THE BOROUGH HOSPITAL.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 46, 31 May 1879, Page 2

THE BOROUGH HOSPITAL.

It will be seen from the report of th*» last meeting of the Borough QouncH, which appeared m our last is»ue, that a Treasurer for the Hospital Fund was appointed. 3ueh being the oase, we wish briefly to point outhowthot fnnd may be greatly a^pmentecf. The building known as the'old Government Barraclcs, was, as many of our readers are aware, on the application of the Borough Council, handed over by the Government to that body some tiin'c ago, for hospital purposes:. f The buildirog ..stands on a reserve of thVee acres, having a frontage to the main street of fiVe chains, and one' to Terrace street $ SIS ?ifF 8 t % ?9 s Afe °ft c 9?

beat fpr business purposes atTerrace ErjtJ. There is a large and rapidlyincreasing population at this end of the town, and business sites having a frontage J»the main street are m great demand, Now, taking it for granted that a hospital of some kind is an absolute necessity m the Borough, no one, we think, will dony that the present building and its position are alike most unsuitable for the purposes of such an institution. Externally the building is nothing more or Less than an umitigated eyesore ; while its internal appearance is still more uninviting. Its position is most objectionable. Being close upon the main Utreet, the tramp of every passer-by would be heard with distinctness by the sick inmates, to say nothnig of the street| traffic, the noise and vibration caused by "the almost constantly passing trains on the railway which run within a few feet of it. We would then urge upon the Council the desirability of their applying to the Government for power to lease a pbrtion o»f the Reserve ; and, this being obtained, that they should, remove the building two or three chains back, or,' which would be far better, sell it, and erect ! a new cottage hospital. This would be .amply sufficient for our re- ■ quirements, we trust, for years to come. I This valuabje property whioh has so long'lainuseless and unpro.d^ctiv v e r could then be'cuVujTinto .small sections, say half a chain frontage s by a chain m depth which, with : leases sufficiently long to induce building thereon, would, we are' assured be, eagerly snapped up, and yield a revenue of some £70 of £80 a year. Fifteen of such sectipus would take up three quarters of au acre, leaving, after making due allowance for the encroachment of the. gravel pit on the Reserve, upwards of two acres for a cottage hospital, which could then be placed remote from street .and railway. By, the time a full-fledged institution was required, the leases would have fallen m, the Reserve restored to its original dimensions, and a nice tidy little sum accumulated to the credit of th^ Hospital Fund.