ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1173, 20 January 1880, Page 2

ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

THE ROOKY ROADS TO OUR HOSPITAL. TO THE EDITOK OF THE OAMARU MAIL. . Sib, —Having had occasion to wend my way, very frequently of late, up the hill known, or rather called, and recognised as a street leading to that most admirable of our public institutions, the Oamaru Hospital; and having had such a strikingly sensational illustration of the good, or evil effects of a drive to our hospital, I cannot refrain from drawing attention to the' present state of: the road leading thereto. Now, I consider myself possessed of a fully average robust constitution; but I have suffered such a fearful shock to my nervous system that, though I had resolved to trouble you with a scrawl upon the subject long since, I was totally incapable of doing so until somewhat re-

covered from the severe shaking received in travelling that lovely street. If there are any strong men in our community who are tired of life I would suggest, aa a respectable mode of shortening life, a drive in a cab or buggy to our hospital, and if ' they-do not succeed in displacing some; jof their vital 'organs, they must be strong indeed. But should anyone of delicate constitution., try the experiment they will stand a good chance —not of drawing up their feet to die, for that were impossible, but of having body, boul, and spirit shaken asunder and cast to the winds. How on earth Dr. Wait manages to preserve his body in good health is a mystery to me ; and it must cost him .something considerable to keep his buggy wheels and springs in good order. Had he not been a man of meek and longsuffering spirit, lie must have rebelled long ere this. Now, sir, I had a friend taken up there some time back, with a fractured thigh, "and to hear a graphic descriptipn from him of the delightful and blesseclWemembrance of that short drive, I feel morally certain, would be quite sufficient to induce any Corporation to have that portion of the road at once levelled on the surface. I think it is agreat pity'seeing that we have such aa ample institution for the relief of suffering fellow beings, and in every way bo ably superintended, that the only road wo have to it should not be. kept in beter repair, - for, once, there, it is certainly a most healthy and pleasant spot, and levelling the surface of the road on the hill would be the means of saving those who are so unfortunate as to have to resort to it a great deal of the most acute pain* The hill when wet is. very soft and pasty, and is constantly traversed by a lot of horned cattle, leaving huge cattle tracks, which, when dry,.'become very difficult and irksome to contend with in driving. But enough. Hoping the attention of the powers that be may be drawn to the matter I shall close my remarks, but should the members of the Hospitel Committee, the Mayor, and members of the Town Council require any practical proof of my statement, I shall leave you, Mr. Editor, to appoint a time, at which I shall be most happy to drive them over the rocky roads to our Hospital.—X am, &c., Old Horsb. Oamaru, January 19, 1880.