H.—3l

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purposes shoujd not be forgotten; nor the work of those very excellent ladies —Mrs. Marchbanks, Mrs. A. Pearce, Miss Pearce, Mrs. Rollestou, Mrs. Duthie, Miss Ewen, and others —who undertook the nursing of the patients. lam glad to acknowledge the work done by the motor service started by Miss Shirtoliffe and Mr. Crawford, who were never deterred by weather or bad roads from carrying out their self-imposed task. In a report like this it is impossible to do justice to the kindness and consideration with which I was met at all times and hours during those strenuous days in June and .Inly last, and which more than compensated me for the hindrance and annoyance to which I was subjected by the captious and sordid few. I have, &c, T. H. A. Valintine, Inspector-General of Hospitals and Chief Health Officer.

THE NURSES REGISTRATION ACT, 1908; THE MIDWIVES ACT, 1908; AND PART 111 OF THE HOSPITALS AND CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS ACT, 1908. Miss Maclean (Assistant Inspector and Deputy Registrai of Midwives and Nurses) reports as follows : — The Nurses Registration Act. 1 have the honour to report as follows : — During the year two examinations were held by the State: 158 candidates sal for examination; 145 were successful in passing, ami their names were placed on the register. Forty-six nurses were registered from overseas. Since the first contingent of fifty nurses left in April, 1915, for active service with the Expeditionary Force, two more contingents of 100 each have been despatched at the request of the War Office for service in Egypt or elsewhere required. Besides these, the two hospital ships have been stalled; other nurses have been sent away on transport duty; the various military hospitals of the Dominion have been staffed; and there are now 320 nurses belonging to the New Zealand Army Nursing Service. The great majority of the nurses sent for service under the War Office have been attached to Imperial hospitals, only about ninety being required for the New Zealand hospitals in Egypt. The nurses did excellent work in Egypt, and the authorities recognized that the training carried out under the system of State registration was the means of qualifying very efficient nurses. In the Imperial hospitals many of the New Zealand sisters were put in positions of responsibility in charge of surgical and medical divisions, working under specialists of world-wide celebrity. The question of sending sisters in transports with the troops was at first decided in the negative, but experience proved that while in some cases they were not required, owing to the good health of the men, in others they were very badly needed. It was therefore decided that they should go on all troopships. Sisters have also been sent back from Egypt in charge of invalided men. and invalided sisters. Besides the nurses enrolled by the Government, a large number have gone to England, paying their own expenses, in order to offer their services. These muses have ; ,11 been accepted by the War Office, the Red Cross, or the French military authorities, and have done very excellent work, some being specially mentioned, in. despatches. A number have also been accepted on the staff of the Walton-on-Thames Hospital for New-Zealanders, whose first Matron, Miss Tombe. was a New Zealand nurse. Four New Zealand nurses have been awarded the Royal Red Cross -Miss Nurse, Miss Cameron, and Miss Tombe, first class; Miss Vida McLean, second class. During the year one sister has died of enteric while on active service, while ten lost their lives in the torpedoing of the transport " Marquette." Difficulties arising regarding the management of some of the training-schools point to the need of more powers of control by the Registrar of Nurses. This has involved amendments being made to the regulations under the Nurses Registration Act. Maori Nurses and Native-health Work There has not been much development in this work during the year. A great amount of work has been done in the northern districts in epidemics of enteric among the Natives, especially by Miss Ferguson of the Bay of Islands district. More nurses are required for the work, there being now only nine nurses, with two giving part service. District Nurses. This branch of health-work has been rather at a standstill on account of the war. There are eighteen nurses now engaged. Plunket, Nurses. This work remains as last year. New branches are not starting on account of difficulty in obtaining funds during the war. There are now twenty-eight nurses engaged.