Page 1 Advertisements Column 5

Gisborne Times, Volume XXV, Issue 1986, 23 January 1907, Page 1

THE PUBLIC HEALTH ACT. AMENDMENT ACT, 190 G. SLIPSHOD LEO ISLATION. Tho South Cnntcrluiiy. Hospital and Ohuritable Aid Hoard have obtained a legal opinion upon the Public Health Act Amendment Act, 1900, in order to ascertain their position in regard to the proposed consumption sanatorium for Canterbury. The opinion, given by Messrs. Perry, Perry and Kinnernoy, is ns follows:—■. ‘‘As instructed, we have considered the provisions of this Act, tlie object of which is to enable District Boards or Hospital Boards to combine in providing and maintaining a sanatorium for porsons suffering from consumption.. The Act is designed to remove tlio defect in the law pointed out in the opinion which wo sent to your Board on 16th October, 1905, but the attempt which has been made to amend the law is in itself so defective as to ho useless. Section 2 of the Amendment Act provides for apportioning, on a population basis, the oxpenses of providing and maintaining tlio'sanatorium amongst the Boards concerned, hut tlio Act makes no provision whatever as to how the money is to ho raised by the Boards to meet the liability so apportioned. As pointed out in ours of the 16th October, 1905, Hospital Boards have no power under the Act of 1885 or its amendments to levy contributions on the local authorities for new buildings or even for additions, alterations, or repairs to existing buildings beyond current repairs. This was deeded bv His Honor, Mr. Justice Willianis, in 1880, in the case—“ The Southland Hospital Contributaries j. The Southland Hospital and Charitable Aid Board” 8 N.Z.L.R., see p. 266. Such being the case, even in respect of Hospitals under the control of the Boards themselves, it is idle to provide, as the Act under notice affects to do, for apportioning liability amongst the several Boards without giving them the necessary power to raise the monoy or providing hi what manner or on what basis it : s to bo raised, as to all of which matters this attempt at amendment of the law makes no provision whatever, "lie Amendment Act provides for the management of the sanatorium by a joint committee not exceeding seven, hut no provision is made as to what body tlio institution or its assets shall bo vested in. Nothing is stated as to how long the committee is to hold office, or if they are not to hold office indefinitely, how or when their successors are to lie appointed. There is no provision for supplying vacancies caused by death or otherwise, or enihling a member to resign, nor are there any of the usual disqualification provisions in the event of a member absenting himself from meetings, becoming bankrupt, etc. There is no provision as to what number of members of the committee shall constitute a quorum, or as to how or by whom meetings are to convened, or for the appointment of a chairman of the committee, or assuming the existence of an implied power to appoint a chairman, providing for how long he shall hold office or what shall constitute disqualification. There is no provision as to how contracts are to be entered into or enforced by the committee in respect of the appointment of officers and otherwise. The committee is not incorporated and there is no provision as to how it is to enforce its rights or how the rigi.iS of others are to he enforced against it, and there is no provision for supplying even minor omissions by regulations made by Order-in-Council or otherwise. The Act is in fact so imperfect and unworkable as to be useless for the purpose for which it was intended”

Members of the Board expressed the utmost surprise that those resnonsible for this legislation should have made such a hopeless bungle of it, and it was decided to forward the legal opinion to the North Canterbury Hospital Board for their perused, it "being agreed that nothing could be done until the defective legislation was remedied.

At the Australasia Science Congress in Adelaide the other day Professor David lectured on the causes and effects of earthquakes, and the San Francisco disaster in particular. The lecturer re, marked that Drs Flett and Tempest Anderson lmd definitely settled that the cause of the remarkable destruction of the town of St Pierre in Martinique was duo not so much to masses of lava dust which fell on it as to the terrific power of compressed air displayed by the great explosion of Mont Peloc, Professor Milne, the greatest living authority on earthquakes, after a lifelong study, had recorded the interesting fact that the biggest and most destructive earthquake waves moved at a speed which was absolutely uniform from the source of dis« turbance or epifocus of the earthquake outwards to aress situated equntorinlly to the epifocus, and eventually reached a point of the earth exactly antipodal to the epifocus. The speed of such vibrations was two miles a second, irrespective of whether they travelled avey sea or land, and irrespective of whether the land was soft as sand or hard as grauite-

Tccliuieal education will havo to be cleared of some of its garbage if it is to retain'its prestige (sa.is tbe Taranaki Daily Nows). Agricultural classes, or “ nature studios,” arc tbo laughing stock all the way through tbe Wairarapa. Here is an instance of bow it is done, A schoolmaster recently received a parcel of shrubs for planting ip the schoolgrounds, and the placing of the roots in the earth was presumed to bo part of tho “ studies.” But then those dreadful little shrubs 'were really wrapped in sacking, and tho sacking from the contact with the earth was not clean And the schoolmaster liked clean hands. He didn’t like soiled fingers. And to have unfastened the sacking would havo meant soiling liis fingers - and sacrificing his hundred a year dignity. What was he to do ? What did lie do, ye gods ? He planted the trees and tacking all in the ho'es. Yet the trees grow and the classes go on.

Under the heading “ A plea foi' the old hards ” the Opotiki Herald states : “ On recent days there lias been an influx of new settlers to Opotiki a very desirable incident Qf coorso. Y, r e all like to s e progress, though some of us like to have cur own particular notions of what progress really is. However,; new settlers have come and wo wish them as much bliss as they can possibly extract from their individual circumstances in their earthly career. There is ono element in connection with this immigration question wliicli semis to eall for a little;"attention, and that is ilia attempt made by seine of the new order to belittle the old settlers of this district and to relegate them, so to speak, to oblivion. The now “cried” which is so conspicuous, is essentially one of the agitator order, and while it has apparently caught on wi ll unreasoning people, theie are some, at least, who are inclined to view it with more than suspicion.”

An extraordinary oocurrenoo. by : which Mr Barber, of AVaikanae (Ho- | rowhenua County), suffered a severe loss of stock, happened a few days ago. Oil going round his farm Mr Barber discovered no less than six cows lying dead, and very soon after several other animals succumbed, until at last no less than 18 fine beasts lay dead from no apparent cause. Mr Barber secured the services of an expert veterinary surgeon, who, on careful examination, discovered that the animals had died from the effects of swallowing white lead. It was then discovered that a quantity of white lead had been left in such a position that the animals could reach it, and this had caused the mischief. DIGEST WHAT YOU EAT. The reason Why any wholesome food is not properly digested is because the stomach lacks some important element of digestion. Some stomachs lack peptone, others are deficient in gastric ,juice or hydrochloric acid. The one thing necessary in any case of poor digestion, is to supply those digestive elements which the stomach lacks, and nothing does this so thoroughly and safely as Dr. Sheldon’s Digestive Tabules.. They digest tvliat you eat, thus giving the stomach a rest and assistance until it is restored to its normal action and vigor. Eor sale by A. AY. J. Mann, Agent, Chemist. THE PERIL OF OUR TIME. In Lung Disease. Dr. Sheldon’s Now Discovery for Coughs, Colds, and Consumption' cures lung trouble. Small dose. Pleasant to take. Every bottle guaranteed. For sale by A. AY. J T Maun, Agent, Chemist.