THE Grey River Argus. TUESDAY, MARCH 19, 1867.

Grey River Argus, Volume III, Issue 184, 19 March 1867, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus. TUESDAY, MARCH 19, 1867.

It ought to . arouse a geueral feeling of shame amongst the miners of; the Grey district that the indifference '-and neglect with which they hayetreated the claims of the -Hospital should : againfoi-m- the .subject of public; comment. It should the 'more cause tj|em to feel and apprei cia.te "the^ijiunfayorfible light in which their corictveit ';•,- when they" look,: over the Beport the'Conimittee and see the great amount of -good which tho Institution has confei^'ed upon the rnming community-' ! dimng ? '] the past year. Although ..^the: surgeon's report does not give a classitication of the occupatioris of ' thd patieiits, it lu£ ;,.a . ! notorious fact that '"fully nine-tenthstbf ■ ! tliose who have received the, heneh* tsVcif the Hospital were miners.. , And yet iii the face of that- we haye'the equally notorious fact that the miners:, as a body, are the tanallewt cf, litiilutons to tlie funds • :-"'' : '■■-•' ',■■" '-■'■•. -'i'- ■" ■ . ',(" " ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ >"."-"-'." •■ ■■- "... ."■-■■'■.-/ . ■''■^■f:'j i :,- ■" ..fa '■■ "■ ■'■■■' ■ : ■ --'-'-'^■-■E'-"

of the institution; Various methods < have been tried for the purpose-bf giving j v ] the minei-s an oppioi'tunity of contributing, but in eaqbj-c.atie disappointment lias been the result:' Appeals' have repeatedly been made by the Committee and by the Press, but. to all appearjiucqs they might as well have been adr dressed to the winds for all the effect they have had, H.ow is this l? We cannot hold so lQ^y an estimate pf the charitable iugtipcts pf the mining comT munity as to thiuk'that the TOiners deliberately withold any help to the Hospital, althougli judging from the past one might ■with very fair reason put them down as the most selfish and. ungeiierpus section of the epinm unity, We are more inclined to think that their neglect of the Hospital has arisen from carelessness and forgetfulness, Taking this lenient view of the ca&e we desire now to remind the inmers that the... funds of the Hospital are in a very languishing condition, and thatf it} is absolutely imperative that they should, subscribe largely to save the institution from being closed or vev-y materially reduced in the extent of its operations. The demands for admittance are heavier now than at any former period, and there is a large average of serious and protracted cases. The miuing population must see that to maintain the efficiency of this most necessary public institution occasioiis a. large expenditure,' fand unless -the public donations are much increased it will be impossible for the Committee to keep, up the existing expenses, The, Eeport read'at the annual meeting states that "there is at present very great and "-prjßvalent sickness, and at no period " injthe history of tlie Institution haygr " the i demands been so sevei'e anil " numerous. The energies of all coii- " nected are strained to the utmost, and " unless helped by those outside the " efficacy of their services must be " seriously impaired," Such an' appeal ought not to be made in vain.' No lessthan 298 patients have been attendedtoduring the yeai*, the great proportion of -whom were miners. It surely then is fair to expect the mini ng class to contribute freely—which they have not, as yet, done. Various suggestions have been made, and some of them have been acted upon, in the endeavor to obtain subscriptions.from the diggings, but they have not been successful, nor will any plan be so as long as the miners themselves appear indifferent to the claims < f the iustitutiqn. Mr Fox tells us how hobly v (!):;the; miners pf Maori Gully have responded to the appeal made to them, and we fear this is only a sample of'what >is the case in many other places. No machinery can compel the miners to contribute; but we should hope that a knowledge of the existing circumstances ipf the Hos]>ital, and a sense of their own past shortcomings, will induce them to come forward and redeem their fame* from the stigma which '. their neglect of the obvious duties of charity has cast upon it. There are many visitors from the diggings now iv Greymouth, and we urge them' before they leave to subscribe their ;imite towards the support of an institution, tl.e benefits of which they may at some time be compelled to accept for them-' selves. ..'."" |