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staff, you referred, did you not, to the subject of a female ward as being a subject of your own? — I do not understand your question. 1577. There was a meeting of the staff on the 6th March, 1889, was there not?— Yes; there was a discussion on my address. 1578. You say: "Then I brought forward the necessity for a distinct ward for diseases of women. - That is the only new proposal I laid before the Trustees. I look upon this distinct ward for the treatment of diseases of women as a pet scheme of my own, and it is the only thing I claim to have brought forward in my address that has not received the attention of the staff"?— Yes, that is quite right, and lam glad that you give me an opportunity of referring to it. There has been a good deal of misunderstanding about it. What I have all along contended for is this: That the Trustees were in duty bound to make the general wards of the Hospital fairly healthy. This matter of a separate ward for the diseases of women to some might appear a matter of sentiment, and for that reason I made an effort to collect money from those most interested, and who would most probably sympathize, viz., the women. 1519. That was apparently the first time that you had urged on the Trustees that the wards were unsatisfactory? —Nothing of the kind. I have answered that question twenty times already. 1520. Can you refer me to any earlier official document ?—No, I cannot. 1521. This expression also occurs in your address : " So long as we stick to our facts and agree together upon them, I am certain that we shall succeed in bringing about those reforms that have been so long advocated by members of this staff"?— Yes, that has been the trouble in the past, because we have not stuck together. 1522. Who have not stuck together ?—The medical men. 1523. Do you mean that the medical staff have not been unanimous ?—No; they have not been. Well, I think I should modify that, to some extent. The staff have been pretty unanimous on the whole, but there have been influences outside the medical staff at work. 1524. Mr. Chapman.] Did you not all agree as to your facts ? —No. Unfortunately, some gentlemen do not work very cordially, and do not assist very much in these matters. 1525. Do you mean in seeking for reforms?— Yes. I think the best way to explain is that there are many different elements in the staff. Some are enthusiastic, and have been very willing to assist in every way, while others have been indifferent, and even careless; others, again, are not sure of their position on the staff, and do not care to jeopardise it by falling foul of the Trustees. These are some of the reasons which induced me to deliver that address independently of the staff. I felt certain that I could not depend on receiving from them such strong support as I wanted, and I thought it would carry more weight if delivered by myself, than if it were cut down and modified at a staff meeting. 1526. The Chairman.] Do you mean that the medical staff have not given you a cordial support in urging these reforms ?—lt has not been a unanimously cordial support. 1527. Mr. Chapman,] You sent in your address as emanating from yourself, and not from the staff ?—Yes. 1528. And that address or speech was sent afterwards to the medical staff, who took it up ?— Yes. 1529. You did not find them unanimous as to the facts ?—I think they were pretty unanimous in regard to the facts. 1530. The Chairman.] You are speaking of the report of the 29th May ? —No; lam speaking of my own address. 1531. Mr. Chapman.] And that was referred by the Trustees to the medical staff?— Yes. I had, prior to sending it in to the Trustees, told the staff that I was preparing it, and they allowed me to send it in, and postponed their annual motion in regard to proposed nursing reform. 1532. In addressing your colleagues you say : " At that time you will find in the report that several of the cases which I had already noted were brought before the Trustees of the Hospital, and these cases were used as strong arguments for the necessity of reforms." Did the Trustees meet you fairly then ?—Yes. 1533. Then you go on to say: "What did the Trustees do? They then said to us, 'We admit that reforms are necessary; point out what you consider the most essential and important reform; ' and we did what I now think showed great want of tact—we suggested the operatingroom."—Yes ; I think we did show want of tact. We suggested the operating-theatre as the most important and urgent reform; but I do not know that it was more necessary than some of the other reforms. The public took up the idea of a theatre as a place where we were wont to amuse ourselves. 1534. Then you went on to say : " That may have been, from our point of view, perfectly correct; but it was not from the point of view of the public. The operating-room was a thing that the public take no interest in. They hardly think it is required, and I think that we did wrong in making this our first move. . . . My action, therefore, has been simply and solely an attempt to educate the public, and support the Trustees in carrying out radical and much-needed reforms'.' ? —This reply has just as much force with regard to the present agitation. 1535. You think that any increased expenditure will be met by public opposition? —I am sure that the Trustees will be. Immediately any increased expenditure on their part was proposed a number of letters would appear in the papers, accusing the doctors of having fads, and of leading the Trustees into unnecessary expenditure, and everything would be again stopped. Ido not think that the public had any idea how bad things really were, and unless the Trustees had the public with them it was quite hopeless to expect to carry any reforms. 1536. Do you think that either the Trustees or the staff had any idea how bad things really were ? —I do not think the Trustees knew, and Ido not think that the staff had any clear idea. I do not think that the public will know until after this inquiry. I did not know myself fully until I