Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878] Being the extended title of the Wairarapa Daily, with which it is identical. FRIDAY, MAY 27, 1892. QUACK DOCTORS.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XIII, Issue 4123, 27 May 1892, Page 2

Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878] Being the extended title of the Wairarapa Daily, with which it is identical. FRIDAY, MAY 27, 1892. QUACK DOCTORS.

The ease with which the public can lie gulled by quack ductors was circumstantially illusirated at the trial of ti father, and in tlio evidence of his son, respectively, Sam Hood and Thomas John flood, ut Sydney recently, The trial was known as the " Oath cer Case." The patient was a Mrs Cohen, who was treated for cancer by Sum Hood, who pretended that he had discovered a lotion which was a certain cure if taken at the right time. Mrs Cohen died. Hood refused in Court to disclose his" secret," on account of its pecuniary value to himself, and stated that he had been offered £SOC3 for it, The following bit of cross-examination isinteresting:— Mr Coffey, counsel for the prosecution: What is your specific ? Prisoner: I won't give it, Mr Coffey; J must press it. Prisoner: I won't give it,' I refuse to, Mr Coffey: Your Honor, I press for an answer, His Honor to witness: What is your objection ? Prisoner: I have been offered i-5000 for it, If I give it everybody can euro themselves. His Honor; You are aware that a large number of persons die every year in the greatest agony from thii disease of cancer, and you say that your specific will cure it, Prisoner; Yes, His Honor; You are aware also, that acoordiug to the rules of the modical profession discoverieiof this kind have to be made public, and that you are not allowed to keep secrets of this kind ? Prisoner: Yes. . Hiß Honor: And you claim to bo a member of the medical profession?' Prisoner: I practice, but not legally-according to law. After some further effort to get the prisoner to disclose his specific, the examination wascontinued as follows: —Mr Coffey: You have a door plate, What is on it? Prisoner: Sam Hood, M.D,, A,B, What does A.B. stand for? Prisoner: It stands for Bachelor of Arts. When did you learn that A.B, stands for Bachelor of Arts? Prisoner; I : never learnt it; How long hivo you had it on.your door? Prisoner: About 14 years, Are you a Bachelor of Arts? No.' Are you the witness who before the lloyal Commission held some years ago said that' M,D. meant money down ? No. What does M.D. in your belief mean? It means many things, What view do you take of it ? Medical doctor. His Honor: Does it not mean that the person has taken the degree of medical doctor at the University ? Prisoner: Yes; I believe so. Mr Coffey : I suppose you saw that a number of other men practising medicine hajl M.D.t.and yon thought you wouH'like to have the same? Prisoner ; Many do that, What have you got on the lamp over your door! Prisoner: Saip floofl, IJ.D, Have you got'! J)r" w well ? • I.ijon't ro. member. You don't remember what is on the lamp out outside your door? Prisoner: Dr Hood.

The Crown Prosecutor having obtained a microscope, placed it on the table in Iront of the jury box, and asked the accused Sam Hood to examine the slide which contained a portion of the cancer taken from the deceasod woman's face, for microbes. The'accused proceeded to arrange the instrument, First he twisted the diaphragm so as to , exclude any possibility of using the microscope, Then he looked through the tube without " any attempt at focussing; and, in answer to tho jCroyn Prosecutor, declared he could fee 'notlilrig, 1 He adjpjttejj that he did not see'a slide, but he omitted t? place the slide in position, 'TJW

tried to put .the slide.in its plaoc, but he utterly failed. He tried to place it under the stage on the reflector, but was Helped out by his son, who put the slide m position, The elder Hood, after trying on two or three pairs of speotacles, and making many excuses, put a second slide on the refleotor, under the stage. Then ha said he could see some spots on the lower From first to last no slide was ever in position, lighted or focussed, and there could have been no possibility of seeing anything. Prisoner, in answer to His Honor, said he commenced practising in Sydney in November, 1877, and he had had the brass plate on his door, He was not a graduate of any university. He put his name on the door with M.D., A.8., after it, to Bhow people that he lived there and was practising medicine. '

Thomas John Hood, tho son, when put in tho witness box, said he never attended any medical school or hospital. He had never dissected a body nor Been one dissected. He considered he had sufficient medical knowledge to treat patients, In (lie certificate of death produced he signed his name 1 with M.D. afterwards. He did not consider in signing M.D. that he was writing a lie. Mrs Webb's testimonial was in his handwriting,' He lived in Cambridge terracß, Newtown road, once. Dr did not live in the same terrace. Sometimes he signed his name "J, Hood," and sometimes "T, J. Hood." He had signed about fonr certificates of death. At the inquest he had no recollect tion of having obtained a testimonial from Mrs Cohen, or having written one and got her signature attached, He could generally detect a , cancer when he saw one. He thought in course of time csncer would be found out to be a parasitic disease. He believed it was a parasitic disease. He had cancer himself in the nose, aud he treated and cured himself. He objected to tell the component pads of the specific. He would revtal the speoiflo if the invention was properly recognised according to its merits, and after a fair test. If he disclosed the specific it would be put under another name and used by somebody else. He knew the component parts of the spocifio, but he wasunwilling to make them known.

_ The elder Hood, who is seventynine years old, and iB described aB a hoary-headed scoundrel, waasmteuced to seven years' ■ penal servitude for manslaughter. The Sentence is perhaps a heavy one for a man of bis aijo, but, surmises the Napier Daily Telegraph, in commenting upon the case, he possibly ' took many lives, and robbed and tortured wholesale.

The fallow deer on the Blue Mountains in the South Island are so numerous that thoy are becoming a nuisance to settlors in the neighborhood, The following advertisement appears on the cover of the 'lllustrated London News' of March 10Now Zealand lamb is now in season. Ask your butcher for it. Wholesale of Nelson Brothers," The Inspector of Factories in Masterton has advised :ertain business people that the females in their employ are workim? an hour a week too much, The matter is to be remedied. The Carterton Fire Brigade netted J;l4 by thoir Birthday demonstration, About £SOO was put through tho totalisator at the Akura races yesterday. Mr M'Gregor, of Chriitohuroh, has been appointed to assist the Rev W. Rowse in the Grey town Wesleyau circuit. It is a large district, extending from the Waingawa River to the Wairarapa Lake, His duties commence in threo weeks.

Mr Burton Boys, oi Masterton, has one of the finest pigeon lofts in the Colony, Some of the birds it contains are of first' class pedigree, Mr Hamilton, a local veterinary sureeun, has informed the Otago Daily Times that typhoid fever is very common among cows around Dunedin.

The local optica arbitration proceedings at Maryborough (Victoria) have resulted in £962!) being awarded as compensation. We notice by the Publice Servico Journal that Mr R. A. Pyke, formerly of the Publ'c Trust Office, Wellington, is now proprietor of the Duml m Thum. Mr Pyke is a son of Mr Vincent Pyke, the well-known ex«M.B.R.,and if wo remembor rightly has an acquaintance with both Masterton and Carterton, having been one of the tennis team which came up from Wellington to play the local ctubi at these townships, Government propose to introduce a Bill next session for the abolition of grand juries.

Mr F. H, Wood makes a further addition to his list of entries for next Thursday's Taratahi stock sale, viz., 3U good ewes (dry) and 200 good lambs. ~ Mr McCardle moved at the meeting of the Wellington Land Board yesterday, " That Government be recommended to amend the regulations for village home., stead settlements, so as to enable one person to select fonr sections instead of one, as at present," The motion was seconded by MrHogg,and agreed to.

A proposal is on foot to form a Far" mem' Club at Raituwa, in the Fo-ty. rrilo Bush. Membership will bs cou« fined to those actually engaged or interested in agricultural,pursuits. The following team has been selected to represent the Colonials in the tug of war at Masterton next week:—W. Day 14si,Malcolm libtlllb, Watson 18st31b, D'Aioy 13st 121b, Gray I2st 81b, W. Weloh 12st 101b, lgeulden 12st 71b, H. Welch, 12st 101b, Horrell, 13st 101b, Crawford .12st 111b. The average weight of the team is .13st 41b, and the total men are to be captained by Mr 0. A. Pownall, and will wear the Masterton Football Olub jerseys. The team is requested to meet at the Club Hotel on Saturday night to make final arrangements for the competition,

Sinco the beginning of the financial year (the Ist of list month) the Wellington Land Board has disposed of 691)4 aores 2 roods' 32 perohos, the cash received being £4116 9s 9d. The principal areas sold during the present month were as follows: 519 acres 3 roods, Wainuioru, James McLaren; 2UB acres, Mikimiki, Jacob Knopki; 250 acres, Puketoi, Joseph Hutt j 248 acres, Mikimiki, Hans Thomson ; 200 acres, Mount Cerberus, MUton Porter. Tho many friends in Masterton of Mr Joseph J. I'reeth will be pleased to hear that he has been granted three months' leave of absence. Mr Freefch's health has been vety indifferent of late, and in his present condition it would be almost impossible for him to fulfil the duties attending the office of Clerk of tho Court tosuoh an important district as Waneanui. Mr anfl Mrs Frceth and family left for fhejr rjesr hop to-flay, Tl|e office of Olerlt of the Court ai Wanganuj will be temporarily filled by Mr A. D, Thompson, . ABsiatTOfc-Clerk of the Court at Wellington. Mr Thompson's place in Wellington will be taken by Mr E. W, Porritt, who has just returned from Kaiapoi, where he has been acting as relieving officer.

The Grattan Riegs Company gave a third and final performance in the Masterton Theatre JRoyal last evening to the best house of the season, The sensational drama, "The Irish. Detective,!' was put on, and ran very smoothly 'through.. out, the audience testifying its apprecia-' ution by its frequent applause. No, less than seven characters were taken by Mr Grattan Riggs, all of wbioh were faithfully represented. The,sating of Messrs liiinan and West and Miss Appleton was again perfect, arid they contributed in no small degree to tj)e success of the performance. - i: l:

A Bill legalising the use of the totalisator in Victoria has been read a firat tlmo in the Legislative Assembly.

_ The Government have definitely dsoided tu run Ur Aricwright, who is .-t present at Home, for the Kangitikei seat.

The first edition of the Horowhenua Times, a new Liberal organ, is shortly to be published at Otaki. ' The talented Grattan Biggs Company will in all probability return to Masterin a few months time. Mr Liohcwark, the horse tamer, gives an exhibition of hi? skill in Mastertori tliis evening ; 'At yesterday's meeting of the Wellington Laud Board Mr Hogg, M.Et.B, asserted that it was an absolute fact that a man named Cooper had hangdhimself for the simple reason that he could not get out of his section because titere wtre no roads. The other mombers of tho Board appeared to think that this assertion required to be taken with a little salt. Mr Hogg, however! persisted in his statement, and said it look place at Fahiatua a short time ago. Ministers have at last received from tho Agent-General a cable message in answer to their enquiries as to General Booth's colonising schemes. Mr Perce»ai says that the General's plans as to the oversea colony have not yet been settled, and the matter lias not progressed beyond the region^enquiiy. He adds that it is probable tlwT before any final decision is come to an officer of the Salvation Army will be sent out to New Zealand to obtain further information.