DISTRICT HOSPITALS.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 405, 21 December 1876, Page 3

DISTRICT HOSPITALS.

The Statutory Annual meetings for the election of Committees for the management of District Hospitals will this year be of considerable importance. The power given to the County Councils " to erect establish and maintain, or contribute to the cost of the erection establishment or maintenance of, any asylum, hospital, or other charitable institution, maintained in the County or without the limits of the County. . . . ," does not throw the responsibility of the Hospitals already established upon them. The Act merely says that —" The Council may from time to time, on sach terms and conditions as may appear expedient, . . . contribute to the cost of the erection, establishment, or maintenance." To fix " terms and conditions" in the case of contributing to the support of existing Hospitals there must be another body to be dealt with —the elected Committee. It would be a mistake, therefore, to assume that the County Councils are put in possession by the Counties Act of such district Hospitals as happen to be built outside Municipalities. It would be equally a mistake to suppose that district Hospitals within Municipalities are removed from the County Councils care. Both cases stand on exactly the same footing. In bothtjie Council may contribute to the cost of Maintenance whether within the County (as at JNTaseby, Clyde, and Cromwell), or without the limits of the County (as at Oamaru).

The statutory meetings should, therefore, be summoned in the usual way towards the end of January, and new Committees elected for the purposes of ordinary management, and to negotiate with such of the County Councils as may elect to come under the whole Act during the year. In all cases the Government undertake. to contribute for the ensuing year_ ss. in the £. If the Council's of Maniototo, Vincent, and Lake Counties come under the Act it is expected they will contribute the balance of 15s, and leave the management in the hands of Committees locally elected. If they do not so constitute there will be no difficulty in securing such a contribution from the Goldfields revenue in the hands of the Government before the balance is spent on the roads. Good Committees are required this year, as difficulties will have undoubtedly to be- faced. _ One other thing occurs to us to mention here. All subscriptions that can be paid should be in the hands of the Secretary before the end of the month. The Government allows subsidies on amounts received this year at the old rate, £1 for £l, but monies returned as received in 1877 will only receive os. in the £. Every collector who can get his money in this month, will there'ore make sure of los. in the £ to the fund. It is probable that the published returns, on which alone subsidies are granted, will have to be dated in 1876. If so not a day is to be lost by collectors.