THE EL DORADO—LA VEGAS.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2642, 25 September 1882, Page 3

THE EL DORADO—LA VEGAS.

In a recent number of the "Argus" Mr Archibald Forbe3 proffers the annexed in formation to those suffering from rheumatism and nil whose blood may be somewhat dis ordered : But Las Vegas is not wholly given over to pushing business. Here, too, the traveller will find a branch line diverging. Let him accept my advice and take It. He may think scorn of the sdvlce if it chance to ba a windy day in Las Vegas, when he looks out on the blinding clouds of sand that fill air, eyes, clothes, food; but still let him take a second thought and dare the transfer. The little line Is bnt six miles long, with a quick bend out of the yli.iu; he will fiad himself suddenly whirled Into the narrow throat of a wonderfully picturesque glen. A few hundred yards farther, where the glen widens somewhat, he will find standing on the brink of a swif -flowing brook a spacious and beiutifully fitted bathhouse, into whose reservoir are gathered the waters that rise in the adjacent hot springs. He will quit his railway car, cross a pretty rustlo bridge, and enter a oapitil hotel, whence, having secured a bedroom, he will still acting on my advice, rush across another bridge Into the bath.honse, and tumble into one of the great marble baths. As he gets rid of the dust of the journey, as the bracing water permeates to his very marrow, and makes a new and a o'ean ard a hearty man of him, he will not grumble at having taken my advice. Still less wiil he do so, as he sits afttr a good dinner at the window of the hotel, listening to the murmur of the brook at bis feet, and inhaling the pleasant air, redolent with the odour of the pine woods that hans; on the rugged crags of tha enclosing mountains. For one fatigued with the turmoil of the world, worn with that; engrossn g addiction to business which makes many men old before their time, I can imagine no more thoou;;h ro!!e ; and variety thai a e.hort residence at the Las Vepas hot springs can aff.rd. They have already, although not long established on their present footing of ele.aut comfort, a well grounded reputation for the cure of rheumatism and aisorf)era of the blood ; but it is by no means necessary that the visitor should be tpec fically an invalid to onj iy a residence iu the beautiful sanitarium. There are lovely walks and beautiful waterfalls In the glen above the springs, and good shooting also. Wild turkeys are pleniiful, deer are not soaroe ; and the strong man who oares to go up a little way into the mountains with an experienced gnide, can reokon on the fannotion of bagging a bear.

h[THB WELLINGTON HOSPITAL e- [FBBM ASSOCIATION TBLESBAM.] WELLINGTON, September 23. t The City Counoil'e hospital enquiry oomf mittee'e report is published. It exhaustively ? reviews the whole oiroumstanoes and evidence. > After considerable difficulty in arriving at any definite oase, it Bays that the oharges reI solved themselves into the following : —(I) ' That Dr. Gillon'a temper unfitted him to ) oooupy the position of resident surgeon, (2) 1 That his constout absence from the hospital i amounted to reprehensible negleot of duty. The committee do not find that either of tbaae oharges is sustained by the evidence. ■ After reviewing this evidence it adds : —" A careful scrutiny of the evidenoe of the patients, past and present, thowß one unbroken line of testimony to the complete absence of any exhibition of harshness or hastiness on tho part of Dr. Gillon toward them ; and the i officials themselves, who appear to be the only porsons who have spoken upon this subjcot, admit that tho hastiness of temper to whioh they referred was due to Dr. Gallon's anxious desire to give effect to instructions contained in the reorganisation report. It ia also worthy of note that the complaint book, whioh has remained at the door of the hospital for eighteen months, contains only one entry—the oomplaint by the patient Staeo against his discharge by D.- Diver. The oommittee therefore are of opinion that this charge must be pronounced to have fallen to the ground." In regard to the seoond charge the report says —" Mr Hodgson himself was the only person capable of giving direct evidenoe upon the question, and his evidenoe waß very emphatically against the allegation. The committee therefore dismiss this oharge from their minds without further comment. This disposes of the speoifio oharges against Dr. Gillon him. self. Following upon these oame a number of very serious allegations made by Councillor Newman against the whole management of the institution. These statements not only brought tho institution into disrepute locally, but made the name of the Wellington Hospital a reproach in all the large centres of population in the colony, where they were published in the newspapers as statements of fact. It will perhaps assist to put things in their proper light if Oounoillor Newman's position in the matter is o'early explained. It should not be forgotten that ' His own feeling for some time had been that the Hospital had been badly managed.' This expression of opinion oame with singular infelicity from Councillor Newman. On the 15th Deoembor, 1881, Councillors Newman and Diver were appointed permanent members of the Hospital sub-committee. The other members served on the sub-committee by turns acoording to rota, but Councillors Newman and Diver were appointed permanent members in order that the Counoil should at all times be able to avail itself of their expert knowledge and advice in the prevention of abuse or mismanagement of any kind whatsoever. The specially defined ' duties of the sub oommittee are to visit the ; Hospital and attend to internal management. Since the 15th December sixteen meetings of the sub-oommittee have been held. The , attendance of the permanent expert members and of the Mayor has been—Oounoillor Diver ' twelve, the Mayor six, and Oounoillor Newmanfour. Clearly Oounoillor Newman, Having accepted the position of permanent member ■ of the sub-committee, was barred from j playing the part of publio aoouser, or having ! eleoted to take up that position, his allegations, if they fell with any force ' upon the institution, and it is undoubted that they did, ought to fall with tenfold force I upon himself. If he knew that ' for some time past the hospital had been badly ! managed' the confession did not come ' from him with a good graoe, for his attendance '' at four meetings out of .sixteen does not dis- | play an alarming amount of interest in the ' welfare of the institution, and the committee understand it to be Councillor Newman's ' interest in the welfare of the institution whioh prompted him to make the statements. ' The case of the epileptic girl, Clara Valen- • tine, • who was hardly treated, who was I douched with oold water, who was allowed to lie in her wet clothes all night, who was I found, poor helpless thing, under a table in a ; fit, with only a half-witted girl to attend ' o her, and who died only a fortnight or thre [ weeks ago,' oould only justly be oonstrued as a very serious allegation against the hospital officials. All the circumstances detailed in this statement were enquired into." After reviewing the evidence, especially that of Dr. Collins, one of the visiting staff, whose patient MiBB Valentine was, the report says:— "It does not appear to the oommittee that the resident-surgeon could do any more or that more was needed to be done. Finally the principal charge having been proved to be baseless, the remainder vanished into nothingness. The ' hardships endured by patients ' were unknown to the patients themselves until they saw the statement in the newspapers. After careful consideration of all the facte the oommittee have come to the conclusion that the oharges made against the resident surgeon and against tho hospital itself have no foundation in faot. They further wish to express their regret that an institution whioh is in every sense a oredit to the oity should have been brought into disrepute by the circulation of statements whioh, if true, would unquestionably refleot the greatest discredit, not ttr.ly upon the hospital officials, but upon the City Council, whose duty it is to see that the affairs of the institution are eoonomioally and efficiently administered, and that the requirements of the sick poor are not negleoted or forgotten. To sum up the results of the investigation, the oommittee have deoided in tho interests of the institution to suggest the following changes for adoption by the Council. (1) That there should be no permanent members on the Hospital sub-committee, but that all members of the Counoil shall take their turn in the rota in the ordinary manner. (2) Thoro was no evidence bafore the committee as to fees having been paid by poor patients, but in order to avoid all questions in future as to the ability of a patient to pay Hospital maintenance or medical fees, it is reoommended that a new form of admission order be drawn up, whioh shall contain these questions, to be answered by the member of Counoil who gives the order : —' Can the patient pay ordinary hospital maintenance oharges ? Can the patient pay medical fees ?' (3) That the recognised staff of nurses be strengthened by the following appointment:— One additional held nurso (female), eitber for the surgioal or medical ward ; one additional under nurse for No. 1 ward, and one man to attend to the door and the fever ward and incidental services. (4) That all communications from the resident surgeon on matters of importance be first laid before the sub-committee, the town olerk to act only in cases of emorgenoy, and then only after consultation with the Mayor or two councillors (5) That at the expiration of the term of office of tho present honorary staff the term of office be tiro years, instead of five, as at present." __^^____