UNITED FRIENDLY SOCIETIES'

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 382, 6 May 1910, Page 2

UNITED FRIENDLY SOCIETIES'

HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION. ANNUAL MEETING. The annual meeting of the above society was (held in the Druids' Lodgeroom, Inglewood, yesterday afternoon. There were twenty-four delegates present from various lodges. Bro. H. J. Hobbs presided. ANNUAL REPORT. The report was adopted as folfcrws:— Your executive have great pleasure 'in presenting their report and balancesheet for the year ended 31st March, 1010. You will* notice by (the balancesheet that the association have a deft-. cieney of about £OO. ' The sickneesi throughout the district, especially is fhe northern portion of the province, has been exceptionally heavy, and the claims paid ito the New Plymouth Hospital amount to over £3OO. and as our total income is not quite £SOO per annum, you will see at once how ■heavy the sickness has been in that locality. _ During the year four new lodges, with a membership (totalling 120, have thrown in their lot with us. namely, Waitara and Eltham Druids, Waitara Foresters, and Stratford Oddfellows, and the membership of the older ilodges has considerably increased, and altogether our association now totals slightly over 1200 members. We would ask lodges to {consider the advisability of holding an annual gathering in aid of the funds of the association. By doing so we think that the sum of about £SQ per annum could be raised throughout the district, and would be of material assistance 'to [us. Where there is more than one lodge affiliated in one town we might suggest that \the gathering might be run as a joint concern, and might take the form of a ball, social, picnic, or whatever members think would suit the requirements of their -particular district. ; During our term of office we have waited on the various hospital (boards with a view to getting the charges to the association reduced, but as the boards were just going /out of office we were advised bv them to make a fresh application to"the new boards, and we have great hopes that (our application will be considered favorably. The concession we asked for was that the charge to our members be 28s jper week, 'and we feel sure that at this rate we would be able to carry on the good work the association is" doing without in any way increasing our contribution. A few months back your executive met Dr. Valintine in conference, and obtained a concession from him in (admitting our members to the sanatorium at Cambridge at 28s per week, and you are now asked to consider the advisability or otherwise of splacins the sanatorium on our list of 'hospitals. Your executive would draw special attention to Rules 17, 18, and 1!), and ask that all lodge secretaries adhere istrictly to them and so lessen the work of our secretary. Rule 18 has not been kept by one lodge, and has caused the executive a great deal of annoyance and worry, as this rule, if not kept, might lead to abuse. We would point out Rule 19 particularly, and trust that delegates present will do their utmost to see that this rule is kept in future by the respective lodges. The best thanks of the -association are due to the Inglewood Druids and Stratford Foresters for the free use (of their halls for our meetings., and also to the Inglewood Foresters for a rash donation. "Your executive wish to congratulate the association on having such an excellent secretary 'in Mr. Frank Amoore, who has had a very busy year, and, as previously mentioned, a very heavy one. and it lis largely due to ins ability and hard work that the association is in its present healthy condition, for if delegates ivill (convey their minds back to when the association was reconstructed they will' remember it was in a. very had" state, (but, thanks to his business capabilities and his determination to get the association out of its trouble, wo are in a (much better position than we have been, as the balancesheet shows. In conclusion, I, as president, have to thank Bro. Amoore, on behalf of the executive, for his way of conducting- the secretarial business of the association and so making the business of the executive as light as possible. —Yours fraternally, Bro. H. J. Hobbs. President. OFFICERS. Officers were (elected as follows: President, Bro. Henderson (Inglewood); vice-president, Bro. Kivell (Stratford); secretary and treasurer,, Bro. Anionre (Eltham); executive, Bros. Hobbs (New Plymouth), .Sole (Stratford), Melvill* (Kaponga), and Spurdle (Inglewood). GENERAL. It was decided that the Cambridge sanatorium he placed on the list of hospitals available to members of the association.