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,^   -NURSING  LIBRARY   - 
THE  HOSPITAL  fORjU^^ 

TOROU'. 


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THE 

piiAi 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED  RY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.  1.135. 


SATURDAY,  JANUARY  1,  1910 


XLIV. 


le&itorial. 


THE  ELECTION  AND  NATIONAL  HEALTH. 
Willi  the  beginning  of  the  New  Year  the 
country  is  on  the  eve  of  a  general  election, 
and  soon  the  struggle  will  begin  at  the  polls. 
At  such  a  time  ever}'-  member  of  the  coin- 
muBJty,  enfranchised  and  unenfranchised, 
has  a  duty  to  perform,  a  duty  which  takes 
the  voters  to  the  poll,  the  rest  of  the  nation 
being  restricted  to  using  an  undelined 
"  influence,"  a  limitation  which  places  it  at 
a  very  unfair  disadvantage. 

The  trained  nurses  of  the  country,  unfor- 
tunately, belong  to  the  latter  class ;  it 
behoves  them,  therefore,  to  see  how  best  they 
can  use  their  influence  so  that  the  members 
returned  to  Parliament  may  be  those  who 
realise  the  importance  of  supporting  legisla- 
tion for  the  benefit  of  the  national  health. 

Most  especiallj'  they  are  concerned  in 
legislation  in  regard  to  the  organisation  of 
nursing.  It  is  not  in  the  public  interest,  and 
it  is  prejudicial  to  the  public  health  and 
safety,  that  there  should  be  no  law  on  tlie 
statute  Ijook  controlling  a  body  of  workcKS 
so  essential  to  the  community  as  the  trained 
nurses  of  this  country,  estimated  as  number- 
ing at  least  50,000  workers. 

The  medical  practitioner,  the  chemist,  the 
midwife,  all  have  to  show  that  they  have 
attained  a  definite  standard  of  professional 
knowledge  before  they  can  lay  claim  to 
these  respective  titles.  Biit  while  this  is 
enjoined  on  tlie  doctor  wlio  directs  the 
treatment  of  the  patient,  and  tlie  chemist 
who  compyunds  the  medicine  which  he  pre- 
scribes, there  is  no  such  obligation  on  the 
nurse  who  carries  out  such  treatment  and 
administers  tlie  medicine  ordered  ;  who  is  in 
sole  charge  of  the  patient  between  the  visits 
of  the  medical  attendant,  and  on  whose  skill 
and  devotion,  or  lack  of  them,  the  balance  of 
life  and  death  often  turns.     In  the  case  of 


the  niu-se,  the  public  admit  freely  to  their 
houses,  in  the  most  confidential  relations, 
women  whose  claim  to  the  title  of  trained 
nurse  will  not  bear  investigation,  and  whose 
probity  not  unfrequently.  rests  on  a  basis  as 
flimsy.     They   further   pay  this   unskilled 
person  the  fees  asked  by  a  skilled  worker. 
We  hope  that  in  every  constituency  trained 
nurses  will  make  a  point  of  bringing  before 
the  candidates  for  election,  both  jjersonally 
and  through  any  other  channels  which  may 
be    open     to     them — husbands,    brothers, 
friends  and  patients — the  need  for  legislation 
by  which  nursing  education  may  be  sys- 
tematised,  and  powers  be  granted  to  the 
nursing  profession  to  differentiate  between 
those   who  have  and  have  not  attained  a 
definite  standard  of  proficiency,  and  to  exer- 
cise the  same  discipline  within  its  ranks  as 
has   been   found    nece&sary   for    the   good 
government  and  honour  of  other  professions. 
We  hope  that  no  member  who  is  returned 
to  Parliament  will  be  able  to  say  tliat  the 
important  ([uestion  of  the  Registration  of 
Nurses  has  not  been  brought  to  his  notice 
during  the  coming  elections.     In  every  con- 
stituency it  should  be  prominently  brought 
forward   by   nurses,  medical   practitioners, 
and  members  of  the  public,  for  it  vitally 
concerns  them  all. 

In  years  to  come,  when  they  have  the 
power  of  the  vote,  nurses  who  come  so  inti- 
mately into  contact  with  the  evils  of  over- 
crowding, and  of  defective  sanitation,  whose 
ciuty  it  is,  under  medical  olhcers,  to  look 
after  the  liealtli  and  cleanliness  of  school 
children,  and  many  other  matters  affecting 
the  public  health,  will  no  doubt  use  it  as  an 
effective  lever  in  obtaining  the  reform  of 
unhygienic  conditions  whicli  their  work  dis- 
closes to  them.  They  should  thus  become 
a  powerful  factor  in  drawing  attention  to 
conditions  wliich  need  remedying,  and  so  in 
raising  the  standard  of  tiie  national  health. 


(Tbe  British  Journal  or  mursma. 


[Jan.  1,  1910 


nDe&ical  riDatters. 


DIRTY  HANOS. 
The  Dangers  of  Colox  Bacilli. 

Dr.  K.  G.  Eecles,  of  Brooklyn,  New  York, 
writiug  in  The  Dietetic  and  Hrjgienic  Gazette 
on  the  subject  of  Dirty  Hands,  says  that  there 
is  no  act  of  Hfe  so  dangerous  to  others  as  care- 
lessness concerning  the  condition  of  our  hands. 
There  is  nothing  that  so  deserves  popular  repro- 
bation as  failure  to  wash  the  hands  when  such 
washing  is  shown  by  scientific  research  to  be  a 
sacred  duty.  We  cannot  call  that  murder 
which  lacks  intent  to  kill,  but  so  near  to 
murder  is  it  that,  with  increased  public  know- 
ledge, the  time  is  sure  to  come  when  dirty- 
handed  people  will  have  to  endure  an  oppro- 
brium that  will  make  them  skulk  in  shame  or 
hide  in  fear.  The  writer  proceeds  to  point  out 
that  what  is  meant  by  dirty  hands  by  the 
average  layman  is  not  the  same  thing  as  that 
referred  to  by  him.  JNlud  and  soil,  dust  and 
ashes,  paint  aiVl  varnish  are,  in  tlie  eyes  of 
science,  clean  dirt.  The  "great  unwashed" 
revel  in  such  dirt,  and,  the  moral  effect  being 
e.xcluded,  no  harm  comes  to  them  from  it. 
But — and  the  crux  of  the  difierence  between 
their  meaning  of  '"  dirty  hands  "  and  ours  lies 
in  this— this  dirt  of  theirs,  by  being  an  index  of 
careless  habits,  becomes  a  visible  index  of  the 
invisible  dirt  that  is  deadly.  People  who  are 
willing  to  tolerate  the  visible  dirt  are  pretty 
sure  to  be  none  too  careful  concerning  the 
dangerous  dirt.     The  two  kinds  get  blended. 

Professor  Sedgwick,  in  his  "  Principles  of 
Sanitary  Science,"'  tells  us  that  the  word 
"  dirt  "~  appears  to  be  derived  from  an  old 
Saxon  word  '  drit.'  meaning  excrement,"  and 
that  "  dirt  is  not  dangerous  because  it  is  of  the 
earth  earthy,  but  because  it  is  too  often  'drit,' 
or  excrement."  It  is  the  vmseen  "  drit  "  that 
plays  the  mischief  with  human  life,  because  it 
is  alive  and  can  multiply  indefinitely..  Once 
this  is  realised,  evei-y  one  must  admit  the 
obligation  of  thoroughly  washing  the  hands 
after  the  daily  evacuations. 

The  chief  unintentional  crime  of  our  age — if 
we  can  call  that  which  is  unconscious  and  un- 
intentional a  crime — is  dirty  hands.  Its 
crirainahty  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  destroys 
human  life — not  occasionally,  but  daily  and 
hourly  in  every  land  upon  our  globe. 

Nature  makes  no  allowance  for  ignorance, 
and  her  sentences  are  never  mitigated  in  the 
slightest  whether  offences  are  committed  by 
prince  or  peasant,  university  professor  or  street 
arab.  If  we  eat  polluted  bread  or  drink  pol- 
luted milk  neither  piety  nor  disbelief  in  the 
danger  from  such  eating  is  going  to  save  us 
from  the   inevitable   sickness  and    death    that 


tulluw  sucli  eunduct.  ...  If  our  hands 
are  dirty  with  uunameable  dirt,  though 
we  may  not  personally  be  "  disease  caniers," 
yet  we  should  be  deemed  responsible  because 
of  the  risk  we  bring  upon  others.  The  danger 
is  there,  and  it  is  evei"y  man's  duty  to  do  all 
in  his  power  to  minimise  it.  He  who,  by  his 
unspeakably  disgusting  habits,  kills  his  Nearest 
friends,  sends  into  eternity  his  own  children, 
delivers  to  the  reaper.  Death,  his  own 
wife,  sister,  or  parent,  should  be 
taught — forcibly,  if  need  be — w^heu  and 
how  to  wash  his  hands,  in  order 
to  put  an  end  to  such  wnolly  avoidable 
tragedies.  But  it  is  not  men  only  that  are  thus 
guilty.  Statistics  have  shown  that  women 
slay  in  this  way  more  victims  than  men.  Of 
the"  destruction  wrought  by  unclean  hands  in 
the  one  disease— typlioid  fever — the  Editor  of 
the  Journal  of  the  American  Medical  Associa- 
tion tells  us  that  "  All  the  striking  cases  in  the 
hterature  are  cooks  or  cooks'  helpers,  bakers, 
dairy  workers,  etc.,  occupations  involving  the 
constant  handling  of  substances  which  are  ex- 
cellent culture  media  for  the  typhoid  bacillus." 
That  this  single  disease  is  not  the  only  one 
carried  on  dirty  hands  can  be  seen  from  the 
following  words  of  Dr.  Simon  Flexuor :  ■ " '  Per- 
haps the  chief  single  compelling  phenomena 
is  that  of  the  microbe  can-ier. 
The  evil  wrought  by  the  microbe  carrier  does 
not  end  with  the  typhoid  bacillus.  He  has  been 
found  to  disseminate  typhoid  fever,  dysentery, 
plague,  cholera,  iutluenza,  spinal  meningitis 
and  in  certain  localities  a  host  of  protozoan 
disease. 

That  the  average  citizen  does  actually  fail  to 
wash  his  hands  when  he  should  do  so  without 
fail  is  matter  of  proof.  Bacteriologists  have 
experimentally  shown  that  after  a  dozen  or  so 
of  average  men  and  women  have  dipped  their 
hands  successively  into  a  small  font  of  water 
.  that  the  water  swarms  with  colon  bacilli.  We 
soon  begin  to  i-ealise  how  almost  impossible  it 
is  for  us  to  keep  our  own  hands  clean  as  long 
as  civility  and  custom  makes  it  obhgatory  for 
us  to  shake  hands  with  people  whose  habits  of 
Hfe  are  unknown  to  us.  Hands  that  are  able 
to  pollute  water  by  a  mere  touch  cannot  pos- 
sibly be  shaken  without  leaving  behind 
evidences  of  uimameable  dirt.  These  are  the 
kind  of  hands  that  handle  our  bread,  our  meat, 
our  fruit,  our  vegetables,  our  pasti-y;  and  our 
money.  No  one  can  picture  to  himself  the 
'naked  truth  of  the  situation  without  shrinking 
from  it  in  intense  disgust. 

The  important  thing  in  this  connection  is  the 
formation  of  habit.  Once  the  habit  of  purify- 
ing the  hands  at  the  proper  time  is  formed,  all 
will  recoil  from  failure  to  attend  to  so  important 
a  dutv. 


■Jan.  1,  191(. 


iibc  SrttisD  3ournaI  ot  •Rursiiuj. 


Zhe  "nurse  m  iprivatc  practice. 


THE  NURSES  POINT  OF  VIEW. 
IlV  Mlij  Beatkke  Kem. 

I  propose  to  treat  the  Nurse's  poiut  of  view 
of  Private  Practice  in  three  sub-divisions, 
uanaely  :  — 

(a)  The  Professional. 

(b)  The  Economic. 

(c)  The  Ethical. 
First,  then,  tiie  Professional. 

To  state  that  a  private  nurse  must  of  neces- 
sity he  a  trained  nurse,  is  an  axiom,  and  a 
commonplace.  But  what  is  a  trained  nurse? 
In  the  present  disorganised  state  of  our  Pro- 
fession, it  would  not  be  easy  to  give  a  precise 
definition.  In  the'absence  of  a  universal  stan- 
dard, she  is  assumed  to  be,  by  expert  judgment, 
;i  woman  who  has  had  three  years'  training  in 
a  general  hospital  of  a  recognised  size ;  and  that 
training  consists  usually  of  the  theory  and  prac- 
tce  of  medical  and  surgical  work  alone.  The 
j.eneral  training  does  not  include  fever  work, 
nor  does  it  include  mental  work,  nor  in  the 
majority  of  cases,  maternitj"  or  midwifery  ex- 
jierience.  If  the  nurse  wishes  to  make  a  study 
of  these  branches,  she  must  specialise,  and  go 
to  separate  institutions  to  acquire  them.  I 
wish  to  emphasise  the  importance  of  efficient 
training  before  I  proceed  to  the  subject  proper. 
l•^-(.•ause  I  believe  that  "the  private  nurse  has 
ut-ed  of  it,  even  more  than  her  hospital  sister. 
I  should  like  to  see  facilities  afforded  for  every 
nurse  being  trained  iu  every  branch  of  nursing 
in  onp  and  the  same  hospital,  which  is  the  case. 
1  believe,  iu  the  Wilhelmina  Hospital  in  Am- 
-tt-rdam  ;  the  nurse  has  to  be  trained  in  all  these 
i. ranches  before  she  is  entitled  to  be  called  a 
trained  nurse. 

In  consideration  of  these  facts,  one  might 
well  differentiate  between  a  trained  nurse  and  a 
iully  trained  nurse.  We  talk  unthinkingly  of 
I  .>th,  and  we  mean  the  same  thing:  but  when 
ui'  have  one  standard  instead  of  many, 
"  trained  nurse  '"  and  "  fully  trained  mu-se  " 
will  be  synonymous  terms. 

Granted  that  the  nurse  has  passed  through 
tlie  three  years'  with  the  utmost  satisfaction  to 
li.r  Matron,  and  may  be  to  herself  and  to  her 
\iKjation  et*r  so  true,  yet,  as  she  stands  on  the 
threshold  of  private  nursing,  she  is  still  raw 
material',  and  why? — because  she  has  never 
had  any  experience  in  the  most  important  of 
all  branches,  and  which  she  is  now  about  to 
take  up  :  in  a  word,  she  has  never  learnt  private 
nursing. 

In   my  opinion,   there   should  be  a   special 

*  Read  at  the  International  Concress  of  Nurses, 
London.  July,  1909. 


eurriuuluni  for  private  uur.ses,  a  liigher  and 
more  advanced  education,  one  that  should 
embrace  the  ethical  and  psychological  side  of 
nursing.  This,  however,  sliould  not  come  afi 
the  end.  as  a  kind  of  appenuix,  so  to  speak,  of 
the  practical  training,  but  should  be  wocen 
together,  as  the  warp  and  woof  of  the  material. 
A  clear  line  of  demarcation  must  be  drawn 
between  the  hospital  nurse  and  the  private 
nurse,  because  a  totally  different  set  of  cir- 
cumstances surround  their  Uves  and  work.  The 
hospital  nurse  is  part  of  the  machinery  of  the 
hospital — I  make  use  of  this  expression  ad- 
visedly— she  helps  to  maintain  the  rhythmical 
measure  oi  the  great  macJiine;  she  is,  as  it 
were,  one  of  the  rivets  that  hold  it  together; 
she  has  just  her  own  special  work  to  do,  and 
no  other,  and  that  always  under  supervision. 
The  private  nurse  has  often  the  work  of  sev  ral 
people  to  do,  and  is  never  under  supervision. 

Xo  officiahsm  of  any  sort  surrounds  her  life. 
UnUke  the  hospital  nurse,  there  are  no  inter- 
mediaries between  her  and  the  sick;  she  is  at 
once  the  nurse,  the  Sister,  and  the  watchful 
observer  in  the  absence  of  the  physician  and 
surgeon.  It  goes  without  saying,  therefore. 
that  her  responsibility  is  great.  The  doctor  in 
attendance  spends  a  few  minutes  each  day 
with  the  patient;  he  may  Hve  at  a  distance: 
if  it  is  in  the  countrj-  he  may  live  some  miles 
away,  perhaps  beyond  the  reach  of  the  tele- 
phone. -    ^ 

In  his  absence,  in  the  case  of  urgency  or 
emergency,  the  nurse,  who  in  hospital  would 
merely  be  required  to  appeal  to  those  in  higher 
office.'  would  have  to  take  the  initiative  and 
act  upon  the  promptings  of  her  own  common- 
sense  and  i-esourcefulness,  for  there  would  be 
no  one  else.  Of  course  emergencies  don't  arise 
every  day,  even  in  the  countn,-,  but  it  is  best 
to  look  upon  the  position  of  the  private  nurse 
in  all  its  aspects.  Many  women  who  would  be 
acquisitions  in  a  hospital,  would  not  make  good 
private  nurses;  tho.se  who  shirk  responsibility 
and  like  to  lean  comfortably  upon  others,  had 
better  not  join  their  ranks. 

Assuming,  as  we  must,  that  no  woman  is 
trained  for  private  nursing,  there  are  certain 
•  quaUties  and  characteristics  that  she  must 
possess,  if  she  hopes  to  be  sueoessful.  Accord- 
ing to  Professor  Huxley,  "  the  intellect  of  a 
person  of  education  should  be  a  clear  cold 
engine,  with  all  its  parts  of  equal  strength  and 
in  smooth  working  order." 

That  is  exactly  what  is  needed  in  a  private 
nurse,  in  the  professional  aspect  of  her  life — 
calmness,  srlf-reliancr,  re.<<onrcefulness. 

There  are  certain  traps  which  be.set  the  path 
of  the  private  nurse,  of  which  she  would  d" 
well  to  beware.     I  should  like  to  mention  . 


(Tbe  36rtti5i)  3oiu'nal  of  IHursmg. 


[Jan.  1,  1910 


iu  particular.  It  is  easier  to  be  disloyal  to  the 
doctor  iu  private  uui-sing  than  it  is  iu  hospital. 
The  patieut  aud  the  patient's  frieuds  are  so  apt 
\o  ask  you  what  you  think  of  the  doctor's  treat- 
ment; do  you  approve  of  such  treatment,  is 
it  what  you  have  usually  seen,  etc.  Now,  I 
think  very  few  nurses  are  intentionally  tlisloyal, 
but  they  are  sometimes  taken  unawares  by  the 
subtlety  with  which  these  questions  are  some- 
times put.  The  wrong  done  by  a  nurse  who 
falls  into  this  error  may  be  irreparable.  Dis- 
loyalty to  the  doctor  is  a  wrong  done  to  him 
and  to  the  patieut  by  shaking  his  confidence, 
besides  being  a  dishonour  to  cue's  profession. 
Doctors  not  only  have  a  right  to,  but  deserve, 
the  loyalty  of  the  nurse,  because  they  them- 
selves with  few  exceptions  co-operat-e  loyalh' 
with  her,  and  show  a  generous  spirit  of  free- 
masom-y  towards  her.  A  certain  amount.. of 
in-ofessioualism  in  a  hospital  is  necessary,  iu 
order  to  maintain  discipline,  but  that  does  not 
belong  to  the  gentler  art  of  private  uursiug, 
wliere  it  would  be  Aggressive.  There  profes- 
sionalism should  be  jelt  rather  than  seen ;  the 
nurse  should  be  persuasive,  not  assertive. 
She  goes  to  the  house  as  a  necessary  invader, 
not  as  an  invited  guest.  To  some  people,  the 
thought  of  having  a  trained  nurse  iu  the  house 
is  by  no  means  a  welcome  one ;  they  fear  she 
may  "  vipset  the  house  "  and  give  trouble  to 
the  servants.  If  a  nurse  does  this,  it  is  quite 
inexcusable;  she  goes  to  save  trouble,  not  to 
give  it ;   she  goes  as  the  servant  of  the  sick. 

Before  1  j^roceed  to  the  next  subdivision  of 
this  subject,  I  should  like  to  say  a  word  upon 
the  very  important  matter  of  the  nurse's  sleep. 
I  do  not  consiaer  that  sufficient  attention  is 
given  to  this  matter;  it  does  not  only  concern 
the  nurse,  but  very  largely  the  patient,  aud" 
therefore  comes  within  the  scope  of  this  paper. 
There  are  still  quite  a  number  of  people  who 
appear. to  think  that  training  to  be  a  nurse 
creates  iu  her  a  kind  of  metamorpho.sis,  which 
enables  her  co  do  without  sleep,  or,  at  least, 
with  much  less  than  other  people.  The  public 
must  be  made  to  understand  that  if  the  nurse 
is  to  do  her  duty  conscientiously  to  her  patient, 
she  must  also  do  her  duty  to  herself  in  the 
matter  of  sleep.  I  contend  that  a  worn-ovit, 
nurse  cannot  d«  her  duty  to  her  patient.  It  is 
often  the  nurse's  fault;  she  is  too  ready  to 
attempt  to  forego  sleep,  and  that  has  led  people 
to  suppose  that  she  is  a  superhuman  creature. 
I  am  speaking  of  when  there  is  only  one  nurse. 
Tf  the  patieut  is  so  ill  that  he  requires  attention 
night  and  day,  there  should  be  a  second  nurse 
without  any  question.  If  the  patient  is 
sufficiently  well  to  be  able  to  do  with  only  one 
lun-se,  he — or  she — is  also  sufficiently  well  to 
allow  her  proper  time  for  sleep.     I  believe  the 


general  public  are  in  total  ignorance  of  the 
serious  results  accruing  from  this  existing  evil. 
In  desperation  nurses  resort  to  drugs — they 
must  get  sleep  somehow;  some  acquire  the 
morphia  habit,  and  even  suicide  is  not 
unknown.  '      - 

This  difficulty  belongs  almost  entirely  to  the 
private  nurse;  iu  hospitals  proper  provision  is 
made  for  sufficient  sleep  for  day  and  night 
nurses. 

Some  doctors  give  attention  to  this  matter  on 
behalf  of  the  nurse,  otuers  are  quite  indifferent. 
I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  the  difficulty 
of  obtaining  sufficient  sleep — not  always,  but 
iu  very  many  eases — is  the  greatest  trial  of  the 
private  nurse. 

{To  he  concluded.) 


3nternationaI  IRcws. 

Trom  J.apax. 

^liss  L.  L.  Dock  lias  received  a  characteris- 
tically channing  letter  from  the  INIarquis  Mat- 
sukata,  the  President  of  the  Bed  Cross  Society 
of  .Japan,  in  reply  to  the  invitation  of  the 
Council  to  Miss  Take  Hagiwara  to  act  as  Hon. 
Vice-President  for  -Japan,  until  such  time  as 
Japanese  Nurses  have  a  national  organisation. 

The  Marquis  ^latsukata  writes:  "We  can 
just  imagine  how  successfully  your  conference 
was  carried  out,  thereby,  we  have  no  doubt, 
resulting  in  affiliating  more  nurses  of  the 
world  for  the  humane  work.  .  .  With  refer- 
ence to  your  inquiry  about  the  nomination  of 
an  Honorary  Vice-President  for  Japan,  allowme 
to  state  that  not  only  have  we  no  objection, 
but  also  Miss  Take  Hagiwara  will  be  de- 
lighted to  accept  your  invitation." 


From  Switzerlaxd. 
.   The  newly  -organised  Swiss  Nurses'  Associa- 
tion has  the  following  objects:  — 

1.  To  unite  in  one  Association  all  male  aud 
female  nurses. 

2.  To  raise  the  professional  standards  of 
nursing. 

3.  To  promote  the  interests  of  nurses  by  the 
following  means :  — 

(a)  The  arrangement  of  nursing  homes  on 
a  co-operative  basis,  with  a  view  to  improv- 
ing the  economic  position  of  nursgs. 

{h)  To  institute  a  unifomi  curriculum  of 
iB'struction. 

(c)  To  institute  a  central  examination. 

id)  To  exclude  morally  inferior  persons 
from  the  profession. 

We  congratulate  the  Swiss  nurses  on  their 
comprehensive  programme.  We  coidd  do  with 
it  all  in  England. 


Jau.  J,  lOlu 


Zi)e  Britisb  3oumai  or  iHurstng. 


practical  IPointJ. 


ill .      .\  u  r  111  a  11      I'urritt. 

The  Use  of  Pure     .M.R.C.S.,     Consulting      Siii- 

Animal  Wool         geon     to     the     Huddersfield 

In  Medical  and       Infirmary,  contributes  to  tlu' 

Surgical -Work.       British    Midual    Juumal    an 

interesting  article  on  tlic   use 

<if  ijiu>-  .Miiiiial  wool  in  medical  and  surgical  work, 

to  which   his  attention  was  first  drawn   by  a   wool 

stapler,  tor  whose  child   he  had  ordered  a  Ganigee 

jacket. 

Mr.  Porritt  points  out  that  cotton  wool  is  not 
wool,  hut  cotton,  a  purely  vegetable  fibre.  The 
value  of  woollen  garments  in  ofjld  weather  is  well 
recognised,  and  in  hot  climates  flannel  is  more 
comfortablt-  than  cotton,  and  is  also  used  by 
athletH<,  who  would  find  themselves  encased  in  wet, 
cold,  clinging  garments  while  exerting  themselves, 
and  ciiiliy  when  resting  after  exercise,  if  clotheil 
in  cottoi;.  To  put  on  a  (Jamgee  jacket  is  to  imitate 
a  cricketer  vr  athlete  who  clothes  himself  in  cotton. 
The  application  and  removal  of  the  Gamgee  jacket 
are  the  work  of  the  nurse,  and  the  ordering  of  it 
is  all  that  comes  within  the  province  of  the  doctor. 
If  the  doctor  could  see  a  (iamgee  jacket  reniove<l 
from  ti'.i  chest  of  a  perspiring  patient,  who  is  per- 
haps taking  diaphoretic  medicine,  he  would  find 
the  inside  of  the  jacket  a  wet.  sopjiing  mess.  The 
cotton  'Jamgee  prevents  the  transudation  of 
vaporous  perspiration,  but  animal  wool  allows  the 
more  re;i<ly  e.scape  of  vaixirous  pers|iiratioii,  whilst 
the  conitort  of  the  patient  is  infinitely  greater. 

Mr.  I'orrilt  also  recommends  tlie  use  of  this  wool 
for  patient*-  atwut  to  undergo  major  operations,  a.~ 
a  means  of  diminishing  shock.  He  says;  Although 
after  t);t.  'iteration  hot-water  bottles  outside  and 
tot  saliii'^  solution  inside  the  patient  promote  the 
return  of  vitality  and  warmth,  their  use  savours 
of  shutting  the  stable  door  when  the  steed  \\a^ 
gone,  or,  to  be  more  precise,  of  jjiitting  into  a 
body  heat  which  ought  not  to  have  been  allowed  to 
escaiie  from  it.  It  is  mnch  more  difficult  to  get 
warmth  into  a  cold  or  chilled  living  l)ody  tliaii  to 
maiiitaiij  the  heat  already  there  by  means  of  w;iriii 
wrajiN  ami  non-conducting  materials.  We  must 
remember  also  that  in  prolonged  operations  the 
long  anaesthesia  lowers  bodily  temperature,  and 
this  should  spur  us  to  omit  no  precaution,  however 
trivial,  which  will  conserve  the  bodily  heat  of  the 
rautilateij  patient.  Operating  tables  with  hot- 
water  beds,  to  minimise  .shock,  have  been  devised, 
but  I  have  no  experience  of  them,  and  I  make  bold 
to  say  tbatkthe  use  of  animal  wool  goes  far  to  make 
them  unnecessary.  The  usual  practice  is  to 
enveloji  tii'r'  jiatient  in  a  Gamgee  jacket  or  ^iiii. 
but  animal  wool  is  a  lieat  retainer  with  wliivli 
cotton  Gamgee  cannot  comjiare.  and  when  the 
lowering  effects  of  the  anaesthetic  and  the  ojiera- 
tion  ca^s^  cold,  clammy  perspiration  to  exude, 
(iamgne  ^i<-.ne  retains  it.  and  then  become^  sonif- 
thing  of  a   refrigerator. 

In  every  abdominal  or  seriou.s  operation.  Mr. 
Porritt  envt-lops  the  patient  ill  animal  wool.  It 
is  also,  h>-  Silys,  useful  in  other  cases  of  shock,  a* 
in  burn.-   aid  bad  smashes,  where  there  is  defective 


vitality,  as  in  iiniiiature  babio  and  Iii'IjIi-  old.  tolks- 
h  IS  best  applied  warm.  The  warmth  is  grateliiL 
to  the  patient,  and  any  lingering  damp  is  driven 
nut  of  tlie  wool.  A  suit  of  this  wool  is  a  great 
protection  if  worn  for  the  first  few  critical  days 
after  the  operation,  and,  if  kept  clean,  is  ready 
when  sterilised  for  another  case.  It  is  more  ex- 
liensive  than  woolly  cotton,  but  as  it  is  not  neces- 
sary to  use  so  thick  a  layer,  the  difference  is  not  so 
great  as  it  appears.  In  private  work  the  extra 
cost  is  not  worth  a  moment's  thought,  whilst  in 
hospital,  if  made  into  garments  with  Hannel 
foundations,  s(?cured  by  buttons  and  tapes,  the 
material  can  be  used  several  times  at  less  cost  than 
the  more   perishable  Gamgee  tissue. 

The  wool  is  stocked  by  Messrs.  Down  Hros.,  under 
the  name  of     '  Thermo-laine   '   (heat  wool^. 


The  .Yi<r,si.'s"  Journal  of  "tlie 
To  Wash  Flannels.  Vacific  I  oust  gathers  to- 
gether no  end  of  useful  prac- 
tical points.  This  is  good :  -Of  special  value  to 
the  obstetrical  nurse  who  attends  to  the  baby's 
flannels  herself  is  this  receipt  for  washing  wools 
of  all  kinds:  To  1  quart  of  water  add  i  cake  of 
■  Ivory  "  soap  and  1  tablespoonful  of  boras.  Boil 
until  soap  is  dissolved.  Allow  to  c<k)I,  as  this 
process  is  entirely  cold.  Use  enough  of  this  soap 
jelly  to  a  basin  of  water  to  make  a  g<K)d  lather 
and  soak  the  flannels  in  it  for  twelve  hours.  Rinse 
in  cold   water. 


■E.  D.  U:  writes:  While 
To  Save  Pain.  1  was  caring  for  a  patient 
suffering  _  from  thrombosis, 
the  physician  ordered  the  leg  to  be  wrapped  in 
cotton  and  bandaged.  I  found  tlie  jirocess  of  un- 
liaiidaging  and  rebandaging  every  day  for  the  leg 
to  be  examined,  very  tiring  and  painful  to  the 
pat'ent. 

The  wife  suggested  what  1  foiiiul  to  be  an  ex- 
cellent plan.  We  took  a  piece  of  cheese  cloth 
about  five  feet  long  and  eight  or  nine  inches  wide 
and  tacked  the  cotton  evenly  and  securely  on  the 
inner  side. 

Raising  the  leg  we  enveloped  the  foot,  pinning 
the  cheese  cloth  in  place  with  safety  pin,  and  with 
about  three  turns  wound  it  around  the  leg  up  to 
the  hip  to  the  great  comfort  and  ease  of  the 
•  patient,  who  no  longer  dreaded  the  daily  removal 
of  the  bandage. 

This  method  could  be  used  on  patients  suffering 
from  inflammatory  rheumatism  or  phlebitis. 

Delirious,  insane,  and  ner- 
A  Cute  Queue.  vous  |)atients  so  often  pull 
their  hair  undone  after  it  is 
lirnided,  and  if  rather  short  it  hangs  round  their 
faces  to  their  great  annoyance.  I  find  that  by 
taking  a  long  iiiece  of  narrow  ribl«in  or  tape,  doub- 
ling it  and  starting  up  near  the  head,  braiding 
it  down  with  the  liair  like  a  Chinaman  does  his 
f|ueiie.  tving  the  two  ends  around  the  end  of  thf 
braid,  that  it  is  almost  impossible  for  the  patient 
to  pull  it  loose. 


Znc  35rttl0b  3onrnal  of  "ttursma. 


[Jan.  1,  1910 


®iu'  Guinea  IPrise. 

We  have  pleasure  iu  announcing  that  !Miss   H. 
H.    Reeve,    Park   llosijital,    Lewisham,    S.E.,    lias 
won  the  Guinea  Puzzle  Prize  for  December. 
Kkv  to  Puzzles.  . 

-No.   1. — Maisou  Sykes-Josephine  Belt. 

M — hav — sun     S — eve  K    S   Joseph   fin 
belt 

Xo.  2. — Scott's  Emulsion-. 

S  cots   E — mule — S — iron 

Xo.  ;3. — Fonnamint. 

i'onu — ha  m — in  n — T 

Xo.  4. — Griuiwade's."  Perfection  "  Bed  Pan. 

G — rim — wades      Pear — fee — C — tie — on 
bed  (sauce)  pan. 

The  following  competitors  have  also  solved  the 
puzzles  correctly: — iliss  A.  Holding,  Mortlake ; 
H.  li.  Flint,  Birmingham;  M.  Lewis,  Paddington  ; 
M.  Woodward,  Redhill ;  E.  S.  Sills,  Oakham;  M. 
.Stewart,  Glasgow;  A.  Cooke,  Westgate;  N.  Cojie- 
lin,  Beckenham ;  T.  O'Donnell,  Limerick ;  B. 
East,  London;  E.  p.  Charlton,  Ilkley ;  A.  Pettit, 
London;  R.  Conway,  Southport ;  E.  A.  Leeds, 
London;  B.  Sheard,  Chislehurst;  T.  Bevan,  Nor- 
wich; K.  C.  Macleod.  Dundee;  A.  M.  Shoesmith, 
Durham;  j\l.  Modlin,  Brixton;  C.  Macdougall, 
>Stirling;  R.  L.  Wiseman,  London;  N.  A.  Fellows, 
Birmingham;  T.  Lupton,  ^Manchester;  M.  Demp- 
ster, Putney;  E.  Macfarlane,  London;  H.  G. 
Bowers,  Xottingham;  H.  Cobb,  Attleborough  ;  M. 
G.  Allbutt,  Wakefield.  C.  A.  Donolan,  Dublin;  K. 
Mow.  Liverpool ;  F.  M.  Wi-igley.  London  :  T.  Levy, 
Brighton;  F.  Sheppard,  Tunbridge  Welk ;  M. 
Cooke.  East  Mailing;  V.  Ramsey.  Edinburgh:  K. 
Soutar,  Loudon  ;  Xurse  Baines,  Bradford  ;  E.  H.  L. 
Dowd,  Clons-keagh ;  M.  Collinti,  Reading:  E.  F. 
Moakes,  Holmewood ;  K.  Tomkins,  London ;  C. 
Bevis.  Hampstead:  E.  M.  Lenthall,  Sydenham;  M. 
O'Connor,  Cork;  M.  Templeman,  Dnlwich ;  E.  .-i. 
Sordy.  Stratford;  M.  C.  Ford.  Holloway :  L.  Law- 
«)n.  Edinburgh  ;  A.  G.  Layton.  London  ;  C.  David- 
son, Glasgow;  E.  Si>encer.  Loudon;  M.  E.  Clegg, 
Liverpool;  L  Lavell,  Margate;  G.  Mav,  Warwick; 
K.  E.  Parfitt,  Mortlake;  T.  E.  Long,  Eastbourne  ; 
C.  Christie,  Aberdeen :  V.  Newham,  London;  J. 
Atkins,  Burton-on-Tient ;  E.  Dinnie,  Harrow  ;  M. 
Black,  Belfast;  E.  Westcott,  Tooting;  M.  AValker, 
Port  St.  Mary :  C.  Douglas.  Perth  ;  C.  S.  Mackay, 
Glasgow;  P.  Mackenzie.  Liverne.ss;  P.  Bo-stock, 
Manchester;  F.  Robin?ou.  Cardiflt ;  T.  M.  Collins. 
London  ;  M.  Deverill.  Birkdale  ;  C.  Cai'ter.  London  ; 
A.  Lossie.  Wigtown;  C.  B.  Steen.  Wexford;  Ji. 
AVatson,  Brighton;  L.  Ryding,  Belfast:  F.  Robin- 
sou,  Cardiff;  L  C.  Smith,  Glasgow:  E.  Douglas, 
Belfast.  • 

Tlie  Rules  for  the  Puzzle  Comjietition  Prize  re- 
main the  same,  and  i\ill  lie  found  on  page  xii. 

Generations  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Nurses  will 
learn  with  regret  that  Sister  President  (Miss  F. 
Sleigh)  is  retiring  from  the  service  of  the  Hospi- 
tal after  33  years  of  faithful  service — service  which 
has  been  recognised  by  the  Governors  b.v  the  award 
of  a  full  pension.  Many  of  her  nurse  friends  also 
desire  to  make  her  a  gift,  and  contribution»i  for  this 
puriiose  will  be  received  by  the  Matron. 


appointments. 


I.ADY  Superintendent. 
Maternity  Hospitat,  Aberdeen. — Miss  I.  J.  ]\IcDougall, 
Lady  Superintendent  of  the  Maternity  Hospital, 
Aberdeen,  whose  appointment  we  recorded  last 
week,  was  trained  in  Maternity  Nursing  and  in 
Midwifery  at  the  Royal  Maternity  Hospital,  Edin- 
burgh, and  has  not  received  tr:iiniim  at  the  Hnyal 
liifiiniary,   Edinburgh. 

Matron. 
Cottage  Hospital,  Hornsey. — Mis^  E.  H.  Grime  has 
been  appointed  Mation.  She  ivas  trained  at  the 
Royal  Infii-niary.  Manchester,  and  has  held  the 
position  of  Mation  of  the  Dew.sbury  Infirmary,  the 
Taunton  Hospital,  and  the  Birmingham  and  IVfid- 
land  Hospital  foi'  Sick  Children. 
Nurse  JM.atkon. 

Cottage  Hospital,  Colwyn  Bay. — Miss    Eleanor    Jones 
has  been  appointed  Nurse  Matron.  She  was  trained 
at  the  Royal    Infirmary,   Liverpool,    and  has  held 
the  jiosition  of  Queen's  Nurse  at  Conway,  and  at  - 
Colwyn  Bay. 

Sisters. 
Charing  Cross  Hospital,  W.C. — Miss  May  Thomson 
has  been  appointed  Sister  of  the  Casualty  Depart- 
ment, a  new  i>osition  created  by  the  Board,  owing 
to  the  increased  work  in  the  Outpatient  Depart- 
ment. Miss  Thomson  was  trained  for  four  years  at 
Charing  Cross  Hospital,  where  she  held  the  posi- 
'  tion  of  Staff  Nurse  in  a  Women's  Surgical  Ward. 
She  haS'  also,  for  a  year,  held  the  position  of  Sister 
at  the  Chelmsford  Hospital. 

Royal  Victoria  Hospital,  Bournemouth.^ — Miss  Eliza- 
beth A.  Foucar  has  been  apjioiuted  Sister.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Ijond'ui  Temperance  Hospital, 
and  has  held  the  position  of  Staff  Nurse  both  in 
that  hospital,  at  the  Hampstead  General  Hos- 
pital, and  at  Bolingbroke  Hospital,  Wandsworth 
Common,  S.W. 

Polyclinic  Hospital,  Rome. — Miss  Johanna  M,  Clay 
has  been  appointed  Sister.  She  was  trained  and 
certificated  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and 
obtained  her- midwifery  training  in  connection  with 
the  Women's  Hospital.  Brighton,  where  she  after- 
wiirds  held  the  position  of  Superintendent  and 
Sub-Matron.  For  the  last  seven  years  Miss  Clay 
has  been  a  member  of  Queen  Alexandra's  Imperial 
Military  Nursing  Service,  and  for  some  time  was 
Sister-in-Charge  of  the  Royal  Arsenal  Hospital, 
AVoolwich,  and  recently  has  been  stationed  at  Alder- 
shot.     She  is  a  certified  midwife. 

Government  Hospital,  Kalgoorlie,  Western  Australia. — 
Miss  D.  AL  Brown  has  been  appointed-  Sister. 
She  was  trained  at  the  London  Temperance  Hospi- 
tal, and  is  a  certified   midwife. 

Night   Sisters. 

Royal  Boscombe  Hospital,  Bournemouth. — Miss  M.  C. 
Rose  has  lieen  apjxiinted  Night  Sister.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Grimsby  and  District  Hospital. 

Monkwearmouth  Hospital,  Sunderland.- — Miss  Edith 
Cuthbertson  has  been  appointed  Night  Sister.  She 
.■was  trained  at  the  Royal  Victoria  Infirmary,  New- 
castle-on-Tyne,  ancj  has  been  Charge  Nurse  at  the 
Park  Hospital,  Hither  Green,  Staff  Nurse  at  the 
Throat  Hospital,  Golden  Square,  and  Theatre  Sis- 
ter at  St.  Jlark's  Hospital,  City  Road,  E.C. 


Jan.  1,  19101 


^bc  IBririsb  3onrnal  ot  iRurstno. 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S  ROYAL  NAVAL  NURSING 
SERVICE. 

Miss  X.  Courtice  has  bi-eii  appointed  a  Nursing 
Sister  in  Quceu  Alexandra's  Royal  Xaval  Nursing 
Service. 

QUEEN   ALEXANDRA'S  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 
NURSING    SERVICE. 

I'uiftiiuj.s  iiml  Trnns/,,s.^S,.'<lr,:<:  Miss  M.  O'C. 
McCreery,   to  Military   Hosp.,  Gibralta;-.  Staff 

Nurses:  Miss  J.  D.  C.  McPlicrson,  to  Mil.  Hosp., 
Tidworth;  Miss  E.  S.  Killery,  to  The  Alexandra 
Hosp.,  Cosham ;  Miss  E.  Lowe,  to  C'amhridgc 
Hosp.,  Aldorshot;  Miss  E.  G.  Barrett,  to  T.S. 
I'lassy,  for  duty ;  Miss  A.  S.  Siddous,  to  T.S. 
Flossy,  for  duty ;  Miss  S.  W.  Wooler*  to  T.S. 
I'lassy,   for  duty. 


THE  LONDON  COUNTY  COUNCIL. 

The  followinti  nurses  have  liren  recoinmonded  by 
the  Education  Committee  for  appointment  on  a 
year's  probation  as  School  Nurses  under  the  Lon- 
don County  Council: — Miss  Hilda  May  Brown 
AylifF,  Miss  Dora  Gertrude  Badger,  Miss  Emily 
Georgina  Barnes,  Miss  Ellen  Florence  Brownsdon. 
Miss  Florence  ^Liry  Edwards,  Miss  Helen  Forbes, 
Miss  Florence  CJane,  Jliss  Nellie  Hancock,  !Miss 
Daisy  Fanny  Hedgcock,  Miss  Harriet  Hunt,  Jliss 
Beatrice  Esther  Burgess  Mason,  Miss  Margaret 
Christine  ;uunro.  Miss  Patricia  Florence  May 
Smallcombe,  Miss  lx)uisa  Adelaide  Sinithers.  Miss 
Mabel  Sparrow,  and  Miss  Janet     Welsh. 


Zbc  Ibeniel  Ibcmpsteab  ^rafleb\». 

We  ire  not  surprised  that  Mr.  H.  Dixon  Kim- 
ber,  the  solicitor  who  so  successfully  conducted  the 
defence  of  Nurse  Bellamy  at  the  Hertford  Assizes, 
takes  exception  to  'the  very  serious  reflections 
cast  upon  her  by  the  Local  .(Jovernmcnt  Board  "  in 
a  letter  to  the  Times  in  reply  to  a  Memorial  of  the 
Workhouse  Nursing  Association. 

The  letter  states  that  "  Nurse  Bellamy,  in  her 
evidence  before  the  Ju.stiees,  admitted  that  she 
was  aware  of  the  rules  (governing  the  administra- 
tion of  baths),  and  it  is  much  to  be  regretted  they 
wen^  not  complied  with." 

Mr.    Kimber    points    out   tiiat    "  if   this    means 
anything  it  means  that  Nurse  Bellamy  knowingly 
broke  the^uhs.  ami  that,  inforentially,  she  is  re- 
sponsible for   the  deatlis   that    recently   occurred"' 
at  the  Henud  Hemp.stead  Infirmary. 

The  Grand  Jury  at  the  Hertford  .Assizes  threw, 
out  the  4Jill  against  Nurse  Bellamy,  the  Crown 
offered  no  evidence  against  her  on  the  Coroner's 
Inquisition,  and  a  Common  Jury  founrl  lier  "  Not 
(Juilty."  More  comjjlete  exoneration  could  not 
be  given  in  a  Court  of  Law. 

>L-.  Kimber  concludes  by  saying:  "It  is  bad 
enougli  that  young  women  of  insufficient  ex- 
perience for  the  adequate  discharge  of  resi)ons!- 
bilities  they  will  be  called  upon  to  assume  should 
be  put  into  such  positions,  but  it  is  hideous  to  find 
that  they  are  liable  to  be  treated  as  Nurse  Bel- 
lamy lias  been  treated,  and  to  be  prosecuted  for 
niaiislaiighter  if  they  fail  to  act  in  those  positions 
with  tliat  judgment  which  can  only  be  reasonably 
expected  from  persons  with  a  scientific  training- 


IHurslnG  lEcboes. 

Tile  Editor  offers  lier  siii- 
•rre.st  tliank.s  .for  all  tin- 
vind  wishe.s  and  lovely  cards 
si-nt  to  her  during  the  Clirist- 
mas  Festival — many  from 
leaders  unknown  to  lit-r  per- 
sonally— but  whose  syni- 
pathy  with  the  professional 
and  .social  aims  of  this  jom- 
nal  makes  it  possible  to 
uiaintaiii  one  weekly  journal 
in  the  pre.ss,  devoted  to  tlie 
interests  ot  trained  nurses  and  tiie  pubjit-  they 

serve.  

ilany  sentences  are  worth  quotation:  — 
"  I  wish  I  could  help  more."  "  I  am  buried  in 
the  coimtrV,  where  the  higher  aims  set  before 
nie  in  your  journal  seem  only  an  echo." 
"  Anyone  seems  good  enough  to  be  called  a 
nurse  in  these  parts."  "  How  I  wish  oin- 
Matron  was  not  an  '  anti  ' ;  it  seems  to  cut  us 
off  from  profes.sioual  oo-operation."  "  Since  I 
joined  tiie  League- 1  have  learned  how  selfish  is 
isolation,  and  to  hke  many  fellow  nurses  1 
disliked  before."  "I  wisli  1  were  a  ready 
writer  to  ligliten  yoiu-  editorial  bm'dens." 
"  Thank  you  for  the"  Congress — I  believe  I've 
'  growed  '  since  then."  "  1  am  going  abroad, 
but  shall  not  be  lonely:  tire  .Journal  will  keep 
me  in  touch  with  ail  at  home." 


From  every  country  in  touch  with  thr  In- 
ternational Council  of  Niu'ses  came  greetings 
in  tjie  happiest  and  most  hopeful  tone,  which 
added  greatly  to  our  sense  of  satisfaction. 
They  mean  that  now  that  the  nurses  of  the 
world  know  sdmewhat  of  one  another,  and 
realise  that  the  good  work  of  one  is  for  th. 
benefit,  of  all,  there  can  be  no  going  back. 
The  place  of  whoever  falls  out  of  the  ranks  will 
be  filled  and  well  filled  by  those  in  faithful 
fellowshiji.  The  nursing  iirofession  has  struck 
its  roots  down  deep  into  the  rich  and  nourish- 
ing soil  of  imity — leaf,  blossom,  and  fruit  wMl 
come  in  due  season. 

"  The  Chain  of  Friendshiji  stivtching  far. 
Links   davs  that  were   with  days  that   arc." 


One  of  the  iiappiest  signs  of  our  times  is 
the  social  fusion  of  rich  and  i)oor,  which  is 
nowiiere  made  more  manifest  than  in  ho.spital 
at  Christmas,  and  this  year  all  over  the  King- 
dom, and  away  in  those  glorious  Dominion.s  be- 
yond the  sea.s"^  the  Golden  Rule  has  prevailed. 
Nowhere  can  more  ha])])iuess  be  concentrated 
in  a  limited  space  on  Christmas  Day  than  in 
hospital  and  infirmary  wards,  and  in  home- 
for  suffering  children. 


^be  Britisb  3ournaI  of  IRursing. 


[Jan.  1.  1910 


To  enter  these  during  Christmas  week  anil 
see  the  result  of  the  unbounded  good  will  whicli 
is  everywhere  apjjurent  would  make  the  poorest 
heart  rejoice.  .Managers,  Matrons,  doctors, 
uurees,  wardmaids,  parsons,  porters,  and 
patrons  have  all  given  time,  labour,  love,  and 
money  with  the  result  that  good  cheer,  gifts. 
and  consolation  suffuse  the  whole  atmosphere 
with  well  being  and  content. 

To  single  out  one  institution  as  more  deserv- 
ing of  praise  than  another  would  be  invidious. 
All  those  we  had  time  to  visit  were  just  as 
lovely  as  lovely  could  be. 


at  the  following  prices  per  lb.  :- — Greengage, 
gooseberry,  and  crab  apple,  yd. ;  damson,  plum, 
and  rimbarb,  7d.  We  hope  the  stock  will  be 
soon  sold  out — the  greedy  editor  has  ordered 
her  supply. 


The  portrait  which 
we  have  the  pleasure 
of  presenting  on  this 
page  is  of  ]\Iiss  Annie 
Smith,  the  IMatron 
of  the  Kingston  Union 
Infirmary.  Miss 
Smith,  who  has  re- 
cently been  elected 
a  member  of  the 
^latrons'  Council,  is 
the  friend  and  succes- 
sor of  the  late  ]\Iiss 
J.  A.  Smith,  who  did 
so  much  for  the  In- 
firmary, and  estab- 
lished the  training 
school  for  nurses  in 
connection  wdth  it.  It 
was  her  hope  that 
Iiliss  Annie  Smith,  of 
W'hose  work  she  had 
had  the  opportunity 
of  judging,  first  as 
Home  Sister  at  the 
Bradford  Union  In- 
firmary, and  then  as 
Ward  Sister  and  As- 
sistant Matron  at  the 
Kingston  Union  In- 
fii-mary.  would  suc- 
ceed her.  Miss  Smith  was  trained  at  ilu 
Crumpsall  Infirmary,  Manchester.  She  is  tlu 
President  of  the  Kingston  Infirmary  Nurses 
League. 


Miss     ANNI 
Matron,    Kingston 


An  interesting  meeting  of  the  Nurses'  Social 
Union  was  recently  held  at  Bristol,  when  Miss 
Evelyn  Eden  gave  a  history  of  nursing,  illus- 
trated by  nuagic  lantern  slides.  The 
lecture  is  quite  unique.  The  slides 
have  been  collected  from  many  sources, 
and  niniiber  over  100,  beginning  with 
illustrations  of  the  period  2.000  years  B.C. 
They  show  the  treat- 
ment, or  maltreat- 
ment, of  the  sick  in 
the  Dark  Ages,  and 
the  rise  of  the  reli- 
gious Orders,  who  de- 
voted their  lives  with 
love,  but  without 
scientific  knowledge, 
to  the  care  (>f  the  sick. 
Evei-y  variety  of  nurs- 
ing, good  and  bad,  is 
depicted,  from  the  uu- 
t\itored  methods  of 
medisevalism  down  to 
tile  enlightened  prac- 
tice of  modern  times. 

The  lecture  was 
thoroughly  enjoyed, 
and  held  the  interest 
of  its  hearers  from 
start  to  finish.  It 
nuide  them  realise  in, 
a  way  that  probably 
they  had  never  done 
before  the  w-onderful 
development  of  their 
I^rofessiou. 

The  Bristol  Branch 
ot  t'he  Nurses'  Social 
Union  is  managed  en- 
tirely by  nurses,  and 
thr  iHunlier  of  meetings  organised  and  practical 
work  done  by  it  attests  the  value  of  the  Union 
to  them  in  their  work. 


SMITH, 
Union    Infirmary. 


Miss  Clara  Lee,  Thistledown,  Norton  Way 
North,  Letch  worth,  Herts,  has  most  kindly 
offered  to  give  the  profits  on  the  sale  of  her  de- 
licious home-made  jam  to  the£10()  Registration 
Fimd.  This  kills  two  birds  with  one  stone,  as 
every  house%vife  must  have  jam  (and  seldom 
gets  it  pure).  To  a  good  registratioirist  it  will 
add  greatly  to  its  flavour  to  know-  that  every 
dainty  sandwich  she  enjoys  is  all  for  the  good  of 
the  cause.    It  can  be  obtained  from  Miss  Lee, 


The  Edmonton  Guardians  have  demanded 
the  resignation  of  jMiss  Helen  Clark,  who  has 
been  a  mn-se  at  the  Infinnai-y  for  14  years,  be- 
cause she  wrote  an  anonymous  letter  to  the 
])ress,  reflecting  in  some  measure  upon  their 
management.  Personally,  we  prefer  signed 
letters^  Poor  Law  Guardians  are  not  the  em- 
ployers of  Poor  Law  staffs,  and  the  touchy 
attitude  of  masters  ill  becomes  them;  Miss 
Clark  is  not  going  to  resign  without  ascertain- 
ii'g  whether  the  Guardians  have  a  right  tc>  dis- 


.Jau.  1,  1910J 


Zbc  Britisb  3ournal   oX  murstno. 


miss  her  for  writiiig  to  tlie  press.  If  her  state- 
ments and  expressions  of  opinion  were  true,  we 
should  very  much  doubt  their  right  to  deprive 
lier  of  lier  hving. 


Everyone  was  full  of  praise  for  Queen's 
Nurses  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Scottish 
Branch  of  the  Institute  recently  held  in  Edin- 
burgh. There  are  now  323  nurses  on  the  Scot- 
tish KoU.  Professor  Caird  said  it  could  hardly 
be  estimated  what  good  the  nurses  accom- 
plished. Tliey  took  part  in  the  iiousework  and 
relieved  the  rates. 


-M-r.  J.  Patten  Macdougall  referred  to  nurs- 
ing in  the  Highlands,  and  pailicularly  in  the 
outer  islands.  Medical  men  were  very  scat- 
tered, and  the  assistance  which  had  been  given 
by  the  nurses  was  beyond  all  praise;  it  was 
educative,  preventive,  and  curative. 

The  wide-spreading  influence  of  the  Ilor- 
draux  Nursing  Schools  in  France,  whilst  most 
gratifying  to  Dr.  Anna  Hamilton,  theii'  foun- 
dresis,  adds  greatly  to  the  necessity  for  the  very 
best  teaching  for  probationers  which  can  be 
procured.  .\s  soon  as  trained  many  of  these 
certificated  nurses  are  called  uptm  to  go  fortli 
and  spread  the  light  in  other  parts  of  France. 


in  our  advertisement  columns  w  ill  be  fouml  ;i 
notice  that  a  Sister  is  I'ecjuired  at  the  .Maisoii 
de  Sante  Protestante  |  Protesta)it  Hos|)ital). 
Bordeaux.  She  must  be  thoroughly  trained 
and  certificated,  and  must  speak  French.  The 
charge  will  he  four  wards  contairing  both 
medical  and  .siu'gical  cases,  men,  wcmen,  and 
children,  which  makes  tlie  work  varied  and  in- 
teresting. The  hospital  ti-ains  V.i  )ii-obationers, 
so  that  the  lady  appointed  will  be  doing  good 
pioneer  service,  as  the  pui)ils  will  carry  far 
and  wide  the  system  of  mirsing  in  which  they 
become  proficient.  It  was  thus  that  Miss 
Elsttin,  .Matron  of  the  Tondu  Hospital,  Bor- 
deaux, began  her  very  useful  nursing  career  in 
France.  To  succeed  in  a  foreign  land  a  mn-se 
must  be  of  an  adaptable  nature,  willing  to 
learn  as  well  as  to  teach,  and  in  no  way  hide- 
bound with  insular  prejudices.  All  information 
can  be  obtained  from  Dr.  Amia  Hannlt<in. 


The  South  .\frican  Colonisation  Society  is  in 
need  of  mn-ses,  one  with  three  years'  hospital 
training,  who  is  also  a  certified  midwife  for 
Salisbury,  Khodesia,  and  one  who  has  special 
training  for  children.  The  salary  is  tdO,  board, 
lodging,  washing,  and  a  certain  amoimt  of 
uniform.  The  passage  second  class  is  paid. 
The  agreement  is  for  three  years,  and  a  bonus 
of  £'2.5  is  given  at  the  eii.l  of' thai  tiiiH-  of  satis- 


factory service.  The  Secretary  of  the  Society 
(the  address  will  be  found  in  our  advertisement 
columns)  will  give  all  information.  Those 
nurses  who  long  for  pastures  new,  will  find 
wide  scope  in  Rhodesia. 

For  a  long  time  the  need  of  a  professional 
club  for  nui-ses  has  been  felt  in  Calcutta,  botli 
by  the  nurses  themselves  and  as  a  centre 
through  which  the  public  could  get  into  touch 
with  private  nurses,  and  I'ecently  their  desiji 
for  such  a  centre  found  fulfilment.  Lady 
Baker  opened  at  the  end  of  the  year  at  12,  Kyd 
Street,  Calcutta,  the  "■  Professional  Nurses' 
Club,"  which  has  been  established  mainly 
through  the  good  offices  of  Mrs.  Jloore.  its  first 
Hon.  Secretai-y.  .Mr.  Duncan  .\lcLeod,  at  the 
opening  ceremony,  described  how  up  to  the 
l)resent  time  the  nurses  of  Calcutta  had  been 
living  in  all  parts  of  the  town,  some  in  rather 
obscure  localities,  and  it  had  always  been  ■■< 
matter  of  difficulty  to  find  them  for  urgent 
cases.  The  idea  of  a  club,  when  proposed  hy 
Mrs.  ]\Ioore,  was  so  well  received  that  a  Com- 
mittee was  formed  to  promote  it.  the  object 
being  to  have  an  organised  system  whereby  an\ 
one  requiring  a  professional  mu'se  coidd  secuiv 
heron  the  sliortest  notice.  Residential  acconj- 
modation  has  been  provided  for  a  few  nurses, 
and  there  are  43  outside  members.  The  schenu 
has  the  approval  and  supjjort  of  Lady  Minto. 

In  declaring  the  club  oijened.  Lady  Baker 
said  she  w^as.sure  that  it  met  a  want  which  w.<> 
much  felt,  and  wished  it  every  success.  \\  ■ 
congratulate  the  mn'ses  of  Calcutta  on  havinL 
a  Home  of  their  own,  which  will  lie  a  centre  "< 
professional  life. 


Tile  first  meeting  of  the  Central  Council  of 
the  New  Zealand  Trained  Nurses'  Association 
took  place  at  Wellington  in  November.  We 
learn  from  Kai  Tiahi  that  the  Branch  Councils 
were  requested  to  forward  suggestions  of  dif- 
erent  nmtters  for  consideration  by  the  Central 
Council,  which  were  then  di  awn  up  in  the  form 
of  an  Addenda  and  sent  to  each  Branch 
Council,  so  that  they  might  i)e  considered  and 
the  delegates  instructed  as  to  the  vie\\s  of  the 
Branch,  .\mongst  the  points  down  for  con- 
sideration were  the  questions  of  incorporation, 
unifonn  fees,  life  membership,  the  qualification 
for  future  membershij)  (State  Registration 
only),  co-operative  training,  the  registration  of 
outdoor  uniform,  and  the  adoption  of  a  l^adge. 

The  two  delegates  of  the  .\uckland  l^rancli 
of  the  New  7A'aland  Trained  Nurses'  .Vs.socia- 
tion  to  the  first  meeting  of  the  Central  Council 
held  at  Wellington  were  Mrs.  Kidd.  K.N.  (nre 
Brid^man).  and  Miss  .] .  ^lelita  .Tones,  R.N. 

Miss  .lones,  who  was  fornierlv  Matron  of  the 


10 


Z\)c  Biit:5b  3omnal  of  IRursina. 


[Jan.  1,  1010 


Nelson  Hospital,  aud  is  a  member  ot  tlic  Mti- 
trous"  Council  ot  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  has 
for  some  years  made  the  Institute  for  Trained 
Nurses,  Auckland,  her  headquarters.  She  asks 
us  to  say,  however,  that  she  has  never  been 
Matron  of  the  Institute.  For  some  years  it  was 
ably  conducted  by  Miss  Cottman,  "and  is  now 
managed  by  jNIiss  W'yatt,  a  Eegistered  Nurse, 
who  was  for  a  time  ilatron  of  the  first  St. 
Helen's  (JMateruity)  Hospital  in  New  Zealand; 
now  similar  hospitals  are  established  in  all  the 
centres. 

The  Auckland  Branch  greath'  enjoyed  an 
"  At  Home  "  given  to  the  members  of  the 
Association  at  Govenmient  House  by  Her  Ex- 
cellency Lady  Plunket.  His  Excellency  the 
Governor,  with  Lady  Plunket  and  members  of 
the  Viceregal  party,  made  the  guests 
thoroughly  at  home,  and  all  agreed  that  they 
had  had  a  delightful  afternoon. 

Their  Excellencies  also  attended  the  Nurses' 
Ball  with  their  suite,  when  they  passed  through 
a  guard  of  honour  of  140  nurses  to  their  seats 
on  the  dais.  The  Governor  remarked  that  the 
guard  was  the  finest  he  had  ever  been  received 
bv. 


One  of  the  most  extensive  developments  of 
nursing  under  the  public  services  is  shown  in 
the  State  of  Pennsylvania.  There  the  State 
Board  of  Health  has  on  its  pay  rolls  as  ser- 
vants of  the  State  a  larger  staff  of  niu'ses,  per- 
haps, than  any  other  similar  body.  Two 
hundred  nurses  are  stationed  tfiroughout  the 
whole  State  in  the  county  dispensaries  estab- 
lished to  carry  on  the  anti-tuberculosis  propa- 
ganda. They  are  directed  bv  a  chief  nurse, 
Miss  AUce  M.  O'Halloran,  of  Blockley  Hos- 
pital, in  Philadelphia,  who  has  her  office  in 
the  capital  buildings  at  Harrisburg  with  the 
Health  Department.  ]Miss  O'Halloran  was 
much  disappointed  at  being  unable  to  come  to 
London,  and  hopes  to  come  to  Cologne, 
to  tell  about  her  work.  Her  nurses,  besides 
being  busied  with  the  anti-tuberculosis  work, 
are  also  despatched  to  rural  pai-ts  of  the  State, 
according  as  need  may  arise,  to  deal  with 
other  infectious  diseases  that  may  threaten  to 
spread — scarlet  fever,  typhoid,  or  diphtheria. 
Further  than  these,  the  State  Health  Depart- 
ment has  now  a  large  staff  in  the  State 
Sanitoria  for  Tuberculosis,  which  are  developed 
on  the  public  lands.  One  of  these,  at  ilont 
Alt-o.  now  has  some  500  odd  patients,  mostly 
in  the  early  stages,  in  residence,  and  forms  a 
village  colony  under  medical  discipline  aud 
nursing  care. 


The  Department  of  Health  of  New  York  City 
has  added  13.5  Tuberculosis  Nurses  to  its  staff. 


^bc  Ibospital  MouI^. 

LONDON    LOCK   HOSPITAL    AND    RESCUE    HOME 

The  London  Lock  Hospital  and  Piescue  Home 
for  Women  in  the  Harrow  Road  is  unique  in  its 
organisation  in  this  or  any  other  country  for  it 
combines,  as  should  always  be  combined,  the 
lock  hospital  wovk  with  that  of  a  rescue  home. 
The  latter,  though  separately  organised,  is  con- 
nected with  the  hospital,  and  a  considerable 
l^roi^ortiou  of  the  girls  are  passed  into  it,  aud 
are  there  trained  to  fit  them  for  a  useful  place 
in  life.  It  is  satisfactory  to  learn  that,  a  large 
proportion  of  these — about  75  j)er  cent. — do 
well  when  they  at  lengtn  leave  tne  care  of  the 
institution.  Now  the  disease  of  sj^philis  is 
better  understood,  it  is  becoming  usual  to  keep 
the  patients  in  hospital  for  a  longer  period,  11 
months  being  quite  a  usual  time.  If  they  enter 
the  Rescue  Home,  they  stay  there  for  another 
15  months,  or  they  may  be  returned  to  other 
Homes,  or  restored  to  their  friends. 

The  question  of  return  to  other  Homes  before 
a  cure  is  effected — for  it  is  now  generally  con- 
sidered that  this  is  not-  completed  under  three 
years — is  a  matter  which  calls  for  considera- 
tion. So  far  in  Rescue  Homes  the  work  has 
been  organised  almost  exclusively  from  the 
moral  and  religious  standpoints,  and  the  co- 
operation of  trained  nurses  has  not  to  any  ex- 
tent been  sought,  nor  have  nurses,  in  an.v  num- 
bers, thought  of  devoting  themselves  to  this 
work.  Yet,  its  physical  aspect  is  a  most  im- 
portant one  both  from  the  point  of  view  of  the 
health  of  the  community,  and  of  the  girls  them- 
selves, and  undonbtedh'  a  uauch  larger  number 
of  hospitals  is  needed  for  the  treatment  of 
venereal  diseases,  with  Homes  attached,  to 
which  when  the  acute  stage  is  over  the  girls  can 
be  drafted,  and  where  they  can  be  kept  under 
observation,  and  their  health  supervised  by 
medical  practitioners  and  nurses.  The  duty  of 
participating  in  this  work  is  one  which  has  re- 
cently been  prominently  brought  before  nurses, 
and  though  it  may  not  be  attractive,  and  de- 
mands special  gifts,  it  is  impossible  to  believe 
that  the  nursing  profession  as  a  whole  will  re- 
gard their  resiwnsibilities  less  seriously  than  the 
rescue  workers,  to  whom  all  honour  is  due,  but 
whose  zeal  is  not  always  according  to  know- 
ledge, otherwise  it  would  be  impossible  for  us 
to  hear  of  such  tragedies  as  that  of  a  healthy 
girl  entering  a  Rescue  Home,  contracting  the 
terrible  disease  of  syphilis  from  being  put  to 
sleep  in  an  infected  bed.  The  London  Lock 
Hospital  for  Women  contains  140  beds,  and  is 
practically  the  only  one  for  the  whole  of  Lon- 
don, cases  being  sent  on  to  it  by  other  hospitals 
and  infirmaries.  This  gives  one  pause,  for  it  is 
estimated  there  are  no  less  than  80.000  "  fallen 


Jau.  1,  1010, 


Cbe  3joriti3b  3ourual  ot  IHiUijino. 


11 


women  "  in  tiiu  Metropolis,  many  uf  wliuui  uic 
iafectfil  witli  disease,  and  a  source  of  infection 
to  others.  Think  what  a  canlver  there  is  in  our 
midst,  uncontrolled  and  undealt  with,  a  ineiuu-e 
to  the  health  of  the  community  at  large,  and 
then  consider  whether  as  nurses  we  should  not 
rise  to  our  responsibilities  and  use  our  intiuenee 
and  special  knowledge  in  dealing  with  this 
disea-se.  How  is  this  to  be  achieved '.'  How  arc 
we  to  find  out  where  the  plague  spots  are ".'  In 
the  first  place  syphilis  should  be  placed  on  the 
list  of  notifiable  diseases,  a  course  which  no 
doidit  would  have  been  taken  long  since  had 
such  notification  applied  only  to  women,  Init 
which  would  be  strenuously  oppo.sed  as  apjilied 
to  both  sexes.  Have  you  ever  thought  that 
when  the  woman  taken  in  adultery  was  "  taken 
in  the  act  "  her  partner  in  sin  must  have  i)een 
similarly  discovered.'  Yet  it  was  the  woman 
only  who  was  arraigned  before  the  Divine  Mas- 
ter, for  His  judgznent  and  censure,  by  pliarisai- 
cal  members  of  the  other  sex.  But  swiftly  ami 
surely  the  weak  place  in  their  armour  of  self- 
righteousness  was  probed  by  the  just  .Judge, 
always  more  severe  on  sins  of  character  than  on 
those  of  infirmity.  You  men,  who  are  so  self- 
righteous,  which  of  you  is  clean  from  similar 
offences?  He  asked.  They  had  no  answer  to 
make  and  went  silently  out. 

Had  the  man  who  was  a  sinner,  as  well  as 
the  woman,  been  arraigned  at  that  bar,  what 
answer  would  he  have  made'.'  Woidd  he,  like 
his  first  forefather,  have  said,  "  The  woman  be- 
guiled me,"  or  would  lie  have  been  inspired 
by  some  remnant  of  manhood  to  say,  "  Mea 
culpa  '".'  We  do  not  know.  We  only  know  he 
did  iiot  stand  by  her,  and  as  it  was  then,  so 
it  is  now.  The  woman  is  "  fallen."  The  man 
is  i-eeeived  into  society,  honoiu'ed,  and  feted. 
If  he  be  rieh  he  is  sought  as  a  desirable  hus- 
band for  some  young  girl,  who  all  unknow  ingly 
may  contract  a  marriage,  which  for  the  re- 
mainder of  her  life  may  bring  ill  health  and  un- 
happiness  to  herself,  and  disease  and  suffering 
to  the  childr<>n  of  the  union.  "  War  on  disease. 
Prevention  of  disease,"  this  should  be  the  bat- 
tle cry  of  nurses,  and  especially  war  to  the  knife 
on  the  venereal  diseases.  This  is  the  aspect 
from  which  they  should  apjiroach  the  questi<in. 
In  caring  for  other  i)atients,  they  do  not  cen- 
sure or  condemn  previous  ill-doing.  Xeither 
should  they  here.  It  is  sutticient  that  those 
"  wounded  in  the  battle  of  life  need  their  profes- 
sional care,  and  that,  under  wholesome  in- 
fluence, while  in  hos])ital,  or  elsewhere,  they 
may  be  inspired  to  live  clean  lives  for  tht' 
future — for  good  as  well  as  evil  is  infeeti<Mis. 
and  the  influence  of  a  high-minded  nurse  is  far- 
rcMi'hing  in  its  results. 

Many  are  the  pmlilems  which  pr.-i.nt  iIm  in- 


srlvrs  tiir  sululion  in  the  numagement 
of  a  hospital  of  this  kind.  The  difficulty  ot 
controlling  the  patients,  and  keej^ing  discipline 
in  a  ward  full  of  imdisciplined  girls — for  the 
majority  of  patients  are  girls  under  twenty-five 
— with  wild  animal  spirits  is  con.siderable.  For 
instance,  a  passing  grinding  organ  will  set  all 
those  who  are  up  dancing.  Then  there  is  the 
question  of  letters.  The  authorities  have  been 
much  criticised  for  insisting  on  the  right  to 
supervise  all  letters  received,  but  the  fact  re- 
mains that  it  is  found  necessarj',  for  a  letter 
fiom  an  undesirable  acquaintance  may  determine 
a  girl  to  leave  the  lios])ital  when  she  is  still  vui- 
ciued  and  in  a  condition  dangerous  not  only  to 
herself  but  the  conununity. 

Then  classification.  No  hard  and  fast  ride 
of  classification  can  be  adopted.  As  far  as  pos- 
sible the  younger  girls  are  ke{)t  away  from  the 
influence  of  older  women  likely  to  do  them 
harm,  but  sometimes  it  happens  that  a  girl 
young  in  years  is  old  in  a  knowledge  of  evil  and 
herself  a  corrupting  influence. 

It  is  sad  to  hear  that  the  age  at  which  pa- 
tients are  admitted  tends  to  become  lower, 
and  even  girls  of  13,  now  apply  for  treatmeiit. 
In  addition  to  these,  married  women,  infected 
through  no  fault  of  their  own,  are  received. 
Saddest  of  all  is  the  children's  ward.  When 
the  new  Nurses'  Home,  now  being  built,  is 
complete,  it  is  hoped  that  additional  .space  will 
be  available  for  these  iiniocent  victims  of  paren- 
tal sin. 

Each  floor  in  the  hospital  is  in  charge  of  a 
Sister,  with  nurses  working  under  her  in  the 
different  wards;  they  work  in  gloves,  a  very 
necessary  precaution  when  the  dangerous  char- 
acter of  the  diseases  which  they  nurse  is  re- 
membered. On  each  floor  is  n  small  operating 
room,  for  nearly  all  the  cases  admitted  are  of 
a  surgical  nature,  but,  of  course,  all  are  septic 
on  admission.  The  examination  of  the  blood 
now  forms  an  important  part  of  the  work  of  the 
medical  staft',  and  progress  is  judged  by  the 
results  obtained.  Tlie  t'hairnutn  of  the  Board 
of  Management  is  I^ord  Kinnaird,  and  one  of 
the  wards,  that  which  is  a  sort  of  half-way 
house  between  the  Hospital  and  the  Home,  is 
called  the  Kinnaird  Ward.  Probationers  are 
admitted  for  two  years'  training,  the  age  con- 
sidered desirable  being  from  "i'i  to  28.  They 
are  then  passed  on  toother  hospitals  for  general 
training.  M.  B. 


The  current  issue  of  Tlir  Kiiglixhwonian 
contains  an  article  by  MissL.  L.  Dock-,  which 
will  be  read  with  wides|n-ead  interest,  on  "  The 
Changing  Status  of  Nursing  in  France."  Our 
readers  will  not  need  to  be  informed  that  it  is 
M  maslerh    re\  i.'U   f.l  tli.-  ..ituiition. 


1-2 


Cbe  Brttieb  3ournal  of  IRursina. 


[Jan.  1,  1910 


a  ilDatron'9  1bolt&a^. 

A  TRIP  TO    PORTUGAL 

Bv  Miss  A.  Carson  Kae. 

Seeing  the  photograijh  of  the  General  Hos- 
pital at  Oporto,  reminded  me  of  a  very  delight- 
ful trip  I  took  to  Portugal  about  two  years  ago. 
It  being  nceessary  to  take  an  early  holiday,  1 
started  at  the  end  of  April  with  three  com- 
panions foi-  Mont  Estoi-il,  the  Riviera  of  Portu- 
gal, and  which  is  under  au  hour's  journey  fi'oiii 
Lisbon. 

We  left  J.iverijool  one  fine  evening  on  board 
one  of  the  Booth  liners,  which  is  a  "mail  boat 
to  Brazil.  On  the  way  out  we  called  at  Havri', 
and  from  there  on  past  the  C'iiannel  Islands, 
skirting  along  the  North-west  coast  of  France, 
then  across  the  Bay  of  Biscay  till  we  arrived 
in  the  lovely  natural  harbour  of  Vigo,  wiiicii 
could  hold  two  or  three  fleets  and  has  sevt-ial 
exits.  We  spent  the  evenin;;  ibi-r.-,  ^taitiui: 
again  in  the  middle  of  the  ui-lit  t.n  l.rixncs. 
wluch  is  at  the  mouth  of  tin-  uvn  |),,ui-ii. 
Oiwrto  is  about  twenty  unnutr-;'  ti-.iin  ijdr 
from  there.  The  steamer  it  up  to  tinn-  waits 
two  days  at  Leixoes,  so  \\c  had  |i]ciity  of  op- 
portunity to  explore  this  ipiaint  phicr.  l'lii')'f 
is  the  wondel-ful  Doui  l>uis  Hlidi^r  (which  was 
designed  by  KilTrl,  ot  I'alfrl  f'owfi'  tajii.-),  Iiom 
wliich  a  maj^iiifiriiii  wrw  u|i  and  down  ili.' 
river  can  be  obtainnl.  P,rsidrs,  it  is  histon- 
cally  interesting,  as  it  was  bnilt  wht-rp  a  great 
struggle  took  place  diuing  tlie  Peninsular  \\-dy, 
when  the  Duke  of  Wellington  drove  General 
Soult  across  the  river  and  out  of  Oporto.  The 
house  is  still  shown  where  the  ^ron  iinl<e  and 
his  staff  ate  the  dinner  prepared  for  tlie  I'lvn.li 
General,  but  wdiich  he  had  to  leaxe  behind 
him  !  There  are  several  buildings  and  churches 
worth  seeing.  The  Santa  (_asa,  where  the 
famous  picture  "  Fons  Vitae  "  is,  should  l>e 
visited.  There  is  a  lovely  piece  of  wood  cai'\  - 
ing  in  one  of  its  rooms  which  is  su))]>osed  to 
date  from  Charles  X.'s  time.  The  Piotanic 
Gardens  are  very  fine,  and  the  jianoramic  \ie\\ 
one  obtains  from  them  is  well  worth  the  jour- 
ney up.  But  there  is  an  excellent  service  of 
trams  up  to  the  gardens.  In  the  Eua  das 
Flores  the  shops  display  some  lovely  filigree 
work,  but  it  is  well  to  have  some  one  who  can 
"  bai'gain  "  before  buying  1  The  Wine  Lodges 
are  also  famous,  but  I  think  autumn  would  be 
a  Ijetter  time  to  see  them.  V\'hat  struck  us 
most  was  the  utter  laziness  of  the  men.  The 
women  and  beautiful  teams  of  oxen  seem  to 
do  all  the  work.  Women  work  everywhere,  in 
the  quarries,  helping  to  unload  the  boats^  carry- 
ing great  basket  loads  of  coal  on  their  heads, 
and  walking  up  the  narrow  planks  whicli 
stretch  from  boat  to  shore,  just  as  if  they  were 


oji  a  level  road.  They  poise  everything  on 
tlieir  heads  from  large  jugs  full  ot  water  to 
crates  of  fish  and  babies,  generally  one  half  of 
the  crate  is  devoted  to  fish  the  other  to  the 
baby  I  We  enjoyed  our  two  days  there,  but 
were  quite  pleased  to  start  at  six  p.m.  for 
Lisbon,  which  is  only  fifteen  hours  sail.  No 
one  should  miss  getting  ujj  early  for  the 
sail  up  tile  ri\er  Tagus.  The  white  buildings 
with  their  red  roofs,  the  tropical  gardens,  the 
mountains  in  the  distance,  the  blue,  blue  sky 
.  and  watei',  all  make  a  most  impressive  entrance 
to  the  city.  One  can  oidy  sit  and  kx>k  and 
driidi  in  tiie  clear  morning  air. 

►Seen  fiom  the  river  Lisbon  'kxiks  a  bright 
clean  city,  the  buildings  going  up  and  up  till 
they  reach  the  Eoyal  Palace  right  on  the  to]). 
There  is  a  s])lendid  service  of  electric  trams, 
«luidi  is  iiecessitry.  as  the  streets  are  all  pre- 
cipitous. 

We  landed  from  the  wharf  on  to  the  Praca  do 
Commercio,  and  wallced  straight  across  to 
where  the  late  King  Carlos  and  the  Crown 
I'rinee  w  eif  assassinated.  There  is  n  co\'ered 
footway  l)iiilt  lik-e  the  line  de  PivoH  in  Pans, 
and   one    can    we]]    iniaL:ine    ]iow    r'n-    assassins 

tins    lilt  le    (al\  .    se\-cra]    c]iiiiv]i,  -  r  of 

Helen,.   Ilie   I'.nll    biiiu,   llie   I'aia.  .        \|,ida 

and  Ai|iiediict ,  and  the  markets.  The  streets 
tue  liiiu'lit  with  gaily  dressed  natives,  the  gor- 
geous t'oloi.ued  kerchiefs  which  thfe  women 
wear  on  their  heads,  make  quite  an  Eastern 
scene.  .V  very  enjoyable  tramway  ride  can  Ije 
taken  at  night  round  the  city.  As  it  was  very 
hot  we  jiushed  on  to  Mont  Estoril,  which  is  a 
lovely  seaside  place.  The  Hotel  d'ltalie,  where 
we  put  u]),  was  most  comfortable,  and  a  lovely 
view  of  the  sea  was  to  be  had  from  the  front 
windows.  I  wish  I  could  give  an  adequate  idea 
of  the  lieanty  of  the  place  as  we  saw  it  on  that 
May  morning.  Our  walk  down  to  the  beach 
was  between  rows  of  gardens  rich  with  every 
k'ind  of  flower  in  full  bloom.  The  walls,  divid- 
ing them  from  the  road,  were  so  well  covered 
one  could  liardly  see  them..  Ivy  geraniums, 
like  hedges,  heliotrope,  mimosa,  etc.,  etc.,  we 
had  only  to  stretch  out  our  hands  and  gather 
branches.  The  air  was  heavy  with  the  scent 
of  tliein  all.  Looking  from  the  shore,  the  view 
was  very  fine.  The  houses  were  all  built  right 
on  the  Cliff,  and  were  gleaming  redi  w'hite,  and 
blue,  all  different  coloured  tiles  and  architec- 
ture, and  seeming  fio  vie  with  each  other  in  the 
beauty'  and  luxuriance  of  their  flow^ers  and 
palm  trees.  A  haze  of  heat  lay  over  the  sea, 
which  looked  quite  calm  in  the  distance,  but 
broke  in  great  heavy  rollers  on  the  sand. 

In  the   "arden  of  our  hotel  we  s-^it  under  an 


Ian.  1,  1910] 


Zbc  Kritlsb  journal  of  IRurstno. 


13 


awning  made  iu  the  following  way.  Hugo  palm 
trees  with  a  network  of  wire  from  trunk  to 
trunk  over  which  was  trained  honeysuckle  then 
in  full  bloom,  sweet  pea,  and  long  trailers  of  the 
<lelicate  vine  leaves,  while  the  walls  of  the  gar- 
den were  covered  from  end  to  end  with  roses 
varying  in  colour  from  white  to  deep  yellow 
mid  pale  pink  to  dark  <;rim80u.  About  two 
minutes  walk  at  the  back  of  the  hotel  were 
woods  of  pine  trees,  and  in  the  morning  after  a 
night's  rain  the  scent  of  them  was  delicious. 

Many  nice  trips  could  be  taken,  notably  one 
to  Cintra.  The  pleasantest  way  is  to  drive 
from  Estoril,  and  on  the  way  stop  to  see  over 
tile  Penha  Palace,  where  King  Carlos  had  been 
staying  just  before  his  last  journey  to  Lisbon, 
and  also  the  JNIoorish  Palace,  to  which  there 
is  a  long  chmb  up,  but  one  is 
repaid  for  it.  In  Cintra,  at  Law- 
rence's Hotel,  we  were  shown  the  room 
where  Byron  is  said  to  have  written  part  of 
his  "  Childe  Harold,"  and  there  is  still  some 
of  the  same  furniture  in  the  room.  There  is 
also  the  Pioyal  Palace,  where  Queen  Maria  Pia 
lives,  which  has  most  interesting  rooms  in  it. 
After  lunch  we  drove  on  to  Montserrate,  the 
property  of  Sir  Frederick  Cook,  an  English- 
man. It  would  need  an  abler  pen  than  mine 
to  describe  this  most  beautiful  spot.  There 
wei-e  walks  of  camelia  trees  in  full  bloom,  palms 
and  cacti  of  evei"y  description,  mimosa  and 
yellow  broom  growing  side  by  side,  and  roses 
of  every  colour  climbing  rampant  over  all.  In- 
deed, every  flower  and  creeper  irom  the  hum- 
blest little'wild  Hower  to  the  rarest  exotic  had 
its  representative.  The  view,  too,  from  differ- 
ent points  was  Uke  an  ever  changing  panorama. 
If  there  be  such  a  place  as  an  earthly  para- 
dise, I  should  say  it  was  there.  After  wander- 
ing about  for  two  hours  we  had  to  tear  our- 
selves away.  .\fter  tea  at  Cintra  we  drove 
back  to  Mont  Estoril  by  a  different  road,  ar- 
riving in  time  for  dinner. 

It  was  rarely  we  had  to  consider  the  weather, 
as  when  it  did  rain,  it  was  obliging  enough  to 
do  so  dm-ing  the  night,  and  in  Estoril  there  is 
\isnally  a  nice  cool  iireeze.  The  Portuguese 
■were  a  pleasant  ])eo])le,  the  educated  ones  were 
good  linguists,  they  all  s])oke  French,  and 
many  had  a  fair  knowledge  of  English.  It  is 
not  necessary  to  speak  their  language,  as  t)oth 
French  and  English  are  s])oken  at  nearly  all 
the  hotels.  In  any  case,  even  if  one  learned 
Portuguese  out  of  a  book,  the  proininciation  is 
so  difficult  that  it  would  take  Some  time  to 
leain  to  "  talk  "  it.  The  |)risons  are  a  great 
blot  on  the  c<->untry,  every  here  and  there  one 
saw  these  grim  buildings,-  and  their  terribly 
depraved  looking  inmates,  with  their  faces 
pressed  against   the  o])en  liarK,  shouting  down 


to   passers-by.        It   was    a   gruesome    and    in- 
finitely sad  sight. 

Altogether  we  spent  about  twelve  days  at 
Mont  Estoril,  and  on  Jlay  20th  had  reluctantly 
to  turn  our  faces  homewards,  but  we  felt  we 
returned  richer  in  health  and  experience 
and  with  a  host  of  pleasant  memories.  The 
whole  trip  was  so  well  organised  and  arranged 
that  I  can  say  we  had  the  maximum  of  plea- 
sure, witli  the  minim uni  of  trouble. 


TReflections. 


From  a  Board  PtOOM  Miebor. 
In  view  of  the  General  Klection,  the  National 
Food  Reform  Association,  of  178,  St.  Stephen'.s 
House,  Westminster,  S.W.,  has  addressed  to  Par- 
liamentary candidates  a  series  of  questions  dealing 
with  Kiich  snbjects  as  the  feeding  ol  tlie  Army  and 
Xavy,  the  inmate-s  ot  prisons,  workhouses,  etc., 
under-fed  .scholai-s,  the  milk  .supply,  the  teaching  ot 
cooker}',  etc..  in  scliooLs,  patent  medicines,  the  pub- 
lication by  the  (lioveinment  of  intormation  as  to  t.he 
nutritive  value  of  t'ootlst u ffs,  and  the  treatment  of 
inebriates.  Copies  may  be  obtained  by  sending  a 
stami)e<l-addre.seed  enveloiw  to  the  Secretary. 

The  exten.sions  «hicli  have  been  made  to  the 
Nurses'  Home  at  the  York  County  Hospital  were 
recently  openetl.  The  extensions  consist  of  eightoen 
additional  betlrooms,  with  bath-room  and  lavatory 
conveniences,  thus  increasing  the  total  accommoda- 
tion to  38  bedrooms,  sitting-rooms,  seven  l)ath- 
rooms,  and  lavatories. 

Mr.  Howard  Collins,  the  House  (Jovernor  ol  the 
(leneral  Hospital,  Birmingham.  haK  received  the  fol- 
lowing letter  from  the  Manclu-ster  <listrict:— "Some 
years  ago,  in  fact,  so  far  buck  a.s  18(i2-;l,  1  had  occa- 
sion to  be  trea'ted  as  an  out-patient  for  aljscess. 
Since  that  time  I  have  always  promised  my*e!f  that 
if  1  could  save  up  enough  money  to  siMire  enough  to 
pay  foi-  the  treatment  1  woukl  do  so.  Herewith  1 
iiave  pleasure  in  handing  you  chofjue  for  £'10,  which 
I  trust  you  will  accept  as  a  donation." 

In  connection  with  the  decision  of  the  Executive 
of  the  Sidlaw  Sanatorium  to  clos<'  the  institution  at 
the  end  of  January,  a  letter  has  be<ui  atUlressed  to 
the  Chairman  of  the  Dundee  Hoyal  Infirmary  by 
Ml.  .1.  K.  Caird,  that  most  generous  of  citizens, 
offering  £10,000  on  the  condition  that  the  Sana- 
torium is  handed  over  to  the  management  of  tne 
Royal  Infirmary  Board.  The  idea  is  that  the 
Sanatorium  should  be  regarded  as  an  adjunct  of  the 
Infirmary,  and  that  it  sliould  l>e  utilised  principally 
for  the  treatment  of  children  suffering  from  tuber- 
cular disease. 

The  NottiiiKham  Hnspital  Saturday  CVuninittee 
has  handed  over  to  the  General  Hosiiital  the  sum 
of  £6,710.  as  compared  with  £.").ei7  in  1008.  This 
line  bospitiil   well   dcsei'vcv   support. 


u 


Ztyc  Britisb  journal  of  IRursing. 


hm.  1,  1910 


professional  IRcvicw. 

LECTURES  ON  SURGICAL  NURSING. 

A  very  useful  series  of  lectures  on  surgical  nur- 
sing, by  Mr.  E.  Staiimore  Bislioi>,  F.R.C.S.,  Hon. 
Surgeon  to  Aucoats  Hospital,  Manchester,  is  puli- 
lislied  by  ilessrs.  John  AVright  and  Sons,  Ltd., 
Bristol,  and  in  London  by  Messrs.  Simpkiii,  Mar- 
shall, Hamilton,  Kent,  and  Co.,  Ltd.  The  author 
in  a   foreword  makes  a  generous    acknowledgment 

of    the    assistance     he    . 

has  had  from  trairred 
nurses.      He  says  :  — 

■■  There  are  many 
pleasant  relationships 
in  life,  the  praises  of 
which  have  been  sung 
in  all  ages  and  by 
many  writers;  I  doubt 
if  there  is  one  much 
more  delightful  than 
that  which  exists  be- 
tween a  surgeon  who 
is  keen  on  his  work 
and  desirous  of  obtain- 
ing the  best  results, 
and  the  nurse  whom  he 
implicitly  trusts,  whose 
ever  ready  smile  and 
cheerful  face  greet 
him  on  every  occasion, 
and  whose  quiet,  will- 
ing, enthusiastic  help 
is  never  wanting  to 
second  his  endeavours. 
How  much  I  person- 
ally owe  to  the  splen- 
did nurses  I  have  met 
can  never  be  told ;  to 
yon.  Nurses  and  iSis- 
ters,  I  owe  a  great 
part  of  any  success  I 
may  have  attained, 
and  the  memories  of 
the  anxious  days,  the 
strenuous  days,  the 
joyfully  victorious  days 
we  have         passed 

through  together  will 
remain  with  me  al- 
ways. If  I  can  pass 
on  to  your  successors 
some  of  the  things  you 
have  taught  me,  I 
shall  but  have  acknow- 
ledged part  of  my  debt  to  you." 

In  his  preface.  Mr.  Bishop  also  expresses  his 
thanks  to  Miss  Beard,  Matron  of  Ancoats  Hospital, 
for  many  points  which  might  otherwise  have  been 
overlooked. 

In  the  lecture  on  the  '"  History  of  Antisepsis  and 
Asepsis,"  describing  the  conditions  of  hospital  gan- 
grene, and  pysemia.  the  former  of  which  "a  nurse 
traiaed  at  the  present  day  is  unlikely  to  see,  the 
author  .says  :  —  "" 

"  So  bad  were  the  results  obtained  in  hospital  iir 


COSTUME    OF    A    THEATRE    SISTER    PREPARED 
FOR    OPERATION. 
Note     the     sterilised     cap     enclosing     the     hair,     thi 


sterilised    gov^ 


those  times  that  the  word  "hospitalism"  was. 
coined  to  express  the  special  danger  which  all 
patients  ran  who  entered  them,  whilst  it  was  pro- 
posed to  do  away  with  surgical  hospitals  altogether, 
and  to  substitute  for  them  tents,  or  small  cast  iron 
cottages,  capable  of  being  occasionally  taken  down, 
cleansed  and  reconstructed.  I  have  myself  seen 
tlie  green  surrounding  the  old  infirmary  site  at 
Manchester  covered  by  wooden  huts  to  accommo- 
date and  isolate  surgical  patients." 

The  author  proceeds 
to  deal  with  methods 
of  sterilisation,  and 
then  follows  a  lectxire 
1)11  altruism,  not  often 
included  in  a  book  of 
tliis  nature,  but  very 
necessary  to  success  as 
a  nurse.  '"  Put  your- 
self in  his  place,'' 
which  is  the  real  mean- 
ing of  altruism,  should 
become  a  sub-conscious 
working  motto,  which 
will  carry  a  nurse  over 
many  difiBcult  places. 
;Mr.  Bishop  considers 
that  (isepsis,  altruism, 
and  (ihitity  should  be 
the  three  watchwords 
of  everyone  who  desires 
to  attain  success  in 
surgical  nursing. 

The  charming  pic- 
ture of  a  Theatre  Sis- 
ter which  forms  the 
frontisijiece  to  the  book 
will  surely  inspire  all 
nurses  to  secure  and 
r.ad  a  copy.  Of  the 
Tlieatre  Sister  the 
author  says: — "On 
her  depends  mainly  the 
credit  of  the  hospital 
operative  work.  If  she 
is  competent,  conscien- 
tious, and  trustworthy 
she  has  it  in  her  power 
to  raise  the  reputation 
of  the  hospital  to  its 
highest  point.  If  she 
is  careless  or  incompe- 
tent, she  is  equally  able 
to  «  reck  the  most  bril- 
liant work  of  the  best 
living  operator.  Xo  responsibility  can  be  greater 
than  that  which  devolves  upon  her,  and  conse- 
quently no  one  should  have  more  implicit  confi- 
dence reposed  in  her,  or  be  allowed  more  absolute 
control  of  those  under  her  orders." 

The  duties  of  a  nurse  in  the  theatre  are  described 
in  detail,  and  may  be  studied  with  advantage.  In 
connection  with  the  nurse's-  thities  during  the  re- 
covery of  a  patient  from  ansesthetisatiou  we  doubt 
if  it  is  often  necessary  for  her  to  bend  over  the 
bedstead  and  grip  the  opposite  framework  with 
both  hands  to  restrain  the  patient. 


es,    and    tennis    shoes. 


-Tail.  1,  1910] 


^bc  Brttlsb  3ounial  ot  THiu-smo. 


15 


Z\K  Daniel)  Council  of  IHuvscs." 

By   ilRS.    HeXXY   TSCIIERNIXG. 

I  onsiJer  it  a  great  privilege  to  be  present  to- 
■  lay  as  a  representative  for  DiMiish  nurses.  We 
liist  want  to  bring  our  tlianks  to  the  Committee  for 
adr.iitting  our  unioji  to  the  Intejnatioual  Council 
o''  Nurses. 

The  Danish  Council  of  Nurses  was  founded  in 
1899,  and  shortly  after  we  received  an  invitation 
to  join  the  International  Council;  but  we  thought 
it  our  duty  to  refuse  tliis  honour  nntil  our  union 
to  some  extent  had  proved  its  right  of  existence. 
But,  after  fully  ten  years  of  experience,  we  feel 
nintident  that  our  union  has  been  a  useful  tool  in 
the  work  for  improving  tlie  conditions  of  the  nurs- 
ing profession,  and  to-day  we  gladly  accept  your 
invitation.  I  hope  that  the  following  short  report 
of  our  work  will  give  you  the  impression  that  we 
are  not  quite  unworthy  of  joining  the  International 
Council  of  Nurses.  The  chief  aim  of  the  Danish 
Council  of  Nurses  has  been  to  improve  the  training 
of  nurses. 

First  of  all.  a  three  years"  course  was  made  the 
oor.dition  for  being  admitted  as  ordinary  member 
to  the  C<juncil.  As  the  training  was  often  one- 
sided, the  Council  helps  the  nurses  to  supplemen- 
tary courses.  As  other  features  of  the  work  can  be 
mentioned  a  bureau  where  nurses  can  register  for 
private  duty;  courses  in  diet  cooking  for  nurses; 
monthly  meetings  for  the  members,  partly  instruc- 
tive, partly  social ;  a  sick  club,  including  a  fund 
to  cover  funeral  expenses:  a  home  for  convalescent 
or  tired  nurses  in  one  of  the  prettiest  parts  of  the 
country  near  Copenhagen,  where,  on  very  moderate 
terms,  ihey  can  spend  theii-  vacation.  AVe  also 
have  our  own  fortnightly  Journal  of  Nursing, 
which  is  distributed  to  every  member  of  the 
■Council. 

At  the  same  time,  steady  work  is  carried  on  to 
improve  the  social  position  of  nurses.  Most  of  our 
membersagree  in  considering  a  homogencon- train- 
ing, with  subsequent  State  registration,  a  neces- 
sity. Several  applications  having  been  made  to 
the  Secretary  of  .State,  and  the  Board  of  Health  has 
taken  charge  of  the  matter,  which  probably  will  be 
ilealt  with  in  the  coming  year.  .  1  wish  to  mention 
that  the  midwives  several  years  ago  have  obtained 
registration. 

There  is  with  the  medical  profession,  as  well  as 
witli  the  public ;  a  general  feeling  of  sympathy  for 
this  examination,  but  there  is  another  question, 
which  has  been  met  with  a  great  deal  more  opjiosi- 
tiou,  namely,  the  a|)iiointment  of  Matrons  in  the 
larger  hospitals.  Still,  we  sincerely  hope  to  suc- 
ceed also  on  this  point,  as  ive  feel  convinced  that 
a  thorough  and  systematic  training  of  nur.ses  ninst 
necessitate  the  aiipointment  of  Matrons. 

The  oldest  hospital  in  Copenhagen,  "  The  Koyal 
Frederichs  Hospital,"  will  be  torn  down  next 
year,  and  be  replaced  by  a  beautiful,  entirely 
modern  institution,  called  "'  The  State  Hospital,"' 
with  which  will  be  connected  a  training  school  for 
nurses.  A  definite  plan  for  its  arrangement  has 
not  been  made  as  yet,  but  we  cannot  but  hope  that 
■*  Presented   to    the     Tnternational     Council    of 

V.,..,.    ,^      I         .,.1,.,,  (.,!..       l.,fl<l 


in  one  way  or  other  a  matron  will  be  put  at  tho 
head  of  the  nurses. 

"The  Municipal  Hospital"  of  CopenLageu  has 
made  an  attempt  at  a  training  school  by  giving  its 
pupils  some  theoretical  teaching,  ending  with  an 
examination.  In  connection  with  the  hospital  has 
been  built  a  i)retty  nnrses'  home,  which  greatly 
adds  to  the  daily  comfort  of  the  nurses.  But  this 
hospital  has  not  a  Matron,  either. 

In  the  suburb  Frederiksberg,  which  has  its  own 
municipality,  has  been  built  a  large  and  lieautifiil 
hospital,  where  the  pupil  nurses  get  a  systematic 
practical  training,  under  the  direction  of  a  Ma- 
tron. But  theoretical  instruction  is  not  given,  and 
no  examination  is  held. 

I  have  been  asked  to  give  some  information 
about  the  Danish  woman  in  i)olitical  life.  There 
is,  in  our  days,  a  strong,  although  quiet,  ix)litical 
and  social  interest  among  Danish  women.  It  is 
not  very  aggressive,  but  steady  and  energetic  work 
is  carried  on  to  get  to  the  final  aim — full  woman 
suffrage. 

The  first  step,  the  municipal  franchise,  has  been 
reached,  and  we  consider  it  a  good  omen  for  the 
future  of  the  nursing  profession  in  Denmark  that 
the  woman  candidate  proposed  by  our  union  was 
elected,  and  is  now  a  member  of  the  Town  Council 
of  Copenhagen.  Being  a  late  nurse — now  the  wife 
of  a  physician — she  fully  understands  and  values 
the  interests  of  the  niirsing  profession. 

During  the  last  election  for  Parliament  all  the 
candidates  were  asked  by  women  as  to  their  atti- 
tude towards  the  different  women's  questions.  By 
the  Danish  Council  of  Nurses  they  were  questioned 
about  State  Registration  for  Nurses,  and  several 
of  the  candidates  treated  the  matter  with  con- 
siderable interest. 

You  will  understand  that  even  if  Danish  nurses, 
as  well  as  Danish  women  ujjon  the  whole,  have  not 
yet  made  any  very  great  progress,  we  feel  that 
the  work  done  has  not  been  in  vain.  And  we  look 
forward  into  the  future  with  the  grand  and  beau- 
tiful optimism  of  those  who  fight  for  a  good  and 
noble    cause. 

Carols. 

A  quite  charming  collection  of  carols  has  been 
made  by  Miss  Edith  Kickert  in  "Ancient  Engush 
Christmas  Carols.  1400-1700."  to  which  she  ha.i 
written  an  interesting  introduction.  A  few  modern 
carols  are  added.  How  exquisite  are  the  following 
line;  of  Oiristina  Rossetti:  — 

Enough   for   Him   wliom   C"herubim 

Woi-sliip  night  and  day. 
.\   lireiivttid  of  milk 

.\iid  a  mangerful  of  hay  ; 
iMuuigh  for  Him  whom  angels 

l'"all  down  before. 
The  ox  and  ass  and  camel 

AVIiich  adore. 

.\i':rels  and  archangels 

May  have  gathered  there. 
Ch'Mi'ihim  and  seraphim 

Thronged  the  air; 
Buf  oidy  Hifi  mother 

111  her  maiden  bliss 
AVi-r^hippFd  ihr  Beloved 

\V:--    ■■ 


16 


CDC  British  journal  of  IRurstng. 


[Jan.  1,  1910- 


©utsi^c  tbc  6ates. 

WOMEN. 

Mis^  .Mary  Higgeiis,  ol 
liiouiUn-.  Kent,  who  die<l 
on  November  9tli,  iias 
left  the  residue  ot  hei- 
estate,  amounting  to 
over  £12,000,  to  Girton 
College,  C!ambridge,  tor 
the  foundation  of  scholar- 
tshiijs  of  the  annual  value 
of  £40  each,  to  be  known  as  the  "  Higgens " 
Scholai-shiix.  We  are  alnay-s  pleased  to  see  women 
leaving  money  for  education  instead  of  philan- 
thropy. More  of  the  former  means  less  need  of 
charity. 

A  Woman's  Guild  has  recently  been  established 
in  connection  with  the  British  Medical  Benevolent 
Fund,  to  f>iipplement  the  money  grants  by  gifts  of 
clothijig.  coals,  and  other  additional  comforts,  and 
by  personal  service  to  add  a  warmer  touch  of 
human  sympathy. 

Mis^  Etliel  Mary  Nucella  Williams,  M.D.,  has 
been  apix)inted  by  His  Majesty  in  Council,  one  of 
the  six  members  of  the  Seiiaie  of  Durham 
University. 

The  Parliamentary  election  is  at  hand,  and 
thousands  of  .women  witli  ardent  and  rightful  self- 
confidence  will  fling  themselves  into  action.  Never 
in  any  previous  election  have  women  come  out  so 
well  equipped  for  battle  or  for  so  great  a  cause. 
This  time  they  are  to  fight  for  the  emancipation  of 
the  serfs,  and  no  longer  as  a  sex  for  .self-interest, 
as  per,souifie<!  in  the  men  to  whom  they  are 
attached.     Good  luck  to  them. 


Bool?  of  tbe  Mecf?. 


The  still  small  voice  i.s  beginning  to  whisi>er  to 
that  mon.ster  Federation  of  Women's  Clubs  in  tlie, 
-United  States.  Two  subjects  have  long  been 
tabooed — social  purity  and  suffrage.  They  Rang 
together.  They  have  now  taken  tlieir  place  on  pro- 
grammes and  discu.ssions  as  vital  topics  of  concern. 
What  is  even  more  hoi)eful,  governors,  or  mayoi's. 
State  and  city  officials,  and  men  connected  with 
educational  and  social  movements  of  national  re- 
nown, aie  advocating  woman's  sufifrage  as  an 
element  necessary  to  civic  improvement.  Just  want 
a  bit  of    ■■  mother  "    in  everything. 


The  Siidiii'ij  Morniny  Herald  says:  "The  in- 
fluence of  the  women's  vote  has  made  itself  felt  in 
Australia,  and  in  every  instance  the  tendency  of 
it  has  been  to  elevate  the  tone  of  politics.  In  such 
matters  as  the  temperance  and  gambling  questions 
the  effect  of  the  women's  vote  was  almost  imme- 
diately discernible   in  the  State." 

About  six  months  ago  the  Governors  of  the  Dis- 
trict Infirmary,  Ashton-under-Lyne,  decided  to 
appoint  a  lady  doctor  as  assistant  house  surgeon. 
The  exijeriment  has  proved  an  unqualified  success, 
and  her  services  are  as  much  appreciated  by  the 
men  as  by  the  women.  A  good  example  to  Man- 
chester. 


THE  CARAVANERS.* 

There  is  a  vein  of  humour,  subtle  and  keen,  run- 
ning through  the  whole  volume.  The  story  is  toKJ 
by  tbe  Baron  Otto  von  Ottringel,  an  egoist  of  the 
purest  type.  He  writes  the  narrative  of  his  ex- 
periences with  the  intention  of  eventually  reading 
them  aloud  to  a  select  circle  of  friends,  but,  as 
time  goes  on,  allows  himself  such  frankness  of 
expression,  that  he  feels  much  he  says  must  be 
omitted. 

In  drawing  his  self-revelation,  the  author  gives  a 
most  unpleasing  presentiment  of  one  phase  of 
German  character ;  at  any  rate,  it  would  strike- 
the  ordinary  English  reader  as  unpleasant.  At 
the  same  time,  the  Baron  passes  many  scathing 
remarks  on  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  Eng- 
lish, amongst  whom  for  a  short  time  he  finds  him- 
self— remarks  which  in  sinne  cases  have  a  great 
deal  of  truth  in  them. 

Baron  Otto  is  a  major  of  artillery,  stationed  at 
Storchwerder,  a  dull  country  town,  as  full  of  gossip 
and  prejudice  as  any  country  town  in  this  land 
might  be.  He  is  married  for  the  second  time,  and 
is  arranging  for  a  holiday  to  celebrate  his  silver 
wedding.  His  first  wife  endured  his  somewhat 
arrogant  personality  for  nineteen  years,  when  an 
accident  caused  her  death.  A  year  of  enforced 
widowerhood  followed;  then  for  five  years  he  seems 
to  have  been  employed  in  moulding  Edelgard,  his 
second  wife,  into  wliat  a  |u-oper  German  wife 
.should  be.  It  matters  not  that  she  has  been  mar- 
ried to  him  only  five  years;  she  has  to  realise 
that  he.  having  done  his  best  to  keep  married 
twenty-five  years,  it  is  only  right  liis  silver  wed- 
ding should  l)e  kept.  Many  plans  and  places  are 
discussed  and  rejected  as  too  expensive ;  then  a 
neighbour,  Fran  Von  Eclrthum,  a  charming  young 
widow,  suggests  that  he  and  his  wife  should  go 
with  her  to  England,  where  she  has  a  married 
sister,  joining  their  caravan  ]iarty  for  a  month. 
She  says  it  is  cheap,  and  |i:iint-.  tin-  life  in  glowing 
colours.  The  lady  is  pntty  ;iiid  attractive;  so 
Baron  Otto  decides  to  visit  the  country,  which — 
after  having  been  in  it  a  short  time — he  speaks  of 
as   "  that  accursed  Island  across  the   Channel." 

The  departure  from  home  is  given  most 
amusingly.  On  the  first  of  ,\ugiist,  the  anniversary 
■  of  his  first  wedding  day.  they  leave  Germany.- 
After  many  difficulties  they  reach  the  spot  where 
the  caravans  aw  ait  them  ;  tliey  are  three-  in 
number — Fran  Von  Eckthnm  and  two  girl  friends 
in  one,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Menzies  Legh,  the  Baron, 
and  "  dear  wife  "  occupy  the  others.  Two  young 
men  who  live  in  a  tent  make  up  the  party.  The 
weather  was  certainly  not  auspiciotis  for  a  caravan 
trip;  the  constant  rain  and  wind  presented  Eng- 
land under  anything  but  an  attractive  aspect  tO' 
him.  Then,  being  "  geboren,"  he  fins  it  some- 
what difficult  to  assimilate  himself  with  English 
people,  who,  having  no  titles,  are  not  jn  his  esti- 
mation as  well  born  as  he  is.  His  self-assertive 
ignorance  leads  him  into  making  strange  mistakes. 

*  By  the  Author  of  "  Elizabeth  and  Her  German 
Gardetx."    (Smith  Elder.) 


Jan.  1,  19111 


^bc  Britisb  3ournal  of  ittursino. 


He  is  told  one  of  tlie  young  men  is  Browne,  going 
into  the  Church,  the  other  is  a  Socialist  M.P. 
He  cannot  understand  how  a  member  of  the  clergy 
can  be  received  ou  an  equal  footing.  Being  u 
Conservative,  the  Socialist  is  abhorrent  to  liim. 

Great  is  his  dismay  when  he  learns  that  Browno 
is  a  Lord,  son  of  a  l)uke;  his  subseq\ient  attempts 
to  ingratiate  himself  are  almost  patlietic. 

If  life  in  a  caravan  is  anything  like  what  he 
describes,  the  discomfort  must  be  so  intense,  that 
no  one  having  read  the  book  would  be  tempted  to 
try  a  like  experience.  From  his  point  of  view,  any 
too  intimate  acquaintance  between  Germans  and 
English  lead  to  a  sad  deterioration  in  the  former. 
His  amazement  and  disiJleasnre  at  Edelgard's  par- 
tial emancipation  from  marital  leading  string  is 
great.  He  adores  his  country  and  all  her  ways; 
his  King  and  his  views  are  admired  and  believed 
in.  Having  paid  for  a  month,  he  is  pre])ared  to 
endure  to  the  end ;  not  so  the  rest  of  the  party — 
one  by  one  they  give  up  the  trip  with  various 
excuses.  "What  have  you  done  to  them?"  asks 
the  puzzled  Edelgard. 

The  plot  is  naturally  slight,  but  the  book  is  one 
to  be  read  with  enjoyment,  and  for  reading  aloud 
cannot  easilv  be  surpassed. 

E.  L.  H.     . 

[Our  reviewer  has  dealt  mercifully  with  this 
odious  egoist,  the  Baron.  He  is  not  only  a 
"  bounder  "  but  a  bnlly,  and  his  species  is  by  no 
means  extinct  even  in  what  he  dubs  this  pcrfidc 
isle,  "The  Caravaners  "  is  the  most  convincing 
'suffrage"  tract  which  has  ever  been  written — as 
:i  New  Year's  gift  to  the  "  antis  "  it  should  have 
ii  most  salutary  and  chastening  effect.  AVe  wish 
them  no  worse  fate  than  to  become  mine  frau  to 
a  Baron  von  Ottringel.- — Ed.] 


letters  to  tbe  CDitor. 


Whilst  cordially  inviting  com-- 
munications  upon  all  lubjecli 
fiiT  tliKse  columns,  u-e  wish  it 
to  he  distinctly  understooa 
that  u-e  do  not  is  any  was 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  out 
correxpondents. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

■January  4th  and  5th. — St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital. Christmas  Entertainment  for  the  Resident 
Hospital  Staff,  8  p.m. 

January  6th. — Charing  Cross  Hospital.  The 
Nursing  and  Resident  .Staff  At  Home.  Music.  Tea 
;ind  coffee.     7. .30  to  11  p.m. 

.January  7th. — Ix>ndo)i  Homoeopathic  Hospital, 
W.C.  The  Matron  and  Nursing.  Staff  At  Home. 
Music.     Tea  and  coffee.     8  to  11  p.m. 

January  12th. — Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh. 
Lecture  on  Operations  on  the  Stomach  and  Intes- 
tines. Preparations  and  After-Nursing.  By  Pro- 
fessor Alexis  Thomson,  F.R.C.S.E.  Extra-Mural 
Medical  Theatre,  4.30  p.m.  Nurses  cordially  in- 
vited. 

January  20th. — Meeting  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee of  the  National  Council  of  Nurses  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland.  To  form  committees  to  fur- 
ther the  Resolutions  passed  at  the  International 
Congress  of  Nurse-;,  431,  Oxford  .Street.  I>ondon. 
W..   J   p,m. 

WORD  FOR    THE  WEEK. 
Again   the   silent  wheels  of   Time   their    annual 
round  have  driven. 

Keep  your  face  always  towards  the  sunshine, 
ml  shadows  will  fall  behind  vou. 


CHRISTMAS  LONDON. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  y'ursing." 
Dkar  M.sd.\m, — I  have  i-ead  with  interest  this 
sketch  in  the  Journal,  and  should  like  to  inform 
your  readers  that  "  Matron  "  is  under  a  misappre- 
hension as  regards  workhouse  wards.  As  a 
'  workhouse  midwife,  I  can  assure  them  that  wo 
also  surround  all  patients — virtuous,  unfortunate, 
and  undeserving — with  "every  care  and  comfort." 
No  expense  is  spared,  and  thoy  are  attended  day 
and  night  by  a  certified  midwife,  and  are  under  the 
care  of  the  medical  officers.  Nursing  requisites, 
diet,  and  laundry  are  all  on  the  most  liberal  scale ; 
the  wards  are  beautifully  kept,  arranged,  and 
decorated — flowers,  plants,  and  draperies.  Matron 
and  officers  show  every  kindness  and  tact  in  dealing 
with  all  inmates.  Moreover,  "  Go  and  sin  no 
more  "  surely  does  not  imply  that  the  sin  was  the 
responsibility  of  an  iniquitous  landlord  ?  Are  we 
not  too  ready  now  to  i)ass  on  the  responsibility  of 
our  sins  to  ancest<jrs,  "human  nature,"  land- 
lords ^^  While  showing  love  and  pity  to  the  sinner, 
let  us  beware  lest  we  indirectly  encourage  self- 
indulgence  and  sexual  immorality — not  only  on 
religious  and  ethical  grounds.  We  who  see  the 
sins  of  the  parents  visited  on  the  children  cannot 
but  think  even,  it  may  be,  at  the  cost  of  a  little 
of  the  so-called  charity,  that  it  were  better  to 
teach  "self-knowledge,  elf-reverence,  self-control." 
The  knowledge  of  evil,  regrettable  as  it  is  for  the 
children,  is  not  sin,  and  it  may  be  their  safeguard. 
It  is  indulgence  and  self-indulgence  that  are  our 
destruction.  Hard  as  it  may  be,  strong  as  the 
temptation  is,  our  youug  men  and  young  women 
can,  if  they  will,  be  pure ;  but  the  children  so 
often  are  not  brought  up  to  "  will,"  and  it  is  our 
weakness  and  moral  irresolution  that  are  our  ruin 
and  the  cause  of  the  degeneration  of  the  race  and 
nation — not  the  landlords,  ancestors,  or  "  human 
nature."  By  all  means,  let  us  try  to  bring  about 
better  social  conditions,  but  also  let  us  try  to 
raise  the  moral  tone  of  the  age  by  taking  the 
responsibility  of  our  own  sins  and  realising  our 
own  individual  power  of  resistance. 
I  am. 

Yours  truly, 

A  Cebtified  Midwife. 
[We  have  referred  this  letter  to  the  writer,  who 
informs  us  that  our  correspondent  has  missed  its 
l)oint,  which  was  not  to  cast  any  slur  on  the  work- 
house ward,  but  to  show  the  injustice  of  regarding 
one  woman  with  a  marriage  certificate  of  a  few 
months'  duration  as  one  who  should"  be  treated 
with  honour,  and  another,  whose  sin  was  no  more 
and   no  loss,   as  a  moral   outcast.      She  still   is  of 


18 


(Tbe  Brltisb  3ournal  of  murstng. 


[Jan.  1,  1910 


opinion  that  where  tlie  liousing  conditions  are  such 
that  boys  and  girls  are  inevitably  brought  into 
contact,  "  unseemly  in  its  closeness,"  the  greater 
responsibility  for  the  immorality  resultihg  belongs 
to  the  landlords.  The  chief  point  emphasised  in 
the  story  was  that  the  stigma  of  birth  in  a  work- 
house ward  clings  to  a  child,  and  places  him  or 
5ier — especially  her — at  a  disadvantage  through 
life.  The  innocent  child  is  saved  from  this  if  born 
in  a  maternity  home. — Ed.] 

THE  ELIZABETH   FRY  LEAGUE 

To  ihr.  Editor  oj  the  "British  Journal  of  Nursinci." 

Dear  M.\dam, — My  deep  interest  in  the — to  my 
mind — greatest  cause  of  the  day,  I  mean  the  sacred 
cause  of  the  enfranchisement  of  women,  has  so 
often  led  my  thoughts  to  Holloway  and  othe^ 
prisons  where  many  brave  women  have  undergone, 
not  only  unjust  imprisonment,  but  the  cruelty  of 
forcible  feeding  by  unskilled  and  untrained  people, 
that  a  realisation  has  come  to  me  of  the  necessity 
of  a  higher  standard  of  training  for  j^rison  officials. 
I  read  your  article  on  the  proposed  "  Elizabeth 
Fry  League  "  therefore,  with  great  interest.  In 
speaking  of  "  the  great  mother  spirit  in  her  " — 
Elizabeth  Fry — you  touch  the  whole  psychological 
spot  of  all  reform.  Is  it  not  the  mother  .spirit 
in  women — the  mothers  of  the  race — that  inspires 
them  with  the  desire  to  improve  social  condition.s 
and  uplift  the  human  race?  Is  it  not  this  that 
makes  ''our  hearts  burn  within  us"  when  we  see 
so  much  that  is  wrong  in  the  world,  and  lonji  to  put 
it  right?  Again  you  touch  the  .spot  exactly  whfn 
you  say  "  that  the  essence  of  Elizabeth  Fry'.s  teacli- 
ing  was  healing  of  body  and  spirit,''  and  you 
rightly  put  lx)dy  first,  for  the  healing  of  the  soul 
and  spirit  must  come  after,  or  together  with  the 
healing  of  the  body. 

Elizabeth  Fry,  who  saw  the  necessity  of  this,  w^as 
in  advance  of  her  day.  It  se^m.s  to  me  that  we  are 
only  jii.st  beginning  to  realise'  that  this  is  the 
fundamental  principle  underlying  all  true  reform. 

Wlien  we  get  State  Registration  nui-sing  will  be 
a  profe*;ion  recogni.sed  by  the  State.  Being  there- 
fore fortified  liy  legal  status,  could  we  not  appix)ach 
the  Home  Secretary  to  aid  us  in  the  scheme  yon 
admirably  sugge.st  of  co-ordinating  prison  work  with 
nursing?  I  feel  sure  the  prospective  Elizalx'th  Fiy 
League  will  interest  all  Devonshire  Square  nur.ses. 
One  of  them — a  friend  of  mine — picked  up  the 
Journal  containing  your  article,  and  read  it  with 
great  delight. 

Good  luck  to  your  scheme! 
Youns  truly. 

Bf-.^thice  Kent. 


Comments  an?)  TRcplics. 

M-iva  Edmunds. — The  private  nurse  of  to-day 
needs  many  qualifications  besides  medical  and  sur- 
gical training  in  the  wards  of  a  general  hospital. 
One  of  the  most  useful  specialities  to  taj<e  up  is 
mental  nursing,  as  nurses  with  general  and  mental 
training  are  much   in   demand. 


Pupil  Midwife. — The  points  to  remember  in 
dressing  a  baby's  cord  are  that  the  ligature  must 
be  secure,  it  must  not  be  dragged  upon,  and  it 
must  be  kept  aseptic.  Scissors  and  ligatures  must 
be  surgically  clean,  and  the  object  of  any  dressing 
applied  should  be  to  keep  the  cord  dry.  There  i& 
rarely  any  trouble  with  a  cord  so  treated. 


IRotices. 

RULES  FOR   PRIZE  COMPETITIONS. 

Pk,\cth'al  Points. 

We  offer  a  Prize  of  5s.  for  the  best  Practical 
Point  i>aragraph  of  from  100  to  200  woi'ds,  to  reach 
the  Eclitor,  at  20  L'pper  Wimpole  Street,  London, 
W.,  not  later  than  Saturday,  .January  15th  inst. 

Paragraphs  sent   in,  other    than    that  to   which 
the  prize  is  awarded,  and  thought  worthy  of  pub- 
lication, will  be  paid  for  at  the  usual  i\ates. 
The  Neatest  Nurse  Photograph. 

Wo  offer  10s.  for  a  photograpli  of  a  nui-se  in 
uniform,  neatness  to  be  the  test  of  excellence,  with 
permission  to  publish  the  same.  The  photographs, 
must  reach  the  Editor  not  later  than  Saturday, 
January  22nd.  Photographs  sent  which  do  not  win 
the  prize  will  be  returiied. 

An  Article  on  a  Practical  Nursing  Subject. 

We  offer  £1  10s.  for  an  article  dealing  with 
Practical  Nureing  of  from  1,400  to  1,500  words,  to 
reach  the  Editor  not  later  than  Saturday,  January 
29th.  By  arrangement  with  competitors  ariicies 
other  than  that  to  which  the  Prize  is  aw-arded  may 
be  selected  for  publication. 

Each  competitor  must  enclose  her  name  and 
address  in   full. 


The  British  Journal  op  Nursing  is  the  official 
organ  of  the  following  important  Nursing  socie- 
ties :  — 

The  International  Council  of  Nurses. 

The  National  Council  of  Trained  Nurses  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland. 

The  Matrons"  Council  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland. 

The  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses. 

The  Registered  Nurses'   Society. 

The  School  Nurses'  League. 

As  their  official  organ  is  widely  read  by  the  mem- 
bers of  these  societies,  the  Editor  will  at  all 
times  be  pleased  to  find  space  for  items  of  news 
from  the  Secretaries  and  members. 

Exclusive  news  being  copyright,  papers  quoting 
from  our  columns  must  give  the  name  of  this 
journal  as  the  .source  of  their  information. 

THE  SOCIETY  FOR  THE  STATE  REGISTRA- 
TION  OF  TRAINED  NURSES 

Those  desirous  of  helping  on  the  important 
movement  of  this  Society  to  obtain  an  Act  pro- 
viding for  the  Legal  Registration  of  Trained 
Nurses  can  obtain  all  information  concerning  the 
Society  and  its  work  from  the  Hon.  Secretary,  4.31, 
Oxford  Street,  London,  W, 

OUR  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 

Rules  for  competing  for  the  Pictorial  Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


Jan.  1, 1010]    Zbc  British  3oiu-nal  of  IRursimj  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


19 


IT  be  Central  flDibwives'  BoarD. 

DECEMBER   EXAMINATION. 
List   of  .SriCE.ssh-ii.  Caniiid.xjks. 

At  the  exaiiiiiiatioii  ol  the  Central  MidHive.s' 
Board,  held  in  London  on  December  13tli,  1909, 
the  number  of  candidates  examined  was  281,  ol 
whom  239  passed  the  exaniinors.  The  percentage 
ot  failures  was  lo. 

London. 

hritish  Lyuifi-iii  Hospital. — .S.  Duly. 

( 'ity  of  London  Lying-in  Hospital. — £.  Fisher, 
A.  H.  Harwood,  D.  M.  Hawtin,  C.  E.  Heningham, 
R.  L.  McCowan,  A.  Rayiier.  H.  G.*Rieknian,  t' . 
Shephard,  F.  Simmoii.s,  G.  M.  Sinclair,  A.  F.  Slater, 
JI.  E.  Slat-er.  E.  M.  Stevens,  E.  M.  Thomson. 

i'lapKam  Mufrruity  Hospital.- — AL  P.  Campbell. 
F.  C.  Dunlop,  H.  A.  Foley,  X.  Jones,  >L  A.  L. 
Pinniger,  N.   J.  Tvpe. 

East  EndM'ithv'rs'  Home.—K.  .M .  Bishop,  .\.  .M. 
Blown,  J.  Davidson,  I.  M.  Heward.  A.  Madgwiek, 
M.  A.  Master. 

General  Lying-in  Hospital. — M.  C.  Browne,  A. 
Bylett,  J.  A.  Dykes.  R.  Gardner.  J.  L.  Griffiths.  J. 
L.  Hirst,  A.  Oliver,  S.  E.  C.  Stewart. 

(ivy's  Institution. — A.  M.  Gautier,  C.  JI.  Han- 
cock, A.  Millard,  E.  L.  J.   Stephenson. 

(rreenwich  Union  Infirmary. — N.  Wells. 

Kensington   T'nion  Infirmary. — E.   A.  Mosdell. 

London  Hosiiital. — C.  Bagiiall,  N.  Beresford,  G. 
K.  Berry,  E.  Evans,  S.  J.  Hawkins.  I.  Keene,  M. 
A.  A.  Knight. 

Middlesex  Hospital. — E.  A.  Bannister,  G.  M. 
Jackson,  C.  M.  Jones,  C.  M.  S.  Nicol,  F.  Preston. 

.You?  Hospital  for  Women. — L.  A.  Northwood. 

(,'u«Kn  Oharlotte,'s  Hospital. — W.  H.  Burges,  M. 
St.  A.  Colwell,  E.  Dav,  R.  L.  Dodson,  F.  Dykes. 
C.  M.  aiwards.  M.  Hadland.  V.  V.  Hall,  W.  I. 
Hammond,  L.  M.  Higgins.  F.  Hoskins,  L.  P.  B. 
Law,  E.  F  Tyowings,  E.  S.  T^ncy,  S.  Matthew,s,  A. 
Miller,  A.  Richardson,  E.  Thomson. 

■  Regions  Beyond  "  Missionary  Union. — A.  B. 
Faher,   B.   M.  Perrin. 

Salvation,  .irmy  Maternity  Hospital. — A.  Booth, 
F.  M.  Brown,  E.  C'ix)mpton,  A.  George,  B.  Jordan, 
E.  Lutz,  E.  R.  Ste«dman,  S.  M.  Waller,  F.  Wright. 

Whitechopel  T'nion  Infirmnrt/. — E.  A.  Dewdnev. 
A.M.  Sago. 

Provinces. 

.Mderskot.  Lemisr  Mare/aret  Hospital. — A.  M. 
Knowle,s,  R.  J.  M.  T.  Wilson. 

Brighton  -md  Hove  Hospital  for  Women. — H.  S.' 
Brwhe,  M  H.  Davis,  M.  H.  Glover,  M.  H.  J.  Ham- 
mond, H.  J    McMath,  M.  C.  Payne,  I.  E.  Russell. 

Bristol  Royal  Infirmary. — M.  Curtis,  E.  Slade, 
E.  M.  M.  Tyack. 

('helienhom  District  Nursing  .Association.— M. 
W    Ralph. 

Croydon  Union  Infirmary. — R.  M.  Hook. 

Derby  Royal  Xnrsinq  .A.i.ioriation. — E.  L.  Bram- 
w.dl,  B.  A.  Britton,  E.  E.  .Sands.  A.  M.  Snook. 


Essex  County  Cottage  Nursing  Society. — E.  J. 
Ditcham,  A.  H.  Gill,  E.  J.  Jones,  F.  E.  Luther,  A. 
E.  Ockelford,  H.  K.  Parker,  L.  M.  Svmons,  A. 
Stan.lheid,  K.  Walthall,  M.  A.  Weston,  A.  Wood. 

Hull  Lying-in  l^'hurity. — F.  H.  Freeman. 

Liverpool  Workhouse  Hospital. — M.  G.  Taaffe. 

Nottingham  Workl^oiisc  Infirmary. — E.  M.  Car- 
nell,  M.  M.  Grafton,  J.  Mulligan. 

Rlaistow  Maternity  Charity. — M.  E.  W.  Bonni- 
mann,  M.  E.  Burton,  K.  M.  Busbridge,  A.  V. 
Collins,  M.  L.  Duncan,  L.  A.  Ferguson,  F.  B. 
Fidler,  L.  M.  Fox,  M.  French,  B.  Gration,  L.  S. 
Groves,  E.  A.  Hawke,  A.  Hunt,  G.  M.  Jonee,  R. 
Kite,  M.  A.  Mack,  J.  J.  McMillan,  L.  Pearson, 
H.  Price,  K.  Robinson,  M.  H.  Sheavyn,  A.  M. 
.Stock,  J.  F.  Tranter,  F.  E.  Walsh,  M.  Warn,  L. 
Young. 

■Sheffield,  Jessop  Hospital. — A.  M.  Ashley. 
Wales. 

Cardiff,   Q.V.J.N.I.~E.  J.  Goodman. 
Scotland. 

Aberdeen  Maternity  Hospital. — J.  Burr,  M. 
Templeton. 

Dundee  Maternity  Hospital. — J.  S.  Craig. 

Edinburgh  Royal  Maternity  Hospital. ^-E.  A. 
Addison,  B.  A.  Smith. 

Ireland. 

Dublin,       Rotunda      Hospital. — E.   GriflSth,    B. 
Lazarus,  A.   E.  Magill,  E.  M.  Parker. 
Private  Tuition. 

J.  M.  Bac-on.  L.  Bee-ston,  E.  Bickerdike,  A. 
Blevvctt,  C.  Brooker,  E.  A.  Brown,  I.  C.  Burnett,  B. 
Biirrell,  M.  E.  Butcher,  A.  E.  Carter.  K.  L.  C!hap- 
man,  M.  J.  Clayton,  K.  A.  Cogswell,  E.  F.  Colburn, 
L.  do  Ruch.  I.  Donald,  A.  M.  Donovan,  E.  R.  Ed- 
wards. G.  C.  Evans,  M.  E.  Farrar,  E.  F.  Francis, 

E.  S.  K.  Giiarini,  M.  E.  Handley,  A.  M.  Hathway, 
M.  M.  Headford,  E.  M.  Heaven,  V.  E.  D.  Hicks, 
L.  A.  Holbrook.  A.  M.  Howes,  E.  L.  I.saac,  M.  D. 
Jeffrey,  M.  C.  .Tones,  F.  Kennedy,  M.  M.  Kyte,  B. 
Lanca-ster,  A.  B.  Lane,  A.  M.  E.  Layton,  J.  A. 
Little,  E.  M.  M.  Lowe,  S.  McKelvey.  F.  Macrae, 
S.  A.  Malpas,  I.  L.  M.  Marks,  V.  H.  Mayne,  E. 
Merrimah.  B.  F.  Miles,  A.  M.  Mitchinson,  C.  Mur- 
ray, M.  E.  Nevice,  A.  C.  Penny,  E.  Phipps,  V.  S. 
Porter,  L.  E.  Preston,  L.  R.'  R<-dding.  E.  M. 
Restall,  E.  P.  Roberts,  R.  S.  Robson.  B.  E.  Sim- 
mons, J.  E.  Simmons,  A.  M.  Simpson,  O.  B.  M. 
Simpson,  M.  E.  Smith,  M.  J.  Smith,  A.  Stanford, 
H.  F.  Stewart,  L.  M.  Stoward,  M.  Svmee,  E. 
Thomas,  M.  A.  Thomas,  A.  J.  Tliorne,  M."  H.  Traf- 
ford,  E.  Tiegellas,  M.  M.  Turnbull.  E.  M.  Walker, 

F.  A.  Weatherby,  E.  J,  West,  E.  B.  Whiddett,  E. 
C.  White,  M.  R.  AVhite,  M.  E.  Williams.  R.  Wilson, 
P.  M.  Wood,  J.  L.  Wooldridge. 


We  regret  that  by  a  printer's  error  the  heading 
"Christmas  in  a  Maternity  Home"  should  have 
been  substituted  for  "  Christmas  in  a  Maternity 
Ward"  in  an  article  in  "The  Midwife"  in  our 
last  issue. 


■20 


^be  Britisb  journal  of  IRurslno  Supplement.    tJ^"  i-  i^k 


dveatment  of  Contiactet)  pelves. 


The  Laiirct,  in  an  interesting:  review  of  tlie 
medical  year,  jiives  tlio  folluwint:  snniniary  of  tlic 
most  modern  metlinds  of  treatin;;;  eoiitraiti'd 
pelves :  — 

With  the  gradnal  lowering  of  the  death-rate  after 
the  operation  of  classical  Csesarean  section,  to- 
gether with  the  development  of  pubiotomy  and  the  • 
introdnction  of  supra-symphyseal  Csesarean  section, 
our  methods  of  treating  cases  of  contracted  i>elves 
are  gradually,  but  surely,  undergoing  a  change. 
At  the  same  time  it  must  be  remembered  that  in- 
creasing experience  is  again  bringing  to  the  front 
the  teaching  of  some  of  the  greatest  masters  of 
obstetrics,  teaching  which  of  late  years  there  has 
been  a  great  tendency  to  forget — namely,  the  ex- 
treme importance  of  allowing,  whenever  possible, 
spontaneous  lalwur  to  occur  in  a  case  of  contracted 
pelvis.  In  a  most  interesting  paper  read  before 
the  Glasgow  Obstetrical  and  Gynaecological  Society 
Professor  F.  Schauta  laid  great  stress  upon  this 
point,  and  showed  that  in  his  clinic,  considering 
labours  at  full  term  only,  nearly  80  per  cent,  in 
cases  of  contracted  pelves  ended  spontaneously. 
Xot  only  did  they  end  spontaneously,  but  this  ter- 
mination gave  better  results  for  the  mother  than 
any  other,  and  better  results  for  the  child  as  com- 
pared with  any  other  method  of  treatment,  •  with 
the  exception  of  Cie«ai-ean  Jiection.  In  cases  of  con- 
tracted pelves  where  labour  took  place  in  a  lying- 
in  hospital  under  the  best  possible  surroundings  he 
recommended  the  following _lines  of  treatment. 
With  a  conjugate  of  above  8  centimetres  (3  i 
■nches)  there  is  a  possibility  of  spontaneous  delivery 
and  therefore  expectant  treatment  should  In- 
adopted.  In  cases  with  a  conjugate  under  8  centi- 
metres (3j  inches)  Cresarean  section  should  lie 
performed,  and  in  cases  with  a  conjugate  of  8-8; 
centimetres  (31 — 3s  inches)  hebosteotomy  is  to 
be  considered.  This  operation  %yith  a  conjugate  of 
8-81  centimetres  (3j  — 3i  inches)  would  be  an 
alternative  to  spontaneous  labour,  with  a  conjugate 
of  7\-8i  centimetres  (3— 3i  inches)  an  alternative 
to  Ca^sarean  section.  The  choice  would  be  deter- 
mined by  the  sjze  of  the  head,  the  character  of  the 
labour  jiains,  and  the  general  condition  of  the 
patient.  These  methods  should  be  regarded  as 
typical,  and  all  other  methods,  such  as  the  induc- 
tion of  premature  labour,  craniotomy,  version,  and 
the  application  of  forceps  to  the  head  above  the 
brim,  as  atypical,  and  only  to  be  undertaken  in 
special  circumstances.  These  conclusions  will  be 
received  with  some  hesitation  by  many  English 
practitioners,  but  they  are  interesting  as  the 
matured  views  of  an  obstetrician  of  great  experi- 
<'noe  and  of  much  eminence,  and  as  indicating  the 
trend  of  modern  treatment  in  these  cases.  Even  in 
this  country  at  the  present  day  the  indications  for 
Csesarean  section  are  becoming  wider  and  wider, 
and  while  hebosteotomy  has  made  but  little  head- 
way obstetricians  are  returning  to  the  teaching  of 
Smellie  and  Hunter,  and  are  at  last  abandoning 
the  dangerous  method  of  applying  forceps  to  the 
head  above  the  brim.  The  iiu.luction  of  premature 
labour  still  holds  its  own  in  England,  but  there  are 


not  lacking  signs  that  among  the  more  enterprising 
Scotch  and  Irish  schools  of  obstetricians  it  is  losing 
the  favour  it  once  had  in  the  treatment  of  con- 
tracted pelves.  A\'e  may  well  anticipate  for  the 
future  the  more  widespread  adoption  of 
hebosteotomy  and  Csesarean  section,  the  abandon- 
ment of  craniotomy,  except  on  the  dead  child,  and 
the  much  more  frequent  performance  of  Cesarean 
section  when  it  can  be  performed  as  an  operation 
of  election. 


Mb^  IRot 


One  would  imagine  that  there  was  a  "  corner  " 
in  midwives  in  Ijondon,  to  judge  from  the  evident 
and  ill-disguised  spirit  of  opposition  to  the  forma- 
tion- of  a  Michvives'  Union  upon  the  part  of  a 
certain  class  of  midwife  who  prefers  to  be  rejjre- 
sented  on  the  Midwives"  Board,  and  otherwise,  by 
a.  medical  practitioner.  This  reminds  one  of  the 
intolerant  K.B.N. A.  days.  Surely  the  midwives 
are  not  to  be  herded  and  hustled  in  the  same 
unbecoming  manner  as  were  the  nurses  in  the 
naughty  nineties?  The  temper  of  the  times  is 
changed — vastly  so,  and  we  hope  Mrs.  Robinson 
wnll  not  be  discouraged,  but  wUl  call  her  meeting 
at  a  convenient  season — at  a  convenient  place — 
when  we  feel  sure  it  will  be  largely  attended.  A 
British  Midwives'  Union  is  urgently  needed,  and 
should  be  organised  with  as  little  delay  as  possible. 
The  MiilirivKs'  Uecord  already  exists  to  voice  its 
needs. 


Zbc  prevention  of  3nfant 
flDortalltv> 

The  Conference  on  the  Prevention  of  Infant 
Mortality  recently  held  at  New  Haven,  U.S.A., 
was,  we  learn  from  the  Johns  Hopkins  Surses' 
AlunmcE  Magazine,  one  of  unusual  interest.  All 
sides  of  the  question  were  exhaustively  discussed — 
medical  prevention,  philanthropic  prevention,  and 
institutional  prevention.  All  the  speakers  em- 
l)hatically  iirotested  against  artificiarfeeding,  and 
the  general  opinion  seemed  to  be  that  with  jiroper 
care — "  proper  care  "  embodying  an  enormous 
range  of  possibilities,  medical,  philanthropic,  and 
connected  with  the  state  regulation  of  labour, 
trades,  etc. — ninety-nine  per  cent,  of  women  could 
nurse  their  children. 

The  prepared  foods  were  left  without  a  leg  to 
stand  upon  when  discussion  concerning  them  was 
ended.  The  o))inion  expressed  concerning  Milk 
Depots  was  that  "  the  educational  possihilifirs  of 
a  milk  depot  should  be  the  only  limits  to 'its  educa- 
tional responsibilitji/'  The  chief  function  of  a  milk 
clfspensary  sliould  be  to  become  a  centre  of  educa- 
tion, not  to  supply  a  milk  for  infant  feeding,  with 
the  possibility  of  making  mothers  depend  on  that, 
instead  of  nursing  their  children.  It  was  sug- 
gestetl  that  there  should  be  classes  and  demonstra- 
tions for  mothers,  and  "  little  mothers,"- and  that 
the  real  element  of  jjride  in  a  milk  dispensary 
should  be  the  large  attendance  of  nursing  niafhers, 
not  the  number  of  liabies  sujiplied  with  niodified 
milli. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

EDITED  BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK ^^^ 

XLIV. 


SATURDAY,  JANUARY  8,  1910. 


je&itorial. 


JUVENILE  OFFENDERS  AND  THE  LAW. 

The  humane  efiects  of  the  Children  Act, 
1908,  are  now  becoming  apparent,  and,,  in 
accordance  with  its  provisions,  an  (^rder  in 
Council  has  been  issued  providing  for  the 
separate  treatment  in  future  of  juvenile 
offenders  at  police-courts,  a  method  already 
in  force  in  Canada  and  Australia,  where  the 
benefits  of  separating  children  from  adult 
offenders  have  for  long  been  recognised, 
both  for  the  children  themselves  and  also 
for  the  State.  Children's  Courts  are  also 
provided  in  some  of  the  States  in  America. 
The  principle  underlying  the  establishm.ent 
of  the  Courts  is  that  child  offenders  must  be 
guarded  from  contamination  by  confirmed 
■criminals,  be  dealt  with  in  separate  courts 
as  a  means  to  this  end,  and,  if  possible,  have 
their  own  special  magistrates.  To  send  a 
child  to  prison  is  to  draft  him  at  once  into  the 
ranks  of  criminals,  from  which  it  is  almost 
impossible  for  him  to  escape  in  the  future, 
and  the  cruelty  as  well  as  the  unwisdom  of 
such  a  system  is  obvious. 

In  each  district  it  will  be  the  duty  of  the 
police  to  provide  special  houses  of  detention 
for  children,  which  will  be  kept  under  the 
■closest  supervision.  Children  under  the  age 
•of  si.xteen  may  also  be  released  on  bail  by  a 
police-officer  nf  the  rank  of  inspector.  By 
these  methods  it  is  hoped  to  check  juvenile 
offenders  at  the  outset  of  a  career  which 
might  easilj'  lead  to  a  life  of  crime,  without 
.disclosing  at  once  the  full  terrors  of  the  law. 

A  wise  provision  in  connection  with  the 
Children's  Courts  is  that  the  public  are  not 
to  be  admitted.  Those  present  will  bo  limited 
to  persons  interested  in  the  case  and  to  repre- 
sentatives of  the  Press. 

Aery  slowly — the  more  so  because  the 
mother  element  is  eliminated  from  the 
^•ounsels  of  the  nation — we  axe  learning  to 


be  more  humane  in  our  dealings  with  its 
children,  or  we  shoiild  not  for  so  long  have 
allowed  them  to  be  brought  up  in  our 
criminal  courts,  to  be  associated  with  con- 
firmed evil-doers,  and  handicapped  for  life 
Ijy  being  committed  to  prison. 

It  is  not  so  long  ago  since  we  used  to  hang 
children  for  most  trivial  offences,  and 
(during  the  late  Queen's  reign)  a  child 
of  nine  years  old — happily  reprieved  by  the 
gracious  mercy  of  the  Sovereign — was  sen- 
tenced to  be  hanged  for  poking  a  stick 
through  a  window  and  stealing  paint  worth 
2^d.  is  it  conceivable  that,  if  women  had 
had  a  voice  in  making  our  laws,  so  mon- 
strous a  sentence  would  have  been  passed 
on  a  little  child  for  so  trivial  an  offence  ?  It 
is  difficult  to  realise  that  a  judge  could  be 
found  to  pass  so  inhumane  a  sentence,  and 
that  no  one  had  sullicient  imagination  to 
realise  that  to  invoke  the  whole  terror  of  the 
law  for  the  punishment  of  a  child  for  the 
theft  of  a  few  pence,  was  to  bring  the  law 
itself  into  contempt. 

A  proposal  has  been  made  which  is  worthy 
of  consideration,  that  women  should  be 
added  to  the  police  force,  and,  as  the  natural 
caretakers  of  children,  should  perform  such 
police  duty  as  relates  specially  to  them.  It 
is  a  proposal  which,  if  carried  into  effect, 
should  work  well,  and  no  section  of  women 
would  l)e  better  qualified  to  fill  the  posts  so 
created  than  trained  nurses,  who  not  only 
have  had  experience  in  the  management  of 
children  in  hospital  wards,  but  who  would  be 
quick  to  recognise  symptoms  of  mental  de- 
ficiency which  might  bring  the  offender 
under  medical  treatment  rather  than  under 
the  stern  arm  of  the  law.  Any  nuree  in  such 
a  position  might  be  satisfied  that  she  was 
rendering  good  service  to  the  community. 
It  is  a  point  which  might  be  brought  to  the 
notice  of  the  J'Hizabetli  Frj'  League  when 
it  is  founded. 


^c  BritCsb  journal  of  IRursin^. 


[Jau.    8,   1910 


flDcMcal  fIDatters. 


RINGWORM. 

The  Lancet  has  doue  good  service  to  the 
community  by  inviting  two  thoroughly  com- 
petent demiatologists  to  inquire  mto  the  whole 
question  ol  ringworm,  its  prevalence,  influence, 
and  treatment  as  it  is  aSectiug  the  school- 
children of  the  jMetropolis. 

The  whole  report  should  be  studied  by  those 
specially  interested  in  the  question.  The  com- 
missioners say,  in  part: — "Much  has  been 
done  to  check  the  prevalence  of  parasites 
among  human  beings,  but  more  remains  to  be 
done.  The  risks  of  the  spread  of  infection  are 
especially  great  among  children,  for  they  are 
either  imaware  of  the  danger  of  contagion  or 
unwilling  to  undergo  the  restraint  which  pre- 
cautions entail.  The  spread  of  education  has 
resulted  iu  increased  facilities  for  the  spread 
of  contagious  diseases  amongst  children.  Thus 
it  has  come  to  pass  that  in  all  large  cities  the 
vegetable  parasitic  diseases  of  the  scalp  are 
widely  prevalent.  .  A  large  proportion  of  all 
children  are  affected  by  some  form  of  ring- 
worm, and  especially  are  the  children  of  the 
less  educated  classes  affected,  for  in  this  point 
it  must  be  recognised  that  the  less  educated 
are  really  representatives  of  lower  grades  of 
i-ivilisation.'* 

The  commissioners  2>roeeed  to  show  that 
with  the  recognition  of  the  necessity  for 
sequestration,  children  known  to  be  affected 
with  ringworm  were  excluded  from  the  schools, 
public  and  private.  The  weak  point  here  was 
that,  though  the  children  were  forbidden  to 
associate  with  their  fellows  in  the  schools  of 
the  country,  no  attempt  was  made,  or  hardly 
any  attempt  worthy  of  the  name  was  made,  to 
jjrevent  infected  children  from  associating  after 
school  hours  with  those  who  were  healthy. 
iNIeanwhile  the  infected  children  were  ex- 
cluded from  educational  facilities,  perhaps  for 
years. 

Dr.  James  Kerr,  the  medical  officer  of  the 
Education  Committee  of  the  London  County 
Council,  has  said :  "  The  extent  to  which  ring- 
worm prevails  amongst  school  children  at  the 
present  time  is  a  serious  handicap  to  about 
."i.OOO,  many  of  whom  have  been  compulsorily 
absent  from  the  school  for  periods  varying 
from  a  few  weeks  to  as  much  as  three  years. 
The  loss  of  education  sustained  by  these  chil- 
dren can  never  be  regained.  Calculations 
based  upon  an  examination  of  the  registers  of 
a  dozen  schools  taken  at  random  prove  that 
the  loss  of  grants  by  reason  of  absence  throligh 
ringworm  alone  amounts  to  €5,654  per  annum, 


so  that  any  methods  which  can  eradicate  this 
disease,  or  even  diminish  its  duration,  must 
not  only  be  welcomed  by  all  educationists  on 
behalf  of  the  children,  but  will  prove  to  be  an 
important  economic  factor.  The  argument  at 
one  time  put  forward  against  taking  the  matter 
in  hand  was  that  proper  treatment  was  not 
available,  and  that  the  only  treatment  which 
was  available  was  tedious  and  vei^y  uncertain, 
but  now  that  the  method  of  treating  this 
disease  by  X-rays  has  long  since  passed  the 
experimental  stage,  and  has  been  proved  to  be 
certain  and  rapid,  and  in  the  hands  of  experts 
absolutely  free  from  risks  of  any  kind,  any 
argument  against  the  adoption  of  this  method 
no  longer  holds  good." 

After  giving  details  of  the  result  of  treatment 
of  ring^\-orm  by  the  X-ray  method  in  various 
hospitals,  the  commissioners  say  : — "  We  may, 
therefore,  take  it  as  jiroved  from  the  evidence 
which  we  have  brought  forward^  and  which 
accords  with  the  opinion  of  2)ractically  all  der- 
matologists, that  at  the  present  time  the  X-ray 
treatment  is  the  most  certain  and  the  most 
rapid  method  of  treatment  of  ringworm  of  the 
scalp,  and  that  with  care  and  in  the  hands  of 
an  expert  no  danger  is  incurred.  This  being  the 
case,  it  has  to  be  detemiined  what  is  the  best 
method  of  applying  the  X-ray  treatment  to  the 
enormous  number  of  children  suffering  from 
ringwomi  who  now  attend,  or  rather  ought  to 
attend,  the  public  elementary  schools  of  London. 
Only  two  methods  can  be  suggested.  Firstly, 
the  work  may  be  undertaken  by  the  existing 
charitable  institutions  of  the  metropolis, 
or  secondly,  special  centres  might  be 
established  by  the  London  County  Council  to 
^deal  with  these  patients.  At  present  there 
have  to  be  dealt  with  not  merely  the  annual 
increase  in  the  cases  of  ringwonn  but  the  many 
cases  which  have  failed  to  recover  under  the 
older  methods  of  treatment.  At  the  present 
time  about  1,000  cases  yearly  are  added  to  the 
previously  existing  cases,  so  that  for  the  next 
few  years  arrangements  made  must  be  able  to 
deal  with  1,000  new  cases  yearly  in  addition  to 
the  5,000  cases  which  at  present  remain 
uncured.  .  .  .  The  establishment  of  four 
ringworm  centres  in  the  County  of  Lon- 
don, each  provided  with  two  coils  and  worked 
by  experts,  would  in  the  course  of  a  year  make 
a  very  appreciable  impression  upon  the  preval- 
ence of  the  disease,  and  would  probably  by  the 
end  of  the  third  year  reduce  it  within  incon- 
siderable limits.  For  calculations  based  upon 
500  consecutive  cases  show  that,  allowing  for 
school  holidays  and  for  carefid  treatment  of 
the  induction  coils,  each  centre  could  turn  out 
700  cured  cases  in  one  year." 


Jan.  8,  1910]        ^|^^.   ^jjiitisl?   3ournal   of  llAursmo. 


23 


Zbe  1Hur5C  in  ipiivatc  Ipractice.* 

THE   NURSE  S   POINT  OF  VIEW. 

Bv  Miss  Beatkice  Kekt. 
(Concluded  jrovi  page  J.i 
Economic. 
!•  roni  the  economic  aspect,  the  case  tor  the 
private  nurse  is  a  bad  one. 

Her  disabihties  in  this  respect  show  as  much 
as  anything  the  evils  of  disorganisation. 

The  ways  in  which  a  private  nurse  earns  her 
money  are  three,   namely:  — 

1.  By  joining  the  private  stafi  of  the  hos- 
pital where  she  was  trained. 

2.  By  joining  one  of  the  co-operative 
societies. 

3.  By  uureing  on  her  own  account  indepen- 
dently of  any  society. 

Xo  money  that  a  woman  earns  can  be,  in  the 
light  of  common  justice,  considered  adequate 
if  it  does  uot  admit  of  putting  by  for  old  age 
and  a  "rainy  day."  If  a  nurse  joins  the 
private  staff  of  the  hospital  where  she  has  been 
trained,  she  is  paid  a  salary,  commencing  at 
£30,  increasing  by  small  yearly  increments ; 
the  maximum  rarely  exceeds  £45.  This  is  not 
good  enough  if  the  nurse  be  fully  trained.  Of 
course  it  should  not  be  necessary  to  make  this 
proviso;  unfortunately,  however,  completion  of 
training  is  not  always  a  sine  qua  nan  for  enrol- 
ment on  the  private  nursing  start. 

There  are  hospitals  where  nurses  (those  pro- 
bably who  are  smarter  and  more  intelligent 
than  others),  who,  before  completion  of  their 
training,  are  so  exploited.  This  is  a  three-fold 
injustice.  It  is  an  injustice  to  the  sick,  who 
pay  for  a  trained  nurse  and  ought  to  have  one  ; 
to  the  probationer  herself  (for  she  is  not  yet  a 
nurse) ;  and  a  serious  injustice  to  the  trained 
nurse,  who  is  competing  with  her.  Cases 
attended  by  the  medical  staSs  of  such  hospitals 
should,  of  course,  be  reserved  for  certificated 
nurses.  Then,  too,  the  absorption  of  about  50 
per  cent,  of  the  nurses'  earnings  by  Hospital 
Committees  is  an  altogether  wrong  principle. 
The  only  fair  and  just  principle  for  the  em- 
ployers of  private  nurses  is,  in  my  opinion,  the 
co-operative  principle. 

By  joining  a  co-operative  society,  the  nurse 
earns  more  money  and  is  in  a  more  independent 
position :  provided  always  that  it  is  one  of 
those  that  are  worked  on  fair  and  honourable 
lines,  such  as  the  Registered  Nurses'  Society 
and  the  Nurses'  Co-operation,  both  of  which 
give  their  nurses  all  the  money  they  earn,  less 
.5  or  7i  per  cent,  for  working  expenses. 

But  if  a  nurse  joins  a  co-operative  society 

*  Read  at  the  Intern.Ttional  Congress  of  Nurses, 
London,  July,  1909. 


she  ought  also  to  co-operate  in  its  government. 
I  believe  the  Registered  Nurses'  Society  is  the 
only  one  where  the  nurses  are  adequately  re- 
presented on  the  Board,  as  they  are  members 
of  the  Society,  and  not  merely  members  of  the 
nursing  stafi. 

By  the  third  way  in  which  a  nurse  can  earn 
her  money — namely,  by  working  up  a  connec- 
tion for  herself — she  may  do  pretty  well,  pro- 
vided she  is  fortunate  enough  to  secure  a 
good  connection,  but  it  is  a  precarious  method. 
I  should  like  to  speak  for  a  moment  longer  of 
the  co-operative  .system.  If  managed  with 
equity  and  justice  to  the  nurse,  as  in  the  two 
well-known  cases  I  have  just  mentioned,  it  is 
an  excellent  system. 

There  are,  however,  a  great  many  small,  un- 
recognised private  co-operations,  managed — oi; 
I  should  say  jiifsmanaged — by  people  who 
know  little  or  nothing  of  nursing,  whose  former 
lives  have  not  fitted  them  for  this  work.  They 
have  no  sympathy  with  the  life  and  needs  of  a 
nurse;  the  term  is  misleading — they  do  not 
co-operate  with  the  nurses.  They  charge  them 
a  most  unfair  jjercentage — namely,  I'J.  15,  20, 
and  in  some  cases  even  25,  per  cent. !  These 
people  debase  the  nursing  profession  into  a 
mere  business  of  commerce  and  speculation. 
This  is  oppression — it  is  siveating.  Nurses 
cannot  cope  with  it. 

It  might  be  urged  that  nurses  should  not 
join  such  institutions.  My  answer  to  this  is. 
the  older  nurses  cannot  always  join  the  good 
co-operations ;  they  are  debarred  by  limitations 
of  age  and  lack  of  vacancies ;  but  that  is  a  side 
issue;  it  is  a  great  evil,  and  ought  not  to  exist. 
From  an  ethical  point  of  view,  this  sweating  is 
equally  mischievous.  The  anxiety  caused  by 
it  is  liable  to  deplete  the  energy  of  the  nurse 
and  crush  the  high  ideals  that  ought  to  domi- 
nate her  thoughts  and  life,  by  forcing  upon  her 
unduly  the  consideration  of  gain.  The  lawful 
gains  of  the  employer  and  employed  must  be 
considered,  but  I  am  dealing  with  the  indawful 
gains  df  the  employer. 

There  are  three  distinct  economic  disabilities 
from  which  private  nurses   suffer:  — 

First :  Unfair  competition  with  untrained 
nurses. 

Secondly  :  These  unmentionable  institutions 
to  which  I  have  refeiTed,  and  which  are  a  blot 
upon  the  escutcheon  of  the  profession. 

Thirdly :  Private  nurses  have  bad  debts 
sometimes,  like  doctors,  but  unlike  doctors 
they  have  no  Defence  Union. 

Xnd'  the  remedies? 

1.  Organisation  and  control  of  the  profession 
by  an  authority  appointed  by  the  State. 
,2.  The  establishment  of  a  Nurses'  Defence 
Union  for  more  purposes  than  one. 


•24 


Zbc  Briiisb  3ournal  ot  iHurstng. 


[Jan.   8,  1910 


I  think  the  principal  graces  required  in  a 
private  nurse  are  adaptability  and  tact — illimi- 
table tact — the  "  touch  faculty."  These  are, 
of  course,  embodied  iu  the  one  potent  word, 
i^nagination. 

She  requires  to  be  continually  re-adapting 
herself  to  new  characters  and  new  surround- 
ing ;  she  has  to  be  continually  re-moulding  her 
own  character  to  suit  the  diverse  characters  of 
her  patients.  For  instance,  the  attitude  that 
suits  ^Irs.  Jones  admirably  will  not  do  at  all 
for  Mrs.    Smith. 

The  private  nurse  needs  to  cultivate  the 
wisdom  of  the  sei-pent  with  the  hamilessuess 
of  the  dove,  in  order  to  gain  the  necessary  in- 
'  sight  into  character  and  knowledge  of  human 
■  nature.  Then  she  will  not  fall  into  the  error  of 
the  nurse  who  told  her  patient — a  cantankerous 
old  gentleman,  who  refused  to  take  his 
medicine  when  she  brought  it  at  the  precise 
moment  ordered — that  she  must  remain  there 
till  he  did  take  it.  Losing  his  temper,  he  took 
it  from  her  and  poured  it  on  the  floor  iu  front 
of  her !  Had  she  waited  for  the  psychological 
moment  to  offer  it,  she  would  probably  have 
won  him  over.  That  nurse  was  probably  very 
conscientious,  but  without  tact  or  wisdom. 

"  The  greatest  study  of  mankind  is  man," 
and  the  private  nurse  has  need  of  it  quite  as 
much  as  the  poet  and  the  novelist. 

I  would  urge  upon  all  would-be  private  nurses 
the  necessity  of  cultivating  their  minds.  In  a 
prolonged  illness,  followed  by  weeks  of  con- 
valescence, companionship  is  needed  quite  as 
much  as  skilled  nursing,  and  a  nurse  makes  a 
poor  companion  if  she  cannot  stretch  her  mind 
beyond  "the  blood  and  muscle  "  of  her  pro- 
fession. A  good  all-round  education  is  the 
private  nurse's  most  valuable  asset;  and  if 
Nature  has  endowed  her  with  a  pretty  wit,  so 
much  the  better.  A  nurse  in  private  i^ractice 
requires  to  be  a  good  conversationalist,  and  one 
cannot  converse  unless  one  reads  and  thinks. 
I  would  recommend  the  private  nurse  to  avail 
herself  of  any  and  every  opportunity  of  reading 
standard  works  of  prose  and  poetry,  also  the 
newspapers,  especially  the  leading  articles,  the 
best  professional  journals,  and  all  good  current 
literature.  If  a  nurse  has  the  taste  for  it,  she 
will  find  or  make  time  somehow.  I  believe, 
too,  that  a  good  deal  of  the  depression  that 
assails  jjrivate  nurses  might  be  combatted  by 
this  means,  besides  which  their  value  to  their 
patients  would  be  largely  increased.  They 
must  know  what  is  going  on  in  the  world. 

Those  long  weeks  which  two  peopje  pass  in 
such  close  companionship  can  be  productive  of 
much  mutual  pleasure  if  the  nurse  can  throw 
herself  easily  into  the  intellectual  pleasin-es  of 
her  patient.   There  is  no  intellectual  gift  that  a 


woman  can  possess  that  comes  amiss  in  jjrivate 
nursing. 

This  long  and  close  companionship  often 
begets  confidences,  too,  between  the  patient 
and  the  nurse.  The  sacred  duty  of  honourably 
guarding  such  confidences  I  need  scarcely  sug- 
gest; and  yet  there  are  some  who  are  careless 
iu  this  matter. 

One  often  hears  that  we  nurses  are  not  what 
we  were  a  decade  or  two  ago — in  other  words, 
that  we  have  fallen  from  our  ideal.  I  fear  we 
must  admit  that  there  is  some  truth  in  this. 
Bishop  Wescott  said:  "Ideals  are  the  very 
soul  of  life."  If,  therefore,  we  lose  the  vision 
of  our  ideal,  we  rob  the  profession  of  its  soul. 
I  think  this  deterioration  is  largely  due  to  the 
fierce  competition  that  at  present  rages — the 
trained  nurse  with  the  untrained  woman.  We 
shall  get  back  to  it,  I  am  sure,  for  better  times 
are  coming. 


prooress  of  State  IRcQistration. 

THE  CENTRAL  REGISTRATION  COMMITTEE. 

The  following  Medical  and  Nursing  Associa- 
tions have  accepted  Lord  Ampthill's  invitation 
to  appoint  delegates  to  attend  a  Conference 
when  it  is  hoped  that  a  "  Central  Registration 
Committee  "  may  be  definitely  organised  to 
support  a  Bill  for  State  Registration  of 
Nurses.  The  British  Medical  Association  has 
been  good  enough  to  place  the  Council 
Room  at  its  office,  429,'  Strand,  W.C. ,  at 
Lord  Ampthill's  disposal,  and  he  has  sum- 
moned a  meeting  for  Tuesday,  January  '25th, 
at  3.30  p.m. 

List  of  Delegates. 

Thr  British  Medical  Assiniatioii. — Sir  Victor 
Horsley,  F.R.S.,  F.R.C.S.,  Mr.  T.  Jenner  Ver- 
rall,  M.R.C.S.,  Brighton;  Dr.  J.  A.  Macdoiiakl, 
Taunton;  Dr.  R.  C.  Buist,  Dundee;  Mr.  J.  Smith 
Whitaker,  M.R.C.S.,  Medical  Secretary,  B.M.A. 

The  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and  In- 
land.— Miss  Isla  Stewart.  Matron  and  Superinten- 
dent of  Nursing,  St.  Bartlioloniew's  Ho.spital,  E.C.  : 
Miss  Heather-Bigg,  Matron,  Charing  Cross  Hos- 
pital, AV.C.  ;  Miss  G.  A.  Rogere,  Lady  Superinten- 
dent, The  Infirmary,  Leicester;  iliss  H.  Todd,  Ma- 
tron, Wandsworth  and  Clapham  Poor  Law  Infir- 
mary; Miss  M.  Mollett,  Matron,  Royal  South 
Hants  Hospital,   Southampton. 

The  Society  for  the  State  jRcriistration  of  Trained 
Nurses. — Dr.  Bedford  Fenwick,  Miss  Sidney 
Browne,  R.R.C.,  late  Matron-in-Chief,  Queen  Alex- 
andra's Imperial  Military  Nursing  Service ;  Miss 
H.  L.  Pearse,  Superintendent,  London  County 
Council  School  Nurses;  Miss  M.  Breay,  and  Mrs. 
Bedford  Fenwick. 

The  Fever  Nurses'  Association. — Dr.  E.  A.  Good- 
all,  Medical  vSuperintendent,  Eastern  Fever  Hospi- 
tal, Homerton  ;  Dr.  F.  Foord  Caiger,  Medical 
Superintendent,  South  Western  Fever  Hospital, 
Stookwell  ;  Dr.  Biernacki,  Medical  Superintendent, 


Jan.  8,   1910] 


ZTdc  Brltisb  i^ournai  of  ■ttuvsinfl. 


25 


Plaistow  Fever  Hospital;  Miss  E.  M.  Baiin,  Ma- 
tron, Brook  Fever  Hospital,  Shooters  Hill;  Miss  L. 
A.  Morgan,  Northern  Convalescent  Hospital, 
Wiuchmore  Hill. 

'£he  Irish  yunes'  Association. — Miss  L.  V. 
Haugliton,  Matron,  Guy's  Hospital;  Miss  Kelly, 
Lady  SuiJerintontlent,  Dr.  Steeveus'  Hospital,  Dub- 
lin ;  MiteS  Sutton,  Lady  Superint-endeut,  St.  Vin- 
cent's Hospital,  Dublin  ;  Miss  Keogli,  Lady  SuiJer- 
intendent,  Richmond  Hospital,  Dublin ;  Mi-s.  Kil- 
dare-Treacy,  Lady  SuiH"i'intc'n<lent,  City  of  Dublin 
Nureing  Institution. 

The  Scottish  XuTses'  Association. — Sir  William 
Macewen,  F.H.S.,  F.R.C.S.,  Dr.  McGregor  Robert- 
sou,  F.R.S.,  F.F.P.S.  ;  Miss  Wright,  Matron,  Stob- 
hill  Hospital,  Glasgow;  Miss  F.  Tisdall,  Nursing 
Home,  Glasgow;  Miss  K.  Burleigh,  Lady  Superin- 
tendent, Royal  Hospital  for  Sick  Children,  JBilin- 
burgli. 

Tht  Uoyal  British  Sarses'  .issociation. — The 
delegates  are  not  j-et  nominated. 


ACTION  OF  THE  BRITISH  MEDICAL  ASSOCIATION 

In  (lur  la.';t  issue  we  drew  tlie  atteiitiou  of 
uurses  to  llie  uecessity  for  bringing  the  ques- 
tiou  of  their  Registration  by  the  State  before 
Parliamentary  candidates  in  every  constituency 
during  the  coming  elections.  This  week  it  is 
with  great  pleasure  we  record  that  the  jMedico- 
Political  Committee  of  the  British  Medical 
.\ssociatiou  has  taken  the  same  view.  This 
Committee  has  drawn  up  memoranda  and  ques- 
tions, on  Parliamentary  subjects  affecting  the 
public  health  and  the  medical  j^rofession,  for 
the  purpose  of  submitting  them  to  Pariiamen- 
tary  candidates,  which  arc  pubhshed  in  the 
Supplement  to  tlie  British  Medical  Joxmial  of 
January  1st.  Copies  of  these  questions  have 
been  sent  to  the  Hon.  Secretaries  of  every 
Division  in  the  United  Kingdom,  and  with 
them  a  request  that  each  Division  should  at 
once  seek  to  interview  each  candidate  for  Par- 
liamentary constituencies  within  its  area,  and 
offer  him,  if  elected,  the  cordial  co-operation  of 
the  Division  in  considering  Parliamentary  ques- 
tions affecting  the  public  health  or  the  medical 
profession.  The  five  questions  selected  by  the 
British  Medical  Association  as  of  primary  im- 
portance include  Nurses'  Registration,  which  it 
presents  as  follows  :  — 

Nurses'    FiKCiisTHATKix. 
Memorandum. 

The  evidence  given  before  the  Select  Committee 
of  the  House  of  Commons  on  the  subject  of  Nurses' 
RegLstratioii,  and  tlie  rei)ort  of  that  C-oinmittee, 
sufficiently  indicated  the  strength  of  the  opinion 
among  nurses,  and  others  who  have  given  special 
attention  to  the  subject,  tliat  there  should  be  a 
system  of  State  Registration  of  Nurses  xrhicli 
uwiild  afford  n  (juardntee  of  trainino,  and,  if  pro- 
pir  disci pliiinry  powers  iccre  entrusted  to  the 
Board,  a  (luaruntee  of  good  conduct.  The  careful 
consideration  of  the  subject  by  the  British  Medical 
Association   for    three   years    indicated    the   strong 


preponderant  opinion  in  tlir  medical  profession  in 
favour  of  the  State  Registration  of  Nurses.  lu 
the  opinion  of  the  Association  any  central  board 
appointed  for  the  purpose  should  consist  of  direct 
representatives  of  nurses  and  of  the  medical  pro- 
fession, respectively  in  equal  proportions. 
Question. 

Would  you  support  in  Parliament  a  Bill  for  the 
State  Hegistration  of  Nurses  on  the  general  lines  of 
the  re<-ommendations  of  the  Select  Committee  of 
the  House  of  Commons  on  the  subject,  but  the 
Central  Nursing  Board  being  constituted  as  above 
described  ? 

Nurses  who  owe  much  to  the  British  Medical 
-Association  for  its  powerful  support  will  be 
grateful  that  through  its  great  organisation  it 
has  brought  the  question  of  their  Registration 
by  the  State  prominently  before  Parliamentary 
candidates,  at  a  time  when,  to  quote  the  lead- 
ing article  in  the  British  Medical  Journal  on 
the  subject,  "  the  opportunity  should  not  be 
lost  of  bringing  to  the  notice  of  candidates,  in 
their  present  impressionable  state,  those  pro- 
blems awaiting  legislative  solution,  in  which 
the  profession  is  specially  interested.  The  mind 
of  the  candidate  is  wax  to  receive,  and  may, 
perchance,  prove  marble  to  retain.  At  any 
rate,  there  will  be  no  such  opportunity,  until 
another  general  election  comes  round,  of  direct- 
ing public  attention  to  medical  needs."  The 
article  proceeds  to  state  that  the  memorandum 
of  the  ]\Iedico-Political  Committee  deals  with 
the  "  most  important  matters  which  are  con- 
sidered to  be  ripe  for  action.  .  .  The  list 
might,  no  doubt,  easily  have  been  lengthened, 
but  it  was  probably  felt  that  the  subjects  enu- 
merated would  suffice,  and  that  it  would  be  im- 
politic to  overburden  candidates  with  a  more 
extended  list  of  questions." 


We  feel  sure  that  nurses  will  be  stimulated 
also  to  do  their  utmost  to  bring  the  question 
of  their  Registration  by  the  State  before  Parlia- 
mentary candidates  in  all  the  constituencies. 
Although  they  have  not  the  strong  lever,  which 
the  members  of  the  British  Medical  Association 
possess  in  the  Parliamentary  vote,  yet  thfry 
also  can  lielp  to  give  prominence  to  the  ques- 
tion, and  the  Central  Office  relies  upon  all 
members  of  the  State  Registration  Society  to 
do  everj-thing  they  can  to  forward  the  move- 
ment at  this  time. 


One  way  in  which  they  can  help,  in  addition 
to  communicating  witli  Parliamentary  candi- 
dates, is  to  take  collecting  cards,  and  help  to 
raise  the  necessary  funds.  Cards  for  collecting 
10s.,  £1,  or  £'.5,  can  still  be  had  from  the  Hon. 
Secretary,  4.31,  Oxford  Street,  Tx)ndon,  W. 
.\ll  that  is  needed  is  cash  to  finance 
the  campaign,  which,  founded  in  righteous- 
ness,  must  ultinintely  end  in  victory. 


26 


Cbc  Bi'itisb  3oiirnal  of  IHursina. 


[Jan.   8,  1910 


^be  3niportancc  an^  progress  of 
Scbool  1b\>9iene. 

The  presence  of  three  distinguished  dele- 
gates at  the  International  Congress  of  Nurses 
in  London  last  rear,  sent  by  uie  Government 
of  Cuba,  demonstrated  to  the  nursing  world 
that  this  Eepublic  is  exceedingly  alert  and  pro- 
gressive in  sanitai-y  and  nursing  matters,  and 
we  are  therefore  not  surprised  to  learn  con- 
siderable attention  has  been  paid  to  school 
hygiene.  A  recent  issue  of  Sanidad  y  Bene- 
fice ncia  contains  an  interesting  editorial  article 
by  Dr.  Joaquin  L.  Dueiias,  the  Chief  of  jNIedical 
School  Inspection,  on  the  "  Importance  and 
Progress  of  School  Hygiene,"  and  the  present 
organisation  of  this  service  in  the  City  of 
Havana. 

Dr.  Dueiias  says  in  part: — A  few  months 
before  the  establishment  of  the  Eepublican 
Government  in  Cuba,  the  Municipal  Board  of 
•Health,  elected  at  the  beginning  of  the 
American  intervention,  created  in  1901  a  ser- 
vice of  school  inspection,  conducted  by  six 
physicians  under  the  immediate  orders  of  the 
Chief  of  the  Municipal  Sanitary   Services. 

Not  long  before,  under  the  auspices  of  the 
same  Government,  a  far-reaching  reform  in 
the  school  curriculum  was  carried  out,  and  a 
large  number  of  public  schools  founded, 
primary  instruction  being  in  this  way  extended 
through  the  country. 

The  service  of  school  medical  inspection 
created  by  the  municipality  had  an  ephemeral 
existence  of  four  or  five  months,  and  was  dis- 
continued as  a  result  of  certain  changes  effected 
in  the  organisation  and  technical  personnel  of 
the  Municipal  Sanitary  Services. 

At  the  constitution  of  the  Eepublic  in  1902 
the  Sanitary  Department  of  Havana  assigned 
to  two  of  its  medical  inspectors  the  duty  of 
visiting  periodically  all  the  schools,  with  the 
object  of  enforcing  the  sanitary  ordinances 
with  respect  to  the  requirements  which  they 
contained  regarding  public  and  private  hygiene. 
The  schoolhouses  and  the  children  were 
examined  from  that  time ;  those  who  required 
it  were  vaccinated,  and  those  who  lived  in  in- 
fected houses  were  not  allowed  to  attend  the 
schools.  Finally,  the  medical  inspection  of 
schools  was  entrusted  to  a  single  physician, 
and  it  was  precisely  the  deficiency  of  this  ser- 
vice, which  was  languishing  with  notable  injun- 
to  the  public  health,  which  brought  about  the 
organisation  implanted  since  the  month  of 
April,  1909,  by  our  Secretary  of  Health  and 
Charities,  Dr.   Matias  Duque. 

The  Supervision  of  School  Hygiene,  as  it  has 
lately  been  organised  in  connection  with   the 


recent  sanitary  reforms,  represents  one  of  the 
branches  into  which  me  section  of  medical  in- 
spection is  divided.  This  section  has  been  con- 
stituted in  the  following  form:- — First,  a 
Bureau  of  Medical  Inspection,  devoted  chietiy 
to  the  investigation  and  prophylaxis  of  con- 
tagious diseases;  second,  a  Bureau  of  Bronia- 
toiogical  Inspection ;  and  third,  a  Bureau  of 
School  Inspection.  The  present  organisation 
of  this  last  department  is  far  superior  to  any 
of  the  previous  systems  which  have  been  in- 
troduced in  this  country  for  this  object. 
Stricter  responsibility,  fuller  authority,  and 
more  complex  duties  in  harmony  with  the 
modern  tendencies  of  this  class  of  sanitary  ser- 
vices, are  the  distinctive  features  of  the  new 
official  organisation,  which  responds  in  this 
way  to  the  peremptory  demands  of  the  child 
population  in  the  schools  of  Havana.  It  is 
quite  evident,  from  the  brief  description  which 
has  already  been  supplied,  that  there  was  wis- 
dom on  the  part  of  the  first  rulers  of  the 
country  at  the  beginning  of  the  period  of 
political,  moral,  and  intellectual  renaissance, 
which  led  them  to  begin  the  move- 
ment of  social  reforms  by  taking  as 
their  starting  point  the_  reorganisation 
of  the  schools  and  the  preservation 
of  the  health  of  the  children.  The  union 
of  both  ends,  education  and  health,  is  an  in- 
dispensable requisite  for  the  constitution  of  a 
progressive  State.  The  first  of  these  factors, 
education,  is  the  solid  foundation,  par  t.rccl- 
lence,  for  the  attainment  and  preservation  of 
self-government.  And  it  is  precisely  in  the 
Eepublican  form  of  government,  as  Montes- 
quieu has  said,  that  the  whole  force  of  educa- 
tion is  most  necessary,  because  the  quality  of 
the  legislators  depends  directly  on  that  of  the 
electors. 

The  second  factor,  health,  is  the  basis  of  all 
the  functions,  a  necessary  foundation  to  resist 
the  noxious  influences  which  may  exist  in  the 
school.  Without  health  the  development  of 
the  body  is  retarded,  physical  vigour  declines, 
and  the  mental  faculties  are  weakened;  the 
work  of  the  teacher  is  hkely  to  be  wasted,  and 
often  proves  prejudicial.  In  human  society  the 
loss  of  health  prepares  the  way  for  the  de- 
generation of  the  race,  for  the  increase 
of  mortality  and  the  extinction  of  the  com- 
munity. And  without  strong  and  healthy  men 
there  can  be  neither  energies  nor  enterprise, 
nor  material  aggrandisement,  nor  national 
riches.  It  is,  therefore,  necessai-y  to  defend 
the  health  of  the  young,  because  they  constitute 
the  hope  of  the  "future.  In  the  family  and  in 
the  school,  the  physician  has  to  be  the  best 
guardian.  And  as  the  English  poet,  Words- 
worth, said:  "  the  child  is  father  of  the  man," 


Jan.  8,   191(1 


Zbc  Brittsb  3ournal  of  iRurslng. 


27 


so  society  should  make  of  liim  a  strong  and 
well-constituted  being,  capable  of  contributing 
to  the  betterment  of  the  race,  and  of  raising 
the  degree  of  physical  culture  of  the  genera- 
tions to  come. 

The  mission  of  the  teacher  is  to  educate 
without  injuring  the  health  of  the  child,  with- 
out bringing  on  fatigue  or  mental  exhaustion. 
The  distribution  of  the  school  work,  the 
employment  of  the  time,  the  hours  of  recess, 
the  methods  of  instruction,  and  whatever  re- 
lates to  the  mental  discipline  of  the  child,  has 
to  conform  to  certain  principles  and  jiroceed- 
ings  which  can  only  be  obtained  in  the  field  of 
physiological  psychology. 

It  is  evident  that  the  physical  educa- 
tion of  the  child  and  his  mental  discipline 
should  be  accompanied  by  the  teaching  and 
practice  of  morals  in  the  home.  And  morals 
are  also  health.  To  teach  the  child  good  prin- 
ciples and  good  habits,  to  guide  the  develop- 
ment of  his  conscience  and  the  cultivation  of 
his  sentiments,  in  order  to  leave  in  his  heart, 
as  Kiant  has  said,  a  fruitful  and  lasting  im- 
pression, is  to  do  a  work  of  preventive  hygiene, 
the  results  of  which  can  only  be  appreciated  at 
the  hour  when  the  passions  are  kindled.  Moral 
education  guarantees  the  existence  and  the 
progress  of  a  community.  When  the  educative 
mission  is  disregarded  the  virtues  become  cor- 
rupted, the  instincts  predominate,  and  the  in- 
tellect withers. 

The  very  careful  attention  which  learned 
men  in  all  countries  have  given  to  the 
study  of  this  arduous  social  problem  has  made 
evident  to  the  governments  of  the  world  the 
necessity  of  lending  their  intelligent  and 
effective  co-operation  to  the  useful  work  of 
human  selection.  It  is  not  strange,  therefore, 
that  school  and  sanitary  legislation  should 
have  been  subjected  in  recent  times  to  cxinstant 
reforms,  until  they  have  attained  the  degree 
of  perfection  which  is  to-day  observable  in  the 
public  administration  of  the  most  cultured 
nations.  Notwithstanding  the  feeling  of  alann 
which  was  created  among  teachers  by  the 
establishment  of  the  new  system,  in  spite  of 
the  conflict  which  sometimes  occurred  between 
the  sanitary  and  the  school  authorities,  in 
spite  of  the  misgivings  of  the  jjarents,  of  the 
indifference  and  disdain  of  the  sceptics,  of  the 
popular  resistance,  and  even  'in  spite  of  the 
protests  of  certain  physicians,  who  condemned 
the  inspection  of  the  school  children  as  a  new 
form  of  competition  in  professional  life,  the 
organisation  of  this  service  was  not  long  in 
winning  a  place  for  itself  as  a  social  necessity, 
and  since  then  this  branch  of  sanitary  services 
has  acquired  all  the  interest  and  importance  of 
a  real  fonn  of  social  defence. 


Conference  of  IHnvsino  Snperin* 
ten^ents  m  3nMa. 

The  annual  (Jonferenee  of  the  Association  of 
Nursing  Superintendents  of  India  was  held  in 
Agra  on  December  8th  and  9th.  The  Sessions 
were  held  at  the  residence  of  Eev.  J.  P.  Hay- 
thornthwaite.  Principal  of  St.  .John's  College. 
Mrs.  Haythomthwaite  liad  kindly  offered  to  ■ 
arrange  for  the  entertainment  of  the  delegates, 
and  the  success  of  the  Conference  is  largely 
due  to  her  untiring  efiorts  and  generous  hos- 
pitality. 

The  first  Session  was  opened  by  Kev.  Theo- 
dore^  Wynkoop,  of  Allahabad. 

In  the  absence  of  the  President,  the  opening 
address  was  made  by  the  Vice-President,  fol- 
lowed by  the  re]X>rt  of  the  Secretary  and 
Treasurer. 

The  following  ofi5cers  were  elected  for  the 
ensuing  vear :  — 

President.— Miss  Tippetts,  Mayo  Hospital, 
Lahore. 

Vice-President.— Miss    Creighton,  Jaunpur, 

U.P. 

Secretary  and  Treasurer. — Miss  Thorpe, 
Belgaum,  Bombay  Presidency. 

Miss  Tindall,  Cama  and  Allbless  Hospitals, 
Bombay,  was  appointed  a  member  of  the 
Executive  Committee. 

Ten  new  members  have  joined  the  Associa- 
tion during  the  year. 

The  following  papers  were  read  and  dis- 
cussed:— "Provincial  Training  Schools  in 
India,"  Miss  Martin,  St.  Catherine's  Hospital, 
Cawnpore.  "  Some  Advantages  of  .Joining  the 
Trained  Nurses'  Association  of  India,"  Miss 
Mill,  St.  George's  Hospital,  Bombay.  "  Three 
Years'  Training,"  Miss  Tindall,  Cama  and  All- 
bless  Hospitals,  Bombay.  "  Private  Nursing 
and  Nurses  in  India,"  Mrs.  Davies,  Chief  Lady 
Superintendent,  Lady  Minto's  Indian  Nursing 
Association,  Simla.  ""  How  are  We  to  Find  a 
Better  Class  of  Indian  Girl  for  Training ;  and 
is  it  Wise  to  Eaise  the  Standard?"  Miss 
Creighton,  .Jaunpur,  U.P. ;  Miss  Ferguson, 
Palwal,  S.  Punjab. 

A  provisional  constitution  and  by-laws  were 
drawn  up  for  the  Trained  Nurses'  Association 
of  India,  and  arrangements  were  made  to  pub- 
lish a  monthly  journal  as  the  organ  of  the  two 
Associations. 

The  first  number  of  the  Journal  will  consist 
chiefly  of  the  reports  of  the  Conference,  and 
will,  'it  is  hoped,  be  ready  by  February  1st, 
1910.  The  magazine  will  be  edited  by  Mrs. 
Klosz,  Akola,  Berar,  and  Miss  Thorpe,  Bel- 
gaum, will  be  its  manager. 

J.  W.  Thorpe. 


28 


Zbc  Britisl)  3ounial  of  IHursing. 


L-Jau.   8,   1910 


3nternational  IHcws. 

From  Belgium. 

We  leavn  that  Dr.  F.  Saoo,  ot  Antwerp,  is 
already  kiudly  iuterestiug  himseli  iu  the  1912 
luteruatioual  Aleetiug,  that  there  is  great 
satisfaction  iu  Belgium  that  it  is  to  be  held  so 
near  as  Cologne,  and  already  there  is  active 
movemeut  towards  affiliation.  This  is  very 
pleasant  news,  as  all  the  fraternal  delegates 
from  Belgium  were  so  charming  and  kind  in 
London  that  we  should  all  be  happier  to  have  a 
Belgian  Council  of  Nurses  within  the  inter- 
national group. 

From  Germany. 

Sister  Karll,  our  President,  writes  that  in- 
foiTuation  has  been  sought  of  her  by  the  Ger- 
man Home  Secretary  concerning  the  work  of 
the  International  Council,  and  this  for  the  Im- 
perial Consul-General  at  Sydney.  This  is 
typical,  we  fear,  of  the  two  nations.  Whilst  our 
own  people  in  Australasia  have  so  far  taken 
little  interest  in  this  wonderful  Federation  of 
Nurses,  founded  in  England,  German  officials 
in  our  Commonwealth  appeal  to  their  Home 
Office  iu  Berlin  for  information  1     Sad  but  true. 


During  her  recent  South  Gemian  tour.  Sister 
Karll  found  such  an  enthusiasm  for  Cologne 
that  she  writes  :"  I  feel  sure  the  Giirzenich 
which  will  hold  1,278  persons,  will  not  be  too 
large  for  our  needs,  and  we  shall  feel  quite 
happy  in  the  place  where  Gei-man  Emperors 
were  feasted  hundreds  of  years  ago,  and  the 
Rhine  is  just  the  right  course  to  Kaiserswerth 
if  we  go  about  it  the  right  way.  My  tour  was 
highly  interesting,  and  I  hope  has  cloue  much 
to  further  our  ends.  In  my  lectures  in  Munich, 
Tuebingen,  Stuttgart,  Heidelberg,  and  Frank- 
furt, I  reviewed  the  conditions  of  the  nursing 
profession  in  Germany,  and  explained  the  work 
of  our  International  Council,  and  gave  a  report 
of  our  splendid  Congress  in  London.  Doctors 
are  enquiring  about  State  Begistration — one 
would  start-  a  nursing  school  to  prepare  for  it, 
the  nurses  to  be  taught  nursing  by  nurses.  He 
lold  me  our  Association  should  train  teachers 
for  the  training  schools.  Isn't  that  good?  An- 
other wishes  all  information  about  post- 
graduate teaching  in  England  and  America.  I 
told  him  of  Miss  Nutting's  system  in  New- 
York.  This  pleased  him  greatly,  and  he  is 
coming  to  Cologne.  ^ 

"  Germany  has  had  a  great  loss  and  sorrow  iu 
the  death  of  one  of  our  dear  old  pioneers — Frau 
Lina  ^lorgenstern.  You  may  have  met  her  in 
1904,  as  she  was  one  of  the  best-known  women 
in  Berlin.  She  was  a  great  and  successful 
social  reformer.  She  started  the  first  public 
kitchens  in  1806,   and  worked  in  them  to  the 


last,  though  she  was  79  1  In  1907  she  showed 
iliss  Nutting  and  me  one  herself,  and  also  one 
of  her  household  schools,  and  told  us  many 
stories  of  her  wonderful  life.  In  1870-71  she 
and  her  husband,  who  is  blind,  and  at  least  84 
years  old,  never  left  the  Berlin  railw"ay  sta- 
tions for  weeks  by  day  or  night  to  bring 
nourishment  to  the  wounded  and  sick  soldiers 
who  were  brought  to  Berlin,  or  passed  through. 
She  started  the  Association  for  Kindergarten, 
and  another  to  diminish  infant  mortalitj-  (Kin- 
dei"schutz  verein),  also  an  Association  of 
Housewives,  to  enable  the  buying  of  household 
goods  in  large  quantities  at  cheaper  rates.  She 
edited  the  Journal  for  Housewives,  and  wrote 
much.  A  dear  old  soul — a  blessing  to  have 
known  her  personally.  Is  it  not  strange  that 
Frau  ]\Iorgenstem  and  two  other  of  our  elder 
leading  women  pioneers  are  Jewesses — all  very 
simple,  kind,  and  not  rich — as  they  have  given 
to  others  all  that  thev  had'?" 


practical  (Points. 

Dr.  Thomas  D.  Luke,  writ- 
The  Preparation  ing  in  the  British  Medical 
of  Soured  Milk.  Journal  on  the  subject  of  the 
preparation  of  soured  milk, 
says: — I  have  been  working  at  the  matter  from  the 
dietetic  standpoint  during  the  past  year,  and  have, 
like  many  other  medical  men  in  all  probability, 
been  disappointed  with  the  results  obtained  with 
the  different  lactic  acid  tablets  on  the  market ; 
also  with  the  comparative  uselessness  of  the  simple 
apparatus  sold  witli  these  tablets  for  preparation  of 
the  sour  milk.  AVitli  any  of  these  in  our  climate  it  is 
next  to  impossible  to  keep  the  temi^erature  from 
varying  considerably,  and  especially  from  falling 
below  that  at  which  the  optimum  growth  of  the 
bacilli  and  foi'ination  of  the  acid  takes  place. 
I  have  tried  almost  all  the  tablets  on  the  market, 
and  one  liquid  culture  sold  in  small  tubes.  This  last, 
on  the  whole,  was  l>est,  but  almost  prohibitively  ex- 
pensive. I  have  now  adopted  the  use  of  milk  cul- 
tures, and  find  with  a.  tem j>erat ii re  of  108  (legs,  to 
110  degs.  a  very  pleasant  curdled  milk  is  obtained 
in  about  five  hours.  I  use  a  small  portion  of  the 
curd  of  the  previous  day — about  a  salt-spoonful 
suffices. 

I  have  replaced  the  simple  tin  apparatus  and 
night-light  by  a  wooden  box  about  2  by  2  by  3  ft., 
lined  with  asbestos,  and  fitted  with  a  metal  tray, 
sliding  out,  and  placed  over  two  eight  caudle-power 
electric  lamps,  with  the  thermometer  passed 
thix)ngh  the  top  of  ih©  box,  as  in  a  bacteriological 
oven.  The  front  side  of  the  lx)x  falls  down  by  means 
of  a  hinge,  allowing  the  removal  of  the  metal  tray, 
which  will  hold  some  thirty  glasses  of  milk.  The 
front  is  fitted  with  a  little  sliding  aoor  about  2  m. 
by  8  in.,  and  by  means  of  this  a  supply  of  cooler  air 
is  regulated  to  keep  the  box  from  getting  too  hot. 

This  apparatus  was  made  for  me  liy  a  joiner,  is 
inexpensive,  and  serves  for  the  culture  of  any  germs 
on  suitable  media. 


J>i!l 


101 1 


Z\K  ISnUeb  3ournal  ot  IRursing, 


•29 


H  IHur^c'5  1Hotc5  on  Ibcrma. 


A  iii-niia  i5  a  protrusiou  or  any  lutcnial  i^art 
contained  in  a  cavity,  either  externally  or 
into  a  neighbouring  cavity.  A  hernia  always  con- 
sists of  a  sac,  its  contents  and  the  soft  parts  cover- 
ing it. 

The  sac  is  formed  of  peritoneum,  and  generally 
has  a  neck,  caused  by  the  contents  pushing  the 
I)eritoneum  before  it,  and  then  expanding  after 
getting  through.  This  neck  is  important  because 
this  is  where  strangulation  may  occur. 

The  contents  oj  sac  are  usually  small  intestine  or 
omentum  (but  in  rare  cases  the  bladder,  large  in- 
testines, and  other  organs  have  been  found  in  a 
hernia). 

The  soft  parts  covering  the  sac  vary  with  the 
position  of  the  hernia,  but  may  roughly  be  said  to 
consist  of  skin  and  various  fascia,  according  to 
position  of  the  hernia. 

An  abdominal  hernia  or  rupture  signifies  a  pro- 
trusion of  riscus  through  an  opening  in  the  walls 
of  the  abdominal  cavity,  and  may  occur  at  any  part 
of  abdominal  wall. 

Herniie  are  most  common  in  the  inguinal  region, 
femoral  region,  and  round  the  umbilicus,  since  in 
these  places  the  walls  are  naturally  weaker  tnan 
elsewhere.  Hernia  is  more  common  in  men  than 
women  (in  proportion,  four  to  one).  It  is  very 
common  in  men  who  have  to  lift  heavy  weights. 
Other  causes  of  hernia  are  non-closure  of  canals, 
unusual  length  of  the  mesentery,  etc.  Some 
children  are  lx)ru  ruptured ;  then  such  hernise  are 
called  congenital. 

Inguinal  hernia,  a  protrusion  ihrotigh  one  or  both 
abdominal  rings  at  the  groin. 

Femoral  hernia,  a  protrusion  behind  Poupart's 
ligament. 

Umbilical  hernia,  a  protrusion  at  the  navel. 
Symptoms  of  Hersi.\. 

The  patient  complains  of  a  lump  which  may  dis- 
appear when  he  lies  down ;  if  he  coughs  the  lump 
is  protruded,  and  on  handling  it  gurgling  may  be 
heard. 

The  treatment  of  simple  hernia  may  be  palliative 
or  curative.  By  palliative  is  meant  the  use  of  suit- 
cble  trusses  to  keep  the  hernia  in  its  plac?.  (A 
truss  is  an  instrument  composed  of  a  pad  or 
cushion  connected  with  a  metallic  spring  and  strap 
so  arranged  as  to  prevent  the  rupture  coming 
down.)  The  curative  method  or  radical  cure 
consists  in  cutting  down  on  the  stricture  at  the 
neck,  replacing;  the  intestine  in  the  cavity,  and 
then  stitching  together  the  part  of  the  wall  through 
which  the  hernia  protruded. 

When  a  hernia  is  down  in  the  sac,  and  can  be 
pushed  back  by  the  patient  or  the  surgeon,  it  is 
call  a  reducible  hernia  j  if  it  cannot  be  put  back 
it  is  an  irreducible  hernia,  and  when  the  neck 
is  constiicte<l  the  hernia  becomes  strangulated, 
the  constriction  prevents  the  contents  passing 
along,  and  unless  the  patient  is  operated  upon  he 
will  die  in  a  very  short  time. 

If  a  hernia  is  irreducible  a  truss  must  not  be 
■worn,  or  the  pad  will  press  on   the  intestine  and 


cause  obstruction.      In  these  cases  a  bag  truss  -s 
lased. 

If  the  patient  Las  a  cough  the  truss  must  be  worn 
by  night  as  well  as  day. 

In  strangulated  hernia  efforts  are  made  to  reduce 
the  hernia  by  taxis.  If  the  patient  can  bear  it 
he  is  given  a  dose  of  tincture  of  opium,  and  while 
he  is  in  a  hot  bath  the  surgeon  again  attempts  to 
reduce  it.  If  this  is  ineffectual  an  operation  must  be 
performed  as  speedily  as  possible,  or  the  constricted 
portion  will  become  gangrenous,  the  patient  will 
get  faecal  vomiting  and  rapid  pulse,  soon  becoming 
quite  listless,  and  death  eventually  ensues. 
lNSiBrME>rTS  Reqcxred  fob  the  Operation. 

.Scalped,  probe-jxiinted  cun-ed  bistoury,  hernia 
knife,  director,  probe,  dissecting  and  catch  forceps, 
artery  forcep^  scissors,  retractors.  Murphy's 
button,  needles  on  handles,  surgical  needles,  and  a 
needle  holder. 

The  wound  is  dressed  aseptically,  and  dressing 
kept  in  place  by  a  firm  spica  bandage.  A  morphia 
suppository  is  usually  given  to  keep  the  bowel  at 
rest.  The  patient  is  put  to  bed  with  a  pillow  under 
the  knees,  and  a  cradle  placed  in  position  to  pre- 
vent the  bedclothes  from  pressing  on  the  abdomen. 

If  the  patient  is  sick  or  coughs,  the  nurse  must 
place  her  hand  over  the  dressing  to  support  the 
wound.  The  patient  must  not  strain  or  sit  up  in 
bed  at  first.  Xo  nourishment  is  given  by  mouth 
for  24  hours  after  operation,  but  a  little  ice  may 
be  given  to  suck,  and  the  mouth  can  be  washed  out 
frequently  with  warm  water.  After  24  hours  a 
nutrient  enema  or  nutrient  suppository  is  given, 
and  gradually  the  patient  begins  to  take  small 
quantities  of  mUk,  beef  tea,  meat  essence,  etc. 
No  solid  food  is  given  until  the  bowels  have  acted 
which  they  usually  do  naturally,  but  if  not  an 
enema  is  usually  given  on  the  fifth  or  sixth  day. 
or,  if  there  is  great  distension,  earlier.  Of  course, 
the  patient's  back  must  be  well  looked  after  as  he 
rests  verv  heavilv  on  the  bed. 

Y.  J. 


legal  riDattcrs. 


A   BROKEN  CONTRACT. 

Tlie  Guardians  of  the  Isle  of  Thanet  Union  had 
recently  before  them  the  case  of  a  nnrs<^ — Miss 
Helps — who.  having  been  apjjointed  by  them,  failed 
to  take  up  the  duties  or  to  give  a  satisfactory  reason 
for  her  refusal.  The  Board  are  claiming  £2  lOs.  in 
lieu  of  notice,  and  have  decided  that  unless  the 
money  is  paid  within  a  month  that  they  will  take 
proceedings  to  recover  the  amount. 

Boards  of  Guardians  are  constantly  troubled  by 
peripatetic  nurses,  who  apply  for  posts,  are  inter- 
viewed, receive  their  expenses,  accept  appointments, 
and  then  fail  to  keep  their  contracts.  We  wonder 
that  they  do  not  oftener  enforce  their  claim 
against  the  defaulters ;  a  few  instances  of  this  Kind 
would  effectually  put  an  end  to  the  nuisance,  and 
prevent  the  ratepayers'  money  being  uselessly  ex- 
pended upon  nurses  who  do  not  know  their  own 
minds.  If  a  nurse  applies  for  a  post  and  is  ap- 
pointed she  should  honourably  fulfil  the  engage- 
ment. 


30 


Cbe  British  3ournaI  of  IRursiiio.       [f«"  s-  loio 


Uppointments. 


Matrons. 

Isolation  Hospital,  Tonbridge.^Mrs.  E.  Yates  Shel- 
ton  lias  been  appointed  Matron.  She  was  trained 
at  the  Monsall  Fever  Hospital,  Manchester,  and 
has  held  the  position  of  Assistant  Nurse  at  the  City 
Fever  Hospital,  Sheffield,  and  of  Charge  Nurse  at 
tlie  City  Isolation  Hospital,  Birmingham. 

Mogden  Hospital,  near  Isleworth. — Mi.s.s  S.  Long  has 
l)een  ai)pointed  Matron  under  the  Richmond,  Hes- 
ton,  and  Isleworth  Joint  Hospital  Board.  She  was 
trained  at  St.  Marylebone  Infirmary,  and  has  held 
the  position  of  Charge  Nurse  at  Gore  Farm  Hos- 
pital, Dartford,  under  the  M.A.B.,  and  also  at  Big- 
gleswade Hospital,  and  has  also  been  Sister,  Night 
Sister,  and  Assistant  Matron  at  Enfield  and  Ed- 
monton Isolation  Hospital,  Winchmore  Hill.  She 
has  also  had  experience  of  private  nursing  in 
Eastlx)urne  and  Hastings. 

Assistant  Matuon. 
Kingston  Union  Inflrmary. — Miss  Kate  A.  Kirk  lias 
been  appointed  Second  Assistant  Matron.  She  holds 
the  three  years'  certificate  of  the  Infirmary,  and 
has  also  held  the  positions  of  Stafi^  Nui-se  and  Sister 
in  the  same  institution.  She  is  a  certified  midwife. 
The  ixisition  is  a  new  one.  created  by  the  Guardians 
on  account  of  the  increa.se  of  work. 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S  ROYAL  NAVAL  NURSING 
SERVICE. 
Mi.ss   H.    M.    Hayward    has    been    appointed    a 
Nursing  Sister  on  iirobation  in  Queen  Alexandra's 
Royal   Naval   Nursing    Service.      She  was   trained 
at  the  Sussex  County  Hospital. 

Miss  M.  J.  R.  Sleigh  has  been  appointed  a 
Nursing  Sister,  on  probation,  in  Queen  Alexandra's 
Royal  Naval  Nursing  Service. 


KAISAR-1-HIND  GOLD  MEDAL. 
Tlie  King  has  Ix'cn  giaciouslj-  pleased  to  make 
the  following  award  of  the  "  Kaisar-i-Hiiid  Medal 
for  Public  Service  in  India"  of  the  First  Cla.*i: — 
Miss  Alice  Comley,  Lady  SuiJerintendent.  St. 
Mary's  Home,  Calcutta. 

QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE   INSTITUTE 
FOR   NURSES. 

Transfers  and  Apiiuintrnvnts. — Miss  Clara  Reeve, 
to  Darwen,  as  Senior  Nurse;  Miss  Isabel  Nicoll, 
to  Brixton,  as  Senior  Nurse ;  Miss  Mary  Simpson, 
to  Cheltenham,  as  Training  Midwife;  Miss  Mary 
C.  Jones,  to  Normanby  Park ;  Miss  Elizabeth  Col- 
burn,  to  Birmingham,  East  Branch;  Miss  Lucy  M. 
I.  Appleford,  to  Bedford;  Miss  Edith  Deadman,  to 
Bedford;  Miss  Edith  Andrews,  to  Iver;  Miss  Wil- 
helmina  McKinnell,  to  Little  Shelford ;  Miss  Kate 
Hastings,  to  Widnes;  Miss  Kate  Heastie,  to  Pem- 
berton  ;  Miss  Edith  Wright,  to  Leamington  ;  Miss 
Miriam  Mills,  to  Hastings;  Miss  Ada  Marsdin,  to 
Cheltenham  ;  Mi.ss  Henrietta  Fischer,  to  Chard ; 
Miss  Edith  M.  Jeffreys  to  Street;  Miss  Frances 
Corneille,  to  Holyhead ;  Miss  Margaret  Nugent  to 
Bethesda;  Miss  Jane  Heaton,  to  Manorbier;  Miss 
Margaret  Williams,  to  Corwen. 


LOCAL   GOVERNMENT    BOARD   EXAMINATION 

On  the  7th,  8th,  and  9th  of  December,  the  Local 
Government  Board  held  at  Glasgow  University  and 
Glasgow  Western  Infirmary  an  examination  for  the 
certification  of  trained  sick  nurses.  Forty  candi- 
dates presented  themselves  for  examination.  Tlie 
examiners  were  Dr.  J.  O.  Affleck,  Dr.  D.  J.  Mackin- 
tosh, and  Dr.  W.  J.  Richard,  who  were  assisted  in 
the  practical  part  of  the  examination  by  Miss  H. 
Gregory  Smith,  JIatron  of  the  Western  Infirmary, 
Glasgow,  and  by  Miss  F.  A.  Merchant,  Matron  of 
tlie  Eastern  District  Hospital,  Glasgow.  The  fol- 
lowing candidates  have  passed  in  one  or  more  sub- 
jects of  examination:  Those  whose  names  are  dis- 
tinguished by  an  asterisk  have  complete<l  the  ex- 
amination, and  are  entitled  to  the  certificate  of  effi- 
ciency granted  by  the  Local  Government  Board:  — 

E.  Aitken,  M.  Allan,  A.  M.  Asher,  *M.  G.  Bathgate, 
•A.  T.  Burnett,  J.  M.  Campbell,  H.  T.  Davidson,  K. 

F.  Deas,  *M.  Drummond,  M.  F.  Gemmell,  J.  W.  F. 
Henderson,  I.  Hepburn,  B.  P.  Hinderwell,  H.  J. 
M'D.  Irving,  *E.  Jenkins,  J.  John.stone,  C.  Kip- 
pen,  *E.  Murray,  "M.  G.  M'Arthur,  *H.  W.  Mac- 
Clymont,  A.  B.  M'Coll,  *A.  R.  Macdonald,  F.  M. 
Macdonald,  L.  Macdonald,  A.  M'lvor,  *M.  A.  Mac- 
keohnie,  J.  R.  Mackenzie,  J.  D.  Mackenzie,  D. 
M'Lean,  A.  Macmillan,  J.  Paton,  E.  H.  Scott,  M. 
Sievewright,  J.  G.  Tait,  *E.  Tomlinson,  *E.  E. 
Tomlinson,  A.  Urquhart,  A.  Westwood,  G.  V. 
AVinter. 


PRESENTATION  OF   PRIZES. 

The  Ogilvy  Dalgleish  Medal,  awardetl  at  the  Royal 
Infirmary,  Dundee,  to  the  nurse  of  greatest  merit, 
has  been  won  by  Nurse  Stewart-Richardson.  It  was 
presented  last  week,  and  prizes  were  also  presented 
to  Nurses  Tindall,  Fisher,  and  Drummond  Hay 
amongst  the  seniors  ;  to  Nurses  Steggall,  Edward, 
and  Geddes  in  the  second  year ;  and  to  Nui-ses 
Dewar,  Henry,  and  Dick  amongst  the  juniors. 


PRESENTATION  TO   MISS  SHUTER 

Mr.  Fane  Vernon,.  D.L.,  presided  at  a  meeting 
in  the  Board  Room  of  the  Royal  City  of  Dublin 
Hospital,  Dublin,  on  December  30th,  when 
Miss  H.  Shuter,  who  is  resigning  the  posi- 
tion of  Lady  Superintendent,  was  presented  by 
her  friends  with  a  pui'se  of  sovereigns  and  other 
gifts,  and  Mi-s.  Dudgeon,  on  behalf  of  the  Ladies' 
Committee,  presented  her  with  a  gold  watch  brace- 
let. In  expresising  her  thanks  for  the  gifts,  and  the 
kind  words  which  accompanie<l  them,  Miss  Shuter 
said  she  was  glad  to  know  that  her  successor.  Miss 
Edison,  was  coming  straight  from  her  old  hospital, 
St.  Thomas's,  London,  as  slie  would  have  liad  a 
good  training,  and  bring  with  her  up-to-date 
methods. 

NURSES'   MISSIONARY   LEAGUE. 

It  has  been  arranged  to  hold  the  fourth  Nui^es' 
Missionai-y  League  Camp  from  June  22nd  to  29th, 
1910.  It  is  hoped  that  as  many  members  as  pos- 
sible will  keep  this  week  free,  and  join  the  paity. 
Tliey  will  probably  go  again  to  Mundesley-on-Sea, 
as  in  the  last  three  yeare,  but  all  particulare  will 
l>e  given  later. 


Jail.  8,   1910] 


Ubc  British  3ournaI  of  IRurainfl. 


31 


TRurslitG  Ecboee. 

W'c  note  with  pleasure  that 
in  tlie  press  reports  of  hospi- 
tal Cliristmas  functions, 
the  Matrons  and  nurses 
come  in  for  much  praise, 
as  it  is  certainly  greatly 
owing  to  their  energy 
and  good  management  that 
ttiese  reunions  are  so  bright 
and  enjoyable.  INIany  not 
only  collect  special  funds 
for  the  purpose  of  giving  the 
patients  a  happy  time,  but  give 
generously  themselves,  and  many  pathetic 
little  stories  are  told  of 
of  the  patients.  One 
we  think  very  touching. 
low  at  the  Royal  Infirmarj- 
clothed  in  garments  contributed  by  hospital 
friends  was  seen  by  a  nurse  to  steal  towards 
the  money-box  in  the  ward,  and  surreptitiously 
drop  in  something.  On  being  questioned  as  to 
his  action,  the  boy  reluctantly  owned  that  he 
had  been  putting  in  the  ha'penny  his  mother 
had  given  him  that  day,  to  prove  his  gratitude 
for  all  that  had  been  done  for  him.  And  re- 
member that  was  a  Scottish  laddie,  parting 
with  his  only  "  bawbee." 


the  gratitude 
from      Dundee 

A  little  fel- 
who    had  been 


The  Christmas  sea.son  at  the  Prince  of  Wales' 
Hospital,  Tottenham,  lias  left  many  pleasant 
recollections  in  the  hearts  of  all  who  spent  it 
within  its  walls.  Christmas  Day  was  kept  right 
royally,  and  on  Tuesdaj-,  a  gigantic  Christmas 
tree  reared  its  head  right  up  to  the  ceiling  in 
the  biggest  men's  ward,  and  thither  were  trans- 
ported all  such  as  could  possibly  walk  or  be 
carried  there.  Each  patient  who  had  any 
juvenile  belongings  was  allowed  to  invite  two, 
and  while  one  side  of  the  large  ward  was 
packed  with  beds,  couches,  and  cots  for  the 
use  of  the  in-patients,  the  other  was  crammed 
with  small  visitors  on  fonns  and  chairs,  their 
elders  finding  standing  room  at  the  back.  A 
fine  display  of  animated  pictures  by  Messrs. 
Maskelyne  and  Devant  gave  great  entertain- 
ment to  all,  and  was  followed  by  a  distribution 
of  the  gifts  from  the  tree  to  everyone  present. 
Tired  out  with  delights  at  last,  and  more  than 
half  asleep,  yet  still  hugging  closely  the  gift  of 
Teddie  bear  or  doll  from  the  tree,  the  little  ones 
from  the  children's  ward  were  afterwards  car- 
ried back  to  their  cots,  there  to  go  over  it  all 
again  in  their  dreams.  During  the  evening, 
the  other  wards  were  all  open  for  inspection, 
and  their  variety  of  illuminated  decorations 
were  much  admired  by  the  visitors.  A  repre- 
sentation of  the  North  Pole  executed  in  plaster 


of  Paris  by  one  of  the  Sisters,  with  bears  and 
Esquimaux  dressed  in  lint  attracted  much  at- 
tention in  the  children's  ward.  A  miniature 
Japanese  tea  garden  occupied  a  table  generally 
devoted  to  the  doctors'  use,  and  a  Maypole 
dance  of  daily  dressed  dolls  made  a  bright  spot 
of  colour  in  one  of  the  women's  surgical  wards. 

New  Year's  afternoon  was  dedicated  to  the 
out-patient  children,  of  whom  two  hundred  of 
the  poorest  were  gathered  at  the  invitation  of 
the  ^latron,  Miss  Fox,  in  the  large  waiting  hall, 
where  a  Punch  and  Judy  show  was  provided 
for  them,  a  gramophone  to  entertain  them 
while  they  discussed  a  bountiful  tea,  gifts  being 
afterwards  distribJted  to  all  before  they  left. 
To  judge  by  the  noise  and  the  happy  faces,  this 
too  was  a  decided  success. 


The  Christmas  Tree  at  the  London  Homoeo- 
pathic Hospital,  Great  Ormond  Street,  W.C, 
is  always  looked  forward  to  with  delight  by  the 
little  inmates  of  Barton  Ward,  and  this  year 
the  entertainment  given  in  connection  with  the 
distribution  of  its  fruit  took  place  on  Thursday 
last  week.  The  expenses  were  defi'ayed  from 
a  special  fund  collected  by  the  Matron,  Miss 
Clara  Hoadley,  who,  with  the  Sisters  and 
nurses,  had  also  decorated  the  wards  most 
tastefully.  A  feature  of  this  Tree  is  always 
the  surprise  preBents  for  the  officers,  medical 
staff,  and  nurses,  arranged  by  those  who  are 
well  acquainted  with  them,  their  tastes  and 
eccentricities;  these  gifts  occasioned  much 
laughter,  and  seemed  to  be  highly  appreciated 
by  the  recipients.  They  were  distributed  by 
the  senior  surgeon,  Mr.  Knox  Shaw,  who  quite 
entered  into  the  spirit  of  the  fun.  Tea  was 
served  in  Duming  Ward,  where  Sister  May 
presided  and  made  all  the  guests  welcome. 

The  Committee  of  the  hospital  are  appealing 
for  £10,000  to  build  a  Nurses'  Home,  in  which 
it  is  hoped  to  give  each  nurse  a  separate  bed- 
room. Donations  to  the  fund  for  tliis  puq>ose 
will  be  gratefully  acknoivledged  by  the  Secre- 
tarv,  Mr.  E.  A.  Attwood. 


A  most  pleasant  "  At  Home  "  was  given  on 
the  invitation  of  the  Guardians  of  the  parish  of 
Marylebone  at  the  Infirmary,  Notting  Hill,  on 
Thursday  in  last  week.  A  general  invitation 
was  extended  to  the  ratepayers  of  the  parish, 
and  invitations  were  also  issued  to  the  friends 
of  the  institution,  and  of  the  nursing  staflf.  The 
guests  were  received  by  the  Matron,  Miss  S. 
J.  Cockrell.  kindliest  of  hostesses,  and  tea  was 
served  in  the  spacious  Board  Room,  which  was 
crowded  with  the  numerous  guests  who  had 
come  to  show  their  good  will  to  the  Infirmary, 
its  inmates,  and  staflf. 


32 


Jibe  ffiritigb  3ournaI  of  IRursina. 


[Jan.   8,   1910 


Tlie  wards  looked  charmiug,  and  a  great  deal 
of  thought,  iugeuuity,  and  taste  had-  been 
brought  to  bear  on  their  decoration.  In  one 
ward  the  doorway  was  converted  into  an  arch 
of  white  and  pui-ple  clematis,  and  opposite  was 
a  large  silver  tripod  and  basket  filled  with  pur- 
ple flowers,  the  effect  of  which  was  excellent. 
Then  the  pretty  coloured  shades  over  the  chan- 
deliers down  the  centre  of  the  wards  make 
them  look  very  festive.  Most  pleasant  of  all, 
it  was  to  hear  the  enthusiasm  with  which  the 
patients,  both  men  and  women,  spoke  of  the 
care  and  kindness  which  they  received  both  by 
day  and  night.  "  A  Happy  Christmas,  yes, 
indeed,"  said  one  old  man,  "it  couldn't  be 
anything  else  under  the  circumstances,"  and 
an  old  lady,  beaming  all  over  with  pleasure 
and  content,  explained  that  it  was  the  first 
time  she  had  ever  been  in  a  hospital,  but  she 
should  always  speak  up  for  them;  as  for  the 
nurses,  it  was  impossible  for  her  to  say  enough 
about  them. 

The  probationers  sitting-room  had  been  most 
beautifully  decorated  by  their  clever  fingers, 
and  in  the  jjlace  of  honour  over  the  fireplace 
was  their  cherished  possession,  a  model  of  Miss 
Florence  Nightingale,  surrounded  by  sprays  of 
almond  blossom — not  imported  from  Japan,  as 
the  uninitiated  might  suppose,  but  made  by 
the  nursing  staff. 

The  whole  building  was  thrown  open  for  in- 
spection, and  most  interesting  were  the  new 
kitchens,  just  opened,  with  every  convenience 
and  labour  saving  appliance,  for  serving  this 
great  household.  Attached  to  it  is  the  bake- 
house, where  over  200  great  loaves  are  turned 
out  daily,  and  most  appetising  does  the  bread 
look  and  smell.  Then  there  is  the  dairy,  where 
all  the  milk  is  received,  filtered,  and  sterilised, 
then  run  into  great  cans  for  deliverj^  to  the 
various  departments.  Here  also  the  supply  is 
tested  daily  to  ensure  that  it  contains  its  "full 
complement  of  cream.  The  whole  apparatus 
is  most  up-to-date  and  interesting.  A  delight- 
ful afternoon  ended  with  carol  singing  in  the 
wards. 

The  Christmas  Entertainment  at  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital,  by  the  Amateur  Drama- 
tic Club,  took  place  on  Tuesday  and  Wednes- 
day evenings  in  the  Surgeiy,  to  which  a  covered 
way  was  arranged  from  the  Smithfield  Gate. 
^Ir.  Harold  Scawin,  the  Stage  JManager,  is  to 
be  congratulated  on  the  excellent  playing  of  the 
two  amusing  farces,  "  A  Eegular  Fix  "  and 
"Vice  Versa." 

Acting  on  what  we  consider  the  unsound  ad- 
vice of  the  Local  Government  Board,  Miss  H. 
A.  Clark  has  resigned  her  position  as  Charge 
Nurse  at  the  Edmonton  Infirmai-y.     Miss  Clark 


was  called  upon  to  resign  at  a  very  heated 
meeting  of  the  Guardians,  for  addressing  a 
letter  to  the  public  press,  which  they  con- 
sidered "  insubordinate."  Apparently  the 
Local  Government  Board  supports  the  conten- 
tion of  the  Guardians  that  tliey  have  a  right  to 
discharge  a  female  officer  with  14  years'  faith- 
ful service  to  her  credit  for  such  an  action. 
Here  we  disagree  with  it,  and  Beaconstield's 
pithy  saying,  "  Never  resign,"  is  sound  advice 
to  those  required  to  do  so  unjustly.  JNIuch  bet- 
ter stick  to  your  rights,  and  be  discharged. 


Miss  Clark  has  expressed  sorrow  for  hurting 
feelings  (the  truth  is  so  often  unpalatable),  and 
as  she  contends  that  she  has  committed  no 
breach  of  duty  she  has  asked  the  Guardians 
for  a  testimonial,  and  to  be  permitted  to  remain  ' 
at  her  post  until  she  obtains  another  appoint- 
ment. 

To  this  they  agreed,  having  had,  apparently, 
time  to  cool  down  since  their  violent  attack  on 
this  nurse  in  the  Board  Eoom  at  ■  a  recent 
meeting. 


One  of  the  international  delegates  who  at- 
tended the  Women's  Congress  at  Toronto  last 
summer,  said  "  Canada  would  be  Paradise  if 
one  could  get  a  glass  of  clean  water."  Indeed, 
it  IS  a  paramount  duty  of  a  Government  to  pro- 
vide this  essential  of  health  and  clean  living. 
Just  now  typhoid  has  become  epidemic  at  Mont- 
real, where  at  least  there  are  3,000  sufferers. 
The  Times  correspondent  writes  :  "Notwith- 
standing the  fact  that  the  accommodation  in 
the  hospitals  is  greatly  overtaxed,  the  City 
Council  seems  unwilling  to  take  steps  to  secure 
temporary  hospitals,  and  there  is  naturally 
great  indignation  with  the  inactivity  of  the 
aldermen.  A  committee  of  citizens  has  been 
formed  to  open  additional  hospitals,  while  the 
Victorian  Order  of  Nurses,  through  Lady  Drum- 
mond,  has  undertaken  to  furnish  all  the  nurses 
required."  Nurses  to  the  fore,  as  usual  1 — 
How  indispensable  they  ai'e  to  the  community, 
and  how  up  till  now  their  conscientious  wish  to 
make  themselves  even  more  efficient  than  they 
are,  through  State  Eegistration,  has  been  cal- 
louslv  ignored  in  England  and  Canada ! 


French  nurses  are  much  concerned  to. learn 
that  the  regulation  unifomr  for  the  Army 
Nurses  is  to  be  a  dress  of  black  merino.  They 
would  not  object  if  it  were  for  outdoor  wear, 
but  apparently  it  is  intended  to  be  worn  in  the 
wards  covered  more  or  less  by  a  linen  overall 
with  a  white  apron  on  the' top.  Both  because 
it  is  unhygienic  and  on  account  of  its  ugliness 
the  uniform  is  criticised. 


Another  point  to  which  attention  is   drawn 


Jan.  8,  1910j 


^i?c   jOiitiyD   3oui-nal   ot   IHur^mo. 


33 


in  a  contemporary  is  that  though  the  military 
regulations  uo  not  mention  that  mamed  women 
may  compete  for  nursing  appoiutmtuts,  or  that 
accepted  candidates  are  permitted  to  mari-y, 
the  conditions  of  leave  lor  nurses  bef'ort;  and 
after  accouchement  are  defined,  and  it  is  also 
stated  that  when  it  becomes  apparent  that  they 
arc  with  child  they  will  be  eniployed  in  otiier 
parts  of  the  hospital,  not  in  wards.  Neverthe- 
less, we  agree  with  Dr.  Anna  Hamiltoil  that  it 
is  not  seemly  that  nurses  in  this  condition 
should  be  in  and  out  of  a  militai-y  hospital. 
France  seems  to  be  the  only  country  where 
married  women  are  employed  in  public  hos- 
pitals. Dr.  Hamilton  hopes  for  the  good 
name  of  the  nurses  of  the  French  Army  that  it 
will  be  made  plain  by  the  militai-j"  authorities 
that  only  those  who  are  iegallj'  married  will  be 
allowed  to  retain  their  titles  and  office,  under 
th(4  above   circumstances. 


1Ruv5inc3  at  tbe  IRoval  3nfinnar^. 
j£&inLnirGb. 

The  report  by  the  managens  of  the  Royal  In- 
liiniai-y  of  Edinburgh  for  the  year  from  1st  Octo- 
ber, 1908,  to  let  October,  1909,  was  presented  to 
the  annual  meeting  on  Monday. 

Tlie  foUowing  reterenco  to  the  Xureing  Dejjart- 
ment  is  highly  satisfactory,  and  we  congratulate 
the  Lady  Superintendent,  Miss  A.  "W.  Gill,  and  tier 
able  assistants: — 

NuasiNO  Depaktment. 

The  a.verage  number  of  nurses  and  probationers 
during  the  year  was  2.39,  as  compared  with  254.8 
in  the  previous  year,  and  of  these  20  i)er  cent,  were 
trainetl  nui'ses.  Theie  were  784  applications  tor 
adnii-ssion,  as  oompare<l  with  67-5  iu  1908.  Sixty- 
seven  trained  nurses  left  during  the  year — one  to 
he  Matix>n  of  a  cottage  hospital ;  four  to  be 
Assistant  Matrons  to  asylums ;  thirt-eeu  to  be 
Sistei-s  in  other  hospitals  or  nursing  homes ;  twelve 
to  1)6  Queen's  Nurses;  one  to  be  a  District  Nurse; 
five  to  be  Nurses  in  other  institutions;  five  to  take 
training  as  Maternity  Nurses;  fourteen  to  become 
Private  Nurses;  one  to  join  the  Colonial  Nursing 
Association ;  tt-n  to  return  to  their  homes.  One,  a 
Hospital  Sister,  -nas  pensioned.  Three  nurses  left 
during  training.  Of  147  probationers  eight  proved 
unsuitable ;  fivo  left  of  their  own  accord ;  seventy 
became  second-year  nurses ;  and  sixty-four  re- 
mained under  training  on  1st  October,  1909.  A 
series  of  lectures  to  trained  nurses  was  again 
given  during  tho  winter  months,  and  proved  very 
successful,  the  attendance  steadily  increasing.  The 
lecturers  were  Professor  Cair<l,  Drs.  Barbour, 
Brewis,  Norman  Walker,  Bruce,  Fleming,  Dawson 
Turner,  and  Shennan,  and  Messrs.  Cotterill  and 
Wallace.  The  annual  prize-giving  took  place  in  the 
Nui-ses'  Home  on  6th  July,  the  Marchioness  of 
Tullibardine  presenting  the  prizes.  The  Territorial 
Nursing  Service  was  instituted  in  December,  1908, 
and    twenty-two   of   our    trained     nurses     enrolled 


themselves  as  members.  Sixty-five  of  tho  whole  staif 
of  120  nurses  have  been  trained  here.  The  annual 
picnics  in  July  were  greatly  enjoyed,  as  well  as 
the  motor  ri<les  for  nui-ses  and  i)ati€nt6  kindly 
arranged  by  Dr.  Veitch.  The  hi-alth  of  the  nurs«js 
has,  with  few  exceptions,  b<'en  goo<l,  and  tho 
managei«  desire  to  express  their  thanks  to  Dr. 
Graham  Brown  and  Mr.  Wallace  for  their  kind- 
ness and  attention  to  those  uui-ses  who  require<l 
me<lical  and  surgical  treatment  during  the  year. 
Blair  House  continues  to  be  of  great  benefit  to 
the  nurses,  and  the  new  summer-house  which  has 
been  erected  there  has  been  much  appreciated.  The 
managei-s  desire  to  record  their  warm  thanks  to 
the  following  members  of  the  .staff  for  courses  of 
lectures  and  instruction  to  the  nurses  and  proba- 
tioners:— Dr.  W.  Fordyce,  on  Gynsecological 
Nui-smg;  Mr.  AV.  J.  Stuart,  on  Surgical  Nursing; 
Dr.  Boyd,  on  Materia  Medica;  Dr.  Shennan,  on 
Bacteriology ;  Dr.  Watson,  on  Instruments ;  Miss 
Bell,  on  General  Nursing;  Miss  Bladou  and  Mi.<=s 
Millar,  on  Bandaging  (Miss  Bladon  also  held 
tutorial  classes  for  the  probationers) ;  to  Pi-ofessor 
Thomson  for  kindly  conducting  the  examinations 
on  instruments  and  bandaging;  and  to  Dr.  Fleming 
and  Mr.  W.  .1.  Stuart  for  having  undertaken  tho 
preliminary  examinations.  The  nianagei-s  offer 
their  grateful  thanks  to  those  friends  who  have 
shown  their  interest  in  nurses  and  patients  by  pro- 
viding motor  drives;  to  those  who  have  so  kindly 
provided  teas  in  connection  with  these  drives,  or 
who  have  presented  tickets  for  concerts,  diaries  and 
calendars,  fruits,  flowers,  and  other  gifts  'or  the 
nurses. 

IReflcctions. 


Fbom  a  Boakd  Eoom  Mibrgk. 
The  King  has  caused  to  be  oonveye<l  to  Miss  Agnes 
Weston,  founder  and  head  of  the  Royal  Sailors' 
Rests  at  Portsmouth  and  Devon  port,  his  Majesty's 
seasonable  greetings  to  hei-self  and  .staff,  as  well  as 
to  the  Bluejackets  and  their  families  among  whom 
they  work,  and  expressing  wishes  for  the  continued 
prosperity  of  the  institutions  in  tho  coming  year. 


Tlie  Rev.  J.  E.  Watts-Ditchfield,  Chairman  of  the 
Que<'n's  Hospital  for  Children.  Bethnal  Green,  ai> 
peals  forasum  of  £1,000  within  the  next  few  days  to 
prevent  the  closing  of  62  beds  within  the  institution. 


The  President  of  tho  Local  Government  Board 
has  appointed  Dr.  Eastwoo<l,  one  of  the  pathologists 
of  tho  Royal  Commission  on  Tuberculosis,  an  addi- 
tional medical  inspector  of  the  Board,  with  a  special 
view  to  his  undertaking  pathological  investifrations. 

The  imme<liate  object  will  1m>  to  apply  to  public 
health  work  the  very  important  r<-«ults  obtained  by 
the  Royal  Commission  on  Tuberculosis,  and  thereby 
to  ensure  the  free<lom  of  important  foods  from  the 
infection  of  this  disease. 


Tlie  Eighth  Quinquennial  International  Prison 
Congress  wUl  be  held  at  Washington  in  October, 
1910,  by  invitation  of  the  President  of  the  United 
States. 


34 


Zbc  Briti0f)  3ournal  or  IRursuiG. 


[Jan.   8,  1910 


Str  5\>^ncv>  Matcrlow  an^ 
IHursinG. 

Tlie  Life  of  Sir  Sydney  H.  Waterlow,  London 
Apprentice,  Lord  Mayor,  Captain  of  Industry, 
Philanthropist,  by  Mr.  George  Smalley,  is  a  book 
worth  reading,  and  to  those  wlio  knew  him  pei-son- 
ally,  in  connection  with  his  work  as  Treasurer  of 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  will  be  found  of  ab- 
sorbing interest.  It  is  so  consoling  to  realise  that, 
in  spite  of  adverse  circumstances,  genuine  dogged 
determination  does  tell  in  the  end,  and  that  it  is 
because  we  are  not  strong  enough,  not  because 
others  are  more  favourably  circumstanced,  that 
they  beat  us  in  the  race  of  life— especially  is  this 
true  ;/  fhc  goal  is  a  worthy  one. 

Having  told  the  story  of  his  rise  from  apprentice 
to  a  prince  of  printer.s.  and  of  hi.s  public  «ork  for 
the  City  and  people  of  London,  Mr.  Smaller  has 
much  to  say  of  the  success  which  attended  thework 
of  Sir  Sydney  as  Treasurer  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital. 

Here  we  come  on  an  interesting  item,  when  the 
nursing  department  is  touched  upon,  namely,  that 
the  late  Mrs.  Gladstuue  used  her  influence  to  have 
Miss  Manson  selected  as  Matron  of  that  great  hos- 
pital.* 

After  referring  to  reforms  made  in  the  medical 
department,  we  read,  "  Then  came  a  sweeping  pro- 
posal—the employment  of  trained  nurses,  with  a 
trained  and  competent  Matron  as  Superintendent. 
The  days  when  it  was  possible  to  be  content  with 
the  services  of  that  highly  respected  widow  of  a 
highly  respected  solicitor  were  over.  The  Sisters 
of  the  Hospital  were  all  highly  respected  and 
highly  incompetent  (this  assertion  is  too  .sweeping, 
some  of  the  Sisters  were  remarkably  able  women). 
They  did  their  duty  conscientiously,  but  conscience 
is  not  a  good  .substitute  for  knowledge.  One  of  the 
chief  rivals  of  St.  Bartholomew's,  St.  Thomas's,  had 
a  staff  of  trained  nurses  whom  Miss  Nightingale 
had  supplied. t 

"To  her  Sir  Sydney  applied,  having  first  per- 
suaded the  Governors  to  grant  a  retiring  pension 
to  the  Matron  in  power.  Miss  Nightingale  under- 
took to  find,  and  did  find,  a  successor,  all  the  way 
from  Montreal,  in  Canada  (Miss  Machin),  and  four 
nurses  to  be  under  her.  I  have  before  me  two  of 
_Miss  Nightingale's  letters;  admirable  letters,  but 
dealing  too  much  with  details  to  be  quoted  in  full. 
But  a  sentence  or  two  will  show  how  well  this 
great  Sister  of  Charity  understood  the  art  of 
letter  writing. 

'  I  should  ere  this,  had  I  not  been  afraid  of 
troubling  .vour  well-filled  time,  have  seized  the  op- 
portunity of  giving  you  joy,  and  the  nurse  cause 
too,  for  your  wise  and  efficient  measures  for  im- 
proving the  nursing.  .  .  I  think  I  am  as  anxious 
for  your  success  as  for  our  own.  Or  rather,  it  is 
all  one;  the  good  nursing  cause,  so  furthered  by 
*Dear  lady !  how  like  her  never  to  mention  her 
kind  offices,  and  thus  receive  the  thanks  which 
were  her  due. — Ed. 

tSeveral  of  the  old  Sisters  at  St.  Bartholomew's 
had  been  trained  under  Mrs.  Wardroper,  on  Miss 
Nightingale'.s  system. — Ed. 


.vuu.  But  you  would  nut  think  much  of  our  train- 
ing if  we  had  always  a  stock  of  people  '  trained  at 
a  moment's  notice,'  as  the  advertisements  have  it, 
on  hand  to  offer.  God  speed  St.  Bartholomew's 
nursing  and  its  Treasurer.' 

•■  The  date  is  10,  South  Street,  Park  Lane,  No- 
vember 29th,  1878,  and  the  signature  '  Ever  your 
faithful  servant,  Flokence  Nightingale,'  quite  in 
the  eighteenth  century  maimer. 

"  Unlrappily  the  Montreal  lady    soon    departed. 
The  untrained  Sisters  and  Nurses  were  difficult  to 
manage,   nor  would   they  work  harmoniously  with 
the  trained  or  with  the  probationers.     Sir  S.ydney 
had  to  .start  again,   inquiring  right   and  left,   and 
finding  none  who  seemed  likely  to  be  competent. 
Suddenl.v   Mrs.    Gladstone  appeared   on  the   scene. 
That  admirable  woman  was  devoting  henselt  to  the 
creation    of   her   excellent     convalescent     home     at 
Woodford,    in    Essex,    of   which   the    world    knows, 
and  was  much  at  the  London  Hospital.    There  was 
in  that  hospital,  and  in  charge  of  a  ward  of  forty 
(fifty-three)    beds,    a    certain    Miss   Ethel    Manson, 
whom     Mrs.     Gladstone     strongly     commended     to- 
Sir    Sydney    as    a   suitable    Matron    for    St.    Bar- 
tholomew's.   Tlie  careful  Sir  S.vdney  went  twice  to 
the   liOndon    Hospital,    incognito  each   time,    visit- 
ing Miss  Malison's  ward,   but  only   as  H  spectator 
interested  in  luu'sing.     He  liked  her  way  of  doing 
things,    but    there   remained   the   difficulty   of   per- 
suading 200  Governors,   in  whom  the  appointment 
veNSted,  to  like  them  also.     His  diplomac.v,  however, 
was  seldom  at  fault.    Instead  of  canvassing  the  200 
in  Miss  Ethel  Jlanson's  behalf,  he  induced  them  to 
allow  the  standing  ojder  to  be  susi)ended,   and  to 
allow  him  to  select  the  Matron  for  a  three  months' 
trial,   the   Governors  then   to   ratify   or   reject   his 
choice.     So  to  St.  Bartholomew's  this  lady  came  on 
trial,  and  when  three  montlis  had  expired  .she  wa.s 
confirmed    b.v    the    200    unanimously,     all     having 
meantime,  I  presume,  seen  the  lady  and  studied  iier 
methods.     I  presume  so,  because  some  of  the  senior 
doctors  objected  to  Mi.ss  Ethel  Manson  as  Matron 
on  the  ground  that  she  was    too    young    and    too 
pretty.       Tliese    faults   were    not    denied,    but    Sir 
Sydney  replied:  "The  first  fault  time  will  remedy; 
the  second  I  do  not  regard  as  altogether  a  fault, 
for  I  think  a  kind,  genial,  sympathising  woi-d  from 
a  pretty  woman  is  vei-j-  acceptable  to  a  sick  patient." 
Perhaps     the    senior    doctors    were    not    really    in 
earnest.      At    any    rate.    Miss    Manson    oontinued 
Matron   of   St.    Bartholomew's   for   some   years,   to 
everybody's  pleasure  and  satisfaction,  devoted  her- 
self with  energy  to  the  work,  develoijed  the  Nurses' 
Training  School,  and  left  only  to  be  married.     '  In 
that    new    state,'    observed    Sir    Sydney,    '  neither 
youth  nor  beauty  were  deemed  faults.'  " 

M.  B. 


I  have  always  felt  the  deepest  sense  of  gratitude 
to  Sir  S.vdne.v  Waterlow  for  giving  me  my  pro- 
fessional chance.  The  story  of  our  first  meeting, 
and  its  subsequent  results,  is  worth  recording  as 
a  telepathic  tale.  Next  week  I  propose  to  give  in 
this  Journal  an  accurate  version  of  my  appointment 
in  the  year  1881,  as  Matron  to  the  Roval  Hospital 
of  St.   Bartholomew  in  .Smithfield.— E.   G.   F. 


Jan.  B,   I'JIO] 


^be  Britisb  3ournal  ot  TRurstng. 


35 


®ur  Jforcion  letter. 

FROM    NATAL. 

Dear  Editor, 
K  11  o  w  i  11  g 
your  interest 
ill  imrKfti  and 
mii-sing  mat- 
t  o  r  ti  i  11 
Hriti&li  Do- 
minions be- 
yond the 
Seas,  1  am 
sending  you 
a  photojzrapli  of  a  surgical  ward  in  tlie  native  hos- 
pital section  of  Grey's  Hospital,  Pietermaritzburg, 
of  which  section  I  am  Sister-in-Charge.  The  Matron 
of  the  Hospital  is  Miss  Mitchell,  who  was  trained 


taining  two  waixls  of  eight  beds  (medical  and 
surgical)  for  women,  a  matornity  ward  of  four 
be<lB,  and  a  ward  for  tubercular  cases  of  five  bods. 
Besides  these  there  are  two  verj'  nice  airy  wards 
built  of  wood  and  iron  for  men.  The  picture  I 
have  sent  you  is  of  one  of  them. 

I  like  the  natives;  they  are  most  good  and 
iwtient,  though  occasionally  one  gets  a  disagree- 
able one.  AVe  have  very  good  work,  both  medical 
and  surgical,  and  I  feel  I  am  getting  some  of  the 
rust  knocked  off  after  ten  years  of  army  nursing. 
AVe  have  a  very  nice  operating  theatre  with  every 
modern  convenience  in  a  small  way. 

Tlie  Xurses'  Home  is  quite  modern.  The  Sisbere 
have  a  delightful  sitting-room,  and  so  have  the 
nui'ses.  All  our  be<lrooms  are  most  comfortable  also, 
with  bath-rooms  which  have  hot  and  oold  water  laid 
on.  We  also  have  a  very  nice  garden  and  tennis 
court.     The  other  day  the  Governor,  Sir  ^[atthew 


A    Ward    in    the    Native    Hospital.    Grey's    Hospital,    Pietermaritzburg. 


at  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Dundee,  and  has  ha<l  a 
great  deal  of  exi)erience  in  South  Africa,  including 
the  sujM'rintendence  of  a  Boer  camp  during  the  war. 
In  the  picture  I  am  .standing  under  the  electric 
light.  Matron  is  on  my  left,  and  my  Staff  Nurse 
on  my  right.  The  others  are  the  Second  Nui-se  and 
the  Proiiationer,  the  two  M^lical  Officers,  the 
Secretary,  and  two  Indian  orderlies  (I  have  three  in 
all,  and  a  KaflBr  woman  to  help  with  the  women). 
The  hospital  is  a  very  nice  one.  containing  about 
100  iK'ds.  One  building  is  for  Eiiiy)i)eaiis,  another 
for  private  patients,  who  mv  nursed  in  small  rooms, 
with  a  larger  ward  of  four  l)e<lK,  and  there  is  also 
a  maternity  ward  built  a  little  way  from  tnese. 
Then    there    is    my    little     native    hospital    con- 


Nathan,  came  to  open  the  new  Children's  Ward, 
which  is  a  memorial  to  the  late  Mrs.  Macdonald, 
who  for  so  many  j'ears  did  such  goo<l  work  for  tne 
hospital.  The  presence  of  the  Ciovernor  was 
specially  appropriate,  as  it  was  he  who  originally 
suggested  this  memorial,  a  fact  r<'ferr«l  to  by  i*lr. 
W.  J.  O'Brien  in  thanking  his  Excellency  for  nis 
presence.  In  declaring  the  ward  open  the  Governor 
said: — 

"  It  was  not  my  good  fortune  to  know  Mi-s.  Mac- 
donald, whose  death  took  place  .just  before  the  time 
of  my  arrival  in  the  Colony.  But  at  that  time  her 
name  was  on  many  tongues,  and  when  I  visito<i  this 
hospital  on  the  tenth  day  of  my  residence  in  Natal, 
and  noted  the  one  obvious  deficiency  in  the  acoom- 


36 


ZV>c  35riti9b  journal  of  'MursinG. 


[Jan.   8,   1910 


modatiou  it  afforded,'  it  occurred  to  me  that  the 
public  appreciation  of  Mrs.  llaodonald's  services  to 
the  Hotipital  and  to  the  Colony  could  scarcely  find 
more  fitting  expression  than  in  the  remedying  of 
this  defect  by  the  equipment  of  a  si>ecial  Avard  to 
be  used  exclusively  for  the  niirsing  to  health  of  sick 
children.  I  deemed  it  a  special  privilege  when  I 
was  subsequently  allowed  to  associate  myself  with 
this  project. 

"The  first  of  these  was  the  debt  of  gratitude  I 
personally  owe,  and  shall  never  lie  able  adequately 
to  pay,  to  the  profession  to  which,  if  Mre.  Mac- 
donald  did  not  actually  belong,  she  was  closely  con- 
nected. Til  is  profession  has  grown  up  in  my  lifetime, 
and  has  in  that  time  lessened  the  sum  of  human 
suffering  in  the  world.  I  do  not  think  the  world 
sufficiently  recognises  what  it  owes  to  the  trained 
nurse.  Her  life  is  a  hard  one,  but  there  are  great 
compensations.  When  under  the  doctor's  directions 
after  a  hard  fight  with  disease,  death  has  been 
driven  back,  the  nurse  must  feel  the  elation  of  the 
soldier  on  the  battlefield  that  has  been  won  by  nis 
courage  and  devotion  as  well  as  by  his  general's  skill 
and  knowledge.  And  it  the  satisfaction  of  doctor 
and  nui'se  is  keen  when  the  I^earded  grain  has  been 
saved,  how  much  greater  must  be  their  content- 
ment when  the  sickle  of  the  dread  Keaper  is  stayed 
from  cutting  down  the  flowers  that  grow  between. 

"Every  child  whose  life  is  saved,  ILmb  made 
whole,  weakness  cured,  constitution  strengthened 
in  this  Hospital  will  add  to  the  iK>tential  strength  of 
this  Colony  and  of  the  British  Dominions  of  which 
it  forms  a  part.  And,  apart  from  this — the  states- 
man's view  of  the  matter — we  lovem  of  children 
count  as  a  gain  every  babe's  discomfort  eased,  ache 
sooth,  and  tear  dried.  We  recognise  that  Childhood 
has  a  right  to  joy  and  pleasure,  and  that  it  is  our 
dutv  to  free  it  from  grief  and  pain." 

C.  J. 


OVALTINE. 

Many  invalids  and  dysix'ptics  who  are  unable  to 
take  tea  and  cofft.Hj  will  find  a  pleasant  sub- 
stitute in  Ovaltine,  which  is  not  oirly  a  beverage 
but  a  food,  as  it  is  composed  of  malt  extract,  fresh 
eggs,  milk,  and  converted  cocoa.  It  is  very  easily 
prepared,  and  contains  active  lecithin,  the  most 
important  constituent  of  the  brain,  spinal  cord, 
and  nerves.  It  is  supplied  by  A.  Wander,  Ph.D.. 
London  Office,  1-3,  Leonard  Street,  City  Road, 
E.C.  Other  valuable  preparations  of  this  firm  are 
the  Dry  Extract  of  Malt  with  Glycerophosphates 
Compound,  and  Fonnitrol  Pastilles,  wliicli 
pleasantly  and  efl'ectively  supersede  gargles  in  ren- 
dering the  mouth  and  throat  aseptic. 


NURSE'S   DIARY  AND    EMERGENCY    NOTE   BOOK. 

The  neat  little  Scott's  Emulsion  Nni-se's  Diary, 
issu«'d  by  .Scott  and  Bowne,  Ltd.,  11,  Stonecutter 
Street,  E.G.,  will  be  welcome  to  many  uui-ses,  and 
contains  much  useful  information.  It  also  con- 
tains a  Coupon-Insurance  Ticket,  which.  When 
signed,  entitles  the  holder  to  substantial  remunera- 
tion in  case  of  accident,  or  her  legal  personal  re- 
pre.sentative  to  £.500   in  the  event   of   her  denth. 


®utsi^c  tbc  Gates. 


WOMEN. 

The  Royal  College  of 
Sui'geons  has  mode  some 
alterations  in  the  regu- 
lations for  the  admission 
of  women  students  to 
the  College  Museum. 
These  alterations  have 
been  rendered  necessary 
on  account  of  the 
adnii,s,sion  of  Honien  to  the  College  diplomas, 
and  in  order  that  they  may  have  the  same 
opportunity,  for  the  purposes  of  study  as  male 
students.  It  is  understood  that  a  number  of  women 
students  have  already  entered  for  the  examinations 
of  the  Conjoint  Board  of  the  Royal  Colleges  of 
Physicians  and  Surgeons,  to  be  held  this  month, 
and  also  for  the  examinations  for  the  diploma  in 
public  health  granted  by  the  Royal  Colleges. 


The  following  resolution  has  been  sent  by  the 
Deutscher  Verband  fiir  Frauenstimmrecht  (the 
German  National  Union  of  Women's  Suffrage  Asso- 
ciations) to  the  Prime  Minister  with  a  request 
that  it  may  be  communicated  to  the  Cabinet :  — 
"  The  German  Union  for  Woman  Suffrage,  through 
its  national  and  local  councils,  expresses  its  deep 
indignation  at  the  cruelty  practised  upon  suffra- 
gists in  English  ijrisous.  They  protest  especially 
again.st  the  fact  that  in  a  constitutional  State  wo- 
men who  have  been  judged  for  political  offences  have 
been  treated  like  common  criminals.  They  protest 
also  against  the  fact  that  in  defiance  of  the  ordinary 
law  of  the  land  .such  women  have  been  forced  for 
weeks  and  months  to  undergo  the  painful  opera- 
tion of  forcible  feeding,  so  that  on  account  of  their 
political  convictions  they  have  been  exposed  to  life- 
long and  irreijarable  injury  to  their  health  and 
strength." 


The  International  Council  of  Women,  founded  by 
Mrs.  May  Wright  Sewall,  of  Indianapolis,  U.S.A., 
,iu.st  twenty-one  years  ago,  has  issued  a  volume  as  a 
I>ermanent  memento  of  its  recent  meeting  in  Canada 
under  the  title  of  "  Our  Lady  of  the  Sunshine  and 
Her  International  Visitors,  1909."  Leading  women 
workere  of  twelve  different  countries  give  their  im- 
pressions of  Canada,  iluch  valuable  insight  is  fur- 
nished as  to  the  various  methods  employed  in  dif- 
ferent countries,  and  the  whole  record  points  to 
most  encouraging  results  for  this  sisterhood  of 
women  w'orkers  united  for  the  realisation  of  high 
ideals.  To  quote  one  of  the  delegates,  it  opens 
"  i>ossibilities  of  a  i)eaceful,  bloodless,  world-wide 
revolution  through  a  unified  system  of  philanthropy, 
education,  health,  and  social  reform.  This  is  the 
task  the  International  Council,  of  Women  is  accom- 
plishing, this  is  the  sure.st  impre.ssion  of  the  Con- 
gress." "Our  Lady  of  the  Sunshine"  is  most  in- 
terestingly illustrated,  a)id  can  be  ordered,  price 
Is.,  from  Miss  Dallas,  Vice-Regal  Lodge,  Dublin. 


Jan.  8,  1910] 


tllDe  3Br!tl0b  3ournal  or  iHurstno. 


37 


■BooU  of  the  Mcch. 


CANDLES  IN   THE  WIND* 

The  Light  of  cvltv  soul  burns  upward,  but  iiiocl 
•of  them  are  candks  in  the  wind.  Let  us  allow  lor 
atmospheric   disturbances." — Georoc    Mer.tdifh. 

To  those  who  have  felt  the  fa.scination  of  India, 
and  more  especially  tliose  intert*,tt!<]  in  the  problems 
of  the  Xoi-thern  Frontier,  a  book  by  Maud  Diver  is 
always  welcome,  for  she  writ<'s  of  what  she  knows, 
and  with  graphic  pen  makes  us  realise  our  debt  to 
the  han<lful  of  men  who  keep  that  Frontier  intact. 

We  are  introduce<l  at  the  outset  to  Alan 
Laurence,  an  engineer  subaltern,  who,  with  a  little 
comi>any  of  Ka.shmiri  Sappers,  has,  after  three  un- 
successful efforts,  ju.st  complete<l  a  difficult  bit  of 
road  on  a  mountain  side  in  the  Hindu  Kush  ;  but 
the  shout  of  victory  of  the  Sappers  breaks  midway 
into  a  howl  of  <'xecration,  for  a  fourth  time  the  road 
gives  way,  an<l  the  native  corimral  stands  before 
him  saluting,  the  dust  of  defeat  uix>n  his  uniform, 
and  the  shadow  of  it  in  his  eyes,  a.sking:  "  How  can 
the  servants  of  the  jNIaharaj  do  more?  Tlie  thing 
■entirely  may  not  be." 

"  Nevertheless  this  thing  must  be,"  Laurence 
asserted  quietly.  '"  How  should  I  carry  such  child's 
talk  as  thine  to  the  Colonel  Sahib?" 

The  man  salaams,  then  hesitatos,  and  prefem  a 
request  that  the  c<^K)lie-loi;  may  kill  a  goat  and  offer 
poojah  to  the  evil  demon  "who  wills  not  tliat  his 
meditations  lie  disturl«?<l  by  the  noise  of  shot  and 
hammer." 

"  And  if  the  request  drew  a  smile  from  the 
Englishman,  there  lurked  in  it  no  tincture  of  con- 
tempt. He  was  beginning,  dimly  and  gradually,  to 
know  something  of  this  India — vast,  comple.x,  mys- 
terious— and  to  .sympathise,  w  here  five  y<'ars  ago  ne 
would  have  scornetl ;  for  sympathy  is  by  knoHh'dge 
out  of  an  understanding  heart." 

But  the  problems  of  India  are  many  sided,  and 
this  .story — a  story  in  the  main  of  fair  women  and 
brave  men — brings  into  .strong  prominence  the  in- 
evitable tragetly  following  on  the  marriage  of  an 
ICnglish  girl  with  a  Eurasian — "  a  pure  half- 
breed  "  with  an  impossible  half-sist«r.  James 
Videlle.  a  doctor  in  the  Indian  Army,  home  on  long 
leave,  wooed  and  won  Lyndsay  Vereker.  Xot  until 
he  took  her  to  India  did  a  su.spicion  enter  her  mind 
as  to  his  mix<'d  blood,  and  the  full  tragedy  of  the 
situation  was  reveale<l  to  her  unconsciously  with 
overwhelming  suddenness  by  Alan  Laurence,  who, 
believing  her  to  be  free,  had  compl<'t<'ly  lost  his 
heart  to  her.  The  rede<'ming  jjoint  in  .lames  Videlle 
is  his  genuine  love  for  his  wife,  but  his  jealous, 
vacillating,  croaked  temperament  made  her  life  a 
martyrdom. 

How  Lyndsay  and  Laurence  "  win  through  " 
must  hi-  left  to  the  readei-  to  discover.  It  is  refresh- 
ing  in  these  days  to  find  an  author  who  jwints  the 
wav  to  happiness  along  the  path  of  duty. 

But  besides  its  human  interest  the  book  holds  one 
by  its  graphic  description  of  Fix>nti&r  warfare,  and 


tln!  stoiy  of  the  capture  of  Nilt  Fort  is  a  fine  bit  of 
wiiting. 

Tho  enchantment  of  the  Frontier  scenery  also 
lays  its  si>ell  upon  one.  The  world  holds  none 
lovelier.  And  yet  more:  "Here,  where  all  is 
elemental,  the  man  at  hand  grijjs  with  colossal 
forces  finds  re-invigoration  of  mind  and  body;  finds 
his  soul  threshed  from  the  husks  of  materialism, 
self-indulgence,  and  the  jietty  selt-imixirtanoe — 
fostere<l  by  civili.sation — that  lots  character  as 
surely  as<lanip  rots  woo<l.  In  this  rough  fashion  tne 
Flintier  makes  or  breaks  her  pioneers,  according 
to  the  grace  that  is  in  them  ;  »ih1  lu'r  fashion,  how- 
ever terrible,  has  aljout  it  a  certain  grandeur  con- 
spicuously aljsent  fiom  the  making  or  bi'eaking  pro- 
cess o^  cities." 

_____  ^-  ^-  ^• 

Dcrscs. 


*  Bv   Maud  Diver. 
Sons.) 


(William    Blaikwood    an^l 


"  MIMMA   BELLA. 
Do  you  recall  the  scents,  tho  insect  whirr, 
Where  we  had  laid  her  in  the  chestnut  shade? 
How  discs   of   sunlight  through  the   bright  leaves 

played 
Upon  the  grass,  as  wo  bent  over  her  ? 

How   roving   breezes  made  the  bracken  stir 

Beside  her,   while  the  bumble-bee,  arrayed 

In  brown   and  gold,  hummed  round  her,    and  the 

glade 
Was  strewn  with  last  year's  chestnuts'  prickly  fur? 

There  in  the  forest's  ripe  and  fragrant  heat 
She  lay  and  laughed,  and  kicked  her  weo  bare  feet, 
And  stretched  wee  hands  to  grasp  some  woodland 
bell; 

And  played  her  little  games;  and  when  we  said 
"  Cuckoo  "    would   lift   her   frock,    and    hide    her 

head, 
■Rliich  now,  God  knows,   is  hidden  but  too  well. 
Eugene  Lee-Hamilton. 

COMING    EVENTS. 

January  7th.~ljond<m  Homoeopathic  Hospital, 
W.C.  The  Matron  and  Nursing  Staff  At  Home. 
Music.     Tea  and  coffee.    8  to  11  p.m. 

January  I3i/t._Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh. 
Lecture  on  Operations  on  the  Stomach  and  Intes- 
tines. Preparations  and  After-Niirsing.  By  Pro- 
fessor Alexis  Thomson,  F.R.C.S.E.  Extra-Mural 
Medical  Theatre,  4.30  p.m.  Nurses  cordially  in- 
vited. 

Januarn  l.',ih. — Girls'  Missionarv  Conference 
(C.E.Z.M.S.),  Morley  Hall.  26,  George  Street, 
Hanover  Square,  W.  Nurses'  welcome,  11 — 1,  and 
2.30—4.30  p.m. 

January  25M.— Meeting  of  the  Central  Regi.stra- 
tion  Committee,  Council  Room,  British  Medical  As- 
sociation Office,  420,  Strand,  London,  W.C,  3.^0 
p.m.  The  Right  Hon.  the  Lord  Ampthill  will  pie- 
side. 

WORD   FOR    THE  WEEK. 
"  To  do  nothing  is  as  fatal  as  to  commit  evil,  and 
it  is  more  cowardlv." 


38 


JTiK  Brttisb  :tournal  of  IHurstng. 


[Jau.   8,  1910 


letters  to  the  Ie^itol^ 


Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  we  wish  tt 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  ^ce  do  not  in  ant  wai 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


THE   USE  OF  PURE  ANIMAL  WOOL. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Dear  Madam, — I  have  been  very  interested  to 
read  the  article  in  this  week's  Journal  on  "The 
Use  of  Pure  Animal  Wool,"  and  shall  certainly  try 
to  use  it  where  possible.  I  have  always  felt  that 
the  ordinary  Gamgee  and  absorbent  cotton  wool  of 
commerce  were  not  satisfactory  materials  for  i>re- 
serving  warmth,  although  practically  I  think  one 
finds  the  latter  is  absorbeirt,  as  it  claims  to  be,  in 
contradistinction  to  the  commoner  variety  known  in 
hospitals  as  "  brown  wool,"  which  is  not,  and  it  is 
the  former  wool  of  which  Gamgee  tissue  is  made, 
so  that  it  should,  and  I  think  does,  absorb  per- 
spiration. This  being  so,  of  course  Gamgee  jackets 
require  to  be  removed  periodically  and  aired — dried 
AVJjuld  perhaps  be  the  more  correct  word — but  the 
dampness  is  internal.  I  do  not  think  that  when  re- 
moving a  Gamgee  jacket  from  a  patient  that  I 
have  ever  found  the  inside — which  I  take  to  mean 
the  side  next  the  patient — a  "  wet  sojiping  mess." 

Nevertheless,  it  is  good  to  know  of  a  wool  which 
is  warm  as  well  as  absorbent.  As  a  chilly  person 
myself,  I  sympathise-  with  those  patients  who  still 
feel  cold  when  supplied  with  the  regulation  num- 
lier  of  blankets,  and  even  with  a  hot  water  lx)ttle, 
and  according  to  routine  rules  "ought  to  be  warm  " 
Init  are  not.  A  use  to  which  "  Thermo-Iaine  "  might 
l)e  put  with  advantage  is,  I  should  say,  to  line 
ordinary  bed  jackets,  for  many  chronic  invalids  feel 
the  cold  even  when  wearing  flannel  jackets,  and 
quilted  silk  jackets  lined  with  down  are  only  within 
the  means  of  a  limited  few.  lu  incurable  homes, 
for  instance,  I  should  think  animal  wool  would 
l)e  invaluable,  and  for  the  tiny  babies  who  depend 
(ui  incubators  for  the  warmth  which  keeps  them 
alive,  also. 

I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Yours  faithfully, 

C.  M. 


MAULED  BY  A  LION. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  -Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  JIadam, — The  account  of  injuries  recently 
inflicted  on  Ralph  Gardener  by  a  captive  lion  at  the 
Crystal  Palace  calls  for  some  comment  fix)m  those 
who  see  two  sides  to  every  question.  One  sym- 
pathises with  the  man,  but  horrible  stories  of  this 
kind  come  as  a  .shock  to  rouse  the  public  con- 
science on  behalf  of  noble  animals  undergoing  im- 
prisonment for  life  for  no  fault  of  their  own.  Surely 
the  time  has  come  when  the  morbid,  vulgar,  selflsh, 
and  cruel  instinct  which  draws  i>eople  to  stare  at 
wild   beasts  behind   bars    should    be    diseouiaged  ? 


These  shows  are  a  mistake,  and  cannot  fail  to  de- 
moralise all  complacent  spectators,  especially  the 
young.  Yet  a  stream  of  "  latest  additions  "  is  con- 
tinually pouring  into  the  Zoo,  and  among  them, 
the  other  day,  was  an  unfortunate  eagle  from  the 
Philippine  Islands.  Disgraceful!  AMiat  a  fate  for 
the  monarch  of  the  sky — just  at  the  moment  when 
men  ai-e  tasting  the  firet  bliss  of  mastery  over  the 
air! 

In  a  fine  essay  entitled  "  A  Visit  to  the  Zoo- 
logical Gardens,"  Leigh  Hunt,  writing  in  advance 
of  his  age  about  a  century  ago,  says  of  imprisoned 
eagles:  "It  is  monstrous  to  see  any  creature  in  a 
cage,  far  more  any  winged  creature,  and,  most  of 
all,  such  as  ai'e  accustomed  to  soar  through  the 
vault  of  heaven,  and  have  the  world  under  their 
eye.  Why  can  we  have  Acts  of  Parliament  in  favour 
of  other  extension  of  good  tieatment  to  the  brute 
creation,  and  not  against  their  tormenting  im- 
prisonment ?  At  all  events,  we  may  ask  the  ques- 
tion whether  a  great  people,  under  a  finer  a.S{>ect  of 
knowledge  and  civilisation  than  the  present,  would 
think  themselves  justified  in  keeping  any  set  of 
fellow-creatuies  in  a  state  of  endless  captivity,  their 
faculties  contradicted,  their  very  lives  turned  into 
lingering  deaths?"  After  a  hundred  years,  are  we 
still  not  "great"  enough,  and  is  our  knowledge 
and  experience  still  not  deep  enough,  to  make  us 
detest  such  barbarities? 

FaithfuUy  yours, 

Edith  C.«rington, 

18,  Miles  Road,  Clifton,  Bristol. 


IRotices. 


RULES  FOR  PRIZE  COMPETITIONS. 
Peactical  Points. 

We  offer  a  Prize  of  5s.  for  the  best  Practical 
Point  i>aragraph  of  from  inO  to  200  words,  to  reach 
the  Pkiitor,  at  20  Upi)er  Wimpole  Street,  London, 
W.,  not  later  than  Saturday,  January  15th  inst. 

Paragraphs  sent   in,  other   than   that  to   which 
the  prize  is  awarded,  and  thought  worthy  of  pub- 
lication, will  be  paid  for  at  the  usual  rates. 
The  Neatest  Nurse  Photogeaph. 

We  offer  10s.  for  a  photograph  of  a  nurse  in 
uniform,  neatness  to  be  the  test  of  excellence,  with 
permission  to  publish  the  same.  The  photogiaphs 
must  reach  the  Editor  not  later  than  Saturday, 
January  22ud.  Photographs  sent  which  do  not  win 
the  prize  will  be  returned. 

An  Article  on  a  Peactical  Nursing  Subject. 

AVe  offer  £1  10s.  for  an  article  dealing  with 
Practical  Nui-sing  of  from  1,400  to  1,500  words,  to 
reach  the  Pkiitor  not  later  than  Saturday,  January 
29th.  By  arrangement  with  competitors  arucies 
other  than  that  to  which  the  Prize  is  awarded  may 
be  selected  for  publication. 

Each  competitor  must  enclose  her  name  and 
address  in  full. 


OUR  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing   for  the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


■^nu.  H,  10101   ^(5c  Brit/sF)  3ournal  of  IHursimj  Supplement. 


The    Midwife. 


nDl^wlfer^  in  1000. 


JJuiiiig  the  past  year  the  Departmental  Com- 
mittee of  the  Privy  Council,  appointed  to  con- 
sider the  working  of  the  .Mid wives'  Act,  pre- 
sented its  report.  The  fact  that  not  one  midwife 
was  appointed  to  assist  in  its  deUberatious 
naturally  detracted  from  the  value  of  the  Com- 
mittee's report. 

The  importance  of  the  maintenance  of  a 
standard  of  education  is  emphasised  by  the 
fact  that  efforts  were  made  to  induce  the  Com- 
mittee to  believe  that  even  the  somewhat 
elementary  examination  of  the  Central  I\lid- 
wives'  Board  is  too  difficult  for  the  candidates. 
Considering  the  great  responsibilities  which  rest 
in  the  hands  of  midwives  when  they  have 
gained  the  Board's  certificate,  it  is  difficult  to 
vmderstaud  how  anyone  with  an  appreciation 
of  the  value  of  human  life  can  desire  to  lower 
the  j)resent  standard.  It  must  be  remembered 
that  the  Board  has  officially  infonned  the  Privy 
Council  that  its  standard  has  always  been 
strictly  limited  to  such  knoiuledge  as  ivoiild  be 
dmigerous  for  a  midwife  to  lack. 

The  recommendation  that  the  Incorporated 
Midwives'  Institute  should  in  future  be  repre- 
sented by  a  certified  midwife  instead  of  a 
registered  medical  practitioner,  met  with 
general  approval,  but  not,  strange  to  say,  the 
approval  of  the  Midwives'  Institute,  whose 
views  were  brought  forward  by  their  repre- 
sentative. Dr.  Stanley  Atkinson,  at  a  meeting 
of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  on  October 
28th.  They  claimed  that  the  Midwives'  In- 
stitute should  have  two  representatives  on  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board,  to  be  chosen  "  with- 
out restriction,"  so  that  in  this  event  it  would 
be  unnecessary  for  either  representative  to  be 
a  midwife  or  medical  practitioner.  Moreover, 
it  is  not  apparent  why  the  600-700  members 
of  the  ^fidwives'  Institute  should  have  two 
representatives  on  the  Board  and  the  rest  of 
the  midwives  on  the  Eoll,  now  not  far  short  of 
30,000,  none  at  all.  Even  if,  as  is  suggested, 
the  members  of  the  ^Midwives'  Institute  are 
the  "  aristocracy  of  midwifery,"  it  is  rather 
out  of  date  to  claim  voting  power  on  this 
ground. 

'Mrs.  T>awson,  President  of  the  National 
Association  of  ^lidwives,  in  a  memorandum 
submitted  to  the  Departmental  Committee  on 
its  behalf,  urged  "  that  any  amendment  of  the 
Act  should  recognise  the  claim  of  midwives  for 
din  rt  n  prcscHtntioii  on  the  Central  Midwives' 


Board."  The  claim  is  a  just  one,  involving  the 
question  as  to  whether  midwives  are  to  con- 
tinue to  be  pariahs  in  their  profession,  or 
whether  they  are  to  be  allowed  a  voice  in  its 
government. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board 
on  November  25th,  Mr.  Parker  Young,  who 
moved  a  resolution  proposing  the  direct  repre- 
sentation of  the  medical  profession  on  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board,  on  the  suggestion  of 
Miss  Paget  added  a  rider  as  to  the  direct  repre- 
sentation of  midwives,  but,  as  this  was  ques- 
tioned on  grounds  of  procedure,  he  informed 
Miss  Paget  of  bis  willingness  to  support  her  if 
she  would  move  a  resolution  at  the  next  meet- 
ing on  the  lines  of  the  rider.  This,  however, 
Miss  Paget  did  not  do. 

It  has  been  announced  that  a  meeting  will 
be  held  in  London  early  in  the  year  to  discuss 
the  question. 

We  have  devoted  considerable  space  to  this 
question  of  direct  representation,  because  it  is 
vital  to  the  welfare  of  midwives,  and  conse- 
quently of  midwifery,  and  their  status  cannot 
be  considered  satisfactory  until  midwives  are 
accorded  this  elementary  right. 

]iIiDwivEs'  Defence  Associatihn. 

The  Midwives'  Defence  Association  has  now 
ceased  to  exist  as  an  independent  body,  and  its 
work  is  merged  in  that  of  the  Midwives'  Insti- 
tute. In  our  view  a  Defence  Union,  to  be  suc- 
cessful in  any  profession,  must  stand  outside 
all  other  societies,  as  is  the  case  with  the  medi- 
cal defence  societies,  and  be  broad  enough  to 
include  all  reputable  members.  All  associa- 
tions of  midwives  shoidd  unquestionably  urge 
upon  their  members  the  imperative  need  of 
making  provision  for  their  defence  in  case  of 
need. 

Organisations  of  Midwives. 

.\  hopeful  sign  is  that  midwives  are  beginning 
to  reaUse  more  the  advantages  of  co-operation. 
Besides  the  Midwives'  Institute  there  is  also 
the  National  Association  of  ^Midwives,  Man- 
chester, of  which  the  Secretary  is  Mrs.  Mal- 
colm ;  the  Nortliumberlaud  and  Durham  ]Mid- 
wives'  -Association,  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  Secre- 
tary, Miss  Renaud :  tlie  Liverpool  and  District 
Trained  Midwives'  Association,  Secretary,  ^liss 
H.  Wood.  A  Certified  Midwives'  Total  Ab- 
stinence League  has  also  been  formed,  in  con- 
nection with  the  Women's  Total  .\bstinence 
Union,  Secretary,  Miss  Francis;  and  it  is  pro- 
posed to  form  a  "  Union  of  British  ^lidwives  " 
earlv  this  venr. 


40 


Zbc  Britteb  3ournal  of  mursing  Supplement,  [Jan.  s,  loio 


a  IRew  nOctboD  of  nDanaginG 
tbe  Breasts. 


An  interesting  article  is  contributed  to  the  Johns 
Sopl;ins  SuTses'  Alumna:  Maiiazine,  describing 
why  bandaging  the  breasts  during  the  puerperium 
lias  been  done  away  in  the  obstetrical  service  of  the 
Johns  Hopkins  Hospital.  It  will  be  quite  a  new- 
idea  to  many  midwdves  and  nurses  and  one  received 
with  a  certain  amount  of  reserve  and  distrust, 
that  nature  should  be  left  to  its  own  resources  when 
for  any  reason  it  is  necessary  to  dry  up  the 
breasts,  but  the  careful  perusal  of  the  subjoined 
article  will  show  that  there  is  much  to  be  said  for 
this  method. 

From  the  time  the  obstetrical  ward  was  opened 
in  1897  until  four  years  ago,  one  of  the  spectacular 
demonstrations  always  given  by  the  head  nurse  to 
the  pupils  was  the  application  of  the  breast  band- 
age and  the  proper  manner  of  giving  massage  in 
cases  where  it  was  necessary  to  check  the  secre- 
tion. We  remember  that  belladonna  ointment  was 
iirst  liberally  applied,  the  breast  then  covered 
thickly  with  cotton  and  pressed  firmly  against  the 
wall  of  the  thorax  by  a  tightly  fitted  bandage. 
The  careful  fitting  of  this  bandage,  the  number  of 
pins  possible  to  in.sert  in  it,  and  the  mathematical 
precision  with  which  the  distance  between  each  was 
arranged,  was  the  pride  of  the  Head  Nurse  and 
often  the  despair  of  the  pupil.  We  also  recall  that 
the  svifferings  of  the  ijatient  were  severe,  that  in 
renewing  and  re-applying  these  bandages,  and  the 
use  of  massage  and  of  the  breast-pump  many  valu- 
able hours  were  consumed. 

How  and  why  all  this  has  been  discontinued  Dr. 
Williams  tells  his  students  in  one.  of  his  ward 
classes,  and  in  a  series  of  ''  Don'ts  "  in  one  of  the 
lectures  on  obstetrics  now  given  to  the  pupil 
nurses  is  "  Don't  massage  or  bandage  the  breasts." 

This  is  the  history  of  the  change  in  method.  In 
1904  Dr.  Williams  was  spending  his  sum- 
mer vacation  in  Rhode  Island.  In  talking 
with  a  country  doctor  of  long  experience 
there,  he  was  asked  how  the  Johns  Hopkins  dealt 
with  this  condition.  Dr.  Williams  gave  the  treat- 
ment with  pridefiil  detail.  Whereujwn  the  country 
doctor  replied  that  he  (Dr.  Williams)  was  away 
behind  the  times ;  that  he  himself  did  nothing  but 
give  his  patients  small  doses  of  potassium  acetate 
three  times  a  day,  left  them  alone,  and  had  no 
further  trouble.  Dr.  Williams  made  more  extensive 
inquiry,  and  on  his  return  instituted  in  the  ma- 
ternity ward  this  somewhat  radical  change  of 
method,  to  the  amazement  of  his  staff,  and  to  the 
scarcely  concealed  disapproval  of  the  Head  Nurse. 
The  new  treatment  was  given  a  thorough  trial,  and 
proved  so  effective,  and  of  such  comfort  to  the  pa- 
tients, that  from  that  time  to  the  present,  pres- 
sure bandages  and  belladonna  ointment  are  un- 
known in  the  ob.stetrical  ward.  It  was  supposed 
at  first  that  the  potassium  acetate  acted  as  a 
diuretic,  and  consequently  fluids  were  limited  and 
purges  were  given.  But  after  a  series  of  observ^i- 
tions,  in  which  a  group  of  patients  not  nursing 
received  the  potassium  acetate,  another  not  iiursing 
small  doses  of  sodium  chloride,  and  another  group 
were  nursing  normally,  the  conclusion  was  reached 


tliat  the  ix>ta.ssium  acetat<?  had  no  action  whatever 
in  checking  lactation,  and  that  all  tl^at  was  neces- 
sary was  to  give  the  breasts  absolute  rest,  let 
nature  pursue  her  own  course,  and  when  on  the 
third  day  the  swelling  and  tenseness  appear,  put 
on  as  she  then  does,  her  own  restrictive  bandage. 
Reference  is  also  made  to  a  treatise  written  in 
1785  by  Dr.  Charles  White,  of  Manchester,  Eng- 
land, showing  that  this  idea  of  leaving  nature 
alone  had  been  advocated  before. 

"  If  the  patient  does  not  suckle  her  child,  no 
method  should  be  used  either  to  recall  the  milk  or 
to  invite  it  into  the  breasts,  but  she  should  be  left 
absolutely  to  nature ;  she  should  live  very  abste- 
miously, litle  or  no  animal  food,  no  strong  liquor 
should  be  allowed  her,  and  the  intestinal  canal 
should  be  left  thoroughly  open." 

The  routine  now  employed  in  Dr.  Williams's  ser- 
vice is  as  follows :  When  for  any  reason  it  is  neces- 
sary to  dry  up  the  breasts,  they  are  left  absolutely 
alone  for  the  days  immediately  following  labour, 
or  after  nursing  has  been  discontinued  at  a  later 
period.  About  the  third  day  engorgement  takes 
place,  often  with  much  pain,  but  within  from 
twenty-four  to  thirty-six  hours  the  swelling  begins 
to  subside,  the  secretion  grows  less  and  disappears 
before  the  end  of  the  week.  If  the  i^ain  is  very 
severe,  small  doses  of  morphia  or  codeia  are  given, 
but  generally  this  is  not  necessary,  the  application 
of  an  ice  bag  usually  giving  relief.  If  the  breasts 
are  large  and  pendulous,  they  are  held  in  place 
by  a  loose  bandage,  no  j)ressure  being  exerted.  The 
patient  is  cautioned  against  handling  the  breasts, 
and  massage  of  any  kind  and  the  use  of  the  breast- 
pump  absolutely  interdicted.  In  no  instance  since 
this  treatment  has  been  used,  has  a  mammary 
abscess  developed,  and  the  discomfort  to  the  pa- 
tient has  been  infinitely  less  than  with  the  old 
methods.  As  Dr.  Williams  remarks,  it  is  probably 
the  vei-y  simplicity  of  this  physiological  procedure 
that  has  prevented  its  general  recognition  and  ac- 
ceptance long  before. 

MASCULINE   LOVE  OF  POWER 

Treating  of  women  in  nninicipal  affairs,  Tlir 
Enfjiishwomaii  points  out  that  the  Women's  Local 
Government  Society  has  constantly  urged  the  Local 
Government  Board  to  apx>oint  women  as  inspectors 
of  workhouses,  and  to  encourage  Boards  of  Guar- 
dians to  appoint  women  as  relieving  officers.  "  Tlie 
Local  Government  Board,  howevei-,  does  not  seem 
■likely  to  do  so  till  women  can  back  their  demand  by 
the  ix)wer  of  the  Parliamentary  franchis.e.  AVhen 
a  Dei>artmental  Committee  was  appointed  to  con- 
sider the  w'orking  of  the  Midwives'  Act,  the  Privy 
Council  did  not  place  upon  it  a  .single  certified  mid- 
wife, while  in  only  seventeen  English  countie-s  and 
seven  county  boroughs  have  women  been  appointed 
to  a  Midwives'  Committee,  The  proper  piovision 
for  birth  and  infancy  is  .so  essentially  a  woman's 
question,  that  the  idea  of  men  attempting  to  deal 
with  it  by  themselve-s  is  palpably  ab.surd.  It  is  hard  to 
realise  that  masculine  love  of  }x>wer  and  office  is  so 
strong  that  it  clings  to  membei'sbip  of  a  Midwives' 
Committee,  refusing  to  appoint  even  one  woman  to 
assi.st  in  their  deliberations.  It  is  difficult,  also,  to 
nndei-stand  how  women  could  ever  have  allowed  men 
to  dominate  control  of  such   n.attere." 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITFQ  RY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.  1,137 


SATURDAY,  JANUARY  15,  1910. 


EMtorial. 


METHODS    OF    TEACHING    THE    MENTALLY 
DEFECTIVE. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  sessions  of 
the  Conference  of  Teachers  arranged  by  tlie 
London  County  Council,  and  held  last 
week  at  Birkl^eck  College,  was  that  on 
"  Methods  of  Teaching  in  Schools  for  the 
Mentally  Defective,"  at  which  Mrs.  Wilton 
Phipps  presided.  The  first  special  school 
for  children  of  this  class  was  founded  in 
1890,  and  now  there  are  no  less  than  87  in 
London,  with  a  staff  of  307  teachers  and 
instructors,  in  which  the  scholars  number 
(),836.  These  numbers  show  not  only  the 
extent  to  which  mental  deficiency  is  present 
in  the  rising  generation  of  liOndon  children, 
but  the  absolute  necessity  for  special  teach- 
ing and  training,  which  will  enable  as  large 
a  proportion  of  them  as  possilde  to  earn 
their  own  living,  so  that  they  may  not 
become  chargeable  to  the  community.  The 
Chairman  expressed  the  opinion  that,  while 
the  education  of  these  children  must  not  be 
neglected,  the  question  of  manual  training 
was  one  which  would  have  to  he  increasingly 
considered  in  these  schools.  The  two  things 
must  be  complementary  if  good  results 
were  to  be  obtained. 

The  classification  now  inaugurated  in  the 
schools  of  tiie  Louilon  County  Council  shows 
how  in  former  days  many  children  must 
have  suiTered  from  lack  of  such  a  method. 
The  mentally  defective  are,  for  instance, 
easily  influenced  by  some  slight  change  in 
the  weathei-,  as  .Miss  Desbery,  a  speaker  at 
the  Conference  pointed  out,  in  speaking  on 
"  Advanced  Occupations  for  !\lentally  Defec- 
tive Cirls."  Nothing  could  have  haj)pened, 
so  far  as  a  teacher  could  tell,  but  she  was 
often  amazed  at  the  freakisliness  and  varia- 
bility exhibited  even  by  the  most  adaptal)le 
and  trustworthy  of  tiie  girls.  Duliiess  would 
replace  alacrity,  and  stubbornness  genuine 
willingness,  for  no  apparent  reason. 


Now  that  these  characteristics  are  recog- 
nised as  evidence  of  mental  deficiency,  the 
wise  teacher  will  be  careful  to  eliminate  the 
possibility  of  this  element  before  attributing 
them  to  "naughtiness"  and  punishing  a 
child  for  exhibiting  them  ;  but  in  the  days 
when  childi-en  were  little  understood  and 
treated  far  more  sternly  than  at  present, 
they  must  have  suffered  pitifully  from  lack 
of  discrimination  in  this  respect.  Dulness 
and  stubbornness  are  not  qualities  with 
winch  the  average  teacher  has  much  patience, 
and,  until  their  real  import  was  realised, 
children  must  often  have  been  punished 
quite  unjustly. 

The  Superintendent  of  Schools  for  Physi- 
cally and  ilentally  Defective  Children  of  the 
London  Count}'  Council,  in  opening  a  dis- 
cussion at  the  above  Conference,  said  tiiat 
the  difHculty  they  had  to  face  was  to  get 
people  to  help  these  least  eihcient  of  the 
children.  They  were  really  the  sick  children 
of  the  country,  and  were  bound  to  cost  more 
than  the  health}'  ones  at  first,  though  per- 
haps not  eventually,  unless  they  were  neg- 
lected. It  was  a  curious  fact  that  many  of 
the  children  in  the  special  schools  wrote 
beautifully,  and  both  fluently  and  with  ex- 
pression. She  pleaded  for  a  closer  contact 
between  parent,  child  and  teacher  in  tlie 
case  of  the  mentally  defective.  If  this  coidd 
be  achieved  manj'  of  the  didicnlties  with 
wliich  they  were  now  confronted  could  be 
lessened. 

There  is  nothing  very  attractive  about 
work  for  the  mentally  deficient ;  neverthe- 
less it  is  of  great  value  not  only  to  indi- 
vidual children,  but  also  to  the  conununity. 
An  uneducated  and  uncontrolled  man  or 
woman  who  is  mentally  deficient  is  not  only, 
as  a  rule,  incapable  of  self-support,  but  is 
inimical  to  the  public  welfare  in  several 
ways.  Teachers  and  nurses  who  bend  all 
their  energies  to  the  training  and  care  of 
this  class  of  children  are  therefore  doing 
work  of  national  value. 


42 


^bc  ISrinsb  3ournal  ox   iHursiug.       r.ian.  1.5,  mio 


flDeMcal  fIDatters. 


THE  PRESENCE    OF      BILHARZIA    HAEMATOBIA  ' 

IN   EGYPTIAN    MUMMIES  OF  THE  20th 

DYNASTY  [1250-1000  B.C]. 

Dr.  Marc  Aroiand  RuSer,  President  of  the 
Sauitai'y,  Maritime,  and  Quarantine  Council 
of  Egypt,  Alexandria,  contributes  a  most  in- 
teresting note  on  the  above  subject  to  the 
British  Medical  Journal,  in  which  he  says:  — 

Thanks  to  the  kindness  of  Professor  Elhot 
Smith,  Professor  Fhnders  Petrie,  and  Professor 
Keatinge,  I  have  obtained  several  oi'gaus  from 
mummies  of  the  eighteenth  to  the  twentieth 
dynasty,  and  I  may  state  at  once  that  such 
diseases  as  atheroma,  pneumonia,  renal 
abscesses,  and  ciiThosis  of  the  liver  are  plainly 
recognisable.  In  the  renal  abscesses  and  in 
other  lesions  I  have  stained  micro-organisms 
with  methjlene  blue,  fuchsin,  haematoxylin, 
and  even  by  Gram's  method. 

At  the  present  time  there  is  perhaps  no 
disease  more  important  to  Egypt  than  that 
caused  by  the  Bilharzia  haematobia.  So  far 
no  evidence  has  been  produced  to  show  how 
long  it  has  existed  in  this  country,  although 
medical  papyri  contain  prescriptions  against 
one  of  its  most  prominent  symptoms — namely, 
haematuria.  The  lesions  of  this  disease  are 
best  seen  in  the  bladder  and  rectum,  but  un- 
fortunately these  are  just  the  two  mummified 
organs  which  I  have  not  been  able  to  obtain  so 
far.  Nevertheless,  in  the  kidneys  of  two 
mummies  of  the  twentieth  dynasty  I  have  de- 
monstrated iu  microscopic  sections  a  large 
number  of  calcified  eggs  of  Bilharzia  haema- 
tobia. situated,  for  the  most  part,  among  the 
straight  tubules.  Although  calcified,  these 
eggs  are  easily  recognisable  and  cannot  be  mis- 
taken for  anything  else.  I  may  add  that  I 
showed  some  of  my  sections  to  Professors  Looss 
and  Ferguson,  whose  paramouut  authority  on 
such  a  subject  cannot  be  disputed,  and  both 
confirmed  my  diagnosis. 

I  have  examined  microscopically  the  kidneys 
of  six  mummies.  The  kidneys  of  two  were  ap- 
parently healthy ;  the  left  kidney  of  another 
was  congenitally  atrophied ;  those  of  the  fourth 
contained  multiple  abscesses  with  well-staining 
bacteria  and  other  lesions,  which  so  far  I  have 
not  diagnosed ;  those  of  the  fifth  and  sixth 
showed  bilharzia  eggs,  and  the  latter  had  other 
lesions  as  well,  which,  owing  to  the  shrunken 
state  of  the  organ,  I  am  unable  to  define  ac- 
curately as  yet. 

Renal  disease,  therefore,  was  not  infrequent 
among  Egyptians  living  over  three  thousand 
years  ago. 

The  method  by  which  mummified  tissues  can 
be  prepared  has  alreadv  been  described  bv  Dr. 
Ruffer. 


THE  MEASLES  MICROBE. 
The  Medical  Revieiv  of  Munich  announces 
an  important  discovery  by  a  German  doctor. 
Professor  Sittler,  who  claims  to  have  dis- 
covered the  measles  microbe.  According  to 
the  doctor  the  microbe  develops  in  the  throat, 
the  nose,  the  buccal  glands,  and  the  bronchial 
tubes.  The  treatment  accordingly  will  be 
strictly  internal  with  the  object  of  destroying 
the  microbe. 


X-RAYS  AND  DIABETES. 
The  Globe  reports  that  at  a  meeting 
of  the  Societe  Medicale  des  Hopi- 
taux  Dr.  ^lenetrier  gave  an  interestmg  ac- 
count of  the  efiect  of  the  Rontgen  Rays  upon 
diabetic  patients  when  applied  to  the  hepatic 
region.  The  effect  is  most  marked  in  the  mori 
severe  form  of  the  disease,  with  general  ie- 
hi.'ity  and  loss  of  flesh.  In  these  eases  the  ap- 
plication of  the  X-rays  is  followed  by  a  con- 
siderable increase  in  the  glycosuria  within  the 
ne-it  24  hours,  and  sometimes  for  several  subse- 
quent days,  and  a  fall  in  the  number  of  red 
blood  coi-puscles.  Thus  in  one  case  the  amount 
of  sugar  excreted  in  24  hours  rose  from  1,000 
to  1,600  grammes,  and  the  number  of  red  cor- 
puscles fell  from  3,470,000  to  1,170,000,  or  a 
loss  of  2,300,000  corpuscles  per  cubic  milli- 
metre. Later  the  glycosuria  diminishes  and 
the  red  corpuscles  increase. 


CEREBRAL  EVOLUTION   THE   PHYSICAL  BASIS  OF 
PSYCHIC  DISTURBANCES  AND  SOCIAL  DISCORD 

Dr.  I.  O.  Allen,  in  the  Dietetic  and  Hygienic 
Gazette,  contends  that  to  make  progress  iu  the 
study  of  mental  phenomena  every  explanation 
that  explains  must  have  a  physical  basis,  for 
every  psychic  state  has  its  physical  basis,  and 
there  is  evidence  that  much  of  that  which  is 
rated  as  psychopathic  is  but  the  j)eculiar  ex- 
pression of  peculiar  brains,  for  whenever  the 
mental  expression  is  in  harmony  with  the  phy- 
sical state,  no  matter  what  that  physical  state 
may  be,  that  mental  expression  is  natural  and 
normal  to  that  particular  state.  For  every 
anatomical,  and  physiological  difference  of 
brain  matter,  thei'e  is  a  corresponding  differ- 
ence in  mental  expression ;  and  these  mental 
expressions  must  be  considered  normal  so  long 
as  they  arc  true  to  the  phtjsical  state,  even  if 
the  physical  state  is  abnomial.  This  would  in- 
dicate that  our  psychic  disturbances  and  social 
discords  are  not  due  to  a  mental  pathology,  but 
rather  to  cerebral  states  and  our  want  of  know- 
ledge concerning  the  brain,  its  capacities, 
faculties,  and  finictions.  If  we  know  anytliing 
we  know  that  different  brains  differ  physically 
in  capacity,  faculty,  and  function,  and  must 
of  necessity  differ  in  mental  expressions;  and 
that  the  highly  organised  brains  have  evolved 
from  primitive  brains. 


Jan.  15,  19101 


ZDc  3Britisb  3ournal  ot  IHursina. 


43 


Ib^pnotic  ipowcr. 

Bv  JMrs.  \Yestawav. 

There  is  a  keeu  popular  appetite  for  suijer- 
natural  wonders,  aud  no  sooner  is  one  delusion 
exposed  than  another  arises  to  take  its  place. 
Animal  magnetism,  electro-biology,  mes- 
merism, aud  spirit-rapping  have  each  in  tuni 
excited  interest  of  greater  or  less  duration  until 
the  delusions  were  exposed  by  the  searching 
light  of  scientific  knowledge,  resulting  in  the 
ignominious  retreat  of  the  chief  exponent  of 
the  wonder  and  the  chagrin  of  the  many  dupes. 
Quite  recently'  a  law  case  concerned  itself  with 
the  claims  of  a  self-styled  Dr.  Bodie  to  cure 
by  means  of  hypnotism,  aud  the  examination 
revealed  most  plainly  that  his  performances 
(for  such  they  really  were,  with  the  music-hall 
stage  for  setting)  were  of  a  bogus  nature. 
Cases  supposed  to  be  cured  were  of  such  a 
slight  nature  that  au  excited  imagination 
triumphed  over  bodily  weakness  sutiicieutly 
loug  to  allow  the  person  to  walk  off  the  stage 
as  though  cured,  while  really  serious  cases 
were  sent  away  with  a  recommendation  to  use 
Bodie "s  Embrocation.  In  some  cases  hypnosis 
was  performed,  but  the  niost  wonderful  per- 
formances were  confined  to  a  circle  of  con- 
federates. 

It  is  but  right  that  such  frauds  should  be 
exposed,  for  wielders  of  hypnotic  power  are 
"playing  with  fire."  Quite  lately  a  case  of 
death  was  reported  from  America,  the  circum- 
stances being  that  a  man  was  hypnotised  and 
the  performer  jumped  on  his  rigid  body.  The 
man  never  again  revived,  and  it  was  foimd  that 
death  had  resulted  from  internal  injuries. 
Even  when  death  does  not  result,  there  is 
danger,  immediate  or  remote,  and  it  certainly 
would  be  a  public  gain  if  performances  intro- 
jducing  hypnotism  wore  to  be  declared  illegal. 
In  fact,  the  laity  should  not  be  allowed  to  in- 
termeddle with  this  occult  force,  which  bafHes 
even  the  scientific  men  who  seek  to  know  it 
better. 

The  human  mind  is  a  wonderful  essence,  and 
ages  of  study  and  research  have  failed  to  reveal 
the  full  extent  of  its  powers.  Not  only  can  the 
mind  act  on  the  body  of  the  individual,  but  its 
influence  can  be  felt  on  the  minds  of  others. 
often  in  a  most  mysterious  way,  and  hence 
have  arisen  the  various  sciences  and  pseudo- 
sciences  dealing  with  the  human  mind.  In- 
vestigations from  a  scientific  standpoint  have 
been  of  value,  btit  charlatans,  wlio  have  prosti- 
tuted their  shreds  of  knowledge  for  the  sake  of 
gain,  or  to  cause  amusement,  have  thrown  dis- 
credit on  the  real  sciei\ce,  and  have  hindered 
the  progress  of  discovery. 

Till'    ontwarrl    mjinifi'st.-ition    ,>f   )i\pj)<-.-;i<    is 


simple.  It  arises  from  constrained  visual  at- 
tention. A  prism  or  bright  object  is  fixed 
slightly  above  the  level  of  the  eye  of  the  person 
operated  on,  who  gazes  at  it  intently  until 
change  of  mental  condition  is  brought  about. 
At  first  there  is  mental  excitement,  but  as  the 
organ  of  vision  is  tired,  the  brain  is  lulled  to 
rest,  aud  nervous  sleep  is  induced.  A  few- 
passes  by  tiie  operator's  hand  cuts  off  connec- 
tion with  the  bright  object,  and  the  person, 
though  seemingly  asleep,  acts  as  though  awake, 
but  is  completely  subservient  to  the  w-ill  of  the 
operator. 

As  early  as  the  second  century  such  pheno- 
mena were  known,  and  cures  apparently 
wrought  by  the  influence  of  hypnotism  were 
regarded  as  miraculous.  Aristides,  born  129 
\.v.,  after  a  long  period  of  travel  returned  to 
Italy,  and  on  his  return  was  seized  with  a 
curious  illness  which  lasted  for  13  years.  The 
history  of  this  illness  is  fully  described  by  him 
in  six  "  Sacred  Discourses."  Visions  aud 
dreams  characterised  the  illness,  and  the  out- 
come was  some  wonderful  cures,  wrought  by 
means  similar  to  those  adopted  by  Mesmer — 
that  is,  by  putting  the  patient  in  a  hypnotic 
trance.  ' 

Joseph  Gassner,  a  Eoman  Catholic  priest,  of 
Swabia,  seems  to  have  been  the  next  to  employ 
hypnotism  to  any  great  extent.  He  held  that 
all  diseases  arose  from  demoniacal  possession, 
and  could  only  be  cured  by  exorcism.  He  be- 
lieved himself  to  be  possessed  of  miraculous 
power.5,  but,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  source  of 
ins  curative  remedies  was  hypnotic  sleep.  In 
1776  he  was  visited  by  Mesmer,  w-ho  studied 
his  methods  and  modified  his  ow'u  plans  of 
action. 

Perhaps  no  exponent  of  hj'pnosis  has  at- 
tracted more  attention  than  Franz  Anton 
]\Iesmer.  He  was  bom  at  Weil,  1733,  studied 
medicine  at  Vienna,  took  his  degrees,  and  com- 
menced practice.  At  first  he  was  interested  in 
astrology,  and  from  confused  ideas  concerning 
astral  influence  introduced  magnetism  as  a 
healing  power.  To  this  he  added  hypnosis,  but 
after  meeting  with  Gassner,  and  finding  that 
hypnotic  trance  could  be  induced  without  mag- 
netism, he  adopted  tlie  simpler  method. 

The  attitude  of  the  public  mind  is  well  ex- 
hibited in  the  case  of  the  Syrian  captain,  wlio 
was  furious  when  he  w-as  told  to  adopt  the 
simple  expedient  of  washing  in  a  small  river, 
and  Mesmer 's  popularity  was  largely  owing  to 
the  luxurious  entourage  of  his  operations.  In 
the  early  days  of  his  practice  an  oval  vessel 
was  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  in  which 
was  disposed  a  number  of  bottles  filled  with 
magnetised  water,  and  arranged  with  the  necks 
l)ointing   to  the   circumference  of  the    vp«cp]. 


44 


Z\K  Bnti5i3   jouniai  or  Mursmg.      tJ-^^^- 1^-  i^io 


Water  was  poured  in  to  cover  the  bottles  and 
irou  tilings  added  to  increase  the  magnetic 
efiect.  The  vessel  was  covered  with  an  iron  lid 
pierced  with  holes,  through  «hich  iron  rods 
were  inserted.  Around  this  the  patients  sfit 
and  applied  the  iron  rods  to  the  afilicted  parts. 
Mesnier  then  entered  dressed  as  Prospero, 
wearing  a  long  robe  of  lilac  coloured  silk,  and 
waving  a  wand.  He  hypnotised  the  patients, 
and  they  appeared  to  recover.  Evei-yone  was 
anxious  to  test  the  new  healing  by  natural 
means,  and  the  fees  charged  were  sutliciently 
high  to  enable  jMesmer  to  keep  up  the  luxurious 
estabhshment  which  he  had  sufficient  foresight 
to  provide.  A  description  of  his  house  reads 
like  a  chapter  from  "  The  Arabian  Xights  ": 
"  Richly  stained  glass  threw  a  dim,  religious 
light  on  his  spacious  salons,  which  were  almost 
covered  with  mirrors.  Orange  blossoms 
scented  the  air  of  his  corridors ;  incense  of  the 
most  expensive  kinds  burned  in  antique  vases 
on  the  chimney-piece;  aeolian  harps  sighed 
melodious  music  from  distant  chambers ;  while 
sometimes  a  sweet  female  voice  from  above,  or 
below,  stole  softh-  upon  the  mysterious  silence 
that  was  insisted  upon  from  all  visitors." 
Alas !  his  success  was  as  brief  as  it  was  gor- 
geous. In  1874  a  Commission  was  ordered  by 
the  King,  and  appointed  by  the  French 
Academy,  to  investigate  the  phenomena  of 
mesmerism.  Benjamin  Franklin  was  one  of 
the  members,  and  the  result  of  the  investiga- 
tion was  "  that  the  only  proofs  advanced  in 
support  of  animal  magnetism  were  the  effects 
it  produced  on  the  human  body ;  that  those 
effects  could  be  produced  without  passes  or 
other  magnetic  manipulations;  that  all  these 
manipulations  and  passes  never  produce  any 
effect  at  all  if  employed  without  the  patient's 
knowledge ;  and  that,  therefore,  imagination 
did,  and  animal  magnetism  did  not,  account 
for  the  phenomena."  Mesmer  fled  ignomini- 
ously  from  Paris  and  died  at  Meersburg  1815. 
In  spite  of  the  loss  of  the  leader,  disciples  re- 
mained who,  in  sincerity  and  good  faith,  con- 
tinued to  practice  the  art.  M.  de  Puysegar 
practised  in  Paris,  and  Dr.  James  Braid,  of 
^lanchester,  revived  the  study  in  England  in 
1841,  although  he  confesses  that  he  commenced 
the  work  as  a  complete  sceptic. 

About  the  same  time,  Dr.  John  Elliotson, 
Lecturer  on  Clinics  at  St.  Thomas's  Hospital 
and  Professor  of  Principles  and  Practice  of 
Physic  at  Loudon  University,  espoused  the 
cause  of  mesmerism.  The  Committee  of  the 
hospital  opposed  its  introduction,  and  Elliot- 
son  resigned  and  devoted  his  attention  to  a 
mesmeric  infirmary,  and  the  results  of  his  ex- 
periments and  obsei-^ations  were  embodied  in 
his  treatise,  "  Surgical  Operations  in  ^lesmeric 
State  without  Pain,"  1843. 


Opinion  on  the  subject  of  mesmerism  was 
divided,  and  no  theological  controversy  in  the 
early  ages  of  the  Catholic  Church  was  con- 
ducted with  greater  bitterness.  Harriet  Mar- 
tiueau,  in  1844,  underwent  a  course  of  mes- 
merism and  was  cured  of  a  painful  illness.  The 
recovery  excited  great  discussion,  but  so  great 
was  Miss  iMartineau's  faith  in  mesmeric  powers 
that  she  pubHshed  sixteen  "  Letters  on  Mes- 
merism," giving  an  account  of  the  case.  This 
gave  great  offence  to  her  friends,  who  regarded 
it  as  incompatible  with  her  undoubtedly  power- 
ful intellect  and  philosophic  mind. 

Sir  George  Coruewall  Lewis,  about  1850,  de- 
clared homooeopathy,  mesmerism,  and 
phrenology  to  be  impostures,  and  so  many 
scientific  men  joined  him  iu  scouting  the  idea 
that  hypnotic  power  was  slowly  relegated  to 
ignorant  empirics,  who  used  it  for  the  sake  of 
gain  or  to  cause  amusement. 

Of  late  years  hypnotic  power  has  received 
revived  attention,  but  principally  on  the  Con- 
tinent, where  operations  are  frequently  per- 
formed while  the  nervous  apparatus  of  the 
patient  is  in  a  perverted  condition.  Whether 
future  investigations  will  strengthen  its  posi- 
tion in  clinical  practice  is  uncertain,  but  as  far 
as  the  science  has  yet  reached  there  are  cer- 
tain grave  objections  attending  its  use.  In 
order  that  23atieuts  may  be  hypnotised  to  a  safe 
degree  of  stupor  for  operations,  it  is  necessary 
to  act  on  them  every  day  for  several  weeks, 
and  this  breaking  down  of  volition  may  prove 
a  "serious  injury  to  neiwous  persons.  The  state 
of  hypnotic  trance  is  in  itself  as  dangerous  as 
that  from  an  anaesthetic,  and  recovery  is  less 
easily  controlled.  Thus,  no  lay  pereons  should 
practise  hypnosis  any  more  than  they  should 
administer  anaesthetics.  But  the  gravest  danger 
of  all  is  that  the  powers  of  volition  are  deranged 
by  hypnosis,  and  may  be  permanently  en- 
feebled. The  will  is  one  of  the  highest  mental 
faculties ;  it  is  the  hand-maid  of  conscience. 
When  conscience  whispers  the  will  must  obey, 
for  any  evading  of  its  dictates  shows  moral 
weakness,  and  actions  are  then  guided  by  the 
lower  and  animal  part  of  human  nature,  ar.  i 
there  is  no  upward  striving  towards  perfection. 


NO  FILTH,  NO  FLIES. 
Mr.  Henry  Hill  chose  as  the  subject  for  his 
lecture  to  children  at  the  Loudon  Institution 
"  The  Story  of  the  Flies."  He  said  that  in 
this  coimtrv'  alone  there  were  from  3,000  to 
4,000  kinds  of  flies,  and  about  40,000  species 
in  the  world.  It  had  been  proved  conclusively 
that  flies  were  conveyers  of  cholera,  typhoid 
fever,  and  other  diseases.  He  would  never 
enter  a  house  unless  dirt  was  there.  Where 
flies  bred,  said  Mr.  Hill,  there  must  be  filth; 
no  filth,  no  flies. 


jau.  15, 1910]         ^|5C  Britisb  3ournal  of  ittur^uuj. 


4;') 


Z\K  IHurec  in  Iprivatc  Ipractice." 

THE  QUALITIES  OF  THE  NURSE 

Bv  Mme.  Alphen  Salvador,  Fkance. 

Let  me  first  of  all  tender  my  most  hearty 
thanks  to  Mrs.  Fenwick  and  to  all  the  or- 
ganisers of  this  Congress  for  having  invited  the 
President  of  the  Rue  Amyot  School  to  raise 
her  voice  among  so  many  others  who  are  autho- 
rised to  deal  competently  with  these  nursing 
questions  in  which  the  whole  world  is  so  deeply 
interested  now-a-days. 

It  is  the  glory  of  England  that  she  was  first 
not  merely  to  interest  herself  in  tlie  improve- 
ment of  sick  nursing,  but  also  to  call  general 
attention  to  that  matter  which  is  both  philan- 
thropic and  social,  and  which  until  then  had 
remained  so  deplorably  unheeded  by  all. 

1  wish  I  could  feel  myself  worthy  of  the 
honour  which  has  been  paid  me,  but  I  am  so 
little  used  to  speaking  in  public  that  I  feel 
somewhat  embaiTassed,  and  fear  to.  deal  clum- 
sily with  the  delicate  subject  which  Mrs.  Fen- 
wick has  set  before  me. 

It  is,  indeed,  a  complex  subject,  and  we 
should  find  it  hard  to  state  in  precise  terms  the 
qvahties  which  a  nurse  should  possess,  so  tme 
is  it  that  her  qualities  must  differ  according  to 
the  special  environment  in  which  she  is  called 
upon  to  fulfil  her  mission  as  a  nuree. 

Thanks  to  her  long  training  in  hospitals, 
under  the  eyes  of  eminent  doctors,  she  has 
gained  full  knowledge  of  the  details  of  tech- 
nical and  practical  nursing.  All  that  concerns 
the  manner  in  which  doctors'  orders  are  to  be 
executed  is  famihar,  or  should  be  familiar  to 
her.  As  the  doctor's  helper  and  his  "  em- 
ployee "  she  manages- — whatever  may  be  the 
school  where  she  first  studied — to  gather- im- 
mediately, according  to  her  special  aptitude 
and  degree  of  intelligence,  what  special  care 
and  attentions  must  be  given  to  the  patient  en- 
trusted to  her.  But  that  is  only  part  of  the 
mission  she  has  to  fulfil.  The  strict  exactitude 
in  fulfilling  the  doctor's  directions,  the 
scientific  probity  which  can  inspire  the  patient 
with  a  sensiole  idea  of  resignation  and  disci- , 
pline,  the  scrupulous  cleanliness  in  every  detail 
of  nursing,  the  feminine  skill  in  applying  dress- 
ings and  bandages,  the  vigilance  in  warning  the 
doctor  of  any  changes  which  may  occur  in  the 
patient's  condition  between  his  visits — all  those 
qualities  which  are  rare  and  make  her  peerless 
among  women,  do  not  suffice  to  tuiTi  her  into  a 
private  nurse  such  as  the  patient  will  long  to 
have   near  him — the  one  who  will  become    a 

*Read  at  the  International  Congress  of  Nurses, 
London,  July,  1909. 


blessing  and  comfort  in  the  long  and  dreary 
lK>urs  of  suffering. 

No,  the  qualities  the  poor  patient  insists  on, 
are  not  among  those  which  may  be  learnt  in 
schools.  It  is  by  a  personal  action  of  her  own 
will,  by  the  development  of  her  intuition  in 
reading  the  character  of  the  various  patients 
to  whom  she  is  called,  that  the  nur=e  is  able 
to  motdd  her  conduct  in  dealing  with  this  one 
or  with  that  other.  Had  she  nothing  but  mere 
technical  knowledge,  she  would  run  the  risk  of 
becoming  not  a  beneficent  helper,  but  a  source 
of  anuoj'ance  in  the  family  into  which  she  finds 
herself  so  suddenly  transjjorted  and  with  whom 
she  must  mix  so  intimately.  She  has  need 
now  of  true  psychologic  science.  Think  of  the 
great  diversity  of  positions  in  which  she  may 
be  placed.  According  to  the  age,  the  position, 
the  character  of  the  patients  she  will  need  to 
modify  her  methods,  as  also  according  to  the 
gravity  and  length  of  the  illness — some  need  to 
be  amused  and  others  to  be  kept  quiet — some- 
times she  must  assert  her  authority,  while  at 
others  she  must  use  the  utmost  gentleness  in 
order  to  obtain  necessary  submission  to  medical 
prescriptions.  By  a  sort  of  guess-work  she 
must  rapidly  enter  into  communion  with  the 
ambient  atmosphere  in  which  she  finds  herself 
■ — -not  merely  the  patient's  mental  atmosphere, 
but  that  of  all  who  surround  him.  How  easily 
these  become  jealous  when  they  see  a  stran- 
ger usui-pLng  their  place  at  the  bedside  of  a 
loved  one ;  how  hardly  do  they  submit  to  ac- 
knowledge that  her  attentions  are  more  en- 
lightened, more  refined  than  theirs ;  they  have 
painful  susceptibilities,  and  the  nurse  must  be 
able  to  understand  their  feelings,  to  spare  them 
and  even  to  pity  them. 

Moreover,  the  nurse  wjio  is  free  from  the 
feverish  anxiety  of  near  relatives  is  often  more 
able  to  calm  the  sick  one  than  they  are,  and 
those  who  love  him  soon  notice  it,  they  become 
sad  and  even  show  irritation.  Such  a  state  of 
mind  is  extremely  himian,  and  the  nurse  must 
realise  this  fact.  When  after  a  few  days 
passed  in  the  house  she  has  won  the  apprecia- 
tion and  gratitude  of  all  around  her,  she  will 
be  fully  compensated  for  the  trying  hours 
through  which  she  has  just  come.  The  value 
of  her  efforts  will  be  soon  appreciated,  the  com- 
fort she  brings  will  be  cherished.  She  will  be 
sought  out  when  they  neea  a  word  of  encour- 
agement or  of  hope,  and  she  will  soon  become 
the  friend  with  whom  they  share  the  joy  of  the 
dear  one's  recovery,  for  has  she  not  greatly  con- 
tributed to  obtain  this  happy  result?  And  she 
will  weep  with  the  sorrowing  friends  when  she 
has  been  unable  to  save  the  beloved  being  en- 
trusted to  her  care,  for  the  patient  she  nurses 
becomes  dear  to  her.  and  it  seems  to  her  that 


46 


dbc  Bntisb  3ournal  of  ffiiu-6inG.      tJ«n.  is,  loio 


she  has  failed  iu  her  duty  when  he  shps  from 
the  doctor's  skill  aud  her  vigilant  care. 

The  nurse  may  also  fulfil  a  beneficent  role 
in  simple  and  humble  homes  where  she  is  al- 
most alone,  by  nursing  the  patient  and  keeping 
the  house  going,  where  she  must  so  to  say,  look 
after  everythmg ;  there  she  must  be  very 
simple  and  modest.  Is  it  the  mother  who  is 
laid  up — a  widow  perhaps  with  children? 
Then  she  must  manage  them,  and  watch  over 
them.  If  on  the  contrary  the  husband  is  at 
home,  she  will  need  even  greater  tact  and  dis- 
cretion to  make  all  pleasant. 

How  great  and  numerous,  therefore,  are  the 
qualities  required  to  fulfil  such  a  mission  or 
rather  such  a  diversity  of  missions.  The  most 
varied  qualities  are  called  for  in  the  nursmg  pro- 
fession. 

First,  the  qualities  of  the  heart.  It  must  be 
admitted  that,  however  remunerative  we  may 
seek  to  make  the  profession  of  nursing,  it  can 
never  become  a  trade ;  it  requires  a  special 
vocation,  the  gift  of  self-love  for  the  poor 
sufferers,  ardent  thirst  to  be  among  the  elect 
who  comfort  and  heal.  The  most  humble 
among  women  may  be  gifted  with  these  sub- 
lime virtues  of  devotion,  but  if  it  be  true  that 
the  heart  is  a  great  master  capable  of  pointing 
the  path  we  must  follow,  yet  it  must  be  recog- 
nised that  in  order  to  fulfil  the  duties  of  a 
nurse  as  we  underetaud  them,  it  is  necessary 
that  the  intellectual  qualities  should  come  to 
the  aid  of  moral  and  educational  qualities.  A 
patient  subjected  to  a  long  period  of  convales- 
cence will  require  to  be  entertained,  to  find  in 
his  nurse  a  woman  capable  of  chatting  wil'.i 
him,  of  reading  interesting  literature  about 
which  they  can  exchange  their  views  and  im- 
pressions. The  convalescent  also  likes  to  find 
cheerfulness  in  the  woman  who  nurses  him. 
she  must  be  able  to  tell  him  a  good  story,  and 
to  bring  a  bright  laagh  to  his  lips. 

And  in  England  you  have  so  well  understood 
and  realised  all  this  that  the  daughters  of  your 
noblest  families,  of  the  highest  social  class??. 
have  become  nurses,  deeming  it  a  true  title  of 
nobihty  to  add  to  that  of  their  birth  :  devoting 
themselves  to  healing  and  comforting  the  sick. 
Your  Ruskin  spoke  delightfully  of  the 
Queen's  garden,  of  the  splendid  role  a  woman 
may  play  at  her  fireside;  nor  is  it  less  praise- 
worthy to  bring  peace,  health,  and  comfort  to 
homes  which  have  been  disturbed  by  the 
anguish  and  disorder  brought  about  by  disease 
and  sickness. 


IProoi"C65  of  state  IRajistration. 

THE    GENERAL    ELECTION. 

During  the  week  a  statement,  on  the  im- 
portant question  of  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses,  has  been  issued  to  upwards  of 
1,300  Parliamentary  candidates  from  the  Cen- 
tral Office  of  the  Society  for  the  State  Regis- 
tration of  Trained  Nurses.  The  Hon.  Secretary 
has  already  received  a  great  number  of  replies, 
the  very  large  majority  of  which  contain  pro- 
mises to  support  a  Bill  on  the  lines  of  that 
passed  by  the  House  of  Lords  in  1908.  This  is 
most  encouraging. 

Now  comes  a  question  for  individual  nurees. 
Have  you  written  to  your  local  candidates, 
and  asked  your  male  relatives  to  do  so"?  If 
not,  why  not?  Please  do  your  part,  and  catch 
the  next  post. 


The  Nursing  School  in  the  Rue  Amyot,  Paris, 
of  which  ilme.  Alphen  Salvador  is  the  Founder 
and  President,  was  the  fii-st  organised  in  that 
city  to  train  nurses  for  private  duty. 


THE  CENTRAL  REGISTRATION  COMMITTEE. 

The  following  delegates  have  been  appointed 
by  the  Royal  British  Nurses'  Association  to 
attend  the  Registration  Bill  Conference  sum- 
moned by  Lord  Ampthill  for  January  25th,  to 
be  held  in  the  Council  Room  of  the  British 
Medical  Association,  429,  Strand,  W.C.  :  — 
W.  Bezlv  Thome,  Esq.,  M.D.,  -Jolm  Langton, 
Esq.,  F.R.C.S.,  Clement  Godson,  Esq.,  M.D., 
Miss  Grace  Gordon,  and  IMiss  Tawney. 

We  are  pleased  to  learn  from  several  sources 
that  Lord  Ampthill's  continued  interest  in  the 
important  question  of  Nurse  Registration  is  in- 
spiring confidence  in  the  future  success  of  the 
movement,  and  that  the  delegates  realise  the 
import'auce  of  the  occasion.  The  constitution 
of  the  Registration  Council  is,  of  course,  the 
great  difficulty,  but  there  appears  a  strong  con- 
sensus of  opinion  that  with  good  sense  and  a 
genuine  determination  that  the  best  interests 
of  the  sick  and  the  nursing  profession  as  a 
whole  shall  be  conserved,  that  a  representative 
workable  governing  body  can  be  defined.  The 
national  interests  of  Scotland  and  Ireland  must 
receive  due  consideration  in  any  acceptable 
scheme,  but  the  unity  of  the  nursing  profession 
throughout  the  United  Kingdom  must  be  pro- 
vided for,  if  the  nurses  resident  in  the  three 
countries  are  to  be  justly  treated.  The  Bill  must 
also  inspire  a  scheme  of  practical  Imperial  re- 
ciprocity, «o  that  the  nui-ses  in  our  Dominions 
beyond  the  seas,  and  those  going  thence  from 
home  shall,  if  maintaining  equal  professional 
standards,  be  registered  throughout  the  British 
Empire.  As  it  is,  we  hear  that  both  in  South 
Africa,  aud  Australasia,  invidious  distinctions 
are  possible,  and  "registered  nurses"  from 
New  Zealand  are  surprised  to  find  that  their 
legal  status  has  no  significance  in  the  mother 
country. 


Jau.  15,  I'Jli 


t\)C  3Brttl5l5  3ournal  of  THuriJino 


47 


^be  Central  lPi-cparator\>  (loursc 

for  iRuri?c£i  at   Ccacbcrs" 

CollCGC  H^cw  Dovk. 

Now  that  several  hospitals  in  this  country 
have  instituted  a  preliminary  course  of  train- 
iuj,  for  their  nurses,  it  is  most  interesting  to 
study  the  central  one  j-ear's  preparatory  course 
ofiered  by  the  Department  of  Hospital 
Economy  at  Teachers'  College,  Xew  York,  de- 
signed to  prepare  students  for  admission  to 
training  schools  for  nurses,  a  plan  advocated 
by  this  Journal  many  years  ago,  to  meet  the 
needs  of  the  smaller  hospitals,  which  have 
neitiier  sutlicient  new  pupils  to  form  a  class, 
nor  hinds  to  maintain  it. 

Miss  Nutting  tells  us  in  the  American  Jour- 
nal of  Nursing  that  arrangements  have  been 
made  with  the  training  schools  of  Bellevue  and 
Allied  Hospitals  whereby  the  students  who 
complete  successfully  the  courses  of  study  out- 
lined will  be  admitted  for  two  years  of  training 
and  instruction  in  the  care  of  the  sick  in  the 
wards  and  other  departments  of  the  hospitals. 
Bi'llevue  is  a  large  municipal  hospital  with 
over  a  thousand  beds,  offering  exceptional  op- 
portunities for  practical  instruction  in  the  fol- 
lowing services :  medical,  surgical,  obstetrical, 
infants  and  children.  The  course  is  a  further 
extension  of  the  idea  of  preliminary  training 
such  as  is  now  found  in  some  of  the  leading 
training  schools  of  the  country,  and  its  purpose 
is  to  give  the  student  a  more  thorough  ground- 
ing in  the  sciences  underlying  the  art  of  nurs- 
ing than  can  ordinarily  be  obtained  in  the  hos- 
pital training  school.  It  also  aims  to  famiUar- 
ise  the  student  with  practical  procedures  in 
general  use  in  nursing.  The  student  is  thus 
prepared  to  benefit  more  promptly  and  fully  by 
the  opportunities  which  the  hospital  offers,  and 
to  bring  a  more  intelligent  effort  to  bear  upon 
the  problems  presented  by  the  patient.  The 
students  must,  however,  in  all  instances  meet 
the  physical  and  other  tests  required  by  the 
training  schools. 

The  course  is  under  the  immediate  control 
and  direction  of  nurses. 

The  outUne  as  at  present  arranged  is  given 
below,  and  should  there  be  a  sufficient  demand 
for  a  training  which  brings  the  first  year  of  a 
nurse's  training  (a  period  which  must  neces- 
sarily include  a  good  deal  of  theoretical  work) 
into  the  college,  rather  than  the  hospital,  ar- 
rangements will  undoubtedly  be  made  to  ex- 
tend the  relationship  to  other  hospitals  and  to 
relieve  them  of  theoretical  courses,  which  are 
usually  provided  with  considerable  difficulty 
sod  expense  and  under  conditions  which  sel- 
dom admit  of  proper  study. 


PbEP.VRAIOBY    CoCBSE   fob    NCBBISO. 

General  and  Educational  Psychology.— This  is  a 
general  course  in  psychologj-,  with  special  refer- 
ence to  dynamic  psychologr  an«l  the  mental  pro- 
oeeses  important  to  intellect  and  character. 

Elementary  Anatomy  and  PAt/sioioyy.— This  is  an 
introductorv  course  in  human  anatomy  and 
phvsiology,"  with  comparative  study  of  general 
an'atomy  and  physiology.  It  fumishee  a  general 
ground-work  in  biological  science. 

Applied  Bacteriology.— Ibis  course  will  deal  with 
bacteria,  moulds,  yeasts,  and  other  micro-organisms, 
selecting  for  most  attention  the  forms  which  affect 
our  everv-dav  life. 

First  Principles  of  Chemistry.— This  is  a  course 
for  beginners  which  gives  special  attention  to  the 
elements  of  chemistry  as  related  to  foods  and 
other  matters  of  household  economy. 

Personal  Hygiene. — The  course  considers  the 
human  body  as  an  organic  machine,  and  preeents 
personal  hygiene  as  the  study  of  the  means  of  pr<v 
serving  and  improving  the  health  and  efficiency  of 
the  human   mechanism. 

Elementary  Materia  Medica  and  Therapeutics.— 
This  course  includes  a  discussion  of  drugs,  their 
sources,  forms,  and  physiological  and  toxic  effects, 
the  handling  of  drugs,  their  accurate  weighing  and 
measuring,  their  preparation,  proper  methods  of 
administration  and  dosage,  poisons  and  antidotes. 

Food  Production. — The  lectures  of  this  course 
describe  the  preparation  of  the  various  staple  foods, 
from  the  raw  state  to  the  finished  product  in  mar- 
ketable forms,  and  include  a  discussion  of  the  com- 
position, nutritive  value,  and  cost  of  the  available 
food  materials. 

Food  Preparation.— The  purpose  of  this  course  is 
to  place  food  preparation  on  a  scientific  basis,  and 
to  6ystemati.se  methods  of  work.  The  course  deals 
witi  the  preparation  of  food  materials  based  on  a 
knowledge  of  their  composition  and  the  chemical 
changes  effected  by  heat  and  moisture,  and  in- 
dicates what  cooking  processes  give  best  results  in 
retaining  nutritive  principles  in  most-  digestible 
form. 

CooJcery  for  Invalids. — ^This  course  gives  special 
attention  to  the  food  and  diet  of  the  sick  and  in- 
valids. Instruction  and  laboratory  practice  are  in- 
cluded. 

Housemfery. — This  course  furnishes  instruction 
and  practical  work  in  the  care,  cleaning,  and  order 
of  the  household.  The  cleansing  processes, 
materials,  and  appliances  are  considered  and  prac- 
tice is  provided. 

Principles  of  Sursing. — This  course  deals  with 
the  principles  of  science  which  are  fundamental  to 
the  art  of  nursing,  the  practical  procedures  of  the 
sick  room,  and  the  appliances  of  nursing. 

Social  Economy. — 'There  are  various  courses  un- 
der this  heading  treating  of  social  and  industrial 
problems,  of  the  causes  of  poverty  and  sickness. 
and  of  the  various  institutions  for  their  prevention 
and  relief. 

The  Montreal  Star  has  offered  £20,000  to  the 
typhoid  fund  if  it  becomes  necessary  for  the 
citizens  to  take  up  the  question  after  the  election 
of  the  new  Council  on  February  1st. 


46 


^e  Biit:6b  3oiirnal  of  •Wursina. 


Jan.  15,  1910 


Ibow  3  Became  riDatron  of  St. 
36artl?olonie\vi?  1bot?pital. 

a  telepathic  tale. 
By  Ethel  Gordox  Fexwick. 

In  the  Life  of  the  late  Sir  Sydney  W'at«i-low, 
Mr.  George  Smalley  has  refen-ed  to  my  ap- 
pointment as  Matron  to  St.  Banholomew  s 
Hospital  in  1881,  an  account  which  I  desire  to 
supplement  as  accurately  as  possible. 

In  the  autumn  of  the  year  1879  I  was  ap- 
pointed Sister  of  the  Charlotte  Ward  in  the 
London  Hospital,  upon  the  recommendation  of 
the  ilatron,  >Iiss  Swift.  To  look  forward, 
thu-ty  years  appear  interminable,  to  look  back, 
they  seem  to  have  vanished  in  a  night.  There 
have  apparently  been  significant  changes  in  our 
hospit'al  world  dnring  these  three  decades — 
changes  on  the  surface— but  of  elemental 
changes  there  have  been  none — and  there 
never  will  be.  Himian  nature,  as  it  was  in  the 
beginning — as  it  is — so  it  ever  will  be.  That  is 
the  reason  why  we  never  grow  old — or  wise — as 
to  the  young  we  appear  to  do.  Thirty  years 
ago  I  aiTived  at  the  London  in  a  growler — to- 
day I  should  whisk  there  in  a  taxi.  \^Tiat" s  the 
odds?    I  should  arrive. 

1  am  in  the  humour  to  write  philosophic 
memoirs,  but  space  forbids;  instead  I  wUI  re- 
cord a  page  of  personal  history.  Things 
hummed  and  were  of  absorbing  interest  to  us 
obsolete  folks,  who  laughed,  and  wept,  and 
worked,  oh  1  so  hard  in  the  great  East  End 
Hospital  in  past  days.  Take  it  fi-om  me — 
modem  niu-ses — that  tiie  explorers  had  a 
glorious  experience — the  women  of  the  sixties 
and  seventies  who  grappled  with  almost  unsur- 
mountable  difficulties  in  the  hospital  world,  had 
the  best  of  it.  Metaphorically  we  fought  with 
beasts  at  Ephesus,  and  the  victory  was  to  the 
strong.  We  unfurled  our  standards  and  planted 
them  in  high  places.  Yet  these  were  the 
happy-go-lucky  days  before  nurses  were 
trained — when  we  just  "  picked  up  " — when 
our  demand  for  knowledge  was  insistent,  when 
we  loved  learning,  when  we  went  ofi  duty  with 
reluctance,  and  a  stretch  of  24:  hours  on  emer- 
gency duty  foimd  us  fresh  and  keen  in  the 
morning.    Not  so  bad  for  us  ! 

My  charge  in  "Charlotte"  was  53 
beds,  which  were  usually  occupied  by 
acute  cases,  with  a  staff  of  foxu-  nurses 
on  day  duty,  and  two  on  at  night.  This 
was  no  sinecure  for  a  Sister.  On  duty  at  7  a.m., 
going  ahead  all  day  at  full  speed  mitil  5  o'clock 
dinner.  Breakfast,  limcl  .  tea,  often  standing 
feasts  on  the  Floor,  oS  du-y  from  6  to  8,  if  pos- 
sible, and  then  three  hoirs'  strenuous  work 
vmtil  11  p.m.     After  which  blessed  bed. — Not 


yet  awhile.  Now  came  the  only  quiet  hour  for 
study.  There  were  few  nursing  books  in  those 
days.  But  there  were  medical  journals,  stu- 
dents" manuals  on  anatomy,  jjhysiology,  and 
thei'apeutics,  Hoblyu's  dictionary,  and  the 
works  of  Plato  and  John  Stewart  JNlill.  We  de- 
vom-ed  them.  I  made  it  a  rule  never,  if  pos- 
sible^  to  go  to  rest  in  ignorance.  Words  of 
unknown  meaning  in  clinical  lectui-es,  new 
symptoms  and  diseases,  new  treatments, 
drugs,  and  diets  must  all  be  cleared  up  over- 
night, notes  made  for  tne  instiiiction  of  nurses, 
and  an  insatiable  mental  avidity  appeased. 


One  night  in  the  winter  of  1880-81,  seated 
at  my  bedroom  table,  I  was  thus  absorbed. 
The  door  was  open,  as  I  wished  to  speak  with 
Night  Sister  as  she  passed  by.  Presently  she 
stood  smiling  on  the  mat. 

"  I've  got  a  bit  of  news  for  you.  Sister  Char- 
lotte," she  said.  "A  nice  little  post  is 
vacant,  which  will  just  suit  you  no  doubt." 

I  put  down  my  pen. 

"  What  is  it"?  "  I  asked. 

"■  Oh  I  only  Bart's,"  she  rephed  airUy,  and 
turned  as  if  to  go  her  rounds. 

Then  she  returned. 

"■  Think  of  it,"  she  continued,  "  the  accumu- 
lated prejudices  of  eight  hundred  years !  Doc- 
tors and  old  Sisters  on  one  side,  the  !Matron 
and  modernity  on  the  other.  Prejudice  has 
just  won  the  day,  and  the  ^latron  has  re- 
signed. ' '" 

"  Shouldn't  I  just  love  to  tilt  at  prejudice," 
I  exclaimed.  ' '  Oh  !  for  the  chance !  ' '  and  I 
closed  the  dry-a-dust  dictionary  and  sent  it 
spinning. 

■■  I  thought  that  would  appeal  to  you," 
laughed  iMiss  Seavill,  and  with  a  spice  of 
malice  she  whispered  derisively,  "  Good  night. 
Matron  of  Bart's,"  and  was  gone. 

I  turned  to  my  books,  but  the  speU  was 
broken.  My  attention  wandered.  I  read  the 
same  sentence  over  a  dozen  times  without 
grasping  its  meaning.  Suddenly  a  voice  said 
peremptorily,  "  Go  in  for  Bart's." 

I  sprang  up  and  went  into  the  Lobby,  ex- 
pecting to  find  Miss  Seavill.  No  one  was  there. 
I  re-entered  my  room  and  closed  the  door. 
Again  the  order  was  conveyed  to  my  inner 
consciousness. 

No  doubt  I  was  over-tired.  I  stood  at  the 
open  window  and  breathed  keen  air.  A  per- 
fect starht  night,  all  peace  below  in  the  Gover- 
nor's garden.  The  far-oS  muffled  roar  of  traffic 
in  the  Whitechapel  Road  was  soothing. 

Then  I  went  to  bed.  But  there  I  found  no 
rest. 

Again  and  again  the  insistent  direction  was 
given — 


juu.  15,  unoj     i^i;,^.   DDiitisi)  3oiu-nal   of  IHurstno. 


■1'. 


"Go  iu  for  Bart's.     Go  in  for  Bart's.  " 

At  last  iu  desperation  I  sat  up  in  bed  and 
said  aloud  quite  soltiinily  : 

"  I  am  terribly  tired.  If  you  will  let  me  go 
to  sleep  /  promise  I  will  go  in  for  Bart's." 

Then  I  slept. 

When  1  awoke  I  felt  strangely  disturbed. 
The  whole  incident  flashed  across  my  mind.  I 
had  solemnly  entered  into  a  contract  with  an 
invisible  force,  and  must  keep  my  pledge.  In 
the  broad  Ught  of  day  the  presumption  and  ab- 
surdity of  an  unknown  young  person,  who  had 
not  yet  completed  three  years'  hospital  ser- 
vice, calmly  proposing  to  assume  the  Blue  Kib- 
bon  of  the  Nursing  World,  was  sufficiently 
evident  to  me.  What  well  deserved  ridicule 
would  be  the  result  of  such  presumption  ! 

Nevertheless,  1  did  not  intend  to  break  my 
word. 

So,  when  dressed,  across  to  liachel  Wartl  1 
went,  where  my  friend  Cassandra  Beachcroft 
must  be  made  acquainted  with  this  folly. 

I  told  her  the  facts. 

Very  sprightly,  and  full  of  wit  and  gi-it,  was 
this  Sister  Kacliel.  We  cackled  in  chorus  iu 
our  light-hearted  way.  We  thoroughly  enjoyed 
the  joke,  and  then  we  sobered  down. 

"  Apply  I  must,"  I  sighed  dolefully.  "  / 
have  promised  the  spirits." 

"  Of  course,"  said  l\achol,  and  that  settled 
it. 

"  What  shall  you  do"?  "  she  inquired. 

"  Go  straight  to  the  fountain  head,  of 
course,"  I  answered.  "  To-morrow  morning 
I  shall  call  upon  the  Treasurer  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital." 

And  I  did. 

(To  be  continued.) 


Ibow  an  i£y*1lAuv5C  i5  pvivilCGCb 
to  Spent)  Sun^a^  flDorning. 

I  live  in  the  country,  some  distance  from 
church,  and  look  on  it  as  a  great  privilege  if  I 
can  manage  to  get  there  twice  a  month  in  time 
for  the  midday  Communion  (about  11.45):  for 
I  have  a  delicate  husband,  three  little  children, 
and  a  very  young  maid.  On  this  particular 
Sunday  morning  I  was  up  betimes,  saw  to  the 
children's  dressing  operations  and  their  break- 
fasts, bathed  my  baby,  made  an  apple  pie,  and 
put  the  rest  of  the  dinner  that  it  oohM  not  got 
spoiled,  whatever  my  maid  did  or  did  not. 
Then  a  casual  putting  tidy  of  the  bedrooms, 
for  we  do  no  work  we  are  not  obliged,  and  at 
last  I  hurry  over  my  dressing. 

I  am  putting  on  my  gloves  at  the  front  room 
window,  preparatory  to  starting,  wh^n — what 


do  I  Sue'.'  A  child  on  llic  opposite  p;i\  I'UnMil 
choking,  nearly  black  in  the  face  I  lias  it 
whooping  cough,  or  what'.'  Off  go  my  gloves, 
I  tear  across,  seize  the  child,  and  run  indoors, 
followed  by  the  big  brother,  aged  about  ten. 
The  little  patient  might  be  three.  1  get  a 
finger  down  the  throat,  but  the  obstruction  is 
too  far  down  to  move  with  it.  What  do  1  feel- 
is  it  a  pin  or  a  fishbone '.'  Soothingly  1  tell  the 
child  I  will  make  her  better  while  I  get  out  my 
forceps,  long  since  disused;  but  iu  my  cottage 
it  is  a  long  way  to  boiling  water,  so  down  they 
go  as  they  are.  Thej'  were  put  awaj'  clean,  and 
I  will  not  say  what  I  have  seen  even  doctors  do 
in  emergencies ! 

Foruuately  the  pin  (a  very  large  one,  which 
we,  as  children,  would  have  christened  a  "  pig- 
sticker ")  was  bent,  and  I  was  able  with  very 
little  trouble  to  extract  it.  Then  I  swabbed  the 
throat  with  boracic  and  glycerine,  and  with 
an  orange  to  compensate  for  the  other  evils,  I 
sent  the  children  on  their  way  to  their  own 
home. 

Now  for  church.  Have  I  time  to  get  there? 
As  I  am  washing  my  hands,  my  little  girl  runs 
in  and  tells  me,  breathlessly,  "  Mother,  Charlie 
(2J),  has  killed  a  baby  outside  with  a  stone  ! 
It  must  be  dead,  coz  its  face  is  covered  witli 
blood!"  Down  I  rush  and  haul  a  little  blood- 
stained mortal  of  about  14  months  from  its 
pram,  and  carry  it  through  to  the  kitchen.  Oh  ! 
my  poor  Sunday-best  frock  ! 

My  maid  gets  me  a  basin,  cotton  wool, 
boracic,  old  rag  and  bandages,  and  then  I  send 
her  to  stop  the  din  the  two  elder  children 
iu  charge  of  the  pram  are  making  outside  the 
house. 

The  ablutions  (how  needed !)  show  me  there 
is  a  i-inch  cut  close  over  the  temple,  and  I 
prepare  some  old  hospital  "  bread  and  butter  " 
of  boracic  ointment  on  linen  for  future  occa- 
sions. A  neat  little  head  bandage,  a  clean 
bonnet,  frock,  and  pinafore  belonging  to  my 
children,  and  the  baby  is  quite  presentable. 
The  old  stained  ganments  are  put  in  a  parcel, 
some  dressings  in  another,  and  all  the  children 
get  oranges  and  biscuits,  the  baby  a  cup  of 
milk,  and  I  send  them  off  with  a  letter  of 
apologj'  to  their  mother  for  the  misdoings  of 
my  young  hopeful. 

Then  come  his  bad  few  minutes  with  Daddy, 
and  never  again  have  I  had  cause  to  complain 
of  him,  even  if  other  "  swanks  "  (as  he  calls 
them)  began  it ! 

No  doctor  lives  nearer  than  a  good  half 
hour's  walk  from  my  house,  so  I  try  to  refrain 
from  being  disappointed  at  having  to  wait 
another  fortnight  for  my  service. 

Alkxia. 


50 


CDC  Brttisb  :tcunial  of  'Wurstng. 


[Jan.  15,  191 1  ■ 


{practical  [Points. 

Ill  the  operating  rooms  and 
A  Recent  Surgical  on  the  surgical  carriages  in 
Convenience.  the  wards,  says  the  Johns 
Mopkins  Nurses'  Alumiuie 
Magazine,  may  be  seen  a  piece  of  ivory  soap  stuck 
with  the  varieties  of  pins  which  it  pleases  the 
doctor  and  the  head  nurse  to  most  affect.  Our  old 
friend,  the  black  headed  piu,  long  associated  with 
crinoline  dressings,  retains  still  an  honoured  place. 
The  history  of  the  introduction  of  the  soap  into  the 
hospital  is  interesting.  Three  years  ago  Dr.  R.  H. 
Follis  operated  upon  a  patient  at  the  Church  Home. 
The  patient  was  a  tailor  by  profession  and  chanced 
to  reside  in  Annapolis.  When  dressings  were  made 
he  observed  the  difficulty  with  which  the  safety 
pins  were  put  through  the  binder  and  suggested 
trying  the  method  the  cadets  at  the  Naval  Academy 
had  evolved  to  help  in  pinning  through  their  stiff 
ducks.  This  simple  but  most  effective  device  was 
a  piece  of  soap  as  a  pin  cushion,  and  he  further 
remarked  that  carpenters  appUed  the  same  prin- 
ciple to  screws.  Dr.  Follis  immediately  tried  the 
plan,  with  such  success  that  it  has  been  generally 
adopted  in  the  surgical  service. 

Catheterisation        of        the 
Cystoscopy.  ureters     is     a     comparatively 

new  achievement,  though  ex- 
perimenters have  been  at  work  on  instruments  and 
devices  which  should  make  it  possible  since  1807. 
The  object  is,  of  course,  to  get  specimens  of  urine 
from  each  kidney  separately  as  a  means  of  diagnosis 
of  kidney  disease.  The  latest  and  most  successful 
device  for  doing  this  is  the  cystoscope,  a  tube  which 
combines  a  tiny  electric  light  and  either  one  or  two 
catheter  points;  by  this  means  the  interior  of  the 
bladder  is  lighted  and  the  entrance  to  the  ureter 
is  made  sure.  In  using  the  instrument  antiseptic 
precautions  are  observed.  The  parts  are  cleansed 
as  usual,  and  the  cystoscope,  which  has  been  kept 
in  an  atmosphere  of  formaldehyde  gas,  is  immersed 
n  a  strong  formalin  solution  for  thirty  minutes, 
then  washed  with  sterile  water.  With  the  earlier 
instruments  pain  was  produced,  and  a  general 
ana?sthetic  was  necessary;  now  local  ana?sthesia  is 
used,  as  the  perfection  of  the  instrument  has  re- 
sulted in  its  having  a  smaller  calibre.  The  subject, 
which  is  referred  to  as  above  in  the  Americnii 
Journal  of  yursing,  is  described  more  in  detail  in 
an  article  by  Dr.  P.  Duncan  Littlejohn  in  a 
medical  contemporary. 

Dr.  Alexander  Boss  describes 
An   Improved        in   the    Lancet  an    appliance 
Inhaler.  for    the    inhalation   of   medi- 

cated air  in  the  treatment  of 
diseases  of  the  respiratory  tract,  as  follows:— Its 
special  features  are :  (1)  It  consists  of  two  simple 
parts,  having  nothing  to  wear  out  or  go  wrong. 
(2)  It  is  made  of  a  light  but  strong  white  metal, 
which  admits  of  it  being  boiled  in  soda  solution,  and 
thus  easily  rendered  aseptic  aft«r  use.  (3)  It 
admits  of  no  erosion  in  contact  with  the  atmosphere 
or  absorption  of  septic  matter.  (4)  It  is  unbreak- 
able,  and  can  be  used  with  both  hands  free,  and 


thus   allow    the   user   to   follow    his    or   her    usual 
vocation. 

Method  of  using  it. — A  pellet  of  absorbent  wool 
is  dipped  into  any  suitable  medicament  and  then 
placed  in  the  centre  of  a  small  round  plate  of  the 
same  material.  The  wool  plate  is  then  folded  in 
over  the  pellet  and  placed  in  the  mouthpiece.  The 
end-piece  is  fixed  on  by  means  of  a  bayonet  catch. 
Begin    using  by  blowing  strongly   outward ;      this 


clears  the  woo!  from  the  mouthpiece.  The  inhala- 
tions should  be  done  by  long,  slowly  drawn  inspira- 
tions xmtil  the  lungs  each  time  are  fully  inflated. 
The  breath  should  be  held  for  some  time  and  then 
aPowed  to  pass  out  by  the  nostrils.  This  inhaler 
has  been  made  for  Dr.  Ross  by  the  Medical  (Supply 
Association,  of  228,  Gray's  Inn  Road,  London,  W.C. 


legal  riDattcrs. 


KENEALY  lermf  LORD  NORTHCLIFFE  AND 
THE  '  DAILY  MAIL  ' 
An  action  now  i>eiKling,  and  which  is  expected  to 
be  heard  in  the  King's  Bench  Division  as  we  go  to 
press,  involves  several  imix)rtaiit  jxiints,  and  is  of 
considerable  interest  to  women  workere  and 
journalists.  It  is  brought  against  Lord  Northcliffe 
and  the  Daily  Mail  by  iliss  Annesley  Kenealy, 
lately  Editor  and  Manager  of  the  "Humanities  De- 
partment" of  that  pajjer.  Miss  Kenealy  will  con- 
duct her  own  case,  and  Mr.  Rufus  Isaacs,  K.C.,  lias 
been  retained  for  the  defence.  An  important  wit- 
ness may  be  the  Hon.  Sydney  Holland,  Chairman  of 
the  London  Hospital. 


SHOP-LIFTING  BY  WOMAN  DESCRIBED 
AS  A  NURSE 
Two  women,  Marion  Cohen,  described  as  a  nurse, 
and  Nellie  Cohen,  said  to  be  her  daughter,  formerly 
a  barmaid,  have  been  convicted  at  Marlborough 
Street  Police  Court  of  stealing  a  pair  of  Ixiots,  value 
4s.  lid.,  from  Messrs.  Bourne  and  Hollingsworth, 
in  Oxford  Street.  No  evidence  was  offered  that 
the  elder  woman  had  received  any  training  as  a 
nurse,  but  the  nursing  profession  is  credited  with 
her  crime.  An  effort  was  made  to  have  the  prisoner.s 
dealt  with  under  the  Probation  of  Offendei-s'  Act, 
but  the  magistrate  said  it  would  be  an  abuse  of  the 
Act,  and  sentenced  both  to  twenty-one  days'  im- 
prisonment in  the  second  division. 


THEFTS  FROM  NURSING  HOMES. 
Henry  Trotraan  was  last  week  sentenced  at  Liver- 
pool to  twelve  months'  imprisonment,  with  hard 
labour,  for  stealing  jewellery  and  money,  to  the 
value  of  £.5.5  from  the  nurses'  bedrooms  in  two 
nursing  homes. 


Jan.  15, 1910]        ;^^^^   ffirttiyl?   3ournal   ot   IFiureino. 


51 


appointments. 

Lady  .Su-eiiintendext. 
Cork  Street  Fever  Hospital,  Dublin. — Miss  A.  S.  Rhine! 
has  be«?n  apiwiiiteil  Lady  .Superintendent.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Meatli  Hospital  and  the  Cork  Street 
Ho6pit.al,  Dublin,  and  has  held  the  position  ot 
Sister  in  the  Cork  Street  Hospital,  and  of  Nurse- 
in-Charge  at  Loughlinstown  Hospital,  and  has  been 
Sister  in  the  Array  Nursing  Service  Reserve.  She 
is  at  present  Assi.stant  Matron  at  the  Cork  Street 
Hospital.  The  appointment  of  a  lady  with  Irish 
training  and  experience  will  no  doubt  be  a  popular 
one  iu   Ireland. 

Matro.vs. 
Brigliton  and  Hove  Dispensary,  Western  Branch.  '-■, 
PortlaiKl  Road.  Hove. — Miss  M.  B.  Milborne  has 
been  ap[>ointed  Matron.  She  was  trained  at  the 
Sussex  County  Hospital,  where  she  was  for  three 
years  Xiglit  Superintendent. 

Cottage  Hospital.  Homsey.  -Miss  £.  H.  Grime,  who 
has  recently  teen  appointed  to  the  Matronship  of 
the  above  hospital,  formerly  held  the  position  of 
Assistant  Matron  at  the  Taunton  and  Somerset 
Hospital:  not  ot  Matron,  as  notified  to  us. 
NiRSE  Matrons. 
Bridgend  Cottage  Hospital. — Miss  Rosa  Kicke  has 
been  appointed  Nurse  Matron.  She  was  trainetl 
at  the  Uoyal  Devon  and  Exeter  Hospital,  where 
she  has  held  the  positions  of  StafI  Nurse  in  Male 
and  Female  Wards,  Sister  in  the  Children's  "Ward, 
Sister  In  a  Men's  Surgical  Ward,  and  Night 
Superintendent. 

SlSTEHS. 

Charing  Cross  Hospital,  Strand,  W.C. — Miss  Sara 
Young  has  been  appointed  .Sister.  She  was  trained 
for  four  years  in  the  same  hospital,  and  has  held 
the  position  of  Staff  Nurse  for  one  year  on  a 
surgical  landing,  and  for  the  same  period  on  a 
medical  landing.  She  also  did  Holiday  Sister's 
duties  in  the  summer,  and  Sister  Housekeeper's 
holiday  duty. 

Royal      Cornwall      Infirmary,     Truro. — Miss     Love<lay 
Down    has   !)een   appointed   Sister  of   Male   Wards 
and  in  the  Theatre.    She  was  trained  at  the  Metro- 
politan Hospital,  Kingftland  Road,  London. 
Staff  NtrssE. 

Union  Infirmary,  Salford — Miss  Bridget  Turner  has 
been  appointed  Staff  Nurse.  She  was  trained  in 
the  same  institution. 

.School  Ncrsk. 

Education  Committee,  East  Ham.  — Miss  A.  Kay  nas 
l>een  ap|»oiiit«Hl  .School  Nurse  under  the  Edycation 
Committee  in  the  Borough  of  East  Ham.  She  was 
trained  at  the  General  Intirmarv.  I>eeds. 


Staff  Xurses:  Miss  A.  R.  Sibbald  and  Miss  V.  L 
Batteson.  to  South  Africa;  Miss  G.  M.  Bennet,  to 
Military  Hospital,  Dover;  Miss  E.  K.  Parker,  to 
Military  Hospital,  Hounslow ;  Miss  E.  A.  Ruther- 
ford, to  Military  Hospital  Dover;  Miss  F.  E. 
Manfield,  to  Egypt;  Miss  J.  Todd,  to  Royal  Her- 
bert Hospital  Woolwich;  Miss  M.  M.  Davies,  to 
Military  Hospital,  Colchester;  Miss  E.  L.  Murray. 
Miss  G'.  M.  Griffiths,  and  Miss  F.  L.  Trotter,  to 
The  Queen  Alexandra  Military  Hospital,  Gros- 
venor  Road,  London,  S.W. ;  Miss  D.  Turner,  to 
Military  Hospital,  Devonport;  Miss  M.  McNaugh- 
tan,  to  Cambridge   Hospital,    Aldershot. 

Appuiiitments  confirmtd. — Staff  Xurses. — Miss 
W.  E.  Eardlev,  Miss  M.  G.  C.  Foley. 

.Irrira/s.— Miss  M.  C.  S.  Knox,  R.R.C.  Matron; 
Miss  C  Button  Potts,  Matron ;  Miss  R.  Osborne. 
Sister;  Miss  E.  Barber,  Sister;  Miss  M.  il. 
Blakely.  Sister. 

Jliss  J.  il.  Clay,  Sister,  resigns  her  appointment 
(January  -ith). 

Miss  £.  Cooke,  Staff  Nurse,  resigns  her  appoint- 
ment (January  8th). 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRAS  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 
NURSING   SERVICE. 

.IppoinfmPntf. — The  following  ladies  have  re- 
ceived appointments  as  Staff  Nurse: — Miss  F.  L. 
Trotter,  Miss  E.  L.  Murray,  Miss  G.  M.  Griffiths, 
Miss  J.  Todd,  Miss  D.  Turner,  Miss  M.  M.  Davies, 
and  Miss  M.  McNaughtan. 

Fostings  and  Transfers. — Matrons:  Miss  A.  A. 
Murphy,  to  South  Africa.  Sisters:  Miss  E. 
Barber,  to  Military  Hospital,  Devonport ;  Miss  A. 
B.  Wohlmann,  to  Cambridge  Hospital,  Aldershot. 


QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
FOR  NURSES. 
Transftrs  and  .1  j.p'juifm?/ifs.— Miss  Mary  H. 
Jones  to  Huddersfield,  as  Superintendent ;  Miss 
Florence  J.  Pritchard  to  Hull,  as  Superintendent: 
Miss  Mary  C.  Browne,  to  the  Shropshire  County 
Nursing  Federation,  as  Assistant  County  Superin- 
tendent; Miss  Gertrude  Magsou  is  appointed 
Senior  Xurse,  Chelsea;  Miss  Annie  Meeson,  to 
Leeds,  Hunslet  Home ;  Miss  Janet  Gibb,  to  Leeds. 
Holbeck  Home:  Miss  Maud  Williams,  to  Stock- 
ton: Miss  Isabel  SaiUy,  to  Chatham,  as  School 
Nurse;  Miss  L.  Monica  Appleford,  to  Bath;  Miss 
Ann  C.  Roberts,  to  Carmarthen. 


PRESENTATION. 
Miss  A.  Barling,  a  Member  of  the  Matrons' 
Council  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  wio,  after 
holding  the  position  of  Matron  of  Kidderminster 
Infirmary,  and  Children's  Hospital,  for  seventeen 
years  with  distinction,  is  now  retiring,  was  last 
Friday  presented  by  Mrs.  Arthur  Jones  with  an 
Address,  and  a  purse  containing  £120,  from  the 
friends  and  supporters  of  these  institutions  in  the 
presence  of  a  large  and  representative  gathering. 
Dr.  Walter  Moore,  President  of  the  Infirmary, 
who  presided,  spoke  of  the  splendid  services  which 
Miss  Barling  had  rendered  to  the  institution,  as 
did  also  the  Mayor  of  Kidderminster,  Dr.  Lionel 
Stretton,  and  others.  Miss  Barling  warmly  ac- 
knowledged the  gift.  Amongst  those  present  was 
Miss  McFarlane,  who  has  been  appointed  Miss  Bar- 
ling's successor. 

The  Joint  Isolation  Hospital  Committee  of  the 
Richmond  Corporation  and  the  Heston  and  Isle- 
worth  District  Council  showed  their  appreciation 
of  Miss  Stone's  eleven  years'  service  in  the  capacity 
of  matron  at  Mogden  hospital,  by  presenting  lier 
with  a  beautiful  Dresden  china  clock.  The  pre- 
sentation was  made  by  Dr.  F.  J.  Wadd,  ex-Chair- 
man of  the  Committee,  after  the  monthly  meeting 
on  the  termination  of  the  engagement. 


'i2 


Zlbe  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRurstng. 


[Jau.  15,  1910 


IHiirsino  Ecboes. 

A  laefting  cf  the  Matrons' 
Council  will  be  held  on  the 
evening  of  ' '  Conference  ' ' 
Day,  January  25th,  as 
several  members  from  a  dis- 
tance will  be  up  in  Loudon. 
Aliss  Alollett,  the  new  Hou. 
Secretary,  has  great  faith  in 
the  possibilities  for  useful- 
ness of  the  Council,  and  has 
arranged  for  Discussions  on 
Hospital  and  InfiiTnai-y 
Kitchens  and  Laundries.  Miss  Mussou, 
i/t  Birmingham,  will  present  a  Paper  on 
Kitchens,  and  Miss  H.  Todd,  of  Wands- 
worth, one  on  Laundries.  These  domestic 
departments  are  of  the  greatest  importance  in 
the  scheme  of  hospital  management,  and  much 
more  depends  on  their  good  management  than 
is  usuallv  acknowledged. 


The  last  number  of  the  Queen's  Nurses' 
Magazine  closes  the  sixth  volume,  and  with 
the  present  year  some  important  alterations 
are  to  be  made.  The  Magazine  will  appear  four 
times  a  year  instead  of  three  as  heretofore,  and 
the  months  of  issue  will  be  January,  April, 
July,  and  October,  the  change  to  take  effect  in 
April.  In  1911  the  subscription  will  be  raised 
to  Is.  6d. 

Under  tue  new  an-angement  the  Queen  Vic- 
toria's Jubilee  Institute  will  avail  itself  of  the 
Magazine  for  circulating  notices  and  sending 
instructions,  to  Queen's  Nurses,  and  it  is  hoped 
that  this  will  be  an  additional  inducement  to 
them  to  supijort  it.  It  needs  and  deserves  the 
support  of  all  Queen's  Nurses,  as  well  as  of 
the  Hon.  Secretaries  of  local  associations. 


We  hope  that  Lady  Dudley,  who  is  known 
to  be  sympathetic  with  the  maintenance  of 
efficient  nursing  standards,  and  in  the  West  of 
Ireland  employed  only  thoroughly  trained 
Queen's  nurses,  will,  in  helping  the  organisa- 
tion of  district  nursing  in  Australia,  en- 
courage the  same  high  standard  as  that 
of  the  Queen's  Nurses  at  home,  and 
insist  upon  a  living  w'age.  One  wonders 
what  is  going  to  happen  in  the  future  in  Eng- 
land to  all  the  poor  cottage  nurses,  subsisting 
in  their  working  days  on  such  small  salaries, 
that  they  cannot  save  a  penny  for  old  age. 


~Slr.  Isaac  Landau,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the 
Kosher  Kitchen  at  the  German  Hospital, 
Dalston,  is  appealing  for  contributions  to  its 
endowment  fund.  These  should  be  sent  to  ^Ir. 
J.  Schwarzschild,  Treasurer,  ."58,  Pembridge 
Villas,  W. 


The  annual  "  At  Home  "  given  by  the 
nursing  and  resident  staff  at  Charing  Cross 
Hospital  is  always  excellently  arranged,  and 
that  which  took  place  on  Thursday  last  week 
was  most  enjoyable.  The  guests  were  received 
in  the  Out-patient  Waiting  Hall  by  Miss 
Mildred  Heather-Bigg,  the  Matron,  and  JMr. 
Sydney  Welham,  Resident  ^Medical  Officer. 
The  concert  given  in  the  Great  Hall  of  the  Hos- 
pital was  charming  and  most  entertaining,  and 
was  highly  appreciated  by  the  large  audience. 
The  impersonations  of  well-known  actors  by 
Miss  Gladys  Marsden  were  wonderfully  clever ; 
so  wei'e  the  illusions  of  Simbri,  Oriental  illu- 
sionist and  conjuror;  and  "  The  Grotesques," 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Vere  Smith,  brought 
down  the  house. 


The  Buffet,  after  the  concert,  was  in  the 
Dispensai-j-  Hall,  which  hefd  been  most 
charmingly  decorated,  the  prevailing  note 
being  red.  Fairy  lights  glowed  through  iniby 
glasses,  the  lamps  had  big  poppy  shades,  pop- 
pies wreathed  the  pillars,  and  red  japonica, 
made  by  clever  fingers  and  trained  up  the 
framework  of  screens,  converted  them  into 
pretty  trellis  work.  The  hosts  and  hostesses 
are  greatly  to  be  congratulated  on  the  success 
of  the  evening.  With  so  genial  a  hostess  and 
capable  organiser  as  j\Iiss  Heather-Bigg,  this 
was  a  foregone  conclusion. 


Mr.  Edward  Henry  Cardwell,  of  11,  Crom- 
well Place,  South  Kensington,  who  died  at 
Newmarket  in  November,  left,  amongst  his 
bequests,  one  of  £4,000  to  Nurse  Susan  Ware- 
ing,  which  will  bring  in  a  comfortable  income. 


Two  rich  and  original  people  who  have  had 
occasion  to  employ  nurses  from  time  to  time 
sent  them  this  Christmas  most  acceptable  gifts. 
These  were  little  "  lucky  puddings  "  in  dimi- 
nutive basins.  Imagine  the  amusement  of 
the  r-ecipients  when  partaking  of  these  "  sur- 
prises "  to  discover  several  golden  sovereigns 
in  each.  In  one  case  the  nurse  shared  her 
pudding  with  her  maid,  who  went  home  the 
richei;with  a  new  ten  shilling  piece  !  All's  well 
that  ends  well,  but  how  easy  to  swallow  these 
delectable  little  coins ! 


The  new  Nurses'  Home  of  the  Cumberland 
Infirmary,  at  Carlisle,  is  now  open,  and  occu- 
pied. A  number  of  guests  invited  by  the  Ma- 
tron, ;Miss  Cummins,  recently  inspected  it,  and 
had  tea.  The  Home,  which  supersedes  the  ac- 
commodation formerly  used  for  the  nurses  over 
the  old  entrance,  consists  of  a  ground  floor  and 
two  storeys  above.  At  the  base  there  is  a 
spacious  dining  hall,  with  librai"y  adjoining, 
and  a  handsomely  furnished  sitting  room.    The 


jau.  lo,  I'jiuj       tibc  36nti5b  3ounial  of  fRursina, 


53 


first  door  has  bfdrooiu  aceonimodutiuii  lor 
nurses  ou  day  duty,  aud  the  top  tloor  has  been 
arranged  similarly  for  the  nurses  on  night  duty. 
There  are  40  bedrooms,  each  nurse  having  a 
separate  room.  Tlie  entire  wing  has  been 
fitted  up  and  furnished  in  the  best  style.  In 
conjunction  with  the  new  kitchen,  laundry, 
and  servants'  accommodation  it  marks  a  great 
advance  in  the  administrative  resources  of  the 
Infirmary. 


At  a  meeting  of  the  Carnarvon  Board  of 
Guardians  last  week,  a  recently  appointed  cer- 
tificated nurse  wrote  complaining  of  the  un- 
satisfactory arrangements  in  the  institution. 
Her  sleep  was,  she  said,  frequently  broken  at 
night  by  disturbances  in  the  wards,  where  im- 
becile patients  frequently  fell  out  of  bed,  or 
dressed  themselves  atid  walked  about.  The 
infirmary  was  also  understaffed;  "as  things 
are  it  is  nothing  short  of  slavery."  She  found 
it  impossible  to  discharge  her  duties 
thoroughly.  Further,  there  was  no  bath- 
room or  lavatory  for  the  nurses'  use.  The 
Board  decided  to  effect  such  improvements  as 
could  be  carried  out  without  expenditure  of 
money. 


could  in  various  odd  quarters  throughout  the 
buildings.  Now  the  extension  nome  was  open, 
there  were  170  nurses  on  the  staff.  He  con- 
gratulated the  nurses  upon  their  happier  state 
of  aSairs. 

It  was  evidently  widely  appreciated,  for  he 
was  informed  that  last  year  there  were  no  fewer 
than  570  applicants  for  36  vacancies  on  the 
nursing  staff.  He  thought  that  an  extra- 
ordinary state  of  affairs.  It  was  interesting 
to  know  that  of  the  nurses  who  had  left  the  In- 
firmary service  during  the  past  year,  most  of 
them  took  up  private  nursing.  Some  of  them 
went  for  fever  training,  some  of  them  for. ma- 
ternity training,  two  went  out  as  missionaries, 
and  three — only  three — had  embarked  on 
matrimonial  adventure.  They  would  agree  with 
him  that  wherever  they  were,  or  whatever  they 
might  be  called  upon  to  do,  evei-yone  of  the 
nurses  was  by  her  training  better  fitted  to  live 
her  life  and  to  bring  blessing  to  others. 


The  customary  annual  meeting  of  the  mana- 
gere  with  the  nurses  of  the  Royal  Infirmary, 
Glasgow,  was  recently  held  in  the  Disi^ensary 
Hall.  Lord  Provost  A.  M'Innes  Shaw  pre- 
sided. 

The  Lord  Provost  having  wished  tlie  com- 
pany a  bright  and  happy  New  Year,  congratu- 
lated the  staff  on  their  continued  successful  ad- 
ministration of  the  Royal  Infii-mary.  It  was, 
he  said,  no  easy  task  to  maintain  unimpaired 
tlie  full  ordinary  work  of  that  great  institution 
while  the  reconstruction  scheme  was,  all  the 
time,  actively  progressing.  Space  was  limited, 
and  the  work  was  increasing  day  and  night, 
and  he  took  that  opportunity  of  expressing  the 
gratification  of  the  citizens  at  the  success  with 
which  the  managers  continued  to  grapple  with 
their  difficult  task.  It  could  not  he  done  with- 
out the  co-operation  of  the  whole  staff,  and 
they  must  all  recognise  the  devotion  and  un- 
grudging efforts  continuously  put  forth  by  all — 
from  Dr.  Thorn,  the  Superintendent,  and  Miss 
Melrose,  the  Matron,  down  to  the  youngest 
member  of  the  staff.  The  year  had  been  an 
eventful  one  for  the  nurses  especially,  for  in 
•Tune  last  the  extension  of  the  Nurses'  Home 
was  opened,  and  now,  at  long  last,  all  the 
nurses  were  housed  in  their  own  comfortable 
home.  A  year  ago  there  were  160  nurses  on 
the  staff,  of  whom  only  106  could  reside  in  the 
home,    leaving  54  to    be  put    up    where  they 


Mr.  J.  D.  Hedderwick,  Chairman  of  the 
House  Committee,  reciprocated  on  behalf  of 
the  managers  and  nurses  the  good  wishes  ex- 
pressed by  the  Lord  Provost,  and  submitted 
some  statistics  relating  to  the  Infinnary. 


Miss  Balmer,  of  Edinburgh,  who  is  reported 
to  be  thoroughly  qualified,  has  been  appointed 
district  nurse  at  Kenmore,  much  to  the  satis- 
faction of  the  neighbourhood.  After  ^Ir. 
Dewar's  withdrawal  of  the  endowment,  a  new 
Committee  was  appointed,  and  strong  efforts 
arc  to  be  made  to  secure  funds.  So  that  little 
difi&cult^'  has  been  overcome. 


W'e  are  glad'  to  report  that  iliss  ^lary  A. 
Snively,  Lady  '  Superintendent  of  the  General 
Hospital,  Toronto,  and  President  of  the  Cana- 
dian National  Association  of  Trained  Nurses, 
has  consented  to  become  a  collaborator  of  this 
Journal.  This  will,  we  are  sure,  give  great 
pleasure  to  our  readers,  who  know  and  value 
^Miss  Snively's  work  for  the  profession  of  nurs- 
ing. 


Miss  Estrid  Rodhe,  Editor  of  the  Swedish 
Nui-ses'  .Journal  (Svensk  Sjukskoterskc-tidniny) 
has  also  kindly  consented  to  act  as  one  of  our 
collaborators. "  :Miss  Rodhe,  it  will  be  remem- 
bered, was  one  of  the  distinguished  nurses  who 
attended  the  International  Congress  of  Nurses 
last  year,  and  was  Secretary  to  the  Committee 
formed  of  representatives  of  all  the  chief  nurs- 
ing institutions  in  Sweden,  under  the  patron- 
age of  Queen  Sophia,  which  organised  the 
splendid  del.gation  from  Sweden.  We  wannly 
welcome  lier  help  as  a  t'ollaliorator. 


o4 


c;be  Brltieb  3ournaI  of  1Rur0ing. 


[Jan.  15,  1910 


IRefiections. 


From  a  Board  Koom  Mirror. 

The  King  held  the  Dissiolution 
t'ouneil  at  Buckingham  Palace  on 
Monday  last,  and  the  wbole 
I  tmntiy  is  now  engaged  in  a  monu- 
iiK'utal  struggle  for  political  power, 
iis  the  General  Election  is  in  lull 
^\^in^.  Although  women  (even  the 
IxK)r  old  '■  chars,"  we  suppose)  are 
pronounced  far  too  dainty  to  re- 
cord a  vote,  they  are  everywhere 
in  the  fi-out  ranks  of  the  scrimmage,  at  the  instiga- 
tion of  the  men  to  whom  they  belong.  \Miat  a 
world  of  humbug  it  is  to  be  sure! 


The  Britisli  Red  Cross  Society  has  published  m 
pamphlet  form  the  address  given  by  Surgeon- 
General  Sir  Alfred  Keogh,  Director-General  of  the 
Army  Medical  Service,  at  a  meeting  held  at  St. 
James's  Palace  recently.  The  pamphlet  is  illus- 
trated with  plans  and  diagrams,  and  appended  to 
it  are  specimen  courses  of  instruction  and  lists  of 
equipment  which  various  units  will  require. 

Mr.  M.  L.  Waller,  of  the  Home  Office,  has  been 
appointed  H.M.  Commissioner  of  Prisons  for  Eng- 
land and  Wales,  in  succession  to  Dr.  H.  B.  Donkin, 
who  retires  under  the  age  rule. 

The  late  Miss  Morrison,  of  Basildon  Park,  has 
bequeathed  £5,000  to  tlie  Royal  Berkshire  Hospital, 
Reading,  free  of  legacy  duty, 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sidney  "Webb  have  a  new  book 
nearly  ready  witli  Messrs.  Longmans  dealing  witli 
"  English  Poor-Law  Policy." 

An  appendix  volume  has  been  issued  containing 
the  reports  of  visits  by  the  Commis-sioners  to  Poor- 
Law  and  charitable  institutions  and  to  meetings  of 
local  authorities  in  the  United  Kingdom. 

One  of  the  grandest  schemes  ever  devised  by  a 
municipality  has  been  sanctioned  in  respect  of 
Paris.  It  involves  a  sum  of  £36,000,000,  the  expen- 
diture of  which  is  to  l)e  spread  over  eighteen  yeai-s 
at  the  rate  of  £2,000,000  a  year.  Practically  it 
means  that  Paris  is  to  be  brought  up  to  date. 
Complaints  on  the  subject  of  Paris  water  are  his- 
toric ;  it  is  profMised  to  remove  their  just  cause.  By 
the  sinking  of  new  wells,  by  the  tapping  of  new 
sources,  and  by  su]>erior  methods  of  filtration,  Paris 
hopes  to  live  down  its  evil  reputation  for  a  microbe- 
infested  drinking  water.  Two  millions  go  to  new 
hospitals.  The  care  of  the  sick  has  not  been 
scientific  in  the  past;  the  buildings  are  old  and  in- 
sanitary, and  most  inadequate  to  the  pui7X>ses  for 
which  tliey  are  intended,  if  one  compares  them 
with  English  and  American  institutions.  They  are 
to  be  reconstructed  on  modern  hygienic  lines. 


IHurses'  National  3ournal5. 

One  of  tlie  most  admirable  of  the  League 
Journals  is  that  of  the  Leicester  Infirmary  Nurses' 
League,  and  the  one  just  to  hand  is  fully  up  to 
the  usual  standard  of  excellence.  TTie  frontispiece 
is  a  picture  ot  the  Ijeautiful  new  Nurses'  Home, 
«hich  it  is  hoiied  will  be  opened  at  the  end  of  this 
month  by  Mi-s.  Fielding  Johnson,  and  Miss  Rogers 
anticipates  that  many  members  of  the  League, 
when  tliey  see  it,  will  want  to  become  pro's  again. 


We  lioi>e  it  is  not  proposed  to  sweep  away  all 
the  old  and  picturesque  streets,  some  of  which  date 
back  to  the  days  of  Henry  IV.,  so  full  of  historic 
and  artistic  interest. 


iliss  L.   L,   Dock,    Hon.   Vice-President   of   the 

Leicester  Infirmary  Nurses'  League,  contributes  an 
admirable  article  on  the  subject  of  League  and 
AlumuEe  Journals,  which  we  publish  below  in 
full,  in  which  she  urges  nurses  to  give  loyal  support 
to  their  National  Organs.     She  writes : — 

Nothing  gives  plainer  proof  of  the  modernised 
character  of  the  nurse's  calling  than  the  number 
of  nursing  journals  that  have  arisen  in  the  difter- 
ent  countries.  Our  national  organs  in  England  and 
America*  seem  to  have  had  the  effect,  among  their 
other  functions,  of  starting  a  whole  ci'op  of  smaller, 
more  individual  ijublications  belonging  to  Leagues 
and  other  special  groups,  and  this  is  a  very  excel- 
lent and  hopeful  growth,  showing  that  unity  of 
purpose  and  feeling  for  co-operation  is  extending 
among  nurses,  and  that  they  feel  the  need  of  being 
in  close  and  ready  touch  with  one  another.  More- 
over, these  local  journals,  voicing  the  interests 
and  chronicling  the  doings  of  their  special  grouijs, 
are  good  practice  schools,  where  young  nurses  learn 
to  write  for  publication,  manage  business  affairs, 
and  prepare  for  future  usefulness  on  lines  larger 
than  individualistic  concerns,  just  as  our  League 
and  Alumnpe  Meetings  are  schools  for  debate,  clear 
thinking,  ready  expression,  and  harmonious  united 
action. 

It  would  be  an  excellent  plan  for  a  system  of  ex- 
changes to  be  carried  on  between  League  and 
Alumnse  journals.  Many  of  them  are  of  special 
excellence,  and  all  are  interesting  as  throwing  light 
on  what  nurses  are  doing.  Each  group  conducting 
a  journal  could  thus  gather  files  of  all  the  other 
journals  for  their  club  house  libraries  or  for  their 
reading  rooms  in  nursing  homes  and  institutions. 
Such  collections  would  have  great  historical  value. 
Every  little  while  a  new  League  or  group  journal 
appears,  and  as  a  rule,  the  first  numbers  of  a 
publication  are  the  ones  that  are  soon  out  of  print 
and  most  diflScult  to  find  in  making  complete  re- 
cords, so  that  all  journals  should  try  to  provide  a 
good  number  of  extra  copies  of  earl.T  numbers  to 
be  ready  for  later  calls  for  complete  files. 

Our  interest  in  our  own  local  journal,  however, 
should  make  us  all  the  more  intelligent  about  the 
necessity  of  supporting  our  national  journals.  The 
intelligent  man  not  only  reads  his  local  new.spaper 
but  the  publications  of  larger  reach  as  well,  and 
every  nurse  should  learn  to  realise  what  her  na- 
tional magazine  means,  and  what  its  task  is  in  the 
whole  nursing  field. 

Great  changes  are  going  on  in  nursing.     Great 

*  The    Bhitish   Journ.\l   of  Nursing    and   The 

American  Journal  of  yursino- 


jau.  15, 1910]        2; be  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRuvsina. 


55 


progress  in  education  is  called  for  and  much  is 
being  done.  Every  country  has  a  progrossive  and  a 
reactionary  party,  in  nursing  as  well  as  in  other 
affairs.  The  latter  in  every  country  resists  the 
progress  of  women  in  general,  resists  education  in 
particular  as  being  the  sine  qua  non  of  progress. 
Our  national  journals  voice  and  express  the  progres- 
sive demands  in  a  way  that  no  smaller  or  local 
journal  can  do.  'I'liey  buffet  with  the  enemy  and 
are  exposed  to  his  attacks  and  counter  attacks.  In 
a  word,  our  national  journals  are  our  champions 
who  are  out  in  the  arena  fighting  our  battles  for 
us,  taking  risks,  pushing  the  way  open,  standing 
for  the  economic  and  educational  conditions  that 
are  hijj;best  and  most  ideal.  They  voice  the  in- 
articulate masses  of  nurses  who  are  too  closely  ab- 
sorbed in  tliH  care  of  the  sick  to  speak  u)r  them- 
selves or  to  watch  their  own  interests.  Each  such 
nurse,  tiierefore,  should  feel  that,  while  she  is  on 
duty  behind  closed  doors,  her  national  journal  is 
•doing  sentry  duty,  as  it  were,  for  her,  out  in  the 
great  market  place  of  the  world,  where  selfish  pri- 
vate interests  are  ever  .seeking  to  reduce  the  status 
of  working  woman  to  a  more  degraded  level.  Every 
nurse,  should  feel  it  her  duty  to  herself,  and  to 
her  professional  standards,  to  help  support  the 
journal  that  represents  her  in  that  wide  public 
where  she  cannot  represent  herself,  and  that  pro- 
tects her  educational  and  social  status  when  she  is 
herself  too  busy  or  too  weary,  to  be  vigilant  about 
things  of  so  general  a  nature.  To  do  this  is  a 
simple  matter  of  self-protection  :  it  is  like  keeping 
up  an  accident  insurance.  We  do  this  by  subscrib- 
ing individually  to  our  defensive  organs,  our 
nursing  journals.  Now,  it  there  are  opposition 
journals  that  advocate  reactionary  principles, 
aimed  at  our  degradation  as  women  and  as  self-sup- 
porting citizens,  and  if  we  subscribe  to  these,  we 
do  just  as  foolish  a  thing  as  a  nation  would  do 
if  it  supplied  its  foe  with  ammunition,  or  a  house- 
holder who  would  give  the  burglar  his  pass  key.  It 
is  surprising  how  seldom  nurses  realise  that  by  con- 
tributing their  money  to  opposition  papers  they 
.strengthen  the  very  party  again.st  which  they  find 
themselves  struggling.  It  is  said,  however,  that 
opposition  is  good  for  us.  This  is  true,  but  we  need 
not  pay  for  this  benefit.  Let  us  loyally  encourage 
and  support  our  own  faithful  scouts  and  sentries, 
our  official,  professional,  independent,  ethical,  and 
indispensable  nursing  press. 


A  WELCOME  NEW  YEAR'S  GIFT. 
The  Xew  Year  has  brought  a  welcome  gift  to 
some  half  a  million  of  London  hoiL-ielvoWers,  in  the 
shape  of  the  announcenumt  by  the  Gas  Light  and 
Coke  Company  of  a  further  reduction  in  the  price 
of  gas.  This  time  last  year  the  Company  reduce<l 
its  price  from  2s.  lOd.  to  2s.  9d.  per  1,000  cubic  fe«t, 
and  now  a  further  drop  to  2s.  8d.  is  announced — 
making  a  total  re<luction  of  4d.  jx-r  1,000  l'«H>t  in 
the  past  five  years.  In  view  of  the  large  and  grow- 
ing volume  of  testimony  from  medical  and  scientific 
men  to  the  fact  that  a  properly  designed  gas  fire,, 
properly  fixe<l  and  intelligently  use<l,  is  not  only 
not  h-ss,  but  is  actually  more  hygienic  than  a  coal 
fire  (in  which  unpurified  gas  is  burnt),  it  is  not  sur- 
jnising  that  the  use  of  gas  fires  is  extending. 


professtonal  IRcvlcw. 

VISITING    NURSING   IN   THE   UNITED  STATES. 

A  most  useful  and  interesting  book  on  "  Visiting 
Nursing  in  the  United  States,"  by  Miss  Yssabella 
Waters,  of  the  Nurses'  Settlement,  Henry  Street, 
New  York  City,  is  published  by  the  Charities  Pub- 
lication Committee,  105,  East  22nd  Street, 
New  York.  Part  I.  contains  chapteis  on 
the  history,  principles,  organisation,  and  methods 
of  administration.  Part  II.,  a  Directory  of  the 
organisations  employing  trained  visiting  nurses, 
and  appended  are  some  useful  tables — (1)  a  list  of 
organisations  arranged  alphabetically  by  States 
and  towns  giving  details  as  to  affiliation,  training, 
hours  of  duty,  classes  of  cases  attended,  and 
salaries;  (2)  showing  the  growth  of  visiting  nursing 
in  the  United  States  from  1874 ;  (3)  the  number  of 
associations  and  of  visiting  nurses  in  each  State- 
New  York  State  alone  has  108  associations,  and  458 
visiting  nurses,  and  Pennsylvania  comes  second 
with  II9  associations,  and  168  visiting  nurses;  (4) 
the  municipalities  employing  visiting  nurses  for 
tuberculosis  patients,  the  State  Department  of 
Health,  Harrisburg,  Pennsylvania  alone  employs 
91,  and  the  Department  of  Health,  New  Y'ork  City, 
24;  (5)  the  Municipalities  employing  Public  School 
Nurses,  and  here  the  Department  of  Health  of  New 
York  City  is  easily  ahead  with  141  school  nurses. 

The  frontispiece  of  the  book  is  a  map  showing 
tlie  location  of  the  Visiting  Nurse  Associations  in 
the  United  States,  and  if  we  take  a  fairly  straight 
lint  from  the  State  of  Minnesota  to  the  west  of 
Lake  Superior  in  the  North  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico 
we  shall  find  nearly  all  ea.st  of  that  line. 
Prinxiples. 
The  chapter  on  "  Principles  "  is  very  interesting, 
and  shows  cleaily  the  need  for  a  high  grade  of 
worker  in  this  branch  of  nursing  service.  We 
read:  "The  requirements  of  the  visiting  nurse 
are  not  only  practical  and  professional,  but  in  a 
large  measure  spiritual.  Purity  of  motives,  in- 
tegrity of  work,  and  broad  conceptions  of  duty  to 
mankind,  are  for  her  not  remote  ideals,  but  neces- 
sary qualities  in  satisfactorily  carrying  out  the 
daily  routine. 

Economy  of  Visiiinq  Nursing. 
"In  addition  to  the  humanitarian  and  social 
reasons  for  urging  adequate  nursing  of  people  in 
their  homes,  is  the  important  one  of  the  economy 
to  the  community  in  thus  caring  for  the  sick. 
The  available  space  in  hospitals  is  entirely  inade- 
quate for  meeting  the  demands  of  aU  who  need 
nursing  care.  Certain  acute  and  chronic  cases  do 
well  at  home  under  proper  conditions,  while  many 
patients  cannot  or  will  not  go  to  the  hospitals.  The 
costly  hospital  space  may  well  be  reserved  then  for 
those  who  need  it  urgently. 

QtT.\LIFIC.\TIONS   OF  THE  NrRSE. 

"The  physicians  have  not  always  given  the 
visiting  nurse  immediate  co-operation.  In  her 
experience  she  is  repeating  the  history  of  the 
struggles  of  the  women  who  first  tried  to  gain  re- 
cognition of  their  value  and  place  in  the  hospitals. 
Some  physicians  have  never  been  associated  in 
their  practice  with  the  professional  nurse;  there- 
fore, they   are  unaccustomed  to  her  use,  but  the 


56 


Zbc  Brittsb  3ournal  ot  iRursiuG. 


[Jan.  15,  1910 


power  to.  make  home  service  most  effective  rests 
largely  uxjoii  the  doctor's  readiness  to  recogiiise  the 
value  of  the  trained  nurses"  co-operation,  and  to 
call  freely  upon  her  for  assistance. 

"  Much  of  the  responsibility  for  the  success  of 
the  work  also  rests  upon  the  nurse.  .  .  .  Inas- 
much as  visiting  nursing  is  largel.r  among  people 
who  cannot  afford  a  trained  nurse  all  the  time,  the 
attendance  of  a  physician  is  likely  to  be  infrequent, 
and  therefore  greater  responsibility  for  detecting 
symptoms  and  reporting  them  intelligently,  falls 
upon  the  nurse.  Often  most  delicate  adjustment 
between  doctor,  family,  and  neighbours  rests  upon 
her  discretion.  For  this  reason,  great  care  shoidd 
be  taken  in  the  selectioil  of  the  nurse,  to  ascertain 
her  aptitude  for  the  service,  and  to  determine 
whether  she  is  well  equipped  for  it  by  her  training. 
Calls  for  the  Nurse. 

'■  When  visiting  nursing  associations  were  first 
organised,  it  was  customary  to  prescribe  stern 
rules  as  to  the  method  of  obtaining  her  services.  It 
was  usual  to  forbid  her  to  answer  calls  except  upon 
the  written  request  of  a  physician.  Offer  she  was 
assigned  to  a  particular  ph.vsician.  It  is  now  quite 
generall.v  the  rule  that  visiting  nurses  may  be  sent 
for  by  all  ph.vsiciaus,  and  some  well-known  visiting 
nursing  societies  encourage  calls  from  every 
source.  Because  of  this  the  gain  in  the  acute  ser- 
vice has  been  noteworthy,  and  the  system  works  out 
as  very  practical  in  many  ways.  All  societies  rightly 
require  the  risitiug  nurse  to  obtain  a  ph.vsician  for 
the  patient  when  none  is  in  attendance,  and  to 
act  under  his  directions.  There  are,  however, 
many  seriously  sick  people  who  can  reach  her,  for 
whom  treatment  might  have  been  delayed,  or 
never  given,  if  she  had  been  available  only  thrj'.i.ih 
the  physician;  this  because  of  easier  access  to  the 
nurse,  and  because  she  is  often  more  gener-illy 
known  in  a  neighbourhood  than  anv  other  x^erson. 
Ch.\rwomex. 

"  In  case  of  emergenc.v  a  good  nurse  should  be 
read.v  to  do  any  kind  of  service  that  bears  reia- 
tionship  to  the  welfare  of  her  patient.  Kut  it 
would  be  wasteful  to  use  her  time  and  strength 
for  work  that  could  be  done  b.v  an  unskilled  pei'- 
son.  It  is  good  jiolic.v,  therefore,  to  engage  women 
to  do  cleaning  or  laundry  work  when  there  is  no 
one  in  the  family  who  can  do  it."'  At  the  Henry 
Street  Settlement  the  nurses  are  authorised  to 
engage  women  to  clean  the  homes  or  do  laundry 
work  for  the  patients  if  necessary. 
Fees. 

The  salar.v  of  the  nurse  should  be  entirely  in- 
dependent, and  all  mone.v  coming  to  her  from 
fees  should  be  paid  over  to  the  Society,  but  where 
patients  are  able  to  pay  a  small  fee  they  generally 
prefer  to  do  so.  These  fees  may  be  nominal  from 
the  point  of  view  of  the  Society,  but  they  repre- 
sent, for  one  hour's  service  or  less,  a  far  greater 
percentage  of  the  income  of  a  working  man  re- 
ceiving two  dollars  a  day  than  the  25  dollars  a 
week  paid  the  private  nurse  for  twelve  hours' 
attendance  from  an  income  of  -5,000  dollars  a  vear. 

The  book  is  dedicated  to  Miss  "  Lillian  D.  Wald. 
Founder  of  the  Nurses'  Settlement,  New-  York  City, 
whose  work  has  been  an  inspiration  to  .so  man.v 
nurses." 


©ut5i^c  tbe  (Bates. 


WOMEN. 

ilrs. 
Horton, 
earliest 
Woman 
formerly 
lecturer 
States, 


Sarah     Frances- 

one       of     the 

advocates      of 

Suffrage,     and 

a     well-known 

in    the     United 

,s    dead.      Alter 


death  the  following  note 
was  found  pinue<l  on  the 
wall: — "  This  is  end — friendlessness,  death.  Let  no 
one  play  the  game  of  philanthropy  who  would  de- 
sire peace,  and  peaceful  end." 

Here      we    can    tolerate    philanthropy    but    not 
ix>litical  freedom. 


The  ■'  Men's  Committee  for  Justice  to  Women  " 
(which  is  independent  of  any  suffrage  or  other 
lX)litioal  society  or  party)  has  issued  a  statement  to 
the  electoi's  signed  by  several  members  of  Parlia- 
ment, clergymen,  doctors,  and  others,  which  says: 
"  As  British  citizens  we  wish  to  protest  against  the 
polic.v  of  the  i)resent  Government  in  regard  to  the 
question  of  the  political  enfranchisement  of 
women.  .  .  .  We  view  with  especial  horror  and 
indignation  the  forcible  feeding  of  women,  who,  as 
a  protest  against  their  treatment  by  the  Govern- 
ment, resolve  to  abstain  fix)m  food  so  long  as  they 
are  detained  in  prison.  We  disapprove  of  personal 
violence,  whether  inflicted  upon  Cabinet  Ministers 
or  helpless  women  in  gaol," 


Thix)ughout  the  history  of  -Japan,  women  have 
had  great  influence  upon  its  affairs,  and  one  of  the 
most  instructive  sections  at  the  Japan-British  Ex- 
hibition at  Shepherd's  Bush  next  year  will  be  tiiat 
devotetl  to  women's  work.  There  are  to  be  line 
samples  of  lace-work,  drawn-work,  gold  and  silver 
work,  embroideries,  and  brocades.  In  the  matter  of 
the  toilet,  English  women  will  be  delighted  with  the 
exhibition  of  the  exquisite  toilet  sets — useful  as  well 
as  artistic — and  with  the  beautiful,  modern,  richl.v- 
embroidered  costumes  made  by  Japanese  women. 
The  British  public  will  also  see  what  Japanese 
women  are  doing  in  connection  ndth  the  Ee<l  Ci'oss 
Society  of  Japan,  which  is  one  of  the  most  thoiiough 
and  well-eqnipix>d  organisations  of  its  kind  in  tlie 
world. 


An  article  in  ThcEngUshxroman,  proving  the  con- 
stancy and  fidelit.v,  the  tenderness  and  courage  of 
the  Southern  women  during  the  Civil  War  in 
America,  1861-186-5,  is  supremel.v  interesting,  and 
their  work  for  the  sick  and  wounded  fine  in  every 
way.  The  Wa.vside  Hospital  of  Columbia,  South 
Carolina,  establishetl  on  March  10th,  1862,  and  con- 
tinued until  February,  186-5,  when  the  burning  of 
Columbia  b.v  General  Sherman  ended  its  good  work, 
was  the  first  institution  of  the  kind  in  the  world. 
How  these  women  worked  and  starved,  so  that  the 
Confederate  Armv  might  be  clothed  and  fed,  is 
something  greatly  to  the  credit  of  humanity. 


Jan.  15,  1910] 


slDc  Bntiyb  itournai  of  l^iirsing. 


57 


•Booh  of  tbc  XUcch. 

LADY  ELVERTON  S  EMERALDS' 
The  book  is  a  slight  one,  but  wtU  written,  and  as 
«uch  can  bo  recommendod  to  nui'st's  wlio,  at  the 
«Iose  of  a  hard  day's  work,  often  want  to  rea<l  some- 
thing which  brings  sustained  interest,  relaxation, 
and  rest.  The  plot  is  uncommon.  The  heroine, 
Evelyn  Ransorae,  should  perliaj)*  l>e  more  accurately 
describe*!  as  "the  leading  lady,''  for  heroine  is  not 
a  word  applicable  to  a  girl  who  leads  the  man 
who  loves  her  into  an  indiscretion  which  ends  tor 
him  in  five  yeans'  penal  servitude,  who  never  goes 
near  him  before  the  trial,  or  gives  him  an  oppor- 
tunity of  justifying  himself  to  her,  if  not  to  tne 
world,  and  who,  before  he  is  liberated,  is  engaged  to 
a  jewel  king,  with  a  heart  as  hard  and  chill  as  .one 
of  his  own  diamonds. 

The  prologue  shows  us  Evelyn  Ransome  and 
Ernest  \Vilderson  in  the  dusk  of  a  May  day,  as  he 
put  on  her  finger  a  ring  he  had  sold  his  hoi-se  to 
buy.  Later  she  dressed  for  him  in  the  gown  wtuch 
she  was  to  wear  at  a  ball  the  next  evening — a  wmte 
brocade,  shimmering,  lustrous,  soft ;  a  glorious 
sheath  to  a  lovely  form.  She  had  put  white  lilac 
blossoms  in  her  hair,  and  a  topaz  chain,  his  gift, 
about  her  neck. 

"  But  it  calls  for  diamonds,"  she  said,  suddenly. 
"  I  can't  wear  these  yellow  things  with  this."  and 
as  he  bid  her  good  night  he  thought  of  a  plan  to 
procure  for  her  the  jewels  she  craved. 

"  They  parted.  May  died  that  night,  and  June 
came  in  with  a  mutter  of  thunder  and  drench  of 
chill  rain,  into  which  the  man  travelled  alone." 

When  next  we  meet  Evelyn  it  is  at  Claxton  Hall. 
engage<l  to  Mr.  Harold  Begbie. 

■'  Men  said  that  this  Harold  Uegbie  knew  no 
human  kindness  and  no  mercy ;  that  dreary  tales 
of  poverty  were  merely  joys  to  him,  since  they 
gave  him  the  chance  of  some  new  jewel,  some  stone 
to  help  in  his  new  chain  of  sapphires — some  quaint 
old  ornament  with  rare  black  pearls  about  it.  His 
keen  eyes,  peering  through  their  pince-nez,  seemed 
to  find  hidden  flaws  and  cracks :  his  cold,  voice 
frightened  the  poor  sellers  into  asking  half  what 
they  had  hoped  for,  and  taking  perhaps  an  eighth. 
There  were  human  tears  cn-stallised  in  the  col- 
lector's p<'arl  ix)pes;  heart's  blood  in  his  fiery 
rubies;  chilling,  changed  hopes  in  the  flame-lit 
opals. ' ' 

To  C'laxton  Hall,  where  the  hostess.  Ijady  Elver- 
ton,  possessed  some  priceless  emeralds,  fate  brought 
Ernest  Wilderson,  now  known  as  Ernest  Reeves, 
and,  as  ill  luck  would  have  it.  just  at  a  time  wncn 
jewel  robl>eries  are  being  committed  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood. It  plays  him  a  scurvy  trick  also  in 
making  him  catch  the  thief  of  T,ady  Elvertou's 
emeralds  r<Kl-han<led.  only  to  find  in  him  "Jim. 
the  Crack-<man.''  whom  he  had  known  in  the 
prison  hospital,  where  a  strange  friendship  nad 
sprung  up  between  the  two  men.  Jim  who  tells 
Tiim:  "Jim  could  have  had  his  decent  pulilic.  and 
lived  honest  if  you  hadn't  put  yer  nose  in.    I  was 

•By  Dorothea  Conyera.     (Hutchinson  and  Co., 

P.-,t. ■...-,.,..,■  !?->„    KC  . 


only  on  this  lay  for  a  last  time — strite!  There's  a 
girl,  and  I  hadn't  a  penny." 

It  was  not  in  Ernest  Reeves,  known  to  .Tim  as 
"  The  Duke,"  to  give  this  old  friend  up  to  justice, 
so  he  retains  the  jewels  and  lets  Jim  go,  but  is  un- 
able to  replace  the  emeralds  before  their  loss  is  dis- 
covered, and,  combined  with  his  former  story,  they 
are  damning  evidence  against  him. 

But  when  the  shadows  are  blackest  they  lift,  and 
as  we  part  with  Ernest  Reeves  the  future  is 
irradiated  for  him  with  new  promise.  Let  us  hope 
it  is  fulhlled.  P.  G.  Y. 


WINTER. 

'  It  is  not  death,  but  plenitude  of  peace; 
And  the  dim  cloud  that  doth  the  world  enfold 
Hath  less  the  characters  of  dark  and  cold 
Than  warmth  and  light  asleep. 
And  correspondent  breathing  seems  to  keep 
With  the  infant  harvest,  breatmng  soft  below 
Its  eider  coverlet  of  snow." 

Coventry   Patmore. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

■January  l^th. — Girls'  Missiouarv  Conference 
(C.E.Z.M.S.),  Morley  Hall,  26,  G"eorge  Street, 
Hanover  Square,  W.  Xurses  welcome.  11 — 1,  and 
2.30 — 1.30  p.m. 

January  21st. — Xurses'  Union  "At  Home,''  5, 
Cambridge  Gate,  2.30 — 7  p.m. 

January  25th. — Meeting  of  the  Central  Registra- 
tion Committee,  Council  Room,  British  Medical  As- 
sociation Ofi5ce,  429,  Strand,  London,  W.C.,  3.-;0 
p.m.  The  Right  Hon.  the  Lord  Ampthill  will  pif- 
side. 

January  25th. — Matrons'  Council  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland.  Meeting  of  the  Council, 
7.30  p.m.  Papers  and  discussion,  8  p.m.  431,  Ox- 
ford Street,  London,  W. 

January  26th. — Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh. 
Lecture  on  "  The  Blood,  its  Functions  and  Altera- 
tions," by  Dr.  G.  Lovell  Gulland.  Extra  Mural 
Medical  Theatre,  4.30  p.m.  Xurses  are  cordially  in- 
vited. 

■January  27th. — Meeting  of  the  Certified  Mid- 
wives'  Total  Abstinence  League,  Chapter  House, 
St.  Paul's  Churchyard,  E.C.  Lecture  by  Dr. 
Kelynack  on  "'  Me<lical  and  Xursing  Aspects  of  the 
Alcohol  Problem."  3.30  p.m. 

January  29th. — Meeting  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee of  the  Xational  Council  of  Xurses  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland.  To  form  committees  to  fur- 
ther the  Resolutions  passed  at  the  International 
Congress  of  Xurses,  431,  Oxford  Street,  London, 
W.,  4  p.m. 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 
I  believe  that  no  one  can  harm  us  but  ourselves; 
that  sin  is  misdirected  energy ;  that  there  is  no 
devil  but  fear:  and  that  the  Univei^se  is  planned  .or 
good.  I  believe  that  work  is  a  blessing,  that  winter 
is  as  necessary  as  summer,  that  night  is  as  usetiil 
as  day.  that  Death  is  a  manifestation  of  Life,  and 
just  as  good.  I  believe  in  the  Xow  and  Here.  I 
believe  in  You  and  I  believe  in  a  Power  that  is  in 
Onrselyes  that  makes   for   Righteonsness. 

Fr-v  Elbertts. 


58 


Zm  leritisb  Journal  of  IRureing. 


[Jan.  15,  1910 


letters  to  tbe  le^itor. 


Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  we  iiish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understood 
that  we  do  not  in  ant  WAt 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


OUR  GUINEA  PRIZE. 

To  the  Editor  of  thi   "  British  Journal  of  Sursing." 
DeaI!  Madam, — I  am  in  receipt  of  cheque.  £1  Ls.. 
Puzzle  Prize  for  December,  1909. 

Thanking  you  very  much  for  the  same, 
I  remain, 

Yours  faithfully, 

H.  H.  Reeve. 
Park  Hospital,  Lewisham,  S.E. 


A  STRAW  SHOWS  THE  WAY. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Madam, — The  stupid  and  int-erested  policy  which 
inspires  party  government  was  aptly  illustrated 
last  week  at  a  meeting  I  was  addressing.  "We  were 
discussing  the  German  scare,  and  one  woman  got 
up  and  asked:  "Will  the  German  Emi">eror  make 
our  lazy  men  sit  up?  Will  he  drill  them  and  make 
them  work?  If  so.  let  him  come!"  And  a  nurse 
who  was  present  asked,  no  doubt  in  semi-serious- 
ness: "Do  you  think  he  will  give  British  nurses 
legal  status  as  he  has  German  nni-ses?  If  so.  let 
him  come!  "  A  straw  shows  how  the  wind  blows, 
and  the  continued  oont'Cmpt  with  which  both 
parties  in  England  treat  women  and  their  demands 
is  arousing  a  .sense  of  bitter  resentment  amongst 
them  which  is  almost  imjwssible  to  estimat'e.  I 
thought  these  questions  might  interest  your 
readere. 

Yours  sincerely, 

A  True  Pathiot. 


A  BROKEN  CONTRACT. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Xursing." 
Madam, — I  read  with  interest  your  note  in  last 
week's  issue  headed  "A  Broken  Contract."  T^Hiat 
is  to  be  done  to  inspire  women  with  a  knowledge  of 
business  and  due  and  honourable  regard  for  a 
contract?  The  complaint  and  action  of  the  Isle  of 
Thanet  Guardians  have  m.v  sincere  sympathy,  and  T 
hope  they  will  win  their  case,  and  thus  establish  a 
precedent.  Once  a  nunse  has  accepted  an  appoint- 
ment it  is  her  duty  to  undertake  the  work  at  least 
on  trial.  There  are  many  other  breaches  of  con- 
tract which  nurses  commit — they  require  some  dis- 
cipline in  this  connection. 

A    SUPEKINTENDENT    XuRSE. 


THE  UNION  OF  BRITISH    MIDWIVES. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam. — I  think  a  Xational  Union  of  .\1k1- 
wives  is  greatly  needed.  Here  in  Manchester  we 
find  our  local  Association  most  beneficial.  Tlie  link- 
ing together  of  local  associations  in  a  national  whole 


is  what  is  required.  The  Midwives'  Institute  has  in 
the  pa.st  been  siuii)ly  metropolitan,  and  must  re- 
main so  in  many  ways,  as  we  are  very  busy  people, 
not  well  paid,  and  cannot  attend  meetings  beyond 
our  own  areas.  The  question  of  the  most  import- 
ance to  midwives  is  that  of  having  direct  repre- 
sentatives on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board, 
especially  as  the  Chairman  is  reported  to  have 
said,  when  discussing  the  granting  of  further 
facilities  to  midwives  who  failed  to  apply 
tor  enrolment  before  1905,  "  that  he  was 
not  there  to  consider  the  question  from  tbe 
ix)int  of  view  of  relief  to  the  midwives — 
he  was  sorry  for  them — but  what  the  Board  had  to 
consider  was  whether  the  recognition  of  some  mid- 
wives  who  would  otherwise  be  debarred  from  prac- 
tising in  1910  would  not  be  a  relief  to  lying-in 
women." 

Surely    our     governing    body    has   some    re.spon- 
sibility  towards  us,  as  well  as  to  our  patients,  other- 
wise its  attitude  is  unjust  and  penalising. 
Yours, 

A  Manchester  Midwife. 


Nest  week  we  shall  have  pleasui'e  in  publishing  a 
letter  from  Lord  Inverclyde  on  theRegistration  Con- 
trovei-sy  in  Scotland. 

Conunents  anb  IReplies. 

.1)1  IrisJi,  Trained  Nurse. — All  the  larger  hospitals 
in  Paris  are  under  the  control  of  the  "Assistance 
Publique."  A  nursing  school  and  college  has  been 
established  b.v  this  Board  in  connection  with  the 
Salpetriere  Hospital,  but  we  Ijelieve  all  the  pupils 
are  of  Fiench  nationality. 


moticeg. 

RULES  FOR  PRIZE  COMPETITIONS. 
Practical  Points. 

We  offer  a  Prize  of  5s.  for  the  best  Practical 
Point  i>aragraph  of  from  100  to  200  words,  to  reach 
the  Editor,  at  20  Upper  Wimjwle  Street,  London, 
W.,  not  later  than  Saturday,  January  15th  inst. 

Paragraphs  sent  in,  other   than   that  to   which 
the  prize  is  awarded,  and  thought  worthy  of  pub- 
lication, will  be  paid  for  at  the  usual  rates. 
The  Neatest  Nurse  Photogeaph. 

We  offer  10s.  for  a  photograph  of  a  nuise  ni 
uniform,  neatness  to  be  the  test  of  excellence,  with 
pennission  to  publish  the  same.  The  photogi'aphs 
must  reach  the  Editor  not  later  than  Saturday, 
January  22nd.  Photographs  sent  which  do  not  win 
the  prize  will  be  returned. 

An  Article  on  a  Practical  Nursing  Subject. 

We  offer  £1  10s.  for  an  article  dealing  with 
Practical  Nureing  of  from  1,400  to  1.500  words,  to 
reach  the  Editor  not  later  than  Saturday,  January 
29th.  By  arrangement  with  competitors  ariicies 
other  than  that  to  which  the  Prize  is  awarded  may 
be  selected  for  publication. 

Each  competitor  must  enclose  her  name  and 
address  in  full. 

OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 

Rules  for  competing  for  the  Pictorial  Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


Jan.  15,  i9i0j    ^be  Biltlsb  3ournal  of  (Rureino  Supple  in  en  r. 

The    Midwife. 


59 


®I(gob\)^l•allln(os. 

Cases  of  oligohydramnios  or  deficiency  of  thi> 
liquor  anmii  are  comparatively  rare.  They 
occur  in  about  1  in  3,(J0(J  i)regnancies.  The 
condition,  however,  especially  if  at  all  marked 
during  the  early  montfis,  is  one  of  very  grave 
import  to  the  fietus,  and  even  the  mother  will 
sometinu's  suffer  serious  inconvenience  and 
pain  from  it  towards  the  end  of  pregnancy. 

Normally  the  functions  of  the  liquor  amiiii 
are  almost  entirely  protective.  It  relieves  the 
foetus  from  pressure  and  muscular  effort,  allows 
it  freedom  for  growth  and  development,  and 
protects  it  from  change  of  temperature. 

Any  secretion  less  than  the  normal  amount 
(1 — 2  pints)  tends  to  injure  the  foetus  by  de- 
priving it  of  its  natural  freedom,  whilst  an  ex- 
treme deficiency  nearly  always  results  in  the 
premature  expulsion  of  a  more  or  less  defec- 
tive ovum  ;  absence  of  the  protecting  fluid  caus- 
ing irritation  of  the  uteiais,  and  arresting  or 
misdirecting  the  growth  of  the  foetus,  which 
dies,  and  acts  as  a  foreign  body  in  the  uterus, 
so  bringing  on  an  abortion. 

During  the  early  months  of  pregnancy  the 
amniotic  cavity  should  become  distended  by 
the  accumulating  fluid,  which  lifts  the  amnion 
from  the  dorsal  surface  of  the  embryo,  and 
pushes  it  out  until  it  joins  the  chorion.  An  in- 
sufficient secretion  will  prevent  this  distension 
taking  place,  and  failing  to  separate  the  am- 
nion from  the  newly  forming  skin  of  the  foetus, 
may  give  rise  to  amniotic  adhesions.  As  preg- 
nancy advances,  and  the  uterus  grows,  these  ad- 
hesions become  stretched  into  liunils,  and  mayso 
seriously  interfere  with  the  ili\  ,l,>|iiiiiTit  of  the 
foetus  that  very  grave  defoi-initii-s  nsnlt.  Intra- 
uterine amputations  are  sometimes  caused  by 
these  bands  twisting  round  the  limbs  and  con- 
stricting them  so  that,  either  they  are  entirely 
separated,  or  their  growth  is  aiTcsted  and  they 
atrojihy.  Cases  of  dry  gangrene  from  constric- 
tion have  also  been  recorded.  If  the  cord 
should  become  entangled  and  compressed  the 
fa-tus  may  die  of  asphyxia,  or  during  labour 
there  may  be  such  traction  on  the  placenta 
that  it  will  separate  prematurely,  and  the  child 
die  of  haemon-hHge.  Other  malformations, 
such  as  anenceplialus  and  protrusion  of  the  ab- 
dominal viscera  occasionally  result  from  the 
amniotic  adhesions,  which  prevent  the  proper 
closing  and  union  of  the  walls  of  the  body 
cavities  during  the  early  weeks. 

If  the  pregnancy  should  go  on  to  teiTn  the 


fcetal  movements  are  likely  to  become  quite 
painful  to  the  mother,  and  labour  will  almost 
certainly  be  longer  and  more  dillicult,  t>wing  to 
the  absence  of  the  lubricating  and  protecting 
fluid ;  there  will  also  be  greater  liability  to  cer- 
vical tears  at  the  end  of  the  first  sttt^e  of 
labou,r,  as  the  os  may  be  rapidly  distended  by 
the  hard  foetal  head  instead  of  being  gently 
dilated  by  the  soft  bag  of  memtiranes. 

The  causes  of  this  abnormality  are  somewhat 
obscure.  It  is  thought  by  many  authorities  to 
be  partly  due  to  absent  or  defective  foetal  kid- 
neys, and  there  is  no  doubt  that  during  the 
later  months  a  certain  propoi'tion  of  the  fluid 
is  derived  from  the  urinary  secretions  and  skin 
excretion  of  the  foetus.  It  is,  however,  gener- 
ally allowed  that  the  amnion  is  mainly  respon- 
sible for  the  production  of  the  liquor,  and  it  is 
therefore  much  more  likely  that  the  deficiency 
is  due  to  some  defect  in  the  secreting  cells  of 
that  membrane. 

Another  condition  very  similar  to  that  of 
oligohydramnios  is  brought  about  when  the 
membranes  rujjture  early  in  pregnancy  at  some 
point  remote  from  the  os.  The  liquor  drains 
slowly  away,  possibly  for  many  weeks,  and  the 
pregnancy  ends  in  either  a  premature  or  a 
difficult  labour.  This  condition  is  known  as 
amniotic  hydrorrhea. 

An  interesting  case  of  oligohydramnios  is  de- 
scribed by  Dr.  Leonard  C.  Blackstone  in  the 
Lancet.  The  patient,  aged  30  years,  was  a 
5-para,  and  had  a  uterus  unicornis.  She  had 
already  had  several  abnormal  labours.  The 
first,  a  face;  the  second,  a  ruptured  cornual 
gestation,  when  the  right  coruu  and  appendages 
were  removed;  the  third,  difficult  third  stagr  ; 
the  fourth,  breech  presentation  with  prolonged 
third  stage  and  adherent  membranes.  With 
the  fifth  pregnancy  she  had  oligohydramnios. 
The  labour  was  a  quick  one,  not  more  than  two 
and  a  half  hours  altogether.  The  ])atient  lost 
no  water  either  before  or  after  the  birth  of  the 
child.  The  child's  left  leg  was  swollen  ami 
oedematous,  and  a  tough  fibrous  band  was 
twisted  round  it  three  quarters  of  an  inch  above 
the  ankle.  Th(!  skin  under  the  band  M'as  found 
to  be  divided  round  the  whole  circumference  of 
the  leg.  The  child  was  able  to  flex  and  extend 
the  foot  and  toes,  proving  the  tendons,  &tc.,  to 
be  undivided.  There  were  no  congenital  d<'- 
formities, ;  the  skin  was  nonnal,  and  no  renal  or 
cardiac  affections  could  be  detected.  The  child 
died  of  marasmus  three  weeks  after  birth.  The 
third  stage  lasted  half-an-hour.     The  placenta 


60 


^be  Britlsb  3ournal  of  IRursina  Supplement.    [Jan.  15,  loio 


was  ragged  and  torn  on  the  maternal  surface, 
and  there  wei'e  long  tough  amniotic  adhesions 
attached  to  it.  The  greater  part  of  the  mem- 
branes were  retained.  Ergot  was  prescribed, 
and  the  membranes  were  expelled  with  the 
lochia  on  the  third  daj".  The  ]yiug-iu  period 
was  nomial.  ]\I.  F. 


^bc  IRureiiiG  an^  fn^i^\vlfer^ 
Erbibition. 


The  third  annual  Nursing  and  Midwifery 
Conference  and  Exhibition,  organised  by  j\Ir. 
Ernest  Schofield,  is  to  be  held  this  year  at  the 
Royal  Horticultural  Hall,  Westminster,  from 
April  27th  to  30th  inclusive,  from  noon  to  nine 
each  day.  The  Exhibition  will  be  opened  on 
the  first  day  by  her  Eoyal  Highness  Princess 
Christian  of  Schleswig  Holstein. 

The  Organising  Secretary  of  the  Conference 
is  Miss  E.  V.  Gill,  and  amongst  the  questions 
announced  for  discussion  are  Hospital  Niirsing, 
including  fever  nursing,  private  nursing  and 
nursing  homes,  and  registration  for  nurses, 
though  why  these  last  two  subjects  should 
come  under  the  heading  of  hospital  nursing  is 
not  apparent.  District  Nursing  and  Midn-ifcr)/, 
including  the  combination  of  midwifery  and 
general  nursing,  blindness  in  infants,  the  living 
wage  for  midwives  in  rural  districts.  The  De- 
partmental Committee's  Eeport  on  the  Mid- 
wives'  Act,  direct  representation  on  the  Cen- 
tral Midwives'  Board,  the  care  of  infants,  and 
pueqjeral  fever.  Mental  Nursing  and  Brain 
Diseases,  Poor  Law  Nursing,  Army  Nursing, 
and  Health  Questions  are  also  to  be  discussed. 


fIDancbester  flDibwives. 

Mrs.  J.  E.  H.  Malcolm,  Corresponding 
Secretary  of  the  National  Association  of  Mid- 
wives,  9,  Albert  Square,  Manchester,  has  for- 
warded to  us  for  insertion  a  copy  of  the  sub- 
joined protest  and  resolution,  which  has  been 
sent  to  the  Board  of  r^Ianagement  of  the  Eoyal 
Infimiary,  ^lanchester,  and  to  the  ^lanchester 
papers :  — 

"  We  as  members  of  the  National  Associa- 
tion of  Midwives  emphatically  protest  against 
the  exclusion  of  lady  doctors  from  the  New 
Infiiinary.  We,  as  midwives,  know  only  too 
well  the  need  for  such  medicos,  and  at;  a 
meeting  of  the  members  of  the  above  Associa- 
tion a  resolution  was  imanimously  carried. 

"  'ihat  the  Board  of  Management  of  the 
new  InfiiTnary  be  urged  to  at  once  reconsider 
their  decision  and  admit  the  lady  doctors.  We 
feel  the  position  of  these  ladies  should  be  one 
of  dignity,  not  humiliation." 

J.  E.  H.  M.\LCOLM,  Secretary. 


ni>ibwtt"ei*\>  Ibalf  a  dentuv^  Uqo. 

Dr.  Lambe  Atthill,  ex-Master  of  tlie  Rotunda 
Hospital,  Dublin,  writing  his  "  Recollections  of  a 
Long  Professional  Life"  in  the  British  Medical 
Journal,  gives  an  interesting  description  of  the 
Rotunda  Hospital,  Dublin,  in  1851,  when  he  was 
appointed  assistant  to  the  then  Master.  He 
writes: — "  There  were  twelve  lying-in  wards,  each 
containing  ten  beds ;  there  were  also  small  wards 
opening  off  these,  into  which  cases  of  serious  illness 
were  moved.  Each  of  the  large  wards  in  turn 
became  '  the  labour  ward,'  into  which  the  patients 
were  admitted  till  all  the  beds  were  filled.  The 
bedsteads  were  wooden,  all  of  hard  old  oak,  and, 
although  they  were  probably  a  hundred  years  old, 
were  perfectly  sound  and  good.  The  bedding  was 
primitive,  the  mattress  consisted  of  a  coarse  canvas 
bag  filled  with  clean  straw,  over  which  was  laid 
an  under  blanket  and  sheets.  The  straw  was  taken 
out  and  clean  straw  put  in  as  each  patient  was 
discharged  or  removed  to  another  ward,  which 
always  took  place  on  the  eighth  day  after  delivery, 
but  the  sack  which  contained  the  straw  was  not 
washed  with  any  regularity,  nor  were  the  blankets; 
these  were,  hoT\ev6r,  well  aired,  the  ward  and  bed- 
steads were  scrubbed,  windows  opened,  and  the 
ward  thoroughly  cleaned  and  ventilated  for  one  or 
more  days  before  another  batch  of  patients  came  in. 

''The  patients  were  delivered  on  a  small  bed 
termed  '  the  couch,'  and  then  carried  to  their  beds. 
The  diet  was  gruel,  bread,  and  tea  for  the  first 
five  days  after  delivery,  then  broth  was  given  for 
dinner ;  and  so  it  remained  till  1  became  Master, 
when  I  was  enabled  to  change  the  diet,  and  broth 
was  given  from  the  first,  and  meat  on  the  fourth 
or  fifth  day.  It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  sixty 
or  seventy  years  ago  no  air  was  admitted  into  the 
lying-in  chamber  in  private  practice;  and  there 
even  light  was  excluded,  that  nothing  but  warm 
drinks  were  given  for  several  days,  and  that  the 
patient  was  always  perspiring.  In  the  old  authors 
will  be  found  learned  discussions  on  the  treatment 
of  '  miliary  fever,'  and  a  description  of  its 
peculiar  rash,  till  at  last  someone  discovered  that 
all  this  was  due  to  the  long-continued   sweating ! 

"  In  the  hospital  itself  no  precautions  whatever 
were  taken  either  by  pupils  or  nurses.  The  ninuber 
of  ijupils  was  unlimited ;  there  were  generally 
about  eight  or  ten  internal  and  a  large  number  or 
external  pupils  always  on  the  roll ;  six  or  eight, 
often  more,  being  on  duty  together  for  twelve 
hours.  These  made  vaginal  examinations  as  often 
!is  they  liked,  none  thought  of  washing  hands  be- 
fore doing  so.  There  was  a  table  with  two  basins 
on  it  for  the  use  of  the  pupils,  and  a  tub  stood 
near  it  on  the  floor  into  which  the  basins  were 
supposed  to  be,  but  not  always  were,  emptied  after 
being  used,  and  things  so  remained  till  I  became 
Master  in  1875,  when  one  of  m^  first  acts  was  to 
get  water  laid  on  to  each  of  the  wards  with  proper 
lavatory  arrangements  and  the  postiug  up  of  a 
notice  that  pupils  '  must  wash  their  hands  before 
making  an  examination,'  and  rinse  them  in  a  solu- 
tion of  carbolic  acid  supplied  for  the  purjjose — rules 
I  found  very  difficult  to  enforce;  indeed,  they  were 
ridiculed." 


mmm 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

rME:  ltUIISI(M€  MMIOIIP 

EDITED   BY  MRS    BEDFORD   FENWICK 


No.  1,138 


SATURDAY,  JANUARY  22,  1910. 


lEMtorial. 


TRAINED   NURSE    INSPECTORS    AT    THE    LOCAL 
GOVERNMENT    BOARD     OFFICE. 

It  is  with  oreat  ploastire  that  we  record 
in  another  colninn  tiio  a])p()intnient,  liy  the 
Presifh'nt  of  tlie  r.ocal  (lovernment  Board,  of 
three  expe^vienced  nurses  to  act  as  inspectors 
uniler  Miss  Ina  Stansfehi,  wlio  at  present 
holds  the  ollice  of  Assistant-Cleneral  Inspec- 
tor in  the  Metropolitan  district,  and  will  now 
act  as  Chief  Woman  Inspector. 

The  dnties  of  the  new  ollicers  will  ])e  the 
inspection  qI  the  maternity  wards,  nurseries, 
infirmaries  and  nursing  arrangements  in 
Poor  fjaw  institutions,  and  Mr.  John  Burns 
is  greatly  to  be  congratulated  that  he  has 
realised  the  necessity  for  the  inspection  of 
nursing  work  and  arrangements  under  the 
Poor  Law  l)y  traine<l  nurses  holding  high 
]>rofessional  qualifit'ations,  and  eminently 
qualified  for  this  important  and  highly 
technical  work. 

The  Local  Government  Board  controls  the 
nursing  in  Poor  Law  infirmaries  and  work- 
house wards  throughout  the  United  King- 
dom— Scotland  and  Ireland  having  their 
■own  special  Boards.  Wiiile  in  some  of  these 
it  is  well  organised  and  highly  efficient ;  in 
others  very  much  is  left  to  be  desired,  and 
inspection  and  report  by  trained  inspectors, 
possessing  the  knowledge  that  comes  from 
e.xperience  botii  in  practical  work  and  super- 
vision, cannot  fail  to  have  a  most  beneficial 
effect  in  co-ordinating  standards,  in  bring- 
ing to  light  deficiencies, and  in  informing  the 
Department  of  the  weak  points  in  the  nurs- 
ing organisation  of  the  institutions  under 
its  control. 

The  creation  of  a  Nursing  Department  at 
the  War  Ollice  under  the  supervision  of  a 
^!atron-in-Chief,  has  resulted  in  the  im- 
measurably increased  clliciency  of  military 
nursing,  and  is  a  useful  ol)ject-Iesson  to 
other  Government  Departments  dealing  with 


nursing..  As  no  Government  office  could 
maintain  its  elficiency  for  a  day  without  its 
responsible  ofiicial  head,  so  the  highly  tech- 
nical l)ranc]i  of  nursing,  now  included  in 
the  manifold  activities  of  many  such  offices, 
also  demands  its  own  e.xecutive  officer  if 
efficiency  is  to  be  maintained  and  progress 
made.  We  hope  that  the  new  appointments 
at  the  Local  (government  Board  are  the  first 
step  towards  the  creation  of  such  a  depart- 
ment. It  is  at  least  most  hopeful  that  the 
President  has  shown  that  he  realizes  the 
value  of  the  assistance  of  experienced 
nurses  in  the  supervision  of  the  nursing 
arrangements  in  I'oor  Law  institutions. 

Another  duty  which  will  devolve  upon 
the  newly  appointed  inspectors  is  the  super- 
vision of  the  work  of  the  new  boarding-out 
committees  and  the  children  under  their 
care,  now  being  created  under  the  Local 
(Tovernment  Board  Order  recently  issued 
with  regard  to  the  pauper  children  boarded 
out  within  the  limits  of  the  union  to  which 
they  are  chargeable.  So  far,  although 
children  boarded  out  by  committees  beyond 
the  limits  of  the  union  have  been  subject 
to  inspection  by  women  inspectors  appointed 
by  the  Board,  it  has  been  optional  with 
Giuxrdians  whether  they  should  enter  into 
arrangements  with  a  boarding-out  com- 
mittee for  the  purpose  of  finding  and  super- 
intending homes  for  such  children  within 
the  limits  of  the  union.  Under  the  new 
Order  the  Guardians  are  required  to  enter 
into  such  arrangements.  The  Local  Govern- 
ment Board  will  keep  in  touch  with  this 
work  through  its  women  inspectors,  both 
the  boarding-out  inspectors  at  present 
at  work  and  the  nurse-inspectors  just 
appointed. 

It  seems  as  if  theLocalGovernmentBoard 
is  on  the  eve  of  developments  which  will 
add  greatly  to  the  efficiency,  and  therefore 
the  prestige,  of  J:'oor  Law  nursing. 


62 


^bc  36riti6b  3ournal  of  murslng,       [J^^-  22,  loio 


nDe&ical  HDattcrs. 


TYPHOID  BACILLI   IN  THE  GALL-BLADDER. 

The  great  importance  of  the  gall-bladder  as 
a  storehouse  for  germs  of  the  typhoid  group  is 
pointed  out,  says  the  Buda  Pest  correspon- 
dent of  the  Lancet,  by  Dr.  M.  Gross  in  the 
Orvosok  Lapja  of  December  23rd,  1909.  He 
says  that  many  individuals  who  have  come 
into  contact  with  patients  suffering  from 
typhoid  fever,  but  are  not  themselves  ill,  har- 
bour virulent  typhoid  germs  in  their  system, 
and  are  thus  a  menace  to  their  surroundings. 
He  found  the  bile  altered  in  all  cases  of 
typhoid  fever  that  came  to  necropsy,  and 
typhoid  bacilli  were  present  even  where  the 
lower  portions  of  the  intestinal  tract  were  free. 
It  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  in  many  cases 
of  typhoid  fever  the  bacilli  in  the  fteces  are 
really  derived  from  the  gall-bladder.  In  the 
blood  of  rabbits  (as  was  first  observed  by 
Forster  in  Germany)  the  typhoid  bacilli  could 
be  found  in  the  bile,  at  a  time  when  they 
had  already  disappeared  from  tlie  blood  and 
urine.  They  were  also  found  in  the  upper 
duodenum,  but  not  in  the  lower  intestines. 
Even  where  the  bile  was  sterile  cultures  could 
be  obtained  if  pieces  of  the  wall  of  the  gall- 
bladder were  incubated  in  an  appropriate 
medium.  The  paratyphoid  germs  behaved  in 
every  way  similar  to  the  typhoid  germs.  The 
bacilli  sometimes  jiersisted  very  long  after  the 
termination  of  the  disease.  In  one  case  the 
gall-bladder  even  continued  to  be  infected  for 
'20  years.  There  was  very  little  that  could  be 
done  under  such  circumstances,  since  neither 
the  bile  nor  the  intestinal  contents  admitted  of 
sterilisation  during  life.  The  best  course  was 
to  make  repeated  bacteriological  examinations 
of  the  faeces  in  suspicious  cases  and  to  operate 
whenever  a  catarrh  or  the  formation  of  a  cal- 
culus seemed  to  be  probable. 


1b\)pnotisin  as  a  Cure  for  Dipso* 
mania. 


PASTEURIZED   MILK 

Dr.  E.  Mather  Sill  writing  in  the  New  York 
Medical  Journal  in  favour  of  the  use  of  raw  as 
opposed  to  Pasteurized  milk,  says: — Pasteuri- 
zation is  not  getting  at  the  root  of  the  milk  evil, 
and  heating  dirty  milk  that  is  full  of  bacteria 
will  never  make  strong  or  healthy  children. 
What  we  want  is  regulation  to  enforce  a  pure 
milk  supply.  It  is  unnecessary  to  Pasteurize 
milk  to  destroy  disease  germs  when  a  pure  milk 
supply  is  provided  for,  and  this  can  be  practi- 
cally done  by  having  the  herd  frequently  sub- 
jected to  the  tuberculin  test  to  exclude  tuber- 
culous cows,  and  by  having  an  adequate  num- 
ber of  inspectors  and  skilled  veterinary  sur- 
geons to  keep  the  milk  supply  under  close  ob- 
servation. 


It  may  interest  your  readers  to  hear  of  a  case 
of  dij)somania  treated  by  hypnotism,  when 
other  "  cures  "  had  been  tried  unsuccessfully. 
The  patient  (a  lady)  was  a  true  dipsomaniac 
(not  an  habitual  drunkard),  but  having  at  vary- 
ing intervals  terrible  bouts  of  drinking,  and  this 
had  been  going  on  for  two  or  three  years  when 
I  went  to  her.  Though  in  between  these  bouts 
she  would  be  a  teetotaller,  and  had  sometimes 
been  so  for  several  months  at  a  time,  when 
suddenly-  the  craving  for  drink  came  on, 
she  would  drink  either  brandy  or  whiskey 
or  any  spirit  she  could  get  hold  of,  becoming 
for  the  time  being  absolutely  the  slave  of  drink 
with  all  the  accompanying  moral  and  physical 
degradation.  As  a  rule,  her  doctor  advised 
stout  after  these  bouts,  as  she  would  have 
something,  all  stimulant  could  not  be  left  off 
suddenly,  and  stout  was  less  harmful  than 
spirit;  but  she  would  drink  as  much  as  13 
pints  in  the  24  hours  at  first.  Various 
"  cures  "  had  been  tried  without  success,  also 
"  Christian  Science,"  and  she  had  become 
hopeless  about  a  cure,  though  she  genuinely 
wished  to  be  cured  when  not  drinking.  Her 
family  history  was  bad,  but  she  was  a  clever, 
cultivated  woman;  she  had  three  children,  and 
the  best  of  husbands.  When  I  went  to  her 
she  was  just  getting  over  a  bout  of  drinking, 
though  still  incapacitated  by  it,  and  her  hus- 
band and  maid  were  worn  out.  This  time  she 
had  drunk  a  pint  of  sal  volatile  in  24  hours  I 
It  was  a  wonder  she  was  alive.  She  was  then 
on  stout,  and  craving  for  it  about  every  half 
hour,  and  in  a  deplorable  condition.  Her 
doctor  advised  trying  hypnotisn:i,  and,  though 
her  husband  was  not  altogether  in  favour  of  it, 
he  felt  other  cures  had  been  useless,  and  \\as 
willing  it  should  be  tried,  and  the  patient  was 
willing  also.  Her  own  doctor  could  give  it,  as 
so  many  can  now,  but  he  advised  her  going  tc> 
one  who  has  given  up  his  general  pi'actice  and 
has  made  hypnotism  his  speciality  for  the  cure 
of  drink,  drugs,  stammering,  etc.,  etc.,  and 
who  is,  I  believe,  one  of  the  leading  authorities 
on  hypnotism  amongst  medical  men.  Accord- 
ingly he  was  sent  for  and  saw  the  patient 
twice  in  bed,  and  the  second  time  he  partially 
hypnotised  her,  but  wished  her  after  that  (as 
she  was  well  enough),  to  go  to  his  house,  which 
we  did,  and  we  went  in  all  about  five  times,  I 
think.  He  rather  wished  she  should  have  had  a 
longer  treatment,  but  it  had  been  arranged  the 
family  should  go  to  the  sea  when  the  children 
came  home  for  the  holidays,  and  this  was  not 
altered,  but  I  went  down  with  her  for  the  first 


Jau.  22,  1910] 


Zn^c  Brittsb  3c'nrnal  of  "Kursing. 


63 


fortnight,  as  ueither  her  husbaud  uur  maid 
could  go  at  first. 

The  method  the  doctor  employed  at  each 
visit  was  to  put  the  patient  to  sleep  and  then 
suggest  that  she  would  have  no  more  craving 
for  drink,  and  he  said  practically  the  same  words 
at  each  visit,  and  also  suggested  that  various 
bodily  functions  should  be  regular;  she  was 
generally  asleep  for  about  ten  minutes  to  a 
quarter  of  an  hour,  when  he  woke  her.  Of 
course  I  felt  when  I  left  her  it  was  early  days 
to  say  if  it  had  been  successful  or  not,  but  at 
the  end  of  nine  months  I  saw  her  again,  and 
she  was  quite  well  then,  and  had  had  no  attack 
and  had  never  seen  the  doctor  again,  and  she 
looked  a  different  woman  and  seemed  happy 
and  busy  :  and  now,  after  more  than  two  years, 
she  is  the  same,  in  spite  of  having  had  a  good 
bit  of  trouble.  Self-respect  and  will-power 
seem  to  have  come  back,  and'  a  home  that 
seemed  ruined  is  restored.  Surely,  this  is  a 
plea  for  hypnotism  in  certain  cases?  I  think 
all  must  feel  that  where  the  patient  can  prac- 
tice auto-suggestion  it  is  the  best,  and  the 
higher  way  ot  overcoming  a  temptation,  and,  it 
this  cannot  be  done,  suggestion  from  outside 
without  hypnotism  may'  be  tried,  but  there  are 
some  cases  in  which  the  conscious  mind  has 
so  got  the  upper  hand,  so  to  speakr  and  is  so 
hopeless  of  cure,  that  the  subconscious  mind 
seems  dominated,  and  it  is  necessary  to  put 
the  conscious  mind  to  sleep  in  order  that  sug- 
gestions of  hope  and  will-power  can  be  made  to 
the  subconscious  mind,  and  these  suggestions 
seem  to  be  lasting  in  their  effect. 

I  think  great  caution  should  be  used  in  re- 
eommenduig  any  one  to  try  hypnotism,  and,  as 
I  have  said,  other  means  should  first  be  tried, 
but,  failing  these,  and  the  patient  truly  wish- 
ing to  be  cured  and  giving  full  consent,  it  seems 
to  me  that  it  is  a  justifiable  method.  The  im- 
|>ortant  part  is  that  the  hypnotist  must  be  a 
thoroughly  good  man,  working  for  the  good  of 
humanity,  and  he  should  be  a  qualified  medical 
l)ractitioner.  There  may,  of  course,  be  certain 
cases  which  are  a  danger  to  the  community, 
and  it  may  be  allowable  to  hypnotise  these 
without  their  consent,  but  I  think  the  majority 
in  their  sane  moments  wisli  to  he  cured  of  their 
evil  propensities. 

"  ElLRAH." 

Discussinfr  the  possibility  of  the  establish- 
ment of  a  State  Medical  Service,  at  a  meeting 
of  the  Society  of  Medical  Officers  of  Health, 
Mrs.  Sidney  Webb  said  there  was,  at  present, 
much  wastefulness  and  duplication  of  work,  as 
the  P(x>r  Law  Authority  and  the  Public  Health 
Authority,  both  provided  within  the  same  area 
medical  attendance,  nursing,  medicine,  and  in- 
stitutional treatment  for  the  sick  poor. 


Ibow  3  Kccainc  flOatron  of  St. 
Bartbolomcw'ij  Ibospital. 

a  telepathic  tale. 

By  Ethel  Gordon  Fenwick. 

{Contiiiiitd  from  page  49.) 

People  who  know  not  Whitechapel  speak  of 
it  as  a  place  of  outer  darkness,  where  the  in- 
habitants differ  from  other  human  beings  in 
that  misery  is  their  inevitable  lot.  White- 
chapel in  my  day — and  doubtless  also  at  the 
present  time — contained  its  average  of  happi- 
ness, and  much  more  goodness,  than  many 
more  immaculate  districts.  Surely  we  had  a 
fine  expanse  of  sky  in  Whitechapel,  and  real 
sea  breezes  from  off  the  river,  and  what  more 
enjoyable  in  hours  off  duty  than  to  tinkle  to 
Stratford  and  back  on  the  top  of  a  tram — saving 
tired  feet,  and  cleaning  out  our  lungs. 

It  was  on  top  of  a  homely  tram  that  Sister 
Rachel  and  I  took  counsel  together  and  made 
plans  for  the  momentous  interview.  We  agreed 
that  appearances  must  be  respected,  first  im- 
pressions are  so  very  important,  and  few  Sis- 
lei's  wore  outdoor  unifoi-m  in  those  days.  A 
"  Eedfern  "  ulster  and  toque  were  both  voted 
quite  out  of  the  question,  and  as  wardrobes 
were  limited,  my  long  sealskin  coat^ — a  digni- 
fied if  somewhat  overpowering  garment,  and 
the  "  Tofield  "  bonnet  were  decided  upon.  ^^  e 
hesitated  about  that  bonnet,  because  we  con- 
sidered that  upon  a  certain  occasion  when  it 
was  anticipated  that  it  would  play  an  all  con- 
quering part  it  had  not  behaved  quite  nicely — 
it  had  failed. 

It  was  in  this  way.  Some  months  previously  I 
had  applied  for  the  post  of  ^latron  to  a  small 
hospital  near  London.  I  called  personally  upon 
the  electors,  and  was  warmly  encouraged  by 
many.  The  proverbial  objector  was  there,  and 
he  said  quite  rudely,  "  Go  away,  and  paint 
some  wrinkles  on  your  face." 

I  took  the  hint. 

I  went  away,  and  ordered  from  a  celebrated 
Bond  Street  iiiodisti .  Mmie.  Tofield  by  name, 
one  of  her  irresistible  "  middle  aged  "  bonnets 
— a  confection  described  by  her  as  "  cosily 
coquettish."  It  was  made  of  fine  black  lace, 
with  tiny  silk  bobs,  trembling  on  the  surface, 
worn  tied  over  the  ears  with  lacey  strings  it 
encircled  the  face  in  a  modish  manner.  For 
some  abstiiise  reason  w-hich  I  have  never 
fathomed,  it  was  considered  eminently  "bold," 
not  to  say  brazen  in  those  days  for  ladies  of 
a  certain  age  to  expose  the  ears  I 

Alas  I  this  innocent  artifice  availed  me  no- 
thing. I  did  not  get  that  post,  and  naturally 
I  blamed  the  Iwnnet.  When  I  reached  home  I 
removed  it  witii  resentment,  and  sat  upon  if. 


64 


ZTbc  Brltlsb  3ournaI  ot  IRursing. 


[Jan.  22,  1910 


and  it  was  entirely  owing  to  a  keen  sense  of 
justice  upon  the  part>of  my  night  nurse-  that  it 
was  restored  to  its  cosy  contour  and  laid  by  in 
tissue  i^aper  for  a  future  occasion. 

Having  decided  to  give  this  matronly  bit 
of  millinery  another  chance  of  furthering  my 
fortunes,  I  that  night  slept  the  sleep  of  the 
just. 

By  eight  o'clock  nest  morning,  di-essed  as 
no  self-respecting  great-grandmother  would  ap- 
pear to-day,  I  set  forth  to  conquer  fate. 

It  was  a  sweet  day.  Spring  was  upon  us. 
■  The  spacious,  airy  Whitechapel  Eoad  appeared 
to  me  a  delightful  laromeuade.  The  busy  people 
with  their.kmd  faces  and  poor  clothes  were  all 
friends.  These  were  the  people  who  filled  our 
wards,  and  taught  us  nurses  lovely  lessons 
'  evei-y  day  of  patience  and  gratitude.  Long  suf- 
fering, noble  people,  they  all  seemed  to  smile 
on  me — as  I  on  them. 

But  time  was  precious.  Soon  the  right  'bus 
.  came  along,  and  in  half-an-hour  I  was  in  Smith- 
field,  had  passed  through  Henry  VIII. 's  Gate- 
way at  Bart's,  and  mounted  the  steps  of  the 
Treasurer's  House. 

I  hesitated  to  ring  the  bell,  and  when  me- 
chanically I  had  done  so,  I  yet  hoped  for  a 
reprieve. 

I6ut  no.  Sir  Sydney  Waterlow  was  within, 
and  without  further  ado  I  was  ushered  into  a 
little  room  on  the  right  of  the  hall,  where  the 
arbiter  of  my  fate  was  seated  writing  at  his 
desk. 

He  glanced  at  my  card,  and  then  at  the 
clock  (it  was  ten  to  nine),  and  said  brusquely, 
waiving  me  to  a  chair,  "I'm  due  at  a  meeting 
at  the  Cannon  Street  Hotel  at  nine." 

I  sat  down. 

"  I  hear  that  your  Matron  has  resigned,"  I 


"Yes,  she  has,"  he  interrupted,  "but  we 
are  not  going  to  look  for  another  for  some  weeks 
to  coine." 

I  nipped  into  the  conversation  again. 

"I  came  to  ask  you  one  question.  Will 
my  age  be  an  insuperable  obstacle  to  my  ap- 
plying for  the  post.      I  am  twenty-four." 

Sir  Sydney  turned  in  his  chair,  and  looked 
keenly  at  me ;  then  he  said  slowly  : 

"  I  do  not  say  that  it  will  be  an  insuperable 
difiRculty,  but  I  do  say  it  will  take  a  very  great 
deal  of  getting  over." 

Crossing  to  the  desk,  I  handed  him 
an  envelope  containing  my  testimonials. 

"I  must  not  detain  you  another  minute," 
said  I.  "  May  I  leave  you  my  testimonials? 
You  will  hear  from  me  again." 

At  this  Sir  Sydney  smiled,  and  it  was  a 
very    channing    smile.       He    rose,   we    shook 


hands,  and  in  half  a  minute  I  was  out  in  the 
Square. 

The  clock  told  five  to  nine. 

Let  us  hope  Sir  Sydney  was  not  late  for  his 
meeting. 

When  I  reached  my  ward  I  put  my  little 
bonnet  tenderly  away  in  its  tissue  paper.  It 
was  forgiven.  It  might  be  required  on  another 
occasion. 

It  was. 

(To  be  continued.) 


Iprlvatc  IRursing  in  <Bcniian\>.-- 

By  Fbaulein  Ellen  Schopwinkel. 

In  Germany  the  religious  institutions  have, 
for  a  great  period,  done  private  nursing.  The 
less,  however,  the  number  of  their  nurses  suf- 
ficed for  their  various  tasks,  the  more  they  were 
obliged  to  give  up  that  branch  of  nursing. 

This,  to  be  sure,  was  done  very  reluctantly 
as  the  income  from  private  nursing  was  a  vei-y 
welcome  help  to  their  charitable  endeavours, 
for  which  there  has  never  been  enough  money 
in  any  part  of  the  world. 

In  the  private  nursing  in  capitals,  and  in 
private  hospitals,  the  first  sisters  who  separated 
from  the  mother  houses,  found  a  materially 
satisfactory  activity,  which  enabled  them  to 
fulfill  their  family  duties,  often  enough  the 
latter  had  been  the  reason  of  leaving  their 
mother  house,  or  which  made  it  possible  for 
them  to  provide  for  their  future. 

The  need  of  private  nursing  has  enormously 
increased  during  the  last  few  decades ;  unfor- 
tunately, however,  the  quality  of  the  plentiful 
supply  of  sisters  for  the  same,  does  not,  by  any 
means,  meet  just  requirements.  Twenty  years 
ago  it  was  the  mother  houses'  point  of  view 
that  a  probationer,  who  was  just  beginning  to 
have  comprehension  of  the  doctor's  aims, 
would  be  more  suitable  to  carry  out  his  iiisii  na- 
tions in  a  private  house  than  the  patient's  i.la- 
tions,  who,  in  face  of  severe  illness,  are  ottiu 
so  alarmed  as  to  be  at  their  wit's  end. 

As  long  as  mother  houses  did  private  nursing 
as  a  duty  to  help  in  any  case  of  liecessiNty, 
nothing  could  be  said  against  this  standpoint, 
and  very  likely  many  a  J'oung  probationer  did 
less  harm  and  made  fewer  mistakes  than  in- 
experienced relations  wotild  have  done ;  and  if 
she  was  a  born  nurse  and  had  been  trained  in 
•a  good  school,  perhaps  she  was  even  of  great 
use. 

But  now  private  nursing,  has  become  an  in- 
dependent branch  of  our  profession,  and  one  of 
the  best  paid,  since  the  people  of  large  towns 
*R6ad  at  the  International  Congress  of  Nurses, 
London,  July,  1909. 


Jau.  -22,  10101 


^Dc  Britisb  3oiirnal  of  'Kursing. 


are  accustouifd  to  pay  for  nursing  at  tlif  rate 
of  5  to  6  marks  and  more  a  day,  it  ought 
to  be  required  of  the  private  uurse,  that  she 
should  be  fully  capable  of  the  duties  under- 
taken by  her.  She  ought  to  possess  adapta- 
bihty  to  a  high  degree,  because  s^ie  must  con- 
tinually manage  to  get  on  with  the  most  differ- 
ent people  and  conditions. 

Great  knowledge  of  human  nature  and  per- 
fect tact  must  make  it  possible  for  her,  always 
to  do  and  say  the  right  thing.  All  branches  of 
sick  nursing  must  be  well  known  to  Jier,  for 
from  one  day  to  the  other  she  can  never  know 
what  sort  ot  case  she  inay  be  called  upon  to 
uurse. 

As  a  rule,  up  till  now,  a  sister's  choice  of 
private  nursing  depended  on  her  great  desire 
for  liberty  or  on  the  necessity  of  procuring 
means  to  support  her  relations,  not  on  her  own 
gift  for  it,  and  on  the  knowledge  necessary  for 
such  work. 

In  the  capitals,  women,  who  are  often  not 
even  nurses  themselves,  have  opened  so-called 
homes,  which  they  fill  with  sisters  by  dint  of 
advertising.  They  pay  them  a  low  salary 
which  is  indeed  generally  a  Uttle  higher  than 
what  the  religious  or  secular  mother  houses 
give,  but  not  high  enough  to  attract  good 
nurses.  To  be  sure,  they  frequently  offer  their 
sisters  to  the  public  at  lower  prices. 

These  have  drawn  a  class  of  nurses  into  the 
private  nursing  professional  ranks  of  the  worst 
and  lowest  kind,  who  disgrace  the  nurse's  dress 
and  make  it  an  object  of  derision — ^nay,  have 
made  it  a  cloak  for  vice. 

Face  to  face  with  this,  we  must  seriously 
demand  that  doctors  and  the  public  take  sides 
with  us,  and  in  future  help  to  ensure  that  em- 
jiloyment  in  private  houses  is  given  only  to 
suitable  and  rea-lly  careful  trained  nurses. 

At  times  when  illness  is  very  prevalent  un- 
fortunately there  will  not  be  a  sufficient  number 
of  such  nurses.  But  when  State  Registration 
has  been  in  force  for  some  time,  and  creates  a 
better  foundation,  especially  when  its  plan  of 
instruction  is  extended  to  tnree  years,  we 
may  hope  to  find  throughout  a  higher  degree  of 
excellence  in  private  nur.sing. 

For  the  sake  of  independent  work  iu  private 
and  parish  nursing,  we  cannot  desire'  too 
earnestly  that  the  possibility  of  undertaking 
such  independent  work  after  one  year,  or  after  a 
one-sided  training,  may  soon  altogether  cease. 

It  is  also  greatly  to  be  desired  and  striven 
after  that  a  special  preparation  should  be  made 
possible  for  these  branches  of  work,  that  the 
younger  sisters  maj'  be  taught  by  experienced 
members  of  their  profession.  There  is  a  great 
need,  too,  of  courses  of  invalid  cookei-y. 
Such     courses     are     plnnned     in     the      TiPtte 


House  for  sisters  for  next  wiuter,  one  of 
our  large  educational  institutions  for  women's 
professions.  Every  hospital,  however,  ought  to 
have  them  as  part  of  the  nursing  curriculum. 

The  residential  conditions  of  private  nurses 
are  exceedingly  different.  Besides  the  already 
mentioned  exploiting  institutions^  there  are 
large  and  smaller  homes,  which,  under  experi- 
enced professional  management,  collect  a 
number  of  carefully  selected,  ai)le  Sisters.  For 
rent,  telephone,  printing  expenses,  and  so  on 
fixed  sums  are  asked — between  20  and  30 
marks  a  month;  for  board  1.2.5-1.75  marks  a 
day.  The  well-managed  homes  discard  unsuit- 
able elements,  are  a  protection  to  the  public 
and  the  Sistei-s,  and  a  great  relief  to  the 
doctors.  According  to  the  same  model,  there 
are,  of  course,  a  great  number  of  unsatisfactory 
homes,  under  the  management  of  unsuitable 
individuals,  who  are  unable  to  collect  a  good 
class  of  Sisters,  nor  can  they  give  them  or  pre- 
serve-for  them  the  good  connections  they  need. 
The  tone  in  such  houses  may  be  imagined.  In 
a  lesser  degree,  large  and  small  partnership 
arrangements  are  being  developed,  iu  which 
the  common  expenses  are  borne  by  all  in  equal 
part :  the  success  of  such  arrangements  de- 
pends on  one  Sister's  undertaking  the  manage- 
ment as  houorarv-  work,  in  order  to  maintain 
outward  dignity  and  inward  order. 

This  Kind  of  arrangement  will  probably  show 
itself  to  be  the  most  rational,  because  of  the 
democratic  tendency  of  our  times  and  the 
growing  independence  of  nurses. 

A  small  number  of  private  nurses  are  for- 
tunate enough  to  be  able  to  live  with  relations 
or  friends;  their  only  care  is  bow  to  secure  a 
good  and  easily  attainable  telephone  connec- 
tion, in  case  circumstances  prevent  their  having 
one  of  their  own. 

A  few  nurses,  who  do  not  care  to  live  in  com- 
pany with  many  others,  dwell  in  furnished 
rooms.  This  is,  however,  only  advisable  when 
possessing  a  large  connection  or  suitable  ar- 
rangements for  the  assignment  of  patients. 


Zbc  £100  IRcoistration  Jfunb. 


Carried  forward 
Miss  Maix  Dawson 
Miss  S.  Cartwright 
Miss  L.  Warrener  . 
Miss  E.  Warrener  . 
Miss  F.  Hoddinott  . 
Miss  E.  L.  C.  Eden  . 


T.envini:  fTP.  7^^  tn  ,-f,ll...-t. 


£    s. 

d. 

21     8 

0 

10 

0 

10 

0 

10 

0 

5 

0 

5 

0 

5 

0 

£23  13 

0 

Zbc  Brittsb  3ournaI  ot  THursing. 


[Jan.  22,  1910 


IPractical  points  prise. 

We  have  much  pleasure  in  stating  that  oui- 
Prize  of  Five  Shillings  for  the  best  Practical 
Point  paragraph  has  been  won  by  Mrs.  Alice 
West,  .Mount  Cottage,  Kosary  Road,  Norwich, 
for  the  following  paragraph  on  the  feeding  of 
helpless  patients. 

The  Feeding  of  Helpless  Patients. 

A  great  help  in  feeding  a  sick  person  with 
milk,  water,  or  any  fluid,  is  a  slender  glass 
tube, -bent  at  one  end.  The  short  bend  rests  on 
the  edge  of  a  glass  or  cup,  and  is  placed  be- 
tween the  lips.  The  long  part  goes  down  into 
the  water.  The  patient  can  so  suck  up  small 
drinks  very  easily,  and  comfortably,  without 
being  raised  up,  or  any  change  of  position  in 
bed.  There  is  no  risk  of  spilling,  or  choking, 
which  might  happen  when  feeders  are  used. 
The  tube  should  be  kept  laid  in  water  between 
use.  When  feeders  are  used,  one  made  of  glass 
will  be  found  a  great  improvement  on  the  or- 
dinary kind.  Their  cleanliness  can  be  made 
positive,  as  every  part  is  clear  to  the  eye,  and 
when  in  use  the  flow  of  fluid  through  the  spout 
can  be  seen,  and  regulated  to  a  nicety  in  conse- 
quence, which  is  a  great  comfort  to'a  helpless 
patient  w^ho  has  difficulty  in  swallowing.  A 
tiny,  soft,  round  sponge  on  a  little  holder  is  a 
nice  way  of  giving  a  vei-y  weak  patient  a  sip 
of  water,  to  to  keep  the  mouth  fresh  and  cool. 
Always  use  a  feeding  cloth,  and  insist  on  others 
doing  the  same  in  the  nurse's  absence,  it  saves 
much  discomfort  to  the  patient,  a  fact  which 
few  people  seem  to  realise. 

Alice  West. 

We  also  commend  the  following  para- 
graphs:-^" Treatment  of  a  Case  after  Chloro- 
form has  been  given,"  Miss  V.  James;  "  The 
Care  of  the  Dead,"  Miss  M.  Green;  "The 
Dressing  of  the  Umbilical  Cord,"  Miss  Evans, 
and  "  Leeches,"  by  Miss  E.  Molson. 

At  the  same  time  we  wish  we  could  com- 
mend very  many  more  of  these  Practical 
Points  Paragraphs.  Several  of  the  paragraphs 
sent  in  are  not  Practical  Points  at  all.  It  is  a 
curious  fact  that  nurses  seem  more  reluctant  to 
write  on  the  practical  side  of  their  work  than 
on  any  other,  and  yet  here  they  have  a  field  ex- 
clusively their  own. 


THE  NEATEST  NURSE  PHOTOGRAPH. 

We  desire  to  remind  our  readers  that  Satur- 
day, January  22nd,  is  the  latest  date  for  photo- 
graphs for  the  above  competition  to  reach  the 
Editor.  The  Prize  for  the  winning  photograph 
will  be  10s.,  and,  as  every  nurse  should  aspire 
to  immaculate  neatness  we  hope  that  many 
photographs  will  reach  us  on  that  date. 


Xorb  3nvcrcli?bc  on  State  IRcgis* 
nation. 


In  the  autumn  a  Statement  issued  in 
pamphlet  fonxi  by  the  Association  for 
the  Promotion  of  the  Registration  of 
Nurses  in  Scotland  was  widely  circu- 
lated, and  we  were  asked  to  criticise  it,  as  it 
was  considered  that  it  did  not  deal  accurately 
with  the  Bill  promoted  by  the  Society  for  the 
State  Registration  of  Nurses  as  passed  by  the 
House  qf  Lords.     This  we  did. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Society,  held  on  Nov.  26 
last,  a  Resolution  pointing  out  objections  was 
passed  unanimously,  and  ]\Irs.  Bedford  Fen- 
wick,  the  Hon.  Secretary,  was  directed  to  for- 
wai'd  a  copy  to  Lord  Inverclyde,  the  President 
of  the  Scottish  Association,  together  with  the 
criticism  of  the  Statement  on  Registration 
issued  by  his  Association.  This  was  done  on 
December  1st,  a  reply,  dated  17th  December, 
was  received  from  Lord  Inverclyde,  and  was 
filed  for  report  to  the  next  meeting  of  the 
Executive  Committee. 

The  following  correspondence  has  subse- 
quently passed  between  Mrs.  Fenwick  in  her 
official  capacity  as  Hon.  Secretary,  and  Lord 
Inverclyde,  and  at  his  request,  and  with  the 
consent  of  Miss  Isla  Stewart,  President  of  the 
Society  for  State  Registration,  we  have  plea- 
sure in  publishing  it. 

Castle  Wemyss, 

Wemyss  Bay,  N.B. 
10th  January,  1910. 
De.\e  Madam, — I  wrote  to  you  on  17th  Decenibei', 
in  reply  to  your  letter  to  me  of  the  1st  Docembei', 
and  as  I  liave  received   no  acknowledgment  tromi 
you  I  will  be  glad  to  know   if  you  duly  received 
my  letter.     In  order  that  there  should  be  no  mis- 
apprehension in  the  matter  I  would  have  thought 
you  would  have  published   my  letter — if  you   have 
received  it — in  the  British  Journal  of  Nursing, 
and  I  shall  be  glad  if  you  will  do  so. 
I  am. 

Your  obedient  servant, 

Inverclyde  . 
Mi's.  Bedford  Fenwick, 
Hon.  SecT'etary, 

The  Society  for  the  State  Registration 
of  Trained  Nurses, 
20,  Upper  Wimpole  Street,  London,  W. 


The  Society  for  tlie  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses, 
431,  Oxford  Street,  London,  W, 

January  11th,  1910. 
Mt  Lord, — I  beg  to  acknowledge  your  letter  of 
the  10th  inst.,  and  to  draw  your  attention  to  the 
fact  that  my  former  letter  to  you  was  written  in 
my  official  capacity  of  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Society 
for  the  State  Registration  of  Trained  Nurses,  and 
that  your  Lordship's  reply  was  addressed  to  me  as 


Jan.  -i'i,   191U_ 


Zbc  Britisb  3ournai  of  IRursina. 


such.     You  will  therefore  agree  that  I  ha<l  no  right 
to  publish  it.     In  compliance  with  your  wi.shes  your 
letter  of  December  17th  will  appear  in  the  British 
JocKNAL  OF  Nursing  next  week. 
I  am,  my  Lord, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

Ethel  G.  Fenwick, 

Hon.  Secretary. 
To  the  Right  Hon. 
The  Lord  Invorclvdo. 


Castle  Wemyss, 

WemysK  Bay,  X.B., 
12th  .January,  1910. 
De.\r  M.\dam, — I  am  in  receipt  of  your  letter  of 
11th  inst. 

1  cannot  follow-  your  reasoning,  more  particularly 
as  the  resolution  which  Voii  were  directed  to  for- 
ward to  me  was  i)ublished  in  the  British  JorRX.\L 
OF  NtTRsrNG,  and  you  therefore  made  it  public  with- 
out making  my  reply  public. 

I  will  be  glad  if  you  will  also  publish  my  letter  to 
you  of  the  lOtii  January,  your  letter  to  me  of  11th 
January,  and  this  letter,  along  with  my  letter  to 
you  of  17th  December,  in  order  that  the  cor< 
respondence  may  be  complete. 
I  am, 

Yotrr  obedient  servant, 

Invercltde. 
Mrs.  Be<lford  Fenirick, 
Hon.  Secretary, 
The  Society  for  the  State  Registration 
of  Trained  Nurses. 


The  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses,   . 
431,  Oxford  Street,  Loudon,  T\'. 

January  Uth,  1910. 
My  Lord,- — I  beg  to  acknowledge  your  letter  of 
12th  Januai-y,  and  regret  that  you  do  not  follow  the 
reaeoning  of  my  previous  letter.     It  is  simple. 

Letters  addressed  to  me  in  my  capacity  of  Hon. 
.Secretary  of  the  Society  for  the  State  Registration 
of  Trained  Nurses  are,  of  course,  not  dealt  with  as 
if  addressed  to  the  Editor  of  the  British  Journal 
OF  Nursing. 

Had  your  Lordship's  reply  to  a  communication 
from  my  Executive  Committee  stated  that  you 
wished  your  letter  published  in  the  British 
Journal  of  Nursing,  with  the  consent  of  tne 
President,  it  would  doubtless  have  appeared,  Dut 
your  letter  contained  no  such  request,  and  1  need 
not  emphasise  that  the  ethics  of  honourable 
journalism  prohibit  the  publication  of  private  com- 
munications. It  is  superfluous  to  add  that  any 
communication  sent  by  your  Lordship  for  putuica- 
tion,  addressed  to  the  Editor  of  the  British 
Journal  of  Nursing  wall,  space  permitting,  be  at 
once  inserted. 

I  am,  my  Lord, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

Ethel  G.  Fenwick, 

Hon.  Secretary. 
To  the  Right  Hon. 
The  Lord  Inverclyde. 


[Reply   from   Loid   Inverclyde,   to  which   he  refers 
in  letter  of  10th  January,] 
Castle  Wemyss, 

Wemvris  Bay.   N.B. 

17th  Deoemljer,  1909. 

Dear  Madam, — I  duly  received  your  letter  of  1st 
instant,  and  I  regret  that  pressure  of  business  nas 
prevented  my  attending  to  it  and  replying  sooner. 

I  need  hardly  say  that  I  have  no  desire  that  there 
should  be  any  inaccurate  or  misleading  statement 
put  fonvard  by  the  Association  for  the  Promotion 
of  the  Registration  of  Nurses  in  Scotland,  and  I 
have  carefully  noted  the  paragraphs  to  which  your 
Committee  take  exception  to,  and  I  am  afraid  there 
must  be  some  misapprehension  on  the  part  of  the 
writer  of  the  article  in  the  British  Journal  ok 
Nursing,  which  you  are  good  enough  to  .send  to  me. 

In  the  article  the  following  api>eai-s: — 

'■  The  unwarrantable  statement  has  been  made 
on  page  20  of  the  Scottish  Committee's  pamphlet, 
that  in  j^ord  Ampthill's  Bill  the  Registration 
Council  only  represents  the  Nurses." 

If  you  refer  to  page  20  of  the  statement  issued  by 
the  Scottish  Association  you  will  find  the  follow- 
ing:— 

"The  Registration  Council  represents  tne 
nurses.  It  is  difficult  to  discover  the  principle  on 
which  the  other  representation  is  ba-sed,"  etc.,  etc. 

It  is  not  stated  by  the  Scottish  Association  that 
the  representation  on  the  Council  in  Lord 
AmpthiU's  Bill  is  Limited  to  nurses,  and  you  will 
observe  that  there  is  no  mention  of  only  repre- 
.senting  the  nurses. 

The  following  also  appears  in  the  article: — 

"  It  is  further  stated  in  the  pamphlet  that  the 
Select  Committee  proposed  in  its  Report  '  that  no 
applicant  for  registration  should  be  subjected  '^o 
examination  other  than  that  of  the  training 
school.'  We  challenge  the  Committee  to  find  any 
such  recommendation  in  the  Select  Committee's  Re- 
port." 

If  you  refer  to  the  Report  of  the  Select  Com- 
mittee appointed  to  consider  the  expediency  of  pro- 
viding for  the  registration  of  Nurses,  which  Com- 
mittee was  appointed  in  June,  1904,  and  re- 
appointed the  following  year,  you  will  find  the 
undemoted  paragraph : — 

"  Your  Committee  recommend  that  the  Central 
Body  should  atlmit  to  the  Register  of  Nurses  such 
nurses  as  have  had  a  training  at  a  reoognise<i 
training  school  for  nurses  for  a  periotl  to  be  deter- 
mined by  such  IxKly,  and  have  satisfied  their  train- 
ing school,  whose  certificate  they  must  hold,  stating 
that  they  are  equippe<l  with  the  knowle<lge  and  ex- 
I)erience  re<iuisite  for  nursing,  and  that  they  are  of 
good  character," 

I  enclose  for  your  perusal  a  copy  of  the  state- 
ment issued  by  the  Association  for  the  Promotion 
of  the  Registration  of  Nui-ses  in  Scotland,  and  if 
you  refer  to  pages  25  and  26  you  will  see  that  at 
the  last  Conference,  held  in  London,  the  delegates 
from  Scotland  were  willing  to  conce<le  the  matter 
of  a  one-portal  examination,  provided  that  the 
several  parts  of  the  United  Kingdom  were 
adequately  represented,  and  that  the  principle  of 
administrative  decentralisation  were   not   excluded. 


68 


Cbe  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRurstno. 


[Jan.  22.  1910 


They  were  distinctly  of  opinion  tliat  without  a 
Scottish  Registration  Committee,  comixjsed  in  tiie 
manner  indicated  in  tlie  Scottish  Bill,  Registiiation 
in  Scotland  would  be  futile,  if  not  positirely  mis^ 
chievous;  and  they  regard  two  guineas  as  the 
maximum  fee  permissible  for  Registration. 

I  desire  to  point  out  that  the  Assoeiation  of  which 
I  am  President  has  no  tjuarrel  with  any  other 
Xui-ses'  As.sociation,  and  in  our  past  endeavoui's 
have  tried  solely  to  secure  the  best  conditions  tor 
nui'ses  and  for  Registration. 
I  am, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

Invercltde. 
Mi-s.  Bedford  Fenwick, 
Hon.  Secretary, 

The  Society  for  the  State  Registration 
of  Trained  Nurses, 
20,  Wimpole  Street,  London,  W. 


We  regret  that  we  are  unable  to  follow  Lord 
Inverclyde's  reasoning  as  to  our  criticism. 
We  quote  below  Section  11,  clause  1,  of  the 
statement  to  which  he  refers:  — 

No.    1. — 11.  The    differences    between    ihc 
Scottish  and  the  English  Registration  Bill. 
Lord    Ampthill's 
Scottish  Bill.  Bill. 

1.  Registration  Council 

1.  Registration  Council  represents      the 

represents —  nurses.    It  is  difiB- 

1.  The  Nui-ses.  cult     to     discover 

2.  The  Training  the    principle     on 

Schools.  which     the     other 

3.  The  Medical  Pio-  representation      is 

fessiou.  based.        On     the 

4.  The   Universities.  Registration 
■5.  The  Government  Council     Scotland 

Departments.  would     be     repre- 

sented by  one 
doctor  and  by  one 
nurse  after  the 
first  five  years. 
Here  it  is  distinctly  stated  that  the  Regis- 
tration Council  represents  the  nurses,  after 
which  statement  there  is  a  full  stop.  Why  is 
it  difficult  to  discover  what  is  printed  in  Lord 
Ampthill's  Bill?  It  is  plainly  published 
that  the  Matrons  and  Nurses  in  England, 
Scotland,  and  Ireland  shall  be  represented 
by  7  persons,  the  medical  profession 
in  England,  Scotland,  and  Ireland  by 
6  persons,  and  the  public  by  3 
persons  appointed  by  the  Privy  Council.  In 
reference  to  the  last  paragraph  of  this  most 
ambiguous  clause,  medical  representation  in 
Scotland,  is  provided  for  in  the  constitution  of 
the  Eegistration  Council,  and  nowhere  is  it 
stated  that  "  after  the  first  five  years  "  Scot- 
land would  be  represented  by  onei  doctor  and 
by  one  nurse.  The  Bill  clearly  states  that  the 
persons  appointed  on  the  first  Council  "  shall 
hold  office  until  the  Lord  President  certifies 
that  the  task  of  forming  a  register  of  persons 


entitled  to  be  registered  ...  is  suffi- 
ciently advanced  to  admit  of  an  election  of 
direct  representatives  of  registered  nurses." 
No  term  of  office  of  any  sort,  is  specified  in  this 
clause. 

No.  2. — We  still  challenge  Lord  Inverclyde's 
Committee  to  find  any  such  restrictive  recom- 
mendation in  the  Report  of  the  Select  Com- 
mittee on  Registration  "  that  no  applicant  for 
registration  should  be  subjected  to  examination 
other  than  that  of  the  training  school." 

The  Select  Committee  recommended  that 
nurses  should  be  admitted  to  the  Register  after 
a  period  of  training  prescribed  by  the  Central 
Body,  after  examination  and  certification  by 
the  training  school.  It  did  not  prohibit  an 
applicant  for  registration  being  subjected  to 
examination  other  than  that  held  by  the  train- 
ing school,  so  unjustifiably  stated  in  the  Scot- 
tish Statement.  It  is  this  devious  and  inaccur- 
ate ambiguity  which  inspires  the  whole  Pam- 
phlet to  which  we  take  the  strongest  excep- 
tion. We  pointed  out  in  our  criticism,  and  we 
repeat  the  statement — that  its  teaching  is 
calculated — let  us  hope  unintentionally — to 
mislead  rather  than  coirectly  inform  Scottish 
Nurses  on  the  Eegistration  question. 


Central  IReoistration  Committee. 

Lord  Inverclyde's  Association  will  be  repre- 
sented at  the  Conference  on  the  25th  by  the 
following  delegates: — Lord  Inverclyde,  Pre- 
sident; Dr.  Ker,  ^Medical  Superintendent,  City 
Fever  Hospital,  Edinburgh;  Dr.  Mackintosh, 
Medical  Superintendent,  Western  Infirmary, 
Glasgow;  Miss  Gill,  R.R.C.,  Lady  Superin- 
tendent, Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh ;  and 
Miss  Cowper,  General  Superintendent,  Queen 
Victoria's  .Jubilee  Institute  for  Nurses,  Scot- 
tish Branch. 

Lord  Ampthill,  the  Convener  of  the  Confer- 
ence, has  issued  an  Agenda,  with  a  list  of  the 
Societies  who  have  nominated  delegates  to 
take  part  in  it. 

The  British  Aledical  Association. 
The  Matrons'  Council    of    Great    Britain  and 

Ireland. 
The     Society    for    the    State    Registration   of 

Trained  Nurses. 
The  Royal  British  Nurses'  Association. 
The  Fever  Nurses'  Association. 
The  Irish  Nurses'  Association. 
The  Scottish  Nurses'  Association,  and 
The  Association  for  the  Promotion  of  the  Re- 
gistration of  Nurses  in  Scotland. 
Let   us    hope  that  a  thoroughly  reasonable 
spirit  will  prevail,    and   that  a   Bill  will  ulti- 
mately be  drafted  to  which  all  registrationists 
in  the  United  Kingdom  can  subscribe. 


Jan. 


1010] 


^bc  Brittsb  3ournaI  of  iRursfng. 


69 


^bc  3ri0b  IHiuses'  association. 

At  a  nifeliiig  ot  tlic  Executive  Comiiiitlee 
of  the  Association  held  in  Dublin  on  the  Hth 
inst.,  when  iniportaut  business  was  transacted, 
Miss  M.  Huxiey  was  elected  u  delegate  to 
attend  the  meeting  oi  the  Central  Registration 
Committee  in  Loudon  on  the  25th  in  place  ot 
Miss  Sutton,  who  was  unable  to  attend. 

It  was  agreed  to  extend  the  influence  oi  the 
Association  by  an  appeal  to  all  Irish  nurses 
to  join  it,  so  that  a  United  Irish  League  might 
result,  which  could  effectually  guard  Irish 
nursing  mterests. 

TO  IRISH   NURSES. 
The  Irish  Nurses'   Association, 

80,  Low«T  Leesoii  Street,  Dublin. 
We,     the     Executive     Coiiunittee     of     the     Irish 
Nurses'   A(*ociation,  <le«ire  to  draw  your  attention 
to  the  lollowinn  resolution  passed  at  a  meeting  held 
on  December  -Itli,   1909:— 

Resolved — "  That  this  meeting  of  the  Irish 
Nurses'  Association  de<'ms  it  advisable  that  in 
future  the  amount  ot  the  annual  subscription  to  the 
Association  .shall  be  2.s.  M.  for  nurses  and  Is.  lor 
probationers  and  country  members." 

Your  Committee  have  lowered  the  amount  ol  llie 
annual  subscription  in  order  that  every  nurse  and 
probationer  in  Ireland  may  join  the  Association, 
thereby  making  it  a  United  Nurses'  League  ot 
management  and  self-defence. 

Dining  the  past  three  yeare  Irish  nurses  have  had 
to  light  for  recognition  ujx)n  equal  terms  with  their 
English  and  Scottish  sisters ;  this  fact  alone  con- 
vinces us  of  the  imperative  necessity  for  continued 
co-operation  and  organised  guarding  of  Irish 
nursing  interests. 

In  consideration  of  future  developments,  you  are 
a£ke<l  to  till  and  return  the  enclosed  form,  witli 
your  name,  address,  and  the  necessary  stamjjs  tor 
yoiu"  subscription,  to  the  Secretary,  86,  Jx>\ver 
Leeson  Street,  Dublin,  when  the  name  of  each  new 
member  will  appear  in  the  British  Journal  of 
Nursing  (price  Id.),  which  may  be  obtained  from 
the  Secretary  at  alx>ve  a<l<lres6. 
We  a  re  J 

Youre  faithfully, 
L.  Br.\dbueni;,  Matron,  Meath    Hospital, 

Dubhn. 
A.  S.  BuTLEE,  Matron,  Sir  Patrick  Dun's 

Hospital,  Dublin. 
F.  E.  CoNNlNOH.^M,  Matron,    Convalescent 

Home,  Stiilorgan. 
H.    EOAN. 

M.  Hampson. 

M.  Hannan,  Matron,  Mater  Infirmorum, 
Belfast. 

E.  Hanna,  Matron,  Mercer's  Hospital, 
Dublin. 

J.  E.  Hughes,  Matron,  Portrane  Asylum. 

M.  HuxLET,  Matron,  Elpis  Private  Hos- 
pital, Dublin. 

E.  M.  Joy,  Matron,  Coombe  Hosy)itnl, 
Dublin. 


IJ.  .\1.  Khi.i.Y,  Matron,  Steevens'  Hospital, 
Dublui. 

1.  C.  Keoou,  Matron,  Richmond  Hospital, 
Dublin. 

M.  Lamont,  I'resident,  and  Superinten- 
dent-General, Ireland,  District  Nurses. 

F.  Manning,  Superintendent,  Elpis  Pri- 
vate Hospital,  Dublin. 

M.  M'Neill,  Health  Inspector. 

A.  M.  MacDonnell,  R.R.C,  Vice-Presi- 
dent. 

C.  Powell. 

F.  Phelan,  South  Dublin  Union. 

L.  Ramsden,  Matron,    Rotunda  Hospital, 

Dublin. 
H.  Reeves,  Matron,  Royal    Victoria    Eye 

and  Ear  Hospital,  Dublin. 
H.  E.  Reed,  Rest  Cure  Home,  Lansdowue 

l{oad,  Dublin.   . 
A.  C.  Rae,  Hon.  Secretary,  Irish  Matrons' 

Association. 

E.  Sutton,  Matron,  St.  Vincent's  Hospital, 

Dublin. 

H.  .Shuter,  Matron,  Rest  Cure  Home, 
Lansdowno  Itoad,  Dublin. 

J.  Kildare  Theacy,  Matron,  City  of  Dub- 
lin Nursing  Institute,  Hon.  Sec. 
Executive  Committee,  I.N. A. 

D.  West,  North  Dublin  Union. 

F.  Chadwiok,  Sister,  Rotunda  Hospital. 
J.  Cahill,  Sister,  Mercer's  Hospital. 
L.  Jardine,    Sister,    Richmond     Hospital. 

F.  E.  Kerr,  Sister,  Sir  Patrick  Dun's  Hos- 

pital. 
V.  Roberts. 
A.  Tho.mas,   Queen's  Nurse,  St.   Patrick's 

Home,  Dublin. 

G.  Thornton,  Sister,  Elpis  Private  Hospi- 

tal, Dublin. 

NEW  MEMBERS. 

From  City  of  Dublin  Nursing  Institute  :  — Nurses 
A.  Feenan,  J.  M.  Greene,  E.  Henley,  K. 
Callinan,  D.  Stephenson,  M.  Touney,  A.  O'Connor, 
J.  M'Lean,  L.  Lyons,  K.  Maxwell,  E.  Sergeant,  F. 
Derry,  M.  B.  Crawley,  C.  Simi).son,  H.  Callery,  N. 
T.  Hai-\'ey,  E.  Bergin,  F.  Walshe,  K.  Growney, 
M.  E.  Doran,  A.  Turtle,  M.  Kelly,  J.  Mangaii, 
M.  F.  C.  Gaynor,  F.  Fanning,  M.  Boyle,  M. 
Walshe,  G.  Phenix,  N.  Quinn,  K.  Bolger.  Nuree 
A.  \W\\te. 

Pix>bationers  Murray,  Monaghan,  L.  Ward, 
Larmon,  Beggan,  Sharkey,  Ballesty,  Harte, 
Bra<lley.  Keeley,  Keys,  Mulvany,  O'SuUivan, 
M'DonaW,   Gervine,   M'Guinnis. 

From  St.  ]'incent's  Ho.ipitnl.  Dublin: — Nurses 
M.  Houlihan,  L.  Le<^>,  E.  Fitzmaliony,  P.  H.  Walsh, 
M.  le  Gaynor,  L.  Mernagli,  A.  Ryan,  A.  Broderick, 
E.  M.  MacLeahan,  M.  MacDermott,  A.  Halbert,  F. 
Macnamara.  J.  Kelsey,  K.  Moore,  A.  Dunne,  H. 
Kelly,  C.  Ryan.  A.  O'Shaughmvvsey,  D.  Fogarty, 
-M.  O.  Reilly,  Banesty,  Gallagher,  M,  MU'aii, 
Bacon,  H.  Ryan,  T.  Gallagher,  H.  O'Loary,  .»!. 
O'Connor,  A.  Roche,  M.  Broderick,  K.  McKeogh, 
.McGann, 


Zbc  16riri5b  3ournal  ox  iRurstng.       [Jan.  22, 1910 


3mportant  IHcw  appotnttncnts  b\> 
tbc  local  Government  Boal*^. 

The  President  of  the  Local  Government  Board 
has  api>ointed  three  women  Inspectors  to  serie 
under  th^  Board,  who  wiir  work  under  Miss  Ina 
Stansfeld,  now  an  Assistant  General  Inspector  in 
the  Metropolitan  District,  who  will  in  future  act  as 
Chief  AVoman  Inspector.  Miss  Stansfeld's  pro- 
motion gives  great  satisfaction  to  Poor-Law 
Matrons,  who  appreciate  the  good  work  she  has 
done. 

We  congratulate  the  President  of  the  Local 
Government  Board  on  his  selection  of  the  new 
oflBcers,  who  have  exceiitional  qualifications.  They 
are:  —  ~   ' 

Mrs.  Lancelot  Andrews,  who  holds  the  certificate 
of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and  was  Gold 
Medallist  of  her  year.  She  at  present  acts  as 
Secretary  to  the  l^eague  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital Xurses.  Mrs.  Andrews  has  had  experience 
in  the  supervision  of  boarded-out  children  as  Lady 
Inspector  of  children  Ixjarded  out  by  the  National. 
Refuge  Association  in  Shaftesbury  Avenue.  She  is 
a  member  of  the  jNIatrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland.    '  '  ... 

Mi.ss  Margaret  Lea,  who  holds  the  certificate  of 
the  London  Hospital,  and  was  afterwards  appointed 
Queen's  Xin-se.  She  has  held  the  positions  of 
Assistant  County  Sui>erintendent  for  Somer,set. 
and  of  Assistant  Superintendent  to  the  General 
Superintendent  for  two  yeare,  and  of  Assistant  In- 
spector in  "Wales,  and  is  now  located  at  Sheffield  as 
Inspector  in  the  Central  Counties  District.  She  is  a 
certified  midwife. 

Miss  Helen  Todd,  who  holds  the  certificate  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  Haspital,  was  for  eight  yeai-s 
Matron  of  the  Royal  Xational  Sanatorium  for  Con- 
sumption, Bournemouth,  and  is  at  present- 
Matron  of  the  VTandsworth  Infirmary.  She  is 
a  certified  midwife,  and  a  member  of  tne 
Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland.  We  believe  that  Miss  Todd  enjoys 
the  distinction  of  being  the  first  woman  wno 
has  ever  been  offered  a  post  by  any  Government 
Department.  While  congratulating  her  on  her  new 
appointment,  we  cannot  but  regret  that  her  ser- 
vices are  lost  as  the  Superintendent  of  a  Xurse 
Training  School,  for  which  she  has  shown  special 
aptitude,  and  her  grasp  of  educational  problems  is 
quite  exceptional. 


appointments. 


TERRITORIAL  FORCE  NURSING  SERVICE. 
Miss  .Sidney  J.  Browne.  R.R.C.,  has  been  ap- 
pointed Matron-in-Chief  of  the  above  Service. 
Miss  Browne  has  been  engaged  in  nursing 
work  since  1879,  and  entered  the  Army  Xursing 
Service  as  Sister  in  188;^,  and  has  seen  active  service 
in  Egypt  and  South  .Africa.  On  the  formation  of 
Queen  -Alexandra's  Imix>rial  Military  Xursing  tser- 
vioe  she  became,  in  1902,  its  fii-st  Matron-in-Cliief, 
a  position  she  resigned  in  1906.  She  is  a  member 
of  the  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland. 


M.^TRONS. 

County  Hospital,  Hertford.  —Miss  E.  M.  Studdert 
has  been  appointed  Matron.  She  was  trained  at 
Guy's  Hospital,  and  has  had  six  mouths'  experi- 
ence of  fever  nursing  under  the  iletropolitan 
Asylums'  Board.  She  has  also  held  the  positions 
of  Sister  of  ^Martha  AVard,  Xight  Sister,  and  Hos- 
pital Housekeeper  at  Guy's  Hospital,  and  is  a 
certificated  masseuse,  holding  the  certificate  of  the 
Incorporated   Society  of  Trained  ^lasseuses. 

Infectious  Diseases  Hospital,  Yarnfield,  near  Stoke-on- 
Trent. —Miss  E.  M.  Reynolds  has  been  appointed 
Matron  and  Superintendent  Xurse.  She  was 
trained  at  the  ^lill  Road  Infirmary,  Liverpool, 
and  has  held  the  positions  of  Xurse  in  the  Field 
Force  during  tiie  South  .African  AVar.  Sister  and' 
Deputy  Matron  at  the  Isolation  Hospital,  AA'imble- 
don,  ilatron  at  the  Morley  Home,  St.  Jlargaret-at- 
Cliffe,  and  Health  A'isitor  at  Macclesfield. 

London  Orphan  Asylum,  Watford. — Miss  !Mountford 
has  l>een  appointed  Matron  in  the  Infirmary.  She 
was  trained  at  Brownlow  Hill  Infirmary,  Liverpool, 
and  has  held  the  position  of  Charge  Xurse  at  Ham 
Green  Infirmary,  Bristol,  and  Matron  of  Clift 
House  Hospital,  Bristol.  She  has  also  had  seven 
yeare'  experience  of  private  nui-sing. 

Municipal  Hospital,  Harrismith,  Orange  River  Colony. 
— !Miss  Clemence  Jones  has  been  appointed  Matron 
of  the  ^lunicipal  Hospital,  Harrismith.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Royal  Southern  Hospital,  Liverpool, 
and  held  the  position  of  Staff  Xurse  at  Gordon 
House  Home  Hospital  for  11  years.  She  worked  as 
an  -Army  Reserve  Xursing  Si.ster  in  South  .Africa 
during  the  war,  and  is  at  present  Sister-in-Charge 
of  the  Xative  Hospital  Section  of  Gre.v's  Hospital, 
Pietermaritzburg. 

.ASSISUNT  M.4TR0N. 
General  Hospital,  Birmingham. ^Miss  Christine  Fal- 
coner has  been  appointed  -Assistant  Matron.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Cottage  Hospital.  Duff  Town, 
and  the  Xorthampton  General  Hospital,  and  has 
held  the  position  of  Sister,  X'ight  Superintendent, 
and  .Assistant  Matron  at  the  Leith  Hospital. 

County  Hospital,  Lincoln. — Miss  .Annie  E.  Hobday 
has  been  appointed  .Assistant  JIatron.  She  was 
trained  at  the  City  Hospital,  Wakefield,  and  the 
General  Infirmary,  Huddersfield,  and  has  held  the 
positions  of  Sister  at  the  General  Infirmary,  Mac- 
clesfield, and  of  Xight  Sister  at  the  East  Lancashire 
Infirmary,    Blackburn. 

North     Evington    Infirmary,    Leicester.  — Miss  Elizabeth 

Jane  Price  has  been  appointed  .Assistant  Matron. 

She    was  trained    at  the    Infirmary,    Birmingham, 

where  she  has  held  the  position  of  Sister. 

Sister-ix-Charge. 

Union  Workhouse,  Stockport Miss  Edith  E.  Doug- 
las has  been  appointed  .Sister-in-Charge.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Crnrapsall  Union  Infirmary,  Slan- 
chester,  and  has  held  the  position  of  .Assistant  Ma- 
tron at  the  Poor  Law  Hospital,  Stepping  Hill,  near 
Stockport. 

Sisters. 

Bolton  Infirmary. — Miss  Maud  Ethel  Matthews  has 
been  appointed  Sister.        She   was  trained  at  the 


Jan.  •_'•-'.   I'.tio: 


vTdc  British  itournai  of  H^urslng. 


71 


Roya]  Infirmary,  Liverpool,  and  has  hcW  tlie 
position  ©f  Night  Superintendent  at  the  Haguley 
Sanatorium,  Timperley,  Cheshire ;  Housekeeper  at 
the  Home  for  Incurables,  Liverpool ;  and  Stuff 
Nurse  at  St.  Peter's  Hospital,  London.  She  is  a 
certified  midwife. 

North  Staffordshire  Infirmary,  Hartshill,  Stoke-on-Trent. 
■ — Miss  Jessie  S.  II.  Kussell  has  been  appointed  Sis- 
ter. She  was  trained  at  the  lioyal  Infirmary,  Shef- 
field, where  she  has  acted  temporarily  as  Holiday 
Sister. 

Polyclinic  Hospital,  Rome.  — The  following  Sisters 
have  been  appointed,  and  will  work  under  the 
Matron,  Miss  Dorothy  A.  Snell,  whose  apjioint- 
mont  has  already  been  chronicled,  and  who  has  held 
the  position  of  Sister  in  the  Surgical  Hospital, 
Walsall,  and  the  Children's  Hospital,  Brighttin. 

Miss  J.  Clay,  trained  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, and  until  recently  a  Sister  in  Queen  Alexan- 
dra's Imi)erial  Military  Nursing  Service. 

Miss  Keece,  trained  at  the  Victoria  Hos])ital, 
Burnley,  where  she  also  had  experience  in  District 
Nursing  for  five  years,  and  as  Matron  of  the  Cathe- 
dral Convalescent  Home  four  years.  For  one  year 
she  has  held  the  position  of  Sister  at  the  Inter- 
national Hospital,  Naples. 

Jliss  Browne,  trained  at  the  Sovith  Devon  Hospi- 
tal, Plymouth,  where  for  2i  years  she  worked  as 
Sister.  She  has  also  had  experience  in  private 
nursing. 

Miss  Ada  Whyte,  trained  at  the  Greenwich  In- 
firmai-j-.  She  has  also  had  experience  in  fever 
work,  and  holds  the  Diploma  of  the  Croce  Azzurra 
(2  years'  training).  For  one  year  she  has  worked 
under  Professor  Antonio,  Surgical  Chief  of 
Clinique. 

Miss  Ada  Brunt,  trained  at  the  General  Hospi- 
tal, ShefiSeld.  For  two  years  she  has  worked  at  the 
International  Hospital,  Naples. 

Miss  Chapman,  trained  at  the  East  London  Hos- 
pital for  Children,  and  for  four  years  at  the  South 
Devon  and  East  Cornwall  Hospital,  Plymouth. 

Miss  Bull,  trained  at  the  General  Hospital,  Bir- 
mingham. 

Signorina  Sciarrino,  trained  at  Bordeaux. 

Fraulein  Egli,  trained  in  Switzerland. 
Night  Sisteh. 

Walsall  and  District  Hospital. — Miss  Margaret  Bridge 
has  been  api><)inted  Night  Sister.  She  was  trained 
at  the  l{^>yal  Infirmary,  Derby,  where  she  has  tem- 
ixjrarily  done  Night  Sister's  work.  She  ha.s  also 
done  private  nursing. 

SurKUINTENnF.NT    Nl'IiSE. 

Sudbury  Union  Workhouse  Infirmary— Miss  Lily 
Bessie  Maud  Hall  has  Ixh'U  a]>pointed  SiiiM-rin- 
tendent  Nui-se.  She  was  traine<l  at  (he  Wefit  Ham 
Infirmary,  Leytonstone.  an<l  has  held  the  jxtsition 
of  Maternity  Sister  and  Deputy  Superintendent 
Nui-se  at  the  Bristol  Tnion  Infirmary. 

Uibridge  Workhouse  Infirmary  —  Miss  I.  J.  Drum- 
mond  has  bix-n  ai)ii(>int<Ml  Superintendent  Nurse. 
She  was  trained  at  Bradford  Union  llo.sjiital, 
where  she  has  held  the  position  of  Jlaternity  Sis- 
ter. She  has  also  been  Sister  at  the  Bradford 
Children's  Hospital,  and  has,  therefore,  liad  good 
experience  to  qualify  her  for  the  appoint- 
ment. 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 

NURSING   SERVICE. 
Mi.ss  J.   A.   M.  Stuart,  Stalf   Nui-se,  is  confirmed 
in  her  api>ointment,   her  period  of  provisional  ser- 
vioo   having  expired. 


QUEEN  VICTORIAS  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
FOR  NURSES 
TransfiTs  and  Apijointments. — Miss  Edith  GtKul- 
win,  to  Hanley,  as  Senior  Nurse;  Miss  Ada  !Mil- 
ner,  to  Atkworth ;  Miss  Mary  Kelley,  to  Sheffield, 
as  School  Nurse;  Miss  Edith  Wright,  to  Leaming- 
ton; Miss  Ada  Harper,  to  Birmingham,  Summer 
Hill  Road;  Miss  Annie  Packe,  to  Bracldey ;  Miss 
Lily  Parker,  to  Rochdale;  Miss  Ada  Bines,  to 
Hastings,  St.  Leonard's;  Miss  Gwendoline  Wel- 
lard,  to  Bath;  Miss  Millicent  Goodwin,  to  Hanley 
Castle;  Miss  Jean  Bain,  to  Stourbridge;  Miss 
Edith  Watkins,  to  Cardiff. 


IRcsi^natione. 

Miss  H.  M.  Schooling,  Matron  of  the  North- 
Eastern  Hospital,  Tottenham,  under  the  ^letro- 
politan  Asylums'  Board,  has  resigned  this  position. 

The  North-Eastern  Hospital  was  opeiie<l  during 
the  epidemic  of  scarlet  fever  in  1892,  and  tlie 
Metropolitan  Asylums'  Board  sought  the  assistance 
of  St.  John's  House,  then  located  in  Norfolk 
Street,  Strand,  to  provide  the  nursing  staff  of  the 
hospital  for  one  year.  During  this  year  Miss 
Schooling  held  the  position  of  Night  Sujierinten- 
dent  and  was  employed  through  St.  John  s  House. 
AVhen  the  M..\.B.  organi-sed  its  own  staff  at  the 
conclusion  of  the  contract  with  St.  John's  House, 
she  was  appointed  INIatron.  Miss  Schooling's  re- 
signation will  be  regi-etted  by  many  nurses  with 
whom  she  was  very  popular. 


Miss  Maddan,  who  is  retiring  from  the  Matron- 
ship  of  Moorheads'  Hospital,  Dumfries,  after  1-5 
years'  service,  has  been  presented  with  a  beautiful 
gold  bangle,  subscribed  for  by  all  the  female  in- 
mates of  the  house  and  the  maids  on  the  staff. 
The  presentation  was  made  by  Dr.  Hunter  on  be- 
half of  the  subscribers,  and  he  referred  to  jMiss 
Maddan's  constant  devotion  to  duty  and  her  efforts 
to  promote  the  best  interests  of  the  house  and  the 
comfort  and  welfare  of  the  inmates.  Miss  Maddan, 
in  acknowledging  the  gift,  expressed  her  gratitude 
for  the  kindness  which  had  been  shown  her.  Miss 
Janet  Black,  who  has  been  cook  at  the  hospital  for 
more  than  ten  years,  and  who  is  al.so  leaving 
shortly,  was  afterwards  present<?d  with  a  hand- 
some umbrella  as  a  token  of  respect  and  esteem. 


Miss  Massie  has  resigned  the  post  of  Matron  to 
the  Morningfield  Hospital,  Aberdeen.  The  Com- 
mittee accepted  her  resignation  with  much  regret, 
and  desiretl  the  Secretary  to  convey  to  her  an  ex- 
pression of  their  sati.'ifaction  w  ith  the  efficient  man- 
ner in  which  she  had  discharged  her  duties  since 
her  appointment,  and  the  care  and  economy  whicli 
she  had  exercised  in  the  management  of  the  ho.s- 
pital. 


72 


tibc  British  Journal  or  IRursmg. 


[Jan.  22,  1910 


IHursing  JEcboes. 


Following  ou  the  cruel 
treatment  of  Nurse  Bellamy 
at  Hemel  Hempstead,  the 
uursLng  profession  has  learnt 
with  renewed  indignation,  not 
to  say  alann,  of  the  uncon- 
stitutional manner  in  which 
Miss  Edith  Gregory,  the  Ma- 
tron of  the  London  Fever 
Hospital,  has  been  treated 
by  the  Committee. 


We  are  glad  to  learn  that  Miss  Gregory 
retused  to  resign,  although  personally  urged  to 
do  so  by  the  Chairman  of  the  House  Com- 
mittee, without  having  an  opportunity  of 
knowmg,  and  answering,  the  charges 
brought  privately  against  her.  We  hope  to 
refer  to  this  case  at  some  length  in 
a  future  issue.  In  the  meanwhile  the  lesson 
which  trained  nurses  must  take  to  heart  is  the 
insecurity  of  their  professional  status  and  per- 
sonal reputation  when  it  is  possible  that  a  hos- 
jiital  committee  of  men,  who  hold  their  posi- 
tions as  the  ti-ustees  of  public  charity,  should 
condemn  unheard  the  responsible  officials  of  a 
public  institution.  What  we  want  to  know  is 
what  accusations  were  brought  against  ;\Iiss 
Gregoiw  behind  closed  doors,  and  who  were  her 
accusers,  and  we  may  add,  without  fear  of  con- 
tradiction, that  were  we  in  her  place  an  answer 
to  this  question  would  be  forthcoming  either 
in   the   hospital  committee  room  or  elsewhere. 


The  Territorial  Nursing  Service  continues  its 
triumphant  progress.  It  is  deservedly  popular 
because  the  nurses  volunteer  as  individuals, 
and  are  not  classed  as  "  things."  At  a  recent 
meeting  of  the  local  branch  at  the  Castle, 
Exeter,  Lady  Forteseue  presided.  The  follow- 
ing ladies  living  in  or  near  Plymouth  were  in- 
vited to  form  an  Executive  Committee  : — Lady 
Mary  Parker,  Mrs.  Bastard,  ^Irs.  Paulby,  Mrs. 
P.  Swain,  Mrs.  Eussel  Eendle,  the  ^Matrons  of 
the  S.  Devon  and  E.  Cornwall,  and  the  Eoyal 
Albert  Hospitals,  and  the  cx-officio  members. 
It  was  resolved  to  urge  upon  the  authorities 
responsible  "  That  badges  should  now  be  issued 
to  those  nurses  whose  names  have  been  ap- 
]iroved  by  the  Organising  Matron." 


The  Somerset  Committee  was  also  elected, 
and  the  ^latronsof  the  following  hospitals  were 
placed  upon  it; — Bath  Eoyal  United  Hospital, 
Taunton  and  Somerset  Hospital,  Bridgwater 
Hospital,  Weston-super-Mare  Hospital,  and  of 
the  County  Superintendent  of  the  Somerset 
County  Nursing  As.sociation. 


On  the  occasion  of  the  recent  State  visit  of 
the  Lord  ilaj'or  (Alderman  Sir  John  Knill, 
Bart.),  accompanied  by  the  Lady  Mayoress, 
}iliss  Ivnill,  the  Sheriffs  and  their  ladies,  to  the 
Lewisham  Infirmary,  on  January  13th,  the 
Lady  ilayoress  presented  certificates  to  the 
following  nurses  :  — 

Nm-se  Wiebkin,  who  took  the  first  place  in 
the  first  year  examination,  as  well  as  in  the 
third,  and  Nurses  O'Connor,  Boyd,  Browne, 
Eecord,  McKenzie,  and  Shearing,  who  were 
introduced  to  Lady  Knill  by  the  Matron,  Miss 
^lilicent  Acton. 

Dr.  Toogood,  the  Medical  Superintendent, 
said  that  the  staff  of  the  Infirmary  incfluded  51 
nurses,  the  majority  of  whom  were  trained  in 
the  institution,  and  their  examiner,  Dr.  Eose 
Bradford,  always  spoke  in  an  exceedingly  com- 
plimentary manner  of  their  work  and  training. 


One  of  our  largest  hospitals  has  come  in  for 
a  huge  bequest.  May  we  venture  to 
hope,  therefore  that  a  few  additional 
comforts  for  the  patients  may  be 
added  to  the  somewhat  meagre  ward  equip- 
ment. The  serving  of  meals  leaves  much  of 
nicety  to  the  imagination.  The  complaint  ou 
more  than  one  occasion  has  reached  us,  that 
tea  is  served  in  enamelled  mugs,  which,  w-hen 
deposited  ou  the  bedside  Jocker,  serve  also  as 
plates,  as  it  is  the  custom  to  place  the  slabs 
of  bread  and  butter  on  the  mug,  useful  no  doubt 
for  the  purpose  of  keeping  the  tea  hot,  but 
hardly  calculated  to  improve  the  condition  of 
the  food.  Surely  it  would  be  both  sanitary 
and  decent  that  a  serviette  should  be  provided 
for  bed  use,  and  as  in  these  days  the  food  of 
pussy  and  bow-wow  is  usually  served  on  a 
china  dish  or  saucer,  our  hospital  patients 
might  be  supphed  with  tea  plates,  and  also 
attain  to  the  same  degree  of  civilisation. 


Joking  apart,  the  food  of  every  person,  espe- 
cially those  who  are  sick,  should  be  served  in 
a  cleanly  and  appetising  man  er,  and  there  can 
be  no  excuse  for  the  primitive  methods  em- 
ployed at  the  hospital  in  question.  Let  us 
hope  that  the  first  expenditure  of  the  be- 
quest may  be  made  in  providing  china  cups  and 
saucers,  plates,  diet  tables,  or  serviettes,  and 
clean  knives,  forks,  and  spoons  for  the  use  of 
the  patients.  In  the  training  of  nurses  the 
niceties  of  food  serving  is  quite  as  important  as 
the  sterilising  of  dressings — perhaps  more  so. 


Mr.  E.  Hogarth  Clay,  Chairman  of  Com- 
mittee, and  Mr.  S.  J.  LawTy,  Hon.  Secretary 
of  the  Devon  and  Cornwall  Home,  Plymouth, 
state  that  no  canvassing  has  been  done 
by  any  of  their  nurses  in   unifonn   for  eitln^r 


Jan. 


1910] 


ZTbc  Britlsb  3ournal  of  IRursina, 


political  party,  and  that  any  authenticated 
statement  t<>  the  contrary  shall  at  once  be 
(Jealt  with  by  the  committee,  as  it  is  obvious 
that  no  committee  could  permit  sudi  a  thing. 
Why  not'.'  Surely  canvassing  lor  oin-  legisla- 
tors is  not  so  discreditable  an  occujjation  that  a 
nurse  nnist  not  wear  her  uniform  when  so 
engaged. 


If  there  are  not  enough  nurses  on  duty  in  a 
ward  to  watch  and  restrain  delirious  patients 
we  presume  the  "  cot  "  bedstead  is  the  best 
method  of  preventing  poor  patients  falling  out 
of  bed  and  injuring  themselves.  At  least  this 
was  the  conclusion  of  the  Coroner  and  jiu-y  at  a 
recent  inquest  held  at  the  Workliouse,  King- 
ston-on-Sea,  touching  the  death  of  an  inmate 
of  the  infiiinary,  to  whom  such  an  accident  oc- 
curred, whilst  the  one  nurse  on  duty  was  in  the 
kitchen  at  the  end  of  the  ward.  ^lany  country 
workhouse  infirmaries  are  sadly  under-nursetl. 


Miss  h.  L.  Dock  writes: — "I  am  sure 
you  are  all  glad  to  hear  of  the  splen- 
did endowment  for  advancing  the  work  of 
nurses  under  Miss  Nutting  at  Teachers'  Col- 
lege. It  all  happened  so  quickly,  easily,  and 
quietly  !  It  is  not  at  all  an  uncommon  thing 
for  Miss  Wald  to  be  consulted  by  people  who 
wish  to  give  money  away,  how  they  may  best 
place  their  gifts.  Indeed,  she  is  constantly 
giving  advice  of  that  kind,  though  usually  not 
in  regard  to  such  large  sums.  It  was  therefore 
not  even  an  incident  that  made  any  impression 
when  she  had  a  telephone  message  from  this 
lady  asking  for  an  appointment,  and  intima- 
ting that  advice  was  to  be  sought  as  to  tlu' 
disposal  of  a  gift.  That  was  one  morning.  The 
next  day  when  I  went  in  to  dinner  she  told  me 
the  news.  It  was  all  settled.  Wasn't  it 
glorious".'  Since  then,  of  course,  thei-e  have 
been  many  conferences  as  to  details — these  will 
no  doubt  be  given  out  by  ^liss  Nutting  from 
time  to  time,  as  they  are  worked  out.  We 
must  not  forget  that,  though  Miss  Wakl  in- 
spired Mrs.  .Jenkins,  ^liss  Nutting  had  inter- 
ested Miss  Wald  inmiediately  m  her  visions  of 
the  post-graduate  teaching  of  nurses  to  fit  them 
for  Social  Service  that  she  has  been  aiming  at 
since  her  arrival-at  Teachers'  College.  Ever 
since  she  has  been  in  toWn  Miss  Nutting  has 
been  talking  impassionedly  on  this  topic,  and 
she  and  Miss  Wald  have  for  some  time  been 
talking  together  over  possible  plans  for  utilising 
the  splendid  practical  field  work  of  the  Settle- 
ment as  part  of  the  post-graduate  advantages 
of  the  nurses'  class  at  Teachers'  College.  The 
prei)aratiori  of  nurses  for  social  service  has, 
indeed,  always  been  more  or  less  present  in 
Miss  Wald's  mind.     Her  own  immense  gift  on 


that  lifie  makes  all  sorts  of  work  in  the  homos 
seem  more  lU'gent  and  vital  to  her  than  insti- 
tutional work.  We  often  used  to  talk  of  the 
p(issii)ility  of  giving  a  special  training  in  visit- 
ing nursing  here  at  the  Settlement,  but  the 
practical  difficulty  in  the  way  was  that  of  pro- 
viding leisure  for  the  accompanying  necessary 
study  and  of  arranging  for  that  study.  Now, 
with  all  the  ample  resources  of  Columbia  Uni- 
versity to  place  before  students,  and  with  the 
many  lines  of  field  work  here  in  New  York, 
not  only  the  general  visiting  nursing  but  the 
public,  school  work  and  Health  l^oard  work  and 
many  special  lines  of  infant  saving  as  well  as 
others,  they  shoidd  be  well  pre])ared  to  teach, 
organise,  and  execute,  and  the  many  nurses 
who  have  been  asking  where  they  could  be 
fitted  for  this,  that,  and  the  other  specialty 
may  be  told,  "Go  to  Teachers'   College." 

We  need  now  to  establish  a  great  many 
scljolarships ;  our  hospitals  and  nurses'  asso- 
ciations will  do  that,  I  hope." 

We  do  not  doubt  that  the  necessary  fluids 
will  be  forthcoming. 


Nurses  in  the  State  of  Washington,  says 
the  Nurses'  Journal  of  the  Pacific  Coast,  are 
making  progress  in  their  plan  to  establish 
a  cottage  for  tubercular  nurses,  to  be  built  oh 
the  site  of  the  open  air  sanatorium  which  the 
.\nti-Tuberculosis  League  is  working  for.  The 
cost  will  be  about  475  dollars  without  furnish- 
ing. The  Young  W^omen's  Christian  Associa- 
tion in  the  same  State  also  hope  to  build  a 
similar  cottage. 


^be  (Bencral  lElGction. 

The  whole  eounti-y  lias  been  seething  with 
excitement  during  the  past  week,  and  we  are 
glad  to  find  that  both  doctors  and  nurses  have 
brought  the  important  national  question  of 
State  Registration  of  Nurses  before  the  candi- 
dates. 

The  replies  to  the  circular  letter  sent  out  by 
the  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of  Nurses 
have  been  quite  surprising,  the  majority  pro- 
mising hearty  support  to  the  Bill.  It  is  an 
open  secret  tliat  if  our  Bill  could  get  a  second 
reading  it  would  be  passed  with  a  thumping 
majority,  and  that  is  the  reason  every  nerve 
has  been  strained  by  the  opposition  to  block 
it  in  the  Commons.  However,  "  we  feel  it  in 
our  bones  "  that  a  good  time  is  coming,  and  our 
Societj'  has  conveyed  "  congratulations  "  to 
every  pledged  friend  who  has  been  so  far  suc- 
cessful at  the  polls,  not  omitting  to  express  an 
earnest  hope  for  future  favours. 


74 


Cbc  3i3iiti9b  3ournal  of  IRiti-sino.        tJ'»^  2-,  1910 


Z\K  IbOBpital  Movlb. 

"THE  LIMES"    JERSEY.     ■ 

The  opening  of  a  new  hospital,  erected  on 
up-to-date  hnes,  is  always  a  subject  of  interest 
to  members  of  the  nursing  profession.  Situated 
in  Green  Street,  S.-  Heher,  the  "  Maisou  San 
Marculf,"  better  known  as  "  The  Limes,"  is 
inhabited  by  the  Order  "  Sceurs  Immaculees  de 
Marie,"  who  for  years  have  quietly  done  good 
work  both  in  the  old  "  hospice  "  and  the  town 
— was  opened  early  this  autumn,  as  soou  as 
the  new  building  was  erected. 

On  the  invitation  of  the  Superieure  de  San 
Marculf,  a  number  of  medical  men,  nurses, 
and  representatives  of  the  press  were  con- 
ducted over  the  premises  by  Dr.  Paul  Chappuis, 
the  visiting  officer  of  the  establishment. 

There  are  thirty  rooms  in  the  new  building, 
including  two  wards  containing  six  beds  each, 
so  there  is  accommodation  for  thirty  cases.  On 
each  floor  there  are  bathrooms  and  lavatories, 
while  the  rooms  along  the  conidors,  with  large 
windows,  and  sunny  aspects,  are  plainly  yet 
comfortably  furnished  for  patients  who  desire 
privacy.  The  charge  for  these  rooms  vary  from 
15s.  to  21s.  per  week,  according  to  size  and 
aspect.  The  wards  are  for  medical  and  sur- 
gical cases,  and  on  the  same  floor  as  the  latter 
is  a  small  operating  theatre,  fitted  with  every 
modem  convenience ;  adjoining  it  is  the 
iaboi-atory.  There  are  two  large  sitting-rooms, 
one  for  male  and  the  other  for  female  patients, 
and  an  airy  kifi  li.n,  supplied  with  an  imposing 
array  of  sau(.-i|ians  and  other  necessary  cooking 
utensils. 

Patients  of  any  denomination  are  admitted, 
and  also  may  be  under  the  entire  control  of 
their  own  medical  advisers,  and  are  allowed  to 
bring  their  own  nurses  to  tend  them.  Infec- 
tious and  maternity  cases  are  not  admitted. 
In  the  wards  patients  are  taken  for  8s.  per 
week,  though  in  deserving  cases  this  charge  is 
reduced.  ' 

The  Order  has  several  hospitals  in  Brittany, 
from  which  more  nurses  can  De  obtained,  for 
at  the  time  at  which  I  write  the  staff  is  not  a 
large  one.  These  nurses  are  conversant  with 
English,  so  English  patients  need  not  be  afraid 
of  being  at  a  disadvantage. 

Facing  south  and  close  to  the  sea,  whose  hue 
rivals  the  blue  of  the  Mediterranean,  the  build- 
ing is  an  ideal  one  for  a  hospital,  while  the 
large  garden,  witli  its  green  lawn  and  shady 
trees,  will  be  a  joy  to  convalescents,  who  have 
not  yet  gained  strength  enough  to  walk  to  the 
shore.  Comparatively  few  English  people 
know  the  Channel  Isles,  yet  they  are  veritable 
gems  of  beautj'  set  in  a  sapphire  sea. 


IReflections. 


From  a  Boahd  Koom  Mirror. 
At  a  meeting  held  oij  the  afternoon  of  Jauuary 
12th,  the  Board  of  Management  of  the  National 
Anti-Vivisection  Hospital,  Battersea  General  Hos- 
pital, appointed  lx>th  a  House  Surgeon  and  House 
Physician  to  the  Institution.  These  appointments 
have  for  some  time  been  contemplated,  owing  to 
the  rapid  growth  of  work  of  the  hospital.  A 
medical  officer  will  consequently  always  be  in  atten- 
dance at  this   Institution  to  receive  patients. 


Dr.  R.  C.  Brown,  of  Preston,  who  has  made 
several  donations  to  the  Preston  Infirmary,  has 
given  a  further  £510  for  a  new  building  for  the 
temporally  isolation  of  patients  suspected  to  have 
contracted  diphtheria  or  scarlet  fever,  but  whose 
symptoms  are  not  sufficiently  pronounced  to  justify 
immediate  removal  to  the  Corporation  Isolation 
Hospital. 


MATERNITY  NURSE   RECOVERS  FEES. 

In  the  Kingston  (Surrey)  County  Court,  Miss 
Helen  Sneddon,  a  Maternity  Nurse,  recovered  from 
a  patient  £7  7s.  fees  due  to  her,  and  costs.  Miss 
Sneddon  was  engaged  to  attend  the  jiatient  on 
October  the  5th,  and  she  went  into  residence  on 
that  day.  Tlie  confinement,  however,  did  not  take 
place,  and  on  October  iiOth  the  patient  and  her 
sister  charged  the  nui-se  with  having  made  a  mis- 
taken calculation  on  data  furnished  to  her  in  the 
previous  May.  The  patient  suggested  the  iiui'se 
should  leave,  and  return  when  required,  pi-oliably 
Noveniber  5th.  The  nurse  declined,  as  she  had  re- 
fused another  engagement  for  October,  but  offered 
to  foi'ego  a  fortnight's  salary  if  the  family  could 
prove  the  mistaken  calculation  was  her  fault.  The 
Judge  lield  that  the  nurse's  calculations  were  quite 
right  on  the  data  supplied  to  her.  Miss  Sneddon 
suggeste<l  that  the  error  arose  from  a  miscalcula- 
tion on  the  doctor's  part,  and  that  she  should  not 
be  made  to  suffer  for  his  error,  and  the  Judge  took 
the  same  view,  and  that  the  nui'se  was  entitled  to 
recover.  There  was  a  written  engagement  for  a 
written  date,  and  the  nurse's  calculations  were 
correct  on  the  data  supplied  to  her. 


A  MEXBOROUGH   NURSE'S  CLAIM. 

A  nurse's  claim  for  compensation  was  the  rather 
unusual  business  which  came  before  the  monthly 
meeting  of  the  Doncaster  and  Mexborough  Joint 
Hospital  Board,  held  recently,-  at  Conisborough, 
Mr.  Henry  Baker,  the  chairman,  presiding.  Miss 
Currier,  of  Mexborough,  was  the  nurse  in  question, 
and  it  appeared  that  shortly  after  commencing  her 
duties  at  the  hospital  she  contractetl  blood  poisoning 
in  one  of  her  fingers.  As  a  result  she  had  to  have 
it  amputated.  Her  father  offered,  through  her 
solicitors,  to  compromise  the  matter  for  £60,  but 
the  Chairman  considered  they  were  not  liable.  A 
motion  by  Mr.  A.  Lee,  of  Mexborough,  that  the 
claim  be  met  was  not  seconded. 


Jau.  •22,  1910] 


ZDc  Brttieb  3ournaI  of  Iftursino. 


75 


IHiirslns  in  the  IBusb. 

From  Una,  the  official  organ  of  the  Koyal 
Victorian  Trained  Nurses'  Association,  we  re- 
print in  full  the  inspiring  speech  of  her  Excel- 
lency the  Countess  of  Dudley,  addressed  to  the 
members  of  that  Association,  when  on  the  29th 
of  November  last,  she  entertained  them  at  a 
Oarden  Party  at  Government  House,  Mel- 
bourne.    Her  Excellency  said  : 

My  Deaji  KniENDS, — It  is  iraixwsible  for  me  t<> 
stand  taciiif;  any  large  body  ot  the  nursing  profes- 
sion and  c^Il  the  niemlx-rs  of  it  by  any  other  title, 
for  I  have  tor  yeare  past  liad  the  advantage  of 
•counting  amongst  my  friends  many  nui-ses  in  the 
Old  Counti-y.  We  have  worked  together,  and  1 
lave  had  opportunities  of  knowing  more  than  most 
people — something,  at  any  rate,  of  the  zeal  and  sell- 
aacrifice,  and  the  devotion  to  duty,  which  con- 
stitutes the  mainspring  of  their  live.s.  So,  in  speak- 
ing to  yon,  I  feel  I  am  on  familiar  ground. 

All  of  you  know,  I  think,  that  I  am  hoping  to 
see  before  long  laid  down  in  Australia  the  founda- 
tion of  a  scheme  for  district  nursing  in  the  Busli, 
and  it  is  upon  this  subject  that  I  am  anxious  to  say 
a  few  woi-ds  to  you  to-day. 

I  do  not  intend  to  speak  to  you  of  the  advantages 
of  district  nursing.  I  know  that  the  R. V.T.N. A. 
counts  amongst  its  memlx'i's  many  that  are  living 
examples  of  the  Ixinefits  which  can  be  Vjestowed 
uiKMi  a  conimunitj'  by  the  ministrations  of  a  district 
nurse,  and  no  better  organisation  oould  be  found 
than  the  Melbourne  District  Nureing  Association. 
But  I  want  you  to  consider  with  me  for  a  few 
minutes  the  point  of  view  from  which,  I  hope,  any 
scheme  of  Bush  district  nursing  will  be  regarde<l 
by  all  those  who  will  have  occasion  to  take  pait 
in  it.  And,  b:-oadly  sjjeaking,  these  may  b*' 
divided  into  two  sections — the  promoters  an<l 
organisers  of  the  scheme  and  those  who  are  to  carry 
it  out. 

Let  me  use  an  illustration  to  make  my  meaning 
clear  to  you.  An  army  is  composed,  broadly  speak- 
ing, of  two  sections,  officers  and  men,  and  we  all 
know  when  any  scheme  of  military  attack  or  de- 
fence is  under  consideration — when  perhajjs  the 
question  at  issue  is  no  less  vital  than  the  vindicii- 
tion  of  a  nation's  honour — that,  great  as  the  n'- 
sponsibUity  is  which  lies  ve8te<l  in  the  hands  of 
the  officei-s  commanding,  the  real  issues  of  the  cam- 
paign lie  with  those  who  comiwee  the  material  of 
an  army^the  non-commissioned  officers  and  m<'n 
who  make  up  the  rank  and  file. 

Of  this  project  of  Bush  nursing  you  are  tlio 
material  on  which  the  success  or  failure  of  tlx- 
enterprise  depends.  It  must  be  well  officere<l,  too; 
its  executive  must  represent  the  best  that  Australia 
can  produce.  But  of  this  great  project,  the  most 
important  part  will  rest  with  the  nurses  who  con- 
stitute themselves  its  pioneers,  who  lay  its  founda- 
tions and  raise  up  the  standards  by  which  it  snail 
be  judged  in  after  years.  And  so  if  any  of  you, 
the  nurses  of  the  R.V.T.N.A.,  eventually  decide 
to  take  part  in  what  I  hope  may   grow  to  he   a 


national  movement,  it  will  be,  1  know,  in  the  true 
missionary  spirit — carrying  into  this  new  branch 
of  an  old  work  the  self-sacrihce,  the  devotion  to 
duty,  and  the  unselfishness  which  distinguishes  the 
profession  to  which  you  belong. 

It  is  not  for  me  to  si>eak  to  you  to-day  of  the 
details  of  an  organi.sation  whicli  has  as  yet  barely 
taken  shape,  but  this  much  I  may  venture  to  assure 
you — that  as  any  leader  should  always  consider  the 
comfort  and  welfare  of  those  who  follow  him  of 
paramount  importance  in  any  undertaking,  so  wiU 
the  promoters  of  this  project  he  zealous  in  their 
consideration  for  the  nui-ses  who  are  to  establish  it. 
Everything  that  forethought  can  devise  will  be  pro- 
vided for  their  well-being,  their  safe-guarding, 
their  security.  On  the  other  hand,  those  who  de- 
cide to  put  their  hands  to  the  plough  to  furrow 
this  as  yet  almost  unbroken  soil  of  nursing  work  m 
Australia  must  remember  that  they  may  have  to 
bring  to  it  certain  qualifications  which  may  be 
superfluous  in  town  districts.  Thoy  must  be 
possessed  of  a  sound  physique,  to  enooiuitor  hard- 
.ships  of  climate  and  distance  to  which  they  will  1)6 
exposed.  Not  only  must  their  staudaixl  of  efficiency 
cover  the  requirements  of  the  lonely  districts  where 
they  may  bo  sent,  and  should  represent  the  three 
divisions  of  medical,  surgical,  and  midwifery  train- 
ing, but  they  should  be  dowered  with  plenty  of  i)er- 
sonal  experience.  It  is  a  field  of  work  perhaps 
better  suited  to  older  nurses  than  to  those  but 
recently  trained.  But  in  any  case  it  is  work  which 
calls  only  to  those  wliose  eare  are  attuned  to  hear 
a  note  pitched  high  above  the  turmoil  of  mundane 
things,  and  who  have  it  in  their  hearts  to  be 
stix)ng,  and  perhaps  to  suffer,  in  order  to  bring 
comfort  and  relief  to  hundreds  of  tneir  fellow  men 
and  women.  We  want  in  our  pioneers,  who  will  also 
l>e  the  captains  of  this  undertaking,  the  qualities 
of  courage,  patience,  and  unselfishness,  which  dis- 
tinguish those  persons — the  salt  of  the  earth — who 
find  it  possible  and  even  congenial  to  sacrifice  their 
individual  aspirations  for  the  general  good  of  the 
community. 

It  is  needless  to  say  that  this  speech  was  re- 
ceived with  great  acclamation. 


WEDDING  BELLS. 
A  pretty  we<lding  took  place  recently  fi-om  the 
General  Hospital,  Johannesburg,  wlien  Miss  I^eila 
Florence  Allison,  daughter  of  Mr.  T.  S.  Allison, 
Magistrate  at  Staiulerton,  was  married  to  Dr. 
Mudd.  senior  re,sident  suigeon  at  the  Hospital.  The 
bride  had  ju.st  complet«l  her  training  as  a  nurse, 
and  carried  off  the  gohl  medal  at  the  final  examina- 
tion. After  the  we<lding  ceremony  there  was  a  re- 
ception at  Hospital  House,  kindly  lent  for  the 
occasion  by  Dr.  and  Mre.  Mackenzie.  Among  the 
numerous  guests  j)resent  were  Mrs.  Magill,  Matron 
of  the  Hospital,  and  all  of  the  nursing  staff  who 
were  not  on  duty.  There  were  many  beautiful 
presents,  including  a  solid  silver  kettle  from  the 
resident  staff,  a  l)eautiful  fruit  dish  from  Mrs. 
Magill,  and  a  silver  entree  dish  from  the  nursing 
staff.  Many  were  the  good  wishes  expressed  for  ^ho 
future  happiness  of  the  bride  and  bridegroom. 


libc  Britfsb  3ournaI  of  THursiiuj. 


[Jan.  22,  1910 


®ur  foreign  letter. 

MATERNITY  TRAINING   IN  HOLLAND. 

Dear  Editok.— Would  it  iuttiest  your  readere  to 
liear  about  the  training  of  maternity  nurses  (I 
mean  those  nurses'  who  assist  t}ie  doctor  or  mid- 
wife, and  nurse  mother  and  child  after  the  con- 
finement) which  Xosokomos  has  instituted? 

Up  to  the  present  moment  the  only  way  of 
obtaining  training  as  a  maternity  nurse  was  to  enter 
as  a  probationer  one  of  the  maternity  hospitals. 
Only  certificated  nui-ses  are  admitted.  "  The  train- 
ing lasts  one  year,  howerer  most  of  the  time  is 
given  to  g,vnjecological  work.  But  Holland  has 
only  four  maternity  hospitals,  wliich  form  part  of 
the  university  hospitals,  and  the  number  of  candi- 
dates being  much  larger  than  the  number  of  vacant 
places  it  is  rather  difiBcult  to  get  admitted.  This 
induces  us  to  seek  an  outlet  and  try  some  other 
method  of  training  maternity  nurses.  Some  excel- 
lent work  being  done  by  Dr.Th.  H.  van  der  Velde 
at  Haarlem  in  the  way  of  training  day  nurses,  who 
.Ko  to  people  of  moderate  means.  We  asked  his  help 
for  our  scheme,  and  he  kindly  accepted  our  pro- 
IMJsal  to  institute  a  training  for  maternity  nurses' 
which  will  not  be  given  in  an  hospital  but  in  dis- 
trict nursing.  Dr.  van  der  Velde  has  a  large  prac- 
tice as  accoucheur;  he  founded  some  years  ago  an 
association  for  the  care  of  poor  lying-in  women, 
which  does  splendid  work.  The  new  course  for  ma- 
ternity nurses  will  take  eight  mouths.  Dr.  van  der 
Velde  will  give  the  theoretical  lectures  and  demon- 
strations, and  control  the  practical  training  of  the 
nurses,  who  during  the  first  weeks  will  work  under 
the  constant  supervision  of  a  Superintendent,  a 
certificated  general  and  midwifery  nurse.  They 
will  have  the  whole  care  of  two  or  three  mothers 
and  babies,  doing  their  work  still  under  control  of 
doctor  and  superintendent.  At  the  end  of  their 
training  they  will  pass  an  examination  which  will 
last  a  fortnight. 

This  training  will  have  advantages,  but  also  a 
drawback.  The  drawback  is  that  although  the 
pupils  will  assist  at  confinements,  they  will  but 
rarely  have  the  opportunity  of  seeing  oases  which 
want  surgical  help.  These,  of  course,  are  sent  to 
the  hospitals.  But  as  all  the  pupils  are  certificated 
nurses  who  must  be  skilled  in  surgical  and  opera- 
tive work,  the  drawback  does  not  seem  so  very 
great,  whereas  the  advantages  are  many.  In  the 
first  place  the  pupils  will  not  only  learn  to  nurse 
maternity  cases,  but  they  will  also  get  some  no- 
tions about  district  nursing.  Besides,  it  will  be  an 
advantage  not  to  be  obliged  any  more  to  conform 
to  the  strict  regulations  of  the  hospital,  but  to  be 
able  to  dispose  freely  of  their  time  once  the  work 
done.  The  training  is  given  gratuitously,  but  the 
pupils  will  have  to  pay  for  their  board  and  lodg- 
ings, and  this  will  be  a  drawback  in  the  beginning, 
the  Dutch  nurses  being  accustomed  to  get  some 
salary  from  the  first  moment  they  enter  the  hos- 
pital. But  I  trust  that  the  more  healthy  prin- 
ciple of  paying  for  training,  and  getting  in 
return  good  teaching  will  soon  be  familiar  to 
everybody. 

J.    C.   V.-iN   L.\NSCHOT-HtJBBECHT. 

Secretary  to  the  Dutch  yurses'  Association. 


®ut5i^c  tbc  6ate6. 


WOMEN. 

The  Society  of  Women 
•lournalists  has  issued  its 
tifteenth  Annual  Re- 
ix)rt,  and  makes  a  most 
interesting  little  budget. 
With  brilliant  Lady 
ilcLaren  as  President, 
Mrs.  H.  T.  Bulstrode  as. 
Chairman  of  Council, 
and  Mi-s.  Baillie  Reynolds  as  Vice-Chairman, 
the  meml>ei's  have  a  trio  of  charming  women 
in  office.  Forty-six  new  members  have  been  elected 
during  the  past  year,  and  much  hard  work  for 
their  benefit — social  and  professional — has  been  ac- 
complished. Every  woman  writer  of  note  should 
give  her  support  to  this  excellent  society. 

Df.  E.  ilaude  Marsden  has  been  appointed 
House  Surgeon  at  St.  Mary's  Hospitals,  Manchester, 
for  a  term  of  six  months.  This  is  the  first  appoint- 
ment at  this  hospital  of  a  woman  to  the  resident 
medical  staff.  It  will  be  remembered  that  the 
Board  of  the  Manchester  Royal  Infirmary  have,  so 
far,  declined  to  appoint  a  woman  medical  officer. 


Dr.  Janet  T.  Miller  and  Dr.  Jessie  C.  Russell 
have  been  appointed  as  Senior  and  Junior  Resident 
Medical  Officers  respectively  at  the  East  Poorhouse 
Hospital.  Dundee.  Dr.  Miller  was  formerly  loc»//i 
tencns  at  the  hospital,  while  Dr.  Russell  is  at  pre- 
sent acting  as  Medical  Resident  there. 

The  Dowager  Queeu  of  Sweden,  whose  interest 
in  all  that  concerns  the  welfare  of  her  fellow 
countrymen  and  -nomen  is  well  known,  and  vrho 
has  been  spending  some  months  in  this  country, 
has  shown  a  great  interest  in  the  Swedish  com- 
munity in  London  during  the  Christmas  and  Is'ew 
Year  season.  The  Scandinavian  West-End  ilission 
received  a  gift  of  money,  and  the  Scandinavian 
Temperance  Home  several  Cliristmas  gifts  for  the 
Swedish  sailoi-s,  and  on  the  New  Year's  Eve  her 
Majesty  arranged  an  enteitainment  at  the  Swedish 
Seamen's  Hall  in  Rotherhithe. 

There  is  great  coraix'tition  as  to  the  honour  of 
representing  Joan  of  Arc  at  the  Army  Pageant  at 
Fnlham  Palace  in  June,  when  the  jiaid  is  to  appear 
in  full  battle  an^y,  suiTounded  by  her  faithful 
knights,  and  carrying  the  banner  of  victory.  lue 
selection  will  be  made  amongst  the  many 
applicants,  including  a  peeress  of  the  realm,  by  Mr. 
F.  R.  Benson. 


Meanwhile,  the  canonisation  of  the  "  Blessed 
Joan "  is  being  proceeded  with,  and  within  two 
yeare  we  may  expect  her  acclaimed  as  a  full-blown 
saint.  But  Joan  will  always  be,  to  those  who  love 
her  well,  the  simple  maid,  who,  following  the  dic- 
tates of  con.science,  held  on  the  straight  cour.se, 
though  that  coui'se  led  to  the  stake,  in  her 
patriotic  love  for  king  and  country,  so  ill  requited 
and  so  tardily  recognised  by  the  Church  which 
should  have  been  her  support  what  time  her  brave 
spirit  found  freedom  through  physical  agony. 


Jan.  22,  1010] 


5CDC  Britisb  journal  of  'Wurstng. 


77 


36001?  of  tbe  Mcch. 


THE  GOD  OF  LOVE* 
Those  who  appiocinto<l  "  Tlio  Flower  of  France" 
and  "The  Gorgeous  Borgia,"  l)y  Mr.  J.  Huiitly 
McCarthy,  will  welcome  another  book  by  this 
author  dealing  with  well-knowa  historical 
characters. 

Dante  and  Beatrice — all  the  world  knows  of  tlieir 
tragic  love  story,  yet  many  know  little  more.  Those 
who  wish  to  have  it  brought  vivi<ily  before  tliem 
by  a  past  master  in  the  art  of  presenting  historical 
facts  in  the  form  of  interesting  fiction  will  hasten 
to  secure  "  The  (io<l  of  Love,"  which  they  may  be 
assured  is  well  worth  reading. 

The  book  purix>rts  to  be  written  by  Lappo  Lappi, 
in  his  youth  frankly  libertine,  now  a  monk,  with 
this  at  least  to  his  credit — that  he  loved  Dante  and 
proved  himself  his  true  friend. 

W©  are  introduced  to  the  City  of  Florence  on 
May  Day.  "  No  city  of  Hesithendom  or  Cliristen- 
dom,"  says  Lapi>o  Lappi,  "  could  be  more  beautiful 
than  Florence  at  any  season  of  the  year.  But  I 
tliink  that  in  all  the  history  of  Florence  there  never 
was  a  May  Day  like  that  May  Day.  It  was  gloriously 
green  and  gold,  gloriou.sly  blue  and  white, 
gloriously  hot,  and  yet  with  a  little  cool,  kissing 
breeze  that  matle  the  flaming  houre  delectable.' 

Monna  Beatrice,  daughter  of  Messer  Folco, 
recently  returntnl  to  Florence,  is  Queen  of  the  May 
Festal,  but  though  the  city  holds  high  revel,  and 
the  lads  and  lasses  make  merry  with  the  voluptuous 
unrestraint  of  their  time,  this  has  little  significance 
for  Dante  Aligheri,  ixK?t  and  dreamer. 

We  make  his  acquaintance  on  the  bridge,  where 
his  master  and  teacher,  Messer  Brunetto,  is  di&- 
coursing  very  learnedly  about  Messer  Virgilius. 
'■  The  firet  1  heaixl  him  say  was  this,  in  a  grave 
voice :  '  Forgive  me  for  lingering,  master.  1  was 
listening  to  the  Song  of  the  River.' 

"  '  What  in  the  name  of  all  the  ancients  is  the 
Song  of  the  River?'  Brunetto  echoes,  in  surprise, 
and  Dante  answei^: 

"  '  Tlie  Song  of  the  River,  the  Song  of  Life.  I 
cannot  sing  you  tlie  Song  of  the  River.  If  I  could 
tell  you  its  meaning  I  should  be  a  greater  poet 
than   Virgilius.' 

"Tlie  dapple<l  calm  of  a  green  garden,  the  sable 
sliadow.s  quivering  on  a  ground  of  gold,  a  Iwok  of 
verses  by  him  to  play  with,  and  a  swarm  of  sweet 
rhythms  like  coloure<l  butterflies  floating  jilvout  his 
drowsy  senses,"  have  more  charm  for  Dante  than 
the  ladies  in  Florence,  "as  lovely  as  the  city's 
lilies,"  but  questioned  by  his  comra<ies  as  to 
whether  he  had  ever  been  in  love,  he  owned — 

"Once,  when  I  was  still  a  child,  I  saw  a  child's 
face,  a  girl's  face ;  it  lives  in  my  memory  as  the 
face  of  an  angel.  I  had  a  rose  in  my  hand,  aiul  I 
was  smelling  at  it,  and  then  I  .<iaw  the  child.  Slie 
was  younger  than  I — and  I  was  very  young.  .  .  . 
Laugh  if  you  like,  but  I  learned  what  love  might 
mean  then,  as  I  iXM-pod  over  the  red  breast  of  the 
rose  at  the  little  maiden.       Ohl  if  I  had  all  the 

•By  Justin  Huntly  McCarthy.  (Hurst  and 
Blackett,  Ltd.,  Paternoster  House,  E.G.) 


wor<ls  in  the  world  at  my  order  I  could  not  truly 
tell  you  all  I  thought  of  that  little  child." 

Arrives  Monna  Vittoria  on  the  scenes — light  of 
love,  and  of  "  a  very  sensual  disposition,"  but 
nevertheless  a  good  friend  to  Dante  and  Beatrice 
when  troubles  thicken  around  them.  She  enquires 
of  the  "gentle  gentles"  why  they  are  not  at  the 
sacrifice,  and  explains  it  is  the  sacrifice  of  the 
"  pearl  to  the  pig,"  of  "  a  clean  child  to  a  coarse 
churl,"  the  sacrifice  of  Folco  Portinari's  Httla  Bea- 
trice to  big  Simone  of  the  Bardi,  "  a  queen  of 
beauty  to  a  king  of  beasts." 

In  the  Queen  of  Beauty  Uante  finds  the  little 
child  he  woi'sliipi)ed,  and  the  book  is  concerned  with 
the  struggle  between  Dante  and  Simone.  Dante,  as 
we  aU  know,  won  her  love.  Simone,  by  means  ot"  a 
lx>isonetl  ixjse,  achieved  her  death. 

But  love  of  the  quality  of  that  between  Dante 
and  Beatrice  is  immortal,  and  for  Dante  death 
must  have  been  the  gate  of  life. 

P.  G.  Y. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

January  21st. — Nurses'  Union  "  At  Home,"  5, 
Cambridge  Gate,  2.30 — 7  p.m. 

January  25ih. — Meeting  of  the  Central  Registra- 
tion Committee,  Council  Room,  British  Medical  As- 
sociation OflSce,  429,  Strand,  London,  W.C.,  3.;j0 
p.m.  The  Right  Hon.  the  Lord  Ampthill  will  pie- 
side. 

January  25th. — Matrons'  Council  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland.  Meeting  of  the  Council, 
7.30  p.m.  Papers  and  discussion,  8  p.m.  431,  Ox- 
ford Street,  Ijondon,  W'. 

January  2Gth. — Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh. 
Lecture  on  "  The  Blood,  its  Functions  and  Altera- 
tions," by  Dr.  G.  Lovell  GuUand.  Extra  Mural 
Medical  Theatre,  4.30  p.m.  Nurses  are  cordially  in- 
vited. 

January  27th. — Meeting  of  the  Certified  Mid- 
wives'  Total  Abstiivence  League,  Chapter  House, 
St.  Paul's  Churchyard,  E.C.  Ij«>,cture  by  Dr. 
Kelynack  on  "  Medical  and  Xunsing  Aspects  of  the 
Alcohol  Problem,"  3.30  p.m. 

Jail  uiiry  27th. — Meeting  of  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board,  Caxton  House,  West  min.stcr,  S.W.,  2.45  p.m. 


Morb  for  tbe  Mecft. 


CONSCIENCE  AND  REMORSE. 
"Good-bye,"    1  said  to  my  Conscience — 

"  Good-bye  for   aye  and  aye  "  ; 
And  I  put  her  hands  off  harshly, 

And  turned  my  face  away : 
And  Conscience,  smitten  sorely, 

Returlied  not  from  that  day. 

But  a  time  came  when  my  spirit 

Grew  weary  of  its  pace; 
And. I  cried,  "  Come  back,  my  Conscience, 

I  long  to  see  thy  face  ' ' ; 
But  Conscience  said,   "  I  cannot — 
Remorse  sits  in  my  place." 

Pacl  L.^wrence  Drxn.vR, 
From  The  A'ursea'  Journal  of  the  Pacific  Coast. 


7S 


tLbe  Britiei?  3ournaI  of  IRursing. 


[Jan.  22,  1910 


letters  to  tbe  lEMtor. 

~'  Whilst  cordially  invifing  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
joT  these  columns,  we  icish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  we  do  not  in  ant  wai 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  out 
correspondents. 


FOR  EVER  AND  EVER. 
To  the  Editor  vi  tht  ■British  Journal  of  yursiiuj:' 
Deak  Madam, — Thank  you  for  your  little  para- 
graph re  my  helief  in  the  usefulness,  not  to  speak 
of  the  power,  of  the  ^Matrons'  Council.  I  have  al- 
ways had  a  great  respect  for  that  body, 
and  a  great  belief  in  its  capabilities.  It  was 
Xajwleon,  I  think,  who  said  that  an  army  fought 
and  conquered  on  its  stomach,  and  its  feet.  Equally 
true  of  a  hospital.  I  have  seen  methods  of  treat- 
ment come  and  methods  of  treatment  go.  I 
have  seen  carboac  sprays,  absolutely  essential 
to  collect  surgical  procedure.  relegated  to 
the  scrap  heap.  I  have  applied  sixty  poultices  in 
one  day  to  the  patients  of  a  surgical  ward,  and 
have  lived  to  see  poultices  treated  with  derision 
and  contempt.  I  have  seen  many  a  gay  balloon  of 
fresh  experimental  treatment  launched  with  hope 
and  confidence  only  to  sink  gently  back  to  Mother 
Earth,  punctured ;  but  I  have  never,  never  met  a 
hospital  that  did  not  require  a  steady  supply  of 
clean  Sheets  and  a  square  mid-day  meal. 
Yours  faithfully, 

M.    MOLLEIT. 

Royal  South  Hants  and  Southampton  Hospital. 

SIMPLICITY  THE   FOUNDATION   OF  GOOD 

NURSING. 

To  the  Editor  of  fhi'  '•  British  Journal  of  Xursin,/.- 

De.\r'  M.\da.m. — I  was  very  interested  to  read  the 
article  recently  on  the  care  of  the  breasts. 
It  is  one  more  proof  of  the  undesirability  of  "  med- 
dlesonTe  midwifery.''  We  used  to  be  taught  to  give 
vaginal  douches  as  a  routine  practice  to  every 
lying-in  woman.  Now  we  know  these  to  be  undesir- 
able except  under  special  circumstances,  and — un- 
less in  the  most  careful   hands — dangerous. 

The  management  of  the  breasts  was  again  a  com- 
plicated business,  if  for  any  reason  the  mother's 
milk  bad  to  be  dried  up.  Breast  pumps,  bella- 
donna plasters,  mas-sage,  bandaging,  the  aid  of  all 
was  invoked.  But  we  learn  jio-w  that  these  are  un- 
necessary, and  that  the  best  restrictive  bandage  is 
that  ai)plied  by  nature.  TheTe  is  also  a  consider- 
able difference  of  opinion  as  to  the  application  of 
the  mother's  binder,  and  it  seems  likely  that  after 
the  infant's  binder  has  served  the  purpose  of  keep- 
ing the  dressing  iu  place  until  the  cord  separates 
that  it,  too.  may  be  abandoned  as  useless  and  even 
injurious.  Does  not  all  this  tend  to  .show  that  sim- 
plicity in  nursing  as  in  everything  else,  is  the  best 
policy,  and  that  the  nearer  we  approach  to  it  the 
better  nurses  we  are.*"  Just  as  the  present  simplicity 


of    aseptic    dressing    is   infinitely   superior   to  the 
complicated  methods  in  vogue  under  the  antiseptic 
system,  so  modern  midwifery  is  immeasurably   in 
advance  of  the  meddlesome  methods  of  the  past. 
I  am,  dear  madam, 

Yours  faithfully, 

A  Lover  of  SiMPLiciTjr. 

THE  COLOGNE  CONGRESS. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  '■  British  Journal  of  7\UTsing." 
Dear  Madaji, — When  1912  is  here  no  end  cf 
nurses  will  want  to  go  to  Cologne  to  attend  the 
International  Congress  of  Nurses,  which  is  sure  to 
\>e  splendidly  organised  by  our  German  sisters,  and 
if  they  do  not  save  up  for  it  the  money  will  not  be 
to  hand.  May  I  make  a  suggestion — that  we  begin 
to  save  now — so  that  we  can  enjoy  a  real  holiday  in 
comfort  when  the  time  comes,  and  see  all  there  is 
to  be  seen.  Witb  economy  a  little  tour  in  South 
Germany  oould  be  accomplished,  and  £10  to  £15 
ougbt  to  be  .saved ;  or  if  we  put  by  5s.  to  10s.  a 
month  a  nice  little  sum  would  be  ready  by  the  sum- 
mer of  1912.  Will  anyone  offer  to  act  as  "Bank 
in  the  meantime? 

Yours  truly, 
A  Member  of  the  Ixterxatioxal  CorxciL 

OF    NCRSES. 


Comtnents  anb  IRcplies. 

We  must  apologise  to  semi-private  correspondents 
for  delay  in  replying  to  their  letters.  No  doubt 
they  will  accoitl  forgiveness  when  they  remember 
that  this  is  General  Election  week. 


Probationer. — You  will  learn  many  details  of 
practical  importance  iu  your  work  from  ex- 
l>eriencefl  nui-ses  under  whom  you  work  which  you 
will  never  find  in  any  text-book.  It  is  a  good  plan 
to  write  these  down,  so  that  in  course  of  time  you 
mav  have  a  valuable  note-book  for  reference. 


TRoticcg. 

RULES  FOR   PRIZE  COMPETITIONS. 
The  Neatest  >.rKSE  Photograph. 

We  offer  10s.  for  a  photograph  of  a  nui^e  in 
uniform,  neatness  to  be  the  test  of  excellence,  with 
permission  to  publish  the  same.  The  photographs 
must  reach  the  Editor  at  20,  Upper  Wunpole 
Street.  London,  W.,  not  later  than  Saturday. 
January  22nd.  Photographs  sent  which  do  not  win 
the  prize  will  be  returned. 

An  Article  on  a  Practical  Nursing  Sitbject. 

We  offer  £1  10s.  for  an  article  dealing  with 
Practical  Nureing  of  from  1.400  to  1,500  words,  to 
reach  the  Editor  not  later  than  Saturday,  January 
29th.  By  arrangement  with  competitors  arcn.ies 
other  than  that  to  which  the  Prize  is  awarded  may 
be  selected  for  publication. 

Each  competitor  must  enclose  her  name  and 
address  in  full. 


OUR  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing   for   the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


jau.  22,  i9iOj  2;f5c  Britisb  3ournal  of  Mursiiuj  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


Zbc  1910  "Union  of  flDibwives. 


POPULAR   REPRESENTATION  AND   POPULAR 
CONTROL. 

The  1910  Union  of  ^lidwives,  which  has 
pubhslied  a  manifesto  declaring  its  poHcy  in 
the  current  issue  of  the  Midwives'  Record,  is 
to  be  commended  for  the  aims  which  it  sets 
before  its  members,  and  the  cleai-ness  with 
which  it  gives  expression  to  them. 

The  Protection  of  the  Ixdividlwl  .and 
Corporate  Interests  of  Midwives. 

The  L'nion  holds  that  the  interests  of  mid- 
wives  can  only  be  adequately  looked  after  by 
midwives,  and  it  is  further  convinced  that  the 
conditions  of  midwifery,  and  the  feeling  of  mid- 
wives  throughout  the  country  renders  such  a 
movement  inevitable.  It  desires  to  work  in 
cordial  co-operation  with  all  existing  organisa- 
tions that  by  united  efforts,  exerted  on  a 
national  scale,  they  may,  by  evei-y  means  at 
their  command,  erect  and  maintain  a  bulwark 
for  the  protection  of  their  individual  and  cor- 
porate interests. 

Direct  Kepkesext.\tion. 

Next  the  Union  holds  that  sweeping  changes 
in  the  constitution  of  the  Central  ^lid wives' 
Board  are  essential  if  it  is  to  be  a  fair  arid  ade- 
quate governing  body  for  midwives,  and  that 
direct'  representation  upon  it  of  certified  mid- 
wives  chosen  by  popular  election  is  at  once 
essential  and  inevitable.  It  declares  that 
though  this  feeUng  is  deep-seated  and  wide- 
spread no  adequate  and  organic  expression  has 
been  given  to  it  hitherto. 

The  Principle  of  Self-Governmext. 

Further,  it  proclaims  as  an  essential  prin- 
ciple, the  non-interference  of  any  outside  ele- 
ments, however  distinguished  they  may  be 
socially,  or  however  influential  their  medical  or 
legal  qualifications  may  be. 

It  points  out  that  the  principle  of  self-govern- 
ment has  been  successfully  applied  to  the 
organisation  of  workers  both  in  the  industrial 
and  professional  world,  as  in  medicine,  the  law 
and  the  church,  and  that  the  same  principle 
should  be  applied  to  midwives.  Doctors  and 
lawyers  alike  would  regard  it  as  an  impertin- 
ence for  laymen,  or  lay  women,  to  intrude  on 
the  administration  of  their  respective  profes- 
sions, and  the  trade  unionist  who  should  pro- 
pose that  members  of  the  employing  class, 
however  philanthropic  their  professions  may  be 
should  be  invited  to  serve  on  the  governing 
bodies  of  their  trade  societies  would  be  greeted 
with  well  merited  derision. 


The  Union  believes  that  the  same  spirit  and 
principles  must  and  will  actuate  working  mid- 
wives  now  and  in  the  future.  Laywomen  truly 
interested  in  the  well  being  of  midwives  can 
find  an  outlet  for  their  activities  in  other 
societies,  but  this  one  is  to  be  governed  by 
its  rank  and  file,  elected  by  the  suffrages  of 
their  sisters. 

Such  a  logical  and  straightforward  pro- 
gramme must  widely  commend  itself.  There 
is  every  prospect  of  a  successful  future  for  a 
Union  of  Midwives  founded  by  and  governed 
by  midwives,  and  all  the  officers  and  tem- 
porally Executive  Committee  have  the  one  es- 
sential qualification  that  they  are  certified 
midwives. 

All  midwives  in  favour  of  the  objects  of  the 
Union  are  asked  to  sign  a  form  which  runs :  "  I 
am  in  favour  of  the  objects  of  the  1910  Union 
of  Midwives  as  explained  in  the  subjoined 
manifesto,  and  will  attend  the  first  meeting, 
if  possible."  The  name  and  address  of  the 
applicant  should  be  attached,  and  the  apphca- 
1,ion  forwarded  with  a  half-penny  stamp  to  the 
Hon.  Secretary,  8,  Henrietta  Street,  Covent 
Garden,  London. 

There  is  every  prospect  of  a  large  gathering. 


^be  IL.C-C.  an^  tbe  nDi^\\nvcs'  Hct. 

The  Report  of  the  Public  Health  Com- 
mittee of  the  London  County  Council,  sub- 
mitting the  Eeport'  of  the  Medical  Officer  of 
Health  for  the  County  for  the  year  1908,  con- 
tains the  following  reference  to  the  JMidwives 
Act  :  — 

The  number  of  midwives  giving  addresses  in 
London,  whose  names  have  been  placed  on 
the  Roll,  was  3,020,  made  up  as  follows:  — 

(a)  1,824  in  virtue  of  a  certificate  obtained  liy 
examination  prior  to  the  Midwives  Act,  1902. 

(h)  1,011  in  virtue  of  a  certificate  from  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board. 

(c)  185  in  virtue  of  having  been  in  practicf 
for  a  year  prior  to  the  passing  of  the  Act. 

After  correcting  for  removals  and  deaths, 
where  such  had  been  reported,  the  number  of 
certified  midwives  residing  in  London  in  19i,i!S 
was  reduced  to  2,690.  Of  these,  518  gave 
notice  of  their  intention  to  practise  during  the 
j'ear,  including  32  midwives  acting  on  specific 
occasions,  but  not  practising  regularly  in 
Loudon.  The  London  midwives  are  classified 
as  follows  :  — 


^be  Britisb  3ournal  of  IHursing  Supplement.  [J^"  22,  mo 


Not 

Notifying  liiteu- 

Practisiug 

tioii  10  Practise 
during  1908. 

Total. 

Class  (a) 

1,392 

206 

1,598 

Class  (b)    . 

ri6 

204 

920 

Class  (c)     . 

64 

108 

172 

2,172  518  2,690 

Mauy  of  the  '204  midwives  in  class  (b),  who 
notified  their  intention  to  practise,  were  newly 
qualified,  and  were  working  for  short  periods 
at  the  institutions  where  they  were  trained 
prior  to  taking  up  practice  in  other  parts  of 
England,  or  going  abroad. 

From  the  above  figures  it  will  be  seen  that 
less  than  20  jjer  cent,  of  the  midwives  residing 
in  London  are  practising.  The  remainder  for 
the  most  part  act  as  monthly  nurses  under  the 
direction  of  medical  practitioners. 

Of  the  practising  midwives,  some  25  reside 
at,  and  work  in  connection  with,  lying-in  hos- 
pitals or  Poor  Law  Infirmaries,  and  are  under 
the  supervision  of  medical  practitioners. 
Others  hving  in  their  own  homes  attend 
patients  on  behalf  of  charitable  institutions, 
which  pay  them  fees  for  each  case  allotted  to 
them,  a  few  taking  no  other  cases,  while  others 
are  also  engaged  in  independent  private 
practice.  The  rest  practise  independently,  or 
work  in  lying-in  institutions  not  under  direct 
medical  supenisiou. 

Three  practisiug  midwives  died,  12  gave  up 
practice,  and  27  removed  from  the  county 
during  the  vear. 


^he  1Rotunt)a  Ibospltal,  Bublin. 

Dr.  Lombe  Attbill,  continuing  his  reminiscences 
in  the  British  Medical  Journal,  gives  the  following 
details  in  regard  to  the  nursing  staff  at  the 
Rotunda  Hospital,  Dublin,  on  his  appointment  as 
Master  in  1875  :  — 

"  There  was  not  a  trained  nurse  in  the  house 
except  the  '  head  midwife,'  whose  main  business 
was  to  supervise  the  female  pupils,  who  were 
trained  in  midwifery  only ;  they  picked  up  from 
the  ward  nurses  such  knowledge  of  the  nursing  of 
lying-in  women  as  the  nurses  were  willing  or  able 
to  impart.  The  ward  nurses  were  always  respec- 
table elderly  women  of  good  character,  selected  by 
the  Matron,  and  put  in  charge  of  a  ward  when  a 
vacancy  occurred,  without  any  previous  training. 
Some  of  these,  I  found,  could  neither  read  nor 
write.  Their  wages,  too,  were  but  £10  a  year. 
They  provided  their  own  clothing,  and  as  their 
laundry  expenses  were  not  provided  for,  they  were 
in  the  habit  of  washing  their  underclothing,  etc., 
in  their  wards,  during  the  interval  between  the 
discharge  of  one  batch  of  patients  and  the  admis- 
sion of  the  nest.  Their  dresses,  being  black,  were 
never  washed,  and  were  worn  till  they  could  no 
longer  be  held  together ;  not  that  you  ever  saw  a 
nurse  in  rags,  they  always   hxjked  respectable. 


"As.  I,  could  not  think  of  discharging  these 
women,  some  of  whom,  indeed,  were  worthy  of 
trust,  I  made  the  following  suggestions  to  the 
governors,  which  they  approved  of  :  — First,  that 
the  nurses  should  be  divided  into  three  classes. 
Two,  selected  by  me,  to  receive  £20  a  year  each, 
the  second  class  to  receive  £16,  and  the  third  £14 ; 
all  to  be  provided  with  uniform,  and  laundry  ex- 
penses paid.  No  washing  to  be  permitted  in  the 
wards. 

"  AH  were  pleased  at  the  prospect  of  better  pay. 
Some  objected  to  the  division  into  classes,  and  most 
of  them  to  being  obliged  to  wear  uniform.  Indeed, 
the  head  midwife  was  much  opposed  to  this  innova- 
tion, specially  as  it  applied  equally  to  the  pupil 
midwives;  and  she  gravely  protested  against  '  the 
poor  things  being  obliged  to  wear  calico  dresses  in 
winter."  Yet  she  was  a  most  intelligent,  and,  in 
other  respects,  most  trustworthy,  woman  ;  but  she 
was  a  great  conservative,  and  considered  wearing 
uniform  derogatory  to  her  pupils.  As  to  herself, 
she  was  not  asked  to  wear  it.  I  knew  she  would 
have   resigned  sooner  than  do  so. 

"  The  new  rules  worked  very  well.  Some  of  the 
oldest  and  least  efficient  nurses,  being  disgusted  at 
not  being  selected  for  the  first  class,  said  that  if 
they  were  given  a  gratuity  they  would  resign. 
Their  application  was  granted,  and  so  I  got  rid  of 
one  or  two  inefficients  without  causing  trouble; 
and  before  my  term  as  Master  expired  I  could  not 
liave  wished  for  a  better  staff  than  I  had. 

"  The  Matron  was  a  nice  old  lady,  a  widow,  who 
ban  formerly  been  in  a  good  social  position.  She 
wished  to  do  right,  but  had  not  had  any  previous 
training,  and  had  no  idea  of  what  the  duties  of  a 
hospital  Matron  should  be.  She  walked  through 
the  wards  once  daily  to  see  if  they  were  clean,  etc., 
but  with  this  exception  her  duties  were  really  those 
of  a  housekeeper.  It  remained  for  my  then 
assistant.  Dr.  (now  Sir  William)  Smyly,  to  again 
reorganise  the  nursing  staff.  Acting  on  his  advice 
when,  some  years  later  (in  1889),  he  was  elected 
Master,  the  Board  abolished  the  office  of  head  mid- 
wife, and  appointed,  as  Lady  Superintendent,  a 
trained  nurse,  with  Sisters,  nurses,  and  proba- 
tioners under  her,  as  in  other  hospitals.  I,  being 
then  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Governors,  n  as 
able  to  support  him  in  this  and  other  improvements, 
for  the  carrying  out  of  which  he  deserves  the 
greatest  credit." 


JLl)C  Central  HDibwivcs'  36oav^ 
fiyanunations. 

The  next  examination  of  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board  will  be  held  on  February  loth,  in  London, 
at  the  Examination  Hall,  Victoria  Embankmeni, 
AV.C,  also  in  Birmingham,  at  the  University;  in 
Bristol,  at  University  College ;  in  Manchester,  at 
Victoria  University ;  and  in  Newcastle-on-Tyne, 
at  the  University  of  Durham  College  of  Medicine. 
Also  at  Leeds — the  new  centre^by  the  kind  permis- 
sion of  the  University  authorities,  who  have  offered 
all  the  necessary  facilities,  the  examination  will 
be  held  at  the  University. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

THE  MeHSIIKI  HECOMB 

eOlTEO   BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,  JANUARY  29.  1910. 


fi&itorial. 


UNITY     OF    PURPOSE. 

A  most  hopeful  siga  of  the  growing  im- 
portance of  the  movement  for  the  State 
Registration  of  Trained  Xiu-ses  and  of  the 
support  accorded  to  it  by  influential  socie- 
ties, is  the  Conference  which  took  place  on 
Tuesday  afternoon  last  at  the  offices  of  the 
British  Medical  Association,  \mder  the  presi- 
ilency  of  Lord  Ampthill,  with  tlie  object  of 
securing  united  action  in  regard  to  State 
Registration  until  a  satisfactory  law  lias 
been  passed  by  Parliament.  Adhesion  to 
principle  of  State  Registration  of  so  power- 
ful a  Society  as  the  British  Medical  Associa- 
tion would  alone  be  strong  evidence  infavour 
of  such  a  measure,  but  the  promotion  of  a 
law  so  intimately  affecting  nurses  must  also 
have  Uieir  support,  and  no  more  forcible 
■  lemonstration  that  this  support  is  forth- 
coming could  be  accorded  than  that  dele- 
gates of  influential  societies  of  nurses  in  the 
three  kingdoms  are  so  keenly  anxious  for 
the  passage  of  a  law  that  they  were  ready 
to  devote  a  considerable  cxpenditiu-eof  time 
and  money  to  attend  the  Conference  in  order 
to  support  the  object  which  it  had  in  view. 

In  face  of  this  united  front,  the  obstruc- 
tion of  the  authorities  of  about  a  dozen 
London  hospitals  must  give  way.  Is  it 
not  infieed  time  that  they  realised  that  the 
law  of  progi'ess  demands  their  support  in- 
stead of  their  opposition  to  such  a  measure  ? 
A  little  more  than  half  a  century  ago  train- 
ing schools  for  nurses  were  non-existent — 
women,  generally  of  mature  age  and  of  the 
charwoman  type,  were  engaged  to  care  for 
the  sick,  a  phase  of  which  the  term  "  nuree- 
tender "' — not  yet  wholly  extinct — is  remi- 
niscent. A  little  later  women  of  a  different 
stamp,  but  still  almost  entirely  uneduaited, 
were  utilised.  Then  came  the  establishmsnt 
of    training  schools    for    nurses,    because 


hospital  committees,  stimulated  by  the 
example  of  Miss  Florence  Nightingale, 
found  that  by  this  method  the  sick  in  tiieir 
charge  could  be  best  cared  for. 

With  the  establishment  of  the  trainins: 
scliool,  hospital  committees  assumed  duties 
of  an  entirely  new  character,  and  became 
in  fact  educational  authorities,  and  that  in 
respect  to  a  highly  skilled  branch  of  work 
with  the  theoretical  requirements  of  which 
they  were  not  as  a  rule  conversant,  and  with 
the  technical  details  of  which  they  were  un- 
familiar, but  the  fact  that  they  have  assiimed 
these  duties  carries  with  it  corresponding 
obligations. 

We  are  the  first  to  admit  the  great  amount 
of  progress  which  has  been  achieved  in 
nursing  education,  but  we  contend  that 
nursing  standards  are  at  present  an  unknown 
quantity,  that  they  depend  greatly  upon  the 
ability  of  individual  matrons,  so  that  even 
the  nursing  school  of  a  hospital,  at 
one  time  efficient,  may  with  a  change  of 
Matrons  become  inefficient.  The  efficiency 
of  trained  nurses  is  a  matter  of  national 
importance,  and  a  definite  minimum  stan- 
dard should  therefore  be  maintained  under 
state  authority. 

Is  it  not  time  that  hospital  audiorities 
realised  that  the  insistent  demand  of  trained 
nurses  for  the  i-egulation  of  their  profession, 
and  the  systematic  organisation  of  nursing 
education,  is  a  legitimate  one,  made  in  the 
public  interest,  and  should  receive  their 
cordial  support?  We  believe  that  tlie 
issues  have  been  obscured,  and  that  many 
hospital  governoi-s  do  not  understand  what 
is  involved  in  the  demand  of  nurses  for  legal 
registration.  We  hope  that  in  the  near 
future  any  objections  they  have  felt  in  tlie 
past,  through  a  misapprehension  of  the 
question,  may  be  entirely  removed,  and  that 
they  will  come  forward  to  help  a  reform 
which  has  too  long  been  delaved. 


^•2 


^be  Brttlsb  Sournal  of  IRursino. 


[Jan.  20,  1910 


fIDcMcal  fIDattcrs. 


TREATMENT  OF  CHILBLAINS. 

The  Paris  corresjioiulent  of  the  l.'iijr,  t  states 
that  aeooixliiig  toil.  .JaL-CLuet  and  .M.  -Jourdanet 
chilblains  are  caused  by  a  contlict  ot  multii^le 
in-itatious.  lu  a  comuiunicatiou  on  this  sub- 
ject read  at  a  meeting  of  the  Academy  of  Medi- 
ciuo  held  on  .January  4th  they  said  that  one 
factor  in  these  irritations  was  the  in- 
fluence of  cold  or  rather  of  rapid  and 
repeated  alternations  of  (X)ld  and  heat, 
whilst  another  factor  consisted  of  variou.s 
organic  reflexes.  The  effect  of  these 
causes  was  that  the  vascular  .system  of  the 
skiu  suffered  from  functional  imj)airmeut  with 
the  production  of  stasis,  erythema,  engorge- 
ment, and  ulceration.  In  ti'eatment  the  first 
consideration  was  exercise  and  elevation  of  the 
extremities.  Very  frequently — even-  hour  if 
possible — the  patient,  sitting  comfortably  on 
the  edge  of  a  bed,  should  raise  his  arms  to  their 
full  height  for  several  minutes,  at  the  same 
time  making  with  his  hands,  and  especially 
with  his  fingers,  rapid  and  alternative  move- 
ments of  complete  flexion  and  extension.  Simi- 
lar exercises  of  elevation  and  movement  were 
appHcable  to  the  feet,  the  patient  being  either 
seated  or  recumbent.  During  the  intervals 
between  these  exercises  care  should  he  taken 
not  to  let  the  hands  hang  down  or  swing  to  and 
fro,  and  when  there  were  chilblains  on  the  toes 
the  person  should  keep  as  much  as  possible  in 
the  horizontal  position  with  the  feet  raised. 
Of  course,  the  extremities  should  Ije  well  pro- 
tected against  cold.  After  a  few  days  of  this 
treatment  the  local  asphyxia  diminished,  the 
doughy  condition  disappeared,  and  the  stiff 
and  swollen  fingers  resumed  their  natural 
condition.  Massage  might  then  with  advan- 
tage be  added  to  the  exercises  already  de- 
scribed, the  best  fonrj  of  it  being  gradual 
kneading  of  the  tissues. 


BERI-BERI   AT  SINGAPORE. 

Dr.  \V.  (lihnore  Ellis,  who  is  the  medical 
superintendent  and  medical  officer  to  a  special 
hospital  for  beri-beri  which  was  opened  at 
Singapore  in  1907,  sends  a  gratifying  account 
of  the  success  that  has  been  secured  in  the 
ti-eatment  of  the  disease,  to  the  Birmingham 
Post.  The  hospital  contains  120  beds,  and  of 
738  patients  who  have  passed  through  Dr. 
Ellis's  hands  only  twenty  have  died,  and  in 
only  eight  of  these  was  beri-beri  the  cause  of 
death.  The  healthy  site  of  the  hospital,  which 
stands  on  the  sea  five  miles  from  Singapore,  the 
open  air  treatment,  and  the  sea-bathing  which 
is  followed  as  a  routine,  all  patients  being  kejit 
in  the  sea  for  half  an  hour  daily  and  massaged, 
promote  healing,   and  Dr.  Ellis    attaches   the 


greatest  importance ,  to  the  prohibition  of  un- 
cured  rice  as  an  article  of  diet.  His  own  ex- 
perience in  connection  with  the  Singapore 
Lunatic  Asylum,  where  there  has  been  a  suc- 
cession of  epidemics  since  1896,  convinced  him 
that  the  disease  was  due  in  some  way  to  the 
use  of  uncured  rice,  and  the  use  of  cured  or 
Bengal  rice  exclusively  has  kept  the  institu- 
tion free  from  beri-beri  for  more  than  a  year. 
Dr.  Ellis  gives  the  directions  v\hieli  are  fol- 
lowed for  the  prejaaration  of  cured  rice  in  the 
Beri-Beri  Ho.spital.  The  rice  used  is  Siam 
rice.  It  is  .soaked  in  water  for  forty-eight 
hoiu's,  the  water  being  changed  once.  It  is 
then  placed  in  boilers  and  steamed,  not  under 
pressure,  until  the  grains  burst,  generally  a 
matter  of  from  ten  to  twelve  minutes.  It  is 
then  sun-dried,  and  afterwards  goes  througii 
the  mill,  to  be  husked  in  the  usual  way. 

MALARIA   AND   BLACKWATER    FEVER   ON 
THE  GOLD  COAST. 

A  retired  surgeon,  Lieut. -Colonel  of  the  In- 
dian "Medical  Seiwice,  writing  to  the  Times  on 
the  above  subject,  says:  "There  are  three 
methods  whereby  infection  with  malaria  can 
be  prevented — the  first  is  absolute  pi'otection 
agai)ist  the  bites  of  mosquitoes;  secondly, 
the  extermination  of  mosquitoes;  and  thirdly, 
the  efficient  prophylactic  use  of  quinine. 

"  From   what  I   saw  of  the  conditions  pre- 
vailing on  the  Gold  Coast  I  was  forced  to  the  - 
conclusion   that   the    third     method — namely, 
quinine     prophylaxis — was    the    only    one    on 
which  any  reliance  could  be  placed. 

"  Europeans  who  go  to  the  Gold  C/oast 
quickly  acquire  the  belief  that  an  attack  of 
fever  is,  in  the  natiu'e  of  things,  a  right  and 
proper  dispensation.  They  are  led  to  think 
that  the  use  of  quinine  will  in  a  measure  only 
protect  them  from  "an  outbreak  of  fever,  and 
not,  as  should  be  the  case,  that  it  will  prevent 
it-s  occuiTence.  It  is  difficult  to  understand  why 
it  should  be  regarded  asi  la  palliative  only  and  not 
a  specific  in  the  prevention  of  fever.  It  is  as 
easy  to  kill  an  infant  as  an  adult,  and  there- 
fore it  is  certain  that  quinine,  which  desti'oys 
a  developed  malarial  infection  will  likewise  kill 
a  similar  infection  in  its  earlier  infantile  stage. 
An  attack  of  malarial  fever  results  from 
the  presence  in  the  blood  of  "a  large  number  of 
spores.  These  spores,  but  few  at  first,  arise 
from  the  germs  injected  by  the  mosquito.  The 
spores  multiply  in  the  blood  of  the  person  bit- 
ten, and  several  days  must  elapse  before  they 
can  become  sufficiently  numerous  to  produce 
an  attack  of  fever.  To  think  that  quinine  will 
not  destroy  these  spores  when  few  in  number 
and  thereby  prevent  fever,  whilst  admitting 
that  it  will  kill  them- when  in  great  numbers 
and  so  cure  fever,  is  to  believe  what  seems  to 
be  an   absurdity. 


•29,  1910] 


Zrt)£  35r(tis5b  3oiu*nal  of  ■Wursmg. 


83 


a  Special  (Eurriculiun  fov  IPrivatc 
IHurscs" 

Bi   AilsS  J.  ij.    \.\N  IjANSOHOT-liLhUtAlll. 

The  suitahlf  traiuiug  of  nurses  preseutB 
many  dirticultii-s.  The  subject  of  this  paper 
is  the  traiuiug  of  the  private  ilurse.  My  eX- 
perieuce  as  Sueretary  of  the  Dutcli  Nurses'  As- 
sociation has  tauglit  nie  tliat  their  education 
is  still  very  iueonijplete.  To  my  idea  it  is  a 
great  mistake  for  a  nurse,  who  has  merely  her 
certitieate  for  general  nursing,  obtained  after 
a  three  years'  training  in  an  hospital  where 
no  paying  patients  are  nursed,  to  be  allowed, 
to  go  in  for  private  nursing.  Even  if 
she  were  technically  fit  for  her  task, 
which  it  is  almost  impossible  for  her 
to  be  under  the  present  conditions,  the 
complaints  of  the  public  prove,  that  manj- 
of  the  nurses  from  lack  of  refinement,  good 
manners,  and  general  knowledge,  are  totally 
unfit  for  the  work  they  take  upon  themselves. 

Of  late  years  nursing  has  not  the  attraction 
for  women  that  it  had  formerly.  For  one  thing 
women  have  now  obtained  a  footing  in  most  of 
the  professions  wiiieli  formerly  were  oiien  to 
men  only.  Twenty  years  ago  a  girl,  who  had 
to  work  for  her  living  or  desired  to  become  a 
u.seful  member  of  society,  had  only  two  courses 
open  to  her :  that  of  teacher  or  nvn-se ;  nowa- 
da3"S  she  has  nearly  all  the  professions  to.choose 
from.  Hence  there  are  fewer  better-educated 
"young  women  who  take  up  the  nurses'  profes- 
sion. A  second  factor  is  the  incomplete  train- 
ing the  nurses  receive.  And  while  well-edu- 
cated women  seeking  to  become  nurses  grow- 
less  in  number  every  year,  the  demand  for 
nurses  becomes  greater.  t'onsequently  the 
trainijig-sehools  have  been  obliged  to  be  less 
particular  in  their  conditions  for  aduiittance, 
and  accept  as  probationers  young  women  whose 
school  education  has  ceased  at  their  fourteenth 
year.  Among  those  are  many  w'ell  qualified 
for  hospital  woik,  young  women  loving  their 
profession,  thoroughly  trustworthy,  and  \\liom 
the  hospital  authorities  gladly  assign  posts  of 
confidence,  l^ut  they  are  not  fit  for  private 
nursing  because  of  their  lack  of  general  culture 
and  refinement. 

In  our  days  high  claims  are  made  of  a  private 
nurse.  There  is  in  the  first  place  her  technical 
knowledge  to  consider,  which  should  be  far 
more  extensive  than  that  of  the  hospital  nurse, 
because  she  worlcs  more  independently,  and 
has  greater  responsibilities  than  the  niu'se  in 
tlie  institution,  who  always  has  a  sister  or  a 
physician  to   resort   to  in  emergencies.       The 

*  Read  at  the  International  Coiigro«s  of  Xnrses. 
linden,  July.  10011. 


private  nurse  in  such  case  has  to  trust  to  what 
she  has  been  taught. 

Then  it  often  Happens  that  the  nurse  is 
completely  isolated  with  her  patient,  or  else 
they  spend  long  hours  together,  hours  which 
for  nervous,  chronic,  or  convalescent  patients 
should  be  spent  in  the  pursuit  of  agreeable  pas- 
times. We  all  know  that  light  handicraft  is 
often  i^rescribed  as  a  part  of  the  treatment, 
and  the  nurse,  in  order  to  be  able  to  adequately 
perform  her  task  in  that  case  must  be  skilled 
in  different  khids  of  ligiit  occupation  such  as 
kindergarten,  slojd,  needlework,  etc.  She 
should  further  be  sufficiently  educated  to  carry 
qp  an  intelligent  conversation  uj^on  art,  litera- 
ture, music,  or  the  topic  of  the  day. 

The  private  muse  comes  into  contact  with  all 
sorts  and  conditions  of  men.  We  desire  that 
she  shall  everywhere  be  treated  as  a  lady;  but 
in  order  to  bring  this  about  the  nurse  herself 
must  be  a  lady.  She  should  be  able  to  readily 
adapt  herself  to  every  circumstance,  and  pos- 
sess the  dignity  and  good  manners  which  place 
her  above  the  level  of  the  domestic  servants. 

A  private  nurse  will  be  called  at  one  time 
to  a  rich  household  where  she  will  have  no 
other  duty  than  the  care  of  her  patient :  an- 
other time  she  will  be  called  to  people  of  moder- 
ate mean.s,  where  she  will  have  to  put  her 
shoulder  to  the  wheel,  and  if  it  is  the  mistress 
W'ho  is  ill.  probably  have  to  take  her  place.  That 
part  of  the  nurse's  w-ork  requires  knowledge  of 
household  economics.  But  wherever  the 
nurse  is,  she  is  responsible  for  the  food  of  her 
patient,  she  must  know  how  to  make  ui>  a 
dainty  menu,  the  kind  of  food  allowed  to  her 
patient,  and  how  to  prepare  it.  Therefore,  she 
must  leara  general  and  diet  cooking. 

The  P.sychiatrical  and  Xein'ological  Society 
in  Holland  came , to  the  conclusion  a  few  years 
ago  that  the  certificate  it  gave  to  its  nurses 
was  no  guarantee  for  the  technical  knowledge 
of  those  who  went  out  as  private  nurses.  It 
decided  to  give  for  the  future  two  certificates. 
The  first  one.  A,  is  awarded  after  a  three  years' 
training  in  mental  nursing,  and  declares  tlic 
mu-se  fully  qualified  tor  nur-snig  in  an  asylum. 
After  another  year  of  study  a  second  certificate. 
B,  is  given,  which  states  that  the  inn-se  is 
qualified  for  the  more  independent  work  out- 
side an  asylum. 

I  should  like  to  see  similar  rides  established 
for  general  nursing.  The  cin-riculum  for  the 
certificate  B  of  the  Psychiatrical  and  Neurolo- 
gical Society  includes  the  same  subjects  as  for 
the  certificate  .\,  but  they  are  treated  more  in 
detail,  including  besides  cooking  and  materia 
mediea.  I  should  wish  to  add  to  this  curricu- 
hnn  household  economics,  diet  cooking,  slojd. 
kindergarten,  literature,  and  reading  aloud  in 


84 


^bc  Bririsb  3ournal  ot  iRiu*t>ing.       tJi"  •^^-  i^io 


foreigu  languages.  If  for  these  last  lessons 
l)eiiodicals  are  chosen,  the  nurses  will  easily 
obtain  a  fair  amount  of  general  iUiowledge. 

By  instituting  this  longer  course  of"training 
for  private  nurses,  I  trust  that  we  shall  acquire 
a  body  of  able  women  to  whose  care  by  reason 
of  their  extensive  technical  knowledge,  culture, 
and  refinement,  the  public  will  confidently  en- 
trust their  sick  ones. 


3Me  ^bouQbts  of  an  3Mc  riDatron. 

Charles  V.,  after  his  abdication,  is  said  to 
h.-ive  had  a  jiassion  for  timepieces,  and  the  diffi- 
culty he  found  in  adjusting  his  clocks  and 
watches  drew  from  him  the  philosophical  re- 
flection as  to  the  absurdity  of  lus  having  at- 
tempted to  make  men,  think  alike,  when  lie 
•  could  not  even  malse  two  of  his  watches  agree 
with  one  another. — Histori)  of  Charlcx  V . 

Whether  Charle.s  ever  really  delivered  hiiu- 
self  of  the  above  obvious  truism,  he  might  well 
have  done  so,  %vithout  any  particular  effort  of 
either  wisdom  or  j^hilosophy.  It  is  a  reflection 
that  in  some  fonn  or  another  nrust  occur  to  any- 
one whose  lot  in  life  is  to  make  a  heterogenou.s 
conglomeration  (Editor,  excuse  the  )uany 
syllables)  of  human  beings  act  together,  let 
alone  think  alike.  It  is  a  good  thing  that 
human  natiu'e  is  a  trifle  stubborn  on  that  point. 

Poor  Charles  I  one  has  sympathy  with  him. 
How  to  secure  the  uniformity  that  alone  uial<es 
concerted  action  possible  without  destroying 
individuality  and  weakening  character  is  a  pro- 
blem that  has  worried  many  and  many  a  well- 
meaning  autocrat.  How  to  make  people  think 
alike — for  unless  they  think  alike  they  will  (iidy 
act  alike  with  very  half-hearted  vigom. 

The  Vicar  of  Bray  solved  the  question  cheer- 
fully, whole-heartedly,  and  without  any  diffi- 
culty W'hatever.  He  believed  firmly  in  his 
daily  bread  and  butter,  and  anything  that 
assured  it. 

A.nd  whatsoever  King  shall  reign 
Still  I'll  be  the  Vicar  of  Bray,  Sir." 

Would  that  this  cheerfid  belief  that  what- 
ever is  in  power  is  right,  were  commoner,  or  if 
the  dictum  that  all  laws,  rules,  and  regulations 
promulgated  by  authority  had  an  aroma  of 
divinity  about  them  were  generally  accepted, 
how  easy  would  be  the  task  of  even  the  luun- 
l)lest  ruler ! 

.\nd  when  we  come  to  work  the  matter  out, 
why  should  we  think?  When  the  world  is  so 
full  of  people  willing  to  take  the  burden  of 
thought  off  our  shoulders  and  decide  all  the 
questions  that  we  are  too  btisy  to  worry  about, 
why  disturb  our  ease"?  Take  the  world's  self- 
appointed  teachers  on  trust,  they  will  be  very 
gratefid  to  vou,  and  will  give  von  an  unlimited 


amount  of  good  advice  gratis.  True,  it  may 
clash  a  bit.  But  you  have  only  to  j)ick  out  the 
parts  that  will  pay  you  l)est,  and  there  you  are. 
J..ike  the  immortal  I'ickwick,  shout  with  the 
crowd,  and  when  there  are  two  crowds  shout 
w  ith  the  largest.  I  ^^'ill  let  you  into  the  seci'et 
of  happiness.  It  was  discovered  long,  long 
ago,  but  the -very  character  pf  the  discoverers 
has  caused  them  to  keep  it  to  themselves;  they 
discovered  it  by  accident,  they  retain  it  by 
accident.  Never  initiate  anj'thiug,  you  will 
l'^u•n  much  affection  and  confidence  from  others 
liecause  you  will  have  no  difficulty  in  believing 
or  pretending  to  believe  in  what  j'ou  are  told. 
You  will  never  rebel,  you  will  never  have 
doubts,  you  will  always  make  for  the  clear  and 
limpid  waters.  Poets  call  that  state  faith  or 
contentment,  and  ])raise  it  as  the  highest 
virtue.     One  poet  writes:  — 

TiOok  not  thou  on  beauty's  charming. 
Sit  thou  still  when  kings  are  arming, 
Taste  not  when  the  wine  cup  glistens. 
Speak  not  when  the  people  listens, 
.  Stop  thine  ear  against  the  singer,     - 
From  the  red  gold  keep  thy  finger — 
Vacant  heart  and  hand  and  eye, 
Easy  live  and  quiet  die." 
Also  a  great  American  philosopher  has  said  : 
"  When  a   man  gets  jjerfectly  contented.    In- 
and  a  clam  are  first  cousins,"  and  when  you 
reflect  on  what  an  excellent  bivalve  a  clam  is. 
how-  absolutely  harmles.s  in  his  blameless  liti-. 
you  will  appreciate  the  compliment. 

Cannot  you  fancy  old  Charles  V.  winding 
up  his  watches  and  clocks,  and  dreaming  of 
continents  crovyded  with  puppets,  who  thought 
as  he  thought,  acted  as  he  told  theni  to, 
dreamt  even  as  he  desired  them  to  dream,  and 
being  happier  in  his  dream  realm  than  ever  he 
was  in  the  turbulent  fighting  and  contradicting 
world  he  actually  ruled.  And  that  brings  me 
l;ack  rather  suddenly  to  my  nnittons — in  other 
words,  to  the  original  idea  with  which  I  started. 
I  have  iiot  yet  abdicated  mj"  little  and  narrow 
realm,  but  I  should  like  to  hear  from  some 
^latron  who  has  done  so  how  one  looks  back 
on  the  time  when  one  foolishly  tried  to  set 
one's  small  world  right,  if  one  is  more  worried 
over  wasted  opportunities,  fights  abandoned, 
efforts  unmade,  or  whether  one  has  a  feeling 
that  one  was  a  bit  of  a  fool  to  fight  at  all,  and 
would  have  had  a  better  time  if  one  had  drifted 
along  with  the  tide  I      I  wonder. 

For  ever  and  for  ever  hangs  out  the  shield 
over  the  hostelry  of  life — gold  one  side,  silver 
the  other,  and  if  you  have  the  spirit  of  a  mouse 
you  must  up  aiid  fight  for  the  side  you  see ; 
but  alack  and  alas  for  the  unfortunate  who  see 
both  sides  of  the  shield  !  Surely,  then,  it  is 
better  to  turn  one's  back  on  the  fray  and  empty  ' 
the  food  sacks  of  those  who  are  fighting — and 


Jan.  29,  1010! 


^Dc  Bvitisb  jjournai  of  "Mursing. 


bo.iuueh    siiti,-!-.       Still,    let    a  .retii'ed    Matron 
spoali. 

Whiil  was  i  iliiiikiiig  of  when  I  began  t<> 
think'.'  Oil,  ruifomiity — yes,  Unifoniiity — 
and  ludividualisni  and  their  blending^bli'nd- 
ing  is  a  good  word.  I  have  now,  bj'  circuitous 
route?;,  it  is  true,  arrived  at  the  thought  th.nt 
was  lazily  trickling  through  my  mind  wln-u  I 
first  digressed.  Uniformity  in  the  minor  i|, 
tails  (^are  there  any  minor  details  )  <il  lii)>|jit.il 
nuuuigement. 

During  the  Congress  last  sunaner  I  went  to 
a  delightful  little  liuicheon  party  at  Miss 
Stewart's,  the  Matron  of  St.  Marthoionn'W 's 
Hospital.  The  I  cr('i»?.e  de  la'  cn'iKc  of  the 
wDrld's  .Matrons  were  present.  Need  I  .say 
that  we  congregated  together  and  began  to  dis- 
cuss The  Things  T'hat  lieally  MjitterV  I  asked 
I'ight  out,  of  a  distinguished  American  col- 
league, of  the  head  of  a  large  liOndon 
Training  Schciol,  and  other  stars  of  the  first 
nmgn'tuile,  "  Have  you  achieved  uniformity  in 
this  detail  and  in  that  detail ;  have  you  attained 
to  yniu'  ideal  in  yoiu-  hospital'.'"  And  oni>  and 
all  said  "  No;  we  have  troidile  with  this,  we 
liave  trouble  with  that,  and  the  third  point 
yon  mention  is  positively  heartbreaking."  It 
was  consoling  but  not  comforting,  for  it  seerned 
as  if  I  were  doomed  to  struggle-  further  with 
those  illusions  that  are  even  as  realities.  In 
eonnnon  with  me  I  think  they  all  yearned  for 
the  shaving  tackle  of  the  renowned  Shagpat. 
with  which  to  shear  away  the  Identical,  which 
is  till-  token  and  symbol  of  the  Illusion  of 
|)ower. 

What  Matr<in  (foes 'not  j"earn  for  the  ideal 
Hesidi'Ut,  the  pattern  Sister,  the  regulation 
probationer,  and  the  typical  wardmaid'.'  But 
does  Kate  ever  send  a  Phoenix  flock'  into  oiu- 
net '.'  Never :  I  can  confidently  affirm  that. 
Aud  .s\>  we  worry  on,  ever  fondly  hoping  for  a 
time  when  we  shall  have  not  only  the  power 
but  the  capacity  of  materialising  our  dreains 
and  of  regulating  the  hospital  clocks  to  a 
point   of  perfection. 

Thus  it  is  anil  thus  it  always  will  be;  the 
little  more — we  might  have  done  it — the  extra 
effort  beyond  our  strength,  the  smallest,  the 
weakest  iroint  forgotten,  and  the  whole  dam 
gives  way.  Anyhow,  the  end  comes,  yon  put 
on  your  crown — I  beg  pardon,  you  tie  your  cap 
strings,  you  ascend  your  throne — I  mean,  take 
office  for  the  last  time,  your  successor  is  wait- 
ing, eager  and  ready  to  show-  that  she  can 
attain  luiifonnity  in  detail  without  sacrificing 
individuality  of  character.  Well,  good-by.  and 
good  hick  to  her.  You  are  off  to  wind  one 
kitchen  clock,  one  dining-room  clock,  and  your 
own  watch — and  make  them  agree. 

M.   MoLLETT. 


Ibow  3  Became  fIDatron  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  Ibospital. 

A  TELEPATHIC  TALE. 

By  Etull  GoiinoN  Fenwick. 
{Continued  {rorn  pu(jr  64.) 


Loudon  Hospital  Sisters  in  the  eighties  had 
liitir  time  to  sit  down  and  think.  They  usually 
thought  of  half-a-do?;e!i  nuatters  in  rapid  suc- 
cession tlilting  aroimd  the  wards.  At  least 
that  w  as  my  way.  For  a  w^ek  or  two  follow- 
ing, my  five  minutes'  inter\ievv  Vvitli  the.  Trea- 
surer of  liart's  I  Was  haimted  at  intervals  with 
the  knowledge  that  sooner  or  later  I  ninst  find 
time  to  sit  down  and  write  a  letter  of  applica- 
tion for  this  important  post,  a  letter  which 
must  be  supjiorted  by  a  sheaf  of  gulogistic  tes- 
timonials from  medical  potentates,  in  which  I 
must  not  only  [)resent  myself  to  the  Treasurer 
and  .Almoners  of  St.  Hartholomew's  Hospital 
as  an  eminently  suitable  candidate  for  the  post, 
but  with  delicately  veiled  self-appreciation  and 
conviction,  as  the  only  woman  in  the  world 
on  whom  the  position  coulil  jjossibly  be  be- 
stowed with  Justice  and  wisdom. 

This  letter  caused  me  many  qualms  and 
flu.shes,  and  in  the  end  a  very  modc^st  epistli- 
was 'despatched  uiercly  stating  facts,  and  con- 
veying an  impression  that  I  felt  capable  of  ic- 
moving  mountains  (which  I  did)  if  given  Ihr 
chance. 

As  Sister  of  (Jliarlotte  W'ai-d  it  had  been  my 
good  forti'nie  to  work  with  such  well  known 
and  kindly  physicians  as  Dr..  Andrew  Clark, 
Dr.  Samuel  Fenwick,  Dr.  I^angdon  Down. 
Dr.  Stephen  Mackenzie,  and  Dr.  Thomas  Bar- 
low, a  liberal  education  for  any  nurse,  and  flu- 
fact  that  my  application  was  endorsed  by  let- 
ters from  the  majority  of  these  eminent  nu'U, 
expressing  generous  appreciation  of  my  work, 
would,  I  felt  siu'c,  be  an  excuse  for  my 
temerity. 

Once  the  little  budget  was  speeding  through 
the  ])ost  I  realisi'<l  an  immenst'  sense  of  ?-clicf. 
I  lindkrpt  fditli. 

I  now  api)ealed  to  all  my  friends  to  lulp  me, 
and  njany,  I  believe,  did  so  without  being 
asked,  but  I  made  no  personal  appeals.  In- 
deed, I  did  not  even  know- the  names  of  the 
four  Alijioners  who,  with  the  Treasurer,  formed 
the  selecting  Committee. 

Sevend  weeks  flew  by,  as  they 
have,  a  habit  of  doing  when  every  minute 
is  .of  value,  and  my  somewhat  censorious  col- 
leagiu^s  had  begim  to  hint  that  pride  must  have 
a  fall,  when  one  fine  day  as  I  was  busily  en- 
gaged at  the  Jjobby  table,  with  sleeves  up 
rolled,  cutting  up  the    scrubbing    .soap,  Nursi- 


so 


JlDe  BrUieb  3ournaI  of  IFiursing. 


■Ian.  29,  1910 


Charlottu  liumed  tlirough  the  arehwaj  \vitlj 
the  inforaiatioii  that  "  there  were  three  geutle- 
meu  comhig  dowu  tlie  ward."  The  trio  just 
then  appeared,  and  i)roved  to  be  our  Chair- 
inan,  :Mr.  Johu  Heury  Buxton,  Sir  Sydney 
Waterlow,  and  (as  I  learned  hitni,  AJi-.  ('v,,,s'. 
Mr.  Buxton  ex2-)lained  thai  Sii'  S\(lney 
Wateriow  would  like  to  be  shown  Uu'  ward.  1 
murmured  "  eharnicd,"  and  ■'  I  will  just  wash 
my  hands/'  which  1  proceeded  to  dp  in  the 
Lobby,  then  slij^piiig  ou^mycuiis  we,  began  a 
grand  tour. 

"  You  won't  mind  my  looking  inside 
drawtn-s  and  cupboards?  "  said  Sii-  Sydney. 
.Mind:  Rather  not-.  I  ha\f  always  been  a  vcix 
■'  house  proud  "  person,  with  a  passion  hjr 
■■  spring  cleaning  "  all  tiie  year  roinid.  '  1  had, 
therefore,  allotted  to  myself  in  my  dixision  of 
labour  the  insides  of  all  cupboards  outside  llu; 
iour  wards.  •  I  scrubbed  and  papered  them, 
dusted  and.  aiTanged  their  contents.  1  liked 
little  orderly  schemes  in  all  my  arrangements. 
J  nuist  be  able  to  put  my  hand  on  a  reynired 
article  in  the  dark,  and  by 'instinct  I  waged  a 
ceaseless  \var  on  dust,  long  before  I  realised 
that  death  lurked  in  its 'particles.  Imagine, 
therefore,  with  what  pleasure  I  opened  these 
sanctums.  Drawers,  lockers,  and  cupboards 
were  all  inspected,  and  duly  a'dmired.  And 
then  I  was  questioned  about  the  patients,  and 
the  reply  of  "  httle  Empyema  "  as  to  whether 
"  she  was  comfortable?  "  that  "  that  ain't  to 
be  expected,  but  I'm  'api^y,"  was  testimony 
greatly  in  my  favour.  At  "Adelaide"  dooi- 
these  kind  visitors  bid  me  good-bye,  Sir  Sydney 
shaking  me  warndy  by  the  hand,  and  express- 
ing himself  as  "  very  pleased  with  your  waixl, 
Sister,  very  pleased,  indeed." 

You  can  imagine  what  fun  we  had  at  dinner 
that  day— how  I  tantahsed  the  dear  ladies 
about  my  visiters,  and  when  I  revealed  the;i' 
identity  how  with  persiflage  and  mock  obeis- 
ance they  insisted  upon  my  being  served  first. 
Then  we  had  another  spell  of  quiet,  until  one 
morning  I  received  a  fateful  letter  in  which  I ' 
was  infonued  that  I  was  a  selected  candidate 
for  the  vacant  post  of  Matron  and  S\iperinten- 
dent  of  Nursing  to  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospi- 
tal, and  politely  requested  to  attend  a  meeting 
of  the  Committee  on  a  certain  Thursday  at  no 
distant  date. 

I  knew  slightly  one  of  the  Siste)-s  at 
"  Bart's,"  and  about  this  time  I  paid  lu'r  a 
visit,  and  spoke  with  her  on  the  all  important 
matter.  Erom  lier  I  learned  that  "  the  old 
Sisters  wouldn't  stand  if  for  a  moment."  and, 
moreover,  that  "  it  was  a  foregone  conclusion 
that  Miss  V was  to  have  the  post." 

Other  funny  things  happened. 

I  received  letters  of  discouragement,  from  n)i- 


kuowu  pei'sons.  One  advised  me  "  for  jour 
own  "Sake  to  retire  gracefully  fVom  so  conspi- 
cuous a  position, -and  cease  competing  wuth 
3iIatrons  of  experience  for  a  post  for  which 
your  age  and  appearance  entirely  disqualify 
ycju." 

"'Wliy?"  T  demanded  in  a  somewhat  pug- 
nacious rejjly,  ancL  I  quoted  the  exploits  of 
David  and"  Goliath,  le  pciit  Corpora}^  Pitt  and 
the  Premiershii),  and  the  ijerspicaeity  .  ■\  - 
toria  in  her  teen's  1 

And  of  course  I  did  not  retire. 

Then  dawiied  that  dreaded  Thursday,  and 
with  the  (hiwn,  I,  poor  mortal,  awoke  to  the 
sound  of  heart  thinups,  with  e\ery  vital  nerve 
a  quiver. 

Ah!  for  the  psychological  system  of  .the 
heroine  of  romance.  Come  life,  come  death, 
what  cares  ahc'!  Pale  and  imperturbable,  she 
scorns  the  pranks  of  Fate.  - 

Whilst  I— in  spite  of  "  Tofield  "—looked 
years  younger  than  I  jeli. 

Face  alone  the  terrible  ordeal  at  "  Bart's 
I  could  not,  so  Sister  Rachel  went  wdtK  me, 
and  it  was  a  veiy  chastened  little  person, 
who,  seated  with  fellow  victims  in  the  Renter's 
ofifice,  awaited  inteiTogation.  It  only  required 
that  the  tocsin  should  sound — a  tumbril  rumble 
under  the  archway — a' key  grate  in  the  lock — 
a  .^iiiiseiilntic  .  .  .  But  why  dwell  on  the 
tdiMuie  (.f  sus].)ense?  Anticipation  is  a  grace- 
less jade — if  only  I  had  kno\A'n — 

-But  we  ne\er  do. 

(  7'o  he  ro)irhiili<l.\ 


f3n^ustrial  Bettcniicnt. 

In  a  note  on  Industrial  Betterment  I'rogrciis 
touches  on  the  beneficent  schemes  for  work- 
jjeople  of  ^lessrs.  Fr.  Bayer  and  Co.,  at  Lever- 
kuseii.  Cireat  liberality  is  shown  in  their  pro- 
vision for  sickness.  Not  only  is  medical  advice 
given  free,  but  a  Polyclinic  has  been  provided 
for  the  treatment  of  ordinary  cases,  and  a 
Tjying-in  Hos])ifal  for  the  wives  of  workmen, 
who  receive  attention,  not  oidy  during  theii' 
eoniinenient,  l)ut  until  tliey  are  convalescent, 
and  the  domestic  duties  which  at  such  times 
tlu'y  themsehes  are  unable  to  perform,  are  per- 
formed by  special  helpers  sent  to  their  homes 
at  the  cost  of  the  firm.  In  addition  to  the  con- 
tribution to  the  Xatioiud  i-lick  Insurance  re- 
quired fj'om  the  emploj'ei-  by  law,  Messrs. 
Bayer  contribute  an  (>xtra.  "it)  per  cent.  Wc.rk- 
men's  wives  and  children  requiring  c-hange  of 
air  are  sent  to  some  country  resort.  Four  doc- 
tors are  regularly  employed  by  the  firm,  in 
addition  to  eleven  club  doctors. 


.Jan.  •_>(>,  1910 


^F)c  Brittsb  3ournaI  ot  iHursmG- 


87 


Zbc  IHeatcst  IHursc  iprtse. 

We  liuvt'  great  plea.suif  in  auaidin','  llir  lu.'- 
Pii/.e  for  the  i)hotograpli  of  tiie  Neatest  Xurs 
toMiss  ^'.  .James,   Home  Sister,  General  In 
tirmary,  Huddersfield,  and  we  feel  sure  eveiy 
reader  who  sees  tile  reprodnelion  on  this  j)a 

will  agree  that  it  is    ^ 

well  deservetl.  All 
.Matrons  wonUl  re- 
joiee,  uo  donbt,  to 
see  every  nleinber 
of  iheii'  nnrsing 
staffs  present  such 
a  perfectly  nurse- 
like  appearance. 
HoxorKAiiLi; 
Menxiox. 

Hononrable  men- 
tion is  accorded  tt) 
several  photograjilis 
in  the  following  or- 
der of  excellence :  — 

To  Miss  K. 
Walker,  South  Eden 
Nursing  Home, 

I'tiignton,  South 
J'evon,  indoor  uni- 
form. 

To  Mi.ss  N. 
Hobbs,  same  ad- 
dress, outdoor  uni- 
fonn. 

To  Miss  E.  H.  li. 
l>i)wd.  Vergemont 
Hall,  Clonskea, 

1  )iiblin,  indoor  nni- 
toriii. 

To  Miss  Edith  K. 
Jloberts,  and  .Miss 
-Mildred  Green,  a 
conjoint  photo- 

eraph.  Queen's 

Nurses,  and  mem- 
bers of  the  Leicns- 
t  e  r  I  n  fi  r  m  a  i-  y 
Nurses'  League, 
indoor  uniform. 

To  Miss  Florence 
B.  Matthews.  High- 
bury New  Park. 
London.  N.,  inddor 
niiifomi. 

To  Miss  E.  E.  Stone,  District  Nurse,  Kin;, 
ston.  Taunton,  Somerset,  indoor  uniform. 

'To  Miss  Hlackett.  The  Sanatorium,  .Middles 
brough,  indoor  uniform. 

Many  otlu'r  photographs  sent  in  were  nici 
but  several  were  spoilt  by  an  e\aggeratei 
coiffure,  and  infinitesimal  caps. 


Zbc  fIDatrons"   Council   of  ^Bicat 
IBritatn  an&  3relan&. 


Miss 
The  Winner  of  the 


.\  meeting  of  the  Matrons'  Council  was  held 
at  431,  Oxford  Street,  I/Ondon,  W.,  on  January 
•2.")th.  at  7.3()  p.m.    Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick  pre- 

sided,      and      Miss 

Mollett,  Hon.  Sec- 
retary, reported 
items  of  correspon- 
dence. 

IsL  V  s.  W  a  1 1  e  r 
Spencer  was  unani- 
mously appointed 
Hon.  Treasurer  ot 
tiie  Council. 

The  following 
iii-w  members  weri- 
elected:  — 

.Miss  J.  M.  Orr, 
ilatron,  Taunton 
and  Somerset  Hos- 
pital. 

-Miss  M.  M.  Mac- 
millan.  Matron. 
Borough  Hospital. 
Birkenhead. 

Miss  B.  E.  Obee, 
^latrou,  Koyal 
Westminster  Oph  - 
thalmic  Hospital, 
W.C. 

yiiaii  .Janet  I'. 
Rolbert.son,  Matron. 
l.,ord  Mayor  Treloar 
Cripples'  Home 
and  College. 

Miss  Mary  Lord. 
-Matron.  Banstead 
.\svlum,    Surrey. 

Miss  C.  C.  du 
Sautoy,  Superin- 
tendent, Somerset 
County  Nursing  .As- 
sociation, Q.V..J.I., 
and  In.spector  ot 
.Midwives. 

Miss  S.  McNeil- 
lie,  ilatron.  Prin- 
cess Louise  Hospi- 
tal, Hosneath. 
N.B. 
Matron,  Malernit> 


V.     JAIVIES, 
Neatest  Nurse  Prize. 


Mrs.  Tamar  Milne,  late 
Hospital,  .\herdeen,  N.B. 

-\t  8  ]).ni.  Miss  ilusson  presented  a  paper 
on  Hos])ital  Kitchens,  ui)on  which  there  was 
an  interesting  discu.ssion,  and  later  .Miss  Todd's 
paper  on  Hos|)ital  Laimdries  was  read  in  lier 
absence  bv  Miss  Jiarton,  of  Chelsea. 


88 


Z\^c  l&ntsb  3oiirnal  of  'Wiirsing. 


[Jau.  29,  1010 


^be  TReaistration  Conference. 

A  largely  atteuded  Conierence,  convened  by 
Lord  Ampthill  to  consider  a  Nurses'  Eegis-tra- 
tion  Bill,  was  held  ou  Tue-sday,  Januai-y  25tli, 
iu  the  Council  Eoom  of  the  British  Medical 
Association,  by  the  kind  pemiission  of  the  As- 
sociation. Lord  Ampthill  was  unanimously 
elected  to  the  chair.  Through  the  delibera- 
tions of  those  present  the  progress  of  Registra- 
tion was  materially  advanced.  It  was  decided 
that  these  deliberations  should  be  private. 

A  Central  Committee,  for  the  pui-jsose  of 
securing  united  action  in  regard  to  State  Regis- 
tration of  Nui-ses  until  a  satisfactory  law  has 
been  passed  by  Parliament,  was  formally  con- 
stituted by  the  delegates  of  the  eight  societies 
present.  Lord  Ampthill  was  elected  Chair- 
man, and  ;\Irs.  Bedford  Fenwick,  and  Dr.  E. 
W.  Goodall,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the.  iletropoli- 
tau  Counties  Branch  of  the  Britisli  ^ledieal 
Association,  joint  Hon.  Seeretari^^^. 


IPractical  Ipoints. 


IProgress  of  State  TRegistration. 

In  Austr.\lasi.\. 

Touching  on  the  work  of  the  past  year,  the 
Australasian  Nurses'  Journal  says:  — 

' '  In  most  of  the  States  Bills  for  the  State  Regis- 
tration of  Nuiises  have  been  considered  by  the 
various  Parliaments  iu  a  form  which,  for  the  most 
jjart,  uphold  the  standard  of  nursing.  It  is  a  matter 
for  regret  that  the  Commonwealth  Parliament  does 
not.  take  stejjs  to  i>ass  such  a  Bill,  so  that  laws  for 
Registration  of  Xurses  may  be  uniform  in  "all  the 
.States.  In  Xew  South  "Wales  the  forthcoming  year 
will  in  all  probability  see  State  Registratio"!!  an 
accomplished  fact,  and  there  is  every  reason  to 
ti-ust  in  a  form  which  shall  have  regard  for  the  best 
interests  of  the  general  public  and  the  nursing  pi-o- 
fession. 

"  TiU  State  Registration  exists  in  all  the  States 
our  Association  continues  to  conduct  the  necessary 
examinations  of  candidates  for  registration  as 
trained  nur.ses.  Tliat  is  now  no  small  undertaking 
in  itself,  as  is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  23.3  nurses 
ha\e  been  examined  recently,  of  whom  13.5  wei'e  in 
Xew  South  AVales." 

There  are  now  2,500  nurses  on  the  general 
and  obstetric  registers  of  the  A. T.N. A.  Let  us 
hope  that  before  another  year  has  passed  we 
shall  have  begun  a  reciprocal  system  of  Nurses' 
Registration  between  the  Motherland  and  her 
Dominions.     It  is  high  time. 


Zbe  £100  IRegistratlon  ifunb. 

Miss  Macvitie  has  worked  and  presented  for 
sale  for  this  fund  a  beautiful  open  worked  and 
embroidered  white  tea  cloth.  We  want  £1  Is. 
for  it,  and  it  is  well  worth  it.  Please  someone 
feel  generous  and  make  it  a  present  to  a  friend. 


Practical 

Appliances  for 

Maternity  Nurses. 


We  have  much  pleasure  m 
drawing  attention  to  the  new 
and  revised  edition  of  '"Xotes 
for  ^Maternity  Nurses,''  sup- 
plied by  Messrs.  Allen  and 
Hanburyr>',  I^td.,  Bethnal  Green,  E.,  which  is  full  of 
practical  information  for  maternity  nurses.  It  is  of 
a  convenient  size,  bound  in  red  leather,  with  a 
pocket  at  the  back  for  the  indispensable  peucU. 

!Many  of  the  uot€s  are  very  useful  to  maternity 
nurses,  including  an  obstetric  table,  a  table  ou  the 
development  of  the  foetus  according  to  the  Lunar 
months,  notes  ou  the  preparation  of  the  lying-in 
room,  and  the  necessaries  required  by  nurse  and 
patient,  points  for  the  nurse  to  observe  before, 
during,  and  after  labour,  registration  of  birth, 
recipes  for  food  preiiarations  suitable  for  infants 
and  young  children,  recipes  for  the  sick  room,  and 
descriptions  of  "  Allenburys"  "'  Infant  Dietarv. 
ililk  Footls.  Maltod  Foods",  the  '■Allenburys''' 
Malted  Food,  Diet,  pancreated  Milk-Cocoa,  Barley 
Flour,  aud  Liquid  Beef. 

Besides  these,  it  contains  illustrated  notices  in 
regard  to  a  number  of  appliances  most  useful  in 
the  practice  of  a  maternity  nurse,  some  of  which 
we  have  pleasure  in  reproducing  on  this  page. 

For  instance, 
the  "  Allen- 
burys' "  Food 
Regu 1  a  t  o  r 
consists  of  a 
round  glass 
disc,  having  a 
small  hole  in 
the  centre. 
It  is  placed, 
as  .shown  in 
the  illustra- 
tion, on  the  top  of  the  neck  of  the  bottle,  and  the 
teat  then  stretched  over  it  in  the  ordinary  manner. 
The  flow  of  milk  is  thus  controlled, 
and  there  is  no  danger  of  the  child 
getting  the  food  too  cjuickly,  aud  per- 
liaps  choking  over  it.  These  useful 
little  Regvdators  cost  only  2d.  each. 

The  "  AUenburys''  Teat  is  also 
worthy  of  note.  It  is  perforated  in 
four  different  ways,  i.e..  with  one  hole 
for  use  with  the  "  Allenburys  "  Milk 
Food,  or  milk,  and  with  one,  three, 
or  five  leech  bites  for  use  with  foods  of 
varying  thickness. 

"  The  "  Allenburys  "  Thermometer, 
which  may  be  used  for  the  diverse 
purposes  of  testing  the  temperattire 
of  the  nursery,  the  infant's  bath,  and 
the  infant's  food,  is  supplied  in  a 
nickel  ease  for  the  small  sum  of  Is. 

Many  other  •  useful  articles  are 
shortly  described,  and  the  cost  given 
in  each  case.  A  form  for  an  infant's 
weight  chart  is  also  appended,  most 
indispensable  in  connection  with  a 
maternity  case. 


jau.  J'.,  loioj       ^|5C   JBritieD  3ournal   ct  IRurstng. 


89 


Tilt-  ;;li>>^  nipple  shield,  liit<?<i  with  the       AlU-n- 

Aljun.-s' "  tvat.  and  procurable 
for  the  sum  of  6d.,  deserves 
to  be  widely  known,  and  the 
appliances  for  giving  a  vaginal 
douche,  and  an  Enema  Syringe, 
connected  with  a  white  iJor- 
celaiu  reservoir,  with  a  handle 
at  the  side  and  a  hole  at  the 
-V  top  for  hanging,  if  so  required, 
^Clllir^^SaS*^      costs  only  8s.  6d. 

Further,   this   multum    ill  parvo   contains  much 
useful       postal      information,     and 
space     for     addresses,  engagements, 
cash  accounts,   and  memoranda. 

We  need  only  add  that  Messrs 
Allen  and  Hanburys  will  be  happy  I 
to  forward  copies  of  the  Note' 
Book  to  any  nurses  who  have,  not 
already  received  them — for  the  firm 
has  been  most  generous  iu  dis- 
tributing them  to  nurses — to  ensur-.- 
their  writing  for  copies,  if  they 
are  wise,  by  the  next  post. 


appointments. 


A   young  French    scientist, 
Magnificent  M.      Jean      C'omandon,      has 

Microbes.  succeeded       in       reproducing 

magnified  microbes  on  the 
cinematograph,  showing  them  moving,  feeding, 
and  warring  against  each  other  in  a 
drop  of  blood  and  other  habitat.  The 
discovery,  which  has  been  rejKjrted  to  the 
Academy  of  Sciences,  is  expected  to  prove  an  in- 
valuable aid  to  bacteriological  research.  The  scale 
of  ultra-magnification  employed  would  repres.-nt  a 
riea   the  size  of  a  six-storey  building. 


Everything   necessary  -must 

How  be    brought     to    the     bedside 

to  Wash  Out  a        before  disturbing  the  patient, 

Patient's  Stomach,   viz.,  mouth  gag,  lint  guards, 

and  what  to        glycerine,      jug      of     boracic 

get  ready  for  that    lotion,       two       basins,      two 

Operation.  towels,      and      long      rubber 

tubing     with      :;lass      funnel 

.attached.    Tin-  patient  sitfc  up.  or  i^  propi)ed  up.  in 

bed,   and    a    towel    spread   to   prevent    soiling    the 

bed-clothes,    another   towel   is   fastened    round   the 

patient's  neck,  one  basin  is  placed  on  the  floor  at 

the    bedside   and   the    other   on   the   bed.      A    lint 

guard    is   dipped    in    the    glycerine  and   the   tube 

lubricated  with  it;    the  tube  is  then  passed  to  the 

back  of  the  patient's  mouth,   and  he  is  asked  to 

swallow    it;     then   iienfhj  push  the  tribe  down   the 

esophagus   into   the   stomach.      The   other    end  of 

tube,  with  the  funnel  attached,  in  now  lowered,  and 

the   contents  of  the  stomach    allowed    to   run    out 

into  the  basin  on  the  fl«x)r.     Wlien  the  stomach   is 

empty,   the    funnel   is   raised    above   the   patient's 

head  and  slowly  filled  two  or  three  times  with  the 

warm    lotion ;    let  this   remain    in   stomach    a   few 

seconds,  and  then  lower  the  funnel  and  empty  the 

stomach  again.     This  must  be  repeated   until  the 

fluid  returns  quite  clear. 

v.  James. 


MaT1!ON. 

Hammersmith  Union  Infirmary,  Wormwood  Scrubbs.— -^ll-s 
Alic-  Kadditfe  lia»  l>een  apiK.intt^^l  .Matron.  >liv  _ 
wai>  traine<l  at  the  Chorltou  Union  Ho>pitals.  Mjttti. 
Chester,  and  has  held  the  position  ot  Sister  at  the 
Sheffield  Union  Hospital,  and  of  Superintendent 
Nurse  at  Hammersmith  Union  Infirmarj-,  \\onn- 
wood  Scrubbs. 

North  Evington  Poor-Law  Infirmary,  Leicester. — Miss 
Linda  Kate  Masters  has  Ijeen  appointed  Matron. 
Sh^  wab  trained  at  the  Whitechapel  Union  In- 
tirmaiy.  and  has  been  Superintendent  Nurse  at 
the  Aston  Union  Infirmaiy,  near  Binningham,  Lady 
Superintendent  of  the  Birkenhead  Infirmary,  and 
A.-*,istant  Matron  at  the  North  Ei-ington  Infirmary. 
Leicester.     She  i:>  a  cenified  midwife. 

Schill  Home  of  Recovery,  Knowie  Hill  Park,  Cob  ham— 
Miss  Margaret  Traill  has  been  appointed  Matron. 
She  was  trained  and  certificated  at  Guy's  Hospital, 
S.E.,  was  Sister  for  eighteen  months  at  the  Koyal 
Hospital  for  Sick  Children,  Edinburgh,  Sister  of 
ilary  and  Esther  wards  at  Guys,  and  has  been 
Matron  of  the  Royal  Surrey,  County  Hospital, 
Guildford,  from  1904  to  date.  Miss  Traill  holds  a 
certificate  for  Midwifery,  and  the  Guy's  Medal  for 
five  years"   service. 

Morningfieid  Hospital,  Aberdeen.— Miss  Adelaide  Mac- 
Lean  has  been  appointed  Matron,  in  succession  to 
Miss  Massie  who  has  resigned.  She  at  present 
holds  the  position  of  Sister  in  the  institution. 
.She  was  trained  at  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Aberdeen, 
and  has  had  some  exjierience  of  private  nursing. 

SiSTEKS. 
London  Homsopathic  Hospital,  W.O, — Miss  J.  E. 
Rol>eitt>  lias  Imxmi  apiv)iiite<l  Sist<>r  in  the  Outpatient 
I)ei>artment.  She  wa.^  traine<l  at  the  Beckett  and 
Barnsley  Hospital,  and  has  held  the  position  of 
Sister  at  the  Royal  Hospital,  Sheffield,  Sister  at  the 
Cumberland  Iniirmaiy.  Carlisle,  and  Sister  at  the 
Royal  Infirmary,  Bradford.  She  is  a  certified  mid- 
wife. 

Royal  National  Hospital,  Venlnor,  Isle  ol  Wight.  — MlSS 
.\niii.'  R.  Thompson  has  been  appointed  Sister  in 
a  Female  Division.  She  was  trained  at  Guys  Hos- 
pital, and  holds  its  medal  for  five  years'  service. 
She  was  Sister  for  two  years  at  the  Royal  Na- 
tional Hospital  for  Consumption,  Newcastle,  Co. 
Wicklow,  Sister  at  the  Rest  for  the  Dying,  Camden 
Row.  Dublin,  and  has  also  done  holiday  duty  for 
the  Matron  at  the  Drunuomlra  Hosi)ital,  Dublin. 
Night  .Sister. 
General  Inlirmary,  Macclesfield.— Miss  Hilda  K.  Mar- 
low  has  been  appointed  Night  Sister.  She  was 
trained  at  Oldham  Infirmary,  where  she  has  held 
the  position  of  Staff  Nurse.  She  has  also  been 
Staff  Nurse  at  the  Warrington  Infirmary  and  Dis- 
jjensary. 

Night  Superintendent. 
General  Hospital,  Leith.— Miss  Margaret  Leuchars 
lias  been  appointed  Night  Superintendent.  She 
wastraineJ  at  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Dundee,  where 
she  bas  held  the  position  of  Assistant  Night  Super- 
intendent. 


90 


dbe  Bntlsb  3ournal  of  IFiursniG, 


[Jan.  29,  1910 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S  IMPERIAL   MILITARY 
NURSING   SERVICE. 

-Mi-^  H.  C.  Johnston.  Start  Nurse,  is  <-oiihriiip(l 
in  lier  ai>|)ointment,  lier  jieiiod  of  provisional  ser- 
vice liiiviiig  expired. 

The  undermentioned     ladies  to   be   Staff  Xiirsp~ 
(provisionally): — Miss  M.   il.  Davies,   Mis-s  E.    !>. 
Killery,    Miss  J.    D.   C.    MrPherson  (Jan.   Ist'. 
QUEEN  VICTORIAS  JUBILEE   INSTITUTE 

Tnuisfrrs  a,„l  App,„„tnn  „f.v._Mis5  Beatnee  Ex- 
ton,  to  East  JiOiulon.  Central  Division,  as  vSuperin- 
tendent ;  Miss  Eunice  Hitch,  to  Geiitleshaw  and 
Lonv'don  :  Miss  Eanny  Jlellor,  to  Handsnortli :  Mis- 
Annice  Orine,  to  Swintoii  :  Miss  Harriet  Richard-, 
to  Leicester;  Miss  Louise  Hogarth,  to  Wishei ! 
Miss  Dorotliy  Grey,  to  Brixton;  Miss  In^e  Broth- 
ner.  to  Weston-under-Penyard. 

IRISH   NURSES'  ASSOCIATION. 

Tlie  following:  nienihers  ot  the  nursin;^  slaft'  of 
Sir  Patricli  Dun's  Hospital.  Dublin,  have  joined 
the  Irish   Nurses'   Association:  — 

Sisters      M.   Berrv,   M.  Stanlev,  C.   M.  O'Toole. 

Nurses  J.  Mulhall,  K.  CriUv.  M.  Jessop.  B.  M. 
Williams,  A.  J.  Beveridge,  iL  G.  Scott,  S. 
Donaiiher,  H.  E.  Acheron,  E.  Blackmore.  K. 
Lanktree,  J.  S.  Deacon.  C.  Mclhvaine,  J.  Drew, 
C.  Tuohv,  L.  Oldham,  .0.  O'Neil,  A.  G.  Maguire. 
P.  Gilmartin,  K.  Nig'-jle,  A.  Turnbull,  M.  Graydon, 
A.  B.  Lontr,  A.  Meredith,  A.  McGarrv,  M.  Keane. 


A  COURSE  OF  LECTURES  ON   M'LK. 

.\n  interestinji  course  of  Lectures  on  ililk  is  to 
be  delivered  at  the  South-Western  Polytechnic  In- 
stitute, Manresa  Road,  Chelsea,  S.W.,  liy  Dr. 
Harden,  F.R.S.,  of  the  Lister  Institute,  which  »  ill 
take  i)lace  on  Thursda.v  evenings  at  7.30  p.m.,  l)e- 
ginniny:  on  February  .Srd.  At  the  conclusion  of 
each  lecture  practical  demonstrations  will  l)e 
given  in  the  chemical  lalioratory.'  The  fee  for  the 
course  is  2s.  6d.  All  information  can  be  obtained 
from  the  Secretary. 

WEEK  OF  SPECIAL  MEETINGS  FOR  NURSES. 

A  week  of  .special  meetings  tor'nur.se.s  is  to  be 
held  at  the  Passmore  Edwaid.s"  Settlement.  Tavi- 
stock Place.  AV.C,  under  the  aii.vpices  of  the  Nui-ses' 
Missionary  League,  from  Monday.  February  14tli. 
to  Saturday.  February  19th.  On  the  fiis.t  five  days 
the  meetings  will  be  held  tiom  10  to  11  ^.m.,  and  in 
the  af'^^-'iioon  from  2.30  to  3.30  p.m.  On  February 
14th  tht  speaker  in  the  morning  will  be  Miss  J. 
Macfee.  B.A.  (Bedtord  College),  and  in  the  attiM- 
iioon  Miss  D.  Burroiighes  (Guy's  Hospital i.  On  the 
lollowing  days  the  speakers  are  rever.sed  each  day. 
On  Saturday,  February  lOtli.  there  will  only  be  one 
meeting,  at  2.30  p.ni.^  when  theC'hairman  will  be 
Miss  W.  Sedgwick  (Somerville  College),  and  the 
sjjeakers  tlie  Hon.  Florence  Macnaghten  (.\cklen- 
brooke's  Ho-spital),  and  Mis^  D.  Burroughes. 


THE  PASSING   BELL 

We  regret  to  record  tile  death  ot  Miss.  Florence 
I*.abel  TiOdge,  of  the  Darweii  District^-  Nursing 
Association,  who  contracted  enteric  fever  while 
nui^iing  a  patient.  Miss  Lodge  was.  a  native  of 
Hawes.  laiul  received  her  profe.ssioiial  training  at 
the  Royal  Infirmary,  Lancaster.  She  has  also  been 
connected  with  the  Salford  District  Nurses'  Home. 


IHiu'Sino  lEcbocs. 

Miss  Clarion  Dashwood^ 
Xational  Head  of  the  Nurses' 
Union,  Y.W.C.A.,  issued  in- 
\itations  to  an  "  At  Home 
;it  .J,  Cambridge  (xate,  to 
members  of  the  Nurses' 
Union  and  tlieir  friends  on 
Friilay,  .laniiary  "ilst.  to 
which  many  responded,  and 
a  very  pleiisant  atternoon 
was  spent.  Dnriii";  the  course 
of  the  afternocVn  severaf 
i:ivi'ii.  'I'lu'  s])fakers  in- 
T.  Stiidd,  who  spoke  of  Hie 
and  -Mrs.  ScharJieb.  M.D., 
of  the  Nmse's  Ca])  and  Apron, 
sni  and  Use,  was  listened  to 
ittention.  Some  Imttles  are,  she 
"soldiers'  battles,"  and  all  siir- 
lise  that  many  results  are  due  c|iiit. 
as  mucdi  to  nurses  as  to  themselves.  Dr.  S.  H. 
Habershon.  wlio  g-^xf  the  eoncdudino-  addiiss. 
spoke  of  the  controversy  which  took  )il;u-r  sutni 
Cil)  years  a.iio  as  to  the  origin  of  life.  i.e..  whe- 
ther spiuitaneous  generation  could  takc>  ]dace 
(/(•  Hurt),  or  whether  life  could  proceed  only 
from  life.  Pasteur,  Tyndall,  iind  otluM's  had 
convincingly  den^oiistrated  the  latter,  and 
many  ye;irs  ago  Harvey  hud  asserted  the  fun- 
damental truth  oiiuic  vivKm  c  r'tvu. 

So  with  the  spiritual  life,  it  could  only  pro- 
ceed from  union  with  the  Christ  life.  If  there 
was  this  life  within  there  was  s])iritual  growth, 
but  s])ontaueous  generation  was  as  imjiossiiile 
in  the  spiritual   as  in  the  natural  life. 

.\t  the  eonclnsion  of  this  address  those  jin-- 
sent  s;iid  good-bye  to  their  kind  hostess,  who 
was  untiring  in  her  efforts  to  make  the  aftei- 
nooii  a  most  pleasant  one. 


Miss  Ctreyory.  the  Alatron  of  the  Lontlon 
Fever  Hospital,  has  now  vacated  the  position, 
and  we  are  glad  to  know  that  \u'r  work  for  the 
imiiroveuient  of  the  nursing  and  the  mainten- 
ance of  better  discipline  was  appreciated  by 
the  nursing  staff.  Before  she  left  she  was  pre- 
sented with  a  handsome  brass  inkstand  by  tlie 
nurses,  wiio  exidessed  their  genuine  sorrow  at 
her  departure,  as  a  "'  token  of  esteem,"  and 
with  a  silver  travelling  clock  by  \\u-  maids  as 
a"  token  of  resiiect." 


It  is  an  opfU  secret  lliat  .Miss  (Iregory,  who 
siicceeiled  .i  Mati'on  suffering  from  chronic  ill- 
he;ilth,  since  ileceased.  found  many  tilings 
which  needed  rectifying  on  taking  u])  her  ]iosi- 
tion    as    M:itrou.    but    those   of    her   c(,lleagues. 


Jan.  -JO,  1<)10| 


^bc  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRurstng. 


&! 


who  know  Ikt  will  in-  sine  that  her  dutifs  Wfit- 
dischiti-^'id  in  a  (jnift,  coiR-iiiatoiy,  autl  con- 
scii'iitidus  s|)ii-it  Ihi-oiighoiil,  tliouj,'li  tlu-  last- 
nuiitioncd  (jnality  t'vi(li'nti.\  aronsed  a  certain 
Minount  of  resentment  on  the  pait  of  some  <.)f 
those  who  worked  unchr   her. 

A  Miixt  ohsolete  and  nnwise  ari-aiifjement  at 
tile  London  l-Vver  Hosj)ital  is  tiiat  tlie  iJatron. 
wlio  is  a  permanent  otfieer,  works  under  the 
lii-sident  .Mf'dieal  Ottiecr.  who  holds  office  only 
for  two  veais,  and  is  j^'enerally  a  junior  mem- 
ber ol  his  profession,  and  it  is  to  tiie  credit  both 
of  .Miss  (jret,'ory  and  of  the  present  II. ALU. 
that  their  relations  have  been  of  a  friendly 
character.  It  is  not  so  greatly  to  the  credit  of 
the  Committee  of  the  Hos])ital,  from  whom  - 
iliss  ("rregory  mi}jlit  reasonably  )iav('  expected 
support,  that  hei'  endeavours  to  nuuntain  effi- 
ciency in  her  department  siioiild  luive  been  so 
ill-recpiited. 


contributors  would  n.xt  year  be  a.sked  to  saui  • 
tion  a  pension  scheme  tor  the  employees,  anii 
also  a  revisal  of  tl^e  present  rules  and  regula 
tions. 


It  is  rumoured  tluit  anotliei'  .Matron  uill  n<:{ 
\>r  Mjjpointed,  but  that  each  Sister  will  be  ri'- 
spunsible  for  her  <nvn  sjx'eial  sphere.  If  tliis 
is  the  ease  this  "'  go-as-you-please  "  method 
may  appear  to  the  Conmiittee  to  effect  Si  saving 
in  the  salary  and  emoluments  of  an  officer 
of  whosi'  value  they  are  a|)paiently unaware, hut 
we  venture  to  pn'diet  there  will  be  more  than 
a  corres])f)nding  increase  of  expenditure  in 
other  directions,  while  the  patients  will  cer- 
tainly suffer  from  the  lack  of  an  official  head 
tu  (lie  nursing  department  of  the  institution. 

.\t  a  well  atte)Kled  meeting  of  the  Becking- 
ton  district  Nursing  .\ssociation,  held  recently, 
the  advisability  of  securing  the  services  of  a 
trained  and  certificated  nurse-midwife  for  ihi- 
BeckinL,'ton  distiict  was  discussed.  The  nuet- 
ing  was  addressed  by  ])i-.  Evans,  .Miss  E.  L.  ('. 
Eden,  and  Miss  du  Sautoy,  County  Superinten- 
dent for  Somerset,  Queen  N'ictoria's  Jubilee  In- 
stitute. .Miss  dn  Sautoy,  .who  spoke  admirably, 
ex|)hiined  that  there  were  two  kinds  of  nurses — 
fully  trained  (Queen's  nurses,  and  village  nurses 
with  a  y.'ar's  training  in  district  work.  She 
strongly  advocated  the  apiwintment  of  the 
former,  aiiil  it  was  imnnimonsly  agieed  to  pro- 
cure a  ci'rtifieated  nurse-midwife  for  the  l?eck- 
ington  district,  and  that  a  committee  be  formed 
to  collect    funds,  and  organise  the  work. 

\t  the  conclusion  of  the  meeting.  Miss  Eden 
showfd  the  interesting  exhibits  of  the  Nurses' 
Social  Union  in  connection  with  district  nurs- 
ing,  which   she   had  kindlv  lent. 


The  Council  of  the  St.  Andrews  Aiijiukimi- 
-Associatioii,  says  the  ScatHiiiHii,  have  awarded 
their  silver  medal  for  bravery  for  saving  lite  on 
land  to  -Miss  Sophie  .Macpherson,  Westmiiistii- 
Training  School,  Queen  Anne's  Gate,  London. 
On  ITtli  -March,  Iflljit,  the  Princess  Christion 
Mission  in  Freetown.  Si^-i'a  -Jieone.  was 
burned  to  the  ground,  the  whole  building  beiiiL^ 
destroyed  in  '20  minutes.  I\Iiss  ^lacpher.son. 
who  was  then  a  Sister  iiL  the  hospital,  was 
walking  through  the  grounds  when  she  ob- 
served that  the  building  was  on  fire.  She  at 
once  ran  to  the  hosj)ital.  and  succeeded  ii. 
making  her  entrance  through  the  nurses'  resi- 
dence. The  native  nurses  tnifortunatelyb-- 
came  excited,  but  ^liss  ilacpherson  Jjot  tie- 
patient.s  out  of  bed,  and  pushed  and  carried 
them  down  the  outside  stair  and  into  a  place 
of  safety.  She  returned  several  times,  in  spitt- 
of  the  smoke  and  Hames,  and  ultimately  .suc- 
ceeded in  Kavini;  all  the  patients  (seven  in 
niniiber)  before  the  arrival  of  outside  help. 
.Mi;-vs  ;\Iaci)heison.  who  \\as  trained  in  the 
Western  Infiniuiry,  Olasgow,  has  suffered 
,  much  in  health  owing  to  the  strain  nnilerijMnc 
hi  the  course  of  her  heroic  effoi  i 
occasion. 


Professor  Kankine  jiresiding  in  the  City 
Chambeis,  Edinburgh,  at  an  adjourned  meet- 
ing of  the  court  of  contributors  to  the  Hoyal 
liifiruiMry.    Rdinburrrli.   saiil   that   innbalily    the 


Christmas  festivities  are  only  just  at  an  end, 
and  children  at  the  Muirfield  House,  Gnllaiie. 
Convalescent  Home,  N.B.,  had  a  gala  day  on 
the  19th  inst.,wlien  Mr.  and  ^Irs.Whitelaw  pre- 
sented them  with  a  lovely  Christmas  tree.  The 
tree  was  dressed  and  managed  entirely  by  the 
.Misses  Whitelaw,  Spier,  and  Kyidoeh,  all  of 
them  wearing  fancy  dress,  which  added  greatly 
to  the  pictnres<|ue  scene  and  delight  of  the 
little  ones.  Miss  Iris  Whitelaw  called  each 
chikl  by  name,  when  a  Fairy  a))iiearefl  and 
gracefully  led  the  child  to  the  tree,  where  an- 
other Fairy  gave  him.  or  her.  a  toy;  an  Es- 
quimaux then  stepped  forward  with  a  basket 
of  fruit  and  crackers,  accompanied  by  a  I'lower 
(lirl,  who  distributed  bunches  of  lovely  spring 
flowers  to  every  child  and  mir.se.  When  that 
was  finished  the  young  lio.sfesses  and  others 
joined  in  a  merry  dance  with  the  children  in 
the  Glass  Room  (which  is  the  chief  feature  of 
the  Home),  this  having  been  prettily  decorated 
with  evergreeiis  and  Chinese  lanterns  by  the 
nurses.  The>nisic  was  sup])lied  liy  a  grani.i- 
I)hone,  kindly  lent  for  the  occasion.  Mrs.  Spier 
gave  the  tea,  wliicli  consisted  of  a  "  lucky 
cake,  and  all  sorts  of  gtMid  things,  with  a  tiny 
Christmas  tree  and   "  Father  Christmas  "  on 


912 


Hbe  Britisb  3ournal  or  iRursing. 


[Jau.  -29,  1910 


iliu  table.  Ou  behalf  of  the  membei's  of  the 
Convalescent  Home,  Dr.  Ewart  proposed  a 
vote  of  thanlis,  iu  a  few  well-chosen  words,  to 
JNlr.  and  ^Irs.  Whitelaw  and  all  friends  from 
>«orth  Berwick  for  their  kindness  iu  giving  the 
treat,  and  expressed  the  deep  regret  felt  by 
everj'one  that  Mrs.  Whitelaw  was  prevented 
through  illness  from  being  present.  In  reply 
-Mr,  Whitelaw  said  it  had  given  them  much 
pleasure  to  give  the  tree,  and  if  the  children 
had  enjoyed  it,  and  it  had  been  the  means  of 
bringing  the  Home  ,to  the  notice  of  others,  j\lrs. 
Whitelaw 's  wish  would  be  doubly  recom- 
pensed. Afterwards  a  lady  suggested  that  she 
would  like  to  invite  some  of  the  children  to  her 
house  for  a  garden  tea  iu  the  summer,  and  a 
gentleman  airanged  to  give  a  magic  lantern 
show  iu  a  fortnight.  The  visitors,  numbering 
about  thirty,  were  then  entertained  to  tea  by 
Sister  Hurlston  and  the  Nurses,  and  this 
ended  what  one  little  girl  described  as  "the 
happiest  day  of  her  life." 

Last  month  the  Countess  of  Dudley  ad- 
dressed a  most  intiuential  meeting  at  ilel- 
bourne  in  the  ballroom  of  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment House,  on  the  Australian  Bush  Nursing 
Scheme.  Lady  Dudley  said  that  she  desired 
that  the  scheme  should  be  in  every  sense  Aus- 
tralian, and  it  deserved  the  best  consideration 
of  Australian  patriots.  The  project  was  to  ex- 
tend district  nursing  to  country  districts.  In 
dealing  with  the  subject  of  this  scheme,  she 
would  like  to  lift  it  at  once  to  a  higher  plane 
than  that  of  mere  expediency,  and  infuse  into 
even  its  earliest  beginnings  something  of  a 
spirit  of  patriotism  and  of  national  duty. 

The  nurse-members  of  the  Royal  Victorian 
Trained  Nurses'  Association  were  recently  en- 
tertained at  the  State  Government  House, 
^lelbourne,  by  Lady  Gibson-Camiichael,  who, 
as  reported  by  Una,  referred  to  the  most  in- 
teresting exhibition  which  had  taken  jilace  in 
Jjondon  in  connection  with  the  International 
Congress  of  Nurses,  which  she  briefly  de- 
scribed. She  felt,  she  said,  thrilled  when  she 
heard  of  it,  and  could  not  help  hoping  that  in 
tile  future  a  similar  exhibition  might  be  held 
there,  to  show  what  nurses  could  bring  in  the 
way  of  education,  comfort,  and  alleviation,  to 
many  who  had  a  brave  life  of  hardship  and  self- 
denial,  and  who  have  too  often  to  face  those 
hard  moments  of  birth  as  well  as  of  death  un- 
soothed  by  any  help  from  a  nurse,  and  some- 
times with  no  other  woman  near  them. 


There  can  be  few  greater  joys  in  the  life  of 
a  nurse  than  to  know  that  she  has  been  able 
io  render  help  in  extremity  to  those  who  other- 
w  ise  would  have  had  no  assistance. 


^bc  Ibospital  Movl&. 

A  HOSPITAL  TO  TEACH  STRAIGHT  THINKING. 

Planned  last  spring  iu  the  hope  of  "  minis- 
tering to  minds  diseased  "  the  New  York  Neu- 
rological Institute  has,  says  JMiss  ]\Iary  Brown 
Sumner  iu  the  Survey,  become  a  reality.  Ac- 
cording to  the  statement  of  its  purposes  pre- 
pared in  .June  by  Dr.  Joseph  Collins  and  two 
fellow  physicians,  the  hospital  was  to  be  for 
patients  with  so-called  functional  curable  ner- 
vous and  mental  diseases.  Such  .disorders  if 
left  uucared  for  or  cared  for  in  the  hurried 
slip-shod  manner  of  the  ordinary  dispensary — 
five  minute  consultation  with  the  doctor  and  a 
bottle  of  medicine — are  in  danger  of  becoming 
more  dominant,  luitil  finally  they  control  the 
patient  imperiously,  and  he  j)asses  into  the 
incurable  class.  The  long,  sympathetic  care 
necessary  for  recovery,  the  treatment  by  sug- 
gestion, the  proper  environment,  smi  and  air — 
all  these  things  can  be  provided  for  the  rich 
patient,  but  not  for  the  poor.  And  the  poor, 
struggling  against  an  unpropitious  environ- 
ment, need  care  infinitely  more.  They  need 
furthennore  "to  be  taught  how  to  live  hy- 
gienically,  how  to  think  straight,  how  to 
pluck  out  fear,  apprehension  and  ob- 
session and  to  put  in  their  places  cour- 
age, hope  and  confidence."  That  such  an  in- 
stitution as  the  New  York  Neurological  In- 
stitute was  indeed  a  response  to  a  great  need 
iu  New  York  was  shown  by  the  fact  that  on  the 
day  the  dispensary  opened  (November  '29th)  no 
less  than  fifty  patients  reported,  and  these 
were  not  sent  from  other  dispensaries,  but  had 
seen  a  notice  in  a  aaily  paper  and  I'ecognised 
this  as  a  hope  of  relief  from  those  mental 
sufferings  which  cannot  be  cured  by  medicines, 
but  which  are  not  paralleled  in  intensity  by 
bodily  suffering.  The  daily  attendance  now 
averages  eighty.  There  are  twenty-five  pa- 
tients in  the  wards  and  private  rooms,  in  fact, 
as  fast  as  wards  and  rooms  are  ready  for  occu- 
pancy they  are  filled. 

The  hospital  occupies  the  building  at  149-151 
East  Sixty-seventh  street,  formerly  the  Lenox 
Private  Hospital.  This  is  a  well-equipped  fire- 
proof building  of  five  stories,  with  a  capacity 
for  abotit  seventy-five  indoor  patients,  a  small 
operating  room,  small  provision  for  medicines, 
but  the  first  complete  equipment  in  America 
of  apparatus  for  the  treatment  of  nervous 
diseases.  The  whole  lower  floor  is  devoted  to 
the  dispensaries  and  the  psychotherapeutic 
rooms.  First  of  these  rooms  is  that  for  the 
treatment  of  locomotor  ataxia.  Here  by  means 
of  diagrams  on  the  floor,  supplemented  by 
exercises  at  home  the  patient  is  taught  to  re- 
place    the     automatic     nervous     reflexes   per- 


Jnn.  -JO,  J'.tli) 


^rf3c  Biitisb  ionrnal  of  IHurstmj. 


93 


verted  Ity  his  disease,  by  definite  mental 
aetioii — lie  is,  in  otlier  words,  made  to 
re-teach  liiiiiseJf  how  to  wiilk  or  move.  Next 
is  the  hydriatie  room  where  batlis  of  every 
conceivable  varietj%  hglit,  hot  air,  electricity, 
Nauheim  steam,  hot  or  cold  water,  are  being 
given  daily.  Beyond  this  is  the  suggestion 
room,  the  core  of  the  whole  system.  Here  it 
is  that  the  opportunity  is  given  the  pliysii.-iun 
to  "  study  the  patient's  mental  nialie-u|3,  to 
unravel  the  eomjjlex  mental  and  emotional 
states  that  accompany  his  condition,  to  find  the 
underlying  cause  of  which  these  states  are  but 
the  expression,  to  make  the  psychoanalysis." 
Unlike  medical  dispensary  work  such  treat- 
ment demands  time,  patience  and  infinite 
sympathy  from  the  physician.  In  the  sugges- 
tion room  is  a  delicate  apparatus  for  register- 
ing the  effect  of  the  emotions  on  the  nerves. 
Other  rooms  contain  the  X-ray  for  diagnosis, 
the  violet  ray  for  the  treatment  of  neuralgia 
and  other  painful  nervous  diseases,  the  Zander 
system  of  mechano-therapy  for  improving  the 
circulation  and  general  health  by  various  forms 
of  exercise  and  massage,  and  the  static  ma- 
chine for  electrical  treatment. 

lu  connection  with  the  work  of  the  dispen- 
sary there  is  a  body  of  nurses,  or  rathei- 
"  trainers  "  especially  equipped  for  work  with 
nervous  patients,  men  and  women  \\ith  pa- 
tience, sympathy,  and  adaptability,  a  practical 
knowledge  of  hygiene  and  of  treatment  by 
exercise,  massage,  and  suggestion.  A  coi-ps.  of 
social  workers  who  will  carry  the  treatment 
into  the  patient's  home  is  also  soon  to  be  or- 
ganised with  the  help  of  Edward  T.  Devine, 
who  is  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  hospital.  In 
time  it  is  hoped  that  a  sanatorium  in  the  coun- 
try can  be  started,  not  a  place  of  melancholy 
and  monotony  like  the  ordinary  sanatorium 
for  nervous  cases,  but  a  bright  and  happy 
home,  run  on  a  co-operative  basis  for  con- 
val(>scent  patients. 

-Mental  liealing.  Christian  science,  the  Em- 
manuel movement  were  the  first  responses  to 
the  demand  for  the  treatment  of  nervous  dis- 
orders in  America.  The  Psychiatric  Depart- 
ment of  the  Massachusetts  (reneral  Hosjtital 
put  the  utilisation  of  the  emotions  on  a  scienti- 
fic basis  and  it  is  believed  that  the  New  York 
Neurological  }Ios])ital  with  its  s])lendid  eipiip- 
nient  and  its  training  (le])artmeiit  for  inu'ses 
and  physicians  will  help  solve  the  ])rol)h'm  of 
the  relation  of  mind  to  disease. 

There  are  acconnnodations  for  thiity-five  free 
patients  in  its  wards;  the  ])rices  for  \r,\\  ]r,\- 
tients  are  from  ten  to  one  hmidred  dollars  a 
week.  The  medical  staff  includes  among  its 
members  most  of  the  ])rominent  neurologists 
in  New  York. 


IReflections. 


From  a  Board  Room  Mireor. 

Kiiowle  Hill  Park,  Cobliam,  Svurey.  lia^i  li>':i 
secured  for  the  Schifi  Home  of  Recovery,  a  solieuco 
brought  to  fruition  l)y  the  in<lefatigaiiU> 
work  of  .the  Earl  of  Lytton.  the  Chi.:' 
man.  The  Home,  the  idea  of  which  origiiia:«i' 
withMissFraser-Tytlerjis  to  provide  special  accc.;,i- 
modatiou  for  that  largo  class  of  .surgical  patieiils 
not  well  enough  to  perform  their  ihities  on  t)eiijL'; 
discharged  from  the  general  hospitals,  and  yet  lu-^ 
requiring  such  active  surgical  help  as  will  justify 
their  being  retained  as  in-patients  when  mer*'' 
urgent  cases  are  awaiting  admission.  Betw-en 
t30,000  and  £40,000  had  been  subscribed  on  beluiii 
of  the  scheme  when  it  was  made  possible  by  ti.'- 
uuuuficent  gift  of  £100,000  from  Mr.  Ernest  ji". 
Schiff,  of  Carlos  Place. 

Kuowle  Park  Hill  is  an  ideal  place  for  the  Ho!!)*^, 
standing  in  its  own  lovely  grounds  of  48  acres,  ;:iu1 
when  a  wiug  has  been  added  there  will  be  re</-ii 
for  70  to  7.5  patients,  all  of  whom  will  be  sent  fri'-!!! 
seven  of  the  principal  Loudon  hospitals.  CoIoikI 
J.  W.  Wray,  of  Guildford,  has  been  appoint*  1 
Sccretary-Su])crintendeiit  of  the  Home,  and  Mi>' 
Traill,  Matron  of  the  Koyal  Surre.v  County  H'^'- 
pital.  Guildford,  has  been  appointed  ^Matron. 


Fnini  the  annual  report  of  the  Leicester  Inl;.'- 
niary  we  learn  that  the  year  past  has  been  a 
pros))erous  one,  as  it  has  also  been  a  year  of  great 
activity  and  usefulness.  Xo  less  than  3,207  in- 
patients have  been  admitted.  It  was  a  cause  :or 
the  greatest  congratulation  that  the  income  h.ifl 
been  sufficient  not  only  to  meet  the  expeu.se*  of 
the  year,  but  to  extinguish  the  deficiency  on  t!.*". 
accounts  of  previous  years,  brought  forward  to 
1909— £2,7-26— and  to  leave  a  small  credit  balan.f. 
The  total  income  for  the  year  availabU'  for  ciu'rent 
expenses  was  £21,822,  against  £18.874  in  the  pr*- 
vioiis  year.  This  svdjstautial  and  gratifying  in- 
crease was  maiidy  due  to  three  sources — (1)  The 
Hosiiital  Saturday  Fuiul,  which  t<j  date  showed  a 
total  of  £12,8.W.  compared  with  £12.2.50.  of  wliicb. 
£8.715  was  available  for  the  needs  of  the  infirmar;y, 
as  against  £8,.301  in  1908,  (2)  The  year  had  be^n 
most  satisfact<jry  from  the  point  of  view  of  legacies 
which  had  amounted  to  £.3,941,  against  £8.56  in 
1908.  (3)  Investments  had  produced  £600  m<);^ 
than  in  the  previous  year,  owing  to  the  timely  am) 
generous  benefactions  of  the  late  Mr.  Sanu.<al 
Odames.  The  income  from  ainiual  subscription.^ 
was  somewhat  disapi)oiutiug.  The  exi)enditure  i<'r 
the  year  was  £18,793,  against  £18.874  in  1908.  In 
concbisiou,  the  report  referred  to  the  ai)proach':'ip 
opening  of  the  )iew  ward  of  3.3  beds,  and  the  n<w 
nurses'  home,  and  pointed  out  that  £3,000  extra 
would  be  required  for  the  annual  maintenance  of 
these  two  additions,  and  made  an  ajjjieal  for  in- 
creased support.  es))ecially  from  the  outlying  dis- 
tricts. Of  the  £100,000  ex))euded  on  thfe  recoD- 
structiou  scheme,  all  but  £2,8.50  had  been  promis^tl. 


•  To  secure  that  the  charities  shall  be  used  by  tbe 
right  people,  it  was  proixxsofl  at  the  annual  meeting 


Civ:   3Driii5l)  3ournnl   of  IHumno.        [J="..  2ci,  i9in 


of  tile  Leeds  Hospital  for  AVonieii  and  Children 
that  during  the  coming  year,  in  conjunction  with 
the  general  infirmary  aiul  dispensary,  to  aijpoint 
an  Almoner  for  six  months  as  an  experiment,  with 
a  view  to  seeing  how  much  work  could  be  organised. 


Till'  Sidford  Guardians  liave,  with  the  concur- 
rence of  the  Local  Goverjinu'ut  IJoard,  decided  to 
apiMjint  a  Medical  Superintendent  at  the  Hoi>e  Hos- 
pital, Salford,  with  two  As-sLstant  Medical  Officers. 

l{y  a  printer's  error  in  dropping  a  line  of  a  foot- 
note attached  to  an  article  on  "Neurasthenia  from 
a  Nurse's  Point  ofView,"  read  before  the  Canadian 
Society  of  Superintendents  of  Training  Schools, 
which  we  recently  printed,  it  tliusomitstostat^  tnat 
the  article  had  appeared  in  the  Canadian  A'Kr.sv. 
the  official  organ  of  the  Society.  With  such  a  crop 
of  lay  nur.sing  journals  making  money  out  of 
nurses,  the  official  organs  cannot  be  too  particular 
in  clinging  tenacionsl.v  to  their  own  propert.v. 

Unfortunately  the  signature  "V.  R."  was 
dnipped  out  recently  in  the  same  manner  from  an 
article   liy  our    Dublin   correspondent. 


iLcijal  riDatterti. 


KENEALY  rer<a<  LORD  NORTHCLIFFE  AND  THE 
ASSOCIATED   NEWSPAPERS.  LTD. 

The  action  bi<iuglit  by  Miss  Annesiey  Kenealy, 
a  lady  journalist  of  distinction,  as  well  as  a  trained 
nurse,  who  has  held  appointments  both  in  this 
country  and  in  America,  against  Lord  Northclitfe 
and  the  Associated  Xewsjjapers,  Lttl.,  for  breacli 
of  contract  and  damages  for  wrongful  dismissal, 
n  as  full  of  live  iiitei-est.  The  case  was  heai'd'in  the 
King's  Bench  Division  before  Mr.  Justice  Darlmi: 
and  a  special  jnr.v.  In  the  first  place,  the 
fact  that  Mis.s  Kenealy  conducted  her  case  in 
person  aroused  great  interest,  and  no  one  could 
listen  to  the  way  in  which  she  opened  and  con- 
ducteil  it  without  realising  that  the  legal  disability 
wliich  at  present  disbars  women  is  au  unjust  one, 
and  that  the  talent  necessary  to  successful  practice 
is  not  the  sole  prerogative  of  the  sex  to  which  such 
practice  is  at  present  restricted.  Throughout,  Mfss 
Kenealy  showed  great  legal  acumen,  and  her 
melodious  voice  and  polished  diction  made  her 
speeches  a  pleasure  to  hear,  so  that  Mr.  Knfus 
Isaacs,  K.C.,  counsel  for  the  defence,  was  com- 
pelled to  admit  that  the  lady  had  advantages  which 
the  other  sex  did  not  possess. 

Miss  Kenealy,  who  oliviousl.v  throughout  the  case 
Has  suffering  from  a  sense  of  injustice,  claimed 
that  she  had  been  ajipointed  co-editor  with  Lord 
>.'orth<-liif<>  of  a  "  Htimanities  l)ei)artment  "  in  the 
Jhiilji  Mail,  a  dei)artnu>nt  with  which  subject  slie 
was  well  (|ualified  to  deal.  This  the  defendants 
denied.  de<'laring  that  no  such  department  was 
ever  created,  aiul  that  tlie  articles  which  ai>|)eared 
in  the  paper  written  by  Miss  Kenealy  were  ordi- 
nary coutriliutions,  and  ))aid  for  as  such.  Certain 
it  is  that  slie  contributed  articles  on  Prison 
Children  and  other  subjects  which  would  fall  under 
this  beading;  that  she  visited  the  London  Ho.s- 
jiital;    and    wrote    articles  calling   attention    to    the. 


maternity  work  at  that  hospital  on  Lady  Derby's 
Baby  Bundles,  Eight  Hundred  Slum  Babies  ask 
for  help,  and  others;  and  that  their  financial 
value  to  the  London  Hospital  was  so  important 
that  the  Committee  passed  her  a  special  vote  of 
thanks. 

Miss  Kenealy,  who  had  no  written  coiitract  with 
the  defendants,  alleged  that  after  her  visit  to  the 
London  Hospital,  where  the  Chairman,  the  Hon. 
Sydne.v  Holland,  elicited  from  her  that  she  had 
anti-viviseftion  views,  of  which  he  snljsequently 
coin|>laineil  to  Lord  Js'orthclitt'e — a  charge  denied 
on  oath  by  Mr.  Holland  in  the  witness-box — she 
was  in  effect  summarily  dismissed  by  being  "  frozen 
out,"  which  was,  she  alleged,  a  method  b.v  which 
undesired  members  of  the  staff  were  gbt  rid  of  in 
the  l)iiil)j  Mail  office.  This,  again,  was  denied  by 
Lord  Xorthcliffe.  The  moral  clearly  is,  that  jour- 
nali.sts  should  have  their  contracts  in  writing,  and 
should  <-arefully   file  them. 

That  correspondence  did  pass  between  Lor_d 
Xorthcliffe  and  Mr.  Sydney  Holland  isevideirt  from 
the  unfortunate  comment  on  Miss  Keneal.v'.s  ap- 
pearance, wlien  she  visited  the  London  Hospital, 
ill  the  'jocular  communication,"  disclosed  b.v  Lord 
.\orth<-llffe,  with  apparent  reluctance,  ujion  tl^e 
direction  of  the  Judge,  Mr.  Justice  Darling.  Lord 
Xorthcliffe  then  said  his  imijression  was  that  iVIr. 
Hollanil  wrote:  •■'Why  did  .von  .send  this  old  Guy 
Fawkes  down   to  worry  me)'" 

The  letter  was  certainly  not  written  Un-  dissec- 
tion in  the  cold  atmosphere  of  ;i  law  court,  and  it 
seems  a  pity  that  its  contents  should  ever  have 
been  divulged  there.  We  are  not  surprised  that 
Miss  Kenealv's  sense  of  humour  did  not  agree  with 
that  of   Mr.'  Holland. 

Certainl.v,  however,  such  a  remark  must  be  pre- 
judicial to  a  woman  worker  when  made  to  her 
employer  by  the  Chairman  of  a  hospital  whom  she 
is  sent  to  interview,  and  in  the  witness-box  Mr. 
Holland  admitted  that  he  regretted  the  expression 
he  had  used  as  to  her  j)er.sonal  appearance.  He 
did  not  mean  to  harm  Miss  Kenealy,  and  it  was 
quite  untrue  to  sa.v  that  he  said  he  would  get 
her  dismissed.  The  plaintiff  then  inquired  whether 
Mr.  Holland  thought  it  kind  to  represent  her  to 
her  emplo.ver  as  an  ugly  valentine,  or  a  music-hall 
artiste. 

Pres.sed  b.v  Jliss  Keneal.v  to  explain  what  he 
meant  in  his  letter  to  Lord  X'orthcliffe,  Mr.  Hol- 
land said  that  she  was  overdressed,  that  she  was 
wearing  the  liiggest  hat  he  had  ever  seen,  a  con- 
siderable sized  wig,  and  an  immense  amount  of 
jewellery.  On  !Miss  Kenealy's  asserting  that  she 
hardly  possessed  any  jewellery,  Mr.  Holland  re- 
torted that  she  must  have  borrowed  it. 

.\ll  of  which  shows  the  disadvantage  under  which 
a  lad.r  journalist  labours  if  her  taste  in  dress  does 
not  coincide  with  that  of  her  clientele,  for  an 
eccentricity  of  dress  in  a  male  interviewer  would 
ceitainly  not   have   elicited  similar   comment. 

.Asked  liy  the  Judge  if  she  had  not  vivi.se-cte<l  Mr. 
Holland  enough.  ^liss  Kenealy  replied:  "  M.v  Lord. 
it  Seems  to  nie  that  he  has  vivisected  me  a.s  very 
few  women  have  neen  vivi.sected  in  a  public  court." 

A  dramatic  moment,  occurred  when  the  Court 
adjourned  at  midday,    and  two  of  Miss  Kenealy's 


Cbc   JBiitiei?  3oiirnal  of  HAursma. 


sisteri  hifonned  Mr.  Holland  in  unmistakably  ex- 
plicit terms  what  they  thought  of  him.  In  quiet 
l)ut  itifisive  tones  they  informeil  him  that  tiny 
thoiiiLtht  him  "  the  bicgest  boimdor  thev  hail  eviT 
met,"  and  .Mr.  Moll.,';, I  ,..,.i„.,i  ,i,.,r  i..."  u  ,.  ,,,,;,, 
sure  they  would. 

The  plaintiff  lo^i 
have  found  no  oliic]    \iTiiiri    iikhi   ,iii,    i,ir   iiu    ,i, 
fendant,    in    view    of     the    lack    of     documentary 
evidence  in  supirort  of  her  claim. 

In  the  (Durse  of  the  case  .several  references  wen- 
made  to  the  ^Hoiise  of  Lords,  but  a  worse  dajiger 
than  the  irnvsiblf  autocracy  of  a  House  of  Ijords 
threaten.s  ilie  country  in  the  i;ireat  Press  Trusts 
which  arc   now   being  e^tabli.-.hod. 

THE    EFFECT    OF    DISORGANISATION. 

^>o  ^ii-jit  h  the  disorganisation  of  the  mirsiny; 
profo!*.ioii  at  the  present  time  that  it  is  quite  im- 
l>0N>ilil«  for  this  journal,  with  the  si>ace  at  its  dis- 
[jo^al,  to  deal  adequately  with  all  the  legal  cases 
which  arise.  We  propose  to  refer  to  several,  to 
which  we  cannot  afford  space  this  weekj  in  our 
next  issue. 


Qutsibe  tbe  ^Bates. 


H  Xibrarv  ot  iHnrstno  ILiterature 
in  IHewJpoih. 

We  have  received  tiie  lollowiug  letter  Ircun 
■\Ii«s  Nutting:-^ 

Teachers'  College, 

Columbia  University.- 
Dkar  Mrs.  Fenwick, — 1  am  anxious  to  try  and 
build  up  liere  in  New  York  ;i  good  reforeiK-e 
library  of  nursing  literature,  which  will  be  avail- 
able for  nurses  both  at  the  College  and  in  the  city, 
who  at  present  have  no  access  to  any  oompreheii- 
siv?  collection  on  this  subject.  If  at  all  jjossible  1 
should  like  very  much  to  secure  a  full  file  of  the 
British  Joitrx.\l  of  Nursing,  and  shall  bo  glad  if 
you  will  let  mo  know  if  this  can  be  done.  AVe 
countc<l  as  one  of  our  most  (-herished  ]K>.sses.sions 
such  a  tile  which  we  have  in  our  library  at.  the 
Johnti  Hopkins  Training  .School  at  Baltimore,  and  1 
want  very  much,  if  possible,  to  reproduce  it  here. 
Believe  me,  with  kindest  regards. 
Faithfully  yours. 

AdKL.MDE   NlTITl.NG. 

I  .\  full  file  of  this  Journal  now  comprises  43 
volumes,  mid  we  are  able  to  supply  all  IMiss 
Nutting  requires  with  the  e.\ception  of  Vol. 
III.,  July  411i,  to  December  -iGth.  1889,  in- 
clusive. Has  anyone  a  hound  vohnne  they 
wish  to  sell,  or  single  copies  for  Jtily,  August, 
Septe.mber,  and  December  of  that  year?  If  so. 
please  communicate  with  the  Editor  at  '20, 
Up])er  Wimpole  Street,  London,  W.,  as  we 
desire  very  earnestly  to  supply  a  full  file  foi- 
Teachers'  College.  Three  separate  files  are 
being  carefully  kept  in  this  country,  one  ot 
which  belongs  to  the  Library  of  the  Iiitei- 
national  Couiicil  of  Nurses.  When  we  ore  ail 
dead  ami  youe  no  doubt  a  future  generation  of 
Registered  Nurses  will  appreciate  a  peep  into 
the  pages  of  the  Journal  which  won  them  their 
legal  status. — Erl."^ 


WOMEN. 

Lady  Constance  Lyttou 
has  a  keen  seu.se  of 
humour  as  well  as  « 
livetj-  spirit,  and  her 
little  ruse?  to  prove  to 
the  Home  Secretary  mat 
il  hci'  ladyship's  heart  is 
too  weak  for  pri.son 
routine,  that  of  "Jane 
Whnitt.,,  ,-  ■■.,^1,  onough,  has  succcHKled  per- 
fectly.  When  sent  to  prison  as  a  .Suffragette  ai 
Newcastle,  la.st  October,  she  was  at  once  released 
ui>on  the  advice  of  a  si>ecialist.  But  during  incar- 
ceration under  an  assumed  and  common-place  name 
at  Liverpool,  the  prison  doctor  pronoiuiced  lier 
physically  fit  to  endure  her  sentence!  This  is  what 
Mrs.  Pethick  Lawrence  calls  "political  snobbery,-" 
and  Ijady  Constance  agrees  with  her.  As  soon  as 
the  secret  leaketl  out  that  "  .Jane  Wharton  "  was 
a  lady  in  her  own  right,  by  order  of  the  Home  Office 
Ijady  Constance  Lytton  was  at  once  released.  We 
learn  that  -she  states  .she  has  sufferwl  gro.ss  insults 
(at  least  Jane  did)  at  the  hands  of  some  of  the 
lirison  officials.  By  condoning  the  unantliorised  use 
of  the  fire  hose  on  a  defenceless  woman  prisoner  at 
Slanchester  the  Home  Secretary  has  in  effect  given 
carfr.  blanche  to  ruffianly  officials  to  ill-use  these 
"  l)olitical  "  offenders  as  they  choose. 

It  is  stated  that  Sultan  Abdul  Hamid  has  re- 
cently made  \ip  his  mind,  at  the  age  of  70,  to  bn 
vaccinated.  Being  a  catitious  man,  however,  he 
first  had  the  j^rocednre  carried  out  on  the  ten 
wives  left  to  him  out  of  h]<  I'oi-TiirT  jioi.mIoh- 
harem,  and  on  his  son. 

A   MODEL  PRISON. 

.Miss  Rosa  M.  Barrett  sends  the  loD.iwiii-  in- 
teresting account  to  rnjuicss  of  one  of  the  many 
prisons  she  visited^  in  the  United  States  last  year  :  — 

'•  The  ijrison  which  impressed  me  most  was  the 
women's  i)rison  at  .Sherborne,  near  Boston. 
Situated  in  the  country-  -about  a  mile  from  the 
nearest  station — it  looks  from  the  outside  more  like 
a  well-planned  factory  than  a  i)rison.  It  is  sur- 
rounded, not  by  high  spiked  walls,  but  by  beautiful 
grounds,  the  cultivation  of  which  gives  employment 
to  many  of  the  women.  I  think  I  am  right  in 
saying  that  fruit  is  largely  grown  for  sale,  as  well 
as  for  consumption  by  the  staff.  Inside,  the  dif- 
ferent grades  of  prisoners  have  different  corridors, 
but  all  the  windows  are  large — as  large  a_s  in  an 
ordinary  rooni — and  made  to  open  and  look  out 
on  a  wide  view  of  sky,  country,  and  trees.  Does 
not  the  voice  of  Nature  in  itself  carry  a  word  of 
hope  and  cheer!-'  Why  do  we  banish  it  so  jdtilessly 
fnun  our  prisons?  (ireat  efforts  are  also  made  to 
teach  every  inmate  some  occupation  by  which  she 
can  earn  an  honest  living  on  leaving.  The  un- 
educated have  regular  school  instruction.  The  ex- 
quisite cleanliness  ever.ywhere,  the  spotless  dairy 
where  beautiful  butter  is  made,  must  Itelp  to  teach 
the  beaut.v  of   i)urity. 


Zhc  :J6ritl6b  journal  of  iRursing. 


[Jan.  29,  1910 


■  1  was  specially  struck  liy  tlie  trust  that  was 
lilacetj  in  tlie  women,  and  the  war  th"ey  resi>ouded 
ti)  tliat  trust :  punislimpnt  is  rarely  used  or  needed, 
discipline  lieing  maintained  more  by  rewards  than 
liy  dejiradation.  No  j:)risoners  were  in  the  lowest 
Krade,  and  all  can  work  up  to  the  highest,  while 
those  wearing  the  large  T  (for  Trust)  have  special 
liberty,  privileges,  '  and  work.  The  food  is  not 
doled  out  in  sjiecified  quantities,  but  each  can  have 
a.s  much  as  she  wishes  (at  all  events  as  regards 
bread),  nor  do  the  inmates  eat  in  their  cells,  but 
in  dining-rooms,  each  grade  having  its  own. 
Crockery  is  used  at  the  table,  not  tin  vessels  and 
r'lUgs:  and  also  proper  bedsteads  and  mattresses, 
v^iiile  the  fatiguing  and  useless  military  plan  of 
daily  folding  up  the  bed  and  bed-clothes  is 
•t  ■olished.  All  are  kept  busy,  and  I  saw  none  of 
;r  fliniatteristic  prison  lounging.  Hay  not  this 
1  ■  piirtly  because  tlie  labour,  instead  of  being  use- 
li'.-.s.  is  made  to  serve  a  given  and  visible  end!' 
Another  admirable  custom  was  that  the  women  are 
aUowed  to  cairy  their  library  books  to  the  uork- 
r.iom,  laundry  etc.,  so  that  whenever  they  have  a 
ff-w  spare  minutes,  or  their  allotted  task  is  done, 
•;i.-itead  of  fitting  with  vacant  minds  they  can  read 
and  o<-oui)y  their  thoughts.  Further,  the  Superin- 
t»-ndent  gathers  the  women  round  her  daily  for  tlie 
t;alf-honr's  mid-day  leisure,  thus  lieljjing  them  to 
forget  for-  that  time  that  they  are  jjrisoners,  and 
giving  them  something  high  and  beautiful  to  think 
:>bout,  uot  only  in  prison,  but  after  they  have  left. 
,  tt.  never  occurs  to  her  that  they  may  be  disorderly; 
:ind  they  never  are.  Another  act  of  mercy  here  is 
fiiat  female  prisoners  expecting  their  confinement 
"re  sent  to  hosi)ital,  so  that  the  poor  baby  is  not 
f-nbje'Ct  to  tlie  life-long  stigma  of  being  born  in 
prison. 

■'  In  the  above  account  I  have  merel.v  referred  to 
.>uch  improvements  in  our  methods  a.s  we  might 
:id.opt  without  any  fresh  legislation.  Do  not  we 
need  to  replace  the  seven  devils  we  are  trying  to 
strive  but  of  our  prisoners  b.v  something  better? 
f^>  that  if  (in  the  words  of  the  Quaker  philan- 
thropist) anyone  should  say  to  them,  '  Friend,  thee 
Uiould  have  better  thoughts,'  no  one  of  them  could 
ri-ply.    '  ^YherB  .shall   I  get  them?'   " 

ALCOHOL  AND  THE  BABY. 

.V  case  is  reported  by  the  Lanict  from  Oldham 
v.hich  is  described  as  "amazing.''  Whether  it 
ifidicates  amazing  vice  or  amazing  ignorance  may 
lie  considered  doubtful,  the  probability  being  that 
vice  and  ignorance  had  equal  shares  in  the  ]iro- 
cieding.  A  woman  going  to  the  market  left  her 
two  children  in  the  care  of  her  mother.  On  her 
i-.Hurn  she  saw  one  of  them,  22  months  old,  on  her 
'•-Other's  knee  looking  "strange."  A  man  in  the 
r'<om  said,  "It's  drunk;  it's  been  having  soine- 
fehing  to  'sup."  '■  Then  the  grandmother  .stated 
tliat  the  man  had  given  it  "  some  rum  and 
V  hisky."  The  mother  t(X>k  tlie  child  to  a  doctor 
:iiid  later  to  the  infirmary,  where  the  house  snr- 
^t-on  said  the  child  had  been  poisoned  by  alcohol. 
The  grandmother  was  fined  10s.  and  costs,  and. 
curiously  enough.  th(>  man  who  had  given  the 
'    sup  "    was   let  off. 


Book  of  tbe  Mcel?. 


.  Gamp  out  of  date,  and 

orders   to    the    assistant 
lor  the  night : — 


A  BLIND  BIRD'S  NEST.* 

"  A  Blind  Bird's  Nest  "  is  not  a  very  now  tjook, 
but  a  very  jxipular  one.  for  it  has  attained  that  sure- 
test  of  popularity — publication  in  Collins'  7d. 
Edition.  Like  other  of  Miss  Findlater's  books,  it 
is  well  worth  reading,  but  the  sjK'cial  object  of  re- 
ferring to  it  here  is  becau.se  of  the  jiortrait  it  con- 
tains of  a  modern  nurNc.  We  consider  Dickens' 
inimitable  jjortrait  of  .\li> 
yet — listen — 

Here   are   Mi-s.    Ganii)'s 
chambermaid  of  the   hotel 

"  I  think,  young  woman,  that  I  could  pick  a  little 
flit  of  pickled  salmon,  with  a  nice  little  sprig  of 
fennel  and  a  sprinkling  of  white  pepper.  I  takes, 
new  bread,  my  dear,  with  jest  a  little  pat  of  fresh 
butter,  and  a  raossel  of  chee.se.  In  ca.se  there  should 
be  such  a  thing  as  a  cowcuni.ber  in  the  house  will 
you  be  so  kind  as  bring  it,  for  I'm  rather  partial  to 
'em,  and  they  does  a  worlu  of  good  in  a  sick  room. 
If  they  draws  the  Brighton  Okl  Tipper  here  I  takes 
that  ale  at  night,  my  love,  it  being  considered  wake- 
ful by  the  doctois.  And  whatever  you  do,  young 
woman,  don't  bring  more  than  a  shilling's  wortli  of 
gin  and  water,  warm,  when  I  rings  the  bell  a 
second  time,  for  that  is  always  my  allowance,  and  I 
never  takes  a  drop  beyond." 

As  to  easy  chairs  Mrs.  Prig  had  forewarned  her. 
"  The  easy  chair  ain't  soft  enough.  You  want  liis 
(the  patient's)  pillow."' 

Other  times  other  niannei's.  Here  is  Miss  Find 
later's  portrait : — 

An  old  lady — the  rector's  wife — is  concerned  that 
the  nurse  shall  have  all  she  requires. 

"  Tliere's  no  arm-chair  .she  can  'ave,  ma'am,  ' 
said  the  maid,  unless  one  from  the  drawing-room 
or  master's  study  chair,  and  it's  so  big ;  but  there's  a 
chair  in  the  blue  bedroom  now,  ma'am,  as  all  our 
visitors  use." 

"Yes;  but  it's  a  wicker  chair,  Joan.  She  says 
that  won't  do." 

So  the  rector's  chair  is  hauled  up  with  the  aid  of 
the  gardener,  and  the  verdict  is  that  it  will  "  do.  ' 

"  Did  you  ask  her  if  she  would  like  anything  jor 
hei'self  through  the  night,  Joan?  "  the  old  lady  in- 
quired, anxiously. 

"Yes,  ma'am,  and  she  said  as  'ow  any  littic 
thing  Aiould  do.  She  only  wanted  just  a  slice  from 
the  joint — cohl  like — and  any  cream  or  fruit  as 
might  be  over  from  the  table;  and  she  was  pa  - 
ticulaily  fond  of  a  cu.stard,  and  only  just  a  gla.ss 
of  Burgundy  along  with  her  .supper,  and  then  some 
bitter  ale  and  biscuits  the  last  thing,  and  nothing 
more  except  ju.st  the  tray  with  the  syphon,  and  a 
small  teajiot  with  cream  and  .sugar,  and  some  plain 
bread  and  butter,  or  a  bit  of  muffin,  and  two  slice ., 
or  else  the  loaf,  to  make  hemelf  a  bit  o"  toast,  and 
the  kettle  for  'ot  water:  and  just  about  a  break- 
fast cupful  of  fresh  milk,  with  a  henamelled  pan  to 
warm  it  in  ;  and  if  there  was  any  plain,  light 
biscuits  she  might  jii.st   'ave  one  or  two  of  them, 


*  By    Mary-    Findlater. 
(Ila.sgow.) 


(Collins.    London    and 


Jan.  -20,  rOKV 


Zbc  Bntieb  3ournal  of  murslno> 


aiul  a  mouthful  of  clicese.  .She  sjiid  as  'o\v  sho 
always  triod  to  give  as  little  tiouble  as  iX)se>iblo 
and  mako  no  <'xtiy  work  as  could  bo  'olped.  She 
can  eat  very  little  through  the  night,  so  might 
she  'ave  a  tiesh  cup  of  tea  Inought  to  her 
at  six,  and  ^he'<l  like  er  liath  at  eight  ;  and  if  Mie 
might  'ave  a  light  bieakfaht  about  'alf-i>ast  nine — 
juht  a  little  Quaker  oats  and  cream  awl  some  tta 
and  bread  and  butter;  and  it  there  was  a  bit  of 
eold  nu>at' — she  wasn't  .set  on  bacon,  but  .she  was 
fond  of  a  plain.  soft-lx>iled  egg  in  the  country;  or 
a  mouthful  of  Devonshire  cream  and  a  muffin,  and 
&he  'o|x'(l  you  wouldn't  l)e  conct-rning  your.st^lf  to 
make  yourself  anxious,  ma'am,  for  she's  got  neaily 
everything  she  really  requires  except  the  night- 
light  and  a  black  blind  tor  the  window — them  old- 
fa.-»hioned  white  blinds  is  no  use.  And  will  we 
])leas<>  to  wrap  each  piece  of  coal- in  ti.s.suo  pajK-r. 
and  send  up  a  pair  of  gloves — any  old  pair  of 
master's  gloves  will  do,  she  says — to  keep  quiet  in 
the  room;  and  the  win<low  must  Ix^  ojx-n  fi'oni  the 
top,  but  that  can  be  done  to-morrow,  she  says,  as 
it's  not  hung;  and  there's  nothing  else  exci'pt 
the  spirit-lamp  and  a  .shailed  light,  and  two 
cushions — for  the  study  arm-chair  w  ill  <lo  very  uell 
if  .she  can  'ave  a  small  loot.stool  and  a  tliick  shaul 
and  a  fur  c-oat."     .She  paused  to  take  br<'ath. 

"  Very  well.  .Joan,"  said  the  old  lady,  with  a 
faint  tremble  in  her  voice;  "if  you  just  rei)eat 
the  things  again  in  order  we  shall  see  what  we  can 
arrange." 

Is  there  not  a  strong  family  likeness  betwtvn  me 
motlern   nur.se  and  her   prototype'? 

The  honours  seem  with  Mrs.  Gamp,  tor  she  cer- 
tainlv  was  the  less  exacting  of  the  two. 

P.  G.  Y. 

COMING    EVENTS. 

■Januarii  20ih. — Meeting  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee of  the  National  Council  of  Jinrses  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland.  To  form  committees  to  fur- 
ther the  Resolutions  passed  at  the  International 
Congress  of  Nurses,  431,  Oxford  Street,  London, 
W.,  4  p.m. 

■Jniiiuinj  J'.Uli . — Catholic  Nurses'  Association 
meeting.     Convent   of  the  Visitation,  Harrow. 

Filii  )i<ini  Sril. — r,ect>ire  on  Milk,  by  Dr.  Harden, 
K.H..'^..  followed  by  practical  demonstration-. 
.Sonth-Westeru  Polytechnic  Institute,  Maurisa 
Hoad,  Chelsea,  S.W.,  7.:»  p.m.  Fee  f<u-  course. 
•Js.  6d. 

Ffltriinrji  t)fh. — R()y;d  luHrniary,  Kdinlmrgb. 
Lecture  on  ■'The  Influence  of  the  Jlind  Over  the 
Body."  by  Mr.  V.  W.  CathcJirt.  F.B.C..S.  Extra 
Mural  Theatre.  4. ,30  p.m.  Nurses  are  cordially  in- 
vite<l. 

Fihriinrii  h'ifli. — Written  examination  of  Central 
Midwivcs'  Board,  in  fjondon,  Birmingham,  Bris- 
tol Manchester,  Newcastle-oii-Tyne,  and  Leedv. 
Oral  examination  a  few  days  later. 

WORD  FOR    THE  WEEK. 

Never  say:  "  It  is  nobody's  business  but  my  <iu  ri 
what  I  do  with  my  life."  It  is  not  true.  Vour 
life  is  put  in  your  hands  as  a  trust,  for  fnany  others 
beside  yourself.  If  you  use  it  well,  it  will  make 
many  others  happy;  if  you  abuse  it,  it  will  harm 
niauv  others  beside  voursdf.     .I\mf,s  M.  Ptit.i.MVN. 


letters  to  the  £Mtor. 


WKUst  cOTdhdly  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
Jot  these  columns,  we  wish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  we  do  not  in  ant  way 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  out 
correspondents. 


THE  HOSPITAL  NURSES'  LEGAL  PROTECTION 
ASSOCIATION 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
M.\DAJi. — I  have  read  the  correspondence  in  the 
British  .Joirna!.  of  Nuilsinq  between  Lord  Invcr- 
clyde  and  .Mrs.  K.uiwick,  I  totally  disagree  with 
any  of  the  advo<'ates,  who  would  place  a 
nurse's  certificate  at  the  nuM'cy  of  her  Superin- 
tendent. I  think  there  shoid<l  be  a  central  exam- 
ining body,  and  that  this  body  alone  should  have 
to  be  satisfied,  and  that  the  hospitals  should  be 
regarded  only  as  are  the  Colleges  of  Oxford  in 
relation  to  the  University;  that  it  ought  not  to  be 
in  the  jxiwer  of  any  hospital  to  grant  certifi<'ates : 
aiul  that  anyone  who  has  worked  for  three  years  in 
a  hospital  or  hospitals  should  be  eligible  to  apjiear 
before  the  central  examining  body.  I  disajiprove 
wholly  of  the  statement  of  the  Hon.  Sydney  Hol- 
land, that  the  new  system  of  <'enlralisi'd  examina- 
tions, now  adopted  in  every  other  rational  pro- 
fession, will  not  bring  out  certain  qualities  or  de- 
fects in  character,  --^.s  long  as  examining  bodies 
are  sinful  men,  and  not  angels,  no  examination 
will.  AVhat  qualities  of  character  does  the  law 
agents',  the  M.B.,  the  Board  of  Education  exam- 
ination bring  outy  .-Vud  I  su))pose  it  is  just  as 
important  that  a  lawyer,  a  doctor,  or  a  tea<her. 
controlling  people's  money,  or  lives,  or  children,  be 
of  good  character  as  a  nurse?  Who  evei-  heard  of 
a  medical  .student  being  deprived  of  his  degree,  or 
a  lady  teacher  of  her  certificate,  because  they  were 
rude  to  the  head  of  their  place  of  residence,  or 
seen  taking  a  glass  of  wine,  or  persisted  in  kee])- 
ing  a   box  of  matches  in  their  bedrooms!' 

Our  association  has  only  recently  been  formed, 
and  with  us  Registration  is  not  the  main  thing; 
at  the  same  time,  we  would  approve  of  any  system 
of  Begistratiou  that  put  it  beyond  the  power  of 
a  Matron  to  deduct  marks  from  a  nurse's  examina- 
tion because  she  has  broken  some  des))otic  rule 
about  not  using  a  candle,  or  not  speaking  to  a 
house  surgeon  in  the  street,  or  some  other  silly 
nonsense.  Similarly,  I  think  we  would  oppose  any 
system  of  Registration  that  insisted  on  a  nurse 
having  to  win  a  certificate  from  her  hospital,  as 
opijosed  to  a  central  body,  or  left  the  length  of  the 
training  to  be  fixed  by  hospitals  and  not  the 
central   board. 

It  is  as  scandalous  that  a  superintendent  should 
ixamine  his  own  nurses  as  that  a  solicitor  .should 
grant  a  degree  in  law  (or  refu.se  it;  to  his  apjiren- 
tice.  At  the  same  time,  our  primary  objwt  is 
not  Registration.  I  did.  indeed,  ask  I/ord  Ampthill 
to  receive  .someone  from  our  .Association,  and  be 
saiil   it   was  not  within  his  )iower.   and  that  he  did 


Zbc  ffirittai)  3ournal  or  mursnuj.      tJ«"  -^  i^iu 


I     t    think    \\i-    luitl    made  Eogistratioii    ;i    pniuaiy 

,lt>c-t.     1  replied  tliat  we  bad  only  existed  a  few 

I   '>iitlis.   and   admitted  that  Registration  was  not 

V  -v  ultimate  aim,  l]iit  said  I  should  like  to  be 
i  : -sent  at  the   Conference  if  possibleV 

Vet  the  whole  question  of  hospital  administra- 
t''.n  is  rather  our  concern.  Cases  like  that  at 
H-mel    Henipsteatl,   and  cases  where  a    grown    up 

V  luan  has  actually  l)een  ordered,  in  defiance  of  the 
,\.  T  of  Habeas  Coi'pus,  to  remain  in  premises  when 
:.  ispended  from  eini)loyers"  service,  and  cases 
IV  'lere  women  leaving  a  liospital,  even  with  reason- 
■'■■le  notice,  liave  lieen  threatened  with  actions  for 

•  (•surd  sums  of  money,  and  have  been  fools  enough 
t..  pay,  aUliiiiiiili  no  court  ever  i/rt  has  airarded 
r  'inoijcs  aii'iiiis  n  huspital  prohot'ioiicr  for  having; 

ui.l  cases  where  nurses  do  not  get  copies  of  the 
i  ijK'rs  they  sign,    or     sign     immoral     agreements 

V  .lirh  -ive  the  hospital  the  right  to  terminate  the 
I  iuagement,  but  under  which  the  nurse  is  not  sup- 
posed to  do  so.  agreements  which  serve  to  intimi- 
liate  nervous  girls,  but  through  which  a  K.C. 
would  put  his  foot — e.g.,  there  is  no  agreed  com- 
pensation in  the  London  Hospital  agreement,  but 
if  a  nui-se  go  they  ask  her  to  pay ;  Init  if  they 
break  their  engageinent  witli  her,  they  don't  pay 
her;  it  is  a  sort  of  heads-I-win-tails-you-Iose  busi- 
ness, which  I  should  like  to  sec  fought  ont  in 
court,  as  the  law  is  that  both  should  be  liable  to 
pay  for  breach  or  none. 

Yotirs  sincerely, 
A.  K.  Paterson  Wing.\te,  Hon.  Gen.  See. 
Loudon  address:     c/o.   of  Lloyd-George,  Roberts 

•  .  1  Co.,  63,  Queen  Victoria  Street,  and 

i.   Murray  Park,  St.  Andrews. 

[This  As.sociation  was  formed  after  the  publicity 
given  til  the  manner  in  which  certain  nurses  were 
tr(!-ated  daring  and  after  the  Ruchill  Fever  Hospi- 
t)I  controversy,  beginning  in  190".  We  hojie  to 
T   S-i-  to  its  aims  in  a  future  issue. — En.] 


THE  COLOGNE  CONGRESS. 

To  the  Editor  of  tin   ••  British  -Journal  of  yvrsing." 

Dear  JIadam, — I  quite  agree  with  your  cor- 
r-spondent  about  the  necessity  for  saving  nuincy 
for  the  Cologne  Congress. 

But  what  is  wrong  with  the  Post  Office  Savings 
Bjnk:-     AVIiv   should  not  each  one  save  for   herself 
for  that   little  holiday  in  lOlL':- 
Yours  truly, 

One  AVro  is   Saving. 

Heathcroft.   Xewnuirket. 

[To  save  for  her.self  is  just  what  each  nurse 
wishing  to  attend  the  next  Triennial  Meeting  of 
the  Interuation-il  Council  of  Nurses  at  Cologne 
should  do.  But  v>  ill  nurses  do  this  without  co-opera- 
tion and  encour.-.genient?  The  Post  Office  Savings 
Bjnk  is  the  best  place  for  the  purjiose,  and  we  hope 
many  little  accounts  will  be  started  for  the  Con- 
gress expenses. — En.] 


lory  ol  the  '  Totiekl  "  bonnet  (1  do  hope  it 
triumi^hed  in  the  end)  I  was  much  imjjressed  with 
your  conclusion  "  that  apijearances  must'  be  re- 
spected "  when  reading  Mr.  Holland's  evidence  in 
the  cnune  celcbre  of  the  week.  Men  seldom  jtidge 
by  anything  lint  api>earauces  and  manners  when 
selecting  women  for  liospital  posts,  and  many  an  ex- 
cellent ^\orann  has  been  passed  over  because  she 
has  got  a  ie<l  nose,  or  a  nervous  manner,  or  an  ugly 
hat.  Evidently  the  genius  of  one  of  our  most 
brilliant  women  journalists,  whose  work  brought 
much  money  to  the  coffers  of  the  London  Hospital, 
«as  im)HMceptible-  to  Mr.  Holland,  because  ovcr- 
ishadowed  by  a  style  of  dress  to  \\hich  he  objected. 
How  wise  yod  were,  feeling  confidence  in  your  own 
lK)wer  to  do  the  work  of  a  ilatron  of  a  large  hovs- 
pital — to  looJc  the  part.  Deserving  promotion  yon 
might  have  missed  it  had  you  worn  a  toc^ne  instead 
of  a  bonnet!  How  al»nrd  is  the  importance  eon- 
ceded  to  aiJijearauces  in  women. 
Yours  truly, 

'  C.   V.   M. 

PRIMITIVE  METHODS  IN   HOSPITALS. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Mad.\ii, — Customs  in  ho.spitals  become  in- 
digenons,  and  are  carried  on  without  change  from 
year  to  year.  Tea  eui)s  and  sauceis  are  used  in  but 
few  of  our  '' best  trainingschools."  and  diet  tables 
and  serviettes  unknown  in  many.  At  food  ex- 
hibitions we  see  a  display  of  spotless  napery  and 
tempting  diet  trays,  for  which  prizes  are  awarded, 
but  where  are  sueh  trays  and  diets  m  use?  I  have 
worked  in  a  good  many  hospitaLs  in  this  country, 
and  nothing  of  the  sort  is  offered  to  sick  people  in 
the  general  wards.  Our  j)Oor  are  becoming  tne 
worst  fed  nation  in  the  world,  and  hospital  cooking 
is  notoiiously  bad.  AVhen  I  was  young  cot- 
tage cooking  in  England  was  most  nutritious. 
and  the  population  healthy.  Tlie-  pot  con- 
tained soup,  meat,  vegetables,  and  pudoing. 
and  it  was  good.  "\Ve  should  return  to  this 
pot  au  feu,  if  we  want  to  empty  hospital  wards. 
And  more  nutritious  "  .stews  '"  should  be  served 
in  hos])itals,  instead  of  himps  of  roasted  foreign 
meat,  cold  potatoes,  and  starchy  puddings.  The 
one  thing  above  all  others  that  the  women  patients 
would  enjoy  would  be  their  own  teapot,  and  a  nice 
cup  and  saiu'er  from  whi<'h  to  drink  their  freshly- 
made  tea.  .Stewed  tea  in  mug's  is  a  very  poor  snb- 
stitnte  for  the  pei-sonal  pot.  This  luxury  used  to 
be  permitted  at  Middlesex  Hospital,  and  I  hope  it 
is  still   continued. 

.\n  Oi.d  Hospitai,  .Sister. 


THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  APPEARANCE. 

To  thcEditon,!  tl,,  --British  -Joii  rnah.f  Sursino.- 
Dear  ^Mada.m. —  I  am  enjoying  so  much  reading 
how  you  became  Matron  of  Bart's.  It  is  always  so 
interesting  to  icil  about  re<d  people,  and  how 
things  really  ha|i|irM.    .After  laughing  over  the  m^- 


Ittotices. 

RULES  FOR   PRIZE  COMPETITIONS. 

An  Article  ox  a  Practical  Nursing  Subject. 

We  offer  £1  10s.  for  an  article  dealing  with 
Practical  Nursing  of  from  1,400  to  1.500  words,  to 
reach  the  Editor,  at  20,  I'pper  Winipole  Street, 
London,  W.,  not  later  than  Saturday.  .January 
29th.  By  arrangement  with  competitors  articles 
other  than  that  to  which  the  Prize  is  awarded  may 
be  selected  for  publication. 

Each  competitor  must  enclose  her  name  and 
address  in   full. 


Jan.  29, 1010]     ^[5^  Btitisb  3ournaI  of  IHursino  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


Ipempbigug  TReonatormn. 

J)r.  ilarfiarot  Jferry  Siuith,  D.P.H.,  ilescribi's 
in  tlio  hriti.ili  Mrdicdl  Joitriiril  an  outbreak  of 
peniphiyius  neonatorum  oociirrinK  in  the  practict* 
of  a   inithvifo  in  Mancht-ster.     Slie  says:  — 

The  disease  is  not  very  common,  but  isolated 
cases  and  epidemics  occur.  Improved  hygiene  and 
tlie  use  of  antiseptic  and  aseptic  methods  in  mid- 
wifery practice  have  made  it  rarer  than  formerly. 
The  characteristic  of  tlie  disease  is  tliat  durin^j;  the 
first  week  or  two  of  life  an  eruption  api)ears  on  the 
skin  of  the  infant.  The  eriii)tion  is  first  noticed 
as  an  isolated  bulla  al)Out  the  size  of  a  threepenny 
piece,  containing  clear  or  yellowish  fluid.  This 
bulla  increases  in  size  and  ruptures,  leaving  a  raw 
base.  MeauH  hile  other  hulla>  appear,  the  size  and 
rapidity  with  which  these  develop  depending  on 
the  severity  of  the  case.  Maguire  very  fully 
describes  the  development  of  these  bulla?.  Th© 
site  most  frequently  affected  is  the  lower  part  of 
the  abdomen  and  the  groins,  but  bulla's  may  he 
present  on  any  part  of  the  body  exce|)t  the  ])alnis 
and  the  soles. 

There  are  two  forms — a  benign  and  a  malig- 
nant— but  both  may  occur  in  one  epidemic.  In 
the  malignant  type  general  septicaemia  sets  in 
after  the  bulhe  have  appeared,  and  the  issue  is 
fatal.  The  umbilicus  is  probably  the  avenue 
through  which  general  infection  takes  place,  the 
lower  part  of  the  abdomen  in  sucli  cases  being 
'xtensively   involved. 

Maguire  gives  the  period  elapsing  between  in- 
fection and  development  of  the  bulte  as  two  to 
four  days.  In  the  benign  type  the  average  dura- 
tion of  ,the  bulla>  is  from  two  to  three  weeks.  In 
the  fatal  cases  death  may  occur  any  time  within 
three  weeks  after  the  onset.  In  the  rapidly  fatal 
cases  death  may  take  place  in  four  days.  It  is 
not  always  possible  to  trace  the  source  of  the 
disease,  but  it  is  without  doubt  contagious,  and 
epidemics  in  maternity  hospitals  and  in  the  prac- 
tice of  midw  ives  are  described.  The  bacteriology 
has  not  be<'n  definitely  settled,  hut  it  is  believed 
to  be   a   streptococcal   infection. 

The  treatment  advocated  is  to  avoid  infection 
of  the  umbilicus  and  of  fresh  skin  from  the  fluid  in 
the  bulla' :  to  api)ly  mild  antiseptic  washes, 
powders,  and  ointments,  and  in  malignant  cases  to 
give  stimulants  and  ai)ply  warmth.  The  attendant 
should  not  wash  or  handle  another  newborn  child 
until  after  thorough  disinfection  of  her  hands, 
person,    (Nothing,    and   appliances. 

THE  PASSING  BELL. 
We  greatly  regret  to  record  the  death  of  Di'. 
Stanley  B.  Atkin.son,  the  repre.^«'ntative  of  the  Mid- 
wives'  Institute  on  the  Central  Midwiv*".'  Board, 
which  took  place  Middenly  la.st  week.  Dr.  .Atkin- 
son's attitude  to  midwives  was  ahvays  a  liberal- 
minded  one,  and  his  active  participation,  and  com- 
mon sense  views,  in  all  discussions  of  the  Board 
will  l)e  greatly  missed. 


3nfanc^. 


An  admirable  manual  is  publi-shed  under  this 
title,  as  the  fir.st  of  a  series  of  "  National  Health 
Manuals,"  by  l^ohert  Culley,  2.5-3.5,  City  Boad,  and 
26,  Paternoster  How,  E.C.,  price  Is.  The  Editor  is 
Dr.  T.  N.  Kelynack,  and  the  booklet  contains  a 
series  of  articles  written  by  medical  experts  which, 
the  editor  tells  us  in  his  preface,  are  "■  intended 
to  afford  concise  ajid  up-to-date  scientific  presen- 
tation of  the  principles  and  practices  which  guide 
and  govern  the  establishment  and  maintenance  of 
personal,  domestic,   and  national  health." 

"  As  far  as  possible  technical  i)hraseology  ha> 
been  avoided.  It  is  hoi)ed  that  both  in  arrange- 
ment and  in  substance  these  hand-hooks  will  he 
suited  to  the  requirements  of  all  thoughtful  men 
and  women." 

The  first  chapter  is  contributed  by  the  Editor, 
whose  opening  words  show  the  importance  of  the 
subject.       He  writes;  — 

"  ■  There  is  no  Wealth  but  Ijife,'  is  the  great 
truth  which  Jiuskin  has  revealed  to  all  students  of 
social  i)rogress.  Our  national  treasure  is  hidden  in 
life's  beginnings.  The  wisdom  and  wealth  of  the 
future  lie  in  the  cradle  of  infancy.  All  designs  for 
human  betterment  should  begin  with  the  infant. 
The  records  regarding  infant  births,  mortality, 
and  morbidity,  afford  reliable  data  whereb.v  to 
gauge  the  efficiency  of  a  jjeople.  The  statistics 
relating  to  this  country  are  startling.  The  Regi.s- 
trar-{<eneral  shows  that :  '  If  a  comparison  is  made 
among  European  countries,  it  is  found  that  in  the 
years  1880-'i  there  were  no  fewer  than  six  .States 
in  which  the  fertility  of  wives  was  less  than  that 
recorded  in  England  and  Wales,  whereas  twenty 
years  later  (1900-2)  the  rate  of  fertility 
among  married  women  in  England  and  Wales 
was,  with  the  exception  of  France  lower  than  that 
recorded  in  any  other  European  country.'  Great 
Britain  and  some  of  her  Colonies  are  adopting  a 
policy  which  is  slowly  making  for  social  and 
national  suicide." 

Dr.  J.  B.  Hellier,  Professor  of  Ob.stetrics  in  the 
Univer.sity  of  l^eeds,  follows  with  a  chapter  on 
'■  The  .Vnatoniy  and  Physiology  of  the  Infant  "  ; 
Sir  William  J.  Thompson,  M.D.,  Physician  to 
Jervis  Street  Hospital,  Dublin,  writes  of  ''  The 
H.vgiene  of  Infancy";  Dr.  James  Stewart  Fowler 
writes  on  ''  The  Feeding  of  Infants,''  and  Dr.  A. 
Dingwall  Fordyce,  Extra  Physician,  Royal  Ho.s- 
pital  for  Sick  Children,  Edinburgh  deals  with 
"  Common  Disorders  of  Infancy,  and  their  Prt^ 
vention.'" 

DiSORDKRS  OF  FeKDING. 

In  connection  with  the  Disorders  of  Feeding 
the  writer  says:  — 

Mother's  milk  is  pure  and  clean;  all  artificial 
food  must  also  be  pure  and  clean. 

In  the  dietary  of  an  infant,  hand-fed,  the  three 
great   desiderata   are:    (")  CleanUness  of  food  and 


100 


JLbc  British  3ournaI  of  IHursinG  Supplement.  [Jan.  20. 1010 


utensils;  (b)  Simplicity  in  composition  of  food;  (c) 
licijidarity  of  meals. 

The  disorders  associated  with  improper  feeding 
ill  infancy  are:  (a)  gastro-intestinal  affections;  (li) 
rickets  and  scurvy;  (c)  anaemia,  malnutrition,  and 
general  debility. 

Cow's  milk,  diluted  with  water  according  to  the 
age  of  the  infant,  with  a  little  cream  and  white 
sugar  added  to  it,  is  a  suitable  food  for  most  hand- 
fed  infants.  This  mixture  shouhl  be  scalded,  and 
never  given  after  a  shorter  interval  than  two  hours. 
Milk  is  a  food  and  not  merely  a  drink.  Plain  water 
is  good  for  the  infant,  and  may  if  desired,  be  given 
freely  between  meals. 

Venere.al  Infections. 

Of  venereal  infections  the  writer  says:  — 

A  peculiar  constant  hoaiseness  in  the  respiration 
of  older  infants  is  frequently  due  to  syphili.s. 
Syphilis  is  a  contagious  disease  wliich  may  be  trans- 
mitted to  the  infant  from  the  father  through  the 
mother,  and  yet  the  mother  jnay  remain  unin- 
fected. In  such  a  case  it  is  quite  safe  for  the 
mother  to  suckle  her  child,  as  by  some  means  she 
has  been  rendered  safe  against  infection.  It  is 
not  safe  for  any  other  woman  to  nurse  the  i  liild. 
In  most  cases  the  mother  of  a  syphilitic  bal)v  has 
syphilis,  or  has  previously  had  it. 

A  syjjhilitic  infant  very  frequently  is  born  dead. 
If  born  alive  it  is  frequently  strong  and  well  for 
the  first  six  to  eight  weeks  of  life  ;  then  the  signs  of 
syphilis  appear — sores,  rashes,  and  discharges — and 
such  an  infant  is  a  source  of  great  danger  to  its 
attendants.  Steady  treatment  usually  readily 
cnres  these  symptoms,  but  the  infant's  vitality  is 
frequently  so  low  that  death  results.  All  sores  and 
discharges  from  such  an  infant  are  capable  of 
communicating  the  di.sease.  Antiseptics  must  be 
constantly  employed  in  handling  the  infant.  One 
shonid  never  unnecessarily  handle  an  infant  with 
sores  on  its  skin,  or  in  its  mouth,  or  discharge  from 
its  nose. 

Infants,  especially  girls,  not  infrequently  suffer 
from  a  discharge  from  the  genital  canal.  The  con- 
dition is  usually  due  to  want  of  cleanliness,  and 
accidental  infection  in  these  cases,  but  the  dis- 
charge as  a  rule  contains  the  organism  of  gonor- 
rhoea, and  is  consequently  capable  of  spreading 
this  disease.  The  utmost  care  and  cleanliness  are 
consequently  necessary,  and  it  is  particularly  ini- 
])ortant  to  prevent  the  infant  infecting  its  eyes  by 
its  fingers. 

Schools  for  Mothers.      ' 

Dr.  Dora  E.  Lidgett  Bunting  deals  with  the 
above  important  subject,   and  says:  — 

.\  "  School  for  Mothers  "  is  a  training  and  edu- 
cational centre  where  the  child-bearing  wonu'U  of 
the  nation  may  be  adequately  fitted  for  their  re- 
sponsible vocation  of  bringing  up  healthy  children 
who  shall  ultimately  take  tlieir  place  as  useful 
citizens  of  the  State.  Such  institutions  were  estal)- 
lished  in  the  fir.st  instance-  to  help  the  poorer 
mothers  of  our  large  towns  in  the  care  of  their 
young  infants.  They  now  have  obviously  a  wider 
field  before  them,  and  must  include  within  the 
.scope  of  their  instruction  all  the  duties  of  mother- 
hood not  only  to  babies  but  to  older  children  and 
all  dwellers  in  the  home.  A  "  School  for  Mothers 
is   an    establishment    to   which     mothers  can    come 


feeling  it  to  be  their  own,  and  where  they  may  ob- 
tain not  only  the  advice  and  sympathy  of  the 
teachers,  but  the  encouragement  of  the  company 
of  their  fellows. 

Dr.  F.  S.  Toogood,  Chairman  of  the  Executive 
Committee  of  the  National  Society  of.  Day  Nur- 
series, writes  on  "  The  Hole  of  the  Creche  or  Day 
Nursery,"  and  Dr.  John  J.  13 uehan  treats  of  "  Milk 
Dei)6ts  and  Kindred  Institutions." 
Mii.K  Dei'ots. 
A  milk  depot  for  infants  effects  a  saving  of  life 
by  its  actual  results  on  the  infants  fed,  and  l)y 
its  educational  infiuence  on  the  mother,  and  the 
community  generally.  Clinically,  the  infants  on 
depot  milk  are  found  to  gain  in  weight,  usually  at 
a  surprising  rate.  .\s  a  general  rule,  an  infant, 
when  taken  oft'  tne  breast,  at  first  loses  in  weight, 
and  the  earlier  the  age  at  which  hand-feeding  i.s 
begiui,  the  greater  is  the  loss,  for  a  young  infant 
often  experiences  difficulty  in  adapting  itself  to 
artificial  feeding.  Infants  are  found,  however, 
to  more  rapidly  accommodate  themselves  to  the 
use  of  humanised  and  sterilised  milk  than  to  othei 
artificial  foods,  and  frequently  they  gain  more  in 
weight  on  depot  feeding  than  on  une  breast. 
Law  .VXD  Infant  Life. 
.\n  interesting  chapter  on  this  impcvrtaiit  snl>- 
iect  is  dealt  with  by  the  late  Dr.  Stanley  H.  .\tkin- 
kinson,  who  shows  that  the  infant — even  the  un- 
born infant — has  its  legal  rights. 

The  Infant  and  the  N.\tion. 
Sir  John   W.   Byers,   Professor  of  Midwifery   in 
the  Queen's  Lniversity  of  Belfast,  deals  with  this 
subject,  and  says  :  — 

The  late  Professor  Pierre  Budin,  of  Paris, 
told  his  countrymen  in  1892:  "  Your  country  has 
need  of  all  her  children,  and  humanity  demands 
that  we  should  spare  no  effort  on  their  behalf." 
For  this  land  as  well  as  for  France  the  question  of 
infant  life  is  a  vital  one. 

Municipal  Action. 
Dr.  John  F.  J.  Sykes,  Medical  Officer  of  Health, 
St.  Pancras,  contributes  a  most  interesting  chapter 
(Ui  "  iluiiicipal  Action  in  the  I'revention  of  Infan- 
tile Mortality."  His  conclusions  are:  That  the 
main  remedies  required  are,  briefly:  (1)  The  im- 
provement of  the  health  of  the  expectant  mother  ; 
C2)  the  improvement  of  the  health  of  the  suckling 
mother;  (3)  the  avoidance  of  premature  weaning 
of  the  infant  from  the  breast,  especiall.v  during  the 
summer  months;  and  (4)  the  protection  of  the  in- 
fant from  cold,  esi^ecially  during  the  winter 
months.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  our  knowledge 
regarding  the  ultimate  causes  of  preventable  in- 
fantile mortality,  and  of  the  lemedies  applicable, 
leads  MS  to  rrjiivcriiv  iipiiii  ihv  mother  iniil  tin- 
h  (I  mr. 

Moral  Aspects  of  Infant  Life  Proteition. 
Lastly,  Dr.  T.  Arthur  Helme,  Hon.  Physician 
to  the  Northern  Hospital,  ^lanehester,  deals  with 
this  question.  There  is  no  great  mystery  in  this 
problem  of  the  protection  of  infant  life.  The  in- 
fant's life  depends  in  the  first  instance  upon  the 
vitality  it  gets  from  its  mother,  and,  after  that, 
upon  the  proper  fulfilment  of  its  needs  as  regards 
air,  food,  warmth,  and '  cleanliness.  For  the,se 
it  is  de|)endent  ui>on  the  healtli,  intelligence,  and 
devotion  of  its  mother,  and  indirectly,  of  its  father. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

[  ltllllSI(M<I  EIECOIII^ 

EDITED  BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.     1,140 


SATURDAY,  FEBRUARY  5,    1910. 


EMtorial. 


THE    SUCCESSFUL  PRIVATE     NURSE. 

Many  qualities  go  to  the  making  oF  the 
successful  private  nurse,  and  it'is  not  always 
the*one  who  is  most  appreciated  as  a  hospital 
worker  who  is  most  acceptable  to  the  sick 
public.  For  this  reason,  amongst  others, 
the  co-operative  system  is  the  fairest  for 
private  nurses,  for  in  no  branch  of  nni'sing 
does  individuality  count  for  so  much.  A 
nurse  who  has  been  engaged  in  private  work 
for  some  time,  and  has  pj'oved  acceptable  to 
patients,  is  always  in  demand,  for  she  has 
built  up  a  connection,  and  doctors  and 
patients  who  know  her  work  are  only  too 
anxious  to  secure  her  services. 

Another  nurse,  who  has  not  the  qualities 
which  make  for  success  in  private  work,  has, 
on  the  contrary,  to  depend  upon  general 
calls — not  being  specially  asked  for.  81  le 
therefore  may  have  a  considerable  amoimt 
of  leisure  time  between  her  cases.  When 
both  nurses  are  working  for  an  institution, 
for  a  definite  salary,  the  one  who  is  always 
hard  at  work  reaps  no  financial  benefit ;  the 
nurse  who  is  not  asked  for  has,  on  the  other 
hand,  no  incentive  to  make  herself  accept- 
able to  patients,  and  so  to  secure  an  in- 
creased number  of  cases.  Her  salarj-  is 
secure  whether  she  is  at  work  or  not,  and  she 
has  no  anxiety  as  to  board  and  lodging 
between  her  cases — these  are  provided  for 
her  by  the  institution  with  which  she  is 
connected,  and  slie  has  besides  the  lil)erty 
and  recreation  which  the  hard  worker  has  to^ 
forego. 

If  .the  two  nurses.  arftjEvorlci']^^  on  a  co-' 
operation,  on  tJie  other  hand,  the  one  gainsi 
the  reward  of  her  woi-k  in  securing  a  larger 
amOiint  of  fees,  and  iii  biiildiiig  up  a  dientide 
upon  which  she  can  (Jcj'end  for  future  sup- 
port.     She,i^,  ,i^_9li;e^y«i5j,a,  .desiraVjle   co- 


operation nurse,  because  she  can  be  sent  to 
a  case  with  confidence,  in  the  certainty  tliat 
the  society  with  which  she  is  connected  will 
1)6  applied  to  on  a  future  occasion  should  a 
nurse  be  required,  either  for  her  services, 
or,  if  they  are  not  available,  for  a  nui-se 
e(|ually  good,  for  she  has  been  carefiilof  tlie 
])restige  of  her  Association,  and  the  ptdjlic 
apply  to  it  with  confidence.  Another  nurse, 
ecjually  well  qualified,  may  frequently  return 
from  her  cases  after  a  short  period,  if  she 
is  wise,  she  will  consider  whether  there  is 
any  reason  for  this,  and  realise  that  when 
sent  to  a  case  it  depends  upon  her  own  . 
efforts  to  make  herself  acceptable  to  the 
patient  and  to  the  medical  attendant.  If 
after  a  fair  trial  of  private  work  a  nurse  finds 
that  she  is  not  asked  for,  then  she  shouhl 
seriously  consider  whether  slie  is  suited  for 
this  particular  branch  of  nursing,  or  whether 
it  would  not  be  well  to  consider  if  her  talents 
do  not  lie  in  another  direction. 

It  is  not  given  to  every  nurse  to  possess 
the  qualities  which  make  for  success  in  pri- 
vate nursing,  anj'  more  than  every  nurse 
has  the  capacity  for  managing  a  ward,  or  as 
a  successful  administrator  as  Matron  and 
Superintendent  of  Niirsing.  Talents  are 
happily  diverse  ;  it  behoves  each  individual 
to  discover  in  what  direction  hers  lie,  and 
then  to  find  her  life's  work  in  a  sphere,  for 
which  she  is  suited,  it  is  useless  to  persist 
in  attempting  to  fit  the  square  man  to  tlie 
round  hole.  It  is  only  productive  ofannoy- 
arice  to  all  concerned,  and  it  is  unwiso 
because  there  is  a  hole  which  every  man 
and  womanis  intended  to  fit. 
i  ;'  It i' may  'be, -however,  that  fclie  nurse  fails 
to  bp  appreciate*!  for  reasons  which  ai-e 
liot  fundamental.  She  may  be  too  arbitrary 
or  inflexible  in  liei' niethods.  A  few  words 
df  iJi-actical  advice  from  an  older  nurso 
may  th'eh  b'6  of  tnuch  value  to  her.     • 


..*«..««_»«t«*.*» 


102 


^be  Biitisb  3ournal  of  IHursdtg. 


[Feb.  5,  1910 


riDcDlcal  riDatters. 


GENERAL  CONSIDERATIONS  ON   TRACHOMA. 

Dr.  Francisco  Fernandez,  writing  on  the 
subject  of  Trachoma  in  Sanidad  y  Beneficencia, 
says  in  part:  — 

Trachoma  is  a  mj-sterious  disease,  quite  over- 
looked in  the  majority  of  cases,  and  which  does 
not  awaken  iu  many  cases  any  suspicion  on  the 
part  of  the  persons  attacked;  a  cruel  and 
treacherous^  disease  which  sets  in  silently  and 
stealthily,  takes  hold  profoundly,  and  is  very 
difficult  to  eradicate. 

As  trachoma  is  one  of  the  most  contagious 
of  ocular  infections,  and  since  it  produces  a 
very  large  number  of  cases  of  blindness,  it  is 
not  strange  that  all  scientists  who  have  devoted 
themselves  to  ophthalmology  have  made  great 
efforts  to  discover  the  cause  of  the  disease  and 
the  means  of  curing  it. 

Recently  it  seems  as  though  the  transmitting 
agent  of  trachoma  has  been  discovered ;  the 
eminent  Gemian  oculist  Greeff,  who  has  a 
private  clinic  for  diseases  of  the  eyes  in  the 
Hospital  La  Charite,  of  Berlin,  and  who  has 
written  a  great  deal  on  his  speciality,  believes 
that  he  has  discovered  the  transmitting  germ  of 
this  terrible  affection  which  has  long  been  a 
scourge  to  mankind.  His  discovery  has  not 
awakened  the  enthusiasm  which  was  to  be 
expected,  and  it  may  be  that  this  indifference, 
otherwise  inexcusable,  is  due  to  the  fact  that  it 
has  not  yet  been  possible  to  confimi  iu  all 
respects  that  the  agent  discovered  by  Greeff  is 
really  the  cause  of  the  disease. 

Among  the  various  treatments  of  trachoma, 
we  believe  that  experience  has  demonstrated  a 
great  many  times  that  real  trachoma  is  not 
curable  by  means  of  medicament  brought  into 
contact  with  the  conjunctiva.  We  have  con- 
firmed this  repeatedly,  and  we  do  not  hesitate 
to  affirm  that  the  suspicious  case  of  trachoma 
cured  with  medicaments  is  not  trachoma. 

It  is  our  opinion  that  the  only  treatment 
which  can  give  favourable  results  is  the  surgi- 
cal, either  by  excision  or  incision.  Both  me- 
thods are  applicable.  Both  also  have  their  dis- 
advantages. In  a  given  case  one  may  be  pre- 
ferable to  the  other,  but  this  is  not  so  in  all 
cases. 

The  inefficacy  of  the  medicinal  treatment 
and  the  advantages  of  the  surgical,  have  been 
demonstrated,  and  we  believe  that  it  is  lament- 
able to  insist  on  curing  authentic  trachoma  by 
means  of  drugs.  This  is  very  important  in  con- 
nection with  immigrants  who  are  allowed  cmly 
three  months  to  get  cured,  and  if  they  do  not 
succeed  in  getting  rid  of  the  disease  in  that 
time,  are  sent  back  to  their  country. 

Even   admitting   that  the  medicinal    treat- 


ment cures  real  trachoma,  is  three  months  suf- 
ficient to  bring  about  that  result  by  the  employ- 
ment of  drugs?  We  doubt  it;  and  we  would 
even  affirm  .that  not  only  are  three  months  in- 
sufficient, but  that  even  six  months  of  treat- 
ment with  drugs  would  not  oe  sufficient  to 
modifj"  to  any  extent  a  case  of  true  trachoma. 

We  have  employed  repeatedly  the  term  true 
trachoma  and  real  trachoma.  We  mean  pre- 
cisely what  we  say  :"  we  refer  to  real  trachoma, 
and  in  no  wise  to  the  various  states  of  false 
granulations  which,  especially  iu  children,  are 
frequently  observed  in  Cuba,  the  pathological 
conditions  of  which  are  sometimes  diagnosed  as 
real  trachoma ;  and  which  in  two  or  three  weeks 
are  cured,  so  that  we  read  in  the  daily  news- 
papers of  a  notable  cure  effected  by  this  or  the 
other  physician.  Unfortunately  these  cases  are 
considered  by  some  as  trachoma,  since  it  is  no 
small  merit  to  have  cured  a  case  of  this  disease 
in  two  weeks.  We  have  had  tne  bad  luck  not 
to  have  been  able  to  realise  any  such  wonder. 

We  honestly  believe  that  in  the  cases  of 
immigrants  suffering  from  trachoma  who  are 
under  bond,  the  surgical  operation  should  be 
carried  out  immediatelj%  either  the  incision  or 
the  excision  of  the  palpebral  conjunctiva,  or 
both  combined.  If  with  one  operation  the  as- 
pect of  the  conjunctiva  is  not  much  modified, 
the  operation  may  be  repeated  one  or  more 
times,  and  we  believe  that  the  majority  of  cases 
may  be  cured  in  a  given  period.  We  believe 
that  only  in  this  way  can  these  cases  be  cured 
in  the  short  space  of  three  months  which  they 
are  allowed. 

In  conclusion,  we  do  not  consider  the  state- 
ment unwarranted,  that  the  medicinal  treat- 
ment does  not  cure  trachoma;  a  few  cases  may 
be  cured,  but  the  immense  majority  can  onlv 
be  cured  or  improved  by  surgical  means. 


PLAGUE   INFECTION   IN  A  CALIFORNIAN 
WOOD  RAT. 

An  addition  to  the  list  of  animals  capable  of 
harbouring  the  bacillus  pestis  is  announced  by 
Dr.  W.  C.  Rueker  in  the  Public  Health  Reports 
of  the  U.S.A.  I'ubhc  Health  and  Marine  Hos- 
pital Service  for  January  7th,  as  notified  in  the 
Lancet.  The  animal  in  question  is  the  Neo- 
toma  fuscipes  anectens  (Elliot).  Several 
species  or  varieties  of  this  genus  are  found  in 
California.  They  are  indigenous,  and  although 
called  "  wood  rats  "  are  very  different  from  the 
imported  true  rats  (Mus  non'egicus).  They  are 
found  in  wooded  localities  where  they  construct 
elaborate  "nests,"  which  are  sometimes  6  or 
7  feet  in  diameter  and  3  feet  high.  In  the  Neo- 
toma  fuscipes  the  body  and  tail  are  of,  nearly 
equal  length,  each  measuring  about  8  inches. 


Feb.  5, 1910]        (jt5c  ^Bi'ttlsb  3ournal  of  fl-lurmng. 


103 


lEtioloot!  of  Z\)niot(c  ientcriti9. 

Dr.  iialph  Vincent,  Senior  Pliysician  to  the 
Infants'  Hospital,  Vincent  Square,  S.W.,  has 
written  a  most  interesting  paper  on  the  above 
subject,  which  is  publislied  by  -Messrs.  Ualliere, 
Tindall  and  Cox.  In  the  preface  the  author 
states  that  in  the  course  oi  the  last  ten  years 
he  has  been  engaged  in  an  investigation  of  the 
conditions  of  disease  as  found  in  infants. 
Seven  years  ago  he  had  provisionally  deter- 
mined the  essential  causes  of  zymotic  enteritis, 
or  "  epidemic  diarrhcea,"  as  it  is  ofiieially 
named,  but  was  not  then  prepared  to  offer  any 
precisely  formulated  explanation  of  the  ri.'lu- 
tionship  existing  between  the  organisms  respon- 
sible for  the  disease  and  the  processes  by  which 
the  disease  attacks  the  infant.  Three  years 
later  he  conceived  the  explanation  advanced  in 
the  paper  under  consideration,  but  was  unwil- 
ling to  publish  statements  so  diametrically  op- 
posed to  current  opinion  and  practice  until  he 
had  tested  them  by  check  and  counter-check. 

Dr.  Vincent  says,  in  part,  that  zymotic 
enteritis  is  the  most  fatal  disease  of  infancy, 
and  despite  the  advances  which  sanitation  has 
made  in  this  country,  no  corresponding  im- 
provement is  observable  in  the  infant  mortality 
rates.  On  the  contrary,  it  has  been  clearly 
shown  by  Newman  that  epidemic  diarrhoea  (the 
official  name  of  the  disease)  is  steadily  increas- 
ing as  a  factor  in  the  causation  of  death  among 
infants  under  one  year  of  age. 

'  Diarrluea,  which  formerh'  caused  the  death 
of  10  per  cent,  of  dead  infants,  has  increased 
in  half  a  century  to  15  per  cent. ;  respiratory 
diseases  have  risen  from  16  to  18  per  cent. ; 
and  prematurity  from  17  to  29  per  cent.  .  .  . 
Other  children's  diseases  are  vanishing  or  have 
vanished.  There  has  been  a  vast  improvement 
in  the  general  environment  surrounding  their 
lives,  but  the  problem  of  infantile  mortality 
still  remains  because  of  the  increase  in  these 
diseases — prematurity,  pneumonia,  and  diar- 
rhoea.' 

The  group  of  conditions  broadly  indicated  by 
the  terms  immaturity,  prematurity,  or  con- 
genital defect  are  of  great  importance,  for  they 
show  that  ante-natal  conditions  are  responsible 
for  a  large  proportion  of  deaths  occurring  in 
infancy.  These  deaths  are  sharply  distinguished 
from  those  arising  from  causes  that  affect  the 
infant  after  birth  by  the  fact  that  the  deaths 
arising  from  congenital  defect  occur  for  the 
most  part  in  the  first  few  weeks  of  life,  and 
jiractically  all  of  them  within  the  first  three 
months.  The  great  increase  in  the  proportion 
of  deaths  caused  by  "  epidemic  diarrhcea  " 
camiot,  however,  be  so  accounted  for.  The 
disease  may  attack  the  infant  at  any  age,  but 


its  greatest  intensity  of  attack  is  not  exercised 
upon  the  youngest  infants,  but  upon  infants  be- 
tween the  ages  of  four  and  eight  months. 

The  increase  in  the  proportion  of  deaths  from 
respiratory  disease  is  probably  closely  con- 
nected with  the  increase  in  diarrhoea. 

With  regard  to  zymotic  enteritis,  it  is  neces- 
sary to  lay  stress  upon  the  fact  that  the  disease 
is  an  extremely  acute  one,  and  is  widely  re- 
moved in  its  clinical  characters  from  the  chronic 
digestive  derangements  from  which  infants 
commonly  suffer  as  the  result  of  improper 
feeding. 

The  infants  most  liable  to  suffer  from  tlu- 
disease  in  its  most  violent  and  latal  form  are 
those  in  whom  alimentary  disorders  have  been 
established  for  some  time.  Their  condition  is 
one  in  which  the  processes  of  zymotic  enteritis 
find  their  unfettered  opportunity.  In  some 
cases  it  may  be  difficult  to  establish  the  line  of 
demarcation  between  the  simple  and  the  toxic 
enteritis ;  nevertheless  the  clinical  types  are 
essentiallj'  distinct.  The  disease  is  so  fatal 
that  the  consideration  of  its  etiology,  and  of  the 
methods  by  which  it  may  be  prevented,  is  of 
much  greater  moment  than  that  of  the  thera- 
peutic measures  to  be  adopted  when  the  infant 
is  attacked.  For,  with  the  most  expert  treat- 
ment available,  the  recovery  of  the  infant  is  in 
reality  dependent  upon  the  dose  of  poison  the 
infant  has  received,  the  precise  degree  of  viru- 
lence of  the  poison,  and  the  constitutional 
vigour  of  the  infant.  The  disease  is  most  pre- 
valent and  most  fatal  during  the  third  quarter 
of  the  year.  The  higher  the  temperature  of 
the  late  summer,  the  greater  the  prevalence  of 
the  disease,  especially  if  this  high  temperature 
be  associated  with  but  little  rain.  In  other 
words,  meteorological  conditions  involving  a 
high  temperature  with  much  dust  are  those 
which  promote  the  conditions  which  accompany 
the  greatest  incidence  of  the  disease.  Other 
authorities — notably  Dr.  J.  T.  C.  Nash,  of 
Norwich,  and  Dr.  Niven,  of  Manchester — have 
drawn  attention  to  the  part  played  by  flies  in 
the  dissemination  of  the  disease.  Dr.  Vincent 
draws  attention  to  three  conclusions  of  Dr. 
Newsholme  as  being  of  particular  importance  : 

1.  Epidemic  diarrhoea  is  chieflv  a  disease  of  urban 
life.     • 

2.  Epidemic  diarrhoea,  as  a  fatal  disea.se,  is  a 
dis^-ase  of  the  artisan,  and  still  more  of  the  lower 
lalx>ni'ins  cla^isps  to  a  proi>onderant  extent.  Tliis 
is  probably  Inrcely  a  question  of  soeial  status,  prr 
se  ;  that  is,  it  is  due  to  neplcct  of  infants,  uncleanly 
storage  of  food,  industrial  occupations  of  mothei-s, 
etc. 

3.  The  fundamental  condition  favouring  epidemic 
diarrhoMi  is  an  unclean  soil,  the  particulate  poison 
from  which  infects  the  air  and  is  swallowed,  most 
commonly  with  food,  especially  milk. 

Dr.  Vincent  believes  that  in  the  first  place 


104 


Cbe  ffirUieb  3ournal  of  Iftursing. 


[Feb.  5,  1010 


it  is  esseutial  to  ttie  coniprebeusiou  of  the 
disease  that  the  commou  conception  that  it 
belongs  to  the  group  of  specific  infectious 
diseases  should  be  abandoned. .  Zymotic  enteri- 
iis  is  in  no  sense  of  the  ivord  an  infectious 
disease,  and  it  cannot  be  conveyed  by  con- 
tagion. 

This  is  the  key  note  of  the  paper,  and  Dr. 
Vincent  supports  this  hypothesis  by  the  strong 
argument  that  at  the  Infants'  Hospital  where 
over  1,000  in-patients  under  twelve  months  of 
age  have 'been  treated,  and  where  babies  des- 
perately ill  with  other  diseases,  lie  side  by  side 
with  those  suffering  from  zymotic  enteritis  of 
an  extremely  severe  type,  and  all  are  nursed 
by  the  same  nurses,  no  infant  has  ever  con- 
tracted the  disease  in  the  hospital. 

Outside  the  hospital  the  same  thing  is  seen. 
At  a  time  when  the  disease  is  causing  a  mor- 
tality of  some  hundi-eds  of  infants  per  thou- 
sand in  the  course  of  a  mouth  or  so,  there  are 
babies  living  iu  the  most  insanitary  conditions 
who  are  immune.  Tliey  arc  the  breast-fed 
babies.- 

The  poor  Irish  breast-fed  babies  in  a  Loudon 
slum  and  the  babies  in  the  Infants'  Hospital 
have  this  in  common.  They  are  fed  on  a  pure 
raw  milk.  Dr.  Vincent  points  out  that  the  in- 
fants at  the  hospital  are  protected  by  some- 
thing much  more  powerful  than  isolation,  for  it 
is  a  i^ractical  impossibility  for  the  violent  fatal 
disease  known  as  zymotic  enteritis  to  occur  in 
an  infant  fed  on  fresh  milk.  It  is  essential  for 
the  development  of  the  disease  that  the  charac- 
teristic propei-ties  of  the  natural  food  of  the 
infant  should  have  been  destroyed  by  heat,  by 
preservatives,  or  by  some  other  means.  Dr. 
Vincent  emphatically  insists  on  the  use  of  pure 
raw  milk,  as  opposed  to  that  which  is  sterilised 
or  treated  with  preservatives,  which  destroy 
lactic  acid  bacilli  or  inhibit  their  action. 

The  author  then  proceeds  to  show  how 
immunity  is  jJroduced,  and  everyone  interested 
in  the  question  should  secure  this  important 
paper,  and  study  it  carefully.  Later,  it  is  to 
form  part  of  the  fourteenth  chapter  of  the 
third  edition  of  the  "  Nutrition  of  the  Infant." 


Ibow  3  SSccainc  HDatron  of  St. 
Bai'tboloincw's  Ibospital. 

A  TELEPATHIC  TALE. 

By  Ethel  G.  Fenwick. 


Conference  on  3ntant  flDortaliti^. 

The  Conference  held  in  New  Haven,  U.S.A., 
in  November  deteraiined,  says  the  Avierican 
Journal  of  Nur.<<ing,  that  all  efforts  .for  the 
betteitnent  of -social  conditions  must  be  carried 
forward.  An  association  was  formed  for  the 
scientific  study  of  the  causes  of  poverty  and  its 
attendant  evils.  Ignorance  and  dirt,  alcoholism, 
the;  social  evil,  -and  artificial  feedinj;;  are  the 
most  du'ect,  causes  of  the  infant  death  rate. 


(Concluded    from     page     86.) 

One  by  one  we  went  silently  and  alone  into 
the  Board  Room,  to  be  interviewed,  weighed 
in  the  balance,  and  appraised.  Sir  Sydney 
Waterlow,  courtly  and  impressive,  was  in  the 
chair.  I  was  invited  to  be  seated  on  his  left 
"hand,  facing  the  light.  1  was  mtroduced,  and 
the  Almoners  listened  in  respectful  silence 
to  a  statement  from  the  chair.  I  soon  realised 
the  situation.  I  was  to  be  tried  before  a  very 
dubious  jury,  and  Sir  Sydney  was  my  counsel. 
He  believed  in  me. 

I  believed  iu  myself. 

They  must  believe  in  me. 

Together  we  were  to  gain  the  confidence  of 
the  Almoners. 

With  subtle  acumen  he  presented  my  case. 
His  line  of  argument  was  what  might  have 
been  expected  from  a  man  who  had  himself 
conquered  circumstance.  Tradition — and  all 
the  conventions  went  by  the  board.  Instinct — 
creative  faculty — power  of  initiative  and  organi- 
sation— forceful  personality — these  he  claimed 
for  me.  Mc,  as  I  was — not  as  I  might  be — or 
ought  to  be — he  presented  dextrously  to  them. 
He  questioned  me,  and  I  replied.  We  two  bold 
spirits  pranced  into  the  arena;  tilted  with 
courage,  and  unhorsed  prejudice. 

I  realised  with  satisfaction  that  I  was  dealing 
with  business  men.  They  wanted  very  good 
value  for  the  trust  funds  they  administered. 
There  was  to  be  no  sentiment  in  their  selection. 
That  was  safe  ground. 

Suddenly  a  spiTice  httle  gentleman,  as  pretty 
as  a  pink,  bent  over  the  table,  and  asked  in  a 
subdued  tone : 

"  Are  you  afraid  of  the  old  Sisters?  " 

That  question  broke  a  spell. 

Dignity  took  unto  itself  wings.  We  laughed 
heartily,  and  I  warmly  defended  our  vigorous 
pioneers.  I  had  good  reason.  Only  a  few 
months  had  passed  away  since  tne  happy  days 
with  those  wonderful  old  Sisters  at  the 
"  M.R.I."  (Manchester  Royal  Infirmary),  all 
of  whom  I  held  in  the  most  affectionate  ad- 
miration, and  regard.  ■ 

^ly  questioner  breathed  a  gentle  sigh  of  re- 
lief) and,  subsided — but  from  that  ihoment  his 
vote  .was  mine. 

■  I  gathered  from  further  converse  that  these 
good  rnen  were  most  sincerely  anxious  for  the 
welfare  of  the  hospital,  especially  of  the  poor 
patients,  and  that  they  must  liave  a  ^latron 


Feb. 


1910] 


C'te   36riti5b  3ouniai  of  "fl-liutMna. 


105 


whose  paramount  duty  would  uc  to  succour  the 
sick.  They  alkided  to  St.  Bartholoinow's  as 
the  "  first  Koyal  Hospital,"  whose  Matron  was 
required  to  uphold  the  honour  and  dignity  of 
her  great  oflice.  She  must  be  an  "eusaniple  " 
in  all  things. 

1  left  the  room  greatly  impressed  with  the 
benevolence  of  these  honourable  men. 

Each  of  the  candidates  having  been  seen,  a 
message  was  conveyed  to  us  that  the  appoint- 
ment would  not  be  made  that  day,  and  we  were 
invited  to  attend  the  Committee  -on  the  follow- 
ing Thursday.  This  we  did,  and  this  time  1 
went  alone.  We  waited  in  the  Prince's  Room, 
and  no  doubt  silently  summed  one  another  up. 
I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  I  had  but  one 
powerful  competitor. 

This  was  a  very  slim  and  elegant  woman, 
who,  seated  in  a  lounge  chair  near  the  window, 
calmly  read  a  book.  As  her  little  hand  regu- 
larly turned  its  pages  I  was  lost  in  admiration 
of  a  temperament  so  equable  or  so  perfectly 
controlled. 

A  sweet  grey  lady — not  that  she  had  ix'auty 
— it  was  charm,  just  charm,  which  set  her 
apart. 

Little  wonder.    It  was  Alice  Fisher  ! 

Twejity  years  later  I  stood  by  her 
honoured  grave  in  the  beautiful  ceme- 
tery at  Philadelphia,  to  which  many  American 
nurses  make  pilgrimage. 

Once  again,  one  by  one  we  were  escorted  to 
the  Board  Eoom,  and  one  by  one  we  re- 
ascended  the  eighteenth  century  stairway  to 
the  Prince's  Eoom,  and  awaited  our  fate. 

We  were  not  kept  long  in  suspense. 

Suddenly  the  door  opened  and  a  messenger 
said  politely : 

"  Sliss  C ,  will  you  please  to  step  this 

way?  " 

Down  dropped  my  heart  like  a  stone  in  a 
deep,  deep  well. 

Miss  C arose  and    nimbly  disappeared, 

but  the  messenger  still  stood  within.  He  then 
named  each  candidate  excepting  myself,  and 
like  shadows  they  rose  and  passed  away.  He 
followed,  and  I  was  alone. 

Two  minutes  passed.  I  heard  footsteps  with- 
out. This  time  the  door  was  opened  wide,  and 
in  quite  the  grand  manner  this  veritable  Mer- 
cury of  the  gods,  smiling,  bowed  low,  and  said  : 

"  And  now,  Miss." 

"  Oh  !  you  don't  mean  to  say  I  have  got  it?  " 
I  questioned  eagerly,  as  I  followed  him  down- 
stairs. 

Wilson  replied  with  dignity  : 

"  I  believe,  Miss,  it  is  the  intention  of  the 
Treasurer  and  Almoners  to  appoint  you  Matron 
of  this  'orspital." 


i'or  the  lliird  time  I  found  myself  in  the 
Board  Koom. 

What  passed  there  can  never  be  written — 
language  is  still,  and  will  ever  remain,  a  crude 
mode  of  expression.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  with 
solemnity  and  a  mutual  sense  of  responsibility 
I  was  elected  on  probation  Matron  and  Superin- 
tendent of  Nursing  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital in  Smithfield,  and  that  1  received  the 
kindly  congratulations  of  those  who  had  done 
me  this  honour. 

Poets  and  pessimists  have  told  us  that 
happiness  is  an  elusive  element,  for  ever 
evading  the  grasp  of  humanity.  Believe 
me,  this  is  not  so. 

Under  the  archway  of  that  historic  hospital, 
as  I  lingered  for  a  minute,  on  that  beauteous 
April  day,  catching  to  the  left  a  glimpse  of 
playing  fountains  and  tender  green  trees,  to  the 
right  beyond  the  Gate  a  sight  of  the  very  spot 
where  courage  had  always  conquered  hell's  fire, 
I  came  upon  happiness,  and  I  held  it  close. 


Entertaining  Angels  Unawares. 

Mr.  George  Smalley,  no  doubt  on  good 
authority,  states  in  his  "  Life  of  Sir  Sydney 
Waterlow,"  that  the  late  Mrs.  W.  E.  Gladstone 
"  strongly  recommended  "  me  to  him  for  the 
position  of  Matron  to  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital. 

This  comes  of  entertaining  angels  unawares. 

One  day  soon  after  my  appointment  as  Sister 
of  Charlotte  Ward,  London  Hospital,  there 
came  a  tap  on  my  sitting-room  door,  and  there 
on  the  mat  stood  a  tall,  sweet-faced,  very  un- 
tidy lady.  She  greeted  me  with  charming  old- 
world  courtesy  : 

"Are  you  the  new  Sister  Charlotte?" 
she  inquired;  "I  am  Mrs.  Gladstone. 
Will  you  be  kind  to  me?  Your  predecessor 
always  took  care  of  my  coat  and  things  during 
Committee  "  (the  Woodford  Convalescent 
Home). 

I,  of  course,  invited  her  in  with  pleasure,  re- 
lieved h-er  of  sundry  parcels,  one  glove,  and  a 
veritable  gamp,  and  helped  her  to  divest  herself 
of  a  very  seedy  sealskin  coat,  a  gamient  which 
as  it  came  away  in  my  hands  revealed  a  lining 
of  purple  wadding,  devoid  of  any  protecting 
satin.  As  she  slipped  off  her  goloshes  I  spied 
a  pair  of  elastic  side  boots  and  white  cotton 
stockings ! 

For  these  little  services  rendered  I  received 
the  smiling  thanks  of  this,  most  unaffected  and 
unconventiouiil  wife  of  a  Liberal  Premier,  who 
in  youth  hiul  been  the  lovely  heiress,  !Miss 
Catherine  Glynne,  of  Hawarden  Castle.  She 
was  lovely  still,  as  innate  beauty  has  so  little  to 
do  with  age  and  clothes. 

Mrs.  Gladstone's  visits  to  the  ward  were  few 


106 


^De  Britisb  30urnai  of  "Mursina* 


[Feb.  5,  1910 


<md  liurried.  She  was  often  a  little  late  for 
Committee,  aud  did  not  gossip.  Now  and  then 
for  a  fleeting  moment  our  converse  verged  on 
the  intimate,  and  the  next  she  was  gone. 

Once  she  badly  needed  a  haii-pin.  1  supplied 
it,  and  took  the  opportunity  of  confining  a  few 
stray  locks  of  wavy  grey  hair,  and  surrepti- 
tiously attacliing  a  hook  and  eye. 

"  You  have  wavy  hair,  too,"  she  said,  smil- 
ing ;  ' '  how  do  you  keep  it  in  bounds '?  But  all 
your  surroundings  are  neat,"  and  she  sighed, 
aud  then  she  added,  "  Your  love  of  order  im- 
presses n:ie  greatly." 

Nothing  ■  more  personal  ever  passed  be- 
tween us.  I  certainly  never  solicited 
her  aid  when  making  application  for  the 
post  at  St.  Bartholomew's.  She  did  not  visit 
my  ward  during  that  time,  and  she  never  in- 
timated to  me  that  she  had  done  me  a  great 
service.  Would  that  she  had  done  so,  so  that 
1  might  have  realised  the  extent  of  her  kind- 
ness, and  given  thanks. 

Thus  ends  this  Telepathic  Tale. 

Who  telepathed  that  message:  "  Go  in  for 
Bart's?  " 

I  do  not  know. 


Iproavess  of  State  TRcGistration. 

We  regret  that  eager  Eegistrationists  should 
have  been  disappointed  that  no  report  of  the 
deliberations  of  the  Central  Committee  on 
Registration  has  been  published,  but  we  feel 
sure  they  will  agree  that  until  the  Central 
Committee  has  completed  its  conference  on 
the  clauses  of  a  Bill,  that  it  is  wiser  not  to 
make  the  results,  as  far  as  attained,  public. 
We  all  hope  much  from  this  Conference  and 
from  the  united  work  of  the  Central  Com- 
mittee. 

It  is  just  fourteen  years  since  the  last  disas- 
trous Conference  on  this  question  was  con- 
vened by  the  British  Medical  Associa- 
tioii,  when  a  resolution  was  passed, 
by  one  vote,  opposing  Registration  as 
inimical  to  the  interests  of  the  nursing 
profession.  Nothing  will  give  us  greater 
pleasure  than  to  wipe  out  that  disloyal  vote. 
We  have  waited  and  worked  hard  for  fourteen 
years  to  this  end. 

Miss  Mollett  has  promised  that,  when  a  Bill 
has  been  adopted — and,  we  hope,  supported  bj 
all  Registration  Societies — she  will  give  an 
explanatory  lecture  on  it  clause  by  clause, 
giving  the  reasons  for  the  inclusion  of  each. 
'The  lecture  will  be  open  to  all  nurses  interested 
in  this  important  professional  question,  and 
will,  we  feel  sure,  be  far  from  dull.  We  hope 
many  Matrons  will  attend  and  repeat  the  in- 
formation to  their  staffs. 


STATE  REGISTRATION   IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

The  anti-Registration  press  in  this  country 
and  the  United  States  have  repeatedly  an- 
nounced that  State  Registration  is  a  failure. 
To  prove  the  inaccuracy  of  their  statements,  we 
invited  Miss  L.  L.  Dock  to  obtain  reliable  in- 
formation for  us  from  those  associated  with 
carrying  out  the  provisions  of  the  Acts  in  force 
in  the  United  States.  We  publish  below  an 
instalment  of  replies  which  she  has  received, 
which  are,  m  our  opinion,  most  encouraging. 


New  York  State. 
New  York  State  Education  Department. 
Inspections  Division. 
My   De.\r    Miss    Dock, — Possibly    some    figures 
from  the  annual  report  of   the  Department,  just 
going  to  print,  may  be  of  service  to  you :     1908 — 
396  candidates  for  exam.,  representing  67  schools; 
191  passed  in  all  subjects,  3.51  received  certificates, 
45  failed,  not  having  secured  a  general  average  of 
7.5  per  cent.,  or  falling  below  that  standard  in  more 
than    two   subjects;    12    received    honoure,    having 
passed  seven   subjects   at  909  or   over.      1909 — 625 
candidates,  78  schools ;   271  passed  all  subjects,  .544 
received  certificate,  81  failed,  23  received  honours. 
To  contrast  the  figures  at  a  glance  :  — 
Candi-  Passed     Reed. 

Year.       dates.  Schools,   in  all.    certif .    Fad.    Hon. 
1908...     396  67         191  351        45        12 

1909  ...  625  78  271  544  81  23 
Fifty-seven  schools,  reporting  a  total  of  701 
graduates,  entered  501  candidates  to  the  examina- 
tion. I  think  one  of  the  strongest,  points  is  that 
the  schools  ask  to  be  registered,  aud  make  the 
necessary  struggle  to  meet  the  regulation.  We 
have  122  on  our  list,  and  a  number  have  been  in- 
spected and  told  of  their  needs,  aud  are  doing  the 
right  and  proper  act  to  be  recognised.  The  reason 
why  all  the  schools  are  not  doing  perfect  work  is 
no  reflection  on  the  law  and  regulations,  but  mainly 
due  to  the  organisation  of  the  individual  corx>oration . 
These  difficulties  have  to  be  dealt  with  individually 
— no  two  alike ;  and  this  is  being  done  and  school 
after  school  is  being  placed  on  a  stronger  basis  and 
better  standing. 

Hastily  yours, 

Annie  L.  Alline,  2..N. 


Connecticut. 
The  Connecticut  State  Board  of  Examination 

and  Registration  of  Nurses. 
My  Dear  Miss  Dock, — In  reply  to  your  letter 
of  recent  date,  relative  to  conditions  in  Connecti- 
cut resulting  from  State  Registration,  I  feel  that 
I  can  safely  say   the  results   are  very  gratifying. 
Prior  to  the  enactment  of  a  law,  nui-sing  was   a 
sort  of  a    "do  as  you  please"  vocation,   and   the 
nurses  and    peoj)le   naturally  suffered    the   conse- 
quences.    Under  the  law  the  people  are  protected, 
and  may   know   whom  they   employ.     The  nurses 
hav«  an   "  Advisory   Board,''    and  the  schools  are 
giving   a  uniform     training,   thus    combining     to 
advance  the  profession  tc  greater  proficiency. 
Very  truly  yours, 
R.   Inde  Albaugh,  R.N.,  Secrcfiirij. 


Feb.  5,  I'.nO] 


Zbc  ^British  3ournaI  of  iftursing. 


107 


Ibospital  Ikitcbcns. 

Bv  Miss-E.  M.  ilcssoN, 
Mairon,  General  Hospital,  BiTtningham. 

As  the  object  of  this  paper  is  to  start  a  dis- 
cussion, you  will  forgive  me  if  it  appears  some- 
what scrappy  ;  if  it  raises  several  questious,  but 
comes  to  no  conclusive  answers  upon  any  one 
of  them.  I  do  not  consider  myself  an  authority 
on  the  kitchen,  department.  The  kitchen 
department  of  a  hospital  is  one  of' a  Matron's 
greatest  responsibilities,  and  frequently  the 
cause  of  a  considerable  amount  of  worry.  The 
difficulties  vary  in  different  hospitals,  but 
happy  is  the  Matron  who  has  none.  DifiBculties 
are  usually  connected  with  the  constnjction  of 
the  kitchen,  the  apparatus,  the  cook,  the 
caterer,  or  the  committee. 

The  construction  is  a  matter  with  which 
Matrons  seldom  have  much  to  do.  We  may 
have  to  make  the  best  of  a  kitchen  which  is 
old  and  inconvenient,  or  we  may  rejoice  in  one 
which  is  modem  and  well  an-anged.  Having 
had  some  experience  of  the  two  extremes,  may 
I  offer  one  or  two  hints  (learned  from  both  kinds) 
to  anj'  ^latron  whose  advice  is  being  asked 
alx>ut  new  buildings.  Sufficient  space  for  the 
requisite"  number  of  persons  to  work  in  must 
be  allowed,  but  unnecessaiy  space  means  un- 
necessary labour  in  cleaning.  Rounded  comers 
and  hard  highly  glazed  materials  are  asdesirable 
m  the  kitchen  as  in  the  operating  theatre,  and, 
in  the  scullery  at  any  rate,  there  is  distinct 
advantage  in  a  floor  which  slopes  gently  down 
to  a  drain.  There  should  be  as  few  division 
walls  as  possible,  and  wide,  open  archways  may 
with  advantage  be  substituted  for  doors.  A 
kit'Chen  which  is  divided  from  the  scullery  by 
two  doors  and  a  passage  is  very  inconvenient. 
Larders  and  store-rooms  should  be  within  easy 
reach,  and  these  doors  must  be  furnished  witii 
good  locks.  The  serving  room  or  the  part  of 
the  kitchen  from  which  food  is  distributed 
should  be  as  near  the  lift  as  jKissible.  Good 
ventilation  and  plenty  of  light  are  essential. 
Artificial  lighting  must  be  carefully  arranged, 
else  the  cook  may  not  be  able  to  see  what  she 
is  doing  because  of  her  own  shadow.  In  a 
modem  kitchen  a  convenient  place  should  be 
prf)vided  where  the  kitchen  staff  may  wash 
their  hands  before  handling  food  stuffs,  also 
hot  and  cold  water  should  be  laid  on  in  a  con- 
venient place  for  the  filling  of  buckets,  and  a 
proper  sink  provided  where  they  may  be 
emptied.  \  thing  which  strikes  me  repeatedly 
in  new  buildings  as  well  as  old  is  the  utter 
absence  of  convenience  for  the  persons  who  do 
the  cleaning.     It  is  fatiguing  enough  to  scrub 

*  Read  before  the  >fatrons'  Council,  Lon-km, 
January  2oth,  1910. 


large  stretches  of  terrazzo  flooring  without 
having  a  long  walk  at  int«r\-als  to  refill  the 
pail.  The  water,  in  consequence,  is  not 
changed  as  often  as  it  should  be;  moreover, 
human  nature  being  what  it  is,  if  no  proper 
place  be  provided  at  a  convenient  distance,  you 
must  not  be  surprised  if,  while  you  arc  looking 
elsewhere,  the  pail  is  quietly  emptied  down  the 
vegetable  sink,  or  if  your  nice  new  earthen- 
ware sink  in  the  pantry  becomes  scratched  and 
discoloured  by  tlie  rims  of  buckets.  Friction 
often  arises  between  the  maid  servants  on 
account  of  this  want.  With  regard  to  apparatus, 
I  think  it  is  generally  agreed  that  for  large 
establishments  it  is  most  satisfactory,  clean, 
and  economical  to  use  steam  and  gas.  As  far 
as  my  experience  goes,  the  gas  ovens,  plates, 
etc.,  are  very  convenient,  economical  in  the 
hands  of  a  careful  cook,  and  give  very  little 
trouble  if  kept  thoroughly  clean.  With  steam 
apparatus  it  is  different ;  where  it  is  nice,  it  is 
very  nice,  but  it  is  apt  to  spring  horrid  surprises 
upon  the  unhappy  cook  if  it  is  not  very  care- 
fully looked  after,  and  you  are  largely  in  the 
hands  of  the  engineer.  I  think  an  elemental' 
course  of  engineering  (also  plumbing)  would  be 
a  great  advantage  to  a  Matron.  I 
am  not  afraid  of  the  cook,  and  feel 
quite  competent  to  instruct  any  other 
domestic  servant,  but  when  first  faced 
with  a  breakdown  in  the  .st^am  apparatus  of 
kitchen  or  laundry,  an  interview  with  the 
engineer  was  quite  an  ordeal. 

I  should  advise  anyone  who  had  to  choose  a 
steaming  apparatus  to  visit  as  many  hospitals 
as  possible  to  see  them  in  working  order,  and 
when  both  Matron  and  cook  say  it  is  "  quite, 
satisfactory,"  make  a  note  of  it.  A  very  small 
thing  will  put  a  steamer  out  of  order;  some 
drains  are  very  small  and  require  continual  at- 
tention, or  they  will  become  blocked  with 
grease  or  small  particles  of  food — a  small  fish 
bone  across  a  valve  gave  endless  trouble  before 
it  was  discovered.  Apparently  the  steamers 
vary  greatly,  and  each  one  should  be  thoroughly 
studied  and  understood  before  it  is  used,  and 
regularly  overhauled  by  a  competent  engineer. 
Perforated  zinc  trays  are  better  than  wire 
baskets.  When  kept  in  really  go<-)d  order,  with 
a  properly  regulated  supply  of  steam,  the  steam 
cookers  are  economical  and  labour  saving. 
Steam  jacketted  boilers  are  very  useful,  and 
give  little  trouble. 

"Even  in  big  kitchens  there  is  often  a  great 
absence  of  laboiu-  saving  device.  With  steam, 
gas,  and  electricity  all  at  hand, it  seems  absurd, 
for  instance,  to  see  maids  turning  the  handle 
of  the  potato  peeler,  and  if  .sewing  machines 
can  be  worked  by  electricity,  why  not  the 
mincers,  etc.     .\  sufficiencv  cf  cooking  utensils 


108 


^be  Brttisl?  3ournal  ot  IRurslno. 


[Feb.  5,  1910 


should  be  provided;  they  are  very  scanty  in 
some  hospitals ;  also  a  proper  supply  ot  suit- 
able cloths,  not  bits  of  old  sheets,  etc. 

The  hospital  cook  is  a  vei-y  important  indi- 
vidual, but  a  woman  who  is  properly  trained  lor 
such  work  and  thoroughly  competent  is  difficult 
to  find.  If  she  be  a  "  high-class  cook,  with  ex- 
perience in  the  best  families,"  she  is  apt  to  pay 
too  little  attention  to  the  ordinary  run  of 
patients'  and  nurses'  food,  leaving  much  of  it 
to  the  kitchen  maid.  Moreover,  the  wage  given 
by  a  hospital  rarely  runs  to  such  an  one.  If 
she  be  an  ordinary  "good  plain  cook,"  her 
abihties  are  frequently  very  limited,  and  there 
is  not  much  time  for  giving  more  instruction. 
As  often  as  not  she  is  a  hospital  kitchenmaid 
promoted,  and  her  ideas  of  dinner  run  on  the 
usual  hospital  routine,  which  she  has  not  the 
abihty  to  alter.  In  this  respect  I  think  tlie 
army  hospitals,  with  their  trained  and  certi- 
ficated cooks,  have  a  distinct  advantage  over 
the  civil  hospitals.  We  pay  considerable  atten- 
tion nowadays  to  sick  room  cookery,  ordinary 
household  cookery,  cottage  cookery,  etc.,  and 
cookerj-  books  for  these  are  numerous,  but  ver}' 
httle  thought  seems  to  be  given  to  the  difficult 
task  of  cooking  economically  for  large  numbers, 
and  I  can  find  no  good  book  on  the  subject. 

We  hear  a  good  deal  sometiu:ies  about 
'■  bad  "  food.  In  all  my  experience  I  have 
rarely  met  with  food  which  was  bad,  in  the 
usual  sense  of  the  word  (except  eggs).  It  is 
the  monotony  which  palls.  I  believe  much 
might  yet  be  done  with  regard  to  the  patients' 
food,  but  it  is  on  the  nursing  staff  that  the 
monotony  palls  most  heavily.  A  patient 
rarely  stays  in  hospital  more  than  three  weeks, 
and  has  probably  advanced  during  that  time 
from  "  milk  only  "  to  "  full  diet,"  so  that  he 
has  not  time  to  have  the  routine  scale  repeated 
very  often.  The  resident  medical  officers  live 
in  hospital  for  six  months  or  a  year,  and  for 
some  reason  or  other  it  seems  to  be  an  accepted 
principle  that  they  must  be  provided  with  a 
higher  scale  of  food  than  their  sisters,  cousins, 
and  aunts  who  may  hold  posts  as  Sisters.  The 
nurses  who  stay  three  or  four  years,  the  Sisters 
who  have  probably  been  many  years  in  hospi- 
tal, are  the  people  upon  whom  the  monotony 
palls  most  heavily,  and  theirs  is  the  table 
which  is  most  likely  to  suffer  from  a  too  rigid 
economy  in  materials,  and  even  more,  I  think, 
from  economy  in  kitchen  salaries.  Part  of  the 
sameness  is,  of  course,  to  be  attributed  to  want 
of  imagination  on  the  part  of  the  caterer,  but 
much  is  also  due  to  the  want  of  individual  care 
on  the  part  of  the  cook.  So  much  work  must 
be  done  by  the  limited  staff  within  a  certain 
time,  that  dishes  which  require  much  prepara- 
tion have  to  be  crossed  oft'  the  list,  and  it  is 


only  by  following  a  regular  routine  that  they 
are  able  to  cope  with  the  work;  in  time,  even 
the  head  cook  is  apt  to  forget  how  to  make 
more  than  six  kinds  of  pudding,  and  that 
potatoes  may  be  cooked  otherwise  than 
■'  a  I'eau."  Also  meat  when  roasting  is,  per- 
haps, not  always  moved  just  at  the  right 
moment  from  the  greater  to  the  less  heat, 
and  is  not  sufficiently  basted;  thus  the  meat 
from  the  same  carcase  usually  tastes  much 
better  when  served  up  at  the  smaller 
"officers'  "  table  in  the  evening,  when  there 
is  more  time  to  attend  to  it,  than  it  does  at  the 
nurses'  table  at  middle  day.  Brillat-Savarin 
says  :  "  Cookery  is  an  art,  but  to  roast  requires 
a  genius."  In  calculating  the  numbers  of  the 
kitchen  staff,  the  large  amount  of  cleaning 
which  they  usually  have  to  do  must  be  taken 
into  consideration.  There  is  no  doubt  that  the 
food  has  been  much  improved  of  late  years, 
but  I  believe  that  much  might  be  learned  by 
comparing  notes  and  by  consultation  with 
first-class  cooks.  To  quote  Brillat-Savarin 
again,  "  the  discovery  of  a  new  dish  does  more 
for  the  happiness  of  the  human  race  than  the 
discovery'  of  a  planet."  I  feel  sure  that  it 
would,  at  any  rate,  cause  more  excitement  in 
a  hospital  than  the  advent  of  a  coixiet — even 
Halley's. 

The  caterer  is  usually  the  Matron  or  one  of 
her  assistants.  There  are  few  hospitals  where 
the  catering  occupies  the  whole  of  one  person's 
time;  if  the  Matron  does  it  herself,  it  is  sand- 
wiched in  between  other  duties,  and  can  only 
have  a  relatively  short  time  each  day.  There 
is  a  great  want  of  training  in  this  department, 
and  many  Matrons  have  to  learn  by  experience, 
more  or  less  happy — or  perhaps  I  should  say 
unhappy.  Those  who  wish  to  take  up  ad- 
ministration work  should  begin  to  train  for  it 
earlier  than  is  usually  the  case,  and  take  up  the 
subjects  most  needed  in  preference  to  those 
which  can  be  dispensed  with.  Thus,  while 
massage  and  midwifery,  for  instance,  are  more 
or  less  essential  to  the  private  nurse,  they  are 
very  rarely  required  by  a  IMatron — at  all  events 
of  the  larger  hospitals,  but  a  knowledge  of 
catering  and  of  linen-room  business,  and  some 
practice  in  teaching  and  organisation  are  of  the 
greatest  value. 

It  is  no  easy  task  to  arrange  the  daily  bill  of 
fare  for  some  hundreds  of  persons,  whose  meal 
times  occur  at  all  hours  of  the  day,  with  a 
limited  number  of  cooks  (and  those  with 
limited  knowledge')  with  due  regard  to  economy 
in  quantities,  and  considerable  limitations  as  to 
the  quality  of  materials.  To  obtain  variety, 
the  housekeeper  must  not  only  study  the 
market  lists,  but  must  see  that  different  modes 
of  cooking  are  adopted — not  an  undue  propor- 


Feb.  5, 1910]        -^15^,   tentisb   3oiirnal   of  murstiid. 


109 


tiou  of  steamed  food,  nor  yet  of  roast,  fried,  or 
boiled,  also  too  much  pastry,  nor  yet  an  end- 
less procession  ol  milk  puddings.  I  believe 
that  the  weekly  routine  so  often  adopted  is  too 
short;  it  should  cover  a  fortnight,  at  least,  and 
vary  with  the  season.  Some  housekeepers  are 
singularly  deficient  in  the  knowledge  of  what 
foods  go  best  together;  they  will,  for  instance, 
order  beef  steak  pie  to  be  followed  by  apple 
dumpling,  or  suet  pudding  after  pork  and 
beans. 

A  knowledge  of  the  relative  prices  of  food 
stuffs  is  necessary;  it  is  not  always  the 
cheapest  which  make  for  greatest  economy  in 
the  long  run.  I  should  very  much  like  to  hear 
some  expression  of  opinion  with  regard  to 
frozen  meat.  Patients  food  is,  of  course, 
always  ordered  upon  a  definite  scale,  drawn  up 
usually  by  the  medical  staff.  Por  the  rest, 
there  is  no  doubt  that  nurses  work  best  on 
plain  fare,  but  it  should  be  plain  fare  of  the 
best.  Best  materials,  good  cooking,  and  ap- 
petisingly  served. 

I  think  that  more  variety  in  puddings  and 
vegetables  should  be  given,  more  vegetarian 
dishes,  and  more  "  made  "  dishes,  but  it  is  not 
ea.sy  under  the  present  conditions  in  most  hos- 
pitals. If  I  seem  to  lay  undue  stress  on  the 
feeding  of  the  nursing  staff,  it  is  because  it 
always  seems  to  me  that,  to  take  a  girl  of  some 
20  odd  years  and  suddenly  to  give  her  much 
heavier  and  more  exacting  work  than  she  has 
ever  done  before,  and  at  the  same  time  to  re- 
duce her  scale  of  food,  and  to  sen'e  it  without 
some  minor  refinements  to  which  she  is  accus- 
tomed, is,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  not  a  very 
sensible  proceeding.  The  Committee  must 
always  keep  in  close  touch  with  the  house- 
keeping department.  Their  task  is  no  easy 
one;  responsible  to  the  public  who  subscribe 
and  for  the  overwhelming  number  of  people  re- 
quiring relief,  they  must  necessarily  enforce  a 
strict  economy  in  evei-y  department.  The 
Matron  is  not  always  to  blame  if  the  staff  arc 
overworked  and  the  economy  too  rigid,  but  .she 
is  to  blame  if  she  fails  to  put  matters  clearly 
before  the  Committee.  The  responsibility  is 
theirs  if,  after  being  convinc^ed  of  the  need  for 
alteration,  they  cannot  find  the  means  to  carry 
it  out.  Vague  complaints  or  grumblings  are 
worse  than  useless;  a  report  must  be  concise 
and  supported  by  figures  and  facts.  The 
system  of  "  comparisons  "  is  often  very  trying 
when  reforms  are  under  discussion — when,  for 
example,  your  expenditure  is  compared  with 
that  of  an  institution  which  you  know  to  be 
lagging  behind  in  efficiency,  you  are  ready  to 
declare  them  "odious,"  and  w'hen  you  set  to 
work  to  study  them  carefully  you  are  bound  to 
confess  that  they  are  often  fallacious.  So 
many  points  are  not  known  :  with  regard  to 
the  patients,  for  instance,  the  relative  number 


of  men,  women  and  children,  of  medical  and 
surgical  patients — how  much,  if  anything,  they 
provide  themselves;  with  regax-d  to  the  staff, 
again,  the  relative  number  of  men  and  women, 
the  difference  in  the  scale  of  "  officers'  "  food; 
above  all,  whether  the  food  is  good,  bad,  or 
indifferent,  which  could  only  be  decided  by 
residence  in  each  place  in  turn. 

District  also  makes  some  difierence;  the 
prices  of  such  important  items  as  milk,  butter, 
eggs  and  meat  vary  considerably  in  different 
parts  of  the  country.  There  is  no  doubt  at  all 
that  it  is  very  false  economy  to  supply  food 
which- is  not  appetising,  and  although  there 
are  still  some  people  who  seem  to  think  that 
coarse,  rough  food  is  the  proper  thing  for  a 
nurse,  and  all  the  more  ennobling  if  carelessly 
served,  this  is  not  usually  the  view  of  hospital 
managers,  who  rely  on  the  Matron  to  warn 
them  if  the  narrow  line  which  divides  economy 
from  stinginess  is  in  danger  of  being  crossed, 
just  as  much  as  they  rely  upon  her  to  enforce 
care  and  real  economy  in  every  possible  direc- 
tion. 


Next  week  we  hope  to  publish  the  discussion 
on  this  paper. 

^be  THational  Council  of  IHurses 
of  (Brcat  Britain  anb  3rcIanD. 

A  meeting  of  the  Executive  Committee  of 
the  above  Society  was  held  at  431,  Oxford 
Street,  London,  W.,  on  Saturday,  Januai-y 
29th,  at  4  p.m.,  Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick,  Pre- 
sident, in  the  chair. 

Vice-President. 

Owing  to  the  unavoidable  absence  of 
the  Hon.  Secretary,  the  President  reported 
that  iMrs.  Strong,  late  Matron  of  the  Royal  In- 
firmary, Glasgow,  had  accepted  the  invitation 
of  the  Council  to  represent  Scotland  as  a  Vice- 
President. 

The  Committ«e  received  Mrs,  Strong's  letter 
with  much  pleasure. 

Standing  Committees. 
Moralitii  and  Public  Health. 

The  following  letter  was  read  from  Miss  L. 
L.  Dock,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  International 
Council  of  Nurses  :  — 

New  York  City,   N.Y.,   U.S.A. 
Tho  President,  National  Council  of  Nnrses. 

Dear  Madam, — Yon  will  remember  tliat  at  the 
Ix>n<lon  Congress  resolutions  were  pas6e<l  agreeing 
to  bring  the  subject  of  moral  and  sanitary  pro- 
phylaxis, and  the  noc<l  of  l)etter  teaching  for  nursee 
on  venereal  disea.ses,  before  the  as.sociations  in  our 
international  membership. 

I  am  therefore  writing  to  ask  if  you  will,  at  some 
forthcoming  meeting  of  your  association,  place  this 
subject  on  the  programme  and  appoint  a  Committee 
to  work  within  the  l)orders  of  your  own  country,  to 


110, 


^be  Britisb  Sournal  of  IRursina. 


[Feb.  5,  1910 


carry  out  the  provisions  of  tlic>  retsolution,   a  copy 
of  wliich  I  enclose.  .  ■ '■». 

It  might  Ix!  well  to  ix)int  out  how  closely  amed*' 
the  uioremoiit  for  rooting  out  venereal  disease  is  to 
the   anti-alcoholic   niovenieiit,   as  alcohol  'is  'a  pro*;' 
niotnig  cause. of  iuiiuor.ality.-  /■( 

Wishing  you  success,  and  with  cordial  greetings, 
I  flm,  ■'['  .'_,,,'. 

i  ':     Very  sincerely  you  re, 

L.  L.  Dock, 
Secretary,  Inteinational  Council  of  Nurses. 


After  some  discussion,  it  was  agreed  that  a 
Standing  Gominittee  be  formed  to  study  and 
work,  on  this  important ,  question.  The  Hon. 
Albinia  Brodriek  -was  unanimously  elected 
Chainnan.  Miss  E.  L,.  C.  Eden  was  nominated 
as  Hori:  Secretary, '  siabject  to  her  consent  to 
act,  and  eleven  ladies  interested  in  the  ques- 
tion, members  of  the  National  Council,  or 
other,  societies,  \ye re  .nominated  to  form  the 
Committee. 

jNIiss  Brodriek  consented  to  convey  the  in- 
vitations to  those  nominated.  ]\Iiss  H.  L. 
Pearse,  who  was  present,  accepted  nomination. 

The  formation  of  an  Educational  Committee 
to  collect  information  on  the  professional  edu- 
cation of  .uursQS,  with  the  object  of  presenting 
a  report  to  the  Triennial  Meeting  of  the  Inter- 
national Council  at  Cologne  in  1912,  was  de- 
ferred.   ,      . 

The  President  reported  action  in  reference  to 
Prison  Nursing,  and  suggested  the  fonnation  of 
an  "  Elizabeth  Fry  League  "  to  work  for  the 
efficient  training  of  prison  officers.  It  was  de- 
cided to  hold  a  meeting  at  an  early  date, 
after  the  urgent  business  in  connection  with  the 
Nurses'  Registration  Bill  had  been  concluded. 

Mrs.  Stabb,  Chairman  of  the  Library  Com- 
mittee, has  recently  undertaken  a  most  valu- 
able bit  of  work.  She  will  collect  and  tabulate 
the  International  Library  of  Nursing  Litera- 
ture, collecting  more  especially  complete  files 
of  official  ntu'sing  journals.  A  good  beginning 
has  been'  made  with  the  43  volumes  of  the 
British  Journal  of  Nursing,  donated  by 
Miss  Curfeton.  and  a  complete  file  of  the  Ameri- 
can Journal  of  Nursing  promised  by  Miss  L.  L. 
Dock. 

WE  DEEPLY  SYMPATHISE. 

During  the  past  week  nurses  all  over  the 
world  will  have  sympathised  most  deeply  with 
their  kind  friends  and  comrades  in  Paris.  The 
historic  places  where  they  were  so  honourably 
entertained  in  1907  have  all  been  in  imminent 
danger-  from  the  terrible  rise  of  the  Seine 
waters.  The  floods  are  receding,  leaving  be- 
hind a  scene  of  devastation  difficult  to  esti- 
mate. May  most  generous  help  be  forthcom- 
ing; our  King  and  Queen  have  set  the  nation  a 
good  example,  each  having  sent  £1,000  to  the 
Lord  Mayor's  Fund. 


W 


®uv  Guinea  IPvisc- 


We'have  pleasure  in  announcing  that^iss  Alice 
M.  Acton,  Home  for  Mothers  and  Babies,  Wood 
St^reet,  Woolwich,  S.E.,  has  won  the  Puzzle  Prize 
fdr  January. 


Key  to  Prize  Puzzles. 
No.  1. — Vai-ieo  Leg  Bandage. 

VA — rick — cow   leg   (hat)l)and; — age. 

No.  2. — Welford's  humanized  milk. 

Well — fords  hew — man — eyes — D  mill — K 

No.  3. — "  Ideal  "  Maternity  Corset. 

Kyc— d— eel       Mat— urn— IT— tee       (golf) 
Core — (tea)  .set. 

No.  4.— Medical  Supply  Hot  Water  Bottles. 
M — liead — IC — awl     Sup — LY     hot     water 

bottles. 


The  following  competitors  have  also  solved  the 
puzzles:— K.  Parfitt,  Mortlake  ;  M.  E.  Clegg,Liver- 
lx)ol ;  F.  Shepi>ard,  Tunbridge ;  E.  A.  Leeds,  Lon- 
don; C.  Harfnnl.  Banbury;  R.  Butter,  Hayle ; 
H.  H.  Bern-*.,  I  ,riM~li:,iii  :  A.  Xott,  Stroud;  M. 
Dempster,  W.  Ivilm.^;  M.  L.  Slater,  Buckhunst 
Hill;  E.  Westcott,  Tooting;  L.  Ryding,  Belfast;  E. 
Williams,  Rawteustall ;  B.  Sheard,  Chisle- 
hurst;  V.  James,  Huddersfield ;  H.  G.  Bowers, 
Nottingham  ;  C.  Ramsay,  Greenock  ;  E.  M.  Smith, 
Hendon;  K.  M.  Monk,  Limerick;  M.  M-  Gibb,  E. 
Twickenham;  H.  Copehn,  Beckenham ;  E.  Bannis- 
ter, Kingston-on-Thames;  C.  P.  .  Eraser,  Edin- 
burgh ;  H.  R.  Flint,  Birmingham ;  C.  Morris,  Shef- 
field ;  K.  T.  Mostyn,  Swansea ;  C.  Emei-son,  Wat- 
ford;  A.  C.  Lang,  Dumfries;  H.  Ellis,  Milford;  K. 
Turner,  London ;  M.  Woodward,  Redhill ;  C. 
Mackenzie,  Glasgow ;  M.  Foster,  Dublin  ;  R.  Con- 
way, Branksorae  Chine;  G.  M.  Smart,  Cork;  K. 
Murley,  Edinburgh ;  L,  Ander.son,  Nottingham ; 
M.  S.  Crichton,  Hove;  E.  Macfarlane.  London;  R. 
Kreckelei-,  Birkdale ;  Nurse  Baines,  Bradford;  T. 
O'Donnell,  Limerick;  M.  Walker,  .Port  St.  Mary; 
R.  L.  Wiseman,  Fulham ;  F.  Dowd,  Clonskeagli ; 
M.  Moss,  London;  K.  Martin,  Chelsea;  E.  F. 
Moakes,  Holmwood ;  K.  C.  Macleod,  Dundee ;  P. 
Sumner,  London ;  M.  E.  Wheatou,  Loudon ;  M. 
McWilliams,  Omagh ;  N.  Smith,  Dublin ;  A.  Law- 
rence, Manchester;  K.  Molony,  Cork;  M.  Modliu, 
Brixton ;  A.  Pettit,  London ;  K.  Soutar,  London ; 
E.  Diunie,  Hamow;  C.  Maodougal.  Stirling;  A. 
May,  Liverjxiol ;  E.  S.  Sills;  Oakham ;  E.  Silencer, 
Ijondon ;  J.  Cook;  Portland;  A.  L.  Etheridge,  Lon- 
don;  C.  A.  Donolan,,  Dublin ;  I.  La  veil,  Margate; 
T.  Levy,  Brighton  ;  L.  Lawson,  Edinburgh ;  S.  Cal- 
laway, Kingston;  T.  E.  Long,  Eastbourne;  C. 
Christie,  Aberdeen ;  M.  Crichton,  Louth ;  M. 
Flowei-s,  Leamington  ;  S.  8.  iSherring,  Liverpool ;  P. 
Mackenzie,  Inverness;  4l.  Lloyd,  London;  A. 
Lossie,  Wigtown ;  B.  Silcock,  London ;  E.  McLer- 
non,  Brighton;  J.  M.  Bruford,  South[x>rt ;  H.  E. 
Smith,  Warrington;   E..  Wood,   Hampstead. 

The  Rules  for  the  Prize  Puzzle  remains  the  same, 
and  will  Ite  found  on  page  xii. 


Feb.  ',,  1910 


dix  iSriritM)  Journal  ox  iRurstuo. 


Ill 


Hppointments. 


Matudx. 

Northern  Hospital  for  Women  and  Children.  Manchester. 
Miss  Lilian  Harrow  has  bttu  ai)i)(>iute<l  Matron, 
bile  was.  traint-il  at  the  Royal  Southern  Hospital, 
Liverpool,  and  has  since  been  Ward  and  Out- 
patient Sister,  Torbay  Hospital,  Torquay;  Sister, 
Army  Xursing  Service  Heserre ;  AVard  Sister, 
Night  Superint-eudent,  and  Assistant  Matron  at 
the  General  Hospital,  Wolverhampton.  She  has 
done  private  nursing,  and  holds  the  certificate  of 
the  Central  ^lidwives'  Board. 

The  Montgomeryshire  Infirmary. — "SlisB  Annie  Roberts 
has  been  apix)int<?d  Matron.  She  was  trained  at 
the  Salford  Infirmary,  and  at  present  hold.s  a  jxjst 
at  the  Tredegar  Hospital. 

.\SSIST.KNT    M.VTRON. 

The  Midland  Counties  Home  lor  Incurables,  Leamington.— 
Miss  E.  Surt«es  has  been  appointed  Assi.stant 
Matron.  She  was  trained  at  the  ueneral  Hospital, 
Northampton,  where  she  has  also  held  the  positions 
of  Theatre  Sister,  Night  Sister,  and  Assistant 
Matron. 

Sister 
Bradford  Union  Hospital. — Mi.ss  A.  M.  Manchee  nas 
been  appoint<Kl  Sister.  .She  has  held  a  similar 
position  in  the  male  wards  at  the  North  Lonsdale 
Hospital,  Barrow-in-Furness,  and  has  worked  on 
the  private  nursing  staff  of  the  Victoria  Hospital, 
Keighley,  and  of  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Preston. 
Night  Scpekistendext. 
Fulham  Infirmary,  St  Dunstan's  Road,  Hammersmith.— 
Miss  Edythe  Gertrude  Hope  has  been  appointed 
Night  Superintendent.  .She  was  trained  at  the 
Royal  Infirmary,  Liverpool,  where  she  has  held  the 
positions  of  temporary  Night  Superintendent  and 
temporary  Ward  Sister.  She  has  also  been  Senior 
Sister  and  Deputy-Matron  at  the  St.  Helen's  Hos- 
pital, Lancashire,  and  Night  Superintendent  and 
Dei)Uty-Matron  at  the  Leicester  isolation  Hosi^ital. 

ScPEniXTEXDEST   NuRSE. 

Colchester    Union    Infirmary.  — Mi.ss     E.     H.     Foskett 

has   been    appointed    Superintendent    Nurse.      She 

at  present  holds  an  appointment  at  Newcastle-on- 

Tyne. 

Health  Visitor. 
Public  Health  Department,  Hoyal  Borough  of  Kensington. 
— Muss  Nina  Stokes  has  been  api)ointed  Health 
Visitor.  She  was  trained  at  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital,  and  has  held  the  position  of  Sister  at 
the  Royal  Hospital  for  Sick  Oiildren,  Edinburgh, 
and  has  worked  as  Health  Visitor  both  in  Willesden 
and  Crovdon. 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 

NURSING   SERVICE. 
The  undermentioned  Staff  Nurses  are  confirmed 
in  their  appointments,  their  periods  of  provisional 
service  having  expired  : — Miss  K.  M.  Burgess,  Miss 
W.  Halloran. 

Miss  E.  L.  Miirray  to.be  Staff  Nurse  (provision- 
ally)  (January  lUth). 

QUEEN  VICTORIAS  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
Transfers  and  Appointments. — Miss  Juliet  Tillot- 
son,  to  Leicester;  Miss  Alice  Ireland,  to  Birming- 
ham, Summer  Hill  Koad  ;  Miss  Marion  Gibbs,  to 
Chelsea ;  Jliss  Ellen  Corser,  to  Rye ;  Miss  Helen 
Wilks,  to  Hallow;  Miss  Emma  Rice,  to  Worthing: 


Miss  Ellen  Mercer,  to  South  Wnnbledou,  as  School 
-Vurse. 


RESIGNATIONS. 
Miss  Maud  Banfield  ha.s  resigned  the  position  of 
Superintendent  of  the  Polyclinic  Hospital,  Phila- 
delpliia,  and  will  leave  tlie  institntion  on  May  1st, 
when  she  will  have  completed  fifteen  years'  service 
in  the  hospital,  three  years  of  which  she  was 
Superintendent  of  Nurses„  and  the  remainder 
Superintendent  of  the  hospital.  Miss  BanfieM  was 
trained  and  certificated  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, London. 

Miss  Georgina  Atkin.son,  Lady  Superintendent  of 
the  Rutson  Hospital,  Northallerton,  has  resigned 
the  position  after  22  years'  tenure  of  office.  In  pre- 
senting their  annual  reixirt  the  Committee  stated 
that  it  was  impossible  to  sijeaktoo  higlily  of  the 
services,  rendered  without  payment,  of  Mis,<i  .Atkin- 
.son. and  that  they  could  not  sufficiently  espre.ss 
their  thanks  for  her  iingrndgmg  devotion  and 
energy. 


PRESENTATION. 
On  leaving  the  General  Hospital,  Birmingham, 
to  take  up  her  new  work  as  Matron  of  the  Kidder- 
minster Infirmary,  Miss  McFarlane,  the  .Assistant 
Matron,  received  from  the  Matron,  .Sisters,  and 
nurses  a  large  easy  chair,  with  a  loose  printed-lineii 
cover.  In  making  the  presentation,  the  Matron, 
Miss  Musson,  briefly  referred  to  Miss  McFarlane's 
long  connection  with  the  General  Hospital,  and  to 
the  loyalty  with  which  she  had  worked  in  various 
capacities,  never  sparing  herself  when  the  comfort 
of  others  was  concerned.  They  would  all  miss  her 
very  much,  but  they  congratulated  her  on  her 
new  appointment,  and  asked  her  acceptance  of  the 
chair,  which  they  offered  with  affectionate  good 
wishes.  Miss  ilcFarlane  o.\pres.sed  her  thanks  in  a 
few  words,  and  having  tried  the  chair,  said  it  was 
perfect.  The  Sisters  afterwards  had  a  little  fare- 
well coffee  party  in  their  sitting-room.  Miss 
McFarlane  also  received  a  framed  picture  from  the 
maid-servants. 


Miss  Gaskell,  who  for  si.x  years  has  worked  de- 
votedly at  Rye  as  head  nurse  in  connection  with 
the  Borough  -Association,  has  been  presented  with 
a  purse  containing  twenty  guineas  on  severing  her 
connection  with  the  Association  to  take  up  the 
position  of  .Superintendent  of  the  Bath  District 
Nursing  Association.  The  presentation  was  made 
by  the  Mayor  (Councillor  J.  Adams),  on  behalf  of 
nearly  400  subscribers,  at  a  meeting  of  the  Ladies' 
Executive  Committee,  who  were  entertained  to  tea 
at  the  Vicarage  by  Mrs.  A.  P.  Howes  (Hon.  Sec.) 


SPECIAL  MEETINGS  FOR  NURSES. 
We  are  asked  to  state  that  at  the  s|M'cial  meeting 
to  be  held  und«M-  the  au.spices  of  the  Nurses'  Mis- 
sionarj-  League  at  the  Pa-ssmore  Edwards'  Settle- 
ment, Tavistock  Place,  fronl  February  14th  to 
19th,  Miss  D.  Bun-oughes,  one  of  the  principal 
speakers,  is  a  fully-trained  nilrsQ,  who  lias  lieen 
Matron  of  the  Norfolk  and  Norwich  Hospital,  and 
the  other.  Miss  J.  Macfee,  B.A..  is  well  known  to 
members  of  the  I^eagne  as  the  Editor  of  its 
magazine.  "  Nurses  Near  ami  Far." 


112 


Zm  35rit(5b  journal  of  "ttursmg. 


[Feb.  5,  1910 


IHursiUG  lEcboes. 

The  Annual  Meeting  of 
subscribers  to  Queen  Vic- 
toria's Jubilee  Institute  for 
Nurses  was  held  at  the 
iiffices,  58,  Victoria  Street, 
on  Monday  afternoon.  The 
annual  report,  which  was 
carried,  stated  that  during 
the  past  year  the  subscrip- 
tions to  the  Queen's  Fund 
reached  the  gratifying  total 
of  £2,038  odd,  the  donations 
amounting  to  over  £1,164.  Queen  Alexan- 
dria's Committee,  which  was  a  Sub-Committee 
of  the  fund  of  the  Institute,  under  the  presi- 
dency of  Adeline  Duchess  of  Bedford,  had  again 
collected  £2,000,  which  the  Sub-Committee 
was  able  to  transfer  without  making  an  inroad 
on  their  reserve  fund.  The  Institute  is  doing 
a  great  national  work,  and  should  receive  a 
much  larger  amount  of  financial  support  than 
it  does. 


Lady  Beachcroft,  and  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Charles 
Tufton,  was  appointed  to  bring  up  a  list  of 
names  for  the  vacancies  on  the  Grand 
Council. 


The  Lady  Mayoress  (Lady  Knill)  presided  at 
the  first  meeting  this  year  of  the  Executive 
Committee  of  the  City  and  County  of  London 
Tenitorial  Force  Nursing  Sei-vice,  at  the  Man- 
sion House  on  January  25th.  A  letter  was 
received  from  Col.  Oughtei-son,  Secretary  of  the 
County  of  London  Territorial  Association,  ex- 
pressing his  Association's  appreciation  of  the 
efforts  which  had  resulted  in  successfully  pro- 
viding nurses  for  the  3rd  and  4th  General  Hos- 
pitals under  its  administration.  The  reports  of 
the  Principal  Matrons  of  the  four  General  Hos- 
pitals were  presented,  and  it  was  stat-ed,  the 
news  being  received  with  great  gratification, 
that  the  vacancies  caused  from  retirements  or 
other  causes  were  but  very  few,  in  one  case  the 
total  establishment  of  120  nurses  being  only 
three  short,  while  there  were  a  large  number  of 
nurses  on  the  waiting  list  for  the  vacancies. 
It  was  unanimously  decided,  in  order  to  ex- 
tend the  influence  of  the  organisation,  to  invite 
the  Princess  Eoyal  to  become  President  of  the 
.Association,  and  a  number  of  well-known  ladies 
are  to  be  asked  to  become  vice-presidents.  It 
was  also  decided  to  invite  her  Majesty  the 
Queen  to  present  the  badges  to  the  Territorial 
nurses  who  have  been  enrolled.  Mrs.  Kinloeh 
was  elected  a  representative  of  the  Committee 
on  the  Sub-Committee  of  No.  1  General  Hos- 
pital. It  was  announced  that  Miss  Sidney 
Browne  had  been  appointed  Matron-in-Chief  of 
the  Territorial  Nui^ing  Service  for  England  and 
Scotland,  and  a  vote  of  congratulation  to  Miss 
Browne  was  passed.  A  s>ib-committee,  con- 
sisting of  Lady   Dimsdale,  Lady   Mackinnon, 


There  has  been  for  some  time  past  a  feeling 
on  the  part  of  the  Metropolitan  Asylums  Board 
that  something  should  be  done  to  improve  the 
staff  conditions  in  its  hospitals.  In  this  con- 
nection it  was  a  striking  fact  that  relatively 
few  nurses  trained  in  London  general  hospitals, 
who  might  be  expected  under  favourable  condi- 
tions to  apply  in  large  numbers  for  appoint- 
ments under  the  Board,  sought  for  such  posts. 
As  a  preliminary  the  Board  invited  the  Matrons 
of  training  schools  in  London  to  meet  it  and  go 
into  the  question  of  this  disproportion.  Some 
of  the  Matrons  accepted  the  invitation,  and 
one,  in  particular,  spoke  very  plainly  as  to  the 
reasons  why  candidates  for  the  higher  ward 
posts  in  the  Board's  hospitals  were  not  more 
numerous.  It  was  then  decided  to  do  what  was 
possible  towards  raising  the  status  of  the  senior 
nursing  staff  and  to  improve  the  quality  of  the 
junior  staff.  As  regards  the  latter  proposal,  by 
a  happy  coincidence  the  Fever  Nurses'  Asso- 
ciation promoted  its  general  scheme  of  training, 
for  probationers  at  the  time  when  the  matter 
was  under  consideration,  and  the  scheme  was 
such  that  it  received  the  approval  of  the  Board. 
Thus,  what  was  perhaps  the  more  difficult 
question  has  been  quickly  solved. 


In  I'eviewing  the  conditions  which  exist  in 
the  Board's  hospitals,  it  is  necessai-y  to  recog- 
nise the  great  difficulties  which  have  to  be 
faced  in  bringing  about  improvements.  Their 
demand  for  assistant  nurses,  if  fluctuating,  is 
very  great,  and,  as  everyone  who  has  to  do 
with  the  staffing  of  hospitals  knows,  the  strin- 
gency of  selection  must  be  lessened  as  the  re- 
quirements increase.  However,  the  changes 
which  are  recommended  in  the  case  of  the 
senior  staff  are  of  a  kind  which  should  appeal 
to  nurses  with  good  general  training,  and  if 
they  are  carried  into  effect,  it  may  be  taken 
that  the  sufficiency  of  candidates  from  hospitals 
in  London  will  be  forthcoming.  They  are 
liberal,  and  show  much  consideration  for  the 
welfare  of  the  head  nurses.  The  proposals  as 
regards  the  junior  nurses  are  in  keeping  with 
conditions  which  prevail  in  large  fever  hospi- 
tals outside  the  Board.  It  cannot  be  doubted 
that  a  proper  training  and  certificate  will  at- 
tract more  suitable  candidates  for  junior  posts 
than  at  present. 


On  the  whole,  the  proposals  of  the  Board 
mark  the  greatest  advance  in  fever  nursing  that 
has  taken  place  for  many  years.      For,  handi- 


Feb.  5, 1910]         Q;|jg  Brlttsi?  3ournai  or  H-iursnuj. 


113 


capped  by  many  difficulties,  the  Board  has  uol 
so  far,  in  nui'siug  matters,  reached  the  stan- 
dard which  is  common  to  most  large  fever  hos- 
pitals belonging  to  other  authorities.  If  the 
proposals  take  effect,  this  standard  will  be  re- 
cognised and,  owing  lo  the  important  position 
of  the  Metropolitan  hospitals,  the  whole  fever 
nursing  service  question  is  bound  to  be 
affected ;  there  will  be  ■  an  improvement  in 
status  in  every  grade  of  the  service. 


Tuesday,  February  8th,  will  be  a  red  letter 
day  for  the  nurses  of  the  Leicester  Infirmary, 
for  their  new  Home,  so  long  and  eagerly  looked 
forward  to,  is  to  be  opened  by  Mrs.  Fielding 
Johnson.  The  Chairman,  Sir  Edward  Wood, 
and  the  Board  of  Governors,  have  issued  invita- 
tions to  many  friends  of  the  institution  to  be 
present  at  the  opening  ceremony,  which  will 
take  place  at  three  o'clock,  and  no  doubt  there 
will  be  a  ready  response,  for  no  hospital  in  the 
Provinces  is  held  in  higher  estimation  than  the 
Leicester  Infirmary,  and  no  ^Matron  is  more 
beloved  by  her  nurses,  past  and  present,  than 
Miss  Rogers,  to  whom  they  owe  so  much. 


^be  £100  IRegistration  3^un^. 


Carried  forward 
Miss  Sidney  Browne 
Miss  McVitie  (teacloth) 
Miss  Dora  Hlinton    ... 
Per  yiiss  Treasure,  R.N.S. 
^liss  J .  Hurlston 
Miss  E.  Wortabet     ... 
Miss  E.  M.  Waind 
Miss  E.  E.  Alderman 
Miss  E.  M.  Si.xsmith 
Miss  G.  J.  Challis  ... 


£28     3  6 
Collecting  Cards. 

Xame  of  CoUcctor:  Miss  M.  Breay  .•£    s.  d. 

Part  Profits  of  Gordon  Calendar  ...  5     0  0 

Anon 3     0  0 

Mrs.  R.  S.  Bartleet            10  0 

Mrs.  Breay             10  0 

T.  W.  Craig,  Esq.               5  0 

Mrs.  T.  W.  Craig              5  0 


£ 

s. 

d. 

23 

13 

0 

1 

1 

0 

1 

1 

0 

1 

0 

0 

10 

0 

5 

0 

5 

0 

2 

6 

2 

6 

2 

6 

1 

0 

Total 


£10     0     0 


£38     3     6 


Miss  M.  N.  Cureton,  of  Bournemouth,  has 
given  £1  Is.  for  the  teacloth  so  kindly  worked 
by  Miss  MoVitie. 


IHcw  WovW  Jfilc  Complete 

Owing  to  the  kuiduuss  ol  .Miss  ]■:.  S.  Sills,  ol 
Dakiiam,  who  will  provide  Vol.  111.  of  the 
Xursing  Record,  the  file  of  43  volumes  of  this 
Journal  required  by  Miss  Nutting  for  Teachers' 
College,  Columbia  University,  New  York  eity, 
is  now  complete. 

Cbe  IHurscs'  ^otal  abi3tineucc 
XeaQue. 

XUESES  .\ND  Tk.MPER.ANCE. 

On  Thursday,  27th  January,  a  meeting  was 
held  in  the  Edgbaston  Assembly  Rooms  in  con- 
nection with  the  Birmingham  Branch  of  the 
Nurses'  National  Total  Abstinence  I.,eague. 
Mrs.  Walter  Priestman,  the  President,  ex- 
plained the  objects  of  the  League,  and  Dr.  J. 
Furneaux  -Jordan,  who  presided,  referred  with 
satisfaction  to  the  reduction  of  drunkenness 
throughout  the  country,  and  to  the  change  in 
the  practice  of  medicine  as  witnessed  by  the 
fact  that  the  hospital  bills  for  alcoholic  drink 
and  milk  had  been  reversed  in  recent    years. 

Sir  Victor  Horsley,  after  expressing  his  plea- 
sure at  meeting  such  a  large  companj'  of 
nurses,  said  they  must  get  rid  of  the  idea  that 
alcohol  was  necessary  either  in  health  or 
disease.  He  hoped  there  would  soon  be  a 
national  registration  of  nm-ses ;  it  would  give 
them  power  as  a  profession.  When  women  had 
the  vote,  as  they  would  have  some  time,  thej- 
would  be  able  to  help  in  making  laws  for  the 
suppression  of  intemperance  and  its  attendant 
evils.  The  nurses  must,  of  course,  imjilicitly 
obey  the  medical  adviser,  but  thej-  miglit  exer- 
cise a  great  influence  in  the  homes  of  the  pa- 
tients bj"  their  example  and  ])ractioe.  He  spoke 
of  the  great  change  in  mediial  opinion  with  re- 
gard to  alcohol.  Before  anitsthetics  were  dis- 
covered alcohol  was  very  freely  administered 
l)receding  an  operation,  partly  under  the  mis- 
taken idea  that  it  would  increase  the  patient's 
strength,  and  partly  as  a  merciful  narcotic  to 
deaden  pain.  At  the  present  time  in  such  eases 
it  was  rarely  given  even  in  small  doses.  The 
medical  profession  had  better  drugs  at  its  dis- 
posal, and  a  better  knowledge  of  the  physical 
action  of  alcohol.  This  was  sliown  in  the  pre- 
sent treatment  of  cases  of  fever  and  pneu- 
bionia,  when  alcohol  was  rarely  used.  Nurses 
must  obtain  registration,  when  iney  would  be 
uniti  il,  and  be  able  to  exert  a  strong  national 
influence  for  good. 

Miss  Musson,  Matron  of  the  General  Hospi- 
tal, proposed  a  vote  of  thanks,  in  which  she 
ennveyed  to  Sir  V.  Horsley  the  gratitude  of  the 
nurses  of  England  for  the  way  in  which  he 
s\i|i|nirte(l  their  eft'oi'ts  to  ohta'ii  State  I'eL'istra- 
tion. 


HI 


Z\jc  3Siit:sb  3oiirnal  of  'Wurstng. 


[Feb.  5,  1910 


Zbc  Ccrtificb  nDi&wivc5'  ^otal 
abstinence  Xeaguc. 

DR.  KELYNACK  ON  TOTAL  ABSTINENCE. 

At  the  Chapter  House,  St.  Paul's,  Jauuary 
27th,  Dr.  Ajinie  jNIcCall  presided  over  a  nieet- 
iug  of  the  Certified  -Midwives'  Total  Abstiuenee 
League,  wheu  a  le<!ture  M'as  given  by  Dr.  Kely- 
uaek,  on  the  medical  and  nursing  aspect  of  the 
alcohol  problem.  Dr.  McCall  opened  the  meet- 
ing by  expressing  regret  for  the  unavoidable 
absence  of  iliss  Alice  Gregory  and  Dr.  Mary 
Rocke.  She  strongly  urged  total  abstinence, 
and  remarked  that  she  had  been  an  abstainer 
for  thirty  years,  and  had  never  regretted  it. 

Dr.  Kelynack  addressed  his  hearers  as  "fellow 
wox'kers  in  the  healing  art,"  and  said  that  un- 
der the  shadow  of  that  venerable  Cathedral,  in 
the  hub  of  the  universe,  it  was  fitting  to  dis- 
cuss a  subject  which  was  one  of  vital  import- 
ance to  the  profession,  and  at  this  period,  which 
was  one  of  the  mile  stones  of  English  History, 
we  should  face  our  individual  responsibility  in 
the  matter  of  total  abstinence.  In  ancient 
days  disease  was  looked  upon  as  the  work  of 
evil  spirits,  later  as  calamity,  and  still  later  as 
the  visitation  of  God,  but  in  the  growing  light 
of  science,  we  know  it  to  be  an  enemy  of  our 
own  making,  and  it  was  right  for  the  teachers 
and  leaders  of  the  profession,  to  point  out  to 
those  under  their  care  the  evils  of  alcohol.  Our 
forefathers  introduced  alcohol  to  increase 
health,  to  withstand  the  invasion  of  disease, 
and  as  a  soui'ce  of  strength  to  the  growing  child. 
Scientifie  knowledge  now  asserts  that  alcohol 
is  a  race  poison.  The  lecturer  said  he  believed 
the  best  way  to  impress  a  moral  truth  was  to 
appeal  to  a  motive,  and  there  were  two  mo- 
tives which  should  run  through  life.  First, 
duty  to  self;  secondly,  to  others.  From  the 
first  point  of  view.  In  these  days  the  lives  of 
doctors  and  nurses  must  of  necessity  be  serious 
and  arduous;  never  "  on  the  loose,"  always  so 
to  speak  "  on  duty,"  and  they  cannot  afford  by 
any  act  to  limit  their  powers.  Everything  points 
to  total  abstinence  as  a  factor  in  efficiency. 
Nurses  and  midwives  must  have  efficient  brains 
and  minds,  capable  of  discrimination,  ra]5id 
judgment,  able  to  separate  good  from  bad,  bet- 
ter from  best.  Eesearch  has  proved  that  alco- 
hol in  even  small  quantities  lowers  power  of 
brain  and  nerves,  and  the  result  may  be  loss  of 
life  and  the  loss  of  professional  character,  so 
that  for  a  nurse's  own  well  being  she  should  put 
the  best  into  the  work  she  has  in  hand.  Se- 
condly, in  regard  to  others..  There  was  still 
much  ignorance  and  superstition  m  regard  to 
this  question.  Among  the  poorer  classes 
mothers  still  believe  it  to  be  good  for  their 
children,  in  spit^^  of  n  great  deal  of  teaching  to 


the  contrary.  Expectant  mothers  were  still 
dosed  and  drugged,  regardless  of  the  tact  that 
an  alcoholic  mother  produces  an  alcoholic 
child.  The  lecturer  thei'efore  called  upon 
the  meeting,  as  leaders,  custodians,  and  guides 
to  public  health  to  take  action  m  this  matter, 
more  especially  as  in  the  jsreseut  day  many  in- 
fluences render  women  liable  to  yield  to  drink — 
the  stress  and  strain  of  life,  the  lust  of  pleasure, 
competition,  all  of  which  fall  with  crushing 
force  upon  women.  He  concluded  his  lecture 
by  an  appeal  to  his  audience  to  use  life's  little 
day  for  the  highest  and  best  interests  of 
science. 

jMiss  Docwra  then  said  a  few  words,  and 
after  a  vote  of  thanks  proposed  o\'.  iliss  Ritchie 
to  Dr.  Kelynack  and  the  Dean  of  St.  Paul's, 
the  meeting  closed. 

Pretty  little  brooch  badges  were  on  sale  for 
the  modest  sum  of  3d. — blue  enamel  for  mid- 
wives  and  white  for  monthly  nurses.  Iney 
uiiiK-arcd  to  be  in  great  request. 

H.  H. 


IReflections. 


From  a  Board  Room  Mirror. 


Mr.  W.  T.  Farr  has  made  good  use  of  the  £10 
which,  as  a  Freeman  of  Swansea,  he  has  annually 
received.  He  has  fonvarded  a  cheque  for  £100  to 
the  Hospital,  as  he  had  always  intended  that  the 
money  should  be  given  to  charity. 


The  Lord  Mayor  of  Liverpool,  ui  proposing  the 
adoption  of  the  reix)i't  and  financial  statement,  at 
the  annual  meeting  of  the  Children's  Hospital, 
said  it  had  given  the  Lady  Mayoress  and  himself 
the  greatest  pleasure  to  go  through  the  hospital 
and  to  see  the  splendid  condition  of  every  depart- 
ment, and  the  evidences  of  the  be.st  treatment  re- 
ceived by  the  chddren  from  the  doctore,  the  matron, 
and  the  nurses,  and  the  kindness  shown  to  them. 
Referring  to  tlie  finances,  he  said  it  was  a  matter 
which  all  would  deplore,  that  whdst  there  had  lieen 
an  increased  number  of  both  in-patients  and  of  out- 
patients, there  had  been  a  falling  off  in  the  sub- 
scriptions during  the  year.  Perhaps  this  might  be 
explained  to  some  extent  by  the  bad  times  through 
which  LiverjKX)l  had  been  passing,  and  he  hojied 
the  matter  would  right  it.'^elf  in  a  short  time.  It 
was  also  to  be  regretted  that  the  debit  balance  liad 
been  increased  to  over  £2,000,  but  remembering  the 
good  work  they  had  done  in  the  past  he  had  no 
doubt  they  would  again  emerge  from  their  diffi- 
culty. That  they  were  justified  in  spending  the 
money  they  had  done  was  proved  by  the  fact  that 
no  sooner  had  they  opened  the  fourtli  ward  than 
there  was  an  overwhelming  demand  for  lje<ls  there- 
in. '  He  fully  approved  of  giving  the  parents  and 
relatives  an  opportunity  of  contributing  something, 
for  he  felt  they  had  a  duty  to  the  hospital  as  well 
as  the  ijublic. 


Feb.  5,  1910] 


C15C  Brttisb  iuiirnal  of  'Wiirstng. 


115 


Scrappino  tbe  poor  Xaw. 

An  article  on  the  Minority  Report  of  the  Poor 
Law  Commission  from  the  lucid  and  well-informed 
pen  of  Mr.  Sidney  Webb,  LL.B.,  L.C.C.,  is  to  bo 
found  in  the  quarterly  number  of  Froijress,  and 
well  repays  study  by  all  those  interested  in  this 
stupendous  question. 

Mr.  Sidney  AVebb  is  for  "scrapping  "  the  exist- 
ing Poor  Law,  and  states  that  the  Minority  Com- 
missioners assert  that  if  wo  want  to  stop  the 
present  overlapping  and  duplication  and  waste,  as 
w©  cannot  abolish  the  separate  services  that  have 
grown  uji,  we  must  not  only  abolish  the  Board  of 
Guardians  but  also  wind  up  the  whole  business  of 
the  Po<n-  Law,  which  has  become,  in  its  very 
essence,  obsolete. 

"  What,  then,"  he  asks,  "  is  the  sohemo  of  the 
Minority  lleport?" 

'■  W'e  must,"  he  answers,  ''  at  all  costs,  put  a 
stop  to  the  wasteful  and  demoralising  duplication 
and  overlapping  that  is  now  going  on,  under  which 
a  single  family  may  be  getting  help  simultaneously 
from  as  many  as  seven  different  public  authorities 
without  any  of  them  necessarily  knowing  what  the 
others  are  doing.  We  must  at  the  same  time  con- 
centrate the  whole  responsibility  for  public  assis- 
tance in  each  locality  in  the  hands  of  the  directly 
elected  representatives  of  the  people  of  that 
locality.  What  the  Minority  Report  proposes  is  to 
take  advantage  of  the  fact  that  it  is  the  County  or 
Borough  Council  which  is  doing  all  the  work  that 
is  now  superseding  the  Poor  Law  with  regard  to  all 
the  different  classes  of  paupers.  Make  the  County 
<ir  Borough  Council  itself  responsible,  (a)  through 
its  Education  Committee,  for  the  prevention  of  all 
forms  of  child  neglect,  and  for  all  the  ijublic  pro- 
vision for  children  of  school  age  (including  con- 
tinuation schooling  up  to  18);  (h)  through  its 
Health  Committee,  for  the  prevention  of  all  jire- 
ventable  sickness,  and  for  all  the  public  provision 
that  is  made  for  the  treatment  of  maternity,  in- 
fancy, sickness,  ami  infirmity ;  (c)  through  its 
Asylums  Committee,  for  bringing  under  proper 
care  and  control  all  the  mentally  defective  (in- 
cluding feeble-minded) ;  and  ((/)  through  its  Pen- 
sions Committee,  for  granting  Old  Age  Pensions 
out  of  local  funds  to  the  healthy  and  reputably 
living  aged  (whatever  limit  of  age  may  lie  fixed) 
not  eligible  for  the  national  pensions.  There  re- 
mains only  the  whole  class  of  the  able-bodied  (in- 
cluding both  vagrants  and  the  unemployed),  for 
whom,  it  is  suggested,  provision  should  be  made 
by  a  National  Authority,  which  should  set  itself 
actually  to  i)revent  unemployment  (in  ways  which 
the  Report  indicates),  and  to  maintain  under 
suitable" physical  and  other  training  those  sporadic 
cases  of  men  thrown  out  of  work  from  causes  which 
could  not  be  prevented.  This  is  the  scheme  of  the 
Minority  Report,  which  is  now  attracting  to  its 
support  so  large  a  proportion  of  the  experienced 
administrators  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  the  philan- 
thropists on  the  other." 

As  to  how  it  is  to  be  worked  out  in  detail,  Mr. 
Webb  refers  the  serious  inquirer  to  the  Report 
itself. 


OLeoal  riDatteus. 

The  cases  in  which  nursos,  or  women  descril>e<l  as 
such,  appear  in  the  Law  Courts,  in  some  instances 
as  ijlaintiffs,  in  others  to  answer  to  various  criminal 
charges  against  them,  are  now  .so  numerous  that  it 
is  quite  imjxjssiblo  to  deal  fully  with  them  in  this 
.Jouiiial.  Quite  recently  the  following  oases  liave 
l)een  heard : — 

In  the  King's  Bench  Division,  Dublin,  before 
the  Ijord  Chief  Baron,  Mr.  Justice  Gibson,  and  Mr. 
.Justice  Boyd,  Miss  Alice  Courtonay  Clarke,  hos- 
pital Matron,  brought  an  action  against  a  hospital 
Matron  for  allegetl  slander  and  conspiracy  to  in- 
jure her.  The  Bench  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
the  action  could  not  be  sustained  or  maintained. 


Ethel  Moody,  a  woman  dre-ssod  as  a  nurse,  and 
lX)sing  as  coming  from  the  Bromhead  Nuiising  In- 
stitute, Lincoln,  with  which  it  was  proved  she  had 
no  connection,  has  been  sentenced  to  imprisonment 
with  bard  labour  lor  obtaining  a  fountain  pen, 
value  23s.,  which  she  subsequently  tried  to  pawn 
for  4s.  3d.,  on  false  pretences. 

At  the  Manchester  County  Police  Court,  Ellen 
Stoevens  (48),  de&cribetl  as  a  nurse,  was  committed 
to  the  Assizes  for  obtaining  board  and  lodging  on 
false  pretences  to  the  value  of  £5  15s.  from  Mrs. 
Jane  Wilson,  boarding-house  keeper,  518,  Stretford 
Road,  Old  TraflFord.  The  prosecuting  solicitor 
alleged  that  the  prisoner's  tale  was  that  she  was 
the  wife  of  Captain  de  Howard,  of  the  s.s.  Jarnac, 
who  wa-s  expected  to  arrive  in  a  few  days;  also  that 
she  had  come  from  Glasgow  to  draw  a  legacy  of 
from  £2,000  to  £3,000  fix)m  Messi-s.  Cobbett, 
Wheeler,  and  Cobbett,  solicitors,  but  they  would 
not  pay  it  over  until  a  relative,  who  would  be  home 
in  a  few  days,  returned  from  South  Afj-ica.  When 
eventually  apprehended  by  the  police  Mre.  Steevens 
admitted  her  guilt. 

Miss  Jessie  Winfield,  a  nurse  at  the  Bridlington 
Sanatorium,  was  convicted  at  the  Bridlington 
Police  Court  of  stealing  the  sum  of  £4  9s.  belong- 
ing to  Miss  Clara  Page,  Matron  of  the  Sanatorium. 
On  Wednesday,  January  12th,  the  IMatron  went 
out  for  the  night,  leaving  her  keys  in  the  left  hand 
drawer  of  her  drt«sing  table  in  the  nurse's  presence. 
In  the  second  drawer  was  money,  papers,  etc., 
which  should  have  amounted  to  £3  2s.  6d.  On  her 
return  the  following  morning  the  prisoner  informed 
her  there  had  been  a  fire  in  her  bedr<K>m.  She  did 
not  know  how  it  had  originated,  but  she  thought 
a  burglar  must  have  been  in  the  room,  as  all  the 
drawers  were  open  and  it  was  in  a  state  of  disorder. 
Eventuall.v  the  nurse  admitted  to  Inspector  Robin- 
.son  that  she  had  taken  the  money. 

The  Matron  said  the  nurse  had  worked  well. 

The  Chairman  of  the  Bench,  Colonel  Y.  G.  Lloyd- 
Graeme,  stated  that  the  Bench  did  not  wish  to 
send  Miss  Winfield  to  prison,  but  to  give  her  a 
chance  to  find  employment  and  earn  an  honest 
living.  She  was  bound  over  in  the  slim  of  £10  to 
come  up  for  judgment  if  called  \ipon. 

AVe  badly  need  a  Nurses'  Registration  Act,  under 
which  a  case  of  this  kind  could  be  dealt  with,  and 
the  public  protected. 


lit; 


tibe  Brltisb  Journal  of  IRiuchiuj 


[Feb.  5,  1910 


QutL'i^c  tbc  (Bates. 


Ifjcai'ts  aLtnkc&  across  tbc  Sea. 


WOMEN. 

Dr.  Louise  llartiii- 
dale,  of  Brighton,  has 
been  appoiut-etl  Hon. 
Secretary  of  the  Public 
Health  Sectional  Com- 
niittee  of  the  National 
Union  of  Women 
Workei-s.  There       is 

plenty  of  nursing  and 
social  reform  work  f<n-  such  a  Committ«e  to  accom- 
plish, and  the  study  of  "health  and  morality" 
should  be  earnestly  appix)achecl  by  every  member 
of  the  Union.  Ignorance  of  facts  which  endanger  the 
standard  of  national  health  and  well  being,  need  no 
longer  be  an  excuse  for  women  shirking  reliable 
knowledge.  This  question  can  be  quietly  considered 
to  begin  with  tlirough  valuable  manuals  which  have 
been  written  from  a  scientific  standpoint.  Once 
acquire  knowledge  and  it  can  be  applied  through 
many  channels  for  tlie  benefit  of  humanity. 

The  Convocation  of  Manchester  University 
having  considered  a  recent  decision  of  the  Board  of 
Management  of  the  Manchester  Royal  Infirmary 
not  to  appoint  women  doctors  to  resident  ix)sts  at 
the  Infirmary,  have,  by  a  large  majority,  passed  a 
resolution  that,  having  logard  to  the  interests  of 
women  students  in  the  l''aculty  of  Medicine,  the 
Convocation  suggest  to  the  Univereity  Court  that 
they  should  ask  the  Infirmary  Board  to  reconsider 
the  question. 

During  the  discussion  on  the  question  many 
spoke  in  favour  of  the  resolution,  but  Dr.  lidge 
said  he  considered  the  main  question  oouoerned  the 
j>atients,  and  from  his  exix'iience  he  had  no  hesita- 
tion in  saying  that  99  i>er  cent,  of  the  men  would 
object  to  being  attended  to  l)y  lady  residents,  while 
as  regarded  the  women,  quite  75  per  cent,  would 
rather  be  attendd  to  by  men. 

Miss  Mathilde  Dresden  of  Cavendish  Square, 
AV.,  who  has  left  the  residue  of  her  estate  to  her 
brother  absolutely,  has  expressed  the  wish  that  he 
will  establish  an  institution  where  ladies  over  oO 
years  of  age  in  reduced  circumstances,  but  having 
some  small  means,  may  obtain  food  and  lodging  at 
a  reasonable  cost. 

LECTURES  OF  THE  ROYAL  SANITARY 
INSTITUTE. 
A  oour.se  of  lectur(>s  of  special  interest  to  Women 
Health  Visitors  and  School  Nurses  is  announcetl  by 
the  Royal  Sanitary  Institute,  90,  Buckingham 
Palace  Road,  London,  S.AV.,  to  be  given  in  the  In- 
.stitute  and  Parkes'  Museum,  beginning  on  Monday, 
March  14th,  at  7  p.m.  The  coui'se  will  consist"  of 
lectures  and  practical  demonstrations  on 
Physiology,  Pei-sonal  Hygiene,  and  the  Sanitation 
of  School  Buildings  and  Dwellings.  Visits  are  being 
arranged  to  creches  and  the  school  for  mothere,  and 
students  will  have  the  privilege  of  attending  certain 
lectures  and  demonstrations  in  the  course  for 
sanitary  oJBoens.  The  fee  tor  the  coui'se  will  be  one 
•  guinea. 


London. 

In  a  quiet  square  of  the  vast  Metropolis 
is  the  firm,  erect  figure  of  him  whose  name  is  en- 
graved as  deeply  on  the  hearts  of  the  people  of 
England  as  ever  the  word  "  Calais  '  was  writt-en  on 
the  heart  of  the  unhappy  Queen  Mary.  The  rush 
and  roar  of  the  mighty  City  never  ceases,  but  ix)und 
this  statue  is  peace  and  rest,  and  it  is  a  powerful, 
though  silent,  witness  to  the  shortness  of  eartlily 
strife,  to  victory  through  death,  and  to  a  lasting 
success  won  through  apparent  defeat  and  failure. 
Near  by,  the  figure  of  England's  greatest  naval 
hero  is  elevated  on  a  lofty  column  above  all  the 
other  statues  there,  but  this  one  is  only  two  or 
three  steps  atx>ve  the  ground  at  its  base. 

One  day,  at  noon,  three  or  four  shabby-looking 
men  were  seated  on  these  steps,  resting  under  the 
shadow  of  him  who,  iu  life,  never  failed  to  help  and 
succour  those  iu  need,  and  who  stood  above  tnem 
still,  protecting  and  sheltering  the  stricken  and 
the  struggling  in  life's  weary  race. 

And  a  passer-by  thought  the  sight  a  beautiful 
one,  and  truly  symbolical  of  the  life  and  character 
of  General  Charles  George  Gordon,  whose  lovmg 
care  and  service  for  othei's  is  influencing  many 
lives  to-day  in  different  parts  of  the  world. 


Khaktdm. 

A. far  distant  city,  lately  risen  Phoenix-like  from 
its  own  ashes;  a  city  of  many  memories — memories 
of  a  great  heart,  which  beat  with  a  passionate  thix)b 
for  the  sufferings  of  humanity  and  the  dumb 
ci'eation — memories  of  faith  linshattered,  which 
I'ecognised  no  failure ;  of  hope  far-reaching,  which 
saw  in  the  dark  cloud  of  disappointment  the  rain- 
bow of  God's  promised  blessing  u[)on  the  land ;  of 
love  stronger  than  death ;  of  mutual  devotion  and 
self^acrifice — all  these  and  many  others. 

And  in  an  open  space  of  the  city  is  the  uplifted 
figure  on  the  camel's  back,  which  appeals  with  irre- 
sistible force  to  the  loyalty  and  veneration  of  the 
citizens. 

One  day  a  poor  native  woman  was  seat-ed  on  the 
ground  iu  fiont  of  the  statue.  She  had  been  there 
for  many  houre,  unmindful  of  the  scornful  remarks 
of  the  passers  by,  watching  and  waiting.  She  was 
watching  for  one  look  of  recognition  fioni  him  who 
had  never  before  failed  to  greet  Uer  with  a  kindly 
glance.  The  sun  was  low  and  cast  strange  lights 
and  sliadows;  the  flickering  sunlight  played  lovingly 
on  the  still  face,  endowing  it  with  the  semblance  of 
life,  and  the  glowing  features  seemed  animated 
with  an  expression  of  benignant  t.enderness. 

And  the  watcher's  heart  was  tilled  with  .joy,  for 
as  she  aftei-wards  said  :  Gordon  Pasha  had  smiled  at 
her. 

Note. — The  last-named  incident  was  published  m 
the  Record  newspaper  of  September  7th,  1906.  The 
correspondent  who  sent  the  account  of  it  also  men- 
tions that  General  Gordon's  statue  at  Khartum  is 
much  venerate<l  by  the  natives  there,  who  said, 
when  they  first  saw  it,  that  Gordon  Pasha  had  come 
back  to  take  care  of  them  again. 

M.  L.  B. 


Feb.  o,  1910] 


Z\yc  36riti6i?  3ournal   ot  H^urstncj. 


117 


■Booh  of  tbc  Mcch. 


THE  SCORE  * 

In  "The  Sc-oif,"  by  Likh.s  Malet  (Mrs.  Mary  St. 

Loger   Hai'rison;    wc    liave   two   cicTcr  sketches  of 

the  motives  which  govern  the  characters  presented 

to  us.        •  ,         ,"  ^  .   '!*-  ,   ' 

MiBGRERB  Nobis. 

The  .story  ojkmis  in  an  Italian  hospital,  wliere, 
"around  the  loiirth  bed  on  the  window  side,  the 
white-habited  nursing  isietere,  at  mid-day,  had 
drawn  a  couple  of  high  screens,  thereby  intimatiUK 
to  any  i\  honi  .■io  common  an  occurrence  might  con- 
cern tliat  its  occuiMjnt  lay  in  his  <leath  agony.  And 
from  iK-hind  the  screens  came  the  sound  of  two 
voices.  One  that  of  an  old  man,  calm,  patient,  ni- 
<lulgent,  yet  weightetl  with  conscious  authority. 
The  other  that  ot  a  young  man,  now  feverish, 
bitter,  eager  in  utterance,  now  sinking  into  halting 
whi-spem,  now  groHTUg  tender,  and  even 
momentarily  gay.  The  l>eds  on  cither  side  of  the 
small  enclosure  were  vacant.  Tlie  nuns  sat  working 
quietly  beside  the  clean-scrubl)e<i  tleal  table.  Xo 
one,  therefore,  was  near  enough  to  distinguish  the 
words  actually  six)keu.  Nevertheless,  the  soun<l  of 
those  two  voices,  alternate,  intermittent,  yet,  as  it 
seemetl,  interminable,  so  permeated  the  whole 
clear,  well-lighte<l  space  with  an  effect  of  sustaine<l 
suspense,  of  vague  insidious  alarm,  that  now  an<l 
again  the  white-habited  sistere  silently  reciteti  a 
prayer  and  cro.s.scd  them.'ielves,  while  an  ill-oon- 
tlitioned  little  N'eaix)htan  conscript  in  the  bed  in 
tlie  far  corner  'first  chante<!  a  dirty  mu.sic-hall 
catch  respecting  the  ways  of  light  women,  and 
then,  burying  his  wide-mouthed,  monkey  face  in 
liis  pillow,  cried  himself  abjectly  to  sleep." 

The  dying  patient  is  a  young  man— wealtuy, 
poet,  full  of  the  love  of  life,  who  has  ende<!  liis  lae 
with  a  soft-nos«><l  rifle  bullet  alter  murdering  nis 
father  (who,  unknown  to  him  as  such,  he  had  loved 
devotedly),  at  the  deliberate  suggestion,  from  his 
childhfHid  upwards,  of  the  cold-blooded,  cultured 
husband  of  the  mother  whom  he  worehipped,  when 
he  revealed  the  truth  of  the  young  man's  parent- 
age. 

In  the  coui-se  of  the  confession  of  his  terrible  sin 
he  owns  that  though  at  the  outset  it  was  repug- 
nant, "  it  has  come  to  lie  strangely  comforting.  I 
find  in  it  relief  and  reconciliation.  Tliiough  it  I 
am  restored  to  human  fellowship.  And  something 
beyond  even  this.  Father.  For  in  telling  you  I 
s<H.'in  to  tell  the  Prince  Amilcare  (liis  niurdere<l 
father)  also — seem  to  make  my  heart,  my  nature, 
and  the  sources  of  my  action  plain  to  him — though 
whether  because  he  is  actually  present  at  my  bed- 
side in  spirit,  or  whether  because  of  some  iijtimate 
l)oud  existing  Itetween  him  and  yon,  apAe  pro- 
found and  primitive  sympathy  uuiting-yoir  to  one 
another,   J   cannot   pretend  to  <lot<-i  niiujc."    "     '  '    ^ 

Tlie  priest  remains  to  the  end  uiufvealcd;  but  as 
the  dying  man  pa&S{>s  he  goes  glffdly  with  the  words 
on  his  lips:  "They  have  come,  you, ; pee  ;  the  t\\jo 
whom  I  love Great  Prince  and  hiuiteir, 


infinitely  desired   mother,   I   am   ready.      Nothing 
hindere.     Let  us  go.".  ^ 

And  the  priest  looks  long  and  earnestly  at  th> 
dead  man — his  brother's  .son,  the  last  of  his  race — 
kisses  the  dead  cheek,  and  then,  "  drawing  asiu^, 
the  scre<^n,  which  scrooix-d  a  little  on  the  bare 
boards  of  the  floor,  a  very  tall,  austere,  black-robe;! 
figure,  he  passed  out  into  the  wartl — his  work  of 
mercy  done.'' 

"  For  and' against — how  stands  the  score?  " 

The  dead  man  has  passetl  into  the  prcscnc  .  • 
the  ju.st  Judge.     It  is  Ix-st  .so. 

The  Couuage  of  Her  Convictions. 

The  second  story  is  of  topical  interest,  as  it  ix; 
cerus  the  General  Bllectiou,  and  is,  indeed,  the  lo.- 
story  of  a  successful  candidate,  llie  heroine,  Poppv 
St.  John,  <leserves  more  than  this  brief  notice,  to  ■ 
she  has  charm,  genius,  and  sincerity,  and  thesr-- 
cover  a  multitude  of  sins.  Read  the  story  for  your- 
self, and  .see  if  you  do  not  agree.  P.  G.  Y. 


*   By  I.ncas  Malet.     (.John   Murray,    Albermarle 
Stre».4,  AV.)' 


JUST  KEEP  ON   KEEPIN'  ON. 
If  the  day  looks  kinder  gloomy 

.\n'  your  chance  is  kinder  .slim — 
If  the  situation's  pnzzlin' 

.\ir   the  prospect's  awful  grim, 
.\ii'  perplexities  keep  pressin' 

Till  all  hope  is  nearly  gone, 
J  us'  bristle  up,  and  grit  your  teeth, 

.\u'  keep  on  keepin'  on. 

COMING    EVENTS. 

Fehruari/  ,s'f/t.— Royal  Maternity  Charity  of  Lon- 
don. The  annual  meeting  will  be  held  at  the 
"  Hospiz."  28,  Finsbnry  Square,  E.G.,  3.30  p.m'. 

February  Sih. — Leicester  Infirmary.  Opening  of 
New  Nnr,ses'  Home  by  Mrs.  T.  Fielding  John^'n', 
S  p.m.  Distribution  of  Badges  to  memlxirs  of  the 
Territorial  Force  Nursing  Service,  12.30  p.m. 

Feuruarij  fith. — Hammersmith  and  Fulhain  Dis- 
trict Nursing  As.sociation.  The  Annual  General 
Meeting.  Council  Chamber,  Hamnn'ismith  Town 
Hall.  The  Mayor  will  pre.side.  3..30  p.m.  A  Dis- 
trict Xur.siiig  Exhibition,  Nui-s<is'  Home,  Carnforth 
I>odge,  Queen  Sfrwt,  Hammersmith,  from  2  to 
•3  p.m. 

Frbruarij  Ofh.— Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh. 
Lecture  on  "The  Influence  of  the  Mind  Over  the 
Body,"  by  Mr.  C.  W.  Cathcart,.  F.R.C.S.  Extra 
Plural  Tlieatro,  4.30  p.m.  Nnrse,9  are  cordially  in- 
vited. 

February  14fh  fo  J,'^?7i.— Week  of  Special  Meet- 
ings for  Nurses,  arranged  by  Nurses'  Misaionary 
League.  Passmore  Edwards'  Settlement,  TaYistoc'k 
Place,  AV.C.  Morning,  10—11  a.m.  Aftenibbn, 
2. ,30— 3.30  p.m.  Saturday,  Feb.  19th,  one  meeting 
only,  2.30  p.m. 

Fcbrunry  i5f7i.— Written  examination  of  Central 
^fidwives'  Board,  in  London,  Biriwinghgm,  Bris- 
tol, MaAcliefet^i-j'  Newcastle-on-TynW,  (iiid  Leeds. 
Oral  examination  a  few  days  later. 

WORD   FOR    THE  WEEK. 
The  object  of' life  .is  to  be  liappv;  %\i&  jilace  to  be 
happy  is  Tiere;   the  time  to  be  hajjpy' is'now  ;   the 
way  to  bo  liapiiy  is  to  make  otlirrs  Iiappy. 

Ingessoll. 
1 1  ^w.;5^-■^  ■«.■.;'■■' 


IIS 


tTbe  Britlsb  3ournal  or  THursina. 


[Feb.  5,  1910 


Icitcrs  to  tbe  JEbitor. 


W'liilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
lor  these  columns,  we  wish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understoua 
thiit  we  do  not  in  ant  wai 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


THE  CONGRESS  AT  COLOGNE. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Sursimj." 
Dear  Madam, — I  was  greatly  pleased  to  read  the 
letter  from  "A  Jleraber  of  the  International 
Council  of  Nurses  "  in  your  issue  of  22nd  ult., 
with  its  suggestion  that  nurses  who  wish  to  go  to 
the  International  Congress  of  Nurses,  to  be  held 
in  Cologne  in  1912,  should  begin  to  save  money  for 
it  now.  I  shall  have  much  jjleasure  in  acting  as 
''  banker  "  to  the  Irish  Section  if  no  one  else  has 
already  come  forward. 

I  am,  vours  truly, 

'a.  W.  Sampson  {Matron). 
Blo'omfield,  Dcunybrook,  Dublin. 
[We  .sjicakl  advise  our  corresiwndent  to  consult 
the  Irish  Nurses'  A-^ociation  on  this  matter. — Ed.] 


THE  WORRIES  OF   MIDWIVES. 

To  the  Editor  of  til     "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Dear  JIadam, — Knowing  how  interested  you  are 
in  midwives,  I  am  sending  yo>i  a  notice  which 
appeared  in  our  Iccal  paper  this  week,  .showing  that 
the  midwives  in  this  town  wdll  not  in  the  future 
attend  private  cases  for  a  lower  fee  than  10s.  6d. 
At  the  .same  time  I  .should  like  to  thank  you  for  the 
valuable  information  contained  in  the  British 
Journal  of  Nursing.  I  have  taken  it  in  for  the 
X>ast  three  yoars,  and  so  do  most  of  the  midwives  in 
this  town.  I  wonder  if  you  know  what  a  comfort 
it  is  to  know  that  thei;e  is  at  least  one  Journal  to 
give  u.s  fair  play. 

There  has  been  such  a. lot  written  about  doctors 
and  midwives  being  at  logger  heads  that  perhaijs 
yon  might  like  to  know  how  we  get  on  here.  Before 
the  Midwives'  Act  oaine  in  force  I  do  not  think  you 
could  have  found  a  happier  or  more  cont€nte<l  cla.ss 
of  woi'kers  than  we  were.  There  are  six  of  us  on 
the  staff  of  this  dispensary,  and  we  are  entitled  to 
call  in  medical  help  whenever  it  is  required.  Now, 
in  the  old  day.^.  l)efore  the  passing  of  the  Act,  the 
doctors  always  came  quite  willingly  to  help  us  iu 
our  ])rivate  work,  whether  the  fee  was  forthcoming 
or  not. 

AVTiat  a  change  after  the  Act  came  into  force! 
The  doctors  told  us  kindly  that  they  had  nothing 
against  us  individually,  but  they  could  not  come  to 
our  help  in  fntui-e  unl&ss  the  fee  was  paid  in  ad- 
vance. 

I  venture  to  say  a  more  worried  or  harassed  lot 
of  women  won!  I  have  been  hard  to  find.  On  the 
one  hand  no  help  from  the  doctors,  whom  we  had 
learned  to  look  up  to  as  friends  iu  need,  and  on  tlie 
other  the  Central  Midwives'  Board,  with  what 
seemed  at  the  time  its  almost  endless  rules  and 
l>enal  cases. 


However,  the  doctor  who  is  our  local  sui>ervising 
authority  has  always  been  most  kind  and  helpful, 
and  we  have  none  of  us  ever  been  afraid  to  go  to 
him  and  consult  him,  feeling  from  the  kind  and 
thoughtful  way  in  which  he  received  us,  and 
listene<l  to  all  our  worries  and  troubles,  that  we  had 
a  real  friend  instead  of  a  deadly  enemy,  as  seems 
to  be  the  case  in  only  too  mauy  towns.  I  am  giad 
to  .say  that  our  troubles  have  gradually  faded  away, 
thanks  to  the  guardians  here  we  can  now  call  in 
one  of  the  parish  doctors,  of  whom  there  are  two, 
the  guardians  recovering  the  fee  where  they  think 
it  fair  to  do  so. 

Also,  the  doctor  who.  is  our  local  supervising 
authority,  kindly  arranged  la>t  winter  for  a  course 
of  lectures  on  midwifery,  so  that  we  might  be 
brought  quite  up  to  dat-e.  So  things  nave 
straightened  themselves  out. 

I  may  say  most  of  the  doctors  have  fallen  back 
into  their  old  way  of  coming  to  help  us  firet  and 
asking  aWut  their  fee  afterwards,  and  to  do  us 
justice  we  always  endeavour  to  get  it  for  them, 
never  thinking  of  taking  anything  ourselves  until 
the  doctor  is  .settled  with. 

I  do  not  know  whether  you  will  approve  our 
action  in  raising  our  fees,  but  when  you  consider 
how  many  ca.ses  we  attend  without  payment,  and 
how  rare  a  thing  it  is  for  a  midwife  to  take  any 
steps  to  recover  her  fee  from  a  jxior  patient,  'you 
will,  I  hoi)e,  agree  with  me  10s.  6d.  is  not  too 
much.  At  the  same  time  the  mere  fact  that  we 
are  l>eginning  to  see  the  value  of  co-oi>erat in g  shows 
that  midwives  are  not  quite  the  ignorant,  un- 
educated class  some  people  consider. 

Hoping  you  don't  think  this  long  letter  tiresome. 
Yours  faithfully. 

Certificated  Midwife. 

[We  consider  10s.  6d.  a  very  reasonable  fee  for  a 
midwifery  case,  and  the  least  a  working  woman 
can  live  on.  Where  poor  people  cannot  afford  so 
much,  midwifery  attendance  should  be  provided, 
as  the  jiarish  doctor  is,  by  the  rates.  Voluntary 
Associations  are  very  disinclined  to  provide  mid- 
wives  with  a  living  wage — very  poor  economy  in  the 
end.— Ed.] 

Comments  an&  IRepUce. 

Miss  M.  B.  F.,  Leicester. — The  Fever  Nurses' 
Association  has  a  medical  man  and  a  matron  as 
conjoint  Secretaries,  Dr.  Biinnacki,  Medical  Super- 
intendent, Plaistow  Fever  Hospital,  E.,  and  iNii.ss 
L.  A.  Morgan,  Matron  of  the  Northern  Hospital, 
Winchmore  Hill,  N. 

3Iiss  F.  IF.,  Bawtenstall .^The  paper  is  La  Garde 
Malade  Hospitalic.re.  It  is  obtainable  from  96  bis, 
rue  Laroche,  Bordeaux. 

Miss 'A.  G.  IF.,  Scarborough. — An  excellent  hand- 
book which  we  think  would  be  useful  to  you  is 
"  First  Aid  to  the  Injured  and  Sick,"  published  by 
John  Wright  and  Sons,  Ltd.,  Bristol,  price  Is.  You 
might  write  to  the  Central  Red  Cix)ss  Society,  9, 
Victoria  Street,  S.W. 

OUR  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
R»les    for   competing   for   the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  sii. 


Feb.  5, 1910]     ^i5e  Britisb  3oiivnal  of  IRursino  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


119 


tlbe  Central  DDiMvives'  36oar&. 

A  ni«?eting  of  the  CViitral  Midwive.s'  Board  was 
held  at  the  Board  Room,  Caxton  House,  Wcst- 
ininstor,  on  Thursday,  January  27th,  the  Chairman, 
Dr.  F.  H.  Champneys  presiding. 

Since  the  last  meeting  of  the  Board,  at -which  Dr. 
Stanley  Atkinson  was  present,  he  has  pas.sod  away, 
and  Dr.  Champneys  moved  from  the  chair: — 

"That  the  members  of  the  Board  havo  hoard 
with  deep  regret  of  the  death  of  their  colleague, 
Dr.  Stanley  Atkinson,  and  desire  to  convey  their 
sincere  sympathy  with  his  family  in  the  loss  they 
have  sustained."  This  was  seconded  by  Sir  William 
Sinclair  and  carried  unanimously. 

A  letter  was  received  from  the  Town  Council  of 
Norwich  fonvarding  a  resolution  of  the  Health 
Committee  of  the  Corjwration  suggesting  that  tne 
Municipal  Corporations  Association  should  be  repre- 
sented on  the  Central  ilidwives'  Board. 
Report  of  Standing  Committee. 

A  letter  was  reported  from  the  Clerk  of  the 
Council  as  to  the  proposed  amendment  of  Rule 
B  3,  so  as  to'  empower  the  Board  to  enrol  women 
who,  though  qualified  under  Section  2  of  the  Jlid- 
wives'  Act,  failed  to  claim  the  jx>ard's  certificate 
before  Apjil  1st,  1905. 

Sir  George  Fordham  moved  that  before  the  Rule 
was  amendetl  in  this  sense  that  the  Board  should 
take  counsel's  opinion  as  to  the  legality  of  such 
action.  He  pointed  out  that  the  Privy  Council  was 
careful  to  safeguard  itsea  by  saying,  "Assuming 
the  Board  is  competent  to  deal  with  this  matter, 
thereby  throwing  the  responsibility  upon  the  juoard. 
He  was  of  opinion  that  the  Board  should  be  fortified 
by  taking  legal  advice.  He  moved,  therefore,  that 
counsel's  opinion  be  taken.  This  was  seconded  by 
Mr.  Golding-Bird. 

The  Chairman  x>ointed  out  that  if  the  opinion 
obtained  were  adverse  the  Board  would  bo  cut  off 
from  further  action,  whereas,  if  they  framed  the 
rule,  which  would  have  to  be  sanctioned  by  the 
Privy  Council  before  it  was  promulgate<l,  tney 
might  be  quite  certain  that  the  Privy  Council  would 
take  the  advice  of  the  Law  Officers  of  the  Crown  as 
to  its  legality. 

Sir  M  illiam  Sinclair  thought  it  most  improljable 
that  any  exception  would  be  taken  if  the  Board 
chose  to  add  names  to  the  Roll,  and  Mr.  Parker 
Young  thought  that  in  the  interests  of  the  rate- 
payer they  should  avoid  the  expense  of  taking 
counsel's  opinion,  and  leave  this  to  the  Privy 
Council. 

Sir  George  Fordham's  resolution,  on  being  put  to 
the  vote,  was  lost. 

.\  letter  was  reported  from  the  Clerk  of  the 
Portsmouth  Guardians  asking  the  Board  to  inspect 
the  maternity  block  of  the  Portsmouth  Infirmary, 
or  to  receive  a  deputation  of  the  Guardians  on  the 
subject  of  the  Board's  refu.sal  to  recognise  the  In- 


firmary as  a  training  school.  The  Chairman  said 
that  the  Infirmary  had  been  rebuilt,  and  was  said 
to  be  very  specially  good,  but  the  number  of  cases 
admitted  during  the  year  was  less  than  the 
minimum  usually  required  by  the  Board  in  a 
training  school.  It  was  a  question,  in  his  mind, 
whether  it  was  not  desirable  to  cease  reoognisiug 
institutions  altogether,  and  only  to  reooguiae 
teachei-s,  but  that  was  outside  the  matter  at  pre- 
sent before  the  Board.  The  Standing  Committee 
recQmmended  that  the  Board  consent  to  receive  a 
deputation,  but  a  discussion  took  place  in 
which  it  was  pointed  out  that  one  of  the  arguments 
put  fonvard  by  the  Portsmouth  Guardians  in 
favour  of  the  recognition  of  their  school  was  that 
they  were  hoping  to  attract  more  women  to  their 
lying-in  wards,  the  Board  felt  that  in  view  of  the 
stigma  attaching  to  infanfs  born  in  workhouses 
this  was  undesirable.  Eventually  it  was  considered 
that  if  the  point  wliich  the  Guardians  de6ire<l  to 
put  before  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  in  person 
was  the  number  of  ca.ses  admitted,  this  could  he 
ascei^tained  by  a  less  costly  process,  and  the  Secre- 
tary was  directed  to  write  to  the  Clerk  of  the 
Guardians  and  say  that  before  receiving  a  deputa- 
tion the  Board  would  be  glad  of  the  latest  figures 
as  to  the  number  of  cases  admitted. 

A  letter  was  reported  from  a  candidate  excluded 
from  the  April  examination,  1909,  under  circum- 
stances reported  to  the  Board  at  the  time,  asking 
t  obe  allowed  to  enter  for  a  future  examination. 
This  was  agreed. 

A  letter  was  received  from  Mrs.  Buckland,  Hon. 
Secretarj-  of  the  East  Mailing  Nursing  Association, 
as  to  the  refusal  of  a  local  medical  practitioner  to 
attend  when  summonetl  on  the  advice  of  a  midwife 
in  the  manner  provided  by  the  rules.  This  me<lical 
man  is  reported  to  have  written  to  Mrs.  Buckland 
that  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  has  nothing  to 
do  with  general  practitioners,  and  that  he  had  de- 
cided to  ignore  the  jK-remptoi-y  notice  on  the 
official  form  when  sent  by  midwives.  Strong  repre- 
sentations had  been  made  to  the  Board  without 
effect,  and  he  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  it. 

The  Chairman  said  that  this  gentleman  was  be- 
hind the  age.  and  Sir  William  Sinclair  remarked 
that  the  letter  showed  "  sheer  rank  ignorance  and 
nothing  else." 

It  was  decided  to  reply  that  "the  Board  has  no 
power  to  enforce  the  attendance  of  a  doctor,  even 
on  the  midwife's  request,  but  that  the  Board  under- 
stands that  the  Mailing  Guardians  will  pay  the 
doctor  for  his  attendance  in  suitable  cases.  lu 
any  event,  the  midwife  has  discharged  her  duty 
when  she  has  advised,  as  directetl  by  the  rules, 
that  the  presence  of  a  doctor  is  necessary." 

The  Secretary  wa.s  authorised  to  remove  the 
names  of  nine  midwives  from  the  Roll  at  their  own 
request. 

The  resignations  of  Dr.  Mary  Thome  and  Dr. 
A.  M.  H.  Gray,   as  examinei's,  were  received  with 


12Q 


Zbc  Brltisb  3ounial  ot  IRursing  Supplement.  H'^h  5,  u 


no 


regret,  and  the  foUowiug  mc<Iical  practitioners  ap- 
pointed to  eucoeecl  them: — -All'.  J.  D.  Barris, 
M.R.C.S..  L.R.C.P.,  and  Dr.  Floreuce  E.  AVilley. 
Dr.   W.   H.  Clieethain,  of  Guiseley,  ivas  appointed 

au  examiner  for  the  Leeds  centre. 

The  UniTersity  of  Durham,  having  Ix^n  requested 
to  recommend  the  name  of  an  examiner  to  be  ap- 
pointed by  the  Board  for  the  Newca.stle-on-Tyne 
centre,  Pi'ofegeor  Sii'  Tliomas  Oliver  was  apiKiinted 
to  this  jxjsition. 

The  Standing  Committee  reported  that,  havihg 
considered  the  suggestion  niiule  by  Mr.  C.  E.  Long- 
more,  Clerk  to  the  Herts  County  Council,  that  on 
the  hearing  of  a  charge  alleged  against  a  midwife, 
the  Local  Suiiervi&ing  Authority  should  have  con- 
duct of  the  case,  it  recommended  that  the  Local  Su- 
pervising Authorities  lie  asked  to  communioate  their 
views  on  the  subject.  8ir  George  Fordham  hoped 
this  would  not  t>e  done.  He  thought  it  would  be  a 
great  pity  to  reopen  the  matter,  and  that  the  cases 
against  the  midwives  should  Ije  conducted  by  the 
Secretarj'  as  heretofore.  •  He  had  gone  into  the 
question  with  Sir  Donald  MacAlister,  President  of 
the  General  Medical  Council,  and  their  propedure 
was  the  same. 

The  Chairman  pointed  out  that  their  position  was 
not  on  all  foure  with  that  of  the  General  Medical 
Council,  inasmuch  as  that  Council  had  nothing 
answering  to  the  Local  Supervising  Authorities 
which  made  the  preliminary  inquiries  into  the  facts 
locally,  and  decided  whether  or  no  there  was  a 
prima-fdcie  ease  against,  the  midwife  impugned. 

Mr.  Pai'ker  Young  pointed  out  that  the  I'esolu- 
tion  did  not  pledge  the' Board  to  more  than  finding 
out  the  feeling  of  the  Local  Supervising  Authority 
on  the  que,stion.  '- 

After  considerable  discussion,  the  recommenda- 
tion of  the  Standing  Committee  was  carried. 

When  Mr.  Ijongniore  appeared  before  the  Board, 
we  understood  that  tlio  Herts  County  Council  de- 
sire that  the  L..S..\.  should  be  permitted,  not  re- 
quired, to  coniliut  the  cases  under  their  jurisdic- 
tion, and  it  f  -  in-  iiM^iinable  that  if  the  local 
authority,  wIik  h  i-  :il!  i  ,rly  in  possession  of  the  facts 
of  the  case,  <l<'--ii.-.  to  im-^i'iit  them  to  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board,  it  ^Imuld  lie  ixr'rmitted  to  do  so. 

Approv.vl  -\s  Te.\cher. 

The  following  me<lieal  practitioners  were  ap- 
proved as  teachers:— Mr.  G.  B. -Elliott,  L.R.C;S.l., 
L.M. ;  Dr.  Enie.st  JNIartvii,  Mr.  F.  M.  Newton, 
>LR.C.S.,  and  Mr.  A,  0.  Way,  M.R,C.S. 

Approval  id  Sign  Forms  III.   and  IV. 

The  following  .  midwives  were  approved  for  the 
purpose  of  signing  FotniS  III.  and  IV. : — Misses 
Clara  Berry  (Xo.  15ol8>,  Margaret  Bartlett  Clay- 
ton (No.  28298),  Rosf  Louise  Ledbrook  <No.  2838'6), 
and  Charlotte  Eliza  betliLindsey  (Xo.  24o82,". 

The  Congress  on  Administrative  Science^. 

On  the  proposition  of  Sir  Geoi-ge  Foldham.  it  was 
decided  that  the  Board  place  at  the  disjxisal  of  1;he 
British  Oommittee  of  the  Congress,  on  the  .Admini- 
strative Sciences,  to  be  held  at  Bru.sf>els  in  July. 
1910,  ra  set  of  the  publications  of  the  Board. 

The  next  meeting  wa>  arranged  for  Fcljiuan-  24tli. 


HOSPITAL  ACCOMMODATION   FOR   PUERPERAL 
CASES.  vr 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Managers  of  the  M«tKv 
politan  Asylums  Board,  held  on  Saturday  last,  the 
General  Ptirposos  Committee,  in  i-eferenfee  to  letters 
from  tile  St.  Pancras  Board  of,  Guai-dians,  and 
the  St.  Pancras  Borough  Council,  concerning 
the  provision  of  hospital  accommodation  for  puer- 
peral septic  diseases,  recommended  that  a  reply  ne 
sent  to  those  bodies  that  the  ^lanagere  are  o* 
opinion  that  an  inquiry  of  the  nature  suggested  •  v 
them  ■Qould  best  be  made  by  tlje  liocal  Goveriinient 
Board.  In  the  event  of  that  Board  deciding  to  add 
puerperal  fever  to  the  list  of  infectious  diseases  for 
wliich  the  Managers  are  required  to  provide  accom- 
modation, they  would  be  prejxired  to  make  arrange- 
ments for  the  reception  of  certified  cases  in  ^..e 
hospitals  under  tlieir  control. 


MORALITY  IN    RELATION  TO   HEALTH. 

At  the  Midwives'  Institute,  12,  Buckingham 
Street,  Strand,  W.C.,  last  week,  the  Hon.  Albinia 
Brodrick  spoke  to  an  interested  audience  on 
"  Morality  in  Relation  to  Health,"  and  on  Tues- 
day she  spoke  at  Bristol  on  the  same  subject.  So 
the  good  work  goes  on,  and^  the  light  is  sprgad. 


Cbcllalu. 


Do  you  think  that  only  white  babies  are  attrac- 
tive ? — you  who  stay  at  home  that  is,  for  those  who 
are  personally  acquainted  with  black  and  brown 
ones  could  never  make  such  a  mistake — then  read 
about  Chellalu,  in  a  charming  book,  "Lotus  Buds," 
by  Miss  Amy  Wilson-Carmichael,  and  see  if 
Indian  babies  are  not  as  winsome  as  any  others. 

"  Chellalu!  Oh  you  need  ten  pairs  of  eyes  and 
ten  pairs  of  hands,  and  even  then  you  could  never 
be  sure  you  had  her  " — this  was  her. nurse's  earliest 
description.  She  was  six  months  old  then,  she  is 
three  and  three-quarters  non  .  but  she  is  what  she 
was,  only  more  so. 

Before  Chellalu  liml  a  single  tooth  she  had  de- 
veloped mother-ways,  and  would  comfort  distressed 
babies  by  thrusting  into  their  open  mouths  what- 
ever was  most  convenient.  At  first  this  was  her 
own  small  thumb,  which  she  had  once  found  good 
herself;  but  she  soon  discovered  that  infants  can 
bite,  and  after  that  she  offered  rattle  handles. 
Later,  she  used  "to  stagger  from  one  hammock  to 
another  and  swing  them.  And  often,  before  she 
understood  the  perfect  art  of  balance,  she  would 
find  herself,  to  her  surprise,  on  the  floor,  as  the 
hammock  in  its  rebound,  knocked  .  her  'over-.  She 
felt  this  ungra-t^ful  of  4he  babV  inside,  '-but-  ship 
seemael;  to  reflect-that  it'^was  y^ji'jng  and  knew  no 
bettei'i'for  she  never  retaliated,  •J>Rt  picked  herself 
up  and  began  agajn.  The.se  haftittiocks,  .'which  are 
our  So^ith  Indian  tradles,  are  long  strips  of  white 
cotton  hung  frorti  the  roOf ,'  and  they  make  delight- 
ful siviiigs. .  Chellalu  learned  tliis  early,  and  her 
nurse's  life"  \y as  a  bnr(,T^h- to  Ji^p"'  becatise  of  the 

disceverv.'  -v.:..  ■)  !>■./;..  ;    -..■,■,>:  '  -l    ,„  •  : 


THE 

iL 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED  BY  MRS  BEDFORD  FENWICK 


•No.  1,141 


SATURDAY,  FEBRUARY  12,  1910. 


CMtorial. 


DECOY       DUCKS. 

A  mischievous  suggestion  made  by  Sir 
Henr}-  Burdett  on  liis  joiinialistic  tour,  as  a 
self-appointed  critic  of  provincial  hospitals, 
has  been  the  establishment  of  private  nursing 
institutions  in  connection  with  all  hospitals. 
Mischievous  because  the  organisation  of 
such  institutions  is  rarely  undertaken  by 
hospital  committees  except  with  the  object 
of  utilising  the  services  of  nurses  to  re- 
plenish tlie  coffers  of  the  institution,  and  the 
only  just  system  upon  which  they  can  be 
employed,  if  it  is  desired  that  their  services 
shall  be  obtainable  for  their  private  patients 
by  the  medical  staff  of  a  liospital,  is  the  co- 
operative one,  or,  if  a  definite  salary  is  paid 
them,  after  the  expenses  of  the  year  have 
been  met  the  profits  of  the  undertaking 
should  be  divided  between  the  nurses  who 
have  earned  them. 

The  reason  alleged  by  Sir  Henr\-  Burdett 
for  the  maintenance  of  such  private  nursing 
staffs  is  a  financial  one.  In  his  view  it  is 
necessary  that  the  nurses  should  act  as  decoy 
ducks  to  bring  money  to  the  coffers  of  the 
institution.  He  believes  that  to  maintain 
an  efficient  private  nursing  staff,  and  give 
the  first  call  upon  their  services  to  sub- 
scribers and  governors  of  the  institution 
"  should  mean  a  large  addition  to  the  sub- 
scription list,  and  so  the  financial  position 
of  the  hospital  would  be  strengthened  im- 
mensely." Indeed,  he  goes  further,  and  says 
that  "a  good  private  staff  of  nurses  will 
become  essential  to  every  voluntary  hospital, 
for  in  no  other  way  can  the  economic  con- 
ditions be  fulfilled." 

If  nurses  are  so  important  a  financial 
asset  to  the  hospitals — assuming  that  they 
are  willing  to  be  exploited  for  gain  in 
this  manner — one  would  have  supposed  that 
their  welfare  would  have  received  due  con- 


sideration ;  but  in  advising  the  committee 
of  the  Swansea  General  and  Eye  Hospital 
that  the  discontinuance  of  their  private 
nursing  staff'  liad  been  a  "serious  error  on 
financial  and  public  grounds,"  Sir  Henry 
Burdett  advises  the  Board  to  re-establish  a 
private  nursing  staff  and  to  set  apart  the 
existing  Nurses'  Home  for  the  use  of  this 
staff  alone.  Of  this  home  he  says  it "  is  very 
badly  planned,  and  is  indeed  about  the 
worst  building  of  the  kind  we  have  in- 
spected in  the  West  of  England.  It  is  most 
inconvenient  to  work  and  has  few  features 
of  comfort  or  attraction."  So  much  for 
adequate  accommodation  for  the  private 
nursing  staff  ! 

One  advantage  which  is  sometimes  ex- 
pected to  accitie  to  a  hospital  to  which  a 
private  nursing  staff  is  attached,  is  that  the 
nurses  should  bring  in  donations  to  its 
funds  from  their  patients.  But  it  is  no  part 
of  a  nurse's  duty  to  obtain  a  subsidy  from 
her  patients,  in  addition  to  the  fees  which 
are  charged  for  her  services.  A  patient 
asked  by  the  nurse  who  has  cared  for  him 
during  a  serious  illness  may  not  like  to 
refuse  a  donation,  thougli,  in  addition  to  the 
heavy  expenses  which  illness  always  brings, 
he  may  feel  tliat  he  can  ill-afford  to  give  it. 
Business  and  philanthropy  are  best  kept 
apart,  and  it  is  a  mistake  to  expect  nurses 
to  act  as  decoj'  ducks,  and  to  replenish  the 
coffers  of  the  hospitals  to  whicli  they  are 
attached  by  this  method.  Both  patients 
and  nurses  are  placed  in  a  false  position 
thereby. 

To  turn  for  a  moment  to  another  side  of 
Sir  Henry  Burdett's  comments  on  the  pro- 
vincial hospitals,  a  noticeable  feature  has 
been  his  fulsome  and  ill-judged  flattery  of 
the  Matrons,  which,  we  understand,  has 
caused  considerable  annoyance  in  more  than 
one  instance.  It  is  ill-judged  because  com- 
mittees are  but  human,  and  it  is  not  pleasant 


122 


^be  Brittsb  3ournaI  of  ifturslng. 


[Feb.  12,  1910 


to  them  to  find  their  paid  officers  represented 
as  everj'thing  that  is  perfect,  and  ther  ole 
assigned  to  them  that  of  drags  on  the  \yheel 
of  the  triumi)hal-car  of  progress ;  particu- 
larly when  most  members  of  country  hospital 
committees  take  a  deep  and  active  interest 
in  the  welfare  of  the  institution  with  which 
they  are  connected. 


nOeDical  flDatters. 


SCHOOL  MEDICAL  TREATMENT. 

The  Annual  Report  of  the  Chief  Medical 
Officer  of  the  Board  of  Education,  reviewed  ex- 
tensively in  the  Britislt-  Medical  Journal, 
Ijoints  out  that  the  Act  of  1907  gives  power  to 
local  authorities  to  provide  medical  treatment 
if  they  think  fit,  and  for  this  purpose  to  co- 
operate with  voluntary  agencies  if  by  so  doing 
it  seems  to  them  they  can  effect  their  purpose 
and  yet  avoid  laying  a  burden  on  the  rates. 
Thj  responsibility  of  sanctioning  any  such 
schemes  is  thrown  on  the  Board,  and  before 
sanctioning  any  substantial  outlay  on  specific 
medical  treatment  it  must  be  assured  that  the 
authority  is  really  attempting  to  grapple  with 
treatment  in  a  broad  and  scientific  way,  and 
existing  machinery  must  be  utihsed  so  far  as 
possible  before  new  agencies  are  created. 
Acting  on  these  principles,  most  of  the  authori- 
ties have  referred  all  cases  of  disease  or  defect 
in  the  first  place  to  a  private  medical  practi- 
tioner, for  though  it  is  the  duty  of  the  authority 
to  find  out  what  children  require  treatment,  it 
is  that  of  the  parent  to  obtain  it.  Tlie  real 
problem  at  i)resent  facing  the  local  authorities 
is: — (1)  What  is  to  be  done  when  treatment 
is  required  which  cannot  be  provided  by  an 
ordinary  medical  man '?  (2)  What  is  to  be  done 
for  those  who  cannot  afford  the  expense  of 
treatment?  (3)  What  is  to  be  done  for  children 
whose  parents  are  irresponsible  or  indifferent 
on  the  subject '?  On  these  points  no  opinion  is 
offered. 

The  work  done  by  School  Nurses  partakes 
to  some  extent  of  the  nature  of  treatment ;  but 
it  throws  a  good  deal  of  work  into  the  hands 
of  private  practitioners,  even  if  these  are 
directly  included  in  the  local  authority's 
scheme.  Certain  scheines  have  not  been  sanc- 
tioned by  the  Board  because  the  supervision 
of  the  nurse  by  the  school  medical  officer  when 
treating  children  for  minor  ailments  did  not 
seem  adequate.  The  Board  has  required  that 
in  all  cases  treatment  by  nurses  shall  be  con- 
fined to  ailments  such  as  ringworm,  vermin, 
and  superficial  sores,  though  in  ■  a  limited 
number  of  cases  it  has  approved  the  inclusion 


of  other  conditions,  such  as  conjunctivitis,  dis- 
charging ears,  and  slight  accidents. 

When  the  services  of  a  specialist,  such  as 
an  ophthalmologist,  are  utilised,  he  may  be  re- 
garded as  part  of  the  school  medical  staff. 
Schemes  for  providing  spectacles  free  of  charge 
have  only  been  sanctioned  when  it  has  been 
shown  to  be  impossible  for  the  child  to  secure 
them  through  its  parents  or  from  voluntary 
associations,  and  when  care  is  taken  to  secure 
adequate  examination  and  proper  prescription 
by  medical  men  of  suitable  experience. 


THE   PHYSICAL  CARE  OF  CHILDREN. 

Much  interest  has  been  taken,  says  the 
Vienna  correspondent  of  the  Lancet,  in  the 
meetings  of  a  committee  appointed  by  the 
Ministry  of  Education  for  the  pui-pose  of  dis- 
cussing the  best  methods  of  preventing  the 
physical  deterioration  so  noticeable  amongst 
school  children  in  the  present  day.  When  it 
was  asserted  by  competent  authorities  a  few 
years  ago  that  the  ijhj'sical  condition  of  the 
rising  generation  was  not  satisfactory  much 
alarm  was'  caused.  These  assertions  were 
made  with  reference  not  only  to  Austria  but 
to  several  other  Euro2)ean  States  as  well.  The 
idea  of  conducting  a  scientific  investigation  of 
this  problem  was  at  once  accepted  by  the  then 
Minister  of  Education,  Baron  Gautsch,  and  it 
was  his  efforts  mainly  which  caused  the  adop- 
tion of  gymnastics  as  a  regular  exercise  in  the 
liigher  schools. 

A  valuable  suggestion  was  made  by  several 
teachers  of  gymnastics,  who  recommended 
open-air  spoii;s  and  running  as  opposed  to  the 
present  method  of  gymnastics  in  the  Tum- 
halle,  or  room  fitted  up  with  ladders,  ropes, 
and  bars  with  which  the  children  perform 
various  evolutions. 

The  procedure  to  which  most  importance  was 
attached,  and  justly  so,  was  reliable,  repeated, 
and  early  examination  of  all  school  children  by 
specially  appointed  medical  officers.  When  it 
is  considered  that  in  Vienna  alone  there  are 
250,000  children  in  schools,  and  that  about  26 
per  cent,  of  them  are  underfed  and  without  the 
benefit  of  pure  air,  it  is  evident  that  the  first 
requisite  is  to  supply  pure  air  and  pure  food  in 
sufficient  quantities  for  them,  and  then  to  con- 
sider how  to  improve  their  development  by 
bodily  exercise.  The  outcome  of  the  meeting 
was  a  re.solution,  addressed  to  the  INIinistry  of 
Education,  in  which  all  the  points  mentioned 
above  were  elucidated,  and  financial  support 
for  the  efforts  which  the  committee  is  making 
was  requested.  As  the  recommendations  will 
be  carried  into  eSfect  in  a  short  time  the 
physical  development  of  the  school  children 
will  no  doubt  be  materially  improved. 


Feb.  12,  l'.»10] 


^IDC  BriKsb  3ournal  of  IHurBfnd. 


123 


TRclation  of  IHursca  to  flDassagc.  ■■ 

By  a  Doctor  on  the  Committee  of  Sophia- 
hemmet,  Stockholm. 

The  idea  of  massage,  which  is  possessed  at 
the  present  time,  not  only  by  the  general 
public,  but  also  by  many  doctors,  does  not  sig- 
nif3-  much  more  than  an  easily  learnt  manual 
treatment  for  relieving  various  aches  and  pains. 
la  opposition  to  this  old-fashioned  and  suijel- 
ficial  i\otion,  it  is  important  that  it  should  be 
known,  and  that  great  stress  be  laid  on  the 
fact,  that  massage  is  already  a  developed 
science,  and  that  it  is  becoming  gradually  more 
and  more  perfected  and  invaluable  as  an  aid  to 
the  medical  treatment  of  a  uuiltitude  of  internal 
and  external  ailments.  This  form  of  medical 
therapeutics  demands  not  only  a  thorough 
technical  skill  in  order  to  have  full  and  entire 
effect,  but  also  a  certain  amount  of  theoretical 
knowledge,  especially  in  such  subjects  as 
anatomy,  physiology,  and  pathology. 

A  specially-trained  ability  to  discover  by 
means  of  touch  the  pathological  changes  in  a 
patient  is  also  required  from  those  wlio  would 
practise  massage,  while  physical  strength,  com- 
bined with  extreme  softness  and  lightness  of 
touch,  is  most  uecessarj'.  As  massage  is  only 
a  part  of  what  is  now  often  called  "  mechanical 
therapeutics  ' '  (cure  of  disease  by  mechanical 
means),  and  as  a  combination  of  massage  and 
gymnastics  is  in  many  cases  very  necessary  for 
the  successful  treatment  of  a  patient,  it  will  be 
easily  uudersto<xl  that  a  thorough  training  in 
medical  gymnastics  ought  to  be  taken  by  every 
would-be  masseuse. 

The  question  is  now,  Is  the  trained  nurse 
qualified  to  give  massage,  and  is  it  desirable 
that  a  nurse's  education  should  include  a  full 
training  in  massage  and  the  other  subjects  I 
have  mentioned,  which  are  so  necessary  to  the 
successful  practice  of  it? 

It  is  true  that  many  of  the  requisite  charac- 
teristics of  a  good  nurse  and  of  a  good  masseuse- 
gymnast  are  the  same,  as,  for  instance,  the 
love  of  nursing  and  healing  the  sick,  the  gift  of 
observation,  etc.  Both  need  a  certain  ground- 
ing in  medical  knowledge,  and  the  work  of 
both,  if  it  is  to  be  of  full  value,  must  stand  in 
subordination  to  the  doctor's  orders.  But  be- 
hind these  general  similarities  are  many  im- 
])ortant  differences.  The  narrow  and  more 
mechanical  sphere  of  work  of  the  masseuse- 
gymnast  would,  perhaps,  be  a  real  trial  to  many 
women  who  are  attracted  by  and  filled  with 
enthusiasm  for  the  great,  complex,  and  humane 
calling  of  nursing. 

Tlie  groundwork  of  medical  knowledge  which 

*  R<vi<l ^atTlie  International  Congress  of  Nurses, 
TA>ndon.  July,  1909. 


is  necessary  to  the  masseuse  has  to  be  used  in 
such  a  much  more  restricted  area  than  that  of 
a  nurse,  and  yet  has,  within  its  limitations,  to 
i)e  so  much  more  thorough  than  hers.  The 
qualifications,  the  work,  and  the  aim  of  the  two 
professions  are,  in  my  opinion,  so  different 
from  one  another,  that  most  women  who  would 
try  to  take  up  both  would  soon  find  that  they 
were  serving  two  masters.  Therefore  it  is  that 
to  both  parts  of  the  aforementioned  questions  I 
answer.  No. 

What  I  wish  to  imjiress  upon  the  audience 
emphatically  is — that  no  one  who  has  only  been 
trained  as  an  ordinary  nurse  ought  to  practise 
massage,  except  under  the  direction  of  the 
doctor  who  has  explained  to  her  and  shown  her 
the  exact  manner  in  which  the  particular  case. 
is  to  be  handled,  as  in  many  cases,  such  as  in 
tuberculosis  and  thrombosis,  the  result  would 
be  most  disastrous. 

However,  I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  previous 
training  as  a  nurse  would  not  be  a  gain  to  the 
would-be  masseuse-gymnast.  One  word  more. 
The  education  and  social  standing  of  a  trained 
nurse  are  already  defined,  and  for  this  we  owe 
a  great  debt  of  gratitude  to  English  women. 
But  how  different  it  is  with  the  masseuse- 
gymnasts  !  How  shall  we  define  their  position "? 
Doctors  must  first  understand  fully  the  great 
importance  of  mechanical  therapeutics  for  the 
treatment  of  sick  people ;  then  they  riiust 
realise  that  it  is  their  duty  to  possess  the  neces- 
sary theoretical  knowledge  of  it ;  and  lastly, 
they  must  know  how  needful  it  is  to  have  pro- 
perly trained  assistants  at  their  disposal  to  give 
the  treatment.  Then  two  obstacles  will  be 
overcome.  First,  in  the  doctors  who,  without 
any  special  study,  think  they  understand 
mechanical  therapeutics;  and  secondly,  in  the 
gymnasts,  who,  with  but  a  half  knowledge  of 
medicine,  believe  themselves  to  be  doctors! 

May  the  time  not  be  far  distant  when  in 
every  hospital,  side  by  side  with  the  doctors 
and  the  nurses,  we  shall  see  also  the  masseuse- 
gymnasts  (or  whatever  they  may  be  called) — 
all  in  the  service  of  healing,  each  with  their 
own  special  training  and  their  own  clearly-de- 
fined work. 


Disinfection  of  school  premises  is  profitable, 
it  appears  from  an  experiment  made  by  the 
Bucks  County  Council.  The  floors  of  twenty- 
five  schools  under  this  authority  were  sprinkled 
nightly  for  a  year  with  a  solution  of  cyllin.  The 
attendance  at  these  schools  improved  so  greatly 
that  additional  grants  amounting  to  oyer  €50 
were  earned,  the  non-disinfected  schools  show- 
ing no  such  improvement  in  attendance.  The 
cost  of  the  experiment  was  less  than  £30. 


J  24 


Ulic  Britiel)  3ournal   of  Ifturstng.       ^^"^^  12,  loio 


®ur  ipr(5c  tor  tbc   IPractical 
IRuvsino  article. 

We  have  pleasure  in  awarding  the  Prize  of 
30s.  to  the  Hon.  Albinia  Brodnck  for  her  paper 
■  on  "  The  Nursing  of  Children,"  which  we  pub- 
lish below. 

The  competition,  on  ttie  whole,  has  been  dis- 
appointing. Twelve  other  papers  have  been 
received,  not  one  of  which  comes,  in  our  judg- 
ment, under  the  heading  for  which  we  offered 
the  Prize.  Some  of  these  papers  are  interest- 
ing, but  are  more  scientific  and  social  than 
practical.  For  instance,  "  Notes  on  Superficial 
Anatomy,"  The  Use,  Structure,  and  Eepair  of 
Bones,"  "  Processes  of  Digestion. "  These  are 
text  book  subjects.  Then  we  have  "  Mid- 
wifery," a  paper  on  the  social  conditions  re- 
lating to  lying-in  women;  "The  Nursing 
Question,"  and  so  on.  Not  one  paper  on  real, 
practical  nursing — that  is,  the  care  and  com- 
fort of  sick  people  so  far  as  the  nurse  is  con- 
cerned. We  could  have  wished  to  receive 
papers  on  questions  on  which  every  well- 
trained  nurse  might  throw  new  lifrht. 


^bc  IHursino  of  Cbilbren. 

Children's  nursing  calls  for  our  best  faculties. 

Children,  like  animals,  are  inarticulate,  so 
that  our  powers  of  observation  are  taxed  to  the 
utmost. 

Children  in  sickness  change  with  a  rapidity 
which  calls  for  cool  head  and  prompt  action. 

Children  in  the  normal  state  are  a  mystery 
to  most  doctors,  and  still  more  a  mystery  in 
sickness.  Therefore  (low  be  it  spoken)  we  must 
bring  to  bear  upon  our  work  for  them  all  our 
powers  of  diagnosis,  and  present  to  the  doctor 
such  a  convincing  picture  as  shall  enable  him 
to  fomi  a  clear  opinion. 

And,  lastly,  it  is  of  the  essence  of  things 
that  the  sick  child,  as  a  rule,  should  be  un- 
conscious that  it  is  being  nursed.  J\Iany  a 
grown  up  patient  consciously  demands  the 
whole  time,  attention,  and  mind  of  the  nurse. 
The  child  is  a  delightfully  unconscious  and  un- 
self-conseious  human  animal,  unless  it  has 
been  hopelessly  spoilt,  and  the  less  it  is  fussed 
over  the  better.  But  that  is  where  the  diffi- 
culty of  good  mu'sing  of  children  arises. 

Dr.  Hutchison's  simple  advice,  "  Never  look 
a  baby  in  the  face,"  lays  down  a  law  which 
obtains  throughout  all  the  care  of  sick  children. 
Such  care  should,  wherever  possible,  be  in- 
direct rather  than  direct.  Children,  thank 
Heaven,  forget  so  soon,  that  half  the  trouble 
of  sickness  slides  away  from  them,  if  nurse  will 


be  wise  and  not  bring  back  recollection  un- 
necessarily upon  them.  And,  on  the  other 
hand,  children  also  remember  too  well,  and  if 
their  little  minds  have  once  been  filled  with 
apprehension,  their  tear  persists  and  recurs  in 
a  way  so  obstinate  that  it  may  take  not  only 
days  but  weeks  to  allay.  This  is  why  uurees 
who  are  hasty  or  rough,  however  kind  or  how- 
ever well-intentioned  they  may  be,  should  be 
debarred  from  contact  with  sick  children 
entirely.  It  is  a  pitiful  thing  to  see  a  child 
endeavouring  to  propitiate  the  grown-up  human 
being  on  whom  its  little  hopes  depend,  and  who 
has  scared  it  in  a  moment  of  hasty  temper, 
almost  bej'ond  power  of  remedj". 

A  child  is  fundamentally  dependent  for 
physical  health  upon  a  healthy  mental  environ- 
ment. It  is  true  that  it  has  a  marvellous  power 
of  recuperation,  which  adults  well  may  envy. 
But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  process  going  on 
in  the  little  body  is  two-fold.  It  must  always 
be  remembered  that,  whereas  in  the  adult 
patient  repair  is  the  only  process  during  re- 
covery, in  the  child  repair  is  proceeding  con- 
currently with  growth.  There  is  a  double  de- 
mand made  by  Nature,  and  any  mistake  in 
supplying  that  demand  will  inevitablj'  result 
in  a  stunting  somewhere  of  the  forces  of  the 
body. 

What  help  can  the  child  give  us  as  regards 
the  symptoms  of  its  illness  and  the  diagnosis 
of  the  disease  ?  With  infants,  the  expression 
of  pain  and  discomfort  is  by  crying,  by  position 
and  wriggling  of  the  little  body,  and  by  the 
placing  of  the  hands.  These  are  its  positive 
signs.  But  of  even  greater  importance  are 
those  signs  which  are  negative.  If  the  baby 
will  not  suck,  if  the  baby  will  not  sleep,  if  the 
baby  will  not  defaecate  or  urinate,  that  baby 
has  expressed  quite  clearly  the  fact  of  its  sick- 
ness, and  if  it  has  a  wise  nurse,  will  have  en- 
abled her  to  draw  many  deductions. 

As  the  child  develops,  we  have  the  conscious 
statements  succeeding  these  inarticulate  ex- 
pressions of  Infancy :  "  Oh,  my  head,"  "  I  am 
so  thirsty,"  "Oh,  it  hurts,"  "Everything 
tastes  nasty,"  "  I'm  so  tired,"  "  I  don't  want 
it."  Each  short  statement  conveys  the  state- 
ment of  a  symptom,  and  not  merely  the 
random  expression  of  a  sick  child's  impatience. 
So  far,  the  child's  power  of  expression  can 
carry  us.  Beyond  those  limits  begins  the  prac- 
tically illimitable  field  of  the  nurse's  own  obser- 
vation. How  are  we  to  study  the  little  patient 
so  efficiently  as  to  be  enabled  to  help  him  for- 
ward on  the  road  to  bettenxient? 

The  sooner  we  recognise  the  futility  of  build- 
ing from  the  top  downwards,  ignoring  founda- 
tions, the  quicker  shall  we  have  some  chance 


Feb.  12,  1910] 


(Ibc  Brttieb  3ournal  of  Iftursina. 


125 


•  f  becoming  capable  helpers  of  the  little  oues. 

With  children,  eveu  more  than  with  adults, 
the  first  help  towards  cure,  which  is  the  aim 
of  nursing,  is  a  history  of  the  family,  the  second 
the  history  of  the  child  itself  from  birth.  These 
are  the  foundations  upon  which  the  careful 
building  up  of  stone  by  stone  of  the  healiny 
process  must  be  firmly  established.  As  regards, 
the  family  history,  illnesses  of  the  father, 
illnesses  of  the  mother,  brothers,  and 
sisters  ou  either  side,  and  the  causes  of  any 
deaths.  These  questions  will  have  special, 
though  often  not  expressed,  reference  to  tuber- 
culosis, venereal  disease,  and  alcoholism.  The 
condition  of  the  mother  during  pregnancy,  the 
character  and  duration  of  the  labour,  history 
of  previous  abortions  or  stillbirths,  the  home 
life — all  these  need  to  be  known.  Then  follows 
the  life-history  of  the  child  itself  from  birth,  its 
weight  and  increase  in  weight,  whether  breast 
or  bottle-fed  and  for  how  long,  the  age  at 
which  dentition  took  place,  at  which  the  child 
first  sat  up,  first  walked,  and  was  able  to  speak 
comparatively  intelligibly,  the  accidents  and 
diseases  of  its  earlier  years,  its  temperament 
and  character.  Every  scrap  of  information 
which  the  motheV  can  furnish,  no  matter  how 
lengthily  or  how  ignorantly  given,  must  be 
|)atiently  listened  to  and  persistently  sought. 
The  orange  must  be  dry  before  it  is  thrown  ' 
away. 

.\nd  then,  concurrently  and  subsequently, 
the  nurse  plays  for  the  first  time  her  own 
unaided  part.  It  is  a  wise  plan,  unless  there 
is  actual  occasion  for  immediate  action.  t<'> 
allow  the  child  to  become  accustomed  to  your 
presence,  before  paying  any  or  much  attention 
to  it.  A  wise  hospital  Sister  used  to  say, 
"  Best  leave  them  mosth'  to  themselves  for 
twelve  hours,  and  they  will  soon  come  round." 
This  does  not  obviously  imply  neglect.  Mean- 
while you  have  jour  opportunitj'  of  studying 
the  patient — a  matter  in  which  you  should  pro- 
ceed systematically.  Often  you  will  know 
already  from  the  doctor  what  you  are  fighting. 
•Just  as  often  the  question  will  be  an  open  one. 
Never  forget  the  possibility  of  some  degree  of 
mental  deficiency  of  a  greater  or  lesser  extent. 

Note  the  quantity  and  character  of  sleep,  the 
ippetite  or  want  of  it,  the  amount  of  food 
I  iken,  the  u-ritability  of  temper,  restlessness, 
the  appearance  of  the  eyes,  the  lines  of  the 
face,  position  of  head,  trunk,  and  limbs,  con- 
dition of  skin,  whether  dry  or  moist,  of  natural, 
earthy,  yellow,  or  marble  colour.  Be  on  the' 
watch  for  symptoms  or  expressions  of  pain 
Take  opportunity  of  ascertaining  an.y  lesion  or 
bodily  defect,  observe  the  discharges  from  the 
body. 

In  the  nursing  of  children  there  are   a  few 


simple  rules  which  it  is  always  well  to  bear  in 
mind.     They  are  both  a  guard  and  guide. 

Headache  may  be  nothing  but  the  result  of 
eye-strain;  sore  throat  may  be  largely  pro- 
duced by  confined  bowels. 

Diarrhoea  is  commonly  the  result  of  a  to.xin 
in  the  body,  which  needs  to  be  cleared  away 
before  any  further  action  can  be  taken. 

Restlessness  proceeds  quite  as  often  from 
discomfort  as  from  pain,  and  more  often  than 
is  supposed  from  tlurst. 

A  high  temperature  and  quick  pulse  may  be 
dependent  on  temporary  excitement,  on  a  bout 
of  crying,  or  on  constipation. 

A  "depressed  fontanelle  in  infants,  an  un- 
closed fontanelle  at  the  24th  month,  is  always 
an  indication  that  the  child  is  sick. 

If  it  were  possible  to  write  down  any  definite 
principles  to  govern  the  general  nursing  of  sick 
children,  who  differ  as  one  flower  differs  from 
another.  I  would  say,  endeavour  first  to  estab- 
lish a  sense  of  confidence,  then  a  sense  of 
comfort,  the  two  being  often  interdependent, 
get  a  regular  and  satisfactory  evacuation  of 
the  bowels  and  action  of  the  liver — the  two  are 
bj'  no  means  synonymous — and  only  after  that 
you  may  hope  to  attack  the  curative  side  of 
your  work.  Sometimes  you  will  be  astonished 
to  find  that  your  work  is  by  that  time  almost 
half  done. 

To  "  never  look  a  baby  in  the  face  "  I  would 
add  "  never  touch  a  child  with  cold  hands." 

Bear  in  mind  that  increase  of  weight  is  often 
the  earliest,  and  occasionally  the  only,  appi-e- 
ciable  sign  of  better  things,  especially  in  a  pro- 
longed illness.  There  is  in  this  country  a 
serious  neglect  of  this  simple  aid  to  knowledge. 

Bathing,  both  hot  and  cold,  is,  as  the  old 
books  have  it,  "  a  sovran  remedie,"  relaxing 
lired  muscles,  soothing  irritable  nerves,  in- 
ducing sleep,  that  best  of  all  remedies  for 
childhood's  ills.  Never  be  afraid  of  bathing, 
unless  the  doctor  forbids. 

.4.11  these  are  but  generalities.  The  secrets 
of  soothing  and  smoothing  and  taking  away 
not  only  pain  but  the  idea  of  it,  are  the  secrets 
which  cannot  be  taught,  though  they  may  be 
leamt.  ^lore  connnonly  they  are  evolved. 
The  mere  pat  of  a  pillow,  the  good-night  kiss, 
will  bring  rest  sometimes  to  wide-open  eves. 

.\11  brightness,  all  gentleness,  the  nurse  must 
be.  .\  frown  will  bring  the  ominous  pucker  to 
a  baby's  mouth,  a  quick  word  will  cut  to  the 
sensitive  soul  of  a  child.  And  withal  she 
must  rule  firmly,  if  unostentatiously.  If  it 
needs,  as  need  it  does,  an  angel  to  nurse  the 
nerve-strick(!n  patient  of  our  degenerate  days, 
it  takes,  to  deal  efSciently  with  a  child  and  a 
Jimntii',   an  archangel. 

Ai,FaKi.\  li.  BRonRicK. 


126 


^be  IBritisb  3ournal  ot   iHursmo.       tFeb.  12, 1910 


Cbe  Jfactor^  IRurse. 

The  successfuJ  work  carried  ou  bythe  Benefit 
Association  and  the  Emergency  Hospital  has 
induced  the  Cleveland  Hardware  Company  to 
employ  a  trained  Nurse  to  give  ner  entire  time 
to  this  work.  She  is  employed  through  the 
Visiting  Nurse  Association  of  this  city,  not  only 
to  get  the  benefit  of  their  experience  and  super- 
vision, but  also  to  do  away  with  the  special 
employee.  Our  plan  is  to  pay  a  stated  amount 
to  the  Visiting  Nurse  Association,  and  they 
supply  us  with  a  nurse  who  gives  her  entire 
time,  reporting  both  to  the  company  and  the 
Association.  She  takes  complete  charge  of  the 
factory  dispensary,  and  has  general  supervision 
of  the  hygiene  in  connection  with  the  entire 
plant. 

She  is  in  the  factory  dispensary  every  morn- 
ing, and  at  that  time  is  open  to  consultation  for 
any  employee.  Her  services  are  also  given  to 
any  member  of  the  employee's  family.  The 
work  she  has  been  able  to  accomplish  during 
the  year  is  beyond  the  limits  of  paper  to  ex- 
plain. She  makes  a  report  of  accident  cases 
on  a  regular  accident  fomi,  giving  the  infonna- 
tion  that  is  generally  required  by  insurance 
companies.  In  addition  to  this  she  has  a  report 
in  case  of  sickness  in  the  home ;  this  gives  us 
such  information  as  conditions  of  the  home, 
patient's  statement  as  to  the  causes  of  the 
sickness,  and  also  a  general  statement  from 
the  nurse. 

But  probably  the  most  interesting  part  of 
her  work  is  a  systematic  investigation  of  the 
home  of  each  employee,  giving  us  generally  in- 
formation in  connection  with  these  home  con- 
ditions. We  have  found  this  report  very,  valu- 
able, indeed,  in  understanding  our  working 
people,  and,  in  a  great  many  cases,  our  advan- 
tages of  a  larger  contact  with  civic  institutions 
have  been  able  to  materially  aid  our  employees 
without  any  particular  outlay  on  our  part  or  the 
giving  of  charity  in  any  way,  simply  an  ex- 
change of  knowledge.  This  is  especially  true 
in  connection  with  children  of  employees.  We 
have  been  able,  through  our  knowledge  of  the 
city  dispensaries,  to  give  aid  in  the  correction 
of  defects  in  eyesight,  also  very  often  in  the 
deformity  of  limbs,  where  all  that  was  neces- 
sary in  the  case  of  young  children  was  slight 
medical  attention,  which  the  parents  either  did 
not  understand  could  be  had,  or  supposed  they 
could  not  afford  to  obtain  it.  We  have  found 
in  a  great  many  cases,  where  employees  have 
been  in  dire  distress  on  account  of  their  narrow 
vision  of  the  work,  by  bringing  them  in  contact 
with  the  broader,  their  troubles  have  been  very 
greatly  relieved. 

*  Contributed  to  the  International  Congi-ess  of 
Nurses,  London,  July,  1909,  by  the  Cleveland 
Hardware  Company. 


There  has  also  been  one  considerable  source 
of  profit  to  the  company,  inasmuch  as  every 
department    foreman    understands    in   case   a 
valuable  employee  does  not  report  for  work,  he 
can  immediately  communicate  the  name  and 
address  to  the  nurse,   and  she  will  visit  that 
employee's  home,  making  a  report  by  telephone 
as  to  just  what  the  conditions  are.     In  some 
cases  we  have  found  employees  have  left  us 
without  any  notice,  and  in  other  cases  we  have 
found  they  were  staying  home  without  suffi- 
cient cause.     In  this  way  we  have  been  able  to 
eliminate    a   great   deal   of   absence   from   our 
factory,  and  have  gained  much  valuable  time 
for  machinery   that  might  otherwise  be  kept 
idle  awaiting  the  employee's  return. 

The  work  of  the  nurse  is  carried  out  with  the 
office  emjjloyees  on  exactly  the  same  basis  as 
it,  is  with  the  factory  employees,  and  we  find  in 
both  cases  it  is  very  efficient  and  valuable. 
Factory  Nurse's  Summartj  for  the   month   of 

April,  1909. 

Total  number  of  patients  (dispensary)  ...     70 

,,  ,,  new  dispensary  cases  ...     58 

old         „  ,,         ...     12 

,,  treatments         ...         ...  205 

,,  ,,  home  patients   ...  ...     34 

,,  new  home  patients      ...     15 

old  „  ,,  ...     19 

,,  new  investigation  visits       14 

visits        ..,      ■ 122 

Extract  from  remarks  made  by  Mr.  E.  E. 
Adams,  General  Superintendent,  to  a  meeting 
of  the  Visiting  Nurses. 

Cleveland  Hardicarc  Nurse. 

"  1  feel  in  the  Factoi-y  Nurse  we  have  the 
greatest  possibilities  for  the  development  of 
welfare  work,  and  I  wish  I  might  create  in  each 
one  of  j-ou  so  much  enthusiasm  for  it  that,  as 
the  work  grows  and  other  factories  call  for 
nurses,  there  might  be  no  lack  of  applicants  foj 
the  positions.  The  possibilities  of  such  a  posi- 
tion are  limited  only  by  the  ability  of  the  persor: 
holduig  it.  To  one  interested  in  the  general 
social  uplift,  the  position,  it  seems  to  me,  must 
be  ideal. 

"  The  average  number  of  employees  in  one  oi 
Cleveland's  large  factories  will  number  very 
close  to  1,000  people,  and  very  often  more; 
and  in  averaging  the  families  it  is  perfectly  fair 
to  multiply  each  one  by  five.  That  means  that 
one  of  these  great  industrial  institutions  will 
have  some  5,000  people  dependent  upon  it. 
The  population  of  Painesville,  Ohio,  is  given  as 
5,025  people.  Now,  imagine  holding  a  position 
that  would  allow  you  to  administer  to  the  wel- 
fare of  every  person  in  a  village  of  that  size, 
not  to  the  poor  alone,  but  all  sorts  and  con- 
ditions of  people  that  go  to  make  up  a  town, 
and  that  through  your  influence  a  personal  con- 


Feb.  12,  1910] 


^bc  Brttisb  3ournal   of   IRurstng. 


tact  could  be  brought  about  bctwcru  all  ul 
them ;  that  the  prosperous  man  expected  you 
to  call  his  attention  to  and  advise  him  what  to 
ilo  for  the  unfortunate  man ;  that  you  were  at 
liberty  and  expected  to  call  in  every  home,  and 
that  your  personal  acquaintance  with  each  oni' 
of  this  population  was  greater  than  that  of  any 
other  one  individual.  This  is  about  what  is 
offered  to  the  Factory  Nurse. 

"  The  wage  earner  is  sjiending  three-fourths 
of  his  working  time  at  the  factory,  and  those 
dependent  upon  him  are  members  of  one  great 
co-operative  community.  Your  Factory  Nurse 
does  not  confine  herself  to  one  district  or 
specialise  in  a  particular  kind  of  work,  and  in 
giving  relief  she  has  the  resources  of  the  whole 
comnumity  back  of  her.  The  expense  of  fur- 
nishings and  supplies  for  her  dispensary  is  such 
;',  small  item  in  the  general  fund  that  they  need 
not  be  considered.  She  has  a  large  variety  of 
positions  for  men  out  of  \^ork.  and  it  is  in  her 
])Ower  to  create  a  general  feeling  of  co-opera- 
tion between  workman  and  foreman." 


a  Ibistorv  of  IRuvsing. 

Miss  L.  L.  Dock  is  now  :it  work  on  the  third 
volume  of  "■'  A  History  of  Nursing."  It  is  to  deal 
with  the  more  important  devclopiucjits  in  the  field 
of  nurses'  work  from  1873  to  1910.  anil  will  be  com- 
piled by  the  menil)ers  ol  t!ie  International  Council 
of  Nurses,  and  sold  for  the  benefit  of  the  Interna- 
tional treasury,  and  will  be  edited  by  Miss  L.  L. 
Dock,  the  Hon.  Secretary. 

As  strictly  impartial  history  is  not  easily  written 
of  those  who  are  still  living  and  exercising  the 
influence  of  their  personahty,  this  volume  is  pre- 
sented rather  as  a  set  of  chronicles  thaii  as  a  history 
in  the  academic  sense,  though  it  may  claim  the 
dignity  of  absolute  acciwacy  of  historical  data  and 
statement  of  facts,  so  far  as  its  limits  reach. 

It  is  believed  that,  while  its  immediate  interest 
and  value  may  be  largely  confined  within  the  mem- 
bership of  the  profession  of  which  it  treats,  it  may 
also  be  not  without  significance  as  a  partial  record 
contributory  to  the  larger  subject  of  the  social  and 
economic  changes  in  the  status  of  women.  The 
modern  work  of  nursing  in  its  whole  extent  is  not 
oidy  one  of  the  fruits  of  the  "  woman's  movement," 
Imt  a  very  remarkable  and  picturesqiu-  jjart — an 
integral  part — of  that  movement,  despite  the  very 
general  absence  of  "class-consciousness"  discernible 
in  the  women  who,  absorbed  as  they  are  in  the  im- 
mediate fulfilment  of  their  most  practical  and  press- 
ing duties,  and  strikingly  free  from  self-conscious- 
ne.'t.s,  have  been  pressing  towards  each  opening  in 
tlieir  special  work,  and  have  wrought  the  manifold 
letails  of  professional  progress  that  characterise 
modern  nursing  as  compared  with  its  earlier  forms. 

Fiom  that  point  of  view  that  shows  the  work  of 
the  nurse  of  the  last  four  decades  in  its  relation 
to  the  larger  theme  of  an  era  in  human  emancipa- 
tion and  development,  the  details  related  in  this 
volume  may  be  justified  as  being  of  sufficient  per- 
manent importance  to  be  ofi'i>red  to  the  pnlilic. 


?Ibc  fIDatrons'  Council. 

HOSPITAL   KITCHENS. 
Discission. 

The  discussion  that  followed  the  reading  of  Miss- 
Miissou's  most  excellent  paper  was  extremely  in- 
teresting, but  discursive  and  conversational  iu 
(haracter.  The  following  ladies,  among.st  others, 
took  part  in  the  discussion  : — Miss  Isla  Stewart,  of 
Hartholomow's;  Miss  Haughton,  of  Guy's;  Mrs. 
Walter  Spencer,  Miss  Marquardt,  of  Camberwell ; 
and  Miss  Kingsford. 

Points  of  interest  touched  upon  were;- — 

(o)  Lady  Cooks. — The  general  concensus  of 
opinion  was  undoubtedly  in  their  favour.  Under 
suitable  conditions  they  were  good  disciplinarians, 
economical,  and  generally  .satisfactory.  Then-  cook- 
ing powers  naturally  varied  according  to  the  indi- 
vidual, one  lady  cook  showing  greater  gifts  in  deal- 
ing with  bulk  cooking,  others  for  smaller  and 
daintier  dishes.  Miss  Isla  Stewart  made  the  fact 
of  their  suitability  for  large  and  up-to-date  hospi- 
tal establishments  very  clear;  but  the  debate  did 
not  actually  settle  the  point  as  to  their  adaptability 
for  smaller  and  less  perfect  establishments. 

(fc)  Carvhiy. — The  economy  of  go<Kl  carving  was 
discussed.  Here,  again,  Miss  Stewart  supplied  the 
Council  with  information,  explaining  how  enor- 
mous the  saving  had  been  since  the  institution  of 
a  trained  male  carver  lor  the  nuit>es'  diunere 
at  St.  bartholomew'.s  Hospital.  Miss  St«wart 
estimated  the  saving  at  two  joints  per  <lay. 
Miss  Musson  explained  how  the  Birmingham 
General  also  employed  a  specially  trained  porter 
for  the  purpose. 

(f)  Kitchen  appliances  were  discussed.  Steam 
cooking  was  generally  approved  of,  where  the 
arrangements  were  perfect,  but  it  was  so  little 
under  the  control  of  the  kitchen  staff,  that  it  did 
not  practically  w^ork  out  as  well  as  it  sounded 
theoretically.  Miss  Marquardt  gave  an  excellent 
illustration  of  the  failure  of  an  otherwise  excellent 
gas  stove  through  faulty  fixing.  Teak  sinks  had 
their  advocates,  who  thought  they  prevented  the 
breakage  of  chijia,  and  their  objectors,  who  thought 
they  were  liable  to  become  saturated  with  grease. 
The  liceds  Infirmary  had  had  to  remove  their 
wooden  sinks  after  a  short  life  on  that  account. 
One  member  gave  a  harrow  ing  account  of  the  tanks 
of  hot  .soap  and  soda  water  in  some  hotels,  which 
were  only  emptied  about  twice  a  week. 

(d)  ^[cnt. — Naturally  the  discussion  opened  with 
a  reference  to  the  relative  value  of  fresh  and  frozen 
meat.  Whilst  all  were  agreed  that  fresh  meat  was 
preferable,  and  wasted  less  in  cooking,  it  was 
allowed  that  the  price  was  prohibitive  for  some 
institutions.  Miss  Kingsford  remarked  very  aptly 
that  frozen  meat  itself  varied  considerably,  the 
same  contractor  often  supplying  excellent  meat  of 
good  flavour  in  one  consignment  and  of  very  much 
inferior  quality  in  the  next.  It  was  generally 
agreed,  however,  that  much  of  the  meat  sujiplied  as 
fresh  was  really  frozen,  and  that  it  was  often  very 
difficult  to  distinguisli,  owing  to  the  improved 
methods  used  iu  preserving  the  same.  The  fact 
that  good   meat    was  often  spoilt    in   the  cooking,  . 


12S 


ci)C  36itti5b  :tounial  of  IRurslng. 


[Feb.  12,  1910 


either  tliiongh  carelessness  or  lack  of  a  proper 
kiiowleilge  of  the  appliances  provided.was  generally 
allowed. 

((■)  Provisions  generally  were  discussed,  and  Mrs. 
\\'alter  Spencer  mentioned,  as  a  fact  known  to 
lier,  that  one  hospital  accepted  a  contract  for  milk 
at  a  lower  price  than  milk  was  actually  fetching 
on  farms.  All  were  agreed  that  unduly  low  <;ou- 
tracts  for  provisions  constituted  a  danger. 

The  discussion  then  passed  into  a  general  con- 
versation respecting  the  food  served  in  hospitals, 
both  to  the  staff  and  the  patients,  and  so  diverse 
v.  ere  the  opinions  expressed  that  one  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  standard  of  living  W'as  far  from 
uniform  in  the  various  institutions  represented. 
-Mrs.  Walter  Spencer  struck  the  right  note  when 
she  advocated  plain,  well-cooked  food,  properly 
served,  as  the  object  to  be  aimed  at. 

The  members  of  the  Council  had  answered  each 
other's  questions  so  readily,  and  the  discussion  had 
been  so  conversational,  that  Miss  Musson  was  not 
called  upon  to  reply. 

M.  MoLLETi,  Hon.  Sec. 


^bc  3ri5b  flPatrons'  association. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  above  Association,  held 
in  Dublin  in  -January,  it  was  proposed  and 
passed  unanimously  that  Miss  L  .V.  Haughtou, 
Matron  of  Guy's  Hospital,  Loudon,  be  asked 
to  become  an  Hon.  Member  of  the  Association. 
At  a  meeting  held  on  February  .5th,  the  Hon. 
Oflicers  for  the  year  were  elected.  President, 
^liss  M.  Huxley.  Treasurer,  ]\liss  B.  Kelly, 
Lady  Superintendent,  Dr.  Steevens'  Hospital, 
Dublin.  Hon.  Secretary,  Miss  A.  Reeves, 
Lady  Superintendent,  Eoyal  Victoria  Eye  and 
Ear  Hospital,  Dublin. 

A  letter  was  received  from  Miss  Haughton, 
accepting  the  honour  of  honorary  membership. 

[Miss  Keogh,  Lady  Supeiintendent  of  the 
Richmond  Hospital,  read  a  vei^y  interesting^ 
paper  on  "  The  Training  of  Probationers," 
which  was  afterwards  discussed.  A.   R. 


^bc  3ri6b  TRurses'  association. 

One  of  the  most  hopeful  signs  in  the  Irish 
nursing  world  is  the  co-operation  amongst 
Matrons  and  nurses  of  various  religious  opinions 
to  secure  a  high  standard  of  nursing  efficiency 
through  State  Registration.  The  sick  of  the 
community  are  the  sacred  charge  of  all  irrespec- 
tive of  religion  or  polities.  This  is  the  only 
basis  of  opinion  upon  which  can  be  built  up  an 
efficient  professional  and  ethical  standard  of 
nursing. 

Some  time  ago  Sister  JM.  AUseus  Fogarty, 
the  Matron  (who  is  a  nun)  of  the  South  Charit- 
able Infirmary  at  Cork,  greatly  to  the  pleasure 
of  her  sister  Matrons,  became  a  member  of  the 
Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland. 


Sister  Albeus  Fogarty  has  now  become  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Irish 
Nurses'  Association,  and  has  used  her  good 
influence  with  most  gratifying  results,  in  en- 
couraging nurses,  sisters,  and  probationers  on 
the  staff  of  the  South  Charitable  Infimiary  to 
join  the  Irish  Nurses' Association,  and  thus  help 
to  build  up  a  really  national  league  of  Irish 
nurses.  There  is  little  doubt  that  State  Regis- 
tration will  soon  be  an  accomplished  fact  in  tha 
United  Kingdom,  and  the  more  united  the 
nurses  are  when  it  comes  the  better. 

We  have  pleasure  in  publishing  a  list  of  the 

new  members  of  the  Irish  Nurses'  Association  ; 

NEW  MEMBERS. 

SoTJiH    Chaeitable    Infibmart   and   County 

Hospital,  Cork. 

Night  Superintendent :   Sister  K.  Carton. 

Charge  Sisters:  D.  McCuUogh,  N.  Cremin,  E. 
Copley. 

Staff  Nurses  :  K.  O'Keefe,  H.  Martin,  M.  Roche, 
K.  Cave,  A.  Fishley,  M.  Hayes,  C.  O'Sullivan,  M. 
ORiordan,  L.  CoUius. 

Probationers:  N.  Bennett,  A.  Buckley,  B.  Healy, 
E.  Lacey,  L.  Buckley,  E.  Ellis,  L.  Aherue,  L. 
O'Connor,  A.  Murray,  K.  Keller,  I.  Perrott,  N. 
Madigan,  S.  Murray,'^  E.  Duggan,  R.  O'Brien,  E. 
O'Keefe,  A.  Shorten,  K.  Crowley,  E.  AVolfe,  H. 
Russell,  K.  Moore,  L.  AValsh,  E.  Sweeney,  A.  Hen- 
derson, K.  O'DriscoU,  N.  OMahony,  N.  Horan,  S. 
Baker  M.  Hill,  J.  Greene,  M.  Kearney,  H.  Hor- 
gan,  E.  Dineen,  K.  McCarthy,  M.  Lordon,  M. 
Burke.   M.   Q-Sullivan. 

TiPPEHART    COCXTT    IXFIRMART,    CaSHEL. 

Matron  :  ^liss  H.  Bavlv.  Nurses  L.  Millett  and 
E.  Kelly. 

Belmullet  Hospit.al,  Co.   Mato. 

Nurse  L.  Mouoghan. 


^be  £100  IReoistration  jfiint). 

£    s.  d. 

Brought  forward               ...              ...  38     3  6 

"  One  Interested  in  State  Registra- 
tion "                   10  6 

Miss  Dalghsh            7  6 

Miss  Emilv  Hughes             5  0 


£39  6     6 
Collecting  C.^rds. 
Name  of  Collector,  Miss  Emily  Dinnie 

Mrs.  Maurice  Best           ...         ...  10 

Mrs.  Plevdell  Nott           10 

Miss  Bell               1     0 

Dr.  G.  H.   Steele            10 

Mrs.  G.  H.  Steele           10 

!Mrs.  Preston          ...          ...          ...  10 

Mrs.  Viner              10 

Mrs.  Burley          10 

Mrs.  Stewart         2     6 


10     6 


Total 


£39  17     0 


Fel'.  1-2,  imo] 


Zlr?c  35riti3b  journal  of  "ttursinfi. 


120 


Iproorcss  of  State  Kcoistratiou.       State  IRefiietration  In  Jfinlant). 


STATE  REGISTRATION  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 
We  publish  below  a  coutiuuatioLi  of  the 
letters  received  by  Miss  L.  L.  Dock  from 
Registration  autliorities  iu  the  United  States, 
proving  that  the  statements  made  by  the  anti- 
Kegistration  Press  (lay  nursing  journals)  that 
Eegistratiou  is  a  failure  in  the  United  Statds 
are  not  true. 


Texas. 

Board  of    Nurse  Examiners  for   tlu'    State   of 
Texas. 

De.ui  Miss  Dock, — In  reply  to  your  letter,  I  bou 
to  say  that  Registration  has  done  for  the  graduate 
nurse  what  nothing  else  could ;  it  has  brought  it 
before  the  public,  and  everybody  has  been  educated 
to  the  fact  that  it  means  hospital  training  for 
educated  women.  It  has  also  put  to  ix)ut  the  eorro- 
spondence  graduate>s,  and  they  «ie  not  getting  tn<> 
work  they  did  a  year  ago.  As  for  Registration  being 
a  failure  in  Texas,  it  is  oidy  iu  it,s  infancy  ;  we  Iioik; 
to  make  a  decided  improvement,  not  only  in  the 
training  schools,  but  some  of  the  small  hospitals 
will,  no  doubt,  have  to  employ  nurses,  and  let  their 
training  school  go. 

It  has  put  before  the  public  what  nurses  never 
coida  have  done  Individually  in  Texas  in  a  hundred 
years.  I  believe  that  Registration  will  be  national 
in  a  year  or  so,  and  I  even  now  have  calls  ii'om 
everywhere  in  the  State  for  nurses  who  are 
registered.  It  has  not  failed  here;  it  has  raised  the 
standards  for  patients,  doctors,  and  nurses  them- 
selves. I  could  tell  you  more,  but  it  is  enough  to 
let  Great  Britain  know  that  there  is  at  least  one 
State  that  has  not  failed,  and  it  is  the  largest  State 
in  the  Union.  Even  in  Mexico  they  send  to  El  Paso 
for  R.X.  nurses.  I  hope  this  information  will  be 
what  you  need. 

Sincerely  yours, 

F.  M.   Beatty, 

}'n'.u/h„t. 


COLOR.\DO. 
State  Board  of  Niir.se  Examiners,  Denve'-, 
Colorado. 
De.ui    Mad.\m, — Your  letter  to    Miss   Laura    .\. 
Beecroft,  President,  of  Pueblo,  has  been  referred  to 
me  for  reply.      In   Colorado  we  see  great  benefits 
resulting  from  State  Registration  for  nurses.     For- 
merly, there  was  nothing  to  prevent  a  niu'se  wiio 
had  been  di.sniissc<l  from  an  Ea.stern  Training  School 
before  graduating  from  coming  here  and  posing  as 
a  graduate.     A  number  of  such  have  been  exposed, 
toj^ether     with     graduates     from     correspondenc<> 
schools. 

Because  Registration  has  been  obligatory,  all 
graduate  nurses  in  the  State  have  been  obliged  to 
open  their  eyes  to  the  progressive  movement  of  the 
profession.  Training  schools  have  materially  raised 
theii  standards  of  instruction. 
Sincerely, 

Mary  B.    Eyrk, 

Secretarii. 


Tlie  one  luiiversal  echo  of  the  International  Con- 
gress of  Nurses  which  was  heard  on  all  sides  after 
the  event  was,  "What  splendid  women  they  all 
were,"  referring,  ot  coui-se,  to  the  official  and 
fraternal  <lelegatt>s  who  attend<?<l  from  our 
Colonies  and  abroad.  "How  earnest  of  puriwse ; 
what  higli  professional  ideals ;  how  intelligent  ;  how 
simple  and  loyal."  Then  foUowed  the  question:  — 
"  How  is  it  they  are  getting  ahead  of  us  in  so  many 
ways?  How  do  they  get  their  legislatures  to  grant 
them  legal  status?  Why  are  we  so  much  more 
material  in  many  ways  tlian  our  colleagues  from 
other  c-oiuitries?  Answers  to  such  questions  are  not 
always  palatable,  j-et  we  should  look  the  reasons 
straight  iu  the  face — that  is  to  say,  if  we  wish  to 
rise  to  their  plane.  The  truth  is,  the  middle  classes, 
from  which  th^  majority  of  our  nurses  are  re- 
cruited, are  not  subjected  to  a  sensible  system  of 
disciplined  education,  many  of  our  ideas  are  snob- 
bish and  demoralising,  we  are  not  taught  to  revere 
good  honest  work,  and  we  are  essentially  apathetic 
and  lacking  iu  moral  force.  Industrially  and  pro- 
fessionally we  offer  ourselves  a  willing  sacrifice  to 
every  needy  exploiter  who  comes  along ;  as  women 
we  have  no  citizenship,  as  nurses  no  legal  status. 
The  answer  why  others  are  giving  us  the  lead  m 
professional  mattere  is  because  they  are  better 
women  than  we  are — more  .self-respecting,  more 
seh-sacrificing,  and  more  loyal ;  less  i>otty,  less 
apathetic,  and,  to  be  quite  frank,  less  selfish. 

Once  again  we  must  take  a  back  seat.  Aiid  thi.s 
brings  us  to  a  piece  of  very  good  news  from  Fin- 
land, which  Baroness  JIaunerheim,  President  of  the 
Finnish  Nurses'  Association,  shall  tell  us  in  her  own 
words : — 

"  Surgical  Hospital,  Helsingfors. 

'■I  must  write  to  tell  yon  our  good  news  about 
registration.  The  new  Rt>gulations  for  Nurses  have 
got  the  approval  of  the  Mwlical  Boaid,  and  are 
now  before  the  Senate,  where  they  will,  in  all 
probability,  also  Ije  passed.  After  that  they  must 
go  before  the  Emperor  (of  Russia),  but  we  are  lull 
of  hope,  now  that  the  ilcdical  Board  is  on  our  side. 

"The  new  Regulations  iiieau  a  two  years'  cur- 
riculum of  training  preceded  by  a  three  months' 
preliminary  training,  a  State  examination,  followed 
l)y  the  entry  of  the  names  of  nurses  in  a  State 
Register.  It  means  also  higher  f<x«  for  nui-ses  in 
the  Government  hospitals,  whose  example  will,  of 
course,  before  long,  be  followwl  by  all  the  private 
and  town  ho.'ipitals.  It  means  additional  fees  alter 
10  and  15  yeare'  service  and  a  pension  at  the  age  of 
•50,  after  20  years'  service,  when  a  nurse  will  get 
the  whole  of  her  first  apix>intments  yearly.  To  us 
all  this  seems  too  goo<l  to  be  true.  We  certainly 
wouUl  have  liked  to  g<"t  the  three  yeans'  training, 
but  I  think  this  would  have  siHMiied  such  an  ini- 
IxiBsibility  to  the  authorities  that  we  would  thou 
scarcely  have  got  anything.  Now  we  shall  work  to- 
wards that  goal,  and  we  shall  certainly  reach  it, 
and  in  not  a  too  distant  future  either. 

'•  What  has  to  me  been  nearly  the  most  wonder- 
ful part  of  it  all  is  that  we  have  nearly  all  tUe 
medical    world   on   our   side.       In     the     Committee 


130 


Cbe  ]Bnti5l5  3ouunal  of  IRursiito. 


[Feb.   12,   1910 


Mrs.  OLCA  LAOKSTROM, 
Editor  of  "  Epione." 


M'hicli  worked  out  tlio  now  R<jgulations  there  were 
oiilj-  two  nurses  to  four  <loctor.s,  and  the  Medical 
Board,  when  passing  the  regulations. -voted  higher 
fe&s  and  pensions  than  we  had  dared  to  ask  tor. 

"  When  I  think  of  the  opposition  all  things 
touching  the  bettering  of  nurses'  conditions  have 
mot  with  in  many  countries,  it  makes  me  feel  un- 
deservedly happy  in  Finland  in  that  respect." 

This  Ls  indeed  splendid  news,  and  all  good  regis- 
trationists  will  join   with   us  in   conveying  to  our 
friends  in  Finland  cordial  congratulations — that  in 
a      few      months' 
time      they      w-iU 
have    accorded   to 
them   rightful    re- 
cognition for  their 
profession    by    the 
State.     Women  in 
Finland  enjoy  full 
citizenship         and 
equal  suffrage 

with  the  men,  and 
they  sit  side  by 
side  with  them  in 
Parliament.  It  is 
therefore  no  sui- 
prLse  to  us  tliat 
tlieir  fine  work  for 
the  oommunity  is 
appreciated,  and  their  sex  treated  with  wholesome 
respect  and  couit:esy,  instead  of  with  the  revolting 
derision,  contemi>t,  and  cruelty  meted  out  by  our 
legislators  to  tlie  women  of  Britain — a  condition  of 
.serfery  which  many  of  our  women  have  not  tlie 
dignity  to  resent. 

We  have  only  one  consolation — we  iu 
England  began  Registration  reform.  Twenty- 
two  long  years  ago  we  clearly  realised  that 
justice  to  sick  people  demanded  efficient 
education  and  organisation  by  the  State 
of  trained  nunses,  and  even  if  we  have  not  won 
firat,  w©  have  shown  the  nursing  world  at  large 
that  the  good  old 
British  love  of 
justice  is  instinct 
in  a  minority,  and 
that  we  have 
fought  for  right 
with  a  determined 
tenacity  of  i>ur- 
pose  which  proves 
our  mettle  far 
more  than  an  easy 
victory  could  have 
proclaimed. 

The  Finnish 
nui-ses  have  been 
happy  in  their 
charming  leader. 
Baroness  Manner- 
heim,  and  she  has 
also  been  fortunate  in  having  the  support  of  many 
strong  and  intelligent  women  to  help  her.  The 
four  delegates  who  represented  the  Finnish  Nurses' 
Association  at  the  International  gathering  in  Lon- 
don made  a  deep  impression  on  all  who  came  in 
contact  with  them. 

We  liave  much  pleasure  in  presenting  to  our 
reader  tlie  jxirtraits  of  four  distinguished  raembere 
of  the  Association  of  Xurses  of  Finland,  who  have 


Miss    ELLEN    NYLANDER, 

Secretary,  the  Association  of  Nurses 

of  Finland. 


done  good  work  in  furthering  the  registration  move- 
nieut  in  that  country,  and  all  of  whom  were  m 
London  last  year  as  tlie  delegates  of  the  Associa- 
tion to  the  International  Council  of  Nurees. 

Mrs.  Olga  Lackstrom  is  the  Editor  of  Epione,  the 
Finnish  nui'ses'  journal,  and  the  Sui)erintendeut  of 
the  Bureau  for  Private  Nurses  in  Helsingfors. 

Miss  Ellen  Nylander  is  the  Secretary  of  the  As- 
sociation, and  the  Superintendent  of  its  Pre- 
liminary Training  School. 

Miss  Naema  Bergstrom  is  the  Sister  in  the  Out- 
patient Depai-t- 
ment  at  the  Sur- 
gical Hospital, 
Helsingfors,   and 

Miss  Sonja 
Korenoff,  Matron 
of  the  Maria  Hos- 
pital in  the  same 
town. 

Those  who  had 
the  pleasure  of 
meeting  these 

ladies  during  the 
Congress  week 
were  much  im- 
Ijressed  by  their 
earnestness  of 

purpose  and  thei'' 
keen  desire  for  the  progress  and  honour  of  their 
profession,  as  well  as  by  their  personal  charm.  We 
believe  they  are  typical  of  the  nur.ses  of  Finland, 
and  a  country  which  ixissesses  women  of  so  high  a 
tyi>e  mu.st  help  to  raise  the  standard  of  nursing  as 
a  whole,  and  the  public  estimation  of  nur.ses  as  a 
class. 

It  is  interesting  to  know  that  the  foundation  of 
Epione,  tlie  Finnish  Nurses'  Journal,  was  decided 
on  by  the  President  of  the  Association,  Baroness 
Mannerheim,  after  the  Paris  Conference.  As  was 
to  be  expected,  it  has  proved  a  most  useful  agent 
in  teaching  the  members  to  realise  their  community 
of  interests,  and 
to  increase  their 
feeling  of  fellow- 
ship. It  has  also 
been  the  means 
of  raising  a  sum 
of  money  to  found 
"  sick  fund,  the 
need  of  which  had 
been  for  some 
time  keenly  felt. 

Baroness  Man- 
nerheim's  ideal 
nursing  curricu- 
lum, as  briefly 
outlined  to  the 
I  n  t  e  r  n  a  tional 
Nursing  C<)n- 

gress,        is       that 
uniform       preliminary 
should      pass     on     to     a 
spend    the    probationary 


Miss  SONJA  KORENOFF, 


after  three  mouths 
training  the  pupil? 
general    hospital,     and 

period  there,  and  afterwards  as  junior  staff  nurses 
spend  half  their  time  in  the  wards  of  a  genera 
hospital,  and  half  in  different  co-operating  hospi- 
tals, dealing  with  special  branches.  They  shonlrt 
then  return  to  their  alma  mater  for  experience  m 
teaching  probationers  and  hospital  management. 


Feb.  12,  1910J 


dbc  Jontisb  3ournal   of  IRuvstiuj. 


13i 


ipractical  points. 

An  improvement  in  railway 
Hospital  Cars  for  service,  says  the  Newcastle 
Railway  Disasters.  Chronide,  which  is  destined 
to  benefit  the  public  more 
than  many  of  the  "innovations"  of  recent  yeare 
is  the  modern,  well-e<iuippcd  hospital  car,  a  number 
of  which  have  just  recently  been  built  by  the 
Southern  Pacific  Kailwaj-  Company,  and  locate  at 
various  of  their  traffic  centres  for  use  iu  connec- 
tion with  railway  disasters.  There  have  been  ho.s- 
pital  cars  before,  but  never  one  like  tliis.  The 
vehicle  is  a  combination  of  tlie  best  of  private  cars, 
and  the  ready-for-service  and  give-every-comfort 
equipment  of  the  modern  hospital.  The  idea  is  to 
give  not  only  quick  and  efficient  aid  to  the  injured, 
but  to  transport  the  sufferers  with  the  greatest 
possible  comfort,  attended  by  nurses,  surgeons,  and 
all  necessary  appliances  to  the  nearest  hospital.  In 
the  event  of  a  serious  railway  accident  one  of  these 
cars,  attached  to  a  special  railway  engine,  and  pos- 
sibly attended  by  a  baggage  car,  is  hurried  to  the 
scene,  carrying  surgeons,  nurses,  and  all  the  usual 
emergency  appliances  for  the  i)atients.  The  car 
is  about  67  feet  in  length,  and  has  been  so  designed 
that  patients  may  be  lifted  into  stretchers  through 
double  doors,  placed  upon  the  operating  table,  and 
then  readily  and  comfortably  put  into  berths  with 
the  greatest  aase.  The  operating  room,  provided 
with  double  swing  doors  on  either  side,  is  so  ar- 
ranged that  injuretl  i>a.ssengers  may  l>o  brought  to 
the  operating  table,  or  to  the  beds,  without  having 
to  be  lift<'d  from  the  stretchers,  and  each  be<l  is  so 
arranged  and  equippefl  that  the  stretchers  can  be 
move<l  into  the  spaces  usually  occiipietl,  by  the  mat- 
trt^ss.  and  allowed  to  remain  there,  thus  obviating 
the  suffering  which  might  result  from  the  transfer 
of  the  patients  from  one  to  the  other.  By  means  of 
sliding  doors  absolute  privacy  when  operations  are 
Wing  iierforme<l  or  injuries  dressed  is  obtained. 
By  a  i>atent  mechanism  the  berths,  wlien  not  in 
u.se.  may  be  loweretl  into  dustproof  .spaces  under  the 
floor,  and  in  the  space  vacat<Hl  by  them  are  placed 
easy  chairs  and  tables  for  dining,  reading,  and 
writing.  Thus  part  of  the  car  can  be  used  as  a 
drawing-room,  while  the  remainder  is  occ\ipi<'<l  as 
a  sleei)er.  In  addition  there  is  a  private  I'oom  wiui 
.stationary  be<l,  toilet,  shower  bath,  lavatory,  and 
lockers  for  the  use  of  the  surgeons  in  charge  ;  an 
observation  room  with  extension  sofa,  that  can  !«? 
transformed  into  upper  and  lower  berths  at  night  ; 
and  two  revolving  stationary  ehaire,  kitchen 
quarters  foi-  nui-ses  and  st^rvants.  and  eveiy  M<MMle<l 
convenience  for  surgical  apparatus,  me<licines,  and 
supplies.  There  is  a  storage  room  for  stretchers,  a 
heating  apjKiratus.  a  refrigerator,  numerous  lockere 
and  wardroljes,  and  "all  the  comforts  of  home" 
arranged  in  the  most  compact  and  efltective  man- 
ner. The  ear  generates  the  electricity  require*!  for 
its  own  illumination.  On  the  Southern  Pacific 
Railway  th<:'se  emergency  hospitals  have  proved  a 
decidocl  boon,  especially  when  reqnire<l  at  places  far 
removed  from  towns  or  cities  provided  with  hos- 
pital  accommodation. 


appointments. 


Lady   Sui'ekimk.nuknts. 

Stanley  Hospital,  Liverpool. — Miss  Mary  Aspmall 
has  been  appointed  Lady  Superintendent.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Guest  Hospital,  Dudley,  where  she 
afterwards  held  the  position  of  Sister.  Subse- 
quently she  held  the  i>08ition  of  Sister  for  four  years 
at  the  Stanley  Hospital,  Liverpool,  and  for  eighteen 
months  has  been  A.ssistant  Matron  in  the  same  in- 
stitution. 

Nursing  Home,  Stratford-on-Avon. — Miss  Cottam, 
Matron  of  the  Stratford-on-Avon  Hospital,  fias 
been  api>ointe<l  Lady  Suix'rintendent  of  the  Nursing 
Home  in  succession  to  Miss  .Moselev,  wlio  has  re- 
signe<l  the  |K).st  after  seventeen  year.s'  much 
appreciatetl  work. 

Thompson  Memorial  Home,  Lisburn,  Co.  Antrim. — Miss 
Fairhurst  has  been  appointetl  Lady  Superintendent 
of  the  Thompson  Memorial  Home,  Lisburn,  Co. 
Antrim.  She  at  present  holds  the  position  of 
Matron  of  the  Infirmary  and  Dispensary,  Tiverton, 
Devon. 

Matron'. 

Faversham  Cottage  Hospital. —  Miss  Lily  Seaton  has 
been  appointed  ilatrmi.  She  w'as  trained  at  the 
Metropolitan  Hospital,  King.sland  Road,  London, 
and  has  also  worked  on  the  staff  of  St.  John's 
Hospital,  Lewisham,  and  of  the  Kent  and  Canter- 
bury Hospital,  Canterbury. 

Assistant  Matron. 

Union  Hospital,  Sheffield.— Miss  Florence  E.  Carter 
has  been  apixiinted  Home  Sister  and  Assistant 
Matron.  She  was  trained  at  the  Union  Hospital, 
Sheffield,  and  the  South-Eastern  Hospital,  New- 
Cross,  under  tlie  M..\.B.,  and  has  held  the  position 
of  Charge  Nurse  at  the  Wanstead  Cottage  Hospi- 
tal, Essex,  the  Eastern  Hospital,  Homerton.  and 
the  Smallpox  Hospital,  Dartf'ord.  She  has  also  held 
the  i)ositions  of  Ward  Sister  and  Night  Superinten- 
dent at  the  City  Hospital,  Sheffield.  She  has  had 
experience  in  private  nursing  and  is  a  certified 
midwife.  Sisters. 

Salford  Union   Infirmary Miss  Marion  E.     Freeman 

has  been  apiKiinted  Si.ster.  She  was  trained  at  St. 
Mary  Abbot's  Intirniary.  Kensington,  and  has  been 
Si.ster  at  the  Eatst  Lancasliin'  Inhrmary,  Blackburn. 

Jaffray  Hospital.  Erdington. -Mi.ss  Florence  Nichol- 
son has  been  appointed  Sister.  She  was  trained  at 
the  Cottage  Hospital,  Bromley,  and  has  worked  for 
eighteen  months  at  the  Trained  Nurses'  Institute, 
Weymouth,  and  been  Sister  for  9i  years  at  St. 
Bartholomew's  Convalescent  Home,  Swanley,  Kent. 
Night  .'^ui-kkintkn dents. 

Southwark  Infirmary,  East  Dulwich. — Miss  E.  L. 
Martlin  has  l>een  appoint^'d  Night.  Superintendent. 
She  was  traine<l  at  the  Poplar  and  Stepney  Sick 
Asylum,  where  she  subsequently  held  the  positions 
of  Staff  Nurse  and  Sister ;  she  has  also  been  Charge 
Nurse  under  the  Metropolitan  Asylums'  Board  at 
the  South-Eastern  Hospital,  Now  Cross,  and  Sister 
!.t  the  St.  Pancras  South  Infirmary.  She  has  also 
had  experience  of  private  nursing. 
Staff  Nurse. 

British  Hospital,  Port  Said. — Miss  Mabel  P.  Cato  has 
been    appointed  Staff  Nurse.     She  was  trained   at 


132 


CDC  jBritisb  3ournal  of  'WursinQ. 


TFeb.  12,  1910 


Kokstadt  Hospital,  S.  Africa,  aud  in  midwiferr 
and,  gynsecology  at  tlie  Eotunda  Hospita.1,  Dublin, 
where  she  has  been  Staflf  Nurse  for  the  past  two 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRAS  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 
NURSING   SERVICE. 

Postiiifis  and  Transfers. — Mafrons:  Miss  C.  H. 
Potts,  to  Military  Hospital,  Chatham.  Sisters: 
Miss  C.  T.  Biltou,  to  the  Queen  Alexandra  Military 
Hospital,  Grosvenor  Road,  London,  S.W. ;  Miss  L. 
E.  Mackay,  to  Military  Hospital,  Cairo,  Egypt  ; 
Miss  D.  M.  Taylor,  to  Military  Hospital,  Alexan- 
dria :  Miss  E.  M.  Denne,  to  Military  Hospital. 
Wynberg.  South  Africa;  Miss  G.  M.  Allen,  to 
Cambridge  Hospital.  Aldershot ;  Miss  E.  H.  Hord- 
ley,  to  Cambridge  Hospital,  Aldershot ;  Miss  E. 
M.  Lang,  to  Military  Hospital,  Devonport;  Miss 
H.  A.  Hare,  to  Military  Hospital,  Tidworth ;  Miss 
G.  S.  Jacob,  to  The  Alexandra  Hospital,  Cosliam ; 
Miss  A.  Barker,  to  Royal  Herbert  Hospital,  Wool- 
wich. Staff  A'urses:  Miss  J.  H.  Congleton,  to 
Military  Hospital,  Tidworth:  Miss  E.  K.  Kaberry. 
to  Military  Hospital.  Alexandria,  Egypt;  Miss  -\. 
S.  Siddons,  to  Royal  Victoria  Hospital.  Xetley ; 
Miss  S.  AV.  ■\Voolerj  to  Military  Hospital,  Colches- 
ter ;  Miss  E.  G.  Barrett,  to  The  Queen  Alexandra 
Military  Hospital,  Grosvenor  Road,  London,  S.W. ; 
Miss  A.  S.  Siddons,  to  Military  Hospital,  Edin- 
burgh. 

.ippointments  confirmed. — Staff  yurses:  Miss  J. 
A.  M.  Stewart,  Miss  H.  C.  Johnston. 

The  undermentioned  Staff  Xurses  resign  their 
appointments: — Miss  E.  G.  Barrett,  Miss  E.  C. 
Ellis  (February  2nd).  The  undermentioned  ladies 
to  be  Staff  Xurses  (provisionally) : — Miss  J.  Todd, 
Jliss  F.  L.  Trotter  (January  '2dth). 


QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
FOR  NURSES. 
Her  ^fajesty  Queen  Alexandra  has  ijeen 
graciously  pleased  to  approve  the  appointment  (to 
date  Januai-y  l,st,  1910)  of  the  following  to  be 
Queen's  Xurses: — E.  M.  Burnside,  H.  M.  Comp- 
ston,  K.  Langston,  H.  Carrie,  G.  M.  Hughes,  X. 
Johnstone.  J.  H.  Scott.  E.  Cunningham,  M.  R. 
Mills,  H.  Wynne-Edwards,  D.  M.  Annear,  S.  J. 
Fiulav.  M.  Hann,  L.  Hopwood,  E.  M.  Jeffreys,  E. 
L.  Suche,  E.  M.  Terrill,  G.  J.  Wellard,  E.  L. 
AVright.  A.  Harper,  1.  Briichner.  A.  M.  Daniels,  E. 
M.  Tubbs,  E.  M.  Vickery,  E.  B.  Keat,  W,  A.  Spong, 
E.  Webster,  E.  Greenwood.  B.  Dundas.  A.  D.  Rout- 
ledge.  J.  B.  McFadden,  H.  E.  Hodgson.  E.  Gilleece, 
E.  ^Hicks.  E.  M.  :\Iarwood.  S.  J.  Cooke.  E.  E. 
XeT\-ton,  M.  Shore.  E.  M.  Andrews.  D.  Grev.  H. 
Sewart,  A.  M.  Tabor,  K.  E.  Young,  L.  M.  L. 
Appleford,  H.  Fowkes.  M.  Bamford,  E.  Robinson, 
A.  E.  Green,  H.  Wilks,  J.  X.  Armstrong,  G. 
Carter.  E.  Ferguson.  H.  G.  Gilbert,  E.  I^mb,  I.  A. 
Larnoch.  H.  A.  Millar,  S.  M.  J.  Ximmo,  J.  T. 
Paterson.  S.  Roberts.  A.  B.  Brown,  M.  D.  Granger, 
E.  R.  Mai-sh.  I.  Maclean.  W.  X.  Samj^on.  E.  M. 
Taylor.  K.  Byrne,  L.  W.  Emery,  F.  J.  Hall.  R. 
Hayes.  A.  Kelleher,  L.  A.  Brabazon,  M.  E.  Caul- 
field,  R.  McAlLster,  51.  Miller,  M.  Rennicks.  R. 
Winfield. 


IHurslna  J£cboes. 

The  annual  meeting  ot  the 
Hammersmith  and  Fulham 
District  Xuremg  Association 
was  held  on  February  8th  in 
the  Hammersmith  Town 
Hall,  presided  over  by  the 
Mayor  of  the  Borough.  He 
opened  the  proceedings  by 
announcing  a  serious  reduc- 
tion in  the  reserve  fund,  aud 
pointed  out  the  difficulty  of 
raising  monej"  in  a  neigh- 
bourhood composed  of  a  class  which  had  prac- 
tically no  municipal  interest,  and  where  a  local 
spirit  was  almost  non-existent.  ^  Mr.  E.  G. 
Von  Glehn  moved  the  adoption  of  the  re- 
port, and  asked  the  help  of  ladies  to  organise 
systematic  collections. 

The  Bishop  of  Kensington  made  an  eloquent 
speech,  and  said  that  if  in  London  the  forces 
of  social  evil  were  great,  the  amelioration  of 
suffering  was  quite  as  pronounced.  It  was  per- 
fectly obvious  that  the  very  mention  of  such  a 
society  of  district  nursing  as  that  ought  to  be 
quite  sufficient  to  bring  adequate  supjiort. 

Here  in  Hammersmith  were  tender,  skilful 
women  ready  for  the  work,  and  having  once 
said  that,  why  was  it  necessary  to  beg  for 
funds'?  There  was  a  good  deal  of  romance  in 
figures,  and  he  asked  those  present  to  use  their 
imagination  as  to  what  it  meant  when  they 
read  in  the  report  how  many  were  relieved  dur- 
ing the  year.  How  delightful  to  be  allowed  to 
touch  such  a  work  with  even  the  tips  of  one's 
fingers.  If  only  people  who  live  in  London 
would  care  to  know  something  of  its  .vastness, 
and  of  the  living  or  starving  of  their  co-citizens, 
there  would  be  fewer  of  these  pathetic  appeals 
for  heljD.  Anyone  who  had  known  the  blessing 
of  trained  and  skilled  nursing  in  their  own  home, 
should  at  least  be  willing  to  minister  this  same 
gift  to  their  less  fortunate  brethren. 

If  there  was  any  bridge  that  could  span  the 
gulf  between  classes  it  was  sympathy,  and  here 
it  was  with  tender  skilful  nursing  ready  to  care 
for  those  who  were  sick  and  helpless  in  their 
poor  little  homes. 

The  ilayoress  of  Fulham  appealed  for  gifts 
of  linen  and  surgical  appliances. 

After  the  meeting,  tea  was  provided  at  Carn- 
forth  Lodge  by  !\Iiss  Curtis,  the  Lady  Superin- 
tendent, and  the  nurses  to  celebrate  the  twen- 
tieth anniversary  of  Queen's  nurses  in  the 
district.  An  exhibition  was  also  shown 
of  nursing  appliances,  and  many  prac- 
tical and  inexpensive  inventions  by  district 
nurses  were  to  be  seen.    An  interesting  feature 


Feb.  12,  1910] 


Ui)e  Britisb  3ournai  ol  iHursinG. 


133 


was  till."  stall  of  tiiio  UcedlcWoik  iiiaiic  l^y  a 
Ouild  in  couuectiou  with  the  iustitutiou  tor  the 
employment  of  cripples,  some  beautiful  em- 
broidery- being  the  work  of  one-armed  girls. 
There  were  also  examjjles  of  exquisit€  smock- 
ing. 

The  quarterly  report  of  the  Queen  Victoria's 
Jubilee  Institute  for  Nurses  ^Scottish  Braiieh) 
states  that  there  are  now  208  district  nursing 
associations  affiliated  to  the  Institute  iu  Scot- 
land, and  that  tiie  number  of  Scottish  Queen's 
Nui-ses  is  323.  The  Scottish  Council  are 
directly  responsible  for  10  Queen's  Nurses  and 
23  Queen's  candidates,  of  whom  two  are 
receiving  training  in  general  infirmaries,  and 
11,  having  ahead}'  complt-ted  three  years' 
training  iu  general  hospitals  or  infirmaries,  are 
undergoing  special  training  iu  district  nursing 
in  the  Scottish  District  Training  Home. 
During  the  period  11  nurses  completed  the  six 
months'  special  training  and  were  engaged  by 
Committees  of  affiliated  Associations  at  Dvsart, 
Kirkliston,  Fair  Isle,  Stirling,  Ardrishaig,  Wick, 
Lochbuie,  Musselburgh,  Inverness,  and  Ren- 
frew. The  Inspectors  made  108  visits  to  nurses 
iu  local  brandies,  and  reports  were  forwarded 
to  the  respective  Local  Committees.  A  new 
branch  was  fonued  for  Inverkeithling.  North 
Queensferry  and  District,  and  a  Queen's  Nurse 
began  work  there  iu  November.  During  the 
three  months  1,527  cases  were  nursed  in  Edin- 
burgh by  the  nurses  from  20,  Castle  Terrace, 
involving  30,411  nursing  visits. 

One  wonders  how  the  poor  iu  Edinburgh  got 
on  before  this  beneficent  Institute  was 
originated ! 


Iu  a  recent  number  of  the  Prague  Medical 
Weelily  an  Austrian  medical  man  gives  an 
account  of  a  visit  to  some  of  the  British  hos- 
pitals last  summer,  and  his  comments  are 
sometimes  not  altogether  favovu-able  to  the 
construction  and  organisation  of  some  of  these. 
When  lie  came  to  Dundee  he  visited  the  Eoyal 
InfiiTuary,  and  the  following  is,  shortly,  his 
description  of  what  he  found: — "  I  was  most 
favourably  impre-ssed  by  the  clinical  hospital 
(Eoyal  Infirmaiy)  of  Dundee.  By  the  kind- 
ness of  one  of  the  doctors  I  had  the  oppor- 
tunity of  being  present  at  a  surgical  operation. 
The  arrangements  were  most  satisfactory,  and 
everything  was  carried  out  according  to  the 
strictest  aseptic  and  most  modem  ideas.  The 
favourable  impression  was  much  increased  by 
the  refinemeut  and  excellence  of  the  nurses, 
who  are  chosen,  as  almost  everywhere  over 
Britain,  from  the  educated  classes.  By  their 
knowledge  and  skill  they  are  able  to  give  the 
physician  and  surgeons  assfstance  of  a  character 
verv  different  from  that   which  one  is  accus- 


lonied  to  receive  from  the  ordinary  nurse  in  our 
German  hospitals." 

.\n  urgent  appeal  is  being  made  for  contribu- 
tions in  order  to  make  it  possible  to  carry  on 
and  extend  the  beneficent  work  done  by  Lady 
Dudley's  Nursing  Scheme.  The  object  of  the 
scheme  is  to  establish  and  maintain  fully 
quaUfied  imrses  in  the  poorest  districts  of  the 
West  of  Ireland,  to  render  professional  services 
to  patients  in  their  own  homes,  free  of  cost, 
and  to  educate  them  in  the  principles  of  hygiene 
.  and  sanitation. 

Professor  Symmers  lectured  last  week  on 
Bacteriology,  before  the  Ulster  Branch  of  the 
Irish  Nm'ses'  Association,  at  the  Club  Eoom  in 
Belfast.  The  lectui'c  was  illustrated  with  lan- 
tern sHdes,  and  was  very  instructive.  Needless 
to  say,  the  nurses  present  thoroughly  appre- 
ciated ife. 

The  Giirzeuich  at  Cologne,  where  Sister 
Agnes  Karll  hopes  to  convene  the  International 
Congress  of  Nurses  iu  1912,  is  an  extremely  in- 
teresting building,  having  been  built  in  the 
fifteenth  century  iu  order  that  the  Town  Coun- 
cil might  have  a  "  Herreu  Tauzhaus  "  and 
banquet  saloon,  in  which  to  entertain  distin- 
guished guests  with  a  magnificence  worthy  of 
the  city.  The  first  grand  festival  was  held  there  in 
HIT),  in  honour  of  the  Emperor  Frederic  III. 
In  the  17th  and  18th  centuries  it  fell  into  decay, 
and  was  used  as  a  magazine  till  1857,  when  it 
was  thoroughly  renovated  by  Jul.  Raschdorff, 
and  restored  to  its  original  uses.  It  is  the 
finest  of  the  ancient  secular  edifices  of  Cologne, 
and  the  nurses  of  the  world  will  appreciate  the 
honour  of  holding  their  meetings  in  this  his- 
toric building. 


The  Inteniufioind  Hospital  Hernrd  reports 
that  at  a  recent  meeting  of  the  Illinois  State 
-Association  of  Graduate  Nurses,  in  the  interest 
of  a  movement  to  create  a  ])icked  body  of 
trained  nurses  to  be  affiliated  with  the  national 
Red  Cross  organisation,  Miss  Jane  A.  Delano, 
Superintendent  of  the  Army  Nvnse  Corps,  ex- 
pressed the  opinion  that  the  United  States  is 
absolutely  unprepared  to  equip  its  anny  with  a 
nursing  force  adequate  to  the  demands  of  a  big 
war.  "  There  is  no  time  to  be  lost  in  organis- 
ing a  reserve  coi"ps  of  nurses,"  she  said.  "  No- 
thing' protects  a  nation  so  much  as  prepared- 
ness. Japan  and  the  nations  of  Europe  are  far 
ahead  of  us  in  this  regard.  It  is  estimated  that 
10,000  nurses  would  be  required  by  the  United 
States  in  a  war  with  a  first-class  power.  Not 
every  frained  nurse  can  do  such  work."  IMiss 
Delano  advocated  the  creation  also  of  a  re- 
serve force  of  men  trained  to  render  first  aid  to 
wounded  in  time  of  war. 


134 


dbe  Biitisb  3ournal  of  IKiursing. 


[Feb.  12,  1910 


^bc  Ibospital  Morl^. 

THE  LEICESTER   INFIRMARY   NURSES'  HOME 

■  The  opeuiug  of  the  uew  Nurses'  Home  at 
the  Leicester  Infirmary  on  Tuesday  last  by 
Mrs.  T.  Fielding  Johnson  marks  a  red  letter  day 
in  the  history  of  the  Infirmary,  and  the  nurses 
of  this  splendid  institution  will  now  have  a 
Home  second  to  none.  Some  idea  of  its  extent 
and  proportions  will  be  gathered  from  the 
illustration  which  we  have  pleasure  in  publish- 
ing on  this  page.  The  Home  has  a  long 
frontage  facing  south,  and  running  back  from 
this  main  building,  ea^t  and  west,  are  three 
blocks,  the  centre  one  of  which  is  a  large 
r  e  c  r  e  a  tion 
hall  and  lec- 
ture room,  a 
most  valuable 
and  necessary 
addition  to  a 
nurses'  train- 
i  n  g  school . 
The  left-hand 
block,  as  one 
faces  the 
main  entrance 
contains  the 
library,  seve- 
ral bedrooms, 
and  an  isola- 
tion r  oo  m  ; 
the  right-hand 
one  the  house- 
maids' sitting- 
r  o  o  m  a  n  d 
various 
domestic 
offices.  On 
either  side  of 
the  hall  in  the 
main  building  are  spacious  sitting  rooms  for 
nurses  and  probationers,  the  Home  Matron, 
and  the  Sisters'  sitting-rooms,  a  "quiet" 
room,  linen  room,  and  kitchen.  All  of  these 
open  into  the  main  corridor,  which  is  connected 
through  the  hall  with  a  vestibule  with  glass 
roof  and  corridors  similarly  glazed,  which 
will  form  a  kind  of  winter  garden.  The 
majority  of  the  bedrooms  on  the  floors 
above  occupy  the  long  frontage  facing  south, 
and  open  into  the  long  corridor.  The  aspect 
is  thus  pleasant  and  sunny,  and  each  room 
has  a  fireplace. 

The  Home,  which  is  conveniently  arranged, 
and  on  the  furnishing  of  which  much  thought 
and  trouble  has  evidently  been  expended,  so 
that  it  may  be  a  real  home  to  the  nursing  and 
domestic  staff,  was  designed  by  Messrs. 
Everard,  Son,  and  Pick,  of  Leicester,  to  whom 


The   Nurses'    Home,    Leicester   Infirmary. 


great  credit  is  due.  The  cost,  including  the 
furniture,  is  over  £22,00U,  and  its  completion 
brings  the  provision  lor  the  nursing  staff  of  the 
Infirmary  to  a  level  with  the  very  high 
standard  of  efficiency  and  comfort  for  which 
the  Infirmary  itself  is  renowned. 

The  Home  is  Georgian  in  character.  Much 
attention  has  also  been  paid  to  the  employment 
of  materials  of  a  fire-resisting  nature,  and  all 
the  floors  are  of  concrete.  In  the  corridors 
they  are  finished  with  terrazzo,  and  in 
the  sitting-rooms  and  bedrooms  "  Stonwod," 
a  seamless  material,  wliich  is  found  satisfactory 
in  use,  is  employed,  (xreat  attention  has  been 
paid  in  constructing  tlie  building,  to  avoid  oc- 
casion for  un- 
necessary 
cleaning.  The 
Home  will  be 
heated  by 
steam,  so  that 
it  is  antici- 
pated the  bed- 
r  o  o  m  fi  r  e- 
places  will  be 
used  princi- 
jjally  as  a 
means  of  ven- 
tilation, al- 
though in  case 
of.  sickness 
they  may  be 
useful. 

It  will  be 
rem  embered 
that  the  me- 
morial stone 
of  the  build- 
ing was  laid 
by  the  Ma- 
tron, Miss  G. 
A.  Rogers,  who  has  done  so  much  for  the  In- 
firmary, and  for  the  nurses  trained  in  the 
Nursing  School  Connected  with  it,  during  the 
twenty-six  years  in  which  she  has  held  this 
position.  This  stone  is  in  a  prominent  place 
over  the  garden  entrance  in  the  centre  of  the 
main  front  elevation,  and  will  serve  to  remind 
succeeding  generations  of  probationers  how 
much  the  nurses  of  the  Leicester  Infirmary  owe 
to  the  Matron  under  whose  supervision  the 
School  attained  a  reputation  second  to  none. 

Associated  with .  Miss  Eogers  is  a  most  effi- 
cient staff  of  Sisters,  who  loyally  and  ably  aid 
her  in  maintaining  efficiency. 

The  opening  of  the  Home  took  place  at  3.30 
p.m.,  but  previously  at  12.30  another  interest- 
ing ceremony  had  taken  place,  namely,  the 
presentation  of  Badges  to  the  members  of  the- 
Territorial  Force  Nursing  Service. 


Feb.  12,  1910] 


tTbe  Britisb  3ournal  ot  IRurslng. 


135 


TReflcctions. 


©utsibc  tbe  Gates. 


From  a  Boakd  Koom  Mikkor. 
AVe  iiuJerstand   that  liis  Majestj-  the   King  kas 
signified  liis  pleasure  tliat  the  Liverixxjl  Chiklien's 
Hospital  should  lieiueforth  be  known  as  the  Royal 
Liverpool  Country  Hospital   for   Children. 


The  Hospital  for  AVomen,  Soho  Square,  is  being 
rebuilt  in  the  most  up-to-date  manner,  and  of 
course  the  Committee  must  have  ample  funds  to 
carry  out  the  necessary  reorganisation.  It  is  pro- 
posed, therefore,  to  hold  a  grand  Bazaar  and  En- 
tertainment in  the  new  buildings  of  tlie  Hospital 
on  May  24th  and  25tli.  i;4,oOO  is  urgently  needed 
to  enable  the  Committee  to  claim  the  handsome 
conditional  gift  of  £3,000,  of  King  Edward's  Hos- 
pital Fund.  Many  rich  and  influential  women  will 
arrange  stalls.  The  miscellaneous  stall  will  be 
undertaken  by  the  Nursing  Staff  of  tlie  Hospital, 
who  will  be  pleased  to  receive  gifts  to  decorato 
it.  The  Earl  of  Shaftesbury.  K.C.V.O.,  the  Pre- 
sident of  the  Hospital,  will  sing  at  a  grand  after- 
noon concert,  and  as  he  has  a  lovely  and  culti- 
vated tenor  voice,  he  should  be  an  immense  draw. 
Miss  Lena  Ashwell  (the  charming  wife  of  a  mem- 
ber of  the  medical  staff)  will  rec'ite.  Mr.  Alfred 
Hayward,  the  Secretary  of  the  Hospital,  will  gladly 
give  information  as  to  this  function,  which  pro- 
mises to  be  one  of  the  most  imi>ortant  of  the  coming 
season. 

A  well  deserved  stroke  of  luck  has  this  week  be- 
fallen the  hospital.  It  is  announced  that  Mrs.  C. 
A.  Savage,  of  Tooting,  has  left  to  it  the  residue  of 
her  estat^e,  which  will  probably  amount  to  al)ont 
£10,000. 


The  different  County  Councils  and  Urban  Dis- 
trict Councils  throughout  England  are  now  con- 
sidering the  question  of  sending  up  delegates  and 
Tepreseutatives  to  the  Nursing  and  Midwifery  Con- 
ference and  Exhibition  to  be  held  at  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Hall,  Westminster,  in  April.  The 
Bucks  County  Council  have  formally  appointed 
Miss  Elizabeth  Mackenzie  (Inspector  of  !Midw  ives 
for  Bucks),  and  the  Heston  and  Isleworth  Urban 
District  Council  have  appointed  Councillor  .T.  J. 
Barnett,  and  Dr.  G.  F.  Buchan  (Medical  Offi<er 
of  Health)  to  attend  the  Exhibition  and  Confer- 
ence. 


The  Di.strict  Nurses'  Exhibition  will  be  a  sec- 
tion apart,  and  will  comprise  exhibits  amongst 
others  from  the  Nurses'  Social  Union,  and  the 
Q.V.J. I.  A  special  feature  is  being  made  this  year 
of  the  Model  Nursei-y  by  Messrs.  E.  and  R.  Gar- 
Tould. 

The  president  of  the  Royal  Halifax  Infirmary 
(Mr.  J.  .Selwyn  Raw.son)  has  received  the  handsome 
donation  of  £.5,000  from  Mi-s.  Woo<l,  of  Livei-pool, 
a  daughter  of  the  late  Mr.  H.  C.  McCrea,  formerly 
Mayor  of  Halifax.  The  donation  is  made  subject 
to  Ward  No.- 6  being  named  the  "McCrea  Ward." 
The  whole  of  the  wards  are  now  named  in  accord- 
ance with  the  wishes  of  the  donors. 


WOMEN. 

Mre.  Philip  Snowden 
last  Sunday  delivered 
the  first  of  a  series  of 
addresses  that  are  to  b« 
given  every  Sunday 
afternoon  for  the  next 
month  or  two  at  tho 
King's  Weigh  House 
Church,      Duke     Street, 


Grosvenor  Square. 


Taking  as  the  title  of  her  discourse  "  Following 
the  Gleam,"  which  she  based  on  Tennyson's  poem, 
Mrs.  Snowden  said  there  were  in  this  country 
ninety  thousand  houses  licensed  to  sell  intoxicating 
poison,  and  women  were  to  be  seen  in  a  state  of 
drunkenness  in  our  public  streets.  She  had  been 
travelling  in  America,  and  America  had  an  enor- 
mous drink  bill,  yet  in  the  whole  of  her  experience 
there  she  never  saw  a  drunken  woman  or  a  woman 
in  a  drinking  saloon. 


At  the  annual  general  meeting  of  the  trustees  of 
the  Manchester  lloyal  Infirmary,  to  be  held  at  the 
Town  Hall  on  the  11th  inst,  after  this  journal  has 
gone  to  press,  the  Chairman  will  move  the  follow- 
ing resolution: — "  That  it  is  not  desirable  to  ap- 
point women  to  resident  medical  and  surgical  posts 
at  the  Manchester  Royal  Infirmary." 


Women  nurses  already  perform  the  most  intimate 
offices  for  male  patients,  and  it  is  futile  to  suggest 
that  women  doctors  cannot  do  the  same.  The  ques- 
tion at  issue,  however  much  it  may  be  obscured, 
really  is  whether  women  practitioners  of  medicine 
are  to  have  the  same  educational  advantages  as  the 
other  sex.  This  lias  been  in  effect  pointed  out  to 
the  Board  of  the  Royal  Infirmary  by  the  Convoca- 
tion of  Manchester  Univer.sity,  and  we  presume 
that  tho  al>ove  resolution  means  that  the  Board  is 
still   obdurate. 


Friiulein  Margaret  Dittmer,  who  was  appointed 
on  the  Berlin  police  staff  in  October,  1908,  has  had 
no  fewer  than  604  cases  to  deal  with  during  her 
first  year  of  service.  Her  work,  according  to  the 
Daily  Express,  consists  in  acting  as  the  guard-an 
of  youthful  delinquents,  waifs,  and  children  who 
are  ill-treated  by  their  jiarents.  The  former  av' 
committed  to  her  charge  to  deal  with  as  she  thinks 
fit,  either  to  place  them  in  reformatories  or  to  re- 
store them  to  their  parents  after  she  has  investi- 
gated the  circuiMstances. 


Waifs  are  iihiced  in  (ir]ihanages,  and  in  cases  of 
parental  cruelty  which  have  been  proved  in  court 
it  is  Friiulein  Dittmer's  duty  to  visit  the  homes  at 
irregular  intervals  to  prevent  the  offence  being  r.' 
])eated.  Of  the  165  school  Ixiys  and  girls  who  rai 
away  from  their  homes  in  the  provinces  to  Berlin 
last  year,  the  majority,  says  Friiulein  Dittmer, 
came  to   the  capital   to  view   the   imperial  palace. 


136 


ilbe  Brittsb  Journal  or  IHursmg. 


[Feb.  1-2.  lUlO 


The  remainder  either  came  through  a  spirit  of  ad- 
venture fired  by  reading  thrilling  stories,  or  be- 
cause their  parents  were  too  severe  with  them  over 
their  lessons. 


Boofi  of  tbe  Meeh. 


THE  MEN  OF  THE  MOUNTAIN.* 

A  book  by  ilr.  Cixx-kett  is  one  which  is  sure  to  be 
full  of  interesting  adventure,  and  to  hold  the  atten- 
tion of  the  reader  from  start  to  finish,  while  a  cer- 
tain delicacy  of  touch  and  sure  delineation  of 
character  are  characteristic  of  the  author. 

The  scenes  of  hi.s  latest  lx>ok,  "  The  Men  of  the 
Mountain."  are  laid  for  the  most  i>art  in  the  border 
land  of  France  and  Switzerland,  in  the  war-swept 
communes  from  Mouthe  to  Le  Lochle  during  the 
Franco-Germau  War  in  1871.  The  opening 
chapter  introduces  us  to  Pastor  David  Alix,  of 
the  Evangelical  Church  of  Geneva,  long  domiciled 
in  Prance,  and  now  in  deadly  [jeril  of  his  life  at  the 
hands  of  the  German  invader. 

The  pastor  was  unarmed,  but  had  been  caught 
with  a  comrade  who  carried  a  rifle  but  wore  no 
uniform.  TixKsel's  Colberg  regiment  of  Grenadiers 
are  angry,  for  their  sentries  have  been  ''sniijed." 
and  their  details  cut  up,  with  the  result  that  "old 
Von  Hartmann,  Major-General  of  the  Third,  has 
come  down  on  purix)se  himself  to  see  into  things. 
And  twenty  minutes  ago  he  had  fallen  into  such  an 
anger  at  the  sight  of  the  fraiic-tireur  and  his  com- 
panion— the  slim  man  clad  in  black — that  he  Him- 
self had  ordered  the  immediate  .shooting  of  the  man 
with  the  rifle  out  of  hand,  and  even  presided  at 
the  drum-head  court-martial  uix>n  David  Alls.  As 
Von  Hartmann  .spoke  no  French  in  any  intelligible 
fa.shion.  and  understood  still  less  of  that  language 
when  six)ken.  the  trial  of  David  Alix  was  very  sum- 
mary indeed."' 

Xot  a  moment  too  soon  did  Military  Chaplain 
Hei-mann  Falk  precipitate  himself  into  the  six  yards 
between  the  pelcton  of  execution  and  the  man 
about  to  die,  for  the  General  had  just  given  the 
command  to  "take  aim."  The  evidences  of  David 
Alix's  guilt,  for  which  he  was  condemned  to  death, 
were  the  hard  little  loaves  with  which  his  pockets 
were  stuffed,  in  the  opinion  of  the  Grenadiers  de.'v- 
tined  to  feed  and  sustain  the  "bush  whackers," 
who,  at  eve  and  morn,  slew  their  comrades,  and 
a  long  list  of  names,  presumably  the  roll  of  a  whole 
company  of  murderei-s  or  their  abettors,  also  found 
in  his  clerical  [xickets. 

IJut  the  Chaplain  of  the  Grenadiei-s  made  short 
work  of  these  frail  evidences.  "  Bread,  a  paper, 
and  a  Bible!  You  would  shoot  a  man  for  that — 
heathens.  Wends,  idolatei^i.  witchfolk !  Does  a  man 
come  out  to  kill,  or  to  give  life,  thus  armed?  See 
yon — you  fools!  Bread  for  the  Ixxly.  the  Word  of 
God  for  the  soul !  And  the  pai^er !  Written  in  Eng- 
lish, is  iff  Well.  I  was  not  three  years  in  Edin- 
burgh College  for  nothing!  " 

And  this  is  wliat  he  read : — 

"  List  of  iKior  widows  and  sick  folk  in  the  Com- 
mune of  Mouthe  to  whom  bread  is  to  be  taken.'' 
"^~By  S.  RTCrockett.  (Beligious  Tract  SocietvT 
4.  Bouverie  Street,  E.G.) 


He  read  the  list  to  the  bottom,  not  sparing  them 
one  single  name,  and  at  the  end  he  took  the  hand 
of  Pastor  David,  true  shepherd  of  his  flock,  and 
crying  aloud:  "  Xow,  shoot  him  if  you  dare!" 
stro<le  off  to  his  lo<lgiug,  taking  David  with  him. 

Ill  truth  David  dispense<l  the  bountj'  of  his 
mother.  Mine.  Alix  "  the  old,"  chatelaine  of  the 
farm  of  Villars  Chaumont,  just  across  the  Swiss 
frontier,  "a  forceful,  -emphatic,  face-to-the-toe 
woman,  full  of  t^uick  angens  and  as  sudden  con- 
tritions," to  whom  the  Upper  Valley  of  the  Doubs, 
in  those  troublesome' times,  owed  its  escape  from 
starvation. 

The  story  of  these  people,  of  the  fraiic-tireurs — 
the  men  of  the  mountain,  mostly  mere  boys,  and 
even  women  also,  for  all  the  able  Ixxlied  men  wore 
at  the  war — of  David's  sister  Xof?lie,  of  Ludovic 
Villars,  their  half-brother,  of  the  little  school- 
mistress, and  many  others,  is  full  of  stirring  inci- 
dent throughout.  It  is,  moi^eover,  clean,  whole- 
some, and  of  high  tone,  a  book  which  can  be  cor- 
diallv  recommended.  P.  G.  Y. 


A  GREAT  EDUCATIONALIST. 

"  Madame  de  Maintenou,  Her  Life  and  Times, 
163-5 — 1719,  "  by  C.  C.  D.vson,  is  a  work  of  most  ab- 
sorbing interest.  Why  do  we  not  learn  more  his- 
tory in  youth,  so  that  we  may  realise  how  many 
great  and  wonderfully  brilliant  women  have  lived 
before  our  time,  and  thus  gain  from  their  teach- 
ing? We  felt  quite  guilty  when  we  read  of  the 
tireless  devotion  of  this  great  Fr.enchwoman  to  the 
King,  her  husliand,  that  in  ignorance  we  had 
classed  her  with  ^Nlontespan  and  Pompadour,  as  a 
venal  maifrcssr  ch  tifrt''.  To  have  been  the  foun- 
dress of  St.  Cyr  in  the  seventeenth  century,  that 
famous  educational  establishment  for  girls  marks 
Madame  de  3Iainteiion  as  one  of  the  greatest  edu- 
cationalists and  organisers  of  all  time. 

In  connection  with  St.  Cyr,  a  reminiscence  of 
great  interest  to  British  people  is  the  fact  that 
we  owe  to  it  our  National  Anthem ! 

On  the  first  occasion  that  Louis  XIV.  visited 
the  institution  the  pupils  sang  a  chorus,  the  words 
of  which  were  composed  by  Madame  de  Brinon,  th& 
fir§t  Superior,  and  the  music  by  LnJli,  Master  of 
the  King's  Music.  It  begins,  "Grand  Dieu ! 
Sauvez  le  Roi !  "  and  was  sung  whenever  royalty 
visited  St.  Cyr  during  a  hundred  years. 

In  1721  Handel  visited  St.  Cyr.  and  was  much 
impressed  by  this  composition,  and  annexed  it. 

After  translating  the  words,  he  had  it  performed 
before  King  George  I.  in  Ijondon,  and  since  then 
as  "God  Save  the  King  "  it  h.ns  become  part  of 
our  national  life. 


COMING  EVENTS. 

Fehruartj  lJ,th  to  19fh. — Week  of  Special  Meet- 
ings for  Nurses,  arranged  by  Nurses'  Missionary 
League.  Passmore  Edwards'  Settlement,  Tavistock 
Place.  Vr.C.  Morning,  10 — 11  a.m.  Afternoon, 
2.30 — 3.30  p.m.  Saturday,  Feb.  19th,  one  meeting 
only,  2.30  p.m. 

Fehrunry  loth. — Written  examination  of  Central 
Midwives'  Board,  in  London,  Birmingham,  Bris- 
tol Manchester,  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  and  Leeds. 
Oral  examination  a  few  davs  later. 


i'eb.  12, 1910]        jThc   ©ritiyi?  3ournal  of  IRursmci. 


137 


ttcrs  to  tbc  EMtor. 


ir/ki<<t  cordiallu  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjectt 
for  thete  columns,  ire  uish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  ice  do  not  in  ant  wai 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


PRACTICAL  POINT  PRIZE. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  A'ursing." 

Dear  Madam, — I  beg  to  acknowledge  with  many 
thanks,  cheque  for  os.  received  this  morning. 

The  ••  Practical  Point  "  was  so  simple  that  I  did 
not  expect  it  to  get  the  place  of  honour ;  but,  as 
you  remarked  in  the  Journal,  it  is  the  everyday, 
<:ommonplace  practical  part  of  a  nurse's  work 
Tchich  often  gets  least  talked  or  written  about. 
Sincerely  yours, 

Norwich.  AucE   West. 


OUR  GUINEA  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
To  the  Editor  of  th^  "  British  Journal  of  .Vurjing." 
Dear  Madam, — Tlie  paragraph  marked  in  the 
British  JorKNAi,  of  Xcrsing  sent  to  me  gave  me 
great  pleasure.  It  was  such  an  unexpected  sur- 
prise. The  cheque  arrived  this  morning,  for  which 
I  thank  you.  It  will  come  in  very  useful  this  spring 
if  I  pass  my  exam.,  as  I  shall  want  to  furnish  my 
rooms  in  the  district  I  am  hoping  to  have.  At  pre- 
sent I  am  getting  the  Journal  through  a  neighbour- 
ing newsagent,  and  it  is  read  with  much  enjoyment 
by  the  other  nurses,   and  the  sisters  as  well. 

Wishing   you    "God   speed"     with    your    work, 
especially  those  branches  relating  to  registration  of 
nurses  and  to  morality. 
Believe  me. 

Yours  sincerely, 

Alice  M.   Acton. 
Home  tor  Mothers  and  Babies, 
Wood  Street,  Woolwich. 


NOTES    OF    CASES. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  ••  British  Journal  of  Sursing." 

Dear  Madam, — The  medical  student  is  required 
by  his  teachers  to  keep  notes  of  the  cases  to  which 
he  is  dresser  or  clerk,  notes  which  are  carefully 
supervised,  and  which  are  read  by  him  to  the  visit- 
ing physician  or  surgeon,  when  going  round  the 
ward.  The  reason  of  this  is,  I  take  it,  not  so  much 
for  the  information  of  the  visiting  staff  as  that 
the  student  may  learn  to  cultivate  accurate  habits 
of  observation,  and  may  impress  upon  his  own 
mind  the  facts  which  he  thus  gathers  together. 

If  this  method  is  so  valuable  in  the  education  of 
the  student,  why  not  in  that  of  the  nurse  also?  I 
do  not,  of  course,  mean  that  she  should  take  notes 
of  the  medical  treatment  of  cases,  that  would  be 
quite  useless  and  undesirable  in  a  nurse's  training. 
But  practical  details  of  nursing  interest  in  con- 
nection with  cases  I  think  a  nurse  should  be  ex- 
pected to  record.  Take  a  probationer  seeing 
".leeches  applied  for  the  first  time.     She  ought  to  be 


taught  how  the  patient's  skin  is  prepared,  why 
leeches  will  not  always  bite,  why  they  are  applied, 
and  where,  and  how,  how  much  blood  each  sucks  on 
an  average,  why  it  should  be  allowed  to  drop  off 
instead  of  being  removed,  how  it  may  be  made  to 
disgorge  itself,  and  so  forth.  This  is,  of  course, 
mere  .4  B  C  to  the  experienced  nurse,  but  a  pro- 
bationer will  profit  greatly  if  she  commits  all  these 
facts  to  paper,  and  then  submits  her  notes  to  the 
Ward  Sister   for  correction. 

Yours  faithfully, 

W.vBD  Sister. 


THE  WORRIES  OF"m1DWIVES. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  ■  British  Journal  of  .Vursoig."' 
Dear  Madam, — I  am  glad  to  notice  that  midwives 
are  combining  in  one  town  at  least  to  raise  their 
fees  to  an  amount  upon  which  they  can  live.  A 
midwife,  under  the  rules  of  the  Act,  has  not  only 
to  attend  during  a  labour  which  may  mean,  and 
often  does  mean,  four  hours  work  at  least;  she 
further,  for  every  day  for  ten  days,  is  responsible 
for  the  comfort  of  both  mother  and  child,  which 
for  the  first  five  or  six  days  certainly  means  an 
hour's  work  a  day.  Put  their  work  at  ten  hours 
for  the  lying-in  period — a  very  moderate  average — 
that  is  is.  for  one  hour's  work,  skilled  work,  not 
charing,  but  work  which  concerns  the  health  and 
lives  of  mothers  and  children,  and  therefore  the 
welfare  of  the  nation,  nor  does  this  include  the 
time  occupied  in  going  to  and  from  the  cases. 

I  wonder  what  other  class  of  workers  wftuld  do 
as  much  for  the  same  pay.  Xight  and  day,  a  mid- 
wife is  never  sure  when  she  will  be  called ;  she 
must  be  at  attention  all  the  time.  If  she  has  a  call 
which  keeps  her  up  aU  night,  she  must  go  on  all 
the  next  day  just  the  same.  There  is  the  comfort 
jnd  care  of  all  the  other  mothers  and  babies  for 
whom  she  is  responsible  to  be  attended  to.  It  is 
cne  of  the  hardships  of  a  midwife's  life  that, 
though  her  work  is  essentially  uncertain,  and 
siidden  calls  make  most  urgent  and  exacting  de- 
mands upon  her,  the  routine  work  must  go  on 
just  the  same.  It  is  this  necessity  for  meet- 
ing both  the  emergencies  and  the  ordinary 
demands  of  her  calling  whicli  make  a  mid- 
wife's life  so  wearing.  Wliere  several  work 
together  in  a  home  it  is  possible  to  arrange  things 
to  some  extent,  but  where  a  midwife  is  single- 
handed,  her  nervous  system  is  bound  to  give  in 
eventually. 

Y'et  10s.  6d.  a  case  seems  to  some  people  a  pre- 
posterous fee  for  a  midwife  to  charge !  When  the 
sweated  industries  are  considered,  why  not  include 
the  work  of  midwives  who  attend  a  confinement, 
and  care  for  mother  and  child  for  ten  days  after- 
wards, for  a  3s.  or  o%.  fee? 

Yours  faithfully, 

Certified  Midwite. 


THE  Importance  of  appearances. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  •  British  Journal  of  Sursii^O-" 
Dear  Madam, — I  entirely  disagree  with  your  cor- 
respondent, who  writos:  "How  absurd  is  the  im- 
portance conceded  to  appearances  in  women.  ' 
Appearances  are  most  important,  but  it  is  of  all 
things   important   to  a   working   woman   that    her 


138 


Tibe  Bdtisb  Sournal  of  TRursino. 


[Feb.  1:2,  1910 


appearauoe  sliould  l>e  "suitable."  That  is  the 
le.sson  I  gather  from  the  "  Totiekl ''  bonnet:  and 
here  may  I  be  permitted  to  hojje  we  may  have 
other  paper.s  on  your  most  interesting  past.  1 
cannot  tell  you  how  gieatly  we  have  enjoyed 
those  just  published  in  this  hospital.  Your 
object,  I  gather,  was  not  to  masquerade,  but  to 
appear  suitable  for  the  jxist  for  whicli  you  were 
applying  —  that  your  appearance  should  be  an 
index  of  your  mind.  My  sisters,  who  are  typists. 
have  adopted  a  sort  of  unofficial  uniform — 
black  gowns  and  coats  (no  blouses),  and  white  cuffs 
and  collai-s.  They  work  in  lawyers'  offices  with  men 
only,  and  have  Ijeeii  highly  commended  by  sensible 
men  for  their  neat  and  workmanlike  appearance. 
One  good  oi>erator  was  jxirted  with  because  of  her 
unsuitable  appearance — fiim.sy  blou.se  and  glass 
l)earl  necklace.  Lack  of  taste  lost  her  a  good 
salary. 

I  am, 

Yours  trulv. 

■  V.  u. 

BLACK    BABIES. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  o]  Nursing." 

De.\r  M.\d.\m, — I  was  glad  to  read  the  account 
publishetl  last  week  in  the  Journal  of  a  black  baby, 
for  I  think  many  people  have  the  quite  mistaken 
notion  that  white  babies  possess  the  monopoly  of 
attraction. 

I  haie  known  babies  of  all  colours,  white  and 
black,  brown  and  yellow,  and  it  is  the  rarest  thing 
ill  the  world  to  find  an  unattractive  one.  I  do 
not  think  I  am  especially  a  baby  lover  either.  I 
know  many  nurses  who  have  that  instinct  far  more 
highly  developed  than  I  have,  but  I  simply  cannot 
understand  the  person  who  does  not  feel  the  charm 
of  a  baby,  and  I  do  not  think  any  babies  have  that 
charm  more  strongly  than  the  black  ones,  with 
their  satiny  .skins,  tight  curly  hair,  and  endearing 
ways.  If  you  make  overtures  to  a  black  baby — at 
least  an  African  one — he  puts  out  not  his  arms  but 
his  legs  to  you,  because  he  expects  either  to  be 
slung  on  ,vour  back  or  to  sit  on  your  hii),  for  his 
mother  always  carries  him  in  one  of  these  positions. 
Why  not  ?  Why  should  he  occupy  both  your  arms, 
and  incapacitate  you  for  doing  anything  else  useful, 
when  he  can  be  accommodated  so  comfortably  and 
sensibly  in  the  manner  described?  I  believe  the 
custom  of  carrying  babies  about  in  one's  arms  must 
really  have  originated  with  a  shirker,  like  a  nurse 
I  once  knew  who,  when  the  ward  was  busiest,  would 
pick  lip  one  of  the  babies  and  walk  about  with  it. 
It  was  a  iJose  which  looked  well,  and  gained  for  her 
much  commendation  (she  w-as  so  fond  of  the  bairns, 
and  so  good  to  them,  it  was  said),  but  the  pros 
knew  that  while  their  staff  philandered  with  the 
babies  they  had  to  get  the  ward  work  done.  Now, 
if  the  practical  fashion  I  have  described  were 
adopted  in  this  country,  that  nurse  would  have 
had  both  hands  disengaged,  and  could  have  done 
her  work  as  usual.  I  venture  to  think  that  in 
that  case  her  devotion  to  the  babies  would  have 
diminished,  and  it  would  not  have  been  found 
necessary  to  take  them  up  so  often. 
I  am,  dear  Madam. 

Yours  faithfully, 

A   CoSMOPOI.IT.\N    NlRSE. 


Coininents  m\b  TKcplics. 

To  Correspondents. — Keplies  to  letters  concern- 
ing hospital  training,  etc.,  can  only  be  answered  in 
this  column. 

E.  B.,  Devonshire. — We  know  of  no  adult  "sur- 
gical "  hospital  which  admits  probationers  at  your 
age.  We  should  advise  you  to  begin  in  a  children's 
hospital,  and  as  you  wish  to  be  near  Manchester, 
apply  to  the  Lady  Superintendent,  Manchester 
Hosjjital  for  Children,  Pendlebury,  Lanes. 

F.  T.  .1.,  Sheffield. — There  are  several  excellent 
hospitals  in  .your  native  town,  but  personally  we 
alwa.vs  recommend  nursing  candidates  to  apply  for 
training  at  a  distance  from  home.  It  is  much  less 
distracting  for  a  probationer  not  to  break  the  hos- 
pital routine  by  running  home  when  ofi  duty. 
Famil.v  fuss  and  gossip  are  also  thus  avoided. 
There  are  good  training  schools  at  Manchester, 
Liverpool,  Birmingham,  Leicester,  and  Notting- 
ham.    Appl.v-  to  the  Matron. 

Maternifij  Sursr. — The  use  of  incubators,  when 
skilfully  managed  is  a  valuable  means  of  preserving 
the  life  of  premature  infants,  and  those  of  low 
vitality ;  but  unless  in  competent  hands  they  are 
worse  than  useless,  and  it  is  much  better  to  rely 
on  other  means  such  as  hot  water  bottles,  wool, 
etc.,  for  maintaining  warmth. 

Miss  Evans. — A  private  nurse,  when  she  has  re- 
ported read.v  for  duty  should  have  her  box  for  the 
most  part  packed,  so  that  if  a  sudden  call  arises 
and  she  has  to  catch  a  train  quickly  there  will  be 
no  unnecessary  dela.v. 

Mrs.  Edmonds. — In  the  case  of  constipation  in  an 
infant  it  mu,st  Ije  remembered  that  the  child  is 
affect e<l  by  the  mother's  diet.  It  often  happens 
that  if  the  mother  takes  an  aperient  the  bowels  of 
the  infant  are  relieved. 

Nurse  Finch. — Probably  the  best  experience  in 
the  nursing  of  enteric  fever  is  to  1>e  had  in  the  large 
fever  hospitals,  such  as  those  under  the  Metro- 
lK)litan  A.syluins'  Board.  We  have  been  told  by  a 
nurse  who  has  had  six  years'  experience  in  large 
general  hospitals,  that  .she  never  saw  such  bad 
cases  of  enteric  in  them  as  subsequentlv  in  a 
M.A.B.  hospital. 


Notices. 


CONTRIBUTIONS. 

The  Editor  will  at  all  times  be  pleased  to  consider 
articles  of  a  suitable  nature  for  insertion  in  this 
.lournal— those  on  practical  nursing  are  specially 
invited. 

Such  communications  must  be  duly  authenticated 
with  name  and  address,  and  should  be  addressed  to 
the  Editor,  20.  Upper  Wimpole  Street,  London.  W. 

.idvertisemcnts  and  business  communications 
should  be  addressed  to  the  Manac/er,  British 
JouRN.'^L  OF    Nursing,   11,    -i-dam    Street,  Strand,. 

w.c. 

OUR  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing   for   the     Pictorial    Puzzle- 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


Feb.  12, 1910]  jiijc  Britisb  3oiirnal  of  IRursino  Supplement.  lao 

The    Midwife. 


Ophthalmia  TRconatorum. 

The  earliest  sign  of  this  disease  is  a  thin  red 
line  running  across  the  upper  e^'elid,  and  the 
next  sign  observed  is  a  discharge.  At  first  thiis 
is  often  waterj-,  but  it  soon  becomes  thick 
yellow  or  greenish  matter,  and  is  secreted  in 
great  quantities.  The  eyes  swell,  become  in- 
tensely hot  and  tense,  and  the  child  wUl  keep 
them  closed.  If  the  disease  is  not  an-ested,  the 
cornea  will  ulcerate  and  perforate,  and  sight 
will  be  destroyed.  The  cause  of  ophthahnia 
neonatorum  must  be  sought  in  the  presence  of 
infective  maternal  discharges.  Infection  may 
be  primary  or  directly  after  birth ;  or  it  may 
not  take  place  till  the  infant  is  several  days  old, 
when  it  is  known  as  secondary  infection. 

About  two-thirds  of  all  cases  of  infective  dis- 
charges are  gonorrheal,  but  ophthalmia  in  the 
baby  does  not  always  mean  gouoirhoea  in  the 
mother — occasionally  another  microbe  in  the 
secretions  may  cause  it. 

In  every  case,  whether  in  private  niursing  or 
in  hospital,  the  skin  of  the  baby's  eyelids 
should  be  gently  but  thoroughly  cleansed  from 
the  vernix  caseosa  'and  secretions,  with  swabs 
of  wool  soaked  in  sterilised  water  or  weak 
boracic.  The  hands  and  arms  should  also  be 
dried  as  soon  as  possible  to  avoid  any  risk 
coming  from  the  baby  rubbing  its  eyes.  At 
the  first  bath  great  care  must  be  taken  to  keep 
the  water  in  which  the  child's  body  is  washed 
from  splashing  its  face :  and  of  course  the  face 
and  head  should  always  be  wa.ihed  first  while 
the  bath  is  fresh  and  clean.  The  nurse  should 
daily  examine  the  eyes  for  the  first  ten.  days 
after  birth,  and  report  the  shghtest  redness  to 
the  medical  attendant. 

A  solution  of  lunar  caustic  (silver  nitrate)  is 
often  used  in  Iving-in  hospitals  or  for  the  in- 
fants of  A.P.V'D.  mothers;  2  per  cent,  solu- 
tion is  what  Credi  used,  one  drop  being  allowed 
to  fall  into  each  eye.  Even  with  the  greatest 
care  this  method  may  cause  a  reactionary  red- 
dening and  discharge,  and  this  has  led  many 
physicians  to  seek  for  another  solution.  It  is 
found  that  1  per  cent,  solutions  are  often  more 
efficacious  in  preventing  ophthalmia. 

Silver  solution  should  be  kept  in  amber 
coloured  bottles  away  from  the  light,  and  the 
drop  applied  to  the  eyes  by  a  glass  rod. 

The  greatest  preventative  of  opTithalmia  lies 
in  the  most  scrupulous  cleanliness  on  the  part 
of  the  n\irse  who  has  to  do  with  the  baby  and 
the  mother.  She  must  be  most  careful  never 
to  use  the  same  towels  or  sponges  for  them 


both,  to  wash  her  hands  after  attending  to  the 
mother  and  before  touching  the  baby,  and  to 
see  that  a  separate  cot  is  provided  for  the  child 
to  sleep  in.  Gl^ys  E.  T.\tham. 

an  3n6i5tent  S)eman&. 

We  are  glad  to  observe  that  the  ilidwives' 
Institute,  is  at  the  present  time  making 
an  efiEort  to  enlarge  it-s  borders,  and 
through  its  "  Committee  of  Eepresentatives  " 
of  affiUated  Associations,  to  co-ordinate  mid- 
wives  throughout  the  country.  The  members  of 
these  affiliated  societies  are  not  necessarily 
members  of  the  Institute,  but  their  elected 
representatives  are,  or  become  so,  and  there- 
fore have  the  right  to  vote  on  Institute  affairs, 
including  the  election  of  its  representative  on 
the  Central  Midwives'  Board. 

At  the  same  time,  if  the  Midwives'  Institute 
is  to  become  the  influence  in  the  midwifery 
world,  for  which  it  has  both  the  central 
machinery  and  the  expert-  knowledge,  it  must 
reahse  the  necessity  for  moving  with  the  times, 
that,  as  midwives  become  better  organised  and 
better  educated,  they  wiU  not  be  satisfied  with 
indirect  representation  on  their  governing  body 
through  the  election  of  a  person — not  neces- 
sarily even  a  certified  midwife — by  the  few 
hundred  midwives  on  the  ^lidwives'  Institute, 
but  that  they  will  claim  and  secure  representa- 
tion of  their  interests  on  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board  by  certified  midwives  directly  elected 
by  the  midwives  on  the  Roll. 

The  !Midwives'  Institute  has  a  great  oppor- 
tunity before  it.  It  may  voice  this  legitimate 
demand,  or  it  may  ignore  it.  If  it  decides 
upon  the  former  course,  it  will  commend  itself 
to  working  midwives,  and  take  the  helm  in 
promoting  a  popular  movement.  If  it  fails  to 
grasp  its  opportunity,  then  it  must  realise  that 
the  demand  is  an  insistent  one,  and  will  be 
voiced  and  carried  to  a  successful  conclusion 
by  others. 

The  Departmental  Committee  of  the  Privy 
Coiuicil,  appointed  to  enquire  into  the  working 
of  the  Midwives*  Act,  recommended  that  the 
representative  of  the  ^Midwives'  In.stitute  on 
the  Board  should  in  future  be  a  certified  mid- 
wife. It  was  not  unreasonably  supposed  that 
this  recommendation  would  give  great  satisfac- 
tion to  the  members  of  the  Midwives'  In.stitute. 
but.  on  the  contrary,  they  are  asking  for  two 
representatives,  and  to  be  allowed  to  choose 
them  without  restriction. 


140 


^bc  Brittsb  3ournal  of  IHurstno  Supplement,  iieb.  12, 1910 


^bc  1Ro\>aI  noatcniitv'  Cbarit^ 
of  Xonbon. 


Mr.  Cornelius  Barham,  CO.,  Cliairman  of  the 
Royal  Maternity  Charity,  jiresided  on  Tuesday 
last  at  the  annual  meeting,  which  nas  held  at  28, 
Finsbury  Square,  E.C.  The  statistical  report  was 
presented  by  Major  Killick,  and  showed  tjiat  2,351 
cases  were  attended  during  the  year.  There  were 
five  deaths  of  mothers,  the  causes  being  respec- 
tively pneumonia,  ursemia,  malpresentation,  faulty 
presentation  necessitating  difficult  instrumental  de- 
livery, and  accidental  huemorrhage.  Thirty-seven 
deaths  of  infants  also  occurred. 

The  report  of  the  Medical  Committee,  signed  by 
Dr.  Septimus  Sunderland,  Dr.  Russell  Andrews, 
and  Dr.  Leonard  Williams,  showed  that  the  sur- 
geons of  the  Charity  had  been  called  into  requisi- 
tion no  less  than  191  times,  proving  that  no  op- 
portunity was  omitted  of  providing  surgical  or 
medical  aid  for  those  patients,  either  mothers  or 
infants,  whose  condition  gave  anxiety  at  any  time 
to  the  midwives.  Nine  pupils  were  trained  in  mid- 
wifery during  the  year,  of  whom  four  passed  the 
examination  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board,  one 
failed,  and  four  at  the  close  of  the  year  had  not 
gone  up  for  the  C.M.B.  examination. 

The  financial  statement  of  the  training  school 
for  the  year  showed  an  estimated  profit  of  £70 
paid  to  the  General  Fund,  and  a  balance  at  the 
bank  of  £88  18s.  lid.  In  connection  with  the 
annual  balance  sheet  the  report  showed  that  from 
1891  to  1904,  £9,585  in  Consols  were  sold  out,  and 
toans  contracted  for  £5,600,  making  a  total  of 
£16,185  in  thirteen  years,  denoting  that  the 
Charity  was  overspending  its  income  by  £1,168 
annually.  Since  1904  no  Consols  have  been  .sold 
out,  and  loans  and  overdrafts  have  been  contracted 
to  the  amount  of  £3,056,  or  £611  per  annum,  as 
against  £1,168,  thus  effecting  an  annual  saving 
of  £557.  It  is  satisfactory  that  the  receipts  of  the 
past  year  exceeded  those  of  1908  by  £318. 

The  adoption  of  the  report  was  moved  by  Nurse 
Dawson,  and  seconded  by  Mrs.  Killick,  both  being 
Governors  of  the  Charity,  and  carried  unani- 
mously. 

The  General  Committee  was  then  re-elected  with 
the  exception  of  Dr.  Victoria  Bennett,  and  Mr.  E. 
Guy  Ridpath,  who  resigned.  The  vacancies  were 
filled  by  the  election  of  the  Rev.  E.  T.  Carter, 
Vicar  of  St.  Matthias,  City  Road,  E.G.,  and  Mr. 
Harry  Symington,  22,  Fenchurch  Street,  E.C. 

The  Chairman,  in  responding  to  a  vote  of  thanks, 
referred  to  the  deep  obligation  the  Charity  was 
under  to  its  Secretary,  Major  Killick,  for  his  great 
fidelity  and  unselfish  interest,  and  a  very  hearty 
vote  of  thanks  was  accorded  to  him.  Major  Killick 
in  reply  spoke  most  warmly  of  the  work  of  the 
midwives  of  the  staff,  who  he  said  were  really  the 
Charity.  They  were  called  out  of  bed  at  all  hours 
and  in  all  weathers,  and  not  only  so,  but  he  knew 
that  out  of  their  own  pockets  they  often  helped 
the  necessitous  poor.  He  thought  a  voteof  thanks 
should  be  accorded  to  them  for  their  loyal  help  to 
the  poor — God's  poor. 


^be  mnstc  of  3nfaut  Xife. 

The  enormous  waste  of  infant  life,  says  Mr.  E.  T. 
Devine  in  the  Survey,  is  a  social  problem  of  funda- 
mental importance.  How  enormous  the  waste  is 
we  cannot  exactly  determine.  It  begins  with  the 
lives  which  are  lost  before  they  are  born,  the  abor- 
tions and  miscarriages  which  some  French  and 
English  authorities  have  estimated  are  the  end  of 
one  pregnancy  out  of  every  five.  It  includes  next 
the  children  born  dead,  though  at  full  term,  which 
happens,  as  nearly  as  we  can  tell,  in  about  1  case 
in  28  in  New  York  Cit,v.  And  the  total  is  made  up 
by  the  heart-breaking  ijroportion  of  babies  born 
alive  who  die  Ltfore  they  reach  the  age  of  one  year. 

A  decline  in  the  birth  rate  can  be  contemplated 
w'ithout  dismay.  "  I  am  not,"  said  John  Burns 
last  year  at  the  British  National  Conference  on 
this  same  subject,  "  I  am  not  for  a  desolating  flood 
of  babies."  What  we  are  "  for  "  is  that  the  child 
that  has  been  conceived  shall  be  born,  that  it  shall 
be  born  with  no  i^reventable  handicap,  and  that  it 
shall  meet  no  preventable  difficulties  on  its  journey 
through  the  first  critical  year  of  its  life. 

In  New  York  City  (Manhattan  and  Bronx 
Boroughs)  at  the  present  time  about  one-seventh 
of  all  the  babies  born  die  before  they  are  a  year 
old,  and  their  deaths  make  up  between  one-fifth 
and  one-fourth  of  all  the  deaths  that  occur  in  the 
course  of  a  year. 

This  .seems  appalling,  but  it  is  a  record  which 
compares  not  unfavourably  with  many  others,  even 
the  State  of  Massachusetts  and  England  and  Wales. 
Many  European  countries  and  many  smaller  cities 
in  the  United  States  lose  a  larger- proportion  of 
their  babies. 

The  encouraging  feature  in  New  Y'^ork  is  the 
decrease  that  can  be  seen  in  the  last  forty  years. 
Since  1866,  when  the  Board  of  Health  was  estab- 
lished, and  we  began  to  have  trustworthy  records 
of  deaths,  the  number  of  deaths  at  all  ages  has 
indeed  increased  considerably,  but  it  has  not  in- 
creased by  any  means  so  fast  as  the  population  has, 
and  the  actual  number  of  deaths  under  one  year 
of  age  has  not  only  not  increased  much  since  the 
beginning  of  the  period  but  has  even  been  decreas- 
ing in  the  last  fifteen  years. 

The  child  born  in  the  country  has,  at  present,  a 
decided  advantage  over  the  one  born  in  the  city. 
The  infant  mortality  in  the  registration  cities  of 
the  United  States  in  1900  was  nearly  .50  per  cent, 
higher  than  in  the  rural  part  of  the  registration 
States.  But,  going  to  England  again,  we  find  an 
interesting  bit  of  evidence  in  behalf  of  the  city. 
Comparing  London  and  certain  rural  counties,  it 
appears  that  while  the  baby  born  in  London  is 
more  likely  to  die  before  it  reaches  its  first  birth- 
day than  the  baby  born  in  the  country,  it  has  just 
as  good  a  chance  to  complete  the  fir.st  month  of 
life,  and  actually  a  better  chance  to  live  through 
the  first  week.  In  other  words,  the  disadvantage 
of  the  city  does  not  begin  to  operate  until  after 
the  first  month,  while  in  the  first  week  there  is  a 
distinct  advantage,  on  account  of  the  prompter 
and  better  medical  care  available  for  all  grades  of 


WITH  WHICH  i3  INCORPORATED 
EDITED  BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,  FEBRUARY   19,    1910. 


THE  WORK  OF  THE  CENTRAL  COMMITTEE 
ON   REGISTRATION. 

The  Central  Committee  for  State  Registra- 
tion of  Trained  Nurses,  imder  the  skilful  chair- 
manship of  Lord  Ampthill,  has  concluded  its 
deliberations  ou  the  Nurses'  Registration  Bill, 
and  we  are  sure  that  the  readers  of  this  joumal, 
which  for  so  many  yeare  has  worked  for  their 
professional  recognition,  and  which  is  the  offi- 
cial organ  of  the  nurses  who  are  working  for 
registration,  will  await  with  eagerness  the  re- 
sult of  those  deliberations.  It  will  be  remem- 
iiered  that  the  Conference  was  convened  with 
the  object  of  closing  the  ranks  of  the  registra- 
tionists,  and  of  securing,  for  one  Bill,  the  sup- 
]ioi-t  of  all  who  ar^  seeking  to  promote  the  pass- 
ing of  an  Act  for  the  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses.  To  further  this  end  Lord 
Ampthill  invited  the  following  Societies  each 
to  appoint  five  delegates  to  attend  a  Confer- 
ence :  The  British  Medical  Association,  The 
Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland, 
Die  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of 
['rained  Nurses,  The  Royal  British  Nurses'  As- 
-'Kjiation,  The  Fever  Nurses'  Association,  The 
Scottish  Nurses'  Association,  The  Association 
tor  the  Promotion  of  the  Registration  of  Nm-ses 
in  Scotland,  The  Irish  Nurses'  Association,  and 
The  Asylum  Workers'  Association.  With  the 
exception  of  the  last -mentioned  Association, 
which  prefen-ed  to  maintain  its  independence, 
all  the  Societies  accepted  the  invitation,  and 
met  first  on  January  2.5th,  the  meeting  being 
held  by  the  kind  permission  of  the  British 
-Medical  Association  in  its  Council  Roojn,  at 
fiO,  Strand,  London,  W.C.  Thirty-nine  of  the 
forty  delegates  were  present. 

For  the  puqwse  of  securing  united  action  in 
regard  to  State  Registration  of  Nurses,  until  a 
satisfactory  law  has  been  passed  by  Parliament, 
a  Central  Committee  was  formally  constituted 
<if  five  delegates  of  the  eight  societies  present. 
Lord  Ampthill  was  appointed  Chairman,  Mrs. 
Bedford  Fenwick,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the 
Society  for  the  State  Registration  of  Trained 
Nurses,  and  Dr.  E.  W.  Goodall,  Hon.  Secre- 
tarj'  of  the  Metropolitan  Counties  Branch  of 
the    British   Medical    Association,   joint   Hon. 


Secretaries,     and     Mr.     Langton,    F.R.C.S., 
Royal  British  Nurses'  Association,  Hon.  Trea-  • 
surer. 

The  Bill  which  passed  the  House  of  Lords 
in  November,  1908,  was  taken  as  the  basis  of 
discussion,  and  was  carefully  considered  clause 
by  clause,  £ind  considerably  amended,  Clause 
4,  re  the  "  Constitution  and  Appoint- 
ment of  Council,"  being  referred  to  a  Sub- 
Committee  composed  of  one  delegate  from  each 
of  the  eight  societies  represented,  for  considera- 
tion and  report. 

The  Sub-Committee  met  on  February  3rd, 
and,  after  long  and  careful  consideration, 
agreed  upon  the  draft  of  Clause  4  for  presenta- 
tion to  the  Central  Committee. 

The  Central  Committee  met  again  on  Feb. 
12th,  when,  with  few  exceptions,  all  the  dele- 
gates attended.  The  principal  business  on  this 
occasion  was  to  receive  the  Report  of  the  Sub- 
Committee,  which  was  presented  by  its  Chair- 
man, Mr.  T.  Jenner  Yerrall,  delegate  of  the 
British  iledical  Association. 

There  were  certain  consequential  and  minor 
alterations  in  the  Bill,  but  the  most  imfKJrtant 
as  finally  amended,  were  as  follows:  — 

■    COXSTITUTIOX  AND  APPOINTMENT  OF  COUXCIL. 

Clause  4. 
1. — ^The    Council    shall    consist   of    twenty- 
one    persons    to    be    appointed    or  elected  as 
follows :  — 

(a)  Three  persons  to  be  appointed  by  the  Privy 

Council,  of  whom  one  at  least  shall  be  a 
woman : 

(b)  Three  registered  medical  practitioners, 
one  of  whom  shall  be  appointed  by  the 
Local  Government  Board  of  England ;  one 
by  the  Local  Government  Board  of  Scot- 
land ".  and  one  by  the  Local  Government 
Board  of  Ii-elaud. 

(c)  Three  registered   medical  practitioners   to 

be  appointed  by  the  British  Medical  Asso- 
ciation, one  to  be  resident  in  England,  one 
to  be  resident  in  Scotland,  and  one  to  be 
resident  in  Ireland. 

^d)  One  registered  medical  practitioner  to  be 
appointed  by  the  Medico-Psychological  As- 
sociation. 

(e)  One  registered   medical    practitioner  to  be 


142 


^f)c  :®rtti6b  3ournal  ot  iRurslng. 


[Feb.  19,  1910 


appointed  by  the  Medical  Superintendents 
of  the  Fever  Hospitals  which  may  be  re- 
cognised as  Training  Schools  for  Nurses  in 
fever  nursing  under  this  Act. 

(f)  Eight  registered  women  nurses  to  be  elected 

as  the  direct  representatives  of  registered 
women  nurses  of  whom  four,  who 
shall  be  resident  in  England  or 
Wales,  one  of  whom  must  be  a  past  or 
present  Matron  of  a  General  Training 
School  for  Nurses,  and  one  of  whom  must 
be  registered  in  the  General  Register  as 
"  also  trained  in  fever  nursing,"  shall  be 
elected  by  the  nurses  registered  in  the 
general  register  whose  registered  address 
is  in  England  or  Wales ;  two,  who  shall 
be  resident  in  Scotland,  and  one  of 
whom  must  be  a  past  or  present  Matron  of 
a  General  Training  School  for  Nurses, 
shall  be  elected  by  the  nurses  regis- 
tered in  the  general  register  whose 
registered  address  is  in  Scotland;  two, 
who  shall  be  resident  in  Ireland,  and 
one  of  whom  must  be  a  past  or  pre- 
sent Matron  of  a  General  Training 
School  for  Nurses,  shall  be  elected  by  the 
nurses  registered  in  the  general  register 
whose  registered  addi-ess  is  in  Ireland. 

(g)  One  registered  medical  piractitioner,  or 
registered  male  nurse,  to  be  elected  as  a 
direct  representative  by  the  nurses  regis- 
tered in  the  Male  Nurses'  Eegister. 

(h)     One     registered     mental    nurse     to     be 
elected   as  a  direct  representative  by  the 
nurses  registered  in  the   Mental    Nurses' 
Eegister. 
Provided  that  pn  the  first  constitution  of  the 
Council,  in  the  place  of  the  direct  representa- 
tives of  registered  nurses,  there  shall  be  four- 
teen persons  appointed  as  follows : — 

(a)  One  past  or  present  Matron  of'  a   general 

hospital,  and  one  past  or  present  Matron 
of  a  Poor  Law  Intirman-.  in  England  or  ' 
Wales,   to  be  appointed   by  the  ^Matrons' 
Council  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland. 

(b)  One  past  or  present  Matron  of  a  Scottish 

Hospital  or  Infirmai-y  to  be  elected  by  the 
Matrons  oi  Scottish  Hospitals  and  In- 
fiiTQaries. 

(c)  One  past  or  present  Matron  of  a  hospital 

or  infiiTnary  to  be  appointed  by  the  Irish 
Matrons'  Association. 

(d)  One  past  or  present  Matron  of  a  Naval  or 

Military  Hospital  to  be  appointed  by  the 
Admiralty  and  the  War  Office  conjointly. 

(e)  One  nurse  to  be  appointed  by  the  Society 

for  the  State  Eegistration  of  Trained 
Nurses. 

(f)  One  nurse  to  be  appointed  'by  the  Queen 

Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute  for  Nurses. 


(g)  One  nurse  to  be   appointed  by  the   Asso- 
ciation for  the  Promotion  of  the  Registra- 
tion of  Nurses  in  Scotland, 
(h)  One  nurse  to  be  appointed  by  the  Scottish 

Nurses'  Association, 
(i)  Two  nurses   to  be  appointed  by   tlie  Irish 

Nurses'  Association, 
(j)  One  nurse  to  be  appointed  by  the  Asylum 

Workers'  Association, 
(k)  One  nurse  to  be   appointed  by  the   Fever 

Nurses'  Association^ 
(1)    One    registered    medical    practitioner    or 
nurse  to  be  appointed  by  the  Eoyal  British 
Nurses'  Association. 
And  the  persons  so  appointed  shall  hold  office 
until  the  Lord  President  of  the  Council  certifies 
that  the  task  of  forming  a  register  of  persons 
entitled  to  be  registered  under  this  Act  is  suffi- 
ciently advanced   to  admit   of   an  election  of 
direct    representatives    of    registered    nurses, 
and  shall  then  retire  and  shall  give  place  to 
direct    representatives    of    registered    nurses 
elected  as  heretofore  provided. 

Increase  of  Quorum. 
As  a  result  of  the  increase  in  the  size  of  the 
Council  the  quorum  provided  for  in  Clause  7 
was  increased  from  seven  to  nine. 

Provision  for  Divisional  Committees. 
The  following  Clauses  relative  to  the  appoint- 
ment of  Divisional  Committees  were  added  to 
Clause  10:  — 

"  And  provided  that  the  Council  sliall  appoint 
Divisional  Committees  for  England,  Scotland,  and 
Ireland,  to  recommend  to  tlie  Council  the  times 
and  places  for  local  examinations,  to  appoint 
esaminere,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  General 
Council,  and  to  inquire  into,  and  report  to  the 
Council  on,  the  character  and  status  of  all 
applicants  tor  registration  in  their  respective 
divisions  of  theK,ingdom,  and  to  do  such  other  duties 
as  the  Council  may  from  time  to  time  determine. 

"  And  provided  that  any  nurse  or  other  person 
may  api>eal  to  the  General  Conned  against  any 
decision  of  a  Divisional  Committee." 

Recognition  of  Certificate  of  L.G.B. 
FOR  Scotland. 
'  Clause  11,  Sub-Section  3,  was  amended  so 
as  to  include  recognition  of  the  certificate  of 
the  L.G.B.  for  Scotland  as  entitling  to  regis- 
tration within  three  years  from  the  commence- 
ment of  the  Act. 

Supplementary  Registers. 
Clause  15  was  amended  by  the  addition  of  a 
sub-section  providing  for  the  establishment  of 

"  A  Supplementary  Register  of  Male  Nurses,  to 
be  called  the  '  Male  Nurses'  Register,'  containing 
the  names  of  male  nurses  who  have  been  registered 
under  this  Act." 

In  connection  with  the  Mental  Nurses'  Ee- 
gister it  was  agreed  that  a  nurse,  whose  name 


Feb.  10, 1010]       xLbc  I6riu(5h  3ournal   oX    iRuustuQ. 


143 


is  entered  on  the  Mental  Nurses'  Register,  may 
also  be  entered  on  the  General  Register,  if  the 
conditions  are  fulfilled,  provided  that  at  the 
time  of  registration  every  such  nurse  shall  de- 
clare under  which  qualification  it  is  desired  to 
exercise  any  right  to  vote  for  the  election  of  a 
direct  representative. 

It  was  proposed  on  behalf  of  the  Fever 
Nurses'  Association,  and  agreed  that:  — 

"  Any  niii'so  who  is  admitted  to  the  General" 
Register,  who  liolds  a  certificate  of  tlie  Fever 
Nurses'  Association,  or  its  equivalent,  granted 
under  conditions  approved  by  the  Council,  shall  be 
entitled,  on  i)ayment  of  a  single  registration  fee  '>f 
two  shillings  and  sixpence,  to  have  the  w-ords  '  also 
trained  in  fever  nursing,'  added  to  her  record  in 
the  Register." 

Recogxised  AcconxT.\xTS. 

The  London  Association  of  Accountants  was 
added  to  those  recognised  under  the  Act  for 
the  purpose  of  auditing  the  accounts  of  the 
General  Council,  in  Clause  16. 

No  Authority  to  Pr.^ctise  Medicine. 

At  the  desire  of  the  Delegates  of  the  British 
Medical  Association  it  was  unanimously  agreed 
to  re-insert  the  following  clause  as  Clause  23  : 

"  Xothing  contain6<l  in  this  Act  shall  bo  con- 
sidered as  conferring  any  authority  to  p^iaotice 
ine<licine,  or  to  undertake  the  treatment  or  cure  »f 
disease." 

SUMMARY. 

The  Gexer.\l  Council  fou  the  Registk.vtidx 

OF  Nurses  in  the  United  Kingdom. 

The  increase  in  the  size  of  the  General  Coun- 
cil was  considered  imperatively  necessary,  not 
only  in  order  to  provide  for  the  adequate  repre- 
sentation of  the  various  interests  involved,  but 
also  for  the  transaction  of  the  large  amourrt  of 
business  with  which  it  will  have  to  deal.  When 
we  contrast  the  permanent  Council  of  twenty- 
one  persons  with  the  number  of  members  of 
the  General  ^ledical  Council,  which  controls  a 
profession  numerically  much  smaller  than  that 
of  nursing,  or  with  the  Council  of  the  British 
Medical  Association,  it  will  be  seen  that  to 
meet  the  requirements  of  the  Privy. Council  it 
has  been  restricted  to  the  narrowest  possible 
limits. 

The  principal  alterations  in  this  Clause  are 
the  provisions  that  a  certain  proportion  ot 
the  direct  representatives  of  the  women 
nurses  on  the  general  ■  register  must  be 
past  or  present  Matrons  of  genqral 
training  schools  for  nurses,  that  one  of  the 
direct  representatives  shall  hold  a  qualificatiou 
in  fever  nursing,  that  Scotland  and  Ireland 
shall  each  have  two  direct  representatives  in- 
stead ot  one,  and  that  the  male  nurses,  who 
are  to  have  their  own  Supplementary  Regis- 
ter,   shall    elect  their  own   direct    representa- 


All  these  alterations  are  in  the  direction  of 
strengthening  the  Council,  and  of  giving  effect 
to  important  principles. 

In  connection  with  the  representation  of 
medical  interests  the  different  branches  of 
medicine  have  been  allotted  expert  representa- 
tion, i.e.,  general  medicine  and  surgery, psycho- 
logy, infectious  diseases,  and  public  health,  and 
following  this  precedent,  the  nurse  representa- 
tives will  now  include  the  Matrons  who  are 
mainly-  responsible  for  the  training  and  disci- 
pline of  nurses,  mental  and  fever  experts,  and 
male  and  female  nurses. 

On  the  first  Council  there  is  to  be  the  same 
medical  representation  as  when  it  is  fully  con- 
stituted, but  until  an  electorate  has  been 
formed  of  registered  nurses  all  those  societies 
which  have  approved  the  principle,  and  been 
working  to  obtain  registration,  will  be  repre- 
sented. As  neither  the  Queen's  nurses,  nor 
Naval  and  Military  nurses,  have  formed  profes- 
sional organisations,  it  has  been  provided  that 
the  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute,  and  the 
Admiralty  and  War  Office  conjointly  may  each 
appoint  a  nurse. 

The  notification  of  training  in  fever  nursing 
against  a  nurse's  name  in  the  Register,  when 
applicable,  is  also  just.  The  registration  of 
fever  specialists  as  such  would  be  a  mistake 
from  all  points  of  view,  but  when  a  nurse  has 
added  fever  training  to  her  general  experience 
she  is  highly  qiialified,  and  it  is  right  that  this 
should  be  recorded. 

The  Divisional  Committees. 

The  most  important  new  clause  provides  for 
the  appointment  by  the  Council  of  Divisional 
Committees  for  England,  Scotland,  and  Ire- 
land, with  duties  as  defined  in  the  Clauses 
printed  on  page  142.  Decentralisation  of  labour 
makes  for  efficiency,  and  we  have  always  been 
in  favour  of  national  executives,  provided  that 
the  final  authority  is  vested  in  the  General 
Council.  This  is  obviously  necessary  it  uni- 
formity of  standards,  and  a  liberal  policy  are  to 
be  maintained.  There  should  be  nothing  paro- 
chial about  a  professional  registration  system. 
The  Register  of  M.\le  Nurses. 

It  is  a  matter  of  justice  to  women  nurses,  a''d 
of  public  convenience,  that  there  should  be  a 
Supplementary  Register  of  Male  Nurses  Male 
nurses  must  always  have  a  somewhat  restricted 
sphere  of  professional  work,  as  they  must  be 
Sore  or  less  sex  specialists.  Obstetric  and 
gvnrecological  work,  and  the  nursing  of  women 
and  young  children,  will  not  be  included  in 
their  duties,  they  must  therefore  have  a 
special  curriculum  of  education  and  examina- 
tion, and  in  consequence  their  own  special  re- 
gister. 


144 


CTbe  Brltieb  3ournal  of  mursina. 


[Feb.  I'J,  1910 


It  is  hojjed  by  this  means  that  better  facih- 
ties  for  training  will  be  ayailaoJe  for  male 
nurses  in  the  future — at  present  outside  mili- 
tary and  naval  hospitals  their"-  educational 
sphere  is  strictly  limited. 

If  male  nurses  were  admitted  to  the 
women  nurses'  register,  'women  specialists 
could   not  logically  be  excluded. 

Fees, FOR  Kegistk.\tion  and  Examin.ation. 
Clause  16. 

No  alteration  was  made  under  this  heading. 
The  Registration  fee  for  all  nurses  during  the 
three  years'  term  of  grace  remains  &2  2s.  After 
the  term  of  grace  the  Examination  fee  is  to  be 
£3  3s.,  the  combined  charge  not  to  exceed  the 
sum  of  iu  5s.  The  Association  for  Promoting 
the  Registration  of  Nurses  in  Scotland  are  of 
opinion  that  the  work  can  be  efficiently  carried 
on  for  less,  and  Sir  Victor  Horsley  approves  of 
a  Treasury  grant  if  the  expenses  exceed 
£3  3s.  for  each  nurse.  All  the  Societies 
composed  exclusively  of  nurses  support  the 
higher  scale  of  fees,  as  they  wish  their  Govern- 
ing Body  to  be  self-supporting,  and  to  encour- 
age trained  nurses  to  reahse  that  legal  status 
has  a  real  professional  and  financial  equiva- 
lent. Moreover,  taking  into  consideration  that 
the  large  majoiity  of  nurses  have  a  valuable 
professional  education  provided  free  of  charge, 
they  are  of  opinion  that  £5  5s.  is  a  very  moder- 
ate charge  for  the  benefits  to  be  received.  To 
secure  the  services  of  the  best  medical  and 
nursing  examiners  and  inspectors,  an  adequate 
fee  must  be  paid,  and  a  new  branch  of  work  on 
educational  lines  will  in  the  future  be  available 
for  thoroughly  quahfied  nurses,  for  which  a 
sufficient  remuneration  will  be  necessary. 

The  nurses'  societies  are  also  unanimously 
of  opinion  that  reasonable  fees  should  be  paid 
to  the  members  of  the  Registration  Council, 
so  that  the  Governing  Body  shall  be  on  a  busi- 
ness basis.  They  strongly  deprecate  voluntary 
supervision  or  patronage  in  this  connection. 

The  institution  of  Divisional  Committees  will 
add  to  the  working  expenses,  as  no  doubt  they 
will  to  the  efficiency  of  the  registration  system. 
The  Future  of  the  Bill. 

The  acceptance  of  one  Bill  by  the  eight  in- 
fluential medical  and  nursing  Associations  is  a 
matter  for  sincerest  congratulation  to  all  con- 
cerned. To  Lord  Ampthill's  inspiring  influence 
and  tact  this  result  of  the  Conference  must  be 
accredited.  He  has  our  warmest  thanks  for 
his  incomparable  conduct  of  business. 

The  Bill  will  be  at  once  transcribed,  and 
await  the  fate  of  the  ballot  next  week,  but  in 
any  case  the  demand  for  legislation  is  to  be 
enthusiastically  pressed  forward,,  and  its  ulti- 
mate passage  into  law  cannot  now  be  long  de- 
ferred. 


niXMcal  riDatteis. 


The  spread  of  pellagra  during  recent  years 
has  resulted  in  the  formation  of  a  representa- 
tive committee  to  investigate  its  nature  and 
causation.  This  committee  has  issued  a  pre- 
liminary communication  as  to  the  presen,t 
position  and  knowledge  of  the  disease,  which 
states,  in  part :  — 

Pellagra  is  one  of  the  formidable  disease- 
scourges  of  mankind.  '  Like  nialaria,  it  is 
widely  distributed  throughout  the  world,  being 
most  prevalent  in  certain  districts  of  tropical 
and  subtroj^ical  countries.  Europe,  Asia, 
Africa,  America,  Australasia,  all  have  their 
areas  of  pellagra  endemioity,  the  extent  of 
which,  owing  to  non-recognition  of  the  disease, 
is  in  jnost  cases  probably  far  wider  than  is 
generally  suspected. 

Like  kala-azar  and  sleeping  sickness,  pellagra 
is  a  deadly  endemic  disease,  presenting  a  long, 
cruel  course  of  3,  10,  15,  or  more  years'  dura- 
tion. It  is  confined  almost  exclusively  to  field 
labourers.  It  is  characterised  'by  a  complexity 
of  nervous,  gastric,  and  cutaneous  symptoms. 
The  symjDtoms  make  their  first  appearance 
during  the  spring  months  and  recur  year  after 
year  at  the  same  season,  remitting  more  or 
less  during  the  winter  months.  Clinically,  the 
more  distinctive  features  are  a  peculiar  skin 
eruption,  not  unlike  a  severe  sunburn,  which 
affects  the  exposed  parts  of  the  body,  accom- 
panied by  profound  melancholia  alternating 
with  mania,  which  often  leads  to  murder  or 
suicide.  In  the  last  stages  the  patient  becomes 
greatly  emaciated,  paralytic,  and  completely 
demented.  In  women  pellagra  usually  causes 
abortion;  when  they  do  have  children,  the 
offspring  are  sickly  and  degenerate. 

Pellagra  is  regarded  as  strictly  endemic. 
Everywhere,  however,  where  its  occurrence 
has  been  noted  for  any  length  of  time  it  has 
shown  a  marked  tendency  to  slow  extension. 
This  tendency  to  spread  is  a  fact  which  must 
receive  very  serious  attention,  especially  when 
we  consider  that  pellagra  can  thrive  just  as 
well  in  Poland  as  in  the  Panama  Canal  zone, 
and  that  when  once  established  in  a  new 
locality  it  remains  there. 

Dr.  L.  W.  Sambon,.  F.Z.S.,  a  member  of 
the  Committee,  will  proceed  to  a  pellagro\is 
area  and  investigate  the  conditions  of  the  dis- 
ease and  the  blood-sucking  flies  that  are  to  be 
found  there. 

Dr.  Sambon  has  informed  a  representative  of 
the  press  that  an  urgent  reason  for  inquiry  is 
that  pellagra,  kala-azar,  and  other  diseases 
do  not  remain  limited  to  their  en- 
demic regions.       They   go  forth,   so  to   speak, 


Feb.  19, 1910]       ^\jc  Brittsi)   journal  or  IRursmo. 


145 


on  the  war  path,  aud  we  caunot  toll  wheii.'  uu.\i 
wo  may  iiud  them.  Investigation  of  pellagra 
cau  hardly  fail  also  to  shed  a  light  on  diseases 
concerniug  the  origin  of  which  much  remains 
to  be  nuide  known." 

The      Colonial    Office    is    contributing    to- 
wards the  expenses  of  the  investigations. 

RAILWAY    TRAVELLING     AND    INFECTIOUS 
DISEASE. 

At  the  last  meeting,'  of  I  he  West  of  England 
and  South  Wales   JJranch   of    the  Society  of 
Medical   Officers    of    Health,  Dr.  J.    Howaril 
Jones,  as  reported  in  the  Lancet,  drew  atten- 
tion to  the  probable  connection  between  rail- 
way travelling  and    outbreaks    of    infectious 
disease,  the  source  of  which  it  seemed  impos- 
sible  to  trace.     Our  railway   systems,    in   his 
opinion,  were  fruitful  means  of  the  transference 
of  infectious  diseases  from  one  town  to  another. 
He   gave    instances  which  had    come  to    his 
knowledge   recently   showing   that   fresh    out- 
breaks could  be  started  in  a  town,   and  also 
that  railway  travellers  were  only  imperfectly 
protected  from  contact  with  infectious  disease. 
These  included  the  removal  of  a  child  who  was 
suffering  from  sparlet    fever    by  train  from  a 
distant  health  resort  to  Newport,  the  medical 
attendant   and   the     local    sanitary    authority 
acquiescing,  but  no  special  arrangements  being 
made  with  the  railway  company.    Another  in- 
stance was  that  of  a  child  with  measles  who 
was  removed  by  train  from  another  health  re- 
sort, and  in  this  ease  also  the  idea  of  making 
special  arrangements  for  the  protection  of  the 
travelling    public    was    apparently    not    enter- 
tained by  anyone.     Two  instances  of  children 
travelling  while  in  the  acute  stage  of  whooping- 
cough  were  cited,  and  one  of  a  sailor  who  went 
by  train  to  Newport  direct  from  a  vessel  in  a 
British  port  on  which  two  outbreaks  of  small- 
pox had  occurred  during  the  last  voyage.     The 
man  was  ill  on  arriving  at  Newport  on  a  Satur- 
day evening,  and  early  the  following  Monday 
was  admitted  to  the  small-pox  hospital  with  a 
well-developed  rash.    There  can  be  little  doubt 
that  he  must  have  been  a  source  of  danger  to 
those  with  whom  he  had  come  in  contact  from 
the  time  he  left  his  ship.     Similar    instances 
were  given  which  had  come  to  the  knowlei,lge 
of  other  members  of  the  Society,  including  one 
referred  to  by  Dr.   W.   G.    Savage,   that  of  a 
man  who  was  found  on  arrival  by  train  at  Car- 
diff from  the  North  of  England  to  be  suffering 
from  plague.    There  appear  to  be  some  difficul- 
ties in  dealing  with  railway  passengers  who  are 
found  to  be  suffering  from  non-notifiable  dis- 
eases, but  Dr.  D.  S.  Davies  stated  that  he  had 
obtained  a  conviction  before  the  Bristol  justices 
against  a  person  who  had  wilfully  exposed  a 
child  in  a  public  place  while  it  was  suffering 
from  measles. 


Ibospital  Xaun^l•ics.' 

By  Miss  Helen  Todd. 

The  laundry  is  one  of  the  most  important 
departments  in  a  modern  hospital  or  infirmary, 
and  frequently  one  of  the  Matron's  greatest 
anxieties.  As  a  rule,  it  is  situated  within  the 
hospital  boundaries,  and  the  Matron  is  directly 
responsible  for  its  management  and  administra- 
tion. 

1  propose,  in  the  ten  minutes  allotted  to  me 
this  evening,  to  look  at  the  matter  from  the 
Matron's  point  of  view,  and  instead  of  reading 
a  paper  in  the  ordinary  sense  of  the  word,  to 
suggest  simply  points  for  the  discussion  which 
is  to  follow.  From  an  administrative  point  of 
view,  then,  let  us  begin  by  considering  the 
pcr8onnel. 

1.  The  Matron,  being  the  responsible  head, 
should  possess  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
laundry  technique,  but  unfortunately  in  how 
few'cases  has  she  had  any  practical  experience 
of  the  working  of  a  steam  laundry,  of  how  the 
work  should  be  organised,  of  the  proportion  of 
staff  required,  of  what  constitutes  a  fair  day's 
work  for  individual  hands,  or  of  the  amount  of 
stores  which  should  be  legitimately  consumed. 
She  may  be  fortunate  in  having  a  capable  and 
conscientious  Laundry  Superintendent,  but  the 
chances  are  quite  as  much  the  other  way,  aud 
incompetence  in  the  head  means  mismanage- 
ment of  the  subordinates  and  a  disastrous  con- 
dition of  thmgs  throughout  the  department 
concerned. 

As  the  first  subject,  then,  for  discussion,  I 
would  suggest:  "What  is  the  best  method 
wliereby  candidates  for  the  Matronship  of  hos- 
pitals riiay  obtain  a  practical  knowledge  of  the 
working  and  management  of  a  steam  laundry '.'" 

2.  The  actual  working  hend  of  the  laundry  is 
the  Laundry  Supfiinh  mlml  :  in  some  institu- 
tions it  has  been  the  [iiiu-ii.-e  to  put  a  Sister  in 
charge  of  this  vei7  important  department,  but 
the  experience  which  she  is  intended  to  gain 
would  be  far  belter  acquired  in  a  subordinate 
position  than  as  head  of  a  business  of  which 
she  knows  nothing.  To  my  mind,  it  appears 
essential  that  the  Superintendent  has  learnt 
all  the  details  of  her  work  in  a  trade  or  public 
laundry,  and  has  also  been  manager  in  one  of 
these  concerns. 

The  practice  of  some  Committees  and  Boards 
of  selecting  candidates  simply  from  their  appli- 
cation forms,  and  appointing  them  after  a  brief 
inten-iew  in  the  Board  Room,  is  one  that 
cannot  be  too  widely  condemned.  If  the 
]\Iatron  is  possessed  of  the  expert  knowledge 
which  she  should  have,  she  ought  to  be  deputed 


Read  before   the  Ar^t'- 


146 


(Tbe  Britisb  3ournal  of  IWurslng.      t^^b.  lo,  loio 


to  interview  the  candidates  and  select  two  or 
three  from  whom  the  Board  could  make  a  final 
choice;  or,  better  still,  if  the  Board  are 
amenable,  to  send  only  one  candidate  before 
them. 

3.  In  considering  the  necessary  staff,  and 
comparing  that  in  a  hospital  laundry  with  that 
in  a  commercial  one,  we  must  bear  in  mind  the 
great  difference  in  the  two  systems. 

In  a  trade  or  public  laundry  only  so  many 
liauds  are  taken  on  each  day  as  are  required 
for  that  day's  work,  and  each  individual  is 
more  or  less  an  expert  in  her  particular  line. 
The  manageress  engages  and  dismisses  hands 
according  to  their  capabilities  and  according  to 
the  amount  of  work  which  she  has  to  get  done. 

The  ironers  are  paid  by  piece-work,  and  not 
employed  for  anything  but  their  own  speciality, 
and  the  system  of  payment  by  result  offers 
every  inducement  for  good  work  during  the 
hours  of  emjjloyment. 

I  am  not  quite  sure  what  is  the  usual  plan 
in  the  laundries  connected  with  our  large  hos- 
pitals, but  under  Poor  Law  conditions,  where 
paid  labour  is  used,  the  women  are,  as  a  rule, 
individually  appointed  by  the  Infirmary  Com- 
mittee, or  even  in  some  cases  by  the  Board 
itself  i  and  can  only  be  dismissed  "by  the  body 
which  engages  them.  Women  once  so 
appointed  come  automatically  under  the 
present  Superannuation  Acts,  deductions  being 
made  from  their  wages.  They,  therefore,  be- 
come practically  permanent  ofiicials,  and  in 
London  their  pay  comes  out  of  the  Metro- 
politan Common  Poor  Fund.  This  system  is 
utterly  bad,  as  in  practice  it  causes  the  employ- 
mentof  a  fixed  number  of  hands  alike  when 
work  is  slack  and  when  it  is  abundant.  By  way 
of  equalising  things  in  some  institutions  the 
nurses  are  allowed  during  the  slack  months  of 
June,  July,  and  August  to  send  such  articles 
as  fancy  blouses  and  white  petticoats  to  the 
wash,  and  these,  by  necessitating  a  good  deal 
of  extra  hand  labour,  create  employment  during 
the  slack  season. 

x\gain,  under  this  system  it  is  not  possible 
to  classify  the  work  to  anything  like  the  extent 
in  a  commercial  laundry.  The  ironers,  for  in- 
stance, will  not  have  work  enough  to  keep 
them  busy  during  a  whole  week,  and  must 
therefore  be  employed  on  another  class  of 
work  during  certain  days.  The  hands  must, 
therefore,  be  more  of  the  all-round  than  the 
specialist  type,  and  thus  lose  in  efficiency. 

On  this  point  also  I  should  like  to  ask  the 
opinion  of  those  present. 

4.  The  numerical  proportion  of  daff  to  work 
done  appears  to  vary  very  much.  I  have  heard 
it  stated  by  experts  that  for  hospital  work  1 
per  1,000,  reckoning  all  round,  should  be  suffi- 


cient. In  my  own  laundiy,  which  is  well 
equipped  with  modern  machinery,  but  which 
is,  unfortunately,  too  much  cut  by  division 
walls  for  easy  supervision,  we  find  22  hands 
per  20,000  a  comfortable  number. 

From  Mr.  Helby's  evidence  before  the  De- 
partmental Committee,  recently  published  in  a 
Blue  Book,  I  see  the  Brook  Fever  Hospital 
employs  a  staff  of  25  for  20,000,  whereas  Dr. 
Mackintosh  quotes  19  as  sufficient  for  20,000 
articles  in  his  chapter  on  the  laundry  in  his 
recent  book  on  hospital  construction;  he  does 
not,  however,  say  whether  the  cleaning  of  the 
machinei-y,  floors,  etc.,  is  to  be  done  by  the 
laundry  or  engineering  and  scrubbing  staff, 
which,  of  course,  makes  a  considerable  dif- 
ference. 

Hospital  laundry  finance  is  not  an  easy  sub- 
ject, the  figures  being  very  complicated  and 
difiicult  to  rightly  estimate.  One  may,  indeed, 
readily  calculate  the  actual  stores  consumed, 
and  the  water  and  light  may  be  registered  by 
meters  for  the  laundry  only,  but  very  frequently 
the  boilers  which  generate  the  steam  are  at 
the  same  time  providing  for  other  parts  of  the 
institution,  and  the  amount  of  coal  which  can 
be  fairly  charged  for  laundry  purposes  is  a  diffi- 
cult matter,  as  are  also  the  services  of  the 
engineering  staff,  who  are  in  charge  of  the 
machinery  throughout  the  building. 

In  the  Blue  Book,  however,  from  which  I 
have  already  quoted,  are  certain  most  interest- 
ing figures,  giving  the  actual  cost  incurred  in  a 
commercial  undertaking — viz.,  £40  4s.  9d.  per 
1,000  articles.  This  includes  horsekeep,  rents, 
rates,  etc.  The  same  book  contains  tables 
showing,  as  far  as  possible,  the  cost  per  1,000 
articles  washed  in  the  laundries  of  the  different 
institutions  under  the  M.A.B.  They  differ 
very  widely;  thus,  at  the  Fountain  Hospital 
the  price  per  1,000  is  quoted  as  £79  Os.  9d., 
and  at  the  Northern  £39  7s.  2d.  Materials 
used  differ  as  widely.  In  a  commercial  laundry 
we  find  used  per  1,000  articles:  Soap,  lib.; 
soap  powder,  3  lb. ;  soda,  lOf  lb.  The  Western 
Hospital  figures  for  soda  alone  stand  at  67.6 
lbs.,  and  those  of  the  South-Westem  at  26  lb. 
per  1,000. 

Doubtless  there  is  some  explanation  for  the 
great  difference ;  the  use  of  soft  and  condensed 
water,  for  instance,  or  the  proportion  of  flannel 
goods  treated;  but  such  very  different  returns 
from  institutions  under  the  same  Board  may 
well  make  one  pause,  and  it  is  not  surprising 
that  such  an  institution  as  St.  Thomas's  Hos- 
pital finds  it  cheaper  and  better  to  contract 
with  a  trade  laundry  for  the  whole  of  its  wash- 
ing, and  that  several  laundry  experts  advise 
large  central  laundries  both  for  the  M.A.B. 
and  the  Infirmaries  under  the  Poor  Law. 


Feb.  19, 1910]        ^1,^;   Britii?!?   3oiU'nal   ot  Unursino. 


11-; 


If  these  are  instituted,  and  prove  econouucal, 
we  may  feel  sure  that  the  King's  Hospital 
I'und,  or  some  such  body,  will  advocate  the 
general  hospitals  to  follow  in  their  train.  It 
seems  to  me  that  sucii  a  plan  would  mean  an 
immense  increase  in  ward  linen  stock,  but 
here,  again,  I  should  like  your  opinion. 

6.  My  time  is  short,  but  I  should  very  mucR 
like  to  enquire  if  anyone  here  has  had  any  ex- 
pei'ience  of  washing  machines  working  under 
steam  pi'essure.  Dr.  Mackintosh  strongly 
advises  such  machines  working  at  10  lb.  pres- 
sure as  efficient  sterilisers. 

Wg  rely  upon  hyposulphate  of  soda  and  boil- 
ing for  disinfection. 

7.  Other  matters  upon  which  I  hoped  to 
have  had  your  opinion,  and  upon  which,  per- 
haps, some  one  will  kindly  speak,  arc  the  uses 
of  electricity  in  the  laundry,  both  for  motor 
power  and  for  heating  irons,  and  the  use  of 
water  softeners  in  districts  where  the  water  is 
very  hard. 

Discussion. 

This  discussion,  which  was  intcrestiug  and  in- 
formal, was  unfortunately  rather  curtailed,  owing 
to  the  lateness  of  the  hour.  Miss  Todd's  paper 
suggested  unlimited  opportunities  for  questions 
and  arguments,  and  a  great  many  interesting 
points  were  touched  ui>on. 

The  members  were  struck  by  the  difference  in 
price  per  thousand  in  the  laundries  of  different 
hospitals  under  the  Metropolitan  Asylums' Board; 
but  one  member  remarked  that  a  great  saving 
would  be  effected  in  those  laundries  were  water 
softeners  used ;  another  also  suggested  that  one 
would  want  to  see  the  manner  in  which  the  linen 
was  washed  before  one  could  criticise  the  price. 

All  were  agreed  that  the  well-being  of  a  steam 
laundry  depended  largely  upon  a  good  engineer. 
Miss  Row,  of  Shadwell,  was  anxious  to  know 
whether  the  washing  for  a  hospital  of  about  120  beds 
could  be  done  without  men — only  an  engineer  to 
manage  the  actual  machinery,  but  not  taking  part 
in  tho  actual  washing.  Both  Miss  Musson,  the  late 
Matron  of  the  Swansea  General  Hospital,  and  ^.iiss 
Mollett,  of  Southampton,  answered  her — not  only 
that  it  could  be  done,  but  that  the  hospital 
laundries  of  Swansea  and  Southampton  were  run 
on  those  lines.  The  majority  of  the  members  who 
had  laundries  attached  to  their  hospitals  thought 
that  Matrons  ought  to  have  some  practical  know- 
ledge of  laundry  work,  and  some  laiowledge  of  tho 
machinery  employed ;  and  the  Chairman  (Mrs. 
Fenwick)  said  a  few  words  in  praise  of 
tho  oaro  of  linen  in  foreign  hospitals  and 
institutions,  and  she  referred  to  the 
American  system,  which  provided  a  domestic 
science  course  at  Teachers'  College,  New  York,  for 
those  who  wished  to  take  up  the  administrative 
branches  of  hospital  work.  She  thought  that  in 
the  future  nursing  education  for  Matrons  would 
have  to  bo  provided   along  those   lines. 

jr.  Moi.t-ETT,  Tlon.  Secreiary. 


Ics  IPctitcs  Blcues.to  the  Tl^^scuc. 

We  hear  thai  the  pupils  of  the  School  for 
Nurses  of  the  Assistance  Pubhque  of  Paris 
have  achieved  great  success  by  their  devotion 
to  duty,  during  the  recent  disastrous 
floods  in  Paris.  The  Almshouse  of  Ivry 
having  been  flooded,  a  great  number  of 
inmates  had  to  be  sent  to  the  Salpetriere.  On 
hearing  of  this  transfer,  the  pupils  of  the 
School  set  to  work  to  remove  the  furniture  from 
several  wards  in  the  Salpetriere,  and  trans- 
formed the  ancient  chapel  as  well  as  two  new 
and  as  yet  uninhabited  buildings  into  a  hospi- 
tal, and  put  up  in  a  few  hours  more  than  800 
beds.  As  many  necessary  articles  were  want- 
ing, they  went  to  their  rooms  and  returned, 
each  carrying  a  chair,  with  a  blanket  and  pillow 
taken  from  her  own  bed.  With  truly  admirable 
courage  "  les  petites  bleues  "  throughout  the 
whole  day  carried  beds  and  mattresses  and  in 
the  evening  they  were  ready  to  welcome  the 
poor  old  women  with  kindly  smiles  and  gentle 
words,  as  they  got  down  from  the  carriages 
which  brought  them. 

Each  day  since  then  the  "Salpetriennes"  have 
done  their  utmost  with  gentle  perseverance  to 
render  the  change  less  trying  to  these  poor  old 
grandmothers  whose  granddaughters  they  have 
become  by  their  constant  and  kindly  atten- 
tions. 

For  tjie  way  they  have  carried  out  this  most 
tiring  work,  and  for  their  touching  care,  the 
pupils  have  received  the  high  praise  of  Mr. 
Silhol,  member  of  the  Council  of  Supervision 
of  the  Assistance  Publique,  who  came  to  visit 
the  Salpetriere,  and  found  the  pupils  at  work. 

It  is  thanks  to  the  immediate  help  given  by 
the  180  pupils  of  the  School  that  the  transfer 
of  the 'pensioners  of  Ivry  was  able  to  take  place 
satisfactorily  and  in  a  few  hours. 


iTbc  tlerritorial  Jforcc  HAuvsino 
Service 


Tlie  following  members  of  the  Territorial  Force 
Nureing  Service,  on  the  staff  of  the  5th  Xorthern 
G«neral  Hospital,  of  which  Miss  Rogers,  of 
Leicester  Infirmary,  is  Principal  Matron,  revived 
their  badges  from  Mi«  Sidney  Browne,  R.R.C., 
Matron-in-Chief,  T.F.X.S.,  at  Leicester  on  Tues- 
day, February  8th:  — 

Si«t«i-s:  Mi.sses  Sawyer,  Milne,  Jones,  Harris, 
Browning,  Seacome,  Laxton,  Cunningham,  Sly, 
Outram,  Glenn,  Hanqison,  Sandback. 

Staff  Nurses:  Misses  Van  AVart,  Willis,  German, 
E>o<ld,  Ward,  Woo<l,  Walnisley,  Rosier,  E<lg<', 
Diuin.  Clarke,  Cheetham,  lievins,  Ashworth, 
Milnes,  Hippinstall,  Hampson,  Yates,  Hamplett. 


148 


Znc  jBritisb  3oi»nial  of  IRursma. 


[Feb.  19,  1910 


Zbc  IHursino  Scbool  at  tbe  <Ion^u 
Civil  Ibospital,  ffioi^caujc. 

The  picture  wiiicli  we  have  the  pleasure  of  pub- 
lishing on  this  page  is  of  a  group  of  nurses  at  the 
Tondu  Hospital,  Bordeaux,  of  which  Miss  C. 
Elston  is  Directrice.  The  Annual  Report  of  this 
school  is  a  most  interesting  record  of  progress,  and 
the  numerous  illustrations  add  greatly  to  its  in- 
terest. 

The  report  opens  with  a  resume  of  the  history 
of    the    fouuda-    


tion  of  the 
School.  "L'Ecole 
de  Garde  s- 
Malades  Hospi- 
talieres. ' '  It  was 
created  in  1903 
by  the  Adminis- 
trative Com- 
mittee of  the 
Bordeaux  Hos- 
pitals, and  the 
intention  was 
at  first  to  re- 
ceive without 
distinction  lay 
pupils,  and 
those  who  be- 
longed to  Reli- 
gious Orders, 
Catholics,  Pro- 
testants, and 
Jews,  resident 
and  non-resi- 
dent. The  first 
group  of  pupils 
was  received 

at  the  Hospital 
of  St.  Andre, 
and  consisted 
partly  of  young 
girls  and  partly 
of  rel i  g  ious 
sisters  belong- 
ing to  com- 
munities which 
had  for  many 
years  been  at- 
tached to  chari- 
table institu- 
tions in  Bor- 
deaux. 

It  was  the 
object  of  those 
who  founded  the 
School  to  give 
their  pupils  a 
professional  education 
schools  which  had  for 
appreciated      where 


9^ 


M» 


^•BB^^B 


Certificated   Nurse. 

A    Croup    of    N 

on  the  model  of  those 
long  been  known  and 
the  work  of  Florence 
Nightingale  has  prospered.  It  was  flot,  however, 
found  desirable,  after  some  practical  experience, 
to  combine  incompatible  elements  in  one  training 
school  and  ultimately  the  Hospital  of  St.  Andre 
was  resigned  to  the  religious  sisterhoods  in  Octo- 
ber, 1904,  and  the  Directrice  and  the  lay  pupils 
were  established  in  the  Tondu    Hospital    of    120 


beds  then  recently  opened  where  they  have  done 
good  work  ever  since. 

After  a  few  months  Miss  Catherine  Elston,  then 
Cheftaine  Generale  at  the  Maison  de  Sante  Pro- 
testante,  Bordeaux — whose  work  there  was  greatly 
appreciated  by  the  fourteen  physicians  and  sur- 
geons, most  of  whom  were  attached  to  the  civil 
hospitals — was  appointed  Directrice.  Since  that 
time  the  school  under  the  able  direction  of  .\ii6S 
ELstou — who  had  the  advantage  of  the  invaluable 
support  of  Dr.  Lande,  whose  professional  eminence 
has  been  recognised  by  the  award  of  the  highest 

' distinction 

the     French 

■ ''  I  Government 
could  bestow — 
has  p  r  o- 
•gressed  and 
increased,  and 
there  are  now 
51  certificated 
nurses,  whose 
services  are 

greatly  in  de- 
mand in  other 
parts  of  France, 
and  many  of 
whom  hold  im- 
portant posi- 
t  i  o  n  s,  while 
several  have 

been  honoured 
by  the  award  of 
decorations  by 
public  bodies. 
The  Government 
also  gave  practi- 
cal proof  of  its 
appreciation  of 
the  work  of  the 
School  when 

President 
Loubet  in  1904 
presented  to  its 
Directrice  the 
medal  of  the 
Assistance  Pub- 
1  i  q  u  e,  a  n  d 
shortly  after- 
wards the  Minis- 
ter of  Public  In- 
struction bes- 
towed upon  her 
the  palities  aca- 
demiques. 

Miss  Elston  has 
under  her  con- 
trol all  the  ad- 
ministrative ser- 


Put.iI.  Chettaine. 

at    the   Tondu   Hospital,    Bordeaux. 


vices,  including  the  laundry  and  the  kitchen,  as 
wen  as  the  nursing  department,  for  in  order  to  in- 
struct the  pupils  on  the  lines  adopted  in  modern 
training  schools,  it  has  been  found  necessary  to 
give  the  Directrice  full  authority  over  the 
various  departments.  This  is  unusual  in  France, 
where  a  male  head,  who  has  consequently  to  dis- 
charge many  essential  feminine  duties,  is  usually 
placed  in  charge  of  hospitals. 

The  course  of  training  for  the  pupils  is  essentially 


Teb.  19,  1910] 


^Dc  Bi'itisb  journal  of  H^uvsiuG. 


149 


practical,  not  only  tlieoretical,  as  is  often  tho  oaae 
in  France.  Tho  cheftaiues  are  api>oint€<l  by  tlio 
hospitals  administration,  on  the  recommendation 
of  the  Directrice.  They  are  assisted  by  certitioate<l 
nurses  in  tho  general  supervision  ot  the  wards,  both 
as  to  the  nui-sing  of  the  sick  and  the  diet  pre- 
scribed by  the  doctors.  They  also  prepare  the  it€ms 
for  tho  daily  report,  and  for  the  statistical  rej>ort 
of  the  patients  in  the  wards.  They  make  in- 
ventories of  tlie  personal  jwescssioiis  of  the  patients 
a<lmittod,  and  deliver  over  to  the  cheftaines  every- 
thing of  value  found  in  their  jx)Ssession ;  they  go 
with  the  patients  to  the  Bureau  when  thej-  are  dits- 
oharged,  and  see  that  their  possessions  are  returned 
to  them;  they  take  part  in  the  practical  instruc- 
tion of  tho  pupils;  do  duty  for  the  cheftaines  ui 
their  absence,  and  are  themselves  replaced,  in  case 
of  need,  by  pupils  in  their  second  year  of  training. 

The  nursing  school 
admits  both  resident 
and  non-resident  pupils, 
the  number  of  vacancie.s 
being    determined    each 

year    by    the    hosi)itals 

administrative  com- 
mittee. The  pupils 
sign  an  agreement  to 
remain  for  two  yeans  in 
the  service  of  the  'Oor- 
deaux  hospitals  at  the 
conclusion  of  their 
training  or  to  pay 
1,000  francs  in  return 
for  their  freo  education 

in  nursing,  and  their 
diplomas  are  only  pre- 
sented to  them  when 
they  have  fulfilled  one 
or  the  other  of  these 
obligations.       Tlie    uo;- 

pitals  administration 
has  the  right  of  award- 
ing scholarehips  to 
thoroughly  eligible 

pupils. 

Non-resident  pupus 
are  not  admitted  unless 
they     live     with     tneir 

parents,  or  with  a 
guar<lian  approve<l '  by 
the  administration. 
They  work  under  the 
same  rules  as  the  resident  pupils. 

In  addition  to  the  practical  instruction  given  by 
the  Directrice,  the  pupils  have  the  advantage  of 
attending  courses  of  lectures  by  so  eminent  a 
medical  man  as  Dr.  Lande,  who  is  not  only  in  tlio 
front  rank  of  his  profession,  but  takes  the  keenest 
interest  in  nureing  oduoation.  Dr.  Lande  gives  40 
lectures  on  elementary  anatomy  and  physiology  to 
fii'st-year  pupils,  and  40  on  elementary  me<licine 
and  surgery  to  second-year  pupils.  It  is  with  great 
plea.su re  that  we  repro<]iice  a  portrait  of  this  uis- 
tinguished  physician  in  tlio  act  of  lecturing  to  a 
doss  of  nurses.  The  m<xl*'m  nursing  movement  in 
France  owes  much  to  his  influential  support,  and 
nurses  owe  him  a  warm  tlebt  of  gratitude. 


Iprcscntatlons. 

On  Tuesday  evening,  February  8th,  Miss  Bar- 
ling, the  much  esteemed  Matron  of  the  Kidder- 
minster Infirmary,  gave  an  "  At  Home  "  to  past 
and  present  nurses,  on  relinquishing  her  duties 
after  17  years'  service.  During  the  evening,  Mr. 
Stretton,  the  senior  honorary  surgeon  to  the  hos- 
pital, presented  Miss  Barling  with  a  beautiful 
piano,  on  behalf  of  past  and  present  Sisters,  nurses, 
and  house  surgeons.  Miss  Barling,  in  accepting, 
and  expressing  her  cordial  thanks  for  the  gift, 
urged  all  the  nurses  present  to  strive  for  the  high- 
est in  the  work  they  had  chosen. 

Nurses  from  all  parts  of  England  were  present, 
and  a  most  enjoyable  evening  was  spent  in  games, 
and  in  listening  to  the  glorious  voice  of  Miss  Sara 
Silver  and  other  vocalists.  It  ended  all  too  soon 
with  the  singing  of  "  Auld  Lang  Syne"  in  the 
orthodox  manner. 


M.    LE    OOCTEUR    LANOE, 

Prolcsseur    de    Medicine    Legale,    Administrateur- 

Deleguec  de  I'Hopital  du  Tondu. 


On  Friday  in  last 
week  there  must  have 
been  a  most  interest- 
ing interview  between 
the  Matron  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital, 
and  one  of  its  veteran 
workers,  when  pri- 
vately, on  behalf  of 
many  subscribers.  Miss 
Stewart  presented  Miss 
F.  Sleigh  (Sister  Pre- 
sident) with  an  oxy- 
dised  silver  purse,  bear- 
ing the  Bart's  coat  of 
arms,   oontaiuing  £42. 

In  President  Ward 
the  patients  were  al- 
ways contented,  the 
nursing  well  done, 
and  tho  surgeons  satis- 
lied,  for  Sister  possessed 
the  true  nursing  in- 
stinct, as  well  as  the 
home  making  art,  and 
in  the  conti-ol  of  her 
little  kingdom  blended 
gentleness  and  firmness 
in  just  the  right  pro- 
portions. Nurses  were 
proud  to  belong  to  Pre- 
sident.       Did      anyone 


want  to  loarn  how  to  pad  splints  so  that  they  might 
afford  a  proof  of  her  eflSciency  in  this  respect  in 
her  final  examination,  she  prayed  to  bo  sent  to 
President,  for  there,  under  Sister's  instructions, 
and  with  practical  demonstrations,  from  her  clever 
fingers,  the  art  of  splint  padding  reached  perfec- 
tion. Withal  the  atmosphere  of  the  ward  was  a 
happy  one,  and  the  nursing  tone  high.  It  is  diffi- 
cult to  realise  that  so  many  years  have  been  spent 
by  Sister  President  in  strenuous  work  in  a  great 
Metropolitan  Hospital,  for  she  seems  to  have  learnt 
tho  secret  of  perpetual  youth,  and  to  have  changed 
but  little  during  the  long  period  spent  in  the  hos- 
pital's service.  She  has  well  earned  the  compara- 
tive leisure  wliich  she  will  now  enjoy. 


150 


CT3C  ©rlti5b  :tournal  of  IHurslng. 


[Feb.  19,  1910 


^•y 


Xcaouc  1Hc\V5. 

THE  SCHOOL  NURSES'  LEAGUE. 

Anyone  passing  along  the  Vic- 
toria Embankment  on  Tuesday 
in  last  week,  about  5  o'clock, 
ma^'  have  noticed,  as  one  lady 
was  heard  to  observe,  "a  lot 
,  -.v:;  of  nurses  "  about,  for  the  School 

„  .  .  ^'^-j  Nurses'  League  was  holding  its 
■  f'^t&v'*^  second  annual  meeting.  As  the 
League  has  grown  in  numbers 
rather  quickly  it  has  been  regret- 
fully obliged  to  give  up  its  former  headquarters 
at  431,  Oxford  Street,  W.,  where  the  Board 
Eoom  could  no  longer  accommodate  it.  The 
President,  Miss  Pearse,  had,  however,  ob- 
tained pemiission  for  the  meetings  to  be  held 
in  future  in  the  Library  at  the  Education  Office 
of  the  London  County  Council,  and  here  over 
60  nurses  met.  First,  of  course,  came  tea  and 
talk,  afterwards  the  meeting. 

The  Secretary  of  the  School  Xurses'  League 
Benevolent  Fund,  Ziliss  Lay  ton,  had  a  very 
satisfactory  report  to  present.  The  Benevolent 
Fund  is  one  year  old,  has  44  members,  and, 
owing  to  the  energy  of  its  Committee,  has  a 
balance  in  hand  of  i£34.  The  Hon.  Treasurer 
of  the  League  showed  that  it  also  has  a  balance 
in  hand. 

^Miss  Griffin,  the  Secretary  of  the  League, 
then  presented  her  report.  The  year  had, 
she  said,  been  rather  a  busy  one.  After  the 
Benevolent  Fund  was  founded  the  members 
tried  to  help  forward  State  Eegistration  for 
Xurses  by  obtaining  signatures  from  people  in 
favour  of  the  measure,  and  by  asking  their 
ilembers  of  Parliament  to  support  their  Bill. 
By  these  means  several  more  Members  of  Par- 
liament were  interested  in  this  important  mat- 
ter. Then,  in  July,  came  the  International 
Congress  of  Xurses,  in  the  coiu-se  of  which 
part  of  a  session  was  devoted  to  "  School  Xur- 
sing  "  in  its  various  branches.  The  League 
also  had  a  School  Nursing  Exhibit,  which  at- 
tracted a  good  many  visitors.  The  next  busi- 
ness was  to  elect  three  new  members  of  the 
Executive  in  place  of  JMiss  Layton,  Miss  Par- 
fitt,  and  Mrs.  Copelin  {nee  Howard)  who  re- 
tired. Miss  Castleman,  ]Miss  Hughes,  and  ]\Iiss 
Makepeace  were  elected. 

;\Iiss  Phillips  moved  the  following  resolu- 
tion, which  was  adopted  :  — 

"  That  School  Nurses  and  Health  Visitors  who 
are  trained  nurses  working  outside  London  be 
allowed  to  join  the  .School  Xurses'  League  by  pay- 
ment of  Is.  entrance  fee  and  Is.  yearly ;  and  that 
Health  Visitors  and  Sanitary  Insi)ectors  who  are 
not  trained  nurses  be  allowed  to  join  the  League 
as  Associates  on  payment  of  the  usual  entrance  fee 
and  yearly  subscription." 


It  was  proposed  to  organise  a  whist  drive^ 
auj"  profit  made  therefrom  to  go  to  the  Bene- 
volent Frmd.  The  SSrd  of  April  was  the  date 
fixed  upon  for  this  purpose,  and  Miss  Pearse, 
Miss  Parkman,  ]\Iiss  Barton,  ]\Iiss  Layton, 
Miss  Griffin,  and  Miss  L.  Eangecroft  each  pro- 
mised a  prize. 

Miss  Pearse  asked  the  nurses  if  they 
would  each  give  a  penny  to  buy  cocoa  and  bis- 
cuits for  the  very  poor  children  who  come  to 
the  three  cleansing  stations,  and  whom  the 
nurses  in  charge  feel  they  must  feed  before 
they  send  the  oftentime  very  ill  clad  little  ones 
out  into  the  cold  after  their  warm  baths. 
An  instant  response  was  made,  and  each  of  the 
three  ntirses  went  off  with  a  little  money  to 
spend  on  their  bairns. 

Five  nurses  joined  the  League  and  five  the 
Benevolent  Fund. 

,  L.  M.  Griffix, 

Ho)i.   Sec. 


Sensational  diseases. 


Is  it  right  to  use  those  suffering  from  unusual 
diseases  for  advertisement  purposes,  or  to  dis- 
cuss such  suffering  in  the  public  p>ress'?  That 
is  a  question  we  asked  years  ago,  when  day  by 
day  the  doings  of  the  "  Elephant  Man,"  who 
resided  at  the  London  Hospital,  to  which  in- 
stitution the  curious  flocked  to  see  this  poor 
afflicted  creature,  were  constantly  referred  to 
in  the  daily  press.  "  He  quite  enjoys  it,"  the 
Sister  informed  us.  "  Human  vanity  has  many 
phases,  and  besides  it  keeps  the  hospital's  work 
before  the  public." 

Last  week  we  had,  under  the  description  of 
■■  The  Brittle  Man,"  notoriety  given  to  a  case 
of  myositis  ossificans  at  the  London  Hospital, 
and  this  week  we  are  informed  that  "  The 
Marble  Man  "  is  puzzling  the  doctors  at  the 
BiiTningham  Hospital  for  Skin  Diseases.  The 
latter  patient  followed  the  trade  of  a  needle- 
pointer.  Four  years  ago  he  had  a  severe  attack 
of  pneumonia,  which  incapacitated  him  for  six 
mouths.  Shortly  aner  the  illness  the  skin 
became  marble  white,  and  cold  as  marble, 
and  so  tight  that  the  patient  is  unable  to  bond 
his  joints,  and  can  only  open  his  mouth  with 
difficulty. 

The  condition  is  thought  to  be  due  to  an  ob- 
struction in  the  arteries,  veins,  or  lymph  ves- 
sels, dependent  upon  some  disturbance  in  the 
vaso-motor  nervous  centre.  At  present  the 
patient  is  being  treated  with  a  view  to  improv- 
ing his  nutrition  and  increasing  the  blood  cir- 
culation, and  it  is  proposed  to  later  on  subject 
him  to  treatment  at  the  new  Birmingham 
Electric  Eadium  Institute,  which,  it  is  hoped, 
will  relieve  his  condition  and  suffering. 


Feb.  19,  1910] 


^be  British  3ournai  or  THursmo. 


131 


IPractical  ipoints. 


First   Aid 

to  the  injured 

and  Sick. 


Ut  si)f(ial  iiitfiH'st  just  now, 
\vhentii>.tai(lk'Ctuio.s  art'  Iwuig 
widely  organised  tlirough  the 
country,  is  the  publication  of 
a  new  edition  of  the  very 
practical  and  useful  haudlx>ok,  "First  Aid  to 'the 
Injured  and  Sick,"  by  Dr.  F.  J.  AVanvick  and  Dr. 
A.  C.  Tunstall,  published  by  Messrs.  John  Wright 
and  Sons,  Ltd.,  Bristol;  price  Is.  in  jjaper  boards, 
a  charming  cover  bearing  the  Red  Cross,  or  2s.  6d. 
iu  cloth.  The  book  is  divided  into  two  parts,  the 
first  of  wliioh  is  mainly  concerned  with  anatomy 
and  physiology,  and  the  second  with  the  practical 
rendering  of  first  aid.  In  this  section,  the  appli- 
cation of  bandages  and  tourniquets,  and,  conse- 
quently, the  securing  of  knots,  occupies  a  consider- 
able space ;  and  by  the  kindness  of  the  publis.hers 
we  are  able  to  reproduce  some  of  the  excellent 
illustrations  of  the  different  methods  employed. 
The  Gr.\xnt  Knot. 
The  knot  most  commonly  used  in  daily  life  is 
that  known  as  the 
"  granny  "  knot, 
but  it  should 
never  be  em- 
ployed in  ambu- 
lance or  nursing  Fig.  1. 
work.  It  is  liable  to  slip,  and  is  not  easily  untied, 
and  the  ends  lie 
at  right  angles  to 
the  bandage,  in- 
stead of  in  a  line 
with  it. 

Figure  1  shows 
the  "  granny  " 
i  n  process  o  f 
being  tied,  and 
Figure  2  the 
"  granny  "  when 
tied.  It  will  be 
noticed  in  the  ac- 
companying illus- 
tration  that  it  is' 
^^'  "■  clumsy         and 

lumpy,  and  is  unsuitable  for  use  in  conjiection 
with  surgical  work.  It  is  here  illustrated  as  show- 
ing what  to  avoid,  as  it  is  the  knot  which  most 
lay  pereons  will   naturally  tie. 

The  Reef  Knot. 
Tlie  "  reef,"  or  ' 
should  be  used 
for  securing  ban- 
dages. To  tie  it, 
the  directions 
given  in  the  book 
under  considera- 
tion on  this  page 
arc  as  follows: — ' 


sailor'.s."  knot  is  the  on^  which 


Hold 


Fig.  2. 


Fig  1. 
the  ends  of  the  ban- 
dage in  the  two 
hands;  wind  the 
end  held  in  the 
right  hand  over 
that  held  in  the 
left;      then     wind 


the  end  now  held  in  the  left  over  that  held  in  the 
right,  and  bring  it  through  the  loop   (Fig.   1). 

"  The  reef   knot,   if   properly  tied,  should   have 
its  free  ends  lying  in  the  same  angle  as  the  ban- 
dage (Fig.  2)."     The  advantages  "of  the  reef  knot 
over  the  "'  granny  "  are  that  it 
is  firmer,  it  is  less  liable  to  slip, 
and  it  is  easily  untied. 

Our  other  two  illn.strations 
are  of  methods  employed  in 
the  corapres.sion  of  arteries. 
The  handle  of  door  key,  padded, 
is  usotl  in  the  compression  of 
the  sub-clavian  artery,  wiiieh 
passes  across  the  upi>er  sur- 
face of  the  first  rib.  "It  cau 
be  best  compressed  at  a  point  behind  the  middle 
of  the  clavicle,  pressure  being  applied  downwards 
and  backwards,  after  first  depressing  the  shoulder 
and  drawing  it  forwards — either  with  both  thumbs' 
or  with  the  handle  of  a  door  key,  padded." 

The  accompanying  illustration  of  a  method  of 
oompression  of  the  brachial  artery,  shows  how  this 
may  be  accom- 
plished by  forcible 
flexion.  In  this 
case  digital  com- 
pression of  the 
artery  is  super- 
seded by  forcible 
flexion  of  the 
limb  —  i.e.,  by 
bending  the  main 
artery  acutely 
over  a  pad  placed 
,/  J  in  the  joint  above 

the    wound.      The 
joints    where   this 
method  can  be  most  effectively  used  are:    the  arm- 
pit,  the  bend  of  the  ellww,  and  the  bend  of  the 
knee. 

The  illustrations  here  reproduced  indicate  the 
very  practical  scope  of  the  book,  and  no  less  than 
25"  sucli  illustrations  are  to  be  found  scattered 
throughout  its  pages.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  it 
useful  to  membere  of  the  Territorial  Force  Nursing 
Service,  and  to  meml)ei's  of  classes  now  l)eing 
formed  in  connection  with  Red  Cro.ss  work,  the 
necessities  of  military  service  being  specially  em- 
phasised, and  also  to  probationers  who  wish  to  per- 
fect them.selves  in  the  application  of  bandages  and 
the  compi-ession  of  ai-teries  on  the  most  approved 
methods.  In  addition,  it  contains  a  mass  of  most 
useful  information  on  other  points,  and  is  a  liook 
to  be  cordially  and  confidently  recommended. 


THE   CHILD  STUDY  ROCIETY. 

Jfost  interesting  lectures  and  discussions  ar- 
ranged by  the  Cliild  Study  Society,  Ixmdon,  are 
taking  place  from  February  to  April  at  the  Royal 
Sanitary  Institute,  00,  Buckingham  Palace  Road, 
S.W.  The  objects  of  the  society  are  the  scientific 
study  of  the  mental  and  physical  condition  of  chil- 
dren, and  also  of  educational  methods,  with  a 
view  to  gaining  greater  insight  into  child  nature 
and  securing  more  sympathetic  and  <- ;..ntifio 
methods  of  training  the  young. 


152 


^be  Brltisb  3ournaI  of  IHurslng. 


[Feb.  19,  1910 


^be  Jrisb  TRiu-gcg'  association. 

We  have  pleasure  in  publishing  the  following 
list  of  new  members  of  the  Irish  Nurses'  As- 
sociation :  —  ■ 

NEW  MEMBERS. 
Cut  of   Dublin  Nuksing  Insiitution. 
Supplementary  List. 
Nurses:   K.   McCaffery,   M.   Egan,   M.   Ryau,   A. 
Dwyer,  N.  CuUen,  N.  Johnston,  B.  Kavanagh,  L. 
Doran,      A.   Anderson,      Bessie    Carr,      Henrietta 
McCreery,   Annie  Fitzgerald,   Mary   Shields,   Mary 
Hayden,  K.   Kinsella. 

CooMBE  Hospital,  Dublin. 

Matron :  Miss  Joy,  member  of  Executive  Com- 
mittee, I.N. A. 

Sisters:   N.  Douglas,  M.  Slater,  M.  Dwyer. 

Nurses:  M.  Brown,  A.  Meehau,  A.  Power,  F.  E. 
Ross,  S.  O'Reilly,  M.  Doberty,  M.  Woran,  T. 
Milligan,  B.  Marrow,  M.  Teulin,  K.  HeiFernau,  M. 
Wvnue,  M.  Byron,  A.  Shannon,  E.  McElligott,  M. 
McEUigott,  E.  Malone,  M.  Kelly,  M.  Doherty,  J. 
Flanagan,  C.  M.  McPhillips,  L.  M.  O'Brien,  M. 
Deane,  M.  J.  Heallev,  M.  Dalton,  W.  O'Suhivau, 
M.  Hughes,  M.  K.  O'Brien. 

Children's  Hospital,  Temple  Street,  Dublin. 

Superintendent  of  Nurses:     Miss  O'Flynu. 

Nurses:    Hanna  O'Keefe,  O'Keefe,  A.  O'Leary, 
O'Toole,  Markey,  WiUiams,  Blanshfild. 
North  Inpiemakt,  Cork:. 

Matron :    Sister  Angela. 

Staff  Nurses:  E.  Daly,  M.  McMahon,  M. 
Duggan,  G.  Fitzgerald,  M.  Murphy,  M.  Crowley, 
F.  O'Sullivan. 

Nurses:  A.  McNamara,  F.  Roycroft,  L.  O'Sul- 
livan, J.  O'Herlihy,  M.  WaUace,  M.  O'Neill,  B.  T. 
Dolan,  A.  Delaney,  M.  Daly,  M.  Downing,  M. 
McCarthy,  F.  Barry,  N.  Aherne,  R.  Bannon,  C. 
Smiddy,  H.  Daly,  'e.  T.  Leahy,  M.  Collins,  K. 
Cambridge,  F.  O'Neil,  A.  Quinlan,  J.  Wakhe,  L. 
O'Keeffe,  M.  Breen,  M.  Sisk,  W.  Murphy,  M. 
O'Sullivan,  M.  Sheehan,  M.  Walshe,  B.  O'Regan, 
N.  MoIIoy,  K.  Dunne,  N.  Power,  N.  Scanlan,  G. 
Quinn,  E.  Quinn,  L.  McAuliffe,  K.  Reen,  M. 
McEvoy,  E.  O'SuUivan,  G.  Biggs. 
Miscellaneous. 

Nurse  Teresa  Corcoran,  Kilkenny  Infirmary. 

Nurse  E.  KeUy,   Infirmary,   Thurles. 

Nurse  Conway,  Rosses  Point,  Sligo. 

Sister  Eager,   Simpson's  Hospital,  Dublin. 

Miss  Moffatt,  Matron,  Cottage  Hospital, 
Drogheda. 

Miss  Reidy,  Matron,  Drogheda  New  Hospital. 


Hppointmcnts. 


Xeoal  fIDatters. 


At  York,  I'ecently,  Roise  Sorton,  aged  35,  said  to 
be  a  trained  nurse,  was  charged  with  obtaining 
money  on  false  pretences.  For  the  defence,  Mr. 
Norman  Crombie  said  there  had  been  similar 
trouble  at  Easingwold,  and  the  Justices,  in  passing 
sentence,  had  regard  to  the  offences  at  York.  He 
asked  that  the  prisoner  might  be  sent  to  a  Home 
where,  as  a  trained  nurse,  she  could  easily  gain  her 
living.  The  prisoner  was  bound  over  to  be  of  good 
behaviour  for  six  months.  AVe  hope  she  will  not 
elect  to  earn  an  easy  living  in  private  houses. 


M.A.IRONS. 
Norton  Infirmary,  Banbury. — Miss  Gertrude  Hal- 
stead  has  been  ajipointed  Matron.  She  was  trained 
at  the  General  Infirmary,  Huddersfield,  and  has 
held  the  position  of  Night  Sister  at  the  General 
Infirmary,  Chichester,  and  of  Theatre  Sister  at  An- 
coats  Hospital,  Manchester,  and  at  Oldham  In- 
firmary. She  has  also  had  experience  of  private 
nursing  in  connection  with  the  Brighton  and  Hove 
Hospiital  for  Women. 

Holcombe  Hall  Hospital  for  Consumptives,  Bury,  Lanes 
Miss  L.  Carey  has  been  appointed  Matron  of  the 
Holcoml>6  Hall  Hospital  for  Consumptives,  Bury, 
under  the  Bury  and  District  Joint  Hospital  Board. 
Miss  Carey  was  formerly  Night  Superintendent  at 
the  Camberwell  Infirmary,  and  has  held  the  position 
of  Senior  Sister  at  the  Bolton  Borough  Isolation 
Hospital,  and  of  Matron  at  the  Ainsworth  Isola- 
tion Hospital. 

Assistant  Matron. 
Mercer's  Hospital,  Publin. — Miss  E.  I.  Allen  has 
been  appointed  Assistant  Matron.  She  was  trained 
at  Crumpsall  Infirmary,  where  she  afterwards  held 
the  position  of  Sister.  She  has  also  been  Senior 
Sister  at  Ancoats  Hospital,  Manchester,  where  she 
has  taken  the  Matron's  holiday  duty.  She  is 
a  certified  midwife,  and  holds  the  certificate  of  the 
Incorporated  Society  of  Trained  Masseuses. 

Sisters. 
Dr.    Barnardo's    Home    for    Incurables,    Tunbridge    Wells. 

Miss  Elsie  Nicholas  has  been  appointed  Sister.  She 
was  trained  at  the  London  Homoeopathic  Hospital, 
and  has  held  the  position  of  Night  Sister,  and  of 
Sister  in  a  Men's  Surgical  Ward  in  the  same  in- 
stitution. 

St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  London,  E.G. — Quite  an 
unusual  number  of  vacancies  have  recently  oc- 
curred amongst  the  Sisters,  owing  to  resignations 
on  promotion  and  retirement.  Owing  to  the  resig- 
nation of  Miss  F.  Sleigh  after  thirty-three  years' 
devoted  work  for  the  hospital,  her  sister,  j\liss 
Mabel  Sleigh,  cert,  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital, 
and  at  present  Sister  of  Lucas  Ward,  has,  by  re- 
quest of  Mr.  C.  B.  Lockwood,  F.R.C.S.,  been 
appointed  Sister  of  President  Ward. 

Miss  K.  M.  Latham,  cert.  St.  Bartholomeiv's 
Hospital,  Assistant  Housekeeper,  has  been  ap- 
l)ointed  Sister  of  Lucas  Ward. 

Miss  Nuttall,  cert.  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital, 
gQld  medal.  Night  Superintendent,  has  been  ap- 
pointed Sister  of   Casualty  Ward. 

Miss  E.  V.  Gascoigne,  cert.  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital,  who  has  had  experience  as  Assistant 
Housekeeper,  has  been  appointed  Sister  of  Har- 
ley  Ward. 

Miss  M.  Paterson,  cert.  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, has  been  appointed  Si.ster  of  Mary  Ward 
from  1st  next.  Miss  Hansard  (in  pink)  is  in  the 
meanwhile  Acting  Sister. 

Chesterfield  and  North  Derbyshire  Hospital,  Chesterfield. 
— Miss  Lilian  Allen  has  been  appointed  Sister.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Queen's  Hospital,  Birmingham, 
where  she  has  taken  the  Theatre  Sister's  holiday- 


Feb.  19, 1910]       Q^^^   ibiitiisi)  3ournal  of  IHiU'Stiuj. 


153 


duties,  aud  has  beeu  temporary  Staff  Xurse  at  the 
Royal  Orthopajdic  Hospital,  Birmingham. 

Hiss  Agnes  Johnson  has  been  appointed  Sister  in 
the  same  institution.  She  was  trained  at  the  Lin- 
coln County  Hospital,  where  she  has  done  both  day 
and  night  Sisters'  holiday  duty.  She  has  also  done 
temporary  Staff  Nurse's  duty  at  the  Sunderland 
Infirmary. 

City  Hospital  North,  Netherfield  Road,  Liverpool. — Miss 
Mai'y  Janet  Macbetli  has  been  api>ointe<l  Sister. 
She  was  trained  at  the  Crumpsall  Infirmary,  Man- 
chester, and  has  since  been  Assistant  Nurse  at  the 
City  Hospital   North,  Liverpool. 

Night  Superintendent. 
General  Infirmary,   Chester.  -Miss  Sara  Bullock    has 
been  appointed  Night   Superintendent.     She    was 
trained   at  the    Mill   Road   Infirmary,    Liverpool, 
where  she  had  held  the  position  of  Sister. 

Royal  Infirmary,  Bradford.  -Miss  H.  Pritchard  has 
been  apix)inted  Night  Sister.  She  was  trained  at  the 
General  Hospital,  Northampton,  where  she  has  held 
the  position  of  Sister. 

Health  Visitok  and  School  Nurse. 

Public  Health  Society,  Macclesfield. — Miss  Marian  E. 
Rogers  has  been  appointed  Health  Visitor  and 
School  Nurse.  She  was  trained  at  the  Hackney 
Union  Infirmary,  and  has  worked  in  connection 
with  the  Victoria  Nurses'  Home,  Cliestorfield,  the 
West  Suffolk  Nurs&s'  Home,  and  the  Accident 
Hospital,  ^lexborough,  and  as  a  Queen's  Nurse  at 
Northampton.     She  is  a  certified  midwife. 

Miss  Mary  H.  Ward  has  been  appointed  Health 
Visitor  and  School  Nurse  under  the  same  authority. 
She  was  trained  at  the  Hackney  Union  Infirmary, 
where  she  also  held  the  position  of  midwife.  She 
has  held  the  position  of  Cliarge  Nurse  under  the 
M.A.B.  at  Gore  Farm  Hospital,  and  has  woz-ked 
on  the  staff  of  the  Ipswich  Nurses'  Home,  and  as 
a  Queen's  Nurse  in  Northampton.  She  is  a  certi- 
fie<l  midwife,  and  holds  the  certificate  of  the  Royal 
Sanitary  Institute  for  Health  Visitors  a)Kl  School 
Nurses. 

QUEEN   ALEXANDRA'S   IMPERIAL   MILITARY 

NURSING   SERVICE. 
Miss  E.   Lowe  to  be  Stafli  Nurse  (provisionally) 
(January  25th). 


QUEEN  VICTORIAS  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
FOR  NURSES 
Transfers  and  Appointments.- — Miss  Fanny 
Mellor,  to  Handsworth ;  Miss  Amy  Edge,  to  Hud- 
dersfield ;  Miss  Margaret  Byerley  and  Miss  Eliza- 
beth Randall,  to  Harrow ;  !Miss  Edith  Andrews,  to 
Trumpington ;  Miss  Evelyn  Smith  and  Miss  Mary 
Cr.acknell,  to  Fleet;  Miss  Sara  Mitchell,  to  Addle, 
stone;  Miss  'Winifred  Heather,  to  Cowley;  Miss 
Annie  Godfrey,  to  Heavitree;  Miss  Ellen  J.  Jones, 
to  Tynewj-dd ;  Miss  Annie  Button  and  Miss  Helen 
Higgs,  to  Treorchy;  Miss  Mary  Gaskell,  as  Super- 
intendent, to  Bath;  Miss  .Mice  Pennington,  to 
Headiiigton;  Miss  Edith  McDonald,  to  'Wriiigton ; 
Miss  Emma  Greensill,  to  Pontypool ;  ^Tiss  Priscilla 
Koarton,  to  Withnell ;  Miss  Norah  Brindley,  to 
Woolwich ;  Miss  Olivia  Kemp,  to  Ivor. 


ll^uvsinG  lEcbocs. 

Last  Friday,  Mrs.  Willie 
James  orgaaised  an  amateur 
pcrformauce  of  The  Marriage 
u]  Kitty  on  behalf  of  the 
Jirightou  branch  of  the 
Queen's  Nurses,  in  which  she 
played  the  title  role.  The 
King  attended  the  perform- 
ance to  the  great  delight  of 
all  concerned,  and  he  gra- 
ciously acknowledged  the 
presence  of  the  nurses  as  he 
passed  through  the  corridors.  Miss  Buckle, 
the  Superintendent,  handed  the  King  a  pro- 
gramme, and  received  from  him  a  sovereign  in 
return.  Why  should  not  the  King's  sovereign 
be  sold  for  the  benefit  of  the  institution? — it 
ought  to  bring  a  handsome  profit.  It  is  hoped 
that  the  institution  will  benefit  to  the  amount 
of  £300  from  this  very  successful  matinee. 


The  Council  of  the  Trained  Nurses'  An- 
nuity Fund,  which  provides  annuities  for 
disabled  Trained  Nurses,  records  that  during 
the  past  year  the  total  contributed  was  larger 
than  ever  before,  due,  in  great  measure,  to  the 
energy  of  its  present  Chairman,  Mr.  Montagu 
W.  Price,  D.L.,  aud  to  two  handsome  dona- 
tions from  the  Hon.  Alexander  Yorke  and  Mr. 
Nivison,  but  several  generous  supporters  of  the 
Fund  have  been  removed  by  death,  and  fur- 
ther subscriptions  are  urgently  needed.  The 
Council  had  the  painful  duty  of  deciding  be- 
tween the  applications  of  twenty-six  nurses  in 
need  of  assistance,  in  awarding  three  annuities 
at  their  disposal.  Eventually  one  was  given  to 
a  nurse  of  forty  years'  standing  who  had  been 
-\Iatron  of  a  largo  institution,  but  whose  savings 
had  been  exhausted  by  ill  health,  and  who  was 
practically  penniless ;  another  to  a  nurse  totally 
paralysed,  as  the  result  of  a  fall  while  on  duty, 
and  the  third  to  a  nurse  permanently  disabled 
by  blood  poisoning  of  her  right  hand  and  ami, 
during  her  work. 

The  Fund  has  now  19  annuitants,  and  the 
extension  of  its  useful  work  depends  on  the 
financial  help  accorded  to  it.  Subscriptions 
and  donations  will  be  gladly  received  by  the 
Hon.  Secretai7,  Dr.  Ogier  Ward,  73,  Cheap- 
side,  E.G. 


The  half-yearly  number  of  League  News  is 
full  of  interest  to  members  of  the  League  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital.  Miss  Frere's  pape. 
on  the  Training  of  Nurses,  which  won  the  £6 
Prize  last  year,  is  pubhshed.  She  suggests  a 
coiu'se  of  four  years.  A  six  weeks'  preliminary 
course  is  proposed — an  eighteen  months'  course 


UA 


(Tbe  36nt(5b  3ournal  of  murstng,      [^eb.  19, 1910 


as  probationer  in  the  wards,  18  months  as  staii 
nurse,  the  fourth  year  to  be  spent  in  one  ward 
with  responsibility  for  the  management  in  the 
Sister's  absence.  The  certificate  to  be  given 
after  examination  at  the  expiration  of  the  third 
year's  work. 


Since  last  June,  £388  has  been  collected  by 
seventeen  members  of  the  League  for  the  ne\v 
Nurses'  Home  Fund,  an  anonymous  benefactor 
contributing  £50. 

The  Journal  concludes  with  a  complete  list 
of  the  700  members  of  the  League. 


j\Ir.  Harold  Boulton,  whom  the  Prince  of 
Wales  as  Grand  Prior  of  the  Order  of  St.  John 
of  Jerusalem,  has  deputed  to  proceed  to 
Canada  as  Special  Hon.  Commissioner,  to' 
assist  in  the  reorganisation  of  the  St.  John  Am- 
bulance Brigade  in  the  Dominion,'  has  left  for 
Ottawa.  Mr.  Boulton  has  been  invited  by  the 
Earl  and  Countess  of  Dudley  to  go  on  to  Aus- 
tralia to  assist  them  in  the  i^romotion  of  a  dis- 
trict nursing  scheme  for  the  Commonwealth 
on  the  hnes  of  the  Queen's  Jubilee  Nurses  in 
this  country,  and  the  Victorian  Nurses'  Order 
in  Canada. 


A  j'ouug  hospital  nurse,  who  speaks  French 
and  Gemian,  and  w-ho  has  lost  her  appoint- 
ment through  her  courageous  work  for  the 
women's  suffrage  cause,  desires  to  obtain  an 
appointment  as  travelling  nurse  attendant  to 
an  invalid  or  child.  Communications  should 
be  addressed,  in  the  first  instance,  to  Mrs. 
Tuke,  Hon.  Secretary,  W'.S.P.U.,  -1,  Clement's 
Inn,  W.C.  

It  is  not  improbable  that  without  care  there 
w'iU  be  an  increased  amount  of  disease  in  coun- 
try villages  owing  to  the  number  of  old  people 
attempting  to  live  on  their  five  shillings  a  week 
pensions.  Care  will  certainly  have  to  be  taken 
that  these  old  people  are  kept  clean,  and  five 
shillings  a  week  leaves  no  margin  for  such  at- 
tendance. 


It  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  making  an 
application  to  the  St.  Asaph  Board  of  Guar- 
dians for  an  increased  grant  in  aid  of  the  funds 
for  the  Abergele  and  Pensarn  District  Nursing 
Association,  ;\Irs.  .Johnson,  the  hon.  secretary, 
pointed  out  that  there  was  at  the  present  time 
a  grea/ter  call  upon  the  seixiees  of  the  nurse 
among  the  old  people  than  had  previously  been 
the  case.  The  reason  was  that  since  the  grant- 
ing of  old  age  pensions  aged  people  retained 
their  homes  for  longer  periods  than  formerlj-, 
and  therefore  needed  more  attention  from  the 
nurse.     The  Board,  however,  declined  the  ap- 


plication on  the  ground  that  if  their  grant  of 
£2  2s.  to  the  Abergele  Association  were  in- 
creased it  would  be  necessary  to  increase  the 
grants  to  the  other  associations  in  the  union, 
which  were  of  similar  amount. 

The  ■  American  National  Eed  Cross  has 
elected  a  very  representative  Committee,  upon 
which  we  find  the  well  known  names  of  Mrs. 
Whitelaw  Keid,  Mrs.  Hampton  Eobb,  Miss 
Jane  Delano,  Miss  Georgia  M.  Nevius,  Miss 
Sophia  F.  Palmer,  Miss  Anna  C.  Maxwell,  and 
I\Irs.  Harriet  Camp  Lounsbury.  This  Com- 
mittee will,  no  doubt,  in  the  future  popularise 
niilitary  nursing  somewhat  on  the  lines  of  our 
Territorial  Force  Nursing  Service. 


In  this  month's  American  Journal  of  Nurs- 
ing an  opportune  little  article  on  Affiliation,  by 
Miss  -Amy  M.  Hilliard,  K.N.,  appears,  in  which 
she  writes  that  "  there  can  be  no  question  of 
the  ultimate  benefit  of  afiiliation  to  schools 
which  cannot  give  adequate  practical  instiuc- 
tion  without  it,  but  such  a  school,  if  it  desires 
to  give  a  three  years'  course,  will  be  confronted 
wdth  the  following  problems,"  which  she 
enumerates.  Miss  Hilliard  concludes  :  "  It 
would  seem  that  the  introduction  of  pupils 
from  one  school  into  another  for  so  long  a  time 
(as  a  year)  would  interfere  with  necessary  dis- 
cipline, but  our  two  and  a  half  years'  ex- 
perience "rith  the  same  aifiliations  has  been 
devoid  of  anything  approaching  unpleasantness 
or  friction  between  pupils  of  both  schools.  In 
fact,  the  home-coming  pupils  are,  by  their  en- 
thusiasm,   an  inspiration  to   the  others." 

This  is  encouraging  to  special  hospitals,  some 
of  which  fear  a  system  of  registration  of  nurses 
may  interfere  with  their  curriculum.  We,  on 
the  other  hand,  have  always  hoped  it  would 
benefit  them,  by  including  theni  in  a  co-opera- 
tive svstem  of  nurse  training. 


Miss  Edith  Woods  sends  to  the  Queen  from 
Cape  Town  an  account  of  Sister  Bessie 
Smythe's  amazing  journey  and  work  across 
Africa.  It  is  nearly  30  years  since,  as  a  bright 
young  Irish  girl,  she  began  her  nursing  career 
in  Kimberley.  She  was  keeia,  adventurous, 
and  hardy.  In  1898,  when  the  sev&re  small- 
pox epidemic  broke  out  in  the  Transvaal,  it  was 
she  who  took  charge  of  the  lazaretto  in  Pre- 
toria— the  only  woman  in  that  grim  and  dread- 
ful place.  She  got  into  camp,  an-anged  the 
wards  and  the  beds,  and  set  to  work  to  train  a 
numbei'  of  awkward  Ivaffirs  as  orderly  boys,  a 
task  which  she  carried  out  to  perfection.  For 
four  months  she  lived  in  that  camp  and  saw 
the  danger  through. 


Fob.  19, 1910]       ^|5C  Bi'itisl)  3ournal  of  mursinn. 


155 


Then  came  the  war.  She  was  iu  the  Ihiug 
hne  at  the  Plodder,  iu  Kimberley,  aud  at 
Boshof ;  and  later  she  was  put  in  charge  of  the 
hospital  at  Vereenigiug.  When  the  war  ended 
Sister  Bessie  took  charge  of  the  Government 
Hospital  at  ^lombasa,  and  after  this  set  off, 
unarmed,  and  only  attended  by  occasional  car- 
riers picked  up  on  the  way,  through  North- 
West  Rhodesia,  across  a  corner  of  the  Congo 
Free  State,  and  along  the  shores  of  Lake  Tan- 
ganyika, till  she  came  to  the  Victoria  Nyanza, 
which  she  crossed  in  an  Arab  dhow. 


The  account  of  her  travels  on  foot  for  300 
miles  is  most  interesting,  and' we  next  find  her 
in  charge  of  the  camp  liospital — the  only 
woman  there — when  the  engineers  of  the  Cape- 
to-Caii'o  Railway  were  spanning  the  Falls,  and 
before  the  bridge  was  half  completed  she  was 
the  first  woman  to  cross  it  on  the  "  travelling 
blondin." 


The  year  1906  saw  Sister  Bessie  on  the  Gold 
Coast,  which  she  left  after  a  short  time  (when 
the  hospital  closed  down)  for  Liberia,  the 
Black  Man's  .Republic,  and  San  Thome,  after 
which  she  found  herself  in  the  centre  of  our 
Cape  colonial  whale  fishery.  Here  she  became 
counsellor  and  friend  of  the  tall  Norse  fisher- 
men, one  of  whose  small  whalers  recently 
landed  her  at  Cape  Town. 


^be  IRursee'  flDi66ionav\>  Xcaauc 

This  week  special  meetings  are  being  held  in 
connection  with  the  Nurses'  Missionary  League 
in  the  Women's  Club  Room  of  the  Passmore 
Edwards'  Settlement,  Tavistock  Place,  W.C. 
They  are  of  a  purely  devotional  character,  their 
object  being  to  create  and  strengthen  among 
nurses  interest  in  Home  and  Foreign  Mis- 
sionary work. 

Since  the  formation  of  the  League  about 
eight  years  ago  nearly  three  times  as  many 
nurses  (not  necessarily  members)  are  qt  work 
in  the  mission  field,  and  this  year  it  is  hoped 
that  about  thirty-four  reciniits  will  be  added  to 
their  number.  It  speaks  well  for  the  enthu- 
siasm of  the  members  of  the  League  that  out 
of  eleven  hundred  between  two  and  three  hun- 
flred  are  volunteers  for  foreign  service.  A  great 
number  of  these  are  sent  out  by  all  the  leading 
missionary  societies,  the  League  being  inter- 
denominational in  character. 

We  understand  that  during  the  past  fortnight 
■  meetings  have  been  arranged  for  the  mu'sing 
staffs  iu  no  fewer  than  twenty-five  London  hos- 
pitals. 

The  meeting  on  Saturday  afternoon  next 
will  be  one  of  thauksgiviDg. 


TLlK  Ibospital  Morlb. 

THE  FORSTER  GREEN  HOSPITAL  FOR 
CONSUMPTION. 

The  Forster  Green  Hospital  for  Consump- 
tion, Belfast,  held  its  Annual  Meeting  recently. 
The  beds,  70  in  number,  35  of  which  belong  to 
the  Corporation,  have  been  fully  occupied  dur- 
ing the  past  year,  and  very  encouraging  results 
from  the  treatment  have  been  obtained. 

I  went  over  this  hospital  last  week,  and  was 
greatly  interested  in  all  1  saw.  It  was  a  bit- 
terly cold  day,  ice  on  the  ponds,  and  snow  on 
all  the  hills,  but  the  hospital,  which  stands 
practically  on  one  side  overlooking  the  town, 
was  bathed  in  sunshine. 

The  patients  were  all  out  in  the  shelters, 
only  one  being  in  bed,  and  very  comfortable 
and  happy  they  looked. 

After  tea,  which  the  hospitable  Matron,  Miss 
Long,  very  kindly  gave  me,  I  was  shown  over 
the  wards.  They  are  all  facing  south  and  west, 
with  large  windows  at  the  south  end.  The  beds 
are  not  placed  with  a  window  between,  but 
standing  out  from  the  walls,  with  the  windows 
(which  have  the  low  sashes  thrown  up)  at  one 
end,  and  the  door  at  the  other.  The  sun  thus 
shines  in  on  all  the  beds,  and  there  is  a  cur- 
rent of  air  always  passing  through.  The  wards 
are  heated  by  means  of  hot  pipes.  We  asked 
several  of  the  patients  if  they  did  not  feel  cold, 
but  they  all  said  they  liked  the  fresh  air,  and 
with  hot  jars,  they  were  very  comfortable.  The 
whole  place  was  beautifully  bright  and  clean, 
the  polished  floors  shining,  the  white  walls 
with  rounded  comers,  the  snowy  quilts  and 
polished  lockers,  and  the  brilliant  sunshine 
made  a  charming  tout  ensemble.  There  is  an 
ample  supply  of  bathrooms,  etc.,  and  a  spe- 
cial sterilising  room  for  the  sputum,  where 
there  is  a  separate  steriliser  for  the  sputum 
before  it  is  carried  down  the  drain,  and  a  very 
large  one  for  the  mugs  which  are  made  of 
aluminium  and  are  therefore  very  light. 

The  nurses'  quarters  are  very  comfortable, 
and  they  have  a  most  dejightful  sitting  room, 
with  a  lovely  view  over  the  mountains. 

We  were  charmed  with  our  visit,  and  said 
good-bye  with  great  reluctance. 

A.  C.  R. 


A  SCOTTISH   MATRONS    COUNCIL. 

Wc  are  glad  to  learn  that  the  formation  of  a 
Scottish  Matrons'  Association  is  now  under 
consideration.  We  wish  it  every  success.  Now 
•that  nursing  is  on  the  eve  of  organisation  by 
the  State,  the  expert  and  well  considered 
opinion  of  the  heads  of  the  Nurse  Training 
Schools  should  be  available.  The  Matrons  in 
England  and  Ireland  have  for  many  years  taken 
counsel  together  on  professional  affairs. 


156 


tibe  Britieb  Sournal  of  mursino- 


[Feb.  19,  1910 


TRcflcctions. 


From  a  Boakd  Koom  Mihror. 
Princess  Heury  of  Battenberg  has  consented  to 
become  the  president  of  the  Isle  of   Wight  Rural 
Midwifery  and  Nursing  Association. 


At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Tiverton  Infirmary, 
Mr.  A.  Fisher,  hon.  sec,  remarked  that  the  deficit 
of  £51  on  1908  was  discharged  by  a  donor,  who 
wished  to  remain  anonymous.  The  ladies'  auxiliary 
was  a  new  feature,  on  which  they  based  their 
future  hopes.  As  to  the  operating  theatre,  he  had 
been  assured  by  surgeons  from  London  and  other 
large  centres  that  they  had  never  seen  a  better 
operating  theatre  in  the  provinces. 


The  annual  meeting  of  the  Glasgow  Women's 
Private  Hospital  was  held  recently  at  the  hospital. 
The  rejiort  submitted  was  of  an  interesting  char- 
acter, showing  that  the  institution  is  in  a  sound 
condition.  With  funds  on  hand  to  the  extent  of 
more  than  £1,500,  the  hospital  is  well  equipped  to 
set  out  on  another  year's  work.  Forty-eight  i^a- 
tients  have  been  treated  throughout  the  year,  with 
the  most  satisfacfcorv  results. 


Mr.  Alexander  Ledingham,  S.S.C.,  in  subrnftting 
the  Royal  Asylum  of  Aberdeen  report  last  week,, 
made  some  interesting  remarks.  He  said  the  num- 
ber of  patients  during  the  last  four  yeais  had  been 
almost  stationary.  This  was  in  aceordance  ■n-ith  the 
general  exjierience  of  the  Scottish  asylums.  The 
boom  was  off  foi-  insanity  as  well  as  for  many  other 
things.  What  the  rea-son  of  this  might  be  he  could 
not  tell.  Partly,  perhaps,  the  absence  of  escit'e- 
ment  and  speculation,  partly  greater  moderation 
in  the  use  of  alcohol.  It  would  be  very  int-eresting 
to  watch,  if  trade  revived,  whether  increased 
prosperity  and  luxury  were  accompanied  by  a  cor- 
responding increase  of  insanity.  From  the  medical 
leport  it  appeared  that  out  of  every  hundred 
patients  admitted  to  the  Aberdeen  Asylum  the 
number  of  recoveries  had  l^een  38,  a  result  some- 
what better  than  in  the  previous  year. 


We  think  that  people  who  are  cruel  to  the  dear 
animals  aie  beyond  the  pale,  and  that  they  deserve 
vei-y  special  punishment.  Tlie  traffic  in  old  horses 
from  this  country  to  abroad  is  a  national  disgrace, 
which  the  kind-hearted  must  arouse  themselves  to 
wipe  out.  We  are  pleased  to  annotmce  that  meet- 
ings are  being  organised  by  Our  Dumb  Friends' 
League  to  protest  against  Continental  traffic  m 
agetl  and  worn-out  hoi-ses.  Poor  dears!  For  tlie 
Ijest  yeai-s  of  their  lives  they  have  worked  for  our 
comfoi-t  and  enrichment,  and  no  better  fate  awaits 
them  than  an  old  age  of  slavery  or  death  in  a 
foreign  land !  Cui  bono  ?  some  fiend  is  a  few 
shillings  the  richer!  Surely  there  is  a  happy  hunt- 
ing giound  in  some  unknown  sphere  for  all  these 
noble  beasts,  and  we  hope  it  is  the  sphere  to  which 
our  spirit  will  take  wings. 


®ut9it)C  tbc  (Bates.^ 

WOMEN. 
—  ,  At      a      well-attended 

meeting  of  women, 
organised  by  the  North 
Kensington  Municipal 
Reform  Candidates'  Elec- 
tion Committee,  held  at 
Horbury  Hall,  Lad- 
broke  Road,  last  week, 
ilary  Lady  llchester, 
who  i^resided,  said  that  the  forthcoming  Londott 
County  Council  Election  was  as  important  to 
women  as  the  General  Election  had  been  to  men, 
for  the  L.C.C.  regulated  social  economics.  In  the 
area  covered  by  the  Council  there  was  a  vast  field 
in  which  women  could  work. 


Six  women  are  seeking  election  to  the  L.C.C.' — 
Miss  Adler,  and  Mrs.  Miall  Smith,  who  did  good 
work  on  the  Loudon  School  Board,  and  who  is  Pre- 
sident of  the'  North  St.  Pancras  Women's  Liberal 
Association,  as  Progressives ;  Dr.  Ethel  Bentham 
(North  Kensington)  and  Miss  Margaret  Bondfield 
(Woolwich)  as  Labour  candidates ;  and  Miss  Susan 
Lawrence  (West  Marylebone)  and  Miss  Douglas 
Pennant  as  Moderates.  ITiey  are  all  well  known 
for  their  public  ivork,  and  we  hope  their  can- 
didature will  receive  widespread  support. 

The  Conference  of  the  Labour  Party  at  Newport, 
Mijn.,  last  week,  under  the  presidency  of  Mr.  Keir 
Hardie,  addjited  a  resolution  moved  by  Miss  Bond- 
field  demanding  that  the  inclusion  of  women  in 
the  Reform  Bill  promised  by  the  Government 
'.should  not  be  left  to  the  chances  of  an  amendment, 
and  'declaring  that  any  attempt  to  exclude  women 
would  be  met  bj"  the  uncompromising  opposition  of 
organised  labour.  Miss  Bondfield's  appeal  to  tne 
men  of  the  Conference  to  i-efuse  to  enter  into  their 
kingdom  of  free  citizenship  while  women  were  left 
outside,  evidently  appealed  to  their  sense  of  justice. 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Trustees  of  the 
Royal  Infirmary,  Manchester,  a  resolution  sub- 
mitted by  the  Board  of  Management,  stating  that 
it  is  not  desirable  to  appoint  women  to  resident 
medical  and  surgical  appointments  at  the  Infirmary 
was  carried.  We.  underst'and  that  medical  women 
are  only  asking  that  appointments  in  the  women's 
wards  should  be  thrown  open  to  them,  and  logically 
they  should  claim  equality  of  opportunity  with  male 
practitioners,  but  even  their  modest  demand  is  thus 
denied. 

At  the  suggestion  of  the  Japanese  Department  of 
the  Interior  a  most  interesting  exhibit  at  tne 
Japan-British  Exhibition  at  Shepherd's  Bush  this 
year  will  be  a  collection  of  relics  of  the  Russo- 
Japanese  war  belonging  to  Mrs.  Tamekichi  Sawauo, 
which  contains  a  number  of  articles  captured  by 
Japanese  soldiers  on  the  battlefield,  and  presented 
to  her  in  recognition  of  her  work  for  the  troops,  as 
well  as  the  sick  and  wounded  soldiere  and  their 
families.  After  the  war  Mi-s.  Sawauo  received  from: 
the  (Government  a  medal  and  the  Japanese  Order 
of  Distinguished  Service. 


IVh.  19,  1910J 


line  Bvitsb  3oiirnal  of  IIAm'sinq. 


157 


A  most  interesting  address  on  "  The  Position  of 
the  Hindu  Woman  " — not  Mohammedans — was  de- 
livOH'd  last  week  at  36,  The  Grove,  The  Boltoiis, 
South  Kensington,  by  Saxath  Kumar  Uhosh.  The 
let-turer  said  that  at  the  ijrescnt  time  it  was  de- 
sirable to.  know  the  Hindu  woman  well,  for  she 
ruled  the  greater  part  of  the  peninsula.  Gener- 
ally speaking  her  position  was  higher  than  that  of 
man  in  her  own  country  or  in  any  part  of.  the. 
world.  Some  of  the  sacred  books  were  written  by 
women,  the  husband  could  not  say  his- morning 
prayers,  or  secure  salvation  without  the  consent  of 
his  wife;  again,  tliere  was  a  popular  belief  that  in 
every  family  tliere  was  a  woman  in  particular 
favour  with  the  goddess  of  good  fortune.  A  man 
did  not  know  which  of  the  women  of  his  family  was 
6o  honoured,  and  was  therefore  bound  to  treat  them 
all  with  res{)ect  and  kindness.  The  fact  that  the 
Hindu  wx>men  did  the  cooking  was  consider<'d  m 
the  AV(\st  a  sign  of  tlieir  .subjection.  The  contrary 
was  the  case,  as  cooking  in  India  was  almost  a  re- 
ligiou.s  rite.  F<K>d  prepared  by  inferiors  could  not 
be  eaten,  but  the  lady  was  the  Ivighest  member  of 
the  household  and  therefore  wliat  she  |ire|Kired 
could  }je  eaten  by  all. 

Booh  ot  tbe  Mceh. 


ANNE  OF  GREEN  GABLES.* 
A  nu)st  charming  Canadian  story,  which  jio  one 
should  miss  reading,  is  "  Anne  of  Green  Gal)les." 
Anne  is  an  original  and  delightful  child,  all 
■'  spirit  and  fire,  and  dew  "  to  whom  the  pleasures 
and  pains  of  life  came  with  trebled  intensity.  Hap- 
pily she  eventually  fell  into  kindly  hands,  though 
her  father  and  mother  both  died  when  she  was  three 
months  old.  "  Mrs.  Thomas,"  remarked  Anne, 
"  said  they  were  a  pair  of  babies,  and  as  poor  as 
church  mice,"  but  at  least  they  bequeathed  to  their 
little  daughter  a  sweet  and  generous  disposition, 
a  disposition  not  spoiled  even  when,  as  she  related, 
"  they  left  me  an  orphan,  and  folks  were  at  their 
wits'  end  to  know  what  to  do  with  me,"  and  when 
she  was  adopted  by  Mrs.  Thomas,  who  had 
a  drunken  husband.  Anne  asks,  "  Do  you  know  if 
there  is  anything  in  being  brought  up  by  hand 
that  oiight  to  make  people  who  are  brought  up 
that  way  better  than  other  people!''  Because, 
v.lienever  I  was  naughty  Mrs.  Thomas  woidd  ask 
how  1  could  be  such  a  bad  girl  when  she  had 
brought  mo  up  by  hand — reproachful-like." 

Poor  Anne — tragedy  befel  the  Thomas  house- 
hold, and,  to  continue  her  story  in  her  oK,n  words, 
"  Mrs.  Hammond  said  she'd  take  me,  seeing  I  was 
handy  with  children,  and  I  went  i\p  the  river  to 
live  with  her  in  a  little  clearing  among  the  stumps. 
It  was  a  very  lonesome  phiee.  I  am  sure  1  could 
never  have  lived  there  if  1  hadn't  had  an  imagina- 
tion. Mrs.  Hammond  had  eight  children.  She 
had  twins  three  times.  I  like  babies  in  modera- 
tion, but  twins  three  times  in  succession  is  ton 
mvch.  I  told  Mrs.  Hammond  .so  firmly,  when  the 
last  pair  came.  I  used  to  got  so  dreadfully  tired 
carrying  them  about."     But  the  Hammond  house- 

•  By  L.  M.  Montgomery.  (Sir  Isaac  Pitman 
and  Sons,  Ltd.,  1,  Araen  Corner,  E.G.) 


hold,  too,  was  broken  up,  and  Anne  was  sent  to  an 
orphan  asylum  in  Nova  Scotia,  from  whence  slie 
was  adopted  by  Matthew  and  Marilla  Cuthbert, 
of  the  Green  Gables,  in  Avonlea,  Prince  Edward's 
Island.  Marilla,  a  woman  of  a  somewhat  stern 
exterior,  but  kindly  heart,  and  Matthew,  a  man 
of  few  words,  who,  nevertheless,  understood  the 
imaginative  and  mercurial  child  from  the  first. 

To  a  child  of  Anne's  temperament  everything 
was  either  an  intense  delight,  or  an  overwhelming  , 
traged.y.  Her  beauty-loving  nature  was  intoxicated 
by  the" loveliness  of  her  surroundings  at  the  Green 
Gables;  it  was  correspondingly  tried  by  the  service- 
able l)ut  ugly  clothes  in  which  Marilla  dressed  her, 
though  she  was  a  loyal  little  soul,  and  wore  them 
uncomplainingly.  But  Matthew  "  suddenly  be- 
came conscious  that  there  was  something  about  her 
different  from  her  mates.  And  what  worried  Mat- 
thew was  that  the  difference  impressed  him  as 
being  something  that  should  not  exist.  Anne  had 
a  brighter  face,  and  bigger,  starrier  eyes,  and  more 
delicate  features  than  the  others,  but  the  difference 
that  disturbed  him  did  not  consist  in  any  of  these 
respects.     Then  in  what  did  it  consist?  " 

"  After  tw^o  hours  of  smoking  and  hard  reflec- 
tion Matthew  arrived  at  a  solution  of  liis  problem. 
Anne  was  not  dressed  like  other  girls !  "  The  re- 
sult was  a  Christmas  present  of  a  becoming  dress, 
which  sent  the  child  into  tlie  seventh  heaven  of 
delight. 

Trouble  and  joy — ^they  alternate  in  most  lives, 
and  in  Anne's  both  were  poignant. 

As  one  clovses  the  book,  Anne  seems  not  the  dream 
child  of  fiction,  but  the  friend  one  has  known  and 
loved.  Road  the  hook  and  she  will  be  real  to  you 
too.  P.  G.  Y. 


COMING  EVENTS. 

February  SUt.^Htate  Opening  of  Parliament  by 
the  King. 

February  2.i(irf.— Central,  Poor  Law  Conference, 
opened  by  the  Lord  May<jr,  Lord  R.  Cavendish 
presiding,  Guildhall  (two  days). 

February  23rd.— Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh, 
Lecture  oii  "  Nursing  in  Ophthalmic  Cases."  By 
Dr.  George  Mackay,  F.R.C.S.K.  Extra  Mural 
l%eatre,  4.30  p.m.  Nurses  arc  cordially  invited. 
We  are  asked  to  notify  that  the  subjects  of  Lectures 
to  be  given  on  March  9tli  and  23rd  are  to  be  trans- 
posed.    . 

February  3/,th. — Ladie.s'  Guild  of  the  London 
Homieopathic  Hospital.  Annual  General  Meeting. 
Great  Ormond   Street,  3  p.m. 

February  ,'?,;</i,.- Central  Midwives'  Board. 
Monthly  Meeting,  Caxton  House,  2.4.5  p.m. 

February  25th .—Society  for  State  Registration 
of  Nurses.  Meeting  Executive  Committee,  to  re- 
ceive a  Report  fi-om  the  Delegates  on  the  Central 
Committee  for  State  Registration.  431,,  Oxford 
StixK^t,  liondon,  W.     4  p.m. 

March  J.'it. — Territorial  Force  Nursing  Service, 
City  and  County  of  London.  Meeting  ot  the  Exe- 
cutive Commitloo,   Mnnsion   House,  3. .30   p.m. 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 
Je   t'adore,    Soleil  1 

Edmond   Rost.\nd. 


158 


^be  Britieb  3onrnal  of  iRursing. 


rFeb.  19,  1910 


Xetters  to  tbe  EMtor. 


Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  we  xcish  it 
to  be  distinctly  under  stooa 
that  we  do  not  in  ant  wa^s 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


NOTES  OF  CASES 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madaii, — I  entirely  agiee  with  your  cor- 
respondent, ''Ward  Sister,"  as  to  the  importance 
of  note  taking  by  probationers,  and  should  like  to 
see  it  the  usual  rule.  In  days  goue  by,  wheu  hos- 
pitals were  understaffed  and  nurses  overworked,  it 
was  impossible  to  give  due  i^rominenee  to  this  im- 
portant side  of  their  training,  and  I  remember  how, 
with  little  assistance  from  the  Sisters  or  Staff 
Nurses  under  whom  I  worked,  I  kept  a  notebook- 
duriug  my  probationary  days  and  entered  in  it  the 
practical  facts  I  gleaned  each  day,  and  the  habit 
then  formed,  and  the  information  gained,  hare 
been  of  immense  value  to  me.  Now  that  it  is 
better  understood  that  nursing  schools  are  places 
where  instruction  should  be  given,  and  not  just 
agencies  for  getting  the  domestic  work  of  the  wards 
done  on  the  cheap,  the  right  of  probationers  to 
-systematised  instruction  in  practical  nursing  de- 
tails is  conceded,  but  such  instruction,  when  given 
by  Ward  Sisters,  loses  half  its  value  if  it  is  not 
cominitted  to  paper.  In  the  first  place,  the  pro- 
bationer's notes  can  be  supervised  and  corrected, 
and  it  is  thus  possible  foi-  the  instructor  to  learn 
to  what  extent  the  pupil  has  profited  by  her  teach- 
ing— what  she  knows  and  w'here  she  is  weak;  and 
in  the  second,  the  x^robationer  gains  in  clearness 
of  thought  and  accuracy  of  expression,  for  unless 
knowledge  is  put  into  definite  words,  it  is  apt  to 
be  but  i^artially  assimilated. 

Xo  less  an  authority  than  Bacon  has  told  us  that 
writing  makes  an  "  exact  man,"  and  it  is  by  com- 
mitting our  Knowledge  to  paper  that  we  learn  lx)th 
its  extent  and  its  deficiencies.  Another  advan- 
tage of  note  taking  is  that  it  is  a  help  for  proba- 
tioners to  learn  how  to  arrange  their  ideas  in  an 
orderly  way,  and  to  express  and  write  what  they 
know  clearly,  for  this  is  an  art  in  which  they  are 
often  deficient,  and  they  are,  therefore,  unable  to 
do  themsplves  justice  in  a  written  examination. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 
Yours  faithfully, 

TEArNED   IN    THE   EIGHTIES. 


HOSPITAL  KITCHENS. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  5L\dam. — As  I  was  unable  to  be  present  at 
tlie  meeting  of  tlic  ^Matrons'  CJouncil  when  Miss 
Alusivon  read  her  paper  on  "  Hospital  Kitchens," 
it  is  with  gre.at  interest  that  I  have  read  it,  and  the 
discussion  which  followed  it,  in  the  Jotirnal.  Tlie 
supervision  of  the  kitchen  and  its  workers  in  a 
moderate  sized  hospital  is  usually  in  the  province 
of  the  Matron,  but  in  many  instances  she  has  had 


no  training  to  fit  her  tor  this  work,  and  yet  it  is 
most  essential,  both  to  the  comfort  and  health 
of  the  patients  and  staff,  and  to  the  economical 
management  of  the  institution,  that  the  super- 
vision should  be  esi)ert  and  thorough.  It  is  one  of 
the  benefits  of  membership  of  the  Matrons'  Coun- 
cil that  we  have  the  opi^ortunity  of  listening  to 
papei-s  by  our  fellow  members  dealmg,  in  an  in- 
teresting way  with  questions  in  which  we  are  vitally 
interested.  I  have  gained  both  pleasure  and  profit 
from  membei'ship  of  the  Council,  and  wish  that 
every  Matron  in  the  Kingdom  could  have  the 
enjoyment  which  I  have  had  in  connection  with  it. 
I  am  looking  forward  to  the  xjublication  of  Miss 
Helen  Todd's  paper  re  "Hospital  Laundries,''  as 
they  also  are  a  difficult  problem  for  Matrons. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Youre  faithfullv, 

'  M.  M.  C. 


Coiniucnts  an&  IRcplics. 

"W'ill'the  nurses  who  have  written  to  us  desiring 
to  be  School  Xurses  please  communicate  with  Miss 
H,  L.  Pearse,  Education  Offices,  London  County 
Council,  Embankment,  'VY.C. 

Co-operative  Nurse. — The  question  as  to 
whether  a  nur-se  should  return  fi-om  a  case  on  the 
death  of  the  patient  is  entirely  one  for  the  relatives 
to  decide.  If  they  wish  her  to  stay  and  complete 
the  week  upon  which  she  has  pi-obably  enterea  sne 
should  do  so.  The  right  kind  of  nurse  is  often  a 
great  comfort,  and  can  be  of  use  in  many  ways. 
The  wishes  of  her  employer  should  therefore  De 
always  ascertained. 

l[rs.  Prior. — A  baby  is  sometimes  fractious  be- 
cause it  is  thirsty  and  needs  a  drink  of  water.  In 
this  case  a  few  teaspooufuls  of  cool  water  will  allay 
the  restlessness. 

IWotices. 


The  Bhiiish  Journal  op  Nursing  is  the  official 
organ  of  the  following  important  Nursing  socie- 
ties :  — 

The  International  Council  of  Nurses. 

The  National  Council  of  Trained  Nurses  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland. 

The  Matrons"  Council  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland. 

The  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses. 

The  Registered  Nurses'   Society. 

The  School  Nurses'  League. 

As  their  official  organ  is  widely  read  by  the  mem- 
bers of  these  societies,  the  Editor  will  at  j(ll 
times  be  pleased  to  find  space  for  items  of  news 
from  the  Secretaries  and  members. 

Exclusive  news  being  copyright,  papers  quoting 
from  our  columns  must  give  the  name  of  this 
journal  as  the  source  of  their  information. 


OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing   for  the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


Feb.  ly,  1910]   ^i5e  Biitisb  3ournal  of  Il^ursiiio  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


l.J9 


ttbe  flDibwifc  (Question. 

The  scarcity  ot  midwives  is  causing  anxiety 
to  people  who  are  interested  iu  the  welfare 
of  the  poor  women  who  require  their  sei-vices, 
and  now  that  1910  has  come,  when  the  period  of 
grace  allowed  by  the  1902  Midwives'  Act 
expires,  many  "  handy  "  women  are  forced  by 
law  to  cease  their  work,  and  the  shortage  of 
properly  trained  midwives  will  be  acutely  felt. 

A[)parently,  Germany  is  suffering  from  a  like 
dilliculty,  for  a  Fraulcin  von  Schmied  (herself 
a  trained  midwife)  has  made  the  somewhat 
startling  proposal  that  all  women  over  18  years 
of  ago  shall  be  compelled  to  undergo  a  year's 
training  in  midwiferj',  just  as  men  are  com- 
pelled to  do  their  military  service.  She  also 
suggests  that  the  organisation  shall  be  con- 
ducted on  military  lines,  and  thinks  "  the 
result  would  be  a  great  advance  in  hygiene,  and 
morality." 

To  most  of  us  it  would  seem  extremely  un- 
desirable thht  any  girl  of  18  should  be  present 
with  a  woman  at  the  time  of  childbirth;  and 
that  any  woman  should  be  compelled  against 
her  will  to  be  so  present,  would,  one  would 
suppose,  be  absolutely  disastrous  to  everyone 
concerned,  for  if  she  were  not  conscientious,  she 
would  shirk  the  disagreeable  part  of  her  work, 
with  the  result  of  discomfort,  and  even  danger, 
to  both  mother  and  child. 

There  is,  foi'tunately,  a  much  more  obvious 
and  simple  solution  to  the  difficulty  than  that 
suggested  by  Fraiilein  von  Schmied,  and  that 
is  to  make  it  worth  while,  from  a  remunerative 
point  of  view,  for  women  to  take  up  midwifery 
as  a  profession,  and  also  to  make  it  less  ex- 
pensive for  them  to  train  as  midwives. 

At  present  the  cost  of  training  in  midwifery 
is  considerable,  and  the  advantages,  when  the 
training  has  been  obtained,  not  very  obvious, 
as  the  following  advertisements  will  testify  :  — 

(1)  British  Lying-in  Hospital. — Co\irse,  four 
months  (C.M.B.  exam.).     28  guineas. 

(2)  Clapham  Maternity  Hospital. — Three 
months.     23  guineas. 

(3)  Dundee  Maternity  Hospital. — Fees  (three 
months  tuition  and  practice,  board,  lodging, 
and  washing),  £15  l5s. 

(4)  Home  for  IMothers  and  Babies,  Wool- 
wich.— Vacancy  for  gentlewoman  with  general 
training.  Midwifei-y,  six  months,  C.M.B. 
exam.,  £20.  If  undertaking  district  midwifery, 
£12. 

It  is  noteworthy  that  at  Woolwich  it  is  only 
gentlewomen  who  are  trained  nurses  that  are 


required;  which  means  practically  that  an 
educated  woman,  after  undergoing  three  years' 
training  in  a  general  hospital  or  iufinnary,  can, 
by  sacrificing  six  mouths  of  her  time  and  pay- 
ing £20  (or,  if  she  undertakes  disti'ict  mid- 
wifery, £12),  be  trained  as  a  midwife.  When 
she  has  sacrificed  this  time  and  money,  the 
question  is,  "  What  advantage  is  she  likely  to 
receive?  "  for  it  is  hardly  reasonable  to  expect 
her  to  take  up  the  work  from  purely  philan- 
thropic motives,  any  more  than  it  would  be' 
reasonable  to  expect  a  doctor  or  teacher  to  do 
so. 

Here  are  some  interesting  advertisements 
bearing  on  the  subject:  — 

(1)  Wanted,  District  Nurse  for  small  country 
town;    C.M.B.     £60. 

(2)  Required,  a  Cottage  Nurse  for  country 
district;  fully  qualified  mi.dwife  and  general 
training;    good  cychst.    Inclusive  salary,  £55. 

In  the  following  two  advertisements  no  mid- 
wifery qualification  is  demanded:  — 

(1)  Wanted,  fully  trained  District  Nurse. 
Salary,  £75  per  annum. 

(2)  "Wanted,  Lady  Nurse,  fully  certificated, 
with  district  experience.    Salary,  iidO,  inclusive. 

Another  advertisement  worth  considering  is 
the  following:  — 

"  Queen  Victoria  Jubiee  Institute  for  Nurses. 
— Required,  etc.,  etc.  Preference  will  be  given 
to  candidates  who  hold  the  C.M.B. certificate.'" 

In  this  latter  case  it  is  decidedly  an  advan- 
tage to  hold  the  C.M.B.  certificate,  for  not 
only  do  the  nurses  who  hold  it  have  the  prefer- 
ence, but,  as  a  rule,  the  Q.V.J. 1.  give  a  rather 
higher  salary  to  such  nurses. 

This  is,  of  course,  a  commonsense  way  of 
inducing  nurses  to  qualify  as  midwives.  But 
all  nurses  cannot  be  Queen's  Nurses,  and  most 
other  societies  do  not  in  any  way  encourage 
their  nurses  to  qualify  as  midwives;  indeed, 
so  much  is  this  the  case,  that  many  nurses  who 
have  already  obtained  their  C.M.B.  very  care- 
fully avoid  all  midwifery  or  maternity  work, 
and  for  this  the  reasons  are  sufficiently  obvious. 

First,  by  undertaking  midwifery,  the  nurse 
receives  (iu  many  cases)  no  higher  remunera- 
tion. 

Second,  her  responsibilities  are  greatly  in- 
creased, and  her  night  rest  constantly  disturbed 
or  entirely  lost. 

Third,  her  social  status  is  not  improved. 

Some  time  ago  I  received  a  letter  from  a 
midwife,  who  is  working  in  a  remote  district  iu 
the  West  of  Ireland,  and  receives  a  salary  of  (I 
believe)  £36  a  year.    I  think  she  is  supposed  to 


160 


^be  Brltisb  3ounial  of  IRursiiiG  Supplement,  ff^b.  19,  1910 


board  with  her  patieuts  when  her  services  are 
required,  but  as  they  are  mostly  too  i:)oor  to 
I)rovide  properly  for  themselves,  she  has 
usually  to  board  herself.  She  has  one- room,  iu 
a  cottage,  but,  when  she  has  been  up  all  night, 
often  finds  it  impossible  to  sleep,  on  account 
of  the  noise  made  by  the  landlady's  children. 
This  woman  has  worked  in  her  remote  district 
for  years,  leading  a  life  of  great  loneliness  and 
hardship,   as   an  extract    from   her  letter  will 

testify  : — "  I  was  called  to  a  patient  in ,  a 

distance  of  three  sea  miles,  at  5  a.m.  on  the 
morning  of  Simday  week.  I  went  immediately, 
and  it  was  very  cold  at  the  time.     I  had  to 

stay   with  Mrs.  until  Tuesday,   the   sea 

was  so  high  the  curragh  could  not  return.  I 
went   then  on   board  the  steamer  that  takes 

goods,  etc.,  fi'om  ,  but  when  we  reached 

not  a  boat  could  leave  the  shore.     Poor 

me  was  obliged  to  go  30  miles  to  the  mainland, 
and  to  endure  the  most  horrible  sea-sickness 
that  can  be  conceived.  We  were  attempting 
to  cross  every  day  without  success,  one  time 
going  back  a  three  hours'  sail,  and,  oh  !  the 
sea-sickness  each  time.  At  length  I  reached 
here  last  Monday,  wearied  and  desperately  put 
about.  Happily,  the  patients  did  not  sufier 
through  my  absence." 

In  sj^ite  of  the  remoteness  from  medical  aid, 
this  nurse  has  never  lost  a  midwifery  patient ; 
but  it  is  easy  to  imagine  what  extreme  anxiety 
she  must  sometimes  have  undergone  in  a 
difficult  confinement. 

Although  this  case  is  doubtless  an  extreme 
one,  all  midwives  take  a  grave  responsibility, 
and  as  their  patients  are  mostly  of  the  very 
poorest  class,  and  often  unclean,  both  in  their 
persons  and  houses,  they  have  to  contend  with 
greater  ditheulties  and  dangers  than  usually 
falls  to  the  lot  of  ordinary  medical  men. 

A  Manchester  midwife  once  said  to  me  that 
she  thought  the  Inspector  of  ^Midwives  ought 
to  inspect  the  patients'  houses,  and  insist  on 
cleanliness  of  house  and  person  before  the  mid- 
wife's services  were  required,  instead  of 
blaming  the  midwife  when  anything  went 
wrong.  The  weight  of  responsibility  connected 
with  her  work  lay  heavily  upon  this  midwife, 
and,  had  she  had  other  means  of  earning  her 
living,  she  would  have  given  up  her  practice 
and  supported  herself  otherwise.  She  told  me 
that  occasionally  she  had  absolutely  declined 
to  undertake  cases  on  account  of  their  dirti- 
ness, and  yet  these  women  had  sent  for  her  at 
tiie  last  moment,  when  it  was  too  late  to  get 
other  help ;  and  so  she  had  felt  compelled  to 
look  after  them.  Now,  if  the  difficulties  of  a 
Manchester  midwife  are  so  great,  on  account  of 
lack  of  cleanliness,  there  can  be  little  doubt 
that  the  difficulties  of  midwives  in  other  towns 


will  be  greater,  for  the  iianchester  poor,  or,  in- 
deed, the  poor  of  Lancashire  generally,  are,  on 
the  whole,  an  industrious,  clean, -thrifty  race, 
who  scnib  me  fronts  of  their  houses,  and  even 
the  street  pavement  in  front  of  their  doors,  and 
whose  houseplace  is  a  marvel  of  cleanliness  and 
poUshed  brass  fire  ornaments. 

Unfortunately,  many  charitable  societies 
seem  entirely"  to  forget  that  "  the  labourer  is 
worthy  of  his  hire,"  and  pay  their  midwives, 
not  according  to  the  value  of  their  services,  but 
according  to  the  lowest  scale  which  extreme 
competition  and  necessity  compels  them  to 
accept ;  and  midwives  working  on  their  own 
account  are  in  consequence  compelled  to  accept 
such  low  fees  that  only  by  very  hard  work  are 
they  able  to  make  a  living,  and  are  too  often 
tempted  through  over-pressure  and  weariness 
to  perform  their  duties  in  a  less  conscientious 
manner  than  they  would  otherwise  do. 

It  is  scarcely  surprising,  surely,  that  with 
such  responsibihties,  such  hardships,  and  such 
pay,  women  of  limited  means  are  not  keen  to 
spend  from  &1'2  to  £.50,  and  to  give  from  three 
to  six  months  of  their  time,  to  qualify  for  posts 
which,  when  they  are  obtained,  scarcely  fur- 
nish a  living  wage  or  the  most  simple  comforts 
and  pleasures  of  life. 

There  appears  to  ine  to  be  one,  and  only  one, 
rational  and  feasible  solution  to  this  knotty 
question,  and  that  is,  to  provide  midwives,  or, 
better  still,  midwife  doctors  for  the  very  poor, 
and  to  pay  them  partially  or  entirely  from  the 
local  I'ates,  or  from  the  coffers  of  the  State, 
ilidwives  should  receive  a  minimum  salary  of 
£100  a  year,  and  in  the  case  of  doctors  acting 
as  midwives  the  salarv  shoidd  be  at  least  £200 


a  year. 


Mary  Moxkhouse. 


THE  1910  UNION  OF  MIDWIVES. 
A  Drawing  Room  Meeting  of  the  1910  Union  of 
Midwives  is  to  be  field  on  Saturday,  Feb.  19tli, 
at  7,  Delamere  Terrace,  Westbourne  Square,  W., 
at  3.30  p.m.,  when  certified  midwives  will  have  the 
opportunity  of  hearing  from  its  promoters  what 
the  Union  hopes  to  achieve.  The  fact  that  its 
oflScers  and  executive  committee  are  all  certified 
midwives  shows  that  organisation  is  beng  under- 
taken on  the  right  fines,  and  should  inspire  confi- 
dence in  its  future.  We  are  glad  to  know  that  ''  it 
affirms  with  all  the  resolution  at  its  command, 
that  a  condition  of  the  modification  of  the  (Central 
Midwives')  Board  in  the  direction  of  direct  repre- 
sentation by  popular  election  is  at  once  essential 
and  inevitable."  It  further  declares  this  feeling 
to  be  deep-seated  and  widespread,  though  no  ade- 
quate and  organic  exjiression  has  been  given  to  it 
hitherto.  This  journal  has  always  pointed  out  the 
vital  importance  to  midwives  of  rejiresentation  on 
their  governing  body. 


EDITED  BY  MRS  BEDFORD  FENWICK 


tio.     1,143 


SATURDAY,  FEBRUARY  26,    1910. 


XLIV. 


EMtorial. 


"THE   NURSING  JOURNAL  OF  INDIA." 

It  is  with  great  pleasure  that  we  welcome 
the  latest  addition  to  the  steadily  growing 
list  of  professional  jonrnals,  The  Nursirnj 
Journal  of  India,  a  monthly  publication, 
the  first  nnmber  of  which  has  appeared  this 
month.  It  is  pulilished  bj'  the  Association  of 
Niirsing  Superintendents  of  India  and  the 
Trained  Nurses' Association  of  India,  anil  is 
edited  by  .Mrs.  W.  11.  Klosz,  K.N.,  Akola, 
who  received  her  professional  training  under 
Miss  Nutting  at  the  Johns  Hopkins  Hospital, 
Baltimore,  the  best  of  preparation  for  work 
which  needs  a  knowledge  of  nursing  history, 
and  a  broad-minded  and  liberal  education. 
The  Johns  Hopkins'  Nursing  Library  has 
its  special  historical  section,  and  it  will  be 
remembered  that,  under  the  name  of  the 
■"  Teresians,"  members  of  the  Nur-ses' 
Alumnae  Association  formed  themselves 
into  a  society  for  the  purpose  of  acquiring 
knowledge  of  all  that  concerns  the  history 
of  their  profession. 

The  manager  of  the  new  journal  is  our 
Indian  collaborator,  Miss  J.  W.  Thorpe,  of 
the  Civil  Hospital,  Belgaum,  Hon.  Secretary 
and  Treasurer  of  the  Association  of  Nursing 
Superintendents  of  India,  and  a  member  of 
the  .Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland,  wlio  at  its  annual  meeting  received 
a  hearty  vote  of  thanks  for  her  enthusiastic 
work  for  the  journal  and  the  new  Nui'ses' 
Association.  During  the  past  year,  in  addi- 
tion to  much  other  work,  she  has  succeeded 
in  collecting  enough  money  to  assure  the 
support  of  the  journal  for  its  first  year. 

The  need  of  a  nursing  journal  to  co- 
ordinate the  interests  of  nurses  in  India  has 
long  been  felt,  so  now  that  the  Associations 
of  Superintendents  and  Nurses  are  well 
established,  it  is  natural  that  thej^  should 
take  an  early  opportunity  of  carrying  out 


a  long-cherished  plan.  They  could  not 
undertake  a  more  necessarj''  or  important 
piece  of  work,  and  in  so  vast  a  country  it 
ought  to  have  a  great  success. 

Once  organisation  was  begun  in  India  its 
development  has  been  rapid.  We  are 
told  by  The  Nursing  Journal  of  India 
that  when  a  few  Superintendents  came 
together  in  Lucknow  in  January,  1005,  no 
one  dreamed  of  a  nursing  magazine  for 
India,  and  the  Association  of  Nursing  Super- 
intendents of  the  United  Provinces  and  the 
Punjab  satisfied  the  ambition  of  its  founders 
as  a  beginning.  The  next  year  the  title  was 
altered  to  embrace  the  whole  of  India,  and 
conferences  have  since  been  held  in  Lahore, 
Bondjay  and  Agra.  The  interest  of  its 
members  has  now  made  possible  the  publi- 
cation of  the  new  journal,  which  it  is  pro- 
posed shall  represent  all  departments  of 
nursing  work  in  the  country.  The  journal 
contains  much  interesting  information,  in- 
cluding the  address  of  the  President  of  the 
Superintendents'  Association,  Jliss  Tippetts, 
Superintendent  of  Nurses  at  the  Mayo  Hos- 
pital, Lahore,  at  the  Conference  held  at 
Agra,  which  shows  that  the  Association  is 
inspired  with  worthy  ideals  and  is  striving 
to  bring  the  standard  of  nursing  in  our 
great  Indian  Emj)ire  into  line  with  all  that 
is  best  in  other  countries.  It  is  most  inter- 
esting to  learn  that  a  resolution  on  Central 
Boards  of  Nursing  Ivlucation  passed  at  the 
last  Conference  was  sent  to  the  (iovern- 
ments  of  the  various  Provinces  and  to  other 
authorities  concerned,  and,  in  consequence, 
the  Association  has  been  asked  by  the 
Punjab  Ciovernment  what  rules  it  would 
consider  necessary  for  the  examination  and 
registratif)n  of  nurses.  This  shows  the  in- 
lluence  of  the  oi'gaiiised  Superintendents, 
an  influence  which  now  that  they  have  the 
suppoi't  of  a  journal  of  their  own,  is  mater- 
ially strengthened. 


162 


^be  ISnrisb  3ournal  ot  iHursing.      L^eb.  26,  loio 


ilDeMcal  riDatters. 


PELLAGRA  IN  ILLINOIS. 

In  connection  with  the  question  of  pellagra, 
which  just  now  is  receiving  so  much  attention, 
the'  Lancet  publishes  au  interesting  account  of 
an  outbreak  at  the  Peoria  State  Hospital  for 
the  Insane,  Illinois,  U.S.A.,  where  there  are 
2,150  incurable  lunatics.  In  August  last  Dr. 
G.  A.  Zellar,  tlie  Medical  Superintendent,  dis- 
covered and  reported  several  cases,  and  Capt. 
J.  F.  Siler  and  Capt.  H.  J.  Nichols,  of  the 
United  States  Army  Medical  Corps,  were  at 
once  despatched  to  study  the  disease  in  co- 
operation with  the  medical  staff.  Their  report, 
now  issued,  shows  that  after  careful  examina- 
tion of  all  the  inmates  and  excluding  many 
doubtful  cases,  it  was  decided  that  175  of  the 
men  and  women  were  pellagrous,  and  that 
some  70  per  cent,  of  these  had  suffered  from 
previous  attacks.  It  is  now  calculated  that 
the  disease  has  been  prevalent,  but  unrecog- 
nised, in  the  asylum  for  at  least  four  years, 
during  which  time  complaints  have  been  re- 
ceived, from  friends  of  inmates  who  had  died, 
of  sunburns  on  the  backs  of  the  patients' 
hands;  coroners'  inquests  have  been  held  on 
patients  who  were  thought  to  have  incurred 
severe  scalds  of  the  f  -et ;  and  attendants  have 
been  dismissed  for  supposed  carelessness  while 
administering  hot  baths.  Dian-hoea,  dysentery, 
and  ulcers  in  the  colon  at  necropsies  were 
present  in  some  cases,  but  a  faulty  water 
supply  was  held  to  be  responsible  for  some  of 
these  symptoms.  The  patellar  and  plantar 
reflexes  were  abnormal  in  about  three-fourths 
of  the  patients,  and  were  usually  excessive. 
Cultures  of  the  blood,  spinal  fluid,  and  spleen 
pulp  were  negative.  There  was  no  evidence 
that  the  maize,  on  which  the  patients  were  fed 
to  the  amount  of  two  ounces  per  day,  was  dis- 
eased, but  the  investigators  state:  "  The  pos- 
sibility of  an  intoxication  from  bacterial  action 
on  maize  products  in  a  damaged  intestine  is 
considered  the  most  promising  field  for  study. ' ' 
One  of  the  arguments  in  favour  of  the  protozoal 
nature  of  pellagra  is  the  mononuclear  increase 
in  the  blood  of  patients,  but  at  Peoria  this 
increase  was  not  found.  The  complete  free- 
dom from  pellagra  in  this  asylum  of  the  resi- 
dent staff,  physicians,  attendants,  and  ser- 
vants makes  it  difficult  to  understand  how  the 
infection  can  have  arisen  through  any  biting 
insect,  and  as  nearly  all  the  pellagrous  patients 
had  been  resident  in  the  asylum  for  periods 
varying  from  two  to  seven  years,  we  must 
agree  with  the  report  that  there  is  "  a  strong 
.  indication  that  the  exciting  cause  of  the  dis- 
ease is  present  in  the  institution."" 

Referring  to  the  striking  photographs  of  the 


disease  published  in  the  "  Pellagra  Number  " 
of  the  Illinois  State  Board  of  Health  Bulletin, 
our  contemporary  makes  the  interesting  sug- 
gestion: — The  well-marked  symmetrical  einap- 
tions  are  doubtless  due  to  the  fact  that  the 
asylum  is  managed  without  restraint;  the 
windows  are  not  barred  and  the  grounds  are 
not  enclosed  by  any  wall  or  fence ;  hence  the 
exposure  to  sunlight  during  the  summer 
months  is  practically  unlimited. 

THE   MANAGEMENT  OF  CHILDBED. 

The  British  Medical  Journal  tlraws  attention 
to  an  interesting  work  on  the  Management  of 
Childbed,  by  a  German  writer,  Dr.  F.  Fromme, 
"  Die  Physiologie  und  Pathologie  des  Wochen- 
bette."  According  to  our  contemporary.  Dr. 
Fromme  is  a  convinced  advocate  of  what  Dr. 
Ballantyne,  in  a  recent  communication  to  the 
Edinburgh  Obstetrical  Society,  called  "  The 
Rational  Puerperium."  He  excludes  from  his 
general  rule  cases  of  exceptionally  long  labours, 
of  operative  delivery,  cases  in  which  fever  is 
present,  or  any  other  complication.  But  in  a 
healthy  lying-in  after  a  natural  labour  he  ad- 
vises that  on  the  first,  second,  and  third  day 
the  patient  should  sit  up  for  about  an  hour 
morning  and  afternoon,  and  that  she  should 
get  up  on  the  fourth  or  fifth  day.  He  does 
not  press  this  on  patients  who  do  not  feel 
equal  to  it.  But  experience  has  convinced  him 
that  in  a  natural  puerperium  the  patient  is  all 
the  better  if  she  gets  up  soon  instead  of  keep- 
ing her  bed  a  long  time. 

Methods  of  procuring  asepsis  by  antisepsis 
of  course  receive  due  consideration.  The 
author,  by  imphcation,  though  not  explicitly, 
accepts  tlae  views  of  Sir  Watson  Cheyne  that 
the  effect  of  pathogenic  microbes  is  largely  a 
question  of  dosage;  that  sterilisation  of  the 
hands  and  everything  else  that  comes  into 
contact  with  the  patient  is  a  practical  impos- 
sibility. All  that  can  be  done,  and  in  good 
hospitals  is  done,  is  to  make  the  dose  bo  small 
that  leucocytes  can  deal  with  it.  The  methods 
of  Lord  Lister  and  Sir  Watson  Cheyne  are 
such  that  any  general  practitioner,  or  any 
midwife  who  understands  them,  can  carry 
them  into  effect  without  difficulty.  But  Dr. 
Fromme  will  have  him  wash  his  hands  for 
five  minutes  in  flowing  hot  water  with  soap 
and  a  nailbrush ;  then  dry  them  with  a  sterile 
towel ;  then  wash  them  for  five  minutes  more 
in  a  70  to  96  per  cent,  alcohol ;  then  two 
minutes  in  1  to  1,000  solution  of  sublimate. 
And  after  this  procedure  lie  is  to  put  on 
sterilised  indiarubber  gloves.  Does  he  really 
think,  asks  our  contemporary,  that  the  average- 
GeiTnan  midwife,  or  German  general  practi- 
tioner,   will   go  through   all  this  performapce, 


Feb.  26,  I'JIO] 


^bc  Brttt5b  3ournaI  of  iRursinG. 


163 


and,  in  addition,  afford  the  expense  of  india- 
rubber  gloves?  Is  he  unacquainted  with  the 
dictum  of  one  of  the  world's  greatest  surgeons 
and  most  brilliant  operators,  to  the  effect  that 
the  use  of  gloves  to  the  surgeon  is  to  keep  his 
hands  clean  while  he  is  not  operating,  so  that 
he  may  take  them  off  when  the  time  to  operate 
comes,  and  touch  the  patient  with  clean 
hands?  Again  the  hair  of  the  vulva  is  always  to 
be  cut  short,  or  before  an  obstetric  operation 
shaved.  Apart  from  these  antiseptic  ex- 
travagancies, which  only  indicate  a  want  of 
confidence  in  simple  means — or,  may  we  put 
it,  a  want  of  trust  in  Lord  Lister? — Dr. 
Fromme's  advice  as  to  the  conduct  of  child- 
bed is  sound  and  good.  He  does  not  advise 
vaginal  douches  in  a  normal  lying-in.  There 
is  a  great  deal  of  information  about  the  dif- 
erent  kinds  of  bacterial  infection  to  which  the 
puerperal  woman  is  liable  and  their  effects. 
TROPICAL   HYGIENE. 

At  the  first  of  a  series  of  lectures  on 
"  Tropical  Hygiene,"  delivered  by  Dr.  \V.  J. 
Simpson,  in  the  Council  Eoom  of  the  Loudon 
Chamber  of  Commerce,  he  said  that  there  were 
good  commercial  and  Imperial  reasons  why 
merchants  should  be  interested  in  tropical 
hygiene  and  iii  the  work  of  the  Loudon  School 
of  Tropical  Medicine.  Our  tropical  possessions 
covered  an  area  of  over  5,000,000  square  miles 
and  represented  half  of  the  British  Empire. 
If  we  set  aside  India  and  the  West  Indies  on 
the  supposition  that  their  progress  was  satis- 
factory, there  remained  that  vast  territory,  the 
size  of  Europe,  where  there  were  scope  and 
opportunity  in  plenty  for  energy  and  enter- 
prise. The  greatest  obstacle  to  the  full  and 
rapid  development- of  these  regions  was  a  dread 
of  their  unhealthiness. 

So  far  as  our  knowledge  went,  there  were 
foi-  a  European  three  conditions  essential  to 
tlif  maintenance  of  health  in  the  tropics.  The 
f\v<t  was  that  the  individual  must  adapt  him- 
sflf  to  the  climate.  He  must  wear  suitable 
clothing,  protect  himself  from  undue  exposure 
to  the  sun,  live  a  simpler  life  in  regard  to  food 
and  drink,  and  he  regular  in  his  habits. 
Secondly,  he  must  live  under  sanitary  condi- 
tions; and,  thirdly,  ho  must  be  protected  from 
insect-borne  diseases.  The  influence  of  tlie 
London  School  of  Tropical  Medicine,  and  the 
T-iverpool  School  of  Tropical  IMedicine.  had 
been  so  remarkable  that  other  nations  had  fol- 
lowed its  example.  The  mortality  of  Europeans 
was  very  different  to-day  in  the  West  Indies, 
in  West  Africa,  and  in  most  parts  of  India 
from  what  it  was  when  our  soldiers  and  traders 
first  occupied  those  countries. 

Dr.  Simpson  proceeded  to  explain  the  nature 
of  the  casual  agents  of  infection  and  the 
manner  in  which  insects  spread  disease. 


flDassaoc  ^cachtna  at  the  School 

tor  IRurscs  at  the  Salpctrlcrc 

Ibospital,  parts. 

By  Miss  G.  Phocope. 

It  was  not  without  a  certain  amount  of  hesi- 
tation that — nearly  two  years  ago — I  under- 
took to  organise  a  course  of  instruction  on  mas- 
sage at  the  New  School  for  the  Assistance 
Publique  Nurses  at  Paris. 

I  realised  only  too  well  the  difficulties  I  had 
before  me.  It  was  not  only  a  question  of  doing 
something  hitherto  unknown,  but  a  question  of 
going  against  certain  prejudices — a  question  of 
overcoming  certain  opposition. 

It  was  indeed  the  first  time  that  a  course  of 
regular  and  methodical  massage  had  ever  been 
organised  in  Paris,  according  to  a  fixed  pro- 
gramme ;  hitherto  there  had  only  been  theore- 
tical lectures,  without  any  practical  applica- 
tion. Consequently,  what  I  really  had  to  do 
was  to  found  a  school  for  massage,  and  just 
because  it  was  a  question  of  a  school,  including 
regular  recruitment  and  constant  training  of 
masseuses,  I  felt  how  very  hard  my  task  might 
be.  The  situation,  from  a  public  point  of  view, 
in  France  is  quite  different  from  that  of  many 
other  countries.  Although  thoy  realise  the 
immense  benefits  derived  from  massage  in 
medical  treatment,  there  is  no  other  existing 
organisation  corresponding  to  this  therapeutic 
need  worthy  of  the  name. 

Except  a  certain  number  of  experienced 
practitioners — mostly  foreigners — many  so- 
called  masseuses  in  Paris  have  never  gone 
through  the  long  training  needed  for  the  pro- 
fession, hence  some  discredit  clings  to  the 
name  of  "masseuse."  For  this  reason,  too, 
doctors  have  kept  difficult  "massage  "  cases 
for  themselves,  leaving  the  easier  cases  to  in- 
experienced masseuses,  to  carry  out  their  pre- 
scriptions. I  might  add  that  these  inexperi- 
enced ones  are  many  of  them  only  desirous  of 
pleasing  their  patients  by  se.sthctically  treat- 
ing the  physique,  instead  of  attaching  impor- 
tance to  what  is  conducive  to  health.  You 
can,  therefore,  easily  understand  what  a  deli- 
cate matter  it  was  to  organise  a  course  of  in- 
struction of  this  kind  for  hospital  nurses. 

In  almost  all  the  Paris  hospital  wards,  by 
force  of  circumstances  and  for  the  want  of  a 
regular  organisation,  the  doctors  and  surgeons 
had  been  obliojed  to  call  in  "  masseuses  "  who 
were  recruited  haphazard,  without  any  guaran- 
tee for  their  efficiency,  and  in  no  way  fonning 
part  of  the  staff. 

*  Read  before  the  International  Congro'i';  of 
Nurses,   London.  Julv.   1909. 


164 


Cbe  3i3ritisb  3ournal  of  IRursino.     tFeb.  26,  1910 


Monsieur  Mesureur,  ou  asking  me  to  organise 
a  course  of  massage  tor  the  jiupils  belonging 
to  the  School  for  Nurses,  wished  to  remedy 
this  state  of  affairs. 

The  opportunity  was  a  favourable  one  for 
such  an  undertaking.  I  was  to  deal  with  care- 
ful, attentive  pupils,  well  up  in  anatomy  and 
physiology,  for  the  School  had  spared  nothing 
to  give  them  every  advantage  in  that  jespect, 
M'hereas  there  are  nurses  who  have  to  suffer 
from  a  prevalent  idea  that  overmuch  science 
often  deteriorates  their  skill  as  nurses. 

Anatomy  and  phj'siology  are  most  necessary 
for  a  "  good  masseuse,"  and,  I  would  add, 
even  for  a  good  nurse.  Then  1  could  draw  up 
a  clear  programme  of  the  training  in  question. 
These  nurses  were  to  be  trained  to  perform  any 
ordinary  kind  of  massage  needed  in  the  wards, 
so  I  simply  excluded  any  difficult  and  compli- 
cated kind  of  massage  that  could  not  be  learnt 
in  a  two  years'  course  (as  they  have  so  many 
other  classes  to  attend),  and  the  question  of 
private  cases,  which  these  young  girls  would 
never  be  called  upon  to  treat,  I  completely 
ignored. 

Thanks  to  the  kind  help  from  the  house 
doctors,  from  other  doctors  and  surgeons,  and 
from  the  "Administration,"  i  am  regularly 
able  to  recruit  about  twenty  patients  daily, 
who  are  sent  to  us  from  the  different  Paris 
hospitals.  Each  patient  is  the  bearer  of  a 
special  paper,  supplied  by  the  School,  on  which 
the  doctor  has  %vritten  his  diagnosis,  exempli- 
fied by  a  design  of  the  human  figure.  Our 
responsibility  is  thus  considerably  lessened  by 
the  prescription  of  a  medical  man,  which  we 
always  demand  before  starting  on  a  fresh  case. 

I  use  this  same  paper,  specially  prepared  for 
the  purpose,  to  write  my  massage  instructions 
in  detail  for  the  pupil. 

The  classes  begin  in  the  month  of  January, 
so  as  to  enable  the  pupils  who  have  joined  the 
School  in  October  to  acquire  a  notion  of 
anatomy  and  physiology,  which,  as  I  have 
already  stated,  is  the  basis  of  massage.  The 
number  of  lessons'for  the  first  year  is  twenty. 

I  begin  by  a  general  theory  on  mechano- 
therapeutics — i.e.,  gymnastics  and  massage — 
leading  on  to  the  physical  requirements  of  the 
masseuse,  with  advice  on  the  hygiene  of  the 
hands,  the  shape  of  the  nails,  and — what  is 
most  imperative — the  way  to  proceed  so  as  to 
obtain  the  maximum  strength  with  the  mini- 
mum fatigue.  For  it  is  a  well-known  fact  that 
the  continual  effort  made  in  massage  often 
causes  serious  heart  trouble  or  functional 
trouble  in  the  arms.  A  masseuse  must  also 
have  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  accidents  that 
so  often  occur  at  the  di^but,  sometimes  inevi- 
table and  always  possible,  so  that  she  can  warn 


the  patients,  who  otherwise  might  be  alaimed. 

Then  we  come  to  the  various  manipulations, 
so  widely  different  and  each  having  its  own 
physiological  purpose.  The  knowledge  of  this 
is,  so  to  say,  the  keynote  of  all  treatment  of 
this  kind,  combined  with  a  perfect  comprehen- 
sion of  the  pathological  state  of  the  tissues  con- 
cerned. 

This  being  of  such  capital  importance,  1  in- 
sist upon  it  most  particularly,  and  try  to  make 
sure  that  my  pupils  have  perfectly  understood 
me,  both  by  oral  questions  and  written  com- 
positions. A  pupil  comes  forward  to  serve  as 
a  subject  of  demonstration.  I  make  her  lie 
down  on  a  bed  for  the  different  manipulations, 
whilst  I  thoroughly  explain  my  way  of  proceed- 
ing and  how  to  apply  the  different  manipula- 
tions to  the  different  parts  of  the  body. 

The  number  of  my  pupils  was  a  difficulty ; 
there  are  too  many  to  all  benefit  by  the  lesson 
ac  once,  and  as  I  am  most  anxious  for  each  to 
thoroughly  understand  such  an  important  de- 
tail of  the  lesson,  I  have  divided  the  pupils  into 
sections  or  groups  of  twenty,  so  that  they  are 
all  able  to  follow  this  practical  part  of  it  most 
closely. 

The  knowledge  of  the  pathological  tissues 
concerned  is  most  indispensable,  and  this  is  the 
object  we  now  have  in  view.  The  pupils  ought 
to  know  the  different  phenomena  which  take 
place  in  the  various  forms  of  traumatism,  or  in 
simple  contusions,  sprains,  luxations,  or  in 
simple  and  compound  fractures,  when  they  are 
of  recent  date,  or  when  some  time  has  elapsed 
since  the  accident.  Of  course,  they  must  be 
well  up  in  all  kinds  of  inflammation  in  the 
articulations,  and  the  morbid  changes  produced 
by  it,  not  only  in  the  articulations,  but  in  the 
surrounding  parts,  so  as  to  conduct  the  treat- 
ment by  attacking  the  root  of  the  disease  as 
well  as  the  radiations. 

They  ought  to  know  all  about  the  beneficial 
effects  of  massage  in  phlebitis,  once  the  inflam- 
mation has  subsided ;  but  they  ought  also  to 
be  fully  aware  of  the  dangers  of  such  a  treat- 
ment if  badly  perfomied. 

And  although  they  need  not  be  acquainted 
with  all  the  various  forms  of  heart  disease,  they 
ought  not  to  be  ignorant  of  certain  effects  of 
it — for  example,  oedema  and  dyspnoea,  which 
both  disappear  under  the  beneficent  influence 
of  massage  and  suitable  gymnastics. 

The  number  of  lessons  being  comparatively 
few,  I  go  deeply  into — and  particularly  insist 
on — cases  usually  to  be  found  in  hospitals,  and 
which  are  certainly  not  quite  the  same  as  those 
to  be  found  among  other  patients.  The  hos- 
pital only  takes  in  those  whose  state  requires 
bed. 

To  familiarise  my  pupils  with  massage  on 


Feb.  20,  1910] 


^l?e  3Brlti0b  3ournal  of  ■Rursing. 


165 


the  human  body,  and  so  spare  the  patient  the 
first  awkward  tunibliiiys,  thej;  are  obliged  to 
practice  on  each  other  in  their  bedrooms  in 
the  evening,  under  the  superintendence  of  a 
mouitress  chosen  among  tlie  second  year  pupils. 
These  are  sixteen  in  number,  and  have  six 
pupils  each  to  superintend. 

At  the  end  of  June  they  undergo  an  oral 
examination  and  a  practical  one,  when  1  can 
test  theii'  knowledge  and  give  them  marks 
accordingh".  Thus  prepared,  they  begin  the 
second  year  by  putting  their  knowledge  at  once 
into  practice. 

VVe  have  a  clinic  for  massage  at  the  School ; 
tlio  patients  are  sent  by  doctors  from  the  dif- 
ferent hospitals.  They  come  to  us  with  the 
diagnosis  of  their  case  written  on  the  afore- 
mentioned paper. 

We  have  three  large  rooms  on  the  ground 
floor  of  the  School  at  our  disposal — one  for 
women  patients,  one  for  men,  and  the  third 
is  a  waiting-room  and  gymnasium,  in  which 
there  are  various  apparatus  for  exercises. 
We  use  these  apparatus  to  complete  the 
nuinual  treatment  in  certain  cases,  and  they 
are  also  used  by  the  pupils  themselves,  as  a 
gymnasiiun",  after  their  baths — ftlie  l.viili-  -i:-' 
close  by) — when  they  wish  to  complete  their 
own  hygiene  by  gymnastics,  according  to  the 
Swedish  system. 

The  massage  rooms  contain  folding  massage 
benches  of  two  different  heights,  covered  with 
white  oil-cloth ;  a  long  table,  some  stools,  a 
wash-hand  stand  to  wash  our  hands  after 
each  case,  and  a  cupboard  in  the  comer,  with 
compartments  containing  vasehne,  powder, 
towel — in  fact  everything  needed  by  each  clinic 
pupil,  for  all  the  pupils  cannot  all  work  at  the 
same  time. 

Once  a  week,  on  Tuesday  at  5  o'clock,  all 
the  clinic  pupils  are  assembled  into  one  of  these 
rooms — sometimes  the  men's,  sometimes  the 
women's — when  a  male  or  female  patient  is 
brought  in  from  the  waiting-room.  A  'glance 
at  the  prescription  paper,  which  gives  the 
diagnosis,  enables  me  to  examine  our  patient, 
rapidly  explain  the  case  to  the  pupils,  and  give 
my  necessary  instructions  for  the  treatment  of 
the  case  to  the  pupil  responsible  for  it. 

In  this  way  the  pupils  can  see  a  variety  of 
cases,  especially  as  they  only  treat  the  same 
patient  two  or  three  weeks  at  a  time,  which, 
however,  does  not  prevent  them  following  up 
the  case  and  observing  the  changes  that  take 
place  during  the  treatment;  by  this  means, 
too,  they  have  an  opportunity  of  getting  their 
hands  into  good  training  by  the  different  mani- 
pulations. After  tlie  fresh  patients,  I  examine 
those  already  under  treatment,  note  the  pro- 
gress, and  try  to  hasten  the  cure  by  a  change 
in  the  treatment,  if  this  appears  necessary. 


As  I  have  already  mentioned,  my  visit  to  the 
School  takes. place  once  a  week,  but  patients 
come  in  daily,  and  then  the  work  goes  on  under 
the  enlightened  superintendence  of  JNladame 
Jacques,  the  Superintendent  of  the  Scho<_)l,  and 
my  best  and  most  deeply  interested  pupil;  or 
if  Madame  Jacques  cannot  be  present,  her 
place  is  taken  by  a  monitress. 

To  give  you  statistics  of  the  number  of 
patients  who  have  been  treated  at  our  clinic,  or 
to  enumerate  the  different  cases  which  1  have 
dealt  with  there,  is  beyond  me,  and  it  would 
take  me  too  long,  but  I  must  say  the  results 
obtained  have  been  very  good.  Our  patients 
have  shown  great  confidence,  and  the  best 
proof  of  this  has  been  the  perseverance  wnth 
which  both  men  and  women  have  continued 
their  treatment — often  a  painful  and  slow  one. 

It  is  needless  for  me  to  dwell  on  the  rapid 
success  of  massage  in  cases  of  sprains,  but  we 
have  noted  with  satisfaction  the  complete  dis- 
appearance of  pain,  and  the  complete  disap- 
pearance of  constitutional  disorders  in  old- 
standing  cases  of  a  similar  nature,  and  .this  in 
a  comparatively  short  time. 

I  will  not  take  up  more  of  your  attention, 
but  I  considered  it  only  right  to  infomi  you  of 
the  founding  of  a  massage  training  for  nurse.s 
right  in  the  heart  of  the  School,  that  is 
destineu  to  supply  in  Paris  hospitals  a  training 
such  as  cannot  be  had  elsewhere  in  Paris. 

Massage  is  such  a  necessary  item  in  a  nurse's 
training  (following  on  the  doctor's  orders),  she 
ought  at  once  to  be  capable  of  performing  the 
manipulations,  the  use  and  bencfieial  effects 
of  which,  unfortunately,  so  few  people  realise. 


®ur  riDarcb  IPrijc  (Ioinpctit(on0. 

SOMETHING  ABOUT  OLD  SISTERS 

We  offer  a  prize  of  one  guinea  for  a  paper 
of  reminiscences  entitled,  "  Something  About 
Old  Sisters."  In  this  connection  the  papers 
must  deal  with  those  Sisters  or  Head  Nurses 
in  charge  of  wards  before  1885 — women  who 
acquired  their  knowledge  and  skill  by  personal 
application,  rather  than  as  the  result  of 
systematic  instruction.  The  papers,  which  are 
not  to  exceed  1,500  words,  should  reach  the 
.Editor,  at  20,  Upper  Wimpole  Street,  Caven- 
dish Square,  London,  W.,  on  or  before  Satur- 
dav,  March  12th,  1010. 


THE  PRETTIEST  PATIENT. 

We  also  offer  a  prize  of  10s.  for  the  photo- 
graph and  description  of  "  The  Prettiest 
Patient,"  to  reach  the  Editor,  at  20,  Upper 
Wimpole  Street,  ('avendish  Square,  London, 
W.,  on  or  before  Saturday,  March  19th. 


166 


Tibe  Britfsb  Soumal  of  IRursino. 


[Feb.  26,   1910 


a   Svnopsis  of  tbe  IHurscs' 
IKeoistration  BUI. 

It  may  be  useful  to  draw  attention  to  the  provi- 
sions of  the  Bill  to  Regulate  the  Registration  of 
Nurses,  which  will  be  introduced  to  Parliament 
under  the  authority  of  the  Central  Registration 
Committee. 

Clause   1. — Name  of  Act. 

Clause  2. — Defines  the  three  classes  of  nurses  to 
be  registered — Women  Nurses,  Male  Nurses,  and 
Mental  Nurses. 

Clause  S. — Council  incorporated  under  the  title 
of  the  General  Council  for  the  Registration  of 
Nurses  in  the  United  Kingdom. 

Clause  4- — Constitution  of  Council,  to  consist  of 
21  pel-sons.  Three  pei-sons  appointed  by  Privy  Coun- 
cil, one  at  least  to  be  a  woman.  Eight  medical  prac- 
titionei-s.  Eight  registere<l  nurses,  three  of  whom 
must  be  Matrons.  One  male  nurse  or  medical 
practitioner.  One  mental  nurse.  Provided  until 
there  is  a  constituency  of  registered  nurses  the 
Council  shall  be  composed  of  three  persons  ai3- 
pointed  by  the  Privy  Council,  eight  medical  practi- 
tioners., thirteen  nurses,  representing  the  registra- 
tion and  other  nursing  societies,  and  one  nurse  or 
medical  practitioner  appointed  by  the  Royal 
British  Nurses'  Association.  These  persons  will 
hold  office  until  the  President  of  the  Privy  Coun- 
cil certifies  that  it  is  time  for  the  registered  nurses 
to  elect  by  ballot  direct  representatives. 

Clause  6. — Provides  that  the  members  of  the 
Council  shall  be  elected  for  a  term  of  five  years. 

Clause  7. — That  the  quorum  of  the  Council  shall 
be   nine. 

Clause  S. — Relates  to  the  appointment  of  the 
paid  officials. 

Clause  9. — That  the  Nurses'  Register  shall  be 
correctly  kept. 

Clause  10. — Defines  the  duties  and  powers  of  the 
Council.  It  is  to  frame  rules,  to  regulate,  and 
supervise  the  course  of  training  and  examinations 
for  nurses,  i-ssne  and  cancel  certificates  of  registra- 
tion, publish  annually  a  register  containing  names, 
addresses,  and  qualifications  of  nui-ses,  decide  upon 
the  suspension  or  removal  from  the  register  of  the 
names  of  nurses  for  any  breach  of  the  rules,  and 
take  proceedings  against  persons  guilty  of  offences. 

Tbe  Council  shall  appoint  three  Divisional  Com- 
mittees— one  for  England,  one  for  Scotland,  and 
one  for  Ireland — to  act  in  an  executive  capacity, 
provided  that  any  nurse  may  appeal  to  the  Council 
against  decisions  of  a  Divisional  Committee. 

(Jlause  11. — Provides  for  the  registration  of  exist- 
ing nurses  during  a  thre^years'  term  of  grace,  so 
that  no  hardship  shall  be  suffered  by  nurses. 

Clause  12.- — Provides  that  after  the  three  years' 
term  of  grace  those  entitled  to  be  regi.stered  must 
produce  evidence  satisfactory  to  the  Council  that 
a  term  of  not  less  than  three  years'  training  has 
been  completed  in  the  wards  of  a  hospital,  or  nos- 
pitals,  approved  of  by  the  Council, and  have  passed 
such  examination  as  the  Council  may  prescribe. 

Clause  IS. — Makes    possible     an     appeal  to   the 


Privy  Council  of  any  governing  body  of  a  hospital 
aggrieved  by  the  refusal  of  the  Council  to  recognise 
it  as  an  approved  training  school  for  nurses. 
•  Clause  i.}. — Makes  registration  on  reciprocal 
terms  ixjssible  in  any  British  possession,  provided 
that  the  standard  of  training  and  examination  is 
equivalent. 

Clause  i5.— Defines  the  sections  of  the  Nurses 
Register,  to  contain  the  Women  Nunses'  Register, 
a  supplementary  Register  of  Male  Nurses,  and  a 
supplementary  llegister  of  Mental  Nurses,  and  pro- 
vides that  male  and  female  mental  nurees  may  also 
be  registered  in  the  Women's  and  Male  Registers  if 
they  fulfil  the  necessary  conditions.  Certificates  of 
fever  nursing  may  be  added  to  the  registei-s  upon 
payment  of  a  fee  of  2s.  6d. 

Clause  16. — Deals  with  fees.  For  the  three  years' 
term  of  grace  two  guineas  is  to  be  i>aid  for  registra- 
tion, after  which  time  there  will  be  a  uniform 
examination  held  at  such  places  in  the  three 
divisions  of  the  Kingdom  as  are  convenient,  for 
which  a  fee  of  three  guineas  may  be  charged.  The 
total  fees  charged  for  examination  and  registration 
not  to  exceed  five  guineas.  Two  shillings  and  eix- 
I)ence  must  be  paid  annually  by  every  registered 
nurse. 

Clause  17. — Provides  for  the  payment  of  fees  and 
expenses  to  membei-s  of  the  Council. 

Clause  IS. — Provides  for  penalties  to  which  per- 
sons who  are  not  registered  are  liable,  who  use  the 
titles  of  "  registered  nurse,"  "  registered  male 
nui-se,"  and  "  registered  mental  nurse," 

Clause  19. — States  that  a  copy  of  the  Nurses'  Re- 
gister, certified  to  be  a  true  copy,  shall  be  evidence 
in  all  cx)urts  of  law  that  the  nunses  whose  names  are 
therein  specified  are  registered. 

Clause  20. — Provides  the  penalty  for  obtaining 
certificate  by  false  representation,  and  for  falsifica- 
tion of  register. 

Clause  21.- — Makes  it  compulsory  before  suspend- 
ing or  removing  any  nurse's  name  from  the 
register  for  the  Council  to  send  such  nurse  a  state- 
ment in  writing  by  registeretl  letter. 

Clause  22. — Gives  power  to  nurses  to  appeal  from 
the  decision  of  the  Council  to  the  High  Courts  of 
Justice  in  the  several  divisions  of  the  Kingdom  in 
which  they  reside. 

Clausf  23. — Prohibits  a  registered  nurse  from 
the  iiractice  of  medicine,  and  from  undertaking  the 
treatment  or  cure  of  disease. 

SuMM.tRT. 

Tlie  chief  recommendations  in  the  Bill  are: — 

1.  Direct  representation  of  matrons  and  nui-ses 
on  their  own  governing  body. 

2.  The  one-portal  sj-stem — that  is,  the  one- 
standard  examination  before  registration. 


AVe  have  received  an  admirable  communication 
from  Miss  Mollett  on  Registration  Finance,  which 
we  shall  publish  next  week. 


The  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Society  for  the  State 
Registration  of  Trained  Nurses  will  be  obliged  if 
the  members  who  have  not  yet  done  so  will  kindly 
forward  their  Is.  subscriptions  for  1910  to  431, 
Oxford  Street,   London,  W. 


Feb.  20,  I'.ilO, 


abe  BritlsD  3ournai  or  H-mrsing. 


167 


IRursino  in  3tal^. 

Queen  Elena,  oi  Italy,  visited  tliu  Poli- 
clinic Hospital  at  Home  on  the  morn- 
ing of  tiie  8th  iust.  Princess  Doria, 
and  Signora  Maraini,  with  the  hoKijltal 
authorities,  received  her  Majesty,  and 
accomijanied  her  iu  her  visit  to  the  new  build- 
ing for  the  Scuola  Convilto  Nurses'  Home  for 
Professional  Nurses.  Her  Majesty  expressed 
great  satisfaction  and  lier  interest  in  the  work ; 
offering  to  send  some  prints  tor  the  Nurses' 
sitting-room  and  refectory.  She  afterwards 
visited  with  Professor  Bastianclli  the  wards 
where  the  School  will  commence  their  work. 
The  press  in  reporting  this  visit  mentions  that 
"  a  staff  of  highly  trauied  nurses  has  been  en- 
gaged for  the  practical  training  of  the  pupils, 
and  the  doctors  of  the  Policlinic  will  impart 
the  scientific  instruction,"  adding  that  "  a 
work  so  highly  modern  and  rising  under  the 
jfrotcction  of  the  Quecu  who  herself  acted  as 
llie  first  nurse  of  Italy  in  the  days  of  the  Mes- 
sina and  Rpggio  disaster,  must  surely  be  at- 
tended by  success." 

As  we  have  reported,  a  highly  qualified 
English  nurse.  Miss  Dorothy  Snell,  will  super- 
intend this  new  School  of  Nursing  at  Home. 
She  leaves  England  for  Italy  on  Saturday,  the 
26th  inst.,  with  the  heartfelt  good  wishes  of 
her  colleagues  at  home  for  success  in  this  most 
interesting  new  work.  Although  so  unlike  in 
teniperaincnt,  the  English  and  Italian  peoples 
are  wonderfully  sympathetic ;  the  truth  is  we 
love  their  sunny  smiles,  and  no  doubt  they 
realise  there  is  something  satisfactory  in  our 
solidity. 

a  ^cmptino  3nvitatton. 

The  Executive  Committee  of  the  two 
National  Societies  which  form  the  American 
Federation  of  Nurses,  have  extended  most 
cordial  invitations  to  all  officers  and  honorary 
members  of  the  International  Council  of 
Nurses  to  go  to  the  United  States  this  spring 
to  be  present  at  the  annual  meetings  to  be  held 
in  New  York  in  the  third  week  in  May. 
American  mu'ses  intend  to  have  some  appro- 
priate commemoration  of  the  fiftieth  anniver- 
sary of  the  foundation  of  the  Niglitingnle 
School  at  St.  Thomas'  Hospital.  How  delight- 
ful it  would  be  to  accept  this  tempting  invita- 
tion !  But,  alas !  we  fear  but  few  will  this 
year  have  the  happiness  of  enjoying  such  a 
holiday.  Until  Registration  in  the  United 
Kingdom  is  an  accomplished  fact  we  have  got 
to  sit  tight  at  home,  and  all  spare  pennies 
must  go  in  furthering  legislation.  There  will 
come  a  time — but  that  is  another  story  ! 


IPi*cIinunai\)  trraining  tor  H^uiscs. 

THE     PRELIMINARY     NURSING     SCHOOL 
AT   GUtS   HOSPITAL. 

It  liuppeued  ihuL  \vhen  \isilmg  Uuy'b  Hos- 
pital last  week,  to  obtain  some  information 
from  the  Matron,  Miss  L.  V.  Haughtou,  as  to 
the  Preliminary  Nursing  School,  1  was  directed 
to  her  office,  and  in  the  outer  office  were  a 
number  of  probationers,  in  neat  mauve  print 
uniforms  and  spotless  caps  and  aprons.  They 
were  the  class  of  pupils  of  the  Preliminary 
School,  who  had  just  passed  their  examination 
and  were  being  interviewed  by  the  Matron  be- 
fore admission  to  the  wards. 

All  the  probationers  at  Guy's  Hospital, 
whether  ordinary  or  paying  pupils,  are  re- 
quired to  pass  a  satisfactory  course  of  in- 
struction and  practical  work  in  the  Preliminary 
School,  which  forms  part  of  the  Henrietta 
Haphael  Nurses'  Home.  Seven  weeks  is 
allowed  for  each  course,  six  full  weeks  of  in- 
struction and  three  or  four  days  for  the  prac- 
tical examination.  The  remaining  days  allow 
the  two  Sisters  in  charge  of  the  School  to  have 
a  few  days'  holiday  before  taking  in  a  new  set 
of  pupils. 

The  preliminary  probationers  have  no  inter- 
course with  those  working  in  the  hospital,  the 
School  being  kept  entirely  distinct,  but  they  are 
responsible  under  the  Sisters  for  the  house- 
work of  three  floors  in  the  Home,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  some  of  the  rougher  work,  and  are 
thus  trained  in  the  habits  of  order,  method,  and 
thoroughness  expected  of  them  when  they 
reach  the  wards. 

Each  probationer  pays  six  guineas  for  board, 
residence,  and  tuition,  provides  herself  with 
indoor  unifonn,  and  pays  her  personal  laundry. 
She  has  a  separate  Ijedroom,  in  which  hot  and 
cold  water  are  laid  on,  and  there  is  a  common 
sitting-room  besides  class  rooms,  lecture  room, 
museum,  and  kitchen  fitted  up  for  the  practice 
of  sick  room  cookery. 

The  course  includes  tuition  and  practical 
work  in  elementary  anatomy,  physiology, 
hygiene,  dispensing,  bandaging,  the  making  of 
dressings,  use  of  instruments,  bed-making, 
house  work,  and  sick  room  cookery.  The  sick 
room  for  the  nurses  is  under  the  ciiarge  of  the 
Preliminary  School  Sisters,  and  the  pupils  in 
this  way  get  an  insight  into  practical  nursing 
anil  accustomed  t<>  the  api)liances  used  in  a 
ward,  though  they  do  not  perform  any  of  the 
actual  niu-sing.  They  also  do  the  cookery  for 
the  nurses'  sick  room. 

The  pupils  go  on  duty  at  eight  o'clock,  and. 
with  an  interval  at  9.30,  when  they  attend 
prayers  in  the  Chapel,  they  are  occupied  with 
the  practical  work  of  the  Home  till  10.30  a.m. 


168 


^be  Britisb  3ournal  of  Tfturaing,,       treb.  26,  1910 


They  then  attend  a  class  on  practical  nursing 
till  11.30,  when  they  are  either  engaged  in  sick 
room  cookery  or  in  keeping  up  stock  until 
12.15.  Dinner,  and  a  quarter  of  an  hour  off 
duty,  occupy  the  time  from  12.15  till  one 
o  'clock,  when  an  hour  is  devoted  to  study.  At 
2    o'clock    the    pupils    go    off    duty,    either 


from     2 — 3     p.m. 


2 — 5     p.m.,    taking 


alternate  days.  From  3—5  p.m.  those 
on  duty  attend  to  the  stock,  pad  splints, 
aud  prepare  dressings,  pads,  and  sponges. 
Tea  IS  from  5  o'clock  to  5.30  p.m., 
and  from  5.30  to  7  p.m.  there  is  a  class  on 
anatomy,  physiology,  or  hygiene.  From  7  to 
9  p.m.  is  devoted  to  study;  supper  is  at  9 
o'clock,  chapel  at  9.30  p.m.  The  pupils  are  in 
their  rooms  at  10  o'clock,  and  lights  are  out 
by  10.45  p.m. 

The  teaching  during  the  course  is  given  by 
the  Sisters  in  the  Home,  and  the  final  examina- 
tion lasts  several  days. 

The  drilling  which  the  pupils  receive  in  the 
Home  is  beneficial  in  two  ways.  Those  who 
prove  (juite  unsuitable  are  weeded  out  before 
entering  the  wards,  and  their  acquaintance 
with  underlying  principles,  and  with  the 
elements  of  practical  work,  makes  those  passed 
into  the  hospital  useful  to  some  extent  at  once, 
and  so  the  ward  work  runs  more  smoothly.  No 
hospitals  which  have  once  had  experience  of 
the  benefits  which  follow  the  institution  of  a 
preliminary  school,  would  return  to  the  old 
system  of  admitting  probationers  on  trial  to 
the  wards  at  once. 

It  rests  with  the  Matron  to  determine  at  the 
end  of  the  course  whether  the  probationer  shall 
continue  her  training.  If  she  is  admitted  to 
the^  wards,  she  is  on  probation  for  a  further 
period  of  three  months,  and  is  placed  for  a 
month  in  a  medical  and  a  month  in  a  surgical 
ward.  If  she  gets  a  thoroughly  satisfactory 
report  from  the  Sister  of  each  ward,  she  may 
be  allowed  to  sign  her  agreement  at  the  end  of 
two  months.  More  often  she  serves  for 
another  month,  and  during  this  period  the 
Matron  may  at  any  time  terminate  her  engage- 
ment. 

Special  Training. 
During  their  three  years'  training,  generally 
early,  many  of  the  probationers  receive  instruc- 
tion in  massage  free,  and  the  hospital  authori- 
ties also  pay  their  examination  fee.  In  return 
for  these  benefits,  they  are  expected  to  under- 
take such  massage  as  may  be  required  of  them 
in  the  wards. 

A  number  of  Guy's  nurses  also  obtain  their 
maternity  training,  being  allowed  six  weeks 
absence  from  the  wards  in  order  to  obtain  their 
cases  in  connection  with  the  District  IMaternity 
attached  to  the  hospital.  During  this  time 
-they  pay  a  fee  of  £10  10s.     They  then  return 


to  the  hospital  and  work  in  the  maternity 
wards,  and  go  up  for  the  examination  of  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board. 

It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that  Guy's  Hos- 
pital offers  very  substantial  advantages  in  the 
way  of  training  to  members  of  the  nursing 
staff. 

Instruction  in  Administrative  Work. 

The  hospital  authorities  also  offer  opportuni- 
ties to  accepted  candidates,  holding  a  certi- 
ficate of  three  years'  training  in  a  general  hos- 
pital of  not  less  than  200  beds,  and  who  have 
subsequently  had  experience  as  Ward  Sisters, 
of  instruction  in  administrative  work.  The  fee 
for  the  course,  which  extends  over  three 
months,  is  eighteen  guineas,  and  it  comprises 
instruction  in  housekeeping  in  hospital  and 
nurses'  home;  the  management  of  kitchens 
and  stores;  the  ordering  and  receiving  of  milk, 
meat,  etc.,  from  trademen;  the  management 
of  servants  and  their  work ;  the  cooking  and 
serving  of  diets  to  patients  and  staff ;  laundry 
work;  the  management  of  linen  stores,  in- 
cluding stock-taking,  and  book-keeping;  and 
the  management  of  the  Matron's  office,  in- 
cluding the  engagement  of  probationers  and 
sei-vants.  M.  B. 


practical  [points. 

Writing  in    the    American 
The  Continuous      Journal     of     Nursing,     Miss 
Hand  Bath.  Marguerite  Parke  says:  — 

For  cellulitis  of  the  hand 
or  forearm,  a  continuous  bath  has  been  con- 
structed, which  is  approved  of  and  used  very  exten- 
sively by  the  surgeons  of  Roosevelt  Hospital,  New 
Yor:k  City. 

The  bath  consists  of  a  granite  or  enamel  tub, 
measuring  about  two  feet  in  length  and  one  foot 
in  width ;  the  depth  may  vary,  although  it  is  gener- 
ally about  nine  inches,  just  about  deep  enough  to 
immerse  the  hand  and   forearm. 

The  tub  rests  upon  brackets,  swung  within  an 
iron  frame  wide  enough  to  receive  it,  and  about 
the  height  of  the  bed.  On  a  shelf  under  the  tub 
rests  the  electric  heater  attached  to  the  general 
circuit  by  the  usual  electric  wire.  By  means  of  this 
heater  the  solution  in  the  tub  is  kept  at  the  re- 
quired temperature,  usually  112  degs.  Fahr. 

The  patient  is  brought  to  the  side  of  the  bed  cor- 
responding to  the  infected  member,  and  propped 
on  pillows  or  a  back-rest  with  pillows,  although  the 
former  method  insures  greater  comfort.  If  a  rub- 
ber cushion  especially  designed  for  the  head  of  the 
tub,  on  which  to  rest  the  arm,  is  not  procurable, 
one  may  be  imjirovised  by  means  of  a  hot  water 
bag  filled  partly  with  warm  water,  partly  with  air. 

The  immersion  in  the  solution,  which  is  generally 
sterile  saline,  may  be  continuous,  or  may  last  from 
an  hour  and  a  half  to  two  hours,  when  a  rest  is 
given  the  infected  member,  after  which  it  is  im- 
mersed again. 


Feb.  26,  1910] 


:i)e  British  3ournal  of  IRursina. 


169 


(tbe  3ri9b  IHurscs'  association. 

On  Tuesday  eveuing,  15th,  we  had  a  very 
instructive  lecture  on  "  Fractures,"  from  Sur- 
geon de  Courcy  Wheeler,  at  the  Association's 
rooms,  86,  Lower  Leeson  Street,  Dublin. 
He  alwaj-s  lectures  very  well,  and 
therefore  we  had  a  full  room.  He 
commenced  by  saying  that  up  to  quite 
recent  years  there  was  little  or  no  advance  in 
the  treatment  of  fractures ;  in  tact,  the  natives 
of  Uganda  knew  as  much  as  most  others,  and 
their  regime  would  be  the  same — splints— for 
the  most  part.  An  old  writer  named  Ambrose 
Parey,  in  the  preface  to  his  book  on  Surgery, 
written  in  1579,  said  he  had  studied  the  sub- 
ject of  fractures  for  filty  years,  and  that  the 
treatment  as  laid  down  by  him  was  so  com- 
plete that  nothing  was  left  by  posterity  to  im- 
prove I 

Poor  Ambrose  would  be  surprised  now  to 
hear  that  posterity  were  preparing  in  many 
cases  to  do  without  sphnts  altogether.  The 
lecturer  dwelt  a  good  deal  on  the  subject  of 
"open  "  operations  in  plenty  of  cases,  espe- 
cially where  union  of  bone  was  difficult,  and 
told  us  of  the  benefit  it  was.  He  also  spoke 
of  how  surgeons  generally  are  allowing  freedom 
of  movement  once  all  pain  in  the  parts  has 
ceased,  and  gave  as  an  authority  Lucas  Cham- 
pioniere,  of  Paris,  who  advocates  the  move- 
ments of  the  ends  of  the  bones.  Of  course, 
massage  takes  a  leading  place  now  with  frac- 
tured bones.  To  us  old  stagers,  when  we 
remember  our  awful  fright  in  bad  fracture 
cases,  lest  they  budge  the  one-eighth  of  an  inch 
in  the  bed,  this  seems  astonishing,  but  in 
medical  matters  we  have  become  used  to  sur- 
prises. Certainly  the  end  justifies  the  means, 
and  if  better  adhesion  and  sounder  limbs  ensue, 
by  all  means  let  us  have  movement.  What  a 
boon  in  the  case  of  little  children  I  He  said 
that  the  advent  of  X-rays  had  revolutionised 
and  enlightened  the  whole  realm  of  fractures. 
Another  mode  since  poor  Ambrose's  time  is 
that  blood  is  now  injected  straight  into  the 
seat  of  the  injury,  which  helps  to  form  callus. 
He  talked  with  admiration  of  Mr.  Arbuthnot 
Lane,  of  London,  who,  although  much  laughed 
at,  has  stuck  to  his  point  for  twenty  or  thirty 
years,  in  advocating  these  newer  methods. 
Practically  speaking,  so  far  most  cases  of 
so-called  healed  fractures  have  good  reason  to 
remember  their  injuries;  they  are  very  seldom 
without  the  reminder,  such  as  rheumatic  pains, 
swelling,  and  frequently  shortening  of  the 
parts.  Mr.  Wheeler  had  brought  many  photos. 
X-rayed,  as  well  as  the  various  plates  and 
screens  now  used  in  "open  "  operations,  to 
show  us.  \'.    W. 


an  3Uu6tnous  Cbirureion. 

Amongst  the  treasured  possessions  ot  the 
Editor  of  this  Jourual  is  an  old  volume,  printed 
in  1634  by  Thos.  Cotes  and  K.  Young,  of 
London,  of  the  works  of  that  famous  Chirur- 
gion,  Ambrose  Parey  translated  out  of  Latine 
and  compared  with  the  French,  by  Th.. Johnson. 
The  Author's  Epistle  Dedicatorie,  "  To  Henry 
the  Third,  the  most  Christian  King  of  France 
and  Poland,"  dated  Paris  8th  February,  Anno 
Dom.,  1579,  shows  this  most  illustrious  smr- 
geon  as  a  polished  courtier  and  man  of  affairs. 
The  catalogue  of  his  works,  29  in  number, 
show  the  scope  of  his  stupendous  researches 
and  learning :  — 

1.  An  Introduction,  or  compendious  way  to 
Chirurgery. 

2.  Of  living  creatures,  and  man's  excel- 
lency. 

3.  Of  the  Anatomy  of  man's  body. 

4.  Of  the  vitall  parts  contained  in  the  chest. 

5.  Of  the  Animall  parts  placed  in  the  head. 

6.  Of  the  Muscles  and  Bones,  and  other 
extreme  parts  of  the  body. 

7.  Of  "rumors,  contrary  to  nature  in  general. 

8.  Of  Tumors,  contrarv  to  nature  in  particu- 
lar. 

9.  Of  Wounds  in  generall. 

10.  Of  the  green  and  bloody  wounds  of  each 
severall  part. 

11.  Of  wounds  made  by  Gun-shot,  and  other 
fiery  Engins,  and  all  sorts  of  weapons. 

12.  Of  Contusions,  and  Gangreenes. 

13.  Of  Ulcers,  Fistulaes,  and  Hfemorroides. 

14.  Of  Ligatures  and  Bandages. 

15.  Of  Fractures. 

16.  Of  Luxations,  and  Straines. 

17.  Of  diverse  affects  of  the  parts  not  agree- 
able to  nature,  whose  care  commonly  is  per- 
fomied  bv  the  hand. 

IS.  Of' the  Gout. 

19.  Of  the  Laes  Venerea  (these  words,  in 
large  type,  proving  how  serious  in  the  estima- 
tion of  the  great  Parey  are  its  ravages),  and 
those  Symptomes  that  happen  by  reason 
thereof. 

20.  Of  the  small  Poxes  and  Measels,  and  also 
of  Wonnes,  and  the  Leprosie. 

21.  Of  Poysons,  and  of  the  biting  of  mad 
dogges,  and  the  stinging  and  biting  of  venemous 
creatures. 

22.  Of  the  Plague. 

23.  Of  the  Art  to  repaire  those  things  which 
are  defective,  either  by  nature  or  accident. 

24.  Of  the  generation  of  man. 

25.  Of  Monsters  and  Prodigies. 

26.  Of  the  Faculties  of  simple  medecines, 
tocether  with  their  composition  and  use. 

27.  Of  Distillations. 


170 


Zbc  ffirttleb  3ournaI  of  IRursina.     ^^'^-  ^-^' 


1910 


28.  A  Treatise  of  reports,  and  the  embalm- 
ing of  dead  bodies. 

29.  An  Apologie,  and  Voyages. 


Zhc  Central  poor  Xaw  Conference 
191 0. 


Bich  Ambrose  Parey !  How  infinitely  richer 
the  world  for  your  ripe  knowledge. 

Some  day  we  must  reproduce  some  of 
the  woodcuts  from  the  Compendious 
Way  to  Chirurgery,  to  prove  that  it  is  time  we 
made  progress,  after  330  years  I 

JLbc  IRurses'  flDissionar^  Xeaaue. 

SPECIAL  MEETINGS  FOR   NURSES. 

Twelve  meetings  were  held  at  the  Passmore 
Edwards'  Settlement,  and  several  in  various 
hospitals,  in  connection  with  the  special  week 
of  meetings  under  the  auspices  of  the  Nurses' 
Missionary  League.  The  meetings  were  on  the 
whole  well  attended.  MissBurroughes,  formerly 
of  Guy's  Hospital,  and  Miss  J.  Macfee,  B.A., 
were  the  speakers  at  the  Passmore  Edwards' 
Settlement.  The  former  took  as  her  subjects 
"The  Call  of  God,"  "  Witnesses  to  God,"  and 
"  Friendship  ' ' ;  while  Miss  Macfee  spoke  of  the 
Mission  of  Christ,  as  described  in  the  five 
clauses  of  St.  Luke  IV.,  18-19. 

At  the  closing  meeting  on  Feb.  19th,  the 
Hon.  Florence  Macnaghten,  now  home 
on  furlough  from  her  work  in  the 
Kanga  Valley  in  India,  was  the  first 
speaker,  and  dwelt  upon  Isaiah's  vision  of 
God,  and  its  effects  upon  his  life.  Miss  Macfee 
then  said  a  few  words  on  the  threefold  aspect 
of  love  — God's  love  to  man,  fnan's  love  to, 
God,  and  man's  love  to  his  fellow-man. 

Miss  Bun'oughes  followed,  taking  as  her  sub- 
ject "  Diseipleship,"  and  dwelHng  on  the  need 
for  absolute  surrender  of  life  to  God,  so  that 
we  are  nothing,  and  do  nothing,  and  have 
nothing  apart  from  Him. 

The  closing  address  was  then  given  by  Miss 
W.  Sedgwick  (Somerville  College),  on  the  text, 
"  God  is  faithful  Who  has  called  you  into  fel- 
lowship with  His  Son."  She  showed  how  fel- 
lowship, or  partnership,  entails  a  sharing  of  re- 
sponsibilities, sorrows,  trials,  work,  and 
pleasures ;  so  that  our  difiSculties  and  troubles 
are  no  longer  ours  alone,  and  we  have  a  share 
in  Christ's  glory  and  victory,  too.  And,  since 
God  is  faithful,  we  shall  have  power  in  times 
of  loneliness  and  discouragement  to  live  up  to 
tSe  visions  we  have  seen  of  Him. 


^be  £100  IReaistration  ifunb. 

£     s.    d. 

Brought  forward  39  17     0 

Miss   Edith   Han-is      10     0 

Miss  E.  M.  Jones      0     5     0 


Total,  £41     2     0 


The  Council  Chamber  of  the  Guildhall  was  full 
to  overflowing  on  the  occasion  of  the  opening  of  the 
38th  Annual  Central  Poor  Law  Conference  on 
Tuesday,  February  22nd.  The  Right  Hon.  the 
Lord  Mayor  attended  in  his  robes  of  office  to  open 
the  proceeduigs,  and  after  expressing  the  pleasure 
he  felt  in  welcoming  the  members  at  the  Guildhall, 
and  predictinga  successful  Conference,  withdrew 
to  fulfil  other  duties.  The  chair  was  then  occupied 
by  the  President,  Lord  Kichard  Cavendish.  The 
prevailing  note  throughout  the  meeting  was  the 
JMiuoritj-  Report  of  the  Royal  Commission  on  the 
Poor  Laws.  Lord  Richard  Cavendish  said  it  was 
unfortunate  that  the  general  impression  given  by 
the  resolutions  pas.sed  at  the  last  Conference  was 
that  Guardians  generally  are  disposed  to  meet  the 
Report  of  tlie  R-oyal  Commission  with  a  direct  non 
■possimus,  and  it  would  incur  the  susi^icion  that 
they  disapproved  of   all  innovation. 

He  prophesied  that  if  a  new  order  of  things  were- 
set  up  the  same  men  and  women  who  had  given  so 
ungrudgingly  of  their  time  and  labour  in  the  past, 
would  again  be  found  in  the  foremost  ranks,  and 
he  submitted  that  before  committing  the  nation  to 
a  policy  very  doubtful  .and  costly,  it  would  be  wiser 
to  bring  the  existing  system  into  harmony  with 
modern  requirements. 

Mr.  A.  F.  Vulliamy  read  through  the  Minority 
Report,  and  proceeded  to  deal  with  it  exhaustively, 
and  in  no  favourable  spirit.  He  considered  that 
the  poor  are  more  favourably  and  sympathetically 
dealt  with  by  a  body  elected  for  that  pur- 
pose, and  who  know  them,  and  that  the  j^roposals 
of  the  ilinority  Iteport  would  tend  to  diminish 
thrift,  and  would  interfere  with  the  liberty  of  the 
subject. 

Mr.  George  Lansbury  made  a  fighting  speech  in 
favour  of  the  adoption  of  the  Report.  He  asked 
the  Conference  to  consider  that  a  great  deal  had 
happened  since  1834.  It  was  a  fact  to-day  that 
from  ten  to  fifteen  thousand  children  receiving 
parish  relief  were  living  in  vicious  and  immoral 
surroundings,  and  that  there  was  in  spite  of  asser- 
tions to  the  contrary  much  overlapping  of  charit- 
able schemes,  as  for  instance  in  education,  the 
feeding  of  school  children,  whose  parents  were  al- 
ready receiving  relief,  and  also  in  dealing  with 
the  unemployed.  He  also  pointed  out  that  phthisis 
was  already  handed  over  to  the  Public  Health  De- 
partment, and  that  other  diseases  would  quickly 
follow.  He  ridiculed  the  present  system,  whereby 
a  person  of  69  was  styled  a  pauper,  and  a  person 
of  70  was  not.  His  remarks  were  received  un- 
favourably by  the  majority  of  the  Conference. 

Other  speakers  joined  in  the  discussion. 

A  CORRECTION. 

In  the  list  of  new  members  of  the  Irish  Nurses'- 
Association,  published  in  our  issue  last  yeek,  th« 
name,  M.  J.  Healley,  published  in  connection  wiin 
the  Coombe  Hospital,  Dublin,  should  read  M.  F. 
Heatley. 


Feb.  -26,  1910] 


^I5e  Bvttlsb  3omnal  of  IRursln^i. 


171 


appointments. 


Matkoxs. 

Wandsworth     Union    Infirmary,    S.W MissF.  M.  Mid- 

dletoii  has  Iji'eii  ai)))<>iiitod  .Matron  in  succession  to 
Miss  Helen  To<ld.  Slie  was  trained  at  Waudswortli 
Infirmary,  and  has  lield  the  positions  of  Cliargo 
Nurse,  Night  Snperintt^ndent,  and  Assistant 
-Matron  in  tlio  stinif  iiiKt itut  ion. 

Hospital  lor  Inlectious  Diseases.  Port  of  London  Sanitary 
Authority.  Denton,  Cravesend. — Miss  Jessie  Jackson 
has  been  appoint<?d   Matron. 

General  Dispensary  and  Infirmary,  itersey. — Miss  Helen 
Bond  has  been  appointed  Matron.  She  was  trained 
at  the  Coventry  and  Warwickshire  Hospital, 
Coventry,  where  she  lias  held  the  position  of  Staff 
Nurse.  She  has  also  been  Staff  Nurse  and  tem- 
porary Night  Sister  at  the  Royal  National  Hospital 
for  Consumption,  Newcastle,  Co.  Wicklow,  Ire- 
land, and  Sister  at  the  Infirmary,  of  which  slie  has 
now  been  appointed  Matron. 

Matron  Nurse. 

The  Infirmary,  Alnwick. — Miss  Eleanor  Jasper  has 
been  appointed  Matron  Nurse.  She  was  trained  at 
the  Royal  Infirmary,  Bradford,  and  has  held  the 
jiosition  of  Sister  at  the  Hospital  for  Women  and 
Children,  Bristol;  Superintendent  Nurse  at  the 
Union  Infirmary,  Todmorden ;  Night  Sister  at  the 
Children's  Infirmary,  Liverpool,  and  Nurse  Matron 
at  the  Cottage  Hospital,  Mold.  She  has  also  worked 
as  a  member  of  the  Array  Nursing  Service  Reserve, 
at  the  Herbert  Hospital,  Woolwich,  and  in  South 
Africa. 

Assistant    M.\tron. 

Stanley  Hospital,  Liverpool. — Miss  Bertha  Pratt 
has  been  appointed  Assistant  Matron.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Royal  Hospital,  Shefiield,  and  has 
held  the  position  of  Night  Superintendent  at  the 
Taunton  and  Somerset  Hospital,  Taunt-on;  Hon.se- 
keeper  at  the  South  Devon  and  East  Cornwall  Hos- 
'pital.  Plymouth,  and  of  Night  Superintendent  at 
the  County  Hospital,    Bedford. 

Home  Hospital,  Leicester — Miss  IMorrison  has  been 
appointed  Assistant  Matron.  She  was  trained  at 
the  Royal  Albert  Edward  Infirmary,  Wigan,  where 
she  has  held  the  appointment  of  AVard  and  Theatre 
Sister  for  tiiree  years. 

Sisters. 

Union  Maternity  Hospital,  Bradford — ^liss  E.  M. 
Meagre  has  been  appointed  .Sister.  .She  was  trained 
at  the  Incorporation  Infirmary,  Shirley  Warren, 
Southampton,  and  has  held  the  position  of  Staff 
Nurse  at  the  Hospital  for  Women  and  Children, 
Leeds. 

Maison  de  Sante  Protestante,  Bordeaux.  -Miss  Edith 
Gregory  has  been  ap])ointt-d  .Sister  of  Medical, 
Surgical,  and  Children's  Wards  at  the  Maison 
de  Sante  Protestante,  Bordeaux.  She  was 
trained  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  London, 
and  has  held  the  positions  of  Theatre  Sister  at  the 
Liverpool  Hospital  for  Women;  Ward  Sister  and 
Night  Superintendent  at  the  Norfolk  and  Norwich 
Hospital;  Home  Si.ster  at  the  itoyal  Infirmary 
Hull ;  Assistant  Matron  at  Seacroft  Hospital, 
Leedsj  and  Matron  at  the  London  Fever  Hospital, 
Islington. 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRAS  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 

NURSING   SERVICE. 

Matron-in-Chte/. 

It  is  officially  announced  that  Miss  E.  H.  Becher, 
R.K.C.,  Principal  Matron,  Queen  Alexandra's  Im- 
perial Military  Nursing  Service,  has  been  selected 
to  succeed  Miss  C.  H.  Ke<'r,  R.R.C.,  as  Matron-in- 
CTiief  at  the  War  Office  when  the  latter  vacates 
that  appointment  on  the  5th  of  April  next. 

Miss  Becher  was  trained  at  the  London  Ho.spital, 
and  joined  the  Army  Nursing  Reserve,  and  later 
Q.A.I.M.N.S.  She  was  on  active  service  during 
the  South  African  War,  and  has  been  a  Principal 
Matron  at  the  War  Office  since  .Mav,   1903. 


QUEEN   VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE    INSTITUTE 
FOR   NURSES 

Appointment  of  Inspector. — Miss  Elizabeth  Ross 
has  been  appointed  Inspector  to  the  Central  Coun- 
ties under  the  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute. 
She  w'as  trained  at  the  Leeds  General  Infirmary, 
and  was  appointed  Queen's  Nurse  in  July,  189.'5.  .She 
worked  as  Queen's  Nurse  at  Handsworth,  and  as 
Assistant  Superintendent  at  the  Northampton 
Home.  She  has  since  held  the  post  of  County 
Superintendent  of  the  Nottinghamshire  County 
Nursing  Association.  She  holds  the  C.M.B.  certi- 
ficate. 

Transfers  and  Appointments. — Mi.ss  Mary  Glad- 
win, to  Measham ;  Miss  Jessie  McLaclilan,  to  War- 
rington, as  Senior  Nurse;  Miss  Esther  Cathcart 
Smith,  to  Bath;  Miss  Dorothy  Jones,  to  Ruthin. 


PRESENTATION. 

At  the  27th  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Kent  and 
Canterbury  Institute  for  Trained  Nurses,  held  in 
the  Library  of  the  Kent  and  Canterbury  Hcspital. 
Canterbury,  the  Bishop  of  Dover,  as  Fresident,  in 
the  presence  of  an  interested  audience,  presented 
to  Miss  Emily  Attwood  a  gold  bar  brooch  to  l)e 
worn  in  connection  with  her  badge,  in  recognition 
of  21  years'  devoted  service  as  one  of  the  nurses 
of  the  Institute. 

The  Bishop,  who  amid  inucli  applause  pinned  tin- 
bar  on  to  the  nur-se's  cape,  stated  that  she  was 
such  a  favourito  that  she  was  constantly  employed, 
and  so  got  little  relaxation. 


RESIGNATIONS. 

The  Governors  of  tlio  Hartlcpools  Hospital,  at 
their  last,  meeting,  had  before  them  tho  resignation 
of  th©  Matron,  Mrs.  Farrar,  who  ha-s  held  thi*i 
position  for  thirty  yeare.  Colonel  Burdon,  J.I'., 
moved  from  the  chair  that  it  be  accept<Hl  with  great 
regret,  and  tho  Secretary-  was  in,strncted  to  write  to 
Mrs.  Farrar  expressing  the  Govcrnore'  appreciation 
of  her  services. 


At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Nottinghamshne 
Nursing  Fwleration  Mi.ss  K.  F.  Ross  wrote  resign- 
ing her  position  of  Suix-rintendent.  Miss  Ro^^n'.s 
excellent  work  in  Nottiiighainshire  is  well  known, 
and  wo  are  not  8Urpris<'<l  that  a  high  tribute  was 
paid  to  its  value,  and  much  regret  expressed  at  her 
resignation. 


172 


ITbe  JBritisb  3ournal  ot  iRursina.       t^^*^-  -6-  i^io 


IRursino  lecbocs. 

At  a  recent  meeting  of  the 
Queen  Victoria's  Institute 
tor  Nurses,  the  Countess  of 
JJudley  reported  to  the  Coun- 
cil the  urgent  need  for  the 
establishment  of  district 
mu'sing  work  in  the  various 
Australasian  Colonies.  She 
had  come  over  from  Austra- 
lia with  the  express  purpose 
of  trying  to  organise  an  Order 
of  district  nurses  on  the 
liufs  ot  the  Queen's  Institute  and  the 
Victorian  Order  of  Nurses  in  Canada.  She 
sought  the  Council's  approval  and  assistance 
in  the  scheme.  It  was  decided  that  the  matter 
should  be  referred  to  the  Executive  Committee, 
and  a  further  report  made  to  the  Council. 
Lady  Dudley  proposes  to  visit  Canada  with  a 
view  to  seeking  information  as  to  the  work 
there  of  the  Victorian  Order  of  Nurses. 


Having  come  into  personal  touch  with 
Australasian  Matrons  and  nurses,  Lady  Dudley 
is  fully  aware  that  district  nursing  must  be 
carried  out  by  the  thoroughly  trained  and 
efficient  worker.  After  years  of  careful  organi- 
sation, very  high  standards  have  been  attained 
by  nurses  in  the  Commonwealth,  and  they 
would  bitterly  resent  the  introduction  of  the 
English  rural  nursing  system  into  Australasia. 
No  two  standards  of  nursing  for  rich  and  poor 
would  be  tolerated  in  that  democratic  quarter 
of  the  globe. 


We  fear  the  wise  warning  of  Dr.  T.  D.  Grif- 
fiths and  Mrs.  Lancaster, at  the  meeting  recently 
convened  at  Swansea  in  connection  with  the 
South  Wales  Nursing  Association,  will  fall  on 
deaf,  if  aristocratic  ears.  The  object  of  the 
Association  is  to  provide  "  nurses  "  for  rural 
districts  by  training  them  in  "midwifery" — and 
failing  funds  (tlioy  so  often  fail  in  this  parti- 
cular) to  pay  a  Queen's  Nurse — to  provide  a 
cheaper  and  less  efficient  article. 


Dr.  Griffiths  complained  of  the  indefinite 
nature  of  the  qualifications  of  the  nurses  they 
were  going  to  have.  He  said  we  now- 
had  doctors,  surgeons,  and  quacks,  and  they 
were  going  to  advocate  a  system  of  quack 
nurses.  They  had  no  guarantee  that  the  nurses 
appointed  would  be  qualified  for  their  work. 
After  a  woman  had  seen  a  few  cases  she  could 
turn,  as  a  last  resource,  to  nursing.  In  the 
first  place,  they  should  guarantee  proper  re- 
muneration, and  insist  upon  certain  quali- 
fications.      He    asked    if    it     wou'Id     not     be 


wiser  to  give  liberal  pay  and  have  nurses  fully 
qualified  thau  have  half-trained  ones  for  less. 

Mrs.  Lancaster  also  disapproved,  and  thought 
it  better  to  have  no  nurse  at  all  than  a  half- 
trained  one,  and  hoped  it  would  not  be  en- 
couraged in  Swansea. 

Unfortunately,  Wales  is  going  strongly  for 
the  semi-qualified  uurse  for  the  poor. 


Sir  Marcus  Samuel  presided  at  the  crowded 
annual  meeting  of  the  Sick  Koom  Helps 
Society  and  Nurses'  Home,  which  is  supported 
by  the  Jewish  community,  and  works  amongst 
the  very  poor  in  East  London,  and  which  was 
held  at  his  residence,  3,  Hamilton  Place, 
Piccadilly,  W.,  on  Thursday  in  last  week. 

The  staff  of  this  Society  consists  of  six 
maternity  nurses,  superintended  by  Airs.  S. 
Levy,  and  three  Queen's  Nurses  for  general 
work,  the  Nursing  Superintendent  of  this  de- 
partment being  Nurse  Orthmann.  In  addi- 
^  tion,  between  60  and  70  sick  room  helps  are 
employed.  The  headquarters  are  at  present 
at  61,  Philpot  Street,  E.,  but  the  staff  and 
work  are  fast  outgrowing  the  accommodation 
of  the  Home,  and  the  prospect  of  expansion  in 
the  near  future,  owing  to  a  bequest  of  £5,000 
from  the  Lewis  Hill  Fund,  which  will  enable 
the  Committee  to  build  a  Nurses'  Home  with 
a  maternity  ward  attached,  is  eagerly  looked 
forward  to. 

In  his  opening  remarks.  Sir  Marcus  Samuel 
said  that,  when  so  many  societies  were  com- 
peting, the  growth  of  the  Society  was  quite 
extraordinary,  and  was  a  confirmation  of  the 
truth  that  people  love  to  help  those  who  help 
themselves.  Nearly  £1,242  in  the  provident 
collection  represented  subscriptions  of  Id. 
weekly  from  4,000  people.  Such  people  de- 
served the  help  which  more  fortunate  members 
of  the  community  could  render.  The  number 
of  nurses  in  proportion  to  helps  was  compara- 
tively few,  but  the  helps  rendered  a  type  of 
assistance  in  poor  homes  which  was  not  within 
the  duty  or  scope  of  the  iiurses,  and  freed 
them  to  give  their  skilled  attention  where  it 
was  really  needed. 

A  very  satisfactory  report  and  balance-sheet 
was  presented  by  Mrs.  Model,  who  said  the 
finances  were  entirely  managed  by  'women. 
The  chief  success  of  the  work  was  due,  she  be- 
lieved, to  the  delicate  and  strong  thread  of 
sympathy  which  ran  through  it  all.  She  re- 
ferred to  the  paper  on  "  Sick  Eoom  Helpers," 
read  at  the  Jubilee  Congress  of  District  Nurses 
at  Liverpool,  last  year,  by  Miss  Eleanor  Eath- 
bone,  which  described  an  experiment  recently 
begun  in  that  city.  Since  then  the  Sick  Eoom 
Helps  Society,  whose  work  she  was  then  called 
upon  to  describe,  had  received  many  enquiries 


Feb.  26,  1910] 


vTdc  Britisb  journal  of  ■ttursino. 


173 


as  to  its  organisation,  especially  in  regard  to 
the  thrift  branch. 

The  adoption  of  the  report  and  balance-sheet 
was  moved  by  Mrs.  Leonard  Cohen,  and 
seconded  by  the  Hon.  Harry  Lawson,  M.P. 
for  Stepney,  who  said  the  usefulness  of  the  ■ 
Society  was  not  to  be  measured  except  by  the 
social  service  which  it  rendered  to  the  com- 
munity. He  remarked  also  that  the  mothers 
in  Israel  set  a  fine  example  to  others  in  the 
way  in  which  they  looked  after  their  children. 

Tea  and  coii'ee  were  served   at  the  conclu- 
sion of  the  meetint?. 


floors,  and  the  work  is  so  arranged  that  the 
two  patients,  usually  allotted  to  each  nurse, 
are  on  the  same  floor,  an  arrangement  which 
they  appear  to  appreciate. 


We  are  glad  to  hear  that  the  Shoreditch  and 
Bethnal  Green  District  Nursing  Association,  of 
which  Miss  Boge  is  Superintendent,  has 
cleared  £80  by  the  recent  entertainment.  The 
annual  meeting  was  held  at  St.  Matthew's 
Parish  Institute,  Bethnal  Green,  on  Tuesday 
last,  the  Bishop  of  Stepney  in  the  chair.  The 
■congested  district  served  by  the  Queen's  Nurses 
attached  to  this  Association  is  one  of  the 
poorest  of  the  poor,  where  their  work  is  far 
above  rubies. 


No  wonder  School  Nurses  are  becoming  in- 
dispensable. The  Board  of  Education  declares 
that  many  class  rooms  at  Tottenham  are  over- 
crowded, and  exit  passages,  corridors,  and 
even  play-sheds  are  used  for  teaching  purposes. 
Classes  are  herded  together  side  by  side,  often 
at  ill-constructed  desks  in  grossly  overcrowded 
rooms.  The  provision  of  the  extra  accommoda- 
tion suggested  would  entail  an  expenditure  of 
over  £100,000. 


The  Henrietta  House  Nursing  Home,  which 
is  at  the  corner  of  Henrietta  Street  and  Wel- 
beck  Street,  Cavendish  Square,  vV.,  was  opened 
in  June  last  under  the  supervision  of  Dr.  A.  B. 
Bradford,  who  for  two  years  was  resident 
medical  officer  of  the  private  patients'  block  at 
St.  Thomas'  Hospital,  S.E.  The  Home,  which 
has  pleasant  and  comfortably  furnished  ro<;ins, 
can  accommodate  eighteen  patients,  and  has  a 
permanent  staff  of  twelve  nurses,  the  Matnm 
being  Miss  Hopkins,  .\bout  half  of  the  staff 
are  St.  Thomas'  trained  nurses.  The  Medical 
Superintendent,  the  Matron,  and  the  Theatre 
Sister  sleep  in  the  Home,  and  the  nurses  in  a 
flat  in  Welbeck  Street  near  by.  The  charge  is 
a  guinea  a  day  and  upwards,  and  includes  all 
ordinary  drugs,  dressings,  and  nursing.  There 
\r>  a  well  appointed  theatre,  with  anaesthetic 
room  adjoining,  and  a  large  stock  of  instru- 
ments I?  available  for  tlie  use  of  the  operating 
surgeons.  The  Home,  which  formerly  was  an 
hotel,  is  provided  with  both  a  passenger  and 
aei-vice  lift.    The  patients'  rooms  are  on  three 


One  of  the  most  charming  Nursing  Homes 
in  England  is  that  situated  at  Hindhoad,  in 
Surrey,  which  was  designed  and  built  for  the 
purpose  for  JMiss  Michael,  who  has  for  seven 
years  carried  on  this  most  successful  private 
hospital.  Now  we  learn  Miss  .Michael  is  re- 
tiring on  her  laurels,  and  that  Miss  Edla  Wor- 
tabet  will,  in  future,  be  Lady  Superintendent. 
In  our  Supplement  will  be  found  an  advertise- 
ment for  three  nurses,  who  must  be  cultured 
women,  required  for  the  Hindhead  Nursing 
Home,  where  everything,  especially  the  elec- 
trical department,  is  very  up-to-date.  Nurses 
who  love  beautiful  scenery  would  find  them- 
selves in  a  congenial  environment  at  Hindhead. 


Mr.  F.  C.  Walhs,  F.R.C.S.,  surgeon  to 
Charing  Cross  Hospital,  writing  in  the  Britisli 
Medical  Journal  in  defence  of  the  radical  opera- 
tion for  haemorrhoids,  refers  generously  to  the 
part  played  by  nursing  in  obtaining  satisfac- 
tory results.  He  writes  : — "  However  well  the 
operation  is  conducted,  the  ultimate  result  will 
be  made  or  marred  by  the  nursing.  Unless 
these  cases  are  scrupulously  nursed  justice 
will  not  be  done  to  the  operator  or  to  the  pa- 
tient. There  is  no  doubt  that  bad,  indifferent, 
or  insufficient  nursing  is  the  main  cause  of 
many  shortcomings  in  these  cases.  I  should 
like  to  pay  a  tribute  to  the  nursing  at  the 
Grosvenor  Hospital  for  Women  and  Children, 
where  I  have  operated  on  a  large  number  of 
these  cases,  and  in  not  one  single  instance  has 
there  ever  been  any  setback  of  any  sort  or  kind. 
Good  nursing  is  the  keynote  of  success  in  all 
rectal  surgery,  and  this  is  particularly  the  case 
in  this  operation  for  hasmorrhoids,  which,  when 
properly  performed  and  properly  nin-sed,  is 
nob  only  a  radical  cure  for  haemorrhoids,  but 
an  almost  equally  radical  preventive  of  abscess 
and  fistula." 


At  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Committee  of 
Management  of  the  South  Infirmary,  Cork, 
Sister  Albeus  Fogarty  and  her  staff  received 
many  no  doubt  well  deserved  compHments. 
The  .Joint  Committee  expressed  their  satisfac- 
tion, and  stated  that  they  had  received  very 
gratifying  reports  of  the  work  done  by  the 
nurses  sent  out  by  the  institution.  Sister 
Albeus  had  as  usual  discharged  her  duties  with 
assiduous  care  and  kinrlly  sympathy,  and  was 
ever  ready  to  adopt  as  far  as  lay  in  her  pow  er 
any  suggestions  for  (he  comfort  and  welfai'c 
of  the  patients. 


171 


ZTbc  Brittsb  3ournal  of  mursing.       t^eb.  26,  loio 


^be  Ibojpital  Morib. 

ROYAL  WESTMINSTER  OPHTHALMIC  HOSPITAL. 

Within  a  stone's  tlirow  of  Charing  Cross,  and 
adjoining  Charing  Cross  Hospital,  is  the  Eoyal 
Westminster  Ophthalmic  Hospital,  which  be- 
longs to  the  class  of  special  hospitals  which 
fulfil  so  useful  a  function  in  treating  a  class  of 
diseases  which  require  prompt  treatment  and 
great  nicety  and  dexterity  in  handling.  The 
latter  certainly  reach  perfection  in  hospitals  or 
wards  specially  devoted  to  their  care,  and 
eye  cases  are  not  suited  for  admission  to  general 
wards.  Such  hospitals  also  afford  valuable 
opportunities  for  post  graduate  instruction  for 
nurses — knowledge  of  a  special  branch  of 
nursing  adding  greatly  to  the  opportunities  of 
those  who  take  up  private  work. 

The  hospital  main- 
tains 40  beds ;  most  of 
the  cases  admitted  being 
surgical  ones,  there  are 
wards  both  for  men  and 
women,  devoted  exclu- 
sively to  cataract  cases. 
The  theatre,  with  its 
special  appliances,  is 
very  interesting,  espe- 
cially the  great  magnet, 
with  which  foreign  bodies 
are  extracted  from  the 
eye,  and  which  is  so 
powerful  that  it  magne- 
tises instruments  within 
a  considerable  range,  so 
that  scissors  and  other 
instruments  kept  near  it 
act  as  magnets  toneedles 
and  other  small  steel 
objects. 

The  small  drops  bottles  also,  each  of  a  dis- 
tinctive colour,  by  which  the  drops  they  con- 
tain are  easily  recognised,  are  very  dainty. 
The  bottles,  with  their  contents,  can  be  easily 
sterilised.  No  special  eye  bandage  is  used  at 
this  hospital,  as  at  the  Eoyal  London  Ophthal- 
mic, the  staff  use  ordinary  roller  bandages, 
which  can  be  accurately  adapted  to  the  head  of 
the  patient  in  each  case.  The  adjustment  of 
these  bandages  requires  considerable  skill,  and 
affords  an  opportunity  for  acquiring  dexterity  in 
this  art. 

A  large  number  of  patients  attend  the  out- 
patient department,  and  more  space  would  be 
very  welcome.  Every  bit  of  ground,  however, 
seems  to  have  been  utilised  to  the  fullest 
extent,  and  the  only  method  of  expansion  left 
seems  to  be  in  an  upward  direction,  by  adding 
another  story.     Then,  of  course,  the  question 


Miss      BERTHA      E.     OBEE, 
Matron,   Royal  Westminster  Ophthalmic  Hospital. 


of  the  foundations  comes  in,  so  that  this  is  a 
matter  for  an  expert  architect ;  but  it  is  a  pity 
that  so  useful  a  work  should  be  restricted  for 
want  of  space. 

Another  want  is  money,  which  means  sa 
much  in  the  efficiency  of  a  hospital.  j\Ioney 
means  increased  usefulness  ;  so  it  is  to  be  hoped 
that  generous  donora  will  not  forget  the  needs 
of  that  sad  class  of  sufferers — those  afflicted 
with  diseases  of  the  eye — and  in  apportioning 
their  gifts  will  remember  the  Eoyal  West- 
minster Ophthalmic  Hospital. 

The  Matron  of  the  hospital  is  ]\Iiss  Bertha 
E.  Obee,  who  was  recently  elected  a  member 
of  the  !\Iatrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland.  She  was  trained  at  the  Eoyal  Surrey 
Hospital,  Guildford,  and  has  had  experience 
in  the  nursing  of  ophthalmic  cases  at  the  Eoyal 
London  Ophthalmic  Hospital,  City  E<}ad,  E.C. 
Aliss  Obee  is  enthusi- 
astic as  to  the  useful- 
ness of  the  special 
branch  of  nursing  work 
which  she  has  adopted, 
and  believes  that  it  is 
worthy  of  the  devotion 
of  the  highest  type  of 
nurse. 

There  is  is  Day  Sister, 
with  Staff  Nurses,  and 
probationers  working  un- 
der her,  and  at  night 
nurses  in  training  are  on 
duty,  unless  extra  help 
is  needed  for  special 
cases,  when  fully  trained 
nurses  are  employed. 
Eye  wards  at  night  are 
usually  light,  as  the  pa- 
tients are  seldom  bodily 
ill. 

The  nurses'  quarters  are  at  the  top  of  the 
hospital  where  they  are  made  as  comfortable  as 
the  pressure  on  the  space  will  permit. 


CLINICAL     NOTES    ON     SOME    COMMON 
AILMENTS. 

We  have  great  pleasure  in  announcing  that 
Dr.  Knyvett  Gordon,  formerly  Medical  Super- 
intendent of  Monsall  Fever  Hospital,  Manches- 
ter, whose  lectures  to  nurses  are  always  so 
much  appreciated  by  our  readers,  will  contri- 
bute to  the  Journal  a  series  of  "  Clinical  Notes 
on  Some  Common  Ailments,"  which  will  com- 
mence in  our  issue  of  March  12th.  There  is 
sure  to  be  a  special  demand  for  this  issue,  so 
those  who  desire  to  secure  extra  copies  of  the 
Journal  of  that  date  should  place  their  orders 
at  once  with  the  Manager,  British  Journal  of- 
Nursing,  11,  Adam  Street,  Strand,  W.C. 


Feb.  2(5,  1910J 


ZDe  36riti0b  3ournai  or  IRuralnG. 


175 


IReflectious. 


From  a  Board  Room  Mirror. 
Princess  Louise  (Duchess  <jf  Argyll)  lias  con- 
sented to  give  her  patronage  U>  a  ball  to  be  held  at 
the  Grafton  Galleries,  on  Wednesday,  April  27tli, 
in  aid  of  the  Army  and  Navy  Male  Nurses'  Co- 
operation, the  object  of  which  is  to  find  employ- 
ment for  timo-expired  men  of  both  Services  who 
have  obtained  a  sound  training  in  nursing.  The 
honorary  secretary  is  Miss  Ethel  MeCaul,  H.ll.(,'., 
47b,  Welbeck  Street,  Cavendish  Square,  W. 


An  association  has  been  formed  to  promote,  as 
far  as  possible,  the  concentration  of  all  forms  of 
public  assistance  under  a  single  authority,  and  to 
become  a  centre  for  consultation  and  co-operation 
among  the  promoters  of  Poor  Law  Reform.  Lord 
George  Hamilton  has  consented  to  be  the  Presi- 
dent. 


Mr.  E.  W.  Morris,  Secretary  of  the  Londdii  Hos- 
pital, has  just  written  a  history  of  the  institution, 
which  is  to  be  published  by  Mr.  Arnold,  beginning 
with  a  survey  of  the  condition  of  medicine  and  sur- 
gery in  1741,  the  date  of  the  foundation  of  the  hos- 
pital, the  author  describes  its  early  days  in  Good- 
man's Fields,  the  move  to  "Whiteehapel,  and  the 
gradual  growth  in  every  department  and  activity 
during  the  last  hundred  and  fifty  years. 


The  treasurer  of  Guy's  Hospital  has  received  a 
donation  of  £1,000  from  Mr.  R.  Nivison.  'J'he 
Governora  earnestly  appeal  for  further  donation.s 
and  annual  suljscriptions  to  provide  the  large  differ- 
ence between  assured  income  and  ordinary  expen- 
oiture,  as  well  as  for  £G0,000  to  provide  for  capital 
veciuirements. 


With  a  view-  to  forming  a  Inanch  of  the  Biitish 
Re<l  Cross  Society  in  the  City  of  London  a  meeting 
of  ladies  and  gentlemen  was  held  at  the  Mansion 
House  last  week,  under  the  presidency  of  the  I/a<ly 
Mayoress.  Mr.  Frank  Hastings,  Secretary  of  the 
Society,  gave  interesting  details  of  the  work  of  the 
organisation,  {X)inting  out  that  one  hundre<l 
county  branches  and  nearly  three  hundred  sub- 
bra  nchee  had  been  formed  since  1905. 

At  the  Annual  Meeting  of  St.  Mark's  Hospital, 
City  Road,  E.C.,  it  was  unanimously  agreed  that 
the  word  Cancer  .should  be  added  to  the  name  of 
the  hospital,  which  will  in  future  be  known  as  "  St. 
Mark's  Hospital  for  Cancer,  Fistula,  and  other 
Diseases  of  the  Rectum." 


There  has  long  been  a  most  useful  British  Hospi- 
tal at  Neuilly,  Paris,  and  now  the  new  American 
Hospital  is  in  working  order.  The  hospital  has 
been  started  by  Americans  in  Paris  to  accommo- 
date twenty-five  poor  compatriots.  There  are  also 
delightful  private  wards  for  paying  patients.  The 
nursing  staff  is  highly  efficient,  and  those  taking 
posts  are  required  to  stay  at  least  six  months.  The 
salary  is  forty  dollars  a  month. 


A  fine  new  h<K<pital  is  to  be  built  at  Melbourne, 
N'ictoria,  and  tho  plans  of  the  architect  have  been 
accepted. 


iTbe  flttcr^Carc  tleeociation. 


At  the  invitation  of  Sir  Douglas  Powell,  who 
occupied  the  chair,  the  annual  meeting  of  the 
After-Care  Association  was  held  on  February  16th 
m  tho  large  library  of  the  Royal  College  of 
Physicians,  Pall  Mall,  S.W. 

Mr.  Roxby,  the  Secretary,  in  the  course  of  read- 
ing the  report,  said  that  during  the  past  year  over 
•)00  cases  had   been   helped. 

Dr.  Savage  said  that  though  tho  usefulness  of 
the  Society  increased,  its  recognition  by  the  public 
was  very  slow.  A  Lord  !Mayor  was  wanted  who 
would  be  impressed  by  tho  needs  of  mental  cripples. 
He  ejnphasised  the  danger  that  lay  in  recurrence 
of  insanity,  but  there  was  in  a  large  majority  of 
cases  no  need  for  the  trouble  to  recur,  if  they  could 
for  a  time  be  shielded  from  worry.  They  might 
be  quite  well,  but  still  weak,  and  ought  not  pre- 
maturely to  resume  their  ordinary  life. 

Sir  W.  Collins,  M.P.,  said  that  people  in  this 
country  were  disjiosed  to  thinly  that  the  setting 
up  of  institutions  was  the  beginning  and  end. 
These  poor  people  could  find  in  this  Association 
the  priceless  gift  of  "  a  heart  at  leisure  from  itself 
to  soothe  and  sympathise." 

Dr.  Marriott  Cooke,  Commissioner  in  Lunacy, 
announced  amidst  applause  that  three  honorary 
Commissioners  had  signified  their  wish  to  become 
Vice-Presidents  and  annual  subscribers. 

Sir  Douglas  Powell  said  that  insane  people  were 
wonderfully  sane  when  their  special  delusion  could 
be  kept  in  abeyance.  After  being  discharged  from 
asylums,  if  they  were  sent  too  soon  into  the  market 
place  of  life,  meeting  occasions  apt  to  arouse 
former  delusions,  these  rubbed  as  it  were  on  the 
raw,  they  were  apt  to  relapse.  It  was  neces- 
sary to  shield  the  tender  spot,  so  likely  to  become 
irritable. 

The  Bishops  of  Rochester  and  Stepney  both 
addressed  the  meeting,  the  latter  saying  that  he 
was  glad  to  accept  the  invitation  to  be  present  at 
the  meeting,  that  he  might  bear  testimony  to  the 
memory  of  the  Founder  of  the  Association,  the 
Rev.  Henry  Hawkins,  and  to  his  extraordinary  in- 
fiuence  and  personal  love  of  the  insane.  He  urged 
the  ladies  present,  when  possible,  to  give  employ- 
ment as  domestic  servants  to  mental  convalescents 

MEDICAL  WOMEN  AND  THE  SUFFRAGE. 
Dr.  Octavia  Lewin,  '2'>.  Wimpole  Street,  London, 
W.,  has  issued  invitations  to  a  drawing  room  meet- 
ing on  Friday,  February  '2.5th,  at  3  i).m.,  to  hear 
addresses  on  Women's  Suffrage  from  the  Hon.  Mrs. 
Havetfield,  and  Miss  Muriel  Matters,  whose  names 
as  speakers  should  ensure  a  crowded  attendance. 
Miss  Thornett,  F.R.C.S.,  will  preside.  Dr.  Lewin 
is  good  enough  to  say  that  any  trained  nurses  will 
be  cordially  welcome  without  spe<'ial  cards  of  in- 
vitation, and  we  hope  that  tho.se  who  can  will 
attend  the  meeting. 


176 


CDC  British  :foiirnal  of  Itturstnij.       l^^^-  -e.  i9io 


®utsi&e  the  (Batcs.J 

WOMEN. 

The  CanjKliau  Maple 
Leat  Party  held  on  AVed- 
nesdaj-  at  the  Imperial 
Institute  was  a  very 
happy  idea.  The  party 
^^41S  organised  by  Lady 
Knightley,  of  Fan^ley, 
I'rosKient  of  the  British 
Women's  Emigration 

Society.  By  arrangement  with  the  Canadian 
CU)vernment,  Miss  Agnes  Deans  Camei^on  gave 
an  account  of  her  10,000  miles'  journey  down 
the  Mackenzie  River  to  the  Arctic  Ocean,  illus- 
trated with  dissolving  views  from  her  own  photo- 
graphs. 

The  main  purpose  of  the  Maple  Leaf  Party  was 
to  enable  those  who  have  enjoyed  Canadian  travel 
and  hospitality  to  show  their  gratitude  by  telling- 
people  in   England  about  them. 


Lady  Strachey  has  been  re-elected  Chairman  of 
the  Lyceum  Club,  128,  Piccadilly,  W.,  Mrs.  Bed- 
ford Fenwick  Vice-Chair,  and  Mrs.  Philp,  Deputy 
Vice-Chair. 

The  Militant  Suffragists  are  waiting  to  know 
their  fate  at  the  hands  of  the  new  Government, 
but  if  the  Premier  refuses  to  give  them  the  vote 
their  demand  has  been  plainly  put  in  the  following 
terms: — "  We  require  that  a  Government  declara- 
tion shall  be  made  at  once,  to  the  effect  that 
Women's  Suffrage  legislation  shall  be  undertaken 
by  the  Governnu'nt  itself  in  this  oiwning  Session 
of  Parliament.  A  clear  and  explicit  statement  to 
this  effect  is  necessary." 


JMrs.  Fawcett  is  of  opinion  that  some  of  our 
eminent  pro-consuls  who  have  lived  long  in  the  East 
have  got  out  of  touch  with  Western  civilisation,  an<j 
have  become  imbued  with  almost  oriental  ideas  of 
womanhood. 

Signor  Gallini  has  introduced  a  Bill  into  the 
Italian  Parliament  conferring  the  municipal  fran- 
chise and  a  right  to  vote  for  Chambers  of  Com- 
merce upon  women  of  more  than  twenty-nve  years 
of  age  and  women  engaged  in  business  respectively. 
The  Prime  ^linister,  in  a  very  sympathetic  speech, 
stated  that  the  intellectual,  social,  and  economic 
condition  of  women  had  latterly  undergone  a  pro- 
found change  which  had  not  been  followed  by  a  cor- 
responding change  in  legislation.  He  was,  there- 
fore, willing  to  consider  the  proposal.  Italian 
legislators  compared  the  spirit  animating  their 
Prime  Minister's  speech,  with  that  of  English 
Ministers. 


Glasgow  University  has  now  come  into  line  wiih 
Edinburgh  by  deciding  to  admit  women  to  its  Lviw 
degrees,  but  there  can  hardly  bo  any  great  demand 
for  enrolment  in  the  law  classes  until  women  are 
admitted  at  least  to  practise  as  solicitors.  The 
Faculty  of  Advocates  may  be  oxjiected  to  hold  out 
even  longer. 


•Book  of  tbe  Meef?. 

AUNT  JANE  OF  KENTUCKY.* 

Lovers  of  American  literature  should  be 
fascinated  with  ''  Aunt  Jane  of  Kentucky."  It 
is  full  of  charm  and  tender  pathos,  but  humorous 
and  cheery  withal. 

Aunt  Jane  is  a  delightful  old  lady,  whose  shrewd 
comments  on  men  and  things  make  excellent  read- 
ing, and  she  discourses  on  a  variety  of  subjects, 
while  her  busy  fingers  are  engaged  on  "  piecin' 
quilts"  or  peeling  apiiles  for  dumplings;  for,  as 
she  says,  "  You  see  I  never  was  one  o'  these  folks 
that's  born  tired.  I  loved  to  work.  I  hear  folks 
prayin'  for  rest,  and  wishin'  for  rest,  but,  honey, 
all  my  prayer  was,  '  Lorg,_  give  me  work  and 
strength  enough  to  do  it.'  And  when  a  person 
looks  at  all  the  things  there  is  to  be  done  in  the 
world,  they  won't  feel  like  restin'  when  they  ain't 
tired." 

Her  theology  is  open  to  criticism,  but  the  follow- 
ing extract  seems  to  hit  the  mark:  "  It  takes  all 
o'  Marthy's  time  to  be  a  Babtist,  and  all  o'  Amos' 
to  be  a  Presbyterian.  They  ain't  got  no  time  to 
be  Christians." 

Apparently  she  is  no  great  admirer  of  the  sterner 
sex,  for  she  remarks :  — 

"  The  Bible  says  an  ass  spoke  up  and  reproved 
a  man,  and  I  reckon  if  an  ass  can  reprove  a  man 
so  can  a  woman,  and  it  looks  to  me  like  men 
stand  in  need  of  reprovin'  now,  as  much  as  they 
did  in  Balaam's  day  "  ;  or,  "  You  see  I  never  was 
any  hand  at  submittin'  myself  to  my  husband, 
like  some  women  .  .  .  and  I  can't  see  but 
what  we  got  on  jist  as  well  as  we'd  'a  done,  as  if 
I  had  'a  submitted  myself." 

The  authoress  sketches  charmingly  the  chapter 
entitled  "  Aunt  Jane's  Album,"  which  she  herself 
shall   explain  to  us. 

"  These  quilts  is  my  albums  and  diries,  and 
when  I  can't  get  out  to  see  folks,  I  jist  spread  out 
my  quilts,  and  look  at  'em  and  study  over  'em. 
There  ain't  nothing  like  a  piece  of  caliker  for 
bringing  back  old  times,  child.  Now,  this  quilt, 
honey,  I  made  out  o'  the  pieces  of  my  children's 
clothes;  some  of  'ems  dead,  and  some  of  'em  mar- 
ried and  a  long  way  off  from  me,  further  off  than 
them  that's  dead,  and  I  sometimes  think,  and 
when.  ...  I  look  at  this  quilt  I  can  see  'em 
playin',  and  hear  'em  cryin'  and  laughin'  and 
callin'  to  me." 

But  there  were  no  tears  in  her  voice,  for  Aunt 
Jane  always  smiled  when  she  talked  of  those  that 
were  gone;  but  there  is  one  thing  she  can't  "get 
over  " — "  Ain't  it  strange  that  a  piece  o'  caliker 
will  outlast  you  and  me?" 

In  the  "  Garden  of  Memory,"  she  has  no  skill 
to  describe  the  flower  that  lingers  sweetest  there: 
"  It  was  yeller,  but  that  word  yeller  don't  tell  you 
the  colour  the  rose  was." 

We  take  leave  of  this  dear  old  woman  looking 
"  wistfully  towards  the  evening  skies,  beyond  whose 
stars  and  clouds  we  place  that  other  world  called 

*  Eliza  Calvert  Hall.  (Cassell  and  Co.,  London, 
New   Y'ork.') 


Feb.  26,  i9io:        ^|^^.   ©uitiyi?   Sourual   ot   IKiurstno. 


177 


lieaven,"  the  ouly  thing  she  miuds  leaving  iu  her 
■'  gyarden." 

••  If  1  could  jist  have  Abram  and  the  children 
again,  and  mv  old  home,  and  my  old  gyardeu.  I'd 
be  willin"  to  give  up  the  gold  streets  and  the  glass 
sea  and  pearl  gates.'' 

As  we  lay  down  this  charming  volume  with  a 
sigh  of  regret,  there  formulates  somewhere  in  the 
back  of  our  mind  a  hope  that  when  Aunt  Jane 
meets  Abram  and  the  children  in  the  old  gyarden 
we  mav  be  there  to  see. 

H.   11. 


Xettcrs  to  tbc  EMtor. 


VERSE. 
I  cannot  die.     For  me  the  year  comes  on, 

Her  four  sweet  ancient  pageants  pass  for  me ; 
Strange  glints  and  shadows  from  all  ages  gone 

Wake  at  my  heart,  dwell  in  my  memory. 
Lake-water  whispering  through  wind-tossed  reeds. 

Sun-quickened  acres,  or  a  mackerel  sky. 
Scent  of  green  ashwood  burning  with  the  weeds — 
O !  all  things  call  to  me :   I  cannot  die. 
From  Vanities, 

Bv  Ffrid.\  a.  ■\Volfe. 


COMING  EVENTS. 

February  2-:>fh. — Society  for  State  Registration 
of  Nurses.  Meeting  Executive  Committee,  to  re- 
ceive a  Report  from  the  Delegates  on  the  Central 
Committee  for  Sfjate  Registration.  431,  Oxford 
Street,  London,  TV.     4  p.m. 

February  25fh. — ojrawing  Room  Meeting  on  AVo- 
men's  Suffrage,  2.5,  Wimpole  Street,  W.  Trained 
Nurses  cordially  invited.     3  p.m. 

Mareh  1st. — Territorial  Force  Nursing  Service, 
City  and  County  of  London.  Meeting  of  the  Exe- 
cutive Committee,   Mansion  House,  3.30  p.m. 

March  0th. — Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh.  Lec- 
ture on  "  Some  Hygienic  Considerations  in  Rela- 
tion to  the  Diseases  of  Women."  By  Dr.  Haig 
Ferguson.  F.R.C.S.E.  Extra  Mural  Theatre. 
Nurses  cordially  invited. 

March  loth. — Kent  County  Nursing  Association. 
Annual  meeting.  Grand  Hotel,  Charing  Cross, 
London,  W.C. 


WORD   FOR  THE  WEEK. 

"  We  wish  to  inspire  them  (the  pupils  of  St. 
Cyr)  with  a  piety  that  is  simple,  solid,  cheerful,  and 
free.  When  a  girl  will  miss  vespers  to  visit  a  sick 
person,  and  when  she  says:  '  It  is  more  pleasing  to 
God  that  a  young  mother  (should  attend  to  her 
childien,  or  keep  her  household  in  order,  than  to 
spend  the  morning  in  the  Oratory  '  people  will  re- 
spect hor.  No  hair  shirt  is  so  valuable  an  aid  to 
piety  as  a  duty  well  fulfille<l.  Refraining  from 
.Mlly  or  cutting  remarks  is  better  than  fa.sting;  a 
medicine  given  in  the  dispensary  at  the  hour  of 
duty  will  do  more  for  the  soul  than  prayers,  if  tiie 
duty  has  been  ueglecte<l  to  pass  the  time  in  prayer. 
The  Inner  Life  (life  of  the  soul)  does  not  consist 
only  in  prayer,  but  rather  in  fulfilling  the  duties  ot 
our  station  as  a  work  plea-sing  to  CkkI.  We  can  find 
God  everywhere." 

Mme.  de  Maistenon. 

In  short,  the  watchword  of  St.  Cyr  was  "  Duty." 


ll'Ai/j^  cordially  invitiny  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
jor  these  columns,  ice  uish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  u-e  do  not  in  ant  wa'y 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


THE  RESULT  OF  THE  CONFERENCE  ON 

REGISTRATION. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  -Journal  of  .Vursing." 

Dear  Madam, — May  I  be  permitted  to  offer  you 
my  hearty  congratulations  on  the  very  satisfactory 
results  of  the  Conference  on  the  State  Registration 
of  Trained  Nurses!' 

It  must  be  very  gratifying  to  you,  and  wUl  repay 
you,  if  anything  can  do  so,  for  the  sustained 
struggle  of  so  many  years. 

I  suppose  it  is  impossible  for  a  mere  onlooker  to 
realise  what  the  future  status  of  nurses,  now  I  sup- 
pose practically  assured,  has  cost  those  who  have 
laboured  for  it  so  devotedly. 

It  is  incomprehensible  that  enemies  to  progress 
should  be  found  within  the  camp,  and  that  nurses 
should  be  so  blind  to  their  on  n  welfare.  But  there 
are  none  so  blind  as  those  who  refuse  to  see.  While 
every  fair-minded  person  will  admit,  there  are,  as 
a  rule,  two  sides  to  every  question,  it  almost  seems 
as  if  this  must  be  the  exception  that  proves  the 
rule,  for  as  yet  I  have  never  heard  a  single  intel- 
ligent or  logical  argument  from  our  opponents. 
AVith  all  good  wishes  for  final  triumph. 
Believe  me,  your  faithfully, 

Hexbietta  Hawkins. 

Friern  Barnet  Road. 


TO  AN  OLD  LOVE  AND  A  HAPPY  MEMORY. 

A  Call  to  Past  and  Present. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Sursing." 

Dear  Madaai, — Could  you  give  me  the  hospi- 
talit.v  of  your  columns  as  the  surest  means  of 
reaching  all  past  Residents,  Matrons,  Sisters,  and 
Nurses,  who  in  the  past  have  helped  forward  the 
work  of  this  hospital  by  their  loyal  and  personal 
service. 

As  is  only  too  well  known,  the  work  here  long 
since  outgrew  its  accommodation,  and  it  has  given 
the  Committee  years  of  strenuous  effort  to  raise 
sufiBcient  funds  to  justify  the  erection  of  a  larger 
building.  It  is,  however,  at  last  everyone's  happi- 
ness now  to  watch  the  new  ward  block  rapidly  ad- 
vancing on  the  new  site  just  across  the  road,  and 
the  autumn  will  probably  see  it  in  occupation. 

But  that,  alas,  still  leaves  us  where  we  were 
in  accommodation  for  out-patients  and  the  nursing 
staff,  for  the  present  building  is  still  to  house  them 
as  heretofore. 

It  is  more  than  heartaching  to  feel  that  daily 
about  two  hundred  little  children  in  all  degrees  of 
pain  and  stlffering  havp  no  better  accommodation 
than    these  waiting    rooms   which   were   never   de- 


178 


(Tbe  Brltisb  3ournal  of  IRursiuQ; 


[Feb.   26,   1910 


signed  for  such  work,  being  developed  out  of  the 
playrooms  of  one-time  day  nursery. 

Still  more  unsuitable  and  inadequate  is  the 
accommodation  for  the  nursing  staff,  as  those  to 
whom  I  write  will  know,  while  that  of  the  house- 
hold staff  is  frankly  intolerable. 

In  view  of  the  great  difficulty  of  raising  the 
funds  for  the  new  In-patients'  Department,  the 
Committee  recognise  the  imijossibility  of  at  present 
att-emptiug  to  deal  with  the  out-patients  and 
nurses'  quarters.  But  feeling  so  sure  within  my- 
self that  all  those  who  have  formerly  worked  here 
in  co-operation  with  those  here  to-day  would  like 
themselves  to  raise  the  funds  for  the  new  Nurses' 
Home  and  Out-patients'  Halls,  I  have  undertaken, 
with  the  sanction  of  the  Committee,  to  endeavour 
to  raise  a  fund  of  one  million  pennies  for  this  pur- 
pose through  the  united  efforts  of  the  past  and  pro- 
sent  medical,  surgical,  and  nursing  staffs  of  the 
hospital. 

Ei«twhile  residents,  matrons,  sLst^rs,  and  nurses, 
will  you  to-day  think  very  lovingly  of  the  little  hos^ 
pital  in  which  you  once  laboured,  and  wall  you  help 
me  in  every  way  you  can  to  raise  this  sum  of  One 
iVIillion  Pennies.  If  you  will  kindly  write  to  me  at 
your  earliest  oouvenience  we  shall  quickly  get  into 
touch  with  each  other,  and  very  soon  have  the  glad- 
ness of  seeing  the  new  building  arise  whose  founda- 
tion stone  shall  bear  testimony  that  it  was  erected 
as  the  love  offering  of  the  past  and  pi-esent  staffs 
of  the  Institution. 

I  should  feel  so  honoured  if  all  the  nurses  who 
have  been  as.sociated  with  me  during  my  nursing 
career  would  help  me  as  w^ell.  If  each  one  would 
only  send  a  few  pennies,  how  quickly  the  million 
would  be  realised ! 

Earnestly  looking  forward  to  a  warm-hearted 
response,  and  to  a  co-operating  re-union  with  many 
old  hospital  friends. 

Believe  me, 

Yours  very  truly, 

Kate  L.  Ray,  Matron. 
St.  Mary's  Hospital  for  AVomen  and  Children, 
Plaistow,  E. 


NURSING   IN    INDIA. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — I  thank  you  for  the  notice  of  the 
Nurses'  Club,  which  appeared  in  the  British  Jour- 
nal OF  Nursing.  I  have  been  a  subscriber  to  your 
paper  for  some  time,  and  read  with  deep  interest 
the  aceounts  of  the  International  Congress  of 
Nurses,  held  in  London  in  July.  I  hope  at  the 
next  Congi'ess  we  nurses  in  India  will  be  able  to 
send  a  representative.  I  wish  you  all  success  in 
your  efforts  to  raise  the  standard  of  education  for 
nurses,  and  hope  that  India  will  also  some  day — 
not  in  the  distant  future — have  the  one  portal 
system,  and  that  the  hospitals  in  Calcutta  will  also 
he  recognised  as  training  schools  such  as  St. 
George's,  in  Bombay.  I  think  that  nurses  who  go 
through  their  three  years  in  a  hospital  out  here 
are  quite  as  capable  as  nurses  trained  at  home ; 
and  more  so  as  regards  nursing  diseases  peculiar 
to  the  country.  The  diflSculty  is  to  find  a  better 
class  of  W'omen,  though  there  are  many  within 
the  last  few  years  who  are  gentlewomen  who  have 


entered  the  hospitals  here ;  and  I  hope  many  more 
will  follow.  There  is  no  doubt  that  to  a  nurse  who 
loves  her  profession  there  is  no  better  training 
school  than  the  hosx>itals  in  Calcutta.  I  mean  those 
which  take  in  both  European  and  Indian  patients, 
and  I  daresay  many  of  our  fellow  workers  at  home 
would  give  much  to  see  the  cases  we  have  out  here, 
as  we  would  to  see  the  operations  done  in  the  hos- 
pitals at  home. 

I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Yours  faithfully, 

E.  B.  Moore, 
Hon.  Sec.  and  Treasurer. 
Professional  Nurses'  Club,  12,  Kyd  Street, 

Calcutta. 
[There  are  so  many  earnest  women  devoting 
themselves  to  the  improvement  of  nursing  in  India, 
and  we  are  glad  to  know  encouraging  those  belong- 
ing to  the  Empire  of  India  to  work  for  their  own 
country,  that  great  progress  in  the  near  future 
is  inevitable.  We  heartily  second  the  hope  that 
the  Trained  Nurses'  Association  will  affiliate 
with  the  International  Council  of  Nurses  and 
take  an  active  jjart  in  the  Triennial  Congress 
at  Cologne  in   1912.— Ed.] 


THE  LC.C.  AND   PUBLIC  SLAUGHTER-HOUSES 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  .Journal  of  Nursing." 
Madam, — In  a  short  time  the  London  County 
Council  Elections  will  be  at  hand,  and  we  sincerely 
hope  that  humane  pei'sons  of  all  parties  will  then 
insist  that  the  urgent  need  for  public  slaughter- 
houses shall  be  forced  on  the  attention  of  can- 
didates. Tlie  record  of  the  out-going  Council  on 
this  matter  is  a  very  had  one  ;  tor  in  spite  of  the 
fact  that  the  Public  Health  Committee,  a,s  long  ago 
as  1899,  had  reix)rte<l  .strongly  in  favour  of  sub- 
stituting public  abattoirs  for  private  slaugucer- 
houses,  the  Council  has  allowed  the  question  to  be 
shelved  year  after  year  in  deference  to  the  hos- 
tility of  the  butchering  trade.  We  would  urge, 
therefore,  that  at  the  coming  elections  all  voters 
should  do  their  best  to  exact  pledges  from  the  can- 
didates that  they  will  vote  for  this  important 
measure,  and  will  not  permit  private  interests  per- 
manently to  thwart  the  coui-se  which  the  public 
conscience  knows  to  be  the  right  one. 
Yours,  etc., 

Ernest  Bell, 

Chairman. 
Humanitarian  League, 
53,  Chancery  Lane,  W.C. 


Comments  anJ)  IRepIlee. 

E.  B.,  Brondesbury. — Miss  L.  L.  Dock,  Hon. 
Secretary,  International  Council  of  Nurses,  is 
shortly  bringing  out  a  book  on  venereal  diseases. 
We  think  it  would  be  very  suitable  for  the  purpose 
vou  mention. 


IHoticcs. 


OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing  for   the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


Fob.  26,  1910]  ^fje  Bvitisb  3ournal  of  IHursino  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


179 


GDe  1910  '^rinion  of  flDit)\vives. 


A  Drawing  Room  ifeftiug  in  support  of  "The  1910 
Union  of  Midwives"  was  held  on  Saturday  last,  the 
19th  iust.,  at  7,  Delamere  Terrace,  Westbourne 
Square,  W.,  by  the  kind  permission  of  Mrs.  Mac- 
donald,  who  hospitably  provided  tea  before  the  pro- 
ceedings began. 

The'  chair  w  as  taken  by  Miss  Mary  Macarthur, 
Secretary  of  the  Women's  Trade  Union  League, 
who,  in  opening  the  meeting,  expressed  her  plea- 
sure in  presiding,  as  she  was  interested  in  every 
movement  which  affected  the  interests  of  women. 

It  was  sometimes  thought  that  the  adoption  of 
trade  union  principles  was  all  very  well  in  un- 
skilled or  semi-skilled  trades,  but  they  were  be- 
neath the  dignity  of  educated  and  professional 
workers.  That  was  the  greatest  mistake.  The 
medical  profession  were  one  of  the  strongest  trade 
unions,  the  legal  i^rofession  and  the  school  t-eeichers 
had  also  strong  associations.  Organisation  was  a 
necessity,  and  women  workers  were  underpaid  he- 
cause  they  were  behind  hand  in  this  respect. 

Miss  ^lacarthnr  expressed  the  hope  that  the 
meeting  would  be  productive  of  great  results,  and 
that  those  who  looked  back  upon  it  in  the  future 
would  be  glad  to  think  that  they  were  present,  and 
amongst  the  pioneers  of  an  important  movement. 
■  The  1910  Union  of  Midwives  "  would  be  no  half- 
and-half  affair,  but  would  be  founded  on  demo- 
cratic principles,  and  governed  by  its  own  mem- 
bers. 

Resolution  I. 

The  finst  resolution,  moved  by  Mrs.  Maquay,,  on 
liohalf  of  the  pro  tern.  Committee,  seconded  by  Miss 
Webb,  and  slightly  amende<l  by  Miss  M.  Broay,  was 
carried  in  the  following  form:  — 

"That  this  meeting  of  certiJSed  midwivee,  realis- 
ing the  necessity  for  the  raising  of  the  status  of 
midwives  throughout  the  United  Kingdom,  and  the 
protection  of  their  professional  interests,  and  their 
direct  representation  on  their  governing  body,  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board,  deelares  that  the  time  has 
now  oome  for  the  organisation  of  midwives  on  a 
trades  union  and  national  basis." 

Mrs.  Maquay,  in  moving  the  resolution,  spoke  of 
tlie  necessity  for  raising  the  status  of  midwives.  At 
present  they  were  barely  tolerated,  and  Sairey 
flamp  was  still  a  favourite.  She  emphasised  th« 
need  for  direct  representation  of  midwives  on  the 
Central  Midwives'  Bo.^rd,  and  pointetl  out  that  tlio 
Municipal  Corporations  the  Local  Govemm<'nt 
IJoartl  and  the  British  M.xlical  Association  were  ask- 
ing for  representation  on  the  Board,  and  why  not 
midwives,  who  were  the  people  vitally  oonoemed. 

As  rogar<ls  inadequate  fees,  midwivc*?  to  a  great 
extent  had  themselves  to  blame,  because  they  re- 
duced their  fees,  owing  to  competition,  till  there 
w-ns  no  living  wage  for  them.     Women  must  loarn 


loyalty  to  one  another,  and  there  must  be  no  black- 
legs. 

Miss  Webb  said  that  midwives  were  a  body  of 
workers  who  oould  not  \m  done  without.  She  hoped 
those  present  would  stick  to  their  principles. 

Mrs.  Bedford  Kenwick  remarked  that  the  tenn 
nui«e  had  b<i'n  usetl  by  previous  speakers 
as  an  equivalent  for  midwife,  but  midwives 
were  not  necessarily  nurses,  and  the  terms 
were  not  interchangeable.  She  thought  that  it 
was  detrimental  to  midwives  not  to  be  known  by 
the  title  of  certified  midwife,  which  they  were 
legally  entitled  to  use,  and  advised  them  to  insist 
upon  it. 

A  good  deal  of  trouble  arose  in  country  districts 
because  certified  midwives  wore  unfairly  introduced 
as  nurses  instead  of  as  midwives,  the  reason  given 
given  for  this  practice  iva.s  that  doctore  would 
often  object  to  the  introduction  of  a  midwife,  who 
was  an  independent  practitioner,  into  a  district, 
but  welcomed  her  in  the  guise  of  a  trained  nurse. 

In  regard  to  direct  representation  on  their 
governing  body,  the  demand  for  one  representative 
was  very  modest.  Midwives  ought  to  have  the 
control  of  their  own  educational  standards  and 
professional  discipline.  They  could  have  no  per- 
sonal liberty  without  it.  Direct  representation  on 
the  Central  Midwives'  Board  was  the  only  firm 
basis  for  professional  organisation  and  reform. 

Miss  Green,  Inspector  of  Midwives  for  Derby- 
shire, also  supported  the  election  of  a  direct  repre- 
sentative of  the  midwives  on  the  Central  Board. 

Mrs.  Edith  Robinson  strongly  advocated  the  elec- 
tion of  a  midwife  on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board 
by  popular  vote,  and  the  protection  of  the  interests 
of  midwives  in  order  to  make  it  worth  their  while 
to  practice.  At  present  many  midwives  were 
obliged  to  take  up  monthly  nursing  because  they 
could  not  make  a  living  in  the  former  capacity. 
The  work  of  midwives  was  worth  an  adequate  fee. 
The  speaker  advocated  State  aid  for  midwives  in 
localities  where  they  could  not  make  a  living  wage. 

At  present  their  work  was  mostly  limited  to  the 
very  poor  cases,  but  she  would  like  to  see  a  better 
class  of  women  employing  midwives. 
Resolution  II. 

This  was  moved  by  Mrs.  Robinson,  and  .seconded 
by  Mrs.  Rowdle,  and  was  as  follows: — 

"That   this  meeting   welcomes  the  formation  of 

the  1910  Union  of  Midwives,   and  pledg<'s  itself  to 

do  all  in  its  i)ower  to  extend    and    strengthen  the 

meml>ersliip,  and  further  the  obj<>cts  of  the  Union." 

Resolution  III. 

This  it'sohition,  which  was  moved  by  Mrs.  Hodg- 
kins,  was  as  follows: — 

Tliat  Mi-8.  Edith  Robinson,  Editor  of  tlie 
Midwives'  TtecoTil.  act  as  President  pro.  tern..  Miss 
V'.  Macdonald  act  as  Secretary  pro  tern.,  and  Mrs. 
Carnegie  Williams  act  as  Treasurer  pro  tern. 

That   tlie   following  la<lies   form   the  Committee: 


180 


ITbe  Brttisb  3ournal  of  IRursino  Supplement.  [Feb.  26,  i9n 


Miss  AIsop,   Mi-s.   Aiulerson,  Mrs.   Boujafi<>ld,   Mrs. 
Ganney,  Mi's.  Macdouald,  Mrs.  Maquay,  Jlrs.  Kow- 
dle,   Mrs.   Simmons,   Miss    AVebb,    Miss    Wliitmee, 
Mi's.  Williams,  and  Miss  Williain.s. 
Resolution    IV. 

Moved  by  Mrs.  James  and  seconded  by  Mrs. 
Willcox . 

That  the  pro  fern,  officials  and  Committee  be 
emix)wered  to  draft  rules  to  be  submitted  to  the 
firet  general  meeting  of  the  Society. 

All  the  resolutions  \\ere  adopted  nem  con. 

In  the  discussion  which  followed.  Miss  Green,  In- 
spector for  Derbyshire,  asked  whether  it  would  be 
in  order  for  her,  as  an  InsiJector,  to  act  as  Secretary 
of  a  local  branch,  and  the  Chairman  replied  that 
w'hile  she  would  b©  eligible  for  niemberehip  if  a 
midwife  it  would  be  against  trade  union  principles 
for  an  official  in  authority  over  niidwives  to  hold 
office. 

Miss  Green  also  said  slie  had  brought  a  message 
from  the  Medical  Officer  for  the  County  of  Derby- 
shire that  he  «as  greatly  in  favour  of  the  estabjish- 
ment  of  the  Union,  and  would  help  in  any  way  he 
could. 

Miss  Green  was  emix>wer©d  to  carry  a  vote  of 
thanks  from  the  meeting  to  this  gentleman. 

One  midwife  said  that  she  thought  the  County 
Councils,  which  gave  scholai'ships  to  midwives, 
should  take  some  responsibility  as  to  providing 
oi>enings  subsequently,  or  the  money  exi>ended  on 
training  was  wasted.  She  had  received  a  scuuiar- 
•ship,  and  passed  the  C.M.B.  examination,  but  had 
had  a  plate  on  her  door  for  nine  months  before 
obtainLng  cases.  As  she  was  able  to  hold  on,  she  was 
now  doing  well,  but  everyone  could  not  afford  to 
wait. 

One  of  the  reasons  assigned  for  the  difficulty  of 
obtaining  adequate  fees  was  the  competition  of  Dis- 
trict Nursing  Associations,  which  were  taking  up 
midwifei'y  and  charging  vei'y  low  fees. 

Miss  Green  thought  there  should  be  a  minimum 
charge,  or  self-supporting  midwives  would  be 
crushed  out. 

The  oi>inion  of  the  meeting  was  taken  as  to  tue 
subscription  desirable  for  members  of  the  Union, 
and  6d.  a  month  wa-s  suggested  as  suitable. 

The  Chairman  spoke  of  the  necessity  of  watching 
BiUs  introduced  into  Parliament  affecting  midwives 
or  their  patients,  such  as  the  ' '  Necessitous  Mo- 
thers' Assistance  Bill." 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  meeting,  which  was 
animatetl  throughout,  a  cordial  vote  of  thanKS  to 
the  chair  was  carried  unanimouslv. 


^be  Central  HDibwivcs'  Boar&. 


Examination   Paper. 

1.  What  are  tlie  diameters  of  the  normal  pelvis? 
"WTiat  kinds  of  conjugate  measurement  do  you 
know,  and  how  are  they  measured  ?  What  would 
you  think  if  you  could  feel  the  promontory  of  the 
sacrum  on  making  a   vaginal  examination? 

2.  What  disorders  in  connection  with  tire  passage 
of  urine  may  you  meet  with  in  pregnancy,  labour. 


and    the   puerperium,   and    how    would    you   treat 
them  ? 

3.  What  do  you  mean  by  obstructed  labour?  How 
would  you  recognise  it,  what  may  cause  it,  and 
liow  would  you  deal  with  such  cases  ? 

4.  Describe  your  exact  examination  of  the  l^hial 
Ijad  during  the  puerijerium,  and  the  information 
to  be  gained  from  it. 

5.  Describe  the  nursing  treatment,  with  exact 
details,  of  a  premature  baby  weighing  five  pounds. 

6.  Under  what  conditions  is  it  necessary,  ac- 
cording to  the  Rules  of  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board,  for  the  midwife  to  communicate  with  the 
Local  Supervising  Authority  ? 


^be  flDi^wivcs'  act,  1902. 

PAYMENTS  TO   MEDICAL  PRACTITIONERS. 

The  Local  Government  Board  have  sent  a  circular 
to  Boai-<ls  of  Guardians  drawing  attention  to  tlie  re- 
l>oi-t>  of  the  Dei>artincntal  Committee  apix)inted  to 
consider  the  working  of  the  Midwives'  Act,  1902, 
and  more  particularly  to  those  recommendations 
which  deal  with  the  payment  of  fees  to  medical 
l)ractitionei-s  summoned  by  midwives  in  cases  of 
emergency,  and  to  those  relating  to  the  supply  and 
training  of  midwives  so  far  as  the  guartlians  are 
concerned. 

On  the  subject  of  payments  to  medical  prac- 
titioners it  is  pointed  out  that  the  Committee  re- 
commends that  the  Act  should  be  amended  so  as  to 
give  any  medical  practitionei'  summoned  by  a  niKl- 
wife  in  cases  of  emergency  "  a  secure  exijectation 
of  i>ayment  " ;  and  that  the  Poor-Law  authority 
should  be  responsible  for  the  fee,  when  the  meuical 
man  cannot  otherwise  obtain  payment,  and  should 
be  empowered,  if  they  think  fit,  to  charge  the  tee 
paid  as  "  relief  on  loan."  It  is  ix>inted  out  that  full 
effect  could  not  be  given  to  this  recommendation 
without  legislation,  but  the  Boaixl  regard  it  as  of 
immediate  importance  tliat  medical  pi'actitioners 
should,  so  far  as  practicable,  feel  assured  of  a 
reasonable  jiayment  for  their  services  in  such  cases; 
and  they  desire  to  impress  upon  Boards  of 
Guardians  that  they  should  give  effect,  if  they  have 
not  already  done  so,  to  the  suggestion  made  in  the 
circular  letter  of  July  2yth,  1907 — that  medical 
men  and  certified  midwives  practising  in  the  Poor- 
Law  Union  should  be  informed  that,  as  regards  any 
jKJor  person  in  whose  case  the  attendance  of  a  regis- 
tered medical  practitioner  is  required,  the 
Guardians  will  be  prepared  to  exercise  their  powens 
under  Section  2  of  the  Poor-Law  Amendment  Act, 
1848,  and  to  pay  a  reasonable  remuneration  to  the 
medical  man  called  in.  The  Board  think  that  anj 
medical  practitioner  who  makes  a  claim  on  the 
Guardians  for  a  fee  in  such  a  case  might  jn'operly 
be  a-sked  to  state  definitely  that  after  making 
reasonable  efforts  he  had  failed  to  secure  payment 
from  the  person  attended. 

The  Midwives'  Act  has  now  been  in  operation 
nearly  eight  years,  and  during  the  whole  time  the 
question  of  the  payment  of  medical  practitioners 
when  called  in  by  niidwives  has  been  a  grievance. 
It  is  a  legitimate  one,  and  we  hope  will  be  effec- 
tively dealt  with   by   legislation. 


iiemsHloDeiM.0' 


m 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

THE  imilSIM€  II£€<>III> 

EDITED  BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.      1,144 


SATURDAY,  MARCH   5,   1910. 


XLIV. 


leMtorial. 


THE  PUBLIC  HEALTH. 
The  growing  interest  in  pul)lic  health 
questions  is  evidenced  hy  the  activity  of  the 
Public  Health  Sectional  Committ"'e  of  the 
National  Union  of  Women  Workers,  wliich 
has,  in  inirsuanee  of  an  arrangement  made 
at  the  last  committee,  forwarded  to  its  mem- 
bers a  collection  of  interesting  literature 
bearing  on  public  health  questions,  issued 
by  the  Women's  National  Health  Association 
of  Ireland,  as  well  as  the  first  bound  volume 
of  Slit  into,  the  organ  of  that  Association, 
which  contains  many  interesting  articles  on 
these  questions.  The  jjrincipal  subjects  on 
which  the  Sectional  Committee  sought  for 
literature  were — 

(1)  The  various  methods  already  adopted 
for  the  prevention  and  for  the  treatment  of 
tuberculosis  and  for  the  care  and  education 
of  phthisical  patients. 

(2)  The  meUiod  for  securing  a  pure  milk 
supply. 

Papers  dealing  with  these  subjects,  as 
well  as  with  babies'  clubs,  the  summer  cam- 
paign against  infantile  mortality  in  Dublin, 
little  mothers'  classes,  the  (!irls'  (iuild  of 
Good  Health,  the  Boys'  Health  Battalion,  the 
disinfection  of  schools,  and  the  campaign 
<igainst  ilies,  appear  in  last  year's  volume  of 
Sldirdc,  and  other  interesting  papers  have 
appeared  this  year. 

So  far,  the  question  of  morality  has  not 
been  dealt  with  hy  the  Sectional  Committee 
of  the  N.U.W.W..  but  it  is  one  which  is 
vital  to  the  health  of  the  nation,  and  im- 
morality is  certainly  the  underlying  cause 
of  many  diseases  not  usually  associated  with 
it  in  the  public  mind.  We  hope  that  before 
long  tills  question  of  morality  in  relation  to 
health,  which  is  essentially  one  which  a 
national    society   of    women    should    deal 


seriously  with,  may  be  considered  and  re- 
ported on  bj'  the  Sectional  Committee  on 
Public  Health,  and  that  suitable  literature 
may  be  issued  with  its  sanction. 

It  is  quite  imposslijle  to  enumerate  all  the 
usefid  leaflets  issueil  under  tiie  authorit,y  of 
Women's  National  Health  Association  of 
Irelaiul.  Those  who  desire  to  know  more 
about  them  should  write  to  the  Literature 
Secretary,  Vice-Uegal  Lodge,  Dublin,  for  the 
order-sheet  of  the  publications  of  the  Asso- 
ciation and  make  their  own  selection. 
Amongst  some  most  useful  ones  we  may 
mention  "lea:  its  I'se  and  Abuse,"  "The 
Care  of  the  Babj%"  "Snggesrions  for  the 
Improvement  of  Dwellings  and  their  Sur- 
roundings," "Air  and  Health,"  and  "Away 
with  the  Flies  " — all  of  which  are  simply 
written,  conveying  imj)ortant  lessons  in 
language  easy  to  be  understood  by  people 
of  ordinary  education. 

In  the  campaign  for  a  higher  standard  of 
public  health,  nurses  may  take  an  important 
share,  and  the}'  should  regard  it  as  a  privi- 
lege and  a  duty  to  make  use  of  their  oppor- 
tunities, which  are  many.  It  is  natural  that 
both  in  private  houses  and  in  the  homes  of 
the  jioor,  where,  if  they  are  worthy  members 
of  their  profession,  they  are  regarded  as  the 
friends  of  many  of  tlie  patients  with  whom 
they  are  intimately  brought  into  contact — 
questions  on  mattei's  of  public  health  should 
be  put  to  them,  and  information  which 
may  bear  fruit  a  hundredfold  may  Ije  given 
by  them  quite  simply  and  naturallj-  in  the 
course  of  their  visits.  To  equip  themselves 
thoroughly  for  this  work  they  should  make 
a  point  of  studying  literature  wliich  will 
inform  them  on  public  health  matters,  and 
they  will  find  that  to  which  we  have  referred 
above  most  useful  in  this  connection.  The 
«tudy  of  conditions  in  health  should 
precede  that  of  disease. 


Zr>c  BiiLsb  3oiir.nal  of  IRursin^;. 


[:\Iarch  5,  1910 


flDeMcal  riDatters. 


THE  CONTROL  OF  SCARLET  FEVER. 

Dr.  F.  G.  Crookshaiik,  Medical  Officer  of 
Health  and  Superintendent  of  the  isolation 
Hospital  of  the  Barnes  Urban  District  Council, 
in  au  address  recently  delivereci  before  the 
Epidemiological  Section  of  the  Eoyal  Society 
of  Medicine,  and  published  in  the  Lancet,  ex"- 
presses  his  strong  conviction  in  the  importance 
of  "  bed  isolation  "  in  the  practical  control  of 
scarlet  fever.    He  writes  in  this  connection  : — • 

The  question  I  desire  to  raise  is  whether  we 
may  not,  in  small  hospitals  at  any  rate,  if  we 
get  a  firm  grip  of  the  real  principles,  safely 
treat  all  diseases  ^de  by  side.  I  am  convinced 
that  we  may.  If  this  can  be  done  generally, 
instead  of  having  to  provide  for  a  series  of 
maxima  only  one  maximum  needs  to  be  pro- 
vided for — the  greatest  total  number  of  cases 
likely  to  need  treatment  at  one  time.  This 
would  mean  probably  not  so  otten  one  bed  per 
1,000  as  one  bed  per  1,500  of  the  population. 

I  recognise  that  the  complete  trial  of  the  plan 
I  suggest  would  mean  the  planning  of  a  new 
hospital,  and  I  have  had,  of  course,  at  JMort- 
lake,  to  make  use  of  pre-existing  buildings. 
But  we  have  done  away  with  separation  be- 
tween diphtheria  and  scarlet  fever  nurses,  and 
therefore  to  that  extent  no  longer  separate 
wards  or  diseases.  We  isolate  patients  with- 
out any  mechanical  apparatus  such  as  glass 
walls,  or  barriers,  but  by  ritual  observance 
only.  It  is  not  that  one  regards  the  trans- 
ference of  prime  infections  as  a  light  matter; 
the  idea  is  that  it  is  as  grave  an  affair  profes- 
sionally for  a  simple  case  of  scarlet  fever  to 
acquire  a  pus  infection  as  for  a  case  of  diph- 
theria to  acquire  typhoid  or  scarlet  fever.  Each 
patient,  therefore,  is  isolated  in  his  or  her  bed 
without  partition  or  barrier.  This  can  be  done, 
if  proper  technique  is  observed,  as  easily  as  it 
is  done  in  the  surgical  wards  of  a  general  hos- 
pital evei-y  day.  Nurses  can  then  pass  from 
block  to  block,  ward  to  ward,  and  bed  to  bed 
as  simply  and  hannlessly  as  does  a  surgeon 
from  a  case  of  empyema  to  a  laparotomy. 
They  relieve  each  other  as  occasion  may  re- 
quire, give  assistance  to  each  other,  and  inter- 
change quite  freely.  The  saving  in  staff  ex- 
pense alone  is  very  considerable,  and  the 
general  results  are  perfectly  satisfactory. 

Before  we  commenced,  in  1907,  the  system 
of  bed  isolation,  we  had  quite  as  many  troubles 
as  others,  in  spite  of  the  most  careful  ward 
separation  and  staff  separation,  but  we  have  no 
apprehensions  now.  It  is  true  that-there  are 
certain  prime  requisites  for  this  method.  One 
is  that  the  ^latron,  in  the  absence  of  a  resident 


medical  officer,  should  have  the  fullest  control 
of  her  staff  and  the  keene~st  appreciation  of  the 
ideas ;  and  in  the  appointment  of  ]\liss  Bel- 
linger I  have  been  fortunate.  Another  is  that 
never  should  the  bed-space  be  less  than  the 
full  minimum  standard  of  the  Local  Govern- 
ment Board;  and  I  hold  that  there  is  no  heresy 
so  great  as  supposing  that  children  require  less 
ward-space  than  aduJts ;  as  children  they  may, 
but  as  virus-holders  they  do  not.  Again,  every 
detail  of  the  isolation  hospital  ward  should  be 
on  a  parity  with  the  best  surgical  wards,  and 
there  must  be  the  freest  use  of  the  steriliser. 
The  steam  disinfector  is  one  steriliser,  the 
laundry  is  another,  and  should  be  worked  to 
the  utmost;  but  the  ward  sterilisers  are,  in 
small  hospitals,  not  used  as  they  should  be. 

Every  patient  should  be  kept  in  bed  for  three 
weeks,  and  for  the  first  few  days  after  leaving 
his  bed  should  recline  on  a  lounge  separated  by 
a  few  feet  from  others.  We  give  to  each  one 
on  admission  a  complete  outfit,  kept  on  his 
locker,  of  porcelain  tray,  kidney  bowl,  spitting 
mug,  receiver,  spray  or  syririge,  thermometer 
in  glass  vase,  feeder,  medicine  glass,  brush  and 
comb,  and  other  articles.  These  are  all  kept 
during  the  whole'  illness  for  the  patient's  ex- 
clusive use,  and  are  frequently  sterilised  by 
appropriate  methods,  being,  of  course,  again 
sterihsed  or,  if  necessary,  destroyed  at  the  end 
of  the  illness.  No  nurse  passes  from  one  prime 
infection  to  another  without  first  disinfecting 
her  hands  and  donning  a  special  ward  overall 
kept  for  the  purpose,  and,  of  course,  disinfect- 
ing her  hands  afterwards.  Certain  cases  of 
doubtful  nature,  and  special  or  mixed  cases,  are 
marked  by^  a  warning  tab  affixed  to  the  bed 
card,  and  for  each  of  these  cases  a  special  over- 
all is  used.  In  addition  to  the  washing  of  the 
hands  required  from  everyone  on  leaving  a 
ward,  disinfection  for  each  case  is  reqviired  and 
made  easy  by  the  placing  of  a  stand  with 
solution,  towel,  etc.,  at  the  foot  of  each 
"  special  "  bed,  or  between  the  beds  of  each 
two  or  three  simple  cases,  while  rubber  gloves 
are  used  in  dressing  wounds  or  attending  to 
puerperal  cases.  All  this  means  little  trouble 
really,  and  is  amply  repaid  by  the  knowledge 
that  security  is  obtained  thereby.  The  system 
can  be  further  elaborated,  but  of  course  in  a 
small  place  one  has  to  go  rlowly  and  acquire 
material  by  degrees.  Xo  doubt  those  who  be- 
lieve in  inunction  and  swabbing  with  oils  will 
say  that  much  of  this  is  unnecessary.  No, 
doubt  it  is,  for  recessive  cases,  so  far  as  the 
obvious  propagation  of  the  disease  is  con- 
cerned; but  it  is  the  virus  from  the  intensive 
eases  we  want  particularly  to  destroy,  and  the 
ritual  must  therefore  be  unhesitatingly  em- 
ployed. 


March  5,  19V)] 


Ctbe  Brttieb  3ournal  of  IFiursinG. 


1«3 


lHotC5  on  Opbtbalimc  iRiirsing." 

Bv  George  Mackav,  M.D.,  F.R.C.S.E., 
Senior  Ophtluibiiic  iiuiycon  to  the  Royal  In- 
finiiary,  Edinburgh. 
Anyone  who  wishes  to  undertake  the  skilful 
and  intelligent  nursing  of  ophthalmic  cases 
should  seek  to  acquire  the  following  qualifica- 
tions :  — 

1.  A  general  acquaintance  with  the  anatomy 
and  physiology  of  the  orbit,  its  contents,  and 
the  neighbouring  parts. 

2.  A  sound  training  in  the  general  manage- 
ment of  medical  and  surgical  patients. 

3.  A  firm  faith  in,  and  practical  devotion 
to,  aseptic  methods. 

4.  A  familiarity  with  the  special  apparatus, 
dressings,  instruments,  and  technique  em- 
ployed by  the  surgeon  to  whose  clinique  or 
practice  they  are  attached. 

5.  A  gentle  hand,  good  vision,  an  observant 
mind,  and  perhaps,  in  especial  decree,  sym- 
pathy and  patience  with  sufferers  deprived  less 
or  more  of  the  use  of  their  ejes,  and  partly  or 
wholly  dependent  on  sighted  companionship  to 
guide  their  movements,  soothe  their  jiain,  allay 
their  fears,  or  divert  their  attention  from  un- 
wholesome introspection. 

Anatomy  and  Physiology. 
If  one  makes  a  vertical  section  through  the 
orbit  from  before  backwards,  one  notes  first 
how  the  eyelids  are  merely  special  folds  of  the 
skin  adapted  for  the  purpose  of  covering  and 
protecting  the  sensitive  globe  or  eyeball  upon 
.  which  the  sense  of  sight  mainly,  though  not 
wholly,  depends. 

The  hairs  of  the  eyebrows  and  of  the  eyelids 
are  specially  developed  to  aid  in  preventing 
sweat  and  dust  from  coming  in  contact  with 
the  eye.  The  mucous  membrane — the  conjunc- 
tiva— which  lines  the  posterior  surface  of  each 
lid,  is  a  continuation  from  the  skin  surface,  and 
being  reflected  from  the  eyelids  to  the  surface 
of  the  eyeball,  gives  a  smooth  lining  to  the 
pouch — the  conjunctival  sac — in  which  the 
globe  turns  easily,  but  at  the  same  time  is  fet- 
tered and  restrained  in  its  range  of  movement 
behind  the  lid  aperture.  Little  glands,  secreting 
fafty  material,  lubricate  the  lashes  and  lid 
margins  in  health  (a  common  stye  is  due  to 
inflammation  in  one  of  these).  Other  glands, 
secreting  mucus,  are  scattered  over  the  con- 
junctival surface.  Tucked  beneath  the  upper  ■ 
border  of  the  bony  arch  of  each  orbital  cavity 
is  the  almond-sliaped  lachrymal  gland,  which 
secretes  the  tears  to  cleanse  and  moisten  and 
give  lustre  to  the  eyeball,  express  grief,  or  melt 


*  A  lecture  delivered  to  nurses  at  the  Royal  In- 
firmarv.  Etlinbmsili.  Fol.niarr  53r'l.  191(1. 


the  stony-hearted  !  In  ordinary  circumstauce.s 
the  tears  make  their  escape  mainly  bj"  evapora- 
tion, but  a  fui-ther  outlet  is  provided  by  a  pin- 
point aperture  near  the  imier  end  of  each  lid, 
which  leads  into  a  little  canal  passing  beneath 
the  skin  to  a  small  bag — the  tear  sac — from 
which  a  duct — the  nasal  duct — descends  into 
the. cavity  of  the  nose,  whence  the  tears  are 
evaporated  or  swallowed,  or  consigned  to  a 
handkerchief. 

The  membrane  which  lines  the  nose  lines  the 
tear  duct  also,  and  nasal  disorder — e.g.,  a 
catarrh  in  the  nose — a  common  cold  in  the 
head — often  leads  to  obstruction  of  the  tear 
duct,  with  consequent  watering  of  the  eye,  and, 
what  is  more  serious,  septic  organisms  from  the 
air  passages  can  readily  make  their  waj-  up  to 
the  tear  sac  and  on  to  the  eye  itself  or  vice 
versa.  This  is  a  point  of  the  highest  impor- 
tance in  connection  with  wounds  and  operations 
on  the  eyeball. 

The  eye  itself  is  a  globe  about  one  inch  in 
diameter,  composed  of  a  dense  white  opaque 
fibrous  tissue  (the  sclerotic),  except  over  the 
front  part,  where  an  area  about  the  size  of  a 
threepennj-  piece,  the  cornea,  is  marvellously 
clarified  to  provide  the  combination  of  a  bow- 
window  and  a  lens,  permitting  the  entrance  of 
light  and  assisting  in  its  being  focussed  within 
the  eye.  Just  behind  the  cornea  is  a  little 
space — the  anterior  chamber — filled  with  pel- 
lucid fluid,  the  aqueous  humour,  which  warms 
and  supports  the  back  of  the  cornea  and 
separates  it  from  the  circular  curtain,  the  iris, 
whose  variegated  surface  gives  the  colour  to  the 
eye  by  which  we  ordinarily  describe  the  eyes  of 
our  friends.  This  curtain  has  a  central  aper- 
tui-e — the  pupil — which  helps  to  concentrate 
the  light  which  is  entering  the  eye.  and  reflexly 
regulates  its  amount  by  contracting  when  the 
hght  is  bright  and  expanding  when  it  is  feeble. 
The  pupil  contracts  also  when  a  near  object  is 
looked  at,  and  so  intimate  is  the  association  of 
the  two  eyes  through  the  nerves  and  brain  con- 
nections that  the  admission  of  light  to  one  eye, 
or  the  employment  of  one  eye  in  near  work — 
e.g.,  reading  or  sewing — affects  the  pupil  of  the 
other  eye,  even  though  it  be  covered.  Some, 
drugs  dilate  the  pupil — e.g.,  cocain  and 
atropin;  some  contract  it — e.g.,  pilocarpin  and 
eserin. 

The  coloured  iris  is  the  middle  part  of  the 
middle  coat — choroid — of  the  eye,  and  as  we 
trace  the  one  back  to  the  other  we  pass  through 
a  very  complex  zone — the  ciliary  region — from 
whose  surface  the  aqueous  fluid  is  secreted,  and 
in  whose  substance  is  lodged  the  tiny  muscle — 
ciliary  muscle — by  means  of  which  we  are  able 
to  alter  the  focus  of  each  eye  according  as  we 
wish  tn  t7tt  an  inui'-'e  of  a  distant  or  a  nearer 


184 


CDC  British  journal  of  IRiii-siiitj. 


[March  5,  1910 


■object.  From  the  ciHary  surface  also  proceed 
numerous  slender  threads,  which  suspend  and 
support  behind  the  pupil  and  uis  the  beautiful 
crystalline  lens  upon  which  the  ciliary  muscle 
.acts.  Loss  of  transparency  in  this  lens  consti- 
tutes what  is  called  cataract.  The  remainder 
of  the  cavity  of  the  eye  is  filled  by  a  transparent 
jelly-like   substance,   the  vitreous. 

The  cornea,  the  aqueous,  and  crystalline  lens, 
and  the  vitreous,  constitute  the  refractive 
media  of  the  eye.  Anything  which  obscures 
their  transparency — e.g.,  an  escape  of  blood  or 
exudations  into  the  eye — prevents  the  light 
from  an  object  looked  at  from  arriving  at  the 
back  of  the  eye  with  suthcient  clearness  to  give 
a  well-defined  stimulus  to  the  nerve  of  sight. 
The  optic  nerve,  entering  the  back  of  the  orbit 
from  the  brain,  pierces  the  outer  fibrous 
(sclerotic)  and  the  middle  vascular  (choroid) 
coat  of  the  eye,  and  expands  to  form  the  retina 
or  sensitive  light -perceiving  membrane,  which 
lines  the  greater  part  of  the  interior  of  the  eye 
as  a  wallpaper  lines  a  room. 

The  Refraction  of  the  Eye. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  cornea,  aqueous,  lens, 
and  vitreous  to  focus  the  incoming  lights  into 
a  well-defined  picture  or  photograph  on  the 
sensory  surface  of  the  retina,  whence  an  im- 
pression is  conducted  by  the  optic  nerve  to  the 
liinder  part  of  the  brain,  where  we  interpret 
what  we  see.  (This  part  of  the  brain  is  really 
the  real  eye,  for  without  it  we  can  realise  no 
visual  picture.) 

Eyes  are  not  all  of  the  same  shape  and 
moulding.  Some,  like  Kodak  cameras,  focus 
distant  objects  without  any  effort  or  change  of 
focus — eumetropia.  Some  are  under  the 
standard  pattern,  and  have  to  make  an  effort  to 
focus  anything,  whether  far  or  near,  or  use 
convex  spectacles — hypermetropia.  Others 
exceed  the  standard  pattern  for  distance,  define 
■distant  objects  badly  unless  they  employ  con- 
cave spectacles,  but  see  nearer  objects  more 
readily — myopia. 

Again,  the  front  of  a  well-formed  eye  should 
be  like  the  surface  of  a  well-made  marble, 
spherical  in  outline,  but  not  infrequently  the 
surface  is  unequally  curved,  so  as  to  be  more 
like  the  back  of  the  bowl  of  a  spoon — astig- 
matism. 

The  measurement  and  correction  of  these 
errors  of  refraction  by  special  glasses  occupies 
a  large  part  of  the  time  of  every  ophthalmic 
surgeon,  and  I  know  some  busy  hospitals  where 
nurses  are  called  upon  to  assist  in  this  work, 
but  I  cannot  pursue  the  subject  in  any  detail 
here. 

In  addition  to  the  protective  covering  afforded 
by  the  soft  eyelids  in  front,  each  eyeball  and 
optic  nerve  is  further  screened  from  pressure 


and  injury  by  being  set  in  a  rudely  conical 
cavity  of  the  skull,  with  bony  walls — the  orbit. 
This  opens  widely  forwards,  but  narrows  Intck- 
wards,  so  as  only  to  leave  room  for  the  pa.^~:-.age 
of  the  optic  nerve  into  the  cranial  cavity,  and 
the  transmission  of  some  other  smaller  nerves, 
blood,  and  lymph  vessels.  There  is  an  intiniate 
connection  between  the  blood  supply  of  the 
eyeball,  the  orbit,  aud  the  surrounding  jiarts. 
Five  little  ribbon-like  muscles  take  their  origin 
from  the  apex  of  each  orbit  and  pass  forward 
to  be  inserted  one  into  the  upper  lid  and  tnie 
into  each  aspect  of  the  eyeball,  above,  bfluw, 
and  on  either  side.  These  straight-going 
muscles — the  recti — aided  by  two  others,  whose 
path  and  insertion  is  more  oblique,  inipart 
turning  movements  to  the  eyes,  and  enable  us 
to  look  in  different  directions  at  fixed  olijeets- 
or  follow  them  if  moving  in  space. 

A  well-made,  well-set,  and  well-controlled 
pair  of  eyes  should  be  directed  to  the  same 
point  in  space,  whether  covered  or  unco\  eivd, 
and  the  image  obtained  on  the  one  should  give 
so  similar  aud  symmetrical  an  impression  un 
the  other  that  the  two  sensations  are  fused  into 
a  common  picture  in  the  brain.  A  faulty  con- 
figuration of  the  orbit,  an  inequality  in  the 
shape  or  focus  of  the  eyes,  over-aetion, 
paralysis,  or  contraction  of  an  ocular  muscle,  or 
the  displacement  of  the  eye  by  a  tumour,  etc., 
in  the  orbit,  may  lead  to  an  appearance  of 
squinting,  or  an  annoying  sense  of  seeing  things 
doubled. 

Without  going  into  too  much  detail, 
between  the  orbits,  the  sphenoidal  sinus  below 
chiefly  composed  of  fat,  fills  up  the  remaining 
space  between  the  eyeball  and  the  bony  walls 
of  the  orbit.  Immediately  surrounding  the 
orbit  we  have  several  air  spaces  connected  with 
the  nose,  the  frontal  sinus  in  the  brow  aliove, 
the  antrum  in  the  cheek-bone  below,  the  upper 
part  of  the  nasal  cavity,  and  the  ethmoid  cells 
Ijetween  the  orbits,  the  sphenoidal  sinu-s  below 
and  behind,  and  the  brain  above  and  behind. 

Now  let  us  consider  some  of  the  duties  which 
might  fall  to  an  ophthalmic  nurse.  I  need 
scarcely  say  that  their  extent  and  responsi- 
bility must  largely  be  governed  by  the  amount 
of  special  training  and  experience  she  has  had. 
One  demands  little  but  commonsense  fi'om  a 
probationer,  but  a  staff  nurse  is  natui'ally  a 
more  efiicient  assistant  in  many  ways  than  a 
fresh-fledged  house  surgeon.  Still,  there  are 
some  things  which  every  nurse  ought  to  learn 
in  order  to  know  how  to  render  first  aid,  or 
carry  out  instructions  intelligently.  First,  how 
to  place  a  patient  for  exarnination.  Speaking 
generally,  it  is  important  that  they  should  be 
placed  so  that  a  good  light  falls  upon  the  eye 
which  is  to  be  examined,  and  that  the  head 


-Mai-ch  5,  I'JKj: 


Zm  35ritl9b  3oiirnal  of  flursing. 


is: 


should  be  well  supported  in  a  couveiiieiit 
position.  For  a  preliminary  exauiiuation,  the 
patient  may  be  seated  in  a  chair  facing  a  well- 
lighted  window,  and  by  preference  the  back  u£ 
the  chair  should  be  sutiiciently  high  to  afford  a 
rest  for  the  head,  so  liiat  it  cannot  be  with- 
drawn. To  secure  this,  it  is  sometimes  'de- 
sirable to  place  the  patient  sitting  or  standing 
with  his  back  close  against  a  wall ;  but  where 
any  more  elaborate  operation  is  reipiired,  it  is 
better  to  ask  the  patient  to  lie  down  on  a  couch 
or  firm  table,  which  should  be  placed  at  right 
angles  to  the  incoming  light,  and  with  tlu> 
affected  eye  on  the  same  side  as  the  light  is 
coining  from.  A  firm  table,  with  a  piUow,  iii 
preferable  to  a  soft  couch,  and  for  precise  opera- 
tions the  height  of  the  tal)le  should  be  such  as 
to  enable  tiie  operation  to  be  conducted  with- 
out the  necessity  of  stooping  much  over  the 
patient,  which  wearies  and  unsteadies  the 
operator. 

.\  simple  and  convenient  methor'  for  the 
examination  of  an  infant  or  a  struggling 
child  is  to  place  it  on  the  lap  of  someone  seated 
on  a  chair  facing  a  window.  The  examiner 
occupies  a  second  chair  at  right  angles  to  the 
first,  and  placed  as  may  be  most  convenient  to 
the  right  hand  or  to  the  left,  and,  spreading  a 
towel  across  his  or  her  knees,  lowers  the  child's 
head  backwards  until  it  is  firmly  held  between 
the  knees  and  supported  on  the  towel.  Both 
hands  arc  left  free  for  whatever  further  mani- 
pulations may  be  required  in  the  examination 
or  treatment.  If  the  lids  arc  moist  and  slip- 
pery, it  is  often  well  to  cover  one  finger  of  each 
hand  with  a  linen  cloth,  so  as  to  increase  one's 
hold  upon  the  skin  surface.  When  the  lids  are 
much  swollen,  or,  on  account  of  extreme  sensi- 
tiveness to  light,  tiiere  is  spasmodic  contracture 
of  the  eyelids,  it  is  often  difficult  to  get  the  lids 
properly  separated  by  drawing  them  apart  with 
the  fingers  alone.  In  such  a  case  the  nurse 
ought  to  have  at  hand,  for  the  surgeon's  use, 
some  artificial  retractors,  such  as  Desmarre's 
or  McGillivray's.  In  the  separation  of  the  lids, 
however,  the  utmost  care  must  always  be  taken 
to  avoid  scratching  or  abrading  the  cornea  or 
exerting  firm  pressure  upon  the  eyeball.  In  the 
fprmer  case  a  slight  abrasion  may,  by  septic  in- 
fection, become  a  serious  ulcer,  and  when  one 
is  examining  an  eye  for  the  first  time  which 
has  been  exposed  to  injury,  or  which  may  be 
deeply  ulcerated,  or  has  recently  been  opened 
into  by  operation,  any  undue  pressure  upon  the 
eyeball  maj'  lead  to  expulsion  of  some  of  the 
cx>ntents  of  the  eye  with  disastrous  results  :  for 
instance,  escape  of  the  aqueous,  prolaps<'  of  thi' 
iris,  and,  in  larger  wounds,  loss  of  the  lens  or 
vitreous. 

(T(y  be  concluded.) 


Zbc  School  ot  flDassaQC.  at  tbc 
Xon^on  Ibomoropatbic  Ibospital. 

A  very  interesting  and  useful  department  at 
the  London  Honnjeopathic  Hospital,  Great, 
Ormoud  Street,  W'.C,  is  the  School  of  i\lassage 
and  Physical  Gymnastics,  in  charge — under  Dr. 
Deane,  a  member  of  the  medical  staff — pi  iliss 
Margaret  Planning,  the  Instructress  in  Mas- 
sage, who  not  only  holds  the  certificate  of  the 
Incorporated  Society  of  Trained  Masseuses,  but 
has  also  studied  for  two  j'ears  in  Stockholm. 

I  learnt  from  the  Matron,  Miss  Clara 
Hoadley,  that  the  ordinary  term  of  training  is 
for  six  months.  Trained  nurses  pay  a  fee  of 
i.")  OS.  and  otlier  pupils  tlO  10s.  for  the  course. 
The  ])robationers  in  the  hospital  go  down  to  the 
massage  department  for  three  months,  anrl 
thus  get  a  useful  insight  into  medical  rubbing, 
though  not  the  tiiorough  training  which  will 
enable  them  to  take  a  certificate. 

We  found  Miss  Manning  in  a  women's  ward, 
in  a  workmanlike  overall,  which  her  pupils  also 
wear,  giving  massage  to  a  patient.  Later  I 
accompanied  her  to  the  gynmasium,  and  there 
saw  something  of  her  methods. 

On  an  average  about  "i")  cases  come  to  the 
hospital  daily  for  the  special  treatment  given 
in  the  physical  department,  cases  of  spinal  cur- 
vature, which  benefit  much  from  physical  gyni- 
nastics,  neuritis,  paralysis,  and  many  others, 
and  last,  but  not  least,  manj-  cases  of  fracture 
^liss  IManning  says  that  at  first  she  was  afraid 
for  the  fracture  cases  which  were  put  into  no 
splints,  and  had  massage  from  the  first,  but 
now  she  is  quite  happy  about  them,  at  least 
with  patients  wlH\will  exercise  a  reasonable 
amount  of  care.  The  little  urchins  of  the 
neighbourhood  are  quite  oblivious  to  the  need 
for  any  special  care — of  a  Colles'  fracture,  for 
instance,  and  will  readily  take  part  in  a  street 
fight  with  the  injured  member,  and  nuike 
such  use  of  it  as  thej-  can  quite  casually. 

.\mongst  the  patients  are  some  whom  one 
would  not  expect  to  find  suffering  trom  neuritis : 
for  instance,  a  i)lacksnn'th,  whose  sturdy  right 
arm  is  being  treated,  and  a  butcher,  vi-ho  has 
injured  his  arm  in  lifting  a  heavy  carcase. 
There  are  many  children  amongst  the  patients, 
and  one  little  boy  was  exercising,  and  ap- 
parently enjoying  the  process,  on  a  bar  fixed 
across  the  room. 

If  there  are  any  specially  interesting  cases  in 
the  \\ards.  ^liss  Manning  gives  a  demonstration 
to  the  pup'ls,  if  the  case  is  a  suitable  one.  They 
also  have  lectures  from  the  visitmg  physician. 

It  is  interesting  to  leirn  that  some  of  tlie 
keenest  and  best  pupils  are  the  army  in- 
structors, wlio  couH'  up  from  .\ldersIrot  to  take 


186 


^be  aBrUisb  3ournai  or  iHurstng. 


[March  5.  1910 


the  course.  All  the  men  have  to  learn  gym- 
nastics, and  tlie  instructors  are  picked  men  who 
have  shown  special  aptitude,  and  are  so  placed 
in  positions  of  authority  and  importanee.  When 
tliey  first' come  up  it  seems  as  i"f  their  hands, 
which  go  to  worlf  with  so  much  energy,,  were 
not  suited  for  the  delicate  manipulations  they 
have  to  perform,  but  when  the  men  understand 
that  tlley  must  assume  the  limb  they  are 
practising  upon  is  dislocated  or  fractured," they 
learn  to  handle  it  with  a  gentleness  and  skill' 
not  to  be  exceeded,'  and  not  always  equalled, 
by  any  woman.    . 

Talking  of  hands,  otlier  masseuses  have  told 
me,  and  I\Iiss  Manning  endorses  it,  that  a  thin 
or  bon3'  hand  which  is  used  much  for  massage 
develops  with  the  exercise  and  becomes  plump 
and  cushiony.;  therefore,  no  one  wlio  thinks 
her  hand  unsuitable  need  despair.  The  main 
thing  is,  so  Miss  Manning  holds,  that  the  hand 
should  be  an  intelligent  one.  Some  hands  are, 
she  says,  so  stupid,  and  we  all  know  that  there 
are'many  hands,  perhaps  the  majority,  if'we 
are  sensitive  to  impressions,  that  we  prefer  not 
to  touch  us^s'o  many  things  are  couvej'ed  to 
us.  by  touqh,  and  so  it  is.  easy,  to  understand 
that  a  liand,  used  in  massage,  should  be  not 
■only  intelligent,  but„sensitive  and  sympathetic', 
otherwise  it  toayonly  irritate  when  its  province 
is  to  heal.     ■  ■ 

One  thing  IMiss  Manning  is  very  much  alive 
to,  and  that  is  the  necessity  for  thoroughness 
in  training.  She  would  like  to  see  the  course 
extended  beyond  six  moiith's.  It  is  possible 
that  belore  long  a  school  may  be  opened  in 
London.,by  a,  Swedish  professor,  with  Swedish 
masseuses,  working  Tinder  him,  in  vvhich  the 
teaching  will  be.- organised  on  the  lines  adopted 
with  so  much  success  in  Sweden. 

A  point  worth'  noting  is  that,  thOtigli  mas- 
sage to  be  of  much  value  must  be  taught  and 
leamt  scientif5callyj  y'et  skill  in  manipulation 
■often  seems  to  be  a  hereditary  gift.  Thus  in 
India  and  Africa  it  is  often  .highly-  developed'  in  ■ 
some  of  the  native  races 

Before  leaving  the  hospital  I  learnt  .some- 
thing from  the  hard-working  and  genial  Secre- 
tary, Mr.  E.  A.  Attwood,  of  the  developments 
which  are  taking  plac?.  A  new  wing,  to  con- 
tain 70  beds,  is  rapidly  rising,  with  a  frontage 
and'  the  main  entrance'  in  Queen  Square, 
Bloomsbury,  already  noted  for  its  numerous 
hospitals ;  and  on  the  other  side  of  Great 
Ormond  Street-is  the.' site  for- the  new  Nurses' 
Home.  "Of  course,  it  all  means  money/'-says 
Mr.  Att;wood,  "  but:  it  comes."  So  'it  does, 
when-  capable  hands  holds  the  reins  jn-  the 
secretarial  office,  but  it  represents  much  hard 
■worki . . 

M.  B. 


Z\K  Soctet\>  tov  tbc  State  IReois* 
tration  of  Cratne^  IRurees. 


A  nieetiug  of  the  Executive  Committee  was 
held  at  431,  Oxford  Street,  London.  'W.,  on 
Friday,  February  25th,  ^liss  Isla  Stewart,  Pre- 
sident, in' the  chair. 

After  the  minutes  had  been  confirmed,  the 
following  Report' \vas  received  from  the  Hon. 
Secretary  :—  i         .    .: 

.The  Hon.   Secret.\rx's  Eep.okt. 
-4  Central  Registration  Committee^ 

I  beg  t-o  reix>rt  that  t})e  proposal  to  secure  tor 
one  Bill  for  tlie  Registration  of  IS'ui's<>s,  tlie  support 
of  the  various  Medical  and  Jvursing  Societies  wJuch 
have  Ueen  promoting  legislation  has  been  successful. 

At  your  nioeting  on  October  8th,  1909.  your  Hon. 
Secretary  proix>se-d,  and  it  was.  agreed: — "  That  the 
principle  of  forming  a  Standing  Central  Committee 
tor  the  State  Regi.stration  of  Trained  Nui^ses  bo 
aocept-ed,  the  Committee  to  be  formed  of  delegates 
of  societies  .supiK>rting  the  movement."  It  was 
further  agreed  that  ''  the  Hon.  iSecretary  be  em- 
jx>wered  to  carry  out  a  lijie  of  preliminary  organisa- 
tion and  report  to  the  Comraittee." 

This  1  have  great  pleasure  ill  doing. 

At  your  meeting  on  November  26tli.  1909,  I  re- 
portied  I  that  L  had  .  consulted  our.  Parliamentary 
advisers- — Lord  Ampthill  and,  Mr.  Munro-l'ergnsou 
— and  that  they  approved  the  suggestion  that  such 
a  Central  .Committee  on  Registration  should  be 
formed-.  Negotiations-  with  various  societies  re- 
sulted in  eight  out  of  the  nine  approached  appoint- 
ing five  delegates  each  to  attend,  a  Coiiferejlee  on 
the  question  convened  by  Lord  Ampthill,  and  tlie 
following   representatives  were   nominated: — - 

Tlie  British  Mcdicul  .issociatiou: — Sir  Victor 
Horsley,  F.R.S..  F.R.C.S.,  Dr.  J.  A.  Macdonald, 
T.  Jenner  Verrall,  Esq.,  M.R.C.S.,  Dr.  R.  C. 
Buist,  J.   Smith  Whitaker,  Ksq.,   M.R.C.S. 

The  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and  Ire- 
land.— Miss  Isla  Stewart,  Miss  Heather^Bigg,  Miss 
G.  A.  Rogei-s,  Miss  M>  Mollett,  Jiilis^.JI.  Todd  (re- 
tired), and  Miss.Musson.       ••■.•.■■- 

The  Society  for  tlie  State  Berfistratiov  of  Trained 
Nurses. — Dr.  Bedford  Fenwick,  Miss  Sidney. 
Browne,  R.R.C.,  Miss  H.  L.  Pearse,  Miss  M. 
Breay,  and  Mrs.  Bedford  Feuwick. 

The  Itoyal  British  Nurses  ,  Association. — Dr. 
Be^ly  Thorne,  John  Langton,  Esq..-,' F'.R.C.S.,  ur. 
Clement  Gods.on,  Aliss  Grace  Gordon,  Miss  Tawney. 

The  Fever  .Nurses'  Association. — Dr.  E.  '\V. 
Goodall,  Dr.  F.  Foord  Caiger,  Dr.  Biernacki,  Miss 
E.   M.,  Bann,  Miss  L.   A.   Morgan. 

The,  Irish  Nurses'  Association. — .!Mi.ss  L.  V. 
Haught^on,  Miss  Kelly,  Miss-  Huxley,  Miss  Keogh, 
and  i\L>..   Kildare  Treacy. 

The  Scottish  Nurses'  .Issociation. — Sir  William 
i\la<^w,en,  f^R.S.,  F.R.C.S..,  'Dr.  McGregor  Robert- 
SOfli,;  Miss.  Wright,  Miss  .Tisdajl,,  and  Miss  K. 
Biu'leigh.  ,  .    -  .. 

The  Association  for  the  Promotion  of  the  Begis- 
tratioii  of  Nurs&g  iri  ,Sc()iland.-^The   hori  Inver- 


March  5,  1010] 


iLbe  Brtttdb  Sournal  oi  r<urslng. 


187 


clytlv,  Dr.  MackintOKh,  .M.V.O.,  Dr.  Kor,  .VUss  Uill, 
R.K.C,  and   Mios  CIoivimt. 

Tli«  Coiiferonce  was  h<'ld,.ljy  the  kind  permission 
of  tlie  British  .Modic»i  Avsociatioii,  in  the  Council 
Room,  -1211.  .'^tiand,  lyoiidbn,  on  .January  25111, 
when  the  Central  Kogistiation  Committ<,t«  Wats'  t'or- 
mally  oonstitutod.  Ixjnl  Amptliill  was  elcct'Ctl 
Chairman,  Dr.  CJoodall  and  Mrs..  Bedford  Fenwick, 
Hon.  Secretaries;  and  .Mr.  John  Langton,  Hon. 
Tieasurer. 

The  Bill  which  had  passed  the  House  of  Lords  was 
taken  as  a  basis  of  discussion,  and  was  considered 
clan.-e  by  clause,  amende<l,  and  several  new  clauses 
adoirted,  No.  4,  which  constitutes  the  General 
Council  of  Registration,  being  refenxxl  to  a  sub- 
coniinittee  of  eight  to  consider  and  re|x>rt.  This 
6ub-oommitt«'e  met  at  431,  Oxford  Street,  London, 
W..  on  February  Sixl,  and  agreed  on  a  Draft  Con- 
stitution, which  was  presented  to  a  second  meeting 
of  the  Central  Committee  on  February  12th.  It 
was  somewhat  amended  and  adopted. 

The  result  of  the  Conference  was  eminently  satis- 
factory, thanks  to  the  earne.st  desire  of  all  dele- 
gates present,  to  arrive  at  a  conclusion,  which 
would  satisfy  and  benefit  the  nui-sing  profession 
and  the  public,  and  also  to  the  incomparable  con- 
duct of  business  by  the  Cliairman,  Lortl  Ampthill. 

I  am  gratifie<l  to  reix)rt  that  all  the  amend- 
ments made  to  the  Bill  pioposed  by  your  delegates 
were  adopte<l : — 

1.  The  api>ointment  of  Divisional  Committees 
for  England,  Scotlaiid,  and  Ireland,  bo  act  in  an 
executive  cai>acity. 

2.  The  formation  of  a  Supplementary  Register  of 
Male  Nurses,  to  be  represented  ou  the  General 
Council  by  a  direct  rei>resentative. 

3.  Special  provision  for  five  pest  or  i)reseut 
Matix>ns  on  the  fii-st  Council — ^two  for  England  (one 
for  general  hospitals  and  one  for  Poor  Ijaw  in- 
firmaries), one  for  .Scotland,  one  for  Ireland,  and 
one  tor  Naval  and  Militaiy  hospitals. 

4.  Special  provision  for  three  matrons  on  the 
General  Council — one  for  England,  one  for  Soot- 
land,  and  one  for  Ireland. 

■5.  Representation  of  the  Scottish  Nui-ses'  Associa- 
tion, the  Association  for  the  Promotion  of  Registra- 
tion ol  Nuiisfs  in  Scotland,  and  the  Fever  Nurses' 
Association  on  the  first  Council,  and  increased  re- 
presentation for  Scotland  and  Ireland  on  both  the 
first  and  the  General  Council. 

Fever  Nursing. 

Your  delegates  voted  for  all  the  amendments  in- 
cluded in  the  Bill,  the  most  imjwrtant  of  whicll 
were : — 

1.  The  recognition  of  Fever  Nursing  as  follows, 
proposed  by  the  F<>ver  Xurscs'  Association : — 
"  Provide<l  that  any  nur.se  whose  name  is  placed  on 
the  Ge^ieral  Regi-ster,  and  who  holdi  a  certificate  of 
the  Fever  Nurses'  Atisociation,  or  its  eqitiyalent, 
granted  under  conditions  approved  by  the  Coun- 
cil, shall  be  entitled,  on  payment  of  a  single  regus- 
tration  fee  of  two  shillings  and  sixpence,  to  hare 
the  words.  '  also  traine<l  in  fevtr  nursing,'  added 
to  her  record  in  the  Register." 

2.  Thfit  one  of  the  four  direct  representatives  of 
the  registered  nui-ses  oil  tlie  General  Council  of  the 


registered   niir.ses   in   England   and   Wales  must  be 
"also  trained  in  fever  niii'sing." 

3.  That  "One  registered  medical  practitioner  to- 
be  apix>inted  by  tlie  Medical  Superintendents  of 
the  Fever  Hospitals,  which  may  be  recognised  as 
training  schools  for  nur.ses  in  fever  nursing  under 
this  Act,"   Ik-  electi?<l  on  to  the  General  Council. 

Mental    Nursing. 

4.  "  That  a  nur.se  whose  name  is  entered  on  the 
Mental  Nui-scs'  Register  may  be  also  entered  on 
the  General  Register  of  Women  Nurses,  or  on  the 
Male  Nurses'  Register — if  she  or  he  fulfils  the 
neee.ssary  conditions — provided  that  at  the  time  of 
registration  every  such  nui-se  shall  declare  under 
which  qualification  it  is  desired  to  exercise  any 
right  to  vote  for  the  election  of  a  direct  representa- 
tive." 

No  .luthoritij  to  Practice  Medicine. 

o.  Tlie  re-insertion  iu  the  Bill  of  the  following, 
clause,  pro|)osed  by  the  British  Mwlical  A.ssocia- 
tion : — "Nothing  contained  in  this  Act  shall  be 
considered  as  conferring  any  authority  to  practice 
medicine,  or  to  undertake  the  treatment  or  cure  of 
disease." 

The  Bill,  as  amended,  is  before  the  Committee. 
The  General  Election. 

Immediately  before  the  General  Election  upwards 
of  1,300  candidates  were  addresse<l  by  letter, 
petitioning  for  consideration  for,  and  support  of, the 
Nurses'  Registration  Hill  if  elected  inenit>ers  of  thft 
House  of  Commons.  A  very  large  numlx-r  of  letters 
from  men  of  all  Parties  were  received  in  reply,  ex- 
pressing interest  iu  the  qiie.stion,  and  promising 
supiK>rt.  A  Congratulation  Card  was  also  sent  ta 
all  old  and  new  friends  when  elected. 

The  thanks  of  the  Society  are  due  to  ^li^  Breay, 
Miss  Caitwright,  and  Miss  Hawkins  in  this  connec- 
tion, who  voluntarily  carrie<l  through  the  work. 
The  CoTrespondence  with  Lord  Iiiverclyde. 

Tlie  corres[X)ndence  with  Lor<l  Iiiverclyde,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Association  for  the  Promotion  of  the 
Registration  of  Nurses  in  Scotland  in  reference  to 
the  resolution  passed  at  a  recent  meeting  of  this 
Society,  is  before  the  meeting.  By  request  of  Loixi 
Iiiverclyde  and  i)ermi.ssion  of  our  President  it  has 
been  printed  in  the  Bkitish  Journaj.  of  Nubsing. 
Finance. 

As  it   was  agreed  that  the  constituent  societies 

on  the  Central  Registration  Comihittee  should  siib- 

scril)e   towards  exix^n.ses,   I  have   forwarded   £.5  to 

the  Hon.   Treasurer,   and  promised  another  £o  if 

.  requiretl. 

The  £100  liegistration  Fund. 

I  have  received  £41  2s.  towards  the  £100  Special 
Registration  Fund.  The  names  of  subscribers  and 
amounts  given  have  api)eare<l  in  our  official  organ. 

The  report  was  adopted  with  expressions  of 
lively  satisfaction. 

'        Votes  OF  Thanks. 

Hearty  votes  of  thanks  were  accorded  to 
Lord  .Ampthill  for  liis  kindness  in  convening 
the  Conference,  and  bringing  it  to  such  a  happy 
conclusion. 

To  Mr.  Munro  Ferguson,  M.P.,  for  his  con- 
tinued interest  in  and  support  of  the  question 


183 


tlbe  Biittsb  3ournaI  of  IRursdig. 


[March  5,  1910 


-of  Xurses'  Eegistration  in  the  House  of  Com- 
mons. 

To  ^Ii-s.  Bedford  Feuwick  for  tlie  part  she 
had  taken  in  initiating  theinovement  towards 
coalition  amongst  registratiouists. 
Letters  . 
A  letter  was  read  from  Mrs.  Kildare  Treacy, 
Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Irish  Nurses'  Associa- 
tion, coligratulating  all'dbneerned  uijou  the  re- 
sult of  the  Conference,  and  from  Mrs.  Etha 
Butcher  Klosz,  E.N.,  the  editor  of  Tlic  Nursing 
Journal  of  India,  applying  for  membership  in 
which  she  wrote:  "  I  do  not  know  whether  or 
not  nurses  outside  the  United  Kingdom  are 
permitted  to  join.  I  am  ah-eady  a  registered 
nurse  in  the  State  of  Maryland  m  America,  but 
I  want  to  identify  myself  with  everything  that 
makes' for  progress  in  the  iiursing  profession, 
and  shall  be  glad  to  have  my  shilling  go  to  the 
Society  even  if  denied  membership." 
Mrs.  Klosz  was  unanimously  elected. 

New  ^Members. 
The  following  new  meinbers   were  elected  : 
2773     Miss  B.     M.     Stainer,    cert.,    Eoyal    South 

Hants  and  Southampton  Hosp. 
277-1     Jliss  A.  Daubenev,  cprt.,  Roval  Hosp.,  Shef- 
field. 
277.5     Miss  G.  Hughes,  cert.,  David  Lewis  Northern 
Hosp.,  Liverpool. 

2776  Miss  E.  A.  Hayes,  cert.,  Kidderminster  Inf. 

2777  Miss  K.  M.  Latham,  cert.,  St.  Bart.'s  Hosp. 

2778  Miss  G.  Hopper,    R.N.,    cert.,    St.     Mary's 

Hosp.,      Paddington ;     Matron,      District 
Hosp.,    Dannevirke,  N.Z. 

2779  ^liss  I.  G.  Kissack,  cert.,  Norfolk  and  Nor- 

wich Hosp. 

2780  :Miss  V.  A.  Heward,  cert..  Royal  Inf.,  Brad- 

ford. 

2781  Ifiss  M.  Jamieson,  cert., Royal  Inf., Sheffield. 

2782  iliss    A.    G.    Kershaw,    cert.,    Royal    Inf., 

Bristol. 

278S  Miss  F.  E.  T.  Salter,  cert.,  Royal  Devon  and 
Exeter  Hosp. 

278-1  Miss  L.  A.  Dixon,  cert.,  St.  Mary's  Hosp., 
Paddington. 

278.5     Mrs.  J.  Endall,  cert..  King's  College  Hosp. 

278()  :Miss  E.  AVnght.  cert..  General  Hosp.,  Not- 
tingham. 

2787  Miss  E.  Irving,  cert.,  Great  Northern  Cen- 

tral Hosp. 

2788  :Miss    E.    Morton,   cert..    Royal    Inf.,    Edin- 

burgh. 

2789  Miss  M.   C.  Johnston,    cert.,    Royal   Hosp., 

Portsmouth. 

2790  Miss  S.  J.   Gibbins,    Matron.     Bannockburn 

Hosp.,  N.B. 

2791  Miss  SV.   Wratten,  cert..  Kingston   Inf. 

2792  Miss   B.   Gallacher,  cert.,   Royal  Inf.,   Glas- 

gow. 

2793  Mrs.  E.    B.  Klosz,  R.N.,  cert.,  Johns  Hop- 

kins Hosp.,   Baltimore,  CS.A. 

2794  Miss  T.     Harris,    cert.,    St.    Bartholomew's 

Hosp.,  E.G. 
279-5     Miss  E.  Btyan  „  ,,  „ 


2796 

2797 
2798 
2799 
2800 
2801 
2802 
2803 
2804 
2805 
2806 
2807 
2808 
2809 
2810 
2811 
2812 
2813 
Th 


Miss  D.  J.  Fisher,  cert.,  St.  Bartholomew's 

Hosp.,  E.G. 
Miss  A.  Bannister      ,,  ,,  ,, 

Miss  M.  A.  Payne       ,,  ,,  ,, 

Miss  J.  J.  Corny ns-Berkeley  ,,  ,, 

Miss  M.  Vincent         ,,  ,,  ,, 

Miss  E.  M.  Hansard  ,,  ,,  ,, 

Miss  F.  Mann  ,,  ,,  ,, 

Miss  C.  M.  Tunbridge  „  „ 

Miss   G.   I.   Lardner   ,,  .,  ,, 

Miss  F.  R.  Holmes     ,,  ,,  ,, 

Miss   A.    Bryant  ,,  ,,  ,, 

Miss  P.  R.   Kilncr     ,,  ,,  ,, 

Miss  L.  Hill 
Miss  L.  C.  :M.  Cole     „ 
Miss  A.  M.  Davis       ,, 
Miss  H.   G..  Liell 
Mis?  M.  0!.'Pemberton 

Miss  E.  M.  Banner,  cert..  Royal  Inf.,  Hull. 
e  meeting  then  terminated. 

Ethel  G.  Fenwick, 

Hon.  Sec. 


Z\K  IRurses'  IRcoistration  BUI. 

AGAIN    INTRODUCED    INTO   THE 
HOUSE    OF    COMMONS. 

On  Tuesday  last,  Mr.  K.  C.  INIunrc  Ferguson 
introduced  the  Nurses'  Eegistration  Bill, 
drafted  by  the  Central  Eegistration  Committee, 
into  the  House  of  Commons.  In  the  present 
unhappy  state  of  affairs  in  Parhament,  where 
useful  social  legislation  appears  at  a  standstill, 
the  introduction  of  the  Bill  is"  devised  to  give 
it  publicity,  and  to  be  a  definite  declaration  of 
the  policy  of  the  promoters  to  press  strenuously 
forward  this  important  question  of  national 
health,  the  protection  of  defenceless  sick  per- 
sons from  unskilled  nursing,  bj'  the  definition 
of  a  useful  practical  and  theoretical  standard 
of  nursing  eflBciency. 

The  Bill  has  received  the  support  of  Mem- 
bers of  all  parties  and  nationalities  in  the 
House,  and  is  backed  by  Sir  Luke  White, 
Dr.  Addison,  Mr.  Eainy,  and  Mr.  Annan 
Bryce  (Liberals);  Viscount  Morpeth,  Mr.  Eem- 
nant,  and  Mr.  Fell  (Unionists) ;  Mr.  .Jowett  and 
^Ir.  .J.  Eamsay  ]Macdonald  (Labour);  Mr.  Field 
(Nationalist),  and  ^Mr.  Kerr-Smiley  (Irish 
Unionist). 

Zbc  Status  of  tbe  jfcvcr  IHurse. 

The  ^latrons  of  the  large  Fever  Hospitals 
under  the  authority  of  the  ^Metropolitan  Asy- 
lums Board  have,  with  very  few  exceptions, 
been  convinced  registrationists  for  many  years, 
and  as  such  have  invariably  given  their  united 
support  to  all  movements  for  the  improvement 
of  nursing  and  the  status  of  nurses.    Everyone 


lyio]      ([[)e  Brttisb  Sournal  of  IFlursnuj, 


189 


will  ivjoice,  therefore,  to  fiiid  their  courage  and 
professional  loyaltj'  rewarded. 

Through  the  action  of  the  Fever  Nurses'  As- 
sociation, a  very  practical  and  growing  power  in 
the  evolution  of  nursing  education,  the  interests 
of  the  Training  Schools  in  Fever  Nursing  are  to 
be  Well  represented  on  the  Governing  Body  for 
the  nursing  profession,  as  suggested  in  the 
Nurses'  Registration  IJill,  promoted  by  tiie  Cen- 
tral Registration  Committee,  and  their  special 
training  is  to  receive  recognition  in  the 
Register.  This  proves  how  beneficial  is  co- 
operation, as  without  the  expert  advice  of  the 
delegati'S  of  the  Fever  Nurses'  .Association  at 
the  recent  Conference,  with  the  best  intentions 
in  the  world,  the  spi'cial  needs  of  fever  hospitals 
and  their  staffs  might  not  have  received  just 
the  recognition  best  suited  to  their  work.  No 
doubt  when  the  Registration  .\ct  is  in  force 
iever  nursing  will  be  included  as  part  of  the 
training  of  the  most  hiijhly  efficient  nurses 
qualified  under  its  authority. 


Special  IReciietration  3^un^. 


Brou^'ht   toiwal'd 
^'  Amicus 
Mrs.  Shuter 
Miss  Ij.  Taylor 
^liss  .J.  Wade 
!Miss  Sandford 


CoLi^ECTixG  Card. 
Name  of  Collector  :  Miss  Isla  Stewart. 


£    s. 

d. 

41     2 

0 

1     0 

0 

10 

0 

5 

0 

4 

0 

4 

(J 

£43     .5 

0 

£  s.  d. 
The  Sisters  of   St.  Bartholomew's 

Hospital               8     4  0 

The  Nurses  of  St.  Bartholomew's 

Hospital                2     1  8 

.\  Friend      2     2  (i 

;Mrs.  King  Roberts 1     1  0 

Mr.  \Vat!;ins            10  6 

Miss  .J.  Clay            2  6 


14     1     8 


Total 


£■57     6 


The  Hon.  Secretary  desires  to  express  her 
most  cordial  thanks  to  the  Sisters  and  Nurses 
of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  for  their  most 
generous  support,  as  well  as  to  the  other  kind 
friends  who  have  contributed  so  liberallv  to  the 
•special  registration  fund. 


Cbc  1Rui*6C6'  Co*oi,icration. 

THE  ANNUAL  REPORT,  1909. 
The  Nineteenth  Aiuuial  Report  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Manageuient  to  the  Members  of  the 
Co-operation,  and  to  the  Nurses  on  the  Staff, 
is  a  record  of  a  very  successful  year's  work. 
The  total  number  of  cases  nursed  during  the 
year  was  6,166,  the  staff  consisting  of  about 
500.  The  fees  received  by  the  Aurses  have  ex- 
ceeded those  earned  by  them  in  any  year  since 
the  Co-operation  was  founded  in  1891,  amount- 
ing to  the  splendid  sum  of  £44,410  Os.  8d.  for 
nursing,  and  £707  J2s.  lid.  for  massage.  The 
commission,  t2,73H  12s.  7d.,  leaves  excess  of 
income  over  expenditure  £292  9s.  5d.,  a  very 
satisfactory  result.  The  whole  business,-  in- 
cluding the  Howard  de  Walden  Home,  means 
a  cash  turnover  of  £50,300  17s.  lOd.,  which 
proves  the  value  of  women's  skilled  work.  Un- 
der a  policy  by  w  hicli  all  the  nurses  are  insured 
against  accident,  compensation  has  been  paid 
to  nurses  who  have  met  with  accidents  of 
various  kinds  in  the  course  of  the  year.  A 
further  policy  of  assurance  against  sickness, 
and  disease  which  has  been  arranged,  has  been 
found  of  great  benefit  to  the  nursing  staff. 
By  a  small  annual  contribution  supplemented 
from  the  funds  of  the  Co-operation,  all  nurses 
become  entitled  to  a  weekly  allowance  whilst 
they  are  temporarily  incapacitated  for  work. 
This  scheme  has  been  warmly  supported  by 
the  nurses. 

Mrs.  Lucas,  the  Lady  Superintendent,  and 
I\Iiss  Laura  Baker,  the  Home  Sister,  are  to  be 
congratulated  upon  the  success  of  the  Head 
Office  and  Home  luider  their  supervision,  which 
the  Committee  warmly  commend,  laying  spe- 
cial stress  on  the  pleasant  and  harmonious 
spirit  which  prevails  between  them  and  the 
nursing  staff. 

So  far,  very  good.  But  how  is  it  that  this  great 
women's  co-operation  lacks  professional  esprit 
de  corps  in  its  widest  sense  ?  We  see  no 
evidence  in  the  Report  of  encouragement  by 
the  Conunittee  of  any  pei-sonal  responsibility 
upon  the  part  of  the  Nursing  Staff  in  relation 
to  their  profession. as  a  whole.  We  congratu- 
late the  Nurses'  Co-operation  on  its  success  as 
a  business,  but  we  want  to  add  congratulations 
on  its  sense  of  corporate  professional  unity.  As 
it  is  commercially  rich,  so  also  should  it  be  a 
powerful  influence  for  all  the  higher  ideals, 
without  which  even  nursing  becomes  a  some- 
what sordid  occupation.  When  shall  we  see 
the  Nurses'  Co-operntion  League  associated 
with  others  for  the  wvll-being  and  solidaritv  of 
the  profession  of  nursing?  Some  day  we  liope 
— thongli  the  time  i--  now. 


190 


Zbc  Britlsb  3ournal  of  iRurstna. 


[March  5,  1910 


®ur  ^Butnca  Iprise. 

We  have  pleasure  in  announcing  that  Miss  Maud 
Crichton,  Matron,  Tlie  Hospital,  Louthj  Jvinooln- 
shire,  has  won  the  Guinea  Prize  for  Februiary. 

r^..,;'''     •     .y,      V-. ,  Key.  TO  ■  Ptr|jj}i^.  .,^:''"""       '^..■^     / 
;,-?^o.  l,-^Solltball's._A<!cx>iiphemen't''Set8.  ^. 

S(outh) — awls     a — couch — men — T     (tea) 
set  S. 
No.  2. — ^Wells  Nui-ses  Bonnet's. 

Wells,  nurses,   bone — nets. 
Xo.  3. — Bailey's  Dressings. 

B — ale — t-yes  dress — inn — GS. 
Xo.  4. — Plasmon  and  Phosphorus. 

P — lass— M  on  N  &  F^ — ^liorse — 4  u's. 
The  following  competitors  have  also  solved  the 
puzzles  correctly : 

M.  Beardsley,  London ;  N.  "VVyles,  Hamp- 
stead  :  E.  Dinhie,  Harix>w  ;  E.  Macfarlane,  London  ; 
K.  Mack-ay.  Edinburgh  ;  E.  Stone,  Earlsfield ;  H.  R. 
Flint,  BirmiUigbam  ;  ('.  Foster,  Penrith;  F.  J)owd, 
Olonskeagli ;  H.  ,  E.  Smith,  Warrington ;  iA.  M. 
Slioesmitb,  Durham;  C.  Maples,  Kettering;  L. ' 
Rydiug,  Belfast;  B.  fS.  Hhesird,  Chislehui-st ;  K. 
Ward,  Brighton;  F.  WMiafe-s,  Ea,^^-benSfall ;  A-. 
Derry,  Dublin  ;  E.  Luff,  Loudon ;  M.  Cooke,  East 
Mailing;  K.  H.  Hutheld-Jones,  Southend;  F.  M. 
Wrigley,  London:  M.  Modlin,  London;  C.  Petei-s, 
Hertford;  T.  Valentine,  Carstair.s ;  X.  Smith,  T)\il]- 
lin;  A,.  Pettitj  London;  R._M.  Hall,  London;  V. 
Payne,  Dundee;  E.  S.  Silfs,  Oakham;  K.  Soutar, 
London ;  M.  Lanpa-ster,  Southampton  ;  A.  Jary, 
Fakenham ;  F.  Sheppaid,  Tunbridge  Wells;  J. 
Wade,  Walmer;  V.  Fuller,  Chailey ;  S.  S.  Sherring, 
Liverpool:  C.  M.  Loudoun,  Edinburgh ; 'P.  Long, 
London;  E. -Atherley,  Manohe.ster;  T.  Macdougal, 
Glasgow;  X.  Fingall,  Wexford;  M.  C.  Daw-.son, 
London;  X.  Copelin,  Beckenham ;  E.  Laborda, 
Stroud  Green  ;  E.  Islip,  Ix>ndon  ;  F.  Robin.son.  (Jar- 
diff;  M.  Walker,  Port  St.  Mary;  E.  Douglas,  Bel- 
fast; S.  Arthur,  Slough;  M.  Loftus,  Stirling;  E. 
M.  Banner,  London;  K.  L.  Wilcox,  I^ondon ;  A. 
L.  Etheridge,  I/ondou  ;  C.  Ramsay,  Greenock  ;  A. 
Glass.  Belfast;  I.  Callaway,  Kingston;  C.  E. 
Gardner,  AVatford  ;  K.  JL  Monk,  Limerick;  h.  A. 
Castlemau,  Balham  ;  .J.  M.  Bruford,  K.  Tliompson, 
Ijondon  ;  M.  C.  O'Donnel,  Dublin;  K.i,.  Murley, 
Edinburgh;  Av  Lentoii,  Acton;  C.  Mackenzie, 
Glasgow ;  E.  Si>ehce)',  London ;  C.  M.  WaiKer, 
Stockport;  K.  Tooley,  l.ieicester ;  A.  Mutton, 
Plyjooouth;^.  A.  _G,  LaytoD,  Jjondon  ;  C.  P.  Fraser, 
Eclinburgh  ;  K.  T.  Mostyn,  Swansea;  M.  Martin, 
Manchester;  K.  C.  Macleod,  Dundee;  V.  James, 
Hudderefield ;  I.  liavell.  -Mai-gate ;  M.  Woodward, 
Re<lhill;  J.  H.  Bennet,  Edinburgh;  S.  J.  Black, 
Edinburgh  ;  K.  P.  Womond,  Xorwich  ;  E.  A.  Leeds, 
I<ondon ;  H.  G.  Bowers,  Nottingham;  M.  Woods, 
Ipswich;  A,  Harding,  Morblake ;  M.  Deverill,  Blrk- 
dale :  R.  Leigh;  Lympstone ;  K.  Molony,  Cork; 
V.  Langton,  London;  G.  Smart,  Cork;  A.  Kemp, 
Upper  Walmer;  T.  Ijong,  Brighton;  M.  E.  Clegg, 
Livei-pool  ;  M.  McWilliaras,  Omagh  ;  E.  M.  Dick- 
sou,  Felixtowe;  J.  Xuti.  W.  Bix>mwich  ;  J.  Cook, 
Portland;  C.  Rose,  AI>erdeen  ;  R.  Conway,  Brank^ 
some  Chine;    M.   E.   Cooi)er,   Shildon ;    M.   Jjewas, 


liondon  ;  A.  May,  Liverpool;  T.  Levy,  Brighton; 
I'.  Mackenzie,  Inverness;  A.  Bruton,  Plymouth; 
F.  Solly,  Derby;  -U,  Cri^,  London  jM.  E.  Ma|Sie«-« 
man,   Stornoway.  ' '-  '  .-.'' 

Several  competitons  failed  to  write  "  Pri^ 
Puzzle  "  on  their  envelopes;  these  were  distjualified. 
The  rules  for  the  Prize  Puzzle  remain  the  same, 
and  will  be  found  on  page  xii. 


ttbe  3r(0b  IRiuses'  Hssoclation, 

We  have  pleasure  in  publishing  the  following 
hst  of  new  members  of  the  Irish  Nurses'  Asso- 
ciation, and  are  very  pleased  to  see  that  they 
are  rallying  to  a  call  for  unity.  We  hope  they 
will  all  watch  the  progress,  of  the  Registration 
Bill,  and  impress  Irish  M.P.'s  with  its  im- 
portance. 

NEW  MEMBERS. 
,   Adel.mde  HospiT.iL,  Dublin. 

Sistei-s.:  Ed\va.fds  and  J'ohn.ston.  ;..;        ;  c  S-^  '  £''' 

Nurses:,  Bennett,  Wisdonx,"  Swan,  Pifeelio,',  S. 
Johnston,  M.  Simpson,  Wolfe,  Lyden,  O'Neill, 
Cream,  ,Adaras,  Young,  Ma idmeut,  Hynes,  Cros- 
kerry,  McRodden,  Irwui. 

Richmond  Hosi'itat,,  Dublin. 

Nurses:  J.  Barton,  M.  Coffee,  X.  Mah6ny,  E. 
O'Drijicul,.  A.  Cummings,  A.  Duiuie,  A.  Mannix, 
L.  Stafford,  'A.  Edgar,  M.  Fitzi)atrick,  E  . 
MucMuiuL,  M-  Hydey,  M.  J-^ecky,  A.  Maloney, 

MlSCELL.^NEOUS. 

■  "Nni'Se  U'reulB  Gordon, ^  Gah«y|c}ajiieU 

Nijrse  Peile,- Londonderry. 

Nurse  Young,  London.    '■  '        ^'  ■    .  ■:  ^'' 

Nurse  M.  Narly,  Nurses'  Home^  Armagh. 

Nurse  Higginson,   Nurses'  Home,-  Aianagh. 

Miss  S.  J.   Fox,  Masseuse,  Dublia. 

Xurse  Slattery,  Ryde,   Isle  of  Wight. 

Nurse   Monan,    Clontarf. 

Nni'Se  Margaret  Parke  Cross,  Royal  Hospital, 
Belfast. 

Nurse  O'Sullivan,   Rathmore, 

Nurse   McAlesie,   Newry. 

Rotunda  Hospit.\l,  Dublin. 

Staff  Ntifses:  Law,  Aberdeen;  C.  H.  Hill, 
Harolds  Cross ;    MandersoU,  Creenlcr. 

Private  ..Nurse  :     L.  Madden,  Delgany. 

Probationers:  Hurley,  Trenton,  NSw  Jersey, 
U.S.A.;  McCJarthy,  Ft'rmpy;  Irene  Hughes, 
Headingley,  Leeds  ;  Thorii,  Kingstown  ;  Hartigan, 
Castleblayney ;  Russell;  Reddie,  Inestioge ;  Iiefl- 
drum,  Dublin;  O'Brien,  Perthj  W.  Australia; 
McGill,  Strabaije;  McConnell,  Letterkenny : 
Slevin,  Arklow ;  iPqiviell,  St.;  Coltim^,  Cornwitii) 
Locke,  RathmineS;  Kemp,  I^lafkheath,  London; 
Campbell,  KlefksdoaiJ,  -S.  .^fi'ica ;  .Sharpe,  t'ole- 
rtine;  Meeilan,-  Port'land,  Maine,  U.S.A.;  S, 
Lillis,  St.  Eiinis;  Rutledge,  Omagh.:  .•.:,Hart^i 
Nebacih;    W"*":'.  Liverpool.  '■   "'^*>'*  ■•'  | 

^taff  Nurse  Criiwford,  D.ubliii.  ;',  i^ ';rV"j'> 

Nurse   MorrisseV,  Killeag;h.  ■ '  ,' 

.jProbationor    Henry,  Portlaw.  .-■«,-• I 

ROY.AL  A'lCTORI.V    EyE   AND    EaR    HosPITAL,    DuBLIN. 

Sister  Ely  I'owe^-. "■  ■:~'"'-'" "■■•"  -^ — ~ j 

Nurses:     0'Riiffe'rfy;i^l'^liJU,T164'wis^4fc(J^itT5..?  j 


March  r,,  loioj       j^j,^   Buitisb  3ournal  of  IRiu-sinci. 


191 


practical  (Points. 


Wf  lia%-e  pU'asiire  in 
The  Thesnor  drawinsi  atU-iition  to  the 
Chin  Strap.  "  Tlifsnoi- "    chin     strap,    de- " 

Kigned  liy  Mi-s.  Ilel<>n  Hc^t, 
whose  numtrous  and  delighttiil  toilet  prejxarations 
are  well  known  and  «idely  appreciated.  Tlie 
"Thesnor"  «as  produced  \>\  Mrs.  Best  as  an  aid 
to  correct  breathing,  by  keeping  the  mouth  closed, 
and  so  preventing  the  entrance  of  atmospheric  im- 
purities to  the  lungs.  It  has  been  found,  further, 
that  it  reniov«-s  the  feeling  of  phj-sical  fatigue  which 
results  from  sleeping  with  tlie  mouth  oi>en,  and  also 


relieves  th<  i  i  '     iiid  the  parched 

condition  ol  the  tongue,  due  to  the  .same  habit,  with 
the  result  that  healthy,  refreshing,  and  natural 
6le<'p  is  obtained.  By  its  use  the  habit  of  .snoring 
is  also  eradicate<l.  Tlie  cost  of  the  "  Thesnor," 
which  is  made  in  two  qualitie.s,  i.s  os.  6d.  and  7s.  (id., 
and  thos«>  ordering  this,  or  any  other  of  Mrs.  Be.st's 
preparations,  ohould  state  whether  the.se  .should  be 
addressed  Mis.  or  Mi.ss.  and  thei>ernianent  addre.ss 
should  always  ))e  mentioned  when  writiiig  from  a 
tem|K»rary  one.  This  is  six-cially  imix)rtant  in  the 
cast-  of  nurses  who  move  about  so  much. 

Will  our   readers  kindly    note   that    Mi's.    Best's 
address  is  now  .V24,  not  ■52(),  Oxford  Street,  W. 

Every  nurse  knows  that  when 

Bed  Pans  and        a  patient  n-ith  a  tender  back 

Bed  Sores.  has    to    use    an    old-fashioned 

bed  pan  of  the  circular  pat- 
tern that  tlie  greatest  care  must  \>e  exercise<l,  or 
tenderness  and  n-dnesb  may  (piickly  develop  into  a 
bed  sore  thiough  prfts.snre  or  rubbing  of  the  tender 
spot.  To  such  |>»tieiits  the  "Perfection"  be<l 
pan.  supplietl  by  .Meinecke  and  Co.,  U.S.A..  and 
wholesale  in  this  country  through  (Jrim- 
wad«'s,  Ltd..  Stoke-on-Trent,  and  through  local 
agents,  is  a  l>oon  indeed,  and  never  since  it  was 
first  brought  to  our  notice  at  the  International 
Congress  of  Nurses  in  Buffalo,  T'.S.A.,  in  1901, 
hav<-  we  seen  one  which  can  compete  with  it.  It 
follows  also  that,  if  it  is  desirable  for  patients  witli 
threatene<l  1m'<!  soi<is,  it  is  also  the  right  and  most 
com tdrt able  slra-|X'  for  onlinary  patients,  the  rea-son 
lieiiig  that  the  shape  conforms  to  the  Ijody,  which- 
is  not  the  ca-^e  with  l>e<l  pans  of  the  ordinary  type.  ' 
Among.st  the  retail  agents  are  Messrs.  E.  and  R. 
O*rroiild,  1")0.  iklgware  Road,  LondQn,  W.,  and 
Messi'si  Southall.  Bros,  and  Barclay,  Birmingham. 


lon^ou  Ibomocopatbic  Iboapital. 

MEDALS.  BARS,  AND   PRIZES. 

To  commemorate  the  lout;  and  faithful  servico  of 
the  Sisters  and  nurses  ut  the  l>ondoii  HomaK>pathic 
Hospital,  and  as  a  token  of  their  appreciation  of 
their  sustaiiietl  effort  to  maintain  the  standard  of 
tlio  i^iirsiiig  with  due  economy,  the  Nursing  Com- 
mittee decided  to  recommend  the  Board  to  award 
medals  for  six  years'  service  and  a  bar  for  each 
additional  five  years.'  service.  Eight  Sisters  and 
five  nurses  have  received  such  medals. 

Sister  Marv  Watkin.son :  5  bars;  Oct.  10th,, 
1882-1888;  1888-1893;  1893-1898;  1898-1903;  1903- 
1908. 

Sister  Margaret  Sarll:  4  bars;  Jan.  10th,  1886- 
1892;    1892-1897;    1897-1902;    1902-1907. 

Sister  Marv  Edgar:  3  bars;  July  10th,  1889- 
189.5;     189.5-1900;     1900-1905. 

Sister  Jessie  Wallis:  2  bars;  July  10th,  1895- 
1901;    1901-1906. 

Sister  Ada  Kavner:  2  bars;  Oct.  10th,  1895- 
1901;    1901-1906. 

Sister  *'rances  Hicks;  2  bars;  May  10th,  1897- 
190;l;    1903-1908. 

Nurse  Lilian  Niemann  ;  2  bars;  July  10th,  1897- 
190.3;    1903-1908. 

Sister  Juliet  Dickiii :  2  bars;  April  10th,  1898- 
1904;    1904-1909. 

Si-ster  Violet  Cousins:  1  b;ir;  May  10th,  1900- 
1905. 

Nui-se  Eliza  Wade:  1  bar;  April  lOtli,  1900-1906. 

Nurse  Ethel  Darlev  :    1  bar ;  Jan.  lOth,  1901-1907. 

Nurse  Annie  Breeze:  1  bar;  Sept.  10th,  1901-1907. 

Nurse  Elsie  Nicholas:   1  bar  ;  Feb.  lOth,  1902-1908. 

The  Board  hfes  also  awarded  a  Gold  Medal  to  the 
nurse  in  training  obtaining  the  highest  number  of 
marks  in  her  three  years'  examinations  ;  also  prizes 
for  the  Nurses'  Examination^  in  th^  first  and 
second  year. 

The  prize  winners  for  1909  were  as  follows:  — 
Gold  Mkdal. 

Marks  Maximum 

obtained.        possible. 

Nurse  Cha-rter      1,129       ...       1,300 

Matron's  Phizes. 
For    next   tivv   Nurses   irith   Mighest   Marks. 
■  '       "    Nurse  Sangar  Nurse  Collins. 

2nd  Ye.\r  NunsEs'  Prizes. 

1st— Nurse   Ward  ...  503       ...  600 

2nd— Nurse  Haile  ..  497       ...  600 

IsT  Veah  Nurses'- Prizes. 

Ist— Nurse  Baron  ...  512       .  .  600 

2nd— Nurse  .ITpton  ...     .     486  600 


THE  DEFENCE  OF  THE  NATIONAL  HEALTH. 

Mr.  Stephen  Paget,  speaking  , it  the  annual  Court 
of  Governors  of  the  Mid<llesex  Hiispitnl.  referred 
to  the  proposal  made  by  the  London  County  Couiieil 
that  the  hospital  should  provide,  under  a  subsidiary 
agreement,  medical  treatment  in  the  out-patient 
department  f<ir  children  .ittendfng  'publfc  elemen- 
tary schools,  and  said  that  ho  looked  fpr^ward  to  the 
time  when  everybody  should  be  made  to  pay  for  the 
defence  of  the  natioi,ial  health  jUst  as  they  paid  for 
the  defence  of  the  national  pe'aoe  «nd  trade. 


192 


C15C  Britisb  journal  ot    iHiuyino.      [March  5,1910 


Eppotntmcnts. 

Metropolitan  Asylvms  Board. 

North-Eastern  Hospital,  Tottenham. — Miss  ilargaret 
Jones  has  been  appointed  ilatron  upon  the 
resignation  of  Miss  iScliooling.  Miss  Jones 
was  trained,  and  afterwaixls  held  the  ix>sition 
of  Staff  Xur.se,  at  St.  Bartliolomew's  Hospital, 
E.G.,  fi-om  1882-87,  and  was  Staff  Nurse  also 
from  1888-89.  MisiS  Jones  afeo  -n-orked  at 
St.  Saviour's  Infirmary,  St.  Mark's  Hospital, 
and  as  Night  Superintendent  at  the  Leam- 
ington Home.  She  entei-ed  the  service  of  the 
Metropolitan  Asylums  Board  in  1890,  and  held  the 
positions  of  Charge  Nurse  and  Night  Superinten- 
dent until  1895,  at  the  Northern  Fever  Hospital, 
when  she  was  appointed  Assistant  Matru  i.  ii.ss 
Jones  was  appointed  Matron  of  Gore  Farm  Hos- 
pital in  1901,  where  she  has  performed  her  arduous 
duties  with  the  greatest  devotion,  a  post  which 
,sh?  now  vacates  for  the  Noith-Eastern  Hcspital. 
Miss  Jones  has  always  taken  the  greatest  interest 
in  the  better  organisation  of  the  profession  upon 
which  she  has  leflecteJ  so  much  credit.  She  is 
a  member  of  the  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland,  of  the  Society  for  the  State  Registra- 
tion of  Trained  Nurses,  the  Fever  Nurses'  Associa- 
tion, and  the  League  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hosjii- 
tal  Nurses.  "We  wish  her  a  happy  and  successful 
future. 

Core  Farm  Hospital,  Dartford,  Kent. — Miss  Alice 
St-ewai-fc  Clegg  Bryson,  Assistant  Mati-on  at 
the  Northern  Hospital,  has  been  apix)inted 
on  probation  for  three  months  as  a  Matron 
in  the  Hospitals'  Service,  and  allocated  to  Gore 
Farm  Hospital.  iliss  Bryson  was  trained  at 
the  Crumpsall  Infirmary,  Manchester.  Her  ser- 
vice under  the  Board  comprises  nine  months  as 
Assistant  Matron  at  the  Fountain  Hospital,  six 
weeks  as  Housekeeper  at  the  Park  Hospital,  and 
six  years  as  Assistant  Matron  at  the  Northern  Hos- 
pital. During  this  last  period  iliss  Bryson  was 
transferred  from  October,  1907,  to  January,  1908, 
to  the  Gore  Farm  Hospital  to  take  charge  of  the 
Southern  Section  of  the  Lower  Hospital.  Prior 
to  her  service  under  the  Board,  Miss  Bryson  held 
the  following  posts,  viz.,  Second  Assistant  Infirmary 
Matron.  Crumpsall  Infirmary,  Manchester;  Glas- 
gow Co-operation  of  Nurses,  private  nurse ;  and 
Temporary  Matron,  Royal  Victoria  Hospital,  Bel- 
fast. 

^Iatron. 

The  Infirmary,  Edmonton.— Miss  Annie  Dowbiggin 
has  been  appointed  Matron.  She  was  tiiained  at 
the  General  Infirmary,  Leeds,  and  ha-s  held  the 
I>osition  of  Charge  Nunse  at  the  Park  Fever  Hos- 
pital, Lewisham ;  Theatre  Sister  at  the  Royal  Hos- 
pital, Portsmouth ;  and  Matron  at  the  Shirley 
Warren  Infirmary,  Southampton. 

Assistant  Matron. 

Royal  Institution  for  the  Blind,  Birmingham. — Miss 
Louise  Kingham  has  been  appointed  Assistant  Ma- 
tron. She  was  trained  at  the  Lewisham'Infirmary, 
and  the  Royal  Westminster  Ophthalmic  Hospital, 
.and  has  been  Staff  Nurse  at  the  General 
Hospital,    Birmingham,    Sister   at  the    South-Eas- 


tern  Hospital,  New  Cross,  Charge  Nurse  at  the 
Royal  Eye  Hospital,  Southwark,  Sister  at  the  In- 
stitution for  Nursing  Sisters,  Devonshire  Square, 
E.C.,  and  Sister  at  the  Fulham  Infirmary,  Ham- 
mersmith, W. 

Sisters. 

East  London  Hospital  for  Children. — Miss  S.  S.  Irvine- 
Robertson  has  been  appointed  Sister.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Royal  Hospital  for  Sick  Children, 
Edinburgh,  and  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital, 
London,  and  lias  recently  been  taking  Sister's 
duties  at  the  Edinburgh  Children's  Hosjiital. 

Birmingham  and  Midland  Free  Hospital  for  Sick  Children. 
— Miss  Florence  Moseley  has  been  appointed  Sister. 
She  was  trained  at  the  Hosijital  for  Women  and 
Children,  Bristol. 

Isolation  Hospital,  Norwich. — Miss  Sarah  Watson 
has  been  aiipointed  Sister.  She  was  trained  at 
the  Leith  General  Hospital,  and  at  the  City  Hos- 
pital,  Edinburgh. 

Home  Hospital,  St.  Leonard's  Lawn,  Exeter.  —Miss 
Margaret  Hume  has  been  appointed  Sister.  She 
was  trained  at  the  General  Hospital,  Leith. 


QUEEN   ALEXANDRAS   IMPERIAL   MILITARY 
NURSING   SERVICE. 

The  foliotting  lady  has  received  an  appointment 
as  Staff  Nurse;   Miss  B.  Jackson. 

Miss  Gwladys  Mary  Griffiths  to  be  Staff  Nurse 
(provisionally).     Dated  February  8th,  1910. 

Postings  and  TTans)crt<.—^[atrons■.  Miss  M.  C. 
S.  Knox,  R.R.C.,  to  Military  Hosp.,  Cork.  Sis- 
ters: Miss  H.  L.  A.  Jack  and  Miss  M.  Smith,  to 
South  Africa;  Miss  A.  F.  Byers,  to  T.S.  Plassy,  for 
duty.  Staff  Nurses :  Miss  C.  V.  S.  Johnson,  Miss 
V.  C.  Paschali,  and  Miss  M.  H.  Congleton,  to 
South  Africa  ;  Miss  M.  E.  Smith,  and  Miss  G.  H. 
C.  Paynter,  to  T.S.  Plassy,  for  duty;  Miss  F.  E. 
Manfield,  to  Military  Hospital,  Cairo;  Miss  I.  J. 
Pooley,  to  Egypt. 

QUEEN  VICTORIAS  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
FOR  NURSES 
Transfers  and  Appointments. — Miss  Margaret 
Warn,  to  Tipton ;  Miss  Charlotte  Almond,  to 
Northampton ;  Miss  Eliza  Birnie,  to  Altrincham 
(Dunham  Massey) ;  Miss  Sarah  Griffiths,  to  Roch- 
dale ;  Miss  Lilias  Gibson,  to  Stockton ;  Miss  Ethel 
Emuss.  to  New  Maiden;  Miss  D.  Anne  Ladbrook, 
to  Gresford  ;  Miss  Catherine  Duncan,  to  Llanidloes. 

NURSING    IN   ITALY. 

^liss  M.  .\my  Turton  has  been  appointed  Assist- 
ant Matron  at  the  Polyclinic  Hospital,  Rome.  Miss 
Turton  is  a  valued  collalK)rator  of  this  Journal, 
and  has  contributed  articles  to  its  pages  for  many 
years,  by  which  means  her  unique  pioneer  work 
for  nursing  in  Italy,  which  is  now  bearing  such 
good  fruit,  is  well  known  to  the  nursing  world. 
She  is  also  Hon.  Vice-President  for  Italy  of  the  In- 
ternational Council  of  Nurses,  and,  with  the  Prin- 
cess Doria,  attended  the  meeting  of  the  Interna- 
tiona! Council  of  Nurses,  in  London  last  year  in 
that  capacity. 

Miss  Dorothy  Snell  and  Miss  Johanna  Clay  left 
London  on  Satuixlay  to  take  up  their  new  work  !.t 
the  Polyclinic  Hospital,  Rome. 


-March  o,  1910J       ^7 1^^.   jDiitiyD  3ournal  of  iRuretno. 


193 


U^ursino  lEcboes. 


W'e  have  beeu  asliod  our 
opiuiou  on  the  system  of 
ort'ering  prizes  for  competi- 
tiou  iu'  connection  with  a 
given  subject,  and  of  publish- 
Jiig  neitlier  the  names  nor  the 
addresses  of  tile  winners 
wln'ii  the  result  c5f  the  coni- 
prtitiou  is  announced.  We 
think  there  can  be  only  one 
opinion  as  to  this  method, 
namely,  that  it  is  both  un- 
satisfactory and  undesirable.  It  is  quite 
competent  to  anyone  to  assume  that  the 
competition  is  fictitious,  and  that  the  prizes 
are  not  awarded  at  all.  In  all  the  years  we 
have  edited  this  journal  we  have  never  found 
a  prize-winner  object  to  the  publication  of  her 
name  and  address.  Such  a  r\ile  siiould  be  made 
compulsory  upon  all  newspajifr  proprietors. 


School  nurses  arc  not  concerned  with  London 
County  Council  polifics,  because  as  servants  of 
the  Council  it  is  their  duty  to  work  loyally 
under  it,  whichever  party  is  in  power.  What 
does  concern  them  is  that  they  shall  do  as  much 
as  possible  for  those  children  in  the  schools 
who  need  their  trained  care.  Before  powers 
were  given  to  local  authorities  under  the  Edu- 
cation (Administrative  Provisions)  Act,  1907, 
in  connection  with  the  provision  of  food,  medi- 
cal inspection,  and  medical  treatment,  in  the 
schools,  many  of  the  children  must  have  been 
working  under  conditions  which  tpiite  unfitte(l 
them  for  serious  study.  Cuts  and  sores,  in- 
flamed glands  and  tonsils,  defective  eyesight, 
discharges  from  the  ears,  skin  diseases,  and 
uncleanliness,  are  some  of  the  more  common 
conditions  brought  to  light  imder  the  present 
system.  Further,  Dr.  ^Marion  Hunter,  report- 
ing on  the  condition  of  the  teeth  of  infants  at 
the  time  of  their  admission  to  school,  gave  some 
startling  instances  of  the  extent  of  dental  caries 
in  six  infants,  with  the  exception  of  two  all 
being  under  five  years  of  age.  Of  these  a  boy 
just  over  five  had  not  one  tooth,  merely  offen- 
sive stimips ;  a  girl,  five  years  and  two  months 
cJd,  had  only  two  teeth  left ;  the  other  children, 
all  imder  five,  had  respectively  seven  teeth  out 
and  five  stumps  remaining,  eleven  stumps, 
fourteen  stumps,  and  seventeen  stumps. 
Periodical  inspection  of  the  teeth,  as  practised 
in  many  foreign  cities,  appears  to  he  the  only 
method  of  dealing  effectively  with  this  national 
evil,  but  nurses  can  do  good  service  by  drawing 
attention  to  any  cases  of  dental  caries  which 
come  tmder  their  notice,  and  securing  treat- 
ment for  the  children. 


We  learn  that  in  soine  of  tlie  County  Hospi- 
tals in  the  provinces  pressure  is  being  put  upon 
the  Matrons  to  open  the  wards  at  certain  hours 
to  the  women  wlio  are  being  organised  for  Ked 
Cross  work  in  connection  with  the  British 
lied  Cross  Society,  in-order  that  they  may  gain 
some  practical  experience  in  nursing,  and  that 
it  is  difficult  for  the  ^Matrons  to  make  a  stand 
when  Boards  of  .Management  and  local  social 
magnates  press  the  point.  Nevertheless,  it  is 
a  manifest  duty  to  safeguard  the  interests  of 
the  sick  in  our  hospitals  as  well  as  of  the  sick 
sailors  and  soldiers  in  time  of  war,  and  that  the 
undesirability  of  such  a  course  should  be  em- 
jihasised.  The  sphere  of  Ked  Cross  woi'kers 
should  be  well  defined,  and  restricted  to  ren- 
dering first  aid,  which  can  well  be  learnt 
outside  the  wards  of  a  hospital.  Skilled 
nursing  is  serious  work  only  to  be 
learnt  by  prolonged  study  and  practical 
experience,  and  any  attempt  to  teach  nurs- 
ing by  a  few  hours'  insight  into  ward  vi-ork  can 
only  result  in  increasing  the  army  of  amateur 
nurses,  and  should  therefore  be  discounten- 
anced. 

As  a  result  of  the  crowded  meeting  of  nurses 
recentlj'  held  at  Edgbaston,  near  Birmingham, 
22  new  members  have  been  added  to  the 
Nurses'  National  Total  Abstinence  League.  A 
nurse's  example  and  teaching  must  naturally 
carry  great  influence  in  the  war  against  intem- 
perance. 


We  are  glad  to  hear  that  the  Brighton,  Hove 
and  Preston  branch  of  the  Queen's  Nurses'  In- 
stitute is  to  benefit  by  the  handsome  sum  of 
tSOO  7s.  3d.  from  the  matinee  arranged  bj'  Mrs. 
William  James,  and  which  was  attended  by  th© 
King.     A  cheque  worth  having  ! 


Sir  George  White  in  his  comprehensive  re- 
view of  the  year's  work  at  the  annual  meeting 
at  Bristol  Royal  Infirmary,  turning  to  the  sub- 
ject of  nursing,  said  :  "  I  should  like  to  remind 
you  that  the  J-ioyal  Infirmary  Preliminary 
Training  School  has  now  been  established  for 
rather  more  than  a  year,  and  has  proved  of  the 
greatest  benefit.  The  careful  training  which 
the  probationers  receive  at  the  school  is  of  the 
greatest  value,  and  no  pains  are  spared  to  raise 
the  standard  of  work  throughout  their  training. 
There  is  every  inducement  for  the  best  class  of 
))robationers  to  come  here  because  the  Bristol 
lloyal  Infirmary  contains  special  departments 
for  various  kinds  of  cases  not  always  received 
in  general  infimiaries  and  hospitals,  and  our 
nurses  have  also  the  privilege  of  learning  mid- 
wifery and  massage,  whilst  the  Institution  is 
one  of  the  schools  recognised  by  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board.    Our  nursing  staff,  including 


194 


IL13C   3):»ntisl)  3ournal  ox  1hiu-«?iiuj.      [March  5,  mo- 


the  private  nurses,  now  numbers  169.  During 
the  last  year  23  nurses  completed  their  train- 
ing and  gained  certificates :  20  gained  the  cer- 
tificate of  the  Central  ]\Iidwives'  Board,  and 
12  the  certificate  of  the  Incorporated  Society 
of  Trained  ^lasseuses. 

'■  Our  best  thanks  are  due  to  :Miss  Baillie, 
our  INIatron,  and  her  staff  fur  the  excellent  ser- 
vices they  have  again  rendered  the  Infirmary. 

'■  In  going  through  the  items  of  the  account, 
I  purposely  omitted  to  mention  that  there  is 
again  no  charge  against  the  Infimiary  for  linen, 
because  I  wish  specially  to  refer  to  the  great 
assistance  of  the  Eoyal'lufirmary  Needlework 
Guild  under  the  presidency  of  her  Grace  the 
Duchess  of  Beaufort.  These  ladies  have  again 
thrown  themselves  into  the  work  with  energy 
and  enthusiasm,  and  I  have  not  the  slightest 
doubt  that  the  quantity  of  linen  which  they 
have  presented  to  the  Infirmary  must  at  least 
represent  the  sum  of  i£ 500  "for  the  year. 
The  ladies  are  not  content  with'  or- 
dinary methods  of  advancing  their  cause,  but 
this  year  intend  to  make  a  special  effort  of  their 
own  in  arranging  a  fete  and  sale  of  work,  to  be 
held  in  the  garden  of  the  Xm-ses'  Home  on  the 
6th  and  7th  -luly  liext,  and  I  am  sure  we  all 
wish  them  every  possible  success." 


The  whole  hospital  world  owes  a  debt  of 
gratitude  to  ^Mrs.  Handley,  of  Bath,  the  clever 
wife  of  the  late  Chairman  of  the  Royal  United 
Hospital  there.  She  it  was  who  first  proposed 
the  organisation  of  a  Linen  League,  and  set  a 
system  in  motion  which  has  brought  thousands 
of  pounds'  worth  of  linen  into  use  in  our  hospi- 
tals. It  was  a  very  happy  idea,  and  one  which 
the  hospital-  world  avails  itself  of  more  and 
more  every  year. 


The  Eoyal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh,  has  at 
present  no  preliminary  training  school  for  its 
probationers',  but  the  Ladv- Sui>erintendent  of 
Nurses,  :\Iiss  A.  W.  Gill.'E.E.C.  has  kindly 
given  us  the  following  information  as  to  what 
is  required  of  candidates.  They  must  satisfy 
the  La-dy  Superintendent  that  they  possess  a 
knowledge  of  housework  and  cooking,  and  pass 
an  examination  in  anatomy  and  cooking  before 
they  are  appointed  as  probationers.  They  study 
for  this  examination,  partly  at  home  and  partly 
during  the  preliminary  three  months  of  train-' 
ing.  in  the  course  of  which  they  have  lectures 
from  one  of  the  surgeons,  and  classes,  etc.,  the 
examination  being  held  a  week  before  the  end 
of  the  quarter.  This  examination  lised  to  be 
taken  by  the  probationers  before  entrance,  but 
Miss  Gill  found  that  as  the  majority  had  had 
no  proper  instruction  in  the  subjects  in  which 


they  were  examined,  they  crammed  from  a- 
book,  and  learnt  uninteUigently.  It  is  hoped 
now  to  ensure  both  that  they  have  a  test  before 
signing,  and  that  they  are  properly  taught, 
while  they  gain  the  iiecessary  knowledge  as 
early  as  possible  in  their  course,  but  Miss  Gill 
is  very  anxious  for  the  establishment  of  a  pre- 
liminary training  school,  whenever  this  is 
feasible. 


A  correspondent  writes  from  ^Mauritius  : — ■ 
"  At  a  meeting  of  clergrmeu  and  Church  workers 
on  January  2oth,  a  paper  was  read  by  a  lady  mis- 
sionary who  has  worked  for  many  years  in 
ilauritiu-s.  She  dealt  mainly  with  the  needs  of  the 
native  women.  One  proposal  made  was,  from  a 
nursing  point  of  view,  very  unusual — viz.,  that  an 
effort  be  made  to  induce  the  Local  Government  to 
set  apart  \\ard.s  in  the  hospitals  for  the  sole  use  of 
Protestants.  Tlie  reason  for  this  suggestion  is  that 
nursing  in  all  the  hospitals  is  under  the  care  of  the 
Sistere  of  the  Roman  Catholic  community.  As  I 
have  never  nursed  in  the  Civil  Hospital,  nor  in  any 
of  the  other  smaller  hospitals  scattered  over  the 
colony,  I  have  not  had  the  opportunity  of  personal 
observation.  TMienever  I  have  been  giving  a  lesson 
of  a  hour  and  a  half's  duration,  or  paying  a- 
casual  visit.  I  have  met  with  the  greatest  courtesy 
at  all  the  hospitals  from  the  sistere. 


"  To  set  apart  a  special  ward,  or  wards,  for  those 
patients  who  pi-ofess  to  be  Protestants,  is  no  solu- 
tion to  the  religious  pioblem.  It  would  be  sad  to 
see  more  walls  l>eing  put  up  between  different  sects 
and  creetls.  Alas!  the  existing  walls  are  already 
too  high  in  this  colony.  But  it  is  regrettable  that 
those  who  tend  tlie  sick  should  not  treat  all  suffer- 
ing creatures  alike.  I  say  'creatures,'  for  many 
of  those  poor,  ignorant  IMalabars  are  little  removed 
from  the  lower  animals. 


"  A  lay  superintendent  of  nursing  in  the  principal 
hospital — Port  Louis — is  sadly  needed,  but  there  is 
little  prospect  of  that.  The  Government  alreaay 
grudge  the  grant  to  the  Health  Department,  and 
consider  it  too  large.  But  anyone  who  has  any 
acquaintance  of  home  hospitals  will  say  that  the 
money  spent  on  the  hospitals  is  inadequate.  ^^Iso, 
one  cannot  dispense  n-ith  the  Religious  Sisters  until 
a  competent  lay  nureing  staff  is  forthcoming,  and 
that  cannot  be  got  locallv." 


Thoroughly  trained  Eoman  Catholic  nurses- 
might  look  around  in  our  Crown  Colonies  ana 
see  where  their  trained  skill  can  be  of  the 
greatest  use  by  way  of  helping  the  "  religious  " 
engaged  in  hospital  work  abroad,  but  who  have- 
not  had  the  opportunity  of  perfecting  them- 
selves by  systematic  training  in  modern  nurs- 
ing, without  which,  even  with  the  best  inten- 
tions, it  is  not  possible  to  meet  the  needs  of 
scientific  medicine. 


March  5, 1910]      ^1,^  Biltlab  Souruai  or  D-uirsing. 


i'j» 


IReflections. 


Fkom  a  Board  Koom  Mirror. 
His  Majo-sty  tlie  King  lius  ac-ie[)to<l  a  copy  of  the 
Jnaiignral  Address  delivered  by  Dr.  George  JUirford 
on  "  The  Medicine  of  the  Future  :  Coming  Events 
that  Cast  their  S)iad<)ws  Ik'fore,''  at  the  opening 
of  the  winter  session  of  tlie  Honymaii  Gillespie 
Lecture  Courses  at  the  London  lloma-opathic  Hos- 
pital, Great  Ormond  Street,  London,  W.C. 


The  annual  meeting  of  Queen  Cliarlotte's  Hos- 
pital, Marylebono  Road,  Ivondon,  was  held  on  Tues- 
day, 22nd  February,  Sir  Samuel  Scott,  Bart.,  M.l'., 
presiding.  The  report  stated  that  1,79.3  patients 
had  been  admitted  to  the  wards  during  the  past 
year,  and  2, .333  [jatients  had  been  attended  and 
nursed  in  their  own  holies.  Twenty-two  medical 
students  (11  men  and  11  women)  and  37  qualified 
practitioners  (24  men  and  13  women)  had  attended 
the  practice  of  the  hospital;  130  women  had  been 
trained  in  midwifery  and  monthly  nursing,  and  43 
in  monthly  nursing  alone.  The  fees  for  trained 
nurses  had  been  reduced,  and  they  .were  now  per- 
mitted to  wear  the  uniform  dresses  which  they  had 
worn  at  their  General  Hospital.  A  private  nursing 
staff  had  been  established,  and  had  been  very  suc- 
cessful. In  moving  the  adoption  of  the  report,  the 
Chairman  deplored.the  fact  that  the  income  during 
rth©  past  year  had  fallen  short  of  the  expenditure 
by  no  less  than  £1,570.  ^Moreover,  there  had  been 
.deficiencies  in  1907  and  1908  also,  the  total  defi- 
cieney  iu  the  three  years,  1907-8-9,  amounting  to 
£3,287.  He  made  an  earnest  appeal  for  additional 
support  to  enable  the  Committee  to  pay  off  this 
large  deficit  and  to  provide  for  the  upkeep  of  the 
hospital  during  the  current  year. 

The  annual  financial  statement  of  the  Metropoli- 
tan Asylums  Board  shows  a  decrease  of  total  expe'n- 
diture  for  the  year  of  over  £40,000.  Sir  Augustus 
Scovell,  in  presenting  the  Finance  Committee's 
report,  said  that  it  was  extremely  pleasant  to  him 
to  announce  a  reduction  of  2d.   in  the  rates. 

We  wondered  how  long  the  predatory  inroads 
intothe  money  available  tor  charity  in  the  Southern 
Counties  by  the  League  of  Mercy,  all  of  which  is 
donated  to  the  King's  H<5spital  Fund  for  Jjondon, 
would  be  tolerated  by  hospital  managers.  Exrre.s- 
sions  of  disapproval  have  already  been  heard,  and 
now,  at  the  annual  Court  of  Governors  of  the 
Sussex  County  Hospital,  Mr.  .Scrase  Dickins,  in 
seconding  the  adoption  of  the  report,  said  he  de- 
sired to  lay  some  emphasis  on  a  matter  which  was 
felt  to  be  prejudicial  to  the  interests  of  the  hos- 
pital, and  that  was  the  way  in  wliich  the  organisa- 
tion on  behalf  of  the  League  of  Mercy  was  being 
•ext«nde<l  in  the  town,  as  well  as  in  the  county  all 
around.  While  they  had  at  their  doors  institutions 
unquestionably  of  high  repute,  receiving  and  deal- 
ing with  the  patients  ijourcd  into  them  in  such 
thronging  numbers,  it  did  seem  hard  that  large 
sums  of  money  should  be  collected  for  the  support 
■of  hospitals  elsew'here  from  those  who  were  enjoy- 
ing the  advantages  of  having  local  charities.      In 


London  there  might  be  patients  drawn  from  the 
lirovinces  immediately  surrounding,  but  he  doubted 
if  there  were  more  than  a,  very  few  sent  from 
Sussex,  least  of  all  from  this  part  of  it,  while  they 
knew  for  certain  that  there  was  not  a  hospital  in 
Brighton  which  not  only  needed,  but  would  be  the 
.  l)etter  for,  increasp<l  pecuniary  resources.  He  was 
not  forgetting  that  a  moderate  percentage  of  the 
money  collected  by  the  League  of  Mercy  was  allo- 
<:ated  locally — but  why  a  percentage  only !'  Surely 
they  liad  the  first  claim  for  support ;  surely  such  a 
competition  as  this  was  unfair ! 

Dr.  AVilloughby  Furncr  thought  that  a  great 
nuiny  people  who  were  asked  to  stibscribe  had  no 
idea  that  only  5  per  cent,  of  the  money  went  to 
local  charities.  Sussex  subscribed  to  the  League 
more  than  almost  any  county,  and  it  seemed  hard 
that  they  should  get  only  such  a  small  percentage. 
If  charitably  minded  people  understood  that  the 
Sussex  County  Hospital  iu)t  only  carried  on  work 
all  over  the  county,  but  in  many  instances  did  a 
great  deal  for  London  patients  wlio  came  down,  he 
though  they  might  think  that  their  subscriptions 
would  be  better  given  direct  to  the  hospital. 


We  think  it  is  high  time  the  Committees  of 
county  hospitals  laid  their  just  cause  of  complaint 
plainly  before  the  President,  H.ll.H.  the  Prince  of 
Wales.  We  know  that  the  Hampshire  hospitals 
also  bitterly  resent  the  diversion  of  money  from 
local  charities  to  the  Metropolis.  Nothing  could 
be  more  unfair,  and  the  abuse  is  yearly  increasing. 

The  question  of  providing  a  suitable  place  of 
worship  for  the  patients  at  the  Frimley  Sanatorium 
at  Frindey  has  for  some  time  past  engaged  the 
serious  consideration  of  the  Committee  of  Manage- 
ment. Lord  Cheylesmore  states  that  last  summer  a 
memorial  was  presented  to  the  Committee  by  the 
patients  at  the  Sanatorium  expres.sing  their  unani- 
mous and  earnest  desire  to  be  allowed  to  bnild  and 
equip  a  chapel  by  their  own  labqur  as  part  of  their 
treatment  of  physical  work,  and  the  Committee, 
feeling  that  the  question  ought  not  to  be  further 
delayed,  have  caused  plans  to  be  prepared  for  the 
erection  of  a  chapel  by  the  architect  who  built  the 
Sanatorium.  Tlie  building  has  been  designe.l  with 
a  view^  to  simplicity,  and  yet  in  keeping  with  the 
rest  of  the  Sanatorium.  Provision  has  been  made 
for  an  abundant  supply  of  fresh  air,  and  it  will  be 
possible  for  the  patients  to  undertake  the  greater 
part  of  the  work  of  building  it. 

A  sum  of  £'2, ."GO  is  required  to  erect  and  equip 
the  chapel. 

WINCARNIS  AND  INFLUENZA. 
One  of  the  iiiedicate<l  wiiu*  which  is  of  proved 
value  as  a  tonic  in  many  caM's  of  debility,  or  when 
it  is  desired  to  fortify  the  .sy.stem  in  the  presence  of 
a  prevailing  epidemic,  is  AVincarnis,  suppli^nl  by 
'llioma-s  Coleman  and  C>>.,  221,  AVincarnis  AVorks, 
Xonvich.  At  the  present  time  it  is  being  prc- 
scrilwd  both  a.<  a  preventive  of,  and  «  valuable  aid 
to  recovery  in  cases  of  inllueiiza,  and  as  a  tonic 
during  convalescence,  with  great. advantage  to  the 
patient. 


196 


Sbe  Britlsb  3ournal  ot  iRursino. 


[.March  5,  1910 


©iitsibe  tbc  tBates. 

SEX    EQUALITY     IN     DIVORCE. 

The  Royal  Coniiiiissiou  on  the  Laws  of  Divorce 
and  its  administration  apijointed  to  take  evidence 
on  this  question  of  vital  importance  to  the  com- 
munity, has  held  sittings  at  Winchester  House,  St. 
James's  Square,  during  the  past  week,  and  the  two 
ladies — Lady  Frances  Balfour  and  Mrs.  H.  J.  Ten- 
nant — who,  with  ten  men,  form  the  Commission, 
must  have  been  somewhat  amazed  by  the  evidence 
of  Mr.  Justice  Bigham,  the  President  of  the 
Divorce  Court. 


36ook  ot  tbe  Meek. 


Dealing  with  the  subject  of  sex  equality,  Sir 
John  said:  "I  do  not  think  the  act  of  adultery 
on  the  part  of  a  man  has  anything  like  the  same 
significance  that  an  act  of  adultery  has  on  the 
part  of  a  woman.  Most  men,  I  think  all  men, 
know  it  perfectly  well.  An  act  of  adultery  on  the 
part  of  a  man  may  be  more  or  less  accidental.  It 
is  not  inconsistent  with  his  continued  esteem  and 
lore  of  his  wife  (some  people,  of  course,  will  think 
differently),  whereas  an  act  of  adultery  on  the 
part  of  a  woman,  in  my  opinion,  is  quite  incon- 
sistent with  the  continued  love  and  esteem  of  her 
husband." 


We  ask  women  what  is  the  i>osition  of  their  sex 
who  have  to  sue  for  justice  in  a  Court  where  the 
Judge  holds  these  opinions.  Equality  of  the  moral 
law  between  the  sexes  is  imperative  in  any  Court 
of  Law  if  justice  is  to  be  maintained,  and  our 
present  divorce  laws  are  grossly  unjust  to  women, 
and  an  incentive  to  immorality  to  men. 

Married  men  do  not  usually  commit  adultery 
with  clean  women.  That  is  the  fact  wives  must 
realise.  Faithlessness  upon  the  part  of  a  husband 
does  not  end  with  the  moral  outrage  to  a  woman's 
inner  oonsciousnes-s. ;  she  also  runs  the  risk  of  loath- 
some physical  infection,  which  may  not  only  ruin' 
her  own  health,  but  that  of  the  innocent  fruit  of 
her  l>ody — a  heart-breaking  result  to  a  mother. 

We  are  not  surprised  to  find  that  Lady  Frances 
Balfour  addressed  some  pertinent  questions  to  Sir 
John  Bigham  on  liis  two  standard  moral  code 
for  the  .sexes.  "  I  suppose  the  wife's  price 
would  indeed  be  above  rubies,  who  closed  her 
eyes  to  'accidental'  adultery?"  questioned  her 
lad.vship. 


Sir  George  Lewis,  the  eminent  solicitor,  in  his 
evidence,  said'  his  experience  covered  thousands  of 
cases  in  the  Divorce  Court.  For  the  last  30  years 
he  had  advocated  a  number  of  amendments  of  the 
law  of  divorce  in  the  direction  of  .securing  sex 
equality,  and  making  relief  possible  to  the  poor. 
He  would  make  the  grounds  of  divorce  the  same 
for  man  as  for  woman,  namely,  adultery,  cruelty, 
desertion,  lunacy,  and  imprisonment  for  five  years. 
If  the  adultery  of  his  wife  entitled  a  man  to  di- 
vorce, the  adultery  of  her  husband  shnukl  entitle 
a  woman  to  divorce.     This  is  .sound  common  sense. 


ANNE    OF    AVONLEA.* 

We  closed  ■'  Anne  uf  Green  Ciables  "  with  regret 
— regret  that  we  had  turned  the  last  page  of  so 
charming  a  book — regi-et  that  we  ha;d  parted  with 
Anne  just  as  she  was  budding  into  womanhood,  for 
we  felt  sure  tlmt  so  delightful  and  original  a  child 
must  have  an  interesting  future.  So  "Anne  of 
Avonlea  "  (Prince  Edward  Island)  is  welcome,  and 
though  her  predecessor  must  remain  first  favourite 
yet  this  is  a  book  to  be  read  and  enjoyed.  We  are 
introduced  to  her  when  she  is  "  a  tall  slim  girl 
'  half-past  sixteen  '  with  serious  gray  eyes,  and 
hair  which  her  friends  called  auburn,"  just  as  she 
is  entering  upon  the  charge  of  the  Avonlea  school. 
Is  it  usual  to  i^ut  girls  of  sixteen  in  full  charge 
of  schools  in  Canada?  It  seems  so  from  this  stor.v, 
for  Anne's  contemporaries  were  appointed  to- 
similar  posts,  and  we  find  three  of  them  seriously 
discussing  the  question  of  corporal  punishment. 
Anne's  strong  conviction  that  it  is  "a  cruel  and 
barbarous  tiling  to  whip  a  child — o/ii/  child  '  fail* 
when  iDut  to  too  severe  a  test,  and  though  she 
bitterly  reproaches  herself — and  so  she  should  for 
she  certainly  lost  her  temper — she  found  that  if 
she  had  not  won  the  delinquent's  liking  she  had 
won  his  respect,  and  Mrs.  Rachel  Lynde  tells  her 
tliat  Anthony  now  believes  .she  is  some  good 
after  all,  though -she  is  a  girl;  ''  that  whipping  you 
gave  him  was  just  as  good  as  a  man's." 

But  Anne  is  mournful  feeling  her  ideals  have 
played  lier  false  somehow.  "  It  doesn't  seem  right. 
I'm  sure  my  theory  of  kindness  can't  be  wrong." 
Nor  is  it.  but  there  are  exceptions  to  every  rule. 

It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  Anne's  genius  for  get- 
ting into  trouble  forsakes  her.  The  episode  of  her 
sale  of  the  wrong  cow  is  amusing  reading.  Nor 
was  the  Avonlea  Village  Improvement  Society, 
launched  by  tlie  energetic  young  people  to  lie^autify 
their  village,  without  its  disasters.  But  they  are 
gaining  experience  all  the  time,  and  especially 
from  the  great  teacher,  Nature,  for  which  Anne  has- 
lost  none  of  her  passionate  love. 

"  I  wonder  what  a  soul.  ,  a  person's  soul  .  . 
would  look  like,"  said  Priscilla  dreamily, 

"  Like  that,  I  should  think,"  answered  Anne,, 
pointing  to  a  radiance  of  sifted  sunlight  streaming 
through  a  birch  tree,  "only  with  shape  and  fea- 
tures of  coui-se.  I  like  to  fancy  souls  as  being 
made  of  light.  And  some  are  all  shot  through 
with  rosy  stains  and  quivers  .  .  .  and  some 
have  a  soft  glitter  like  moonlight  on  the  sea  .  . 
and  some  are  pale  and  transparent  like  mist  at 
dawn." 

"  I  read  somewhere  once  that  souls  were  like 
flowers,"    sai<l  Priscilla. 

"  Tlien  your  soul  is  a  golden  narcissus,"  said 
Anne,  "  and  Diana's  is  like  a  red,  red  rose.  Jane's 
is  an  apple  blossom,  pink  and  wholesome  and 
sweet." 

"And  your  own  is  a  white  violet  with  purple 
streaks  in  its  heart,"  finished  Priscilla. 

*  By  L.  M.  Montgomery.  (Sir  Isaac  Pitman  and. 
Sons,   Ltd.,   1   Amen  Corner,   E.C.) 


March  0, 1910]      ^^j^.^  Btitisb  Sourual  of  Thursino, 


197 


■■  Marilla's  experiment  in  the  adoption  of  Anne 
seems  to  have  emuoldened  her  to  open  her  lioiise 
to  two  orphans— twins — a  boy  and  a  girl,  a  decision 
welronieil  joyfully  by  Anne,  but  not  without  its 
drawbacks  and   discipline. 

The  Hay  opens  at  last  for  Anne  to  enter  on  the 
.colleye  career  which  she  so  willingly  relinquished 
for  Marilla's  sake. 

When  we  part  with  Anne  this  time  "  the  page  of 
girlhood  has  been  turned,  as  by  an  unseen  finger, 
and  the  page  of  womanhood  is  before  her,  with  all 
its  charm  and  mystery,  its  pain  and  gladness." 

Is  Anne's  story  to  be  written  in  three  volumes r 
Somehow  it  seems  foreshadowed  that  we  shall  have 
yet  another  in  which  the  central  figures  will  be 
Anne  Shirley  and  Gilbert  Hlythe. 

P.  G.  Y. 


VERSE. 
Swallow,    dear    swallow,    1    wonder,    I    wonder 
Why  you  of  all  the  birds   build  the  eaves  under. 
Farther  than  any  you   wander  and  roam. 
Closer  than  any  you  clin^;  to  your  home. 
You,   whom  we   never   see   touch  earth  at  all, 
Out  of  the  mud  you  have  built  your  nest  wall; 
Sometimes  you  dimple  the  pond  as  you  &y, 
Sometimes   you're   lost  in  the    blue  of  the  sky. 
The  Swallow, 
By  Edith  L.  M.  King. 

COMING  EVENTS. 

Mdrih  7th. — The  Princess  of  AVales  opens  the 
new  building  of  the  Hospital  for  Invalid  Gentle- 
women, 19,  Lisson  Grove,  3.30  p.m. 

March  9th. — Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh.  Lec- 
ture on  "  Some  Hygienic  Considerations  in  Rela- 
tion to  the  Diseases  of  AVomen."  By  Dr.  Haig 
Ferguson,  F.R.C.S.E.  Extra  Mural  Theatre. 
Nurses  cordially  invited.    4.30  p.m. 

Man-h  9th. — South  Kensington  Xurses'  Co-opera- 
tion. Meeting  by  invitation  of  Miss  H.  Walker  at 
The  South  Kensington  Hotel,  QJuecn's  Gate  Ter- 
race, to  meet  the  Mayoress  of  Kensington,  and  dis- 
cuss the  formation  of  a  Local  Branch  of  the  British 
Red  Cross  Society.  Music.  Tea  and  coffee. 
3.30  p.m. 

March  loth. — Kent  County  Nursing  Association. 
Annual  meeting.  Grand  Hotel,  Cliaring  Cro.ss, 
London,  W.C. 

March  17th. — Meeting  Central  Midwives'  Board, 
■  Caxton  Hous*,  Wostmin.ster,  S.W.,  2.45  p.m. 

March  18th.- — Somerset  County  Nursing  Associa- 
tion. Eighth  Annual  Meeting,  Municipal  Build- 
ings, Taunton.  Address  by  Miss  Amy  Hughes, 
General  Superintendent,  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee 
Institute  for  Nurses,  3  p.m. 

March  23rd. — Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh. 
Lecture  on  "  Neurasthenia."  By  Dr.  J.  J.  Graham 
Brown.  Extra  Mural  Theatre.  Nurses  cordially 
invited.     4.30  p.m. 

WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 
Trust  men  and  they  will  bo  true  to  you  ;  treat 
them  greatly  and  they  will  show  themselvee  great. 

Emerson. 


letters  to  tbe  Editor. 


W'hiltt  cordially  invitiny  com- 
munications upon  all  subiectt 
jur  these  columns,  ue  wish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understood 
that  u-e  do  not  IN  any  way 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


REGISTRATION    FINANCE. 
To  the  Editor  uj  ■■  The  llidi.^h  .Joarital  of  Sursiny." 

Dkak  Madam, — 1  was  extremely  glad  to  see  that, 
in  your  comments  on  tho  Registration  Bill  in  its 
amended  form,  you  laid  special  stress  on  the  neces- 
sity for  giving  the  Council  jjower  to  charge  the 
nurses  benefiting  under  that  Bill  adequate  registra- 
tion and  examination  fees.  No  mistake  could  be 
graver  than  to  stultify  the  work  of  such  an  impor- 
tant professional  organisation  from  its  very  com- 
mencement by  neglecting  to  provide  it  with 
adequate  means;  .so  that  it  would  from  the  very 
commencement  be  forced  to  depend  upon  voluntary 
outside  aid  to  carry  on  its  work.  It  is  essential 
that  the  Council  should  have  control  over  its 
officers,  male  and  female,  examiners,  and  registra- 
tion officials,  and  what  hold  would  it  hare  over 
voluntary  workers?  The  work  demanded  would  be 
far  too  exacting  to  be  given  without  proper 
remuneration,  and  the  whole  thing  would  soon  drift 
into  an  amiable  farce.  This  pro])er  remuneration, 
as  you.  Madam,  rightly  say,  should  be  jjiovided  by 
those  who  benefit  by  the  Bill,  the  nurses. 

I  cannot  speak  for  Scotland  ;  I  do  not  know  its 
social  and  economic  nur.sing  conditions  well  enough, 
but  I  do  know  that  in  England  and  Ireland  (from 
whence  I  have  had  many  excellent  probationers), 
the  candidates  who  come  to  tho  hospital  belong  to 
that  great  scx;ial  strata  generally  known  as  the 
middle  class — not  as  a  rule  rich,  but  self-respecting 
and  independent  in  money  matters,  and  whose 
daughters  are  quite  able  to  put  down  £.3  to  ensure 
their  entrance  into  a  legally  acknowledged  profes- 
sion in  which  they  can  respectably  earn  their  live- 
lih<X)d. 

There  are,  of  course  exceiitions — there  aie  hard 
cases  in  every  calling  and  profession — and  these  will 
|>robably  be  met,  as  in  other  professions,  by  the 
foundation  of  scholarships,  by  grants,  or  even  by 
l)Ower  on  the  part  of  the  Council  to  reduce  the  fees 
in  special  cases.  All  that  is  a  matter  of  detail,  but 
that  money  for  nursing  educational  purposes  can 
be,  and  is,  raised  by  nurses  is  proved  by  the  very 
large  amounts  that  are  paid  yearly  in  London  alone 
by  those  anxious  to  obtain  special  nursing  know- 
ledge. This  is  amply  proved  by  the  balance-sheets 
of  maternity  hospitals  and  wards. 

Of  the  nurses  in  bulk  who  cannot  pay  a  £5 
examination  and  registration  fee  I  am  extremely 
sceptical.  Of  course,  a  good  many  would  rather  not 
pay  it — but  as  to  cannot,  that  is  another  question. 
Nothing  is  more  demoralising  than  the  modern 
mania  of  trying  to  obtain  more  than  we  pay  for — to 
be   quite    willing,    when    in    the   full    possession   of 


198 


Zi)c  Bi-itisb  3ouniai  of  H^ursing. 


[March  5,  1910 


health,  strength,  aud  working  faculties,  to  let 
someone  else  st«p  in  and  take  over  our  responsibili- 
ties. It  is  good  for  us  that  we  should,  even  with 
some  effort,  with  some  sacrifice,  pay  our  own  way ; 
we  value  what  has  cost  us  dear — such  is  human 
nature — more  than  what  is  lightly  attained. 
Charity  is  good  in  its  proper  place;  in  time  of 
need,  trouble,  or  sickness,  he  or  she  would  be  a 
churl  who  would  not  accept  gracefully  what  is 
kindly  meant  and  kindly  given ;  but  to  brand  the 
whole  profession  of  nursing  as  a  profession  in  need 
of  charitable  alms  from  its  very  inception  would 
be  to  stamp  it  at  once  as  "  niedriger,"  and  to  sur- 
render our  independence  for  the  instant  dole. 

Leave  us  our  proper  pride.  Let  this  Bill  provide 
us  with  a  Council  that  shall  really  and  in  truth  be 
the  controlling  force  that  guides  the  nursing  pro- 
fession, and  let  us  feel  that  as  individual  profes- 
sional women  we  stand  on  an  independent,  a  sound 
and  honest  financial  basis.  Let  us  "  pay  our  way." 
It  is  a  good  old  Englisli  idea,  perhaps  not  very 
modern,  but  it  rings  true.  Tlie  Royal  British  Xurses' 
Association,  for  instance,  started  on  an  inadequate, 
and  therefore  nn.sound,  financial  basis.  I  speak 
quito  freely,  fori  helped  to  erect  that  shaking  frame- 
work myself,  and  it  has  practically  ever  since  had 
to  be  propped  up  at  intervals  by  kind  friends  to 
prevent  it  from  collapsing. 

Do  not  let  tliis  Council  which  is  to  he  our  pal- 
ladium start  its  career  -foredoomed  to  bankruptcy 
unless  it  is  rescued  by  the  scraps  it  may  drag  from 
a  cliaritable  public  of  an  unwilling  Treasury.  And 
do  not  refer  to  us  as  the  "  poor  nurses."  There 
is  no  need  to  reduce  us  to  a  muddled  condition  of 
self-pity.  We  are  not  rich,  but  we  can  afford  to 
pay  a  fair  price  for  a  good  article,  and  we  honestly 
expect  and  believe  tliat  this  Registration  Bill  will 
give  us  good  value  for  our  five  jjound  note. 
I  am.  Dear  Madam, 

Yours  faithfully, 

M.    MOLLETT. 


THE  NURSING  JOURNAL  OF  INDIA. 
To  the  Editor  of  th''  "  British  Journal  of  Kursina." 
Dear  Madaji, — Fancy  India  with  a  nursing 
Journal!  Isn't  it  fine  P  I  was  pleased  to  see  it 
was  to  be  edited  by  an  American  woman,  trained 
by  Miss  Nutting  at  Johns  Hopkins,  liecause  the 
more  we  realise  that  there  is  "  no  nationality  in 
nursing"  the  better  our  work  will  become.  It 
means  more  sympathy  with  one  another,  something 
lees  of  deadly  apatby  in  our  ranks,  and.  believe  me, 
it  is  not  only  in  Europe  that  the  mass  of  nurses 
are  so  nan-y>w ;  they  are  just  the  same  at  the  other 
side  of  the  Atlantic,  and  have  less  excu-se,  because 
tilings  over  there  are  much  more  light  and  airy. 
It  seems  just  wonderful  to  .see  the  resistless  in- 
fluence of  the  real  professional  nurses'  journals. 
Aren't  you  proud  that  the  Beitish  Journal  of 
Nursing  was  the  first  of  them?  1  remember  the 
Nursing  Record  when  it  bad  a  red  and  white  cover. 
It's  about  as  lively  as  all  other  grandmothers  these 
days,  and  long  may  it  stand  for  right  against 
might,  as  it  has  always  done. 

An  ever  constant  reader. 

An  American  Nurse  in  London. 


Comments  an&  IRepUes. 

Intcrnatioiial. — We  should  advise  you  to  com- 
municate with  Mme.  Alphen  Salvador,  10,  Rue 
Amyot,  Paris,  and  Mile.  Chaptal,  Maison  Ecole 
d'Inflrmieres  Privees,  66,  Rue   Yercingetorix,  Paris. 

Miss  Evans,  Birmingham. — Apjily  to  the  Matron 
of  the  General  Hospital  or  the  Queen's  Hosx>ital, 
Birmingham,  for  information  •  as  to  the  terms  on 
which  probationers  are  received. 

]SHss  E.  Bobinson. — A  private  nurse  who  has  only 
had  medical  and  surgical  training  is  very  in- 
differently equipped  for  her  work.  You  should 
certainly  obtain  experience  in  one  si>ecialty  before 
taking  up  private  nureing.  Fever  nursing  and 
massage  are  almcst  indispensable. 


HAotices. 


RULES  FOR  PRIZE  COMPETITIONS. 

Something  About  Old  Sisters. 

We  offer  a  prize  of  H  Is.  for  the  best  paper  of 
reminiscences  entitled  "  Something  About  Old 
Sisters."  Tlie  paper  must  deal  with  Si-stere  or 
Head  Nurees  in  charge  of  wards  before  1885 — 
women  who  acquired  their  knowledge  and  skill  by 
personal  application  rather  than  as  the  result  of 
systematic  instruction.  Tlie  papers  for  this  com- 
I>etition  must  not  exceed  1,400  words,  and  must 
reach  the  Editor  at  20,  Upper  '^^■impole  Sti-eet, 
Cavendish  Squai'e,  Loudon,  W.,  on  or  before 
Saturday,   March  12th,   1910. 

The  Prettiest  Patient. 

We  also  offer  a  prize  of  10,s.  for  a  photograph  and 
description  of  "  The  Prettiest  Patient,"  which 
must  reach  the  Editor  at  20,  Upper  Wimpole 
Street,  Cavendish  Square.  London,  W.,  on  or  be- 
fore Saturday.  March  19th,  1910. 

The  decision  of  the  Editor  in  each  case  -n-ill  lie 
final. 


The  British  Journal  op  Nursing  is  the  official 
organ  of  the  following  important  Nursing  socie- 
ties :  — 

The  International  Council  of  Nurses. 

The  National  Council  of  Trained  Nurses  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland. 

The  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland. 

The  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses. 

The  Registered  Nurses'  Society. 

The  School  Nurses'  Leagne. 

As  their  official  organ  is  widely  read  by  the  mem- 
bers of  these  societies,  the  Editor  will  at  all 
times  be  pleased  to  find  space  for  items  of  news 
from  the  Secretaries  and  members. 

Exclusive  news  being  copyright,  papers  quoting 
from  our  columns  must  give  the  name  of  this 
journal  as  the  source  of  their  information. 


OUR  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 

Rules    for   competing   for  the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


March  5, 1'.iioj   ^jje  Brttlsb  3ournal  of  iRursino  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


190 


Common  Cii-ors  in  3nfant 
JTceMnG. 

All  interesting  article  on  the  above  subject  is 
contributed  by  Dr.  Erie  Pritchard  to  a  recent 
issue  of  The  Clinical  Journal,  in  which  the 
writer  points  out  that  errors  iu  the  feeding 
of  infants,  and  tlie  catastrophes  that  follow, 
are  by  no  means  coutiued  to  artificial  methods; 
tht-y  are  equally  common  amongst  infants 
brought  up  ou  the  bi-east,  and  he  proceeds  to 
analyse  some  of  the  causes  which  lead  to  the 
disasters  which  are  attendant  on  both  systems 
of  feeding. 

Some  fifteen  years  ago  Dr.  Pritchard  pub- 
lished an  article  on  the  "  percentage  system  " 
of  feeding  infants.  The  aim  and  object  of  this 
method,  as  is  now  well  understood,  was  to  ad^ 
just  the  nutritive  supply  to  the  nutritional  re- 
quirements. It  was  clear,  therefore,  that  if 
cow's  milk  was  adapted  to  the  nutritional  re- 
quirements of  the*  calf,  it  could  not  also  satisfy 
tile  needs  of  the  human  infant,  and  no  amount 
of  dilution  could  make  it  do  so.  It  was  claimed, 
however,  that  the  food  elements  which  existed 
in  cow's  milk  could  be  separated  by  analysis, 
and  re-combined  by  synthetic  methods  in  the 
required  proportions,  and  the  results  of  the 
method  have  proved  abundantly  that  this  is 
true.  And  from  this  aspect,  if  the  method  fails 
it  is  the  fault  of  the  individual  who  employs  it, 
and  not  of  the  method.  "  I  frequejatly  see  it 
stated,"  says  Dr.  Pritchard,  "  by  authorities 
who,  in  my  opinion,  might  be  expected  to  take 
wider  views,  that  the  percentage  method  is  in- 
ferior to  the  old  system  of  milk  dilution  ;  this  is 
tantamount  to  saying  tlmt  guess-work  is  better 
than  a  certainty,  for  the  percentage  method 
enables  us  to  employ  with  accuracy  any  degree 
of  dilution  we  please." 

The  writer  proceeds  to  show  that  the  infants 
with  whom  he  had  his  early  successefe  were  all 
over  one  month  of  age.  Some  had  been  breast 
fed,  others  had  been  brought  up  on  the  bottle, 
but  all  of  them  were  failures  in  some  respect  or 
otherwise  he  would  not  have  found  it  necessary 
to  interfere,  with  the  method  of  feeding,  but  the 
moment  he  attempted  to  apply  the  same 
method  to  the  case  of  new-born  infants,  the 
disillusionment  came,  and  ho  had  to  confess 
that  the  sy.crtem  had  been  weighed  in  the 
balance  and  found  wanting. 

Why?  Here  comes  in  an  interesting  point, 
showing  the  value  of  observation  and  practical 
experience  on  the  part  of  a  nui'se,  which  al- 


though unsupported  by  scientific  proof,  afforded 
the  key  to  the  puzzle. 

Dr.  Pritchard  writes:  "  The  answer  to  this 
question  was  unexpectedly  supplied  me  by  a 
maternity  nurse,  wlio  had  worked  for  me,  and 
who  was  quite  enthusiastic  over  the  new 
method.  8he  told  me  that  she  lound  her  cases 
did  much  better  when  she  peptonised  the  milk 
mixtures  for  the  first  few  weeks  of  life.  This, 
then,  was  the  secret  of  my  own  failures,  and  I 
set  to  work  to  study  why  Nature  did  not  fail 
in  the  same  way.  1  knew  perfectly  well  that 
Nature  did  not  peptonise  the  human  infant's 
food  .  .  .  however,  when  I  came  to  ex- 
amine the  character  of  the  food  which  Nature 
supplied  to  the  new-born  infant,  I  had  to  ac- 
knowledge that  if  it  was  not  exactly  peptonised 
it  was  at  least  of  a  composition  that  required 
little  or  no  digestion  before  it  could  be  absorbed 
from  the  alimentary  tract. 

During  the  first  few  days  of  the  puerperal 
period  the  mammary  secretion,  or  colostrum, 
is  extremely  scanty  in  quantity ;  it  is  non-stimu- 
lating, non-coagulable,  and  yet  adequately 
nutritious  for  the  then  existing  requirements  of 
the  nursling.  In  fact,  it  is  exactly  the  sort  of 
fooi  that  on  theoretical  grounds  ought  to  be 
supplied  to  a  small,  sensitive,  and  undeveloped 
digestive  organ  such  as  the  stomach  at  the 
time  of  birth.  To  indicate  how  nicely  adjusted 
colostrum  is  to  the  physiological  needs  of  the 
new-bom  infant,  I  may  mention  that  the  sugar 
which  it  contains  is  capable  of  immediate  ab- 
sorption without  any  alteration  in  the  digestive 
tract  of  the  infant.  The  sugar  of  colostrum  is 
dextrose,  and  not  lactose,  the  milk  sugar  by 
which  it  is  replaced  after  the  establishment  of 
full  activity  of  the  mammary  gland.  .  .  Na- 
ture therefore  provides  the  new-born  infant 
with  a  mono-saccharide  sugar  (dextrose),  which 
is  immediately  available  for  absoi-ption  and  for 
the  purposes  of  nutrition." 

The  transition  from  eolostrum  to  coagulable 
milk  is  relatively  slow ;  it  may  be  ten  days  be- 
fore the  mammary  secretion  assumes  the  char- 
acter of  a  true  milk.  During  this  time  the 
stomach  has  been  functionally  ueveloping,  ac- 
quiring tolerance  in  the  presence  of  coagulated 
casein,  and  learning  to  peptonise  or  liquefy  the 
clot  soon  after  its  fomiation.  There  can  be  no 
evasion  or  short-circuiting  of  this  route,  and 
that  is  why  new-born  infants  who  are  started 
in  life  on  the  statutory  mixtures  or  the  most 
approved  percentage  combinations  so  often  fail 
to  do  justice  to  the  method  of  feeding. 


200 


Zlhc  Britieb  3ournal  of  IRursmo  Supplement,  t^in'^i'  s.  I'Ji" 


^be  Central  fllMbwnvCij'  16oal•^. 


The  luoiitlily  luei'ting  of  the  Central  ilidwives' 
Board  was  heki  at  the  Board  Kooni,  Caxton  House, 
S.W.,  on  Thursday,  February  24th,  at  2.45  p.m. 
Dr.  F.  H.  Champneys,  Chairman,  presided. 

Letters  were  read  from  the  Registrar  of  tlie 
Royal  College  of  Physicians,  announcing  the  re- 
election of  Dr.  Champneys  as  reiiresentative  of  the 
College  on  the  Board  for  the  year  ensuing  April 
1st,  1910 ;  from  the  Secretary  of  the  Royal  College 
of  Surgeons,  announcing  the  re-election  of  Mr.  C.  H. 
Golding-Bird  as  the  representative  of  the  College 
on  the  Board  for  a  similar  period ;  and  a  letter 
from. the  Midwives'  Institute,  announcing  that  Dr. 
G.  E.  Herman  had  been  appointed  its  representa- 
tive on  the  Board  in  succession  to  the  late  Dr. 
Stanley  Atkinson,  J. P. 

Report  of  Pen.\l  Cases  Committee. 

The  Penal  Cases  Committee  reported  that  at  the 
request  of  the  Board,  reports  by  various  Local 
Supervising  Authorities  on  the  conduct  of  mid- 
wives  previously  censured  or  cautioned  for  offences 
against  the  rules  were  received  in  fourteen  cases. 
In  nine  cases  the  reports,  being  generally  satisfac- 
tory, it  was  decided  to  take  no  further  action,  in 
one  a  further  rejjort  was  asked  for,  in  another  it 
was  decided  to  cite  the  midwife  to  appear  before 
■  the  Board,  the  Local  Supervising  Authority  was  to 
be  requested  to  suggest  the  voluntary  resignation 
of  the  midwife  in  a  third ;  one  case  was  adjourned, 
and  in  one  no  action  was  taken. 

It  was  decided,  subject  to  satisfactory  evidence 
being  furnished  by  the  respective  Local  Supervising 
Authorities  in  three  instances,  to  cite  25  midn'ives 
to  appear  before  the  Board,  and  another  unless  her 
voluntary  resignation  was  sent  in  forthwith.  In 
another  ca.se  it  was  decided  to  caution  the  midwife 
as  to  her  methods  of  practice,  and  especially  as  to 
her  duty  in  advising  that  medical  help  be  sent  for. 

In  connection  with  three  applications  for  the 
restoration  of  names  to  the  Roll,  it  was  agreed  to 
grant  that  of  Margaret  Ellen  Manns  (Wakefield), 
the  consideration  of  one  application  >vas  adjourned, 
and   anotlier  refused. 

Report  of  Standing  Committee. 

On  the  report  of  the  Standing  Committee,  a 
letter  was  considered  from  the  Clerk  of  the  Council 
transmitting  a  copy  of  a  report  by  Dr.  Monckton 
Copeman,  Medical  Inspector  of  the  Local  Govern- 
ment Board,  on  an  outbreak  of  pemphigus  occur- 
ring in  the  practice  of  a  midwife.  It  was  decided 
to  ask  the  Privy  Council  to  furnish  copies  of  tlie 
report  for  the  use  of  members  of  the  Board. 

A  letter  was  read  from  the  Local  Government 
Board  transmitting  a  copy  of  a  proposed  circular 
to  Boards  of  Guardians,  dealing  further  with 
the  payment  of  medical  practitioners  summoned  on 
the  advice  of  a  midwife  in  emergency,  and  with  the 
supply  and  training  of  midwives.  It  was  decided 
to  thank  the  L.G.B.  for  their  letter,  and  to  in- 
timate that  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  apiiroves 
the  proposed  circular. 

At  the  request  of  the  Registrar  of  the.  University 
College  of  South  Wales  and  ^Monmouthshire,  per- 
mission was  granted  to  hold  the  written  examina- 


tion.s  at  the  College  at  Cardiff.  The  application  was 
jK-companied  by  torm.s  of  undertaking  signed  by 
Pi-ofessor  D.  Hepburn,  Dr.  E.  J.  Maclean,  and  Dr. 
H.   T.   Samuel,  the  pix)pose<l  supervisoi-s. 

A  letter  was  considered  from  the  Herts  County 
Council  forwarding  a  copy  of  a  resolution  passed  by 
the  Council  as  to  the  conduct  of  the  penal  business 
of  the  Board,  together  with  a  draft  letter  which 
the  Standing  Committee  recommended  should  be 
sent  to  Local  Supervising  Authorities  as  to  the 
suggestion  of  tlie  Herts  County  Council  that  on 
the  hearing  of  a  charge  against  a  midwife,  the  Local 
Supervising  Authority  should  hare  the  conduct  of 
the  case.  The  letter  stated  that  before  taking  any 
action,  the  Board  desired  to  ascertain  the  views  of 
other  County  Councils  in  this  matter.  The  letter 
was  approved,  and  it  was  agreed  to  circulate  it  to 
the  Local  Supervising  Authorities. 

The  removal  of  the  names  of  seven  midwives  from 
the  Roll  at  their  own  request,  on  the  ground  of  ill- 
health  or  old  age,  was  sanctioned. 

In  connection  with  the  application  of  Dr.  Davies- 
CoUey,  F.R.C.S.,  for  appointment  as  one  of  the 
Board's  examiners,  it  was  agreed  that  Dr.  Colley 
be  placed  on  the  list  of  supernumerary  examiners. 

The  following  medical  practitioners  were  ap- 
proved as  teacher,s: — Dr.  J.  B.  Banist-er,  Dr.  J. 
Johnston,  Mr.  E.  W\  Lowry,  M.R.C.S.,  Dr.  AV.  F. 
J.  Whitley. 

Tlie  following  certified  midwives  were  approved 
for  the  purposes  of  signing  Forms  III.  and  IV.  :  — E. 
B.  Benjafield  (No.  27026),  S.'A.  Butler  (No.22967), 
Edith  McClernon  (No.  27140),  M.  F.  Maunsell  (No. 
22459),  Emma  Newev  (No.  26243),  Harriet  C.  Dvke 
(No.  182.30),  Rebecca  Handley  (No.  23048),  and 
Sarah  Macdonald  (No.  23922). 

Financial   Statement. 

The  Secretary  presented  the  financial  statement 
prepared  for  submission  to  the  Privy  Council,  which 
showed  a  deficiency  of  over  £2,070  on  the  year's 
working.  The  Hon.  Mrs.  Charles  Egerton  enquired 
what  the  deficiency  was  la.st  year,  and  the  Secretary 
replied  that  it  was  £1,853.  The  examination  fees, 
Mr.  Duncan  continued,  showed  an  apparent  surplus 
of  receipts  over  expenditure  of  £383,  but  it  had 
been  found  imjiossible  to  estimate  the  proportion  of 
establishmental  charges  and  cost  of  printing  which 
should  be  credited  to  the  cost  of  the  examinations. 
If  these  items  were  included,  tliere  would  be  a 
deficiency  instead  of  a  suri)lus. 

Diploma  of  Honour. 

The  Secretary  reported  that  a  Diploma  of 
Honour  had  been  conferred  on  the  Board  by  the 
.Seventh  National  Congress  of  Midwives,  held  at 
Bologna  from  September  18th-21st,  1909,  and  dis- 
played it  for  inspection  by  the  Board.  The  Cliair- 
man  said  that  Miss  Paget  had  represented  the 
Board  at  the  Congress,  so  it  was  probably  owing  to 
her  that  the  Board  had  been  awarded  the  Diploma. 
The  Chairman  undertook  to  have  it  .suitably  framed. 
Future  Meetings. 

The  March  meeting  of  the  Board  was  arranged 
for  March  17th;  special  meetings  of  the  Board,  for 
dealing  with  penal  cases.'  for  Tuesday,  April  19th, 
and  Wednesday,  April  20th  f  and  the  April  monthly 
meeting  for  April  21st. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED   BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY.   MARCH    12,    1910. 


3n  flDcmoriani. 

ISLA    STEWART. 

Words  are  inadec|uate  to  convey  the  irre- 
parable loss  which  has  befallen  the  nursing 
world  by  the  passing,  on  Snnda\'  last,  of  Miss 
Isla  Stewart,  Ihitron  and  Superintendent  of 
Nursing  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital. 
■  As  head  of  a  great  training  school  for 
nurses  she  discharged  the  duties  of  her  office 
in  a  way  which  brought  to  it  the  utmost 
distinction  ;  in  public  life  she  has  stood  for 
all  that  is  best,  noblest  and  bravest ;  to  her 
friends  she  was  a  most  true,  generous  and 
loyal  comrade.  With  the  shadow  of  hei" 
loss  heavy  upon  us,  it  is,  at  the  present 
moment,  of  her  public  career  that  we 
wish  to  speak  —  of  that  part  of  her  life 
which  belongs  to  the  profession  of  which 
she  was  so  distinguished  a  member,  and 
served  with  such  unselfish  loyalty. 

Of  Highland  descent,  Miss  Stewart 
entered  upon  her  life's  work  at  St.  Thomas' 
Hospital  in  1879,  and  in  18>7  was  appointed 
to  the  position  of  ]\Iatron  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital,  in  which  position  she  has 
accomplished  her  great  work  for  the  profes- 
sion she  loved. 

Isla  Stewart's  claim  to  greatness  lies 
in  this  :  that  she  used  her  high  position  for 
no  selfish  ends,  but  threw  the  whole  weight 
of  her  influence  into  furthering  the  welfare 
of  nursing,  whether  or  not  the  line  of 
action  she  felt  impelled  to  fake  seemed  for  the 
moment  prejudicial  toher  personal  interests. 
She  held  higher  than  any  personal  con- 
sideration her  public  duty,  and  the  fulfil- 
ment of  the  obligations  which  her  position 
imposed  upon  her.  A  lover  of  peace  she 
has  lived  through  the  troublous  times  which 
so  oftea  befall  a  profession  during  its  evo- 
lution, and  only  in  the  future  can  the 
nursing  profession  fully  estimate  its  great 


debt  to  her  for  her  firm  stand  for  vital  prin- 
ciples. For  herself  she  could  gain  no 
higher  position,  no  greater  honour,  but 
with  keen  insight,  and  rare  unselfishness, 
she  entered  the  arena  of  public  controversy 
to  further  the  organisation  of  nursing  for 
the  benefit  of  the  sick,  and  in  order  that 
trained  nurses,  whose  work  she  estimated  so 
highly  might  have  legal  recognition  as  mem- 
bers of  an  honourable  profession.  For  her 
work  in  this  connection  her  name  is  honoiu'ed 
to-day  throughout  the  nursing  world. 

Her  end  was  as  she  would  have  wished. 
At  work  until  Thursday  in  last  week  she 
left  London  that  day  for  Chilworth  for  a 
short  rest.  On  Saturday  she  became  acutely 
ill,  and  passed  away  on  Sunday  last. 

A  great  patriot,  Miss  Stewart  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Nursing  Board  of  Queen  Alexan- 
dra's Imi^erial  Military  Nursing  Service  and 
Principal  Matron  of  No.  1  (City  of  London) 
Hospital  of  the  Territorial  Force  Nm-sing 
Service  ;  a  great  j^^djlic  servant,  she  was 
President  of  the  Matrons'  Council  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland,  and  of  the  Society  for 
the  State  Registration  of  Trained  Nurses, 
Hon.  President  of  the  League  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital  Nurses,  a  Foundation 
Member  of  the  International  Council  of 
Nurses,  an  Hon.  Member  of  the  National 
Council  of  Nnrses,  the  Irish  Nurses'  Asso- 
ciation, the  German  Nurses'  Association,  and 
the  American  Federation  of  Nurses,  while 
the  Atfsistam'c  Puhlinue  of  Paris  recognised 
her  great  services  to  nursing  by  conferring 
on  her  a  sjiecial  medal.  Her  body  was 
brought  from  Chilworth  to  the  mortuary 
chapel  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and 
taken  thence  to  Mofl'at,  N.B.,  where  she  will 
be  laid  to  rest  on  Thursday,  March  lOth,  at 
2  o'clock,  and  at  ;>  o'clock  there  will  be  a 
memorial  service  at  St.  Bartholomew's  the 
(Treat,  West  Smithfield,  E.C. 


202 


Z\ic  3Brlti0b  3ournal  or  iWureing. 


[March  12,  1910 


flDeMcal  riDatteis. 


THE  /ESTHETICS  OF  AN/ESTHETICS. 

Dr.  Frederic  W.  Hewitt,  M.V.O.,  M.A., 
consulting  anaBsthetist  and  Emeritus  Lecturer 
on  Anaesthetics  at  the  Loudon  Hospital,  de- 
livered an  interesting  lecture  at  tue  hospital 
on  February  25th  on  the  above  subject,  which 
is  pubhshed  in  full  in  the  Lancet,  in  which  he 
said,  in  part:  — 

"  I  do  not  propose  to  deal  at  any  length  with 
the  technical  principles  of  auaesthetisation. 
.  .  .  I  am  to-day  concerned  with  those  de- 
tails which  make  for  meiital  tranquility  and 
comfort  during  and  after  the  administration  of 
general  anesthetics. 

"  One  of  the  first  duties  of  the  anaesthetist 
is  to  treat  all  patients,  whether  they  be  of  the 
sensitive  or  of  the  phlegmatic  type,  whether 
they  be  of  the  amenable  or  of  the  cross-grained 
class,  with  the  utmost  consideration,  kindness, 
and  tact.  Discourtesy  on  the  part  of  a  patient 
• — nay,  even  actual  rudeness — may  be  but  the 
expression  of  an  overwrought  nervous  system. 
Whenever  possible  it  is  a  distinct  advantage  to 
see  patients  and  to  examine  them  before  the 
time  appointed  for  the  operation.  This  is  par- 
ticularly the  case  when  a  patient  is  exceedingly 
apprehensive  with  regard  to  the  angesthetic,  or 
when  there  is  some  grave  respiratory,  circula- 
tory, or  other  condition  which  may  complicate 
the  anaesthesia.  It  is  practically  impossible  to 
obtain  a  correct  estimate  of  the  patient's  con- 
dition and  the  best  method  of  procedure  when 
one  sees  him  for  the  first  time  lying  upon  the 
operating  table  surrounded  by  surgeons  and 
nurses  prepared  and  waiting  for  their  respective 
duties.  By  seeing  a  patient  a  day  or  two  be- 
forehand the  important  question  of  the  diet 
can  be  settled  and  final  injunctions  issued 
against  the  reprehensible  but  prevalent  prac- 
tice of  giving  the  patient  tea,  beef  tea,  etc., 
three  hours  before  the  operation.  The  question 
of  the  preliminary  use  of  morphine  and  atro- 
pine can  also  be  considered.  During  the  past 
two  years  I  have  used  these  drugs  (generally 
J  grain  of  moi-phine  and  l-120th  grain  of  atro- 
pine 20  to  30  minutes  before  the  anaesthetic") 
with  great  advantage,  particularly  in  abdominal 
cases.  The  indifferent  and  rather  sleepy  con- 
dition brought  about  by  the  morphine  is  a  great 
boon  to  apprehensive  patients ;  abdominal  re- 
laxation may  generally  be  secured,  even  in 
muscular  men,  with  less  anaesthetic  than  usual ; 
the  secretion  of  mucus  during  anaesthesia  is 
almost  wholly  prevented,  and  the  patient 
passes  through  the  first  portion  of  the  otherwise 
painful  post-operative  period  in  comfort. 

"It  is  to  be  regretted  that  in  their  laudable 


desire    to  conform  to  the    ever-increasing  de- 
mands  of   aseptic  principles,  many    surgeons 
altogether  lose  sight  of  the  disquieting  effects 
which  their  methods  of   applying  those   prin- 
ciples may  have  upon  patients,  and  particularly 
upon  nervous  patients.     I  have  on  numerous 
occasions  seen  sensitive  and  a'pprehensive  sub- 
jects about  to  undergo  formidable  operations 
absolutely   appalled  at  the  sight  presented  to 
them    on  entering  a  well-equipped    operating, 
theatre,  with  its  blaze  of  electric  light,  its  com- 
plicated   and    comfortless  operating    table,  its 
suggestive    foot-baths    beneath    the    table,  its 
equally  suggestive  red   tiled   floor,  its    hissing 
sterilisers,  its  trays  of  glistening  instruments, 
and  its  small  army  of  surgeons,  assistants,  and 
nurses,   all    masked,  gloved,   and   gowned    in 
accordance  with  the  latest  dictates  of  science. 
I  do  not  for  one  moment  desire  to  belittle  the 
precautions  and    preparations  of    the  modern 
surgeon.    My  point  is  that  it  is  unnecessarj- — 
I  had  almost  said  barbarous — to  bring  those 
precautions  and  those  preparations  prominently 
before  patients  about    to  undergo  operations. 
Curiously  enough,  there  are  still  some  nurses 
who  seem  to  think,  it  necessary  to  provide  un- 
fortunate patients  about  to  be  operated  upon 
with  the  hardest  of  operating  tables,   covered 
with  the  coldest  of  mackintoshes,  and  furnished 
with  the  thinnest  and  most  uncomfortable  of 
pillows      To   place   a   cold   mackintosh   for    a 
patient  to  lie  upon  is  to  be  guilty  of  a  surgical 
misdemeanour.    In  all  cases  the  operating  table 
should  be  well  warmed  by  hot  water  bottles 
before  the  patient  lies  upon  it,  and  great  care 
should  be  taken  to  see  that  the  bottles  are  then 
removed.    I  have  heard  of  several  instances  of 
extensive  bums  resulting  from  a  want  of  this 
precaution.     During  the  operation  the  bed  into, 
which  the  patient  will  subsequently  be  moved 
should  also  thoroughly  be  warmed  and  covered 
.with  a  full  complement  of  clothes  till  the  very 
second  that  he  is  transfen-ed  from  the  table  to 
the  bed.    The  curious  custom  of  exposing  one- 
half  of  the  bed  throughout  the  operation  still 
remains.     Immediately  the  operation  is  over 
the  patient  should  be  placed  in  the  warmed  bed 
and  the  hot-water  bottles  removed.     Tlie  im- 
portance of  this  last-named  point   cannot  be 
over-estimated.     I    have,  in    my    experience, 
heard  of  at  least  a  hundred  cases  of  more  or 
less    serious    burns  due  to  inattention  to  this 
point.    The  rule  that  should  be  followed  is  that 
under  no   circumstances    should    a    hot-water- 
bottle  be   placed  in  bed  with   an  unconscious 
patient.     Although  the,  anaesthetist  may  incur  ' 
the  displeasure  of  the  nurse,  he  should,  I  think, 
always  make    a  point,  before    he    leaves    his, 
patient,  of  searching  for  and  removing  all  hot- 
water  bottles." 


March  12,  1010' 


(The  BrtnsD  3ournai  or  IHiirsiuG. 


203 


Clinical  litotes  on  Some  Common 
ailments. 

Bv  A.  Knyvett  Gordon,  M.B.  (Cantab. j. 


lu  the  ensuing  series  of  articles  an  attempt 
will  be  made  to  describe  some  of  the  most 
marked  features  of  certain  more  or  less  common 
diseases  as  they  strike  the  observer  at  the  bed- 
side, and  to  explain  the  reason  for  their  occur- 
rence. As  I  have  previously  pointed  out,  when 
the  patient  is  sufficiently  ill  to  require  the  ser- 
vices of  a  trained  nurse,  no  inconsiderable  part 
of  the  duty  of  observation  falls  to  her  lot,  if 
only  because  she  is  in  all  probability  at  the 
bedside  for  as  many  hours  as  the  physician 
spends  minutes.  It  is  difficult  to  measure  the 
advantage  that  the  constant  presence  of  a 
trained  observer  affords  to  the  physician,  and 
therefore  to  their  common  patient. 

In  considering  the  selected  diseases,  it  will 
be  assumed  that  the  reader  has  access  to  some 
standard  text  book  of  medicine,  and  no  attempt 
will  therefore  be  made  to  give  a  complete 
description  of  anj'  of  the  ailments,  the  aim 
being  rather  to  dwell  on  such  points  which  the 
nurse  should  notice  if  she  wishes  to  form  an 
accurate  idea  of  the  progress  which  the 
patient  is  making. 

It  has  always  seemed  to  me  that  thjs  is  one 
of  the  chief  difficulties  which  the  nurse  has  to 
face.  She  notices  certain  symptoms,  but  has 
no  means  of  knowing  which  are  important  and 
which  of  but  trivial  value.  The  old  idea  that 
tlie  trained  nurse  has  merely  to  carry  out  orders 
dies  hard,  but  it  is  surely  erroneous,  or,  at  all 
events,  singularly  incomplete,  and  I  feel  sure 
that  a  nurse  who  is  really  interested  in  her 
patient  must  often  have  some  difficulty  in 
knowing  just  where  he  really  is — whether  he 
is  getting  better  or  worse,  and  whether  the 
treatment  is  having  the  desired  effect  or  not. 
For  this  purpose  she  must  know  something  of 
two  things — namely,  what  has  gone  wrong  in 
the  first  place,  and  then  what  sort  of  resistance 
the  patient  is  making  to  the  evil.  I  often  think 
that  we  are  all  too  apt  to  think  of  an  illness  as 
a  disease  only ;  it  is  not ;  it  is  a  fight — between 
one  army  and  another,  between  the  forces  of 
the  disease  and  those  of  the  patient  who  is  at- 
tempting to  resist  it.  The  disease  runs  on 
pretty  much  the  same  lines  in  every  case,  but 
tiie  resisting  powers  differ  each  time,  even  in 
the  same  person,  and  our  treatment  must  vary 
accordingly.  We  ought  never,  in  fact,  to  talk 
about  the  treatment  of  a  disease  at  all;  we 
treat  the  illness  and  not  the  ailment,  the 
person  not  the  process. 

To  do  this  successfully,  we  must,  above  all 
things,  know  what  to  look  out  for,  and  it  is,  in- 


cidentally, just  this  knowledge  which  distin- 
guishes the  trained  from  the  untrained  nurse ; 
the  latter  can  only  follow  and  help,  the  former 
can  observe  also.  Often  a  helper  is  all  that  is 
required,  and  as  she  is  then  very  useful,  we 
should  never,  I  think,  make  any  attempt  to  do 
away  with  the  untrained  "  nurse  "  altogether, 
only  it  is  desirable  that  the  labels  should  be 
quite  distinct,  and  that  the  general  pubhc 
should  have  some  means  of  knowing  which 
they  are  getting  when  illness  arises. 

We  will  now  pass  to  the  consideration  of  the 
selected  diseases,  and  the  first  of  these  is 
bronchitis.  We  will  first  see  what  part  of  the 
human  machine  it  is  that  has  gone  wrong,  and 
then  how  it  has  done  so. 

The  trouble  lies  in  the  breathing  apparatus. 
The  object  of  breathing  is  to  take  in  oxygen 
from  the  air  and  convey  it  to  the  blood,  the 
work  being  done  satisfactorily  only  so  long  as 
the  blood  gets  its  proper  supply  of  oxygen. 

The  air  is,  or  should  be,  taken  in  by  the  nose. 
Now  the  use  of  the  nose  is  twofold — firstly,  to 
waiTn  and  moisten  the  air,  and  then  to  detect 
by  the  sense  of  smell  any  odour  which  shows 
that  the  air  is  unsuitable  for  respiration,  both 
these  advantages  being  lost  if  we  breathe 
through  the  mouth.  The  air  then  passes  down 
the  trachea  or  windpipe  until  the  lungs  are 
reached,  when  the  windpipe  divides  into  a 
number  of  branches,  called  bronchi,  which  get 
smaller  and  smaller  until  each  ends  in  a  little 
bladder,  which  is  called  an  alveolus,  the  walls  of 
which  are  composed  of  a  number  of  small  blood 
vessels,  whose  coats  are  very  thin,  so  that  the 
air  in  the  bladders  can  pass  easily  in  and  out 
of  the  blood  which  the  vessels  contain.  There 
the  red  corpuscles  seize  on  the  oxygen,  and 
give  up  carbonic  acid  in  exchange. 

The  lung,  therefore,  consists  of  a  network  of 
bronchi,  alveoli,  and  blood  vessels.  By  the  art 
of  breathing  pure  air  is  drawn  into  the  alveoli 
with  each  inspiration,  and  used  up  air  is  ex- 
pelled from  them  at  each  expiration. 

Now,  when  we  come  to  think  of  it,  it  is 
evident  that  the  whole  of  this  apparatus  .o 
rather  freely  exposed  to  attack  from  without, 
for  it  must  necessarily  come  into  contact  with 
all  kinds  of  unsuitable  air,  which  may  not  only 
be  too  hot  or  too  cold,  but  which  may  be 
charged  with  irritating  dust  or  fumes,  or  with 
germs  of  various  diseases. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  seldom  that  one 
cause  alone  is  responsible  for  respiratory 
disease ;  more  often  than  not,  they  act  together, 
cold  or  heat  lowering  the  resisting  powers  of 
the  delicate  membranes  with  which  the  air  pas- 
sages are  lined,  so  that  germs  which  would 
otherwise  prove  harmless  are  enabled  to  grow 
and  multiply  and  produce  their  respective 
diseases. 


204 


Ube  Britisb  journal  of  iRursino.        f^^-'^^'^h  12,  loio 


Nor  are  the  organisms  necessarily  introduced 
from  without.  If,  for  instance,  we  take  a 
swabbing  from  the  mouth  of  a  healthy  person 
and  pass  it  over  the  surface  of  a  number  of 
tubes  containing  substances  on  which  bacteria 
can  easily  grow,  we  find  that  after  a  time  these 
tubes  contain  a  large  assortment  of  many  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  germs,  such,  for  instance,  as  are 
responsible  for  diseases  like  consumption  and 
various  kinds  of  inflammation  of  the  lungs. 
But  we  do  nob  suffer  from  these  ailments, 
though  we  have  their  germs  in  our  mouths,  and 
the  reason  is  that  in  health  the  white  corpuscles 
of  the  blood  are  able  to  keep  them  in  subjec- 
tion, so  that  they  stay  in  the  mouth,  and  do  not 
get  into  the  system  at  all. 

But  if  the  healthy  man  gets  his  resistance 
lowered,  say  by  subjecting  his  respiratory 
organs  to  very  sudden  changes  of  temperature, 
the  white  corpuscles  are  temporarily  weakened, 
so  that  the  germs  multiply  and  then  attack 
them.  A  fight  is  estabhshed,  and  the  patient 
is  said  to  be  suffering  from  the  particular  dis- 
ease. It  is  then  easy  to  see  how  catching  cold 
gets  blamed  for  a  disease  for  which  it  is  only 
partly,  and  not  even  mainly,  responsible. 

Whatever  the  cause,  however,  tiie  result  is 
in  the  case  of  respiratory  disease  at  first  the 
same — namely,  the  process  that  we  know  as 
inflammation.  The  germs  multiply,  and  white 
corpuscles  are  called  up  in  numbers  to  fight 
them.  Part  of  this  combat  takes  place  at 
close  quarters,  and  the  coi-puscles  then  devour 
the  germs  or  vice  versa,  but  for  the  most  part 
the"  fighting  is  not  of  this  hand-to-hand 
character,  but  the  germs  secrete  a  poison 
(toxin)  and  the  corpuscles  an  antidote  to  it 
(antitoxin),  and  these  neutralise  one  another, 
and  whichever  is  then  left  over  poisons  the 
opposite  party.  In  any  case,  the  result  is  a 
quantity  of  dead  bodies,  both  of  cells  and 
corpuscles. 

Clinically,  the  first  sign  of  inflammation  of 
a  part  is  that  it  becomes  red,  swollen,  hot,  and 
painful.  Then  the  affected  part  pours  out  a 
secretion  which  contains  the  dead  bodies  afore- 
said, sticky  mucus  to  bind  them  together  for 
more  easy  removal  (and  to  soothe  the  inflamed 
part)  and  water  to  wash  them  away  with.  This 
secretion  continues  as  long  as  the  fight  goes 
on,  and  ceases  with  the  death  or  recovery  of 
the  patient. 

(To  be  concluded.) 


It  is  reported  that  there  is  a  recrudescence  of 
sleeping  sickness  in  some  districts  of  the  Congo, 
and  that  in  some  villages  25  per  cent,  and  more 
of  the  children  are  suffering  from  it.  The 
situation  is  vei7  serious. 


1HotC0  on  ©pbtbalinic  BursinQ.-- 

By  George  Mackay,  M.D.,  F.E.G.S.E. 
Senior  Ophthalmic  Surgeon  to  the  Royal 
Infirmary ,  Edinburgh. 
(Concluded  from  page  185.) 
Now  let  me  demonstrate  to  you  the  follow- 
ing procedures:- — ■ 

1.  How  to.  remove  a  foreign  body  from  the 
conjunctival  sac. 

2.  How  to  remove  a  foreign  body  from  the 
cornea. 

3.  How  to  remove  ingrowing  eyelashes — epi- 
latiug  forceps. 

4.  How  to  apply  drops  to  the  eye — by  means 
of  a  dropping  tube,  drop  bottles.  Chalk's, 
Stroschein's. 

5.  How  to  cleanse  the  lid  margins,  remove 
crusts  of  dried  secretion,  or  parasites,'  and  pre- 
vent scabs. 

6.  How  to  douche  the  conjunctival  sac — 
cotton  wool  non-medicated — Undine. 

7.  How  to  douche  the  tear  sac — syringe. 
(N.B. — Irrigation  of  the,  anterior  chamber  of 
the  eye  is  employed  by  some  surgeons — e.g.-,  at 
the  operation  of  cataract  extraction,  but  a 
nurse's  only  duty  is  to  see  that  the  apparatus 
and  saline  solution-  is  irreproachably  sterile.) 

8.  Crede's  method  of  prevention  of  conjunc- 
tival infection,  its  general  application,  and  its 
special  value  in  maternity  cases.  A  2  per  cent, 
solution  of  nitrate  of  silver. 

9.  The  necessity  of  early  douching  after  ap- 
plication of  nitrate  of  silver. 

10.  The  necessity  for  frequent  douching  in 
acute  infection,  avoidance  of  irritant  lotions  or 
corrosive  wool.  Simple  saline  solution  or  boric 
lotion  the  safest,  combined  with  20  per  cent, 
solution  of  argyrol  2-hourly.  The  same  lotion 
not  to  be  used  twice  over. 

11.  The  application  of  ointment,  (a)  To  the 
lid  edges;  (b)  to  the  conjunctival  sac  with  a 
glass  or  other  smooth  rod. 

12.  How  to  prepare  and  apply  Buller's  eye 
shield.  A  strong  watch  glass  between  two 
pieces  of  sticking  plaister  leaving  a  circular 
central  window. 

13.  How  to  apply  a  protective  dressing  to 
one  or  both  eyes. 

14.  How  to  support  it  with  a  single  or  double 
roller  bandage. 

15.  Liebreich's  bandage  applied  to  one  or 
both  eyes. 

16.  The  apphcation  of  rubber  plasters,  or  the 
use  of  paper  tape  plasters. 

17.  Blood  letting  from  the  temple  by  leeches, 
natural  or  artificial,  "wet  cupping,  blistering  the 
temple. 

*  A  lecture  delivered  to  nurses  at  the  Royal  In- 
firmary, Edinburgh,  February  23r<3,  1910. 


Murcii  12,  i9iuj     ^ji,^.   DBntisi)  3oui-nal  of  IRursina. 


20D 


18.  Iced  applications. 

19.  Cold  face  pluuge  treatment  for  childreu. 

20.  How  to  Uiuku  aud  apply  hot  fomeutatious. 

21.  Hot  air  or  radiant  lieat  baths. 

22.  A  brief  reference  to  some  ophtlialmic  in- 
struments, testing  the  points  and  edges  of 
knives  aud  needles. 

23.  Preparation  for  operations : — (a)  Under 
local  ansEsthesia — cocaine;  (b)  under  general 
ansesthesia — chloroform. 

24.  Preliminary  cleansing. 

25.  Transportation  after  operation.  Avoid 
hard  and  fast  rules  as  to  confinement  to  bed  or 
prolonged   bandaging. 

26.  The  illumination  of  an  ophthalmic  sick- 
room. 

27.  The  selection,  fitting,  and  use  of  dark 
glasses,  preferably  goggles. 

28.  Diet. 

29.  Avoidance  of  draughts,  stooping,  cough- 
ing, sneezing,  straining,  sui-prise  visits  or 
handling,  startling  noises,  cold  feet. 

30.  Early  control  of  pain. 

31'.  Let  me  conclude  with  some  general  ob- 
servations on  the  special  care  of  ophthalmic 
patients:  — 

Watching  for  symptoms  of  poisoning — e.g., 
by  cocaine,  atropiti,  atropin  eczema,  pain  or 
vomiting  as  symptoms  of  increased  tension, 
atropin  dementia. 

The  occurrence  of  complications,  such  as 
digestive  disturbance,  or  acute  infectious 
fevers,  bronchitis,  pneumonia,  etc. 

Necessity  of  keeping  eye  patients  cheerful, 

especially  old  people,  and  letting  them  lead 

ag  much  as  possible  the  life  they  would  have 

led  at  home  as  to  diet,  choice  of  aperients, 

etc.     Mental  disturbance. 

On  the  care  of  the  blind  I  have  no  time  to 

speak,  but  I  commend  to  your  notice  a  little 

book    entitled    "  The    Blind    Man's    World," 

written  by  the  late  Dr.   Java],  of  Paris,   and 

translated  by  Dr.  Ernest  Thomson,  of  Glasgow. 

Some  of  you  may  be  glad  to  know  ako  that 

there  is  a  handbook  of  Ophthalmic  Nursing,  by 

Dr.  Sydney  Stephenson,  of  London. 

Wo  regret  that  by  a  printer's  error  in  the  first 
part  of  the  above  article  published  last  week  a 
line  was  faultily  introduced  on  page  184. 
In  the  third  paragraph  in  the  second  column 
the  second  line  should  be  deleted,  and  the  para- 
graph should  read  :  "  Without  going  too  much 
into  detail,  suffice  it  to  say  that  a  soft  elastic 
cushion,  chiefly  composed  of  fat,  fills  up  the 
remaining  space  between  the  eyeball  and  the 
bony  walls  of  the  orbit,"  etc.  On  page  183, 
the  opening  words  of  the  last  paragraph  should 
be:  "The  coloured  iris  is  the  visible  part  of 
the  middle  coat."  The  word  emmetropia  de- 
notes normal  vision. 


Cbe  JTactorv!  IWursc 

(Concluded  jiom  page  l'!'i  .j 

[The  first  part  of  the  paper  on  " "  The  i'actory 
Nurse,"  which  was  published  in  our  issue  of 
February  12th,  described  the  method  of  work 
of  the  nurse  empl<^'ed  by  the  Cleveland  Hard- 
ware Company,  U.S.A.  The  nurse  attends 
the  factory  dispensai-y  every  morning,  when 
she  is  open  to  consultation  for  any  employee. 
Her  sendees  are  also  given  to  any  member  of 
the  employee's  family.  Her  work  further  in- 
cludes a  systematic  investigation  of  the  borne 
of  each  employee.  As  will  be  gathered  from 
the  second  part  of  the  paper,  published  below, 
it  is  in  her  power  to  create  a  general  feeling  of 
co-operation  between  workman  and  foreman.] 

The  superintendent  of  one  department  has 
reported  to  the  nurse  that  one  of  his  valuable 
employees  has  not  reported  for  work  in  the 
morning.  He  lives  in  one  of  the  small  suburbs 
of  the  city,  and  th'e  nurse  reports  the  following 
morning  that  he  is  subject  to  occasional 
stomach  trouble,  and  it  was  an  attack  of  this 
kind  which  kept  him  away  from  work.  A  sub- 
sequent report,  however,  reads  in  this  way:  — 

■ '  One  lung  is  badly  affected ;  he  will  have  to 
go  to  the  country,  at  least,  for  the  summer. 
He  has  had  to  work  since  early  boyhood,  and 
now  has  a  home  almost  paid  for.  The  mort- 
gage amounts  to  about  700  dollars,  and  it;  will 
require  about  300  dollars  to  move  to  the 
country." 

Inquiry,  at  the  bank  which  held  the  mortgage 
on  this  man's  house  resulted  in  the  informa- 
tion that,  while  the  man  considered  liis  house 
worth  2, .500  dollars,  the  bank  would  not  ap- 
praise it  as  worth  any  more  than  1,500  dollars, 
and  under  these  circumstances  had  loaned  as 
much  money  as  they  cared  to  on  it.  There  was 
no  other  way  for  the  man  to  get  300  dollars, 
and  it  looked  as  if  it  was  either  a  case  of  sacri- 
ficing his  home  or  staying  in  the  city,  which 
the  doctor  claimed  %vould  be  fatal.  The  result 
of  all  this  investigation  was,  the  Executive 
Committee  of  this  Corporation  was  called  to- 
gether for  a  special  meeting,  and  on  the  book 
of  minutes,  sandwiched  in  between  resolutions 
that  carried  the  expending  of  thousands  of 
dollars,  is  one  that  shows  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee, one  member  of  whom  is  a  director  in 
the  bank  spoken  of,  had  decided  to  guarantee 
the  bank  against  any  loss  by  the  additional 
loan  of  300  dollars  to  this  workman ;  and  this 
winter  the  man  has  been  reinstated  in  his  posi- 
tion, seemingly  very  much  improved  in  health. 

"  This  man  works  in  the  mill,  but  has  been 

*  Contributed  t-o  the  International  Congress  of 
Nurses,  London,  July,  1909,  by  tbo  Cleveland 
Hardware  Company. 


206 


C;bc  British  Journal  of  IHiirsing.     [March  12,  mo 


■out  of  work  so  much  he  has  no  money.  The 
grocer  has  refused  credit.  He  has  been  in  this 
counti7  only  seven  months,  and  has  ,no  rela- 
tives here.  His  landlady  says  he  has  only  one 
suit  of  clothes." 

Here  is  a  memorandum  taken  from  the 
general  statement  of  the  nurse  on  one  of  her 
visiting  reports,  which  tells  the  story  of  a  young 
man,  eighteen  years  old,  who  has  come  to  this 
country  at  the  beginning  of  one  of  the  worst 
financial  panics  it  has  ever  had.  There  has 
been  no  accident,  no  sickness,  and  no  one  to 
notify  the  nurse  or  the  company  of  trouble  of 
any  kind;  but  she  has  happened  in  on  one  of 
her  home  visits  just  as  this  young  man  has  got 
to  the  end  of  his  resources.  It  is  one  of  those 
cases  that  so  very  often  form  the  setting  for  a 
pathetic  newspaper  story,  after  the  young  man 
has  either  broken  the  laws  of  the  countiy,  or 
the  laws  of  God  by  making  away  with  himself. 
The  following  day  the  nurse's  statement 
accompanied  this  note  to  the  foreman  of  the 
rolling  mill,  from  the  Superintendent  of  the 
Company  :  — ' '  The  following  is  a  copy  of  the 
report  handed  in  by  the  nurse  in  connection 
with  a  visit  to  one  of  the  mill  employees.  It  is 
very  evident  this  fellow  should  receive  some 
amount  of  consideration ;  and  while  he  is  a 
young  man  and  unmarried,  still  I  understand 
he  has  not  been  in  this  country  very  long,  and 
is  making  a  hard  effort  to  support  himself.  It 
is  evident,  too,  from  the  report,  he  pays  a  cer- 
tain amount  for  room  rent,  and  then  buys  his 
own  food  supplies.  I  give  this  to  you  simply 
so  you  can  use  your  own  judgment  in  the 
matter,  and  I  would  suggest  to  make  sure  he 
is  on  when  the  mill  is  working,  and,  in  case  of 
a  long  shut  down,  it  might  be  good  policy  to 
try  to  give  him  one  or  two  days  a  week  labour- 
ing." Filed  with  this  report  is  an  answer  to 
the  note,  from  the  mill  foreman,  which  reads  : 
"  I  have  looked  this  matter  up,  and  find  the 
boy  is  now  working,  and  have  arranged  to  have 
him  assured  of  at  least  two  days  a  week  when 
we  are  idle." 

This  personal  contact  gives  such  a  thorough 
insight  into  the  lives  of  the  members  of  the 
community.  I  was  especially  impressed  with 
this  in  looking  at  the  result  of  two  visits  which 
were  made  on  the  same  day,  one  of  them  to 
the  home  of  a  Polish  labourer,  who,  one  would 
take  for  granted,  was  liable  to  suffer  consider- 
ably during  hard  times.  The  nurse  reported 
the  man  and  his  wife,  four  little  boys,  and 
three  boarders  in  a  four  room  suite.  In  this 
case  I  asked  her  to  give  me  a  definite  report  as 
to  how  much  it  cost  these  people  to  live,  with 
this  result : —  - 

"  They  buy  a  pound  of  meat,  get  a  loaf  of 
bread    each    day,  and    occasionally  potatoes, 


rice,  and  coffee.  They  have  a  book,  and  each 
one  buys  separately  and  pays  each  pay  day. 
Lodging,  washing,  and  cooking  cost  them  $3.50 
per  month." 

The  other  report  came  from  the  home  of  an 
employee  that  had  been  in  the  factory  for  some 
twenty  years.  He  was  one  of  the  best  paid 
men  there,  and  I  should  have  imagined  he 
could  withstand  hard  times  for  quite  a  while. 
However,  this  is  the  result  in  the  nurse's 
statement:' — 

"  The  house  is  paid  for,  but  taxes  and  water 
rent  are  due,  and  they  do  not  know  where  the 
money  is  coming  from.  He  has  five  children 
at  home.  Two  are  able  and  willing  to  work, 
but  they  cannot  get  it.  He  has  two  married 
daughters.     All  seemed  well  educated." 

One  can  easily  see  here  this  man  has  brought 
his  standard  of  living  up  to  the  point  that, 
while  his  wages  amount  to  more  than  double 
the  price  of  the  other  man,  with  him,  if  he  is 
to  maintain  this  standard,  which  is  very  com- 
mendable indeed,  it  will  be  necessary  for  him 
to  have  steady  work,  and  be  given  considerable 
preference  in  connection  with  it;  while  the 
other  man,  with  even  one  or  two  days  a  week, 
will  be  able  to  very  easily  maintain  the  stan- 
dard which  he  has  created  for  himself. 

"  There  is  a  little  girl,  eigh?  years  old,  who 
has  never  been  sent  to  school.  They  seem  to 
know  nothing  about  the  public  schools." 

In  this  home  investigation  report,  it  shows 
one  member  of  the  community  is  entirely 
ignorant  of  the  ways  of  his  adopted  country, 
and  the  little  girl,  already  eight  years  old,  has 
never  been  sent  to  school.  Until  this  visit  was 
made  by  the  nurse,  there  had  been  no  incident 
to  call  the  attention  of  anyone  to  this  child ; 
and  the  probabilities  are  that,  without  it,  she 
would  have  grown  up  without  any  of  the  ad- 
vantages of  an  education. 

This  is  one  of  the  home  investigation  reports, 
and,  as  time  goes  on,  it  is  expected  in  the 
office  of  the  company  there  will  be  one  of  these 
reports  for  every  one  of  its  employees.  You 
can  see  by  this  how  thoroughly  the  interests  of 
this  family  must  centre  in  the  institution,  and 
it  is  very  often  the  case.  The  report  gives 
name,  address,  and  nationality;  ag^,  whether 
married  or  single ;  apartments  and  amount  of 
rent  paid ;  household,  who  are  the  wage 
earners,  and  conditions  of  the  home;  and  in 
the  statement  you  will  see,  of  the  household 
consisting  of  himself,  wife,  and  six  months  old 
baby,  together  with  his  sister,  he  and  his  sister 
are  working  at  the  factory  now,  and  the  wife 
worked  there  before  she  was  married ;  and  we 
confidently  expect,  when  the  six  months  old 
baby  goes  beyond  the  school  age,  she  also  will 
be  employed. 


Maixh  12, 1'jiOj      ^ij^.  Bvitisb  3ountal  of  ll^ursinQ. 


20: 


association  for  tbc  IPvomotion  of 

tbc  IRcoistrntion  of  IWurscs 

in  Scotlan^. 


The  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Association  for 
tlie  Promotion  of  the  Registration  of  Nurses  in 
Scotland  was  held  in  Glasgow  on  Wednesday, 
JIarcli  2ud.  To  suit  the  convenience  of  the 
East  of  Scotland  members,  a  corresponding 
meeting  was  held  iii  Edinburgh  on  the  follow- 
ing day.  Tiie  programme  was  the  same  at  both 
meetings,  with  some  variation  in  the  speakers. 

Lord  Inverclyde,  the  President  of  the  Asso- 
ciation, who  presided  at  both  meetings, 
said  at  that  held  in  Edinburgh,  on 
Thursday,  March  3rd:  "On  the  27th 
of  Februai-y,  1909,  you  did  me  the  honovu' 
to  allow  me  to  preside  over  a  vei-y  large  and 
representative  meeting,  held  in  Glasgow,  which 
was  probably  the  largest  and  most  representa- 
tive gathering  of  nurses  ever  held  in  Scotland; 
tiiat  is  ho\\'  it  impressed  me. 

At  this  meeting  it  was  decided  to  form  an 
Association  for  the  Promotion  of  the  Registra- 
tion of  Xurses  in  Scotland,  and  the  objects  of 
the  Association  were: — (1)  To  promote  a 
system  of  registration  of  nurses.  (2)  To  protect 
the  interests  of  Scottish  nurses,  and  to  secure 
for  Scotland  such  treatment  as  would  enable 
it  to  obtain  the  fullest  possible  benefit  from 
registration. 

Of  this  As.sociation  you  were  good  enough 
to  elect  mo  President,  and  a  number  of  repre- 
sentative people  as  vice-presidents.  The  Exe- 
cutive Committee  contains  the  Matrons  of  prac- 
tically all  the  principal  hosfiitals  in  Scotland, 
also  the  Superintendents,  and  representatives 
from  their  senior  staff  and  Board  of  Manage- 
ment. 

You  may  remember  that  before  the  meeting 
held  on  27th  February,  1909,  a  pamphlet  was 
circulated  giving  a  brief  resume  on  the  whole 
question  of  the  registration  of  nurses  as  it 
affected  Scottish  nurses,  stating  the  reasons 
why  the  EngHsh  Bills  were  not  acceptable  to 
Scottish  nurses,  and  also  giving  the  draft  of  a 
Bill  embodying  the, main  points  for  which  the 
nurses  in  Scotland  were  contending. 

In  coui'se  of  time  I  put  myself  in  communi- 
cation with  Lord  Ampthill,  who  had  previously 
been  successful  in  passing  a  Bill  through  the 
House  of  Lords,  %\iiich  was  not  acceptable  to 
us. 

Lord  Ampthill  welcomed  my  suggestions 
that  the  representatives  of  this  Association 
should  join  in  conference  with  other  Associa- 
tions to  endeavour  to  arrive  at  a  mutual  under- 


standing, and,  if  possible,  to  agree  on  the  pro- 
motion of  a  Bill  which  sljould  meet  with  the 
approval  of  the  various  interests  concerned. 

These  conferences  have  been  held,  and  1 
think  1  may  say  with  satisfactory  results,  mis- 
understandings have  been  cleared  up  and  con- 
cessions have  been  made  by  all  parties  with 
the  result  I  think  I  may  say,  the  draft  of  a  Bill 
has  been  agreed  on  which  we  who  have  the  in- 
terests of  this  Association  at  heart  can  con- 
sider almost  entirely  satisfactory,  and  which 
carries  out  the  objects  I  have  already  men- 
tioned. 

1  want  to  take  this  opportunity  of  publicly 
stating  how  much  we  are  indebted  to  Lord 
Amptliill  who  presided  at  the  conferences,  for 
the  fair  and  impartial  manner  he  did  his  duty; 
and  how  much  we  owe  to  him  for  a  general 
agreement  being  arrived  at.  ~ 

As  I  have  said,  the  draft  of  the  Bill  has  now 
been  practically  agreed  on,  but  our  difficulties 
are  by  no  means  over :  we  have  got  to  get  it 
passed  through  the  two  Houses  of  Parliament 
before  it  becoines  law.  With  the  House  of 
Lords,  I  believe,  there  will  not  be  much  diffi- 
culty, but  it  is  needless  for  me  to  enlarge  on 
the  present  state  of  the  House  of  Commons, 
the  present  usefulness  of  that  body  is  very 
doubtful  indeed.  I  am  not  one  of  those  who 
clamour  for  legislation,  quite  the  reverse;  but 
there  are  useful  pieces  of  legislation  which  I  am 
afraid  at  the  present  time  will  have  to  wait 
until  members  of  the  House  of  Commons  are 
not  so  full  of  the  necessity  of  the  preservation 
of  their  numerous  parties,  and  instead  will  give 
thought  to  what  is  for  the  good  and  needs  of 
their  country.  ■  The  Bill,  however,  was  on 
Tuesday  last  introduced  into  the  House  of  Com- 
mons by  Mr.  Munro  Ferguson,  and  we  can  only 
trust  that  an  opportunity  will  arise  for  its 
making  progi-ess." 

Dr.  D.  J.  Macintosh,  M.V.O.,  the  Hon. 
Secretary,  gave  in  detail  the  history  of  the  for- 
mation of  the  Association,  and  the  various  steps 
by  which  the  above-mentioned  satisfactory  re- 
sult had  been  reached.  The  Association  had 
now,  he  said,  on  its  list  1,785  nurse  members. 
The  medical  men  who  had  interested  them- 
selves in  the  question  were  not  included  in 
these  figures.  It  had  all  along  been  recognised 
that  this  was  a  nurses'  association.  In  refer- 
ence to  the  Registration  fee.  Dr.  Macintosh 
stated  the  Association  was  of  opinion  that,  in- 
stead of  five  guineas,  the  maximum  charge 
should  be  three  guineas. 

Dr.  Allan  Jamieson  (President  of  the  Royal 
College  of  Physicians),  congratulating  the 
Association  on  the  progress  made,  moved,  and 
Dr.  Playfair  (Vice-President  of  the  Roval  Col- 


208 


Zlbe  Bintisb  3ournal  of  mursing,     [March  12, 1910 


lege  of  Physicians)  seconded,  "  that  the  meet- 
ing approve  of  the  action  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee, including  the  action  of  the  D.elegates 
to  the  various  conferences." 

Dr.  JNIcKenzie  Johnston  proposed,  and  Sir 
Alexander  Simpson  seconded,  "  that  it  be  re- 
mitted to  the  Executive  Committee  to  watch 
the  progress  of  the  united  Bill,  with  a  view  to 
safeguarding  the  interests  of  Scottish  nurses, 
and  to  securing  that  the  Scottish  Committee 
provided  for  in  the  Bill  be  of  an  adequately  re- 
presentative character." 

Miss  Gill,  Lady  Superintendent  of  Nurses, 
Edinburgh  Royal  Infirmary,  moved  a  resolu- 
tion setting  forth  that  State  Registration  would 
be  to  the  advantage  of  every  nurse,  and  urging 
upon  all  nurses  the  desirability  of  joining  the 
Association,  and  of  helping  on  its  interests  by 
getting  others  to  join,  and  thus  proving  that 
the  nurses  themselves  were  really  behind  the 
Bill.  Miss  Gill  stated  that  the  help  which  the 
Association  had  received  from  medical  men  was 
very  great. 

Miss  Thomas  (Matron  of  City  Hospital) 
seconded  the  motion. 

All  the  motions  were  unanimously  adopted 
by  those  present. 

The  oifice  bearers  and  Executive  Committee 
were  re-elected. 

Dr.  Affleck  moved  a  vote  of  thanks  to  Lord 
Inverclyde  for  presiding  at  the  meeting,  and 
also  for  the  very  warm  interest  he  had  taken 
in  the  matter  ever  since  the  foi-mation  of  the 
Association. 

Tea  was  served  at  the  close  of  the  meeting, 
on  the  kind  invitation  of  Dr.  AtHeck. 


Scottisb  fIDatrons'  association. 


At  a  meeting  held  in  Edinburgh  on  March 
-3rd,  at  which  a  large  number  of  jNIatrons  and 
Superintendents  of  Nurses  were  present,  the 
Scottish  Matrons'  Association  was  formally 
constituted.  Glasgow  was  well  represented  at 
the  meeting,  and  there  were  present,  beside 
the  Edinburgh  members.  Matrons  from  Dum- 
fries, Perth,  Stirling,  Leith,  Falkirk,  Airdrie, 
Hawick,  Motherwell,  Rothesay,  Melrose,  and 
Musselburgh.  The  Association  starts  with  a 
membership  of  87. 

It  was  unanimously  agreed  that  the  name 
of  the  Association  should  be  "  The  Scottish 
Matrons'  Association."  The  objects  of  the 
Association  and  the  rules  were  discussed  and 
approved,  and  the  officers  for  the  year  ap- 
pointed.    The  officers  appointed  are  as  follows  : 

President.— Miss  A.  W.  Gill,  R.R.C.,' Edin- 
burgh. 

Vice-Presidents. — Miss  Cowper,  Superinten- 


dent, Scottish  Branch  Q.V.J. N.I. ;  Miss  Duff, 
Dundee;  Miss  Macnaughton,  Aberdeen;  Miss 
Melrose,  Glasgow;  j\Iiss  Gregory  Smith, 
Glasgow. 

Council. — iliss  Wise,  Edinburgh;  Miss 
Gordon,  Dumfries;  Miss  Philp,  Inverness; 
and  Miss  Glendinning,  Palkirk. 

Hon.  Sec. — Miss  Graham,  15,  Alva  Street, 
Edinburgh. 

Ho>i.  Treasurer. — Miss  Thomas,  City  Hos- 
pital, Edinburgh. 

Owing  to  the  distance  of  the  various  locali- 
ties represented  by  the  Association,  it  was  con- 
sidered advisable  to  have  several  Vice-Presi- 
dents. 

Matrons  desirous  of  joining  the  Association 
should  apply  to  the  Hon.  Secretary,  who  will 
supply  them  with  all  information,  and  bring 
their  names  before  the  first  general  meeting  of 
the  Society  for  election. 


IProeress  of  State  IReoistration. 

STATE   REGISTRATION    IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

In  continuation  of  the   letters  received   by 
Miss  L.  L.  Dock  as  to  the  effect  of  State  Regis- 
tration of  Nurses  in  tue  United  States,  we  pub- 
lish this  week  one  from  the  President   of  the 
Board  of  Nurse  Examiners  in  New  Hampshire. 
New  Hampshire. 
Board  of  Nurse   Examiners,   State  of   New 
Hampshire. 

Mt  Dear  Miss  Dock, — Tlie  time  for  granting  a 
licence  to  a  nurse  without  examination  does  not 
expire  until  March  7th,  1910 ;  consequently  the 
standard  for  the  schools  of  the  State  has  not  been 
as  yet  definitely  announced. 

A  list  of  the  requirements  for  registration  of 
hospitals  has  been  sent  to  every  hospital  in  the 
State  having  a  training  school.  If  these  suggested 
requirements  are  adopted  as  the  real  standard, 
every  hospital  in  the  State  will  need  to  affiliate 
.  with  some  hospital  outside  of  the  State,  in  order  to 
complete  its  course,  and  practically  every  hos- 
pital has  signified  its  willingness  to  not  only  do 
that,  but  to  arrange  its  course  so  as  to  come  up  to 
this  standard  that  has  been  brought  before  them. 

Three  of  the  hospitals  are  now  sending  their 
nurses  out  of  the  State  for  experience  that  they 
cannot  get  in  their  own  wards;  one  other  has 
arranged  to  send  its  nurses  outside  the  State  as 
soon  as  the  class  is  ready ;  and  another  hospital 
has  added  a  diet  kitchen,  where  the  nurses  can  take 
their  instruction. 

To  ray  mind,  there  is  no  doubt  about  the  value 
of  the  Registration  law.  The  outlook  is  very  cheer- 
ful indeed  in  New  Hampshire,  and,  as  I  am  con- 
stantly reminding  the  members  of  the  Board  of 
Examiners,  if  any  failure  occurs  it  will  not  be  be- 
cause of  the  undesirability  of  the  law,  but  because 
we  have  not  spent  enough  time  in  carrying  out  its 
provisions.  Sincerely  yours, 

B.  M.  TRtTESDELi,,  President. 


.Maivii  12, 191U]        ct)c  Brltisb  jtt-'urnal  ot  H^urstnij. 


209 


Xat»\>  fIDinto's  3nMan  IHureino 
association. 


The  lieport  foi'  19UU  of  l^ady  "Nliuto's  Iiidiau 
Isiiisiiig  Association  is  au  excellent  record  of 
useful  work,  and  the  fact  that  the  nurses  have 
not  been  quite  so  busy  this  year  is  due  to  the 
satisfactory  reason  that  there  has  been  a 
general  absence  of  serious  illness  amongst  the 
European  population. 

The  Hon.  Secretary,  Surgeon  Lieut. -Colonel 
Crooke-Lawless,  in  his  report,  gives  a  typical 
instance  of  the  way  in  which  the  nurses  cari-y 
out  the  aims  of  the  Association  in  carrying 
their  skilled  work  to  out-of-the-way  places. 
Major  Grant,  Medical  Adviser  to  His  Highness 
the  Maharajah  of  -Jodhpur,  wrote  to  the  Hon. 
Secretary  of  the  Kajputaua  Branch  as  follows  : 

"  I  wish  to  report  the  excellent  sendees  ren- 
dered by  two  of  the  nursing  sisters  of  your 
branch  (Misses  Martin  and  Achard)  while  in 
attendance  on  an  enteric  case  in  this  State. 
They  were  summoned  by  wire  about  the  middle 
■of  December,  and  on  arrival  in  Jodhpur, 
learned  that  their  patient  was  lying  ill  in  the 
desert,  which  necessitated  their  immediately 
undertaking  a  further  journey  of  some  hours  by 
rail,  and  after  that  a  ride  of  32  miles  on  camels. 
That  they  accomplished  this  with  the  utmost 
cheerfulness,  and  it  is  only  those  who  have  had 
to  do  a  similar  journey  who  can  fully  under- 
stand the  amount  of  fatigue  that  must  have 
been  endured.  They  remained  for  two  months 
in  the  desert  where  no  supplies  could  be  ob- 
tained locally,  and  although  the  best  that  could 
be  done  in  the  circumstances  was  don©  for 
their  comfort,  needless  to  say  it  left  a  good  deal 
to  be  desired.  Their  cheerful  behaviour  and 
devotion  to  duty  impressed  all  who  saw  them." 

The  Hon.  Secretary  also  reports  that  inocula- 
tion against  enteric  fever,  which  is  now  com- 
pulson'  for  all  nui'ses  going  out,  is  done  free 
of  charge  at  the  Pathological  Laboratory  of  the 
Royal  ^ledical  College  at  Millbank,  and  the 
Association  is  much  indebted  to  the  Director- 
General  of  the  Army  Medical  Sendee  for  this 
privilege.  His  report  concludes:  "I  need 
hardly  add  that  the  supervision  of  the  Associa- 
tion's work  has  been  admirably  carried  out  by 
Mrs.  Davies,  Chief  Lady  Superintendent.  Her 
energy  and  whole-hearted  devotion  are  beyond 
all  praise." 

Mrs.  Davis's  report  reviews  admirably  and 
concisely  the  work  of  all  the  branches,  and  re- 
echoes the  note  of  encouragement  that  has 
been  the  predominating  and  inspiring  feature 
of  the  Association  since  its  inauguration.  The 
frontispiece  of  the  report  is  a  portrait  of  the 
Countess  of  Minto. 


3ntcrnational  II^cws. 

A  copy  of  the  Keports  of  the  International 
Council  of  Nurses  in  a  handsome  dark  green 
binding,  lettered  in  gold,  have  been  forwarded 
by  Miss  L.  L.  Dock,  the  Hon.  Secretary,  to 
the  Queen  Dowager  Sophia  of  Sweden.  On 
the  back  are  the  words,  '"  Reports  of  the  Inter- 
national Council  of  Nurses,"  and  on  the  cover, 
also  in  gold,  "  To  her  Majesty  Sophia,  Queen 
Dowager  of  Sweden,  with  the  compliments  of 
the  Council."  It  will  be  remembered  that 
Queen  Sophia  took  au  active  interest  m  the 
International  Congress  of  Nurses,  held  in  Lon- 
don in  July  last,  and  in  the  Committee  which 
organised  the  Swedish  delegation. 


^bc  department  of  IRnrsino  an^ 
Ibealtb,  Seacbers'  Colleoe,  ITl.&.H. 

The  Teachers'  College  Bulletin  for  February 
26th,  1910,  is  entirely  devoted  to  the  Announce- 
ment of  "  The  Department  of  Nursing  and 
Health,"  under  the  heading,  "  School  of 
Household  Arts." 

Courses  are  oSered  in  four  sections  in  this 
Department  preparing  for:  — 

1.  Teaching  and  Supervision  in  Training 
Schools  for  Nurses. 

2.  General  Administration  in  Training 
Schools  and  Hospitals. 

3.  Public  Service  as  Teacher-Nurses,  Visiting 
Nurses,  and  Board  of  Health  Assistants. 

4.  Admission  to  Training  Schools  for  Nurses 
(Preparaton  Course). 

This  places  on  a  permanent  and  stable  basis 
the  Department,  hitherto  called  Hospital  Eco- 
nomy, which  the  College,  m  co-operation  with 
the  American  Society  of  Superintendents  of 
Training  Schools,  has  earned  on  for  ten  years. 


Xa  6arbe  flCtalabe  Ibospitaliere. 

We  rejoice  to  liear  of  the  continued  and 
growing  success  of  La  Garde  Malade  Hospi- 
taller e,  our  spirited  contemporary  in  Bor- 
deaux. The  Ministry  of  Public  Instruction 
now  subscribes  for  fifty  copies,  and  has  directed 
that  one  shall  be  sent  to  each  of  the  "  Lycee 
des  Jeunes  Filles  "  of  France.  The  significance 
of  this  is  that  it  is  now  considered  desirable  for 
.  nicely  educated  girls  to  have  trained  nursing 
brought  to  their  notice  as  a  possible  career. 
This  is  most  hopeful  for  the  future  of  nursing 
in  France,  and  wc  look  forward  to  the  i\vn.^,  not 
far  distant,  when  French  nursing  will  rank  with 
the  best,  throughout  the  countrj',  as  it  already 
does  in  the  centres  of  progress. 


210 


^bc  36rlti9b  3ouniaI  of  "Wurslna. 


[JMarch  12,  1910 


IPvactical  Ipoints. 

The  medical    value  of  pine- 
The  Digestive        apples,  says  the   Spatvla,  has 
Value  of  recently    been   the  subject   of 

Pineapples.  considerable    inquiry    ■  among 

physicians,  and  in  Hawaii  ex- 
periments have  beeu  made  to  determine  something 
of  these  properties.  It  has  been  found  that  the 
fruit  of  the  pineapple  contains  a  digestive  principle 
closely  resembling  pepsin  in  its  action,  and  to  this 
is  probably  due  the  beneficial  results  of  the  use  of 
the  fruit  in  certain  forms  of  dyspepsia.  On  the 
casein  of  milk  j^iueapple  juice  acts  as  a  digestive  in 
almost  the  same  manner  as  rennet,  and  the  action 
is  also  well  illustrated  by  placing  a  thin  piece  of 
uncooked  beef  between  two  slices  of  fresh  pine- 
apple, where  in  the  course  of  a  few  hours  its  char- 
acter is  completely  changed. 


appointments 


In  his  report    to  the  Direc- 

Smoking  and        tors    of     the    Royal  Victoria 

Eyesight.  Eye     Infirmary,   Paisley,   Dr. 

N.  Gordon  Cluckie  calls  atten- 
tion to  the  abuse  of  the  eyes  by  their  excessive  use 
in  reading  in  bed.  Referring  to  152  cases  of  toxic 
amblyopia  due  to  excessive  use  of  tobacco,  he  points 
out  that  these  working  men  were  so  saturated  with 
nicotine  that  the  visual  nerve  centres  of  the  brain 
were  affected,  and  defective  vision  caused  to  the 
extent  of  preventing  them  from  earning  their  daily 
bread.  It  is  the  absorption  of  the  nicotine  and  its 
poisonous  effects  that  are  to  be  guarded  against. 
If  the  nerve  of  vision  is  not  decayed,  and  the  pa- 
tient becomes  a  total  tobacco  abstainer,  vision  may 
be  restored  to  its  normal  condition  in  a  few  months. 
In  Dr.  Cluckie's  opinion  there  is  as  great  need  for 
Total  Abstinence  Societies  for  tobacco  as  for  liquor. 


When  the  patient  returns  to 
Treatment  of  a      the     ward,    the     hot     water 
Case  after  bottles   and  blankets  are  re- 

Chloroform  has      moved   from  the  bed,   and  he 
been  given.  is  gently  lifted  on  to  the  bed, 

the  blankets  and  bottles  re- 
placed (a  layer  of  blanket  between  the  skin  and 
bottle.)  If  necessary,  a  cage  is  placed  over  the 
wounded  part  and  the  bed-clothes  put  straight. 
Only  one  small  pillow  should  be  put  under  the 
head  at  first.  The  nurse  must  not  leave  the  patient 
■until  he  is  out  of  the  chloroform,  as  he  will  pro- 
bably feel  very  sick.  If  patient  vomits,  the  head 
must  be  slightly  raised  or  turned  on  one  side. 
Patient  must  bo  kept  quiet,  and  nothing  must  be 
given  by  the  mouth  for  a  few  hours  except  a  little 
ice  or  soda  water.  After  four  hours,  if  there  is 
no  sickness,  he  may  have  a  little  milk  and  soda 
water.  If  there  should  be  troublesome  sickness, 
starvation  may  be  tried  as  a  means  of  controlling 
it,  or  sucking  small  pieces  of  ice  or  sipping  very 
hot  water  may  bo  tried.  The  part  that  has  been 
operated  on  must  be  carefully  examined  from  time 
to  time  to  see  that  there  is  no  swelling  or 
haemorrhage,  or  discharge  through  the  dressing. 

V.  J. 


iLlIKONS. 

Royal  Surrey  County  Hospital,  Guildford. — Miss  Jessie 
ilillicent  Jackson  has  been  appointed  Matron.  She 
was  trained  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  Lon- 
don, and  has  held  the  positions  of  Sister  at  the 
New  Hospital  for  Women,  Euston  Road,  Assistant 
Housekeeper  iu  the  Nurses'  Home  at  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital,  Assistant  Matron  at  Kensington 
Infirmary,  and  Assistant  Matron  at  the  Sussex 
County  Hospital,  Brighton. 

Tiverton  Infirmary  and  Dispensary,  Devon. — Miss  Lilian 
Lloyd  has  been  appointed  Matron.  She  was  trained 
at  the  Jessop  Hospital  for  Women,  Sheffield,  and 
the  G&ueral  Infirmary,  Bolton,  Lancashire;  and  has 
held  the  positions  of  Charge  Xurse  at  the  Park 
Hospital,  Hither  Greeu ;  Night  Superintendent  at 
the  Royal  Infirmary,  Halifax;  Night  Superinten- 
dent at  the  Royal  Chest  Hospital,  B.C. ;  and  Ma- 
tron of  the  Cottage  Hospital,  Maltou,  Yorkshire. 

Cottage  Hospital,  Oswestry.  — Miss  Eleanor  Jasper 
has  beeu  appointed  Matron.  She  was  trained  at 
the  Royal  Infirmary,  Bradford,  where  she  won 
both  the  gold  and  the  silver  medals.  She  has  aLso 
beeu  Sister  at  the  Hosijital  for  Women  and  Chil- 
dren, Bristol,  Superintendent  Nurse  at  the  Union 
Infirmary,  Todmorden,  Nursing  Sister  in  the  Army 
Nursing  Service  Reserve,  working  at  the  Royal 
Herbert  Hospital,  Woolwich,  as  well  as  in  South 
Africa,  Night  Sist-er  at  the  'Children's  Infirmary, 
Liverpool,  and  Nurse  Matron  at  the  Cottage  Hos- 
pital, Mold.  3Iiss  Jasper  was  recently  appointerl 
Matron  Nurse  at  the  Alnwick  Infirmary,  but 
did  not  take  up  the  post. 

Nurse  Matron. 
Hendon  Urban  District  Council  Isolation  Hospital,  Renter's 
Lane,  Hendon,  N.W — Miss  Annie  Edmonds  has  beeu 
appointed  Nurse  Matron.  She  has  held  the  posi- 
tions of  Second  Assistant  Nurse  and  Assistant 
Nurse  at  the  Fountain  Hospital,  Tooting,  under  the 
Metropolitan  Asylums  Board;  Sister  at  the  City 
Hospital,  Birmingham;  and  Matron  of  the  Frim- 
ley  Urban  District  Council  Isolation  Hospital. 

AsSIST.iNT   M.\TROX. 

Samuel  Lewis  Seaside  Convalescent  Home,  Walton-on-the- 
Naze. — Miss  .Julia  Arnold  has  been  appointed  As- 
sistant Matron.  She  was  trained  at  Charing  Cross 
Hospital,  in  which  institution  she  has  held  the 
position  of  Staff  Ntirse. 

Sister 

General  Hospital,  Cheltenham. — Miss  Maud  Shorto 
has  been  ap]K>inted  Sister.  She  was  trained  at  tlie 
East  Suffolk  Hospital,  Ipswich,  and  has  held  the 
positions  of  Sister  at  the  Hospital.  Bridgwater : 
Night  .Sister  at  the  East  Suffolk  Hospital,  Ipswich  ; 
Theatre  Sister  and  Night  Superint<?ndent  at  the 
Royal  InfiiTuary,  Hull,  and  Night  Sister  at  the  New 
Hospital  for  Women.  Euston  Road.  N.W. 
Enquiry  Officer. 

East  London  Hospital  for  Children,  Shadwell,  E. — Miss 
Margaret  Burrows  has  been  appointed  Enquiry 
Officer  in  the  Out-patient  Department.  She  was 
trained  at  the  East  London  Hospital,  and  at  Guy's 
Hospital,  and  has  held  the  positions  of  Sister  at  the 


.Maivh  12,  1910] 


^be  Britlsb  3ounial  ot  THursliuj. 


211 


Eiist  Ixnnlon  Hospital,  and  of  Sister-in-Cliargc  at 
the  Princt'ss  Mary  Home,  Bogiior.  She  is  at  pre- 
sent Assistant  Lady  Superintendent  at  the  East 
Loudon  Hospital,  and  will  hold  the  post  co-jointly 
with  that,  of  Enquiry  Officer. 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S  ROYAL  NAVAL  NURSING 
SERVICE. 
Miss  Janet  Cnrwon  lias  bwn  «piM)nit<Hl  a  Xursin;; 
Sister  in  Qu«h.'U  Alexandra's  Koyal  Naval  Nui-siiig 
Serv'ioe  (on  probation). 

Miss  Elizal>eth  McKay  has  bcK?n  api>ointed  a 
Xuiising  Sister  in  Queen  Alexandiia's  Royal  Naval 
Xnising  Service  (on  prol>ation). 

QUEEN   ALEXANDRA'S   IMPERIAL  MILITARY 

NURSING   SERVICE. 
The    under-nieiitionetl    ladie.s  to   be    StaH    .Niii-^es 
(provisionally):   Miss  Dorothy   Turner   (dated   Feb- 
ruary 14th,  1910):  Mis.s  .Mary  McXaughtan   (dated 
Februai-y  15th,  1910). 


QUEEN  VICTORIAS  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
FOR  NURSES 
Transfers  and  A  iipniiitments. — Jliss  Elizabeth 
Burnett  (as  Senior  Xur,sc),  Mi.ss  May  Cule  (as  Mid- 
wife), and  Jliss  Margaret  jSIcLellan,  to  Pontypridd; 
Miss  Frances  Buckingham,  to  Pleasley ;  Miss  May 
Hann,  to  Huddersfield,  'as  Staff  Midwife;  Miss 
Norah  Sherwood,  to  Markyate;  Mi.ss  Clara  Jack-- 
son,  to  Kenilworth  (Maternity  Branch)  ;  Miss  Ellen 
Pemberton,  to  Woolton ;  Miss  Emma  Wherritt,  to 
Stockton  Heath;  Miss  Ethel  Collins,  to  Westmin- 
ster; Miss  Kate  Turner,  to  Oakworth ;  Miss  Edith 
Webster,  to  Morley ;  Miss  Louisa  Trinham,  to 
Crook ;  Miss  .\nnie  Houghton,  to  Wetherby ;  Miss 
Edith  Symons,  to  Gloucester ;  iliss  Sarah  Jones, 
to  Rutliin  ;  Miss  Sarah  Roberts,  to  Barmouth  :  Miss 
Adelaide  Hawtin,  to  X'ewbury  (teniixirary). 


ORDER  OF  ST.  JOHN  OF  JERUSALEM. 
The  King  has  been  pleased  to  (^auction  the 
ap|)ointments  of  the  follow-ing  ladies  to  the  Ordoi" 
of  the  Hospital  of  St.  John  of  Jeru.salem  in  Eng- 
land: — As  Ladies  of  Oraoo:  Olga  Lady  Egerton, 
■Emily  Caroline  Mrs.  Papillon,  the  Right  Hon.  the 
Countess  of  Derby,  Evelyn  Elizabeth  Mrs.  W.  1). 
James. 


RESIGNATION. 
Miss  F.  M.  Phillips  has  resigned  her  position  as 
Matron  of  the  Grosvenor  Hospital  for  Women, 
Vincent  Square,  Westminster,  S.W.,  which  she  has 
held  for  the  past  12  years,  and  the  Committee  has 
accepted  her  resignation  with  the  greatest  regret. 


WEDDING  BELLS. 
Tlie  maiTiage  of  Miss  Harriet  Hopkins  with  Mr. 
Harry  Willoughby  TiOfts  took  place  in  Ivondon  last 
week.  Miss  Hopkins,  who  was  trained  at  East 
Lancashire  Infirmary,  Blackburn,  has  for  the  last 
three  years  l)een  a  menilxT  of  the  Registered  Xui-ses' 
Society,  and  only  recently  resigned  her  position  on 
the  staff.  Slie  has  the  .sincere  goo<l  wi.sh«>s  of  ^wr 
colleagues  and  friends  tor  her  future  happiness. 


IRuvsino  Echoes. 


.Miss  C.  II.  Keer  (ex- 
Matroii-iu-Chiel),  Miss  E.  H. 
Beeher  (Matrou-iu-Chiefj, 
and  Miss  E.  M.  McCarthy 
(Principal  Matron),  Queen 
Alexandra's  Imijerial  jMili- 
tary  Nursing  Service,  had 
the  honour  of  being  received 
by  the  Queen  on  Friday, 
Alarch  4th,  at  Buckingham 
Palace. 


.\t  a  s(ncial  meeting  of  the  council  of  Cjueen 
Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute  for  Nurses,  held  on 
]March  3rd,  at  the  otlices,  58,  Victoria  Street, 
S.W.,  "Mv.  George  Franklin  presiding  in  the  ab- 
sence of  the  chairman  (Viscount  Gosohen),  it 
was  unanimously  resolved,  "  That  at  the  ur- 
gent request  of  the  Countess  of  Dudley,  on  be- 
half of  the  Commonwealth  of  Austraha,  the 
General  Sujjerintendent  of  the  Institute,  Miss 
Hughes,  be  allowed  six  months'  leave  of  ab- 
sence to  enable  her  to  proceed  to  Australia  to 
assist  in  the  organisation  in  the  Commonwealth 
of  an  Order  of  Nurses  on  the  lines  of  the 
(Jueen's  Jubilee  nurses." 


The  Electrical  and  Actino-th'erapeutic  Depart- 
ment at  Guy's  Hospital  has  this  week  changed 
its  quarters  from  the  top  storey  in  the  old  sur- 
gical building  to  the  ground  floor  of  the  same 
building,  and  occupies  the  place  of  the  time- 
honoured  "Front  Surgery,"  which  has  been 
moved  to  the  new  building  in  Maze  Pond. 
There  are  5  cubicles  for  X-ray  treatment,  and 
one  for  the  Finsen  lieyn  lamp.  Kooms  for 
radium,  radiant  heat,  and  electric  baths,  a 
room,  for  a  Wimehurst  machine,  and  the  large 
hall  partially  occupiid  by  the  Finsen  lamp. 
Probationers  usually  remain  on  duty  for  three 
months  in  the  "  Light  Department,"  and  it 
has  been  arranged  for  them  to  have  two  courses 
of  lectures  during  the  three  months  from  the 
medical  stafi  of  the  department.  Practical 
demonstrations  are,  of  course,  given  daily  by 
the  Sister-in-chargc.  There  are  special  facili- 
ties for  nurses  from  other  hospitals  who  wish  to 
take  this  three  months'  course  of  special  work. 
The  old  "  Dressers'  House  "  adjoining  the  De- 
partment has  been  adapted  for  Nurses'  (Quar- 
ters; it  is  now  known  as  the  "  Light  House," 
and  Sister  Light  is  in  charge  of  the  ten  airy  and 
inight  rooms  for  nurses,' which  make  such  a 
pleasant  "  Dependaiice  "  to  the  Nurses'  Home. 
Once  more  the  top  storey  of  the  Surgical  Build- 
ing is  deserted,  but  probably  not  for  long.    One 


212 


Z\}c  Biit:sb  3ournal  of  •Wursin^. 


[March  12,  1910 


hears  rumours  of  new  operating  rooms,  and 
then  one  dreams  of  the  "  good  old  days  "  when 
the  probationers  were  dwellers  in  those  same 
attics,  and  little  thought  of  all  the  changes 
which  would  take  place  there. 


At  the  Quarterly  Court  of  Goveniors  of  the 
London  Hospital  last  week,  the  Chairman,  the 
Hon.  Sydney  Holland,  said  it  would  interest 
the  Governors  to  know  that  the  Hospital  sent 
private  nurses  to  South  Africa,  San  Eemo, 
Malta,  Brussels,  Madeira,  Japan,  and  several 
other  places,  a  testimony  to  the  value  of  their 
services. 


The  forty-third  annual  report  of  the  Trained 
Nurses'  Institution,  Leicester,  is  a  record  of 
quiet  and  unostentatious  work  for  the  sick  and 
suffering.  The  chief  subject  of  regret  is  that 
no  fewer  than  five  of  the  staff  have  been  ill 
during  the  year,  some  very  seriously,  and  that 
there  has  been  a  proportionately  heavy  strain 
and  drain  on  the  sick  fund.  The  committee  of 
management  and  friends  have,  however,  the 
satisfaction  of  knowing  that  the  immense  value 
of  trained  nursing  is  being  increasingly  realised, 
and  it  is  being  ever-increasingly  utilised.  The 
Leicester  Trained  Xurses'  Institution  has  thus 
an  ever-widening  field  of  beneficent  usefulness. 


Speaking  recently  at  the  annual  meeting  of 
the  Walsall  Victoria  Nursing  Institution  and 
the  Leckie  Memorial  Home,  at  the  Walsall 
Town  Hall,  the  Chairman  of  the  Institution, 
Councillor  W.  J.  Peai-man  Smith,  said  that 
words  from  him  could  not  adequately  thank 
the  Lady  Superintendent,  Miss  Holloway,  and 
the  nurses  for  the  work  they  did  amongst  the 
poor.  Year  by  year  they  had  evidence  of  that 
self-saciificing  work  and  devotion  which  they 
bestowed  upon  the  cases  that  came  under  their 
care,  and  it  was  satisfactoi-y  to  know  that  their 
services  were  appreciated  by  those  whom  they 
attended.  They  had  received  innumerable 
letters  in  which  the  nurses  and  Lady  Superin- 
tendent were  thanked  for  what  they  had  done 
in  this  respect.  One  of  their  leading  practi- 
tioners in  the  town  spoke  of  the  nurses  and 
their  work  as  being  most  satisfactory.  He 
made  reference  to  two  special  cases  of  pneu- 
monia and  one  of  typhoid  fever  where  the  work 
of  their  nurses  contributed  in  a  marked  degree 
to  the  recovery  in  each  case.  A  liberal  response 
to  the  Chairman's  appeal  for  increased  sub- 
scriptions, which  are  tadly  needed,  would  most 
effectively  demonstrate  the  towiispeople's  ap- 
preciation of  the  good  work  of  the  nurses. 


Queen's  nurses  in  proportion  to  population  than 
any  other  part  of  the  Kingdom,  and  the  Queen 
Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute  has  so  far  borne  the 
whole  expense  of  training  Welsh-speaking 
nurses.  Now  the  two  associations  recently 
formed  one  for  the  north,  and  one  for  the  south, 
of  the  Principality,  are  actively  engaged  in  i-ais- 
ing  money  for  the  training  of  midwives  and 
nurses,  and  are  being  assisted  by  the  County 
Councils.  The  total  amount  collected  so  far 
is,  however,  much  below  that  which  is  required 
to  meet  the  needs  of  the  present  year. 


On  Mai'ch  3rd,  Miss  de  Lasalle,  of  Notting- 
ham, gave  the  nurses  of  Stobhill  Hospital, 
Glasgow,  a  most  interesting  address  on  foreign 
mission  work.  She  pointed  out  the  great  neces- 
sity tor  trained  nurses  in  India,  where  doctors 
are  daily  perfonxiing  operations  without  the 
help  of  trained  nurees.  Not  only  would  nurses 
be  invaluable  to  the  patients,  but  they  could 
also  teach  the  natives  how  to  nurse  their  rela- 
tives in  sickness. 


Nurse  Henry,  who  was  trained  at  Stobhill 
Hospital,  is  doing  mission  work  in  India,  and 
we  are  infomied  by  the  Matron,  Miss  Wright, 
"  she  writes  the  most  interesting  letters,  full 
of  hope,  and  this  week  she  sent  me  a  copy  of  the 
first  Xtirsing  Journal  of  India.  That  it  may 
have  all  the  success  it  deserves  is,  I  am  sure, 
the  wish  of  all  British  nurses." 


The  members  of  the  Ulster  Branch  of  the 
Irish  Nurses'  Association  spent  a  pleasant  even- 
ing on  Wednesday  in  last  week  when  Dr.  Mc- 
Leish  gave  them  an  interesting  lecture  on  the 
Nervous  System.  These  lectures  are  always 
greatly  enjoyed,  and  are  both  profitable  and 
pleasurable. 


We  greatly  regret  to  learn  that  Miss  Geor- 
giana  C.  Eoss,  Superintendent  of  Nurses  at  the 
Johns  Hopkins  Hospital,  Baltimore,  is  obliged 
to  take  a  complete  rest  from  work.  Miss  Eoss 
has  been  Superintendent  of  Nurses  for  several 
years,  having  succeeded  Miss  M.  Adelaide 
Nutting,  on  her  appointment  as  Profes- 
sor of  Household  Administration  at  Colum- 
bia University,  New  York.  Miss  Eoss's 
connection  with  the  hospital  dates  back 
nearly  twenty  years,  she  having  taken 
up  the  work  of  a  trained  nurse  there  imme- 
diately after  her  graduation  from  the  Johns 
Hopkins  Training  School  for  Nurses. 


It  is  interesting  to  leam  that  Wales  has  more 


The  knowledge  acquired  during  that  time, 
added  to  her  training  at  the  school,  has  proved 
of   invaluable    service    to    the    physiciaas  and 


March  12,  1910] 


2be  aSrttisb  3ournaI  of  IRursing. 


213 


nurses  at  the  hospital  aud  her  illness  is  greatly 
regretted.  During  hc-r  administration  Miss 
Boss  has  done  excellent  work,  both  in  the 
school  and  hospital. 

A  most  splendid  new  hospital  has  been 
built  at  Calgary,  Alberta,  Canada,  and  was 
opened  recently  with  great  expressions  of 
satisfaction.  Another  good  training  school  for 
nurses  will  thus  be  available,  so  necessary  with 
the  increased  population  in  the  Province. 


A  Calcutta  correspondent,  writing  from  the 
Professional  Nurses'  Club,  in  that  city,  says  :  — 
"  It  has  only  been  in  existence  a  few  months, 
and  is  already  recognised  as  a  great  help  to 
medical  men  and  nurses  alike.  The  Hon. 
Superintendent  and  Treasurer,  who  is  a  ti'ained 
nurse,  and  an  ex-Matron  of  the  Eden  Hospital, 
-does  everj'thing  in  her  power  to  make  the 
nurses  comfortable,  and  never  turns  a  nurse 
away,  no  matter  how  full  the  club  is,  and  often 
puts  a  new  comer  into  her  own  room  till  there 
is  a  vacancy  and  the  nurse  has  been  able  to 
secure  suitable  accomuKxlation,  so  that  any 
nurse  arriving  in  Calcutta  can  always  be  sure 
•of  a  welcome  at  the  club.  As  it  is  on  the  tele- 
phone, the  doctors  are  glad  to  avail  themselves 
■of  it  to  the  full,  and  Mrs.  Moore,  the  Secre- 
tary, has  as  much  or  more  than  she  can  do  to 
■comply  with  their  requests.  She  has  compiled 
a  list  of  nurses,  and  as  there  are  outside  sub- 
scribers as  well  as  resident  ones,  and  Mrs. 
Moore  keeps  in  touch  with  them  all,  you  can 
tell  how  far-reaching  her  sphere  of  usefulness 
is.  She  is  certainly  the  right  person  in  the 
right  place." 

>  

The  question  as  to  whether  district  nurses 
through  their  work  among  the  poor  are  decreas- 
ing the  free  work  at  hospitals  is,  says  the  In- 
ternational Hospital  Rtcord,  a  debatable  one. 
There  is  probably  no  question  that  a  percent- 
age of  those  cared  for  by  these  nurses  would  be 
apphcants  for  hospital  aid  were  it  not  for  the 
treatments  administered  at  their  own  homes, 
and  to  this  extent  free  work  at  the  hospitals  is 
■diminished.  On  the  other  hand,  charity  cases 
are  being  sent  to  the  hospitals  by  the  nurses 
who  otherwise  might  not  go,  so  there  are  two 
sides  to  the  question. 

Special  "Kegistration  jfunb. 


Brought  forward 

Miss  A.  Henderson  (Cape  Town)  ... 

Mrs.  Tennant ... 


6  8 
-5  0 
2     6 


£.57  14     2 


^Tbc  Ibospital  lUol•l^. 

THE  HOSPITAL  FOR  INVALID   GENTLEWOMEN. 

The  Hospital  tor  Invalid  Gentlewomen,  until 
recently  located  at  90,  Harley  Street,  \\  .,  must 
always  have  a  unique  interest,  inasmuch  as 
Miss'  Florence  Nightingale,  O.M.,  was  its 
Superintendent  for  two  years,  and  went  out 
from  it  to  take  up  her  national  work  in  the 
Crimea.  Founded  in  Chandos  Street  in  1850, 
and  aftenvards  removed  to  Harley  Street,  it 
has  done  good  work  there  until  the  falling  in  of 
the  lease  compelled  the  Committee  to  seek 
other  quarters,  with  the  result  that  it  was 
found  necessary  to  build,  and  a  convenient  site 
was  secm-ed  in  Lisson  Grove. 

On  Monday  the  new  hospital,  which,  thanks 
to  an  anonymous  donor  of  £5,000,  is  free  of 
debt,  was  opened  by  H.E.H.  the  Princess  of 
Wales,  who  was  received  by  the  President, 
Earl  Waldegrave,  the  Lady  President,  ^Lrs. 
William  Bridgeman,  the  Chairman  of  the 
Building  Committee,  Mr.  Wilharn  Bridgeman, 
M.P.,  and  the  Hon.  Secretary,  Mr.  Hugh 
Parker.  The  Lady  Superintendent,  ^Miss 
Houghton,  was  also  presented  to  the  Princess. 

Her  Eoyal  Highness,  who  was  weai-ing  a 
royal  purjjle  gown  aud  coat,  a  black  toque, 
and  handsome  fui's,  was  presented  by  Master 
Maurice  Bridgeman,  who  wore  a  suit  of  blue 
satin  and  lace,  with  a  beautiful  bouquet  of 
roses,  tied  with  salmon  pink  ribbon.  The  Pre- 
sident briefly  explained  the  objects  of  the  hos- 
pital, and  prayers  were  said  by  the  chap- 
lain, the  Eev.  C.  E.  Han-is,  Her  Royal  High- 
ness then  announcing  the  opening  of  the  build- 
ing in  the  following  words  :  — 

'■  I  declare  this  building  open  in  the  name  of  th« 
Father,  aud  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 
Amen." 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  opening  ceremony. 
Her  Koyal  Highness  inspected  the  wards,  which 
are  sunny,  bright,  and  comfortably  furnished. 
It  is  testimony  to  the  gratitude  of  patients  who 
have  been  nursed  in  the  hospital,  that  one  of  the 
private  wards  has  been  entirely  fiurnished  by 
them ;  very  bright  it  looked,  with  its  white 
Lawson  Tait  bedstead,  dimity  quilt,  comfort- 
able chair,  and  green  and  white  crockery.  AJl 
the  crockery  for  the  patients'  use  is  green  and 
white,  both  in  the  wards  and  that-  on  which 
their  meals  are  served,  and  the  white  lockers 
have  preen  tiled  tops. 

The  floors  are  laid  with  a  composition 
material,  the  basis  of  which  is  sawdust  and 
asbestos.  When  polished,  they  are  of  a 
pleasant  brown  colour,  and  by  the  side  of  each 
bed  is  a  strip  of  gi-een  cai-pet.  The  walls  are 
coloured  in  a  soft-  shade  of  gi'ev. 


214 


^be  Britisb  3oiirnai  or    imuyino-      ^^^^'''^'  i'-^-  ^Q^^' 


There  are  31  beds  in  all,  ou  twu  doors,  ouc 
large  ward  on  each  floor  containing  eight  beds, 
with  a  small  ward  leading  out  of  it  with  two 
beds,  and  on  one  floor  six,  and  ou  the  other  five, 
private  rooms,  each  provided  with  an  electric 
bell.  The  clocks  throughout  the  byildiug  are 
electric,  and  there  is  also  an  electric  lift.  The 
patients  can  easily  be  wheeled  on  to  the  flat 
roofs  adjoining  the  wards.  On  an  upper  floor 
is  the  up-to-date  operating  theatre,  with  north 
and  south  lights.  On  the  north  side  are  double 
windows,  with  hot  water  pipes  between,  and  on 
the  south  the  glass  of  the  window  is  coloured 
blue  to  avoid  a  possible  glare.  The  nurses'  and 
maids'  bedrooms  are  also  at  the  top  of  the 
building. 

The  arrangement  of  the  bathrooms  is  worthy 
of  note.  The  porcelain  baths  are  set  out  from 
the  wall,  and  the  material  of  which  the  floor  is 
composed  is  raised  into  a  pedestal  in  which  the 
bath  is  set,  so  that  it  is  easy  to  keej)  the  room 
perfectly  clean.  All  the  radiators  and  pipes 
throughout  the  building  are  painted  with 
aluminium  paint. 

The  staff  consists  of  the  Lady  Superinten- 
dent, ten  nurses,  eight  maids,  and  one  man. 

When  one  descends  to  the  kitchens,  one  finds 
them  spick  and  span,  and  white  tiled  through- 
out. There  is  an  open  archway  between  the 
kitchen  and  its  annexes,  so  that  the  cook  can 
keep  the  work  of  her  subordinates  under  obser- 
vation. It  is  so  arranged  that  the  whole  can 
be  flushed  out  into  the  garden. 

Over  all  the  stoves  is  a  sloping  glass  canopy, 
and  the  ventilation  is  so  arranged  that  all  steam 
and  odours  are  conducted  outside  the  building 
under  these,  so  that  no  odours  find  their  way 
into  the  wai'ds. 

The  Lady  Superintendent,  ]Miss  Houghton, 
received  her  training  at  St.  George's  Hospital, 
London,  and  afterwards  held  the  position  of 
Sister  there,  since  which  time  she  has  been 
Matron  of  the  Sevenoaks  Hospital,  Marl- 
borough. 

The  hospital  is  designed  to  meet  a  real  need 
in  providing  private  hospital  treatment  for 
necessitous  gentlewomen  at  fees  much  below 
those  usually  charged  in  a  private  nursing 
home,  and  medical  practitioners  attached  to 
London  hospitals  give  their  gratuitous  services. 

We  hope  it  has  a  useful  and  prosperous 
career  before  it  in  its  new  home. 


IRctlections. 


Fuo.M  A  Board  Koom  Mirror. 
Sir  Savile  Crosslej-,  who,  as  Hon.  Secretary,  pre- 
sented the  Dral't  Report  of  King  Edward's  Hospi- 
tal Fund  for  London  to  the  annual  meeting,  said 
that  the  amount  distributed  iu  1909  was  £150,000, 
being  an  increase  of  £10,000  over  the  sum  distri- 
buted in  1908.  For  the  first  time,  therefore,  the 
sum  mentioned  by  his  jjresent  Majesty  at  the  in- 
auguration of  the  Fund  has  been  attained.  Tlie' 
Council  desired  to  express  their  gratitude  to  all 
those  whose  contributions  had  made  it  possible  to 
achieve  this  result. 


The  Ladies'  Guild  of  the  London  Homoeo- 
pathic Hospital,  which  has  just  held  its  Annual 
Meeting,  does  much  useful  work,  including  the 
collection  of  subscriptions,  the  support  of  beds, 
and  the  provision  of  clothes  for  destitute  pa- 
tients. 'The  members  also  visit  in  the  wards, 
and  take  up  any  other  work  decided  upon. 


Workmen  are  already  preparing  the  site  for  tJie 
Barnato-Joel  Memorial  Institute,  to  be  built  on  a 
sit©  adjoining  the  Middlesex  Hosj>ital,  as  a  memorial 
to  the  late  Mr.  Harry  Barnato  and  his  nephew,  Mr. 
Woolf  Joel.  The  cancer  wards  of  the  institute  will 
contain  at  least  40  Ijeds,  which  will  bring  up  the 
number  available  for  cancer  patients  to  8?.  Funds 
are  available  for  the  upkeep  of  the  new  beds,  but 
the  resxx)nsibility  of  the  Committee  of  the  Hospital 
for  the  upkeep  of  the  ijreseut  cancer  wards  rem  mis 
thfe  same. 


At  the  Annual  Court  of  Giovernors  of  the  East 
Loudon  Hosi^ital  for  Children,  Shadwell,  the  Chair- 
man, Col.  Charles  Needham,  who  moved  the  adop- 
tion of  the  report,  and  emphasised  the  unsatisfac- 
tory financial  position,  the  fall  in  annual  subscrip- 
tions being  particularly  i-egrettable,  mentioned  that 
the  King's  Hospital  Fund  insisted  upon  the 
appointment  of  an  inquiry  ofiicer  for  the  inspection 
of  suspicions  cases.  Though  the  Governors  did  not 
think  the  appointment  necessary,  they  had  com- 
plied with  the  wishes  of  the  fund,  and  had 
appointed  the  Assistant  Mati-on  to  the  post.  Ihe 
cost  of  the  apix)intment  would  be  £120  a  year. 


Mr.  Hai-vey  du  Cros,  in  accepting  the  invitation 
to  become  the  Pnesident  of  the  Buchanan  Hospital, 
St.  Leonard's,  for  the  ensuing  year,  said  that  he 
had  just  passed  through  a  grave  illness  w'hich  he 
was  hardly  expected  to  survive.  By  God's  blessing 
he  did  survive,  and  he  knew  what  he  owed  to  the 
me<lical  men  who  attended  him,  and  to  those  noble 
Avomen  who  devoted  their  lives  to  nureing.  It  was 
good  to  feel  that  as  hospital  subscribers  they  were 
instrumental  in  admitting  the  poor  to  those  privi- 


At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Royal  Isle  of  'U'ight 
County  Hospital,  held  last  week  at  the  Guildhall, 
Newport,  the  62nd  Annual  Report  presented  by  the 
Rev.  W.  H.  E.  Welby,  Chairman  of  Committee, 
stated  that  thanks  to  a  munificent  gift  of  £-500 
from  an  anonymous  donor,  and  the  desire  of  the 
Dr^  Groves  Memorial  Committee  to  i>lace  their 
tribute  to  the  doctor's  memory  within  the  walls  of 
the  Hospital,  the  Committee  had  been  able  to  enter 
upon  a  scheme  of  perfecting  the  arrangements  of 
the  hospital  by  the  provision  of  a  new  operating 
theatre,  with  ana?sthetising,  sterilising,  and  other 
rooms,  the  necessary  funds  for  completing  the  work 
having  been  voted  from  invested  capital. 


March  12, 1910]      (^\jq  iBviUsb  Soumal  of  mursing. 


215 


Iprofcssional  IRcvtcw. 

A  MANUAL  FOR  MINOR  SURGERY  AND 
BANDAGING. 

AVe  have  much  pleasure  in  drawing  the  attention 
of  our  readers  to  the  fourteenth  edition  of  this 
valuable  manual,  which,  formerly  {cnown  as 
"Heath's,"  is  now  revised  and  in  part  re-written 
by  Mr.  Bilton 
K-oIlard,  F.R.C.S. 
The  picture  of  a 
surgeon's  aseptic 
operating  costume 
which  we  print 
on  this  page,  by 
the  kind  permis- 
sion of  the  pub- 
lishers, Messrs.  J. 
and  A.  Churchill, 
7,  Great  Marl- 
borough Street, 
W.,  shows  the 
great  advance  in 
surgery  since  the 
first  edition  of 
the  book  was  pub- 
lished in  1861. 
In  connection 
with  this  illustra- 
tion the  author 
writ«s:  "The 

aseptic  costume  of 
a  surgeon  is 
shown  in  the 
front  is  piece, 
where,  however, 
the  surgeon's 

hand  appears  to 
be  touching  the 
margin  of  the 
bowl,  on  its  way 
to  pick  up  a 
piece  of  gauze. 
No  surgeon  pro- 
perly trained  in 
asepsis  would  do 
that." 

The  book  is 
p  r  i  m  a  r  i  ly  in- 
tended for  house 
surgeons  and 
dressers,  but  it 
is  a  classic  with 
a  u  se  f  u  1  n  ess 
which  extends 
far  beyond  the 
class  for  whom  it 
was  originally 
written.  Nurses 
can  gain  much 
from      its    pages, 

while  the  clear  and  explicit  instructions  given  as  to 
the  methods  of  applying  bandages,  and  compressing 
arteries  would  b«  most  useful  to  those  who  are 
studying  these  subjects  in  connection  with  Red 
Cross  work. 

One  point  we  notice  referred  to  in  the  Introduc- 
tion is  "  the  prevailing  custom  of  constantly  scrub- 


bing the  floors  of  wards  with  soap  and  water,"  bt.t 
we  do  not  think  that  at  the  present  day  many  hos- 
pital wards  have  "  scrubbed  boards."  The  author 
says  also  that  "the  practice  of  polishing  and  dry- 
rubbing'  the  floor,  especially  if  made  of  teak,  or 
some  hard  wood,  is  a  great  improvement,  and  is 
found  to  have  a  direct  tendency  to  reduce  the  oc- 
currence of  wound  infection." 

We  are  glad  to 
note  that  the 
author  emphasises 
the  importance 
not  only  of  scrub- 
bing the  hands 
which  come  in 
contact  with  a 
wound,  but  of 
keeping  them 

clean.  He  writes: 
"  Everyone  whose 
hands  come  into 
contact  with  a 
wound,  or  with 
the  instruments, 
ligatures,  sutures, 
etc.,  must  exer- 
cise constant 
watchfulness  over 
his  hands.  He 
must  be  careful 
to  avoid  contami- 
nation as  much  as 
possible,  and 
should  protect 
his  hands  with 
gloves  when 
touching  dirty 
things."  The 
method  of  cleans- 
ing the  hands  is 
then  described  in 
detail.  Rubber 
gloves,  the  author 
holds,  should  be 
used  much  more 
frequently  than 
they  are  as  a 
means  of  protects 
ing  the  hands 
from  infection, 
and  "the  house- 
surgeon  or  dres- 
ser who  is  going 
to  help  at  an 
aseptic  operation 
in  the  afternoon 
should  certainly 
use  gloves  for 
dressing  septic 
cases  in  the  morn- 


A   Surgeon's   Aseptic  Operating    Costume. 


The  author  describes  in  detail  the  various  me- 
thods employed  to  sterilise  catgut,  but  concludes: 
"  Many  surgeons,  including  the  author,  are  scep- 
tical as  to  the  efficiency  of  all  those  methods  of 
sterilisation,  and  are  so  impressed  by  the  occasional 
occurrence  of  tetanus  after  its  use  that  they  are 
unwilling  to  use  it  under  any  circumstances." 


21G 


Ebe  Brltisb  3ournal  of  IRuvstiiG.        tMaicii  12,  leio 


Tlio  immediate  and  after  treatment  of  burns  and 
scalds  on  modern  lines  is  described  in  detail,  as  also 
the  three  recognised  methods  of  skin  grafting,  i.e., 
Thiersch's  method,  Reverdin's  method, and  VVoolfe's 
method. 

The  application  and  preparation  of  various  dress- 
ings, poultices,  etc.,  are  also  dealt  with.  Indeed, 
the  book  is  what  its  name  implies,  a  very  com- 
prehensive handbook  of  instructions  for  dealing 
with  all  the  minor  accidents  and  ailments  so  com- 
mon in  the  surgeries  and  outpatient  departments 
of  our  hospitals.  The  many  excellent  illustrations 
incorporated  in  the  work  add  to  its  clearness.  The 
price  is  7s.  6d.  net,  and  it  has  an  undoubted  sphere 
of  uscfuhiess  in  connection  with  nurses'  libraries. 


®ut5i&e  tbe  v6ates. 


"jSCIENCE   IN    MODERN    LIFE." 

The  foui-th  volume  of  this  ■^^■ork  has  just  been 
publislied.  It  contains  surveys  on  "Botany,"  by 
Mr.  J.  M.  F.  Drummond,  F.L.S. ;  "Zoology,"  by 
the  Editor,  Mr.  Ains\vorth  Davis;  and  "Science 
and  the  Sea  Fisheries,''  by  Dr.  Travis  Jenkins.  In 
the  botanical  section  several  beautifully  coloured 
plates  illustrate  different  sx>ecies  of  Fungi  and 
Algae.  The  work  will  be  completed  in  the  two  fol- 
lowing volumes,  one  of  which  will  contain  a  survey 
of  Pliysiology,  Medicine,  Surgery,  and  Hygiene. 
Th«  idea  of  producing  this  work  was  a  happy  one, 
for  all  niodeni  life  is  linked  to  science.  The  pub- 
lisher are  The  Gresham  Publishing  Company. 

E.  A.  S. 


SURGERY  OF  THE  LYMPHATIC  SYSTEM 
Professor  W.  Sampson  Handley,  of  the  Middlesex 
Hosiiital  Cancer  Research  Laboratories,  lecturing 
on  the  Surgery  of  the  Lymphatic  System  at  the 
Royal  College  of  Surgeons,  London,  observed  that 
the  subject  of  his  lecture  was  rather  neglected  in 
the  field  of  surgery,  and  expressed  the  opinion  that 
cancer  surgery  is  essentially  a  branch  of  lymphatic 
surgery,  owing  to  the  fact  that  the  disease  mainly 
spreads  by  gix>wing  along  the  lymi>hatic  vessels.  He 
gave  an  account  of  the  favourable  results  of  a 
method  which  he  had  introduced  for  treating  the 
dropsical  or  swollen  arm,  which  is  a  painful  and 
frequent  comi^licatiou  of  breast  cancer.  In  this 
operation  silk  threads,  buried  in  the  tissues,  are 
used  to  replace  the  lymphatic  vessels  destroyed  by 
the  disease.  In  this  way,  unless  subsequent  effusion 
in  the  pleural  cavity  int-erfores  with  drainage,  the 
sufferings  of  the  patient,  due  to  the  swelling  of  the 
arm,  are  usually  relieved  during  the  rest  of  the 
patient's  lifi-. 


THE  "ALLENBURYS"   DIET    FOR    ADULTS. 

The  "  Allenburys  "  Diet,  to  the  value  of  which 
we  have  mucli  pleasure  in  calling  attention,  is  a 
XJreparation  of  rich,  pure,  full-cream  milk  and 
whole  wheat,  and  is  partially  predigested  in  the 
process  of  manufacture.  ,Being  easy  of  assimila- 
tion its  use  ensures  complete  nutrition  where  diges- 
tion is  at  fault,  where  it  is  desired  to  assist  a 
normal  digestion,  or  where  a  weakened  economy 
a-equires  reinforcement,  as  in  elderly  people.  It 
is  supplied  by  Mes.srs.  Allen  and  Hanbury's,  Ltd., 
Plough  Court,  Lombard  Street,  E.G. 


The  appointment  by 
til©  Board  of  Trade  of 
eleven  ladies  to  be  Super- 
vising Offioei'^  of  tne 
Women's  Dejtartment  of 
the  Labour  Exchanges 
has  given  great  satisfac- 
tion. Tlieir  duties  will 
-^  bo  to  sui>ervi86,  under 
the  divisional  officers,  the  women  registration 
clerks,  to  get  into  touch  with  women's  organisa- 
tions, to  canvass  employers  of  women,  and  to  give 
advice  on  matters  within  their  province.  The  ladies 
appointed,  all  of  whom  have  had  excellent  ex- 
perience fitting  them  for  the  work,  are: — Miss  J. 
J.  Bixivvn,  B.A.,  of  the  Royal  Univereity  of  Ireland; 
iSIiss  L.  Griffith-Jones,  w'ho  has  sui>ervised  the  em- 
l>loyes  of  a  large  drai>ery  house;  Miss  M.  D.  Jones, 
who  has  made  a  study  of  statistics  of  unemploy- 
ment ;  Miss  F.  I.  Knowles,  M.A.,  of  Dublin  Univer- 
.sity  ;  Miss  M.  B.  Lewis,  M.A.,  of  Dublin  University ; 
Miss  E.  E.  Page,  member  of  the  Local  Education 
Authority,  Xonvich ;  Miss  Gertrude  E.  Rocliffe, 
Senior  Lady  Saiiit«ry  Insi>ecf>or,  Ncwcastle-ou- 
Tyne;  Mrs.  E.  Ross,  Health  Visitor  for  the  Cor- 
poration of  Glasgow ;  Miss  Sanday,  who  took  the 
degree  of  B.,Sc.,  with  first-class  honours  in  Botany, 
at  London  Univei-sity ;  Miss  E.  E.  M.  Trent,  mem- 
ber of  the  Society  of  Friends :  and  Miss  L.  M.  Clap- 
ham,  member  of  the  Apprenticeship  and  Skilled  Em- 
ployment As-Siociatioii. 

Petitions  widely  signed  by  electoi-s  in  favour  of  a 
measure  for  the  enfranchisement  of  women  were 
presented  in  the  House  of  Commons  last  week  by 
Mr.  J.  Walton  (Barnsley),  Sir  W.  J.  Crossley 
(Altrincham),  and  Mr.  T.  C.  Taylor  (Radchffe, 
Lanes) . 

At  the  eighteenth  annual  conference  of  the  Inde- 
pendent Labour  Party,  to  be  held  in  London  on 
March  28tli  and  29th,  the  Dover  Branch  will  pro- 
pose the  following  I'e&olution  : — "That  this  Confer- 
ence is  of  the  opinion  that  the  time  has  now  arrived 
when  the  State  maintenance  of  mothers  and 
children  should  be  made  a  permanent  and  integral 
part  of  our  Socialistic  lii'ogramme." 


Miss  Helen  Blagg,  lecturing  before  the  Eugenics 
Education  Society  on  infant  mortality,  said  that 
the  total  prohibition  of  the  employment  of  married 
women  would  be  impossible,  and  would  lead  to  an 
increase  of  |x>verty,  but  legislation  might  be  im- 
pi-ovod  on  the  lines  of  Germany,  Switzerland,  or 
Spain.  There  should  be  total  prohibition  of  employ- 
ment for  eight  weeks  before  and  after  child-birth, 
and  facilities  for  feeding  the  child  would  be  a  great 
gain.  

The  Mary  Kingsley  Medal  of  the  Liverpool 
School  of  Tropical  Medicine,  which  is  presented  to- 
persons  distinguished  in  research  in  tropical  medi- 
cine and  allied  subjects,  has  been  awarded  to  Pro- 
fessor G.  H.  F.  Nuttall,  F.R.S.,  Professor  of  Bio- 
logy in  the  University  of  Cambridge. 


^luni.  12, 1910]       ^|5g  jsritlsb  3oui:nal  of  IWursino. 


217 


Booh  ot  tbc  miceft. 


THE  QUESTION.* 
To   be  a   ''success"   or  not   to  be,   that   is  the 
-qm?6tiou. 

If  pretty  Josephine,  of  ideals,  had  worried  less 
about  her  lover  "  fulfilling  himself,"  and  delighted 
in  his  charming  pei-souality  as  it  was,  she  would 
have  been  a  well-advised  young  woman. 

Doubtless  it  was  trying  when  she  had  spent  a 
long  night  planning  her  answers  to  quite  a  num- 
ber of  things  he  might  bo  expected  to  say,  to  be 
greeted  with: 

■  •  Josephine,  wliafc  a  fearfully  jolly  tea  I 
What  arc  tve  waiting  for,  0  my  heart?  Shan't 
I  ring.^  Hurry  up  and  make  tea.  I  like  you  in  a 
green  dress,  but  it  will  suit  you  even  better  after 
tea.  Don't  spoil  my  appetite  by  being  the  least 
little  bit  stiff,  darling.  I  will  take  a  buttered 
scone.  They  almost  always  disagree  with  me,  and 
then,  with  shooting  pains  everywhere  1  shall  be 
more  in  tune  with  what  you  think  is  my  positive 
duty  as  a  reasoning  human  being. 

This  was,  of  course,  trying  for  one  who  had  lain 
awake  all  night,  wrestling  with  the  problems  of 
existence ;  yet  we  confess  our  sympathies  are  with 
Rupert,  who,  in  the  cosy  firelight,  refuses  to  con- 
sider anything,  but  that  he  is  young,  with  thp 
woman  he  loves,  and  is  desperately  hungry. 

Josephine  chooses  this  moment  to  complain.  It 
is  so  different  talking  to  you,  from  thinking  things 
over  alone,  your  incorrigible  levity — "  Good  word, 
incorrigible,"  breathed  Rupert. 

"Don't!"  she  said,  very  much  as  though  he 
had  struck  her.     "Rupert,   don't!" 

"  I  won't,"  he  promised,  very  quickly  and  hum- 
bly.    "  I  am  a  pig  of  the  first  water." 

And  then  she  unfolds  to  him  the  conditions  on 
which  she  will  accept  him.  He  is  to  leave  her  free. 
She  couldn't  "  marry  the  most  spotless  knight 
until  his  spurs  were  won." 

"  What  am  I  to  do  to  win  my  spurs?  ...  I 
don't  want  'em  honestly.  I'd  much  rather  just 
marry  you,  and  be  cosy  together,  and  eat  huge 
teas,  and  talk  rot.  And  play  to  you — of  course, 
play  to  you.  I  am  not  forgetting  that."  He 
seemed  to  be  speaking  very  lightly  still,  but  under- 
lying the  light  words,  there  rang  in  Josephine's  ear 
a  note  of  earnestness,  of  appeal. 

But  she  sends  him  away.  During  his  absence, 
there  appears  on  the  scene  "  the  other  one,"  the 
nephew  of  a  neighliouring  farmer,  who.  though  not 
of  her  own  class,  is  possessed  of  qualities,  besides 
"  magnetic  Jewish  eyes,"  which  appeal  to  her  far 
more  strongly  than  anything  in  Rupert.  The 
scene  in  which  she  meets  him  is  the  shepherd's  hut, 
where  the  old  man  lies  dying,  is  vividly  drawn. 
Penuel  Barton   asks  her  :  — • 

"Shall  I  tell  you  what  I  want?" 
Josephine  was  by  nature  a  fighter.     "  You  must 
please  yourself." 
But  Penuel  was  a  fighter,  too,  and  far  cleverer 

*  Bv  Parry  Truscott  (T.  Werner  Laurie,  Clifford's 
Inn,  W.C.) 


than  she  was.     "  It's  your  place  to  say  if  you  will 
listen,"  he  said. 

The  appalling   waste  of  life  and  opportunity  if 

she  failed  to  reap  this  harvest,  so  ripe  to  her  touch, 

overwhelmed  her.     "  Please  go  on,  then,"  she  said. 

"Listen,  I  want  you,  all  of  you.     .     .     .     Your 

love  to  the  uttermost  depths,  your  soul,  as  well  as 

your  body,  your  every  tliought,  your  every  desire. 

you.'"       He    paused    for    breathlessness. 

Though  she  had  not  spoken,  she  was  breathless,  too. 

"  Ah  !"   she  gasped. 

"  He  took  her  in  the  close  embrace  of  his  strong 
arms  and  covered  her  face  with  his  kisses. 

"The  rai&e<l,  shocko<l,  oondemning  voices  of  her 
world  clamoured  in  her  ears,  and  heroically  she  dis- 
regarded their  cries.  In  an  agony  of  pity  she 
pressed  her  cheek,  warm  with  his  kisses,  against 
his  cool  sleeve." 

"  O,  I  am  sorry  for  you — sorry  for  you,"  she  said. 
One  would  have  thought  the  inevitable  parting 
with  Rupert  that  follows  would  have  been  final, 
but  his  failure  at  the  recital  at  which  he  hoped  to 
win  his  musical  "  spurs,"  and  the  unfavourable 
criticisms  wliich  followed,  give  Josephine  her  op- 
portunity for  making  amende. 

"  You  perfect  darling,"  he  whispered. 
It  is  not  quite  satisfying  this,  and  vaguely  annoys 
us     But  by  all  means  read  "  The  Question." 

H.  H. 


COMING  EVENTS. 

March  10th. — British  Red  Cross  Society.  Meel^ 
ing  to  form  a  City  of  London  branch,  Sir  F.  Treves 
speaks,    Mansion    House,    4    p.m. 

March  IJfth. — .Annual  Meeting,  North  Ijondon 
Nursing  Association,  King  Edward  Hall,  Canon- 
bury,  the  Jlayor  of  Islington  presiding,  8  p.m. 

March  loth. — Kent  County  Nursing  Association. 
Annual  meeting.  Grand  Hotel,  Charing  Cross, 
London,  W.C. 

March  IGth. — Meeting  at  the  New  Infirmary, 
Hendon,  to  inaugurate  the  Hendon  Branch  of  the 
Central  London  Sick  Asylum  Nnrses'  League. 

March  nth. — Meeting  Central  Midwives'  Board, 
Caxton  House,  Westinin.ster,  S.W.,  2.4.5  p.m. 

March  18th. — London  Society  for  Women's  Suf- 
frage. Reception  by  the  Lady  Frances  Balfour  and 
the  Committee  at  the  Great  Central  Hotel,  Mary- 
lebone,  9—11.30  p.m. 

March  18th. — Women's  Social  and  Political 
Union.  Demonstration  at  the  Royal  Albert  Hall. 
Chair,  Mrs.  Pankhurst.    8  p.m. 

March  ISth. — Somerset  County  Nursing  Associa- 
tion. Eighth  Annual  Meeting,  Municipal  Build- 
ings, Taunton.  Address  by  Miss  Amy  Hughes, 
General  Superintendent,  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee 
Institute  for  Nurses,  3  p.m. 

March  23rd. — Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh. 
Lecture  on  "  Neurasthenia."  By  Dr.  J.  J.  Graham 
Brown.  Extra  Mural  Theatre.  Nurses  cordially 
invited.     4.30  p.m. 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 
"  Any  life  that  is  worth   living   for  must  be   a 
struggle,  a  swimming  not   icith,    but    against   the 
stream."  Dean  Stanley. 


218 


Zt)^  35ritisb  journal  of  H^ursing. 


[March  12,  1910 


letters  to  tbe  E&itov. 


^  Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
for  these  colum7is,  we  wish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understood 
that  ice  do  not  in  ant  wai 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  out 
correspondents. 


OUR  GUINEA  PRIZE. 

To  the  Editor  of  "  The  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
De:VR  Madam, — I   beg   to   acknowledge  a  cheque 
for  £1  Is.  as  the  result  of  Puzzle  Prize,  for  which 
I  thank  you. 

AVishiug  your  valuable  pajjer  every  success. 
Yours  faithfully, 

Maud  Chichton,  Matron. 
The  Hospital,  Louth,  Lincolnshire. 


REGISTRATION    FINANCE. 
To  the  Editor  of  tin-  "  British  ./ournal  of  Xursincj." 

Dear  Madam, — I  have  read  with  great  interest 
Miss  ilollett's  letter  in  your  columns  on  the  sub- 
ject of  Registration  Finance.  What  is  worth  hav- 
ing is  surely  worth  paying  for,  and  it  is  only  right 
and  proper  that  all  officials  under  the  Registration 
Council  should  be  fairly  remunerated.  It  would  be 
quite  as  reasonable  to  argue  that  all  hospital 
Ai'orkei-s — from  the  Matron  downwards — should  be 
voluntary  workers,  as  that  the  whole  machinery  of 
registration  should  be  kept  in  motion  as  a  work 
of  charity. 

Miss  Mollett  remarks  that  English  and  Irish  pro- 
bationers are  drawn  from  the  middle  classes. 

In  my  hospital  days,  the  same  condition  existed 
in  Scotland,  and  I  learn  from  several  ^Matrons  that 
those  who  now  enter  general  hospitals  belong  to 
the  same  clas-f\«.  Why  all  this  unseemly  outcry 
n1x>ut  the  hardships  of  jxjor  nurse.s? 

It  would  be  interesting  to  know  how  much  has 
been  subscribed  by  nurses  to  other  objects  than 
charitable  ones  during  the  past  year ! 

Scotch  probationers  receive  salaries,  and  I  have 
heard  many  nurses  remark  that  they  could  sav-^ 
more — in  proportion — while  "pros"  than  after- 
wards when  in  receipt  of  good  salaries.  Again, 
consider  the  number  of  nurses  who  on  the  comple- 
tion of  general  training  go  in  for  midwifery,  not 
with  the  view  of  practising  as  midwives,  but  simply 
for  the  purpose  of  adding  to  their  qualificatio  is. 
Many  women  without  any  training  go  in  for  mid- 
wifery for  the  pnrpose  of  making  a  living  as 
monthly  nur.ses.  These  women  are  usually  older 
than  traine<l  nui-se.s  who  enter  maternity  hospitals, 
and  many  of  them  liave  othere  depending  upon 
them  for  tlieii-  bread.  When  the  l>are  fees  and  iios- 
pital  board  come  to  -£lo  los. — a  common  figure — 
we  may  Siifely  add  £.5  to  £7  more  for  examination, 
books,  appliances,  and  railway  expenses.  Yet  we 
never  hear  a  grumble  from  these  wom^n,  and  we 
certainly  never  h«ir  of  any  attempt  to  make  thing.s 
easier  for  them. 


To  my  mind  this  cry  about  £5  for  examination 
and  registration  is  one  of  the  most  feeble  arguments 
which  has  been  brought  forward.  There  are  excep- 
tions to  every  rule,  but  we  cannot  mould  things  to 
meet  the  exceptions;  we  should  work  to  meet  the 
rules. 

In  Scotland,  a  favourite  form  of  memorial  is  a 
bursary  bearing  the  name  of  the  person  whose  good 
deeds  are  to  be  oommemorated  and  handed  down 
to  posterity.  Judging  fixmi  the  extreme,  interest 
which  has  been  taken  in  the  condition  of  nurses' 
pockets  it  is  only  reasonable  that  nurses  should  look 
forward  to  seeing  many  of  these  useful  helps — bear- 
ing well-known  names — ^in  full  operation. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Y'oui-s  faithfully, 

E.  A.  Stevenson. 


Comments  an&  TRepUes. 

Correspondent,  Clackmannan. — If  the  bedding 
and  blankets  are  thoroughly  stoved,  and  the  Iatt-?r 
subsequently  wa.shed,  thei'e  should  be  no  risk  in 
using  them  again,  only  it  is  important  to  be  certain 
that  the  stoving  really  is  efficient.  It  is  on  record 
that  a  medical  man,  doubtful  as  to  the  efficiency  of 
a  certain  system  of  stoving,  sent  a  coat  to  be  baked 
with  an  egg  in  one  of  the  pockets,  and  when  the 
ooat  was  returned  to  him  the  consistency  of  the  egg 
was  found  to  be  unchanged.  Free  exposure  to  fresh 
air  is  also  desirable. 

District  Nurse. — "The  Dogs'  Medical  Diction- 
ary,'' published  by  Routledge  and  Co., price  5s.,  will 
give  you  full  information  as  to  the  ailments  of 
dogs.  We  can  hear  of  no  similar  book  relating  to 
cats,  but  the  Matron  of  the  Animals'  Hospital  says 
"  Treat  them  as  you  would  children." 


IRotices. 


RULES  FOR   PRIZE  COMPETITIONS 
Something  About  Old  Sisters. 

We  offer  a  prize  of  £1  Is.  for  the  best  paper  of 
reminiscences  '  entitled  "  Sjomething  About  Old 
Sisters."  Tlie  j>aper  must  deal  with  Sistere  or 
Head  Nui-ses  in  charge  of  wai-ds  before  1885 — 
women  who  acquired  their  knowledge  and  skill  by 
I)ersonal  application  rather  than  as  the  result  of 
systematic  instruction.  The  papers  for  this  com- 
petition must  not  exceed  1.400  woixis,  and  must 
reach  the  Editor  at  20.  Upper  Wimpole  Street, 
Cavendish  Square,  London,  W.,  on  or  before 
Saturday,   March  12th,   1910. 

The  Prettiest  Patient. 

AVe  also  offer  a  prize  of  10s.  for  a  photograph  and 
description  of  "The  Prettiest  Patient,"  which 
mu,st  reach  the  Editor  at  20,  Upper  Wimijole 
Street,  Cavendish  Square.  London,  W.,  on  or  be- 
fore Saturday,  March  19th,  1910. 

The  decision  of  the  Editor  in  each  case  will  ))e 
final. 


OUR   PUZZLE   PRIZE. 
Rules   for  competing   for  the     Pictorial   Puzzle- 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  sii. 


March  12, 1910]  ^\jc  Btitisb  3oiu-nal  of  ll^iiraino  Supplement. 


•219 


The    Midwife. 


^be  Central  fil^(^wive5'  36oal•^. 

LIST  OF  SUCCESSFUL  CANDIDATES. 
Kkbkuabv  Ex.\iaNATIOS. 
At  the  examination  of  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board,  held  on  February  loth,  in  London,  Pro- 
vincial, and  Welsh  centres.  574  candidates  were 
examined,  and  474  passed,  the  percentage  of 
failures  was  17.4. 

London. 

British  Lying-in  HospHal. — M.  J.  Couper,  M.  A. 
Craig,  L.  M.  De  Basagoiti,  S.  J.  Hitchcock,  J.  A. 
M.  Jackson,  F.  E.  Penkivil. 

City  of  London  Lying-in  Hospital. — B.  L.  Bright- 
well,  E.  M.  Donaldson,  E.  Griffiths,  V.  D.  Hollick, 
M.  Kaye,  M.  E.  Kendall,  il.  W.  Lindsay,  E.  Little- 
wood,  R.  E.  C.  Parkin,  K.  Kobiusou,  S.  Stancsby, 
K.  E.  Stone,  M.  J.  TVeston. 

Clapham  Maternity  Hospital, — S.  E.  Barmby,  E. 
Benjamin,  H.  C.  Campbell,  F.  J.  Gamble,  D.  G. 
Jackson,  M.  H.  Lindsay,  E.  C.  Miller,  C.  Pickup, 
M.  Ray,  R.  L.  Scudamore,  A.  M.  Webley. 

East  End  Mothers'  Home.—L.  A.  Brooker,  B.  E. 
Chantler,  M.  E.  Conway,  A.  Fox,  L.  Harvey,  S. 
W.  Midgelow,  C.  ^^^lite. 

General  Lying-in  Hospital. — M.  H.  Ballance,  E. 
A.  Birch,  A.  A.  B.  Brown,  1.  V.  Burningham,  S.  A. 
Cheeseman,  M.  A.  M.  Coaker,  G.  11.  Davidge,  H. 
Deas,  E.  R.  Draper.  J.  M.  M.  Henderson,  L. 
Homewood,  L.  M.  Jefferys,  A.  Jones,  A.  M.  Keen, 
R.  Lambert,  A.  Lingen-Burton,  G.  Loog,  A.  S. 
Orr,  X.  Rogers,  E.  IL  Tunbridge,  G.  E.  Turner, 
H.  J.  Tyrell,  A.  Varlou ,  E.  A.  L.  Velvin,  M.  C.  D. 
Walters,  A.  Wherry,  J.  M.  Wiley,  N.  Wiley,  C.  G. 
Wilkinson,  E.  S.  Williams. 

Guy's  Institution. — M.  L.  Brown,  M.  A.  Hartin, 
E.  M.  Mow  Fung,  E.  M.  NichoUs,  C.  M.  Porter, 

E.  G.  Stone,  B.  F.  Woollett. 

London  Hospital. — K.  M.  Carthew,  E.  E.  Cook, 
V.  Cottage,  E.  A.  Fletcher,  M.  B.  Hunt,  A.  M. 
Jenner,  B.  M.  King,  H.  I.  Matthews,  H.  Parry, 
K.  Sharpe,  K.  E.  Wallbank. 

Middlesex  Hospital.— F.  E.  Child,  K.  Lander. 

Xew  Hospital  for  Women. — P.  G.  Frere,  E. 
Henry,  K.  Lowe. 

"  Begions  Beyond"  Missionary  Union. — N. 
Raine,  E.  WTiitehead. 

Queen  Charlotte's  Hospital. — F.  Baker,  G. 
Baker,  F.  H.  Callaway.  E.  HaviU,  C.  A-  Hodson, 

F.  M.  Howell,  E.  A.  McCormick,  L.  Merryweather, 
A.    Wareing,   E.    M.   M.   Watsou. 

f!alration  .irmy  Maternity  Hospital. — A.  Arm- 
gill,  E.  Anderson,  E.  F.  Bartlett,  M.  Brooks,  A. 
Prosser,  M.  M.   Stroud. 

Shoreditch  Union  Infirmary. — G.  Ennis,  R.  E. 
Hendry,  E.  F.  Leahy,  F.  Reade.  E.  E.  Tibbies. 

W'hitechapel  Union  Infirmary. — E.  M.  Long,  M. 

G.  Soust«r. 

Woohcich  Home  for  Mothers  and  Babies. — A.  M. 
Acton. 


Provinciai,. 

Aldershot ,  Louise  Margaret  Hospital. — M.  Els- 
don,  J.  Pattison,  A.  S.  Tether. 

Birkenhead  Maternity  Hospital. — 1.  Bagtiley,  M. 
J.  Bryan,  E.  Edwards,  L.  C.  L.  Heward,  W.  Ken- 
nett,  E.  Williams. 

Birmingham,  Aston  Union  Workhouse. — F.  E. 
Dunn,  M.  E.  Faulkner,  M.  A.  Mole,  E.  Xaish. 

Birmingham,  King's  Xorton  Union  Infirmary. — 
K.  Bach,  E.  Wotherspoon. 

Birmingham  Maternity  Hospital. — K.  C.  Ap- 
pleby, S.  S.  Bennett,  K.  Bird,  H.  L.  Bunting,  N. 
J.  K.  Hall,  F.  Hawkes,  H.  Haycock,  A.  Houghton, 
E.  Lovell,  M.  F.  Reid,  F.  A.  Smith,  S.  K.  Teague, 
S.  A.  Young. 

Birmingham  Workhouse  Infirmary. — E.  Hand- 
ley,  M.  E.  Huish,  M.  L.  Peart. 

Brighton  and  Hove  Hospital  for  Women. — M.  E. 
Broad,  E.  V.  O.  Gascoigne,  M.  Lamb,  E.  A.  Mus- 
son.  K.  C.  Roberts,  F.  il.  T.  Sherwood.  A.  Winter, 
M.  F.  F.  WooUey. 

Bristol  General  Hospital.— ^l.  M.  Comer,  E.  G. 
Jenkins,  M.  L.  Rouse,  C.  E.  P.  Smith,  E.  J.  Tillev. 

Bristol  Eoyal  Infirmary.— E.  E.  Blunsdon,  R.  M. 
Gravett,  B.  Hughes,  M.  E.  Nickson,  M.  Taylor. 

Chatham  Military  Families  Hospital. — E.  Kelly. 

Cheltenham  District  Xursing  Association. — M. 
Cule,  J.  Davies,  F.  Fry.  R.  E.  Steel. 

Chester  Benevolent  Institution. — L.  Bolland,  G. 
Davies,  M.  Dutton,  S.  A.  G.  Lett,  A.  M.  Todd. 

Derby  Eoyal  Xursing  .Association. — M.  C.  Baker, 
E.  M.  Hodgkineon.  A.  E.  Jenkinson,  A.  Pole. 

Devonport  Military  Families'  Hospital. — L.  J. 
Delahay.  M.  B.  Mcintosh. 

Essex  County  Cottage  Nursing  Society. — K.  E. 
Parker,  A.  M.  Sayzland. 

Gloucester  District  Nursing  Society. — M.  Hann, 
G.  E.  Moore,  E.  M.  TerriU. 

Hull  Lying-in  Charity. — E.  K.  Hadaway. 

Ipswich  Nurses'  Home. — C.  M.  Bacon. 

Liverpool  Maternity  Hospital. — J.  Anders.  F. 
Brown,  E.  M.  Collins,  B.  M.  Duff,  A.  G.  Burber, 
M.  A.  Greene.  S.  Halewood,  M.  Hannoii.  E.  Hazel- 
dine,  E.  Hudson.  M.  I.  Killop,  A.  Kiunear,  C.  A. 
Linacro,  S.  Lockington,  M.  J.  Mellor,  E.  Morgan, 
K.  Xixon,  I.  M.  Ralph,  C.  Smith,  M.  E.  Towers, 
A.  J.  Whittam. 

Liverpool,  West  Derby  Union  Infirmary. — C.  R. 
Evans,  G.  L.  Foxton,  F.  S.  lesott. 

Liverpool  Workhouse  Hospital. — B.  Irvine,  A.  M. 
R.  Johnson,  M.  F.  Tliomson. 

Manchester,  Chorlton  Union  Hospitals. — A.  M. 
Flynn,  A.  Sutton.  C.  A.  "Walker. 

Manchester,  St.  Mary's  Hospitals. — C.  E.  Acra- 
man,  C.  J.  Addison,  A.  Bentley,  E.  M.  Broom, 
K.  H.  Croke.  M.  Hacking,  E.  Hairsnape,  A.  E. 
Herbert.  J.  P.  Ingham,  M.  A.  Isbister.  H.  Jeffery,. 
J.  F.  Jeffrey,  H.  .Jones,  M.  Moore,  A.  E.  Richard- 
son. H.  A.  Thompson. 

Manchester  Workhouse  Infirmary. — S.  E.  Daw 
son,  E.  J.  Urquhart. 


220        Z\K  British  3ournal  of  IRursino  Supplement,   t^^^'ch  12.  iokj 


Monmouth  Trainiiiij  Centre. — L.  Baker,  L. 
Davies,  S.  Ewart,  A.  A.  George,  M.  A.  Groom,  G. 
Haines,  J.  Healy,  M.  Jenkins,  B.  B.  Sheppard,  A. 

F.  Stevens. 

y eu'caxtle-nn-T yne  Maternity  Hospital. — M.  Tay- 
lor, M.  B.  Traill. 

yexcport  and  Monmouthshire  Sospital. — J. 
Murray. 

Sottinqhan  'Workhouse  Infirmarii. — K.  O'Don- 
nell. 

Plaisioii-  Maternity  Charity. — M.  E.  H.  Barr- 
Hamilton,  L.  L.  Bateman,  S.  J.  Chadwick,  E.  M. 
Chad.  F.  A.  Cleall,  W.  A.  Conwav,  E.  A.  V. 
Cooper,  M.  T.  Cracroft,  A.  R.  Bade,  A.  Evans,  S. 
Franks.  M.  E.  Griffitlis.  E.  K.  Houghton,  G.  Jack- 
man,  E.  Johnson,  K.  Neale,  M.  L.  Pierce,  E.  J. 
Phimh,  H.  K.  Robinson,  L.  Rushworth,  N.  Soott^ 
T.  Spalding.  M.  A.  Stagg,  J.  A.  Tutt. 

Portsmouth  Military  Families'  Hospital. — A.  L. 
Eldridge,  R.   B.  Little. 

Sheffield,  Jessop  Hospital. — E.  A.  Holt,  R.  A. 
Todd. 

Sheffield  Union  Infirmary. — A.  G.  Duxfield. 

}Yindsor,  H.E.H.  Princess  Christian's  Maternity 
Home.—L.  C.  Searle,  A.  A.  S.  Taylor. 

Wolverhampton,   Q.V.J. I. — E.  S.  A.  Burden,  N. 
Campbell,  E,  M.  Dickinson,  R.  Dukesell,  R.  Grigg, 
E.  E.  Spencer,  C.  E.  Warmington. 
Wales. 

Cardiff,    Q.V.J .X-I.—E.  Evan.s,    G.    Kilvington, 

G.  M.  King,  C.  Smith,  A.  M.  Vanghan. 
Cardiff  Union  Hospital. — A.  E.  L.  Jones. 

Scotland. 

Aberdeen  Maternity  Hospital. — A.  Donald,  M. 
Grant. 

Dundee  Materniiy  Hospital. — H.  K.  Brooke,  M. 
Gilchi-ist,  G.  Portei,  H.  White. 

Edinhurrih  Boyal  Maternity  Hospital. — E. 
Bruce,  K.  S.  Cathels.  E.  I^eeming,  E.  M.  Mo.selev. 
M.  B.  Reah,  M.  Relph,  A.  Smith,  I.  H.  Wight, 
E.  L.  AVi-ight. 

GhiSiiov  Eastern  District  Hospital. — F.  E.  Mac- 
kenzie, E.  E.  Young. 

Glasgow  Western  District  Hospital. — E.  Jenkins. 

Glasgow  Maternity  Hospital. — M.  H.  Anderson, 
W.  K.  Donnett,  C.  B.  Ferine,  M.  Hamilton,  M.  W. 
Service,  J.  Waddell. 

Ireland. 

Belfast  Incorporated  Maternity  Hospital. — E. 
Collins. 

Belfast  Union  Maternity  Hospital.- — H.  E.  Bag- 
galey,  E.  Maginn,  E.  Reilly,  E.  Walker,  T.  S. 
Whiteside.  ' 

Dublin,  Coombe  Hospital. — G.  Boake. 

Ihiblin,  Botunda  Hospital. — K.  M.  Boyd,  A.  M. 
Glendinning,  A.  Grimes,  M.  P.  Killick,  E.  V.  M 
Monk,  M.  A.  Simmers. 

Private  Tuition. 

E.  L.  Andrews,  J.  I.  Baldock,  F.  C.  Barclay,  M. 
Barker,  B.  Barnes.  A.  L.  Barracloigh,  A.  Bell.  K. 
Bellamy,  J.  L.  Bickford,  L.  Birchall,  B.  G.  P. 
Blagg,  A.  M.  Bond,  L.  S.  Bowman,  K.  Brightwell, 
A  Bromley,  F  A.  Broughton,  A.  Brown,  M.  E. 
Brown,  E    A,  Brunt,  M.  F.  Buckell,  B.  E.  Budgen, 


B.  B.  Canham,  A.  Cobbe,  M.  Cousins,  V.  G.  Cro- 
mar,  G.  Crowe,  C.  AV.  Curra,  J.  C!  Dawson,  M. 
Deas,  J.  E.  Dent,  A.  E.  Draper,  E.  J.  DufEefl,  I. 
Ferrie,  B.  Fleming,  D.  N.  Frances,  E.  Francis,  !M. 
S.  Eraser,  M,  Galbraith,  F.  G.  Gillett,  E.  Gilson, 
N.  E.  Grinley,  F.  E.  Groombridge,  H.  M.  Gubb, 
E.  L.  Haddeii,  H.  Hall,  J.  Hall,  G.  C.  Hannaford, 
A.  Harding,  A.  A.  Harris,  E.  Harris,  E.  Harvey, 
K.  i.  Hawkins,  A.  E.  A.  Hicks,  F.  L.  Hicks,  M.  i<". 
E.  Hicks  E.  Hirst,  S.  Hirst,  C.  A.  Hiscox,  E.  F. 
Hodges,  M.  Holland,  A.  Hunter,  C.  A.  Jackson,  K. 
James,  S.  A.  Jarman,  K.  Jeans,  J.  Jenkins,  H. 
Johnson,  E.  A.  Jones,  G.  E.  Jones,  S.  A.  Jones,  H. 
Kelly,  E.  E.  Keown,  G.  Kerr,  S,  E.  Kitchen,  H. 
Kweit,  D.  A.  Ladbixx)k.  R.  C.  P.  Lancaster,  .J.  C. 
H.  G.  Langerman,  S.  E.  Lay,  J.  Lishman,  E.  C. 
Livingstone,  ,M.  A.  Long,  E.  Luoas,  C.  Lvnch,  M. 
M.  McAuslan,  J,  McClelland,  A.  J.  Macdonald,  S. 

E.  :McDonald,  L.  C.  McGrath,  T.  Maclagan,  I. 
JIacleod,  H.  McPhail,  H.  E.  Mason,  E.  A.  Mellor, 
M.  L.  Meredith,  E.  F.  ilerrall,  P.  Mettam,  M. 
Moore,  A.  >L  ilorrall,  T.  M.  Muir,  M.  Parry,  S.  M. 
Partridge,  E.  A.  Pates,  S.  A.  Peach, 
L  G.  Phillips,  E.  Philp,  L.  Power,  H,  Prescott, 
O.  V.  P.ve,   E.  Ross,  M.   A.  Russell,  E.  C.   Scally, 

F.  J.  Schmitt,  M.  E.  Sherman,  M.  L.  Sherman, 
N.  E.  M.  Sherwood,  F.  L.  Smith,  E.  M.  Snow, 
R.  E.  A.  Snow,  E.  J.  Spencer,  M.  Stanley,  J.  C. 
Stevenson,  M.  J.  Stirman,  E.  Taylor,  S.  J.  Tay- 
lor, N.  M.  Terry,  C..H.  Thackerav,  E.  S.  Thomas, 

E.  E.  Tiplady,  M.  Trollope,  E.  J.  Tuite,  N.  M.  F. 
Viner,  L.   E.   Walker,  E.  J.  Wall,  A.    B.  Waller, 

F.  M.  E.  L.  Warner,  A.  J.  M.  Webb,  A.  White- 
head, E.  Williams,  G.  E.  Williams,  S.  A.  Williams, 
E    Wind,  T.  S.   AMiitcombe. 


IWational  association  of  flDi^wives- 


An  interesting  meeting  convened  by  the  National 
Association  of  Midwives,  9,  Albert  Square,  Man- 
chester, was  held  at  the  Caxton  Hall,  Westminster, 
on  Saturday  last.  Mrs,  Lawson,  the  President, 
who  was  in  the  chair,  spoke  of  the  urgent  need 
of  organisation  amongst  midwives. 

Mrs.  Eddie,  Financial  Secretary,  explained  the 
aims  of  the  Association,  and  said  that  its  members 
did  not  object  to  rules  and  laws,  but  wished  for  a 
say  in  their  making,  througli  a  direct  representa- 
tive on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board.  Midwives 
knew  where  the  shoe  pinched,  and  where  the  rules 
might  be  eyen  more  stringent.  They  wanted  the 
right  to  live,  and  to  raise  the  standard  of  educa- 
tion. They  were  not  "out"  with  the  object  of 
becoming  millionaires,  but  to  make  their  position 
firm,  that  babies  might  be  healthier  and  midwives 
better  trained. 

In  the  discussion  which  followed,  Mrs.  Lights 
bourne,  of  Blackburn,  Miss  Thompson,  Miss  Alice 
Gregory.  Mrs.  Parnell,  Mrs.  Glanville,  Miss  Elsie 
Hall,  Miss  Breay,  and  otliers,  took  part.  Members 
of  the  Midwives'  Institute  present  considered  that 
body  should  satisfy  all  legitimate  needs,  but  the 
Chairman  expressed  the  opinion  that  it  did  "  not 
fill  the  bill." 


[Ml 


THE 

IdOUik 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

I  mimmma  uwcmm 

EDITEH  ^:/  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,  MARCH    19,    1910. 


lEMtonal. 

A    QUESTION     OF    HONOUR. 

There  is  an  inherent  tendencj' in  every- 
one to  talk  of  the  things  in  which  he  or  she 
is  absorbed.  Within  limits  this  is  good. 
People  are  usually  at  their  best  when  talk- 
ing of  their  hobbies,  because  these  are 
subjects  on  which  they  are  well  informed 
and  can  give  interesting  information.  But 
the  person  who  can  talk  of  nothing  but  his 
speciality  is  a  bore,  and  this  is  one  reason 
why  from  time  to  time  the  charge  is  made 
against  many  nurses  that  they  talk  nothing 
but  "  shop,"  a  charge  which  just  recently 
has  been  levelled  at  them  in  a  morning 
paper. 

The  nurse  against  whom  such  a  charge 
is  a  true  bill  olTends  in  more  ways  than 
one.  First  and  foremost  she  is  wanting  in 
the  honour  and  reticence  which  should  be 
her  strongest  characteristics,  for  "  shop " 
usually  takes  the  form  of  relating  spicy 
details  in  connection  with  cases  which  she 
attended.  What  would  be  thought  of  a 
:nedical  practitioner  who  went  from  one 
patient  to  another  relating  details^racj', 
gruesome,  or  intimate — which  have  come 
to  his  knowledge  solely  through  his  pro- 
fessional attendance  on  the  case  ?  To  their 
credit,  the  medical  profession  seldom  offend 
in  this  way. 

The  nurse  is  not  always  so  discreet.  Of 
course,  her  temptation  to  offend  is  much 
greater  than  that  of  the  doctor.  lie  visits 
the  patient  perhaps  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour, 
a  consideralile  part  of  wliich  is  taken  up 
with  his  pi'ofessional  duties,  a  few  pleasant 
commonplaces,  and  he  is  out  of  the  house 
and  on  his  way  to  another  case.  Tlie  pri- 
vate nurse  is  with  the  patient  continuously. 
She  has,  if  he  is  in  the  convalescent  stage, 
to  keep  him  happy  and  entertained.     She 


draws  on  her  store  of  knowledge  for  this 
purpose,  and  tlie  chances  are  that  if  she 
does  not  draw  on  her  nursing  experiences 
she  draws  a  blank,  lor  the  average  nurse  is 
not  well  read,  has  not  travelled  much,  and 
her  experience  of  life  is  verj'  ordinary.  So 
the  "  interesting  case  "  is  brought  out,  on 
which  she  can  talk  fluently  enough,  and  if 
she  keeps  off  horrors  the  patient  may  be 
interested  and  anuised  until  it  occurs  to 
him  that,  just  as  she  is  describing  her  last 
case  for  his  benefit,  so  she  may  dilate  on 
him  to  the  next — then  the  position  does  not 
seem  so  amusing,  for  the  foibles  and  weak- 
nesses of  a  patient  are  revealed  to  a  nurse 
as  to  few  other  people  ;  she  sees  him  with- 
out the  armour  in  which  he  confronts  the 
world,  and  it  is  just  for  this  reason  thatanj'- 
woman  of  honour— even  if  she  is  not  a 
nurse  pledged  to  reticence  by  the  unwritten 
law  of  her  profession — will  keep  silence. 

Another  very  real  temptation  to  nurses 
is  when  they  leave  a  case  and  return  to  the 
Home — where  other  nurses  also  live— to 
discuss  with  them  the  details  of  their  cases, 
so  that  the  Home  is  a  kind  of  clearing-house 
of  information.  There  can  1)e  no  justifica- 
tion for  this  habit,  and  nurses  should 
rigorously  set  their  faces  against  it.  No 
information  as  to  what  has  passed  in  the 
sick-room  from  which  they  have  come,  or 
of  the  nature  of  the  illness  from  which 
the  patient  whom  they  have  been  attending 
has  suffered,  should  be  communicated 
by  them  to  other  nurses,  and  so  to  the 
general  public.  It  is  an  offence  against 
their  professional  honour. 

The  devotion  and  the  self-sacrifice  of 
nurses  are  unquestioned,  they  are  pillars 
of  strength  in  times  of  acute  illness 
and  emergency  ;  the  more  the  pity, 
therefore,  when  minor  failings  mar 
their    value. 


Cbe  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRursing. 


[March  19,  1910 


flDeMcal  flDattcvs. 


THE   1V10RAL3TREATMENT  OF   DISORDERED 
NERVES. 

An  interesting  little  book  on  '  Nervousness," 
by  Dr.  A.  T.  Schofield,  M.E.C.S.,  should  be 
studied  by  nurses,  as  far  too  little  is  kno^'u  and 
understood  in  regard  to  this  distressing  affec- 
tion. We  quote  below  two  sections  of  this 
^^■ork  which  will  give  an  insight  into  its  scope, 
and  we  hope  induce  our  readers  to  study  it  at 
length. 

Mental  Causes  of  Nerve  Disease. 

The  predisposing  cause  to  nerve  trouble  is 
principally  a  nervous  diathesis  or  disposition. 
People  are  born  nervous:  that  is,  they  are 
bom  with  the  nervous  system  unduly  pro- 
minent, less  under  control,  less  orderly  in  its 
action  than  in  other  people.  No  doubt  a  highly 
developed  nervous  system  ivith  adequate  con- 
trol is  the  best  type  lor  man  or  woman;  but 
without  this  control  he  or  she  joins  sooner  or 
later  the  ranks  of  nerve  sufferers.  The  great 
predisposing  cause  is  therefore  heredity;  but 
(and  this  may  be  noted  as  important),  if  the 
family  history  only  reveals  nervous  troubles  in 
other  members  as  distinguished  from  loss  of 
mind  in  any  form,  the  invalid,  however  severe 
his  symptoms  and  great  his  sufferings,  is  not 
likely  to  cross  the  border-hne  of  sanity  to  the 
other  side. 

The  exciting  causes  may  be_  mental  or 
physical. 

The  leading  mental  cause  of  nervous  disease 
is  worry,  first  and  foremost,  rather  than  work. 
Properljr  regulated  brain-work  no  more  leads  to 
nei-ve  disease  than  hard  manual  labour  leads 
to  disease  of  the  muscles.  Indeed,  it  is  so  far 
from  injuring  the  nerves  that  u  is  one  of  the 
greatest  sources  of  their  strength,  and  one  of 
the  strongest  safeguards  against  neurasthenia. 
Worry,  however,  is  an  unmitigated  evil ;  it  is 
a  most  vicious  habit,  doing  good  to  none,  but 
.invariably  damaging  more  or  less  the  nervous 
system  of  the  one  who  gives  way  to  it.  This 
must  be  due  to  the  constant  cross-currents  of 
thought  that  eddy  backwards  and  forwards  in 
the  brain,  and  to  real  fatigue  and  difficulty  in 
finding  the  resultant  that  shall  issue  in  action 
from  among  a  number  of  conflicting  forces. 

Next  to  won-y  as  a  cause  of  nerve  disease, 
or  perhaps  bracketed  with  it,  we  should  be  in- 
clined to  place  sudden  mental  idleness,  such 
as  schoolgirls  experience  when  all  at  once 
transformed  at  tlie  close  of  the  last  school  term 
into  '■  .young  ladies."  The.  change  from  work- 
ing every  day  through  a  long  time-table  to  the 
peaceful  occupation  of  arranging  the  flowers  in 
the  drawung-room  for  half  an  hour  dailv.  has  a 


\  ciy  marked  effect  on  some  natures,  and  they 
readily  become  a  prey  to  nerve  disorders  from 
the  abrupt  cessation  of  brain  work.      .     .      . 

Long-continued  strain  from  any  reason  is 
another  cause,  and  so  is  overwork  of  all  sorts, 
especially  if  combined  with  underfeeding,  as  is 
so  common  in  the  poorer  classes.  Bad  mental 
surroinidings,  such  as  association  with  other 
nerve  sufferers  or  anxious  or  fractious  parents, 
are  other  agents;  and  there  are  many  more. 
Physical  CausI:s  of  Nerve  Disease. 

Turning  to  the  -physical  causes,  which,  how- 
ever, generally  act  in  conjunction  with 
mental,  we  would  first  place  general 
ill-health,  especially  if  dyspepsia  be 
present;  too  much  physical  work  is- 
seklom  a  cause,  but  too  httle  exercise  fre- 
quently is.  Sudden  change  of  surroundings  of 
any  sort  frequently  develops  nervous  disease. 
Shock  arising  from  accidents,  bad  news,  etc., 
is  a  cause;  so  is  extreme  grief  or  extreme  joy. 

Now,  nervous  people  are  the  very  salt  of  the^ 
earth,  and  the  leading  men  in  every  profession 
are  drawn  from  their  ranks.  They  are  men 
with  brains  that  thrill,  that  feel,  that  are  quick 
in  action,  firm,  clear,  and  of  high  organisation. 
It  is  the  nervous  men  that  rule  the  world,  not 
lymphatic  vegetables.  Listen  to  an  impartial 
sketch  of  the  type  :  — 

"  The  skin  is  dark,  earthy,  pale,  or  may  be 
of  any  shade,  and  is  often  hot  and  dry.  The 
skull  is  large  in  proportion  to  the  face  ;  muscles, 
spare,  features  small,  eyes  quick,  large, 
lustrous;  circulation  capricious,  veins  large. 
Face  characterised  by  energy  and  intensity  of 
thought  and  feeling;  movements  hasty,  often 
abrupt  and  violent,  or  else  languid.  Hands  and 
feet  small,  frame  slight  and  delicate.  Require 
little  sleep.  Prone  to  all  nervous  diseases. 
Always  seem  to  be  able  to  do  more  than  they 
are  doing.  The  character  may  bCj  on  the  one 
side,  admirable  for  its  powers  of  mind  and  in- 
sight, for  its  lofty  imagination;  while,  on  the 
other,  it  may  be  disfigured  by  impetuous  and 
luiruly  passions.  To  this  class  belong  the  most 
intellectual  of  the  race — the  wittiest,  the 
cleverest  of  mankind.  These  are  the  poets, 
the  men  of  letters,  the  students,  the  professors, 
or  the  statesmen.  Their  great  dangers  consist 
in  uncontrollable  passions.  They  feel  pain 
acutely.  Nevertheless,  they  can  endure  long 
fatigue  and  privation  better  than  the  sanguine. 
They  form  the  leaders  of  mankind.  Amongst 
women  there  ar-e  delicacy  of  organisation, 
quickness  of  imagination,  and  fervour  of 
emotion ;  but  they  are  beset  with  danger,  from 
want  of  control  of  their  great  powers." 

The  book  is  published  bv  William  Eider  and 
Son.  Ltd..  164.-.Aldersgate  Street,  E.G.  • 


Maici.  19. 1910]       ^^e  j&vir.C'h  3omnal  ot  HAiirstna. 


223 


Clinical  iRotcc^  on  Some  Con\nion 
ailments. 

Bv  A.  Knvvexx  Goudu.x,  ^..B.  (Cantab. )T 


[Concluded  from  page  204.) 

When  inflammation  attacks  the  respiratory 
organs,  the  signs  vary  according  to  its  extent 
imd  its  intensity,  an  intense  aSection  being  not 
necessarily  extensive,  nor  an  extensive  lesion 
intense.  Thus,  when  the  nose  only  is  afiectcd, 
we  have  at  first  the  feeling  of  heat  and  pain, 
with  swelling  of  the  lining  membrane,  and 
when  the  secretion  commences,  there  is  a  run- 
ning from  the  nose— in  fact,  a  common  cold. 
When  the  inflammation  spreads  lower  down 
(which,  of  course,  does  not  always  happen), 
and  the  bronchi  are  involved,  we  get  bronchitis, 
and  if  there  is  a  further  extension  to  the 
alveoli,  we  have  pneumonia  or  inflammation  of 
the  lungs.  We  need  not  now  consider  the 
common  cold,  but  we  will  dwell  a  little,  firstly 
on  bronchitis,  and  in  the  next  paper  pneumonia 
will  be  dealt  with. 

Bronchitis  practically  always  begins  with  a 
eold  in  the  head,  and  the  first  sign  that  this 
lias  extended  downwards  is  to  ne  found  in  the 
jiresence  of  a  cough,  which  is  nothing  more  or 
less  than  a  forcible  expiration  with  the  larynx, 
or  voice  box,  closed,  and  its  object  is  to  expel 
secretion  from  the  bronchial  tubes,  where  it 
would  otherwise  lodge. 

At  first  this  cough  is  frequent  and  shallow, 
or  tickling,  as  we  say,  but  later  on,  as  the 
secretion  becomes  more  profuse,  it  is  easier  and 
deeper,  and  accompanied  by  the  ejection  of 
the  secretion,  which  in  children  is  swallowed 
and  in  adults  spat  out.  If  the  attack  is  very 
acute,  and  especially  in  children,  there  may  be 
a  slight  rise  of  temperature  at  first. 

So  long  as  the  inflammation  is  confined  to 
the  larger  tubes  we  have  nothing  more  serious 
than  the  discomfort  engendered  by  the  cough- 
ing, and  the  act  of  breathing  is  not  interfered 
with,  because  there  is  plenty  of  room  in  the 
large  tubes  both  for  air  and  secretion,  but  if 
the  inflammation  extends  to  the  smaller  tubes. 
we  have  a  different  state  of  things  altogether, 
because  there  is  no  longer  room  for  both  air 
Mnd  secretion,  so  that  if  the  latter  is  not  ex- 
pelled, air  cannot  pass  through  the  small  tubes 
into  the  alveoli,  and  the  patient  dies  of  suffoca- 
tion, being  in  fact  drowned  in  his  own  secre- 
tions. However  uncomfortable,  therefore,  the 
cough  may  he,  we  must  look  upon  its  presence 
as  an  advantage,  and  the  more  vigorous  it  is, 
withiti  limits,  the  hap])ier  the  nurse  should  feel 
about  the  safety  of  her  patient. 

The  first  sign  of  danger,  then,  is  to  be  found 
in  the  diniiiuition  in   the  force  of  the  coufrh. 


and  this  is  soon  followed  by  the  next  sign — 
namely,  cyanosis,  or  blueness  of  the  lips  and 
ears,  which  is  obviously  due  to  the  face  tliat 
the  blood  is  not  getting  its  proper  supply  of 
oxygen.  Along  with  this,  we  have  extreme 
distress  as  the  patient  tries  to  force  air  into 
his  lungs  by  using  all  the  muscles  of  his  chest 
and  neck.  He  is  restless,  and  cannot  lie  down, 
but  has  to  be  propped  up  in  bed  with  pillows. 
At  this  stage  the  patient  may  either  die  from 
an  insufficient  supply  of  air,  or  his  strengtu 
may  hold  out  until  the  inflammation  begins  to 
abate,  and  he  then  coughs  up  large  quantities 
of  secretion  and  recovers.  If  he  dies,  he  suc- 
cumbs painlessly  and  apparently  sleeps,  and 
the  relatives  will  think  that  he  is  getting 
better,  but  so  long  as  the  lips  are  blue, the  sleep 
must  be  regarded  as  a  sign  of  danger,  not  of 
hope. 

On  listening  to  the  chest,  preferably  behind 
over  the  lowest  part  of  the  lungs,  we  can  hear 
(usually  without  a  stethescope)  two  kinds  of 
abnormal  sounds  with  each  respiration;  these 
are  rhonchi,  or  snoring  sounds,  which  are  due 
to  the  air  passing  through  tubes  that  are  nar- 
rowed by  inflammation,  and  rales,  or  bubbling 
sounds,  which  are  caused  by  the  air  making 
its  way  through  the  fluid  secretion  in  the 
smaller  tubes. 

The  outlook  is  determined  mainly  by  two 
fact-or.s — the  presence  or  absence  of  cj'anosis 
and  the  extent  to  which  the  patient's  strength 
is  being  maintained,  this  latter  being  estimated 
roughly  by  the  force  of  the  cough  and  the 
rapidity  of  the  pulse — quickening  of  the  pulse 
being  a  sign  of  danger — and  more  accurately 
by  the  careful  examination  of  the  heart,  which 
is  always  made  by  the  physician.  Babies  ami 
old  people  bear  bronchitis  badly. 

The  treatment  of  ^n  attack  of  bronchitis  re- 
solves itself  into  attending  to  the  following 
points: — Firstly,  in  the  beginning,  when  the 
tubes  ai-e  hot  and  painful,  we  have  to  soothe 
the  lining  membrane  and  encourage  it  to 
secrete.  The  best  way  to  do  this  is  to  let  tlio 
patient  breathe  air  saturated  with  steam, 
which  is  perhaps  the  most  comforting  thing  we 
can  give.  In  adults  this  can  be  effected  by 
means  of  an  inhaler  (which  can  easily  be  ex- 
temporised from  a  jug  of  boiling  water  and  a 
foliled  towel'l,  because  by  this  way  the  steam 
is  confined  to  the  patient's  lungs,  and  does  not 
also  saturate  his  clothing  and  the  walls  of  the 
room.  As  a  general  rule,  therefore,  unless  a 
patient  can  be  taught  to  use  an  inhaler — and 
even  small  children  usually  can  if  they  are 
encouraged  to  think  of  it  as  a  game  and  not  as 
an  invention  of  the  man  with  the  black  bag — 
it  is  best  not  to  use  steam  at  all,  except  in  the 
case  of  babies  with  bad  attacks,  when  we  have 


224 


sEdc  Britisf)  journal  of  IHurslng. 


[March  19,  1910 


to  chance  the  harm  arising  from  the  saturation 
of  the  clothing,  and  moisten  the  air  of  the 
room  with  steam  from  a  kettle.  In  unskilled 
hands  a  kettle  usually  does  more  'harm  than 
good.  Sometimes  the  steam  in  the  inhaler  is 
medicated  with  sedative  drugs,  but  the  main 
factor  is  the  warmth  and  moisture  of  the  steam 
itself. 

Next,  when  secretion  has  been  established, 
we  want  to  liquefy  it  as  far  as  pos- 
sible, and  stimulate  the  power  of  cough- 
ing. For  this  purpose  we  use  such 
drugs  as  chloride  of  ammonium,  which 
has  mainly  a  Uquefying  action,  cai-bonate 
of  ammonium  and  ipecaehuaua  wine,  which 
also  strengthen  the  power  of  cough.  Many 
other  drugs  are  also  employed,  but  the  object 
is  the  same.  Lately  a  tendency  has  arisen  to 
belittle  the  efficacy  of  drugs  given  by  the 
mouth  in  pulmonary  affections,  partly,  no 
doubt,  on  account  of  the  many  '"  elegant  "  but 
quite  useless  preparations  which  the  enter- 
prising chemists  have  so  freely  distributed  of 
late,  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  drugs  pro- 
perly used  have  turned  the  scale  in  the  patient's 
favour  in  very  many  cases  of  bronchitfs. 

Thirdly,  if  cyanosis  appears,  we  want  to 
ensure  that  the  little  air  that  passes  to  the 
patient's  alveoli  shall  be  as  useful  to  the  blood 
as  possible,  and  we  therefore  add  pure  oxygen. 
We  do  this  by  letting  him  breathe  the  gas 
through  a  tube  connected  with  a  cylinder  con- 
taining the  gas. 

In  addition  to  these  measures,  we  often  find 
that  hot  poultices  or  fomentations  appUed  to 
the  back  of  the  chest  give  the  patient  much 
relief,  but  unless  these  are  applied — and  con- 
stantly changed — by  a  skilled  nurse  they  do 
much  more  harm  than  good.  Eubbing  the 
back  with  an  irritating  liniment  is  free  from 
the  drawbacks  of  wet  applications  and — in 
small  children  especially — is  often  very  effica- 
cious. In  fact,  the  vigorous  maternal  applica- 
tion of  camphorated  oil,  at  the  mention  of 
which  the  nose  of  the  modern  nurse  is  apt  to 
become  somewhat  upturned,  is  not  without  its 
advantage  to  a  bronchitic  baby. 

Then,  when  the  heart  shows  signs  of  failing, 
we  use  stimulants  such  as  alcohol,  or  cardiac 
tonics  such  as  strychnine  and  digitalis. 

So  far,  we  have  spoken  only  of  an  acute 
attack,  but  this  does  not  always  clear  up  com- 
pletely, and  we  get  what  is  known  as  chronic 
bronchitis,  where  the  patient  suffers  from  a 
perpetual  cough,  which  may  be  either  dry  and 
irritating,  or  deep  and  accompanied  by  profuse 
expectoration,  but  inasmuch  as  the  sufferer 
from  this  complaint  only  comes  under  the  care 
of  the  nurse  when  he  has  an  acute  attack  on 


the  top   of  his  chronidS  trouble,  we  need  not 
dwell  on  this  type  now. 

Fr-om  the  foregoing  remarks  it  might",  per- 
haps, appear  that  the  treatment  of  a  case  of 
bronchitis,  as  far  as  the  nurse  is  concerned, 
resolves  itself  mainly  into  administering  the 
drugs  prescribed  by  the  physician,  but,  as  a 
matter  of  fact,  the  issue  of  the  battle  is  very 
often  decided  mainly  by  the  nursing.  Some- 
thing has  to  be  done  almost  every  minute ; 
now  a  little  nourishment  has  to  be  given,  now 
a  change  of  position  has  to  be  made  to  ease 
the  restlessness,  or  even  to  enable  the  patient 
to  get  rid  of  accumulated  secretion.  Often  a 
life  can  be  saved  in  the  case  of  cyanosed 
children  by  holding  them  up  by  the  heels  so 
that  the  mucus  can  run  out  by  itself,  or  a  fail- 
ing heart  can  be  resuscitated  by  holding  a  hot 
sponge  over  it.  Then  there  is  the  indescribably 
soothing  effect  which  the  ministrations  of  a 
well-trained  nurse  have,  not  only  on  the 
patient,  but  also  on  the  anxious  relatives.  All 
these  count  for  very  much  in  deciding  the 
ultimate  issue  of  the  case,  though  they  cannot 
be  described  on  paper  or  learnt  from  a  text 
book. 

tibc  JfluC'bina  of  lEnteric  jfcvcr 
IPaticnts. 


The  Budapest  correspondent  of  the  Lanbct 
has  sent  to  that  journal  an  account  of  a  paper 
read  by  Dr.  i\Iayer  on  ^Yater  Drinking  as  a 
Treatment  for  Typhoid  Fever.  He  said  that 
medical  men  have  for  long  recognised  the  value 
of  the  free  administration  ■  of  water  in  this 
disease,  and  it  is  common  to  ask  the  patient 
to  drink  at  least  one  Utre  in  the  day.  He  has 
recently,  however,  made  an  interesting  trial 
of  the  eiiects  of  giving  greatly  inci-eased  quan- 
tities of  water  during  the  course  of  typhoid 
fever.  By  the  regular  administration  or  about 
live  ounces  of  water  every  15  minutes- during 
waking  hours  (as  first  suggested  by  Dr.  H. 
Gushing  in  America)  he  was  able  to  give  each 
patient  from  8  to  14  pints  of  water  per  day,  in 
addition  to  about  3  pints  of  other  fluid,  which 
usually  consisted  of  milk  and  albumin  water, 
the  water  used  being  filtered  river  water.  Th^r-se 
apparently  enormous  quantities  of  fluid  were 
taken  with  ease.  Under  this  system  Dr.  Mayer 
says  that  headache  is  much  less  common;  the 
general  comfort  of  the  patients  is  increased; 
the  tongue  and  mouth  remain  clean,  and  nausea 
is  unusual.  Restlessness,  sleeplessness,  and 
delirium  cause  less  trouble.  He  considers  the 
svstem  worthv  of  a  wider  trial. 


Mrtivli  10,  1010 


a  be  British  3ournai  or  TRursinfi. 


Z\K  passing  of  riDtss  35la 
Stewart. 


On  Thursday,  March  10th,  with  every 
tribute  of  affection  and  respect,  Miss  Isla 
Stewart,  Matron  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, was  laid  to  rest. 

At    Chilwuhth. 

As  we  briefly  stated  last  week,  the  end  camt- 
at  Chilworth,  Surrey,  on  Sunday,  Marcii  6tli, 
where,  with  her  friend,  ilrs.  Bedford  Fenwick, 
she  had  gone  for  a  short  rest.  They  left  town 
•II  the  previous  Thursday,  and  on  Saturday  a 
'TV  happy  letter  was  rec-^ived  at  the  hospital 
iioni  Miss  Stewart,  but  on  Saturday  morning 
she  was  not  well,  and  the  local  doctor  was  sum- 
moned. In  the  afternoon  ^Irs.  Fenwick  tele- 
L;raphed  to  St.  Bartholomew's  for  a  nurse,  !Miss 
Stewart  herself  naming  Miss  L.  M.  Low, 
Night  Superintendent,  as  the  one  to  be  sent. 
I>y  a  later  train,  in  response  to  another  tele- 
Liani,  Miss  Janet  Stewart,  her  sister,  accom- 
panied by  Dr.  Horder,  who  has  recently  been 
attending  her,  and  Miss  E.  Nicholson,  Superin- 
ii-ndeut  of  the  Nurses'  Home,  arrived  at  Chil- 
worth, and  on  Sunday,  Miss  Cutler,  the  Assist- 
ant ^latron,  went  down  also.  Everything  pos- 
sible was  done  for  her,  but  nothing  availed,  and 
^he  passed  to  her  rest  on  Sunday  at8. 15p.m.  It 
was  surely  an  ideal  end — the  end  she  herself 
would  have  wished — in  harness  till  the  last, 
and  then  two  golden  days  in  the  peace  and  love- 
liness of  the  country,  spent  with  the  fx'iend  with 
whom  she  had  been  associated  in  her  public 
work,  for  over  twenty  years  of  close  comrade- 
ship and  affection,  and  attended  in  her  last 
liours  by  a  member  of  the  staff  of  the  hospital 
she  had  served  so  faithfully,  and  nursed  with 
affectionate  devotion  by  tnose  who  owed  their 
skill  to  her  teaching  and  training. 
At  the  Hospital. 

On  the  ^londay  evening,  accompanied  by 
Miss  Borthwick  (Sister  Lawrence),  and  Miss 
Nicholson,  the  remains  of  their  beloved  Matron 
were  brought  back  to  the  hospital,  and  were  re- 
reived  at  the  Smithfield  entrance  by  the  Sis- 
''■rs,  the  flag  which  floats  over  the  hospital  as 
1  mark  of  its  Royal  foundation  drooping  sorrow- 
lully  at  half-mast.  Then  as  the  body  was  car- 
ried into  the  mortuary  chapel,  beautified  by 
loving  hands  with  fragrant  Madonna  lilies,  the 
Sisters,  with  Lady  Hampden  Smith,  a  former 
Sister  and  intimate  friend,  formed  in  proces- 
sion, and  followed  it  into  the  mortuary  chapel, 
where  a  short  service  was  held,  conducted  by 
the  hospitaller,  the  Kev.  11.  S.  Close,  and  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Lewthwaite,  Vicar  of  St.  Paul's, 
Clerkenwell.  So  she  came  back  to  the  hos]>i- 
tal,  to  rest  for  awhile  in  charge  of  the  Sisters 


and  nurses  who  loved  her  well,  and  who  were 
keenly  conscious  of  many  kindnesses  and 
gracious  actions  towards  them  on  the  part  of" 
the  ^latron  who  took  so  real  an  interest  in 
their  personal  and  professional  welfare. 

l)n  the  Tuesday  the  mortuary  chapel  was  in 
charge  of  Miss  Birch,  House  Sister,  who  is 
u.sually  responsible  for  it,  and  of  Sister  Martha, 
who  ordinarily  undertakes  to  su})ply  and  ar- 
range the  flowers,  and  on  the  Wednesday  the 
Sisters  were  on  duty  in  rotation  for  half-an- 
hour  at  a  time. 

The  Ch.\mber  of  Pe.\ce. 

Throughout  Wednesday  many  reverent  feet 
trod  the  steps  leading  to  the  quiet  sanctuary. 
Sisters,  nurses,  members  of  the  League  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital  Nurses,  maids  irom 
the  wards,  and  the  Home, and  members  of  the 
civil  staff,  all  came  to  visit  the  place  where  the 
mortal  remains  of  their  Matron  lay  enshrined. 
And  surely  something  of  its  peace  and  beauty 
stole  into  the  hearts  which  were  sore  for  her. 
and  brought  a  sense  of  comfort  and  rest. 

The  casket,  of  plain  unpolished  oak,  with  a 
brass  plate  inscribed  "Isla  Stewart,  " 
and  the  dates  of  her  birth  and  deatli. 
lay  in  simple  dignity  before  the  altar 
with  its  pure  white  lilies,  and  on  it, 
or  near  by,  rested  the  flowers  sent  by 
those  who  were  closest  to  her.  The  cross  sent 
by  the  Nursing  Staff  of  the  hospital,  composed 
of  orchids,  lilies  of  the  valley,  and  white 
heather,  nearly  covered  it.  It  bore  the  inscrip- 
tion, in  letters  of  gold,  on  a  white  ribbon, 
"  In  loving  memory  from  her  Nurses,"  at 
the  foot  was  the  hospital  shield,  carried  out 
in  white  stock,  and  puqjle  violets,  fringed  with 
orchids,  and  with  a  knot  of  black  and  white 
ribbon,  inscribed,  in  silver  letters,  "  To  our  dear 
Matron,  from  her  Sisters,  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital";  deep  crimson  roses 
were  sent  by  those  who  knew  her  love 
for  them — by  her  sister,  I\Iiss  Janet 
Stewart,  by  Miss  Cutler,  whose  lovely 
wreath  hung  at  the  head  of  the  casket,  and  by 
Miss  Amy  Tibbett,  who  served  her  so  faithfully 
and  devotedly.  At  the  foot  was  a  beautiful 
wreath  of  orange  tulips  and  deep  yellow  daffo- 
dils "  from  the  private  nursing  staff  in  affec- 
tionate remembrance."  In  a  place  of  honour 
also  was  the  wreath  bearing  the  words,  "  Dear 
Isla  Stewart,  from  her  friend  Ethel  Fenwick," 
composed  of  Madonna  and  Eucharis  lilies, 
lilies  of  the  valley,  orchids,  frezia,  and  white 
tuHps,  with  Parma  violets  interspersed,  and 
opposite  a  bunch  of  white  heather,  sent  by  Sir 
Rudolph  and  Lady  Hampden  Smith. 

Froni  the  Medical  ami  Surgical  Staff  came  a 
wreatii  of  lilac,    lilies,   and   sinilax ;   from   the- 


226 


^be  asritisb  3ournal  oi  iRursing.      t^^ai^i^  lo,  loio 


^Medical  Council  a  wreath  of  roses,  lilies  of  the 
valley,  and  deep  brown  leaves;  from  the  Junior 
^ledical  and  Surgical  Stafi'  a  chaplet  of  carna- 
tions and  lilies  of  the  valley  ;  from  Mr.  Thomas 
Hayes,  Clerk  to  the  Governors,  and  Mrs. 
Hayes,  a  wreath  of  red  roses  and  white  stocks ; 
from  the  Steward,  Mr.  Watkins,  a  wreath  of 
white  arum  lilies,  and  pink  tiowers;  from  the 
Civil  Staff,  a  wreath  of  mauve  and  white 
flowers;  from  the  Stafi  Maids,  a  white  anchor 
\\ith  red  roses;  from  the  workwomen,  a  harp 
iured  and  white  ;  the  scrubbers alsoseut  flowers. 
The  League  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital 
Nurses  sent  a  magnificent  anchor,  composed  of 
white  stocks  with  a  cluster  of  red  carnations, 
and  intertwined  with  red  geraniums,  bearing 
the  inscription  :  "  In  affectionate  remembrance 
of  our  ]\Iatron,  the  Founder  of  our  League, 
from  all  the  ^Members  of  the  League  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital  Xurses."  Equally 
exquisite  was  the  harp  "■  from  the  mem"- 
bers  of  the  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Bri- 
tain and  Ireland  to  theirPresident,  in  affectionate 
and  honoured  remembrance,"  carried  out  in 
white  stocks,  with  strings  of  d-ark  violets,  and 
decorated  with  mauve  orchids,  lilies  of  the 
valley,  white  heather,  and  light  green  foliage, 
with  ribbons  of  soft  wide  mauve  satin,  har- 
monising with  the  orchids. 

These  were  placed  in  prominent  positions  on 
either  side  the  altar,  and  before  it  lay  a  most 
beautiful  cushion  of  white  stocks,  with  the 
letters  "I.  S.  "  carried  out  in  moss,  and  a 
cluster  of  Mme.  Chateney  roses,  and  ribbons  to 
correspond,  inscribed:  "  A  loving  tribute  to  our 
beloved  Matron  from  her  married  nurses." 
Near  by  was  a  lovely  wreath  of  massed  light 
and  dark  violets,  with  a  cluster  of  lilies  of 
the  valley,  Parnia  violets,  and  asparagus 
fern,  "  In  sorrowful  and  grateful  remembrance 
of  our  President,  from  the  Society  for  the  State 
Registration  of  Trained  Nurses."  A  handsome 
cycas  leaf  palm  chaplet  of  Madonna  and  lanci- 
folium  lilies,  and  lihes  of  the  valley,  with  deep 
variegated  red  leaves  interspersed,  came  "from 
the  National  Council  of  Trained  Nurses  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland,  in  loving  memory  of  her 
national  work  for  nurses  ";  and  the  tribute  of 
the  International  Council  of  Nurses  was  a 
wreath  of  massed  white  immortelles,  bearing 
two  palm  leaves,  secured  with  mauve  ribbons, 
and  a  cluster  of  Parma  violets,  with  the  in- 
scription, "  In  sorrow."  Her  colleagues  on  the 
Army  Board,  Miss  C.  H.  Keer,  Matron-in- 
Chief,  and  Miss  E.  H.  Becker,  Matron-in-Chief 
elect,  sent  a  wreath  of  laurel  leaves,  ^Madonna 
luies,  white  tulips,  and  violets ;  the  Registered 
Nurses'  Society,  a  laurel  wreath  with  a  cluster 
of  Madonna  lilies  and  white  heather,  "  in 
grateful  remembrance    of    her    work    for  the 


nursing  profession."  A  lovely  wreath  came 
from  the  Irish  Nurses'  Association  i^of  which 
Miss  Stewart  was  an  Hon.  ]\Iember),  of  Ma- 
donna and  Eucharis  lilies,  white  stocks,  and 
pink  carnations,  with  a  fringe  of  deep  brown 
leaves;  Steevens'  Hospital  Nurses'  League, 
Dublin,  sent  a  wreath  of  choice  white  flowers 
and  shamrock ;  and  the  Leicester  Infirmary 
Nurses'  League,  a  laurel  wreath  with  a  cluster 
of  beautiful  ^ladonna  lilies  and  deep  red  roses. 
Another  beautiful  wreath  of  orchids,  hhes  of 
the  vallej-,  and  violets,  came  from  "  old  nurses 
who  are  now  Matrons  " ;  and  from  "  Some  old 
nurses  " ;  a  cross  of  Parma  violets,  lilies  of  the 
valley,  and  white  heather:  from  ]iliss  Payne, 
the  Matron  of  Great  Ormond  Street  Children's 
Hospital,  and  five  of  the  Sisters,  a  wreath 
of  violet  and  white  flowers.  The  "  Ecole 
des  Infirmieres  de  I'Assistance  Pubhque  de 
Paris  "  sent  a  lovely  chaplet  of  the  lilies  of 
France,  carnations,  and  palms,  tied  with  the 
Tricolour. 

Besides  these  pubhc  tributes  were  many 
from  individual  relatives  and  friends.  Mrs. 
Borthwick  and  family  sent  a  bunch  of  crimson 
carnations ;  Miss  ]M.  Stewart,  a  bunch  of  tulips ; 
I\Iiss  Helen  Pearse,  Superintendent  of  L.C.C. 
School  Nurses,  a  shield  of  violets;  Miss  I.  C. 
Keogh,  Matron,  Richmond  Hospital,  Dublin,  a 
wreath  of  lilac  blossoms  and  pale  pink  carna- 
tions;  Miss  Beadsmore  Smith,  a  bunch  of  red 
carnations,  heather,  and  orchids;  Miss  Brist-ow, 
a  bunch  of  lilies;  the  Misses  C.  H.  and  A. 
Bourne,  a  cross  of  white  flowers ;  Miss  Karr,  a 
bunch  of  violets;  Miss  Dickinson,  bunches  of 
snowdrops ;  Mrs.  Gardner,  a  basket  of  red 
rauunculas  and  white  flowers ;  Dr.  and  Mrs. 
Caiger,  roses  and  lilies  of  the  valley;  Dr.  Cuff, 
a  cross  of  white  flowers;  Dr.  Bruce,  a  wreath 
of  violets  and  lilies  of  the  valley;  Miss  Lucy 
Low  and  ]\Irs.  Anderson,  wreaths  of  daffodils ; 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Acland,  a  laurel  wreath  with 
violet  and  white  flowers;  Mrs.  Wilson,  a 
laurel  wreath  with  white  flowers;  Lady  Maud 
Keith  Falconer,  a  wreath  of  mauve  and  white 
flowers;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bernheim,  a  laurel 
chaplet  with  lilies  and  other  white  flowers ;  the 
Misses  Daisy  and  May  Paterson,  a  mauve  and 
white  cross  ;  Mrs.  Blampton  Paterson,  a  bunch 
of  flowers ;  and  wreaths  were  also  sent  by  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Gray,  Mr.  Deane  and  family,  and 
the  Misses  Day  and  Dalrymple. 

As  she  lay  in  the  quiet  sanctuary,  surrounded 
by  these  love  tokens,  the  general  feeling  was 
that  the  body  of  the  Matron  could  have  found  no 
more  appropriate  resting  place.  Nurses  trained 
in  the  hospital  in  years  gone  by  well  remember 
the  old  mortuary;  they  visited  it  but  rarely, 
and  they  always  sent  their  patients  down  to 
it  with  a  thrill  of  regret.    In  the  arrangements 


Mai-ch  19,  1910] 


Zbc  Brltisb  3ournaI  of  IHurstno. 


of  the  new  mortuaij-  chapel,  Miss  Stewart  had 
taken  the  keenest  interest,  and  placed 
them  in  the  charge  of  a  member  of  the 
nursing  staff  of  long  standing  in  the  hospital,  so 
that  they  instinctively  felt  the  place  which 
the  hospital  now  provides  for  its  dead  was  the 
most  fiiting  setting  which  could  be  found  for 
their  beloved  head — for  the  Matron  whom  they 
desired  to  honour. 

So  she  rested  there,  as  she  herself  would  have 
wished,  till  the  time  came  for  the  journey 
north.  As  they  carried  her  through  the  Smith- 
field  gate,  all  the  Sisters  and  certificated  nurses 
followed  the  casket,  in  spite  of  the  pouring  rain, 
through  Smithfield,  and  along  Giltspur  Street, 
till  it  passed  beyond  the  hospital  boundaries, 
then  some  returned,  but  a  number  of  the  Sis- 
ters, with  Dr.  Norman  Moore,  Senior  Physi- 
cian, Mr.  Thomas  Hayes,  Clerk  to  tlie  Gover- 
nors, and  others,  went  on  to  Euston,  where, 
with  all  reverence  and  respect  the  body  was 
entrained  for  Mofiat. 

St.  B.\rtholomew's  the  Gre.\t. 
The  parish  church  of  the  hospital,  St.  Bar- 
liiolomew"s  the  Less,  was  quite  inadequate  to 
iiold  all  those  who  desired  to  show  their  respect 
for  Miss  Stewart's  memory  by  attending  the 
Memorial  Service  in  London  on  Thursday,  May 
10th,  so,  by  the  kind  permission  of  the  Eector, 
it  took  place  in  the  beautiful  church  of  St. 
Bartholomew  the  Great,  West  Smithfield, 
where,  within  the  sanctuary  rails,  is  the  tomb 
of  Eahere,  the  great  founder  of  the  hospital, 
whose  traditions  ]Miss  Stewart  had  so  worthily 
carried  on,  and  even  its  spacious  choir  was  filled 
to  overflowing.  One  side  was  reserved  for  the 
nursing  staff  of  the  hospital,  and  silently  and 
sadly  Sisters,  nurses,  and  probationers  came  in 
until  every  seat  was  filled,  and  only  standing 
room  was  available.  The  large  and  representa- 
tive congregation  included  Lord  Sandhurst, 
Treasurer  of  St.  Bartholomew's,  and  Lady 
Sandhurst,  a  number  of  the  Governors,  the 
Medical  and  Surgical  Stafi  of  the  hospital,  Mr. 
Thomas  Hayes,  Clerk  to  the  Governors;  and 
many  members  of  the  civil  staff;  Sir 
George  Wyatt  Truscott,  late  Lord  Mayor  of 
London ;  Sir  Edmund  Hay  Currie  ;  Sir  Frederic 
.\lliston  ;  Sir  IMontague  Nelson  ;  Professor  and 
Mrs.  Howard  Marsh,  Dr.  Bedford  Fenwick, 
Mr.  Walter  Spencer,  F.ll.C.S.,  and  Mrs.  Spen- 
cer ;  Dr.  de  Segundo,  and  other  medical  friends. 
iliss  E.  S.  Haldane,  LL.D.,  Vice-Chairman, 
Territorial  Force  Nursing  Service,  and  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Society 
for  the  State  Registration  of  Trained  Nurses; 
Miss  Cave,  Matron  of  Westminster  Hospital, 
member     of     the     Army     Nursing     Board; 


Miss  C.  H.  Keer,  K.R.C.,  Matron-in-Chief 
t^A.I.M.N.S. ;  Miss  E.  H.  Becher, 
Matron-in-Chief  elect;  Miss  Sidney  Browne, 
K.K.C.,  Matrou-in-Cliief,  Territorial  Force 
Nursing  Service;  Miss  Haughton,  Matron 
of  Guy's  Hospital,  representing  also 
the  Irish  Nurses'  Association;  Miss  H.  L. 
Pearse,  Superintendent  of  School  Nurses  under 
the  London  County  Council;  Miss  H.  Sherlock, 
representing,'  the  Leicester  InfiiTnaiy  Nurses' 
League ;  Miss  ^laiben,  representing  the  League 
of  St.  John's  House  Nurses;  Miss  Finch,  Ma- 
tron of  University  College  Hospital ;  members 
of  the  Matrons'  Council  and  of  the  League  of 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  Nurses  too  numer- 
ous to  mention;  and  Mnie.  Jacques,  Matron 
and  Superintendent  of  Nursing  of  the  Nursing 
School  of  the  Assistance  Publique,  Paris,  who, 
with  one  of  her  pupils,  had  travelled  to  London 
to  represent  it,  an  action  which  will  not  soon 
be  forgotten  by  her  English  colleagues. 

The  service  was  conducted  by  the  Arch- 
deacon of  London,  the  Rev.  H.  S.  Close,  vicar 
of  St.  Bartholomew's  the  Less,  and  Chaplain 
to  the  hospital,  and  the  Rev.  R.  Adams,  for 
many  years  Assistant  Chaplain.  The  sweet  old 
hymns  selected  were:  "  Oh  God  our  Help  in 
ages  past,"  "  Rock  of  Ages,"  and  "  On  the 
Resurrection  morning,"  and  a  short  address 
was  given  by  Archdeacon  Sinclair,  who  spoke 
of  Miss  Stewart's  strenuous  life  of  duty,  her 
noble  example,  inspiring  influence,  and  the 
use  she  had  made  of  her  great  gifts.  Those, 
he  said,  who  use  well  their  powers  in  this  life 
find  wider  scope  for  them  in  the  quiet  realm 
of  Paradise,  and  the  life  beyond,  so  we  left  her 
with  God.  It  was  for  those  who  remained  to 
see  that  the  spirit  of  her  great  work  still  went 
on. 

As  one  left  the  church,  glad  that  all  honour 
should  have  been  paid  to  the  Matron  and  friend 
whom  we  revered  and  loved,  one  realised  that 
while  position,  power,  and  honourable  estate, 
all  are  good,  they  are  of  secondary  importance 
to  the  truth,  moral  courage,  straight  dealing, 
and  high  principle,  in  the  practice  of  which  she 
set  so  fine  and  high  an  example. 

M.  B. 
At  St.  Martin's  Blackheaxh. 

A  memorial  service  was  held  by  request  of 
Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick,  at  St.  Martin's  Church, 
Blackhcath,  Chihvorth,  at  3  o'clock  on  Thurs- 
day. 10th  inst.,  and  was  most  sympathetically 
conducted  by  the  Rev.  A.  J.  C.  Young,  curate 
of  the  parish.  It  was  attended  by  those  who 
had  offered  the  kindest  help  during  the  soriow- 
ful  past  days. 

This  lovely  little  church,  a  wayside  ciiapcl 
such  as  may  be  found  anywhere  in  North  Italy. 


•228 


2be  Bvitisb  3ournal  of  murema.      t-^^^^'^''  i^-  i^io 


was  built  by  llie  late  Sir  William  Roberls- 
Austeu,  aud  the  rich  internal  decoratiou  is  a 
memorial  to  him.  The  walls  are  "covered  with 
marble  and  frescoes,  the  latter  of  unusual  in- 
terest, executed  by  Mrs.  Lea  Merritt,  by  the 
method  known  as  "  silicate  painting,"  exam- 
ples of  which  are  rare  in  this  country.  They 
preserve  their  freshness  perfectly.  These  ex- 
quisite worlis  of  art  depict  incidents  in  the  life 
of  our  Lord,  and  with  the  gold  screen,  beauti- 
ful altar  piece,  aud  painted  ceiling,  complete  a 
scheme  of  decoration  gorgeous  and  jserfect  of 
its  kind. 

During  the  service  sunshine  flooded  the  little 
cliapel,  aud  from  the  heath  beyond  full  throated 
wild  birds  sent  their  triumphant  singing  to  the 
sun.  In  jubilant  chorus  they  flung  forth  their 
pteon,  "  Oh,  Death  where  is  thy  sting.  Oh! 
grave  where  is  thy  victory?  " 

Nothing  could  have  been  in  sweeter  harmony. 
All  Nature  rejoicing,  and  so  on  into  the  Golden 
Light. 

E.   G.   F. 


At  Moffat. 

It  was  my  sad  privilege  to  attend  the  funeral 
of  Miss  Isla  Stewart  at  Moffat,  as  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  Matrons'  Council.  The  train 
left  Euston  a  little  before  midnight,  and 
members  of  the  medical  staff  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's as  well  as  Sisters  in  deep  mourning  were 
gathered  on  the  platform  to  wish  their  Matron 
God-speed  on  her  last  journey  to  the  hills.  The 
coffin,  placed  in  a  large  special  van,  was  covered 
and  sun-ounded  by  a  gorgeous  wealth  of  flowers 
that  bore  witness  to  the  affection  and  esteem 
\\ith  which  she  was  regarded.  Thei-e  was 
something  peculiarly  touching  in  this  departure 
in  state  and  silence  to  the  spot  where  she  had 
spent  so  many  happy  hours,  and  from  which 
>lie  would  never  return. 

The  train  an-ived  at  Moffat  a  httle  before 
eight  in  the  morning,  and  the  coffin  was  at  once 
taken  to  the  Episcopal  church  and  placed  in 
tlie  chancel  to  wait  the  service  and  funeral 
wliich  had  been  fixed  for  the  afternoon.  On 
the  coffin  itself  were  placed  the  flowers  from  the 
nearest  relatives  and  friends,  surmounted  by 
the  shield  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  in 
white  and  purple  flowers  sent  by  the  Sisters. 
Ai'ross  the  entrance  to  the  chancel  were 
grouped  the  wreaths  and  symbolic  floral  tokens 
from  representative  bodies.  At  the  foot  of  the 
•  coffin  lay  the  cushion  of  white  with  the  purple 
monogram  across  it,  sent  by  the  nurses  who 
had    left    the    hospital    and    married,  and    the 


handsome  wreath  with  the  brilliant  tricolour 
riband  from  the  Assistance  Publique  of  Paris. 
On  either  side  were  displayed  the  sparlet  and 
white  anchor  of  the  i^eague  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Nurses,  the  orange  wreath  of  the  private 
nurses,  the  white  cross  of  the  nurses  of  the  hos- 
pital, the  harp  in  white  stocks  and  purple  orchids 
from  the  Matrons'  Council,  wreaths  from  the 
Leicester  Infirmary  Nurses'  League,  from  tlie 
senior  and  junior  staff  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital,  and  from  the  various  nursing  societies 
with  which  she  was  coimected  or  that  wished 
to  show  her  their  respect.  Bunches  of  roses, 
carnations,  lilies,  and  wreaths  from  private 
friends  filled  the  upper  end  of  the  little  church. 
It  was  the  silent  coffin,  with  no  pall  but  tho 
amazing  quantity  of  lovely  flowers  round  it, 
that  made  the  scene  impressive,  for  the  church 
itself  is  only  a  temporary  structure  of  cor- 
rugated iron  lined  with  wood. 

Moffat  itself,  lying  amongst  the  hills,  with 
its  grey  modern  houses,  has  a  handsome 
high  street,  whose  remarkable  breadth  bears 
\\itness  to  the  fact  that  once  the  old  coaching 
road  passed  through  ijt;  now  it  is  the  terminus 
of  a  small  local  line.  There  is  a  stream  called 
Moffat  Water  '  running  swiftly  alongside  the 
little  town,  and  on  the  hills  the  golf  course  was 
pointed  out  to  me  where  Miss  Stewart  used  to 
play. 

It  was  a  regular  March  day — sunshine  and 
wind  in  the  morning,  rain  and  v.dnd  and  grey 
scudding  clouds  in  the  afternoon,  with  occa- 
sional breaks  of  sunshine;    a  bleak  day. 

The  service  in  the  church  was  held  at  2  p.m., 
and  was  conducted  by  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Leuthwaite  and  the  Rev.  .John  Malony. 
It  was  quiet  and  reverent ;  no  address  was 
given.  The  little  church  was  filled  with 
mourners — her  relations  and  friends  in  the 
town — and  those  who  had  come  from  a  dis- 
tance. In  addition  to  the  near  relatives,  tiiere 
were  present  Miss  Cox-Davies,  Matron  of  the 
Royal  Free  Hospital,  and  President  of  the 
League  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  Nurses, 
which  she  represented;  Miss  Cutler,  Deputy 
Matron,  St.  Bai'tholomew's  Hospital;  Miss 
Borthwick  (Sister  Lawrence) ;  i\Iiss  Burleigh, 
and  Miss  Hurlston,  from  Edinburgh  ;  Dr.  Foord 
Caiger,  Dr.  Bruce,  Sir  Rudolph  and  Lady 
Hampden  Smith,  and  Mr.  Herbert  Pollitt. 
It  was  especially  appropriate  that  Dr.  Caiger 
and  Dr.  Bruce  should  be  there,  as  they  have 
known  her  since  the  da3's  when  she  was  a 
Matron  under  the  Metropolitan  Asylums  Board. 
The  "Dead  March  in  Saul"  was  played, 
and      the      hymn      chosen      by      her      sister. 

Abide  with  Me,"  was  sung.  From  the  church 


.Mrticli  19,  1910] 


CDC  British  jtounml  of  l^urstng. 


to  tlie  ci'inetery — the  distance  was  about  a  mile 
and  a-lialf — tlie  road  lay  along  tlie  broad  high 
street  and  up  a  steep  slope  to  the  hillside, 
where  she  was  to  be  buried  amongst  her  people. 

As  we  stood  by  wliilst  her  relations  and 
friends  lowered  her,  according  to  the  Scotch 
custom,  into  her  grave,  I  looked  across  the 
little  tow  n  to  the  hills  beyond  and  above,  some 
still  tianked  with  snow,  and  1  understood. 
Isla  Stewart  belongeil  to  the  hills,  and  she  had 
eonie  back  to  the  hills  to  rest. 

Slie  had  played  a  fine  part  in  life's  game; 
she  had  used  her  talents  and  her  share  of  life 
well ;  for  twenty-three  long  years  she  had 
worthily  represented  the  great  hospital  of  which 
she  was  ^latron — but  now  she  had  come  home 
again  I  We  left  at  peace  on  the  hillside  a 
generous  woman — one  of  the  world's  best  and 
most  conscientious  workers,  of  whom  might 
well  be  (quoted  the  words  she  herself  used  when 
speaking  of  our  late  (Jueen  :  "  She  feared  (rod 
and  knew  no  other  fear." 

For  the  high  courage  with  which  she  re- 
mained "  on  duty  "  to  the  end  was  typical  of 
the  woman.  Through  ail  her  life  she  lield  to  a 
grand  conception  of  what  was  expected  of  her, 
of  a  standard  she  might  not  fail.  And  this, 
without  any  straining  or  effort ;  it  was  inborn, 
natural,  unaffected,  part  of  her  being.  In  all 
her  public  life  appears  this  serene  disregard  of 
difficulties  and  dangers.  Some  things  might 
have  to  be  avoided  because  they  were  inexpe- 
dient, but  never  because  they  were  difKcult  or 
dangerous. 

She  was  a  loyal  friend  and  an  honest  foe — 
straight  always. 

Her  sense  of  justice  was  great,  but  her  mercy 
greater.  None  had  a  more  kindly,  tolerant 
sympathy  for  human  frailty,  her  charity  was 
boundless;  she  had  a  clear  brain,  but  a  large 
heart. 

Life  for  her  was  glad ;  she  never  pretended 
that  her  wine  was  poisoned  or  her  corn  mil- 
dewed :  she  enjoyed,  and  she  wished  others  to 
share  her  joy. 

She  would  have  succeeded  in  any  calling, 
but  having  devoted  herself  to  her  profession,  she 
threw  herself  wholeheartedly  into  its  advance- 
ment and  organisation,  and  spent  herself  and 
her  talents  freely  in  its  service,  utilising  to  its 
last  ounce  her  enormous  capacity  for  work. 

Large  mintled,  she  was  singularly  free  from 
pettj'  jealousy,  and  had  a  most  generous  appre- 
ciation for  the  talents  and  successes  of  others ; 
there  was  no  small  or  mean  trait  in  her  being. 

She  faced  the  inevitable  with  dignity  and 
courage,  and  bore  herself  to  the  end  as  became 
her  tiiune  and  her  position. 

M.  M. 


AN  EXAMPLE  OF  DUTY  AND  COURAGE. 

When  the  history  ol  conteuiporary  niasing 
is  written,  ^liss  Isla  Stewart  will  be  found 
amongst  the  great  hospital  Matrons  who 
created  the  profession  of  nursing  by  their 
example  and  precept.  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Fry  and 
Miss  Florence  Nightingale  inaugurated  the 
movement  with  high  ideals  and  first-rate  judg- 
ment. They  were  followed  by  tactless  persons 
who  brought  discredit  on  a  good  cause  by  wil- 
fulness and  wrongheadedness.  Miss  Stewart 
came  later,  and  occupied  a  prominent  position 
just  at  the  time  when  her  remarkable  talents 
were  capable  of  producing  the  uest  fruit.  Miss 
Ethel  Manson,  now  Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick, 
came  to  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  from  the 
London  Hospital  in  1881,  reorganised  the 
nursing  school,  prepared  the  way,  and  set 
things  in  order  for  the  advent  of  Miss  Stewart. 
It  is  to  the  credit  of  Mrs.  Fenwick  and  Miss 
Stewart  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  that 
they  saw  the  necessity,  made  the  opportunity, 
for  better  education  and  better  training  for  the 
nursing  staff,  and  effected  the  change  gradually 
and  almost  imperceptibly. 

JNIiss  Stewart  combined  in  herself  great 
teaching  power  with  first-rate  administrativi- 
capacity,  and  she  had  full  scope  to  use  her 
ability.  All  her  changes  were  carried  out 
gradually,  and  she  had  been  several  years  at 
the  hospital  before  she  changed  or  added  to  the 
rules  which  she  found  in  existence  when  she 
was  appointed.  But  if  the  changes  were 
gradual  they  were  none  the  less  important. 
The  length  of  training,  the  hours  of  duty  and 
of  leisure,  the  routine  by  which  every  nurse 
was  enabled  to  take  the  greatest  possible  share 
in  each  part  of  her  course,  all  received  anxious 
thought  and  were  modified  in  the  most  prac- 
tical manner.  Finality  was  never  reached, 
because  to  the  last  Miss  Stewart  maintained 
an  open  mind.  She  was  always  ready  to  ri'- 
ceive  suggestions  from  those  in  whom  she  hud 
confidence,  and  if  the  ideas  approved  them- 
selves to  her,  she  adopted  them.  Her  school  of 
nursing,  therefore,  was  always  progressive,  and 
as  her  rule  was  mild  and  just,  she  gradually 
made  it  worthy  of  the  great  charily  to  which 
it  was  attached.  Her  pupils  attained  distin- 
guished positions  at  home  and  abroad,  and  in- 
culcated her  methods  on  succeeding  genera- 
tions. The  banquet  given  to  her  by  the 
Matrons'  Council  in  1908,  and  the  reception 
she  received  at  the  International  Congress  of 
Nurses  last  year,  gladdened  her  heart,  for  they 
were  proofs  of  her  far-reaching  influence  and 
of  her  personal  popularity.  Miss  Stewart  was 
more  than  a  great  Matron.  She  was  a  pioneer, 
creating  a  new  profession,  yet,   unlike   many 


230 


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pioneers,  she  was  abounding  in  commonsense ; 
she  had  a  wide  outlook  and  she  bad  a  keen 
humour.  Her  course,  therefore,  tvas  perfectly 
straight.  She  desired  to  obtain  State  Registra- 
tion for  nurses,  just  as  there  is  State  Eegistra- 
tiou  for  medical  men,  for  dentists,  and  for 
members  of  the  veterinary  profession.  The 
subject  proved  to  be  thorny,  and  was  beset  with 
imexpected  difficulties,  but  she  never  wavered, 
and,  being  free  from  guile,  pettiness,  and  the 
benumbing  spirit  of  party,  she  allowed  her  will 
to  carry  her  far  beyond  the  strength  of  her 
body.  Illness  came  upon  her,  but  she  could 
say  with  ]\Iilton  :  — 

"  Yet  I  argue  not 
Against  Heaven's  hand  or  will,  nor  bate  one  jot 
Of  heart  or  liope ;    but  still  bear  up  and  steer 
Riglit  onward.      What  supix>rts  me,  dost  thou  ask  ? 
The  conscience.  Friend,  to  have  lost  them overpl led 
In  Liberty'.s  defence,   my  noble  task. 
Of  which  all  Europe  talks  from  side  to  side." 

Indeed,  if  she  would  have  been  persuaded  to 
do  less,  or  to  allow  others  to  share  her  woi'k,  her 
life  might  have  been  prolonged.  It  was  charac- 
teristic of  the  woman,  and  the  keynote  of  her 
success,  that  she  must  carry  out  to  the  very, 
end  all  those  duties  which  she  had  undertaken 
even  though  her  life  should  be  the  cost  of  her 
conscientiousness.  Others  will  take  up  her 
work,  but  it  will  be  difficult  to  follow  her.  We, 
her  friends,  shall  miss  her  grievously,  though 
we  are  the  better  for  having  known  her  as  an 
example  of  duty  and  of  courage. 

D'Arcy  Power. 


AN  APPROPRIATE  MEMORIAL. 

Miss  F.  Whitley,  West  House,  Halifax,  in 
sending  a  donation  of  £5  from  herself  and  her 
sister  to  the  Special  Eegistration  Fund,  writes 
that  she  does  so  in  memory  of  Miss  Isla 
Stewart,  instead  of  sending  a  wreath.  She  feels 
that  Miss  Stewart  had  the  registration  cause 
so  closely  at  heart  that  this  is  the  most  suitable 
form  of  commemoration. 

The  League  of  St.  John's  House  Nurses  has 
iilso  sent  a  guinea,  "  In  memory  of  the  life  and 
work  of  iliss  Isla  Stewart." 

One  of  Miss  Stewart's  last  acts  before  she 
left  London  was  to  forward  over  £14,  which  she 
had  collected,  to  the  State  Eegistration  Society, 
and  these  gifts  seem  singularly  appropriate. 

The  loss  which  the  Society  has  sustained  by 
the  death  of  its  President  is  impossible  to  esti- 
mate, and  we  are  sure  that  she  herself  would 
rejoice  that  the  cause  in  which  she  was  so 
keenly  interested,  and  to  which  she'devoted  so 
much  time  and  thought,  should  be  supported 
bv  those  who  eared  for  her. 


THE  GENERAL  SORROW. 

From  all  quarters  spontaneous  tributes  to> 
the  high  worth  of  Miss  Stewart  are  being  re- 
ceived. 

The  Qdees's  Symp.\thy. 

Her  Majesty  the  Queen  has  graciously  sent 
to  Miss  Janet  Stewart  the  Badge  of  the  Terri- 
torial Force  Nursing  Service  which  ]Miss  Isla 
Stewart  would  have  received  at  her  hands,  had 
she  lived,  on  Saturday  last.  The  letter  which 
accompanied  it  expressed  her  Majesty's  appre- 
ciation of  Miss  Stewart's  work  for  the  Service, 
and  her  personal  sympathy. 

Letter  from  the  Prince  of  W.\les. 

The  Prince  of  Wales,  through  Sir  Arthur 
Bigge,  has  requested  Lord  Sandhurst  in  the 
following  letter  to  convey  his  sympathy  to  the 
relatives  of  the  late  Miss  Isla  Stewart:  — 

Marlborough  House,  JIarch  7th,  1910. 

My  dear  S.iNDHciiST, — The  Prince  of  Wales  is 
much  oonconied  to  receive  your  sad  news  of  the 
death  of  the  Matron  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital. 
His  Royal  Higbues.s  had  known  Miss  St.ewart  tor 
some  years,  and  fully  realises  what  a  great  power 
for  good  she  was,  not  only  in  the  administration, 
but  as  a  personal  influence  in  the  hospital.  His 
Royal  Highness  begs  that  you  will  convey  the  ex- 
pression of  his  sincere  regret  to  her  relatives,  and 
his  sympathy  with  the  hospital  authorities  in  the 
great  loss  which  they  have  sustained. 

Believe  me,  yours  vei-y  truly, 

Arthur  Bigge. 
Eesolution  of  the  Irish  Nurses' 
Association. 

At  a  special  meeting  of  the  Irish  Nurses' 
Association,  held  at  86,  Lower  Leeson  Street, 
Dublin,  on  March  10th,  Miss  Kelly  (Matron 
of  Dr.  Steevens'  Hospital)  pi'oposed  the  follow- 
ing resolution:  — 

The  meml>eiis  of  the  Irish  Nui-ses'  Association 
tender  to  Mi-s.  Bedford  Fenwick,  the  Matrons' 
Council  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  and  the 
Society  foi-  State  Registration  of  Trained  Nurses 
their  deepest  sympathy  in  the  loss  sustained  by  the 
death  of  their  noble  friend  and  President,  Miss  Isla 
Stewart.  They  wish  to  place  on  record  their  pro- 
found soiTow  for  the  irreparable  loss  to  the  cause  of 
pa'ofessional  organisation  and  progress  through  the 
passing  away  of  so  brilliant,  loyal,  and  devoted  a 
colleague. 

Miss  Kelly  said :  "  It  is  with  feelings  of 
profound  sorrow  that  I  move  this  vote  of  con- 
dolence with  our  English  colleagues.  Not 
only  English  speaking  nurses,  but  nurses  of  the 
whole  nursing  world,  will  regret  the  passing 
away  of  one  of  the  most  brilliant,  earnest,  and 
energetic  workers  in  the  great  cause  of  organi- 
sation and  development.  It  has  been  marvel- 
lous the  amount  of  time  and  zealous  care  which 
Miss  Stewart  bestowed  upon  every  scheme  for 
the   advancement   of   nurses,  notwithstanding 


-March  in,   I'.lld 


Ctbe  Britteb  3ournaI  of  Ifmrslna. 


•231 


lior  enormous  responsibilities  as  Matron  of  onr 
<^f'  tile  greatest  of  the  London  nospitals. 

"  To  other  JMatrons  she  set  an  example  of 
liigh  ideals.  Her  unswerving  loyalty  to  the 
interests. of  her  profession,  her  comprehensive 
grasp  of  everything  relating  to  it,  and  continual 
staunch  support  of  matters  tending  to  elevate 
and  ennoble  it,  should  i)rove  a  brilliant  example 
not  only -to  Matrons  and  nurses  of  her  own 
day  and  generation,  but  to  those  who  eome  loiii; 
ages  after  her. ' ' 

The  resolution  was  then  passed  by  the  meet- 
ing amid  an  impressive  silence. 

LeTTEU  from  the  pRESmEXT  OF  THE  InTEK- 

XATR)NAL  Council  of  Xl'rses. 

Dear  Mrs.  1'"knwick, — In  tho  midst  of  the  Amiuta! 
Conference  of  the  0<>niian  National  Council  of 
Women  I  reccive<l  the  sa<l  news  of  our  deeji  loss. 

Will  you  oonvej-  my  heartfelt  symi)athy,  and  that 
of  the  International  Council  of  Xui-sos,  and  the 
German  Nui^ses'  As.s<x:iation,  to  the  National  Coun- 
cil of  Nui-ses  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  and 
('■;iK!ciall,v  to  the  Matrons'  Council,  the  State  Regi.s- 
t ration  Society,  and  the  League  of  St.  Bartliolo- 
nien-'s  Hospital  Nurses. 

I  am  suit'  «e  shall  never  forget  what  dear  Mi.>»s 
Stewart  ha.s  been  to  us  all.  and  how  nnich  the  nurses 
of  all  countries  owe  her  for  her  fine  and  oourageons 
work  for  our  intere-st>s.  / 

We  all   know,   too,    what    a   staunch    friend   and 
supporter  she  has  hM'en  to  ,vou    in   all  ,vour  work, 
and  you  most  of  all  nefvl  our  sympathy  in  the  loss 
of  one  of  your  truest  colleagues. 
Sincerely  youi-s, 

Agnes  Karll, 
President,  International  Council  of  Nui'ses 
and  German  Nurses'  Association. 
Sympathy  of  the  Directok  Ctexeral  of  the 
Assistance  Publique,  Paris. 

In  addition  to  deputing  Mine.  .Jacques  to  re- 
present the  Nursing  School  of  the  Assistance 
Publique  at  the  memorial  service  to  Miss  Isla 
Stewart,  Monsieur  G.  Mesureur,  its  distin- 
guished Director  General,  who  has  given  prac- 
tical proof  of  his  appreciation  of  j\Iiss  Stewart's 
personality  and  work  by  entrusting  to  her  care 
pupils  of  the  School  for  further  experience  in 
an  English  hospital,  has  written  a  most  chann- 
ing  letter  of  sympathy  to  Miss  Cutler,  Deputy 
Matron  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital. 


When  the  Committee  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital  met  on  the  morning  of  Thursday, 
March  10th,  the  sad  tidings  were  received  that 
the  funeral  of  the  Matron,  who  on  the  previous 
Thursday  had  presented  her  report  as  usual, 
would  take  place  that  day.  The  Committee 
at  once  adjourned,  the  only  business  transacted 
being  the  appointment  of  Miss  Cutler,  the  As- 
sistant Matron,  as  Deputy  Matron  for  a  period 
of  three  months. 


dbc  auccn  Ibonours   ^ervitoiial 
IRuvscs. 


Un  Saturday  alleriKion, 
at  Buckingham  Palace,  the 
C^ueen  as  President  of  the 
Territorial  Force  Nursing 
Service,  presented  Badges  to 
Matrons,  Sisters,  and  Nurses 
of  the  Hospitals  of  the  Ser- 
vice in  the  City  and  County 
of  Loudon.  Out  of  a  possible 
480  uurses  38'2  were  present. 
On  arrival  at  tne  Palace  they 
were  conducted  by  the  Royal 
servants  up  lue  Grand  Stair- 
case to  the  State  Apart- 
ments, and  assembled  in  the 
Picture  Gallery,  where  they 
wei-e  marshalled  by  the  Prin- 
cipal Matrons,  Miss  Marcon, 
Matron  of  No.  1  Hospital, 
which  by  the  death  of  Miss 
Isla  Stewart  is  bereft  of  its  Principal  Matron, 
organising  the  nurses  of  that  hospital. 

The  Queen  presented  the  Badges  in  the 
Throne  Room,  standing  just  in  front  of  the 
iiirone.  lu  attendance  upon  her  Majesty  were 
the  Court  otKcials,  and  there  were  present  the 
Duchess  of  Montrose,  Vice-President,  Miss  E. 
S.  Haldane,  Vice-Chairman,  and  most  of  the 
members  of  the  Advisoi-y  Council  of  the  Ser- 
vice, members  of  the  London  Committee  of  the 
T.F.N.S.  of  the  City  and  County  of  London, 
and  the  members  of  the  Executive  Committee, 
who  had  the  honour  of  being  invited ;  also  Sir 
William  Mackinnon,  Director-General  of  the 
Territorial  Force,  and  Surgeon-General  Gub- 
bins,  Director-General  of  the  Army  JMedical 
Service.  Amongst  those  who  were  unavoidabh' 
prevented  from  obeying  her  Majesty's  com- 
mand was  J\lrs.  Bedford  Fenwick. 

The  silver  Badges,  with  their  scarlet  and 
white  ribbon  had  previously  been  arranged  on 
cushions  by  the  Ladies  in  Waiting,  the 
Right  Hon.  R.  B.  Haldane,  Secretary  of  State 
for  War,  held  each  cushion  as  her  Majesty  took 
the  Badges,  and  Surgeon-General  Keogh  read 
out  the  names  of  the  recipients.  JNIiss  Sidney 
Browne,  as  Matron-in-Chief  of  the  Service,  was 
the  first  to  receive  her  Badge,  and  then,  in 
quick  succession,  came  the  nursing  staffs  of  the 
four  hospitals.  No.  1  first,  led  by  Miss  Mar- 
con,  and  the  others  by  Miss  Ray  (King's  Col- 
lege Hospital),  Miss  Davies  (St.  Mary's  Hos- 
pital), and  Miss  Barton  (Chelsea  Infirmary), 
Principal  Matrons. 

When  they  had  received   the   Badges,    th.' 


•232 


(Tbe  Bnti5b  3ournal  of  IRursiiuj.      rMarch  19,  loio 


nurses  passed  on  into  another  gallery,  where 
each  was  given  a  box  for  her  Badge,  after  which 
they  left  the  Palace,  the  whole  ceremony  oc- 
cupying about  three  quarters  of  an  hour.  The 
members  of  the  Advisory  Council,  and  of  the 
J.ondon  and  Executive  Committees  were  after- 
wards presented  to  her  JMajesty  by  the  Duchess 
«)i  Montrose. 

The  Queen  wishes  it  to  be  known,  that  she 
presented  the  Badges  to  the  nursing  stafl's  of 
the  four  London  Territorial  Hospitals  as  repre- 
sentative of  the  whole  Service,  which  is 
lionoured  by  her  Majesty's  gracious  action.  It 
i-i  impossible  that  he*-  Majesty  should  present 
tiie  Badges  of  3,000  nurses,  which  number  it 
now  approximately  comprises. 

\A  e  desire  to  draw  the" attention  of  nurses  be- 
longing to  the  Territorial  Force  Nursing  Service 
who  were  unavoidably  prevented  from  being 
l^resent  at  Buckingham  Palace  on  Saturday 
last  to  a  notice  on  the  first  page  of  our  Sup)ple- 
ment,  asking  them  to  furnisli  their  present 
addresses  to  their  Principal  ^Matrons. 

iRnrse5~lRea'i5tration  Bill. 

The  Nurses"  Registration  Bill  (Bill  31)  is 
now  published,  and  can  be  obtained  from 
Messrs.  Wyman  and  Sons,  Fetter  Lane,  E.G., 
price  2M..  post  free. 

Zbc  3ri5b  1R urges'  Hseodation. 

We  are  glad  to  publish  the  tollowing  addi- 
tional names  of  members  of  the  Irish  Nurses' 
Association :  — 

St.    VlNCESl's    HoSPIT.\L,    DUBLIX. 

Sisters:    F.   Potter,   M.   Hooper,   A.    Smeddy. 

RoTu.xDA  Hospital,  Dublin. 
Xiirse  Rose  MacMaims. 

MlSCELLAXEOCS. 

Xurse  Xellie  Patterson,  Fever  Hospital,  Xaas, 
Co.  Kildare. 

Nurse  Teresa  Corcoran,  The  Infirmary,  Kilkenny. 

The  Memorial  Hospital,  Drogheda,  of  which 
the  election  of  ^liss  M.  Eeidy,  the  Matron,  as 
a  member  of  the  I.  N.  A.  was  recently 
chronicled,  was  built  as  a  memorial  to  the  late 
Lord  Drogheda. on  the  CuiTagh  of  Kildare,  to 
be  primarily  available  for  all  accidents  at  the 
Curragh  race  meetings  and  at  the  various  train- 
ing stables  on  the  Curragh.  As  the  late  Lord 
Drogheda  was  a  great  patron  of  the  Turf,  many 
well-known  people  in  Ireland  are  nuich  inter- 
ested in  it. 

Miss  Corcoran  sent  a  subscription,  '2s.  6d., 
and  a  very  nice  letter,  asking  if  she  could  help 
further,  and  on  receiving  a  reply  from  the 
Secretary  that  anything  would  be  acceptable, 
she  sent  a  €'1  subscription,  whereupon  she  was 
■elected  upon  the  Executive  Committee. 


riDctropolitan  Hsv^luniy'  Boai^. 

At  tie  meeting  of  tlie  Metropolitan  Asylums' 
Board,  on  Satiu-day  last,  the  Finance  Committee 
submitted  to  the  Board  pi-oposals  received  from  the 
Hospitals  Committee  to  amend  the  wages  scale  'u 
respect  of  the  nursing  staff  in  the  hospitals  service, 
together  with  the  grounds  on  which  such  proposals 
are  made.  These  proposals  were  emlxidied  in  an 
api)endis,  and  are  of  far-reaching  impol-tance,  and 
have  been  arrived  at  as  a  result  of  prolonged  con- 
sideration, after  obtaining  valuable  suggestions 
from  the  Medical  Superintendents  and  Matrons  of 
the  Board's  hospitals,  and  after  conference  with  the 
Matrons  of  ten  of  the  large  general  hospitals  of 
Loudon.  The  most  important  recommendations 
are : — 

1.  The  abolition  of  the  position  oj  Superintendent 
of  yight  yurses,  and  the  employment  of  Sisters  for 
a  period  not  exceeding  twelve  months,  additional 
remuneration  to  the  extent  of  10s.  per  month  to 
the  usual  salary  of  a  Sister  being  given. 

■2.  That  a  distinct  grade  of  "Sister  "  s7<o»/rf  be 
created  in  place  of  the  present  "  Charge  Nurse." 
The  Sisters  must  have  liad  full  general  training, 
and  be  women  of  good  education.  They  should  be 
required  as  part  of  their  regular  duties  to  instruct 
the  probationers  under  them.  Having  regard  to 
their  status  and  responsibilities,  they  should  enjoy 
greater  privileges  th'an  the  other  grades  of  nurses 
over  whom  they  would  exc-cise  supervision;  The.v 
should  come  on  duty  at  7.4-5  a.m.  instead  of  7  a.m.. 
and,  as  far  as  practicable,  they  shoidd  be  exempt 
from  night  duty. 

Their  increased  duties  and  responsibilities,  as 
compared  with  the  present  charge  nurses,  shoidd 
be  marked  by  a  higher  salary;  £38  ijer  anntnn, 
rising  £2  annually  to  £44,  is  suggested,  instead  of 
£36  per  anniun,  rising  £1  annually  to  £40,  the 
pay  of  charge  nurses. 

3.  The  gradual  abolition  of  ''assistant  nurses" 
(Class  I.),  and  the  creation,  of  a  new  grade  of 
"  staff  nurse,"  with  a  salary  of  £26,  rising  to  £30. 
The  qualification  of  this  new  grade  should  be  either 
three  years'  previous  training  in  a  recognised 
general  hospital.  Poor  Law  Infirmary,  or  children's 
hospital,  or  the  completion  of  two  years'  good  work 
in  one  of  the  Board's  hospitals,  on  the  joint  recom- 
mendation of  the  >Iedical  Superintendent  and 
Matron  after  attendance  at  lectures  and  satisfac- 
torily passing  an  examination,  or  two  years'  service 
in  an  outside  fever  hospital  of  not  less  than  100 
beds,  and  the  obtaining  of  a  recognised  fever  cer- 
tificate.    The  Committee  add:  — 

We  hope  that  the  creation  of  the  grades  of 
•  Sister  "  and  "  Staff  Xurse  "  on  the  lines  we  have 
indicated  will  result  in  attracting  many  nurses,  who 
have  completed  their  training  at  the  general  hos- 
pitals, to  come  as  staff  nurses  to  the  Board's  acute 
fever  hospitals  to  gain  fever  experience,  and  there- 
by add  to  their  own  knowledge  and  obtain  a  certi- 
ficate of  fever  training.  To  obtain  such  a  certifi- 
cate we  suggest  that  they  should  come  for  a  period 
of  twelve  months  and  pass  the  necessary  examina- 
tion.    If  they  leave  before  the  expiration  of  that 


March  I'j.  ivdn      ^j^j.  Brttisi?  3ournal   oX  1l-mi-s?ino. 


23d 


time,  after  Juiug  not  less  than  three  months'  work 
in  the  Board  s  ffver  hospitals,  they  would  be 
granted  the  testimonial  prescribed  in  the  existing 
rcj^ulations.  Xo  doubt  some  would  join  with  the 
object  of  remaiuinji  in  the  service  as  Sisters. 

Assisiiiiit  Xurses  (Class  11.). — We  think  that  llie 
title  of  this  class,  so  far  as  the  permanent  start'  at 
the  acute  fever  hospitals  is  concerne<l,  should  be 
changed  to  that  of  •'  probationer,'"  which  marks 
the  corresponding  grade  in  a  general  hosi)ital.  We 
feel  that  a  strong  effort  should  be  made  to  improve 
this  section  of  the  nursing  staff.  We  accordingly 
suggest  that  candidates  should  be  more  carefully 
selected,  that  the  first  tliree  months  of  their  service 
should  be  regarded  as  a  real  period  of  probation, 
and  that  they  should  receive  training  and  be 
awarded  a  certificate  in  accordance  with  the  scheme 
set  forth  below.  Further,  we  have  made  a  provi- 
sional arrangement  with  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, whereby  a  certain  number  of  our  proba- 
tioners, of  whose  suitability  the  Matron  of  that 
hospital  is  assured,  will  be  received  into  that  insti- 
tution for  training  at  the  end  of  their  two  years' 
work  under  the  Board,  that  two  years  to  count  as 
one  year's  work  at  a  general  hospital.  We  hope 
that  this  scheme  will  be  so  successful  that  other 
general  hospitals  will  be  willing  to  enter  into  a 
similar  arrangement,  and  we  feel  that  it  ought  to 
prove  of  material  assistance  in  attracting  the  best 
possible  class  of  nurse  to  the  service  of  the  Board. 
We  think  the  salary  of  this  class  should  be  £18  per 
annum,  rising  at  the  end  of  a  year  to  £20. 

it  is  intended  that  a  detailed  record  shall  be  kept 
of  the  progress  and  conduct  of  each  probationer. 

Training  oj  Probntioners. — We  have  already  re- 
ferred to  the  training  of  probationers  and  the 
granting  of  a  certificate,  but  we  feel  that  we  ought 
to  define  clearly  our  views  on  this  important  sub- 
ject. To  attract  better  nurses  to  their  service  the 
Managers  must  endeavour,  by  means  of  systema- 
tised  and  improved  methods,  together  with  the 
granting  of  a  certificate,  to  render  such  fever 
training  more  valuable  as  a  nursing  asset.  With 
this  end  in  view,  we  recommend:  — 

(1)  That  the  schedule  of  ward  instruction  and  the 
syllabus  of  lectures  drawn  up  by  the  Fever  Xurses' 
-Vssociation  and  sanctioned  by  the  Board  on  31st 
July.  1909,  be  adopted  for  use  in  the  Managers' 
hospitals. 

(2)  That  two  years  be  the  minimum  period  of 
training  for  probationers. 

(3)  That  a  certificate  of  proficiency  in  fever 
nursing  be  awarded  by  the  Board  to  those  proba- 
tioners who  have  spent  two  years  in  the  Managers' 
fever  service,  provided  their  work  and  general  con- 
duct have  been  satisfactory  and  they  have  passed 
the  necessary  examination. 

(4)  That  this  examination  be  conducted  by  in- 
dependent examiners,  who  will  in  each  case  be  un- 
connected with  the  hospital  in  which  the  nurse  re- 
ceived  her  training. 

If  our  recommendations  are  adopted,  the  nursing 
■eiliiration  of  probationers  in  the  Board's  hospitals 
will  be  governed  by  a  imiform  and  well-defined 
■  scheme,  and  the  reward  of  those  who  succeed  in 


their  work  will  gain  in  value  in  the  eyes  of  the 
nursing  profession. 

Special  recommendations  were  made  iu  connec- 
tion with  the  convalescent  hospitals,  small-jHix  hos- 
pitals, and  fever  ambulance  service. 

The  report  was  received,  and  in  accordance  with 
the  procedure  of  the  Board  in  all  matters  relating 
to  finance,  notice  was  given  of  the  following  resolu- 
tion, which  will  b<'  brought  up  at  the  next  meeting: 

'■  That  the  proimsals  of  the  Hospitals  Committee 
to  amend  the  consolidated  salaries  and  wages  scale 
set  out  in  the  appendix  to  the  report  of  the  Finance 
Committee  dated  8th  March,  1910,  be  approved 
and  adopted.  " 

Hppointiiients. 

M.\TKOX. 
King's  Sanatorium,  Sherborne,  Dorset. — Miss  Ida  K. 
Jenkins  has  boon  appointed  Matron.  She  was 
trained  at  tlie  Royal  Albert  Hospital,  Devonport,- 
where  she  has  also  held  the  position  of  Sister.  She 
has  also  had  experience  in  private  nursing. 

Bradwell  Isolation  Hospital,  Staffordshire. — Miss  L.  A. 
Boothi"oyd  has  Viecn  appointed  Matix)n.  She  was 
traineti  at  tlie  Fin-ale  Union  Hospital,  SheflBeld, 
and  has  held  the  positions  of  Head  Nurse  at  the 
Union  Infirmary,  Gainsborough ;  Charge  X'urse  at 
the  Union  Infirmary,  Bury  ;  Sister  at  the  City  Hos- 
pital, Sheffield;  and  X'urse  JIatixjn  at  the  Stanhope 
Isolation  Hospital. 

Xihse-Matuon. 
Carlton  Isolation  Hospital,  near  Worksop. — Miss  Mary 
S.  Clark  has  been  appointetl  Xui-se  Matron.  SCf 
was  trained  at  the  Belviderc  Hospital,  Glasgow,  and 
has  lield  the  position  of  Charge  Xurse  at  the  Kirk- 
caldj-  Joint  Hospital,  the  City  Hospital,  Wakefield, 
the  City  Hospital,  Hamilton,  X.B.,  and  of  Xight 
Superintendent  at  the  .Middlesbro'  Sanatorium. 

Cottage  Hospital,  Mold. — Mi.ss  Florence  Pitt  lias 
been  appointed  Xuis«'-Matrou.  She  was  trained  at 
the  Koyal  County  Hospital,  llydo,  and  has  held 
the  position  of  Sister  at  the  Royal  Hospital,  Rich- 
mond, Surrey,  and  of  Theatre  Sister  and  Assistant 
Matix)!i  at  the  Warrington  Infirmary,  Lancashire. 

Meigle  Sanatorium,  Galashiels. — Miss  M.  J.  Ander- 
son .Smith  lias  hi^^n  apiK>iiite<l  Xurse-Matron.  She 
was  tiaine«l  at  Stobhill  Hospital,  Glasgow,  and  has 
held  the  position  of  Cliarge  Xurse  at  Old  Mill  Hos- 
pital, Aberdeen. 

Sisters. 
Horton  Infirmary,  Banbury, — Miss  Lucy  Xaylor  has 
been  ap[K)inte<l  Sister.  .She  was  trained  at  the 
General  Infirmary,  Oldham,  and  has  held  the 
position  of  Staff  Xurse  at  Montagu  Hospital,  Mex- 
borough. 

Seacroft  Hospital,  Leeds. — Miss  M.  K.  Peai-son  has 
lieen  apix>iiit<tl  .Sister.  She  was  trained  at  the 
Royal  l.ifirmaiy,  Hull,  where  she  has  held  the 
[x>sition  of  Sister, 

Polyclinic  Hospital,  Rome, — The  following  ladies  have 
been  appointed  Sisters  in  addition  to  those  whose 
appointments  have  already  been  chronicled:  — 

Miss  E,  M,  Bryant,  two  years'  training  and  cer- 
tificate, Maison  de  Sante    Protestante,  Bordeaux; 


234 


Zbc  38riti5b  3ournaI  of  IRursing.        [^^aich  lo,  1910 


maternity  nursing,  G.L.I.H.,  York  KuaJ,  and 
District  9  months;  Sous-Cbeftaiue,  Maison  de  Sante 
Protestante,  Bordeaux,  3  months. 

JMiss  Margaret  Cormick,  three  year  certificate, 
and  Charge  Nurse,  Gloucester  Infirmary;  two  years 
Maternity  and  District  Home,  Plaistow  . 

Miss  Lucy  Culverwell,  three  years'  certificate, 
Bristol  General  Hospital ;  also  in  the  Army  Nui-s- 
ing  Service. 

Miss  Mary  Kell,  three  years'  certificate,  St. 
Mary's  Hospital. 

Signorina  ociarrino,  two  years'  certificate,  Buf- 
falo Hospital;  9  months'  post  graduate  course,  New 
York. 

Miss  Mary  Browne,  three  years'  certificate,  S. 
Devon  Hospital;  two  years  and  a  half  as  Sister; 
acted  as  Night  Sister ;  had  charge  of  Operating 
Theatre. 

Miss  Ada  Brunt,  three  years'  certificate,  and  two 
years  Sister  at  Sheffield  Royal  Hospital ;  two  and  a 
half  years  at  the  International  Hospital,  Naples; 
seven  months  Night  Superintendent,  Lincoln 
County   Hospital. 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S   IMPERIAL  MILITARY 
NURSING   SERVICE. 

The  following  ladies  have  received  appointments 
as  Staff  Nurse: — Miss  M.  McCormick  and  Miss  M. 
T.  CasswelL 

Postings  and  Transfers. — Sisters:  Miss  L.  E.  C. 
Steen,  to  j[<oyal  Victoria  Hosp.,  Netley ;  Miss  R. 
Osborne,  to  Royal  Herbert  Hosp.,  Woolwich;  Miss 
M.  M.  Blakely,  to  The  Queen  Alexandra  ililitary 
Hosp.,    Grosvenor    Road,    London,    S.W  Staff 

yuTses :  Miss  E.  H.  Davies,  Miss  M.  McCormick, 
and  Miss  M.  T.  Casswell,  to  The  Queen  Alexandra 
Military  Hosp,,  Grosvenor  Road.  London,  S.W.  : 
Miss  E.  J.  French,  to  Connaught  Hosp.,  Aldershot ; 
Miss  M.  A.  McCabe,  to  Military  Hosp.,  York. 

Appointments  confirmed. — Staff  Nvrses:  Miss  K. 
M.  Burgess,  Miss  W.  Halloran. 


QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE   INSTITUTE 
FOR   NURSES 

Transfers  and  .ippointmcnts. — Miss  Mabel  Shin- 
gleton,  to  Manchester,  Harpurhey  Home,  as 
Senior  Nurse  ;  Miss  Gertrude  Suggitt,  to  Liverpool, 
U'illiamson  Home,  as  Senior  Nurse ;  Miss  Jane 
Heaton,  to  Faringdon ;  Miss  Sarah  Lebart,  to 
Southwark  ;  Miss  Mabel  Dadd,  to  Camberwell ;  Miss 
Elizabeth  Murray,  to  Carlisle ;  Miss  Teresa  Giblin, 
to  Burnley ;  iliss  Anna  Zerhusen,  to  Coventry ; 
Miss  Leinbje  van  der  Mey,  to  Southampton. 

THE  PASSING  BELL. 
Many  nurses  will  hear  with  great  regret  of  the 
death  of  Miss  Helen  Ligertwood,  which  took  place 
at  Harrow  on  Sunday.  Mi,ss  Ligertwood  was 
trained  at  Guy's  Hospital,  as  a  Lady  Pupil,  enter- 
ing the  hospital  for  training  in  December,  1879. 
She  was  afterwards  Sister  of  Luke  ward  for  several 
years,  after  which  until  1902  she  held  the  position 
of  Lady  Superintendent  of  the  Kent  Nursing  Insti- 
tution, "West  Mailing.  Miss  Ligertwood  was  the 
daughter  of  Mr,  AVilliam  Ligertwood,  of  Logieraine, 
Aberdeenshire. 


IRuising  )6cboc5. 

Nurses  share  in  the  loiss- 
which  has  befallen  the 
Diocese  of  Lincoln  in  the 
death  of  its  chief  pastor,  the 
saintly  Bishop  King,  for,  as 
Patron  of  the  Guild  of  St. 
Barnabas,  he  took  a  deep 
interest  in  their  work,  and 
annually  sent  them  an  in- 
spiring message.  As  he  was 
laid  to  rest  in  the  Cloister 
garth,  wnere  were  assembled 
to  do  hiia  honour  the  highest  dignitaries  of  the 
Church  which  he  seiwed  so  faithfully,  and  in 
which  he  ruled  so  wisely  and  lovingly,  Church- 
man and  Nonconformist  side  by  side  mourned 
for  him  as  for  a  father  and  friend.  There  were 
people  weepiilg  by  the  graveside  as  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  spoke  the  final  words, 
butthen,saysa  contemporary,  "people  had  been 
weeping  in  the  crowded  streets  of  Lincoln  all 
day — sorrowing  on  market  day,  with  the 
squares  all  filled  with  liuxtering  tradesmen,  and 
the  air  laden  with  the  discordant  noises  of  the 
mart.  As  the  Archbishop  raised  his  hand  to 
pronounce  the  Benediction  his  fine  voice  broke. 
Many  heard  him,  few  saw  the  raised  hand,  for 
people  looked  through  unshed  tears,  because  a 
good  man  had  passed  in  the  fulness  of  years, 
rich  in  love,  great  in  wisdom,  to  the  God  he 
had  so  liumbly  and  so  faithfully  served." 


In  a  large  and  spacious  room  in  the  South 
Kensington  Hotel,  a  number  of  people  gathered 
on  Wednesday  afternoon,  March  9th,  by  the 
kind  invitation  of  Miss  Walker,  the  Lady 
Superintendent  of  the  South  Kensington 
Nurses'  Co-operation,  The  meeting  was  con- 
vened to  discuss  the  foi-mation  of  a  local  branch 
of  the  British  Red  Cross  Society. 

The  Mayoress  of  Kensington,  Lady  Philli- 
more,  who  is  the  Vice-President  of  the  Society, 
was  present.  In  spite  of  a  steady  and  persis- 
tent downpour  of  rain  all  the  afternoon,  the 
guests  responded  well  to  the  invitations  sent 
out,  although  the  meeting  was  an  infonnal  one, 
and  preliminary  only  to  the  larger  and  more 
important  one  which  is  to  take  place  on  the 
14tli  inst.  This  may  go  to  prove  to  the  pessi- 
mists that  patriotism  still  lives  in  the  hearts  of 
the  British  people,  and  that  iiingland  is  not 
going  to  the  dogs  just  yet. 

The  flowers,  which  were  as  abundant  as  the 
dainty  refreshments,  made  a  beautiful  riot  of 
colour  en  a  dull  grey  day,  the  lovely  Lent  lily 
largely  predominating. 


Dr.  Waugh  opened  the  discussion,  and  briefly 


March  19,  1910] 


tTbc  Britlsb  3ournal  ot  IRureitiG. 


235 


•oxplaiiied  the  object  of  the  uiectiug,  and 
Mr.  Charles  Kothschild,  a  member  ot  the 
Council  of  the  British  Eed  Cross  Society,  ex- 
plained that  the  exact  movement  was  not  the 
foniiation  of  a  Red  Cross  Society,  as  that 
already  existed,  but  to  form  an  aid  society,  to 
be  called  "  Voluntary  Aid  Detachments,"  lo 
bo  affihated  with  the  B.li.C.S.,  the  real  object 
of  which  is  to  form  an  intermediate  line  be- 
tween the  field  hospital  and  the  base  hospital. 

Two  Voluntary  Aid  Detachments  already 
exist,  and  now  it  is  desired  to  form  a  branch  in 
the  Borough  of  Kensington. 

The  Detachments  are  divided  into  two  sec- 
tions—the  Men's  Detachment  and  theWomen's 
J_)etachment.  The  latter,  which  is  what  we  are 
mostly  concerned  with,  comprises  the  following 
officials :  — 
1    Commandant    (medical    man    or    medical 

woman). 
1   Assistant   Commandant   (medical   man   or 
medical  woman). 
1  Assistant  Quartennaster  (man  or  woman). 
"2  Lady  Superintendents. 
20   Women    (of    whom    two    should  be    fully 
trained  nurses). 

It  appears  that  the  only  essential  qualifica- 
tion required  of  the  18  lay  women  is  that  they 
hold  a  certificate  cither  from  the  L.C.C.  or  St. 
■John's  Ambulance  Society  for  first  aid  to  the 
injured. 

The  women  will  meet  twelve  times  in  the 
year  for  practice  of  one  hour's  duration. 

Miss  Pitt-Taylor,  the  Hon.  Secretary,  pleaded 
earnestly  for  recruits.  Many  nurses  were 
])resent,  and  one  offered  to  join  as  a  Superin- 
tendent. 

The  whole  organisation  of  the  British  Eed 
Cross  Society  is  intended,  it  will  be  understood, 
to  provide  supplementary  aid  to  the  Territorial 
Medical  Service  to  meet  the  needs  of  war  at 
home.  A  cordial  vote  of  thanks  was  pro- 
posed to  Miss  Walker  by  Lady  Phillimore,  and 
seconded  by  Dr.  Waugh,  and  the  meeting  then 
teiininatcd. 


At  the  annual  moefingof  the  QueeuVictoria's 
Nursing  Institution  at  Northampton,  the  Chair- 
man, Councillor  F.  H.  Thornton,  J. P.,  in 
moving  the  adoption  of  the  report,  referred  with 
satisfaction  to  the  increase  in  the  number  of 
maternity  cases,  and  expressed  the  hope  that, 
as  it  was  essential  to  a  nurse's  health  she 
should  have  one  day's  rest  in  seven,  the  public 
would  be  more  generous  with  uieir  subscrip- 
tions in  order  that  llie  weekly  rest  day  might - 
he  given  without  any  extra  fifianeial  burden  to 
the  Institution.  TTo  pointed  to  the  successes 
of  Nurses  Rogers  iuul  Wai'd  in  (jbtaining  Mp- 


pointments  at  Macclesfield,  and  to  the  appoint- 
ment of  iliss  Rose  as  an  Inspector  under  the 
Queen  Victoria  Jubilee  Institute,  as  showing 
that  the  Institute  nurses  were  first-class. 
Turning  to  the  balance-sheet,  he  said  that  the 
increased  expenditure  had  been  met  by  in- 
creased income,  but  he  hoped  to  see  a  still  fur- 
ther increase  in  the  donations  from  patients. 

The  annual  report  of  the  American  Society 
of  Superintendents  of  Training  Scl:\ools  for 
Nurses,  together  with  the  report  of  the  second 
meeting  of  the  American  Federation  of  Nurses 
has  just  reached  us.  It  is  a  most  interesting 
volume,  containing,  as  it  does,  the  proceedings 
of  the  fifteenth  annual  convention  of  the  Super- 
intendents' Society,  held  at  St.  Paul,  .Minne- 
sota. We  hope  in  a  future  issue  to  reter  to  this 
at  greater  length. 


The  following  is  the  text  of  the  resolution  of 
the  Board  of  "Toronto  General  Hospital,  as  re- 
ported by  the  Canadian  Nurse,  in  reference  to 
Miss  Snively's  retirement,  carried  unanimously 
on  December  1st,  1909  :—"  Eesolved,  That  this 
Board  of  Trustees,  on  the  occasion  of  the  retire- 
ment of  Miss  Mary  Agnes  Snively,  after  25 
years  of  faithful  and  honourable  service,  as 
Superintendent  of  the  Training  School  for 
Nurses  in  connection  with  the  hospital,  desires 
to  place  upon  record  its  deep  appreciation  of 
the  highly  satisfactory  manner  in  which  she 
has  discharged  the  duties  of  the  position;  to 
testify  to  the  rare  quality  of  the  service 
rendered,  and  to  the  ability,  zeal,  earnestness 
and  devotion  which  have  marked  her  admini- 
stration and  conferred  distinction  upon  both  the 
Hospital  and  the  Training  School,  and  to  con- 
vey to  her  the  assurance  of  the  esteem  and 
respect  in  which  she  has  been  held  hy  all  the 
members  of  the  Board." 


©ur  prise   Competition. 

"SOMETHING  ABOUT  OLD  SISTERS." 

We  have  pleasiu'e  in  announcing  that  the 
prize  of  £1  Is.  offered  for  the  best  paper  of  re- 
miniscences entitled,  "  Somethmg  about  Old 
Sisters,"  has  been  awarded  to  Miss  E.  M.  Dick- 
son, 15,  London  Eoad,  Strood,  Eochester,  for 
her  reminiscences  of  Sister  Monica,  Sister 
Winifred,  and  Sister  IMary  in  one  of  the  London 
hospitals  in  the  early  eighties.  We  shall  hope 
to  publish  the  paper  in  an  early  issue. 

Will  our  readers  note  that  Saturday,  March 
19th,  is  the  latest  date  on  which  to  send  in 
photograplis  for  the  competition,  "  The  Pret- 
tu'st  Patient." 


236 


Cbe  mxtisb  Journal  of  murslno. 


[March  19,  1910 


IReflections. 


From  a  Board  Room  Mikkok. 
It  is  now  officially  aunoimced  that  Surgeon- 
General  Sir  Alfred  Keogh,  K.C.B.,  has  been  placed 
on  retired  pay,  and  Surgeon-General  William  L. 
Gubbins,  C.B.",  M.V.O.,  has  been  promoted  from 
Deputy  Director-General  to  Director-General. 
Ck)nsequent  on  these  changes,  Colonel  William 
Babtie,  V.C.,  C.M.G.,  has  been  appointed  Deputy 
Director-General,  with  the  temporary  rank  of  Sur- 
geon-General, and  Lieut.-Col.  W.  G.  Macpherson, 
C.M.G.,  R.A.M.C..  has  been  appointed  Colonel. 


Mr.  H.  J.  Tennant,  M.P.,  Parliamentary  Secre- 
tary to  the  Board  of  Trade,  presided  last  week 
at  "the  annual  meeting  of  the  Great  Northern  Cen- 
tral Hospital,  HoUoway  Road,  and  in  proposing 
the  adoption  of  the  report  said  the  institution  had 
done  more  work  last  year  than  in  any  previous 
year  of  its  existence.  The  total  receipts  had 
amounted  to  £'24,000,  which  had  enabled  them  to 
reduce  their  debt  to  the  bankers  by  £."),000.  The 
satisfactory  financial  result  was  largely  attributable 
to  the  festival  dinner,  which  produced  £8,051,  and 
to  a  grant  of  £5,000  from  King  Edward's  Hospital 
Fund.     The  report  was  adopted. 


Upwards  of  £100,000  has  been  left  or 
given  to  hospitals  and  other  charitable  insti- 
tutions recently,  of  which  w©  rejoice  to  see 
that  Urn.  Morrison  left  £'25,000  to  the 
National  Society  for  the  Prevention  of  Cruelty  to 
Children ;  she  also  bequeathed  £5,000  each  to  the 
Anti-Vivisection  Hospital  and  the  Anti-Vivisection 
Society;  King  Edward's  Fund  gets  £1,000  from 
^[iss  Emma  Brandreth ;  and  St.  Bartholomew's 
and  St.  Thomas'  £1,000  each  from  Mr.  R.  Nivison. 


Dr.  Manuel  Varona  Suarcz,  Secretary  of  Public 
Health  and  Charities  in  Cuba,  has  been  appointed 
Chief  Editor  of  the  Official  Bulletin  of  the  Depart- 
ment, Sanidad  y  Bcnificeiicia.  in  succession  to  Dr. 
Matias  Dugue  y  Perdomo.  The  usefulness  of  the 
Bulletin  as  a  branch  of  the  work  of  the  Depart- 
ment has  been  amply  demonstrated  by  the  valuable 
articles  published  in  its  columns,  which  we  have 
from  time  to  time  brought  to  the  notice  of  our 
readers. 


Messrs.  Coleman  and  Co.,  Ltd.,  Proprietors  of 
Wincarnis,  notify  us  tjiat  their  stock  of  perfumed 
blotters  is  now  exhausted.  They  have  given  away 
several  hundred  thousands,  which  no  doubt  our 
readers  have  apjireciated. 

They  also  inform  us  that  they  have  issued  a  new 
edition  of  their  valuable  cycling  maps.  A  complete 
set  of  these  maps,  sixteen  in  number,  embracing 
the  whole  of  England  and  Wales,  will  be  sent  free 
on  receipt  of  four  penny  stamps. 

Last  year  -500,000  of  these  maps  were  sold  to  the 
public.  We  may  mention  that  the  actual  cost  of 
these  maps  exceeds  the  price  asked  for  them. 


®ur  Jforeion  Xettcr. 

THE  DREAM  COME  TRUE. 

Scuola  Convitto,   ■' Regina  Elena,"  PoHclinico, 
Roma. 

This  little - 
place  is  ex- 
t  r  e  m  e  1  y 
pretty ;  all 
the  walls  and 
paint  are 
w  bite  or 
cream  or 
pale  green, 
so  that 
strong  notes 
of  colour  can  be  struck  in  the  accessories. 

Thirty-two  bed  and  four  bathrooms,  a  large 
refectory  and  nurses'  salone,  Sisters"  salottino, 
and  Matron's  salotto  and  office,  all  with  steam  heat 
and  electric  light,  make  up  the  whole,  which  a 
friendly  laundry  manager  to-day  rejoiced  at  as 
"something  done  finally  for  nurses  with  a  little 
luxury.'' 

We  still  have  workmen  giving  finishing  touches, 
ami  still  some  of  the  furniture  keeps  making  a 
somewhat  retarded  appearance.  But  in  what 
country  are  promises  always  absolutely  fulfilled  ? 
Our  chief  has  obtained  wire  in  all  our  windows, 
so  that  neither  flies  nor  mosquitoes  can  torment  us. 
We  have  the  hospital  chapel  above  us,  only  a  flight 
of  stairs  to  reach  it.  On  meeting  one  of  the  little 
snore  with  whom  I  worked  in  Signora  Sciamanna's 
time,  I  told  her  how  glad  I  was  to  be  back,  and 
how  fortunate  we  were  to  have  such  a  delightful 
little  convitto. 

"Yes,  indeed,"  she  an.swered,  "you  are  for- 
tunate to  live  under  the  Santissimo  " — the  Most 
Holy.  And  the  Mother  Sujierior  sent  two  English- 
speaking  snore  to  "carry  her  love  and  homage  to 
the  Signora  Direttrice  "  in  response  to  Miss  Snell's- 
presentation  by  the  Committee  ladies. 

The  actual  date  of  taking  over  the  wards  is  not 
yet  fixed,  but  will  be  quite  in  the  beginning  of 
April.  The  Queen  will  open  the  Training  School, 
only  the  hospital  great  people  being  present,  besides 
the  Committee,  and,  we  hope.  Miss  Baxter.  But 
for  some  days  after,  the  public  who  are  interested 
in  the  work  will  be  invited  at  a  fixed  hour  to  visit 
the  "Dream  come  true'' — alias  the  Scuola  Con- 
vitto Nurses'  Home — and  see  the  Anglo-Italian 
staff  at  work  and — in  uniform  ! 

On  the  17th  Professor  Bacarani  comes  to  Rome 
to  give  a  CVinference  on  Nursing,  when  all  the 
nurss  who  liave  arrived  can  hear  the  Italian  Hos- 
pital Director,  who  symiJathises  so  keenly  with 
their  work. 

The  nurses  are  beginning  to  appear  in  Rome,  the- 
best  way  to  devolop  their   Italian. 

I  think  this  is  our  news  briefly  up-to-date.  I 
hope  you  can  use  it,  though  it  is  not  so  interesting; 
as  it  might  he,  if  I  could  tell  more  details.  I  will 
write  more  after  the  opening. 

Yours  very  truly. 

M.  Amy  Tcrton. 


March  19, 1910]       ^f^^  Bilttsl)  3ournnl  of  iRursing. 


237 


®ut6t&c  tbe  (Bates. 


WOMEN. 


drawn     np     by     Latly 
at     the     International 


On  Monday  Sir  Cliarles 
McLaren,     M.P.,     intix)- 
ducod  into  the  House  of 
Commons  a  series  of  Bills 
in      whicli      are      incor- 
porated a  number  of  the 
reforms  contained  in  tlio 
Women's      Charter      of 
Rights     and      Liberties 
McLaren     and     presented 
Women's     Suffrage    Con- 
gress.     Tlie   Bills   provide: — 

1.  That  a  wife  shall  have  a  right  to  maintenance 
from  Iier  husband,  without  the  int-ervention  of  the 
Pooi-T/aw  Guardians,  if  she  has  no  other  means  of 
support  and  is  delmrred  from  earning  her  own 
living  through  having  the  care  of  young  children. 

(2)  A  wife  who  devotes  her  whole  time  to  house- 
keeping and  the  care  of  the  children  sliall  have  a 
claim  uix>n  her  husband  dunng  his  life,  or  upon  his 
estate  after  death,  for  a  sum  calculate<l  on  a  scale 
not  exceeding  the  wages  of  a  housekeei>er  in 
her  station  of  life,  provided  she  has  not  received  any 
other  pei-sonal  allowance. 

3.  The  divorce  law  shall  be  amended  so  as  to 
allow  either  husband  oi-  wife  to  obtain  a  divorce  on 
the  ground  of  unfaithfulness  alone. 

4.  Fat  here  and  mothers  shall  be  joint  guardians 
of  their  children. 

5.  The  ancient  riglit  of  wives  to  dower  shall  be 
restore<l  ;  and  wives  shall  be  put  in  a  more  equal 
position  in  oases  of  intestacy. 

6.  No  woman  otherwise  qualified  shall  be  ex- 
cluded by  sex  or  marriage  from  exercising  the  Par- 
liamentary franchise. 

Can  anyone  deny  the  reasonableness  and  justice 
of  these  proposals? 


The  London  County  Council  is  to  be  oongratu- 
latod  that  two  women  have  been  elected  to  serve 
upon  it  of  ripe  experience  and  unquestioned 
ability.  Mi.ss  Susan  I;;iwrence,  the  member  electe<l 
by  West  Marylebone,  starved  on  the  Ijondon  School 
Board,  and  has  been  a  co-opted  member  of  the 
Education  Committee  of  tlie  I;ondon  County 
Council.  IVfiss  Nellie  Adler  is  a  daughter  of  the 
Chief  Rabbi,  and  has  done  excellent  work  in  connec- 
tion with  the  organisation  of  trade  schools  and 
classes  in  which  women   are  specially   interested. 

La<ly  Frances  Balfour,  Mrs.  Henry  Fawcett,  and 
Mr.  Granville  Barker  are  announced  to  speak  at  the 
reception  of  the  Ijondon  Society  for  Women's  Suf- 
frage in  connection  wilii  the  annual  council  meet- 
ing of  the  Society,  at  the  Great  Central  Hotel,  on 
Friday,  March  18th. 

Mrs.  Pankhurst  will  preside,  and  Mrs.  Pethick 
Lawrence  and  Miss  Christabel  Pankhurst  will  speak 
at  the  Women's  Demonstration  at  the  R«yal  Albert 
Hall  on  Friday,  March  18th. 


.Mrs.  Sidney  Webb,  .^peaking  last  week  at  a 
dia\ving-r<K>m  mooting  at  Lady  Emily  Lutycn's 
house  in  Bloomsbury  Square,  said  we  had  at  the 
base  of  our  society  a  great  mass  of  chronic  desti- 
tution, to  deal  with  which  in  all  its  phases  we  had 
two  separate  authorities.  One-seventh  of  the  pre- 
sent pauperism  wius  due  to  phthisis,  or  tuber- 
culosis, and  under  the  Poor  Law  we  dealt  with  it  as 
foolishly  as  we  did  with  typhus  seventy  j-eai-s  ago. 
One-third  of  the  )M>oplo  who  died  of  tuberculosis 
died  in  the  worUlioiivs,  alt*']-  iiitecting  tlioir 
families,  and  it  was  perfectly  clear  that  theee  oases 
ought  to  be  treated  in  their  incipient  stages,  wJiicli 
the  P<x)r  Jjaw  was  ijowerless  to  do.  llie  wlnie 
machinery  of  the  Poor-Law  had  become  obsolete, 
and  the  time  had  come  for  a' great  step  forward 
in  the  direction  of  prevention. 


VERSE. 
When  thy  gaze 
Turns  it  on  thine  on  soul,  be  most  severe. 
But  when  it  falls  upon  a  fellow-man 
Let  kindliness  control  it;  and  refrain 
From  that  belittling  censure  that  springs  forth 
From  common  lips  like  weeds  from  marshy  soil. 
Ella  Wheeler  Wilcox. 


COMING  EVENTS. 

March  ISth. — London  Society  for  Women's  Suf- 
frage. Reception  by  the  Lady  Frances  Balfour  and 
the  Committee  at  the  Great  Central  Hotel,  Mary- 
lebone, 9—11.30  p.m. 

March  18th. — Women's  Social  and  Political 
Union.  Demonstration  at  the  Royal  Albert  Hall. 
Chair,  Mrs.  Pankhurst.     8  p.m. 

March  ISth. — Somerset  County  Nursing  Associa- 
tion. Eighth  Annual  Meeting,  Municipal  Build- 
ings, Taunton.  Address  by  Miss  Amy  Hughes, 
General  Superintendent,  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee 
Institute  for  Nurses,  3  p.m. 

March  ISth. — Women's  Local  Government 
Society,  Annual  Meeting,  Council  Chamber,  Caxtou 
Hall,  Westminster.  Lady  Strachey  will  preside. 
4.30  p.m. 

March  ISth. — Association  for  Promoting  the 
Training  and  Supply  of  Midwives,  Annual  Meeting, 
36,  Thurloe  Square,  South  Kensington.  Cliairman, 
T.  Raffles  Hughes,  Esq.,  K.C.     4  p.m. 

March  JSIh.— The  Infants'  Hospital,  Vincent 
Square,  S.AV.,  Annual  Court  of  Governors,  Major- 
General  Lord  Cheylesmore  in  the  chair.    4.30  p.m. 

March  19th. — Mectuigof  the  Scotti.sh  Nurses'  As- 
sociation, Masonic  Hall,  100,  West  Regent  Street, 
Glasgow,  4.3u  p.m. 

March  23rd. — Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh. 
Lecture  on  "  Neurasthenia."  By  Dr.  J.  J.  Graham 
Brown.  Extra  Mural  Theatre.  Nurses  cordially 
invited.     4.30  p.m. 

WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 

"Truth  exists,  undivided  and  eternal;  noitlicr 
you  nor  I  create  it  by  our  own  apprehension  of  it. 
We  are  all  in  different  vessels  reconnoitring  an  isle: 
one  thinks  the  isle  is  one  shape,  and  one  thinks 
it  another;  but  our  thoughts  change  it  not;  it  is 
one  shape  and  was  ever  so."       General  Gordon. 


•238 


^15C  "©ritisb  3ournai  ot  iRursino>      ^^^^"^^'^  ^■*'  i^^o 


Xettcrs  to  tbc  EMtor. 


tyj 


Whilst  cordially  invitiny  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  we  xcish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  lie  do  not  in  ant  vim 
hold  ourselves  respoiisible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


PRINCESS  CHRISTIAN'S  FARM  COLONY. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Dear  JlADAjr, — Krerv  year  newspai>eis  t-e<'m  with 
figures  demonstrating  tlie  increase  of  feeble-minded- 
npsti,  lunacy,  and  the  crimes  resulting  from  these 
causes ;  yet  the  public  look  on  at  this  rising  flood  of 
degeneracy  without  attempting  to  avert  it. 

"  If  there  is  a  positive  increase  in  the  numbers 
of  the  feeble-minded  and  of  lunatics,"  says  Profes- 
sor Clifford  Allbutt,  "  it  is  because  we  are  doing 
our  best  to  breed  tbem."  Is  the  nation  becoming 
so  effete  that  its  individual  membciis  can  do 
nothing  to  end  such  conditions?  If  so,  it  is  not  sni- 
prising  that    feeble-mindedness  increases. 

We  appeal  to  all  who  can  appreciate  the  serious- 
ue.ss  of  the  problem  to  help  us  to  grapple  with  it. 
Feeble-mindedness  iS'  largely  hereditary,  and  it  is 
therefore  one  of  the  most  preventable  of  diseases, 
]5rovided  only  that  those  afflicted,  while  being 
kindly  treated  and  ^ell  cared  foi-,  can  be  kept  apart 
from  tlie  world.  For  this  reason  the  Association  lias 
founded  a  Farm  Colony  of  170  acres  near  Ton- 
bridge,  where,  by  the  care  and  control  of  the  feeble- 
minded, one  of  the  most  subtle  evils  whicli  has 
ever  attacked  national  life  is  being  successfully 
combated.  Tlie  Colony  is  named  after  the  Princess 
Christian,  and  she  will  hei-self  open  it  on  June  drd 
next.  Already  there  is  established  a  Home  for 
Lads  of  16  to  23.  These  lads,  in  some  cases  a 
source  of  danger  to  all  around  them,  are  now  busily 
and  happily  employed  in  tending  the  live  stock 
which  kind  symi>athi.sei-s  have  already  given,  and 
in  ether  Colony  work.  So  far,  a  sum  of  £4,300  has 
been  sutecriljed  for  the  Colony,  but  another  £8,000 
is  yet  required. — (1)  To  clear  off  the  debt  for  tlie 
laud  purchased :  (2)  to  build  more  homes ;  (3)  to 
estal)lish  a  school  and  homes  for  feeble-minded 
cliiklren  of  lioth  sexes. 

An  earnest  api)eal  is  made  for  the  imnieeliate 
foundation  of  a  home  for  young  girls,  who  are  m 
greater  danger  than  all  others.  For  this  about 
£1,.500  will  be  needed,  and  a  great  effort  is  Ijeing 
made  to  collect  the  sum  by  June  3rd,  in  order  that 
the  Princess  Christian  may  lay  the  foundation-stone. 
For  every  £100  we  can  add  a  named  bed  to  the 
Cokjiiy.  Furniture,  clothing,  and  farm  stock  will 
be  gratefully  accepted. 

It  is  probably  too  much  to  hope  that  this  .scheme 
will  ajipeal  to  the  impulsive  benevolence  of  the 
general  public,  but  to  those  of  wider  knowledge, 
who  can  see  its  far-reaching  issues,  we  nmke  our 
reque.st  with  much  confidence,  A  :Medical  Specialist 
has  .said: — "More  nations  have  sunk  to  utter  in- 
sif'nificance  as  tlie  result  of  moral  intellectual  and 


physical  degeneracy  than  by  war,  famine,  or  any 
other  conditions."  It  is  time  that  this  menace  to 
the  British  race  was  put  an  end  to. 

A\'ill  those  who  read  this  show  their  interest  i,y 
sentliug  a  subscription  or  donation,  marked  either 
'•'Colony"  or  "General  Fund,"  to  the  Secretary 
of  the  National  Association  for  the  Fecble-Minded, 
at  Denison  Hou.se,  296,  Vauxhall  Bridge  Road 
S.W. 

AVe  are, 

Your  obedient  servants, 

Margaeet  Beudexell-Bruce. 
LucT  C.  F.  Cavendish. 
William  Chance. 
W.   H.   Dickinson. 
C.  S.  Loch. 
Constance  B.  Mekser. 
George  H.  Savage. 
National  Association  for  the  Feeble-ilinded, 
Denison  House, 
296,  Vauxhall  Bridge  Road.  S.W. 

THE  GAT,  ITS  CARE  AND  MANAGEMENT. 
To  tlie  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Madam, — In  reply  to  "  District  Nui-se,"  who 
api>ears  to  w'aut  a  book  dealing  with  the  ailment 
of  cats,  she  will  find  "  The  Cat :  Its  Care  and  Man- 
agement," by  Mi's.  Leslie  Williams,  and  publisned 
b.v  Sydne.v  Appleton,  2-3,  Bedford  Street,  London, 
a  useful  little  volume.  Price  2s.  6d, 
Faithfullv  vours. 

C.  B.  Myers. 
Dunningwell,  Millom,  R.S.O..  Cumberland.  \ 


IRoticcs. 


The  British  Journal  of  Nursing  is  the  official 
organ  of  the  following  important  Nursing  socie- 
ties :  — 

The  International  Council  of  Nurses. 

The  National  Council  of  Trained  Nurses  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland, 

The  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland. 

The  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses. 

The  Registered  Nurses'- Society. 

The  School  Nurses'  League. 

As  their  official  organ  is  widely  read  by  the  mem- 
bers of  these  societies,  the  Editor  will  at  all 
times  be  pleased  to  find  space  for  items  ot  news 
from  the  Secretaries  and  members. 


RULES  FOR  PRIZE  COMPETITIONS 
The  Prettiest  Patient. 
We  offer  a  prize  of  10s.  for  a  photograph  and 
description  of  "The  Prettiest  Patient,"  which 
must  reach  the  Editor  at  20,  Upper  Wimjiole 
Street,  Cavendish  Square,  London,  W.,  on  or  be- 
fore Saturday,  March  19th,  1910. 

The  decision  of  the  Editor  will  be  final. 


OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules   for  competing  for  the    Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


March  19, 191UJ  j^fjQ  Bcltlsb  Joumal  of  IRursino  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


239 


Zvco  3ntcrc9tinG  Cases. 

A  Case  of  Axte-Partum  Haemorrhage. 

The  following  case  illustrates  the  value  of 
restorative  treatment  in  aute-partum  haemor- 
rhage, and  presents  a  second  point  of  interest — 
painless  dilatation  of  the  cervix. 

The  patient  was  a  three-para,  aged  23; 
former  labours  had  been  noiTnal.  According  to 
her  dates,  she  was  38  weeks  pregnant.  On 
rising  she  had  severe  hemorrhage  without 
pain ;  she  stayed  in  bed  till  the  afternoon ;  on 
attempting  to  get  up  for  the  second  time,  the 
liaeniorrhage  recurred  and  was  alarming.  The 
midwife  was  sent  for;  on  iier  arrival  the 
patient  was  somewhat  collapsed,  the  pulse 
rapid  and  feeble,  sometimes  hardly  perceptible, 
tiie  respirations  were  sighing,  and  the  mucous 
membranes  were  blanched.  The  child  was 
lying  in  the  third  vertex  position,  the  foetal 
heart  sounds  were  regular,  the  os  was  the  size 
of  a  Is.,  the  patient  had  no  pains.  The  midwife 
sent  for. the  doctor;  while  waiting,  she  raised 
the  foot  of  the  bed,  gave  two  pints  of  normal 
saline  per  rectum,  kept  the  patient  warm.  To 
her  great  relief,  the  pulse  and  general  condition 
improved  rapidly,  and  when  seen  by  the  doctor 
her  condition  was  satisfactory ;  he  decided  to 
remove  her  to  hospital,  and  injected  a  bulb  of 
aseptic  ergot  into  the  buttock.  On  admission, 
7.30  p.m.,  the  temperature  was  99.4,  the  pulse 
1 16.  the  respii-ations  20,  there  was  no  bleeding, 
the  OS  was  the  size  of  a  two-shilling 
))iece,  there  were  good  uterine  con- 
tractions, but  the  patient  said  she  felt  no  pains  ; 
iit  8..j0  the  OS  was  fully  dilated  painlessly,  the 
membranes  were  ruptured  artificially,  and  the 
child  was  born  alive  ten  minutes  later  in  the 
second  vertex  position  ;  she  weighed  5  lb.  13 
oz.,  and  measured  19  in.  The  third  stage 
lasted  fifteen  minutes;  there  were  4  oz.  of 
hemorrhage,  there  was  no  evidence  of  the 
placenta  being  in  the  lower  segment.  The 
puerperium  was  uneventful. 

KxEE  Presextatiox. 
Knee  presentation  is  extremely  rare.  The 
patient  was  a  five-para  :  her  former  labours  had 
been  normal.  The  sixth  pregnancy  went  to 
term,  there  was  slight  ante-partum  hemor- 
rhage for  three  days  before  the  onset  of  labour. 
The  child  was  lying  in  the  left  sacro  anterior 
position,  the  presenting  part  was  high,  and 
early  in  labour  with  unruptured  membranes  it 
was  diagnosed  as  the  breech.  The  first  stage 
last  23i  hours,  the  membranes  ruptured  spon- 


taneously at  full  dilatation ;  an  hour  later,  as 
there  was  apparently  no  advance,  a  second 
vaginal  examination  was  made ;  the  right  knee 
was  in  the  hollow  of  the  sacrum,  the  leg  lying 
across  brim.,  the  foot  was  just  above  pubes,  the 
left  buttock  could  just  be  felt  very  high  up. 
Chloroform  was  administered,  and  the  doctor 
rotated  the  ftnee  for\\-ards,  and,  extending  the 
limb,  the  cord  prolapsed,  and  the  child  was 
therefore  extracted.  Both  arms  extended,  the 
head  was  easily  deUvered  by  Prague's  method. 
The  child  had  blue  asphyxia,  but  rapidly 
responded  to  stimulation.  There  was  a  caput 
on  the  right  knee.  The  second  stage  lasted  two 
hours,  the  third  stage  lasted  ten  minutes. 
haemoiThage  10  oz.  The  pueii^erium  was 
nonnal.  There  was  apparently  nothing  to 
account  for  the  abnormal  presentation. 

M.  O.  H. 


®ut  of  tbe  motlb. 


Miss  M.  Ellen  Kershaw,  a  graduate  of  the 
St.  Luke's  Hospital,  Chicago,  writing  from  tiie 
North-West,  where  she  is  95  miles  from  a 
station,  in  the  American  Journal  of  Xurs/ii;/. 
says:  — 

You  ask,  what  of  the  nursing  in  this  vast 
wilderness '.'  The  field  is  an  open  one,  for  but 
three  graduates  have  wandered  this  way.  As 
one  might  suppose,  "  experienced  or  practical 
nurses  "  are  the  ones  sought  for  most,  as  the 
people  have  not  yet  been  educated  up  to  the 
point  of  desiring  the  graduates.  A  member  of 
a  family  or  a  friend  often  cares  for  the  patient. 
In  one  instance,  an  obstetrical  case,  the  woman 
began  to  have  pains,  and  the  physician  was 
making  a  call  some  sixty  miles  away.  He  was 
located  by  "Central  "  at  Bend,  and  he  in- 
structed (by  telephone)  the  friend  what  to  do 
at  that  stage,  jmnped  into  his  buggy,  and  liis 
horses  fairly  flew.  Some  ten  miles  further  on 
he  found  another  telephone,  and  inquired  as  to 
conditions,  found  how  the  case  was  progressing, 
and  gave  instructions.  On  the  horses  flew, 
until  another  telephone  was  found,  same  in- 
quiry was  made,  and  instructions  given.  On 
he  went,  inquiring  and  giving  instructions  when 
the  opportunity  afforded,  until  before  he 
reached  the  house  the  patient  was  delivered  of 
a  ten-pound  boy ;  and,  strange  to  relate,  a  gw id 
recovery  was  made,  without  a  complication  ! 
Now  the  physician  tells,  with  great  pleasure, 
how  he  conducted  an  obstetrical  case  iiv 
telephone. 


240       ^bc  Brtttsb  3ountal  of  IRursino  Supplement,  [^^aich  19, 1910 


As  this  is  a  new  country,  the  ranch  houses 
resemble  the  shacks  of  the  working  classes  in 
our  cities,  may  have  one  to  four  rooms^  may  be 
papered  with  lining  paper  or  newspapers,  with 
here  and  there  a  picture  cut  from  a  magazine. 

In  a  little  house  at  the  foot  of  the  Sisters 
mountains,  22  miles  from  Bend,  a  tiny  three- 
months-old  baby  had  malnutrition.  The  physi- 
cian wished  to  place  it  under  the  care  of  a  nurse, 
and  finally  succeeded,  because  he  needed  her  to 
assist  liim  with  perineorrhaphy,  as  the  mother 
needed  the  operation.  The  dweUin^  consisted 
of  four  rooms,  one  of  wLieh  was  used  for  both 
dining  and  living  room.  This  was  used  for  the 
operating  room,  and  prepared  by  the  nurse  the 
day  before.  Of  course,  she  sterilised  all  things 
necessary,  so  recovery  was  almost  a  foregone 
conclusion,  especially  since  there  are  710  germs 
in  the  country.     This  is  a  saying  of  the  wise. 

But  the  poor  little  boy  ?  What  could  be  done 
for  him?  Commonsense,  regular  feeding,  exact 
following  of  the  physician's  orders,  and  fresh 
air  were  all  that  were  needed  to  make  a  wonder- 
ful difference  in  the  little  chap  in  two  weeks. 

What  do  you  think  was  suggested  to  the  in- 
experienced young  mother  by  her  neighbours 
and  friends?  Every  kind  of  prepared  food,  of 
course,  was  tried  by  her  a  few  days;  burnt 
cracker  added  to  gruel  almost  caused  his  death, 
poor  boy.  An  ice  pack,  because  after  feeding 
the  abdomen  was  enlarged  and  he  was  said  to 
be  mortifying.  Fortunately  the  man's  better 
judgment  sent  him  to  the  telephone  to  consult 
the  doctor,  who  assured  him  it  would  kill  the 
child.  Not  satisfied  with  a  close  room,  a  hot 
fire  was  kept  burning,  though  the  child  was 
clothed  in  flannel  and  the  time  of  year  was 
summer. 

One  of  the  greatest  difficulties  one  finds  is 
the  length  of  time  it  takes  to  reach  a  patient, 
for,  as  we  nave  said  before,  we  are  in  a  country 
of  magnificent  distances.  If  one  receives  a  call, 
it  may  take  two  or  three  days  before  she  can 
reach  the  patient,  and  if  the  person  is  in  a  criti- 
cal condition  when  the  nurse  receives  the  tele- 
phone message  the  result  may  be  anything  but 
gratifj'ing. 

People  in  this  wilderness,  the  pioneers,  do 
anything  tuat  comes  to  hand,  in  a  neighbour- 
ing town,  a  drive  of  only  thirty-five  miles 
reached  by  stage  or  private  conveyance,  the  un- 
dertaker is  furniture  dealer,  plumber,  mattress 
manufacturer,  and  hardware  merchant,  so  one 
can  easily  see  that  the  services  of  a  nurse  at  the 
time  of  death  must  be  doubly  gratifying  to  the 
family. 

There  must  be  ample  room  for  nurses  with 
the  instinct  of  the  pioneer  in  this  locality. 


f^I^i^wivc9'   leranunattons. 


At  an  ordinary  meeting  of  the  College  of  Sur- 
geons, held  last  week,  at  which  the  President,  Mr. 
Henry  T.  Bullin,  presided,  Mr.  C.  H.  Golding- 
Bird,  the  College  i-epresentative  on  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board,  reported  the  proceedings  of  the 
Board  during  the  past  year,  and  stated  that  the 
number  of  midwives  on  the  roll  was  28,843.  The 
Board  held  six  examinations  in  London  and  three 
in  each  of  the  provincial  centres,  with  the  follow- 
ing results: — London,  1,735  entered,  1,457  passed; 
Birmingham,  159  entered,  132  passed ;  Bristol,  178 
entered,  144  passed ;  Manchester,  376  entered,  286 
passed ;  and  Neweastle-on-Tyne,  171  entered,  140 
passed.  Leeds  has  now  been  constituted  a  provin- 
cial centre.  Mr.  Golding-Bird  further  reported 
that  the  long  standing  question  of  the  payment  of 
doctors  who  respond  to  the  call  of  the  midwife, 
acting  under  the  rules  of  the  Board,  is  still  un- 
settled. It  appears  that  the  Board  has  done  its  best 
to  induce  the  various  local  governing  bodies  to 
exercise  what  i^owers  they  at  present  possess  in 
that  direction,  but  only  an  Act  of  Parliament  can 
enforce  the  payment  of  the  fees.  In  many  districts 
arrangements  have  been  made  for  the  various  local 
authorities  to  provide  the  necessary  medical  assis- 
tance to  the  midwife,  by  arrangement  with  the 
doctors  residing  in  their  various  districts,  and  in 
the  case  of  the  destitute  poor  this  assistance  is 
given  through  the  authority  of  the  Poor  Law  Guar- 
dians, but  the  adoption  of  these  arrangements  is 
far  from  universal.  The  refusal  of  a  doctor  to 
attend  the  midwife's  summons,  while  certainly 
legitimate  in  present  circumstances,  is  to  be  re- 
gretted, since  the  patients'  lives  are  thereby 
endangered.  Many  medical  men  have,  however, 
without  prospect  of  reward,  given  their  services 
under  these  conditions.  The  best  thanks  of  the 
Council  were  given  to  Mr.  Golding-Bird  for  his 
services  on  the  Midwives'  Board. 


^bc  IRational  association  of 
fIDibwives. 


It  is  regrettable  that  the  work  of  the  National 
Association  of  Midw'ives  should  not  receive  more  en- 
couragement fix)m  the  Midwives'  Institute,  because 
there  is  ample  i-ooni  for  both  Associations.  The 
position  is  this,  the  National  Association  consider 
direct  representation  on  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board  of  supreme  importance  in  the  immediate 
future.  Memoers  of  the  Institute  present  at  the 
Caxton  Hall  meeting  were  not  averse  to  it  "  some 
day,"  but  with  extreme  modesty  doubted  their 
capacity  to  act  on  the  Board  at  the  present  time. 
That  being  so,  the  way  is  surely  open  for  the  28,000 
midwives  wdio  are  not  members  of  the  Institute  to 
work  for  a  reform  they  consider  vital.  The  two 
societies  can  work  harmoniously  side  by  side,  but 
their  jxiint  of  view  being  different,  they  can 
scarcely  amalgamate,  although  the  multiplication 
of  societies  may  not  be  theoretically  desirable. 


THE 

L 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED  BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.     1,147 


SATURDAY,  MARCH   26,    1910. 


ie&itorial. 


THE  NURSING  IN  MILITARY  FAMILIES' 
HOSPITALS. 
A  branch  of  the  work  ol'  the  War  Oflice, 
witli  which  a  good  manj''  ilurses  are  un- 
ac(|xiainted,  is  the  provision  and  staffing  of 
l\Iilitary  Families'  Hospitals  in  the  chief 
depots  and  garrisons.  Formerly  these  were 
nursed,  as  a  ride,  by  the  wives  of  soldiers, 
l)ut  during  the  term  of  ollice  of  iliss  C.  II. 
Jveer,  Matron-in-Chicf  of  Q.A.I.M.N.S.,  the 
nursing  has  been  reorganised,  and  staffs  of 
thoroughly  trained  nurses  are  now  pro- 
vided. 

Stations  at  which  such  hospitals  are  pro- 
vided are  Aldershot,  Chatham,  Devonport, 
Portsmouth,  Tidworth,  Bulford,  Shoebury- 
ness  and  Cairo,  and  four  of  these  are  recog- 
nised as  institutions  in  which  pupil  mid- 
wives  may  be  trained  under  the  rules  of  the 
Central  Midwives' Board.  They  thus  fidfil 
a  double  purpose — i.e.,  to  provide  skilled 
midwifery  and  nursing  care  for  soldiers' 
wives  in  their  confinement,  andj  to  serve  as 
educational  centres  (for  training  in  mid- 
wifery) for  trained  nurses.  It  is  an  excel- 
lent piece  of  work  to  have  achieved  and 
one  which  Miss  Keer  may  look  back  upon 
with  sincere  satisfaction. 

The  liegulations  for  the  Nursing  Staff  of 
thelwilitary  Families'  Hospitals  provide  for 
two  grades  of  nurses  ;  (1)  head  nui-ses  and 
{2)  nurses.  All  candidates  for  appointment 
must  possess  a  certificate  of  not  less  than 
tliree  years'  training  and  service  in  medical 
and  surgical  nursing  in  a  civil  hospital,  and 
the  certificate  of  the  Central  -Midwives' 
Board — thus  a  high  standard  is  for  the 
future  to  be  maintained  in  these  hospitals. 
Candidates  before  appointment  are  required 
to  produce  the  necessary  certificates  and 
have  to  attend  before  a  sub-committee  of 


the  Nursing  Board,  who  make  recommenda- 
tions as  to  their  appointment.  Arrange- 
ments are  also  made  for  their  physical 
examination  at  the  War  Ollice.  Head  nurses 
are,  as  far  as  possible,  appointed  from  the 
rank  of  nurses  in  Military  Families'  Hospi- 
tals, so  that  there  is  a  prospect  of  promotion 
for  those  who  begin  as  nurses,  added  to 
which  they  are  eligible  for  grants  of  pen- 
sions and  gratuities  after  ten  years'  service, 
so  that  the  posts  in  these  hospitals  afford 
an  opening  which  may  with  advantage  be 
considered  by  nurses  holding  the  necessary 
(Xualifications.  The  initial  rate  of  pay  for 
nurses  is  £.35  per  annum,  which  is  increased 
.£2  annuallj'  to  a  maximum  of  £15.  Ihere 
is  also  an  allowance  of  £5  for  uniform,  and 
a  weekly  allowance  at  home  of  15s.  a  week 
for  board  and  washing,  and  abroad  of  -Is., 
reduced  to  3y.  Gd.  when  free  messing  is 
provided.  The  pay  of  Head  Nurses  is  as 
follows  :  at  Aldershot  the  initial  rate  is 
£73  per  annum,  rising  to  £83  ;  and  at  other 
stations  £55,  rising  to  £65. 

Pensions  are  calculated  on  the  rate  of  pay 
at  the  time  of  retirement,  nurses  not  being 
retained  after  sixty  years  of  age.  After  ten 
years'  service  they  are  30  per  cent,  of  such 
pay,  rising  2  per  cent,  each  year  up  to  a 
maximum  of  70  per  cent.  In  case  of  special 
devotion  to  duty  a  pension  not  exceeding 
£50  a  year  may  be  granted  should  the  rate 
for  which  the  Head  Nurse  or  nurse  is 
normally  qualified  bo  less  than  the  amount. 
It  must  be  understood  that  the  nurees 
employed  in  these  hospitals  are  not  members 
of  (jueen  Alexandra's  Imperial  Military 
Nursing  Service,  but  are  engaged  by  the 
Nursing  Board  of  the  Service  under  regula- 
lations  issued  with  Army  Orders  dated 
December  1st,  1909.  We  commend  this 
brunch  to  the  notice  of  nurses  as  affording 
a  useful  and  congenial  sphere  of  work. 


242 


(tbe  Britisb  3ournai  oi  iHursmg. 


[T^lai-ch  20,  1910 


fIDeDical  riDattcrs. 


HAEMOPHILIA. 

Dr.  Paul  Fildes,  in  an  interesting  article  in  a 
recent  issue  of  the  London  Hospital  Gaxcitc, 
describes  this  somewhat  rare  disease.  The 
cardinal  features  are,  he  says,  three  in  number, 
and  may  be  boldly  sunmied  up  m  the  following 
definition — an  inherited  and  abnormal  tendency 
in  males  to  bleed. 

Hcemorrhage. — The  question  of  bleeding  may 
be.  considered  first.  The  essential  feature  in 
this  respect  is  that  the  application  of  trauma, 
which  would,  in  a  normal  person,  pass  un- 
noticed, ill  a  bleeder  determines  an  haemor- 
rhage, and  when  this  hemorrhage  is  established 
there  is  no  tendency  for  it  to  stop  hi  the  usual 
manner.  The  blood  is  usually  described  as 
trickling  or  oozing  away  from  a  surface  in  spite 
of  all  treatment,  and  continuing  till  death 
ensues,  or,  which  is  very  much  more  common, 
till  spontaneous  arrest  occurs  after  the  subject 
is  reduced  to  a  condition  of  profound  anasmia. 

An  outstanding  feature  of  hagmophilic  bleed- 
ing is  that  in  the  majority  of  eases  it  can  be 
definitely  traced  to  trauma.  The  haemorrhages 
are  frequently  stated  to  have  been  spontaneous 
in  onset,  but  are  usually  of  a  nature  or  in  a 
position  commonly  liable  to  slight  knocks  or 
pressure.  The  skin  lesions  vary  from  a  normal 
bruise  to  an  haBmatoma  according  to  the 
severity  of  the  injury. 

The  liability  to  hsemorrhage  is  always  chronic. 
It  is  noticed  in  early  childhood,  and  makes  the 
existence  of  the  sufferer  wretched,  throughout 
youth  to  manhood,  or  perhaps  old  age.  It 
appears,  however,  to  be  established  that,  if 
adult  old  age  is  attained,  a  progressive  decrease 
in  the  number  and  danger  of  the  haemon-hages 
may  occur,  so  that  in  middle  life  the  individual 
may  be  practically  free. 

Variation  in  the  intensity  of  the  liability  to 
bleeding  is  frequently  well  marked,  and  has 
been  clearly  demonstrated  over  a  period  of 
years  by  Ripke.  A  boy  may  be  seen  literally 
covered  with  bruises  and  prostrated  by  some 
particular  bleeding.  Pressure  with  the  thumb 
upon  the  skin  will  determine  a  bruise  in  five 
minutes, -yet  a  week  or  two  later  the  same  boy 
may  be  free  from  bruises,  react  normally  to 
jiressure  or  a  needle  stab,  and  even  undergo  a 
cut  without  unusual  hsemorrhage. 

The  general  condition  of  the  patient  at  the 
time  of  a  bleeding  is  undoubtedly  in  the  great 
majority  of  cases,  apart  from  an*mia,  good. 
Fever,  malaise,  and  constitutional  disturbance 
are  shght  or  absent,  the  fomier  being  chiefly 
seen  in  cases  where  the  blood  is  retained  within 
the  body.     The  boy  lies  quiet  and  expectant. 


as  if,"  as  an  author  says,  '  he  realised  the 
danger  of  his  position."  When  the  bleeding 
stops,  recovery  is  usually  not  prolonged,  there 
having  been  no  further  drain  on  the  patient's 
vitality  than  the  loss  of  a  quantity  of  blood. 
The  boy  regains  his  habit  of  gaiety  and  reckless- 
ness, which  outlook  on  life  is  so  constantly 
mentioned  as  to  constitute  a  minor  feature  of 
the  disease. 

Sex. — With  reference  to  the  question  of  sex 
in  haemophilia,  it  is  necessary  to  state  that, 
after  an  exhaustive  examination  of  the  litera- 
ture, no  condition  has  been  found  in  a  female 
in  any  v\-ay  closelj-  resembling  the  disease 
kiiow'u  as  haemophilia.  In  the  most  elaborate 
and  best-known  cases,  females  are  definitely 
stated  to  have  been  unaffected,  but  the  litera- 
ture is  full  of  alleged  female" bleeders. 
That  the  females  in  bleeder  famihes  are  ab- 
normal in  some  unknown  particular  must 
readily  be  admitted.  They  are  the  active  propa- 
gators of  the  disease,  and  they  differ  from  nor- 
mal women  in  the  great  size  of  their  families; 
but  that  they  are  liable  to  hasmophilia  is  quite 
unsupported  by  evidence. 

It  is,  however, -impossible  to  dismiss  the  sub- 
ject of  haemophilia  in  women  without  reference 
to  that  rare  and  obscure  condition,  sometimes 
referred  to  as  haematidrosis  or  sweating  of  blood. 
This  disease,  which  is  probably  a  complex  of 
pathological  states,  constitutes  a  chronic 
"  liaemon'hagic  diathesis."  .  .  .  The  symp- 
toms consist  of  haemorrhage  or  the  exudation  of 
bloodstained  fluid  under  the  skin  or  from  any 
area  of  the  body  surface.  Of  these  haemorrhages, 
the  most  remarkable,  and  that  which  was  con- 
sidered a  marvel,  is  sweating  of  blood  from  the 
pores,  hair  follicles,  or  sweat  glands.  The  at- 
tack is  often  preceded  by  some  violent  emotion 
or  sometimes  trauma.  In  any  case,  the  sub- 
jects are  usually  of  a  neurotic  temperament. 

Inheritance. — It  has  always  been  considered 
one  of  the  most  remarkable  features  of  hasmo- 
philia that  the  disease  runs  in  families,  and  the 
earliest  reporters  'were  so  definite  on  this  point 
that  even  in  1820  Nasse  had  sufficient  material 
at  his  command  to  foniiulate  his  so-called  law 
— tKat  haemophilia  is  propagated  entirely  by 
the  unaffected  females  in  bleeder  families  to 
their  sons.  '  This  tj'pe  of  propagation  is  illus- 
trated in  every  bleeder  family,  and  must  be 
accepted  as  the  rule.  It  is,  however,  admitted 
that  in  a  small  number  of  cases  the  disease 
appears  to  have  been  propagated  through  a 
male,  either  a  bleeder  or  a  normal  man.  The 
number  of  instances,  however,  is  so  small  that 
they  may  represent  what  might  be  described  as 
"a  descriptive  error":  in  fact,  that  the 
assumption  of  propagation  through  the  male  is- 
erroneous. 


:\Inivli  -iC,  I'.iHi 


^bc  :fi$i1tt5b  3omnal  ot  iRursino. 


24b 


jfloatiiu3  Ibospitals.- 

In  the  summer  of  1873  New  York  City  was 
visited  l)y  a  spell  of  very  excessive  hot  weather, 
and  the  suffering  among  the  poor  was  very 
gieat.  The  inexpensive  summer  I'esorts  and 
trips  to  the  seashore,  now  so  numerous,  did  not 
then  exist  to  afford  Uieir  welcome  relief,  even 
if  the  people  had  the  means  to  get  to  them.  A 
member  of  the  editorial  staff  of  one  of  the  large 
daily  papers,  while  crossing  the  park  suiTounil- 
ing  City  Hall,  was  a  witness  to  the  sad  sight 
of  seeing  a  company  of  newsboys  chased  from 
the  gra«s  plot  to  the  paths  wliere  the  stones 
were  so  hot  as  to  burn  their  bare  feet.  The 
thought  occurred  to  him  that  if  these  boys  could 
be  given  even  a  day  away  from  the  city,  great 
benefit  would  result,  and  he  undertook  to  ar- 
range an  excursion  for  thi-m.  To  carry  out  his 
plan  he  turned  for  help  to  St.  John's  Guild, 
then  a  parish  organisation  working  among  the 
poor  in  their  homes.  A  barge  was  hired,  the 
children  gathered  together,  and  the  first  excur- 
sion became  an  accomplished  fact.  The  bene- 
ficial results  were  so  apparent  as  to  w'aiTant 
giving  another  trip  duiing  the  same  year,  and 
in  the  following  summer,  through  gifts  of  the 
public  for  the  purpose,  eighteen  such  trips  were 
given.  We  have  no  record  of  the  number  who 
were  benefited  the  first  year,  but  15,200  persons 
availed  themselves  of  the  opportunity  during 
the  second  year. 

One  of  the  projectors  of  the  scheme  who  was 
on  board  on  one  of  the  first  trips,  and  made  in- 
quii-y  of  a  small  lad  if  he  was  enjoying  himself, 
received  the  reply:  "Yes,  but  I  wish  me 
muther  and  the  sick  baby  wuz  along."  This 
remark  started  the  idea  of  getting  mothers  with 
babies,  and,  in  the  years  since,  the  development 
of  the  woi-k  has  been  with  this  in  mind.  The 
vessel  now  in  use  is  not  the  excursion  barge  of 
the  beginning,  but  a  hospital  completely 
equipped  to  care  for  day  patients.  The  present 
mortality  among  infants  during  the  summer 
months  is  very  much  less  than  in  former  years, 
and  authorities  giv^  credit  for  a  good  measure 
of  the  reduction  to  this  Floating  Hospital  work. 

In  1875  a  vessel  was  bought  and  rebuilt  for 
the  special  purposes  of  the  Guild.  This  was 
supplanted  in  1899  by  a  larger  boat,  especially 
built  and  equipped.  A  description  of  tlie 
"  Helen  C.  Juilliard,"  named  after  the  donor, 
will  be  of  interest  to  those  who  are  thinking  of 
organising  a  similar  work. 

The  vessel  is  of  wooden  construction,  212  ft. 

*  Contributed  to  the  International  Congress  of 
Nurses,  Ixindon,  Julv,  1909,  by  the  St.  John's 
Guild  of  Xow  York. 


long,  42  ft.  beam,  75U  tons.  It  cost  $33,000  to 
construct  and  $10,000  to  furnish  and  equip.  On 
the  main  deck  amidships  is  a  large  open  space 
where  are  the  gangways  and  the  stairs  leading 
to  the  decks  above  and  below.  This  affords 
ample  room  lor  the  reception  of  patients  and 
their  distribution  on  board.  Forward  of  this 
space  there  are  two  wards,  one  on  either  side 
of  the  vessel,  each  ward  containing  nine  cribs. 
The  babies  who  because  of  their  condition 
should  be  placed  in  bed,  are  conduct-ed  imme- 
diately to  these  wai'ds.  A  graduate  nurse  is  in 
charge.  Forward  of  these  wards  is  the  Super- 
intendent's office  and  staff  cabin.  Aft  of  the 
space  referred  to  is  a  large  bathroom,  hereafter 
mentioned.  Still  further  aft  are  dressing-rooms 
for  the  nurses  and  maids,  and  in  the  extreme 
stem  is  a  toilet  room  for  the  patients.  This 
room  is  entered  by  means  of  a  special  stairway 
from  the  upper  deck,  so  as  to  Keep  the  people 
from  the  parts  of  the  boat  where  the  crew  has 
to  have  free  passage. 

Below  this  main  deck,  in  the  bow,  is  the  tore- 
castle,  where  part  of  the  crew  sleeps.  The  crew 
are  the  only  persons  who  sleep  on  board  at 
night.  Aft  of  the  forecastle  is  the  galley.  Att 
of  this  are  storerooms,  pantries,  etc.,  and  then 
a  large  dining-room,  seating  400  persons  at  a 
time.  In  the  stern  is  the  engine-room.  The 
vessel  has  not  its  own  propelling  power,  but  is 
towed.  This  eliininates  the  danger  from  fire. 
The  engine  on  board  is  a  small  one  for  pumping 
salt  water  to  the  bathroom  and  keeping  the 
toilets  flushed.  Hot  water  is  supplied  from  the 
boiler. 

The  upper  deck  is  entirely  open,  exce])t  for  a 
small  compartment  where  the  feedings  for  the 
infants  are  prepared.  On  the  top,  or  hurricane 
deck,  are  located  the  pilot  house,  the  captain's 
room,  the  berths  for  some  of  the  crew,  and  at 
the  stem  an  isolation  ward. 

Contagious  diseases  are  excluded,  but  if  one 
should  be  inadvertently  passed  in  the  admis- 
sion of  patients,  and  discovered  afterwards,  it 
can  be  kept  away  from  the  other  patients  on 
board. 

The  bathroom  has  tubs  for  bathing  babies, 
with  fresh  and  salt  water  connections.  Medi- 
cated baths  are  given  as  prescribed  by  the 
physician.  The  room  is  also  furnished  with 
about  forty  shower  sprays,  and  the  older 
children  and  mothers  can  take  salt  water 
shower  baths.  A  graduate  nurse  is  in  charge 
of  the  bathroom.  The  mothers  give  the  baths 
to  the  babies,  uidess  they  seem  not  to  know 
how,  and  then  they  are  given  by  an  attendant, 
the  luu-se  standing  by  to  give  instructions  to 
tile  mother.     Tlie  nurse  watches  out  for  aiiv 


244 


^be  iSriri0t?  journal   ot  iRursiuG.      [March  20, 1910 


skill  eruptions  which  should  have  the  attention 
ot  the  physician. 

The  milk  booth  is  also  in  charge  of  a'T^raduate 
nurse,  who  prepares  tne  feedings  as  prescribed 
by  the  doctor  and  instructs  the  mothers  in  the 
preparation  of  them.  Two  other  graduate  nurses 
are  on  the  upper  deck,  circulating  among  the 
n.cthers,  observing  the  babies  and  children,. in 
order  that  those  who  require  it  may  have  the 
attention  of  the  ph3'sician  when  he  makes  his 
rounds,  talking  with  the  mothers,  and  instruct- 
ing them  in  the  general  care  of  their  children  as 
to  clothing,  bathing,  diet,  etc.,  etc. 

The  baby  patients  for  this  hospital  need  not 
be  actually  ill.  Those  ailing  and  fretful  from 
teething,  prickly  heat,  slight  intestinal  troubles, 
and  the  like, are  proper  cases.  It  must  have  been 
inferred  from  what  has  gone  before  that  the 
mothers  are  admitted  with  the  children,  and  in 
order  that  they  may  have  no  excuse  for  not 
bringing  their  babies,  they  are  allowed  to  bring 
the  other  small  children  in  the  family  who 
cannot  be  left  at  home.  The  whole  family  is 
thus  under  the  observation  of  the  physician  and 
nurses.  Those  who  do  not  actually  need  treat- 
ment have  the  benefits  of  the  day  in  the  fresh 
air. 

During  the  morning,  and  again  in  the  after- 
noon, milk  is  distributed  for  the  older  children, 
and  at  noontime  all  who  are  not  on  diet  are 
given  a  waiTn  dinner.  The  mother  has  practi- 
cally nothing  to  think  of  but  to  reach  the  land- 
ing place  on  time — no  feedings  for  the  bottle- 
fed  babies  to  bring,  no  lunch  to  prepare,  etc. 

The  work  is  for  the  poor  only,  and  is  abso- 
lutely free. 

Tickets  for  the  hospital  are  widely  distributed 
among  hospitals,  dispensaries,  day  mu'series, 
milk  depots,  settlement  houses,  churches, 
doctors,  druggists,  and  others,  and  can  be  had 
for  the  asking.  The  idea  is,  besides  helping  the 
babies,  to  give  the  mothers,  so  often  weary  and 
worn  wdth  the  care  of  their  little  ones,  as  little 
trouble  as  possible. 

The  vessel  is  licensed  to  carry  ?,G00  persons, 
and  operated  as  it  is,  costs  aboout  $250  a  day. 
Trips  are  made  dailj-  except  Sundays,  alter- 
nating between  the  west  side  of  the  city,  the 
east  side  of  the  city,  and  Brooklyn.  The  route 
of  the  vessel  is  to  an  anchorage  off  New  Dorp, 
Staten  Island,  where  St.  -lohn's  Guild  main- 
tains the  Seaside  Hospital  for  the  babies  re- 
quiring prolonged  treatment.  This  route  affords 
:>,  sail  of  about  26  miles,  and  keeps  the  people 
in  the  air  for  six  or  eight  hours. 

This  paper  has  been  written  with  tlie  idea  of 
helping  those  who  have  the  organisation  of  a 
-'inilar  work  in  mind,  and  therefore  deals  more 


particularly  with  the  description  of  the  vessel, 
its  equipment,  and  method  of  operation.  What 
tliese  trips  do  tor  the  people  who  take  them 
cannot  well  be  stated.  Many  of  the  babies  are 
brought  on  board  in  the  morning  pale,  peaky, 
and  irritable.  Soothed  by  the  baths,  or  with 
pain  allayed  by  gentle  care  and  proper  treat- 
ment, under  the  spell  of  the  fi'esh,  salt  air, 
they  are  revived  and  strengthened,  and  return 
in  the  evening  with  bright  eyes  and  with  colour 
in  their  cheeks.  The  mothers,  too,  worn  and 
tired  from  nights  of  vigil  and  days  of  anxiety, 
find  rest  and  refreshment,  and  their  coun- 
tenances transformed  by  seeing  their  loved  ones 
better,  speak  their  gratitude  more  eloquently 
than  words.  The  work  is  well  worth  the  doing, 
and  the  results  warrant  the  expenditure  for  its 
maintenance. 

SoinctbiuG  about  ®lb  Sieters. 

PRIZE    PAPER. 

Prominent  in  my  memory  stands  the  figure 
of  Sister  Monica,  whom  I  still  believe  to  be  the 
best  and  most  devoted  nurse  I  have  ever 
known.  I  enteredone  of  the  London  hospitals 
in  1884  as  probationer  in  the  children's  ward. 
Sister  Monica  was  then  Night  Sister,  and  the 
first  time  I  saw  her  she  came  into  the  kitchen 
to  explain  the  working  of  a  machine  (which,  I 
believe,  she  had  herself  given)  to  teach  back- 
ward children  to  walk.  She  was  short,  with  a 
fresh  colour  and  dark  hair,  and  wore  glasses. 
I  still  seem  to  see  her  as  she  looked  straight 
into  me  and  asked  me  to  dust  the  "  walker." 
Very  soon  after  she  became  Sister  of  this  ward, 
and  to  her  I  always  feel  I  owe  what  is  my 
strongest  point — success  with  babies.  She  was 
strict  and  stern,  never  passing  over  a  fault, 
but  she  was  also  just,  and  what  she  said  to- 
day was  as  the  law  of  the  Medes  and  Persians 
till  she  finally  altered  it.  I  don't  think  the  raft 
theory  was  evolved  then,  but  I  was  taught  to 
dust  in  a  manner  that  would  gladden  the  heart 
of  its  most  ardent  disciple. 

"  Never  spare  yourself,''  "  Nothing  but  your 
best  is  good  enough  for  nursing,"  and  such  like 
principles  she  tried  to  instil  into  us  by  precept 
and  practice,  but  chiefly  the  latter.  I  well  re- 
member my  shame  when,  late  one  midday  with 
my  after-dinner  sweep,  she  took  a  second 
broom  and  swept  one  side  of  the  ward  herself. 
Many  times  by  evening  I  have  been  so  tired 
I  almost  wished  I  might  be  found  unsuitable 
and  sent  home,  but  her  kind  "  Good-night, 
nurse,"  as  I  went  off  duty  made  me  quite  eager 
for  the  morning  when  I  might  try  again.  She 
inquired  my  name  and  how  I  spelt  it  when  I 


March  2G,  lOlOl 


Z\ic  36rlt:5b  3oiunal  of  IRurslng. 


245 


first  came  under  her,  and  never  forgot  either, 
which  w  as  a  gift  possessed  by  few  of  the  other 
Sisters.  She  became  .Matron  after,  and  about 
six  of  us,  who  became  nurses  about  the  same 
time,  called  ourselves  "  Sister  Monica's  own." 
She  was  always  vexed  if  a  nurse  tried  to  excuse 
herself  when  reprimanded,  but  if  one  waited 
patiently  to  the  end  of  her  lecture,  she  would 
always  say,  "  Why  did  you  do  so,  nurse'.'"  or 
something  similar,  and  so  give  one  opportunity 
to  offer  explanation  or  extenuating  circum- 
stances. We  were  rather  a  young  lot  of  pro- 
bationers, and  after  the  stem  discipline  and 
strict  etiquette  of  the  wards,  were  apt  to  play 
childish  tricks  when  off  duty.  On  one  occasion 
we  dressed  up  a  dummy  nurse.  (She  had  no 
face,  poor  thing,  but  someone  lent  a  tail  of 
false  hair !)  One  probationer  suggested  the 
dummy  should  be  put  into  the  dormitory  pas- 
sage to  trick  Night  Sister  when  she  came  along 
to  see  that  our  lights  were  all  out.  The  figure 
appeared  to  be  kneeling  on  a  chest  of  drawers, 
and,  oh,  our  hon-or  when  we  heard  Sister 
Monica's  voice  :  "Who  is  that?"  What  folly 
is  this  "  "  Come  down,  nurse,"  etc.,  etc., 
till  she  reached  the  dummy,  but  she  only  said 
then,  "Goodnight,  nurses;  make  haste  to 
bed,"  and  we  still  do  not  know  what  brought 
her  at  such  an  unusual  hour  on  our  floor.  In 
those  days  our  unifonn  dresses  were  allowed  a 
tail  of  a  certain  length,  and  I  well  remember 
having  to  stand  while  Sister  Monica  measured 
mine,  which  was  found  double  the  allotted 
number  of  inches !  We  were  not  taught  the 
cost  of  dressings,  etc.,  but  woe  betide  the  pro- 
bationer found  using  anything  wrongfully  or 
wastefully.  "  Do  you  suppose,"  Sister  Monica 
would  say  in  her  severest  tone,  "  that  chari- 
table people  give  their  money  to  this  hospital 
that  you  may  waste  things  like  that?"  And  I 
am  glad  to  say  I  still  hear  it  passed  occasionally 
from  one  of  my  private  patients  to  another  that 

imrse  is  not  extravagant." 

A  great  contrast  to  Sister  Monica  in  appear- 
ance and  most  other  things  was  SisterWinifred. 
She  was  tall,  somewhat  colourless,  and  placid. 
She  gave  us  our  first  (and  almost  only)  lec- 
tures, and  she  certainly  taught  us  patiently 
and  well.  Based  on  Blackie's  school  series, 
she  gave  us  lectures  on  physiology  which,  as 
we  understood  and  remembered  them,  made  a 
splendid  foundation  for  any  after  knowledge. 
She  always  went  over  the  old  lecture  before 
going  further,  and  never  thought  it  a  trouble 
to  explain  away  or  correct  our  mistakes.  Sister 
Winifred  would  also  give  an  occasional  lecture 
on  any  special  case,  such  as  the  only  (so  far  as 
my  experience  goes)  ease  of  hydrophobia.  To 
her  we  mostly  went  for  such  information  as  we 


desired,  and  siie  would  always  tell  us,  or  say^ 
"  I  don't  know,  nurse ;  but  1  will  look  it  up  or 
ask  one  of  the  doctors."  She  was  excellent  in 
theory,  but  not  very  practical.  1  have  vivid 
recollections  of  my  agitation  when,  from  the 
kindest  motives,  she  would  come  to  help  me 
make  beds  if  the  ward  were  extra  heavj-,  but 
she  would  not  put  the  middle  crease  of  the 
sheet  exactly  in  the  middle  of  tne  bed,  nor  did 
an  inch  or  so  difference  in  the  distance  of  the 
counterpane  from  the  floor  concern  her.  But 
we  all  loved  her,  and  I  think  she  taught  us 
nearly  all  the  theory  we  learned. 

Then  there  was  Sister  Julia,  who  used  to 
scare  me  nearly  out  of  my  wits.  She  would 
come  and  stand  very  close  to  one,  and  say,  with 
a  stern  mouth  and  a  fixed  eye,  ",  Nurse,  did  you 
do  so  and  so?"  "Yes,  Sister."  Then,  with 
an  out-of-your-owu-niouth-will-1-condemu-you 
sort  of  air,  the  mouth  still  sterner  and  the  eye 
more  fixed,  "  You  are  sure  you  did?"  With  a 
feeling  of  guilt  and  horror,  I  would  meekly  say 
again,  "  Yes,  Sister."  "  Oh,  that's  all  right, 
then;  I  was  afraid  you  might  forget!"  And 
with  a  smile  and  benign  eye  she  would  waddle 
away,  leaving  me  to  recover;  but  it  was  some 
time  before  1  used  to  her  ways. 

Sister  Mary  was  another  old  Sister,  and  (as 
success  went  in  those  days)  successful  surgical 
nurse.  She  was  adored  by  most  of  the  patients 
and  nurses  who  came  under  her,  but,  to  my 
mind,  she  was  too  nunlike  and  sexless  to  be 
sympathetic ;  she  always  seemed  to  be  above 
the  petty  joys  and  sorrows  of  every  day.  \\'e 
had  among  our  Sisters  a  fair  number  who  were 
members  of  good  families,  and  perhaps  that  is 
why  there  are  fewer  peculiarities  to  write  about, 
since  education  in  their  day  tended  to  turn  out 
women  more  of  one  pattern. 

E.  M.  Dickson. 


®ur  pri5C„  Compctitton. 

THE  PRETTIEST  PATIENT. 
We  have  pleasure  in  announcing  that  our  prize 
of  10s.  for  a  photogra])!)  and  description  of 
'  The  Prettiest  Patient  "  has  been  awarded  to 
;\Iiss  Newton,  Queen's  Nurse,  Carrickfergus, 
CO.  Antrim,  Ireland,  for  the  photograph  and 
description  of  "  A  Child  of  Erin." 

The  photograph  of  "  A  Small  Damsel  of 
Three  Summers."  sent  by  Miss  K.  Mary  Hull, 
2'2,  High  Street,  Manchester  Square,  W.,  is 
also  accorded  honourable  mention.  We  hope 
to  publish  the  Prize  Photograph  next  week. 

We  also  consider  uiat  the  photographs  sent 
by  Miss  Metcalfe,  Miss  E.  James,  and  Miss 
Oliver  should  be  highlv  commended. 


246 


Z\K  5Sriti5b  3ournal  of   fiursina,      [^larch  26,  loio 


Morl&=»MiJ)e  (Brief. 


ilrs.  Bedtord  Feu-svick  wishes  to  express 
-wami  thanks  to  all  those  who  nave  during  the 
past  fortnight  written  to  her  in  terms  of  so 
much  kindness  concerning  the  death  of  their 
dear  mutual  friend,  iliss  Isla  Stewart.  She  feels 
they  will  realise  that  it  is  from  no  lack  of 
appreciation  that  she  has  not  replied  persoually 
to  them,  and  that  she  values  their  sympathy 
■\  ery  deejjly. 


Surgevu-Geueral  \V.  L.  Gubbins,  C'.B., 
M.V.O.,  Director-General  of  thfe  Army  iledical 
Service,  has  written  to  Lord  Sandhurst,  Trea- 
surer of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  "on  be- 
half of  the  Army  Xursing  Board  for  Queen 
Alexandra's  Imperial  -Military  Nursing  Service, 
to  express  their  extreme  regret  at  the  news  of 
the  dep/ch  of  JMiss  Isla  Stewart,  who  was  so  long 
-one  of  its  most  respected  and  able  members. 
The  wor-k,  diligence,  and  admirable  advice  ten- 
dered by  this  lady  on  all  occasions  will  ever  be 
remembered." 

Lady  Truscott  also  wrote  to  Lord  Sandhurst 
to  expvess  the  deepest  regret,  and  to  say  that 
Miss  Stewart  rendered  to  her,  as  Lady 
ilayoress  of  London,  1908-1909,  the  greatest 
assistance  in  forming  a  Nursing  Service  for  the 
city  in  connection  with  the  Ten-itorial  Forces, 
and  to  express  her  sincere  sympathy  with  the 
Treasurer  and  Governors  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital. 


At  a  meeting  of  the  Scottish  Xurses'  Associa- 
tion, hold  on  19th  March,  the  President,  Sir 
William  Macewen,  in  his  opening  remarks, 
made  sympathetic  reference  to  the  death  of 
I\Iiss  Isla  Stewart,  and  the  Hon.  Secretary  was 
instructed  to  inform  the  Society  for  the  State 
Eegistration  of  Trained  Nurses  of  the  sympathy 
■of  the  Scottish  Nurses'  Association,  and  their 
sense  of  the  great  loss  which  the  nursing  world 
has  sustained  through  the  passing  of  Miss 
Stewart. 


During  the  past  week  letters  have  been  re- 
ce-ved  from  France,  Italy,  Holland,  and  Fin- 
land expressing  the  genuine  grief  occasioned  by 
the  news  of  ^liss  Isla  Stewart's  death.  In  every 
country  where  trained  nursing  exists  she  was 
affectionatelj-  esteemed  as  a  woman,  and  re- 
vered as  a  professional  leader.  All  deplore  the 
loss  of  a  dear  friend — proving  appreciation  of 
her  sympathetic  personalitj- — and  the  loss  to 
the  '.'orld  of  nursing  . 

The  Baroness  -Mannerheim,  President  of  the 
Finnish  Nurses'  Association,  writes  from  Hel- 
■.singfors  ■.  '"  Tr  ^^.'^nT;  nliiio'^t  incivdililp  that  she 


is  no  more,  the  genial,  kindly  hostess  who  last 
summer  gave  us  such  a  splendid  welcome  in  the 
glorious  old  Hall  at  Bart's,  that  she  who  for 
years  has  been  working  so  unselfishly  for  pro- 
gress in  nursing  all  over  the  world,  will  no 
longer  be  with  us  at  the  meetings  of  the  Inter- 
national Council  of  Nurses. 

The  Finnish  nurses,  who  were  with  me  in 
London  last  summer,  wish  me  to  convey  to  you 
the  expression  of  their  deep  concern  and  sym- 
pathy, in  which  I  am  one  with  them." 

Aliss  Tilauus,  President  of  the  Dutch  Nurses' 
Afsociation,  is  deeply  moved  by  the  sad  news, 
and  considers  the  loss  irreparable. 


IN    MEMORIAM    OF    ISLA    STEWART. 

A   Tribute, 

With  t^inccre  Nymjuif/i y. 

Silently,  sadly,  slowly,  lay  lier  here  a  space, 

Midst  these  hearts  that  loved  her;  'tis  her  chosen 

place. 
Tenderly  leave  her  spirit,  to  tlie  Father's  care, 
iSomow,  loss,  and  tumioil,  cannot  toiich  her  there. 

Tender  with  all  suffering,  upright,  ti'ue  as  steel, 

Ever  with'  high  courage,  modest,  full  of  zeal ; 

■■  Called,"  she  made  her    calling,    something    near 

sublime ; 
Ci'own    her    with    yon  laurels,  /tort  her   name   to 

Time. 

See  the  silent  watcliers,  gathere<l  round  her  betl, 
Hush,  tread  slowly,  softly ;  leave  them  with  tlieir 

dead. 
Swiftly  passed  her  spirit,  to  the  realms  of  light. 
F.igh   she   held   her  standard,   thro'   the   ha  id-won 

fight. 

Earth    may   bring   its   riches,    rank   may   bring   its 

ix>\\er. 
But  the  Spirit  giveth,  gifts  of  greater  dower. 
"Called,"     she     heard    the    summons;    answered, 

' '  Lord ,  I  come !  " 
We  in  grief  unite  and  say,    "  Lord,    Thy    icill    he 

done.'  Madge  Sutton. 


CI3C  £100  IRcoistration  lfun^. 

£     s.    d. 
Brought  forward        ...  ...  ...     57  14     2 

Sent    in    memory    of    the    faithful 

services  to  the  Registration  Caitse 

of  Miss  Isla  Ste-wart. 

The  Misses  Whitley 5     0     0 

Miss  fidith  Edwards  and 

Miss  L.  H._Ulph 5     0     0 

The  League   of    St.    John's    House 

Nurses        110 

The      Chelsea     Infirmary     Niu'ses' 

League        ...         ...         ...         ...       1     1     0 

?iliss  Stower luO 


.-£■70  IC,     2 


March  2G,  1010-     (i\jQ  Bntisb  3ournaI  of  IFiiirsiiuj 


24'; 


a  pioncci-  Moii^cr. 

We  briefly  announced  last  week  the  death  of  Mies 
Helen  LigertHOotl,  for  eight  years  Lady  Superin- 
tendent of  the  Kent  Xursiug  Institution,  West 
Mailing,  which  will  come  as  a  great  sorrow  to  her 
many  friends  and  former  nurses.  The  funei-al  took 
place  on  Wednesday  in  last  week  at  the  Cemetery, 
Harrow,  and  amongst  those  present  were  Mr.  A. 
Edmond  (a  brother-in-law).  Miss  Clay  (representing 
Colonel  Thomas  Ligertwood.  M.l).,  C.B.,  a  cousin). 
Miss  A.  Kelly,  Lady  Sui)erinten<lent  of  tJie  Kent 
Nursing  Institution,  We-,t  Mailing,  and  the  follow- 
ing nurses: — Miss  M.  L.  Piggott,  Miss  E.  Gisby, 
Miss  C.  Tunaley,  Miss  E.  Bailey,  Miss  E.  Dinnie, 
Miss  M.  Macintosh,  and  Mrs.  S.  G.  Lidyard,  R.N.S. 

Flowers  were  sent 
by  Miss  A.  Ligert- 
wood (sister).  Dr. 
Ligertwood,  Mr.  X. 
Edmond,  Lady  Isobel 
BUgh,  the  Hon.  :Mrs. 
Dale,  Miss  Timins, 
the  Lady  Superin- 
tendent and  Staff  of 
the  Kent  Nursing  In- 
stitution, West  Mail- 
ing, MisS  Russell, 
Lady  Superinten<lent 
of  the  NursingSistere' 
Institution,  Devon- 
shire Square,  E.G. ; 
Nurses  Tunaley, 
Gisby,  Dinnie,  Leddy. 
Broughton,  and  S.  ('.. 
Lidyard ;  and  Mi-s. 
Palmer,  Mr.  and  Mr.v. 
Bolter;  and  Little 
Margery. 

The  service  wa.-^ 
conducted  by  the 
Rev.  Percy  Stowers, 
M.A. 

Since  she  left  West 
MaUing,  in  1902,  on 
account  of  failing 
health,  and  went  to 
live  at  Harrow,  ML^ 
Ligertwood  has  Ijoen 
most  devotedly  cared 
for  by  Mies  Catherine 
Tunaley,  one  of  her 
former  nurses  at  West  JIalling,  who  has  done  every- 
thing possible  for  her  care  and  comfort. 

Nurses  who  obtain  their  hospital  training  at  the 
present  day,  when  nursing  is  a  desirable  calling  for 
girls  to  enter,  can  scarcely  realise  what  it  meant 
to  adopt  it  in  the  seventies,  and  early  eighties. 
Grit,  determination,  and  high  purpose  were  all 
needed  to  meet  the  opposition  of  relatives,  the  dis- 
approval of  friends,  and  the  conditions  encoun- 
tered on  entering  the  hospitals.  Let  us  keep  fra- 
grant the  names  of  those  who,  like  Mi.ss  Ligert- 
wood, have  helped  by  tlioir  personality  and  work 
to  lay  the  foundations  of  our  profciwion. 


(Siuccn  l^ictona's.  3ubilcc  3n5ti* 
tute  tor  IHmscs. 


Miss    HELEN    LIGERTWOOD, 


Examination-    Patkh. 
nie  following  is  the  pajwr  set  in  the  examination 
for  the  Roll  of  Queen's  Nurses,  March  10th,  1910 : 

1.  Wliat  precautions  would  you  take  if  a  case  af 
typhoid  had  to  be  nursed  in  a  poor  home  with  re- 
gard to 

(a)  The  patient. 

(b)  Other  members  of  the  hou.sehold. 

(c)  Your.self. 

2.  How  may  ophthalmia  neonatorum  be  caused, 
and  de.sciil)e  in  detail  the  ways  in  which  a  nurse 
can  assist  in  its  prevention  or  cure  ? 

3.  What  is  the 
essential  object  of  all 
cooking  processes?  Ex- 
plain the  changes 
which  broad  and  meat 
respectively  undergo 
when  baketl. 

4.  Which  clauses  in 
the  "Children's  Act  " 
affect  district  nureing 
specially  ?     Or 

4a.  What  is  the  dif- 
f  e  r  ence  between 
school  nursing  and 
school  inspection  'f 
Can  both,  or  either, 
be  combined  with  a 
district  nuree's  work? 
Or 

4b.  Give  some  illus- 
trations of  the  work 
of  charitable  agencies 
with  which  you  are 
familiar  for  the  relief 
of  poverty  and  dis- 
tress. 

5.  (a)  What 
measures  are  em- 
ployed to  prevent 
sower  gas  from 
oscaping  into  a  house 
through  the  water 
closet? 

(b)     How    can    the 
drains  of  a  house  be 
tested      to      discover 
whether  they  are  in  good  order  or  not? 

6.  How  would  you  give  a  vaginal  douche  to  a 
district  case?  Give  reasons  for  the  methods  you 
woultl  adopt.  AVhat  are  the  purposes  of  such  a 
douche  ? 

Questions  1,  2,  3,  5,  and  6  must  aU  be  answere<l. 
Questions  4,  4a,  and  4b  are  alternative ;  one  only 
of  these  must  be  answered. 

N.B. — Thi-ee  hours  is  allowed  for  the  examination. 


It  is  evident  that  a  very  practical  knowledge  of 
the  conditions  they  will  have  to  meet  in  their  work 
is  expected  of  Queen's  Nurses. 


248 


CDC  Brtttsb  iourual  ot  IRursinQ. 


[Mavch  -26,  1910 


Cbc  Scottisb  IRurses'  Hssociatlon. 


The  Scottish  Nurses'  Association  met  in  the 
-Masonic  Hall,  West  Regent  Street,  Glasgow,  on 
Saturday,  March  19th,  at  4.30  p.m.  There  was  a 
very  large  attendance  of  nurses  and  honorary 
niembei-s. 

The  Secretary,  Dr.  Robertson,  read  numerous 
apologies  for  absence,  including  those  from  Lady 
Ailsa  aud  Lady  Helen  Munro  Ferguson,  honorary 
members. 

Sir  Wm.  Macewen,  the  President,  after  con- 
giatuLatiug  the  Association  on  the  large  attend- 
ance at  one  of  the  earliest  meetings,  made  sym- 
pathetic reference  to  the  loss  which  the  nmisnig 
world  bad  sustained  in  the  death  of  Miss  Isla 
Stewart,  Matron  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital, 
London,  who  had  taken  a  very  active  part,  even 
<bu-ing  her  last  illness,  in  tile  promotion  of  State 
Registration.  He  then  described  the  formation  of 
the  Scottish  Xui-ses'  Association  by  a  number  of 
matrons  and  nui-ses  in  various  parts  of  Scotland, 
«  bo  realised  the  necessity  for  united  effort  on  tlie 
part  of  the  nui-ses  themselves  to  obtain  the  oppor- 
tunity of  discussing  questions  affecting  nursing 
interests,  of  forming  opinions,  and  of  voicing  these' 
opinions;  to  be  independent  of  extraneous  aid. 
and  to  be  helpful  to  one  another.  Although  only 
formed  seven  months  ago,  the  Association  had 
already  justified  its  existence  both  as  regards  mem- 
bers, of  whom  there  were  many  hundreds,  including 
a  large  number  of  matrons  and  superintendents  of 
nurses,  and  by  the  work  which  it  had  done.  He 
pointed  out  how  unsatisfactory  the  present  position 
of  nurses  is,  where  anyone  may  don  a  uniform  and 
call  hei-self  a  nurse,  and  be  acoepte<l  as  such  by  the 
public,  who  pays  the  same  price  for  the  untrained 
as  the  fuUy  trained ;  how  unequal  the  training  of 
nui-see  is,  even  in  the  larger  schools;  and  how  very 
va lying  the  standards  of  examination  ai'e.  iJy 
State  Registration  this  would  all  be  changed;  the 
<iualified  would  be  distinguishe<l  from  the  un- 
<iualified;  all  tiiaining  schools,  large  or  smaU,  would 
1k'  required  to  comply  with  the  code  of  education  set 
by  the  State,  and  the  State,  by  means  of  uniform 
<xaminations  held  from  time  to  time  throughout 
the  Kingdom,  by  unprejudiced  examiners,  would 
determine  what  constituted  a  trained  nurse.  The 
qualified  nurse  would  probably  receive  a  State 
diploma,  and  might  be  distinguished  by  the 
qualification,  N.D.N — National  Diploma  in  Nursmg. 
He  next  asked  why  the  Universities,  which  pro- 
vided for  the  education  of  women  as  doctors,  had 
not  thought  it  worth  their  while  to  provide  the 
theoretical  part  of  a  nurse's  cunlculum,  and  he 
then  went  on  to  compare  the  unsatisfactory  con- 
dition in  our  own  country  with  the  excellent 
organisation  which  exists  in  many  of  our  Colonies, 
aiul  particularly  on  the  Continent,  where  a 
thoioughly  organised  nursing  staff  is  recognised  as 
a  necessity  in  times  of  peace,  and  a  very  imjx>rtant 
]Xirt  of  the  military  mechanism  in  time  of  war.  He 
lastly  explained  shortly  the  aims  of  the  single  portal 
system,  for  which  they  were  fighting,  with  its  three 
years'  course  of  training,  with  a  defined  curriculum, 
prescribed  by  a  Central  Nursing  Council,  and  oon- 


tlucted  in  recognised  bospititls  and  nursing  schools, 
and  its  uniform  State  examination,  conducted  by 
examinere  appointed  by,  or  with  the  approval  of, 
and  undei'  the  supervision  of,  the  Central  Numing 
Council,  at  suitable  centres  throughout  the  King- 
dom, and  expressed  his  indebtedness  to  the  other 
delegates  of  the  Scottish  Nurses'  Association,  who, 
at  short  notice,  and  at  their  own  expense,  had  gone 
to  London  to  attend  the  conferences. 

Mrs.  Strong,  ex-Matron,  Glasgow  Royal  In- 
firmary, who  was  loudly  cheered  on  rising,  next 
spoke.  She  said  that,  having  spent  the  greater  part 
of  her  life  as  a  Matix>n  in  a  nursing  home  and  in 
liospital,  at  Dundee  and  Glasgow,  she  thought  it 
would  be  granted  that  she  knew  something  of  the 
I'eqinremeuts  of  Scottish  nurses.  She  shortly  traced 
the  developments  of  trained  nursing  from  the  time 
of  Florence  Nightingale  and  Mi's.  Wardix>per,  of 
St.  Tliomas's  Hospital,  to  the  present,  describing 
the  commencement  of  the  movement  in  Glasgow 
and  the  West  of  Scotland,  when  Sir  William  Mac- 
ev.  en  addressed  the  nurses  of  the  Royal  Infirmary  on 
New  Year's  Day,  1891,  asking  if  nursing  could  not 
l>e  raisied  to  a  distinct  profession,  with  its  minimum 
requirements,  theoretical  and  practical,  its  teachers, 
examinere,  and  its  diploma,  the  scheme  suggested 
Ijeing  adopted  by  the  managers  in  1893.  While 
many  hospitals  both  train  and  examine  their  nurses 
now,  there  is  no  recognised  standard,  and  uniformity 
is  much  required.  Some  Scottish  nurses  had 
proved  themselves  equal  to  the  demands  of  a 
Central  Board,  as  illustrated  by  their  having  passed 
the  stiff  examinations  set  by  the  Royal  Britisli 
Nunses'  Association.  Not  one  of  the  nurses  who 
have  gone  up  from  the  Glasgow  Royal  Infiimary 
had  faUed  at  this  esaminatioii,  and  it  presents  this 
great  advantage  of  their  being  examined  by  an  in- 
dependent Board,  which  does  away  with  all 
partiality.  She  strongly  urged  all  members  who 
wish  to  take  a  high  place  when  Registration  comes 
into  force  to  enter  for  the  examiiLations  of  the 
R.B.N. A.,  as  these  examinations  are  thorough,  and 
nui-ses  who  pass  them  gain  the  diploma  of  the 
association.  The  R.B.N. A.  is  the  only  body  in  the 
Kingdom  which  is  authorised  to  grant  a  diploma, 
and  this  diploma  is  already  recognised  as  a 
qualification  of  out-standing  merit.  She  then 
described  and  commended  the  objects  of  the 
Scottish  Nurses'  Association,  of  which  she  was 
proud  to  be  a  Vice-President. 

Miss  Wright,  Matix)n,  Stobhill,  described  the 
work  which  the  Association  had  done,  particularly 
at  the  conferences  in  London,  where  it  had  worked 
hard  to  get  increased  representation  for  Scotland 
on  the  Council.  She  was  sure  what  would  most 
appeal  to  nurses  in  Registration  was  the  guarantee 
they  would  obtain  of  securing  a  systematic, 
methodical,  and  adequate  tnaining. 

Miss  AVaddington,  Matron,  private  nursing  home, 
spoke  of  the  benefits  which  would  be  derived  liy 
nurses  who  were  trained  out  of  London  from 
passing  a  State  examination,  particularly  if  they 
intended  practising  in  the  Colonies  or  on  the  Con- 
tinent. 

Dr.  Devon,  Glasgow,  explained  some  misoonceii- 
tions  which  had  arisen  regarding  the  proposed  fee 


.March  :2G,  I'JIOJ 


tibc  IBritlsb  3oiirnal  of  IRurslno* 


•249 


lor  examination  and  rcgisti  iitioii.  Fivo  guiiu-aK 
was  stated,  not  as  the  rigid  I'eo  to  be  imposed,  but 
as  the  maximum  which  could  be  lmi)ose{l,  and  he 
knew  that,  guided  by  tlie  cxi>erience  with  other 
lU'gistration  JJills,  the  Crown  authorities  woukl  be 
viMj-  slow  to  ix'rniit  tlie  passing  of  a  Bill  wliich 
tli<l  not  provide  its  own  working  expenses.  Same 
had  objected  to  the  paying  of  iepresenta.tives  on 
the  Central  Hoard,  an<l  liad  pointed  out  that  it 
would  be  easy  to  got  representatives  wlio  would  pay 
their  own  expenses.  His  <'xperienco  was  that  when 
you  did  not  pay  a,  pei-son  to  act  for  you  that  pei-son 
was  not  your  representative,  but  an  indei)endeiit 
in<lividual,  who  naturally  <lid  not  voice  your  views, 
fo."  wliich  he  did  not  care,  but  his  own.  If  nurses 
wisiietl  to  soikI  real  repr<wiitatives,  who  would  look 
after  their  interests  and  not  their  own,  they  would 
require  to  pay  these  representatives,  as  tlie  Bill 
now  before  Pai'liajiient  proposed  they  should  do, 
the  exiienses  being  cx>vered  by  the  fee  for  examina- 
tion and  registration.  NuiBes  already  in  practice 
at  the  time  of  pa.ssing  of  the  Bill  would  only  re- 
quire to  pay  the  portion  of  the  fee — ^that  for  Regis- 
tration. 

Dr.  Kraser,  Paisley,  six>ke  from  the  practitioner's 
and  small  hospital's  standpoint  of  the  desirability 
of  a  uuifonn  minimum  standard  of  esamiaatiou 
for  nurses. 

Dr.  Core,  Stobhill,  reminded  his  hearers  that 
w  liile  the  Association  had  a  political  side,  which  had 
recently  of  necessity  been  very  active,  it  also 
ixiesessed  a  social  side,  and  he  hoj>ed  the  time  was 
not  far  distant  when  the  Association  would  possess 
a  chib-rooiii  in  Glasgow. 

Dr.  Johnston,  Belvidere,  spoke  of  the  necessity 
of  fever  iiuiisfs  l)eing  alive  to  the  change  which 
Hegist ration  would  produce  in  their  i>asition,  and  of 
taking  .steps  to  secui*  adequate  recognition  of  their 
excellent  training,  lx)t}i  in  fever  and  medicine, 
which  they  obtamed  in  a  fever  hospital. 

Di'.  McGregor  Robertson,  Glasgow,  summarised 
the  objects  of  the  As.sociation  with  reference  to 
Registi-ation,  and  explained  how  the  Association 
ha<l  done  all  in  its  power  to  forward  the  interests  of 
.Scotch  Nurses,  including  the  fever  nuiives,  whose 
position,  as  Dr.  Jolinston  had  pointed  out,  had  been 
threatened. 

Dr.  Wallace  Anderson  then  pix>posed  a  hearty 
vote  of  thanks  to  the  Chairman,  and  Mi-s.  Stix>ng, 
who  liad  specially  come  up  fiom  Wales  to  address 
them,  and  the  other  six-'akere,  and  the  meeting 
then  terminated. 

3nternationaI  IRews. 

We  are  informed  by  our  Internatioiiai  President, 
Frauleiu  Agnes  Karll,  that  Miss  Therese  Tamm  has 
;Kcepte<l  the  office  of  Hon.  Vice-President  for 
Sweden  of  the  international  Council  of  Nurses. 
She  writes  in  a  very  nice  letter,  "she  will 
try  and  do  her  best  for  nursing."  At 
present  the  Swedi.sh  nurses  have  not  formed  a 
National  Council,  and  until  they  do  their  interests 
eould  not  be  more  intelligently  represented  than 
by  Miss  Tamm,  who  is  a  very  clever  and  charininti; 
woman. 


G:bc  3iii5b  murses'  association. 

The  annual  meeting  of  the  Irish  Nurses'  .\ssocia- 
tion  took  place  at  the  Rotunda  Hospital,  Dublin, 
on  St.  Patrick's  Day,  March  17th.  The  usual  cus- 
tom for  the  past  has  been  to  combine  business  and 
pleasure  in  these  meetings,  and  this  was  very  suc- 
cessfully accomplished  on  Thursday  evening. 
Through  the  kind  intervention  of  Miss  Ramsden 
(to  whom  was  voted  a  resolution  of  thanks),  Matron 
of  the  Rotunda  Hospital,  and  past  President  of  the 
Association,  we  were  given  the  PiUar  Room  of  the 
Rotunda,  which  is  large  and  beautiful.  A  ball 
having  been  held  there  the  night  before,  it  was 
most  tastefully  decorated,  and  the  garlands,  lamp- 
shades, and  everything  else,  were  loft  up  for  our 
meeting,  and  when  it  was  filled  with  nurses,  in  all 
their  different  indoor  uniforms,  it  was  a  pretty 
sight.  Another  room  was  given  us  for  the  tea,  all 
the  provisions  of  which  had  been  provided  through 
individual  members  of  the  Executive  Committee,  to 
whom  the  nurses  owe  a  debt  of  gratitude.  Several 
of  these  also  undertook  the  preparation,  notably 
Miss  Ramsden,  assisted  by  a  large  number  of  her 
nurses;  Miss  MacDonnell,  R.R.C.,  our  new  Presi- 
dent; Miss  Hughes,  Portrane;  Miss  Reeves,  Miss 
Goulding,  Miss  Pate,  and  many  others.  Home 
made  cakes  and  sandwiches  were  the  order  of  tlic 
day,  and  were  much  appreciated.  During  the  even- 
ing oranges  sent  by  Miss  O'Flynn,  Temple  Street 
Hospital,  and  sweets  from  Miss  Shuter  and  Miss 
Reeves  were  handed  round  during  the  dancing, 
which  all  much  enjoyed.  Nearly  all  the  members 
of  the  Executive  sent  cakes,  jam,  tea,  sugar,  milk, 
cream,  and  all  the  requisites,  so  that  the  funds  of 
the  Association  were  not  called  upon,  which  was  a 
most  generous  effort  on  their  part. 

At  7  o'clock  the  chair  was  taken  by  the  out-going 
President,  Miss  Lament,  who  gave  a  most  inter- 
esting resume  of  the  working  of  the  Association 
during  her  year  of  office.  She  was  followed  by  Mrs. 
Kildare  Treacy,  Hon.  Secretary,  who  read  the 
minutes  of  the  last  general  meeting,  and  also  the 
financial  statement. 

The  New  Phksidknt. 

Miss  MacDonnell,  the  new  President,  then  took 
the  chair,  and  Miss  Huxley  moved  a  resolution  in 
warm  terms  of  praise,  to  thank  Miss  Lamont  for 
hci  conduct  as  President  for  the  past  year.  Slie 
said  that  "  ahvays  most  courteous  and  dignified, 
she  never  sacrificed  principle  for  expediency," 
but  filled  her  office  to  the  admiration  and  satisfac- 
tion of  all  who  came  in  contact  with  her.  This  was 
seconded  by  Miss  Kam.sden,  who  said  .she  fully  en- 
dorsed all  Miss  Huxley  had  said.  The  resolution 
was  carried  with  acclamation. 

The  other  officers  who  had  been  voted  for  were 
then  announced,  viz.  : 

Vice-President:  Miss  Irene  Keogh,  Matron, 
Richmond  Hospital. 

Hon.  Secretary:  Mrs.  Kildare  Treacy,  Matron, 
City  of  Dublin  Nursing  Institution. 

Finance  Committee:  Miss  Huxley,  Elpis;  Miss 
Kelly,  Matron,  Steeveus'  Hospital;  and  Miss  Sut- 
ton, Matron,  St.  Vincent's  Hospital. 


250 


Cbe  BritiGb  3ournaI  of  IRursino. 


[Marcli  26,  1910 


Executive  Comin'tttee  :  Six  nurses  were  elected  to 
sit  on  the  Executive,  viz.,  Sister  Ixerr,  Sir  Patrick 
Dun's  Hospital;  Sister  Chadwick,  Rotunda  Hosiji- 
tal ;  Sister  Thornton,  Elpis  Private  Hospital ;  Sister 
Jardiue,  Pichmond  Hospital ;  Nurse  Potter,  St. 
Vincent's  Hospital;  and  Nurse  O'Donnell,  City  of 
Dublin  Nursing  Institution. 

Secretary :  The  appointment  of  the  new  Secre- 
tary, Miss  Cai-son-Rae  (late  ilatron  of  Cork  Street 
Fever  Hospital)  was  announced  to  those  present ; 
and  she  received  a  large  number  of  annual  subscrip- 
tions. 

A  letter  was  read  from  Miss  Hannan,  Matron  of 
the  Mater  Infirmorum  Hospital,  Belfast,  announc- 
ing that  about  40  of  her  staff  were  joining  the  As- 
sociation, and  that  she  regretted  not  being  able  to 
be  present  on  that  occasion.  The  Hon.  Secretary 
told  the  nurses  that  the  Association  had  arranged 
to  give  £3  towards  defraying  the  expenses  incurred 
by  the  Central  Registration  Committee,  as  ar- 
ranged at  the  late  Conference;  she  asked  for  a  show 
of  hands  as  to  who  were  willing  to  give  their  mite, 
and  all  present  responded.  This  ended  the  busi- 
ness part. 

A  concert  had  been  arranged  by  Sister  Baker, 
Rotunda  Hospital,  who  contributed  two  songs  her- 
self, by  Helmund.  She  possesses  a  beautiful  voice, 
and  was  warmly  received  and  encored.  Nurse  Wat- 
son (of  the  same  hospital),  a  fine  contralto,  sang 
"  I  know  a  lovely  garden  "  (D'Hardelot),  "  When 
I  Awake"  (Ellen  Wright),  "Annie  Laurie"  (ar- 
ranged by  Lehmann),  and  "Absent"  (Metcalf), 
(encored).  Nurses  Baker  and  Jenner  also  sang,  and 
the  latter  acted  as  accompanist.  Nurse  Duggan 
(Sir  Patrick  Dun's  Hospital)  danced  a  jig  in  the 
costume  of  an  Irish  colleen,  and  looked  one  to  the 
life.  Nurse  Meeuau  also  played.  Dancing  went  on 
until  11  o'clock,  when  Sir  Roger  de  Coverley  ended 
a  most  pleasant  re-union.  About  200  Matrons  and 
nurses  were  present,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  next 
year  may  see  even  a  larger  number,  owing  to  the 
enlarged  membership  of  the  Association. 

V.  R. 

ULSTER   BRANCH. 

On  the  11th  March  the  liisli  Nurses'  Atss^ociation, 
Ulster  Branch,  held  their  annual  meeting  in  the 
Nurses'  Club  Room  in  Belfast.  Miss  Workman, 
the  Hon.  Secretary,  read  the  reixu-t,  which  stated 
that  there  are  now  127  members  of  the  branch,  46 
having  joined  during  the  year;  18  of  the  niembere, 
however,  have  not  as  yet  paid  their  subscrii)tion. 
Tlie  doctora  have  been  most  kind  in  giving  many 
interesting  lectures,  and  the  Amusements  Com- 
mittee have  organised  several  very  successful  social 
eienings. 

The  two  new  Vice-Presidentswho  were  then  elected 
for  the  year  1910  are  Miss  Hewlett,  Matron  of  the 
Belfast  infirmary,  and  Miss  Melville,  Matron  of  t)ie 
County  Antrim  Infirmary.  The  Finance  and  Amuse- 
ments Committee  were  re-elected.  It  was  announced 
that  the  Irish  Nui-ses'  Association  have  decided  to 
lower  the  annual  subscription.  In  the  future  proba- 
tionary nui-ses  and  country  members  will  only  be 
a.sked  to  suljscribe  Is.  i^er  annum,  and  staff  nui-ses 
2s.  6d.  It  is  hoped  that  all  Irish  nurses  will  now 
join   the    Association,   as    the   subscription '  is    so 


moderate.  Tliese  .small  sums  include  the  use  of 
the  Club  Rooms  in  Belfast  or  Dublin. 

Lady  Hermione  Blackwood,  President,  was  in  the 
chair,  and  addressed  the  meeting.  She  mentioned 
the  princii>al  events  in  the  nursing  world  during  the 
liast  year,  and  spoke  of  the  International  Congress 
of  Nui-ses,  the  District-  Nurses'  Conference  at  Liver- 
pool, the  State  Registiiation  Bill,  and  the  Scottish 
Nurses'  Association.  She  concluded  by  proposing 
the  following  iiesolution,  which  was  seconded  by 
Miss  Newman  in  a  few  very  feeling  words,  and 
which  was  passed  unanimously  : — 

"  Tliat  this  branch  of  the  Irish  Nurses'  Associa- 
tion desire  to  place  on  record  their  deep  sense  of 
the  loss  the  nureing  profession  has  sustained  by  tlie 
death  of  Miss  Isla  Stewart." 

The  business  meeting  then  terminated. 

Tea  was  aftenvards  served  and  conversation  be- 


came general 


NEW  MEMBERS. 

The  following  nui-ses  have  been  elected  members 
of  the  Irish   Nurses'   Association : — 

Sir  Patrick  Dun's  Hospital,   Dublin. 

Sisters:   M.  Berry,  M.  Stanley,  C.  Toole. 

Nurses:  J.  Mulhall,  R.  CriUy,  M.  Jessop,  A. 
Beveridge,  M.  Scott,  S.  Donaghue,  H.  Ashmore, 
E.  Blackmore,  K.  Lankester,  J.  Deacon,  E.  M'll- 
waine,  J.  Drew,  C.  Tuohy,  L.  Oldham,  O.  O'Neil. 
A.  Maguire,  C.  GiJmartin,  R.  Magee,  A.  TurnbuU, 
M.  Graydon,  A.  Long,  A.  Meredith,  C.  M'Garry, 
M.   Keane,   B.   Williams,   M.   McMullen. 


appotntincnts. 


Matron. 
Waddington     Cottage     Hospital,     Clitheroe,     Lancj  shire. ~ 

Miss  Catherine  W.  Smart  has  been  appointed  !Ma- 
tron.  She  was  trained  at  the  Royal  Infirmaiy, 
Edinburgh,  where  she  has  held  the  position  of 
Cliarge  Nurse. 

Night  Superintendent. 

Sanitary  Hospital,  Bournemouth. — Bliss  Lil.v  Gray 
has  been  appointed  Night  Superintendent.  She  was 
trained  at  the  County  Hospital,  Motherwell,  and 
the  Crumpsall  Infirmary,  Manchester,  where  she 
also  held  the  iJositicn  of  Ward  Sister.  She  has  also 
bad  experience  in  x^rivate  nursing,  and  has  acted 
as  Health  Visitor  in  Bournemouth.  She  is  a  certi- 
fied midwife. 

Kent  and  Canterbury  Hospital,  Canterbury.  — Miss 
Clara  Sayers  has  been  appointed  Night  Sister.  She 
was  trained  at  the  West  Ham  and  East  London 
Hospital,  Stratford,  E.,  and  has  been  Charge  Nurse 
on  night  duty  at  the  'NVest  End  Hospital,  Welbeck 
Street,  W.,  and  has  had  experience  in  the  nursing 
of  infectious  diseases  at  the  Brook  Hospital, 
Shooter's  Hill,  S.E.  She  has  also  done  temporary 
Sister's  duties  at  the  Kent  and  Canterbury  Hos- 
pital. 

Superintendent   Nurse. 

York  Workhouse  Infirmary. — Miss  Marguerita  Mullin 
has  been  apix>iiited  Superintendent  Nurse.  Slie 
was  trained  at  the  Sheffield  Workhouse,  and  has 
held  the  position  of  Charge  Nui-se  and  Maternity 
Nui-se  at  the  Sciilcoates  Workhouse,  Hull,  and'  of 
Night  Superintendent  and  Superintendent  Nurse 
at  Newbury  Workhouse. 


March -io,  lOK.       ^|jj>  ^gritisb  3ournal  of  IRursino. 


251 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 
NURSING  SERVICE. 
Miss  K.  J.  Stewart,  Staff  Niii-so,  is  ooiUirnicd  in 
hor  apix>iiitinent,  her  i)eri<xl  oi  provLsional  service 
liaving  expired.  The  name,  ol;  Miss  F.  L.  Trotter, 
Staff  Niii-so,  is  as  now  <l<'^'rih(>cl,  and  not  as  stated 
ill  tho  (kizittc  of  February  1st. 

QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
FOR  NURSES 
Transfers  and  Appointinints. — Miss  Catherine 
Hiidd,  to  Birstall;  Miss  Amy  Rounds,  to  Hor,^- 
forth ;  Miss  Gwladys  Griffiths,  to  Hertford;  Mi.ss 
Alice  AValmsley,  to  Llandilo;  Mi.ss  Millie  Owen,  to 
Coedpoeth ;  Miss  Louie  Roberts,  to  Llanaelhaiarn  ; 
Miss  Wilhelmina  MoKinnoll,  to  Little  Shelford  ; 
Miss  Sarah  Hewson,  to  Swinton. 


XeaGuc  IRews. 


GUY'S  HOSPITAL  PAST  AND   PRESENT 
NURSES'  LEAGUE. 

A  course  of  six  post-graduate  l,(M'tures  luis  been 
arranged  to  commence  on  Tuesday,  April  5th,  1910, 
in  tho  Nurses'  Home,  at  8  p.m.  The  lectures  will 
be  given  by  H.  C.  Cameron,  E.sq.,  M.D.,  and  E.  C. 
Hughes,  Esq.,  M.C.,  of  Guy's  Hospital, on  "Recent 
Changes  and  Treatment  in  the  Medical  Wards," 
•The  Mental  Factor  in  Disease,"  "Recent  Sur- 
gery," and  "The  After  Treatment  of  Abdominal 
Operations." 

The  Lectures  will  be  printed  in  pamphlet  form, 
and  sent  post  free  to  all  subscribers.  Tho  fee  for 
the  course  will  be:  Members,  -"js.  :  non-members, 
Ts.  6d. 

Intending  subscribers  should  .send  in  their  names 
to  the  Matron  as  soon  as  possible. 

CENTRAL  LONDON   SICK  ASYLUM    NURSES 
LEAGUE. 

The  inaugural  meeting  of  the  Hendon  Branch  of 
the  Central  London  Sick  Asylum  Nurses'  League 
wa-  held  at  Hendon  on  Wednesday,  March  16th. 
There  was  a  very  good  attendance  of  former  mem- 
bers of  the  nursing  staff,  who  were  delighted  to 
meet  again  under  the  old  roof.  Tea  was  served  at 
4.80  p.m.,  and  business  commenced  at  5.  Miss  Smith 
as  Chairman  explained  the  objects  of  the  League, 
^rnd  put  before  the  meeting  the  suggested  rules, 
which  were  di.scusscd  and  passed  in  a  most  spirited 
and  business-like  manner.  The  following  officers 
were  elected :  President,  Miss  Elraa  Smith ;  Vice- 
President,  ^liss  M.  A.  Trueman  ;  Hon.  Treasurer,  ■ 
Miss  E.  J.  Pearce;  Hon.  Secretary,  Miss  E.  I/loyd, 
and  the  following  six  memliers,  to  form  the  Execu- 
tive Committee:  Miss  Punchard,  Mi.ss  Bell,  Mrs. 
Mannering,  Miss  Scliuler,  Miss  Harbott,  and  Jliss 
Hfshe. 

Miss  Ada  Brown  was  elected  to  be  Magazine  Edi- 
tor, and  Miss  E.  J.  Pearce  Sub-Editor.  Either  lady 
win  be  pleased  to  receive  and  consider  any  articles 
or  suggestions  for  the  Journal,  from  members,  and 
also  advertisements  for  insertion  on  the  cover.  If 
any  of  the  old  nurses  of  either  Cleveland  Street  or 
Hendon  Infirmaries,  have  not  yet  been  communi- 
cated with  will  they  kindly  write  to  their  respective 
Matrons  as  several  letters  giving  notice  of  the 
League  have  been  returned  by  the  Post  Office. 


IRiu'Slno  lEcbocs. 

'J'ho  Eiirl  of  Aberdeen  has 
written  to  the  Hon.  Secre- 
tary of  the  Royal  Hants 
County  Hospital,  Winches- 
Irr,  Captain  Carey,  K.N.,  ex- 
pressing his  own  and  Lady 
Aberdeen's  desire  to  pre- 
sent an  ambulance  to  the 
hospital,  and,  if  necessary, 
to  provide  a  shed  for  its 
accommodation.  In  the 
course  of  the  letter,  which 
u.\prcsses  deep  gratitude  to  the  authori- 
ties, the  Lord  Lieutenant  of  Ireland 
says :  *"'  We  feel  that  he  (Mr.  Gordon) 
could  not  possibly  have  been  taken  better  care 
of  anywhere  in  the  United  Kingdom,  and  we 
should  like  to  pay  our  tribute  to  the  skill  and 
devotion  of  Dr.  Godwin  and  tlie  unremitting 
attention  of  Dr.  Laurie."  They  also  acknow- 
ledge "  the  great  personal  kindness  "  of  the 
Matron,  Miss  Carpenter-Turner,  and  express 
'  grateful  remembrance  "  of  the  great  services 
rendered  by  the  nurses  in  charge  of  their  son, 
especially  Sister  Watson  and  Nurse  Howard, 
and  they  trust  that  the  redecoration  of  the 
nurses'  sick-room  will  be  accepted  as  a  token 
of  their  feelings  in  this  regard.  To  the  porters 
and  servants  they  also  desire  to  express  special 
thanks.  The  letter  will  come  before  the  Court 
of  Governors  at  their  next  meeting. 


Lady  Minto  has  been  presented  by  the  ladies 
of  Bengal,  including  many  Purdah  ladies,  with 
a  diamond  brooch  on  the  eve  of  her  departure 
from  India.  The  presentation  was  made  by 
Lady  Baker,  who  spoke  of  Lady  Minto's  deep 
interest  in  the  women  of  India,  and  their  edu- 
cation, as  well  as  in  nursing  and  hospitals.  The 
Nursing  Association  which  bears  her  name  will 
be  a  permanent  witness  to  her  Excellency's 
desire  to  provide  skilled  nursing  for  sick  Euro- 
peans in  India. 


The  Prince  and  Princess  of  Wale.s  have  pre- 
sented a  brooch  to  Nurse  Schilling,  who  was 
one  of  the  two  nurses  chosen  to  nurse  Prince 
.Mbert  of  Wales  dta-ing  his  recent  illness. 


The  Vicar  of  Islington,  the  Rev.  C.  J.  Proc- 
ter, presided  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the 
North  Ijondon  Nursing  Association,  held  in  the 
King  Edward  Hall,  Canonbm-y  Tower,  Isling- 
ton, last  week.  The  Association  is  doing  a  most 
excellent  work  amongst  a  crowded  population — 
men  and  women,  whom  the  Chairman  de- 
scribed as  stowed  away  in  garret  and  cellar — a 


C:be  3Snti0i>  journal  or  IWursmg.      [March -20,  i9iu 


poor  population  with  hardly  enough  to  meet  the 
necessities  of  food  much  less  of  sickness — and 
these  conditions  were  increasing  in  Islington 
year  after  year.  Referring  to  the  need  of  in- 
creased support  from  churches  and  chapels,  he 
said  that  he  did  not  believe  that  the  public  was 
irresponsive  to  the  cry  of  human  pain  if  only 
it  were  brought  tangibly  and  impressively  be- 
fore them.  People  were  thoughtless,  "  only  be- 
cause they  did  not  think."  They  were  apt  to 
shut  themselves  up  in  their  own  affairs.  A 
••hearty  and  heartfelt"  vote  of  thanks  was 
accorded  to  the  devoted  Superintendent  and 
nurses. 


ilany  hospital  governors  are  just  now  holding 
their  annual  meetings,  and  we  are  glad  to  ob- 
serve that  Matrons  and  nursing  staffs  have  re- 
ceived some  well-merited  thanks.  Although 
the  best  work  is  not  done  with  a  view  to  appre- 
ciation, it  is  none  the  less  pleasant  when  ac- 
corded. At  the  Koyal  South  Hants  and  South- 
ampton Hospital,  the  Chairman  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Management,  Mr.  Courtenay  F.  Wil- 
son, J. P.,  thanked  the  Matron,  Miss  MoUett, 
for  the  care  she  had  taken  of  the  institution ;  at 
the  Bristol  General  Hospital  the  able  report  for 
the  past  year,  presented  by  the  Secretary,  Mr. 
W.  Thwaites,  stated  that  the  appointment  last 
year  of  Miss  A.  E.  Densham  as  Matron  has 
given  the  Committee  abundant  cause  for  con- 
gratulation. Miss  Densham  soon  gave  evidence 
of  the  earnestness,  tact,  and  ability  with  which 
she  undertook  the  responsible  duties  of  her  im- 
poi-taut  post.  The  committee  are  specially 
happy  in  the  knowledge  that  Miss  Densham 
has  so  soon  won  the  confidence  and  affection  of 
the  nursing  staff,  and  have  every  reason  to  be 
satisfied  with  the  arrangements  made  for  the 
?;ystematic  instruction  of  theiiursing  staff.  The 
care  bestowed  upon  this  most  important  work 
by  the  honorary  staff  and  the  Matron  is  evi- 
denced in  the  increased  proficiency  already  at- 
tained, and  the  demand  for  the  services  of  the 
jirivate  nurses. 


At  the  Cottage  Hospital,  Surbiton,  the  Chair- 
man, Mr.  K.  S.  Bond,  said  that  an  innovation 
iluring  the  past  year  was  the  introduction  of  a 
"  Pound  Day."  The  idea  originated  with  the 
^Matron,  Miss  Gough,  and  was  enthusiasticaliy 
taken  up  by  ladies  in  the  district,  with  the  re- 
sult that  the  hospital  obtained  a  very  large  in- 
flux of  goods  and  materials,  and  £30  5s.  in  cash  ; 
at  the  Children's  Cottage  Hospital,  Cold 
Ash,  the  Committee  reported  their  good  fortune 
ill  securing  Miss  Evelyn  Hurlbatt  as  the  new 
Lady  Superintendent,  and  at  the  annual  meet- 


ing of  the  Ulster  Hospital  for  Children  and  Wo- 
men, Belfast,  the  medical  staff  in  their  annual 
report  embraced  the  opportunity  of  expressing 
their  appreciation  of  the  skill  and  care  of  Miss 
Tate  and  her  nurses. 


At  the  first  annual  meeting  of  the  Women's 
Guild  in  connection  with  the  West  of  Cornwall 
IMiners'  and  Women's  Hospital,  Redruth,  the 
report  gave  the  following  reason  for  the  fomia- 
tion  of  this  useful  Guild :  On  the  appointment 
of  the  new  Matron,  Miss  Hollister,  the  hospital 
was  found  to  be  very  bare  of  necessaries,  and  at 
her  suggestion  that  this  part  of  the  hospital 
work  might  be  materially  helped  by  the  forma- 
tion of  such  a  guild,  it  was  inaugurated  last 
March.  The  number  of  members  is  now  590, 
who  contributed  subscriptions  and  donations 
to  the  amount  of  £118  17s.  9d.,  and  articles  in 
kind  of  the  estimated  value  of  £66. 

All  of  which  goes  to  show  that  brains  and 
ideas  in  a  Matron  are  of  definite  financial  value 
to  her  Committee. 


There  was  a  large  attendance  at  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  Somerset  County  Nursing  Asso- 
ciation in  the  Municipal  Hall  at  Taunton  on 
Friday  last.  The  Rev.  Menzies  Lambrick,  of 
Cheddar,  presided,  and  many  of  the  affiliated 
societies  were  represented.  The  annual  report 
stated  that  the  work  of  the  Association  \\'as 
steadily  extending,  and  several  new  and  inter- 
esting developments  have  marked  its  growth. 
Miss  du  Sautoy,  the  County  Superintendent, 
and  Miss  McKay,  Assistant  Superintendent, 
have  worked  with  unremitting  ardour  through 
a  year  of  exceptionally  stormy  weather,  which 
for  them  means  long  days  of  exposure  to  cold 
and  wet  week  after  week.  In  1908  the  Associa- 
tion trained  19  nurses  at  the  cost  of  nearly 
£60  per  nurse,  and  still  had  a  difficulty  in 
meeting  the  local  needs.  An  appeal  to  the 
Vice-Presidents  met  with  a  very  kind  response, 
and  a  scheme  by  which  sectional  committees 
have  been  fomaed  in  the  seven  divisions  of  the 
county  have  resulted  in  increased  local  inter- 
est and  substantial  financial  assistance.  Mrs. 
Sanders,  Convener  of  the  Committee  for  West 
Somerset,  has  handed  to  the  Treasurer  £18'2, 
and  Mrs.  Arthur  Hoskyns,  Convener  for  South 
Somerset,  £100.  A  good  many  of  the  local  As- 
sociations now  refund  part  or  all  of  the  cost  of 
training  on  a  contributory  system.  Miss  Dyer, 
Q.V.J. I.,  Inspector  for  the  Southern  Counties, 
spoke  of  the  responsibility  attached  to  the  work, 
and  congratulated  the  Association  on  its  splen- 
did organisation  and  excellent  officers,  specially 
m.entioning  the  Hon.  Secretary,  the  Hon.  Mrs 
Stanlev. 


Marcli  26,  lOlOJ 


Cbe  iSritlsb  3ournal  of  IWursuio. 


253 


Tlio  parents  of  Crewo  are  indignant  liiat  tlic 
Health  Committee  of  the  Town  Council  of 
Crewe  have  prohibited  them  from  seeing  their 
children  when  admitted  into  the  Isolation  Hos- 
pital, and  recently  some  200  or  300  were 
only  prevented  by  the  police  from 
forcing  their  way  into  the  institution. 
Formerly  they  were  allowed  to  see  the 
children  through  the  windows,  but  it  is  con- 
sidered that  the  excitement  so  caused  is  detri- 
moutal  to  the  little  patients.  Naturally  parents 
whose  children  are  removed  from  their  care, 
when  suffering  from  scarlet  fever  and  diph- 
tlu'ria,  arc  anxious  to  satisfy  themselves  as  to 
tiieir  condition,  b^^  personal  inspection,  and  it 
i.i  desirable  that  they  should  be  penuitted  to  do 
so,  through  a  windo\\'  or  glass  screen,  without 
the  knowledge  of  the  children.  At  Crewe  an 
appeal,  by  a  deputation,  to  the  Chairman  of 
the  Health  Committee  had  no  effect,  and  an  in- 
dignation meeting  was  subsequently  held  out- 
side the  walls  of  the  hospital,  at  which  it  was 
de.cided  to  petition  the  Local  Government 
]5oard  and  Town  Council  to  rescind  their  order. 

Thanks  to  the  generosity  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  W. 
H.  Heywood,  of  Holly  Blount,  Edgerton,  the 
jHU'ses  of  the  Huddersfield  Infirmary  have  now 
is  Home  which  is  worthy  of  the  institution,  and 
which  will  add  greatly  to  their  comfort.  The 
Home,  which  is  known  as  the  "  Ernest  E.  Hey- 
wood Memorial  Nurses'  Home,"  is  given  by 
the  donors  as  a  memorial  to  their  son.  It  was 
last  week  opened  in  the  jjresence  of  a  large  num- 
ber of  friends  of  the  institution  by  Mrs.  Hey- 
wood, and  after  Mr.  Heywood  had  presented 
tlie  title  deeds  to  :\rr.  .lohn  Sykes,  President  of 
the  Infirmary,  and  ^Irs.  .Joseph  Crowther,  on 
behalf  of  the  Matron  and  nurses,  had  expressed 
tiieir  thanks  to  Mr.  and  ^Irs.  Heywood  for  their 
generous  gift,  and  had  presented  Mrs.  Heywood 
with  a  gold  watch  bracelet,  the  gift  of  the  In- 
firmary Board  and  the  contractors,  tea  was 
served  in  the  new  Home  on  the  hospitable  in- 
vitation of  Mrs.  Heywixxl. 

Gen.  Sir  Neville  Lyttelton,  K.C.B.,  presided 
at  the  annual  meeting  of  tlio  Convalescent 
Home,  Stillorgan,  Dublin,  last  week,  and  spent 
some  time  previously  in  inspecting  it  under  the 
guidance  of  the  Matron,  ^liss  Nora  Cunning- 
ham, and  the  Secretary,  Mr.  J.  Godwin 
Ramadge.  It  is  high  testimony  to  the  good 
work  done  by  the  Home  that  since  its  founda- 
tion in  18()2  nearly  34,000  convalescents  have 
lieen  admitted,  the  C'hainnan  explained  that 
\'hen  ])atients  left  the  hospitals  the  Home 
stepped  in,  and  did  its  best  to  carry  them  to  a 
condition  of  complete  recovery,  and  he  was  glad 
to  say  that  the  efforts  in  that  respect  were 
.generally  successful. 


IReflections. 


From  a  Boaud  Room  Mikkok. 
.\t  a  jonit  nieotiiiK  of  Xhv  Royal  Colleges  of 
Pliy-siciaiis  aiul  Siugeoiis,  last  week,  it  was 
amiouiicc<l  that  ar>  the  result  of  a  coiiiiM»titioii  Mr. 
A.  N.  Prentice  liail  been  apix>inted  architect  for 
tlie  new  Examination  Hall  to  be  erected -in  Queen 
Square,  Bloonisbury. 

Owing  to  the  diminution  of  infections  disease  in 
tlie  Metropolis,  the  Metropolitan  Asylums  Board 
has  decided  that  no  more  cases  are  to  b<'  sent  to  the 
Park  Hospital,  Hither  Oreen,  until  further  orders, 
which  means  that  it  will  be  closed  for  the  present. 


The  trustees  of  the  Barnato  Memorial  bequest 
have  approved  of  plan.s  for  the  erection  of  a  hos- 
pital for  the  treatment  of  cancer  patients,  and  for 
cancer  research,  in  cuuiiection  with  the  Cancer 
Charity  of  the  Middlesex  Hos])ital.  About  €200,000 
is  to  be  invested  lor  the  endowment  of  the  new 
hospital,  leaving  between  £50,000  and  £60,000  for 
l)uilding  and  equipment.  It  is  hoped  that  it  will 
be  finished  in  two  years  time. 


At  the  annual  general  meeting  of  the  Poplar  Hos- 
pital for  Accidents  much  regret  wa,?  expressed  at 
the  decision  of  the  Hon.  Sydney  Holland  to  retu-e 
from  the  acting  Ohainiiauship  of  the  Hospital,  a 
IKJsition  he  had  held  for  eighteen  yeans.  With  .\lr. 
Holland's  concurrence,  and  on  the  underetan<nng 
that  he  would  not  be  able  to  give  so  much  time  to 
the  management,  the  Governors  again  elect-ed  liini 
Chairman  of  the  mstitution. 


Lord  Shaftesbury  has  l)een  appointed  President 
of  the  Queen's  Hospital  for  Children,  Hackney,  in 
succession  to  the  late  Loixi  Amherst,  of  H^kney. 


Mr.  Gordon  Martyr,  who  has  for  five  years  been 
in  the  Secretary's  Office  at  St.  Mary's  Hospital. 
London,  has  been  apix>inted  Secretary  of  the  Royal 
Victoria  Hospital,  Bournemoutli.  There  were  1()4 
candidates  for  the  post. 


The  Governors  of  the  StafFordshiro  General  In- 
firmary have  deci<U'<l  to  .m'II  the  portrait  by  Gainst 
borough  of  Mr.  Jolui  Kid,  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
institution.  The  ix>rtiiait  was  j>ainted  about  1770. 
and  has  Iwen  hanging  in  the  Board  Room  for  140 
years.  The  Infirmary  is  short  of  fuiwls,  an<l  the 
Governors  feel  that  it  will  Ije  in  the  best  interests 
of  the  institution  if  the  picture  can  Ix?  sold  for  a 
.siibstantial  sum. 


The  Royal  Berks  Hospital  at  Rea<liug  has  just  re- 
ceived a  "  windfall,"  and  it  is  stated  that  Guy's 
Hospital  will  also  benefit  under  the  will  of  an  old 
lady  who  lived  in  a  Paris  .slum.  She  was  thouglit 
to  be  extremely  i)Oor ;  but,  on  her  death  recently, 
the  authorities  found  a  considerable  s>un  of  money 
hidden  with  various  d<K-nnients  resjiecting  pix>ix»riy, 
some  valuable  securities,  an<l  a  quantity  ol 
.jewellery.  Her  will,  also  found,  clearly  niention<'d 
the  hospitals  \\  hich  she  wished  to  benefit. 


254 


Zt)^-  Bi'itisb  journal  of  IHursinG. 


[:\Iareh  26,  1910 


^be  Ibospital  Morib, 


THE  INFANTS'  HOSPITAL,  VINCENT   SQUARE. 

On  Friday,  March  18th,  the  annual  meeting 
ot  the  Governors  of  the  Infants'  Hospital,  Yin- 
cent  Sqivare,  Westminster,  was  presided  over 
bv  the  Vice-Chairman  of  the  Institution,  ^Ir. 
j"  S.  Fletcher,  M.P.,  who  said  that  the  diffi- 
culty in  these  days  among  so  many  institutions 
was  to  get  known,  and  he  had  no  doubt  that 
when  their  hospital  became  better  known,  and 
more  visited,  it  would  receive  the  support  it 
deserved. 

Dr  Ealph  Vincent  reported  two  iiriirortaut 
developments.  Through  the  generosity  of  Air. 
Eobert  Mond,  their  Treasurer,  the  hospital  had 
secured  a  farm  directly  under  the  control 
of  the  Com- 
mittee and 
]\l  e  d  i  c  a  1 
Staff,  where 
the  diet  of. 
the  cows  is 
liighly  spe- 
cialised, and 
the  strictest 
attention  is 
jjaid  to  the 
sanitation  in 
the  sheds. 
From  t  h  e 
time  the 
cows  were 
milked  at 
Combe  Bank 
Farm,  Seven- 
oaks,  to  the 
delivery  of 
the  milk  in 
the  Hospital, 
only    four 


hours  elapsed. 
The  temperature  of  the  milk  was  at 
once  brought  down  to  40  degrees  Fahr., 
and  was  never  allowed  to  lise  higher  until  it 
was  consumed.  This  temperature  was  main- 
tained in  the  hospital  bj'  means  of  ^  refrigera- 
tor so  constructed  that  the  electric  switches  can 
easily  be  worked  by  a  nurse,  thus  saving  the  ex- 
pense of  a  mechanic,  and  there  was  no  risk 
of  accident.  The  hottest  day  in  summer  would 
only  require  that  the  refrigerator  should  be 
worked  for  an  bom-  or  so  longer.  This  boon 
had  also  been  supplied  by  the  generosity  of 
Mr.  Eobert  Mond.  The  cost  of  working  was 
one  shilling  a  day,  a  great  improvement  on  the 
costly  system  which  had  formerly  prevailed  in 
the  hospital  of  keeping  the  milk  on  ice,  for 
which  12  cwt.  was  required  daily. 


After  the  meeting  tea  was  served  in  the- 
Board  Eoom,  and  the  charming  wards  were 
open  to  inspection. 

Were  it  not  that  the  sleepy  eyes  of  the  little 
patients'  were  already  closing  one  would  have 
been  tempted  to  linger  long  in  the  dainty  sur- 
roundings. In  the  upper  ward  the  infants  were 
clad  in  wee  blue  jackets,  with  snowy  bibs,  the 
cot  covers  were  of  like  colour,  and  even  the 
woolly  toys  depending  from  the  white  curtains 
were  of  the  same  hue. 

In  the  lower  ward  the  same  scheme  was  car- 
ried out  in  pink,  and  one  could  not  decide  which 
to  be  most  in  love  with. 

But  the  bathrooms  !  They  are  veritably 
Lilliputian,  and  we  had  the  good  fortune  to  see 
them  at  tubbing  time,  when,  shorn  of  the  glory 
of  jacket  and  bibs,  the  tiny  creatin-es  lay  noked 

and  un- 
ashamed 
on  the  laps 
of  their  de- 
voted slaves, 
in  a  tempera- 
ture one  felt 
loth  to  leave,, 
and  near  by 
the  most  fas- 
cinating little 
jD  o  r  c  e  1  a  i  n 
baths  you  can 
imagine 
awaited 
them.  Truly 
in  these  en- 
1  i  g  h  t  e  n  ed 
days,  when 
the  subject 
of  infant  mor- 
tality is  so 
much  before 
the  public, 
this  hospital, 
wliich  is  doing  such  a  grand  work,  should  be 
widely  known,  and  generously  supported. 


A    Ward    Bath-room,    the    Infants'    Hospital. 


The  Committee  appeal  to  all  who  have  the 
welfare  of  infants  at  heart  to  support  them  in 
the  arduous  work  ^^'hich  they  have  undertaken. 
Nothing  but  a  conviction  of  its  urgent  necessity 
■^^■ould  have  led  them  to  undertake  such  onerous 
duties,  and  they  rely  upon  the  generous  re- 
si)onse  of  those  who  are  in  a  position  to  support 
the  Hospital,  either  by  annual  subscriptions  or 
bv  other  means. 


Paying  probationers  are  now  received,  J'nd 
many  are  availing  themselves  of  the  oppor- 
tunity of  obtaining  experience  in  the  manage- 
ment of  sick  infants. 


March  20,  10101 


ZTbc  Brittsb  3oiirnaI  of  iRursing. 


255 


®ur  Jfoieion  Xetter. 

Govfnuueut  Hosi)ital,   Moliak-s    Hook, 
Basutoliiiicl,  S.A. 

.My  1)e.\k 
Editor,  —  1 
li  a  V  0  Ijecn 
here  just  a 
week,  and  we 
liave  already 
started 
taking  in 
^  ^1^ ^^g^j^^^i^iesfe^'Wg^ge^M  patients,  and 
\  \  ^-^^" — "^'^■^  )i  a  V  o     li  a  (' 

\U-^  tlirt-e    <)i»T,i- 

tions.  Considering  the  nnpackiny;  we  have  liad, 
and  the  t»aching  of  domestic  and  nursing  matters 
we  have  to  do,  we  find  ourselves  somewhat  tired. 
There  is  one  other  Sister,  and  we  work  the  hospital 
with  native  male  and  female  nurso  attendants, 
whose  devotion  to  labour  Js  not  too  great!  The 
hospital  is  very  pretty  and  well  planned^^two  large 
wards,  male  and  female;  one  isolation  ward;  and 
two  small  wards,  to  be  kept  for  European  patients. 
The  situation  is  exquisite,  the  village  or  hoek  be- 
hind us,  and  in  front  a  huge  vista  of  mountains, 
interlacing  as  far  as  the  eye  can  travel,  which  is  a 
great  distance  in  this  country. 
The  journey  here  from  Maseru  took  us 
was  most  interesting;  one  thing 
evident  to  me  en  route  was 
field  lAbmir  the  native  women 
thing  in  this  re^^pect  notice<l 
was  the  jaro  of  cornfields.  To  scare  away  the  birds, 
a  woman  sits  every  day  on  a  high  mound  of  W'et 
earth,  and,  having  a  long  withy  or  cane  in  hand, 
sticks  little  pellets  of  mud  on  the  end  of  it,  then 
surely  sends  it  at  any  offending  bird  with  good 
result ;  she  sits  in  a  position  to  command  the  whole 
field.  The  next  thing  w<(  pas.sed  was  a  huge  patch 
of  ground  covered  in  a  circle  with  <-orn,  and  on  it, 
being  chased  round  and  round,  were  about  twelvjo 
oxen,  women  btsatiiig  them  on  to  trample  out  all  che 
corn.  The  next  process  was  some  women  twirling 
Basuto  pots,  like  wasbliand  basins — the  wind,  as 
tliey  twirled  them,  blowing  out  all  the  chaff  from 
the  corn — and  singing  in  most  perfect  harmony  a 
chant  to  beg  the  breezes  to  blow  to  help  them. 
These  scenes,  with  the  most  exquisite  atmosphere 
and  glorious  landscape,  are  indelibly  printed  on  my 
mind.  The  colours  at  this  lieight— over  -5,000  feet 
alwve  sea  level — are  most  wonderful;  such  a  field 
of  work  for  a  painter's  brush  could  not  well  be 
beaten. 

I  think  I  shall  like  work  Jiero,  although,  again,  it 
will  be  all  teaching,  for  we  have,  as  1  told  you,  to 
use  native  help  and  train  them  for  work;  but  the 
native  mind  works  rather  like  the  "key  pattern." 
You  mu.st  .stick  to  a  straiglit  idea  or  train  of 
thought;  once  go  out  of  the  course  you  have 
mapp'd  out  for  them  you  get  to  a  full  stop,  and 
must  begin  all  over  agaiji.  You  cannot  quite  preach 
to  them,  "  >\'hatsoever  tby  hand  findeth  to  do," 
etc.,  but  you  must  stick  to  the  motto  yourself. 
They  can   be   unique  in   not  seeing  anything  that 


two  days,  and 
that  was  vei-j' 
the  amount  of 
did ;     the    liitit 


does  not  quite  belong  to  their  pattern  of  work, 
which  is  hardly  a  recommendation  for  good  nursing. 
They  can  dispense  medicines  well,  take  tempera- 
tures, and  do  dressings,  all  in  a  very  correct, 
methodical  way ;  they  are  not  very  great  at  dusting 
or  swt<eping!  I  am  very  thankful  to  have  this 
interest  just  now,  for  life  in  the  future  was  looking 
very  blank  for  me,  owing,  as  you  know,  to  tho  loss 
of  ray  dear,  life-long  fiiend,  whose  lettere  from  home 
came  with  every  mail. 

I  ar.i  hoping  1  may  time  my  next  visit  to  Europe 
in  1912,  and  be  with  you  at  Cologne  for  the  Inter- 
national Congress.  If  that  tablecloth  advertised 
in  last  mail's  Bnixisn  Journal  of  Nursino  for 
£1  Is.  lias  not  been  sold  in  aid  of  State  Registra- 
tion, please  buy  it  in  for  me.  I  shall  follow  all 
your  work,  for  up  here  1  am  as  near  you  in  work, 
through  your  Journal,  or  more  so,  than  with  other 
stations  in  Africa. 

J.  C.  Child. 


practical  (Points. 


.\  small  basin  of  strong  am- 
Things  worth        ni<mia   iilaced  in  a  room  that 
remembering.         lias  been     fumigated  with  for- 
ma Ideliyilc     will    soon  remove 
all  'dour  of  the  formaldehyde. 

A  large  basin  of  water  placed  in  the  window 
where  the  wind  will  blow  over  will  often  lower  the 
temperature  of  a  room  in  summer  ;  also  a  wet  towel 
pinned  to  hang  in  an  open  window. — E.ll. 

If  nausea  is  intense,  mix  a  few  bits  of  cracked  ice 
with  some  orange  juice,  and  it  will  not  only  prove 
most  grateful  to  a  parched  tongue,  but  it  will  fre- 
quently lead  the  way  to  retaining  more  solid  nutri- 
ment.— Nurses'  Journal  of  the  Facific  Coast. 

Every  nurso  finds  lifting  hard,  but  if  she  will 
follow  this  suggestion  she  will  find  it  easy.  First, 
take  a  fall-out  position,  then,  before  lifting,  bend 
the  knees  well,  so  that  the  lifting  will  be  done  by 
the  legs,  not  by  the  back. — American  Journal  of 
Nursing. 

The  nurse  who  makes  a  specialty  of  obstetric  cases 
or  who  is  liable  to  have  a  considerable  number  of 
that  class  of  cases  will  find  a  waterproof  bath  apron 
made  of  stockinet  a  wise  exiienditure.  The  ma- 
terial can  be  secured  for  a  dollar  or  less,  and  it 
will  pay  for  itself  in  time  in  the  saving  of  laundry 
bills  for  white  aprons.  An  apron  of  this  kind  is  a 
gift  to  a  young  mother  or  nurso  that  is  sure  to  be 
appreciated. — Dietetic  and  Eygienic  Gazette. 

Miss    Grac&   Baxter,    R.N., 
Sterilising  of       writes  to  the  American  Jour- 
utensils.  nal  of  yurslug  from    tho  Os- 

pedale  Gesu  e  Marie,  Naples, 
in  r^ply  to  a  correspondent  who  wishes  to  be  told 
of  a  quick  method  of  sterilising  instruments :  I  am 
doing  pioneer  work  in  this  Italian  hospital  and 
hardly  dare  to  make  a  suggestion  of  any  kind,  but 
surely  tho  Italian  system  of  sterilising  such 
utensils  by  burning  spirits  of  wine  in  them  is 
better  than  using  bichloride  of  mercury,  which  cor- 
rodes. We  move  the  burning  alcohol  about  so  a.s  to 
roach  every  part  of  the  utensil  just  before  using, 
and  it  does  not  damage  the  articles  in  the  least. 


25G 


(Tbe  Brltieb  3ournaI  of  Iftursinfl. 


[Mrti-ch  26,  1910 


®ut5i&c  tbc  (Bates. 


WOMEN. 

Th,; 


London     Society 
for      Women's     Suffrage 
held  an  "At  Home"  at 
the  Great  Central  Hotel, 
Maiylebone.   on    Friday, 
March   18th,  to  welcome 
the  130  delegates  attend- 
ing the  Annual   Council 
Meeting  of  the  National 
Suffrage     Societies,     and    to 
Parliament     friendly     to    the 
the 

work  done  by  the  Society  in  every  constituency  in 
the  last  General  Election.  Mrs.  Henry  Fawcett 
said  they  had  done  splendidly,  and  would  be  ready 
to  renew  work  when  Mr.  Redmond  gave  the  sign 
for  the  next  General  Election. 


Union  ol  Wour-ii 
meet  Membei's  of 
cause.         Lady     Frances     Balfour    spoke    of 


An  interesting  private  exhibition  was  held  at 
58.  Victoria  Street,  S.W.,  from  Saturday,  19th,  to 
Wednesday.  March  23rd,  under  the  auspices  of  the 
London  Society  for  AVomen's  Suffrage,  when  two 
pictures  by  Miss  Bertha  Xewoonibe  were  on  view — 
(1)  a  portrait  of  Miss  Emily  Davies.  LL.D.,  and  (2) 
an  incident  in  connection  with  the  presentation 
of  the  fii-st  Parliamentary  Petition  for  Women's 
Suffrage  to  Mr.  John  Stuart  Jlill  by  Miss  Emily 
Davies  and  Mre.  Gan-ett  Andei-son. 


Mr.  J.  Ca/Stlx>rg,  ex-Minister  of  Justice  in  the 
Norwegian  Liberal  Cabinet,  and  Member  of  the 
Parliament  which  carried  the  Woman  Suffrage  Bill 
in  Norway,  had  a  most  cordial  reception  when  he 
addressed  the  meeting  organised  by  the  Women's 
Social  and  Political  Union  in  the  Albert  Hall  last 
week,  at  which  Mrs.  Pankhurst  presided.  He 
described  how  the  women  of  Norway  first 
gained  the  municipal  franchise,  and  how 
when  a  plebiscite  of  voters  was  taken 
on  the  question  of  the  separation  from 
Sweden,  to  meet  the  assertion  advanced  in  Sweden 
that  this  wa.s  not  the  will  of  the  Norwegians,  the 
women  refused  to  be  left  out,  and  so  had  a  plebiscite 
of  their  own.  By  their  public  spirit  they  amply 
proved  that  they  deserved  the  Parliamentary  fran- 
chise,  which  they  obtained  in  1907. 


The  W.S.P.U,  is  arranging  a  great  demonstra- 
tion of  women  for  Saturday,  !May  28th.  A  proces- 
sion will  form  up  on  the  Westminster  Embank- 
ment at  2  p.m.,  and  march  to  the  Albert  Hall, 
where  a  i^ublic  meeting  will  be  held  at  4  p,m. 


The  Women's  Industrial  Council  is  undertaking 
a  useful  bit  of  work  in  organising  a  day  nursery  in 
the  East  End  for  the  children  of  mothers  who  are 
obliged  to  go  out  to  work,  one  principal  object 
being  to  afford  a  demonstration  of  the  practica- 
bility of  training  working  class  girls  as  children's 
nurses.  The  question  has  been  carefully  gone  into 
by  the  Women's  Industrial  Council,  and  efforts  have 
been     made    to    get    a   scheme     for   such   training 


adopted  by  the  County  Council,  but  finding  that 
a  successful  demonstration  under  voluntary  auspices 
is  a  necessary  preliminary  to  its  adoption  by  any 
public  body,  it  has  determined  to  initiate  the 
scheme,  and  is  appealing,  in  a  letter  signed  by  its 
officers,  for  funds  to  carry  it  out.  Correspondence 
and  inquiries  should  be  addressed  to  the  Secretary, 
W.I.C,  7,  John  Street.  Adelphi,  W,C,  ;  dona- 
tions and  gifts  in  kind  should  be  sent  to  the  Hon. 
Treasurer,  Mrs,  Frederic  Franklin,  44,  Lancaster 
Gate,   W. 


have  a 


Booh  of  tbe  Wceft. 

NEST  OF  THE   SPARROW-HAWK. 

In  the  ■'  Nest  of  the  Spanx)w-Hawk  "  w 
romantic  .story  of  the  time  of  Cromwell. 

The  intrigue<s  of  Sir  Marmaduke  de  Chevasse, 
'•  as  stiff  a  Roundliead  as  ever  upheld  my  Lord 
Protector  and  his  Puritanic  Government"  to  gam 
jxissession  of  the  vast  fortunes  of  his  lovely  ward, 
keeps  the  reader  interested  throughout  the  volume. 
Very  descriptive  is  the  opening  chapter,  m 
which  the  Puritan  butler,  with  the  disconcerting 
name  of  Hymn-of-Praise  Busy,  pays  court,  mingled 
i\ith  godly  admonition,  to  Mistress  Charity,  the 
pretty  serving-maid  of  the  Court. 

She  inquires  of  him:  "Have  you  ha<l  your 
dinner.  Master  Busy?  " 

"  'Tis  sinful  to  address  a  single  Christian  pei'son 
as  if  he  or  she  were  several,"  retorted  the  man, 
sharply.     .     .     . 

"  Mistress  Charity  knew  that  in  defiance  of  my 
Lord  Protector  and  all  his  Puritans  she  was  looking 
her  l>est  that  afternoon.  On  the  whole  she  was 
pleased  with  her  appearance." 

"  I  give  the  assurance,"  said  the  young  girl, 
"  that  the  county  of  Kent  no  longer  suits  my  con- 
stitution. 'Tis  London  for  me,  and  thither  will  I 
go  next  year." 

"  And  leave  thy  fond,  adoring  Hymn-of-Praise — 
to  go,  mistiess — and  to  break  my  heart." 
•    '•  Law,  Master  Busy,"  she  said,  demurely;  "how 
was  a  ix>or  maid  to  know  you  meant  it  earnestly  F  ' 

'■  Meant  it  earnestly?  " 

"Yes;  a  new  kirtle — a  gold  ring — flowers,  sack, 
pos-set,  and  pasties  to  all  the  guests,"  she  explained. 
"  Is  that  what  you  mean — hem — what  thou 
meanest.  Master  Busy?  " 

We  are  introduced  to  lovely  Lady  Sue  in  the 
.skittle  alley,  who,  with  the  quality  assembled  at 
her  guardian's  invitation,  is  watching  the  play. 
'■■  In  the  midst  of  all  these  sober  folk,  of  young  men 
in  severe  garments,  of  portly  dames  and  frowning 
squires,  a  girlish  figure,  young,  alert,  vigorous, 
wearing  with  the  charm  of  her  owi\  youth  and  fresh- 
ness the  unbecoming  attire,  which  disfigured  her 
elders,  yet  seemed  to  set  off  her  own  graceful  form, 
her  dainty  bosom  and  pretty  arms. 

"  'Twas  years  later  that  Sir  Peter  Lely  painted 
Lady  Sue,  when  she  was  a  great  lady  and  the  friend 
of  the  Queen.  She  was  beautiful  then  in  the  splen- 
dour of  her  maturer  charms,  but  never  so  beautiful 
as  she  was  on  that  hot  July  afternoon  in  the  year 
of  the  Lord  1657,  when,  heated  with  the  ardour  of 

*  By  Baroness  Orczy.  (Greening  and  Co,,  Ltd., 
London.) 


March  26, 1910]     j^j^g  Bcitisb  Soumal  of  "IRursma. 


tlio  game,  plea-setl  uncloubtt^^iiy  with  tlie  atluUitiou 
which  siinoiiiuled  lier  on  every  side,  slie  laughed 
and  chattere<l  witli  tlie  women,  teased  the  men, 
lier  cheeks  aglow,  her  eyes  bright,  her  brown  hair 
lK-if>ist*,-ntly  unruly  flying  in  thick  curls  over  tier 
neck  and  shouldei's." 

Such  a  sweet  and  gracious  lady  must  of  necessity 
have  lovei-s,  and  young  Richard  Lambert,  "  who 
wrote  the  lettcre  w  hich  Marmaduke  had  not  known 
how  to  spell,"  worships  her  with  protective  rever- 
ence. Sir  Marma<luke,  whose  plot  is  to  woo  and 
win  her  in  the  guise  of  a  Prince  of  Orleans,  resents 
this  faithful  espionage  an<l  lays  a  plot  to  lure  liini 
to  a  gaming-liouse  in  London,  where  the  play  is 
carried  on  "  in  defiance  of  my  Lord  Protector,"  and 
he  is  comiJelled  by  his  employer  to  take  his  seat  at 
the  table.  "  Of  course  he  disapprovetl  of  w'hat  he 
did ;  he  knew,  somew  hat  vaguely,  perhaps,  yet  with 
some  degree  of  certainty,  that  gambling  was  an 
illicit  i)astirae,  and  that  thei"eforo  he,  by  sitting  at 
this  table  with  these  gentlemen,  was  deliljerately 
contravening  the  laws  of  his  country." 

And  in  the  midst  ot  a  brawl  into  which  he  had 
beeu  duped  there  comes  a  "  measured  tramp  down 
the  sti-eet,  growing  loutler  and  more  distinct,  a 
muffled  "Haiti"  the  sound  of  arms,  of  men 
moving  al)out  that  yawning  archway,  and  along  the 
tlark  and  dismal  passage,  with  its  hermetically 
closet]  front  door." 

The  arrest  of  poor  Lambert  riiakes  it  easy  tor 
.Sir  Marmaduko  to  cany  out  his  cowardly  decep- 
tion, and  he  marries  Lady  Sue. 

We  will  not  anticipate  the  conclusion  of  the 
story,  which  is  full  ot  episode  and  intrigue,  but 
suffice  it  to  say  that  all  is  well,  because  it  ends  well. 

H.   H. 

INSTANT  KINDNESS 
1' 1  ieiid.s.    111    this   world   ot    hurry,    and     work     and 

sudden  end. 
It  a  thought  comes  quick  of  doing  a  kindness  to  a 

friend, 
Do  it  that  very  minute ;  don't  put  it  off,  don't  wait ; 
Wiat's  the  use  of  doinjz  a  kindue»!s  if  you  do  it  a 
day  too  late? 

A.   C.   MoRG.xx. 

COMING  EVENTS. 
Ipril  nth. — First  lecture  of  a  Post  (iraduate 
Course  to  Nurses,  arranged  by  the  Guy's  Hospital 
Nurses'  League,  on  "  Recent  Oianges  and  Treat- 
ment in  the  Medical  Wards."  Course  open  to  non- 
members  on  ijayment  of  a  fee  of  "s.  6d.  Nurses' 
Home,  Guy's  Hosi)ital,  8  p.m. 

Central  Midwives'   Boakp. 

.Ipri7  10th  and  ^nth. — Special  Meeting  of 
Central  Midwives'  Board  for  the  liearing  of  Penal 
Cases.  Board  Room,  Caxtou  House,  Westmin.ster, 
S.W.,  2  p.m. 

April  Jlst. — Moiitlily  Meeting  of  Central  Mid- 
wives'  Board,  Board  Ro<mi,  Caxton  House,  West- 
minster, S.W.,  2.4-5  i).m. 

WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 
■'  .Study  the  past,  live   in  the  present,   work  tor 

til-  future. " 

G.  F.  Watts 


Xetters  to  tbe  EMtor. 


Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
mutiicalions  upoi\  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  xve  wish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  ive  do  not  in  any  wat 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


THE  WORKHOUSE   NURSING    ASSOCIATION    AND 

THE  HEMEL  HEMPSTEAD  INFIRMARY. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Juurnal  of  Nuraino.'' 
Madam, — I  venture  to  ask  leave  to  state  that  this 
Association  sent  upon  February  )i2iid  a  further  letter 
to  the  Local  Government  Board  in  answer  to  our 
memorial,  a  copy  of  which  was  published  presuma- 
bly by  the  Guardians.  In  this  further  letter  we  ex- 
plained various  facts  in  the  case,  which  the  Board 
seem  to  have  ignored,  and  again  pressed  for  a  full 
enquiry. 

On  March  4th,  we  received  an  absolute  refusaj 
from  the  Assistant  Secretary  for  any  further  en- 
quiry or  investigation.     No  reasons  were  given. 

We  think  it  only  right  that  the  public  should  be 
in  possession  of  these  facts  regarding  a  case  of  wide 
intere.st  and  great  i)ublic  importance. 

The  correspondence  is  open  to  the  inspection  of 
the  press,   and  of  all  interested  in  the  subject  of 
Union  Infirmary  management. 
Yours  truly, 

R.  V.  Gill,  Secretary. 
Workhouse  Nursing  Association. 
Darro  House,  Dean  Farrar  Street,  Westminster. 


GODS  LAW. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
De.\r  Madam, — I  have  been  following  daily  the 
reports  of  the  meetings  at  Winchester  House  on 
the  divorce  law's,  and  have  been  tliankful  there  are 
women  to  speak  on  tliis  question.  I  was  pained  to 
read  the  opinion  of  Mr.  .Justice  Bigham,  that  the 
adultery  of  men  was  not  hurtful.  Surely  he  speaks 
in  ignorance,  and  could  not  maintain  such  views 
after  reading  your  exi)ression  of  opinion  iu  the 
British  Journal  of  Nursing.  How  can  justice  be 
done  if  there  is  one  law  for  men  and  another  for 
women  ?  If  he  doubts  the  terrible  effects  upon  the 
wife,  let  him  come  and  see  .some  of  the  sad  cases 
we  nurses  see — the  results  of  this  great  sin.  Only 
last  week  I  found  a  young  wife,  aged  23,  nearly 
blind  through  the  infidelity  of  her  husband.  She 
has  been  operated  on  twice,  and  will  never  see 
again,  and  now  her  husband  }ias  deserted  her, 
leaving  her  with  a  baby  three  months  old ;  and  yet 
the  late  Pre.sident  of  the  Divorce  Court  says  the 
wife  does  not  suffer  by  her  husband's  adultery.  If 
this  poor  girl  was  his  daughter,  do  you  think  he 
would  say  so?  This  .Judge  says  an  act  of  adultery 
may  be  '■  accidental."  I  say  nn — such  wickedness 
is  wilful,  not  accidental — and  the  wife  is  robbed  of 
affection  which  should  be  hers  alone.  Those  who 
maintain  the  two  standards  of  morality  for  men 
and  women  cannot  read  or  follow  their  Bible,  as 


258 


XL\K  Britiel?   3ournaI   of  IRuustuG.       [March -26,  mo 


God's  Law   is  rerv  i^lain.     It   is  written,    '' Thou 
shalt  not  commit  adultery." 

I  have  seen  so  mauy  ruined  lives  during  my  nine- 
teen years  of  nursing,  I  feel  it  impossible  to  keep 
silence,  but  must  speak  for  my  fellow-women. 
I  remain, 

Yours  truly, 
Eliz.\beth  Mary  Wind.vll. 

St.  John's  Road,  Peuge. 

[We  also  have  carefully  followed  the  evidence 
placed  before  the  Royal  Commission  on  the  Divorce 
Laws,  and  have  been  struck  by  the  fact  that  not 
one  medical  practitioner  or  trained  nurse  has  been 
placed  upon  it,  so  that  the  Commission  is  therefore 
not  qualified  to  deal  with  the  most  important  part 
of  the  inquiry — hoM-  the  Laws  affect  the  Public 
Health.  We  grant/  the  importance  of  the  religious 
and  moral  side  of  the  question — the  Archbishop  of 
York  is  an  expert  member  of  the  Commission — but 
to  exclude  from  its  deliberations  expert  medical 
and  nursing  opinion  and  advice  proves  the  ignorance 
and  incapacity  of  aGovernment  entirely  composed  of 
laymen  to  readjust  the  Laws  of  Divorce.  The  Com- 
mission, if  its  rei>ort  is  to  be  of  the  highest  value, 
should  command  expert  medical  opinion  on  the 
physical  ravages  after  marriage  of  the  venereal 
gi-oup  of  diseases;  and  from  trained  nurses  on  the 
wastage  of  life,  the  deterioration  of  health,  and 
domestic  misery  resulting  from  adultery  of  hus- 
bands and  the  physical  pollution  of  wives,  for  which 
the  present  iniquitous  injustice  of  our  divorce  laws 
are  responsible.  To  discuss  whether  or  no  the  de- 
privation of  sight,  mental  deterioration,  and 
general  physical  rottenness  comes  within  the  mean- 
ing of  the  word  cruelty  is  an  outrage  to  human  in- 
telligence. The  infection  of  the  lawful  wife  and 
her  innocent  ofFspi-ing  by  husband  and  father  with 
venereal  virus  is  a  crime,  and  should  be  dealt  with 
by  the  law  as  .such. — Ed. J 


A  QUESTION   FOR  THE   NATIONAL  COUNCIL 
OF  TRAINED   NURSES. 

To  the  EditoT  of  the  ''  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam,— Mr.  Haldane's  Fimt-Aid  Detach- 
ment Scheme,  which  was  noticed  a'  little  time  ago 
in  your  oolunuif^,  is  a  well-thought-out  scheme  of 
education  for  the  women  of  the  nation.  But  I  fear 
the  efficiency  of  the  nureing  detachments  is  fore- 
doomed] to  failure  owing  to  the  antiquated  rules  of 
the  St.  John  Ambulance  Association,  which  will  not 
permit  lectures  to  be  given  by  any  but  medical 
men. 

That  "fii-st-aid"  lectures  should  be  considered 
the  prerogative  of  medical  men  I  can  understand, 
but  judging  from  the  accounts  of  such  lectures 
which  a  friend  of  mine  is  attending  it  is  quite 
evident  that  s.ome  of  them  cannot  teacli  firet-aid 
even  irith  the  St.  John  Ambulance  book  in  front 
of  them.  This  is  a  sjjecimen  of  instruction  of  this 
l>articular  lecturer.  "Ah! — er — um.  Stings!  You 
all  know  what  to  do  for  stings.  Fi-ost-bite.  Ah ! 
frost-bite  doesn't  often  happen  in  this  country," 
and  these  two  minor  accidents  are  dismissed, 

Foa-  severe  bUvdiug  from  the  wrist  he  tells  his 
pupils  to  find  the  brachial  artery  and  to  keep  up 
finger   pressure    upon    it    and   the   pulse    until   the 


doctor   comes.      "  You   will    always   find    plenty   of 
l>eople  to  relieve  you,''  .says  this  excellent  teacher. 

I  know  that  mauy  doctors  are  splendid  lecturers, 
and  have  excellent  results  with  their  ambulance 
classes,  but  even  they  are  not  qualified  to  teach 
nursing,  I  maintain  that  as  nursing  is  jjecuharly 
women's  woa-k,  and  a.s  there  are  mauy  well-qualified 
nurses  capable  of  teaching  what  they  so  well  know 
and  understand,  that  the  nursing  lectures  in  con- 
nection with  this  or  any  other  .scheme  should  be 
given  by  nurses  who  are  practical  exjierts.  In  fact 
I  go  furtJier  and  think  that  both  firet-aid  and 
nursing  lectures  should  be  given  to  women  by 
nurses. 

Unless  this  is  done  I  fear  all  Mr.  Haldane's  good 
intentions  will  be  rendea-ed  abortive. 

Is  not  this  a  matter  which  could  be  taken  up  by 
the  Xational  Council  of  Trained  Nurses  and  the 
affiliated  Leagues? 

And  may  I  suggest  to  all  Matrons  who  are  acting 
upon  the  British  Red  Cross  Committees  to  protest 
against  this  very  nanow-minded  and  short- 
sighted policy. 

These  Fii-st-Aid  Detachments  are  supposed  to  Vie 
effective  in  time  of  invasion ;  if  the  Lnstructdon  i-s 
well  given  they  will  be  even  more  useful  in  time  of 
peace  in  their  own  homes  and  among  theii-  neigh- 
bours, so  guarding  the  national  welfare  equally  in 
l>eace  as  in  vr&r. 

What  is  worth  doing  at  all  is  worth  doing  \\ell. 
and  therefore  I  ask  all  nurses  to  use  their  in- 
fluence to  get  this  state  of  things  altered  so  that 
the  nursing  lectures  may  be  given  by  trained  nurees 
who  know  their  work  both  theoretically  and  prac- 
tically. 

T  remain,  dear  Madam, 

Yours  faithfully, 

Mary   Buku. 

Tlie  Chestnuts,  Ebford, 
Topsham,  S,  Devon, 


Conuncnts  ant)  IRepItes. 

Pupil  Midwife. — White  asphyxia  is  a  much  more 
serious  condition  than  blue  asphyxia,  which  usually 
responds  to  artificial  respiration,  and  alternate 
hot  and  cold  baths.  'Wliite  asphyxia  denotes  heart 
failure,  and  is  a  very  serious  condition, 

International.~-\\e  do  not  think  you  can  do 
l)etter  than  advertise  your  requirements  in  the 
Ihillrtin  Professioiinel  des  Infirmieres  et  Gardes- 
.1/n?.'i7('.s.  It  is  published  at  25-27,  Rue  de  I'Ecole 
de  Medecine,  Paris,  6. 

Miss  Jessop,  Birmingham. —Yon  will  find  that 
special  training  in  mental  nursing  will  be  very 
valuable  to  you,  and  if  you  can  afford  to  devote 
three  years  to  it,  and  gain  the  certificate  of  the 
Medico-Psychological  Association,  by  all   means  do- 


IRotices. 


OUR   PUZZLE   PRIZE, 
Rules    for   competing   for   the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  sii. 


Maixh  20,  ii.ioj  ^ijj.  3gntiijl?  3oiu*nal  of  IHuusiiuj  Supplement. 


259 


The    Midwife. 


ttbe  Central  flDibwives'  Boar&. 

A  meeting  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  was 
lield  at  the  Board  Room,  Caxtoii  House,  S.W'.,  on 
Thiirstlay,  March  17th,  Dr.  F.  H.  Champueys  in 
the  chair. 

COEHESPOXDP.NCE. 

The  correspondence  considered  included  a  letter 
from  the  Clerk  of  the  Council,  enclosinti  a  letter 
from  the  Leicestershire  County  Council,  forwarding 
a  copy  of  resolutions  ado])te<l  after  consideration 
of  the  report  of  the  Midwives  Act  Committee. 
Also  a  letter  from  Sir  George  Fordham,  resigning 
the  office  of  Hon.  Treasurer  to  the  Board.  On  the 
motion  of  Mr.  Parker  Young,  Sir  George  Ford- 
ham's  resignation   was  accepted. 

Report  of  Pex.m,  C.\8es  Committee. 
Reports  made  at  the  request  of  the  Board  on  the 
conduct  of  two   midwives,   previously  censured  or 
cautioned  for  offences  against   the  rules,   were  re- 
ceived    from     the     respective     Local     Supervising 
Authorities,   and,    being  generally  satisfactory,   it 
was  agreed  to  take  no  further  action  in  these  cases. 
In  addition  to  the  midwives  whom  the  Board  has 
already  arranged  to  cite  to  appear  before  it,  it  was 
agreed  that   ten   more  should  be  so  cited. 
Report  of  Standing  Committee. 
On    the    recommendation   of   the  Standing  Com- 
mittee, the  Board  decided  to  grant  the  applications 
of  ten  women  for  removal  from  the  Roll  on    the 
ground  of  ill-health  or  old  age. 

The  applications  of  the  following  institutions  for 
recognition  as  Training  Schools  were  granted:  — 
The  Devon  and  Cornwall  Training  School,  Ply- 
mouth ;  the  Helena  Hospital,  Shorncliffe,  Kent ; 
auu  the  Wolverhampton  Union   Infirmary. 

The  applications  of  Mr.  W.  Barker  Bale, 
M.R.C.S.,  and  Mr.  Donald  Macrae,  M.R.C.S.,  for 
approval  as  teachers  were  granted,  and  the  appli- 
cation of  Dr.  George  Fawcett  White  pro  kdc  vice. 

The  applications  of  the  following  midwives  for 
approval  to  sign  Forms  III.  and  IV.  we^-e  granted  : 
M.  Milne  (No.  22493),  S.  E.  Sinfield  (No.  22509), 
A.  £.  Smith  (No.  3867). 

On  the  proposition  of  the  Chairman,  it  was 
agreed  that  a  "  List  of  Institutions  in  which  pupil 
midwives  may  he  trained  under  the  Rules  of  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board  "  be  substituted  for  the 
"List  of  Institutions  approved  as  Training 
Schooks "   hitherto  in  use. 

The  Secretary  was  instructed  to  communicate 
with  the  Secretary  of  the  Royal  Derby  and  Derby- 
shire Nursing  Association  as  to  complaints  which 
have  been  received  in  connection  with  the  training 
of  candidates  at  that  institution;  and  it  was 
agreed  that,  pending  a  satisfactory  explanation  of 
the  complaints  alleged,  the  Board's  renewal  of  ap- 
proval, as  from  April  1st  next,  of  the  Royal  Derby 
and  Derbyshire  Nursing  Association  as  an  Institu- 
tion in  which  pupil  midwives  may  be  trained,  be 
withheld. 


It  was  decicled  lo  make  inquiry  of  the  Local 
Supervising  Authority  of  the  County  of  Norfolk  as 
to  tJie  reason  for  the  suspension  of  a  midwife  for 
a  period  of  six  weeks  after  a  fatal  puerperal  fever 
case.  On  the  motion  of  Miss  Paget,  it  was  further 
agreed  that  the  Secretary  be  instructed  to  draw 
the  attention  of  the  Board  to  similar  cases  of  pro- 
longed suspension  which  come  to  his  notice. 
Secret.\ry's  Report  ox  Ex.\.mi.n.\tiox. 

In  connection  with  the  Secretary's  rejwrt  on 
the  recent  examination.  Miss  Paget  drew  attention 
to  the  unusually  high  percentage  of  failures  of 
candidates  from  St.  Mary's  Hospitals,  Manchester. 

Sir  William  Sinclair  said  that  he  was  glad  Miss 
Paget  had  drawn  attention  to  percentages,  because 
he  wished  to  refer  to  the  very  low  percentage  of 
failures  in  London.     It  was  far  below  the  average. 

The  Chairman  said  that  a  considerable  proiwr- 
tion  of  the  Jjondon  candidates  had  no  intention  of 
practising  midwifery,  but  entered  for  the  examina- 
tion to  add  an  additional  specialty  to  their  nursing 
qualifications.  From  time  to  time  his  attention 
had  been  drawn  by  the  examiners  to  the  papers 
written  by  some  of  the  candidates,  and  they  could 
not  be  bettered  by  the  papers  of  candidates"  at  the 
Medical   Examination   Hall. 

Sir  William  Sinclair  proposed,  and  it  was  agreed, 
that  visitors  should  be  appointed  to  the  examina- 
tion at  Manchester. 

It  was  also  agreed  that  it  would  be  useful  to 
have  a  return  of  the  percentage  of  failures  in  the 
examinations,  of  those  who  intended  to  practise 
midwifery,  and  of  those  who  propose  to  act  as 
monthly  nurses,  and  the  Secretary  was  instructed 
to  prepare  this  return. 

.  New  Rule. 

The  Secretary  reported  that  a  letter  had  been 
received  from  the  Clerk  to  the  Council,  enclosing 
a  copy  of  a  new  Rule,  sanctioned  by  an  Order  of 
Council  of  the  14th  inst,  enabling  the  Central  Jlid- 
wives'  Board  to  admit  to  the  Roll  a  candidate  who 
though  duly  qualified  under  Section  2  of  the  ilid- 
wives  Act,  failed  to  claim  the  Board's  certificate 
during  the  two  years'  period  of  grace  which  ended 
on  March  31st,  190.5.  This  Rule  (Rule  B.  2)  i* 
as  follows:  — 

A  candidate  who  has  failed  to  claim  to  be  cer- 
tified under  the  Midwives  Act  within  the  time 
limited  by  Section  II.  of  the  Act,  and  who  satis- 
fies the  Central  Midwives'  Board  that,  but  for  her 
failure  so  to  claim,  she  would  have  been  entitled 
to  be  certified  under  the  Act,  may  be  admitted  by 
the  Central  Midwives'  Board  to  the  Roll  of  Mid- 
wives  upon  such  conditions  as  the  Central  Mid- 
wives'  Board  shall  think  tit,  and  shall  receive  a 
certificate  in  the  form  set  out  in  the  Schedule 
and  her  name  shall  be  entered  by  the  Secretary 
on  the  Roll  of  Midwives.  (Schedule,  Form  II.  B.) 
Provided  always  that  no  such  candidate  shall  be 
admitted  to  the  Roll  of  Midwives  after  September 
30th,  1910. 


260 


(The  JBvitisb  3ournal  of  IHursmg  Supplement.   [March  26,  mo 


Tliis  rule  is  most  imjjortaiit  to  those  who  failed 
from  oversight  or  ignorance  to  claim  admission  to 
the  Roll  during  the  period  of  grace.  As  the  iireseut 
regulations  are  by  the  Rule  only  relaxed  for  a 
period  of  six  months  it  is  important  that  the  atten- 
tion of  all  whom  it  may  concern  should  be  directed 
to  it  without  delay. 

The  next  meeting  of  the  Board  was  fixed  for  April 
21st,   and  the  meeting  then  terminated. 


Jl\K  craintno  an^  Supply  of 
fiPi^wives. 

The  sixth  annual  meeting  of  the  Association  tor 
Promoting  the  Training  and  Supply  of  Midwives 
was  hold  on  Friday,  March  18th,  at  36, 
Thurloe  Square,  by  the  kind  ■  permission 
of  Mrs.  Charles  Ebden.  Mr.  T.  Raffles 
Hughes,  K.C.,  fras  in  the  chair,  and  said 
that  the  annual  report  which  was  in  the  hands  of 
those  present  sliowed  the  admirable  work  done  by 
the  association.  The  Chairman  refen-ed  to  the  an- 
nouncement in  the  repoit  of  the  resignation  of  the 
.Secretary,  Miss  Gill,  who  has  done  most  admirabk> 
and  valuable  work  for  the  As.-yociation,  and  said  it 
had  been  received  with  vei-y  great  regret.  He 
moved  the  re-election  for  the  ensuing  year  of  tue 
President  (the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury),  and 
other  officers. 

Mi-s.  Chaides  Ebden  moved  that  Mrs.  Haixjld 
.Schwann,  Miss  Swift  (lat«  Matron  of  Guy's  Hos- 
pital), and  Mrs.  Ashbee  be  appointed  new  members 
of  the  Council ;  and  Lady  Mary  Glyn  moved  the 
leapixtintment  ot  the  Advisory,  Finance,  and 
Executive  Committees,  with  the  addition  of  .Mr. 
Francis  E.  Fremantle,  F.R.C.S.,  to  the  Executive. 
All  of  these  i>ropositious  were  carried. 

Mrs.  AVaUace  Bruce,  Chairman  of  the  Executive 
Committee,  then  moved  the  adoption  of  the  annual 
report.  She  prefaced  her  remarks  by  a  few  woixls 
of  warm  appreciation  of  the  way  in  which  Miss  GUI 
had  carried  out  the  work  of  Secretarj-,  and  said  slie 
was  sorry  Miss  Gill  was  prevented  from  Ijeing 
present,  so  that  she  might  receive  their  pei-sonal 
thanks  and  admiration.  Miss  Ford  had  been  ai5- 
poiuted  as  her  successor. 

Mm.  "Wallace  Bruce  then  briefly  commented  on 
the  report  pre.sented,  especially  in  reference  to  the 
iciK)rt  of  the  Departmental  Committee  of  the  Privy 
Council  on  the  Midwives  Act.  It  was  extremely 
satisfactory  to  find  the  Report  testifying  to  the 
value  and  usefulness  of  the  Act  "as  an  operative 
influence  of  public  health  "  ;  also,  though  it  was 
generally  exiK-cted  that  the  Committee  would  report 
that  State  aid  for  midwives  was  necessaiy.  that  ^lo 
strong  evidence  was  brought  forward  on  this  ix>int. 
The  reports  of  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute 
showed  an  increasing  demand  for  nurses  trained 
in  midwifery ;  al.s.o  more  County  Councils  were 
giving  scholar.ships  for  training,  but  at  present  they 
had  no  powers  to  give  grants  towards  the  main- 
tenance of  midwives  when  trained :  fresh  legisla- 
tion would  be  necessary  for  thi.s,  and  all  merabei's  of 
County  Councils  seemed  to  regard  with  terror  any 
proposition  which,  if  carried  out,  would  add  to  the 
burden  of  the  rates. 


It  was  heing  proved  that  the  provision  of  midwives 
pure  and  simple  did  provide  a  practical  soluticu 
tor  the  oare  of  mat-ernity  oases  in  tlie  country  i.is- 
tricts,  as  midwifery  alone  would  not  provide  a  living 
wage.  In  these  days,  however,  there  was  an  ai>- 
proximation  of  midwifery  and  nur-sing  duties,  and 
a  oombinatiou  of  the  two  seemed  the  best  methoa. 

Miss  Lucy  Robinson  gave  a  reix>rt  of  the  woi'k  ot 
the  Home  at  East  Ham,  maintained  by  the  Associa- 
tion, and  of  the  urgent  and  pitiful  nece.ssities  of  tlie 
mothei-s  and  babies  attended  by  the  midwives. 
Often  there  was  no  food  and  no  gruel  in  the  houses, 
and  if  it  were  not  for  "The  Cupboard"  at  the 
Home  some  of  the  i>atients  could  not  i>ull  through. 
Early  in  her  work  as  a  midwife  she  discovered  that 
half-a-cro«ai  was  sufficient  to  save  a  mother's  life — 
to  provide  the  milk  and  eggs,  and  the  chop  on  the 
thiixl  day  which  were  essential. 

.    Tlie   financial  statement   was  presented   by   Miss 
Ix>rent  Grant,  after  i\hich  the  report  was  adopted. 

The  perennial  question  of  the  payment  of  medical 
men  called  in  by  midwives  was  discussed,  and  it  was 
agreed  to  forward  the  subjoined  resolution,  pro- 
l>osed  by  Mrs.  Wallace  Bruce,  and  seconded  by  Lady 
Mary  Glyn,  to  the  Privy  Council. 
Resolution. 

"  That  inasmuch  as  the  circulare  of  1907  and  19]  0 
i-ssued  by  the  Local  Government  Board,  recommend- 
ing to  Boards  of  Guardians  that  they  shall  be  re- 
sponsible for  the  fees 'of  medical  men  called  in  by 
midwives  in  oases  of  emergency  when  payment 
cannot  be  otherwise  obtained,  have  in  many  cases 
been  ignored ;  and  that  extreme  danger  is 
frequently  incurred  thereby,  and  that  tlie 
deaths  of  women  occur  in  consequence  of  the 
refusal  of  medical  men  to  attend  without 
guaranteed  payment,  we  beg  respectfully  to  bring 
before -the  Privy  Council  that  legislation  in  the 
matter  is  of  urgent  necessity,  and  we  earnestly  hope 
that  it  may  he  included  in  any  Bill  amending  the 
Midwives  Act  of  1902." 


POUND   DAY  AT  THE  BRITISH   LYING-IN 
HOSPITAL. 

A  very  successful  Pound  Day,  organi-sed  by  the 
Ladies'  Committee  and  the  Matron,  was  held  at  tbr 
British  Lying-in  Hospital,  Endell  Street,  W.C.,  on 
Monday,  the  14th  inst.,  the  spacious  dining-rooui. 
and  the  new  rooms  lately  oiiened  for  the  examin.i- 
tion  of  patients,  being  used  for  the  occasion. 

There  was  a  very  large  attendance  of  the  Ladies' 
Committee  and  nur.scs  trained  at  the  Institution, 
and  friends.  The  Chairman  and  several  members 
of  the  Board  of  Management  were  al.-vo  present. 
Much  to  the  general  satisfaction  an  unique  gift  of 
2  lbs.  M eight  of  silver  (£8  lis.)  was  made  by  Mr. 
and  Mi's.  Edward  W'ormald. 

Many  sovereigns,  and  cheques  for  £1  were  re- 
ceived, and  the  gifts,  in  the  aggregate  amounting 
to^over  £70  in  cash  and  1,700  lb.  in  groceries,  etc., 
cannot  fail  to  considerably  relieve  the  year's  ex- 
penditure side  of  the  accounts. 

The  Hospital  was  thrown  open  to  visitors,  and  an 
excellent  tea,  provided  at  the  expense  of  the  Ladies' 
Committee,  made  a  pleasant  finish  to  a  most  success- 
ful afternoon. 


THE 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED  BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,  APRIL  2.    1910. 


lE^itonal. 


THE  DEVELOPMENT    OF    NURSING    EDUCATION. 

If  we  watch  ediirational  muveineiits  we 
shall  notice  over  and  over  again  that 
courses  of  instnictiou  regarded  as  sulFicient 
at  the  outset  are  developed  and  lengthened 
as  experience  proves  the  need  for  greater 
thoroughness.  There  was  a  time  when  it 
sufhced  for  purposes  of  medical  education 
that  students  should  "  walk  the  hospital  " 
lor  a  period  of  one  j'ear,  and  even  less,  and 
when  nurses  were  promoted  to  be  Sisters  of 
wards  at  the  end  of  six  months.  We  now 
realise  that  both  these  terms  of  training  are 
ludicrously  inadequate. 

Within  recent  years  there  has  been  added 
to  the  curriculum  of  some  of  our  largest 
training  schools  a  course  of  preliminary 
instruction  for  probationers  before  entering 
the  wards,  usually  of  six  weeks'  duration. 
No  one  who  has  had  experience  of  the 
beneiits  which  the  instruction  given  in  this 
connection  confers  would  willingly  return 
to  the  system  of  admitting  probationers  for 
training  direct  to  the  wards.  But  already 
the  expediency  of  devoting  more  time  to 
this  preliminary  teaching  is  beginning  to 
be  felt,  and  it  is  probable  that,  as  time 
goes  on,  the  period  may  he  extended.  Yet 
the  fact  must  be  faced  that  the  term  of  a 
nurse's  training  cannot  be  prolonged  in- 
definitely, for  her  wage-earning  life  is  short, 
and  her  remuneration  modest. 

Why  should  we  attempt  to  impart  all  tlie 
professional  instruction  which  a  nurse  is 
expected  to  receive  in  the  course  of  her 
hospital  training?  Just  as  a  boy's  future 
career  is  determined  when  he  is  fourteen  or 
fifteen  years  of  age,  and  his  school  educa- 
tion is  directed  thereafter  with  a  view  to 
his  subsequent  needs,  so  the  education  of  a 
girl  who  hopes  to  enter  the  nursing  profession 


should  include  those  subjects  in  which  she 
will  later  have  to  specialise.  A  sound 
knowledge  of  elementary  physiology  and 
anatomy,  hygiene,  and  domestic  science, 
acquired  during  her  schooldays,  is  of  the 
greatest  possible  benefit  to  a  nurse  in  later 
life. 

In  the  Report  of  tlie  Committee  of  (he 
Course  in  Hospital  Economics,  at  Teachers' 
College,  Columbia  University,  U.S.A.,  pre- 
sented by  Miss  A.  \V.  Goodrich,  Chairman 
of  the  Committee,  to  the  Fifteenth  Annual 
Convention  of  the  Superintemlents"  Society, 
mention  is  made  of  an  important  step  taken 
by  the  College  during  the  past  year. 

Through  the  efforts  of  Miss  Nutting  the 
Department  of  HosjDital  Economy  now  offers 
"  a  one-year  course,  designed  to  prepare 
students  for  admission  to  Training  Schools 
for  Nurses.  The  course  is  a  further  exten- 
sion of  the  idea  of  preliminary  training, 
such  as  is  now  found  in  some  of  the  leading 
training  schools  of  the  country,  and  its 
purpose  is  to  give  the  student  a  more 
thorough  grounding  in  the  sciences  under- 
lying the  art  of  nursing  than  can  ordinarily 
be  obtained  in  the  hospital  training  school. 
It  also  aims  to  familiarise  the  student  with 
practical  proceduies  in  general  use  in 
nursing.  The  stutlent  is  thus  prepared  to 
benefit  more  promptly  and  fully  by  the 
opportunities  which  the  hosjjital  offers,  and 
to  bring  a  more  intelligent  elfort  to  bear 
upon  the  problems  presented  by  the  patient." 

We  hope  the  day  is  not  far  distant  when 
our  own  Universities  will  olTer  similar  ad- 
vantages to  nursing  students.  The  subject 
was  recently  referred  to  by  Sir  William 
Macewen  in  his  Presidential  Address  to  the 
Scottish  Nurses"  Association,  and  it  is 
certain  that  theoretical  instruction  might 
advantageously  be  arranged  for  nurses  at 
our  Universities. 


202 


Zhc  British  3ournal  of  fiursing.       t  ^p"'  -•  i''^" 


HDcMcal  fIDattcrs. 


ANGINA  PECTORIS. 

Sir  William  Osier,  M.D.,  F.E.S.,  Eegius  Pro- 
fessor of  Medicine  in  the  University  of  Oxford, 
in  the  second  of  the  Lumleian  Lectures  on 
Angina  Pectoris,  delivered  before  the  Royal 
College  of  Physicians,  of  London,  and  pub- 
lished in  the  Lancet,  spoke  in  j)art  as  follows  : 
At  the  outset  let  us  frankly  face  certain  ob- 
scurities which  have  not  yet  been  cleared  up. 
Why  is  it  more  common  in  the  upper  classes '.' 
Why  do  we  not  see  it  inore  often  in  hospital 
practice?  Worry  and  work  are  the  lot  and  por- 
tion of  the  poor,  among  whom  vascular  degener- 
ation is  more  widespread.  It  is  as  though  only 
a  special  strain  of  tissue  reacted  anginally,  so 
to  speak,  a  type  evolved  amid  special  surround- 
ings or  which  existed  in  eej'tain  families.  Or 
there  may  be  a  perverted  internal  secretion 
which  favours  spasm  of  the  arteries,  as  Harvey 
at  Cambridge  has  shown  to  be  the  case  with 
pituitary  extract  and  the  coronai-y  vessels. 
And  a  case  of  aortic  valve  disease  is  reported 
in  which  the  use  of  this  extract  caused  anginal 
attacks.  This  suggestion  is  supported  by  the 
fact  that  in  myxoedema  anginal  attacks  may  be 
caused  by  thyroid  extract.  It  is  not  the  deli- 
cate neurotic  person  who  is  prone  to  angina,  but 
the  robust,  the  vigorous  in  mind  and  body,  the 
keen  and  ambitious  man,  the  indicator  of  whose 
engines  is  always  at  "  full  speed  anead."  There 
is,  indeed,  a  frame  and  facies  at  once  suggestive 
of  angina — the  well  "  set  "  man  of  from  45  to 
55  years  of  age,  with  military  bearing,  iron-grey 
hair,  and  florid  complexion.  .  .  Still  more 
extraordinary  and  inexplicable  is  an  imitative 
feature,  if  one  may  so  speak  of  it,  by  which  the 
repeated  witnessing  of  attacks  may  induce  one 
in  the  observer.  There  are  two  pnmary  features 
of  the  disease,  piain  and  •  sudden  death — pain, 
paroxysmal,  intense,  peculiar,  usuallj'  pectoral, 
and  with  the  well-known  lines  of  radiation — 
death  in  a  higher  percentage  than  any  known 
disorder,  and  usually'  sudden.  Often,  indeed, 
it  is,  as  the  poet  says,  "  Life  struck  sharj)  on 
death."  The  problems  for  solution  are  :  What 
is  tlie  cause  of  the  pain?  Why  the  sudden 
death?  The  secondary  features  of  the  attack, 
the  vaso-motor  phenomena,  the  radiation  of  the 
pain,  the  cardiac,  respiratorj',  and  gastric  symp- 
toms are  of  subsidiary  interest. 

After  discussing,  exhaustively  the  morbid 
anatomy,  the  involuntary  muscle  pain,  the 
cardio-vascular  pain,  and  the  arterial  spasm, 
Professor  Osier  said :  After  all  this  talk,  what 
in  a  few  words  is  a  reasonable  explanation  of 
the  pain  in  angina?  Angina  results  from  an 
alteration  in  the  working  of  the  muscle  fibres 


in  any  part  of  the  cardio-vascular  system, 
whereby  painful  afferent  stimuli  are  excite. I. 
Cold,  emotion,  toxic  agents  interfering  with 
the  orderly  action  of  the  peripheral  mechanism, 
increase  the  tension  in  the  pump  walls  or  in  the 
larger  central  mains,  causing  strain,  and  a  type 
oi  abnormal  contraction  enough  to  excite  in  the 
involuntarj-  muscles  painful  atterent  stimuli. 
Mackenzie  suggests  that  there  is  rapid  exhaus- 
tion of  the  function  of  contractability,  which  is 
after  all  only  the  fatigue  on  which  Allan  Burns 
laid  stress;  but  I  feel  that  in  disturbance  of  this 
Gaskellian  function  is  to  be  sought  the  origin 
of  the  jjain,  whether  m  heart  or  arteries. 
In  stretching,  in  disturbance  oi  the  wall  ten- 
sion at  any  point,  and  in  a  pain-producing  re- 
.  sistance  to  tliis  by  the  muscle  elements,  lie  the 
essence  of  the  phenomena. 

What  is  the  explanation  of  the  sudden  death  '.' 
There  are  three  modes  of  dying  in  angina  pec- 
toris. The  one  which  specially  interests  us  here 
is  the  form  which,  as  Walshe  says,  "  is  sudden, 
instantaneous,  coeval,  with  a  single  pang." 
No  form  of  death  so  placid,  so  peaceful,  and  so 
much  to  be  envied,  as  it  probably  is  without  a 
pang.  The  functions  of  life  appear  to  stop 
abruptly,  with  a  gasp  or  two  all  is  over.  It  is 
extraordinary  how  little  a  man  may  be  dis- 
turbed in  this  death.  An  old  doctor  whom  I 
knew  well  stopped  at  his  house  to  write  a  pre- 
scription. With  pen  in  hand  he  died  at  the 
desk,  where  I  found  him,  as  if  in  sleep,  with 
his  head  peacefully  on  his  arm  ana  pen  in  hand. 
Another  friend,  the  subject  of  angina,  whom  I 
had  only  left  a  few  minutes  previously,  talking 
quietly  to  Dr.  Thayer,  fell  over  on  his  bed ;  both 
pulse  and  breathing  seemed  to  stop  simul- 
taneously. It  must  be  a  vagal  death,  a  sudden 
inhibition  of  the  inspiratory  centre  in  the 
medulla.  It  is  exactly  paralleled  in  chloroform 
death,  when  the  inspiration  stops  abruptly, 
while  the  heart  may  continue  to  beat.  In  a 
third  case  the  patient  gave  a  sudden  cry, 
clasped  his  hands  over  his  heart,  the  eyes  be- 
ciime  fixed,  and  he  fell  over  dead  after  giving 
two  inspiratory  gasps.  No  pulse  could  be  felt 
at  the  wrists,  but  feeble  heart  sounds  could  be 
heard  for  three  minutes. 

A  second  mode  of  death  is  also  seen  in  which, 
following  a  series  of  severe  attacks,  the  heart 
grows  gradually  feebler,  and  the  patient  dies  in 
progressive  asthenia,  often  with  Cheyne-Stokes 
respiration.  And  thirdh',  a  certain  number  of 
patients  die  in  the  cardiac  complications,  and 
it  is  interesting  to  note  how  after  great  misery, 
caused  by  repeated  attacks,  when  cardiac  in- 
sufficiencj'  is  established,  even  with  the 
dyspnoea,  the  patient  is  much  happier,  and  dies 
slowly,  if  not  so  suddenly  and  placidly. 


April  2,  I'.'iU] 


Zbc  Britleb  3ournal  of  iRurslng. 


263 


(TUnical  litotes  on  Sonic  doninion 
ailments. 


PNEUMONIA. 
Bv  A.  Knvvett  Goruun,  ]M.15.  (Cautab.). 


In  the  preceding  jyapero  we  have  seeu  how 
the  branches  of  the  windpipe  may  become  in- 
flamed, and  the  disease  which  we  know  as 
bronchitis  result.  Frequently,  however,  the 
misciiief  extends  further  down  into  the  air  cells 
themselves;  we  then  have  the  condition  known 
as  pneumonia  or  inflammation  of  the  lungs. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  this  may  arise  in  two 
rather  different  ways,  though  the  resulting 
disease  is,  from  the  nursing  point  of  view, 
pretty  much  the  same ;  so,  after  a  brief  descrip- 
tion of  the  origin  of  the  two  types,  the 
symptoms  and  treatment  of  the  two  will  be 
taken  together. 

Obviously,  one  way  in  which  pneumonia  may 
arise  is  by  direct  extension  from  the  bronchial 
tubes  in  a  patient  who  is  alreadj-  suffering  from 
bronchitis;  this  tj-pe  is  therefore  known  as 
broncho-pneumonia,  or  catarrhal  pneumonia, 
and  it  is  usually  due  to  germs  known  as  strep- 
tococci. In  this  case  the  disease  has  no  definite 
distribution — that  is  to  saj%  any  one  part  of  the 
lung  or  group  of  air  cells  is  as  liable  to  be 
attacked  as  any  other,  and  in  practice  the  in- 
flammation is  usualh-  present  in  both  lungs 
from  the  first,  though  it  may  be,  and  usually 
iS;  more  marked  in  one  lung  than  the  other.  It 
begins  in  patches  or  islets  separated  from  one 
another  by  areas  of  lung  which  are  healthy,  ex- 
cept for  the  previously  existing  bronchitis. 
Inasmuch  as  one  patch  is  apt  to  become  in- 
volved before  the  first  one  clears  up,  the  dis- 
ease does  not  finisii  in  the  whole  of  the  lung  at 
the  same  time,  and  consequently  its  signs  as 
we  see  them  at  the  bedside  may  run  on  for  a 
considerable  time,  like  a  series  of  relapses,  and 
in  practice  it  does  not  do  to  prophecy  about  the 
duration  of  an  attack  of  pneumonia  of  this  type. 
It.  occurs  most  commonly  in  children,  though 
adults  are  .sometimes  affected  in  the  course  of 
the  bronchitis  which  is  associated  with  influenza. 

In  the  other  type,  however,  the  air  cells  are 
affected  directly,  and,  though  the  infecting 
organisms  (which  are  most  commonly  those 
which  we  call  i)neumococci)  pass  down  the 
bronchi,  tht-y  do  so  without  causing  iatlamnui- 
tion  of  the  tubes  to  any  great  extent :  possibly, 
moreover,  the  gemis  may  sometimes  find  their 
way  into  the  air  cells  through  the  blood  vessels, 
if  they  are  present  in  the  blood  to  begin  with. 
The  distribution  of  this  kind  of  pneumonia  is 
quite  different,  inasmuch  as  all  the  cells  in  one 
lobe  of  a  limg  are  affected  at  once;     conse- 


quuiilly,  unless  the  opposite  lung  is  attacked 
subsequently,  the  disease  runs  a  definite 
course,  and  the  symptoms  terminate  rather 
suddenly,  usually  on  the  fifth  or  seventh  day 
of  disease.  This  type  is  known  as  lobar  pneu- 
monia, and  is  most  common  in  previously 
healthy  adults,  tiiough  it  sometimes  occurs — 
usually  in  a  mild  form — in  children  also. 

Whatever  the  origin  of  the  type  of  disease 
may  be,  the  results  for  our  purpose  are  the 
same.  The  air  cells  become  filled  with  a  tough 
mass  of  cells  which  is  quite  impervious  to  air, 
so  that  the  part  of  the  lung  wnich  is  affected 
is  rendered  useless  for  breathing  purposes,  and 
the  patient  has  to  manage  with  the  healthy 
remamder;  consequently  the  difficulty  in 
breathing  is  much  greater  than  when  bronchitis 
only  is  present,  and  the  air  cells  are  obstructed 
with  fluid  through  which  some  air  at  all 
events  can  pass. 

So  much  for  the  mechanism  of  the  disease ; 
let  us  now  see  what  happens  to  tue  patient  who 
has  been  attacked  by  it. 

Obviously  he  will  be  seriously  ill  and  unable 
to  get  about,  and  as  he  has  only  a  jjortiou  of 
his  lungs  to  breathe  with,  he  will  have  to  take 
in  his  supplies  of  air  more  frequently  than  usual 
if  his  red  corpuscles  are  to  have  their  proper 
supply  of  oxygen.  In  practice  this  increased 
frequency  of  breathing  is  most  marked,  so  that 
the  respirations  maj"  be  as  many  as  60  or  80 
per  minute.  Then,  too,  the  extraordinary 
muscles  of  respiration  are  brought  into  play, 
and  we  see  the  sternomastoids  in  the  neck  and 
the  intercostals  between  the  ribs  working  with 
each  inspiration;  even  the  nostrils  participate 
in  the  effort,  and  may  be  seen  to  contract  and 
dilate  as  the  chest  is  filled  and  emptied. 

Then  there  is  pain  which  is  felt  more  acutely 
when  a  deep  breath  is  taken.  Usually  this  is 
referred  to  the  side  of  the  chest  over  the  affected 
lung,  but  is  not  infrequently  felt  in  the  abdo- 
men, especially  at  the  onset  of  the  disease,  so 
that  it  is  not  uncommon  for  a  diagnosis  of 
appendicitis  to  be  made  at  this  stage  of  a  right- 
sided  ijneumonia. 

•  The  patient  is  also  feverish,  the  temperature 
being  usually  very  high  (about  103  de- 
grees or  104  degrees),  and  remaining 
so  in  lobar  pneumonia,  while  in  the' 
bronchial  form  of  inflammation  it  generally 
rises  and  falls  at  frequent  intervals,  being 
usually  highest  at  night.  Temperatures 
of  10;j  degrees,  or  even  106  degrees, 
are  not  uncommon  in  lobar  pneumonia, 
especially  in  children,  and  it  is  impor- 
tant to  remember  tliat  the  height  of  the  fever 
bears  no  necessary  relation  to  the  severity  of 
the  disease ;  in  fact,  the  worst  attacks  are  often 
associated  with  a  temperature  that  is  but  little 


•264 


;rDe  Brttisb  :tonnial  of  IRurstng. 


[April 


1910 


xaised.  With  the  fever  there  is  a  hot  and  dry 
skin,  with  thirst  and  a  parched  mouth  and 
tongue  and  some  prostration. 

All  through  the  course  of  the  disease  at- 
tempts are  being  made  by  the  patient  to  clear 
his  air  cells  of  the  obstructing  masses;  conse- 
quently we  find  their  contents  coughed  up  in 
the  form  of  sputum,  which  is  usually  rusty  in 
colour  Irom  admixture  with  a  little  blood.  At 
first  the  sputum  is  scanty,  thick,  and  sticky,  so 
that  the  vessel  containing  it  can  be  turned  up- 
side down  without  the  contents  escaping,  but 
if  the  patient's  resistance  is  good,  it  soon  be- 
comes more  liquid  and  increased  in  quantity 
as  the  air  cells  become  clearer;  similarly,  at 
first  the  cough  is  shallow  and  inefiectual,  but 
as  recovery  sets  in  becomes  full  and  deep. 

But — and  here  the  disease  differs  from  simple 
bronchitis — we  have  not  only  the  inside  of  the 
air  cells  to  consider ;  there  are  the  blood  vessels 
also  which  run  in  their  walls,  and  it  is  obvious 
that  if  the  cells  are  filled  and  distended  with 
solid  matter  the  vessels  must  be  compressed  to 
some  extent.  Hence  more  force  is  required  to 
drive  the  blood  through  them,  so  the  heart  has 
so  much  extra  work  thrown  on  it,  and  has  to 
beat  faster  to  get  this  work  in  :  we  have,  there- 
fore, a  rise  in  the  rapidity  of  the  pulse. 

Now  this  is — especially  in  lobar  pneumonia — 
the  most  important  sign  of  all.  In  practice,  if 
the  patient's  strength  can  o&  maintained, 
his  leucocytes  can  after  a  time  get  rid  of 
the  organisms  and  debris  in  the  air  cells  by 
themselves,  and  the  act  of  coughing  empties 
these  cavities  in  due  course,  out  if  the  heart 
flags  this  cannot  be  done,  and  the  disease  takes 
an  unfavourable  turn.  Wherefore,  whether  the 
nurse  is  told  to  or  not,  she  should  always 
observe  and  record  the  rate  of  the  pulse  at  least 
every  two  hours.  This  can  always  be  done 
without  disturbing  the  patient,  and  personally, 
if  I  had  to  make  the  choice,  I  woufd  rather  see 
a  pulse  chart  than  a  temperature  record  in  a 
patient  suffering  from  inflammation  of  the  lung. 

Just  as  in  bronchitis,  we  get  an  indication  as 
to  whether  the  blood  is  getting  suSicient  oxygen 
by  the  presence  or  absence  of  cyanosis,  though 
in  practice,  before  the  stage  of  blueness  is 
reached,  we  often  get — in  children  especially — 
a  state  of  restlessness  which  should  sound  to 
the  observant  nurse  a  note  of  warning. 
{To  be  concluded.) 

IODINE  STERILISATION. 
Dr.  Umber,  U.S.A.,  advocates  the  method 
-of  disinfecting  the  field  of  operation,  dry,  by 
merely  swabbing  with  tincture  of  iodine.  After 
an  extensive  trial  he  considers  it  the  simplest 
and  most  effectual  of  the  measures  yet  intro- 
duced for  this  purpose. 


3n  riDcinoviain. 

A  meeting  will  be  held  in  London  at  an  early 
date  to  consider  what  form  the  JNlemorial  to 
Miss  Isla  Stewart  shall  take.  We  all  want  to 
honour  her  great  name,  and  we  want  to  dt>  it 
at  once.  Several  suggestions  have  already  been 
made,  and  whatever  is  approved  by  her  wide 
circle  of  loving  friends,  we  know  it  will  be  ap- 
propriate. Truly  great — in  that  generosity  of 
feeling  and  a  noble  loyalty  inspired  all  her  re- 
lations with  her  kind — her  Memorial  must  be  of 
a  spacious  and  liberal  nature,  something  of  far- 
reaching  jjrofessional  influence,  which  cannot 
be  he^n  from  wood  or  stone. 

Although  a  social  refoiiner  in  the  highest 
sense,  Isla  Stewart  was  no  mere  modern  philan- 
thropist. She  was  of  sterling  stuff,  inheriting 
from  her  sturdy  Scottish  ancestry  great  inde- 
pendence of  character,  a  wonderful  power  of 
self-control  and  dignified  self-respect,  and  the 
pith  of  her  teaching  was  ever  "  stand  on  your 
own  feet  and  face  circumstance,  and  thus  con- 
tribute your  quota  to  the  quality  of  your  race." 

By  her  will  Miss  Isla  Stewart  has  set  aside — 
after  the  life  interest  of  her  sister — a  sum  of 
£1,400  to  form  a  biennial  bursary  (an  educa- 
tional grant)  for  the  nurses  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital.  This  bequest  may  indicate  to 
those  anxious  to  pei-petuate  her  name  by  "some 
means  of  which  she  would  have  approved,  the 
lines  on  which  her  Memorial  may  assume  in- 
dividual distinction. 


Lord  Ampthill,  Mr.  E.  C.  Munro  Ferguson, 
M.P.,  and  other  Parliamentary  supporters  of 
the  Registration  Cause  have  written  exjiressing 
their  sincere  regret  at  the  loss  sustained  by  the 
nursing  profession.  Lord  Ampthill  desired  his 
sympathy  to  be  conveyed  to  those  associated 
with  her  in  her  public  work,  and  Mr.  Munro 
Ferguson  said  that  she  always  insijired  him 
with  the  greatest  confidence. 


The  Nurses'  Leagues  of  St.  -John's  House, 
the  Royal  South  Hants  Hospital,  and  Steevens' 
Hospital,  Dublin,  have,  by  resolutions,  con- 
veyed to  the  League  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital  Nurses  their  sorrow  and  sympathy  in 
the  loss  the  members  have  sustained  by  the 
death  of  their  Founder. 


Letters  are  now  coming  from  friends  over 
seas. — From  Cleveland,  Ohio,  ]\Irs.  Hampton- 
Robb  writes  in  terms  of  the  warmest  sympathy 
for  British  Nurses  in  their  great  loss.  "It 
hardly  seems  as  though  you  could  let  her  go  at 
this  moment,  she  is  needed  so  much.  To  those 
oi  us  in  America  who  knew  her  she  had  become 
a  dear  friend,  and  we  shall  miss  her  sorely." 


April  2,  1910] 


Cbe  iSntfsh  3ournal  of  H-lursino. 


265 


a  Cbil&  of  jEnn. 


A  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  PRIZE  PHOTOGRAPH. 

-My  pi-etticst  puluiit  was  a  dear  little  girl  of 
throe  summers,  to  whom  I  was  called  in  when 
oil.  my  district  in  the  county  Down.  It  would 
take  a  much  cleverer  pen  than  mine  t<i  describe 
the  angelic  beauty  of  the  child,  with  her 
glorious  Irish  eyes,  and  the  unusual  combina- 
tion of  golden  hair.  Strange  to  relate,  the  dear 
mite"s  tather  was  a  hunchback,  th(!  mother 
being  most  oi-dinary  and  of  little  intelligence, 
but,  like  most  Irish  mothers,  fidl  of  a  great 
love  for  her  offspring.    As  I  was  retnniinL'  from 


recovery,  the  shock  being  great,  and  the  scalds 
severe,  as  the  child  had  close-fitting  heavy 
woollen  garments  on,  which  had  soaked  up  so 
much  water.  As  the  urethra  and  the  labia 
were  in  a  shocking  state  it  was  necessary  to 
draw  off  the  urine  twice  daily,  having  pre- 
viously soaked  the  parts  with  oliVe  oil.  After 
many  weeks  of  great  suffering,  with  the  aid  of 
a  small  water  pillow  and  absolute  cleanliness, 
the  dear  mite  recovered  to  the  great  joy  and 
thankfulness  of  the  parents,  and  was  once  more 
to  be  seen  running;  and  playing  about  the  cot- 
tage. She  usually  addressed  me  as  "  The 
\\'nninn."  inv  iidviiil  ;ilwavs  brinKing  the  tears 


A    CHILD    OF    ERIN. 


a  morning's  duty  along  a  country  road,  a 
woman  rushed  out  from  a  cottage,  begging  me 
to  come  in,  and  saying  that  her  child  was  dying. 
On  entering  I  found  the  most  lovely  child  it 
had  ever  been  my  lot  to  see,  screaming  pitifully. 
She  was  horribly  scalded  about  the  lower  part 
of  the  body  and  legs,  having  fallen  into  a  pot  of 
boiling  potato  water,  which  the  mother  had 
left  in  the  centre  of  the  kitchen  Hoor.  It  so 
happened  that  I  had  plenty  of  dressings  with 
me,  and  was  able  to  druss  the  scalds,  havhig  in 
the  meantime  despatched  a  kind  neighbour  for 
the  doctor.    Little  hope  was  given  of  the  child's 


to  her  eves.  When  I  askeil  her  if  she  would  be 
good  and  not  cry,  her  answer  would  be  "  Ay  I 
and  on  teaching  her  to  say  "  ies,"  she  would 
say  "  I'uss.''  Before  I  left  her  she  could  saj' 
'Nurse"  and  "Yes,"  and  nothing  would 
satisfy  her  but  a  nurse  dolly,  which  she  is  hold- 
iuK  in  the  picture. 

Lily  Newton, 

Queen's  A'tirs<  . 


The  children  of  Erin  may  not  be  plentifully 
dowered  with  wealth,  but  in  beauty  tEey  can 
hold  their  own  with  those  of  any  nation. 


•266 


tlbe  Brttisb  3ournal  ot  iHurslncj. 


[April  2,  1910 


?lbe  tlrainino  of  probationers. 

Bv  iliss  I.    C.  Keogh. 
Matron,  Ricliinond  Hospital,  Dublin. 


While  we  continue  our  efforts  to  attain  to  a 
•universal  standard  of  education  for  our  nurses, 

•  it  is  a  matter  of  great  interest  to  note  the 
various  methods  of  training  employed  in  our 
hospitals. 

We  cannot  but  realise  that,  in  the  question 
of  practical  nursing  there  should  be  but  one 
common  method  of  training. 

It  is  one  of  the  instances  where  we  can  truly 
say  that  the  best  is  only  just  good  enough,  but 
until  we  have  obtained  that  universal  standard 

•  of  education  and  examination  which  is  so  essen- 
tial for  our  profession,  we  must  be  content 
to  choose  those  methods  by  which  we  can 
obtain  the  most  satisfactory  results. 

Of  course,  each  Matron  must,  to  a  great 
extent,  adapt  her  jnethods  to  the  advantages — 
or  disadvantages — which  her  hospital  provides. 
Such  considerations  as  the  number  of  her 
nurses,  the  arrangements  for  lectures,  the  exist- 
ence of  special  wards,  and  departments,  etc., 
indicate  to  her  the  best  method  to  pursue. 

It  is  now  almost  universally  acknowledged 
that  much  advantage  is  to  be  gained  by  the 
-  system  of  providing  a  separate  Home,  where 
probationers  take  a  preparatory  course  of  in- 
struction in  Housework,  Bedmaking,  Bandag- 
ing, Invalid  Cookery,  the  Elements  of  Sur- 
gical Asepsis,  and  also  a  course  of  lectures  in 
Elementary  Anatomy,  Physiology,  and  Hy- 
giene, with  the  result,  that  when  the  proba- 
tioner enters  the  wards  she  will  (if  she  is  of  the 

•  desirable  type)  be  a  help  and  not  a  hindrance 
to  her  fellow  workers. 

It  is  not  possible  for  all  hospitals  to  have 
the  advantages  of  such  preparatory  Homes, 
but,  in  my  opinion,  they  are  most  desirable, 
and  this  system  contrasts  very  favourably  with 
that  of  sending  the  probationers  straight  to  the 
wards,  to  find  their  feet  as  best  they  may. 
Which  of  us  does  not  know  the  advent  of  the 
new  probationer?  We  can  each  recollect  what 
we  ourselves  endured  as  such,  or  what  we,  in 
•our  turn,  had  to  endure  from  others  in  like 
difficulties. 

The  firs.t  year  of  training  is  a  most  important 
one  for  the  probationer,  both  mentally  and 
morally.  Even  though  she  may  enter  when  no 
longer  in  her  early  twenties,  and  maj'  already 
possess  well  formed  ideas  and  opinions  of  her 
own,  she  will  be  easily  influenced  by  "her  new 
surroundings. 

*  Paper  read  at  the  monthly  meeting  of  the 
Irish  INIatroiis'  Association,  Feb.  5tli,  1910. 


What  she  sees,  hears,  and  is  taught,  either 
by  her  own  observations,  or  by  the  instruction 
and  example  of  others  while  her  mind  is  still 
pliable,  and  undulled — so  to  speak — by  the 
necessary  routine  of  hospital  life — this  she  will 
carry  with  her  throughout  her  professional 
career.  It  is  in  her  early  days  that  the  ground- 
work is  formed  on  which  may  rest  the  nurse's 
success  or  failure,  and  very  often,  too,  the 
credit  of  her  training  school,  of  which  she  will 
be  a  representative  when  she  goes  forth  into 
the  world  as  a  certificated  nurse. 

Great,  therefore,  should  be  the  care  witli 
which  both  Matron  and  Sister  should  strive  to 
develop  the  best  that  is  in  the  probationer's 
character  and  personality,  to  cultivate  her 
powers  of  observation,  accuracy,  obedience, 
punctuality,  and  sympathy  towards  her  pa- 
tients ;  to  instil  into  her  mind  the  necessity  of 
loyalty  to  her  superiors  and  to  her  training 
school,  and  of  working  amicably  -and  unsel- 
fishly with  other  nurses  under  all  circum- 
stances. It  is  because  I  think  these  matters  so 
essential  in  the  training  of  a  nurse,  that  I  con- 
sider a  year  will  be  well  spent  if  devoted  to 
them,  together  with  the  practical  nursing,  and 
general  ward  work  which  will  be  taught  her 
from  the  time  she  first  enters  the  wards.  I  do 
not  propose  to  mention  in  detail  the  subjects 
with  which  a  probationer  shoiild  be  fully  con- 
versant af  the  end  of  her  first  year's  training, 
at  which  time  her  knowledge  should  be  tested 
by  examination,  both  written  and  oral,  but  I 
think  that  very  special  care  should  be  given  to 
practical  instruction  in  aseptic  methods.  The 
importance  of  surgical  cleanliness  in  connec- 
tion with  wounds,  di'essings,  instruments,  etc., 
should  be  instilled  into  the  mind  from  the  very 
first.  An  intelligent  interest  on  this  point  is  ab- 
solutely essential,  if  a  probationer  is  ever  to 
become  a  successful  surgical  nurse. 

In  many  training  schools  the  greater  portion 
of  the  nurse's  theoretical  instruction  is  de- 
ferred until  the  second  and  third  year,  b.y  which 
time  she  should  be  able  to  appreciate  more  fully 
the  value  and  importance  of  such  instruction. 

It  is  also  advisable  to  leave  the  training  in 
special  subjects,  such  as  theatre  work,  house- 
keeping, catering,  etc.,  until  the  nurse  is  near- 
ing  the  end  of  her  general  training.  She  will 
then,  I  think,  realise  more  fully  their  great 
^alue,  and  will,  if  she  be  at  all  ambitious  for  hor 
future,  endeavour  to  go  fully  into  these  sub- 
jects, which  are  so  essential  in  the  training  of 
those  who  desire  to  obtain  administrative  pests. 

It  is  encouraging  for  nurses  to  note  that  in 
many  hospitals  where  special  departments  do 
not  exist,  the  authorities  endeavour  to  secure 
for  their  nurses  training  in  fever  mu'sing,  mas- 


April  2,  loio:       ^,5j.   Britisi?  3ournal   ot  Ifturstncj. 


267 


sage,  etc.,  by  affiliatiou  with  other  liospitals. 

-Much  advantage  is  to  be  gained  by  the  system 
of  independent  examinations  held  by  outside 
examiners,  and  1  am  told  that  in  some  training 
schools  this  plan  has  been  adopted  with  excel- 
lent results. 

With  regard  to  the  important  question  of  dis- 
cipline among  the  norses,  in  my  opinion  verj' 
decided  distinctions  should  be  mads  between 
certificated  nurses,  and  senior  and  junior  pro- 
bationers, both  with  regard  to  duties  and  re- 
sponsibilities, and  while  remembering  that  all 
are  "  probationers,"  until  they  have  obtained 
their  cei-tificates,  I  tiiink  that  senior  proba- 
tioners should  have  their  responsibilities  added 
to  as  they  go  on,  and  moreover  that  thej'  should 
be  made  to  reahse  that  on  them,  to  a  certain 
extent,  r.sts  the  progress  of  their  juniors.  I  do 
not  believe  that  the  work  is  ever  satisfactorily 
done,  or  that  patients  in  the  general  wards  are 
ever  really  well  nursed,  where  a  thoroughly 
well  organised  sj'stem  of  discipline  does  not 
exist.  This  is  all  important,  too,  when  viewed 
from  the  moral  standpoint.  We  are  told  that 
discipline  either  goes  towards  perfecting  the 
cliaracter  of  the  highly  principled,  or  it  helps  to 
deteriorate  that  of  the  unprincipled. 

From  my  own  observations,  1  am  convinced 
that  this  is  more  especially  true  of  hospital  hfe, 
and  training.  It  is  a  common  belief  that  no 
woman's  character  remains  the  same  during 
luT  training — she  is,  at  the  end  of  it,  much 
better  or  worse  than  when  she  began — but  the 
choice  of  making  or  marring  her  personality 
rests  mainly  with  the  probationer  herself. 

There  are  many  other  points  in  connection 
with  this  interesting  subject  which  I  cannot 
touch  upon  in  the  time  at  my  disposal,  but 
which  will,  I  am  sure,  be  dealt  with  in  the 
discussion  which  is  to  follow. 


Zbc  £100  IReoistration  Jfiin&. 


Brought  forward 


€     s.    d. 
70  16     2 


Sent  in  memory  of  tlu  faithful  ser- 
vices to  the  Kegiittration  Cause 
of  Miss  Isla  Steivart :  — 

Miss  E.  M.  Musson  110 

Miss  Catherine  E.  Bennett        ...       1     1     0 


Further  profit  on  Gordon   Calendar 

per  Miss  M.  L.  Breay 10     0 

Miss  Youlder,  E.N. S 10    0 


£74     8     2 


iHurscs  an&  ^Temperance. 

All  of  us  who  have  gone  through  our  hospital 
course,  and  have  taken  up  any  branch  of 
nursing  afterwards,  are  well  aware  of  the  awful 
ravages  of  crime,  disease,  and  destitution  that 
are  caused  by  intemperance.  Indeed,  we  are 
so  well  aware  of  them  that  the  subject  has 
become  hackneyed  and  distasteful  to  us,  and 
when  we  listen  to  anyone  expounding  the 
great  temperance  question,  we  do  so,  as  it 
were,  with  only  one  ear  and  a  quarter  of  our 
minds;  the  other  ear  and  the  other  three- 
quarters  of  our  minds  are  occupied  by  any 
trivial  sounds  and  thoughts  that  may  be 
passing.  Perhaps  if  the  lecturer  brings  to  our 
notice  any  awful  examples,  we  smile  in  a 
superior  way,  and  say  to  our  wise  selves, 
"  What  bigotry!  Where,  for  instance,  would 
our  pneumonias  often  be  without  st'mulants"?  " 
forgetting  that,  if  it  were  not  for  the  stimu- 
lants, very  often  tliere  would  be  no  pneumonia. 

No,  I  venture  to  say  that  we,  as  nurses,  do 
not  think  enough  of  the  evils  that  are  brought 
about  by  the  excessive  use  of  alcohol.  The 
homes  that  are  wrecked,  the  lives  blighted,  the 
ever-increasing  body  of  the  insane  who  crowd 
our  asylums,  the  criminals  who  fill  our  prisons, 
and  the  paupers  who  throng  to  our  workhouses. 
Do  we,  for  instance,  put  ourselves  out  of  the 
way  to  prevent  this  evil?  Not  many  of  us,  I 
fear.  In  this,  as  in  all  other  evils,  prevention 
is  jetter  than  cure.  If  we  are  of  a  pessimistic^ 
turn  of  mind,  we  may  say:  "  It  is  of  no  use 
worrying  alx>ut  confirmed  drunkards;  they  are 
hopeless,  they  will  never  refomi."  This  is  a 
fallacy,  as  they  do  sometimes,  but  never  mind ; 
if  this  is  the  trouble,  and  we  are  firmly  con- 
vinced that  we  personally  can  do  nothing  with 
the  chronic  inebriates,  then  let  us  turn  our 
attention  to  preventive  work.  No  one  can  deny 
that  much  may  be  done  there.  Let  us  get 
hold  of  the  children,  and  preach  temperance  to 
them  in  season  and  out  of  season.  Let  us 
bring  home  to  their  youthful  minds  in  simple 
language  the  horrors  of  alcoholism.  Let  us  ex- 
plain the  theory  of  heredity  to  them;  make 
them  sign  the  pledge.  If  need  be,  bribe  them 
with  "  Bands  of  Hope,"  temperance  concerts, 
tea  parties,  little  plays,  operettas,  etc.  So 
embue  them  with  the  spirit  of  temperance  that 
they  in  turn  will  become  proselytizers  and  join 
the  army  of  those  who  seek  to  gain  converts  to 
the  ranks  of  the  great  temperance  cause. 

A  great  deal  may  be  done  by  example.  If 
some  of  us  are  not  total  abstainers  when  we 
enter  hospital  for  onr  three  years'  training, 
surely,  when  we  find  how  well  we  can  do  with- 
out alcohol  or  stimulants  of  any  kind  during- 
that  lengthy  period,  we  shall  continue  in  the- 


268 


Z\)c  36rittsb  3ournal  of  IRursino. 


[April 


1010 


same  course,  whether  we  go  on  with  hospital 
work  or  take  up  private  or  district  work  or  any 
otlier  form  of  nursing,  or  even  if  we  marry  and 
leave  nursing  altogether. 

Many  of  us  think  that  a  glass  of  wine,  ale, 
stout, etc.,  with  meals  does  not  nurt  anyone, and 
often  does  great  good.  This  is  quite  true,  as  far 
as  it  goes,  but  as  we  have  found  in  our  three 
years'  course  that  we  can  perfectly  well  do 
without  it,  why  start  it  again?  People  think 
and  talk  so  much  about  what  a  nurse  does,  that 
our  modest  glass  of  claret  or  ■  little  dose  of 
whisky  and  water  before  retiring  may  be  a 
i^tumbling  block  in  the  way  of  our  weaker 
brethren    or    sisters.     The    maids    may    say, 

Well,  if  nurse  has  her  glass  of  wine,  I  don't 
.see  why  we  should  not  have  our  beer."  They 
n'ay  not  have  such  strong  wills  or  brains  as  we 
have,  and  the  one  innocent  glass  may  lead  to 
•a  liking  for  more,  and  so  a  life  may  be  ruined 
simply  throvigh  our  example. 

One  never  knows  what  troubles  and  trials 
niay  be  in  store  for  us  in  this  life.  In  our 
youth  we  may  be  strong  and  hardy,  and  work 
merely  for  the  love  of  nursing,  but  as  middle 
a^e  approa(Jhes  we  may  find  ourselves  left  quite 
dependent  on  our  own  exertions  for  our  daily 
bi'ead.  Our  health  may  give  way,  and  we  may 
feel  that  we  need  a  little  stimulant,  as  we  have 
in  the  past  felt  how  it  braced  us  up  temporarily, 
and  so,  as  every  day  we  get  older  and  not 
generally  stronger,  we  may  find  ourselves 
gradualh-  increasing  our  dose,  until  in  time  we 
may  wake  up  to  find  to  our  horror  that  we  have 
become  a  slave  t-o  the  habit,  and  cannot  do 
without  it. 

How  do  we  know  if  one  of  our  long-forgotten 
ancestors  may  not  have  had  a  taste  for  strong 
drink.  Perhaps  he  may  have  been  one  of  those 
■■  jolly  "  fellows  we  read  of  in  the  old-fashioned 
novels,  who  consumed  three  bottles  of  wine 
at  a  sitting,  and  finished  up  the  evening  under 
the  table.  The  sins  of  the  fathers  are  visited 
on  the  children  unto  the  third  and  fourth  gene- 
ration. Let  us  not  give  our  ancient  ancestor  a 
chance  to  reincarnate  his  evil  ways  in  our  own 
lives. 

Of  course,  we  must  not  forget  in  our  zeal  for 
temperance  that  we  are  under  the  doctors' 
orders,  and  that  their  directions  must  be  obeyed 
implicitly.  If  they  prescribe  stimulants  for  the 
patients,"  they  must  be  given  without  remark, 
and  with  the  exactitude  and  promptitude  of  any 
other  medicine.  There  is  a  time  lor  everything, 
and  when  one  is  nursing  a  patient  dangerously 
ill,  for  whom  the  doctor  has  ordered  alcohol  in 
any  foi-m,  this  is  not  an  opportune  moment  for 
the  nurse  working  under  his  direction  to  lecture 
■on  temperance. 

E.  F.  Whatham. 


®ur  Guinea  Ipnssle  prise 

We  have  pleasure  in  announciug  that  Miss  Annie 
A.  Axon,  certiiied  midwife,  Waltham  Villa,  West 
Street,  Ryde,  Isle  of  Wight,  has  won  the  Guinea 
•Puzzle  Prize  for  March. 


Key  to  Puzzles. 

Xo.   1. — Lectures  on   Surgical  Nursing. 

Leek — T — ewer — S    on   S — urge — "  eye  " 
— C — awl  Nursing. 
Xo.  2.— Cyllin. 

C — ill — inn. 
Xo.  3. — Listerine. 

List — tearing. 
-Xo.   4. — Panoi>epton. 

Pan — O — pea — P — ton  (.20  cwt.). 

Tlie  lollowing  competitors  have  also  solved  the 
puzzle.s  correctly ; — 

R.  Conway,  Branksome  Chine:  E.  Beever,  Horra- 
bridge;  H.  G.  Bower.s,  Xottingham ;  V.  James, 
Huddensfield  ;  C.  Mackay.  Banff  ;  K.  Chick,  Exeter  ; 
T.  Fellows,  Gl«.sgow ;  E.  Mareland,  Huntingdon; 
C.  E.  Gardner,  Farnham ;  K.  Long,  London;  M. 
Williams,  Bristol;  C.  Flower,  Margate:  J.  Wade, 
AValmer;  T.  Valentine,.  Carstairs;  M.  Modlin,  Brix- 
ton: E.  A.  Leeds*,  London:  C.  Pavne,  Dundee;  L. 
Ryding,  Belfa.st  ;  M.  Woodward, '  Redhill ;  CM. 
Loudoun.  Edinburgh;  F.  AVest,  London;  it. 
Kreckeler.  Birkdale ;  T.  Macdougal.  Glasgow;  E.  S. 
.Sills,  Oakham  ;  S.  M.  Berry,  Brighton  ;  F.  C.  K.iy, 
IlKwich ;  B.  Terry.  Dover;  M.  C.  O'Donnel, 
Dublin ;  A.  M.  Shoesmith,  Durham ;  F.  Sheppard, 
Tunbridge  Wells;  C.  Mawn,  Sheffield;  E.  Patenson, 
I.(Ondon ;  K.  Stevens,  Bath ;  E,  Dinnie,  Harrow ; 
A.  Keenan,  Cork;  P,  Dowd,  Clonskeagh  ;  E.  Clegg, 
Liverpool;  S.  Lewis.  Armagh;  F.  M.  Wrigley,  L-on- 
don  :  E.  J.  Sayle.  Epsom  ;  E.  Spencer,  London  ;  '  . 
Ramsay,  Greenock;  K.  T.  Mo^ityn,  Swansea;  P. 
X'ewman,  London;  A.  Jary,  Fakenhani ;  G.  Smart, 
Cork;  E.  Lynn.  AVanvick  :  E.  Macfarlane,  London; 
K.  Moore,  Manchester;  Xuree  Xuti,  W.  Bromwich  ; 
K.  Moloney.  Cork;  T.  Long,  Bi-ighton  ;  S.  Rnt- 
ledge,  Watford ;  C.  Rose,  Al>erdeen ;  T,  Levy, 
Brighton  ;  L.  Cameron,  Edinburgh  ;  F.  T,  Brown, 
Loirdon  :  C,  Macarthy,  Dublin  :  S.  Barter,  Welling- 
ton ;  E.  Edwards.  Car.shalton  ;  O.  Dinine,  Limerick  ; 
P.  Walton,  Guildford:  K.  Heath,  Bradford;  A.  C. 
Grove,  AVigtown  ;  AV.  Brading,  Lincoln  :  B.  Addison, 
London;  L.  C.  Alurphy,  Alullingar;  X.  AVatson, 
Sherringham;  M.  E.  MacLennan,  Stornaway;  E. 
Evans,   Birmingham;   M.   Hackett,   Cardiff. 

.Competitors  must  si.gn  their  Christian  name  or 
initials. 

The  rules  for  the  Prize  Puzzle  lomain  the  .same, 
«nd  will  he  found  on  page  xii. 


Princess  Louise  (Duchess  of  Argyll)  will  take  the 
chair  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Governors  of 
the  Prince  of  AVales's  (Tottenham)  General  Hospi- 
tal to  be  held  in  the  Council  Chamber  at  the  Muni- 
cipal Buildings  on  Alay  18th. 


April  •_>,  miir 


Zbc  3Brlti0f)  journal  or  mursmo. 


269 


CI.K  Cruth   Hboiit   State  IRccjis* 

tration  m  tbc  l^lnttc^  States 

of  Hmeiica. 


LETTEhS  ADDRESSED  TO   MISS  L.  L.    DOCK. 

Office  of  the  Manjland  State  Board  of  fjj.-amincrs 
of  Nursi^,  Baltimore. 

My  Dear  Miss  Dock, — Your  letter  is  just  at 
•.aiul,  and  in  r('])ly  I  will  say  that  so  far  is  State 
R<'}listration  fix>m  being  a  failure  in  Maryland, 
that  we  consider  it  one  of  the  very  best  steps  that 
nurses  have  ever  taken.  Nearly  every  sichool  for 
nurses  in  the  State  is  coming  up  to  better  standards 
bp<au6e  of  it,  and  what  benefits  the  nurse  in  this 
way  benefits  the  public. 

As  a  result  of  State  Registration,  we  have  a 
Society  of  Superintendents  of  Nurses,  which  meets 
once  a  month,  and  a  uniform  course  of  study  is 
being  worked  out;  in  fact,  the  course  for  the  first 
year  is  now  being  followed  fairly  closely,  with  a 
probability  of  doing  better  as  soon  as  it  is  possible 
to  readjust  the  work. 

The  Hoard  of  Examiners  sends  each  Superinten- 
dent of  Nurses  the  average  made  by  her  own  pupils 
(not  the  individual  average)  in  each  subject,  and 
this  enables  the  Superintendent  to  see  in  w  hat  lines 
her  work  i.s  weak.  The  Ik)ar<l  of  nealth  is  co-opera- 
ting with  us  in  appointing  only  Registered  Nurses 
as  School  Nurses  or  for  tubercular  work,  and  the 
usual  request  for  institutional  work  is  for 
Registered  Nurses. 

AVo  had  more  nurses  come  up  for  examination 
this  fall  than  ever  before  at  one  time.  I  mention 
these  things  to  show  that  the  value  of  State 
Registration  is  recognised  by  the  public  as  well 
as  by  the  nurses. 

Very  truly  yours, 
Mary  Gary  Packard,  R.N., 

President. 

.'<tiite  of  West  Virginia  Board  of  Examiners  f'lr 
Nurses. 

My  Dear  Miss  Dock, — Replying  to  yours  of 
recent  date  regarding  Registration  in  the  United 
States,  I  would  say  that  in  so  far  as  all  indications 
point  in  our  State,  Registration  is  proving  of  de- 
cided benefit.  AVe  have  had  only  two  yearly  exam- 
inations, but  the  last  one  was  attended  by  a  class 
of  42,  an  increase  in  number  of  12  over  the  former 
year.  And  the  papers  were  of  much  improved 
quality,  showing  that  the  Board's  examination  is 
having  its  effect  upon  the  training  of  the  nurses; 
also  the  training  schools  are  showing  evidence  of 
an  inclination  to  bring  their  work  up  to  the 
standard.  I  am, 

Very  respwtfully  yours, 

Gi;o.  LouNSDERY,  Secretary. 


3ntcrnational  IHewt?. 

i[iss  I..  I-.  Dock  writes  that  an  extraordinary 
and  gratifying  amount  of  attention  is  already  being 
shown  by  the  medical  fraternity  in  J^urope  in  the 
next  International  Meeting  in  Cologne  in  1912,  and 
it  is  probable  that  many  of  the  most  progressive  will 
attend  the  Congress. 


appointments. 

Matron. 

Hartlepool  Hospitals.^Miss  Louisa  Strickland  has 
been  apiiointed  Matron.  She  was  trained  at  TJiii- 
versity  College  Hospital,  London.  Miss  Strickland 
has  hold  the  positions  of  Night  Superintendent  at 
the  Samaritan  Free  Hospital,  London,  and  Matron 
of  tlie  Victoria   Infirniary,  Northwich. 

Knightswood  Fever  Hospital.  — Miss  Agnes  Lindsay 
has  biH'n  apix)int<Kl  Matron.  She  was  trained  at 
the  AVestorn  Lifirmary,  Glasgow,  where  she  subse- 
quently held  the  (xwition  of  Sister.  She  also  gained 
experience  in  tlic  nursing  of  infectious  diseases  at 
the  Belvidere  Hospital,  Gla.sgow,  where  she  held 
the  jxjsition  of  Assistant  Matron. 

Combination  Hospital,  Annan. — Miss  Margaret  Ho|X! 
Stewart  has  \)tH'n  a|>|)ointed  Matron.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Cumlu'rland  Infirmary,  Carlisle,  and 
has  beld  the  ix>sition»4  of  Charge  Nui'se  at  the 
Doi-set  County  Hospital,  Dorchester,  Charge  Nurse 
at  the  North-Eastern ,  Tottenham  (M.A.B.),  and 
Home  Sister  at  the  Children's  Infirmary,  Car- 
shalton. 

Crookston  Home  for  Children,  Cardonald,  near  Glasgow. 
— Mi^s  Kjitli<<rine  K.  Caniphcll  Ii:i>s  l)('en  apiwintcil 
Alatron.  .She  was  trained  at  ihe  AVestern  Infir- 
mary, (;iasgow,  where  she  has  held  the  position  of 
Sis-ter. 

Night  Sister. 

Victoria  Hospital,  Hull. — Miss  Florence  Davis  has 
been  ai>i>c)inted  Night  Sister.  She  was  trained  at 
the  Children's  Hospital.  Moseley,  near  Birmingham, 
and  the  AVarncford  General  Hospital,  Leamington, 
She  has  also  had  experience  in  the  nursing  of  m- 
fectioM^i  <lisea«es  and  in   pi'ivate  nui-sing. 

The  Infirmary,  Greenock. — Miss  T.  A\'ood  has  Ix-eii 
apijointed  Night  Sister.  She  was  trained  at  the 
AA'estern  Infirniary,   Glasgow. 

QUEEN   ALEXANDRA'S   IMPERIAL   MILITARY 

NURSING    SERVICE. 

TiiK  New  .Mati'.o.n-i.n-Chiki-. 

In  connection  with  the  selection  of  Miss  E.  H. 
Becher,  R.R.C.  to  succeed  to  the  office  of  Matron- 
in-Chicf  at  the  AA'ar  Office  from  oth  April  next,  we 
a]f  able  to  give  her  professional  career,  winch 
wi'll  (|imlifies  her  for  the  honourable  and 
res|M>nsible  position  ^he  will  shortly  assume. 
The  Alatron-in-Cliief  elect  received  her  training  at 
the  Ix)ndon  Hosj)ital  from  1892-1895,  subsequently 
holding  the  position  of  Sister  in  male,  medical,  and 
surgical  wards  till  December,  1899.  She  was  .sent 
from  the  Ijondon  Hospital  to  South  .\frica  as  one 
of  H.R.H.  the  Princess  of  AVales'  (Queen  Alexan- 
dra) Nurses  on  December  23rd,  1899,  and  served  at 
AVynberg  and  Bloemfontein  till  June,  1900.  She 
was  then  appointed  Acting  Superintendent  of  No. 
19  General  Hospital,  Pretoria,  until  the  hospital 
'was  closed  in  June,  1902,  on  the  cessation  of  hostili- 
ties; was  mentioned  in  despatches,  and  received 
the  Order  of  the  Royal  Red  Cross,  and  the  South 
African  medals. 

Aliss  Beclier  retunie<l  to  England  in  July.  1902, 
and  was  appointe<l  a  Principal  Matron  in  Queen 
.Alexandra's   Imperial    Military   Nursing  Service   at 


270 


^be  aBritlsb  3ournai  ot  iHursino. 


[Apri 


1910 


tlio  War  Office  in  1903.  She  has  therefore  taken 
I)art  ill  the  re-organisation  of  the  Militai-j'  Nursing 
Seivice  during  the  past  seven  yeare.  "She  was 
apiKjinted  Secretary  of  the  Nui'sing  Board  in 
addition  to  other  duties  in  1908,  and  has  earned  tlic 
reputation  of  being  a  tlioroughly  straight-forward 
woman  of  business,  devot«l  to  the  interests  of  the 
great  national  Nursing  Service  slie  is  promoted  to 
superintend. 

Miss  M.  Wright,  Sister,  is  placed  on  retired  pay ; 
Miss  L.  M.  Culverwell,  Sister,  resigns  lier  ap- 
pointment (March  20th) ;  Miss  M.  Byerley,  Staff 
Nurse,  resigns  her  appointment  (March  23rd) ;  Miss 
M.  McCormick  to  be  Staff  Nurse  (provisionallv) 
(March  10th). 

QUEEN    ALEXANDRAS    ROYAL    NAvAL    NURSING 
SERVICE. 

BIis.s  M.  S.  C.  Gubb  has  been  appointed  a 
Nursing  Sister  in  Queen  Alexandra's  lloyal  Naval 
Nursing  Service  (on  jirobation). 

QUEEN  ALEXANDRAS  MILITARY  NURSING 
SERVICE  FOR  INDIA 
The  following  ladies  have  been  appointed  Nursing 
Sisters  in  Queen  Alexandra's  ]\Iilitary  Nursing 
Service  for  India.  Dated  September  16th,  1909: 
Miss  Agnes  Ethel  Lowry,  Jliss  Laura  Ellen  Davies, 
and  Miss  Grace  Eleanor  Fardell.  Dated  Septem- 
ber 29th,  1909 :  Miss  Fanny  Mary  Georgina  Ander- 
son and  Miss  Jose  Pagan.  Dated  February  16th, 
1910:    Miss  Frances  Amy  Lawrence  Smith. 


PRESENTATION. 
Miss  Cai-son-Rae,  tlie  late  Lady  Snpprintendent  of 
Cork  Street  Fever  Hospital,  Dublin,  has,  on  her 
retirement,  received  a  valuable  presentation  irom 
the  joint  membeiis  of  tiie  two  Committees,  ladies' 
and  gentlemen's,  which  took  the  form  of  a  hand- 
some silver  pui-se  of  sovereigns,  as  a  token  of  their 
remembrance  and  gratitude  for  her  many  years' 
work  there. 

The  nursing  staff  also  presented  her  with  a  very 
l>eautiful  set  of  entree  dishes  with  a  suitable  in- 
scription, iliss  Cai-son-Eae  has  now  taken  up  the 
duties  of  Secretary  to  the  Irish  Nurses'  Associaiion, 
a  position  which  we  feel  sure  slie  will  fill  to  their 
utmost  satisfaction. 


WEDDING  BELLS. 
The  wedding  of  Jliss  ilay  Beardsley  and  Dr. 
Samuel  Northwood,  of  Kimberley,  Nottingham,  will 
take  place  in  London  on  7th  April.  Mi.ss  Beards- 
ley,  who  was  trained  at  the  General  Infirmary, 
Northampton,  has  recently  resigned  her  position 
as  a  memlx^r  of  the  Registered  Nui-ses'  .'3-ciety, 
and  her  fellow-workers  wish  her  every  happiness  in 
her  marriwl  life.  

PRACTICAL  POINTS. 

Patients  who  suffer  from 
Stomach  Baths.  symptoms  of  gall-stones  very 
often  do  not  drink  enough. 
Sir  Lauder  Brunton  advises  them  to  drink  a  glass 
of  hot  water  slowly  one  hour  before  every -meal  and 
also  while  dressing  in  the  morning  and  while  retir- 
ing at  night.  In  this  way  the  stomach  is  washed 
out  preparatory  for  the  next  meal. 


IRuraino  i£cl?occi. 


Viscountess  Esher  hopcs- 
tliat  ladies  wishing  to  join 
the  amliulance  classes,  which 
begin  {he  last  week  in  April, 
will  communicate  with  her 
by  letter,  as  soon  as  possible, 
to  Craig's  Court  House, 
Whitehall. 


The  Hon.  Sydney  Holland, 
in  moving  the  adoption  of 
the  report  at  the  quarterly 
meeting  of  tlie  Governors  of  the  Lon- 
don Hospital,  made  the  interesting  an- 
nouncement that  the  Board  of  Edu- 
cation has  once  more  made  a  grant  towards 
the  expenses  of  the  training  of  the  nurses  at 
Tredegar  House;  the  grant  amounting  to 
£331  Ts.  He  further  said  that  the  Committee 
were  considering  the  question  of  applying  for  a 
long  lease  from  Lord  Trpdegar  for  some  piece 
of  ground  in  the  East  End,  on  which  a  more 
suitable  training  school  could  be  built.  The 
present  training  school  was  inconvenient,  being 
only  two  ordinary  private  houses  knocked  into- 
one,  and  the  actual  class  room  wa:^  an  old 
vinery  in  the  garden. 


In  reply  to  a  question  put  to  the  Under- 
Secretary  for  India  in  the  House  of  Commons 
by  Mr.  Kelly  with  reference  to  the  opening  of 
the  nursing  profession  to  Indian  women,  i\Ir. 
Montagu  replied  that  the  General  Hospital, 
Madras,  was  supported  entirely  from  Indian 
revenue.  As  this  was  the  principal  State  hos- 
pital in  Madras,  and  receiving  many  European 
and  Eurasian  patients,  it  seemed  advisable  that 
the  Matron,  Assistant  Matron,  and  head  nurse 
should  be  Europeans  or  Eurasians  trained  in 
European  hospitals.  Such  training  was  hardly 
a\  ailable  for  Indians.  The  diffusion  of  a  know- 
ledge of  medical  matters  among  Indian  women, 
the  importance  of  which  was  fully  recognised, 
was  promoted  by  schools  for  the  training  of 
nurses  attached  to  tliis  and  to  other  large  hos- 
pitals in  India. 


School  nurses  will  be  glad  to  know  that  a 
monthly  paper.  The  School  Cliild,  has  now 
made  its  appearance.  The  sub-title  is  "  A 
.Journal  for  Children's  Care  Committees,  and 
School  IManagers."  Tire  price  is  one  penny, 
and  it  is  obtainable  through  all  booksellers  and 
newsagents.  The  March  issue  contains  two  of 
a  series  of  articles  on  the  recommendations  of" 


A|iril  2,   I'.UO, 


2 be  DSiitiob  3oiu'na[  of  IRursino. 


27J 


tlie  P<ior  J^aw  Conimissitm,  as  tliey  affect 
8cliool  Children,"  the  first  being  "  Ihe  Case 
for  the  Minority,"  by  G.  M.  Lloyd,  and  the 
second,  "  A  Keply  to  the  Aliuority,"  by  Mrs. 
Helen  Bosanquet,  a  member  of  the  Poor  Law- 
Commission,  and  a  Signatory  of  tlie  Majority 
Keport.  Next  mouth  Mrs.  Sidney  Webb  will 
contribute  an  article  to  this  discussion.  An- 
other article  i;-;  one  on  '  School  Feeding  in 
Livei-pcK)!."  which  will  be  read  with  interest 
by  School  Nurses. 

.Vn  interesting  and  useful  piece  of  work  is 
being  carried  on  by  Miss  E.  B.  Kiugsford, 
formerly  Matron  of  the  Metropolitan  Hospital, 
N.E.,  and  Miss  ]B.  Wright,  also  a  trained  iiinse, 
in  the  Fallow  Corner  Home  for  Homeless 
Children  at  North  Fiuchley.  The  Home,  whicli 
has  now  been  open  for  twelve  j-ears,  aims  at 
making  a  suitable  provision  for  the  first  infants 
of  unmarried  girls  whose  former  lives  Have  been 
thoroughly  respectable,  and  to  provide  sound 
education,  healthy  suiToundings,  and  careful 
attention  for  the  children,  and  so  to  lay  a  stable 
foundation  whereby  they  may  develop  into 
healthy,  useful  members  of  the  community,  in- 
stead of  being  the  stunted,  ill-nourished  speci- 
mens of  hunuuiity  which  only  too  often  result 
from  unscrupulous  baby-farming.  As  the  report 
of  the  Home  points  out,  this  is  an  age  when 
much  is  said  about  "  race  culture,"  and  special 
interest  is  evinced  in  the  welfare  of  children. 
If  this  be  so,  it  is  impossible  to  over-estimate 
the  importance  of  judicious  care  during  the 
early  years  of  life.  The  Home  exists  to  give  a 
fair  chance  to  children  who  from  the  force  of 
circumstances  are  debarred  the  advantages  of 
home  life.  It  takes  those  who  are  most  heavily 
handicapped,  and  more  at  the  mercy  of  the 
world  than  any  others,  and  tends  them  during 
their  years  of  helplessness,  thus  preparing  them 
to  become  useful  citizens,  fit  to  undertake  the 
duties  of  life,  and  haply  to  transmit  an  im- 
proved strain  to  a  future  generation.  Nurses 
could  scarcely  undertake  a  more  useful  work, 
and  we  wish  Miss  Kingsford  and  Miss  W^righl 
all  the  success  they  deserve. 


Mrs.  Hill,  Chettle,  Blandford,  Dorset,  writes 
to  tlie  TimcH,  calling  attention  to  the  action 
of  the  Government  of  the  Malay  States  in  clos- 
ing the  European  Hospital  at  Scremban,  which 
she  describes  as  "  both  ill-advised  and  unjust." 
She  writes :  — 

"  Seremban  is  tho  chief  town  of  a  largo, 
and  to  Eiiroi)cans  an  luihealthy,  district, 
given  up  to  rMt)ber  planting,  and  support- 
ing a  considerable  and  increasing  Knropean 
piipidation  ;  and  for  the  last  eiglit  years 
ii  hospital  has  been  maintained  there  by  the 
Oovernment    for      the      use      of      this    European 


lK>|)ulation.  .  .  ,  Kvery  year  it  has  become  more 
useful  and  more  necessary.  Large  new  areas  of 
rubber  estates  have  been  opened  uii ;  there  are 
many  more  Europeans,  and  consequently  many 
more  cases  of  fever.  Yet  now  of  all  times,  and  with- 
out even  making  an  appeal  for  subscriptions  from 
tlio  local  residents  and  those  interested  in  the 
country,  to  which  a  ready  respon.se  would  assuredly 
have  been  given,  the  Government  have  closed  tho 
hospital,  and  there  is  now',  1  understand,  no  place 
at  Seremban  where  Europeans  can  be  nursed.  Tho 
reason  given  for  tlii.s  step  is  that  tho  hospital  gave 
too  much  work  for  one  nurse,  but  not  enough  for 
two ;  and  so,  in  the  interests  of  economy  and  to 
avoid  incurring  the  expense  of  providing  a  second 
nurse,  who  would  not  at  once  be  fully  occupied,  the 
hospital  has  been  abandoned  altogether. 
The  Government  derive  large  revenues  in  land-rents 
and  duties  from  the  rubber  estates  which  these 
European  planters  have  done  so  much  to  develop, 
and  one  would  sujjpose  that  it  would  ho  wMse  as  a 
mere  matter  of  prudence  to  make  some  provision 
for  the  health  of  those  to  whom  it  is  so  largely  due 
that  there  are  any  revenues  at  all.  ...  It  is 
the  d  ity  of  a  Government  to  hell)  ^"d  encourage 
its  subjects,  and  not  to  neglect  their  greatest  needs  ; 
and  as  one  who  formerly  resided  in  this  State,  and 
has  many  friends  who  reside  there  still,  I  feel  liound 
to  make  this  protest  against  tho  action  of  the 
Grovernment  in  closing  a  hospital  wliich  was  so 
essential  to  the  welfare  of  all  Europeans  living  in 
those  i^arts." 


We  agree  thoroughly  wath  ^Irs.  Hill  that  it 
is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  the  Govern- 
ment should  conserve  the  health  of  settlers  in 
the  Malay  States,  but  what  strikes  us  as  out- 
rageous is  that  any  hospital  can  be  worked  by 
one  nurse  !  Is  it  conceivable  that  no  provision 
is  to  be  made  for  the  nurse  to  be  off  duty 
night  or  day  ?  No  hospital  should  be  sanctioned 
where  a  staff  of  less  than  three  nurses  can  be 
maintained — two  for  day  duty  (one  to  relieve 
the  other)  and  one  for  night  duty.  A  less  staff 
spells  sweating — a  custom  very  prevalent  at 
home  in  our  cottage  hospitals — where  the- 
w-onu-n's  work  is   concerned. 


Dr.  George  M.  Hobertson,  Physician-Super- 
intendent of  tho  Royal  Edinburgh  Asylum,  has 
always  been  a  w  arm  supporter  of  the  adoption 
of  hospital  methods  in  asylum  managei-nent, 
and  of  the  employment  of  nurses  w-ho  liave  re- 
ceived a  general  training  in  the  responsible 
])ositions.  In  an  exhaustive  report  on  the  work- 
ing of  the  Asylum  he  describ;s  the  history  of 
the  past  j-ear  which,  he  says,  may  be  summed 
up  in  the  W'ord  "  organisation."  Craig  House, 
on  Craiglockhait  Hill,  intended  foi-  people  of 
means,  and  the  West  House  in  tiu'  !Morningside 
district,  are  both  governed  by  the  managers  of 
till'   Hoval   Edinburgh    .Vsvlum.        The   nursing 


272 


^Dc  3Brltl9b  journal  of  IHurslng. 


[April 


1910 


and  domestic  staff  at  West  House  have  beeu 
strengtbeued  by  ten  heads  of  departments, 
fully  responsible  under  the  Lady  Superinten- 
dent and  the  JMatrons,  for  the  efficiency  of  their 
special  departments.  All  are  women  of  good 
education,  and  almost  all  hold  certificates  of 
proficiency  from  hospitals  and  asylums,  or  from 
schools  of  domestic  economy. 


Dr.  liobertson  frankly  distrusts  any  practice 
y.eculiar  to  asylums.  His  aim  is  to  approxi- 
mate his  methods  to  those  of  hospitals,  and 
he  states  '"  nothing  has  aided  more  in  attaining 
this  object  than  the  introduction  into  asylums 
ol  hospital  trained  nurses.  My  own  policy  for 
many  years  has  been  openly  to  put  under  sus- 
jjicion  any  practice  that  is  in  operation  which 
is  peculiar  to  asylums.  If  I  find  I  can  do  with- 
out it  I  abolish  it,  and  if  I  find  it  cannot  be 
<lone  without,  but  that  it  can  be  replaced  by  an- 
other method  of  a  hospital  character,  then  I 
introduce  that.  Subject  to  this  stern  criticism, 
it  is  sui-prising  how  many  anachronisms  and 
worthless  traditions  can  be  discarded,  and 
with  a  policy  of  hospitalisation  so  definite  and 
imeompromising,  progress  towards  the  goal  \\"e 
strive  for  is  a  comparatively  easy  matter." 


Dr.  Eobertsou  remarks  that  it  is  curious  that 
the  padded  room  of  which  mental  experts  are 
now  beginning  to  feel  ashamed  should  have 
been  invented  about  66  years  ago  by  Conolly, 
tiie  great  apostle  of  the  non-restraint  and 
humane  methods  of  treatment  for  the  insane. 
l:5ut  at  that  time  many  patients  were  violent 
and  aggressive  owing  to  tlie  ill-treatment  they 
had  previously  received  from  their  attendants. 
Cases  of  furious  or  raging  mania  such  as  were 
described  in  those  days  are  neyer  seen  now 
because  they  were  goaded  into  being  by  the  vile 
treatment  they  received,  whereas  skilful  treat- 
ment has  a  tranquilising  effect.  Conollj'  writes 
of  the  nursing  staff  of  that  day  that  they  "  were 
worse  dressed,  and  wilder  looking  than  the 
generality  of  the  patients." 


the  testator  suggested  that  she  ought  to  found 
a  hospital  for  the  treatment  of  those  whose 
"distempers  and  wounds  were  curable."  It 
was  in  the  most  working  class  part  of  the  city, 
between  Bow  Lane  and  the  banks  of  the  Lift'ey, 
that  iladame  Steevens  in  1717  purchased  some 
acres  of  land,  and  there  prepared  to  carry  out 
what  was  as  much  her  own  design  as  that  of 
her  brother,  contributing  at  the  same  time 
£2,000  towards  the  building. 

The  legend  that  Madame  Steevens  was  a 
"  pig-faced  lady  "  probably  arose  from  the  fact 
that  she  visited  the  poorest  parts  of  the  to\\n 
closely  veiled,  and  at  the  age  of  ninety-three 
she  had  to  sit  by  the  front  corridor  win- 
dow with  the  blinds  drawn  back  to  convince  the 
people  she  was  not  deformed.    ■ 

The  nurses  of  this  historic  old  hospital  are 
now  sent  to  all  parts  of  the  world,  and  have 
sained  laurels  for  it  even  in  far  off  Siam. 


The  Irish.  Timix  publishes  an  interesting  ac- 
count of  the  foundation  of  Dr.  Steevens'  Hos- 
pital, h\  Madame  Steevens,  a  great  phiianthro- 
3)ist,  in  1720.  Grissel  Steevens  was  the  daugh- 
ter of  a  Royalist  English  clergyman,  who,  hav- 
ing preached  against  Cromwell,  was  obliged  to 
fly  to  Ireland,  and  settled  in  Athlone  with  his 
wife  and  two  children,  Richard  and  Grissel. 
Richard,  who  afterwards  practised  medicine  in 
Dublin,  died  in  1710,  bequeathing  property  in 
Westmeath  and  Queen's  County  to  the  v^lue  of 
£600  a  year  to  his  sister.  If  she  should  marry 
she  was  to  regard  the  legacy  as  her  sole  pro- 
perty, but  in  the  event  of  her  remaining  single. 


^Ir.  J.  C.  Eaton  has  generously  notified  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Toronto  General  Hos- 
pital that  he  will  contribute  250,000  dollars  to 
the  new  hospital ;  he  has  been  appointed  by 
the  Provincial  Government  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  hospital  in  the 
place  of  Dr.  Orr,  who  resigned  to  fill  the 
vacancy.  An  order  in  Council  has  been  passed, 
making  the  appointment,  as  the  Government 
considers  it  of  great  importance  that  Mr.  Eaton 
shoidd  be  associated  with  the  trust. 


American  nurses  are  keenly  interested  in  the 
announcement  that  the  ninth  International  Red 
Cross  Conference  will  probably  be  held  in 
Washington  during  May,  1912.  At  the  eighth 
International  Conference  held  in  London  in 
1907  the  American  Red  Cross  delegates  ])i'o- 
posed  that  the  next  Conference  should  be  held 
in  W'ashington,  the  arrangements  being  carried 
out  by  the  Central  Committee  of  the  American 
Red  Cross.  The  International  Council  at 
Geneva,  favourably  received  the  invitation,  and 
has  placed  itself  entirely  at  the  disposition  of 
the  American  Committee  to  aid  in  the  organisa- 
tion of  the  Conference. 


A  representative  Committee  on  the  Nursing 
Service  of  the  National  Red  Cross,  with  Miss 
Delano  as  President  is  now  considering  the  rules 
and  method  of  organisation  of  members  of  the 
Service.  The  American  Journal  of  Nursing 
,  says  that  I\Iiss  Delano's  practical  knowledge  of 
Red  Cross  work  and  her  close  touch  with  nurs- 
ing affairs  make  her  a  most  efilicient  and  in- 
spiring leader  diu'ing  this  difficult  period  of 
orgranisation. 


April  2, 1910J       (£|,c   36int(5b  3ournal  of  IFiursina, 


273 


■Some  (IbariticsJ   in   tbc    tlllcst 
IRi&iuG  of  IPoiiiSbire. 


By  Mack  All. 


THE  GENERAL  INFIRMARY  AT   LEEDS. 


The  General  Infirmary  at  Leeds  is  one  of  the 
best  known  hospitals  in  the  North  of  England. 
It  stands  at  the  heart  of  the  West  Riding.  One 
hundred  and  forty  years  ago  there  was  a 
General  Infirmary  at  Leeds. 

The  present  building  was  erected  forty-one 
years  ago.  It  eost  i;120,000  then,  and  a  larger 
sum  has  been  expended  since,  keeping  it  up 
to  date  and  enlarging  its  borders.  Yet  one  has 
to  remember  that  four  decades  ago  the  struc- 
tural ideas  concerning  hospital  building  were 
not  the  ideas  that  prevail  to-day.  It  is  possible 
a  modern  architect  would  plan  the  building  in 
a  difierent  way.  It  is  scarcely  possible  that 
better  work  or  more  scientific  could  be  done 
even  in  a  modern  building. 

The  site  of  the  hospital  is  on  an  elevation, 
and  has  the  advantage  of  being  wind-sw'ept. 
The  outside  of  the  hospital  is  not  attractive. 
The  walls  are  grimy  and  the  windows  bare. 
The  entrance  hall  compensates  for  the  dingy 
exterior.  A  fire  burns  in  a  wide  grate,  and  the 
decorations  and  colouring  arc  very  fine.  Doors 
at  each  side  of  this  hall  lead  into  the  casualty 
department,  the  Manager's  offices,  and  the 
apartments  of  the  resident  staff.  In  front  is  a 
wide  staircase ;  this  lands  one  on  a  circular 
corridor,  surrounding  :i  coiu't.  This  court  is 
the  first  thing  to  strike  a  stranger — it  is  so  un- 
expected. It  has  a  glass  roof,  seats  around  its 
sides,  and  in  the  centre  a  tennis  court. 
Allegoric  figures  are  ranged  round.  It  reminds 
one  of  a  corner  of  Hampton  Court. 

It  would  take  days  to  explore  this  village 
within  walls ;  and  much  more  space  than  the 
Editor  will  allow  me  to  describe  what  I  noticed 
in  a  few  hoiirs. 

There  are  400  beds  in  the  hospital,  and  be- 
tween seven  and  eij^dit  thousand  patients  are 
treated  there  aniuially.  This  is  the  only  hos- 
pital in  Leeds  where  casualty  cases  and  acci- 
dents can  be  brought  at  any  time.  The  out- 
door department  in  1908  treated  48,635 
patients.  Over  500  maternity  cases  were 
looked  after  from  tlie  Infirmary.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  there  seemed  to  be  some  overcrowding 
in  the  wards.  All  the  wards  are  built  so  that 
two  beds  stand  between  each  pair  of  windows ; 
this  did  not  seem  to  give  sufficient  floor  space. 
Another  thing  that  was  very  noticeable  in  the 
wards  was  the  number  of  acute  cases ;  there 
were    literally    no    convalescents.      The    con- 


valescents, we  learnt,  are  removed  to  a  semi- 
convalescent  home,  but  this  unique  establish- 
ment deserves  an  article  to  itself. 

The  wards  contain  28  and  32  beds  each.  The 
walls  are  of  light  colour,  painted  and  varnished. 
The  floors  are  of  oak,  and  beeswaxed.  The 
white  counterpanes  and  folded  crimson  rugs  at 
the  foot  of  the  beds  made  a  welcome  bit  of 
colour  in  the  wards.  There  is  one  modern-sized 
ward  in  the  hospital,  and  the  authorities  aim 
at  bringing  all  the  others  into  line  with  it.  This 
is  the  Weatherill  Ward,  called  after  a  gentle- 
man who  left  over  4124,000  to  the  Infirmary 
in  1905.  A  marble  medallion  of  Mr.  Weatherill 
is  in  a  niche  of  the  wall  near  the  door.  The 
walls  of  this  ward  are  pale  green,  and  the  paint 
oak-coloured.  The  windows  are  fitted  in 
summer  with  bhnds  that  roll  from  the  bottom 
upwards.  The  beds  are  constructed  so  that  the 
top  end  can  be  used  as  a  bed  rest.  Chains  take 
the  place  of  springs  and  the  mattresses  are  of 
horsehair.  Tents  were  around  many  of  the 
beds  here,  so  arranged  as  not  to  get  in  the  way 
of  the  nurse,  and  yet  to  screen  the  patient 
sufficiently.  One  old  man  was  very  proud  of 
the  method  used  for  supplying  him  wuth  steam 
instead  of  the  old-fashioned  steam  kettle. 
Nearly  everything  that  science  and  ingenuity 
could  devise  to  ease  suffering  and  prolong  lite 
was  to  be  seen  in  this  ward.  The  patients 
were  accident  cases,  and  it  was  literally  "  a 
palace  of  pain." 

The  lockers  were  of  the  newest  patterns,  and 
a  sti'ucture  in  the  centre  of  the  ward  acted  as 
table  and  drawers.  All  dressings  are  placed  in 
covers  of  sti'ong  calico  and  lint,  and  sent  to  the 
centre  sterilised. 

A  room  leading  out  of  the  ward  had  many 
labour-saving  contrivances.  One  was  for  heat- 
ing hot-water  bottles.  Two  sterilisers,  one  for 
instruments  and  anotlier  for  gloves,  had  water 
taps  over  each  for  refilling.  The  bathroom  and 
lavatories  were  also  at  the  end  of  this  ward. 
Just  outside  the  ward  door  was  a  small  kitchen 
with  a  gas  stove.  This  is  used  for  heating 
plates,  milk,  and  beef  tea,  all  meals  being  sent 
fi;om  the  centre  kitchen  ready  to  be  served  out. 
There  are  five  theatres  in  the  hospital ;  these 
are  heated  and  ventilated  by  the  Plenum 
system.  Drawers  and  cupboards  are  dust- 
proof.  In  connection  with  the  theatres  there 
are  rooms  for  the  honorary  staff  and  for  the 
students  to  prepare  themselves  for  operations, 
ansesthetic  rooms,  and  recovery  rooms.  The 
nurses  while  in  the  theatre  wear  overalls  and 
caps  made  to  cover  their  hair  and  neck;  the 
latter  lend  a  very  sweet,  ^Madonna-like  look  to 
the  face,  and  are  not  likely  to  be  forgotten. 

The  air  in  the  theatres  was  oppressive,  and 
both  the  theatres  and  rooms  used  in  conncc- 


274 


Cbe  Brtttsb  3ournal  of  IRursino. 


[April  2,  1910 


tion  with  them  seemed  rather  small  and  over- 
crowded with  fixtures. 

There  is  a  large  outdoor  department,  to  which 
patients  are  admitted  free. 

The  Infirmary  has  an  honorary  staff  of  be- 
tween 20  and  thirty  physicians  and  surgeons, 
and  the  indoor  staff  consists  of  16  residents. 

The  nursing  staff  numbers  over  100.  These 
consist  of  a  Lady  Superintendent,  an  Assistant 
Superintendent,  15  Sisters,  and  88  nurses  and 
probationers.  This  is  the  permanent  staff' ;  for 
special  cases  nurses  from  the  Nurses'  Homes 
iiL  the  town  are  sometimes  employed.  The  train- 
ing for  nurses  is  for  four  years.  Fourth  year 
nurses  are  called  "  staff  nurses."  The  Sisters 
are  chosen  from  nurses  trained  at  the  In- 
firmary. 

The  nurses  spend  several  months  during  their 
training  at  the  semi-convalescent  home  belong- 
ing to  the  Infirmary;  here  the  life  is  not  so 
strenuous  as  at  Leeds. 

During  her  first  and  second  years,  a  proba- 
tioner is  required  to  attend  a  course  of  lectures 
on  anatomy  and  physiology,  surgery,  medicine, 
and  elementary  hygiene.  She  must  pass  an 
examination  in  each  subject,  or  receive  a  modi- 
fied certificate  at  the  end  of  her  training.  The 
certificate  shows  botli  the  practical  and  theore- 
tical work.  ]\Iiss  Fisher  remarked  that  "  often 
the  most  practical  nurses  are  poor  at  theory 
and  vice  versa  in  a  greater  degree,  and  that 
the  fairest  way  was  to  let  theory  and  practice 
go  hand  in  hand." 

Xurses  trained  at  the  Leeds  General  Infir- 
mary get  some  of  the  best  posts  in  the  nursing 
world.  The  rules  and  regulations  for  nurses 
state  that  "  candidates  must  he  well  educated, 
active,  industrious,  thoroughly  trustworthy, 
and  of  unexceptional  character;  age  between 
22  and  30." 

There  are  numbers  of  applications,  but  the 
right  sort  of  probationer  is  always  welcomed. 
Each  nurse  and  probationer  has  a  bedroom  to 
herself  in  the  comfortable  Nurses'  Home,  which 
is  joined  on  to  the  hospital  by  a  covered  way. 
The  housekeeper's  post  is  a  peniianent  one, 
and  she  need  not  necessarily  be  a  nurse.  A 
chef  rules  the  kitchen;  he  is  assisted  by  six 
women ;  they  have  at  the  rate  of  about  100 
persons  each  to  cook  for. 

The  Infirmary  owns  its  own  laundry ;  this  is 
in  charge  of  a  Laundry  Matron.  The  washing 
is  done  here  for  the  convalescent  home  as  well 
as  for  the  Infirmary  staff  and  patients. 

The  latest  addition  to  the  Infirmary  is  a  Lady 
Almoner,  who  spends  the  greater  part  of  three 
days  in  the  institution  each  week. 

The  Leeds  Infirmary  is  noted  for  retaining 
its  staff.  Miss  Fisher,  the  Lady  Superinten- 
<lent,  has  been  there  for  20  years,  and  she  is 


not  the  oldest  inhabitant  by  a  long  way.  Th© 
housekeeper,  who  retired  a  year  ago,  had  been 
at  her  post  for  33  years. 

Migs  Fisher  believes  that  both,  nurses  and 
patients  will  benefit  by  State  Registration,  and 
she  will  welcome  the  clay  when  all  fully  trained 
nurses  will  have  their  position  better  defined. 

If  fate  is  kind,  I  will  some  day  write  an 
article  on  "  Matrons  I  have  Met,"  and  bring 
the  Lady  Superintendent  of  Leeds  General  In- 
firmary in  under  another  name.  But,  until 
then,  I  must  not  discuss  her  in  print.  Miss 
Fisher  comes  from  North  of  the  Tweed,  and  if 
she  suspected  me  of  "  blarney,"  I  would  nob 
have  a  chance-  of  describing  the  semi-con- 
valescent home  in  connection  with  the  Leeds 
General  Infirmary,  of  which  Miss  Fisher  is  also 
Superintendent. 

Last  year  the  Infirmary  sustained  a  great 
loss  in  the  death  Mr.  Thomas  Blair,  who  for 
many  years  was  the  General  Manager.  His 
successor  is  Mr.  Bray. 

To  the  Board  of  Management,  and  to  the 
General  Manager,  no  less  than  to  the  medical, 
surgical,  and  nursing  staff,  is  due  the  popularity 
and  usefulness  of  the  General  Infirmary  at 
Leeds. 

Ipcnsion  Scbeinc. 

The  fourtli  annual  nieftiiig  of  the  Pension  Scheme 
for  male  employees  of  Cadbuiy  Bros.,  Lt-d.,  Boiuii- 
ville,  was  recently  held  at  Bonrnville.  The 
meml>ership  is  now  about  2,000.  The  balance-slifet 
shows  accumulations  in  the  fund  of  £106,000,  wliich 
includes  the  sum  of  £55,000  paid  by  the  Company 
on  account  of  their  special  donation  for  the  liack 
service  of  old  employees.  An  announcement  was- 
made  to  the  meeting  that  the  Company  was  now 
l>aying  another  £5.000  of  this  donation.  The  in- 
vestment of  the  fund  is  all  in  securities  outside  the 
Company's  business.  The  contributions  of  members 
and  Comi>any  are  now  about  £14,000  per  anninn, 
the  proportion  paid  by  the  Company  being  slightly 
in  excess  of  that  paid  by  mcrabei-s.  The  scheme- 
was  adopted  after  taking  the  advice  of  the  highest 
actuarial  authority,  and  is  therefore  based  on  the 
soundest  lines.  We  congratulate  this  great  cocoa 
firm  on  its  ]>aternal  interest  in  the  workers.  Such 
co-operation  is  a  sure  ba.sis  of  success. 

HDcbical  (TonQvess  in  Xonbon. 

The  seventy-eighth  annual  meeting  of  the- 
British  Medical  Association  will  take  place  in 
London  in  the  month  of  July.  The  annual  re- 
presentative meeting,  which  precedes  the  Con- 
gress, will  be  held  at  the  Guildhall,  and  the  pro- 
gramme includes  a  service  in  Westminster 
Abbey.  The  president  will  be  Sir  William 
Whitla,  and  the  president-elect  is  Mr.  H.  T^ 
Butlin. 


April  2, 1910]       j^jjg  Britisi)  Sounial  of  ■nAursma. 


27,'5 


■Reflections. 


Fkom  a  Board  Room  Mirror. 
Sir  Thomas  Barlow,  Bart.,  K.C.V.O.,  lias  been 
•elected  President  of  the  Royal  College  of  Pliysicians 
of  lAMidon  in  succession  to  Sir  Richard  Douglas 
Povvoll,  who  has  hekl«  the  office  since  1905.  Sir 
Thomas  Bailow  is  on  the  visiting  staff  of  University 
•College  H<xsi>ital,  and  Consulting  Physician  to  the 
Hospital  for  .Sick  Children,  Great  Ormond  Street, 

w.c. 


The  Committee  of  St.  Peter's  Hospital,  Henrietta 
Street,  Covenfc  Gartlen,  W.C,  are  desirous  of 
raising  £5,000  to  rtlieve  the  hospital  from  debt 
and  provide  for  necessary  improvements,  in  connec- 
tion with  tlio  Jubilee  Festival  on  April  26th  next, 
when  rx>rd  Airedale  will  preside.  Since  the  ojK'n- 
ing  of  the  pro-sont  hospital  in  1882  by  the  lato 
Duke  of  Albany,  K.G.,  1,599  operations  for  the  re- 
moval of  stone  from  the  bladder  have  been  per- 
formed,   and   the   mortality,   which   was   15.25   per 

.cent,  in  the  first  decade  of  the  hospital's  existence, 
was  last  year  only  1.96  per  cent.  The  oix^ration 
for  the  enucleation  of  the  prostate  gland  was 
initiatetl  in  the  hospital  just  nine  years  ago,  and  is 
now  uiiivei-sally  accepted  and  practised  throughout 
the   workl.     Out   of   the  80  who  submitted  to  the 

•  operation  of  prostatectomy  last  year  75  were  com- 
pletely cui'e<l. 


The  Duke  of  Connaught,  who  is  tlie  president  af 
•the  Institution,  will  preside  at  the  Anniversary 
Festival  of  the  British  Orphan  Asylum  at  the  Hotel 
Metit)[X)le  on  Tuesday,  May  24th. 


The  General  Hospital,  Birmingham,  one  of  the 
busiest  and  most  up-to-date  hospitals  in  the  Mid- 
lands, dealt  last  year  with  some  70,000  patients, 
5,511  of  these  being  in-patients.  The  operations 
performo<l  numljered  3.!)29.  The  good  work  which 
the  Iiospital  can  do  appears  to  be  unlimited,  but  the 
Board  and  the  able  House  Governor,  Mr.  Howai<l 
Collins,  view  with  apprehension  the  falling  off  in 
annual  sul)scriptions  and  the  increasing  overdraft 
at  the  bank.  A  wealthy  city  such  a.s  Birmingham 
should  not  allow  its  hospitals  to  be  in  want.  Tlie 
pies«Mit  Matron.  Miss  K.  M.  Musson,  entere<l  uixm 
her  duties  in  March  of  last  year,  and  since  her 
api>ointment  11  nurses  have  been  added  to  the  staff, 
which  now  numbers  120.  All  of  these  must  be  kept 
busy  in  dealing  with  so  large  a  number  of  patients. 


.\  great  International  Exhibition  is  to  be  held 
ill  Dresden  next  year  for  the  in.struotion  of 
si)eciali,sts  in  hygiene,  and  all  who  are  intei^ested  in 
the  public  health.  The  King  of  Sa.xony  has  lent  a 
large  ]X)rtion  of  the  Royal  Great  Garden  to  the 
organ isi'is,  and  the  German  Government  have 
plaoe<l  a  considerable  sum  of  money  at  the  disposal 
of  the  autliorities.  The  Municipality  of  Dr<^en  has 
•sub.scribe<l  a  large  sum,  and  the  wealthier  in- 
Hialiitants  of  Dreslen  have  c<)iitribnte<l  almnt 
C50,()00. 


flDoralit^  in  IKclatton  to  Ibealtb. 

ADDRESS  BY  DR.  MORROW. 
Dr.  Prince  A.  Morrow,  of  New  York,  has  pub- 
li-shed  in  pamphlet  form  an  address  delivered  before 
the  American  Society  of  Sanitary  and  Moral 
Prophylaxis,  19,  Kast  f2nd  Street,  New  York  City, 
of  which  he  is  Presi<lent,  entitled  "Results  of  the 
Work  Accomplished  by  the  Movement  for  Sanitary 
and  Moral  Pix)|)hylaxis,"  in  which  he  reviews  the 
results  of  the  woik  accomplished,  alludes  to  some 
of  the  difficulties  ency)untere<l,  and  indicates  what 
the  signs  of  promise  are  for  the  ultimate  success  of 
this  movement.  Dr.  Morrow  {joints  out  that  the 
value  of  the  Society's  work  is  not  to  be 
measured  alone  by  material  results  in  diminishing 
the  sum  of  venereal  morbidity  and  mortality.  If 
carried  to  a  successful  i.ssue  it  will  represent  an  im- 
pixivement  in  the  moral  as  well  as  the  physical 
health  of  the  i>eople.  After  discussing  the  question 
from  various  standix)ints  he  says:  "  The  chief  diffi- 
culty encountered  in  the  enlightenment  of  the  pub- 
lic has  been  the  social  sentiment  which,  masquerad- 
ing under  the  gui.se  of  modesty  and  piopriety,  has 
resolutely  rcfuse-d  to  recognise  the  existence  of  this 
class  of  diseases.  .  .  .  AVomen — modest,  refined, 
the  most  womanly  of  women — are  not  offended  by 
our  plainness  of  .si)eecli ;  their  feeling  is  not  one  of 
outragetl  mod<».ty,  but  of  indignation,  of  resent- 
ment rather,  that  mattei-s  which  so  materially  con- 
cern their  health,  and  the  health  and  lives  of  their 
children,  have  always  been  concealed  from  them  by 
the  medical  profession."  He  further  expresses  the 
opinion  that  "it  is  eminently  proijer  and  fitting 
that  women  should  interest  themselves  in  this 
movement.  It  is  largely  a  woman's  question,  for  it 
is  ui>on  woman,  and  the  children  who  are  a  jMirt 
of  her  being,  that  the  burden  of  suffering,  disease, 
and  death  from  this  social  scourge  is  chiefly  laid." 


LITERATURE  FOR   NURSES. 

Miss  L.  Jj.  Dock  sends  us  the  following  list  of 
literature,  compiled  by  Dr.  Caroline  Hedger, 
member  of  the  Federation  Committee,  for  the  use 
of  nurses:  — 

The  following  six  educational  ]Ximplilets,  pub- 
lished by  the  Society  of  Sanitary  and  Moral  Pro- 
phylaxis, 9,  East  42nd  Stiwt,  New  York  City, 
which  may  l)e  obtained  in  this  country  thiongh  tue 
Workei-s'  Bwkshop,  18a,  New  Oxford  Street,  W.C. : 

(1)  "Tlie  Young  Man's  Pix)blem,"  (2)  "Educa- 
tion in  the  Physiology  and  Hygiene  of  Sex  for 
Tcachere,"  (ii)  "  The  Relations  of  Soeial  Diseases 
with  Marriage,"  (4)  "  The  Boy  Problem,"  (5) 
"  How  My  Uncle,  the  Doctor,  Instructed  Me  in 
Matters  of  Sex,"  (6)  "  Health  and  the  Hygiene  of 
Sex  for  College  Students."     Also  recommended:  — 

Ahhoft  :  Handbook  of  Transmissible  Diseases, 
page  160.  lidllaiitijni'.  :  Abortion,  Brif.  ^[rd.  Jour., 
.Ian.  22nd,  1898.  Bel  field:  (1)  Man  and  Woman ; 
(2)  Woman  the  Higher  Type.  BlackweU,  Eliza- 
beth: Essays  in  ^fed.  Sociology,  2  v.,  Lend.,  '02. 
BIdvku-ell,  Klizabcfh  :  The  Human  Element  in  Sex, 
2nd  edition,  Lond.,  1884.  Bulkley:  Syphilis  of 
the  Tunocout.  Burif  :  Syphilis  in  Ancient  Times, 
I'hil.,  1891.     Chirk:    Blood  Vessels  of  Ovary  (best, 


27() 


^bc  16rid6b  3ountal  ot  iHiuini\G^ 


[April  2,  1910 


most  scientific);  Contributions  to  Science  of  Medi- 
cine, by  pupils  of  Wm.  E.  AVelch.  CHeveland  :  Pro- 
nbvlaxis  Ven.  Disease,  Tr.  Amer.  Gyn.  Soc,  '07 
vfine  article  for  education).  Cloust'on :  Female 
Education,  Bosf.  Med.  and  ■Surfj.  Jour.,  1883, 
C'VIII.,  p.  68.  Cvmsfon:  What  Effective 
.Measures  are  there  for  the  Prevention  of  the 
Spread  of  Syphilis,  Jour.  Amer.  Med.  A.ssn..  '06, 
XLVII.,  l,.37i'.  Duncai,  :  Sterility  of  Women, 
nrif.  Med.  Jour.,  Lond.,  188.3,  I.  393,  445—497,  550 
—  604,  701—753.  Fernald:  Sociologic  View  of 
Criminal  Abortion.  III.  Med.  Jour.,  '0.3-4,  v.  57. 
Fisher  and  Ostirald  :  Zur  Physikulisch  Chemischen  ; 
Theorie  der  Befrnehtung;  Pfliigers  Arch  F.  d.  ges. 
Physiologie,  1905,  vol.  106,,  p.  227.  Galbraiths: 
Four  Epochs  in  a  Woman's  Life.  Geddes  and 
Thompson  :  Evolution  of  Sex  (bibliograpliy,  good). 
Goffe,  J.  B.  :  Sterility,  International  Clinic,  Phila., 
'"'^ — 13-s,  II.  261.  Gordini  :  Gonorrhoea  in  Women, 
Mrdiccd  lierord,  v.  .50,  Nov.  21st,  1896,  p.  470 
(bibliography).  Hanauer:  Die  Bekampfung  der 
Sexuellen  Infectious  Krankheiten.  Havelock, 
Ellis:  Man  and  Woman.  Jacohy,  Mary  Fuinam: 
The  Question  of  Rest  for  Women  (prize  essay). 
Jones:  Syphilis  Considered  in  its  Ethical  Rela- 
tions, Med.  Ber.  of  T!ev.,  X.  Y.,  '03,  IX.,  812-817. 
Jones,  Marii :  Sterility  in  AVomen,  Medieal  I'eeord, 
iX.  Y.,  1891.  XL.,  317.  Jullien  :  Blenorrhagie  et 
Manage,  1898.  Kay:  A  Study  of  Sterility,  Jour. 
Amer.  Med.  .Assn.,  Chicago,  1891,  XVI.,  181,  222, 
265  (bibliog.).  T.ancereaux:  Treatise  on  Sypliilis' 
Lond.,  1868-9;  Bibliograph  on  Prostitution.  Lep- 
pinejton  :  Hygienic  Measures  against  Syphilis, 
Lancet,  '06,  I.,  p.  1,8-53.  Loeh :  .Amcriea'n  Jour. 
Physiology,  1899-1900.  Loeb:  1896,  Physiologic 
.Archives.  Loiendes  and  Briscoe:  Ethics' in  Rel. 
to  Syphilis,  Lancet,  '06,  p.  991.  Lydston  :  Pre- 
vention of  Gonorrhoeal  Infection  ;  Twentieth  Cent. 
Practice,  vol.  I.,  p.  442  (believes  in  easily  acquired 
innocent  infection).  Martin  :  Gonorrhoea  in 
Children,  Jour.  Cutan.  and  Gen.  Ur.  Diseases,  X'ov.. 
1892,  p.  418;  Koplik,  l1jid,  1893  (bibliography)! 
McMurchy,  Helen  :  Physiology  of  Menstruation, 
Lancet,  Oct.  .5th,  1901.  Minot :  Embryology. 
Marley:  Renewal  of  Life.  Morrow:  Svphilis 
and  Divorce,  Medical  Aeivs,  N.  Y.,  1903,  Vol.  83, 
p.  1,110.  Morrow:  Syphilis  and  the  Medical 
Secret,  -Jour.  Cutan.  I)is.  Including  Syphilis,  N.  Y., 
'03,  XXI.,  268  (relates  to  protection  of  nurses 
under  French  law).  Muren:  A  Contribution  to 
the  Prophylaxis  of  Venereal  Disease,  .Im.  Medicine, 
Phil.,  '03,  Vol.  VI.,  p.  480.  Muren:  Physician^ 
Responsibility  to  Venereal  Patients,  Am.  Medicine, 
Dec.  13th,  '02.  Noeggerafh:  Latent  Gonorrhoea, 
Tr.  .imer.  Gyn.  Soc.,  1876,  I.,  268.  Fhilbrick,  Inez  : 
Social  Causes  of  Criminal  Abortion,  Med.  Becord 
N.  Y.,  '04,  LXVI..  p.  489.  Bentonl.  B.  B.:  (1) 
Race  Culture  or  Race  Suicide— AAliich  .^  1906;  (2) 
Causes  and  Treatment  of  Abortion;  (3)  Woman's 
Health.  Taller,  Maria,  Ph.D.:  Physiology  of 
Menstruation,  Monatsrhrift  fur  GehurtshilfT  und 
Gyn.  Bd.,  22.  Thihierge:  Syphilis,  '03.  Thomas: 
Abortion,  N.  Y.,  1898.  Thomas,  W.  I.:  Sex  and 
Society,  Chicago  Pre.is,  1907.  Wilcox:  Ethical 
Marriage.  Wdson  :  The  Cell  in  Development  and 
Inheritance,  Columb.   Univ.  Biologic.   Series. 


®ut^i^e  the  (Bates. 


The  HoUoway  Dis- 
charged Prisoners'  Aid 
Society  states  in  its 
annual  report  that  there 
were  last  year  13,132 
women  prisonere  dis- 
charged from  HoUoway 
Prison  sent  there  from 
London,  Jliddteex, 

Surrey,  AVest  Kent,  and  a  part  of  Es,%ex.  They 
varied  from  the  Militant  Suffragist  to  the  most 
<l<»graded  inebriate.  Many  had  little  mental  power 
but  could  not  be  certified  as  insane.  Some  were 
very  young  and  ought  not  to  have  been  relea,sed 
to  carry  out  their  avowed  intention  of  leading  an 
immoi-al  life,  and  some  were  very  old  and  should  be 
sheltered  for  the  i-emainder  of  their  lives.  Of  the 
discharged  prisoners  4, .386  applied  for  help,  and 
3,949  received  assistance  from  the  Society's  agents, 
who  were  at  the  prison  gates  every  morniiig  to  meet 
such  womeji  as  were  released.  Some  were  restored 
to  family  or  friends,  .some  started  in  busine«.s  as 
street  hawkers  or  in  other  «'ays,  and  some  ot  the 
more  hopeful  went  into  homes  for  training. 

Miss  Isabel  Clegho'rn,  Head  Mistress  of  Heeley 
Bank  Council  School,  Sheffield,  was  on  Monday 
elected  A'iee-President  of  the  National  Union  of 
Teachers  at  its  Annual  Conference  at  Plymouth,  as 
a  result  of  the  previous  ballot.  She  is  the  first 
woman  A'ice-President  elected,  and  will  automa- 
tically become  Presidejit  of  the  Union  next  year. 
On  rising  to  acknowledge  her  election.  Miss  Cleg- 
horn,  who  was  enthusiastically  cheered,  said  that 
the  vote  was  in  effect  a  declaration  that  the  Union 
knew  no  Salic  law,  and  that  in  the  future  women 
might  share  with  men  not  only  the  pleasure  of  pay- 
ing their  subscriptions,  but  also  its  highest  honours 
and  greatest  responsibilities. 

The  Right  Hon!  R.  B;  Haldane,  M.P.,  Secretary 
of  State  for  AA'ar,  addressing  a  meeting  of  his  con- 
stituents at  Haddington,  on  Monday,  said  that 
women  were  coming  to  the  front  in  politics  be- 
cause the  sense  of  citizenship  was  growing  in  their 
minds.  There  was  a  great  disposition  on  the  part 
of  women  to  assert  their  right  to  a  voice  in  the 
control  of  public  aft'airs,  and  lately  questions  in  the 
fore-front  of  politics,  such  as  Tariff  Reform,  had 
touched  the  home  interests  of  women  very  deei^ly. 


Mr.  E.  Castberg,  es-Minister  of  Justice  in  Nor- 
way, lecturing  at  Univei-sity  College  last  week, 
stated  that  in  Norway  a -separation  is  always 
granted  by  the  magi.strates  without  any  special 
reason  I>eing  alleged  if  it  is  demanded  by  both 
parties.  A  se^>aration  can  also  be  granted  bv  the 
Ministry  of  Justice  if  a  man  is  a  drunkard,  or  has 
gix)ssly  neglected  his  conjugal  duties,  or  if  there  is 
strong  inoomj>atibility.  The  granting  of  a  divorce 
following  a  separation  rested  with  the  King — i.e., 
the  Ministrj'  of  Justice — when  one  year  had 
elapsed  after  .separation  if  both  parties  were  agreed,, 
otherwise  the  term  was  two  years. 


April  2,  1910] 


Cbe  36rUieb  3ournaI  of  IKiursina. 


277 


Booh  of  the  Mceh. 


"  I  WILL   MAINTAIN."* 

Thoio  me  those  who  lu'hcvc  that  tlie  interest  of  a 
novel  cannot  be  maiiilaiiiid  unless  it  is  <loniinatecl 
))y  a  lovo  episode.  Samuel  Warren  disprovo<l  this 
when  ho  wrote  "  Now  and  Then."  Miss  Marjorio 
liowen  has  done  the  ."^me  in  her  latest  novel,  "  I 
Will  Maintain,"  which  more  than  confirms  the 
.strong  evidence  wo  have  already  had,  that  she  is 
a  novelist  of  extraordinary  genius — a  woman 
.saturatod  with  history,  which  she  can  weave  into 
romances  of  enthralling  inten'st  for  our  instruction 
and  recreation. 

The  txKik  takes  its  title  from  the  motto  of  the 
House  of  Orange:  "  Moi  je  sera  Nassau,  je  main- 
taindrai,"  and  is  the  story  of  John  do  Witt,  Re- 
publican, and  Grand  Pensionary  of  the  United 
Pi-ovinces ;  and  William  Prince  of  Orange,  in  his 
guardianship  and  under  his  tutelage  as  head  of  the 
Republic.  The  historical  situation  finds  its  parallel 
in  our  own  country  at  the  time  of  the  struggle  be- 
tween Koyalists  and  I'arliamentarians,  when  good 
men  of  lx)th  parties  willingly  laid  down  their  lives 
for  principles  which  they  believed  to  l)e  vital. 

John  de  Witt  was  a  true  patriot,  a  man  of  great 
nobility  of  character,  who  served  his  country  with 
a  single  aim,  and  tl&served  better  at  its  hands  after 
spending  twenty  laborious  years  in  its  service  than 
to  be  torn  to  pieces  by  a  frenzied  mob. 

But  our  symi>athios  go  out  to  William  of  Orange; 
of  d«'licate  health,  surrounded  by  those  whom  he 
distrusts,  veiling  his  real  feelings  under  a  deep  re- 
serve, apparently  submissive  to  his  Governor,  John 
do  Witt,  but  inwardly  raging  at  having  to  submit 
to  the  control  of  a  burgher,  and  quietly  biding  his 
time  to  show  that  he  too  is  inspired  by  a  burning 
patriotism,  and  that  he  can  bring  to  his  country's 
service  gifts  greater  even  than  J-ohn  do  Witt,  since 
he  succeeds  in  foiling  tlie  attempts  of  Ijouis  XIV. 
of  France  and  Charles  II.  of  England  to  comi)el  the 
submission  of  the  Uiiite<l  Provinces  to  the  out- 
rageous demands  of  France,  when  de  AVitt's  ix>licy 
has  failed  completely. 

And  surely  de  Witt's  insight  was  at  fault  when 
he  believed  that  he  could  educate  a  Prince  of  the 
Housi'  of  Orange  to  become  a  good  Hepublioan. 
"SI.  de  Montbas  told  him  plainly:  "You  have  been 
wiTong  from  the  first.  You  cannot  tame  an  eagle 
with  sugar  and  smiles.  If  you  want  to  keep  him 
you  cage  him,  otherwise  he  will  fly  as  soon  as 
he  is  able,  though  ho  may  have  taken  your  friend- 
liness while  his  wings  were  growing."  Nevertheless, 
though  William  was  "  a  prince  in  a  thousand,  a 
nature  as  deep,  as  constant  as  any  the  Lord  God 
ever  made,"  yet  he  owed  something  too  to  John 
de  Witt,  who  could  truly  say,  "  I  have  taken  some 
pains  with  liLs  teaching ;  he  hath  been  educated  as 
a  Christian,  a  Dutchman,  a  gentleman;  I  cannot 
believe  my  lalK>ur  has  been  in  vain — not  utterly." 

William  of  Orange  did  little  to  gain  the  affec- 
tion of  the  nation,  but  it  was  his  for  the  taking, 
for  ho  had  charm — perhaps  he  owed  it  to  his 
Stuart   bl<K)d — which   bound   people  to   his  service 

•  By  Marjorie  Bowon.  (Methuen  and  C!o.,  36, 
Essex  Street,  Strand,  W.C.) 


without  any  effort  on  his  part.  Ho  had  tact  also, 
and  insight  beyond  his  yeare.  He  took  counsel  of 
no  one — and  it  goes  without  saying  that  he  was 
lonely.  We  have  a  glimpse  of  his  clear-sightedness 
when,  at  a  ball,  he  rei>els  the  advances  of  the  tool 
of  France,  a  beautiful  woman  twice  his  age,  and 
experienced  in  the  ways  of  the  world  to  whom  he 
pix>fe.sses  his  belief  in  predestination,  and  says,  "  I 
do  not  believe,  madamc,  that  I  am  iJrodestineJ  to  be 
the  tool  of  the  King  of  Franco.  The  Princes  of 
my  house  have  left  behind  them  records  that  teach 
mo  different  aims  and  higher  ambitions!  "  In  the 
face  of  almost  unsunnountablc  obstacles  he  accom- 
plished the  task  which  he  set  before  himself — to 
rescue  the  United  Provinces  from  the  designs  of 
France  upon  her  liberties,  to  repel  the  foreign  in- 
vader, and  to  prcscuve  intact  her  national  inde- 
IJendenco  and  her  leformed  religion,  even  at  the 
expense,  as  a  last  resource,  of  cutting  the  dykes 
and  flooding  the  country. 

Our  regret  is  that  two  such  noble  natures  as  those 
of  John  de  Witt  and  William  Prince  of  Orange 
should  inevitably  have  been  at  variance,  so  that 
de  Witt  felt  "  meeting  liis  own  firm  resolve,  iron 
striking  iron,  the  nuyielding  strength  of  two 
opposed  natures  lirought  into  contest." 

To  those  unacquainted  with  it  let  me  commend 
Motley's  "  Rise  and  Fall  of  the  Dutch  Republic." 
_  P.  G.  Y. 

COMING  EVENTS. 

April  5tli. — First  lecture  of  a  Post  Graduate 
Course  to  Nurses,  arranged  by  the  Guy's  Hospital 
Nurses'  League,  on  "  Recent  Changes  and  Treat- 
ment in  the  Medical  Wards."  Course  open  to  non- 
members  on  payment  of  a  fee  of  7s.  6d.  Nurses' 
Home,  Guy's  Hospital,  8  p.m. 

April  5th. — Gresham  Lectures:  Dr.  F.  M.  Sand- 
witli  begins  a  course  of  four  lectures  on  "  Elemen- 
tary Domestic  Hygiene,"  City  of  London  School,  6. 

April  Gth. — Royal  Sanitary  Institute,  90, 
Buckingham  Palace  Road,  S.W.  Paper  on 
"  Sanitary  Aspects  of  Floods,  and  Measures  to  b© 
Taken  to  Prevent  Epidemics  Arising  Tlierefrom," 
by  Dr.  A.  J.  Martin,  Inspecteur  General  des  Ser- 
vices d'Hygiene  de  la  Ville  de  Paris.  Chairman, 
.\.  Winter  Bljrth,  I'W].,  Barri-ster-at-Law.     5  p.m. 

April  7a.— Child  Study  Society:  Dr.  T.  B. 
Hyslop  on  "  Subconsciousness,"  90,  Buckingham 
Palace  Road,  7.30. 

April  31st. — Monthly  Meeting  of  Central  Mid- 
wives'  Board,  Boar<l  Room,  Caxton  House,  West- 
minster, S.W.,  2.4.')  ]).m. 

.'ipril  22nd. — Society  for  the  State  Registration 
of  Nurses:  Meeting  of  Executive  Committee,  431, 
Oxford  Street,  4  p.m. 

jipril  27th  to  .10th. — Third  Annual  Nursing  and 
Midwifery  Exhibition  and  Conference,  Royal  Hor- 
ticultural Hall,  Westminster,  S.W. 

.4pr(7  2Sth.- — Examination  of  Central  Midwives 
Board  at  the  Examination  Hall,  Victoria  Embank- 
ment, W.C.  The  Oral  Examination  follows  a  few 
days  later. 

WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 

"  Above  the  clouds  the  sky  is  blue." 


278 


^e  IBvitisb  3oiirnal  of  IRiirstng. 


[April  2,  1910 


Xcttcrs  to  tbe  jeMtor. 


Whilst  cordially  iiivitiny  com- 
munications upori  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  we  icish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understood 
that  ice  do  not  in  any  wai 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  oj)inions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


GOD  S  LAW. 
To  the  Editor  oj  the  "  British  Journal  o/  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — We  have  to  thank  Miss  Wiudall 
for  lier  out-S[X)ken  letter.  lu  my  district — a  very 
I>oor  one  iu  a  black  manvifacturing  town — I  have 
liad  heart-rending  experiences.  Rottenn©s.s — the 
«ord  you  use — exactly  expresses  tlie  condition  of 
many  of  my  patients.  But  these  people  have  little 
relation  to  the  Divorce  I*aws,  because  the  majority 
of  them  are  not  married — men  and  women  simply 
live  together  as  man  and  wife,  without  any  civil 
or  religious  ceremony  at  all.  The  animal  savagery 
of  these  human  beings  is  a  national  danger  and  dis- 
grace. Would  that  something  effective  could  be 
done  to  raise  tliem !  Their  instincts  are  good  wlien 
they  are  sober,  but  the  majority  do  not  undei-stand 
what  morality  means.  Children  are  never  innocent, 
and  many  are  diseased. 

Youi-s  sadly, 

A  Queen's  Nurse. 


F>E   FIRE  GUARDS  AND   OVER-LAYING  CHILDREN 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  lirittsh  Journal  of  Nursi/ifj." 

Dear  Madasi, — Could  you  kindly  favour  me  witli 
the  exact  wording  of  the  Act  of  Parliament  relating 
to  alK)ve  through  the  columns  of  your  journal? 
Thanking  you  in  anticipation. 

Yours  sincerely, 

Rose  Rutter. 

Hayle,  Cornwall. 

[The  Children's  Act  provides  "  Suffocation  of  In- 
fants "  (Clause  13):  ''  When  it  is  proved  that  the 
death  of  an  infant  under  three  years  of  age  wa.s 
caused  by  suffocation  (not  being  suffocation  caused 
by  disease  or  the  presence  of  any  foreign  lx)dy  in 
the  throat,  or  air-passages  of  the  infant)  whilst  the 
infant  was  in  bed  with  some  other  person  over  six- 
toen  yeai-s  of  age,  and  that  that  other  pei'son  was  at 
the  time  of  going  to  bed  under  the  influence  of 
drink,  that  othur  pei^son  shall  be  deemed  to  have 
neglected  the  infant  in  a  manner  likely  to  cause  in- 
jury to  its  health  within  the  meaning  of  this  jjart 
of  this  Act." 

"  Exposing  children  to  risk  of  burning."  (Clause 
lo)  piyjvides :  "  If  any  pei^son  over  the  age  of  six- 
teen yeai^.  who  has  the  custody,  charge,  or  care  of 
any  cfiild  under  the  age  of  seven  years,  allows  tnat 
cliild  to  be  in  any  room  containing  an  open  fire- 
.  grate  not  sufficiently  protected  to  guard  against 
■  the  risk  of  the  child  l>eing  burnt  or  .scalded,  with- 
out taking  roasonalile  precautions  again.st,  tint  risk, 
and  by  rea.son  thereof  the  child  is  killed,  or  suffers 
serious  injury,  he  shall,  on  summary  conviction,  be 
liable  to  a  fine  not  exceeding  ten  pounds." — Ed.] 


'THElCAT:  ITS  CARE  AND  MANAGEMENT." 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — I  should  like  to  thank  your  oor- 
respondent  for  the  address  of  the  publisher  of  the 
above,  which  I  have  now  got,  and  which  will  b& 
very  useful  to  me. 

Tlianking  you,  dear  madam,  for  your  kindne,ss, 
I  am. 

Yours  faithfully, 

DiSTKICT   XURSE. 


THE  CANING    OF   SCHOOL  CHILDREN. 
To  the  Editor  vf  the  ''  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Madam, — I  think  your  readers  will  be  interested 
in  what  Sir  John  Gorst  has  to  say  about  the  flog- 
ging of  children.     Here  is  his  opinion:  — 

"  Flogging  terrifies  the  children;  it  makes  them 
hate  school  and  escape  from  it  as  much  as  they 
can ;  it  exasperates  those-  parents  who  do  not  beat 
their  children  themselves,  and  resent  it  being  done 
by  persons  to  whom  they  are  compelled  by  law  to 
entrust  them." 

A  convert  from  corporal  punishment  is  to  be 
found  in  Dr.  H.  J.  Spenser,  head  master  of 
University  College  School.  He  was  sceptical  on  his 
appointment,  seven  years  ago,  as  to  his  success  in 
managing  on  the  traditional  lines  of  the  school — 
i.e.,  without  corporal  punishment — but  he  now 
asserts  that  he  will  ijever  revert  to  the  rod. 

The  corporal  punishment  of  school  children  has 
been  abolished  in  every  country  of  importance  ex- 
cept England.  It  does  not  exist  in  France,  Hol- 
land, Italy,  Japan,  and  many  of  the  States  of 
America,  while  in  Egyptian  schools  the  infliction  of 
th;^  rod  or  cane  is  absolutely  prohibited. 

Solomon  was  thought  to  have  said  the  last  word 
of  wisdom  on  the  subject,  but  the  modern  Socrates, 
Mr.  Dooley,  finally  settled  the  matter  in  a  recent 
dialogue:  "Spare  the  rod  an'  spile  th'  child," 
said  Mr.  Hennessy.  "Yes,"  said  Mr.  Dooley, 
"  but  don't  spare  th'  rod  an"  ye  spile  th'  rod,  th' 
child,  an'  th'  child's  father." 

Yours,  etc., 

Humanitakian. 


Comnicnta  an&  IRepIics. 

L.O.S.  Certificate,  Birmingham. — You  should 
apply  without  delay  to  have  your  name  entere<l  on 
the  Roll  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board,  as  the  new 
rule  which  enables  the  Beard,  at  its  discretion,  to 
enrol  duly  qualified  midwives  who  failed  to  claim 
the  Board's  certificate  before  April  1st,  1905.  only 
holds  good  for  sis  months.  AVrite  to  the  Secretary, 
Central  Midwives'  Board,  Caston  House,  Westmin- 
.ster,  S.W. 

Candidate.  London. — Write  to  the  Matron  of  the 
hospital,  and  ask  for  an  interview. 


H^otice. 


OUR   PUZZLE   PRIZE. 
Rules   for   competing  for  the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii! 


April  2, 1910]  ^[30  Brltisb  3ournal  ot  fl^ur^ino  Supplement. 


27!:» 


The    Midwife. 


flDibwivcs  in  JEnaiisb  Ibistor^. 

The  first  Royal  inidwile  mentioned  in  the  old 
records  is  Marguerite  Cohbe,  wife  of  John  C'oblx^. 
She  wai  Planted  a  pension  of  t:12  jier  annum. 
ordered  by  Lettere  Patent,  in  recognition  of  her 
services  to  Queen  Elizal>eth  Woodville,  wife  of 
Kdward  IV.,  at  the  birtii  of  Edward,  the  elder  of 
the  ill-fated  little  Princes  murdered  in  the  Tower. 
He  was  born  in  a  troublous  time;  the  King  was 
waging  war  against  Warwick ;  the  Queen  had  been 
sent  to  the  Tower  for  safety ;  she  was  expecting  a 
fourth  child. 

With  great  energy  she  prepared  the  Tower  for  a 
siege,  but  when  the  news  oame  that  Warwick  was 
in  London  she  fled  panic-stricken  with  her  mother 
and  three  little  daughters  to  a  great,  gloomy  for- 
tress, known  as  the  Sanctuary.  Here,  destitute 
of  necessities,  and  dei)endent  on  the  charity  of 
generous  subjects,  she  gave  birth  on  November 
1st,  1470,  to  the  niuch-lioped-for  heir.  "Mother 
Cobbe,  a  welI-dispose<l  midwife,  resident  in  the 
Sanctuary,  charitably  a.ssisted  the  distressed  Queen 
in  the  hour  of  maternal  peril,  and  acted  as  nurse 
to  the  little  Prince.''  When  the  rebellion  was 
cruslied  Edward  bestowetl  "princely  rewards"  on 
those  who  had  aide<l  "  his  Elizabeth,''  as  he  called 
her,  in  that  fearful  crisis. 

There  is  a  quaint  story  anent  the  birth  of  the 
first  child  of  Elizal)eth  Woo<lville.  Edward  and  the 
royal  phj-sicians  learne<l  in  astrology  had  predictc<l 
the  birth  of  a  prince.  One  of  the  physicians, 
Dominic  by  name,  crouched  outside  the  bed- 
chamber listening.  Directly  he  heard  the  child  cry 
he  knocke<l  and  aske<l  what  her  Grace  had?  Tliere- 
u|X)n  one  of  her  ladies  smartly  answered:  "What- 
soever the  Queen's  grace  hath  here  within,  sure  'tis 
a  fool  that  standeth  there  without."  Poor  Dr. 
Dominic  stole  away  discomfited. 

In  the  first  half  of  the  sixteenth  century  'Alice 
Massey  was  Queen's  midwife.  In  the  privy-purse 
account";  of  Elizabeth  ot  York,  wife  of  Henry  VII.. 
•is  found  an  entry  of  tlO  paid  to  Alice  Massej-  for 
exercise  of  her  officf,  and  later  clothing  for  a  former 
"  norice  "  to  her  brother.  Edward  V.,  is  one  of  the 
items. 

It  is  inteiesting  to  compare  the  salaries  given 
then  with  those  of  to-<lay.  Tlie  maids  of  honour 
had  an  allowance  of  £G  Vis.  4d.  per  annum,  and 
the  governess  received  £13  <is.  8d.,  so  it  appeare  the 
midwife  wa's  not  ill  paid.  To  the  Countess  ^Iarga^et 
Beaufort,  mother-in-law  of  Queen  Elizabeth  Wood- 
ville,  we  owe  details  of  the  ancient  etiquette  and 
ceremonial  previous  to  a  ro.val  birth.  The  Queen 
went  into  retirement  for  tlie  last  month.  She  first 
attended  ^lass  at  Westminster,  accompanied  by  tiie 
greater  part  of  the  nobles  of  the  realm,  and  then 
])a.ssed  on  to  the  Royal  Chambers  in  Westminster 
Palace.  Arrived  at  the  ante-room,  the  I/ord  Cham- 
berlain dcsiro<l,  in  the  Queen's  name,  "all  her 
people  to  i)ray   that  God   would  send   her   a   goo<I 


hour":  then  she  retired  into  her  chamber,  which 
was  "  hanged  and  ceiled  with  blue  cloth  of  arras, 
enriched  with  gold  fleur-<le-lis."  A  curtain  was 
drawn,  and  •'  thenceforth,"  says  the  old  chronicler, 
■'  no  manner  of  ofiBcer  came  within  the  Queen's 
chamber,  but  only  ladies  and  gentlewomen,  after  the 
old  custom." 

It  must  have  been  a  di'eary,  unwholesome  con- 
finement ;  for  "  the  Royal  patient  was  enclosed  not 
only  from  air,  but  from  the  light  of  day  "  ;  sides, 
roof,  windows,  and  all  of  the  lying-in-chamber  were 
hung  with  rich  cloth  of  arnas,  except  one  window, 
"where  it  was  hanged  so  that  the  Queen  might 
have  light  when  it  pleased  her." 

When  Elizaljeth  was  exijecting  her  seventh  child, 
she  conferred  «ith  a  French  nurse,  but  dismissed 
her  with  a  gratuity  of  6s.  Stl.  ;  later  she  interviewed 
a  Mistress  Harcourt,  who  had  been  oonimende<l  to 
her,  but  she  likewi.se  was  dismissed  with  a  gratuity. 
It  appears  that  Her  Majesty  was  not  easily  pleased 
in  the  matter  of  midwives,  though  history  extols  her 
as  gentle,  pious,  and  lovely.  She  was  the  last  Queen 
to  choose  the  Tower  for  her  accouchement ;  it  endetl 
tragically  in  her  death,  nine  daj-s  after  the  birth 
of  a  daughter,   Katherine. 

There  is  mention  later  of  one  Elizabeth  Gauus- 
forde,  a  devout  Catholic,  who  chri-stened  the  child 
"in  utero  "  in  cases  of  delayed  labour. 

This  o£Bce  of  Queen  s  midwife  was  doubtless  much 
eouglit  after,  but  it  was  a  delicate  matter  even  to 
speak  of  it  when  Henry  VIII.  rule<l  our  Mcrrie 
England,  and  took  unto  him   wives  at  pleasure. 

A  Matron  of  Wat  lingt on  was  attended  by  one  Johaue 
Hammulden,  a  midwife;  so  skilled  was  she  that 
the  Matron  said  she  was  worthy  of  being  mid\vife 
to  the  Queen  of  England,  providetl  it  were  Queen 
Kateryn,  but  she  was  too  good  for  Queen  Anne." 
This  latter  she  abused  so  roundly  that  the  ungrate- 
ful Johane  informed  against  her.  The  scandal  and 
gossip  seethed  in  Watlington,  and  it  transpire*!  that 
Airs.  Hammulden  had  likewise  indiscreetly  spoken- 
of  "Queens."  The  whole  business  was  gravely  in- 
vestigated by  a  right  worehipful  quorum  of  justices 
at  Reading.  Much  discretion  and  keeping  of 
counsel  was  then,  as  now,  most  desirable  in  a  mid- 
wife. M.  0.  H. 
(To  be  concluded.) 


Conference  ot '  flDi^witcrvi 
3n6pectors. 

It  is  proposed  that  the  County  Inspectors  of  Mid- 
H  ives  should  meet  and  hold  an  informal  conference 
during  the  last  week  in  April,  when  the  Midwifery 
Conference  is  being  held. 

Any  Inspector  who  would  like  particulars  is  re- 
quested to  appl.v  to  Miss  du  Sautoy,  Inspector  for 
Somerset,   16,  Elm  Grove,  Taunton. 


280 


^be  Brtttsb  3ourna[  of  IRursing  Supplement.   [Apni  2,  1910 


?tbe  (Siuestion  of  ©roanisation. 

The  question  of  organisation  amongst  Inidwives 
is  one  which  at  present  is  pressing  itself  forcibly 
upon  the  attention  of  working  midwives  who  realise 
their  defenceless  position  as  unorganised  units.  The 
trouble  goes  further  back  even  than  the  passing  of 
the  Slidwives'  Act  in  1902,  for  as  Mrs.  Lawson,  Pre- 
sident of  the  National  Association  of  Midwives, 
pointed  out  recently  while  the  Midwives'  Bill  was 
before  Parliament  there  was  '"  grumbling  here  and 
there,"  but  no  a.ssociated  action  on  the  part  of  the 
large  body  of  midwives  scattered  throughout  the 
country,  and  "  all  the  time  legislation  was  going 
forward  to  control  them  body  and  soul." 

Incidentally  this  proves  the  danger  to  any  section 
of  workers  of  legislation  put  forward  on  their  be- 
half unless  they  themselves  have  an  organisation 
sufiBciently  strong  to  demand  a  recognition  of  their 
rights  in  any  legislation  which  may  be  enacted, 
and  their  representation  on  any  body  created  to 
control  them. 

Of  course  everyone  recognises  that  legislation  in 
the  interests  of  the  lying-in  mother  was  an  urgent 
necessity,  and  that  the  Midwives'  Act  was  pri- 
marily in  her  interest.  Through  its  agency  mid- 
wives  have  been  brought  under  control,  and  have 
become  known  to  the  local  authorities,  by  a  system 
of  notification,  and  to  the  public  through  the  Roll 
of  Midwives.  All  this  is  good,  as  is  also  the  fact 
that  a  uniform  examination  has  been  established, 
even  though  it  is  limited  to  "knowledge  which  it 
would  be  dangerous  to  a  midwife  to  lack."  But 
the  Act  is  one  for  the  control  of  midwives,  not  one 
which  gives  them  a  reasonable  amount  of  self- 
government,  or  even  representation  on  their 
governing  body  at  all,  and  consequently  no  voice  in 
defining  their  educational   standards. 

And  on  the  subject  of  education,  midwives  feel 
keenly.  They  think  they  need  higher  training  in 
order  to  do  their  work  efficiently.  For  instance, 
the  cases  of  pemjihigus  which  occurred  not  long  ago 
in  the  practice  of  a  midwife  in  Lancashire  are  cited 
by  the  President  of  the  National  Association  of 
Midwives  as  demonstrating  the  need  for  more 
thorough  training.  The  midwife  concerned  had 
never  been  taught  to  recognise  pemphigus,  and 
four  infants  died  before  she  appreciated  the  danger 
and  infectious  nature  of  the  disease.  Then  the 
midwife  was  cited  to  appear  before  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board. 

Wlen  a  midwife  in  Lancashire  is  cited  to  ap- 
pear before  the  Board  she  receives  an  intimation 
from  the  Local  Supervising  Authority  that  she 
must  cease  work.  She  is  not  allowed  to  practice 
pending  the  decision  of  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board."  Before  the  time  came  for  the  midwife  to 
appear  before  the  Board,  she  had  died  of  heart- 
break. 

Other  points  put  forward  by  the  President  of  the 
National  Association  of  Midwives,  which  press 
hardly  upon  midwives  are  that  midwives  cited  to 
appear  before  the  Board  from  the  provinces  are  too 
poor  to  defray  the  expense  of  a  journey  to  London. 
Any  criminal  can,  she  says,  be  conveyed  free  of 
expense,  to  the  place  where  he  is  to  be  tried,  in 


Black  Maria.  AVhen  a  judicial  body  is  sitting  in 
judgment,  it  takes  into  consideration  the  defen- 
dant's appearance,  and  the  points  he  or  she  is 
able  to  jiut  forward  on  her  own  behalf.  Persons 
are  condemned  more  often  in  their  absence  than  it 
they  are  able  to  defend  themselves. 

The  Association  also  considers  that  all  books 
which  they  are  required  to  keep,  and  all  notifica- 
tion forms  which  they  are  compelled  to  send  in, 
should  be  supplied  by  the  Local  Supervising  Autho- 
rity. 

The  National  Association  of  Midwives  recog- 
nises that  there  is  one  means  by  which  their  views 
can  be  represented,  and  their  interests  voiced,  and 
that  is  by  direct  representation  on  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board,  and  on  this  they  are  concentra- 
ting their  energies. 

Mrs.  Lawson  says  that  she  attended  the  first 
meeting  in  London  on  the  question  of  direct  repre- 
sentation, and  it  is  a  standing  joke  in  Manchester 
that  the  Chairman  on  that  occasion  described  the 
demand  as  "  a  wild  cat  scheme."  _ 

They  had  been  told  that  a  doctor  could  represent 
midwives  on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  better 
than  a  midwife.  She  denied  that.  A  doctor  did 
not  know  where  the  shoe  pinched.  A  poor  doctor 
might  have  the  same  class  of  patient  as  the  mid- 
wife, but  he  did  not  sit  on  the  ilidwives'   Board. 

The  late  Dr.  Stanley  Atkinson  believed  that  mid- 
wives  should  have  direct  representation  on  their 
Governing  Body ;  in  his  opinion,  their  desire  was 
not  a  wild  cat  scheme.  They  would  like  to  see  more 
enthusiasm  for  direct  representation  at  the  Mid- 
wives'  Institute. 

We  entirely  sympathise  with  the  desire  of  the 
Manchester  Midwives,  voiced  through  their  Na- 
tional Association,  to  obtain  direct  representation 
on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board,  as  we  do  also 
tt  ith  their  declaration  that  they  desire  no  outside 
patronage,  and  realise  that  if  they  want  a  thing 
they  must  work  for  it,  and  pay  for  it  themselves. 


THE  MANAGEMENT  OF  HOMES   FOR   INFANTS. 

The  need  for  the  NniX'ivi--ion  ot  homes  where 
infauts  are  receivetl  is  apparent  in  Tasmania  as 
well  as  in  this  country.  In  connection  with  the 
inquest  touching  the  death  of  an  infant  whicli  died 
in  the  General  Hospital,  Launceston,  .shortly  after 
admission  from  the  Glen  Dhu  Home,  Mre.  Eliza- 
beth Brahaip,  President  of  the  Children's  Protec- 
tion Society;  gave  evidence  ot  the  admission  of  the 
child,  and  said  that  every  morning  the  Matron  of 
tlie  Home  telephoned  to  lier  a  reix)rt  of  the  children. 
Five  of  the  children  were  affected  by  a  thunder- 
storm, and  two  days  later  the  child  collapsed. 

Dr.  Ramsay,  Superintendent  ot  the  General  Hos- 
pital, said  the  child  was  admitted  in  a  dying  con- 
dition;  death  was  due  to  general  emaciation.  The 
child  could  not  get  into  that  condition  in  a  day  or 
two  if  it  were  previously  well.  He  stated  most 
emphatically  that  any  home  where  babies  congre- 
gated should  be  in  the  handm  of  a  trained  nurse 
and  under  medical  supervision.  That  was  the  im- 
portant thing,  and  there  was  no  alternative ;  in 
the  hands  of  an  untraine<l  {xrson  the  death  rate 
was  bound  to  go  up. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

ran  MimSKKl  MECOMP 

EDITED   BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.  1,149. 


SATURDAY,     APRIL     9,     1910. 


i£&itorial. 


THE    PRESTIGE    OF  NURSING  SCHOOLS. 

One  oi"  the  charms  of  the  Nursing  pro- 
fession is  that  it  is  a  most  flemoci'atic 
<'onimunity  ;  and  we  may  paraphrase 
Napoleon's  statement  that  the  baton  of  a 
Ifarshal  of  France  may  be  hidden  in  the 
knapsack  of  every  soldier,  and  say  that  the 
Matron's  wand  of  oliice  may  be  concealed  in 
every  probationer's  kit-bag.  There  could 
be  no  greater  incentive  to  a  nurse  than  to 
feel  that,  provided  she  jjossesses  the  neces- 
sary qualifications,  combined  with  devotion 
to  duty,  there  is  nothing  to  prevent  lier  from 
rising  to  the  higliest  position  in  her  pro- 
fession, with  the  reservation  that  the  larger 
nursing  schools  train  many  pupils  annually 
and  that  only  one,  in  a  long  series  of  years, 
<jan  be  chosen  as  head  of  the  school. 

Twenty  years  ago  the  number  of  trained 
nurses  was  much  more  limited  than  to-day, 
and,  consequently,  promotion  to  Matrons' 
posts  was  very  much  quicker.  With  the 
increase  in  the  ninnber  of  qualified  n.urses 
promotion  is  delayed,  and  the  age  of  the 
women  who  have  proved,  both  by  personal 
character  and  administrative  ability,  that 
they  have  the  capacity  for  holding  the 
higliest  ofhces  in  their  profession,  is'  neces- 
sarily raised.  We  must  frankly  own  that 
we  consider  the  age  limit  of  forty  mentioned 
in  the  advertisement,  declaring  the  ofTice  of 
Matron  and  Superintendent  of  Nursing  at 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  vacant,  a  mis- 
take— as  by  far  the  most  suitable  and 
desirable  candidates  might  be  a  few  years 
beyond  this  limit,  and  we  sincerely  hope 
that  the  Committee  of  Election  will  waive 
this  proviso  should  it  be  found  expedient  to 
do  so. 

It  is  generally  recognised  that  the  Train- 
ing Schools  for  Nurses  in  connection  with 


four  of  the  largest  Metropolitan  hospitals 
take  precedence — those  of  the  two  Royal 
liospitals  of  St.  Bartholomew's  and  St. 
Thomas's,  of  fiuy's  and  the  London — not 
liecause  the  training  in  some  of  the  smaller 
hospitals  may  not  be  equallj^  good,  but 
because  of  their  ancient  foundations  and 
splendid  attainments  in  the  healing  of  the 
sick. 

The  Matronships  of  these  hospitals  are 
recognised  as  the  blue  ribands  of  the 
nursing  profession,  the  individuality  of 
each  school  has  developed  on  distinctive 
lines  and  it  has  its  own  methods  and  tradi- 
tions— traditions  of  which  the  nursing  staff 
are  justly  proud.  The  system  of  admini- 
stration varies  in  each  of  these  schools,  and 
in  these  days  to  seek  a  Superintendent  out- 
side the  ranks  of  their  own  graduates  would 
gi'eatly  lower  their  prestige,  and  be  resented 
by  everj'  nurse  whose  work  has  helped  to 
build  up  their  first-class  reputations. 

It  is  verj'  seldom  that  the  .Matronship  of 
one  of  these  large  training  scliools  is  adver- 
tised as  vacant — committees  on  more  than 
one  occasion  having  honoured  a  ladj'  trained 
under  their  autliority,and  whose  subsequent 
record  as  an  able  administrator  is  known 
to  them,  by  inviting  her  to  accept  this 
honourable  position. 

It  may  be  safely  asserted  that  unless 
amongst  the  many  pupils  who  have  been 
trained  in  a  leading  nursing  school  one  can 
be  found,  when  a  vacancy  occurs,  possessing 
the  knowledge,  experience,  and  personal 
attributes  qualifying  her  to  assume  the 
position  of  bead  of  the  school,  there  is 
something  wrong  in  the  system  of  nurse 
training,  and  it  behoves  the  Governors  of  the 
hospital  with  which  it  is  connected  to  make 
searching  inquiry  into  that  system  to  dis- 
cover the  reason  for  its  failure  in  cllieiency. 
We  may  waive  aside  anj'  probability  that 


282 


Zbc  Britisb  3ournai  of   iRursmci.       t-^p''!  ^'  ^^^o 


the  selecting  committee  at  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's will  be  faced  by  any  such  diiliculty. 
There  are  a  number  of  ladies  ■who  have  been 
trained  in  the  hospital,  and  who  ha^-e 
subsequently  held  positions  of  authority  in 
it,  who  have  since  earned  for  themseh^es 
the  most  honourable  records  as  Matrons 
of  important  hospitals,  and  who  would  be 
well  qualified  to  continue,  as  Matron  and 
Superintendent  of  Nursing  of  their  Alma 
Mater,  the  sound  practical  teaching  which 
has  enabled  them  to  make  excellent  reputa- 
tions elsewhere. 


flDe^ical  fIDattcrs. 


HOPE  FOR  THE  VICTIMS  OF   NARCOTICS. 

Dr.  Alexander  Lambert,  Visiting  Physician 
to  Bellevue  Hospital,  New  York,  and  Professor 
of  Clinical  Medicine  at  Cornell  University,  con- 
tributes to  Nash's  Magazine  for  March  an  in- 
teresting article  on  the  above  subject,  in  which 
he  says,  in  part:  — 

From  time  immemorial  mankind  has  sought 
substances  to  help  celebrate  his  joys,  or  soothe 
his  sorrows,  or  blunt  the  drudgery  of  his  exis- 
tence. Opium  and  alcohol  have  most  fre- 
quently been  used  for  these  purposes.  Of  late 
years  cocaine  has  been  added  to  this  list.  When- 
ever these  narcotics  have  been  employed  for 
these  purposes  they  have  often  been  used  to 
excess. 

When  the  habit  of  the  excessive  use  of  nar- 
cotic* has  once  been  formed,  so  rare  indeed 
have  been  the  instances  of  individuals  success- 
fully freeing  themselves  from  their  enslaving 
habit  that  they  have  been  regarded  as  medical 
curiosities.  In  the  whole  broad  range  of  the 
practice  of  medicine  there  is  no  situation  more 
trying  to  patient  and  physician  than  the 
struggle  to  obliterate  the  craving  for  narcotics 
and  to  re-establsh  the  patient  in  a  normal 
mental  state  in  which  he  may  agaid  face  suc- 
cessfully the  problems  of  existence. 

Until  recently  this  seemed  all  but  impossible, 
but  lately  a  treatment  was  discovered  which 
.successfully  obliterated  the  craving  for  nar- 
cotics, and  persons  who  were  formerly  enslaved 
may  now  have  the  opportunity  to  begin  life 
anew  without  their  resistless  desire  for  narcotic 
indulgence. 

The  treatment  of  those  addicted  to  narcotics 
h.as  heretofore  been  a  more  or  less  rapid  with- 
drawal and  then  a  deprivation  of  the  drug, 
trusting  to  the  deprivation  to  cause  gradually  a 
cessation  of  the  craving  for  the  narcotic.  But 
deprivation  is  not  an  obliteration  of  the  craving. 


This  craving  is  both  physical  and  mental,  and 
the  failure  of  the  deprivation  method  has  been 
due  to  the  continuance  of  the  craving  in  spite 
of  the  deprivation  from  the  narcotic.  Great  in- 
justice has  often  been  done  to  many  narcotic 
addictees  who  willingly  have  submitted  to  all 
the  suffering  of  deprivation  in  vain  hopes  of  re- 
lief from  the  irresistible  craving,  because  after 
their  supposed  cure  they  have  been  unable  to 
resist  the  ever-present  desire  and  have  relapsed. 
They  have  usually  been  held  as  morally  respon- 
sible for  the  impelling  force  of  their  still 
poisoned  minds  and  bodies.  With  equal  justice 
should  we  consider  the  chronic  dyspeptic  a 
moral  degenerate  because  of  his  peevish  mor- 
bidness. The  method  of  treatment  should  be 
blamed,  not  the  unfortunate  patients. 

The  New  Treatment  Obliterates  the 
Cr.wing. 

This  treatment  begins  at  the  other  end  and 
obliterates  the  craving  for  narcotics.  The  treat- 
ment consists  of  the  administration  of  a  mix- 
ture of  belladonna,  xanthoxylum  (prickly  ash), 
and  hyoscyamus,  with  a  proper  amount  of 
active  catharsis  to  stimulate  the  action  of  the 
Hver  and  produce  rapid  and  thorough  elimina- 
tion of  the  narcotic.  There  is  not  a  sudden 
withdrawal  of  the  narcotic,  but  enough  of  the 
narcotic  is  given  at  certain  stated  intervals  to 
prevent  the  appearance  of  the  uncomfortable 
withdrawal  symptoms. 

The  patients  do  not  sufier  beyond  a  bearable 
discomfort,  and  the  obliteration  of  the  craving 
is  not  a  matter  of  weeks  and  months,  but  is 
accomplished  in  less  than  five  days.  This  re- 
sult is  often  so  dramatic  that  one  hesitates  to 
believe  it  possible.  It  seems  too  good  to  be 
true. 

This  method  of  treatment  was  perfected  and 
used  for  a  number  of  years  by  Mr.  Charles  B. 
Towns,  of  New  York,  who  gave  it  to  me  to  use 
and  convince  myself  of  its  efiectiveness,  and 
then  publish  it  to  the  medical  profession.  I 
have  used  it  in  the  wards  of  Bellevue  Hospital, 
New  York,-  and  published  it  as  soon  as  my  ex- 
perience with  it  justified  me.  The  exact  physio- 
logic action  of  the  belladonna  mixture  is  not 
clear,  but  that  it  does  obliterate  the  craving 
for  morphine,  cocaine,  and  alcohol  is  beyond 
question. 

The  Nature  of  the  Treatment. 
The  method  of  treatment  here  spoken  of  is 
new.  not  because  it  brings  into  use  some  re- 
cently discovered  drug,  but  it  is  new  in  making 
use  of  a  heretofore  unused  combination  of  well- 
known  drugs  and  using  them  in  an  entirely  new 
way.  Even  after  its  details  are  known,  it  can- 
not be  successfully  administered  in  a  perfunc- 


April  9,  1910] 


Zbc  Brltisb  3ournaI  ot  THurslng. 


283 


tory  manner,  like  a  routine  dose  before  or  after 
meals.  The  treatment  of  those  addicted  to 
narcotics  is  most  difficult,  and '  is  trying  to 
patience  and  temper,  and  it  requires  trained 
judgment,  tactful  firmness,  and  often  courage 
t'l  persist  in  this  treatment  and  carry  it  out  to 
II  successful  issue.  It  cannot  be  successfully 
self-administered  eveit  by  a  physician. 

Doubtless  if  the  miserj-  and  suffering  which 
accompany  the  continuance  of  such  a  habit, 
and  the  mental  and  physical  agony  which  the 
deprivation  of  their  narcotic  causes,  could  be 
foreseen,  it  would  be  sufficient  to  have  pre- 
vented many  an  unfortunate  from  ever  begin- 
ning. But  the  thoughtless  beginnings  give  an 
indication  of  what  the  future  has  in  store,  and 
the  pleasure  and  excitement  of  broader  and 
unusual  experiences  are  so  deceptive  that  the 
narcotic  has  its  fatal  grip  on  the  individual  be- 
fore there  is  a  realisation  that  he  has  gone  so 
far  and  cannot  recede.  The  causes  which  lead 
up  to  the  morphine,  cocaine,  or  alcohol  habit 
in  certain  respects  are  similar. 

There  is  nearly  always  the  weak  and  unstable 
mental  equilibrium  which  has  been  bequeathed 
from  neurotic,  alcoholic,  tuberculous,  or  other- 
wise diseased  parents;  or  a  sickly,  ill-nourished 
childhood  develops  into  a  weakly  adolescence ; 
or  the  pampered,  unrestrained  child  develops 
into  a  selfish  and  self-indulgent  man,  who  easily 
falls  a  victim  to  any  narcotic  which  will  give 
him  temporary  pleasure.  Over-education  for 
the  position  in  life  which  must  be  occupied 
brings  not  infrequently  heart-burnings  and  a 
restless  disappointment,  which  easily  leads  to 
narcotic  indulgence.  Disappointments  and 
reverses  soon  discourage  the  weak,  and  they 
turn  to  some  narcotic  for  forgetfulness.  The 
neurasthenics  and  those  who  are  overworked 
feel  that  they  must  stimulate  their  flagging 
energies  to  tide  over  a  crisis,  and  soon  become 
dependent  on  their  narcotic  and  continue  its 
use  long  after  the  cause  for  its  indulgence  has 
ceased. 

For  the  successful  treatment  of  narcotic 
addictees,  the  variations  seen  in  the  different 
individuals  must  be  carefully  considered,  and 
each  individtial  treated  according  to  his  separate 
needs.  During  years  of  service  in  the  alcoholic 
wards  of  Bellevue  Hospital  I  have  tried  many 
drugs  and  many  methods  of  treatment  to 
obliterate  the  craving  for  morphine,  cocaine, 
and  alcohol,  and  many  times  failed  of  success. 
The  treatment  here  referred  to  is  the  first  I 
have  found  which  successfully  obliterates  the 
cravings  for  narcotics.  Methods  should  be 
judged  like  men,  more  by  what  they  do  than 
what  they  fail  to  do.  It  is  not  the  failures,  but 
the  successes  which  count. 


CUnical  IRotes  on  Some  Cointnon 
ailments. 

PNEUMONIA. 

By  a.  Knvvutx  Gouuun,  M.B.  (Cantab.). 
[Concluded  from  page  264.) 

Another  sign  of  danger  is  pallor  of  the  face, 
the  meaning  of  which  is  that  the  small  vessels 
in  the  head  are  not  getting  a  sufficient  supply 
of  blood — as  distinguished  from  impei-fectly 
aerated  blood — and  it  is,  therefore,  a  sign  that 
the  heart  is  not  acting  sufficiently  vigorously  : 
it  points  to  a  state  of  great  tianger,  aud  it 
is  always  jjreceded  by  quickening  ot  the  pulse. 

Owing  to  the  fact  that  the  organisms  con- 
cerned in  the  production  of  both  forms  of  pneu- 
monia manufacture  toxins,  aud  that  these  are 
constantly  being  absorbed  into  the  circulation 
and  carried  to  all  the  organs  of  the  body,  we 
expect  to  find  some  symptoms  of  poisoning 
apart  from  those  signs  which  are  due  to  the 
obstruction  in  the  lungs.  Of  these,  the  most 
noticeable  is  delirium,  which  in  lobar  pneu- 
monia usually  takes  the  form  of  active  maniacal 
fui-y,  and  in  broncho-pneumonia  is  of  the  low, 
muttering,  incoherent  type,  both  these  being 
due  to  the  effect  of  the  toxins  on  the  cells  of 
the  brain.  Their  significance  from  the  nursing 
point  of  view  is,  however,  very  different,  for 
while  the  violent  delirium  is  not  only  not  an 
unfavourable  sign,  but  is  said  hy  some  to  be 
almost  always  associated  with  subsequent  re- 
covery, the  muttering  type  always  goes  with  a 
very  severe  attack,  and  is  not  infrequently  the 
beginning  of  the  end. 

Another  sign  of  toxaemia  is  diarrhoea,  which 
often  goes  with  either  type  of  pneumonia,  espe- 
cially in  children,  and  is  due  to  poisoning  of  the 
nervous  mechanism  which  controls  the  move- 
ments of  the  intestine  ;  it  is  frequently  accom- 
panied by  distension  of  the  abdomen. 

Hitherto  we  have  taken  both  forms  of  the 
disease  together,  but  in  considering  the  course 
which  they  take,  and  the  effect  which  they  have 
on  the  patient,  we  shall  find  some  rather  im- 
portant differences  between  them. 
■  The  great  point  about  lobar  pneumonia  is 
that  it  is  a  question  of  "  kill  or  cure  "  in  a 
week;  as  a  rule,  the  patient  either  dies — in 
about  17  per  cent,  of  cases — or  recovers  com- 
pletely with  an  undamaged  lung.  The  tem- 
])erature  remains  persistently  high  and  the  con- 
dition of  the  patient  gets  steadily  worse  until 
the  fifth  or  seventh  day,  when  the  so-called 
crisis  occurs,  and  the  temperature  falls  sud- 
denlj'  and  the  symptoms  quickly  abate ;  the 
point,  therefore,  which  decides  the  issue  of  the 
battle  is  whether  the  strength  of  the  patient 


284 


Ebe  tSriusb  3ournal  ot  iHursing.        ['^p"1  o.  wio 


can  hold  out  for  a  week.  The  only  exception 
to  this  occurs  when  the  other  lung  becomes 
afiected,  when  the  crisis  is  postponed  "until  this 
has  cleared  up  also. 

In  broncho-pneumonia,  on  the  other  hand, 
there  is  no  crisis,  but  the  disease  runs  on  until 
all  the  areas  have  been  attacked  and  have 
cleared  up,  and  in  any  given  case  we  have  no 
means  of  knowing  beforehand  how  long  this  will 
take.  Fortunately,  however,  the  intensity  of 
the  obstruction  to  the  passage  of  air  through 
the  diseased  patch  is  not  usually  so  great  as  in 
lobar  pneumonia,  nor  is  the  strain  on  the  cir- 
culation so  severe;  otherwise  but  few  patients 
affected  with  broncho-pneumonia  would  re- 
cover. The  disease  ends  gradually,  and  lasts 
as  a  rule  for  from  seven  days  to  three  weeks  or 
so,  though  periods  both  shorter  and  longer  than 
these  are  not  uncommon. 

The  convalescence,  too,  from  an  attack  of 
broncho-pneumonia  is  much  slower,  and  is 
liable  to  be  interrupted  by  such  complications 
as  empyema  (which  is  a  collection  of  matter 
between  the  lung  and  the  chest  wall),  and  ab- 
scesses in  various  situations,  and  occasionallj' 
is  the  starting  point  of  an  attack  of  tuberculosis 
in  the  lung  or  joints.  Statistically,  broncho- 
pneumonia is  more  frequently  fatal  than  lobar 
pneumonia;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  many  at- 
tacks of  the  former  are  very  mild.  Perhaps 
the  best  way  of  comparing  them  is  to  say  that 
if  a  patient  is  obviously  ill  the  outlook  is  better 
if  his  pneumonia  is  of  the  lobar  variety.  This 
higher  mortality  of  the  bronchial  form  is  partly 
explained  by  the  fact  that  it  so  often  occurs  as 
a  complication  of  some  other  disease,  such  as 
measles  or  whooping-cough,  which  has  already 
diminished  the  patient's  resistance. 

The  treatment  of  pneumonia  has  been  de- 
scribed as  the  battlefield  of  therapeutics,  be- 
cause there  is  a  wide  difference  of  opinion  be- 
tween the  various  schools  of  teaching  on  the 
subject,  the  reason  being  that  there  is  no  drug 
or  method  of  procedure  which  is  generally  be- 
lieved to  have  the  power  of  cutting  short  the 
disease. 

On  reflection,  this  should  be  fairly  obvious, 
for  we  are  manifestly  unable  to  directly  attack 
the  organisms  which  are  a  cause  of  the  disease ; 
they  are  out  of  reach,  or  rather  the"y  can  only 
be  reached  by  drugs  given  in  the  form  of  vapour 
by  inhalation,  and  we  have  no  gaseous  disin- 
fectant which  we  can  give  in  a  strength  suf- 
ficient to  kill  the  germs  without  also  damaging 
the  delicate  lining  of  the  air  passages ;  any 
drug,  moreover,  which  gets  into  the  circulating 
blood  cannot  come  into  contact  with  the 
organisms  inside  the  air  cells.  As  yet  we  have 
no  anti-toxin  which  is  capable  of  neutralising 
the  products  of  the  germs. 


In  pneumonia  we  can  only  work  by  increasing 
the  patient's  powers  of  resistance,  and  the  most 
difficult  thing  of  all  is  to  know  when  to  inter- 
fere. Here,  again,  the  value  of  a  trained  nurse 
comes  in,  for  it  is  obvious  that  any  method  of 
treatment  is  of  much  greater  value  if  it  can  be 
applied  when  the  indication  for  its  use  first 
appears. 

We  can  help  the  patient  in  two  ways — by 
local  applications  and  by  drugs  given  internally  ; 
in  practice,  both  are  usually  employed  together, 
though  we  employ  our  spare  moments  in  quar- 
i-elling  about  their  respective  values.  Of  local 
applications  there  are  two  kinds — the  ice-bag 
and  the  hot  poultice  or  fomentation.  In  many 
cases — I  do  not  say  in  all — the  ice-bag  is  very 
useful  indeed  when  applied  over  the  affected 
part  of  the  lung,  and  its  action  is  to  be  ex- 
plained, as  I  believe,  by  the  effect  which  it  has 
in  dilating  the  blood  vessels  in  the  lung,  so  that 
there  is  .an  increased  flow  of  blood  to  the 
diseased  area,  or,  in  other  words,  an  increased 
supply  of  white  blood  corpuscles  is  sent  to  deal 
with  the  germs.  Though  this  paper  is  not  in- 
tended to  deal  with  points  of  practical  nursing, 
I  may  remark  that  when  an  ice-bag  is  used,  it 
should  be  a  large  one,  be  kept  constantly  filled, 
and  be  bandaged  firmly  to  the  part  selected  by 
the  physician ;  hot  water  bottles  should  at  the 
same  time  be  applied  to  the  feet,  and  a  carefid 
watch  kept  on  the  temperature  of  the  patient. 
If  this  falls  suddenly,  more  hot  bottles  should 
be  used,  but  the  ice-bag  should  not  be  removed 
unless  the  physician  has  so  directed ;  in  any 
given  case  it  is  best  for  the  nurse  to  ascertain 
his  views  on  fliis  point  beforehand.  Unless  a 
trained  nurse  be  in  constant  attendance,  the  use 
of  an  ice-bag  is  impossible. 

In  other  cases,  hot  poultices  or  fomentations 
are  used,  the  chief  effect  of  which  is  to  relieve 
pain.  If  these  are  not  constantly  renewed  they 
are  worse  than  useless. 

Apart  from  these  local  applications,  we  have 
three  main  objects  in  view  in  our  general  treat- 
ment. Firstly,  we  want  to  assist  the  power  of 
coughing,  and  this  we  do,  as  in  the  case  of  an 
attack  of  bronchitis,  by  the  administration  of 
such  drugs  as  carbonate  and  chloride  of 
ammonia,  squills,  ipecacuanha,  and  so  on,  and 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  these  drugs  often 
have  the  action  that  we  wish,  and  increase  the 
force  of  the  cough  and  loosen  the  phlegm. 

Then  we  have  to  ensure  that  the  inspired  air 
shall  contain  a  sufficiency  of  oxygen,  and  for 
this  reason  we  must  in  all  cases  allow  the 
patient  as  much  fresh  air  as  possible.  Now 
this  is  the  duty  of  the  nur.se,  and  it  will  usually 
be  very  difficult  to  carry  out,  for  she  will  re- 
quire much  tact  and  firmness  to  persuade  the 
relatives  of  the  patient  that  the  opening  of  a 


April  9,   l!)l()i 


Cbe  BrittsD  3oiunaI  of  IRursmo. 


•2iio 


wiudow  will  uot  seuil  him  forth  with  to  his 
giave.  It  is  well  to  remember  that  the  pre- 
judice is  really  due  to  the  habit  of  the  laity 
(especially  grandmothers  aud  mothers-in-law) 
of  confusing  freshness — i.e.,  the  amount  of 
oxjgen  in  the  air — wjth  temperature.  They 
arc  apt  to  estimate  the  purity  of  the  air  by  the 
height  of  the  thermometer!  The  proper 
method  is  to  see  that  the  patient  is  warmly 
covered  up  in  bed,  and  tiien  to  open  the 
window.  When  cyauosis  occurs,  oxygen  may 
be  given  from  the  cylinder  until  the  lips  become 
red  again. 

Lastly,  we  have  the  most  difficult  problem 
of  all — namely,  when  to  assist  the  heart,  and 
we  cannot  do  better  than  take  the  analogy  of 
a  foot  race  to  explain  the  problem  with  which 
we  have  to  deal.  Let  us  imagine  that  two  men 
have  to  run  a  race,  let  us  say  on  a  course  half 
a  mile  in  length ;  the  first  man,  we  will  say, 
runs  off  as  hard  as  he  can  go  from  the  starting 
point  aud  endeavours  to  keep  the  same  pace  up 
till  the  finish,  while  the  second  man  does  not 
start  off  so  quickly,  but  keeps  some  strength  in 
reserve  until  he  sees  he  is  being  pressed,  and 
then  puts  on  a  spurt.  Obviously,  the  second 
man  will  win.  If  the  race  is  two  miles  long,  the 
spurt  has  to  be  put  on  still  later  in  the  race,  and 
the  pace  at  the  start  must  be  slower.  Now,  an 
attack  of  lobar  pneumonia  is  our  half-mile 
course  and  broncho-pneumonia  our  two-mile 
stretch,  and  in  either  case,  if  we  stimulate  our 
patient's  heart  too  soon,  he  will  run  himself  out 
before  the  tape  is  reached,  and  the  race  will  be 
lost. 

When,  then,  shall  we  make  him  put  on  the 
pace  ?  At  any  time  if  he  becomes  cyanosed,  or 
if  his  pulse  rate  runs  up  suddenly,  and  if  either 
of  these  conditions  occurs  the  physician  should 
be  summoned  without  delay.  Sometimes  we 
want  to  stimulate  if  the  pulse  rises  gradually, 
and  this  is  where  the  value  of  a  well-kept  pulse 
chart  comes  in.  There  are  other  signs  of  value 
to  be  obtained  from  the  physician's  examina- 
tion of  the  heart,  but  in  any  ease  the  problem 
is  a  difficult  one,  and  requires  both  thought 
and  experience  for  its  solution,  especially  in  the 
case  of  broncho-pneumonia,  where  the  struggle 
is  prolonged  and  the  end  can  never  be  in  sight. 
The  drugs  most  frequently  used  are  alcohol, 
strychnine,  and  digitalis,  and  the  niu'se  should 
remember  that  alcohol  is  a  powerful  drug  and 
not  a  harmless  beverage,  and  she  should  never 
give  brandy  except  in  the  prescribed  doses  and 
at  the  appointed  times.  If  she  should  become 
alarmed  at  the  condition  of  the  patient,  she  can 
do  no  harm  by  applying  temporarily  a  sponge 
wrung  out  of  hot  wsiti'i-  fo  tln'  ri'L'inn  nf  llir. 
heart. 


\ery  much  can  hi-  done  also  by  judicious 
feeding,  and  here  one  may  say  that  the  ten- 
dency is  usually  to  overfeed — invariably  on  the 
part  of  the  relatives,  and  often,  it  nuist  be  con- 
fessed, by  the  nurse  also.  The  nourishment 
should  be  varied,  fluid,  easily  absorbed,  and 
nutritious.  When,  as  so  often  happens,  the 
patient  refuses  food,  stimulant,  and  medicine 
altogether  at  the  hands  of  the  relatives,  the 
presence  of  a  trained  luuse  who  knows  how  to 
overcome  the  prejudice  by  tactfulness  com- 
bined with  skilful  preparation  and  attractive 
presentation  of  the  food,  is  imperatively  called 
foi-. 

IProgrcss  of  State  IReoistration- 

BILL  BLOCKING   IN  THE    HOUSE    OF    COMMONS 

In  spite  of  the  strained  conditions  of  polities 
in  both  Houses,  the  friends  of  nurses  have' 
been  actively  engaged  in  furthering  their  in- 
terests in  the  House  of  Commons  since  the 
opening  of  the  present  Session,  and  Mr  Muuro 
Ferguson,  isnth  his  supporters  in  all  the  various 
Parties,  are  now  convinced  that  should  the 
Nurses'  Eegistration  Bill  be  accorded  a  second 
reading,  it  would  pass  with  inconsiderable  op- 
position. This  we  gather  from  members  on  all 
sides  of  the  House^ 

Under  our  present  obstructive  method  of  pro- 
ceeding with  legislation  in  the  House  of  Com- 
mons, a  method  which  common  sense  de- 
mauds  should  be  effectively  reorganised,  any 
Government  Department,  as,  indeed,  any 
single  member,  can  obstruct  vexatiously  the 
most  needed  reform,  such  as  the  State  Eegis- 
tration of  Nurses,  session  after  session,  and 
already  this  Session  the  Home  Office,  which 
has  absolutely  nothing  to  do  with  the  matter, 
and  Lord  Winterton,  who  had  been  misin- 
formed of  the  present  position  of  the  ques- 
tion, have  blocked  the  Bill,  and  raised  their 
blocks    upon    reliable    information    being    laid 

befoi'e  them.  

■  Last  week  the  Local  Government  Board,  of 
which  yU-.  .John  Burns  is  President,  entered 
the  arena  of  obstruction,  and  blocked  the  Bill, 
and  this  is  the  more  to  be  deplored  because 
when  the  Bill  was  before  the  House  of  Lords. 
no  oi)jection  was  made  to  it  from  this  De- 
partment, and  amongst  the  Government 
amendments  was  one  providing  for  the  repre- 
sentation of  the  Ijoeal  Government  Board  on 
the  Registration  Council,  an  amendment 
which  was  agreed  to  by  Lord  Ampthill.  More- 
over, in  the  Bill  promoted  by  the  Central  Re- 
gistration Committee,  tlie  Scottish  and  Irish 
t.oeal    Government    Boards     have   representa- 


286 


(Tbe  :©rtti6b  3onrnaI  of  H^ursing. 


[April  9,  1010 


tion  on  the  Couucil,  aud  it  is  provided  that  a 
past  or  present  ^latron  of  a  Poor  Law  In- 
firmary must  also  have  a  seat  upon  the  First 
Council. 

No  class  of  nurse  stands  to  benefit  more 
directly  by  the  institution  of  a  definite  curricu- 
lum of  training,  and  the  one  portal  system  of 
examination,  that  the  nurses  in  the  Poor  Law 
Service,  and  for  this  reason  no  Matrons  have 
given  more  loyal  support  to  the  organisation  of 
nursing  by  Act  of  Parliament  than  those  at  the 
head  of  the  Poor  Law  Nursing  Schools,  and  the 
Fever  Hospitals  under  the  authority  of  the 
^letropohtan  Asylums  Board.  When  our 
Bill  becomes  law,  as  it  very  soon  will,  the  pro- 
fession generally  will  owe  a  deep  debt  of  grati- 
tude to  these  ^Matrons  who  have  given  so  much 
time,  thought,  and  financial  support  to  the  re- 
gistration movement — a  movement  for 
better  educational  facilities  and  economic  con- 
ditions for  trained  nurses. 

As  soon  as  it  became  known  that  the  Local 
Government  Board  was  blocking  the  Nurses' 
Eegistration  Bill,  an  Emergency  Meeting  of 
the  Matrons  of  the  Metropolitan  Poor  Law  In- 
firmaries and  Fever  Hospitals  was  held  in  Lon- 
don, and  the  following  Resolution  was  passed, 
widely  signed  by  Alatrons  within  24  hours,  and 
forwarded  to  the  President  of  the  Local  Go- 
vernment Board,  with  a  covering  letter  signed 
by  Miss  E.  C.  Barton,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Poor 
Law  Infirmary  Matrons'  Association,  and  Miss 
L.  A.  Morgan,  Nurse  Hon.  Secretary  of  the 
Fever  Nurses'  Association:  — 

LETTER. 

To  the  Bight  Eon.  John  Burns,  M.P.,  President 

of  the  Local   Government  Board. 

Sib, — We  beg  respectfully  to  forward  to  you  tlie 
enclosed  Resolution,  on  behalf  of  Matrons  working 
under  the  Local  Government  Board.  We  do  so 
\\ith  confidence  because  we  are  aware  of  your  sym- 
pathy with  the  sick  poor,  and  your  interest  in  the 
efficiency  of  the  Nursing  Service  of  the  Department 
over  which  you  preside,  and  we  believe,  therefore, 
that  you  will  accede  to  our  request  to  give  your 
consideration  to  this  question  which  so  vitally 
affects  every  nurse  and  patient  in  Poor  Law  In- 
firmaries, and  that  on  acquainting  yourself  with 
tlie  facts  you  will  withdraw  your  opposition  to  the 
Bill  for  the  State  Registration  of  Trained  Nurses 
now  before  the  House  of  Commons. 

We  beg  to  assure  you  that  your  decision  to  do  so 
would  be  welcomed  with  gratitude  by  a  very  large 
majority  of  the  nurses  in  the  Poor  Law  Service. 
We  are,  Sir, 

Your  obedient  servant-s, 

ELE.iXOR  C.  B.\RTON, 

Hon.  Secretary,  Poor  Law  Ln- 
firmary  Matrons'  Association . 
L.   A.   Morgan, 

Nurse  Hon.  Secretary,  Fever 
yvrses'  .'Issociation. 


RESOLUTION. 

"  That  this  meeting  of  Matrons  of  Poor  Law  In- 
fiimaries,  and  of  Fever  Hospitals  under  the  Metro- 
politan A.sylnms  Board,  desires  very  resijectfully 
to  express  the  great  regret  which  those  Matrons 
feel  that  the  President  of  the  Local  Government 
Board  is  opposing  the  j^rogress  of  the  Bill  for  the 
Registration  of  Nurses,  and  thereby  delaying  the 
improvements  in  the  status  and  work  of  their 
nurses  which  the  Matrons  under  the  authority  of 
the  Local  Government  Board  earnestly  desire,  and 
which  they  have  worked  for  many  years  to  secure. 
They  beg  to  point  out:  — 

"  1.  That  the  experience  of  other  professions, 
and  of  other  countries  which  have  passed  Nursing 
Bills,  proves  that  the  efficient  education  and  dis- 
cipline of  the  large  number  of  women  and  men  now 
engaged  in  nursing  the  sick  in  this  country  can 
only  be  effected  by  an  Act  of  Parliament. 

"2.  That  at  present,  there  is  great  difficulty  in 
persuading  the  best  class  of  educated  women  to 
enter  Poor  Law  Infirmaries  fur  training  as  nurses 
in  sufficient  numbers,  because  of  the  invidious  class 
distinction  between  the  Certificates  of  great  General 
Hospitals  and  those  of   Workhouse   Infirmaries. 

"3.  That  if  all  nurses  were  subject  to  the  same 
State  Examination,  and  awarded  the  same  Certi- 
ficate of  Registration,  as  provided  in  the  Bill  in 
question,  that  invidious  distinction  would  at  once 
disappear.  The  excellent  training  of  Poor  Law- 
nurses  fits  them  to  compete  on  equal  terms  with 
the  nurses  trained  in  any  other  institution. 

"4.  That  the  nurses  working  under  the  Local 
Government  Board,  and  the  sick  poor  in  workhouse 
infirmaries,  would  therefore  be  greatly  benefited 
by   the  proposed  legislation. 

''  This  meeting,  therefore,  most  earnestly  and 
respectfully  requests  the  President  of  the  Local 
Government  Board  to  investigate  this  question, 
feeling  confident  that  he  would  then  give  his  in- 
valuable assistance  to  the  Bill  for  the  Registration 
of  Nurses." 

Signatories. 
Matrons   and  Superintendents   of   Nursing    under 

the  L.G.B. 
G.    Cl-4Rke  ^(Asliton-under-Lyne). 
A.  M.  Orchard  (Bermondsey). 
A.  A.  Footman  (Birkenhead). 
A    C.  Gibson  (Birmingham). 
M    A.  FoGGEiT  (Bradford). 
H.  PiRiE  (Bristol,  Eastville). 
F    E.  MARQn.\RDT  (Camberwell). 
C    M.   Williams   (Cardiff). 
M.   WiNMiLL  (Carshalton). 
E.  C.  B.-vRTON  (Chelsea). 
E.  M.  Smith  (Chorlton). 
A.    W.   Pagen   (Croydon). 
J.  F.  Ballanttne  (Fulham). 
A    L.  Blacklock  (Gateshead). 
M    M.  Hampson  (St.  George's,  Fulham  Road). 
E    A.  Wesley  (St.   George's-in-the-East). 
S.  Ward  (Greenwich). 
L    Griffith  (Hackney). 
A.  Radclipfe  (Hammersmith). 
E.  A.  KiDSON  (Halifax). 
A.   Smith  (Kingston). 


April  9,   1910J 


cDe  Brttisb  journal  of  IRurstiuj. 


287 


E.  M.  Byt.es  (Lamlx'th). 

L.  K.  AfASTEUs  (Leicuster,  North  Evington). 

E.  A.   GiTTiNS  (Leeds). 

J    E.  Nicholson  (Liverpool,  HighfieKl). 

E.  Stewart  (Citv  of  Lornlon). 

U    Templeman  (Mcrtliyr  Tydfil). 

A    F.  RocKRTT  (Middlosbroiigh). 

E.   R.  Grauam  (Mile  End,  Old  Town). 

E.  F.  DwiGHT  (Nottingham.  Bagthorpc). 

P.  A.    FoTSTER  (Portsmouth). 

L.  M.  Hall  (Reading). 

I    H.  CoPELAND  (Rochdale). 

E.  M.  Bradley  (Salford,  Manchester). 
L.  Bentley  (St.  Pancras,  South). 

A.  C.  Lawso.n  (Sheffield). 

A.  A.  G.AHC  (South  Shield.^). 

J.  Jeffery  (Stockport). 

A    E.  Blackwell  (Stoke-on-Trent). 

I.  Kemp  (Southwark). 

F.  M.  Middleton  (Wandsworth). 
L.  S.  Clark  (West  Ham). 

A.    Syers   (Wolverhampton). 

S     A.    Hannaford     (Poplar     and     Stepney     Sick 

Asylum). 
E      M.     Smith     (Central     London    Sick     Asylum, 

Hendon). 
C.  Leigh  (Central  London  Sick  Asylum,  Cleveland 

Street). 
Matrons  under  ihe   Metropolitan  Asulums  Board. 

E.  M.  Bann  (Brook  Hospital). 

F.  E.   M.  D.\Y  (Ea.stprn  Hospital). 
L.   A.   Morgan  (Northern   Hospital). 
M.  Jones   (North-Eastern  Hospital). 

M.  M.  Lloyd  (North-Western  Hospital). 

S    A.   ViLLiERS  (Park  H<).spital). 

F   M.  Ambler  Jones  (South-Eastern  Hospital). 

C.  L.  Burton  (South-Westera  Hospital). 

E.  Ross   (Western  Hospital). 

A.   S.   Bry-son  (Gore  Farm  Hospital). 

H.  Wachp:r  (Joyce  Green  Hospital). 


Sisters.--' 

T5y  Miss  .\.  Butler, 
Matron  of  Sir  Patrick  Dun's  Hospital,  Dublin. 


In  connection  with  this  matter,  the  Fever 
Nurses'  Association  held  a  meeting  on  Monday, 
Dr.    Goodall,    the  President,  presiding. 


From  the  office  of  the  Society  for  the  State 
Eegistration  of  Trained  Nurses,  Mrs.  Bedford 
Fenwiek,  the  Hon.  Secretary,  has  forwarded 
documents  and  information  on  the  Registration 
question  for  the  consideration  of  the  Local  Go- 
vernment Board,  and  has  brought  to  the  notice 
of  the  President  the  fact  that  all  the  influen- 
tial National  Associations  of  medical  prac- 
titioners and  trained  nurses,  which  form  the 
Central  Registration  Committee,  have  agreed 
to  and  are  supporting  the  Bill  now  before  the 
House  of  Commons. 

The  Bill  provides  that  the  General  Council 
for  the  Registration  of  Nurses  in  the  United 
Kingdom  shall  include  three  registered  medical 
practitioners  appointed  by  the  Local  Govern- 
ment Boards  for  England,  Scotland,  and  Ire- 
land respectively. 


When  I  was  told  I  was  expected  to  read  a 
paper  this  evening  on  the  subject  of  Sisters,  it 
was  not  made  clear  to  me  if  1  was  to  give  a 
detailed  account  of  Sisters'  duties,  or  a  descrip- 
tion of  Sisters  I  have  known,  or  Sisters  I  would 
like  to  know.  If,  therefore,  my  short  paper 
does  not  give  what  is  expected  or  desired,  I 
must  ask  you  to  forgive  me. 

I  regret  to  say  mj-  personal  experience  of 
Sisters — with  one  or  two  exceptions — has  been 
disappointing.  Possibly  this  may  Tiave  been 
due  to  some  fault  of  mine,  or  I  may  have  ex- 
pected too  much.  I  do  not  know,  but  the  sad 
fact  remains. 

We  all  complain  of  the  diflficulty  of  getting 
good  probationers  for  training,  and  it  is  without 
doubt  a  very  great  difficulty;  but  I  cannot  help 
feeling  that  if  we  were  more  fortunate  in  our 
choice  of  Sisters  we  would  have  much  belter 
results  even  from  the  very  faulty  material  wc 
have  to  work  upon. 

Only  a  few  women  who  aspire  to  the  position 
of  Sister  at  all  realise  the  enormous  amount  of 
responsibility  such  a  pysition  involves,  not  only 
with  regard  to  the  care  of  their  patients  and 
general  arranging  of  their  wards,  but  with  re- 
gard to  their  influence  over  the  nurses  working 
under  them.  Undoubtedly  the  whole  profes- 
sional future  of  every  nurse  is  more  or  less  in- 
fluenced for  good  or  evil  by  the  Sisters  she 
works  under.  To  the  earnest  worker,  who  finds 
herself  in  such  a  position  of  responsibility,  the 
burden  must  at  times  seem  almost  too  great ; 
but  it  is  the  women  who  take  uji  a  Sister's 
work  in  this  spirit,  fully  realising  all  it  means, 
who  are  most  likely  to  do  it  well.  The  duties 
of  a  Sister  are  of  necessity  so  various  that  she 
needs  quite  a  long  list  of  qualifications  to  fit 
her  for  the  post. 

A  thorough  knowledge  of  nursing  is  only  one 
of  many  qualifications  needed,  for,  however 
good  a  nurse  a  woman  may  be  herself,  she  maj' 
be  utterly  unfit  to  teach  others  or  to  govern 
large  wards. 

To  make  a  successful  head  of  a  ward  requires 
much  the  same  qualities  as  are  needed  for  the 
good  head  of  any  household.  The  same  con- 
stant thought  for  others,  method  in  arrange- 
ment of  work,  forethought  to  meet  expected 
incidents,  and  cheerful  readiness  to  bear  the 
unexpected  and  make  tlie  best  of  things.  Then 
there  must  be  the  ready  tact  and  sweet  temper 

*A  paper  read  at  a  meeting  of  the  Irish  Matrons' 
Association. 


■288 


G,i)c  Britisb  3ournaI  of  IRurstno.       tApiii  9, 1910 


(o  smooth  away  the  fnctiou  that  is  ahiiost  uu- 
avoidable  between  even  the  best  workers,  un- 
faihng  courtesy  to  visitors,  though  they  may 
come  at  most  inopportune  moments.  These 
are  but  a  few  of  the  qualities  indispensable  to 
a  good  Ward  Sister. 

One  of  the  most  important  of  a  Sister's  duties 
is  the  training  of  her  probationers,  and,  strange 
to  say,  it  is  the  part  of  their  work  Sisters 
most  often  fail  in.  Many  are  most  capable 
women  in  every  other  respect.  Their  w^ards 
are  w'ell  ordered,  their  patients  excellenth' 
nursed,  doctors'  orders  intelligently  and  well 
carried  out;  but  the  poor  "  pro.,'"  the  success 
of  whose  future  career  depends  on  the  teaching 
and  training  she  receives,  is  left  to  pick  up 
knowledge  as  best  she  can.  She  is  told  to  do 
things  she  has  never  been  shown  how  to  do, 
and  scolded  if  she  does  them  badly ;  and  if  she 
dares  to  ask  for  inforaiation,  she  is  probably 
snubbed  and  made  to  feel  such  a  fool  she 
wishes  she  had  never  spoken. 

Often  when  I  have  spoken  about  teaching  the 
nurses,  I  have  been  told:  "  Oh,  the  patients 
nted  so  much  attention,  and  they  must  come 
first,  there  is  no  time  to  teach."  Granted,  the 
patients  do  need,  and  ought  to  receive,  first 
and  best  care,  but  are  not  their  very  needs  the 
golden  opportunity  for  teaching  nurses  ?  Every 
attention  to  a  patient  can  be  made  an  ol^ject 
lesson  to  the  nurses  by  the  careful  teacher,  and 
where  can  a  nurse  be  taught  practical  work  so 
well  as  in  the  wards?  The  busiest  wards  I 
liave  worked  in  were  the  wards  where  I  received 
most  teaching — such  teaching  as  I  can  never 
forget,  and  teaching  that  I  wish  I  could  obtain 
for  my  nurses  now.  If  a  woman  has  not  got 
the  ability  of  imparting  knowledge,  and  the 
sympathy  that  enables  her  to  get  at  the  best 
that  is  in  her  pupils,  she  had  better  take  up 
any  work  rather  than  that  of  a  Sister,  no  matter 
how  callable  she  may  be  in  other  respects. 

Women  wdth  great  strength  of  character 
combined  with  a  sweet  and  tender  nature,  with 
the  wide  sympathy  that  makes  them  quick  to 
perceive  the  needs  of  others,  high  principled, 
trustworthy,  earnest  workers  in  evei-ything 
they  undertake  to  do,  these  are'  the  women 
suited  to  guide  others ;  these  are  the  women 
we  need  at  the  head  of  our  wards.  When  we 
can  give  our  probationers  into  the  care  of  such 
women,  we  may  indeed  feel  we  have  done  the 
best  that  can  be  done  to  make  them  good 
nurses  and  useful  women,  but  until  we  can  give 
them  the  best,  do  not  let  us  lay  all  the  blame 
of  failure  on  the  probationers. 

Those  whose  duty  it  is  to  teach  probationers 
need,  besides  special  aptitude  for  imparting 
l<'iowledge,  instruction  in  the  art  of  teaching. 
Such  instruction  is  seldom  given  to  them. 


3n  flDemorlam. 

The  League  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital 
Nurses  is  taking  the  initiative  concerning  an 
appropriate  Memorial  to  their  late  Matron  and 
President,  and  will  consider  the  matter  in 
Executive  Ckinimittee  this  week.  Later  the 
members  will  consult  with  others,  as  they 
realise  how  dear  she  was  to  nurses  and  friends 
far  and  wide. 


From  Miss  Annie  W.  Goodrich,  President  of 
the  American  Federation  of  Xurses,  comes  an 
e^pression  of  "  sincere  and  intense  sympathy." 
She  writes:  "It  is  with  much  sorrow  that  I 
have  heard  of  the  termination  of  Miss  Stewart 's 
work;  her  loss  must  at  this  moment  seem  to 
you  irreparable,  for  it  does  to  me  :  but  I  cannot 
fail  to  appreciate,  after  having  watched  her  last 
summer,  that  she  herself  would  rejoice  that 
she  was  allowed  to  continue  her  work  to  the 
end — a  true  patriot's  life  and  death." 


Froiii  Miss  L.  L.  Dock,  the  Hon.  Secretary 
of  the  International  Council  of  Nurses,  tlie 
following  touching'  little  letter  has  been  re- 
ceived :  — 

I  cannot  express  my  grief  over  the  death  of  Miss 
Stewart.  And  yet  the  sad  news  was  not  unex- 
pected. Last  summer,  and  especially  the  evening 
of  the  Reception  at  Bart's,  in  the  midst  of  the 
beautiful  scene  where  she  radiated  hospitality  and 
genial  friendliness,  I  wondered  how  long  we  should^ 
have  her,  and  felt  a  mournful  intuition  that  we 
from  this  side  might  never  see  her  again. 

Dear  Miss  Stewart !  So  full  of  joy  and  purpose 
in  life;  so  staunch  and  true,  so  big  hearted  and 
brave !  We  can  ill  afford  to  lose  her.  The  memory 
of  her  will  always  be  an  inspiration.  My  deepest 
sympathies  are  for  you,  her  comrades,  who  are  so 
bereft  in  your  work  and  in  yoiu'  councils. 


The  Lancet  of  April  2nd  publishes  the  fol- 
lowing appreciation  of  Miss  Isla  Stewart:  — 

May  Florence  be  allowed  to  lay  its  little  immor- 
telle on  the  grave  of  this  true  "  Sister  of  Mercy  ''  :■' 
"WTien  just  three  years  ago,  at  the  instance  of  the 
Governing  Body  of  St.  Bartholomew's,  she  came  to 
the  City  of  Flowers  for  a  brief  respite  from  work, 
she  received  not  only  from  the  profession  but  from 
the  well-informed  lay  public,  Italian  as  well  as 
British,  the  welcome  due  to  her  honourable  record 
in  hospital  administration  and  philanthropic 
endeavour.  All  who  had  the  opportunity  of  meet- 
ing her  were  speedily  impressed  by  her  force  of 
character,  her  centripetal  insight  into  detail,  and 
her  appreciation  of  the  dominating  factor,  her 
catholic  sympathies,  her  sagacite  de  coeur.  No 
experience,  particularly  in  her  own  metier,  was 
thrown  away  upon  her,  and  the  hints  and  sugges- 
tions she  made  in  her  survey  of  the  local  hospitals 
were  treasured  all  the  more  that  there  was  some 
hoj>e  of  her  early  return  to  the  city,  where  she  migiit 


Ai-ril   .>,    lUlOj 


Cbc  Brttisb  3ournal  ot  IRursinG. 


•289 


)iavf  witnessed  how  loyally  aiid  inteiligoiitly  her 
advice  had  been  utilised.  But  (lis  aliter  visum. 
Florence  was  destined  never  to  see  lior  again,  and 
now,  to  the  regrets  which  follow  her,  can  but  add 
the  expression  of  its  own  :  — 

'■  Va-te-ne  in  pace,  alma  sautu  c  bclla." 

?tbe  £100  IReoietratton  Jfunb. 


Brought  forward 

Scut  ill  memory  of  tlu:  faithjul  ser- 
vices to  the  Registration  Cause 
of  Miss  Isla  Sti:icart. 
Miss  W'iiimill 


£ 
74 


1     U     U 


■2     0 


The  Royal   South   Hants    Hospital 

Nurses'  League  ...  ...       2     0     0 

Mrs.  Andrews  ...         ...         ...       1     1     0 

Miss  Margaret  Jones  ...         ...  10     6 

Collecting  Card 
Name    of    Collector,     Miss   E.    M. 
Dickson. 

M.  A.  Steil  

E.  M.  D 

Mrs.  Whinney 

]\Irs.  P.  W.  Tolhurst 

Mrs.   Veeners 

Nurse  Finnis 

Mrs.  Bremncr 

Mrs.  Flood  

O.  S.  M 


Total 


0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

10 

0 

.£79     9 

8 

practical  (Points. 


Special  Crockery 

for  Infectious 

Cases. 


A  useful  practice  aclopto<l 
at  Guy's  Hospital  in  relation 
to  the  crockery  us«<l  by  cn- 
t<>ric  patients  and  otlier  in- 
fectiou.s  cases  is  that  a  broad 
band  of  red  paint,  or  a  broad  red  cross,  is  painted 
upon  it.  Not  only  are  plates  and  cups  and  saucers 
treated  by  this  method  but  also  all  the  war<l 
crockery,  such  as  bed-pans,  etc.  Crockery  so  markeil 
is  readily  identified,  and  its  use  restricted. 


At  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
Cotton  Blankets,  pital  "cotton  blankets"  aro 
used  for  ent«ric  and  othei- 
cases  where  frequent  sterilisation  is  nece.s«ary,  an<l 
■we  understand  that  they  are  foun<l  quite  satislac- 
tory,  and  as  they  are  cheap,  c<«ting  aljout  lialt-a- 
crown  each,  they  can  be  renewe<l  more  frequently 
than  a  more  expensive  kind.  It  is  found  that 
woollen  goods,  including  blankets  and  flannel  and 
domette  bandages,  are  apt  to  perish  when 
sterilise<l,  owing  to  the  freeing  of  some  acid  in  the 
woollen  material;  also  that  blankets  treated  with 
disinfectants,  or  which  are  exi)o,«e<l  to  great  heat 
when  wet,  rot  wherever  a  wet  patch  occurs. 


appointments. 

Lady  Scpeiuntendent. 

Charitable    Institution,    Belfast Miss  Fanny  Sheldon 

bar,  been  appointed  Lady  Superintendent.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Browidow  Hill  Infirmary,  Liverpool, 
and  also  received  training  in  district  nursing  in 
Haggerston.  She  has  worked  as  a  Queen's  Nurse 
in  Heading,  Huntingdon,  and  Londonderry,  and  in 
January,  1902,  was  appointed  to  the  i)osition  she 
at  present  holds  of  Nurse-Matron  at  the  Foyle  Hill 
Hospital,   Londonderry. 

M.\TRON. 
District  Nurses'  Home,  Southampton. — Miss  C.  M. 
Coaling  has  been  appointed  Superintendent  of  the 
District  Xurses'  Home,  .S<nithampton,  in  affiliation 
with  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Workhouse  Infirmary,  Birmingham, 
where  she  has  held  the  position  of  Sister,  and  has 
also  had  experience  in  mental  nursing  at  the  City 
Asylum,  Birmingham,  and  in  infectious  nursing  at 
the  Isolation  Hospital,  Great  Yarmouth.  She  has 
worked  as  a  Queen's  Nurso  at  Michinhampton,  and 
as  Assistant  Superintendent  of  the  District  Nurs- 
ing Association,   C'licltonham. 

Rutson  Hospital,  North  Alierton.  -Miss  Marion  Thomas 
has  been  appointed  Matron  of  the  Rutson  Hospital, 
and  Nursing  Association,  North  Alierton,  Yorks. 
She  was  trained  at  the  London  Hospital,  E.,  where 
she  has  held  the  position  of  Matron's  Assistant. 

Orosvenor  Hospital  for  Women,  Vincent  Square,  S.W — 
Miss  J.  C.  Witchell  has  been  appointed  Matron. 
She  was  trained  at  the  London  Hospital,  E.,  and 
has  held  the  positions  of  Sister  at  the  Sussex 
County  Hospital,  Brighton,  and  Queen  Charlotte's 
Hospital,  London,  and  of  Matron  of  the  Cottage 
Hospital,  Abingdon. 

Victoria  District  Hospital,  Richmond,  YorKshire.  — Miss 
A.  C.  Hastall  has  been  appointetl  Matron  of  the 
Victoria  District  Hospital,  Ilichmond,  Yorkshire. 
She  was  trained  at  the  Sheffield  Royal  Hospital, 
where  she  has  since  held  the  posts  of  Sister  of  the 
Out-patient  Department,  Sister  of  a  men's  surgical 
wai'<l,  an<l  Sister  of  the  Oi>erating  Theatre.  She 
has  also  done  Night  Sister's  holiday  duty. 
Assistant  Matron. 

Cancer  Hospital,  Glasgow Miss    Janet    Brodie     has 

been  appointed  A.ssistant  Matron.  She  was  trained 
at  the  Western  Infirmary,  Glasgow,  and  has  held 
the  jjosition  of  Sister  at  the  Children's  Hospital, 
Nottingham,  and  at  the  Royal  Hosi^ital  for  Sick 
Children,  Edinburgh. 

Assistant  Superintendent  Nurse. 
Aston  Union  Infirmary,  near  Birmingham. — Miss  Minnie 
Jack.san  has  been  apiHiinted  Assistant  Superinten- 
dent Nurse.  She  was  trained  at  the  Chorlton 
Union  Hospitals,  and  has  held  the  positions  of 
Ward  Sister,  Maternity  Nurse,  and  Senior  Super- 
intendent lit  Night  Nurses  in  the  same  institution. 
Sister. 

The    Sanatorium,    Huddersfiela Miss     Marian     Lewis 

Day  has  been  api>oiiitetl  Sister.  She  was  trained 
at  ('rumi)sall  Infirmary,  Manchester,  and  at  the 
Fylde   .loiut   Hospital,    near   Lythatn. 


290 


Z\K  Bnticib  3ournal  of  mursinci,         t^p"^  9-  i^io 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRAS  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 
NURSING   SERVICE. 

Miss  C.  M.  Roy,  Staff  iXiirse,  is  confirmed- in  Irt 
ai.polntmentj  ner  period  of  provisional  service  hav- 
ing expired.  

QUEEN  VICTORIAS  JUBILEE    INSTITUTE. 

Transfers  and  Appointments.— Miss  Gertrude 
Lawton,  to  Wakeiield,  as  Senior  from  Pontypridd ; 
Miss  Mabel  Griffiths,  to  Wakefield;  Miss  Lydui 
Birchall,  to  Frodingham;  Miss  Mary  Simpson,  to 
Birmingham,  Summer  Hill  Road,  as  Senior,  from 
Cheltenham;  Miss  Eugenie  Widt,  to  Wilmslow ; 
Miss  Eliza  Abel,  to  Gloucester,  from  Frodingham  ; 
Miss  Florence  "\\'alker,  to  Brighton,  from  Birming- 
ham, Summer  Hill  Road;  Miss  Mary  Chisholm,  to 
Swansea,  from  Carlisle;  Miss  Elsie  Noel,  to  Wid- 
nes;  Miss  Alice  Johnson,  to  Silvertowu ;  Miss  Fred- 
rika  Cramer,  to  Kettering;  Miss  Mary  Sewell,  to 
Birmingham,   Summer  Hill   Road. 


RESIGNATION. 

At  the  Annual  Meeting  last  week,  of  the  Coven- 
try District  Nursing  Association,  affiliated  with 
the  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute,  at  which 
Lord  Leigh  presided,  the  Committee  reported  with 
great  regret  the  resignation  of  the  Superintendent, 
Miss  Munro,  and  that  they  had  recorded  in  a  Re- 
solution the  high  appreciation  of  Miss  Munro's 
services  which  the  Committee  entertain. 

In  moving  the  adoption  of  the  report.  Lord  Leigh 
announced  that  the  institution  was  losing  the  ser- 
vices of  Miss  Munro,  because  of  her  approaching 
marriage,  and  offered  the  congratulations  of  all 
present,  congratulations  with  which  all  her  friends 
in  the  nursing  world  will  wish  to  be  associated. 


LEAGUE     NEWS. 

We  are  glad  to  learn  that  the  latest  League, 
formed  by  the  nurses  of  the  Central  London  Sick 
Asylum  at  Hendon  Infirmary,  has  already  enrolled 
upwards  of  70  members  who  are  very  keen  to  make 
it  a  great  success.  With  the  Matron,  Miss  Elma 
Smith,  as  President,  the  new  League  will  not  fail 
for  need  of  plenty  of  energy,  and  kind  feeling. 

The  Cleveland  Street  Branch  of  the  C.L.S.A. 
League  will  be  inaugurated  at  a  meeting  to  be  held 
on  Saturday,  9th  April,  upon  the  invitation  of 
the  ^latron.  Miss  Charlotte  Leigh. 


IRISH    NURSES'    ASSOCIATION. 

The  Association  held  its  monthly  meeting  at  86, 
Lower  Leeson  Street,  Dublin,  on  April  2nd.  There 
was  a  large  attendance.  The  following  new  mem- 
bers were  elected :  — 

Rotunda  Hospit.\l. 
Miss  Stritch,  Miss  Jeffery,  Miss  Nicholl,  Miss  K. 
Watson,    Miss     I.    Watson,    and    Mrs.     Margaret 
Smyth. 

Elpis   Phivate  Hospital. 
aiiss  Whitford,  Miss  Proctor,  Miss  Quinn,  Miss 
Gilbert. 

Social  Functions. 
After  routine  business  an  Amusements  Committee 
was  appointed  to  arrange  the  cycle  rides  and  pic- 
nics to  take  place  during  the  summer  months,  and 
which  are  always  greatly  appreciated  by  those 
members  who  are  able  to  attend  them. 

A.  Carson  Ra£,    Secretary. 


E.G. 


IRureluQ  lEcbocs. 

Tlie  office  of  JMatrou  aud 
Sui^erintendent  of  Nursing 
at  St.  Bartholomew's  is  now 
advertised  as  vacant,  the 
salary  being  £250  a  year, 
with  Board,  Residence,  At- 
tendance, and  Washing. 
Candidates  are  requested'  to 
lodge  36  copies  of  their  appli- 
cation and  testimonials  with 
the  Clerk  to  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital,  London, 
on  or  before  May  7th. 


On  Tuesday  the  King  honoured  with  a  visit 
the  Biarritz  Nursing  Home,  which,  it  wdll  be 
remembered,  he  founded.  His  Majesty,  who 
is  always  appreciative  of  the  work  of  trained 
nurses,  gave  great  pleasure  to  fhe  nursing 
staff  by  warmly  congi-atulating  them  on  the 
valuable  services  which  they  have  rendered  to 
the  Briti.sh  colonv  in  Biarritz. 


In  view  of  the  recommendation  of  the  Poor 
Law  Commission  that  Poor  Law  Orders  should 
be  subjected  to  revision  and  consolidation,  the 
President  of  the  Local  Government  Board  has 
appointed  a  Departmental  Committee  to  take 
the  work  in  hand.  It  would  be  well  for  Poor 
Law  Matrons  to  inquire  if  Orders  dealing  with 
nursing  will  be  revised,  and  if  so  to  have  a  say 
in  the  matter. 


The  Asylums  Officers'  Superannuation  Act, 
came  into  operation  last  week.  The  asylums 
authorities  have  been  busy  classifying  the  dif- 
ferent officials  in  accordance  with  the  provisions 
of  the  Act,  aud  it  appears  that  the  great  ma- 
jority of  the  officers  in  asylums  have  as  part 
of  their  ordinary  duty  the  care  of  the  insane, 
aud  therefore  come  under  the  more  beneficial 
scale  of  pensions  provided  by  the  Act. 


Some  time  ago  we  reported  that  the  Nursing 
Service  Eeserve  of  the  Navj'  was  being  or- 
ganised by  the  commandeering  of  the  nurses 
through  the  hospitals,  instead  of  on  the  volun- 
teer principle  as  is  the  case  with  the  Amiy  Ee- 
serve. .\lthough  this  was  denied  by  the  lay 
nursing  press,  the  system  has  been  in  force  for 
some  months,  and  the  services  of  nurses  are 
being  offered  by  hospital  committees  to  the 
Nursing  Department  of  the  Navy,  although 
they  have  made  no  contract  with  their  nurses 
to  render  such  service. 


A  nurse  in  the  Liverpool  Workhouse,  whose 
clothing   caught   fire  while  she    was  on   night 


April  'J,   10111 


^IK   3Bntisb   .'journal   or  Mursino. 


291 


duty  ill  !i  male  ward,  owes  her  life  to  tin; 
promptitude  of  one  of  the  patients,  an  old  nuui 
named  Edward  Hudson,  formerly  a  cab  driver, 
thrown  out  of  work  by  the  introduction  of 
motor  cal)s.  The  man  jumped  out  of  bed,  and 
enveloped  the  nurse  in  one  of  his  blankets.  A 
subscription  is  being  made  by  the  Workhouse 
Committee,  to  give  the  man,  whose  ch.ir.n-tii- 
is  quite  satisfactory,  a  new  start  in  lifi  . 


Councillor  Margaret  Ashton,  of  Mancbeslcr, 
is  a  thoroughly  all  round,  practical  woman,  and 
made  a  very  sensible  speech  to  the  nurses  of 
the  Manchester  and  Salford  Sick  Poor  and 
Private  Nursing  Institution  when  handing 
them  their  certificates  and  prizes.  Mrs.  Lor- 
rain  Smith,  one  of  the  Hon.  Secretaries,  re- 
ported tile  new  departure — the  giving  of  four 
courses  of  lectures  on  social  subjects.  They 
included  the  problems  of  feeble-minded  Poor 
Law  children,  the  "  children's  charter,"  effec- 
tive inspection,  and  infant  mortality.  During 
tiio  autumn  and  spring  terms  17  lectures  had 
been  given,  some  by  Manchester  medical  men, 
which  had  been  attended  by  about  60  of  the 
nurses  of  the  Institution,  and  other  nurses  who 
had  applied  specially  for  permission  to  attend. 
Twenty-three  nurses  came  up  for  examination, 
and  of  these  17  obtained  over  60  per  cent,  of 
marks. 

Miss  Margaret  Ashtoii,  in  presenting  the  cer- 
tificates, congratulated  the  nurses  on  their  pro- 
fession, which  she  had  once  hoped  would  have 
been  her  own  profession.  They  had  in  their 
hands  the  sick  people  of  the  city,  and  they 
were  devoting  themselves  to  public  service. 
She  always  felt  about  the  nursing  profession 
that  there  had  been  much  false  sentiment; 
an  idea  that  it  was  a  life  of  peculiar  self-sacri- 
fice, and  thai  it  was  taken  up  from  a  religious 
ideal.  That,  she  thought,  was  not  the  ease. 
She  did  not  believe  that  nurses  went  into  the 
profession  with  the  idea  that  it  was  a  life  of 
self-sacrifice.  She  believed  it  was  taken  up  as 
a  profession,  a  profession  into  which  they  could 
throw  their  whole  soul,  and  make  it  their  life's 
interest.  She  did  not  think  there  was  more 
self-sacrifice  needed  in  the  life  of  a  nurse  than 
in  that  of  a  doctor,  a  teacher,  a  mother,  or 
many  other  professions  which  dealt  entirely 
with  humanity.  Nurses  were  dealing  with  hu- 
man lives,  and,  therefore,  their  res])onsibility 
might  be  greater.  The  power  in  their  hands  to 
deal  with  human  beings  at  their  most  weak, 
helpless,  and  dependent  periods  was  a  grave 
trust,  and  there  was  no  career  higher  than  that 
of  good  nurses.  At  the  same  time,  she  con- 
demned thnt  sicklv  sort  of  seiitinii'iit  whii-li  jint 


nurses  apart  from  all  other  people ;  they  were 
not  different  from  otlier  people,  except  tiist 
they  had  more  opportunities  than  other  people. 
It  lay  in  their  hands,  when  everything  else 
had  been  done  for  them,  to  make  nursing  really 
the  highest  of  all  professions.  They  belonged 
to  a  grand  profession,  and  it  was  for  them  to 
uphold  it  in  its  highest  sense.  It  was  theirs 
to  make  their  profession  not  only  beloved  of 
themselves,  but  beloved  of  those  with  whom 
they  came  in  contact,  bj'  the  force  of  their  own 
character  and  by  the  beauty  of  their  own  lives. 


We  are  now  quite  used  to  the  little 
"  tweepie"  in  the  suburbs  masquerading  iu 
nurse's  uniform  when  she  wheels  the  family 
twins  in  public  places,  but  it  remains  for  a 
Liverpool  nurse  to  report  that  when  she  re- 
cently entered  one  of  the  largest  drapery 
establishments  in  the  city,  she  found  the  youug 
lady  who  served  at  the  perfumery  counter  clad 
in  the  orthodox  uniform  of  the  hospital  sister. 
She  asks  why  should  not  our  uniform  be  sacred 
to  the  nursing  profession '.'  We  reply  because 
there  is  no  nursing  profession,  and  until  an  Act 
of  Parliament  secures  to  nurses  legal  status 
they  have  no  more  distinctive  standing  in  the 
body  politic  than  a  "  tweenie  "  maid  I  The 
chaotic  condition  of  nursing  and  the  helpless 
position  of  nurses  is  the  fault  of  those  trained 
nurses  who  are  too  apathetic  to  co-operate  to 
organise  their  own  work,  and  thus  acquire  the 
power  to  prevent  themselves  being  exploited  on 
all  sides  as  they  are  at  present. 


The  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Royal  City  of 
Dublin  Hospital  was  held  on  March  31st  in  the 
hospital.  The  Earl  of  Pembroke,  G.C.V.O., 
one  of  the  Vice-Patrons,  presided.  There  was 
a  large  attendance  of  both  ladies  and  gentle- 
men. The  report  of  the  Directors  states  that 
there  was  an  increase  of  patients  in  all  the  ex- 
tern departments,  but  a  decrease  in  the  intern 
owing  to  the  closing  of  some  of  the  wards  for 
structural  alterations.  The  year  closed  with 
a  debit  balance  of  .^1,716  14s.  Id.  The  Chair- 
man in  the  course  of  his  remarks  said  that  he 
was  very  glad  to  see  present  Miss  Helen 
Shuter,  their  late  Matron.  He  could  only  ex- 
press his  regret  that  they  had  lost  her  services. 
He  also  gave  a  hearty  welcome  to  her  succes- 
sor, Miss  Edith  Eddison. 


As  we  go  to  press,  a  concert  which  promises 
to  be  a  great  success,  is  being  held  in  Dublin 
in  support  of  Lady  Dudley's  Nursing  Scheme. 
It  is  one  of  three,  organised  by  Lord  Shaftis- 
bury  for  this  excellent  object,  the  others  taking 
place  in  Belfast  and  Cork.     Lord  Shaftesbury 


^Df*  Brttt^b  journal  of  IRursing. 


[April  9,  1910 


will  himself  sing  several  songs,  and  Lady  j\Iaud 
Warreuder,  and  Lady  Speyer  will  "also  take 
part  in  the  programme.  The  funds  of  the 
Scheme  are  at  present  not  sufficient  to  allow  of 
any  extension  of  the  work,  greatly  as  this  is 
needed,  and  the  Committee  are  faced  with  the 
possibility,  unless  the  annual  income  is  con- 
siderably increased,  of  a  curtailment  becoming 
necessary,  so  we  hope  a  substantial  sum  will 
be  added  to  the  Fund  by  these  concerts. 

j\lr.  Morton  (Sutherland,  Min.),  in  the 
House  of  Commons  on  Tuesday,  questioned 
the  President  of  the  Local  Government  Board 
as  to  the  circumstances  connected  with  the 
bathing  fatalities  at  the  Hemel  Hempstead 
Workhouse  in  October.  Mr.  Burns  stated  that 
the  circumstances  were  most  carefully  investi- 
gated by  the  officers  of  his  Department,  and 
also  received  his  close  personal  attention.  The 
conclusions  arrived  at  were  indicated  in  the 
letters  addressed  to  the  Hemel  Hempstead 
Guardians,  and  the  Workhouse  Nui'sing  Asso- 
ciation in  December,  and  he  saw  no  reason  to 
depart  from  them.  No  advantage,  in  his 
opinion,  would  result  from  further  enquiry. 
He  did  not  think,  in  justice  to  Nurse  Bellamy, 
that  her  friends  were  well  advised  in  pressing 
for  a  reconsideration  of  her  case. 

The  trouble  goes  deeper  than  is  indicated  by 
any  single  case,  and  is  one  more  instance  of 
the  need  for  the  maintenance  of  a  definite  stan- 
dard of  nursing  education  under  State 
authority.  Guardiaris  could  then  have  a  guar- 
antee that  the  nui'ses  whom  they  engage  are 
efficiently  educated  for  their  responsible  duties, 
\\-hich  would  render  such  tragedies  as  the 
Hemel  Hempstead  one  almost  impossible.  The 
Local  Government  Board  is  responsible  for  the 
care  of  thousands  of  sick  pei-sons  throughout 
the  kingdom,  and  so  has  a  greater  interest  in 
the  maintenance  of  efficient  standards  of  nurs- 
ing education  than  any  other  Government  De- 
partment.   

At  the  Annual  fleeting  of  St.  George's  Hos- 
jjital  Nursing  Association,  Bombay,  last  month, 
at  which  Sir  Walter  Hughes  presided,  a  report 
on  the  nursing  in  the  war-ds  by  Lieut. -Colonel 
M.  A.  T.  Colhe,  M.B.,  I. M.S.,  the  Physician 
in  charge  of  the  hospital,  was  presented,  and  in 
expressing  their  satisfaction  at  the  efficiency  of 
the  work  done  by  the  hospital  and  private  nurs- 
ing stafts  during  the  year,  the  Committee  re- 
corded their  appreciation  of  the  services  ren- 
dered by  ^liss  ]Mill,  the  Lady  Superintendent, 
and  ^liss  Walters,  the  Assistant  Lady  Super- 
intendent, to  whose  energy  and  zeal  in  the 
welfare  and  progress  of  the  Institution  this 
efficiency  is  mainly  due.  They  also  report  a 
considerable  improvement  in  the  health  of  the 
nursing  staff  during  the  vear. 


IReflcctlons. 


From  a  Board  Room  Mibeoe. 
The  Duke  of  Xorthuml>erland,  President  of  the 
Royal  Sanitary  Institut^e,  will  preside  at  the  annual 
dinner  to  be  held  in  tlie  Langliam  Hotel  on  May 
2oth.  Among  others  who  will  be  present  are  Sir 
Thomas  Barlow,  Sir  William  Selby  Church,  Sir 
.John  Cockburn,  and  JMr.  Henry  T.  Butlin. 

The  tablet  which  has  been  placed  over  the  bed 
at  the  Seamen's  Hospital,  Greenwich,  endowed  by 
the  Emperor  of  Japan,  w-ill  Ije  unveiled  by  the 
Japanese  Amba."*sador  on  Wedne.sday,  April  13th. 
His  Graee  the  Duke  of  Marltx)ix)ugli  has  promised 
to  attend  in  order  to  receive  his  Excellency. 


The  long-standing  controversy  over  the  div 
position  of  the  sunrol  £100,000"  left  by  Mr.  Ben- 
jamin Weir  for  a  Cottage  Hospital  for  the  Streat- 
bam  neighbourhood,  culminated  in  an  appeal  by 
the  Wandsworth  Corix)ration  against  an  order  of 
the  Chai'ity  Commissioners,  luider  which  a  con- 
siderable portion  of  the  endowment  is  allocated  to 
BolingbiX)ke  Hospital  at  Battereea.  Tlie  matter 
was  argued  before  Mr.  Justice  Eve  in  the  High 
Court  of  Justice  last  week,  when  it  was  maintained 
that  the  money  thus  applied  would  confer  more 
benefit  on  Streatham  than  any  local  institution. 


Owing  to  the  illness  of  Dr.  A.  J.  Martin,  the 
meeting  of  the  Royal  Sanitary  Institute,  at  which 
he  was  to  have  spoken  on  April  6th,  has  been  post- 
poned. 


The  total  amount  raised  this  year  by  the  Salva- 
tion Army's  "self-denial"'  collection  has  been 
£69,034. 


Grimsby  Hospital  was  last  \\eek  presented  by  the 
Working  Men's  Committee  with  a  light  depart- 
ment eqnipjied  with  every  apparatus  for  the  light 
cure  of  diseases  and  X-ray  work.  The  installation, 
which  was  said  to  l>e  the  finest  in  the  provinces,  was 
the  gift  of  the  Charity  Gala  Committee,  who  have 
already  presented  the  institution  with  two  new 
wards  and  large  sums  of  money.  In  making  the 
presentation  the  Chairman  said  that  the  Com- 
mittee's next  gift  would  take  the  form  of  a  tube  of 
radium  to  enable  the  surgeons  to  battle  success- 
fullv  with  the  scourge  of  cancer. 


The  programme  of  the  Eighth  Quinquennial  In- 
ternational Prison  Congi'ess,  to  be  held  in  Wash- 
ington next  October,  is  divided  into  four  sections. 
Section  IV.  p:ioix>unds  questions  with  regaixl  to 
children  and  j'oung  pensons — special  institutions 
are  suggested  for  defective  children  displaying 
criminal  tendencies,  the  condition  of  homeless 
children  in  large  towns  ismeutioned  for  discussion, 
and  delegates  are  invited  to  describe  what  measures 
are  taken  in  their  .several  countries  to  protect 
illegitimate  children.  Sir  Evelyn  Rnggles^Brise  has 
been  appointed  to  represent  tlie  British  Govern- 
ment at  the  Congress,  and  members  of  tli? 
Scottish  and  Irish  Prison  Commissions  will  attend. 


April  9,   1910J 


^be  3Brit(sb  3ournai  ot  iHursiiuj, 


293 


Iprofcssional  IRcvtcw. 

THE  REPORTS  OF  THE  AMERICAN  SOCIETY  OF 
SUPERINTENDENTS  AND  THE  AMERICAN 
FEDERATION  OF  NURSES. 

A  most  iiit<.'restiiig  aiiiiiial  volume  is  always  the 
Hcport  of  the  American  Society  of  Snperiiit«iKlent3 
of  Training  Schools  for  Xurses,  the  tifteentli  num- 
ber of  which  is  now  issued.  It  has  an  added  int^r- 
t'st  this  year,  as  it  includes  for  the  first  time  the 
Report  of  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  American 
Federation  of  Nurses,  in  wliich  the  Xurses'  Asso- 
ciated Aluninif  of  the  United  States  is  afifiliated 
w  ith  tlie  Superintendents'  Society.  It  will  be  re- 
mombero<l  that  Miss  A.  W.  Goo<lrich,  R.X.,  Super- 
intendent of  the  Trniuiiifi  School  of  Bellevue  and 
the  Allied  Hospitals,  Xew  York,  represented  the 
Federation  at  the  International  Congress  of 
Nurses  in  London  last  year. 

Mrs.  Hampton  Robb,  who,  as  President,  pre- 
sided at  the  Fifteenth  Annual  Convention  of  the 
Suj)erintendents'  Society,  struck  the  right  note 
when  she  said: — "The  main  reason  for  o\ir  drop- 
ping the  routine  of  our  daily  work,  and  travelling 
long  distjinces  annually,  is  to  confer  together  face 
to  face  over  this  serious  business  of  the  making 
of  the  trained  nurse.  Xor  can  any  programme 
that  may  appear  in  print  ever  wholly  convey  just 
all  that  these  meetings,  or  a  given  subject  in  them, 
ir.ay  hold  for  us ;  to  understand  one  must  read  be- 
tween the  lines;  each  must  bring  her  contribution 
of  interest,  experience,  and  originality,  and  fear- 
lessly say  what  she  thinks.  The  needs  and  condi- 
ditions  of  this  peculiar  work  demand  this  kind  of 
conference,  and  I  think  at  no  time  in  the  existence 
of  Training  Schools  ha*  the  demand  been  so  great 
as  at  present."' 

One  most  interesting  feature  of  the  Superinten- 
dents' meetings  is  always  the  presentation  of  the 
Reports  of  the  various  Committees.  First,  Miss 
Alline,  Treasurer,  presented  the  Financial  Report, 
showing  a  substantial  balance  in  hand.  Miss  ^I. 
A.  X'uttiug.  that  of  the  Committee  on  Education, 
which,  in  accordance  with  the  recjuest  of  the  last 
Annual  Convention,  liad  prepared  an  outline  of 
^■lasses  in  Home  Xursing,  suitable  for  the  use  of 
the  Red  Cross  in  its  various  branches:  Miss  Good- 
rich, Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Hospital 
Economics,  presented  its  report  on  the  Course  at 
Teachers'  College;  amongst  the  instruction  offered 
to  students  during  the  past  year  were  Lectures  on 
Poverty  and  Relief  by  Dr.  Divine,  on  The  In- 
dustrial Family  by  Mrs.  Simkhowitch,  on  Practical 
Economics  by  Professor  Moore,  on  Public  Health 
by  Miss  Lilian  Wakl,  on  Hospital  Administration 
by  Dr.  Irving  Fisher,  and  on  Hospital  Accounts 
and  Book-keeping  by    Dr.   Irving   Fisher. 

The  Report  of  the  Committee  on  Closer  Union  of 
Xursing  Societies  was  presented  by  ^liss  Gladwin. 
Many  of  those  communicated  with  thought  it  would 
lie  a  good  plan  to  try  for  a  few  years  to  have  the 
annual  meetings  in  the  same  place,  and  in  the 
same  week.  Tlie  ensuing  economy  of  time,  energy, 
strength,  and  money  would  mean  larger  and  more 
representative  meetings. 

A    short   paper   on    "'  Training   School    Commit- 


tees '  was  read  by  Miss  Erduian,  who  urged  that 
such  a  committee  is  an  important  factor  in  the 
government  of  the  School  at  the  present  day.  She 
said:  "As  the  Training  School  exists  primarily  for 
the  comfort  and  welfare  of  the  patients,  it  but  em- 
phasises the  fact  that  it  must  be  considered  an  in- 
stitution, of  educ.ition  for  yonng  wonioii  as  nurscc. 
Fortunate"  is  the  Superintendent,  therefore,  that 
ha.s  oducators  ot  the  pa.st  or  pre.sent  represented 
on  the  Committee.  Th<'y  will  bo  in  (sympathy  witli 
her  efforts  to  provide  good  education  and  training, 
and  will  co-oi>erate  and  respond  readily  with  in- 
telligent action  in  all  such  matters." 

Tile  e.Kpert  opinions  and  experience  embodied  m 
these  repiHt.s,  and  .suljsequently  printetl,  are  most 
vahuible,  not  only  to  the  Superintendents'  Society 
in  America,  but  to  the  nui'sing  world  at  large.  Tliey 
also  demonstrate  the  activity  and  influence  of  the 
.Society. 

The  pa{>eis  iwesented  at  the  various  sessions  were 
full  of  practical  wisdom.  Thus,  in  the  discussion 
in  the  paper  ou  "  Training  for  Obstetrical  Xurs- 
ing," presented  by  Miss  Martha  M.  Russell,  R.X.. 
Superintendent  of  the  Sloane  Maternity  Hospital. 
Mi's.  Lounsberry  six>ke  as  follows: — "  In  West  \  ir- 
ginia  obstetrical  nursing  had  become  quite  a 
pioblein.  The  nm-ses  there  say  '  We  cannot  do 
it.'  They  .say  one  case  interferes  with  another; 
that  while  they  are  waiting  for  this  one  case  they 
must  let  another  one  go.  I  think  the  thing  to  do  is 
to  impress  uixni  oitr  pupils  the  fact  that  they  are 
business  women,  and  thoy  .should  take  what  oomes 
into  their  hands,  and  as  it  come-s.  The  type-writer 
does  not  tiini  down  a  letter  because  it  is  long,  or 
because  she  wix)te  one  before,  or  wrote  sixty  yester- 
day. A  clerk  waits  on  a  tiresome  customer  as  well 
as  on  a  pleasant  one.  These  obstetrical  cases  ougnt 
to  be  oonsidcred  from  a  business  ]x>int  of  view,  ami 
our  likes  and  dislikes  put  entirely  out  of  the  way.'' 

Miss  Elsie  M.  Lawler,  R.X.,  of  the  Johns  Hoi>- 
kins  Hospital,  in  a  paper  on  "  The  Xursing  of  Ner- 
vous Diseases,"  quotes  Dr.  Llewellyn  Barker' i< 
opinion  that  the  iiui-se  should  not  be  t<x>  ini- 
matiire.  Many  of  these  patients  come  from  tiie 
educate<l  classes,  and  intellectual  equality,  or  even 
superiority,  on  the  part  of  the  nui-se,  if  not 
e<.sential,  is  highly  desirable.  So  much  is  expected 
of  the  nurse  iii  the  teaching,  apart  from  the  actual 
physical  care  of  these  patients,  that  to  achieve 
sucoe-ss  she  must  ix)v<t\ss  or  acquire  a  certain  skill 
Of  tact  for  the  work.  .She  mentions  that  the  car©  of 
the  nervous  patient  is  very  taxing,  an<l  the  nui-se 
must  be  in  good  condition  physically  and  mentally. 
Rest  and  recreation  are  necessary  in  any  branch  of 
our  work,  but  particularly  so  for  the  nurses  taking 
care  of  the  mentally  disturbc<l.  We  cannot  be 
"cheerful  and  firm."  and  "fight  over  and  over 
again  the  same  fight  "  day  after  day  if  physically 
tireiL 

Miss  Laura  A.  Heecroft,  Suix3rintendent  of 
Xui-ses,  Minnequa  H<xspital,  Pueblo,  in  a  paper  on 
"  Ethics  to  be  Oli^nvod  Between  Training  Schools,  ' 
define<l  ethics,  as  ''  the  .science  of  human  duty." 
Other  valuable  pai>eis  dealt  with  "  Xui.sing  of 
Diseases  of  the  Eye,  Ear.  Xose,  and  Thioat,"  "  Pre- 
paration for  Institutional  Work,"  and  for  "  Private 
Duty." 


294 


^be  BrltiGb  Journal  of  TRursing. 


[April  9,  1910 


®ur  jrorcu3u  letter. 

THE  LARGEST   HOSPITAL  IN   THE  VVORLD. 

Vienna  is 
one  of  tho 
most  attrac- 
tive cities  in 
Europe,  and 
the  Austrians 
are  the  most 
charm  i  n  g 
\  -^^^^|'^^9^^^^^ssss»s=s^^^^  of  i^eoples. 
\  r\\^"-^ — "^^^"  They       com- 

V-^  bine      the 

vivacity  of  the  Italian  with  the  solidarity  of  the 
German,  and  'tis  an  excellent  mixture.  The  very 
name  of  this  gay  city  summons  to  memory  delicious 
strains  of  music,  the  waltz  music  of  Strauss  or 
Gungl,  played  as  it  only  can  be  played  in  the  city 
of  its  birth.  And  who  that  has  ever  tasted 
Austrian  coffee  but  will  wish  to  repeat  the  delight- 
ful experience?  Go  into  any  cafe  in  Vienna  and 
ask  for  a  melange,  and  there  is  brought  to  you  in 
a  tumbler  a  most  delectable  mixture — p^ire  coffee, 
with  a  thick  layer  of  whipped  cream  at  the  top. 
This,  for  the  modest  sum  of  forty  heller,  or  four- 
pence  in  English  money.  The  bread,  too,  how 
good  it  is !  Vienna  bread,  as  we  know  it  in 
London,  is  but  a  pale  copy  of  the  original. 

This  city  possesses  a  splendid  and  probably 
unique  group  of  modern  public  buildings.  The 
Town  Hall,  Houses  of  Parliament,  Court  Museum, 
and  Opera  House,  the  Emperor's  Palace,  the  Town 
Theatre,  and  that  exquisite  gem  of  modern  archi- 
tecture, with  its  twin  lace-like  spires,  the  Votive 
Church,  are  all  situated  in  the  same  quarter  of 
the  town,  w^hich  they  render  both  imposing  and 
beautiful. 

But  the  Imperial  and  Royal  General  Hospital 
does  not  stand  amongst  these  princely  buildings, 
and,  except  as  regards  size,  is  not  at  all  an  im- 
posing structure.  It  is  built  in  nineteen  quad- 
rangles, and  has  a  very  monastic  appearance,  and 
naturally  covers  a  great  extent  of  ground. 

The  Hospital  can  make  up  3,000  beds,  and  re- 
ceives about  30,000  patients  annually.  There  are 
131   wards,   varying   much   in  size. 

It  is  not  of  a  venerable  age,  but  was  founded 
by  Joseph  II.  towards  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  This  Emperor  only  reigned  ten  years, 
from  1780  to  1790.  He  seoms  to  have  been  a  man 
of  very  good  intentions.  The  following  prayer, 
ascribed  to  him,  has  been  preserved: — "Lord, 
Thou  Who  alone  canst  read  my  heart,  knowest 
right  well  that  every  act  of  mine  has  been  done 
with  a  view  to  my  subjects'  welfare."  And  he  is 
said  to  have  suggested  as  his  own  epitaph  :  — "  Here 
lies  a  monarch  whose  intentions  were  of  the  purest 
kind,  but  who  had  the  misfortune  to  see  all  his 
undertakings  ruined." 

Very  possibly  the  Kaiserliche  and  Konigliche 
Krankeuhaus  at  Vienna  suffered  from  the  outset 
by  haste  in  its  foundation. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  medical  science,  the 
institution  is  justly  renowned.  At  the  present 
time  probably  the  greatest  of  living  aurists  has 
his  clinique  here. 


But  many  other  aspects  have  to  be  considered 
in  the  arrangements  of  a  house  for  the  sick,  and 
certainly  when  I  visited  this  hospital  some  few- 
years  ago  the  arrangement  and  organisation  of  the 
vast  building  left  much  to  be  desired.  The  wards 
we  passed  through  had  a  desolate  look,  and  were 
rather  dark ;  indeed,  there  was  a  want  of  l>oth 
light  and  air,  nor  did  we  think  that  the  sanitation 
of   the   hospital   was   above  suspicion. 

It  is  a  usual  custom  for  young  American  doctors 
to  finish  their  medical  and  surgical  education  in 
Eurojie,  and  many  of  them  go  to  Vienna  for  that 
purpose.  I  well  remember  the  indignant  remarks 
made  by  one  or  two  of  these  students  as  to  the 
treatment  of  patients  at  this  hospital.  While  they 
were  full  of  admiration  for  the  great  skill  and 
cleverness  of  the  Viennese  doctors,  they  considered 
that  some  of  these  practitioners  betrayed  a  terrible 
lack  of  sympathy  and  tender  care  towards  the 
sick  under  their  control.  "  Brutal,"  I  think,  was 
the  W'ord  one  of  these  young  Americans  used  in  this 
connection. 

Possibly  some  of  the  faults  noticeable  in  this 
hospital  are  due  to  its  unwieldy  size.  And  pro- 
bably there  have  been  many  changes  for  the  better 
since  I  was  there.  It  may  even  be  that  the  trained 
nurse,  as  we  in  America  and  England  understand 
the  term,  has  found  her  way  into  this,  the  largest 
hospital  in  the  world,  and  has  already  worked 
wonders  in  it. 

R.\y   Merton. 

[Nursing  in  Austria  still  leaves  much  to  be  de- 
sired. Tlie  President  of  the  International  Council 
of  Nui-ses  has  it  in  mind,  and  we  hoyye  to  stir  up 
interest  at  Cologne  in  1912. — Ed.] 


^bc  Ibistorv  of  tbe  IRise  of  tbe 
IRurstng  professton. 

The  only  comijlete  and  authenticated  history  of 
the  professional  organisation  of  Nursing  is  to  be 
found  in  the  Nuksing  Record,  and  now  the 
British  JonRNAL  of  Nursing.  This  file  of  forty- 
three  volumes  is  now  becoming  exceedingly  valuable' 
from  a  historic  standpoint,  and  every  copy  extant 
should  be  secured  by  Nursing  Associations  in  this 
country. 

Owing  to  the  educational  perspicuity  of  Miss 
Adelaide  Nutting,  there  are  to  be  found  complete 
files  of  this  Journal  at  Teachers'  College,  Colum- 
bia University,  New  York  City,  and  in  the  Library 
of  the  Nursing  School  attached  to  the  Johns  Hop- 
kins Hospital  at  Baltimore,  U.S.A. 

By  and  bye  other  countries  affiliated  to  the 
International  Council — all  of  which  should  aim  at 
possessing  a  Library  of  International  Nursing 
Literature — will  require  them,  and  it  is  to  be 
feared  they  will  not  be  procurable.  A  reader  of 
the  Journal  is  prepared  to  sell  bound  volumes,  18 
\a  all,  from  1892  to  1900,  inclusive.  These  volumes 
should  be  secured  in  the  hope  of  obtaining  those 
published  from  1888  from  another  source.  Tho 
Editor  will  be  pleased  to  hear  from  any  Associa  ■ 
tion  of  Nurses  desirous  of  securing  them. 


April  9,  1910] 


tTbc  Britisb  3ournaI  of  ittursino. 


295 


©iitsibcTtbc  GatC5. 


WOMEN. 

The  now  Scciot«ry  of 
State  for  tlie  Home  De- 
partment lias  been  well 
advised  to  at  once  put 
an  end  to  the  scandalous 
manner  in  wliich  liis 
predecessor,  now  Ix>rd 
Gladstone,  at  tempt o<l  to 
crush  out  in  prison  the 
militant  demand  of  women  for  their  rightful  statii.s 
in  the  IkmIv  i>olitic.  the  Draft  Rule  proix>se<l  fortlie 
amelioration  of  pri.son  treatment  for  offendere  in 
tli«*  second  and  third  division  re«<ls  as  folloA<"s: — 

"  In  puisuance  of  the  power  conforie<l  on  me  by 
the  Prison  Act,  1898,  I  hereby  make  the  following 
rule,  to  be  added  after  Rule  243  of  the  Rules  for 
Ijooal  Prisons  made  on  April  21st.  1899: — 

"  243a. — In  the  case  of  any  offeiidor  of  the  .st-cond 
or  third  division  whose  previous  character  is  good, 
and  who  has  lieeu  convicted  of,  or  committed  to 
prison  for,  an  offence  not  involving  dishonesty, 
cruelty,  indecency,  or  serious  violence,  the  Prison 
Commissioneiis  may  allow  such  amelioration  of  the 
c<juditions  prescnlxsl  in  the  foregoing  rules  as  the 
Secretary  of  State  may  approve  in  respect  of  the 
wearing  of  prison  clothing,  bathing,  hair-cutting, 
cleaning  of  cells,  employment,  exercise,  books,  and 
otheiTvise. 

'■  Provide<l  that  no  such  amelioration  shall  be 
greater  than  that  granted  under  the  rules  for 
offendere  of  the  first  division." 


The  Earl  of  Lytton  has  written  to  the  press  pro- 
testing against,  the  official  imputation  of  untruth- 
fulness on  the  part  of  his  sister.  Lady  Constance 
Lytton,  by  the  Home  Office,  in  oonnectoin  with  her 
treatment  in  prison  as  "aladyinher  own  right,"  and 
a.s  ]X)or,  unknown  "Jane  Wharton"  in  the  New- 
castle and  Liverpool  gaols  respectively.  I^ord 
Lytton  leaves  the  public  to  form  their  own 
oi)inions  of  the  justice  of  a  Government  Depart- 
ment which  brings  accusations  of  untruthfulness 
against  an  individual  while  refusing  the  only  means 
by  which  the  truth  can  be  established.  I/ct  us 
hope  now  tliat  a  new  .Secretary  of  State  has  happily 
Ijeen  installed  at  the  Home  Office  we  shall  h<^r  no 
more  of  the  brutal  ill-usage  of,  and  assaults  on, 
women  political  prisoners,  which  have  impressed 
with  the  deepest  resentment  the  minds  of  all  self- 
respecting  women,  and  which  have  brought  the 
Home  Office  of  late  years  into  the  greatest  dis- 
repute in  our  Colonies  and  other  civilised  countries. 


The  Rowton  Houses  and  other  lodging-houses 
provide  comfortable  lodgings  for  men,  but  women 
who  need  cheap  lodgings  of  a  similar  type  are  but 
ill  piovided  for.  An  experiment  is  about  to  bo 
made  in  the  parish  of  Holy  Trinity,  Woolwich,  in 
which  there  is  a  large  common  lodging-hou.so  popu- 
lation, to  provide  such  a  house,  which  will  be 
carried  on  without  any  desire  for  personal  profit, 
under  Church  management,  and  with  this  object  a 


building,  until  recently  used  as  a  public-house, 
has  Ijeen  taken.  The  Bishop  of  Woolwich,  in  a  letter 
to  the  i>ress,  Sfiys  that  when  once  fairly  stai-ted  it 
is  conhdeiitly  exix>cted  that  the  house  will  be  self- 
supporting,  but  that  to  funiish  the  house  in  the 
simplest  manner,  to  effect  needful  repaire,  and  to 
satisfy  the  requirements  of  the  L.C.C.,  about  £3-50 
is  now  nee<l<Hl.  He  believes  that  the  establish- 
ment of  tlie  house  will  be  heartily  welcomed  by 
many  .struggling  women  who  at  present  are  com- 
pelled to  live  in  circumstances  which  tend  to  en- 
courage or  confirm  them  in  vicious  habits. 


In  addition  to  the  election  of  Miss  Cleghorn,  of 
Slieffield,  as  Vice-President  of  the  National 
Union  of  Teachere,  five  women  have  been  elected  to 
seats  on  the  Executive  Committee. 


Book  of  tbe  Meeh. 


AN  INTERRUPTED  FRIENDSHIP.* 
One  takes  up  a  new  book  by  the  author  of  "  The 
Gadfly"  with  mingled  feelings,  for  it  abides  in 
the  memory  as  unutterably  sad,  albeit  it  was 
arresting,  compelling,  and  the  personality  of 
Arthur. — lovable,  dominating,  tragic,  defiant — so 
vivid  in  quality,  that  his  memory  remains  with 
us  as  that  of  a  dear  friend  rather  than  of  a 
character  in  fiction. 

The  present  book  begins  with  the  funeral  of  the 
wife  of  the  Marquis  de  Martcurelles,  whose  death 
shook  to  its  foundations  the  life  of  her  husband — 
a  middle-aged  Egyptologist.  "She  had  been  a 
mother  to  him  as  well  as  a  wife,  had  kept  the 
.strain  of  poverty  off  him,  and  sheltered  him  from 
all  the  jars  and  frets  of  domesticity;  he  had  never 
known  anything  about  her,  or  suspected  that  there 
was  anything  to  know ;  she  had  been  just 
Fraui^ise."  She  had  had  a  "  desperate  and 
unaided  fight  against  the  typhus  fever  which  had 
.seized  on  three  of  her  children,  and  she  had  risked 
her  own  life,  and  protected  that  of  her  husband  as 
a  matter  of  course.  Distinguished  scholars  were 
too  precious  to  be  allowed  to  run  risks.  He,  for 
his  part,  had  refrained  from  interference,  not  out 
of  cowardice,  but  simply  because  he  never  inter- 
fered. He  had  every  confidence  in  Fran(;H5ise,  and 
would  no  more  have  thought  of  questioning  her 
judgment  in  practical  matters  than  she  of  dis- 
puting his  on  a  papyrus.  Now,  having  saved  one 
child,  she  had  followed  two  others  out  of  the  world 
with  no  more  exalted  dying  sentiments  than  a 
gentle  anxiety  as  to  whether  the  servants  would 
keep  the  children  neat  and  make  the  coffee  pro- 
perly when  she  was  no  longer  there  to  attend  to 
things  herself." 

The  first  duty  which  faced  the  Marquis  was  the 
future  care  of  his  children.  Marguerite,  the  baby 
girl,  had  been  allowed  to  fall  downstairs  during 
his  absence  at  the  funeral;  Henri,  the  eldest  boy, 
just  recovering  from  the  fever,  had  been  sent  to 
the    funeral    in    thin    shoes,   and    became    again 

*  By  E.  L.  Voynich.  (Hutchinson  and  Co., 
Paternoster  Row,   London,   E.C.) 


296 


tn^e  36rit:0b  3ouniaI  of  IRurstng. 


LApril  9,  1910 


dangerously  ill.  So  Marguerite  went  to  the  care 
of  a  maiden  auut,  Heuri  to  the  Cistercian"  College 
in  Avallou,  and  Rene  to  an  uncle  in  England. 
AMien  Bene  returned  home  at  the  age  of  18,  it  was 
t-o  find  his  sister  a  confirmed  invalid,  physically 
crippled  and  mentally  starved,  docile  outwardly, 
raging  inwardly,  in  the  care  of  the  kind,  well- 
meaning  aunt.  Owing  to  his  iniluence  she  is 
brought  home,  and  a  strong  and  beautiful  friend- 
ship is  established   between  the  two. 

It  is  to  meet  the  expense  of  treatment  for  Mar- 
guerite that  Rene  went  otit  to  South  America  with 
an  exploring  expedition.  The  story  of  the  expedi- 
tion is  well  written,  and  we  are  deep  in  it  before 
«-e  discover  in  it  an  episode  in  the  life  of  "The 
Gadfly.  "  Duprez,  the  commander,  and  Dr.  Mar- 
chand — gruff,  taciturn,  and  drowning  his  private 
grief  in  occasional  outbursts  of  drinking — are  both 
well  drawn  characters,  but  it  is  Felix  Rivarez,  in- 
terpreter, and  many  other  things  besides,  who 
chiefly  holds  one's  attention.  His  friendship  with 
Rene — abruptly  broken  because  Felix  not  under- 
standing how  much  intuition  can  teach  a  loving. 
woman  believes  liis  secret  to  have  been  betrayed 
by  his  friend — was  a  beautiful  thing.  If  life  had 
not  dealt  so  unkindly  with  Felix,  he  would  scarcely 
have  believed  the  worst,  or  dealt  so  hardly  with 
the  man  who  had  always  been  true  and  loyal  to 
him,  without  seeking  an  explanation. 

Rene's  summing  up  of  the  situation  is  to  be 
found  in  a  bit  of  advice  to  one  of  his  own  boys. 
•■  If  you  should  ^er  come  across  any  one  who 
setms  to  you  .  .  .  different  from  yourself  and 
all  the  rest  of  tis — one  of  the  rare  spirits  that  go 
through  the  world  like  stars,  radiating  light^ — try 
to  remember  that  it  is  a  great  privilege  to  know 
such  persons,  but  a  dangerous  thing  to  love  them 
too  much.  The  little  personal  joys  and  sorrows 
and  affections,  that  are  everything  to  us  ordinary 
mortals,  are  not  big  enougli  to  fill  the  lives  of 
such  folk,  and  if  we  set  our  hearts  on  their  friend- 
ship, and  think  we  possess  it,  the  chances  are  that 
we  are  only  Ixiring  them  all  the  time.  .  .  .  They 
put  up  with  us  out  of  compassion,  or  because  they 
are  grateful  for  any  service  we  may  have  been 
lucky  enough  to  do  them.  Then,  when  we  wear 
their  patience  right  out,  and  it  breaks  down  sud- 
denly— that's  lx)und  to  happen  at  last,  because, 
after  all,  they're  only  human — then  it's  a  bit  late 
for  us  to  start  life  again."  P.   G.  Y. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

April  9th. — The  Infirmary,  Clev<jland  Street, 
London,  W.  A  meeting  will  be  held  at  the  In- 
firmary, by  invitation  of  the  Matron,  Miss  Char- 
lott-6  Leigh,  to  inaugurate  the  Cleveland  Street 
Branch  of  the  Central  London  Sick  Asylum  Nurses' 
League.     4.30  p.m. 

April  12th.— Guy's  Hospital,  S.E.,Post-Graduate 
Lectures.  "  Recent  Changes  in  Treatment 
in  Medical  Wards."  By  H.  C.  Cameron, 
Esq.,  M.D.     Nurses'  Home,  8  p.m. 


Xcttevs  to  the  jeMtor. 


?  Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
nunications  upon  all  subject» 
Jor  these  columns,  we  xcish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  ue  do  not  in  ant  wa's 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  out 
correspondents. 


OUR  GUINEA  PRIZE. 
To  the  Editor  oj  the  "  British  ■Journal  of  Xursing." 
DE.\n  M.\DAM, — Very  many  thanks  for  the  prize 
cheque  of  £1  Is.  for  my  paper  on  "  Old  Sisters." 
I  was  much  surprised,  as  well  as  pleased,  when  I 
found  I  was  the  successful  competitor.  With  best 
wishes  for  the  continued  success  of  the  B.J.N. 
I   am, 

Yours  faithfully, 

E.    M.   Dickson. 
De    Warren   House,   Northfleet,   Kent. 


NURSING  SHOULD  BE  TAUGHT  BY  NURSES. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  BritisJi  Journal  of  Nursing.'' 
Dear  M.^dam, — I  am  very  glad  that  Miss  Burr 
has  written  about  the  question  of  nurses  giving  the 
lectures  on  Nursing  to  the  women  of  the  Voluntary 
Aid  Detachments.  I  have  been  endeavouring  to- 
rouse  people  to  a  sense  of  the  incongruity  that 
forbids  the  lectures  to  be  given  by  the  expert !  I 
laid  the  case  before  the  Secretary  of  the  Red  Cross 
Society  about  ten  days  ago,  telling  him  I  could  get 
nursing  authorities  to  support  my  opinion.  I  have 
not  yet  received  his  answer.  But  if  your  influen- 
tial paper  will  take  the  matter  up  I  cannot  lielp 
hoping  that  the  rule  may  be  rescinded. 
I  am,  yours  faithfully, 

E.  L.  C.  Eden. 
Tlie  Grange,  Kinaston,  Taunton. 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 
"  Ti'ue  friends  visit   \is  in   prosiJority  only  when 
invited,  but  in  adversity  they  come  without  invife- 
tion." 


To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing ." 
Dear  Madam, — In  this  week's  issue  of  the 
Bkitish  Jottrnal  of  Nursing,  page  2.58,  there  is 
a  question  of  trained  nurses  giving  both  First  Aid 
and  Nursing  Lectures  for  Women.  In  the  first 
place  I  fear  it  would  never  answer,  for  nurses 
could  not  leave  their  patients  for  so  long  a  time  as 
a  doctor  can,  and  these  lectures  are,  in  very  many 
cases,  only  given  in  the  evening  when  patients  are 
needing  the  nurse  most,  and  most  doctors  have 
done  their  duties.  I  should  think  the  lady  in  ques- 
tion who  was  taking  the  lectures  was  not  interested 
in  the  subject.  I  have  been  an  active  member 
of  the  St.  John  Ambulance  Brigade  for  over  18 
years,  and  during  that  time  have  assisted  many 
doctors  with  the  classes,  lx)th  First  Aid  and  Nurs- 
ing, and  have  never  met  such  a  lecturer  as  the  one 
named.  The  St.  John  Ambulance  Brigade  is  far 
from  antiquated  or  narrow-minded,  the  Brigade  is 
making  very  rapid  strides,  they  are  a  body  of  men 
and  women  who  are  vohintarn  workers,  and  have 
done  noble  service  to  the  public;  also  many  hun- 
dreds of  the  St.  John  Ambulance   men    did  noble 


April  9,  1910] 


Zbc  IBritlsb  3ournal  of  IRuretnG. 


297 


work  in  the  late  war,  both  as  First  Aiders  and 
nurses,  tlierefore  showing  that  our  noble  band  of 
doctors  did  give  First  Aid  and  also  nursing  lec- 
tures in  a  most  perfect  manner.  Both  the  men 
and  Xursing  Sisters  have  the  same  lectures,  and 
by  the  same  lecturers.  I  ara  sure  the  trained 
nur.ses  could  not  possibly  give  the  lectures  so  well 
as  our  doctors,  and  am  sure  they  would  not  have 
such  good  results  from  their  classes.  I  would  invite 
those  who  do  not  think  our  doctors  are  able  to  give 
the  lectures  to  visit  some  of  the  open  spaces  on 
Bank  Holidays,  and  the  exhibitions,  and  see  the 
work  the  members  of  the  Brigade  do;  they  would 
then  find  the  results  of  the  doctors'  lectures  were 
very  good  indeed. 

I  am  sorry  to  trouble  you  with  such  a  long  letter, 
but  could  not  let  this  matter  pass  without  letting 
vou  know  all  our  doctors  are  good  lecturers. 
I  remain,  yours  truly, 

Elizabeth  Brukning, 
Second  Xursing  Officer  of  yuTsing 
Division,    St.  John  Ambulance 
Brigade. 

Beckenham,  S.E. 

[Our  correspondent  is  not  a  trained  nurse,  so 
that  her  point  of  view  is  not  strictly  a  professional 
one. — Ed.] 

A  GRAVE    INJUSTICE. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Madam, — Will  you  allow  me  to  call  attention 
to  a  proposed  grave  injustice  to  thousands  of  poor 
women?  At  present,  when  a  woman  in  her  liour 
of  trial  is  attended  by  a  midwife,  the  midwife  is 
required  by  Statute  to  summon  a  doctor  if  any 
complication  ensues.  Xo  provision  is  at  present 
made  for  the  payment  of  the  doctor  whom  the 
State,  not  the  patient,  insists  on  summoning.  This 
is  an  injustice  to  the  doctor. 

Now,  the  Government  proposes  (in  the  Bill  just 
introduced  by  Lord  Wolverhampton)  to  require  the 
Board  of  Guardians  to  pay  the  fee  (as  parochial  re- 
lief to  the  woman  and  her  husband).  This  is  a 
grave  injustice  to  these  poor  farailice.  The  woman 
and  her  husband  are  not  paupers — they  are  not 
e\eu  destitute  persons.  Through  the  exercise  of 
thrift  they  have  made  for  themselves  the  normal 
provision  for  childbirth  of  their  class,  i.e.,  a  mid- 
wife. The  Government  proi>oses  to  make  them 
compulsorily  into  paupers  (even  if  they  subse- 
quently repay  the  full  amount  it  makes  no  differ- 
ence in  this  respect) ;  their  homes  will  be  visit-ed 
by  the  Relieving  Officer  with  his  hated  enquiries, 
often  to  the  detriment  (as  any  nurse  or  midwife 
will  testify)  of  the  woman's  l^ealth ;  they  will  b© 
liable  to  be  proceeded  against  by  the  Board  of 
Guardians,  if  (as  is  intended  by  Clause  17,  sub- 
douse  2),  the  "  relief  "  is  given  "on  loan,"  and 
compelled  to  repay  a  charge  which  they  have  never 
incurred,  but  which  the  State,  in  the  public  in- 
terest, has  chosen  to  require. 

I  cannot  believe  that  the  House  of  Lords  will 
choose  this  moment  to  thrust  thousands  of  i)oor 
women  involuntarily  into  pauperism ;  or  that  the 
House  of  Commons  will  think  of  tolerating  such  an 
injustice. 

When  the  police  call  a  doctor  to  attend  to  a 
patient  in  an  emergency,  the  fee  is  paid  out  of  the 


nirnicipal  funds,  and  the  patient  is  not  thereby 
made  a  pauper.  The  Town  Councils  of  Manches- 
ter and  Liverpool  are  already,  with  the  knowledge 
and  consent  of  the  IxKjal  Government  Board,  fol- 
lowing a  similar  course  with  regard  to  the  doctors 
called  in  by  the  midwives;  and  this  course  is  open 
to  any  other  sanitary  authority  (under  section  133 
of  the  Public  Health  Act).  There  is  accordingly 
no  need  for  the  degrading  and  insulting  Clause 
17  of  Lord  Wolverhampton's  Bill ;  and  I  hope  that 
the  Government  will  withdraw  it. 
I  am,  etc., 

Beatrice  Webb. 
(Mrs.  Sidney  Webb) 
41,  Grosvenor  Road,  S.W.. 


LIPS  SHOULD  BE  SEALED. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Xursing." 

De.ar  Madam, — I  was  very  nmch  interested  in 
your  Editorial  of  a  week  ago,  entitled  "  A  Qxies- 
tion  of  Honour."  I  have  had  a  great  deal  to  do 
with  nurses  in  one  way  or  another  for  many  years. 
One  does  not  like  to  discuss  the  failings  of  such 
a  splendid  band  of  women  as  Hiey  are,  but  I  must 
say  that  the  way  many  of  them  talk  and  write 
about  their  patients  is  unpardonable.  Not  only 
do  they  entertain  (?)  one  patient  with  the  story 
of  the  illnesses  and  weaknessec  of  others,  but  they 
write  to  their  own  people  letters  detailing  the 
faults  (as  they  consider  them)  of  the  patient  whom 
they  are  nursing,  and  the  patient's  friends.  One 
nurse  said  to  me:  "  Surely  one  can  write  what  one 
likes  to  one's  mother."  My  answer  was:  "What 
would  be  thought  of  a  doctor  who  gave  his  mother, 
or  relatives,  details  of  his  patients    by  name?  " 

One  cannot  understand  how  ladies  can  be  led 
into  such  a  grave  fault,  but  I  believe  the  fact 
is  that  many  nurses  do  not  distinguish  between  the 
personal  and  the  professional.  One  can  writ©  what 
one  likes  of  personal  things  to  mother  or  best  be- 
loved friend,  but  on  professional  matters  lips 
should  be  sealed. 

I  believe  nurses  have  only  to  realise  this  to  cor- 
rect a  failing  which  is  talked  of  a  good  deal 
among  all  classes  of  patients. 

Yours  sincerely, 

A  Lover  of  Nurses. 

fWe  regret  that  pressure  on  our  space  comp'els 
us  to  hold  over  other  interesting  letters. — Ed.] 


Comments  anb  TReplics. 

Sister  E.  Tompkins,  North  Ormesby. — We  feel 
sure  that  if  you  call  at  the  Policlinico  Hospital, 
Rome,  and  ask  for  the  Matron,  Miss  Dorothy 
Snell,  presenting  your  card,  she  will  be  pleased  to 
show  you  the  hospital. 

Miss  van  Lanschot  Hubrecht,  Holland. — "  The 
School  Child  "  may  be  obtained  from  the  Editor, 
67,  Belsize  Park  Gardens,  London,  X.W.,  price 
Is.  per  annum,  postage  extra. 

IHotice. 

OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing  for  the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  zii. 


208 


Zbc  Britisb  Jountal  of  IHursino  Supplement.    [Apnio.  ma 


The    Midwife. 


Zbc  nl^i^\vi\>es'  act,  loio. 

When  the  Midwives  Act  became  law  ou  July 
31st,  1902,  its  full  comiug  into  operation  was 
delayed,  under  the  provisions  of  the  Act,  until 
April  1st,  1910.  Henceforth  no  woman  may, 
habitually  and  for  gain,  attend  women  in  child- 
birth otherwise  than  under  the  direction  of  a 
qualified  medical  practitioner,  unless  certified 
under  the  Act.  This  for  the  first  time  brings 
the  practice  of  all  unqualified  and  ignorant 
women  under  supervision,  as  the  untrained 
women  who  were  admitted  to  tue  Roll  of  Mid- 
wives  at  the  passing  of  the  Act,  on  the  ground 
that  they  had  been  in  bond  fide  practice  for  at 
least  one  year  at  the  time,  are  already  known 
to  the  Local  Supervising  Authorities  and  sub- 
ject to  inspection.  Probably  in  another  fifteen 
years  the  majority  of  midwives  on  the  Roll  will 
be  those  who  have  gained  admission  to  it  after 
training  and  .examination.  We  may  therefore 
hope  that  poor  women  in  their  confinements 
will  receive  better  attention  than  heretofore, 
and  that,  in  consequence,  both  the  maternal 
and  infantile  death-rate  will  decrease,  and  the 
general  level  of  the  health  of  the  community 
be  raised. 

The  full  comiug  into  opei-ation  of  the  Act  is 
marked  by  the  introduction  of  an  Amending 
Bill  into  Parhament  by  the  Lord  President  of 
the  Council,  founded,  for  the  most  part,  on 
the  Report  of  the  Departmental  Committee  ap- 
pointed to  consider  the  working  of  the  Mid- 
wives  Act,  1902,  but  departing  from  the  recom- 
mendations of  that  Committee  in  one  or  two 
details.  The  Board  is  to  be  enlarged  by  the 
addition  of  four  membei's  appointed  by  (1)  the 
Local  Government  Board,  (2)  the  Association 
of  Municipal  Corporations,  (3)  the  Society  of 
:Medical  Othcers  of  Health,  and  (4)  the  British 
Medical  Association,  an  addition  which  will  be 
welcome  no  doubt  to  the  overworked  Boai'd, 
which  is  at  present  too  small  to  admit  of  the 
formation  of  different  sub-comm;ttees  to  deal 
in  the  first  instance  with  the  mass  of  M'ork 
which  comes  before  it.  We  regret  that  there 
should  be  no  provision  amongst  the  new 
members  for  one  or  more  direct  representatives 
of  the  midwives  on  the  Roll. 

But  the  most  important  point  in  the  Bill 
from  the  mid\\"ives  point  of  view  is  that  for  the 
first  time  provision  is  made  that  two  of  the 
members  of  the  Board  must  be  certified  mid- 
wives — i.e.,  the  nominees  of  the  Incorporated 
Midwives'  Institute  and  of  the  Royal  British 
Nurses'  Association.     It  will  be   remembered 


that  when  the  Act  was  passed  in  1902,  it  con- 
tained no  provision  that  certified  midwives. 
should  have  any  seats  upon  it,  either  through 
direct  representation  or  as  the  nominees  of 
societies.  When  the  Depiartmental  Coinmittee 
recently  issued  its  Re^Dort,  this  contained  a  re- 
commendation, which  gave  general  satisfac- 
tion, that  the  person  appointed  by  the  Mid- 
wives'  Institute  should  be  a  certified  midwife. 
To -the  surprise  of  everyone,  the  Midwives  In- 
stitute objected,  and  succeeded  in  securing  a 
recommendation  from  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board  that  it  should  have  two  representatives 
on  the  Board,  to  be  chosen  without  restriction. 
It  is  now  demonstrated  that  the  Lord  President 
considers  this  Association  of  Midwives  should 
be  represented  by  a  certified  midwife,  an 
opinion  which  is  shared  by  most  midwives ; 
but  it  is  regrettable  that  such  representation 
should  not  have  been  claimed  bj'  the  Midwives*^ 
Institute  on  their  behalf. 

The  Departmental  Committee  recommended 
that  the  representation  of  the  Royal  British 
Nurses'  Association  should  be  discontinued. 
The  Bill  introduced  by  Lord  Wolverhamp- 
ton retains  this  representation,  but  provides 
that  the  person  appointed  must  in  future  be  a 
certified  midwife,  an  obviously  just  provision, 
as  the  claim  of  the  Association  to  representa- 
tion rests  on  the  fact  that  it  includes  certified 
midwives  amongst  its  members,  and  at  present 
its  representative  on  the  Central  Midwives^ 
Board  has  no  such  qualification. 

We  look  forward  with  pleasure  to  seeing  the 
representatives  of  these  two  Societies  take  their 
seats  on  their  Governing  Body  on  the  ground 
that  they  are  certiified  midwives. 

A  new  provision  is  that  every  certified  mid- 
wife must,  annually  notify  to  the  Central  Mid- 
wives  Board  her  name  and  address,  and  pay  a 
fee  of  one  shilling.  Failure  to  comply  with 
this  requirement  entails  the  penalty  of  removal 
from  the  Roll.  The  Bill  empowers  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board  to  suspend  a  midwife,  as  a 
disciplinaiw  measure,  to  defray  the  expenses  of 
a  midwife  required  to  appear  before  it;  to  sup- 
ply gratis  all  forms  and  books  which  certified 
midwives  are  required  to  use.  The  Board  is 
al.so  empowered  to  prohibit  a  midwife,  removed 
from  the  Roll,  from  attending  women  in  child- 
birth in  any  other  capacity.  Failure  to  sur- 
render her  certificate,  on  removal,  will  render 
a  midwife  liable  to  a  fine  of  five  pounds. 

Provision  is  also  made  for  reciprocal  treat- 
ment of  midwives  certified  in  other  parts  of  his- 
Majesty's  dominions. 


April  9,  1910]  ^bc  Biitisb  3ouvnal  of  IHuvsino  Supplement. 


299 


nDtbwtvcs  in  jEnolisb  Ibistoii^. 

{Concluded  from  page  279.) 

There  was  au  interval  of  almost  a  century  be- 
tween the  birth  of  Jane  Seymour's  last  child  and 
the  nest  arrival  in  the  family  of  the  English 
sovereign.  Tlie  old  etiquette  and  ceremonial  pre- 
viously associated  with  subh  an  event  ha<l  been  for- 
gotten, so  that  Queen  Anne  of  Denmark,  wife  of 
James  I.,  was  spared  the  irksome  retirement  of  the 
Queen-coneorts,  her  predecessors.  There  was  much 
talk  of  the  old  customs,  but  it  ended  there.  Anne's 
fii^t  cliild  liad  been  born  while  James  was  King 
of  Scotland,  and  she  may  have  preferred  the  Scotch 
ways.  Her  second  son  was  l«>i-n  on  November  19th, 
1609.  The  King,  it  is  said,  rewarded  the  attend- 
ants of  the  Queen  ''  «-ith  his  own  hand."  In  his 
accounts  is  an  entry  which  runs  thus: — "Item,  His 
Majesty's  self  to  Janet  Kinlock,  midwife  of  Her 
Majesty,  £26  las.  1-kl.,  punds  Scot."  The  name 
suggests  Janet  was  fixmi  beyond  the  Border. 

At  the  birth  of  the  first-born  of  llenrietta  JIaria 
and  Charles  I.  a  dramatic  incident  took  plaoe. 
Labour  set  in  prematurely  owing  to  the  Queen 
being  frightened  by  a  dog.  At  the  time  she  was  at 
Greenwich  with  neither  physician  nor  midwife  in 
attendance.  The  "good  old  woman"  who  usually 
officiated  was  therefore  called  in  by  the  terrified 
attendants,  but  she  was  so  agitated  and  perturbed 
at  having  to  minister  to  so  exalte<l  a  patient  that 
.she  swooned  away  and  had  to  be  carried  out  of  the 
i-oyal  chamber,  so  adding  to  the  general  confusion. 
The  French  "  sage-femnie,"  who  had  l>een  chosen 
hy  the  Queen's  mother  to  attend  lier  had  been  cap- 
tured en  route  b,v  a  privateer,  who  kept  her  in 
captivity  till  all  need  of  her  .services  w-ere  passed. 
The  little  premature  bab.v  only  live<l  a  few  hours. 
The  second  child,  diaries,  was  a  "strong,  fine 
babe."  One  of  his  spon.sors,  the  Duchess  of  Rich- 
mond, who  was  renowned  for  her  extravagant  pre- 
.sents,  gave  the  midwife  a  quantity  of  "  massy 
plate." 

The  wife  of  James  II.,  the  beautiful  Mary 
Beatrice  of  Modena.  had  the  grief  of  losing  four 
children  in  early  infancy.  At  the  birth  of  the  fiftli 
chHd  there  were  no  less  than  67  pei-sons  present — 
"  a  noble  mob  of  witnesses,"  including  Tvord  Chan- 
cellor Jeffries,  and  several  of  the  royal  physicians. 

'ITie  Queen  had  asked  that  no  one  should  pro- 
claim the  sex  of  the  child,  "  lest  the  pleasure  on  the 
one  hand,  or  the  disappointment  on  the  other, 
should  over-power  her."  Lady  Sunderland  charged 
the  midwife  to  pull  lier  dress  if  it  were  a  bo,v  ;  she 
would  then  touch  her  forehead  as  a  token  to  the 
King  that  he  had  an  heir.  He,  however,  was  so 
eager  that  he  cried  out.  "  What  is  it?  "  "What 
your  Majesty  desires."  replied  the  nurse.  A 
'•  ilrs.  de  Labadie  "  is  nientione<l  a-s  the  nurse  who 
carried  the  babe  into  an  outer  chamber  for  the 
I/ords  to  see.  She  had  some  trouble  in  making  her 
way  through  the  crowd. 

Later,  all  manner  of  malicious  and  foolish  stories 
were  circulated  about  this  mucli  be-witneesed  birth. 
It  was  said  that  another  baby  had  been  smuggled 
ill  or  substituted.     The  scandal  became  eo  grave, 


and  the  doubts  cast  upon  the  maternity  of  the 
young  prince  eo  serious  that  an  extnaordinary 
council  was  convened  by  desire  of  the  Queen  to  in- 
vestigate the  matter.  One  of  the  most  imxx>i-tant 
witnesses  was  naturally  the  Queen's  midwife. 
Mary,  wife  of  William  of  Orange,  and  Anne, 
daughtere  of  James  II.  by  a  former  marriage,  when 
he  was  Duke  of  York,  were  only  too  anxious  to  dis- 
own their  little  bix>ther,  seeing  that  they  were  the 
nest  heirs  to  the  throne.  The  shameful  doubts 
were,  however,  sot  at  rest  by  the  courageous,  con- 
sistent, and  minute  witness  given  by  those  present 
at  liis  birth. 

From  this  time  onwards  there  is  little  mention  of 
the  Queen's  midwife.  The  objection  to  men-mid- 
wives  was  slowly  broken  down,  and  it  became  the 
fashion  to  be  attended  by  me<lical  men,  who  had  at 
last  treated  this  branch  of  medicine  seriously  and 
scientifically. 

One  quaint  story  is  told  of  a  midwife,  daughter 
of  a  doctor.  She  diagnosed  a  breech  presentation, 
but  longed  to  have  it  confirmed,  ilio  doctor  was 
therefore  smuggled  into  tho  room,  which  was  in 
darkness.  He  maintained,  after  an  examination 
which  the  patient  imagined  was  made  by  the  mid- 
wife, that  the  presentation  was  vei-tex.  He  was 
evidently  less  exijerienced  than  his  daughter,  for 
the  course  of  events  proved  him  wrong. 

In  reviewing  the  midwife  in  English  history  it 
cannot  be  said  that  there  was  any  woman  con- 
spicuous for  her  gifts;  but  it  must  he  remembered 
that  the  midwife  in  those  days  was  for  the  most 
part  uneducated,  untraine<l,  and  somewhat  grand- 
motherly. They  were  guided  by  rule  of  thumb, 
much  like  our  "  gamps,"  but  there  are  few  to 
deny  that  midwifery  is  essentially  a  profession, 
suitable  for  women,  and  with  present-day  oppor- 
tunities there  is  no  revison  why  they  should  not 
help  to  make  history.  M.  O.  H. 

Somerset  Countp  Council. 

MIDWIVES'  ACT   SUB-COMMITTEE. 
Inspector's  Report  fob  March  1st,  1909.  to 

February  28th,  1910. 
An  interesting  report   has    been     presented   b.v 
Miss  C.  C.  du  Sautoy,  Inspector  of  Midwives  un- 
der the  Somerset  County  Council,  who  states:  — 

Tlie  number  of  midwives  who  notified  their  inten- 
tion of  practising  in  the  county  during  the  above 
dates  were  238;  in  1908  214  notified. 

1908  1909 

Trained  Midwives 97     ...     123 

Bona-fide       „  117     ...     115 

Analysis  of  Trained  Midwives. 
(1)  Working  under  Committees...     74     ...     100 
■     (2)  Working  on  own  account    ...     23     ...       23 

1908      1909 
(1)  Working  under  Committees:  — 
(at  Under  County  Nursing  Associa- 
tion   54     ...     72 

9  loft  during  1909;  their  places 

were  taken  by  others. 
5  had  no  cases  as  Midwives. 
58  at  work  as  Midwives,    Feb., 
1910. 


300         t^bc  Britisb  3oumal  of  IRiirsincj  Supplement.    [-Vi 


9,  1910 


20 


28 


(b)  Under  independent  Committee 
10  left  during  the  year. 
6  had  no  cases. 
12  at  work  February,  1910. 
(2)  Working  on  own  Account: — • 

Of  these  Midwives  5  had  no  cases;  3  had  monthly 
cases  only ;  2  had  over  100  cases ;  1  had  over  50 
cases;  4  had  over  20  cases;  8  had  under  20  cases, 
totalling  23. 

It  will  be  seen   from  the  above  that  only  two  of 
these  Midwives  could  earn  a  living  wage,  and  only 
then  if  they  obtained  an  average  of  10s.  for  each 
case,  and  had  no  bad  debts. 
Cases  attended  by  Trained  Midwives  in 
1908  1909 

Cases  as  Midwives    2236     ...  2094  =  23.79  each. 
CasesasMat'nityN'rse  430    ...     500  =  5.68  each. 
The  Bon.\-fide  Midwives. 

1908 
CI)  Midwives  working  on  own  account  116 
(2)  Midwife  working  under  Committee     1 


1909 

114 

1 


117 


115 


1908 


Suspended              

5     .. 

2 

Suspension  removed  ...       2 

1 

Still  suspended 3 

1 

Unsatisfactory      

67     .. 

72 

(a)  Old  age  (over  60)  ...     54 

64 

(b)  Dirty,  etc 9 

7 

(c)  No  suitable  appliances  4 

1 

Given  up  practice          

6     '. 

5 

Died            

1     .. 

— 

Fairly  satisfactory          

38     .. 

37 

117 

116 

Xo   work            

10 

8 

Total  at  work  about 


107 


108 


Analysis  of  Cases. 
1  had  over  100  cases;  6  had  over  50  cases;  11  had 
over  20  cases;  89  had  under  20   cases;  8   had   uo 
cases. 

The  fees  in   most  districts  seem  to  be  from  5s. 
to  7s.  6d. 

Cases  attended  by  Bond-fide  Midicives. 
1908  1909 

Cases   as  Midwife  ...     1623     ...     1570 

Cases  as  Maternity  Nurse      168     ...       180 

SUMM.VRT. 

Cases  attended  bv  all  the  Midwives  1908  1909 

as   Midwife 38-59     ...     3664 

as  Maternitv  Nurse  ...       598     ...       680 


Total 


4457 


4344 


1908  1909 

Average  to 
each  Mid- 
wife, count- 
ing month- 
ly cases...  24.,50  22.44 
Doctor  sent  for    (1908)    397  =  10.28    per    cent. ; 

(1909)  345  =  9.41  per  cent. 


3.36 


per 


StiU  Births— as  Midwife    (1908)     130  = 
cent.;  (1909)  114=3.13  per  cent. 

Inspections  paid  (1908)  470=  2i  to  each;  (1909) 
.3.59=  2.87  to  each. 

The  births  in  the  county  during  1908  were  8667 
(121  less  than  in  1907),  and  Midwives  attended 
either  as  Monthly  Nurses  or  Midwives  4457  cases. 
During  1909,  Midwives  attended  4344  cases~113 
less  than  in  1908. 


flDt&\vitei-^  ^rainina  in  3nMa. 

The  recognition  of  the  Cama  and  AUbless  Hos- 
pitals, Bombay,  as  institutions  in  which  pupils 
may  be  trained  under  the  Rules  of  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board,  now  enables  Indian  pupils  to 
qualify  for  this  examination,  and  as  the  plans  of 
the  Lady  Superintendent,  Miss  S.  Grace  Tindall. 
for  raising  the  standard  of  teaching  and  training 
for  the  pupil  nurses  find  ready  acceptance  and  co- 
operation, the  future  prospects  of  the  School  are 
bright. 

The  Governor  has  recently  obtained  a  gift  of 
7;000  rupees  per  annum,  which  will  augment  the 
amount  which  has  hitherto  had  to  sufiSce  for  its 
upkeep,  and  it  is  now  proposed  to  award  scholar- 
ships, as  the  result  of  competitive  examinations, 
to  candidates  who  have  the  necessary  qualifications, 
but  who  would  not  otherwise  be  able  to  pay  the 
fees  for  the  first  18  months.  It  is  hoped  that  by 
this  means  outlying  stations  of  the  Presidency  will 
be  enabled  to  send  candidates  to  be  trained,  who 
will  afterwards  return  to  their  homes  and  work 
foi  a  definite  salary.  In  this  way  the  Presidency 
will  be  supplied  with  trained  nurses,  who  are  also 
midwives,  in  districts  in  which  they  have  up  to 
the  present  time  scarcely  been  heard  of,  and  where 
so  many  poor  women  suffer  cruel  mutilation  at  the 
hands  of  the  ignorant  native  midwives,  and  fre- 
quently die  from  sepsis. 

Another  grant  of  2,000  rupees  has  been  applied 
by  the  Lady  Superintendent  to  equipping  the 
Nurses'  Lecture  Room  with  anatomical  charts,  and 
some  beautiful  French  models  of  the  different  or- 
gans. A  Nursing  Library  has  also  been  estab- 
lished, containing  English  books  for  the  use  of  the 
Eviropean  and  Eurasian  pupils,  and  others  in  the 
vernacular  for  the  native  probationers,  who  largely 
predominate. 

The  Committee,  who  have  greatly  appreciated 
Miss  Tindall's  work  on  behalf  of  the  School,  have 
expressed  their  thanks  to  her  in  the  kindest  terms, 
and  have  further  decided  to  give  hfer  a  monthly 
bonus  amounting  to  two-thirds  of  the  Government 
salary.  Such  a  generous  acknowledgment  of  her 
work  must  be  very  cheering,  for  there  are  many 
diflBculties  and  discouragements  in  connection  with 
the  superintendence  of  nursing  in  India. 

We  hope  that  affiliation  of  the  Associations  of 
Nursing  Superintendents  and  Nurses  in  India  with 
the  International  Council  of  Nurses  will  in  the 
near  future  increase  their  sense  of  comradeship 
with  the  nurses  of  other  nations,  and  we  know  this 
hope  is  shared  by  many  of  our  colleagues  in  India. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

IME  MUIISIMG  MACOMB 

EDITED  BY  MRS  BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.   1,150. 


SATURDAY,     APRIL     16,     1910. 


jEMtorial. 


THE  TEACHING   OF  NURSING    BY  EXPERTS. 

The  question  of  the  teaching  of  Xui-sing 
to  the  members  of  the  Voluntary  Aid  De- 
tachments of  the  Central  Red  Cross  Society, 
under  the  authority  of  the  St.  John's  Ambu- 
lance Association,  by  medical  men,  is 
arousing  a  great  deal  of  interest,  as  will  be 
seen  by  the  lettei-s  already  published  in  our 
correspondence  columns. 

When  tlie  St.  John's  Ambulance  Associa- 
tion wasfounded  inl877  there  were  probably 
few  nurses  who  could  have  lectured  on  the 
theory  and  practice  of  their  own  profession, 
for  most  of  the  nursing  schools  were  still  in 
their  infancy,  and  the  teaching  given  to  pro- 
bationer was,  as  a  rule,  very  rudimentary. 
Besides  which,  many  of  the  duties  now  per- 
formed by  nui-ses,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
were  in  those  days  undertaken  by  medical 
students. 

But  scientific  medicine  has  developed 
marvellously  in  the  last  quarter  of  a  cen- 
tury, and  so  also  has  nursing.  The  pro- 
fessions of  medicine  and  nursing  are 
analogous  and  interdependent,  but  diverse. 
The  education  of  the  medical  praetioner 
does  not  include  training  in  the  practical 
details  of  nursing,  and  we  claim  that  what  a 
person  cannot  do  he  cannot  teach.  It  is 
iDecause  the  old  belief  dies  hard  that  a  nurse 
is  an  inferior  doctor,  tliat  the  doctor  is  taught 
all  that  the  nurse  is  taught, and  more  besides, 
that  the  public  consider  the  doctor  the  right 
pei-son  to  teach  nursing,  whereas  medicine 
and  nureing  are  really  distinct  professions. 
No  doubt  a  doctor  can  teach  the  theory 
underlying  the  jiractice  of  nursing,  but 
should  it  ever  happen  that  the  enemy  is  at 
our  gates,  and  our  soldiers  need  first  aid  and 
nursing  assistance  from  the  Voluntary  Aid 
Detachments  in  the  temporary  hospitals,  it 


will  avail  little  if  the  members  of  these 
Detachments  have  learnt  only  the  theory 
of  nursing,  and  not  the  practical  methods 
of  making  the  sick  and  wounded  comfort- 
able. 

Thirty  years  ago  the  general  practitioner 
learnt  by  experience,  if  not  in  hospital, 
some  of  the  art  of  nui-sing,  for  he  frequently 
had  to  nurse  his  patients,  as  best  he  might, 
for  lack  of  any  trained  help.  To-day  he 
relies  on  the  assistance  of  nurses  who  have 
often  spent  almost  as  long  in  learning  their 
special  work  as  the  doctor  has  in  learning 
his,  and  the  patient  is  much  better  cared  for 
in  consequence.  Surely  it  is  now  time  to 
acknowledge  that  nursing  should  be  taught 
by  experts  in  nui-sing — that  is,  by  trained 
nurses.  Such  matters  as  bed-making, 
devices  for  the  comfort  of  the  patient, 
bathing,  the  care  of  the  teeth,  mouth,  hair 
and  nails  ;  the  preparation  and  serving  of 
food,  the  best  methods  of  feeding  helpless 
patients,  the  administration  of  medicines  ; 
the  purposes  of  irrigation  and  of  simple 
enemata,  and  the  best  methods  of  giving 
them;  the  application  of  poultices,  plasters 
and  blisters  ;  the  management  of  sick  infants 
and  children  ;  the  cai"e  of  the  surroundings 
of  patients,  their  linen  and  crockery  ;  the 
disinfection  of  rooms,  and  innumerable 
other  details,  are  all  matters  which  need  a 
nurse  to  teach  thoroughly,  because  she  alone 
possesses  the  practical  skill  and  dexterity 
which  results  from  the  repeated  perform- 
ance of  these  duties  under  trained  super- 
vision. 

We  do  not  wish  to  undervalue  the  services 
rendered  to  nursing  by  the  profession  of 
medicine — they  are  many  and  great ;  but 
every  man  to  his  trade.  Let  doctors  teacii 
theory  and  nurses  practical  nursing,  and  the 
best  results  will  be  obtained,  because  in 
each  case  the  teacher  will  be  an  expert. 


302 


tTbe  Britfsb  3oiirnal  of  IFlursinG. 


[April  16,  1910 


riDeMcal  fIDatters. 


DEATHS   RESULTING    FROM   THE  ADMINIS- 
TRATION  OF  ANAESTHETICS 

The  Eeport  of  the  Committee  appointed  by 
the  Home  Office  to  inquire  into  the  question 
of  deaths  resulting  from  the  administration  of 
anaesthetics  shows  that  there  is  an  increasing 
number  of  deaths  from  this  cause,  and  that 
in  the  opinion  of  experts  a  certain  number  of 
these  deaths  are  due  to  preventable  causes, 
though  a  certain  proportion  are  inevitable  what- 
ever the  care  and  skill  with  which  the 
anaesthetic  is  administered.  The  deaths  rose 
from  5  in  1866  to  155  in  1905,  and  a  return 
furnished  by  coroners  for  the  year  1908  shows 
that  the  deaths  reported  to  them  in  that  year 
under  anaesthetics  were  235.  The  Conimirtee 
have  no  statistics  to  show  the  ratio  between 
the  number  of  operations  performed  and  the 
number  of  deaths  under  anaesthetics.  They 
point  out  also  that  there  is  an  important  dis- 
tinction to  be  drawn  between  a  death  from  an 
anassthetic  and  a  death  under  an  anaesthetic. 
They  also  state  that  anybody  may  at  present 
administer  an  anaesthetic,  and  that  this  un- 
regulated state  of  affairs  constitutes  a  serious 
menace  to  the  public,  and  should  be  regulated 
by  law.  They  summarise  their  more  import- 
ant recommendations  as  follows:  — 

(1)  Every  death  under  an  antesthetic  should  be 
reported  to  the  coroner,  who,  after  inquiry,  should 
determine  whether  it  is  desirable  to  hold  an  inquest 
or  not. 

(2)  In  the  case  of  every  death  under  an  ansesthetic 
the  medical  certificate  of  death  .should  specify  the 
fact,  whether  the  ansesthetic  was  the  actual  cause 
of  death  or  not. 

(3)  No  general  respirable  ansesthetic  should  be 
administered  by  any  person  who  is  not  a  registered 
medical  or  dental  practitioner. 

(4)  Registered  dentists  should  be  confined  to  the 
use  of  nitrous  oxide  gas  for  dental  oi)erations,  and 
should  not  employ  the  general  respirable  an»sd:hetics 
of  longer  duration. 

(5)  Intra-spinal  anaesthesia  should  be  practised 
only   by   registered   medical  praotitdoaiers. 

(6)  Practical  and  theoretical  instruction  in  the 
administration  of  ansesthotios  should  be  an  essen- 
tial part  of  the  medical  curriculum. 

(7)  Such  instruction  in  the  administration  of 
nitrous  oxide  gas  should  be  an  essential  part  of 
the  dental  curriculum. 

(8)  In  the  case  of  any  death  under  an  ansesthetic 
in  a  hospital  or  other  similar  pubUc  institution, 
there  should  be  a  scientific  investigation  into  the 
ac-tual  cause  of  death,  conducited  by  the  authorities 
of  the  institution. 

The  Committee  suggest  the  appointment  of 
a  small  Standing  Scientific  Committee  on 
Anaesthetics  by  the  Home  Office,  a.s  nuieh  still 
remains  to  be  learnt  about  them  and  their 
administration. 


TYPHOID  CARRIERS. 

Further  light  has  been  thrown  on  the  subject 
of  typhoid  "'  carriers  "  by  the  report  recently 
submitted  to  the  Local  Government  Board  on 
the  repeated  occurrence  of  enteric  fever  in  the 
Bradfield  rural  district.  The  author,  Dr.  E. 
W.  Johnstone,  after  an  exhaustive  investiga- 
tion, traced  the  outbreaks  to  two  "  carriers." 
and  it  is  becoming  evident  that  public  health 
officials  will  find  it  advisable  in  the  future  to 
devote  a  considerable  part  of  their  energies  to 
the  detection  of  these  cases.  Probably  the 
most  convincing  history  of  a  "  carrier"  in  this 
country  has  been  put  on  record  by  Dr.  D.  S. 
Davies,  Medical  Officer  of  Health  for  Bristol, 
who  traced  the  successive  outbreaks  of  illness 
which  followed  on  the  employment  of  a  woman 
cook  in  several  public  institutions.  Some  yea'rs 
ago  in  the  United  States  a  whole  series  of 
typhoid  epidemics  was  traced  to  a  woman  cook, 
who  was  found  to  be  a  bacillus  "  carrier,"  and 
who  received  the  soubriquet  of  "  Typhoid 
Mary."  She  was  quarantined  on  North 
Brothers'  Island,  New  York,  where  she  has 
remained  for  the  past  three  years  under  super- 
vision. She  has- recently  been  released  by  the 
Board  of  Health,  subject  to  the  conditions  that 
she  does  not  resume  her  occupation  of  cook 
and  that  she  reports  herself  regularly  to  the 
Board.  In  the  same  way  several  "  carriers 
have  been  found  in  the  ranks  of  the  army,  and 
the  prolonged  detention  of  some  of  them  in  the 
military  hospitals  was  the  subject  of  recent 
questions  in  Parliament. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that  even  "earners" 
themselves  are  usually  quite  unaware  of  their 
dangerous  condition,  it  is  obvious  that  all  those 
engaged  in  the  handling  and  preparation  of 
foods  should  be  required  to  observe  such  per- 
sonal cleanliness  as  will  minimise  the  risks. 

The  powerful  germicidal  effect  of  Izal  on 
bacilli  of  the  coli-typhoid  group  has  been  de- 
monstrated by  bacteriologists,  and  those  whose 
occupation  involves  the  touching  of  food  would 
be  well  advised  to  wash  their  hands  frequently 
throughout  the  day  with  Izal  soap,  and  the 
same  precaution  may  usefully  be  adopted  by 
nurses  in  attendance  on  fever  cases. 

The  whole  subject  of  "  carriers  "  is  one  of 
the  romances  of  preventive  medicine,  and  a 
little  manual  on  the  cure  of  the  "  carrier." 
written  by  various  authorities  for  Messrs. 
Newton,  Chambers  and  Co.,  Ltd.,  of  Thorn- 
cliff  e,  near  Sheffield,  which  we  understand 
will  be  forwarded  to  nurses  on  receipt  of  a  post- 
card, is  of  much  interest.  The  clanger  of  "  car- 
riers ' '  is  one  witli  which  all  nui-ses  should 
acquaint  themselves,  and  Messrs.  Newton 
Chambers  are  doing  useful  service  in  placing 
this  manual  at  their  disposal. 


April  16,  1910; 


^e  Brif.sb  3oiirnal  of  1Rurstn(». 


303 


diseases  Siinnlatiiuj    Cv5titi3  in 
tbc  Jfcmalc 

Mr.  Hurry  Fenwick,  F.R.C.S.,  Senior  Sur- 
geon to  the  London  Hospital,  contributed  to  a 
receot  issue  of  The  CUiiiAil  Journal  an  interest- 
ing article  on  the  above  subject,  in  which  he 
deals  with  that  class  of  renal  diseases  which 
simulate  iutlammatiou  of  the  bladder  so 
accurately  that  they  confuse  diagnosis,  dis- 
courage the  patient,  and  depreciate  the  best 
efforts  of  the  medical  practitioner  to  relieve. 
He  writes  in  part :  — 

"  Do  not  some  of  us  still  cling  to  the  belief 
that  washing  out  the  bladder  is  the  panacea  of 
any  and  everj'  case  of  cystitis,  and  when  relief 
is  thereby  obtained  that  our  diagnosis  of 
cystitis  is  conlii-med'?  Is  it  not  true,  however, 
that  our  faith  in  this  treatment  has  been  sadly 
shaken  in  one  or  two  cases  by  finding  that 
months  of  bladder-washing  has  been  love's 
labour  lost,  and  our  patient  in  consequence 
sadly  recognises  that  we  are  not  infallible,  and 
that  her  faith  in  our  skill  is  rudely  shaken  by 
the  failure  of  a  very  unpleasant  and  often  pain- 
ful process? 

"  Now,  the  fact  is  the  cases  we  do  not  readily 
succeed  in  relieving  by  bladder  wash  are 
generally  renal  or  ureteric  in  their  origin.  I 
would  even  formulate  a  maxim,  rough  and 
ready  though  it  is :  Curable  cystitis  in  the 
female  is  tantamount  to  infection  from  below — 
by  way  of  urethra.  Obstinate  cystitis  is  nearly 
always  due  to  infection  from  above — by  way 
oi  the  ureter." 

The  writer  mentions  "  three  diseases  of  the 
upper  urinary  tract  in  the  female  which  sirbu- 
late  cystitis,  in  which  vesical  irrigation  is  not 
only  painful,   but  worse  than  useless. 

"  They  are  as  follows:  — 

(1)  BiiciJIiis  coU  communis  infection  of  the 
kidney  (haematogenous). 

(2)  Tuberculosis  of  the  kidney  (hsemato- 
geuous"!. 

(3)  Ureteritis  due  to  uterine  '  sag.'  " 

HiEMATOGENOrS    IkFECTION    OF  THE  KiDXEY    BY 
THE   B.ICILLCS   COLI   CoMSfUNIS. 

"  Definition. — Au  urinary  infection  of  vary- 
ing intensity,  in  the  milder  grades  of  which 
bladder  symptoms  are  the  more  prominent." 

In  this  connection  the  writer  says: — "We 
lire  all  awan'  that  micro-organisms  pass  out  of 
till'  IkxIv  through  the  kidney  as  through  a 
sieve,  and  may  induce  no  trouble  whatever  in 
their  transit.  .  .  .  It  is  also  a  well  authen- 
ticated clinical  and  experimental  fact  that 
when  two  cDnditions  are  present,  viz.,  an  un- 
healthy  ;iri-;i   in  thi;   kidney  or  ureter,    and  a 


blood  charged  with  a  micro-orgaiii;.m,  the 
inevitable  result  ensues  in  the  form  of  irrita- 
tion and  disease  in  the  locus  minoris  rcsis- 
ti7itiae. 

"  Lastly,  we  know  that  because  women  are 
particularly  Uable  to  back-pressure  upon  the 
renal  pelvis,  either  as  a  result  of  a  movaijlo 
kidney  or  from  uterine  pressure,  they  are 
specially  prone  to  urinary  infections  of  the 
hsematogenous  type. 

"  It  is  evident  from  clinical  knowledge  that 
of  the  three  great  groups  of  infecting  septic 
organisms,  the  staphylococcus,  streptococcus, 
and  coU  bacillu.s,  the  last-named  is  generally 
the  commonest  in  the  urinary  channels;  it  is 
also,  luckily,  the  least  virulent  in  its  action. 

"  There  is  no  doubt  but  that  the  source  of  tiie 
coll  is  the  bowel.  What  sets  it  free  into  the 
circulation  is  still  a  problem — probably  some 
slight  damage  to,  or  erosion  of,  the  protective 
epithelium. 

"  Perhaps  a  clue,  which  I  personally  cannot 
follow,  lies  in  the  fact  that  many  of  tlie  cases 
occur  in  the  winter  months,  and  appear  coinci- 
dently  in  localities  afiected  by  epidemic  in- 
fluenza. Waiving  the  question  of  the  exact 
path  whereby  the  blood  is  afiected,  we  find  that 
when  the  Bacillus  coli  communis  spontaneously 
impairs  the  integrity  of  the  urinary  tract  of  the 
female,  it  often  appears  as  a  renal  pelvitis — a 
coli  inflammation  of  the  mucous  membrane  of 
the  renal  pelvis. 

The  Clinical  History. 

"  The  patient  has  not  been  feeling  well  for 
a  few  days — complains  of  slackness,  headache, 
being  easily  tired,  or  nothing  very  definite  per- 
haps, but  she  is  not  quite  herself.  These  pio- 
dromata  mark  the  gradual  increase  of  the 
Bacilli  coli  in  the  blood. 

"  She  is  suddenly  seized  with  a  frequent  de- 
sire to  empty  her  bladder;  the  act,  which  is 
repeated  perhaps  as  often  as  evei-y  five  or  ten 
minutes,  affords  no  satisfying  relief,  and  it  is 
accompanied  by  a  scalding  pain.  A  slight 
chilliness  or  even  a  shiver  is  coincidently 
noticed,  and  if  the  degree  of  the  infection  is 
severe  a  distinct  rigor  develops.  Fever  ap- 
pears, the  temperature  rising  to  100.5  degrees 
to  101  degrees  F.  or  higher.  Within  an  hour 
the  urine  becomes  murky.  It  is  never  high- 
coloured.  If  the  glass  or  bottle  containing  it  is 
shaken  and  held  up  to  the  light  a  curious  .shot- 
silk  appearance  is  produced  in  the  eddies  of  the 
urine,  or  a  light  cigaiette-smoke-like  aspect. 
This  appearance  and  the  fishy  smell  which  is 
present  is  increased  when  the  urine  is  stale. 
The  urine  contains  pus,  a  little  albumen,  a  few 
red  cells,  and  bacilli  of  the  eoliform  type 
{Biicilli  coli  communis).    If  the  vesical  strain- 


304 


^be  :Bnti6h  3ournal  of  mursing,      [Apiii  le,  1910 


iiig  becomes  marked,   blood  is  noticed  in  the 
last  few  drops  of  the  water." 

The  writer  goes  on  to  explain  that  in  a  few 
hours  the  isatient  complains  of  pain  in  one 
loin  over  the  kidney,  and  skilful  bimanual 
examination  shows  the  kidney  to  be  distinctly 
tender  and  the  loin  resistant;  tue  muscles  may 
even  be  rigid.  In  four  or  five  days  most  of  the 
symptoms  subside,  but  the  scalding  remains 
and  the  urine  is  turbid.  About  the  seventh 
day  the  temperature  is  normal,  and  the  medical 
man  permits  the  patient  to  get  up,  but  perhaps 
before  she  does  so  the  temperature  rises  again, 
and  the  same  symj^toms  re-appear,  the  cause 
being  that  the  other  kidney  is  affected.  Mr.  ■ 
P'enwick  says  "  this  apparent  exacerbation  of 
the  disease  takes  place,  I  believe,  when  both 
kidneys  have  been  weakened  by  previous  ill- 
health." 

In  about  thrfee  weeks  the  patient  is  fairly 
<-onvalescent. 

"  The  urine  has  become  clear  to  the  ej'e,  the 
Mood  has  disappeared,  but  there  is  still  some 
>calding  on  urination ;  the  coli  are  non-ap- 
parent, but  they  are  there,  and  may  be  found 
niicroscopically  together  with  pus  cells.  Any 
tlepreciation  in  health,  any  shock  or  severe 
chill,  is  liable  to  cause  a  return  of  the  symp- 
toms, either  in  the  course  of  months  or  even 
years. 

■'  This  is  the  course  of  the-  mildest  form  of 
coli  nephritis." 

Herein  lies  the  difference  between  the  rule- 
of- thumb  man  and  the  modem  man. 

"  The  rule-of-thumb  man  will  say  at  once: 
'  Cystitis !  I  will  send  on  a  nurse  to  wash  out 
the  bladder.  Blood  in  the  urine !  I  must 
sound  for  stone.'  You  notice  there  is  no  ques- 
tion raised  as  to  the  judgment  of  washing  or 
sounding  in  acute  and  recent  symptoms.  It  is 
merely  a  rule  of  thumb — pus,  wash ;  blood, 
sound. 

"  Now,  from  my  own  experience  I  can  assure 
you,  under  the  conditions  named,  that  with  the 
sounding  or  vesical  washing  the  patient  will 
suffer  imnecessary  pain,  the  so-called  cystitis 
will  not  subside,  the  variety  of  the  bacterio- 
logical flora  in  the  urine  may  increase,  and  that 
it  may  in  consequence  be'  iinpossible  to  cure 
that  patient  of  persistent  coli  cystitis.  I  do 
not,"  says  Mr.  Fenwick,  "  blame  the  practi- 
tioner who  acts  in  this  way;  I  merely  mention 
what  is  done. 

"  The  modem  man  follows  the  routine  which 
I  have  indicated  in  all  cases  of  apparent 
cystitis.  He  gives  urotropin,  does  not  wash. 
He  does  not  allow  his  patient  to  pass  water 
when  in  the  horizontal  position,  but  gets  her 
to  empty  the  bladder  on  the   commode,  and 


thus  avoids  a  '  postural  cystitis. '  He  examines 
the  heart  and  notes  the  tonelessness  of  the 
sounds.  He  despatches  a  sample  of  urine  to 
an  expert  bacteriologist,  and  for  a  few  shillings 
he  obtains  a  report  as  to  whether  there  is 
Bacillus  coli  or  tubercle,  or  any  other  form  of 
microbe  in  the  urine ;  and  if  he  finds  that  it  is 
probably  a  hsematogenous  infection  he  refrains 
from  washing  out  the  bladder.  He  has  a  vac- 
cine prepared  as  soon  as  possible,  and  starts 
giving  the  patient  small  doses  subcutaneously 
at  intervals  of  every  week  or  fourteen  days 
without  delay.  He  remembers  that  only  in  the 
early  stages  of  coli  nephritis  are  vaccines  of  any 
value,  and  therefore  the  sooner  he  can  get  it 
done  the  better.  When  the  ease  is 
chronic,  the  vaccines  may  relieve  the 
bladder  pain,  but  it  will  not  free  the 
urine  of  coli.  Now,  as  regards  medicines 
in  coli  nephritis^ — and  the  public  demand  medi- 
cine— the  best  of  all  is  the  hexa-methylene 
tetramine  group.  They  do  not  reheve  pain, 
but  they  do  certainly  curtail  the  virulence  and 
output  of  bacteria." 

Severe  infection  is  rare.  When  it  occurs  the 
symptoms  are  urgent,  and  if  they  do  not  sub- 
side the  only  chance  of  life  is  surgical  inter- 
ference. When  incised,  the  indurations  of  the 
kidney  may  even  have  pus  in  them,  which  will 
show  on  cultivation  the  B.  coli  communis. 

The  relief  afforded  by  surgical  treatment  is 
often  "  little  short  of  marvellous.  No  medicine 
is  of  any  avail  in  these  dangerous  cases  of 
acute  infections — only  surgery." 

2. — Tuberculosis  of  the  Eenal  Pelvis. 

In  this  disease — the  second  which  closely 
simulates  cystitis-r-"  the  distressing  bladder 
symptoms  start .  quietly — insidiously  for  the 
most  part.  There  is  an  inci'eased  desire  to 
urinate,  perhaps  a  little  difficulty,  but  always 
urethra]  pain  during  and  after  the  act.  The 
water  is  murky,  not  necessarily  bloody.     .     .     . 

"  The  symptoms  of  vesical  distress  in  tuber- 
culosis, instead  of  decreasing  in  force,  as  in 
coli  nephritis,-  become  more  marked  as  the 
weeks  go  by.  Moreover,  a  few  questions  will 
usually  elicit  the  fact  that  the  bladder  distress 
has_  been  preceded  or  accompanied  by  a  dull 
acliing  pain  in  the  loin,  over  the  kidney  area, 
not  an  acute  agonising  pain  as  in  coli  nej^hritis  : 
also  that  as  the  weeks  go  by  the  course  of  the 
renal  pain  has  been  intermittent — now  better, 
now  worse — but  it  is  rare  for  the  renal  pain  to 
be  so  acute  in  its  onset  as  in  acute  coli 
nephritis." 

SUMMAEY. 

Summarising  the-  two  diseases,  the  author 
says  :  — 

"  There  are  two  diseases  of  the  renal  pelvis 


April  16,  191n 


^be  Britisb  journal  or  IHursmg. 


305 


which  irritate  the  vesical  neck  and  produce 
symptoms  which  simulate  cystitis,  but  they 
should  be  treated  quite  differently  to  true 
cystitis.  These  two  diseases,  the  mild  coli 
nephritis  and  raild  tuberculous  nephritis,  affect 
the  kidney  differently. 

"  The  coli  have  a  sharp  onset  and  a  rapid 
initial  progress ;  the  tubercle  bacillus  is  usually 
icsidious,  mild  and  quiet  in  its  progress. 

"  The  vesical  frequency  due  to  coli  has  a 
rapid  onset  and  a  rapid  abatement ;  it  is 
marked  by  recrudescences  lasting  days.  The 
vesical  frequency  of  tubercle  is  uniformly  pro- 
gicisice,  extending  over  years;  its  recru- 
descence may  be  marked  by  months  of  com- 
parative health. 

"  In  both  diseases  vesical  irrigation  is  best 
avoided,  and  in  both  diseases  vaccines  are  to 
be  used  at  once — as  soon  as  the  disease  shows 
itself.  In  neither  should  vaccines  be  expected 
or  promised  to  ci<re." 

3. — Uretekitis  Dce  to  Uterine  "  S.\g." 

"  The  third  form  of  trouble  which  simulates 
cystitis,  and  to  which  I  wish  to  draw  your 
attention,  originates  in  the  left  ureter. 

"  It  i.s  merely  a  localised  inflammation  of  a 
small  tract  of  the  ureter  at  or  about  the  point 
where  that  channel  passes  under  the  broad 
ligament.  Now,  this  localised  mflammation  of 
the  ureter  is  the  cause  of  severe  bladder  dis- 
tress and  pain  and  functional  disturbaiice  of 
the  left  kidney.  It  is  apparently  provoked  by 
the  uterus  dropping  down  (prolapse)  and  drag- 
ging with  it  the  left  ureter,  causing  what  I  con- 
ceive to  be  a  bend  or  kink  in  its  channel.  The 
irritation  of  the  mucous  membrane  of  this 
traumatised  area  induces  nerve  excitations 
i)Oth  starthng  and  w-idespread ;  they  seem  to  be 
increased  by  uric  acid,  or  osaluric  tides  in  the 
urine. 

"  Now,  it  is  a  fact  which  has  long  since  been 
accepted  that  a  stone  lodged  in  the  ureter  just 
near  the  bladder  evokes  all  the  symptoms  of 
stone  in  the  bladder,  in  addition  to  those 
symptoms  which  arise  in  the  kidney  from 
ureteric  obstruction.  There  is  the  same  fre- 
quency of  micturition,  the  same  tenesmus,  the 
same  meatal  pain  in  juxta-vesical  ureteric  stone 
as  in  vesical  stone. 

"  Similarly,  tuberculous  ureteritis  of  the 
juxta-vesical  part  of  the  ureter  evokes  the 
symptoms  of  vesical  stone.  It  is  conceivable 
therefore  that  simple  ureteritis-  of  the  juxta- 
vesical  ureter  disturbs  normal  functions  of  the 
bladder  just  as  cystitis  would;  but  in  addi- 
tion, if  the  source  of  irritation  be  prolonged  the 
ureter  thickens,  the  kidney  suffers  from  back- 
pressure, and  pain  in  that  organ  necessarily 
ensues." 


Subconsciousness. 


Dr.  T.  B.  Hyclop.  Jlesideut  Physician  at 
the  Royal  Bethlem  Hospital,  gave  a  brilliant 
and  most  interesting  lecture  on  Subconscious- 
ne;-;  before  the  Child  Study  Society,  at  90, 
Buckingham  Palace  Road,  S.W.,  on  Thursday 
in  last  week.  The  lecture  was  illustrated  by 
lantern  slides  of  the  brain  in  various  stages  of 
development,  the  brain  of  a  congenital  idiot, 
sections  showing  the  different  areas,  sections 
of  the  spinal  canal,  and  so  forth. 

The  lecturer  explained  that,  owing  to  the 
cerebro-spinal  fluid,  which  plays  so  important 
a  part  in  the  cerebixt-spinal  system,  the  brain 
really  rests  upon  a  kind  of  water  cushion.  It 
will  be  a  surprise  to  most  people  that  nine- 
tenths  of  the  brain,  probably  more,  consist  of 
water. 

The  impression  left  upon  one's  mind  by  the 
lectui-e  was  that  the  brain — like  Central  Africa 
thirty  years  ago — contains  many  unexplored 
regions  and  that  although  the  functions  of  cer- 
tain areas  are  well  known  and  defined,  there 
are  others  as  yet  quite  undeveloped,  and  it  is 
quite  likely  that,  while  we  are  losing  some  of 
our  senses,  others  which  we  do  not  at  present 
possess  may  be  developed  in  years  to  come. 

He  gave  an  interesting  example  of  the 
arousing  of  subconsciousness  in  a  colleague, 
whom  he  wished  to  wake  to  consult  about  a 
case.  He  found  him  asleep,  w^ith  one  toe  ex- 
posed. As  tickling  this  produced  no  impres- 
sion, he  applied  frozen  liquid  air.  The  vocabu- 
lary which  poured  forth  was  astounding.  Ht- 
was  sure  his  colleague  had  no  idea  he  possessed 
it,  but  it  was  stored  away  somewhere  in  his 
subconscious  mind.  The  people  most  Ukely  to 
use  strong  language  when  their  subconscious- 
ness was  aroused  were  not  those  who  used  it  in 
the  ordinary  way.  Ladies  who  had  accidentally 
heard  it,  and  on  whom  it  had  made  an  im- 
pression as  something  which  it  would  be  ter- 
rible for  theii"  husbands  or  brothers  to  use. 
might  become  eloquent.  The  worst  languase 
he  had  ever  heard  came  from  the  lips  of  a  nun. 

The  hearing  of  voices  was  the  result  of  a  ilis- 
turbance  of  a  section  of  the  brain.  A  man  who 
was  crossing  Westminster  Bridge  heard  a  \oiee 
saying  to  him,  "  .Jump  over  the  bridge,  you 
silly  fool,"  and  he  promptly  jumped.  \\  hen 
he  w'as  in  the  river  he  beard  another  voice, 
which  said,  "  Swim  to  the  shore,  you  silly 
fool."  So  he  swam,  and  was  brought  to 
Bethlem. 

Dr.  Hyslop  also  said  that  in  certain  condi- 
tions of  the  mind  sleepers  awoke  in  a  state  of 
great  teiTor,  and  attacked  the  nearest  person. 
Murders  were  committed  by  persons  in  this 
condition. 


306 


^be  Kritisb  3ournal  oi  iRursing. 
a*6reat  fiDatron. 


[April  16,  1910 


Two  very  appreciative  obituary  notices  ap- 
pear in  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  Journal 
this  month  of  the  late  Matron.  In  one  is  writ- 
ten:"  She  was  a  great  Matron.  .  .  Doubt- 
less someone  will  worthily  fill  her  post  and 
carry  on  her  work,  but  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 


able  of  jNIiss  Stewart.  The  portrait  we  repro- 
duce has  been  enlarged  from  a  group  taken 
recently  with  the  Sisters  of  the  Hospital  (the 
block  of  which  has  been  courteously  lent  to  us 
by  the  editor  of  St.  Bartholomeiv's  Hospital 
Journal),  and  taken  by  Messrs.  Miles  and  Kaye, 
54,  Cheapside,  fi'om  whom  copies  can  be  ob- 
tained.      Orders  for  photogi-aphs  of  her  last 


Miss     ISLA     STEWART, 
A  Great  Matron. 


pital  will  never  have  a  jMatron  more  loyal  and 
broad-minded  or  more  faithful  to  a -high  stan- 
dard of  duty  than  Isla  Stewart." 


No  really  satisfactory  photograph  is  procur- 


quiet  resting-place  in  the  cemetery  at  Lloffat, 
covered  by  the  love'ly  flowers  sent  in  such  pro- 
fusion, can  be  placed  with  Miss  Ellen  Birch, 
House  Sister,  Nurses'  Home,  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital. 


April  16,  luiUj        ^i^j.   Britiel?  3ournal   ot   1I'(iu-6ino. 


307 


3n  flOeinoriatn. 

At  the  ileetiag  of  the  ^lutrous'  Council  of 
Great  Britain  and  Irelaud,  to  be  held  on  April 
22nd,  iMiss  MoUett,  the  Hon.  Secretary,  will 
give  a  short  valedictory  address  in  memory  of 
the  Founder  of  the  C'o\uicil,  touuliing  on  the 
irreparable  loss  sustained  by  the  members  in 
tiie  death  of  their  President. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Executive  Committee  of 
the  League  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital 
Nurses,  held  on  April  8th,  it  was  agreed  to  in- 
vite representatives  ot  nursing  societies  with 
which  the  late  Miss  Isla  Stewart  was  associated 
to  meet  at  the  Hospital  on  Saturday  afternoon, 
April  30th,  to  confer  on  tlie  question  of  an  ap- 
propriate Memorial.  Tiie  President,  Miss  Cox- 
Davies,  will  preside. 

THE  CANADIAN  NATIONAL  ASSOCIATION 
OF  TRAINED  NURSES. 
My  Dear  Jtns.  Fr.xwK  k, — I  am  writing  to  ex- 
press my  sympathy,  and  tlic  sympathy  of  all  Cana- 
dian nurses,  not  only  for  yourself,  but  for  all 
nurses  across  the  sea,  who  have  known  and  loved 
the  !ato  Miss  Isla  Stewart,  the  honoured  Matron 
of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital. 

In  tlie  first  sad  hours  of  grief,  such  an  irrepar- 
able loss  seems  altogether  appalling,  but  the  in- 
fluence of  her  life  can  never  cease,  and  its  impell- 
ing force  will,  we  trust,  bring  to  the  great  cause 
she  loved,  othei-s  who  will  continue  the  work 
begun  by  her,  in  accordance  with  her  high  ideals. 

"  They  shall  rest  from  their  labours,  and  their 
works  do  follow  them." 

Yours  faithfully, 

MiVRY  Agnes  Snively, 
President,  Canadian  T^ational  Association 
Toi-onto.  of  Trained  Nurses. 

THE  DANISH  COUNCIL  OF  NURSES. 

;Mrs.  Hans  Koch,  the  Secretary  of  the 
Danish  Council  of  Nurses,  has  forwarded  to  the 
President  of  the  National  Council  of  Nurses  of 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland  the  following  letter : 

Dear  Mapam,— The  sad  tidings  of  the  death  of 
Miss  Isla  Stewart  has  been  received  by  the  members 
of  the  Danish  Council  of  Nurses  with  great  sym- 
pathy and  sincere  regret. 

We  fully  realise  how  much  the  nursing  profes- 
sion of  Great  Britain  has  lost  in  Miss  Stewart, 
and  we  wish  to  add  that  we  feel  sure  that  your 
sisters  from  all  over  the  world,  who  through  the 
International  Council  of  Nui-ses  have  had  the  privi- 
lege and  the  pleasure  of  learning  to  know  Miss  Isla 
Stewart,  participate  with  all  their  heart  in  your 
loss. 

We  know  what  a  beautiful  and  noble  life  hers 
was.  May  it  be  an  example  and  an  encouragement 
to  us  all. 

In  deep  sympathy. 
For  the  Danish  Council  of  Nurses, 

Hexny  Tschernino, 

Copenhagen.  President. 


Care  of  tbc  Bo^\}  Hftcv  IDcatb. 

NOTES  OF  AN  ADDRESS  DELIVERED  TO 
THE  INTERNATIONAL  COUNCIL  OF  NURSES 

Bv  THE  Key.  E.  F.  Russell, 
Chaplain-General  of  the  Guild  of  St.  Barnabun. 

iNTltOniTTORy. 

In  introducing  the  subject,  the  speaker  said 
that  the  question  of  tlie  care  of  the  body  by  no 
means  belonged  to  liim ;  his  function  generally 
ended  where  that  of  the  nurse  began,  and,  with 
the  other  friends  of  the  dead,  he  was  dismissed 
that  the  nurse  might  do  her  own  particular 
work.  So  he  could  not  speak  as  an  expert. 
But  there  was  an  art  as  well  as  a  science  of 
nursing,  and  when  you  came  to  the  art  of 
nursing  that  concerned  the  mind,  the  morale, 
the  character,  the  objects,  the  ideals  of  the 
nurse,  with  all  of  which  things  he  was  bound 
to  have  something  to  do. 

He  begged  nui'ses  not  to  lose  their  idealism, 
and  related  that  it  had  been  said  somewhere 
that  one  day  the  Synthesis,  and  Reason,  and 
Abstraction  met  and  wished  to  confer  together. 
They  began  by  putting  Feeling  and  Sentiment 
outside  the  door,  but  Feeling  took  the  light  with 
her  and  left  them  in  the  dark.  So  it  would 
surely  be  found  in  nursing  or  in  any  depart- 
ment of  women's  work  that  if  Sentiment  were 
put  outside  the  door  she  would  take  with  her 
the  light  that  was  all  important. 

He  then  related  the  tale  of  the  "  Brothers 
of  Pity  "  (Fratelle  de  la  Misericordia),  as  told 
by  Mrs.  Ewmg,  that  greatBrotherhood who  have 
for  centuries  charged  themselves  with  the  care 
of  the  sick  and  the  dying,  and  especially  of  the 
friendless  dead,  and  who  ai-e  beloved  without 
measure  in  Italy  as  the  friends  of  the  friendless, 
and  how  a  small  boy  coming  on  a  picture  of 
the  Brothers  in  his  godfather's  library  tried  to 
follow  their  example  by  giving  honourable 
burial  to  the  dead  bodies  of  birds,  and  frogs, 
and  beetles.  "  There  you  get  the  unspoiled 
instinct  of  a  compassionate  child's  heart." 
A  Ple.\  for  Reverent  Pity  in  the  Care  of 
THE  De.\d. 

The  speaker  then  said:  — 

Some  of  us  perhaps  can  remember — and  we 
find  it  difficult  to  forget— the  first  time  that 
we  looked  upon  the  face  of  the  dead.  Of  course 
it  is  absolutely  impossible  that  the  poignant 
emotion  of  our  first  view  of  the  dead  face 
should  remain  with  us ;  indeed  it  is  not  desir- . 
able  that  it  should. 

I  always  remember,  and 'to  some  of  you  I 
have  quoted,  that  little  sentence  of  dear  old 
Dr.  John  Brown's,  whose  name  is  one  always 
to  be  thought  of  with  love  and  veneration, 
who,  speaking  of  one  of  the  great  Scotch  sur- 


308 


^be  3Britl5b  3ournaI  of  IWursiUQ. 


[April  16,  1910 


geons,  said  that  in  him  "  pity  had  died  as  an 
emotion,  but  remained  as  a  motive."  I  thank 
Dr.  John  Brown  for  that  senten&e.  It  has 
often  stood  me  in  good  stead  and  been  a  com- 
fort to  me,  and  I  know  to  many  others  also. 
We  are  not  to  think  that  because  the  emotion 
of  pity  is  wanting,  that,  therefore,  pity  itself  is 
\\auting.  It  may  remain  in  us  as  a  most  in- 
spiring motive. 

I  would  plead  on  behalf  of  those  who  cannot 
plead  for  themselves  for  your  reverent  pitj"  in 
the  handling  of  the  dead ;  and  my  first  point  is 
this.  Do  not  forget  that  you  represent  the 
nearest  and  dearest  of  that  dead  body  that  is 
before  you  when  you  have  to  deal  with  it.  Do 
not  forget  that  you  have  put  out  of  the  room, 
after  a  sufficient  interval  and  as  gently  and 
kindly  as  you  can,  the  nearest  and  dearest  of 
the  one  who  has  died,  and  are  left  alone  with 
their  dead.  Remember  that  they  trust  you  to 
do  for  them  what  they  themselves  would  do  if 
they  could — if  they  had  the  necessary  self- 
command,  ^ly  \^ord  to  you  would  be  this — 
please  always  deserve  the  confidence  that 
people  have  placed  in  you.  Never  do  any- 
thing that  could  in  any  way  undermine  that 
most  precious  confidence.  That  would  be  in- 
de"ed  a  most  serious  loss. 

My  second  point  is  this :  we  give  reverence 
to  symbols — a  flag,  for  instance.  No  doubt  you 
have  noticed  that  when  the  Guard  passes 
through  the  streets  the  people  raise  their  hats 
to  do  homage  to  the  colours,  and  it  is  a  joy  to 
them  to  do  it.  You  know  what  the  colours 
stand  to  represent,  and  how  people  have  laid 
down  their  lives  for  the  symbol.  Now,  the 
dead  with  whom  I  have  to  deal  are  not  a 
symbol ;  they  are  a  great  reality,  and  represent 
to  us  the  battlefield.  In  that  body  has  been 
fought  out  some  great  life  issue ;  there  good 
and  evil,  light  and  darkness,  have  met  with 
varying  successes :  sometimes  the  good  was 
victorious,  sometimes  the  evil,  and  you  have 
before  you  the  result,  the  fruit  which  has  been 
moulded  and  modelled  by  that  means.  You 
are  in  the  presence  of  the  battlefield  and  the 
remains  of  that  great  and  often  most  pathetic 
life  struggle. 

It  becomes  your  duty  to  deal  with  that  body 
with  the  utmost  reverence.  A  piece  of  advice 
once  given  to  a  young  musician  was:  "  Play 
always  as  if  you  were  in  the  presence  of  a 
master."  That  is  to  say,  never  jingle  a  piece 
of  music  on  the  piano, ,  always  feel  that  there 
is  a  master  there;  ithen  play  your  instrument. 
That,  I  think,  is  an  excellent  rule  for  all  kinds 
of  ai-ts  besides  music^for  the  art  X)f  nursing 
as  well  as  other  arts.  Do  yoin-  work  as  if  a 
master  were  in  the  room,  and  do  it  in  the  way 
that  he  woidd  approve. 


We  are  carried  beyond  this  when  we  come 
into  the  region  of  faith.  Our  eyes  see  the 
pathetic  record  of  the  life  struggle  of  the  body 
that  is  before  us;  our  faith  carries  us  deeper 
than  that,  and  beyond  that,  and  bids  us  recog- 
nise in  that  body  the  temple  of  the  Holy  Ghost, 
one  whom  God  has  redeemed,  a  body  for  whom 
God  has  done  much,  and  has  fed,  indeed,  with 
His  Own  most  precious  Body  auci  Blood.  That 
body  through  life  was  a  member  of  Christ,  and 
has  about  it  memories  of  the  Christ.  In 
serving  that  body  in  life  Christ  bid  you  seiwe 
Him ;  surely  no  less  should  you  sei-ve  Him 
through  that  body  in  death,  and  what  you  do 
"for  that  body  you  do  for  Christ. 

Aud  that  brings  me  in  thought  to  the  foot  of 
the  Cross.  You  remember  how  the  Ijord  Him- 
self died  upon  the  Cross,  and  that  His  Blessed 
Mother  at  the  foot  of  the  Cross  cared  for  His 
Body,  and  did  for  it  aU  that  needed  to  be  done. 
And  you  will  find  in  what  Mary  did  for  the 
Body  of  Jesus  the  very  ideal  of  that  which 
Christian  nurses  should" do  for  every  body  that 
is  committed  to  their  trust  and  care. 

Well,  now,  what  have  I  to  say  in  the  matter 
of  the  practice  ?  But  very  little.  I  have  dealt 
rather  with  the  principles  that  are  all-important 
to  the  heart  rather  than  with  the  actual  know- 
ledge you  bring  to  bear  in  that  room  where  the 
dead  person  lies,  and  I  plead,'  first  of  all,  that 
what  is  done  should  be  done  in  silence.  There 
are  those  who  have  ready  in  their  minds  some 
thoughts  and  words  in  which,  and  by  which, 
they  can  lift  up  their  hearts  to  God  before  they 
begin  this  sacred  task  of  caring  for  the  dead. 
Let  the  words  be  few,  and  only  the  most  neces- 
sary ones. 

And  then,  further,  surely  you  would  do  all 
you  could  to  make  the  whole  aspect  of  the 
dead,  and  the  aspect  of  the  room  in  which  the 
dead  is  lying,  as  full  of  peace  and  as  helpful 
to  the  friends  as  it  can  possibly  be. 

All  this  should  surely  be  taught  where  the 
other  lessons  of  the  nurse's  life  are'taught,  in 
the  hospital.  But  it  will  never  be  taught  in  the 
hospitals  so  long  as  there  are  in  them 
some  such  mortuaries  as  we  know,  alas,  still 
exist.  Thank  God,  there  are  many  hospitals 
uhere  the  mortuary  is  all  one  could  wish  it  to 
be.  But  there  are  hospitals  in  which  to  enter 
the  mortuary  is  a  positive  humiliation.  I  will 
not  mention  the  name,  but  I  had  occasion  to 
visit  a  mortuary  at  a  hospital  with  the  friends 
of  a  dead  person,  and  I  was  absolutely 
ashamed.  We  stood  there  in  the  cellar  im- 
pressed with  every  mark  of  disregard  and  dis- 
honour, gloomy  and  forbidding,  and  we  liurried 
away  as  quickly  as  we  could. 

It  would  be  a  most  admirable  fruit  of  this 
rrathering  if  those  present  were  to  take  up  with 


April  16, 1910]       2i5e  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRursmg. 


309 


resolution  the  work  of  doiug  their  utmost  to 
make  the  mortuaries  of  our  hospitals  what  they 
really  should  be — places  to  which  one  can  go 
with  the  friends  of  the  dead  with  content, 
places  marked  with  signs  of  honour,  marked 
with  the  sign  of  our  redemption,  and  with 
words  of  consolation  and  hope  upon  their  walls. 
Tliat  would  be  an  excellent,  an  admirable,  fruit 
of  our  meeting  this  afternoon — if  something 
could  be  done  in  some  hospital  where  there  is 
yet  a  mortuary  which  is  not  what  it  should  be. 

The  substance  of  the  very  little  I  have  said 
to-day  is  gathered  up  in  two  little  lines  of  that 
great  poetess,  Elizabeth  Barrett  Browning, 
which  I  should  like  to  leave  with  you,  as  they 
sum  up  what  I  wish  to  put'be.fore  you  in  my 
plea  for  reverent  pity  in  deahng  with  the  dead. 
Ttie  man,  most  man,  with  tenderest  human  hands, 
Works  best  for  man,  as  God  iu  Xazareth. 


Zbc  territorial  Jforce  IRursincj 
Service. 


At  the  meeting  of  the  Executive  Ck)mmittee 
of  the  Territorial  Force  Nursing  Service  of  the 
City  and  County  of  London,  held  at  the  Man- 
sion House  on  April  8th,  the  following  resolu- 
tion, proposed  by  Lady  Wyatt-Truscott,  and 
seconded  by  Lady  Dimsdale,  in  the  most  feeling 
manner,  was  unanimously  adopted:  — 

That  the  members  of  this  Committee  desire 
to  express  their  deep  regret  at  the  loss  sus- 
tained by  this  Committee  and  by  No.  1  General 
Hospital  in  the  death  of  Miss  Isla  Stewart." 

Tt  was  decided  that  copies  of  the  resolution 
signed  by  Lady  Wyatt  Truscott,  late  I^ady 
^layoress.  Lady  Dimsdale,  Vice-President,  and 
the  Lady  Maj'oress,  Lady  Knill,  Chairman, 
should  be  forwarded  to  Lord  Sandhurst,  Trea- 
surer of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and  to 
Miss  Janet  Stewart. 

liady  Mackinnon,  who  throughout  has  shown 
the  kindest  interest  in  all  that  concerns  the 
nursing  staff,  proposed  that  some  steps  should 
be  taken  to  bring  the  Committee  into  personal 
touch  with  the  members  of  the  four  Territorial 
Hospitals  for  J-iondon,  and  also  to  bring  the 
members  of  those  Hospitals  into  touch  with 
each  other.  The  proposal  was  warmly  sup- 
ported, and  it  was  announced  that  Lady  Trus- 
cott, with  her  usual  generosity  would  be 
pleased  to  hold  a  Eeunion  of  the  members  of 
the  Committees,  and  the  nursing  staff,  at  her 
house,  and  it  was  agreed  that  once  in  six 
months  such  Reunions  should  be  held,  thus  fur- 
tluring  the  good  feeling  and  f sprit  de,  corps  of 
thi'  Service. 


IProercss  ot  State  Hvegistration. 

The  news  that  Mr.  Bums,  the  President  of 
the  Local  Government  Board,  has  removed  his 
block  from  the  Nurses'  PkCgistratiou  Bill  in  the 
House  of  Commons  will  be  received  with  much 
satisfaction  by  the  very  large  majority  of  Ma- 
trons and  nurses  working  under  the  Poor  Law, 
and  we  congratulate  those  Matrons  who  last 
week  had  the  good  sense  to  promptly  place  their 
expert  views  on  this  professional  question  be- 
fore him.  The  day  is  long  since  past  when 
women  can  afford  to  stand  aside  when  the  con- 
ditions of  their  work  and  consequently  their 
lives,  are  under  discussion — indeed,  it  is  their 
dutj-  to  form  conditions  which  they  can  con- 
scientiously accept.  We  sincerely  hope  the 
President  of  the  Local  Government  Board  will 
not  be  content  with  not  opposing,  but  that  he 
will  in  the  future  actively  help  trained  nurses 
to  attain  their  justifiable  ambition — the  organi- 
sation of  their  profession,  by  State  Authority, 
for  the  protection  of  the  sick.  Let  Mr.  Burns 
realise  that  nurses  are  working  women — and 
very  hard-working  women,  too — engaged  iu 
combatting  disease  by  every  means  in  their 
power,  and  helping  thus  to  build  up  the  health 
of  the  people,  and  he  should  be  in  the  front 
rank  of  active  friends. 


It  is  only  quite  recently  that  entirely  through 
the  initiative  and  deteitnination  of  Mr.  Burns 
three  thoroughly  qualified  certificated  nurses 
have  been  appointed  Inspectors  of  Poor  Law 
Infirmaries  and  Schools — the  most  sensible  bit 
of  Poor  Law  refomi  effected  for  some  time. 


The  follow-ing  Matrons  unavoidably  signed 
the  resistration  resolution  too  late  for  presen- 
tation'Mast  week: — Miss  L.  A.  Houston, 
Holbom  Infii-mai^;  Miss  E.  S.  Owen,  Staple- 
ton  Infirmary,  Bristol;  and  Miss  M.  C.  Trc- 
harne-Jones,  Newport  Infirmary,  Mon.  These 
additional  signatures  have  been  forwarded  by 
Miss  Barton  to  the  President  of  the  Local 
Government  Board. 


It  will  be  seen  that  as  we  meet  with  opposi- 
tion from  employers  at  every  tuni,  we  cannot 
afford  to  rest  on  oiu*  oars  for  a  moment.  Our 
keen  adversaries,  Mr.  Holland  and  Miss  Liickes, 
of  the  London  Hospital,  are  sparing  neither 
time  nor  energy  in  whipping  up  opposition  to 
the  Nurses'  Bill.  This  should  spur  us  on  with 
all  the  more  detemiination,  as  the  nurses 
working  under  anti-registration  authority  are 
just  those  who  for  economic  reasons  cannot 
help  themselves,  and  require  State  protection 
the  more. 


310 


Cbe  Brftieb  3ournal  of  IRursing. 


[April  16,  1910 


Xcaijue  IRews. 

GUY'S  HOSPITAL  PAST  AND   PRES"ENT 
NURSES'  LEAGUE. 

The  eight  Annual  JMeeting  aud  the  second 
Annual  Dinner  of  the  Guy's  Hospital  Nurses' 
League  will  be  held  in  the  Xurses'  Home,  on 
Friday,  April  29th.  Dinner,  7  p.m.  ^liss 
Gertrude  Eogers,  Matron  of  Leicester  Infir- 
mary, has  kindly  consented  to  take  the  chair 
at  the  meeting. 

The  sixth  Annual  Exhibition  of  the  Guy's 
Hospital  Nurses'  Photographic  Society  will  be 
opened  on  the  29th  April. 

The  first  Post-graduate  Lecture  arranged  by 
the  Guy's  Hospital  Nurses'  League,  was  held 
on  Tuesday,  April  otli,  in  the  Nurses'  Home. 

Dr.  Cameron,  in  his  opening  remarks,  said 
he  had  tried  to  imagine  that  the  lectures  were 
for  those  wJio  had  been  away  from  the  wards 
for  a  period  of  about  five  years.  Eeceutly 
great  alterations  in  the  treatment  prescribed 
for  gastric  ulcer  had  been  made,  based  on  the 
scientific  research  of  Prof.  Pawlow,  and  fol- 
lowed up  by  Prof.  Lenhartz,  whose  treatment 
consisted  of  rest  in  bed,  ice-bag  to  epigastrium, 
large  doses  of  bis.  carb.  grs.  xxx.,  iron  as  a 
tonic  directed  against  the  anaemia,  and  con- 
tinuous spoon  feeding  leading  up  to  a  normal 
diet.  Typhoid  fever  was  another  disease  in 
which  the  method  of  treatment  had  undergone 
a  complete  change.  The  patient  was  allowed 
to  sit  up  in  bed,  and  a  more  generous  diet  was 
given,  in  addition  to  milk,  cream,  chocolate, 
puddings,  and  minced  meats  being  allowed,  so 
that  he  had  not  to  fight  against  the  terrible 
weakness  caused  by  a  low  diet  as  well  as  the 
weakness  from  the  disease  itself.  Cold  baths 
were  also  advocated,  as,  in  addition  to  lower- 
ing the  temperature,  they  were  of  great  value 
as  a  stimulant  to  the  whole  body. 

CENTRAL  LONDON  SICK  ASYLUM   NURSES' 

LEAGUE. 

Cleveland  Street  BRA^•c^. 

The  inaugural  meeting  of  the  Cleveland 
Street  Branch  of  the  Central  London  Sick 
Asylum  Nurses'  League  was  held  at  Cleve- 
land Street  Infirmary,  on  Saturday,  April  9th, 
when  the  following  officers  were  elected  : — Pre- 
sident, Miss  Charlotte  Leigh;  Hon.  Treasvrer, 
iMiss  Shaw;  Hon.  Secretary,  Miss  M.  Pun- 
chard;  Hon.  Editor,  IMiss  Farries;  Executive 
Committee,  Miss  E.  Smith,  Miss  Chick,  Miss 
E.  Hill,  Miss  Healey,  Miss,  France,  Miss 
Tippell. 

The  Hon.  Editor  will  be  glad  to  receiye  com- 
munications of  interest  for  publication  in  the 
League  Journal,  which  will  be  issued  about  the 
end  of  the  vear. 


flDctropolttan  Hsvluins'  ffioart). 

Tlie  iIetix)politan  Asylums'  Board  on  Saturday 
last  had  before  them  jMrt  of  the  Finance  Com- 
mittee's Heport  of  March  8th,  in  which  they  sub- 
mitted proiKisals  made  by  the  Hospitals'  C-onimitt(?e 
to  amend  the  consolidated  salaries  aud  wages  scale 
in  respect  of  the  lujrsiug  staff  in  the  Hospitals'  .Ser- 
vice, together  with  the  grounds  on  which  such  pro- 
posals are  made. 

These  proposals  were  made  in  consequence  ot  a 
letter  addressed  by  the  Medical  Superintendent  of 
the  Park  Hospital,  Dr.  Birdwood,  to  the  Clerk  of 
the  Board,  on  Octoljer  16th,  1907,  in  which,  in  tor- 
warding  a  list  of  candidates  for  ai^pointment  as 
Charge  aud  Fii-st-Assistant  Nurses,  who  had  re- 
sponded to  au  advertisement,  he  wrote:  — 
'  ■'  Only  one  of  the  26  applicants  tor  charge  nurse 
was  trained  in  a  general  hospital  in  Loudon,  aud  ni 
her  case  some  further  iuformatiou  is  necessary  be- 
fore api>oiutmeut.  There  must  be  something  wrong 
somewhere  to  account  for  this  boycott  of  tlie 
Asylums'  Boaixl  by  the  elite  of  the  nui-sing  com- 
munity. Something  should  be  done  to  find  out  wiiy 
wonieu  trained  in  the  best  training  schools 
attached  to  the  general  hospitals  of  the  Metropolis 
avoid  the  Board's  sei'vice.  I  think  it  a  great  tiis- 
advantage  to  us  to  be  dei>rived  of  well-qnalitied 
nurses  if  by  any  action  on  the  Board's  part  tlieir 
services  could  be  secured." 

This  letter  was  referred  to  Dr.  Cuff,  who  sub- 
mitted an  important  report  upon  it,  and  the  Hos- 
pitals' Committee,  as  a  result,  went  into  the  whole 
question  of  the  nursing  staff  with  a  view  to  the 
improvement  of  the  service.  They  received  much 
information  aud  some  valuable  suggestions  from  the 
Medical  Sui^eriuteudents  and  Matrons  of  me 
Board's  Hospitals,  and  interviewed  the  MatroiLS  of 
ten  of  the  large  London  general  hospitals,  and  turee 
of  the  Board's  hospitals,  and  discussed  the  whole 
subject  with  Dr.  Cuff.  In  their  deliberations  they 
kept  two  objects  in  view  :^- 

(1)  How  to  improve  the  standing  aud  character  ot 
the  Board's  nureing  staff  ;  aud 

(2)  How  to  utilise  the  Board's  unique  position  as 
an  infectious  hospital  authority,  to  spread  abroad 
among  uui-ses  knowledge  aud  exjierience  of  fever 
nursing — a  'most  important  branch  of  their  profes- 
sion. 

They  therefore  considered  the  Board's  i>resent 
nursing  system,  and  the  gi-ades  into  which  the 
nuiises  are  divided,  in  relation  to  the  acute  hos- 
pitals, the  convalescent  hospitals,  the  small-ix>x  hos- 
pitals, and  river  ambulance  service. 

Vi'e  ijublished  a  full  report  of  the  recommendations 
of  the  Hospitals'  Committee  in  our  issue  of  JIarch 
19th.     They  included  :  — 

The  abolition  of  the  position  of  Superintendent 
o<  Sight  Nurses,  the  duties  of  this  office  to  be 
undertaken  by  the  Sisters  in  rotation  for  a  period 
not  exceeding  twelve  months,  with  extra  remuner- 
ation at  the  rate  of  10s.  per  month. 

The  creation  of  a  distinct  grade  of  "  Sister  "  in 
place  of  the  present  Charge  Nurse.  The  Sisters 
must  have  had  full  general  training,  and  be  women 


April  IG,  1910] 


^Dc  3Bi1ti3b  journal  of  IRursfng. 


311 


of  good  education,  and  should  be  required,  as  part 
of  their  regular  duties,  to  instruct  the  probationers 
under  them.  They  should  have  greater  privileges 
than  the  other  grades  of  nurses  over  whom  they 
exercise  supervision,  and  their  increased  duties  and 
I'esponsibilitiee,  as  compared  with  the  present 
Charge  Nurses,  shoujd  be  marked  by  a  higher 
salary. 

The  gradual  abolition  of  the  grade  of  Assistant 
i\urse  (Class  I.)  and  the  creation  of  a  new  grade 
of  "  Staff  Nurse." 

Assistant  Nurse  {Class  II.)  to  be  replaced  in  the 
acute  hospitals  by  "  probationers,"  marking  the 
corresponding  grade  in  a  general  hospital. 

The  Board  had  the  warm  sympathy  of  the  late 
^latron  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  in  its  efforts 
to  effect  these  improvements  ia  the  status  of  its 
nurses    and   a  provisional  arrangement  has   been 


entered  intp  with  the  authorities  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital,  whereby  a  number  of  the  Board's 
probationei-s  can  bo  received  for  training  at 
that  hospital  at  the  end  of  their  two  years'  proba- 
tion, which  will  be  counted  as  one  year's  work  in  a 
general  hospital. 

The  adoption  of  the  schedule  of  ward  instruction 
and  the  syllabus  of  lectures  drawn  up  by  the  Fever 
Nurses'  Association,  and  the  award  of  a  certificate 
of  proficiency  in  fever  nursing  by  the  Board 
to  probationers  who  have  satisfactorily  iiassed 
through  their  two  years'  training,  and  iia-ssed 
the  necessary  examination. 

The  Hosi>itals  Committee  were  of  opinion  that  if 
these  reoommondations  wore  adopted  the  nursing 
education  of  probationers  in  the  Board's  hospitals 
would  be  governed  by  a  uniform  and  well-defined 
scheme,   and  the  reward  of  those  w-ho  succotxl   in 


RETURN   OF  SALARIES  OF  VARIOUS  GRADES  OF   NURSES   UNDER   PROPOSED   SCHEME 
COMPARED  WITH   EXISTING    SALARIES  OF  CORRESPONDING   GRADES. 
At  Present.  Proposed. 

I.—.iCUTE  FEVEB  HOSPITALS, 


Office. 

Superintendent  of 

Nurses  (night) 


Charge  Nurse 

Assistant    Nurse 

(Class  I.) 
Assistant  Nurse 

(Class  II.) 


Salary    and    Emoluments 
£42,    rising    £2    to     £46,    with 
B.L.W.U. 


£36,  rising 
B.L.AV.U. 

£24,  rising 
B.L.AV.U. 

£20,  rising 
B.L.AV.U. 


£1 
£1 
£1 


£40,  with 
£28,  with 
£24,     with 


Office.  Salary  and  Emoluments. 

Abolished.     Duties  10s.  per  month   to   be  added   to 
to  be  discharged      Sister's  salary  while  so  acting, 
by  Sisters  selec- 
ted in  rotation,  i 
Sister.  i£38,    rising 

I    B.L.W.U. 
Staff  Nurse  £26,    rising 

B.L.W.U. 
Probationer  £18,   rising 

B.L.AV.U. 
Assistant       Nurse  £20,   risirig 
(Class    II.)    (to     B.L.AV.U. 
supplement  pro- 
bationers). 


£2 

to 

£44, 

with 

£2 

to 

£30, 

with 

£2 

to 

£20, 

with 

£2 

to 

£22, 

with 

Superintendent  of  £42,    rising    £2 


Nurses  (night) 

B.L.AV.U. 

Charge  Nurse 

£36,    rising     £1 
B.L.AV.U. 

to 

£40, 

Assistant    Nurse 

£24,    rising     £1 

to 

£28, 

(Class  I.) 

B.L.AV.U. 

Assistant  Nurse 

£20,   rising     £1 

to 

£24, 

(Class  II.) 

B.L.AV.U. 

Nursemaid 

£18,  with  B.L.yV 

.U. 

per   month  to  be  added   to 
Sister's  salary  while  so  acting. 


CONVALESCENT  HOSPITALS. 
to     £46,    with  Abolished.     DutiesTOs 
to  bo  discharged' 
by  Sisters  seleo-j 
ted  in  rotation. 
with  Sister.  £38,  rising 

B.L,.A\'.U. 
with  Assistant       Nurse  £24,     rising 
(Class  I.)  B.L.AV.U. 

with  Assistant       Nurse  £20,    rising 
(Class    II.)  B.L.AV.U. 

Nursing Attendantl£18,   with  B.L.AV.U. 

III.— SMALL-POX  HOSPIT.iLS  .iNV   BIVER  .UIBULANCE  SERVICE. 
Salaries  include   £2  additional  for   smalUpox   ser  vices    granted   under  general   regulation    No. 
Superintendent  of£44,    rising 
Nurses  (night)         B.L.AV.U. 


£2    to 

£44, 

with 

£1    to 

£28, 

with 

£2    to 

£22, 

with 

Charge  Nurse 

Assistant    Nurse 
(Class  I.) 


Assistant  Nurse 
(Class  II.) 


£2    to    £48,     with  Abolished.     DutieslOs.   per   month  to  be  added   to 

Sister's  salary  while  so  acting. 


£38,  rising 
B.L.AV.U. 

£26,  rising 
B.L.AV.U. 


£1 
£1 


£42, 
£30 


£22,  rising 
B.L.AV.U. 


£1     to    £26. 


to  be  discharged 
by  .Sisters  selec- 
1     ted  in  rotation 
with  Sister. 

with;  Staff  Nurse 
i 

'Assistant  Nurse 
(Class  I.)  (to 
supplement  staff 
nurses) 
with  Assistant  Nurse 
(Class     II.) 


£40,  rising 
B.L.AV.TJ. 

£28,  rising 
B.L.AV.U. 

£26,  rising 
B.L.AV.xf. 


£22,    rising 
B.L.W.U. 


£2 
£2 
£1 


£46, 
£32, 
£30, 


with 
with 
with 


(Signed) 


AV. 


DENNIS, 

Chairman  of  the  Hospitals  Committee. 


sm 


CDC  Brltisb  jtournal  of  flursing. 


[April  16,  1910 


tlieir  work  HoiiUl  gain  in  value  in  the  eyes  ot  the 
nui-siiig  piX)fe«siou. 

It  is  i)ropose<l  that  probationers  should  be  allowed 
to  join  at  the  minimum  age  of  21.  Thus  they  could 
obtAin  their  two  years'  experience  in  infectious 
nursing  before  the  age  at  which  pi-obationers  are 
admitted  for  training  to  a  large  general  hospital. 

At  the  conralescent  hospitals  it  is  proposed  to  re- 
tain the  grades  of  Assistant  Xurse,  as  well  as  m 
connection  with  the  small-pox  hospitals  and  River 
Ambulance  Service. 

At  the  Convalescent  Hosi)it<ils  it  is  also  proposed 
to  revert  to  the  term  Nursing  Attendant  instead 
of  Xursemaid,  which  is  really  a  misnomer. 

The  appix)val  and  adoption  of  the  Hospitals'  Com- 
mittee's proposals  weie  moved  from  the  chair  by 
yiv.  J.  T.  Helby,  Chairman  of  the  Board,  when  an 
amendment  was  moved  by  Mr.  Luttman-Johnson 
to  refer  the  recommendation  back  for  further  con- 
sideration and  report.  A  long  discussion  ensued  in 
the  ooui'se  of  which  Mr.  Harold  Spender  supportetl 
the  proposal  to  create  the  gratle  of  Sister,  and  orew 
attention  to  the  strain  entailed  by  permanent  night 
duty. 

In  the  result  the  amendment  was  lost,  and  the 
Committee's  recommendation  adopted  by  a  large 
majority. 

We  congratulate  the  MetroiX)litan  Asylums' 
Board  most  cordially  on  their  decision,  ^^•hich  can- 
not fail  to  increase  the  efficiency  and  popularity  of 
its  Jvureing  Service. 

IPractical  Ipoints. 

A     correspondent     is     recom- 
A  Slow  mended    in  the  British  Medi- 

Combustion  Fire,  cal  Journal  to  pack  the  fire- 
grate with  pieces  of  coal  as  he 
would  pack  a  child's  bricks  into  the  box,  and  fill 
the  interstices  with  coal  dust,  then  light  a  fire  on 
tlie  top,  when  he  will  have  an  ideal  fire  for  a  sick 
room.  It  will  burn  without  attention  for  twelve 
to  twenty-four  hours  if  well  laid.  The  writer  adds: 
Take  some  pieo&s  of  coal,  of  a  suitable  size, 
and  pack  the  grate  with  them,  as  closely  as  they 
will  lie,  having  placed  one  layer  on  the  bottom 
<if  the  grate,  fill  the  cracks  between  the  coals  with 
coal  dust,  then  pvit  a  second  layer  of  pieces  of  coal, 
iind  fill  with  dust  as  before,  and  so  do  till  the  grate 
IS  full  to  the  top  bar;  then  with  i^aper,  wood,  and 
coal,  or  with  a  fire  lighter,  procead  to  make  a  fire 
en  the  top  of  the  filled  grate,  feed  this  with  cinders 
or  pieces  of  coal  till  it  is  well  burning.  Then  the 
tire  will  burn  for  twelve  or  more  hour-s  according 
To  the  care  with  which  the  grate  has  been  filled. 
yly  library  grate  is  an  old-fashioned  hob  grate ; 
when  the  fire  has  been  lighted  in  this  manner,  it 
has  burnt  from  10  one  day  to  noon  the  next ;  of 
course  it  is  not  a  fierce  fire,  and  it  should  not  be 
poked.  The  tighter  the  coal  is  packed  the  slower 
the  combustion.  Coke  and  coal  dust  will  make  a 
good  fire,  but  is  not  so  lasting. 

Private    nurses    will  be    glad    to  know    of  this 
method  of  keeping  a  fire  in  through  the  night. 


appointments. 


L.iDY  Superintendent. 
Maternity  Hospital,  Leeds.  -Miss  E.  M.  Edward* 
has  been  appointed  Lady  Superintendent.  She 
was  trained  at  the  County  Hospital,  York,  and  at 
the  Glasgow  Maternity  Hospital,  and  has  held  the 
post  of  District  Head  Nurse  at  the  Gla.sgow  Ma- 
ternity Hospital,  and  is  at  present  Assistant  Ma- 
tron and  District  Superintendent  at  the  Liverpool 
Maternity  Hospital. 

West  Kent  iieneral  Hospital,  Maidstone. — Miss  E.  Gro- 
cott  ha.s  been  apix>inted  Lady  Superintendent.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Royal  Infirmarj',  Liverpool,  and 
had  experience  of  private  nursing  in  connection 
with  its  private  uureing  staff.  She  has  also  been 
Sister  at  the  General  Hospital,  Northampton,  and 
Night  Sui)erintendent,  Home  Sister,  and  Assistant 
Mati'on  at  the  Norfolk  and  Norwich  Hospital,  Nor- 
wich. 

M.\TRONS. 

London  Fever  Hospital,  N. — Miss  Fleming  has  l>eeu 
placed  in  the  position  of  Matron  on  six  months'  i>ro- 
bation.  She  was  trained  at  the  Hospital  for  Sick 
Children,  Great  Ormond  Street,  and  has  been  Staff 
Nurse  at  the  Children's  Hospital,  Bradford.  She 
had  some  months'  experience  at  the  Westminster 
Hosijitai,  and  has  been  Staff  Nurse,  and  subse- 
quently Sister,  for  three  years  at  the  London  Fever 
Hospital. 

The  Hartlepools  Hospitall^HaMlepooi.  — Miss  A.  Ste- 
venson has  been  appointed  Matron  of  the  Hartle- 
pools Hospital.  She  was  trained  at  the  Sheffield 
Royal  Hospital,  and  has  since  been  Sister  of  the 
Men's  Medical  Ward,  and  for  the  last  two  years 
has  held  the  post  of  Night  Sister.  She  has  acted 
as  Matron  during  holidays,  and  also  taken  House- 
keeper's duties  in  that  institution,  and  on  several 
occasions  taken  charge  at  the  country  annexe. 

Kettering  and  District  General  Hospital,  Kettering.— 
Miss  F.  M.  Smithies  has  been  appointed  Matron. 
She  was  trained  at  the  Bolton  Infirmary,  Lan- 
cashire, and  has  held  the  positions  .of  Sister  at  the 
Cardiff  Infirmary ;  Matron  of  the  Cottage  Hospi- 
tal, Bridgend ;  Deputy  Matron  at  the  Royal  Infir- 
mary, Hull ;  Lady  Superintendent  of  the  General 
Hospital,  Altrinoham ;  and  Matron  of  the  Jlonk- 
wearmouth  Hospital. 

NuKSE  Matron. 
Cottage  Hospital,  Malton,  Yorkshire — Miss  Frances 
C.  Lorrimer  has  been  appointed  Nurse  IMatron.  She 
was  trained  at  the  General  Infirmary,  Leeds,  and 
has  held  the  positions  of  Charge  Nui-se  at  the  Scar- 
borough Hospital,  Sister  and  Night  Superintendent 
at  the  Rojal  Infirmary,  Sheffield,  and  Assistant 
Matron  at  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Preston. 
Assistant  Mateox. 
Maternity  Hospital,  Leeds. — Miss  Alice  L.  Moore  has 
been  appointed  Assistant  Matron.  She  was  traine<l 
at  the  Adelaide  Hospital  and  at  the  Rotunda  Ho-.s- 
pital,  Dublin.  She  has  held  the  position  of  Sister 
at  the  Liverpool  Lying-in  Hospital,  and  at  the  Leitli 
General  Hospital,  and  has  been  Night  Sui>enn- 
tendent  at  the  Rotunda  Ho.siiital,  Dublin.  She  is 
a  certified  midwife. 


Vpril  10,  r.'ln 


Zbc  l&ntiob  3oiu'nal  of  IRursing. 


313 


.•sisters. 
The   Hartlepools   Hospital,    Hartlepool Miss  Irene  U. 

Page  has  beeu  ai)i)oiiited  Sister  in  charge  of  the 
Oiicratiiig  Theatre.  She  was  trained  at  the  Shef- 
tield  Royal  Hospital,  and  has  since  been  Staff  Nurse 
and  has  also  done  Sister's  and  Housekeeper's  holi- 
day duties  in  that  Institution. 

AlGHT    SiSTKH. 

Monkwearmouth  and  Southwick  Hoepltal,  Sunderland.— 
— Miss  Annie  St.  George  has  been  appointed  Night 
Sister.  She  was  trained  At  the  Uoyal  luhrnniry, 
Ncwcastle-on-Tyno ;  and  has  held  the  positions  of 
Staff  Nurse  at  the  Stamford  and  Rutland  General 
Infirmary;  Charge  -Nurse  at  the  AVorkiugton  In- 
firmary; and  Private  Nurse  on  the  staff  of  the 
Sunderland  Institute. 


QUEEN    ALEXANDRA'S    ROYAL    NAVAL    NURSING 
SERVICE. 
Miss  M.  A.  French  has  been  appointed  a  Sister 
in   Queen   .-Vlesandra's  Royal   Naval   Nursing  Ser- 
vice, on  probation. 

QUEEN   ALEXANDRAS  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 
NURSING    SERVICE. 

.\latrou-in-Chu't  Miss  C.  H.  Keer,  R.R.C.,  is 
placed  on  retired  pay;  Principal  Matron  Miss  E. 
H.  Bocher,  R.R.C.,  to  be  Matron-in-Chief,  vice 
-Miss  C.  H.  Keer,  R.R.C. ;  Matron  Miss  E.  M. 
McCarthy,  R.R.C,  to  be  Principal  Matron,  vice 
Mies  E.  H.  Becher,  R.R.C.  (April  5th). 

QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUbIlEE    INSTITUTE 

Transfers  and  Appointments. — Miss  Caroline 
Coaling,  as  Superintendent,  to  Southampton  ;  Miss 
Constance  Eva  Niclioll,  to  Kidderminster,  St. 
John ;  Miss  Gertrude  Moore,  to  Hucknall  Htith- 
waite;  Miss  Evelyn  H.  Furmiuger,  to  Lincoln  City; 
Miss  Florence  Dow.  to  Hastings. 
WEDDING   BELLS. 

The  marriage  of  Miss  MayBeardsle}',a  member  of 
the  Registered  Nurses'  Society,  to  Dr.  Samuel 
Northwood,  was  solemnised  on  Thursday,  April  7, 
at  Marylebone  Parish  Church.  The  wedding  took 
place  from  49,  Beaumont  Street,  the  residence  of 
Miss  M.  E.  Rowell,  a  former  colleague  of  Miss 
Beardsley  on  the  R.N.S. 

The  bride,  who  looked  very  handsome  and  happy, 
wore  a  gown  of  fine  face  cloth  in  a  pastel  shade  of 
blue,  inset  with  laro,  and  with  touches  of  pink  em- 
broidery. The  flowers  in  a  becoming  hat,  of  the 
same  shade,  were  wisteria  and  pink  roses. 

The  ceremony  w-as  performed  by  the  Rev.  W.  H. 
Davies,  the  bride  being  given  away  by  her  mother. 
Her  bridesmaid  was  her  sister,  Miss  Jenny  Beards- 
ley,  and  Mr.  Kirby,  an  intimate  friend  of  the 
bridegroom  acted  as  best  man. 

A  reception  w  as  afterwards  given  by  Miss  Rowell, 
when  the  bride  and  bridegroom  were  the  recipients 
of  many  good  wi.shcs,  and  the  wedding  presents, 
wlii<h  were  on  view,  were  greatly  admired.  They 
included  a  salad  bowl  and  servers  from  Miss  Rowell, 
a  tea  service,  a  reversible  entree  and  muffin  dish, 
fisli  servers,  a  silver  toast  rack,  cheques,  and  many 
other  gifts.  The  gift  of  the  bride's  mother  and 
sister  was  her  drawing  room  furniture. 

Dr.  and  Mrs.  Northwood  will  make  their  future 
home  at  11.  Wondbnrniin),  Road.  -Vfniii.r.rU.v  Not- 
tingham. 


Illurslno  lEcboee. 

The  eiglith  Annual  Confer- 
enco  and  Electing  of  the 
Nurses'  Missionary  League 
will  be  held  at  University 
Hall,  Gordon  Square,  W.G., 
on  Saturday,  April  23rd.  The 
morning  meeting  will  open  at 
10  a.m.,  when  Miss  Fairfield 
will  give  an  address  on  "  Dis- 
cipleship."  This  will  be  fol- 
lowed by  a  Conference  at 
which  the  chair  will  be 
taken,  and  papers  read,  by  members  of  the 
League.  The  question  considered  will  be 
What  the  X.-\LL.  stands  for,  and  how  far  it 
is  being  can-ied  out.  In  the  afternoon  there 
will  be  a  Conversazione  from  2.30 — 5.30  p.m. 
to  meet  members  from  abroad,  and  ]\Ii,ss  Lea 
Wilson ;  and  the  business  meeting  will  be  held 
at  7.30  p.m.,  Mr.  \V.  McAdam  Eccles, 
F.R.G.S.,  in  the  chair.  Miss  De  Lasalle  will 
then  speak  on  "  Work  in  the  Provinces,"  and 
Mr.  T.  W.  E.  Lunt  on  "  The  World  Aspect  of 
Missions."  The  Closing  Address  will  be  given 
by  the  Eev.  H.  G.  Peile,  on  "  Knowledge  of 
God,  and  the  Eesponsibility  it  Entails  in  the 
Life  of  the  Individual." 


Sir  Edward  Wood,  Chairman  of  the  Leicester 
Infirmary,  has  been  unanimously  re-elected  to 
this  office  for  the  ensuing  year.  The  appoint- 
ment will  be  welcomed  by  the  nurses,  for  whose 
comfort  he  is  always  so  considerate,  and  for 
whom  he  has  done  so  much. 


The  annual  report  of  Sir  Patrick  Dun's  Hos- 
pital, Dublin,  has  just  been  published,  and  it 
shows  the  Hospital  to  be  in  a  most  critical  posi- 
tion. Owing  to  lack  of  funds  one  of  its  prin- 
cipal wards  has  been  closetl  for  many  years 
past;  the  Governors  believe  that  any  further 
reduction  of  beds  would  be  out  of  the  question, 
would  destroy  the  Hospital's  efficiency,  and 
render  it  almost  useless;  but  unless  funds  are 
forthcoming,  there  is  no  alternative  but  to  close 
the  Hospital  altogether.  The  Governors 
earnestly  hope  that  this  serious  state  of  things 
will  be  speedily  recognised  by  the  public,  and 
that  the  hospital  will  be  saved  from  financial 
disaster  dtu-ing  the  current  year.  The  Go- 
vernors are  ver\"  son'y  to  announce  .the  retire- 
ment of  ^liss  Hau^liton  last  September  from 
the  position  of  Lady  Superintendent,  she  hav- 
ing accepted  a  similar  position  in  Guy's  Hospi- 
tal, London.  They  eamiot  speak  too  highly  of 
^liss  Haughton,  and  consider  it  would  be  im- 
possible  for    anyone    to  have    discharged    the 


314 


tlbe  BritisI)  3ournal  of  IHursina. 


[April  16,  1910 


duties  of  the  position  more  efficiently  than  she 
has  done  during  the  past  seven  year's.  -  The 
vacancy  has  been  filled  by  the  appointment  of 
]\Iiss  Butler,  and  they  confidently  expect  tliat 
this  lady  will  prove  in  every  way  an  efficient 
successor  to  Miss  Haughton. 


The  concerts  oi-ganised .  last  week  by  Lord 
Shaftesbury  in  Dublin,  Belfast,  and  Cork,  in 
aid  of  Lady  Dudley's  Nursing  Scheme,  were 
all  most  successful,  and  we  hope  a  handsome 
sum  will  be  available  for  this  most  excellent 
charity. 


The  Ontario  Graduate  Nurses'  Association 
and  The  Canadian  Society  of  Superintendents 
of  Training  Schools  for  Nurses  will  meet  in 
Toronto  on  May  24th,  25th,  and  26th.  The 
graduating  exercises  of  the  Toronto  General 
Hospital,  Training  School  for  Nurses  will  be 
held  on  May  27th,  on  which  date  a  class  of  38 
will  receive  their  certificates  aud  badges.  This 
will  bring  the  total  number  of  nurses  trained 
in  this  school  up  to  five  hundred  and  thirty-six. 
Members  of  the  above-mentioned  societies  will 
receive  invitations  for  the  garden  party  and 
graduating  exercises,  which  will  ue  held  on  May 
27th  in  the  beautiful  grounds  of  the  Toronto 
General  Hospital. 


Miss  Eebecca  H.  McNeill,  E.N.,  writing  in 
the  American  Journal  of  Nursing  on  "  The 
Ideal  Nurse,"  says:  My  ideal  is  one  who  has 
not  been  hardened  by  the  scenes  of  suffering 
through  which  she  has  passed.  No  true  nurse 
ever  loses  her  sympathy,  though  she  must  cul- 
tivate the  art  of  controlling  it;  she  has  the 
deep  sympathy  which  causes  her  not  only  to 
feel  for  her  patient's  woes,  but  prompts  her 
best  efiforts  to  alleviate  them.  She  has  the 
spirit  of  a  surgeon  in  one  of  our  large  cities, 
who  knelt  for  hours  by  the  mangled  forni  of  a 
poor  boy,  exerting  all  his  energy  and  skill  to 
save  his  life.  The  child,  surprised  at  meeting 
such  kindness,  looked  up  and  said :  '  Doctor, 
why  are  you  trying  so  hard  to  s^ivc  my  life 
when  you  know  that  you  will  never  get  a  cent 
for  it?'  The  good  man  replied,  'Child,  I 
would  rather  be  the  instrument  in  God's  hand 
of  saving  life  than  be  the  President.'  " 


The  annual  report  of  the  Visiting 
Nurse  Association  of  Chicago  (this  year 
the  twentieth)  is  always  most  inter- 
esting, and  the  value  of  the  work  -done 
by  the  nurses  is  widely  appreciated.  Mr. 
J,  W.  Mack,  Judge  in  the  Juvenile  Court, 
writes  of  it :  "I  do  not  know  what  we  should 


do  in  Chicago  without  the  Visiting  Nurses. 
Their  influence  extends  far  beyond  the  mere 
duties  of  a  nurse.  They  are  among  the  most 
powerful  of  the  uplifting  forces  that  are  now 
doing  so  much  for  our  city.  It  has  been  a 
great  pleasure  to  me  to  have  them  enrolled  as 
probation  officers.  Their  work  brings  them  in 
touch  with  conditions  that  demand  immediate 
betterment,  and  the  Juvenile  Court  owes  much 
to  them.  No  organisation  needs  greater  sup- 
port from  the  citizens  of  Chicago.  The  Visiting 
Nurse  Staff  numbers  forty-one  members,  all 
of  whom  are  graduates  of  the  leading  hospital 
training  schools,  and  are  qualified  to  practice 
nursing  under  the  law  of  the  State  of  Illinois, 
besides  which  there  are  forty  Public  School 
nurses  working  under  the  Department  of 
Health  the  large  majority  of  whom  are  regis- 
tered nurses,  and  an  Office  Staff  of  five. 


The  Secretary,  Miss  Eleanor  F.  Tenney,  in 
her  report  on  behalf  of  the  Directors,  writes : 
"  For  the  twentieth  time  they  would  say  to 
you  '  All's  well.'  .  .  We  believe  that  you 
may  rest  assured  that  your  Association  is  well 
abreast  of  the  times  and  its  aims  and  methods. 
The  nurses'  work,  as  much  as  anyone's,  is 
making  such  popular  words  as  conserva- 
tion, co-operation,  social  betterment,  effi- 
ciency, prevention  "  into  a  living  dictionary. 
The  Association  now  nurses  for  the  Metropoli- 
tan Life  Insurance  Company,  which  pays  for 
all  cases  attended,  and  their  proportion  of  ad- 
ministration expenses. 


Miss  HaiTiet  Fulmer,  E,N.,  the  Superinten- 
dent of  Nurses,  and  Morse  Memorial  Nurse,  in 
her  report  of  the  Nurses"  Work  for  1909, 
writes  : — "  We  are  all  imbued  with  a  righteous 
discontent,  and  '  Prevention  '  is  our  war-cry. 
We  have  made  obvious  and  telling  strides  for- 
ward in  the  strengthening  of  our  own  ranks. 
•Just  why  any  woman  wishes  to  leave  her  com- 
fortable practice  to  come  into  district  work  at 
a  small  salary,  expose  herself  to  contagion,  and 
filth  and  vermin,  and  all  the  disagreeables  of 
the  elements,  cold,  and  rain,  and  heat,  is 
past  finding  out.  That  they  do  come  though, 
the  very  best  in  the  profession,  is  true  never- 
theless, and  they  stay,  which  is  better — if  not 
in  the  Chicago  Association,  they  go  elsewhere, 
to  institute  our  plans  and  methods.  We  are 
particularly  foi-tunate  in  drawing  to  our  work 
an  unusually  fine  set  of  apiplicants.  Our  new 
rule  of  requiring  every  nurse  to  present  her  cer- 
tificate of  State  Registration,"  in  addition  to  her 
diploma,  has  pi-oved  a  good  one,  as  such  a 
declaration  of  standard  helps  to  advance  the 
place  of  the  trained  nurse  everywhere." 


Api-ii  16, 19101       ^|3<>  i6nn0f5  3ournaI  of  iRurstno. 


315 


IReflections. 


®ut0ibe  tbe  Gates. 


FkoM  a  BlIAKD  iloOM  MlKBOK. 
Oil  the  motion  of  I'rolossor  Smitli  tlit  Metro- 
politan Asylums'  Board  resolved  at  their  last  meet- 
ing:— "That,  in  vieiv  ot  the  oontinued  provalenco 
of  scarlet  fever,  notwithstanding  the  extensive 
isolation  accomnuKlation  which  has  been  provided, 
the  Local  Government  Boai<l  bo  asked  to  cause  an 
inquii'y  to  be  instituted  into  the  cause  of  this 
disease,  and  whether  any,  and,  if  so,  what  further, 
means  oan  be  a<lopt-e<l  for  its  prevention." 


The  German  Mount  of  Olives  Hospital  at  Jeru- 
salem was  inaugurated  in  conjunction  with  the 
consecration  of  the  Ascension  Church,  under  the 
auspices  of  Prince  Kitel  Friedrich,  son  of  the  Ger- 
man  Emperor,  on  Saturday  last. 

Beuter  reports  that  from  an  early  hour  persons 
concerned  in  the  ceremony  were  streaming  towards 
the  Mount  of  Oliv<'s.  while  all  the  streets  and  roads 
between  the  Jaffa  Ciate  and  the  hospital  were  lined 
with  dense  throngs  of  spectators,  who  heartily  de- 
monstrated their  interest  in  the  occasion.  The 
ceremony  of  consecration  of  the  church  was  of  an 
imposing  nature.  At  the  head  of  the  i)rocession 
from  the  Gala  Hall  iif  the  hospital  to  the  Ascension 
Cliurch  walked  the  wliole  clergy  of  tlie  foundation 
with  their  ecclesiastical  vessels  and  the  Bibles  pre- 
sented by  the  (icrmau  Emi)cror  and  Empress.  After 
the  strictly  ecclesiastical  ])roceedings  had  ter- 
minated, a-  reception  of  the  Knights  of  Malta  and 
St.  John,  and  subsetiucntly  of  tlio  Consular  Body, 
took  place  in  the  Gala  Hall.  The  whole  ceremony 
was  altogether  a  great  success,  and  the  solemn  ser- 
vice in  the  magnificently  decorated  church  made 
a   deep   impression  on  all  present. 


Xegal  fIDatters. 


The  Bakewell  Guar<liaiis  have  recommended  the 
Local  Government  Board  to  pay  the  taxed  costs, 
amounting  to  £70,  of  Miss  Elizabeth  Swift,  the 
nurse  against  whom  the  Master  of  the  AVorkhouse, 
Jlr.  "W.  E.  Ponsford,  brought  an  action  for  libel  at 
tlie  recent  Derbyshire  Assizes.  The  action  was  tlie 
outcome  of  most  serious  allegations,  which  Miss 
Suift,  and  other  nurses,  considered  it  their  plain 
duty,  in  the  interests  of  the  morality  of  the  staff, 
to  report  to  the  Ciunrdians. 

The  Judge,  in  summing  up,  remarked  on  the  iin- 
)Mn-tanc6  of  the  case,  as  it  affectod  the  conduct  of 
an  institution  under  a  Government  Department, 
and  said  the  charges  against  the  plaintiff  were  so 
grave  that  if  e6tablishe<l  it  would  be  impossible  for 
hira  to  remain  in  the  public  service.  Unless  tne 
allegations  against  the  plaintiff  were  true  the  <le- 
fendant  and  the  nurses  whom  she  had  called  to  cor- 
roliorato  her  must  have  agr€e<l  to  commit  wilful  per- 
jury with  the  object  of  ruining  the  plaintiff  and  his 
family. 

The  jury  found  for  the  defendant,  and  the  fore- 
man affirmed  that  Miss  Swift  had  not  been  actuate<l 
by  malice,  and  that  the  statements  she  made  were 
true   in  substance  and   fact. 


WOMEN. 

Never  before  has  there 
been  gathered  together 
in  any  country  such  a 
collection  of  babies  as 
those  at  the  World's 
Baby  Congress  at  the 
Ideal  Homo  Exhibition 
at  Olympia.  They  hold 
merry  court  while  a 
struggling,  seething  mass  of  hot  humanity 
enters  the  gangway,  which  burly  policemen,  with 
an  eye  on  the  interminable  queue  behind,  beg  you 
to  "pass  along  quickly  please,"  and  one  realises 
the  privilege  of  representing  the  press. 

On  mentioning  the  British  Journal  oi'  Nursing 
one  was  at  once  admitted  to  an  intimate  acquain- 
tance with  these  charming  little  people,  all  as 
bonnie  as  can  be,  and  as  hai)py  as  the  day  is  long. 
Mrs.  Palmer,  whose  brilliant  idea  it  was  to  bring 
them  together,  naturally  ascribes  their  healthy 
condition  to  Virol,  for  they  are  one  and  all  Virol 
babies.  Swinging  .sedately  on  an  Indian  cradle 
was  a  little  Norwegian  baby  of  a  few  summers, 
in  her  picturesque  national  costume.  On  a  charpoy 
near  by  a  little  child  from  India  was  snugly  curled, 
"Liza"  from  Trinidad  smiled  bewitchingly  on  the 
world  at  large  while  Thumbeo  and  Umniah  from 
Ceylon  had  the  solemnity  of  the  unfathomable  East 
in  their  dark  eyes;  and  Beebee,  of  Jamaican 
origin — well,  Beebee's  portrait  is  on  next  page. 

English,  Scotch,  and  Irish  babies,  of  course,  are 
there,  besides  French,  German,  Italian,  Turkish, 
Russian,  Dut<'h,  Japanese,  Chinese,  West  African, 
East  and  West  Indian,  South  American,  Moorish, 
and  Creole  infants  and  small  children,  and  others 
of  different  sections  of  the  great  Indian  Empire. 
Qiicstions  of  politics,  caste,  and  creed  trouble  them 
not  one  wit.  They  feed,  play,  sleep,  and,  it  must 
be  added,  flirt  with  one  another  with  supreme  in- 
difference to  all  these  questions  which  in  later  life 
will  seem  so  vital  to  them,  and  are  the  most  be- 
witching object  lesson  imaginable  to  their  elders 
that  the  millenium  would  be  near  at  hand  if  only 
they  would  not  disagree  about  matters,  which  to 
the  baby  world — which,  after  all,  is  nearest  to  the 
celestial  one — seem  so  unimportant. 

Another  thing  which  strikes  the  observer  is  how 
much  those  nations  have  lost  which  have  discarded 
national  costumes,  the  graceful  Indian  saree,  the 
bright  coloured  silk  trousers  and  zouave  of  the 
liltio  Turk,  the  sapphire  velvet  and  silver  costume 
of  a  small  boy  from  the  East  Indies,  introduced 
into  the  scene  a  wealth  of  colour  and  picturesque- 
ness  never  seen  in  a  gathering  of  English  children. 
The  National  Society  of  Day  Nurseries,  1,  Sydney 
Street,  Fulham  Road,  S.W.,  also  have  a  very  in- 
teresting exhibit  at  the  exhibition,  under  the  per- 
sonal supervision  of  Muriel  Viscountess  Helmsley, 
where  those  interested  in  creche  work  have  an  op- 
portunity of  .seeing  what  is  being  done  to  provide 
suitable  accommodation  for  babies  whoso  mothers 
have  to  go  out  to  work  daily.  The  society  is  ex- 
hibiting a  model  for  the  guidance  not  only  of  those 


3i0 


Cbe  ffirltisb  3ournaI  of  IRursina. 


[April  16,  1910 


about  to  ostalilish  a  creche,  but  also  of  those  who 
desire  in  existing  day  nurseries  to  reach  the  stan- 
dard of  efficieucT  requisite  before  afiBliation  with 
the  Society  can  be  obtained.  The  children  can  be 
seen  at  play,  asleep,  and  at  meals.  Some  fascina- 
ting twins,  as  good  as  gold,  apparently  enjoyed  all 
the  attention  they  were  receiving.  Among  practi- 
cal appliances  an  excellent  airer  and  dryer,  which 
would  be  useful  in  many  households,  was  on  view 
in  this  exhibit. 

The  Queen's  Hospital  for  Children,  Hackney 
Road,  K.,  showed  a  de- 
lightful model  ward,  the 
walls  of  which  were  lined 
with  opalite.  One  of  the 
model  babies  was  the 
best  representation  we 
have  seen,  and  received 
unstinted  admiration. 

During  the  exhibition,  jJr. 
W.  Hampsou,  medical  offi- 
cer in  charge  of  the  Elec- 
trical Department  of  the 
Hospital,  is  giving  some 
interesting  demonstra- 
tions. 

A  very  interesting  ex- 
hibit is  that  of  the  Lord 
-Mayor  Treloar  Cripples' 
Home  and  College  at 
Alton,  Hants,  demonstra- 
ting not  only  what  is  done 
for  the  children,  but  what 
they  can  do  in  the  direc- 
tion of  self-support.  Some 
excellent  examples  of 
leather  work  included 
many  useful  articles  made 
by  the  cripple  lads. 

The  Tudor  village,  with 
its  village  green,  stocks, 
and  ducking  stool  is 
sure  to  be  a  popular  at- 
traction of  the  exhibition, 
which  both  because  it 
shows  all  kinds  of  useful 
inventions  for  the  Home, 
and  by  reason  of  Baby- 
land,  is  a  woman ■.-;  exhibi- 
tion. 


eagerly  through  narrowed  eyelids  and  sheltering^ 
hands  to  see  if  the  good  God  sent  anything  their 
way  that  night,"  while  the  good  Cure  in  the  little 
church  prayed  for  the  souls  of  those  who  might  pass 
uix>u  the  sea,  and,  more  earnestly  still,  that  if  any- 
thing came  ashore  it  might  not  be  brandy. 

When  the  storm  subsided  the  next  day,  and  tlie 
fishermen,  with  the  Cure,  visited  the  wreck,  they 
found  lashed  to  the  stump  of  the  foremast  the  body  of 
a  woman,  and  tietl  to  her  a  bundle,  in  the  midst  of 
which,  rosy  and  warm,  in  spite  of  the  damp,  was  a 
sleeping  child.  So  Gillian 
came  to  Guelgoat,  and 
was  handed  over  by  the 
Cure  to  good  Jeanne 
Daoulas,  who,  having  lost 
her  own  child,  took  the 
foundling  straight  to 
her  heart.  Then  they 
bore  the  beautiful  young 
mother,  wrapped  in  a  sal- 
vaged sail,  up  to  the  little 
stone  church  dedicated  to 
Our  Lady  of  Pity,  and 
laid  her  before  the  altar, 
decked  her  with  flowers 
for  her  burial,  and  drew 
from  her  finger  the  quaint 
old  ring,  inscribed  "  Gil- 
lian,'' for  it  was  the  heri- 
tage of  the  child. 

So  Gillian  grew  up  on 
the  country-side,  and  at 
twenty-one  was  a  maiden 
of  unusual  and  striking 
lieauty.  So  thought  Derek 
Kerval,  who  loved  her 
with  all  his  heart  and 
.soul ;  and  so  thought  many 
besides.  But  always  Gil- 
lian looked  out  on  the 
world  with  eyes  which 
dreamed  of  the  unknown, 
and  though  her  friend- 
ship for  Derek  was  strong 
and  pure,  her  face, 
charming  as  it  was,  lacked 
tTiat  which  his  eyes  and 
his   heart    craved    beyond 


Booh  of  tbc  mccti. 

GREAT  HEART  GILLIAN.^ 
Everyoiie  who  lias  read  ■'  Hearts  in  Exile."  '•'  The 
Long  Road,"  "  Carette  of  Sark,"  and  other  Ixmks 
by  John  O.xenham,  will  take  up  "Great  Heart 
Gillian  "  expecting  it  to  be  fresh  and  vivid,  and  full 
of  stiiTing  incident.  The  book  opens  with  a  ship- 
wreck on  the  coast  of  Brittany,  near  the  little 
village  of  Guelgoat,  where,  though  thanks  to  tlie 
thirty  years'  work  of  the  good  Cure,  no  false  light 
had  hung  on  Pen  Dhu  for  many  a  year,  yet  the 
people  crouched  amongst  the  Ghost  Stones,  '"'  peered 
*  By  -John  Oxenham,  Hodder  and  Stoughton, 
20,  Warwick  Square,  London. 


BEEBEE, 
A  Virol   Baby   at  Olympia. 

everything  else  in  the  world. 

And  while  Derek  was  exposed  to  peril  in  lonely 
seas  there  comes  to  Guelgoat  Victor  Lenoir,  artist, 
"  in  search  of  the  beautiful."'  He  finds  it  in  Gillian, 
whom  he  forthwith  paints  in  the  picture  which  is  his 
masterpiece,  and  marries  the  original ;  and 
Derek,  sore  at  heart,  sees  it  in  the  Salon — Gillian, 
lying  on  their  oven  great  table  on  Pen-Dhu  in  a 
long  «hite  rol>e,  iiith  her  white  throat  bai-e  and  her 
feet,  and  all  her  hair  flying  loose  about  her,  as  no 
modest  girl  ever  wore  her  hair.  There  was  no  other 
face  in  the  world  like  Gillian's — and  she  had  let  that 
man  paint  her  so!  The  hot  blood  Iwiled  so  furiously 
in  his  head  that  his  eyes  were  dim,  his  knife 
slashed  through  the  canvas,  and  the  pictured  Ginian 
was  rent  by  his  strong  brown  hands  into  a  hundred 
ragged  fragments. 

The   bad    blood   resulting    from   this   episode    be- 


Api-il  16,  1910] 


tlbe  Brittsb  3ournal  of  iHursino. 


si: 


tivt>en  Jicrval  and  Leiioir  iucroat^oil  till,  on  the 
strongest  ciic\Miistaritial  ovitleuco,  Derek  Keival 
was  found  guilty  of  his  murder  and  condeninetl  to 
the  galleys  for  ten  years.  It  was  then  that  Gillian, 
with  her  baby  in  lier  arms,  convincetl  of  his  in- 
nocence, journeyed  from  Brittany  on  foot  to  Paris 
to  obtain  his  pardon  from  the  Emperor,  and  finding 
he  had  left  for  the  seat  of  war,  went  on  to  the  fron- 
tier, and,  finding  him  at  length  in  Sedan,  obtained 
a  free  pardon  for  Kerval,  only  to  learn  on  her  return 
to  Paris  that  the  jxiwer  of  tlie  Emperor  had  passe<l. 

But,  after  all,  Derek's  innocence  was  conclusively 
proved,  and  he  and  Gillian,  happy  in  their  love  for 
one  another,   returned   to  their  Brittany  home. 

Once  during  the  horrors  of  the  fight  near  Sedan 
Gillian  seemed  to  come  near  to  solving  the  mystery 
of  her  parentage.  An  officer  of  the  German  army, 
of  high  rank — api)eale<.l  to,  to  decide  her  fate — sud- 
denly "  gazed  at  her  with  a  face  blanched  white 
with  amazement,  and  eyes  that  blazed  with  fearful 
curiosity.  His  eye  caught  the  gleam  of  her  ring, 
and  he  pointed  to  it  with  a  hand  that  would  not 
have  shaken  so  at  the  menace  of  a  hundred  deaths. 

■'Where  got  you  that?"  and  his  lips  were  as 
white  as  his  face. 

"  It  was  my  mother's.  They  called  me  after  it." 
But  just  then  a  furious  cannonading  broke  out 
beyond  the  village  to  the  eastward. 

"For  one  second  he  stood  torn  by  conflicting 
en.otions.  Then  duty  prevailed.  The  Fatherland 
first.    He  was  needed  elsewhere.    This  must  wait." 

P.  G.   Y. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

April  i9f7i.— Guy's  Hospital,  S.E.,  Post  Graduate 
Lectures.  "Recent  Surgery."  By  E.  C.  Hughes, 
Esq.,  M.C.     Nurses'  Home,  8  p.m. 

.lpr(7  I'Jth  and  20ih. — Annual  Council  Meeting, 
Women's  National  Health  Association  of  Ireland, 
Leinster  House,  Dublin. 

April  21st. — Monthly  Meeting  of  Central  Mid- 
wives'  Board,  Board  Boom,  Caxton  House,  West- 
minster, S.W.,  2.4.5  p.m. 

April  22nd. — Society  for  the  State  Registration 
of  Nurses:  Meeting  of  Executive  Committee,  431, 
Oxford  Street,  4  p.m.     ' 

.\pri  22nd. — Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland.  Valedictory  on  the  late  President  by 
Miss  MoUett,  431,  Oxford  Street,  London,  AV. 
5  p.m. 

.ipril  23rd. — Nurses'  Missionary  League.  The 
Eighth  Annual  Conference  and  Meeting,  University 
Hall,  Goi-don  Square,  London,  W.C.,  10  a.m.  to 
9.30  p.m. 

.ipril  27th  to  SOth. — Third  Annual  Nursing  and 
^Midwifery  Exhibition  and  Conference,  Royal  Hor- 
ticultural Hall,  Westminster,  S.W. 

.ipril  28th. — Examination  of  Central  Midwives 
Board  at  the  Examination  Hall,  Victoria  Embank- 
ment, W.C.  The  Oral  Examination  follows  a  few 
days  later. 

.\pril  2Sth. — Union  of  Midwives.  A  Musical  En- 
tertainment, Cavendish  Rooms,  Mortimer  Street, 
Jtegent  Street,  W.     7.30  p.m. 


letters  to  the  EDitoi. 


Whitat  cordially  invitinfj  conV' 
munications  upon  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  ire  uish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  ice  do  not  in  any  wat 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  out 
correspondents. 


OUR  GUINEA  PRIZE. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Sursino." 
Dear  Madam, — I  have  pleasure  in  acknowledging 
the  receipt  of  cheque  for  one  guinea,  as  the  result 
of  Puzzle  Prize  for  March,  for  which  I  tliank  you. 
AVith  my  best  wishes  for  the  success  of  your  valu- 
able and  instructive  paper. 

Yours  faithfully, 

Anntb  a.  Axon. 
Waltluun  Villa,  West  Street,  Ryde. 


NURSING   SHOULD   BE  TAUGHT   BY   NURSES. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  .Journal  of  Nursing." 

Dear  Madam, — I  have  read  with  much  interest 
Miss  Burr's  letter  in  last  week's  issue  of  the 
British  Journal  op  Nursing,  and  am  glad  to  see 
that  She  draws  the  attention  of  the  National 
Council  of  Nurses  to  Mr.  Haldane's  scheme.  I 
agree  with  her  that  the  Nursing  detachments  are 
foredoomed  to  failure;  not  owing  to  the  giving  of 
nursing  lectures  by  doctors  instead  of  nurses,  but 
from  the  fact  that  lay  people  are,  in  almost  every 
case,  managing  the  various  country  districts. 

Sir  Alfred  Keogh  told  us  in  his  address  at  the 
meeting  held  at  St.  James's  Palace  in  October 
last,  that  "  If  there  is  to  be  real  help  there  must 
be  no  confusion,  no  overlapping,  no  misunderstand- 
ing; there  must  be  knowledge,  organisation,  pre- 
cision, discipline,  self  sacrifice."  Of  the  latter  we 
hope  we  are  all  capable;  but  I  maintain  that  it  is 
impossible  for  Socioiy  ladies  (or  men)  who  have 
not  the  special  knowledge,  who  have  not  been 
trained  and  disciplined  themselves,  to  undertake 
the  work  of  organising,  and  keeping  organised  these 
Voluntary  Aid  Detachments.  Surely,  the  scheme 
ought  tt)  be  in  the  hands  of  trained  nurses  and 
medical  men  throughout,  if  in  time  of  war  these 
detachments  are  to  be  of  the  least  use. 

The  actual  instruction  given  is  only  one  link  in 
the  system.  The  fact  of  having  had  five  lectures 
on  "First  Aid  "  and  a  similar  number  on  "  Home 
Nursing,"  however  well  given,  will  be  of  little 
value  to  the  ppdple  without  the  special  knowledge 
necessary  for  the  management  of  temporary  hospi- 
tals in  time  of  war.  This  knowledge  can  only  be 
given  by  those  who  have  already  gained  it  in  their 
hospital  training.  I  would  suggest,  that  the  various 
districts,  comprising  as  they  do  several  villages, 
should  be  supervised  by  a  trained  nurse.  I  feel 
sure  tliere  would  be  little  difficulty  in  obtaining 
this  help  from  married  nurses,  retired  Army  Sis- 
ters, etc.  I  cannot  see  how  "discipline,  organisa- 
tion, precision,"  are  to  be  attained  if  the  Voluntary 
Aid  Detachments  after  ten,  or  even  twenty  hours' 


318 


(IDC  Britisb  3ouvnal   ot  IRuvcniuj.        ^M-^ii  le,  i9io 


of  teaching,  are  left  to  the  care  of  those,  who,  how- 
ever willing  and  euthusiastic  they  may  be,  are  ot 
necessity  incapable  of  imparting  the  further  de- 
tailed knowledge  required.  An  occasional  visit 
from  a  qualified  official  from  headquarters  will  cer- 
tainly not  be  sufficient  to  train  Voluntary  Aid  De- 
tachments in  the  most  elementary  knowledge  of 
hospital  routine.  The  two  trained  nurses  wlio  are 
to  form  part  of  every  Voluntary  Aid  Detachment 
will  arrive  on  the  scene  of  action  much  too  late  in 
the  day,  according  to  the  present  plan,  to  do  any- 
thing but  malie  the  best  of  existing  arrangements. 
It  is  the  organisation  of  the  temporary  hospitals, 
large  or  small,  which  must  be  in  the  hands  of 
trained  women.  Others  can  render  invaluable  aid 
in  arousing  the  interest  of  the  people,  explaining 
the  scheme  to  them,  getting  up  Ambulance  and 
Xursing  classes,  and  taking  charge  of  tlie  financial 
business,  etc.  They  cannot  determine  the  amount 
of  surgical  and  medical  material  needed,  say  for  a 
hospital  of  40  beds — the  number  of  cooks,  cleaners, 
laundry  women,  porters — the  amount  and  kind  of 
food  necessary  for  sick  jjeople — the  general  stock  to 
liave  ready — the  sanitary  arrangements  necessary, 
and  all  the  innumerable  details  that  we  as  trained 
women  alone  understand.  It  is  not  an  easy  mat- 
ter to  discipline  and  organise  the  laity,  rich  or 
poor,  sufiiciently  for  them  to  be  of  use  in  time  of 
war ;  but  it  can  be  done  if  undertaken  by  those 
who  from  their  training  and  experience  know 
what  will  be  needed,  and  how  to  make  the  best  use 
of  our  material  and  environment  while  there  is 
time  to  do  so. 

We  must  not,  unless  the  scheme  is  to  fail  utterly, 
trust  to  vague  promises  of  help  coming  at  the 
eleventh  hour  from  headquarters,  presumably 
the  War  OflSce. 

Faithfully  yours, 

Lucy  Netteeville  B.\beox, 
Member  Leicester  Infirmary  Nurses' 
League. 

Cranborne  Ck>rner,   Ascot. 


LECTURES  ON   NURSING   BY  NURSES. 

Madam, — May  I  exi^lain,  in  answer  to  the  letter 
signed  "  Elizabeth  Brunning,"  in  yonr  last  issue, 
that  I  do  not  doubt  that  tliere  are  a  number  of 
doctors  who  can  lecture  well  on  nursing,  and  that 
in  London  and  other  large  centres  tlie  St.  John  Am- 
bulance Association  can  command  the  services  of 
the  best. 

But  in  the  country  the  supply  of  good  medical 
lecturers  is  limited,  and  yet  the  rule  holds  good, 
making  it  impossible  to  take  advantage  of  good 
nurse  lecturers  wlio  may  be  available.  And  al- 
though nurses  in  full  work  have,  no  doubt,  as  you 
correspondent  says,  little  time  for  lecturing,  there 
are  plenty  of  qualified  nurse  health  lecturers,  and 
occasional  letired  or  partially  occupied  nurses  who 
would  be  perfectly  competent  and  willing. 

I  have  received  the  enclosed  unsatisfactory 
answer  from  the  St.  John  Ambulance  Association, 
wMch  may  be  useful  to  publish. 

I  am,  yours  faithfullv. 

E.  L.  C.  Edex, 
Central  Orijaniser,  Nurses'  Social  Union. 


St.  John  Ambulance  Association, 
St.  John's  Gate. 

Clerkenwell,  E.C.. 
7th  April,  1910. 
Dear  Madam, — In    reply   to   your    letter  of  the 
5th  instant,  I  beg  to  inform  you  that  no  exception 
can    be    made   to    the    fundamental    rule    of   this 
Association  that  the  lectures  in  "  First  Aid  "  and 
"  Home   Nursing  "    should  be   given    by   qualified 
members   of  the  nursing  profession. 
Yours  faithfully, 

P.  G.  Daevil-Smith. 
.l^s.  Sec,  Territorial  Branch. 
Miss  E.  L.  C.  Eden. 

[This  letter  is  not  very  clear.  The  fundamental 
rule  of  the  St.  John's  Ambulance  Association  is 
that  lectures  on  First  Aid  and  Home  Nursing  shall 
be  given  by  members  of  the  medical  profession. 
Presumably  this  rule  was  adopted  when  trained 
nursing  was  practically  non-existent.  It  is  now 
obsolete,  and  should  be  abrogated. — Ed.] 


SISTERS. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — I  think  that  one  of  the  reasons 
why  Sisters  come  short  of  the  standard  expected 
of  them  by  Miss  Butler  is  that  such  a  multiplicity 
of  duties  is  required  of  them  that  it  is  impossilile 
to  perform  them  all  adequately.  The  systematic 
iristruotion  of  probationers  is  too  important  a  mat- 
ter to  be  placed  upon  the  head  of  a  busy  ward. 

By  no  means  every  Sister  is  qualified  to  teach. 
I  grant  that  she  ought  to  be,  and  when  our  nursing 
education  is  more  systematic,  perhaps  it  will  be 
a  requisite  qualification  for  promotion  to  the 
position  of  Sister  for  a  nurse  to  be  required  to 
demonstrate  her  ability  to  do  so,  but  if  a  Sister 
supervises  the  domestic  arrangements  of  her  ward, 
both  as  to  cleanliness  and  economy,  assures  herself 
that  the  duties  of  thenursesand  ward  maids  are  pro- 
perly performed,  that  the  patients  are  comfort.able, 
that  medical  directions  are  carried  out,  notes  any 
changes  in  the  condition  of  the  patients,  goes- 
round  with  the  staff  twice  a  day  or  more,  if  the 
hospital  is  a  medical  school  sees  that  everything  is 
duly  ordered  for  the  visits  of  the  students,  orders 
and  serves  the  diets  for  each  patient,  sees  and 
corresixmds  with  the  friends,  and  does  a  multitude 
of  other  things  besides  as  they  crop  up,  is  it  reason- 
able to  expect  her  to  be  an  efficient  teacher  of  tlieo- 
retical  nursing  as  well?  Sisters'  duties  are  not  often 
defined.  I  think,  if  they  were,  that  hospital 
authorities  would  find  that  they  espect-ed  for  £30 
or  £3-3  a  year  more  than  it  is  in  mortal  woman  to 
perform. 

Youre  faithfully, 

A  Harassed  Sister. 


IHotice. 


OUR   PUZZLE   PRIZE. 
Rules   for   competing   for  the     Pictorial    Puzzle- 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii 


April  16,  lOKv   ^|ie  British  Souvnal  of  ll^ursino  Siuiplcment. 

The    Midwife. 


319 


"  Cbc  IRiGbts  of  tbc  Babies." 

Miss  Caroline  E.  Knieriem,  R.N.,  Nurse-in- 
Charge,  Baby  Cottage  Hospital,  State  Public 
School,  Onatonna,  Minn.,  read  at  the  Alumnse 
Banquet  of  the  Nurses  of  St.  Barnabas  Hosijital, 
Minneapolis,  au  interesting  paper,  which,  though 
addressed  primarily  to  nurses,  is  of  equal  interest 
to  midwives.  The  State  Hospitals  in  the  United 
Stat«6  of  America  answer  to  our  Poor-La w  Institu- 
tions. 

In  this  paper,  which  is  published  in  fuU  in  the 
American  Journal  of  yursino,  she  says,  in  part:  — 

I  am  aware  that  this  subject  is  not  a  popular 
one  with  the  majority  of  nurses.  They  may  see 
ii"teresting  possibilities  in  one  well-kept,  ijroperly 
nourished  baby,  but  the  pathetic  setting  of  a  group 
of  motherless  infants  whose  only  nourishment  is 
supplied  by  the  dear  old  "  moo  cow  "  through  the 
agency  of  a  few  spinster  nurses  whose  greatest 
anjdety  is  to  have  everything  in  use  "surgically 
clean,"  even  to  the  baby's  thumb  before  i)utting 
it  into  his  mouth,  as  babies  sometimes  will,  you 
know — ^this  does  not  appeal  to  the  average  nurse. 

The  subject,  in  itself,  may  seem  somewhat  senti- 
mental, but  I  hope  to  prove  to  you,  who  are  open 
to  conviction,  that  the  work  among  infants  and 
young  children  is  not  all  a  mere  sentiment,  but, 
on  the  contrary,  that  it  is  very  real  and  that  it 
has  a  deeper  and  more  practical  side.  It  is  an 
ever-increasing  and  most  perplexing  problem  which 
e\ery  true  nurse  should  be  ready  and  willing  to 
meet  and  help  to  solve,  and  whether  success  or 
failure  crown  her  efforts  in  the  struggle  to  prolong 
the  frail  little  life  entrusted  to  her  care,  she  at 
least  "hath  done  what  she  could" — her  duty. 

Someone  has  said  that  a  woman  is  far  more  com- 
1-etent  with  a  baby  on  her  lap.  If  this  be  true, 
why  should  she  not  be  still  more  compet-ent  with 
thirteen  or  sixteen  babies  on  her  lap? 

The  one  thing  which  wiU  help  to  prevent  our 
growing  bitter  and  resentful  is  the  soul-light  in  the 
sixteen  pairs  of  baby  eyes  looking  up  into  ours,  and 
with  mute  appeal  saying,  "  We  are  here — will  you 
help  to  take  care  of  us?  Then  the  grateful  baby 
smile  at  every  gentle  touch  or  care.  Do  you  think 
you  could  resist  sixteen  smiles  all  at  once  ? 

After  you  have  seen  and  actually  handled  these 
frail  little  specimens  of  humanity — not  simply  one 
by  one,  but  by  the  dozens,  group  after  group — 
when  you  have  watched  them  hour  by  hour  and 
day  by  day,  looking  for  even  the  slightest  improve- 
ment, you  will  begin  to  understand  in  a  measure 
what  an  endless  task  you  have  before  you,  and  what 
infinite  patience  and  courage  must  be  required  to 
keep  you  always  at  the  post  of  duty. 

You  may  wonder  how  we  are  able  to  train  and 
discipline  so  many  and  at  such  an  early  age.  Here, 
again,  we  meet  with  difiBculties  and  discourage- 
ments. Criticisms  and  false  impressions  must  be 
met  and  overcome.     The  nurse  is  subjected  to  a 


regular  catechism,  but,  strange  to  say,  she  never 
seems  to  know  the  correct  answer  to  this  list  of 
questions.  We  must  be  persistent  in  what  we  be- 
lieve to  be  the  right  course,  and  every  success 
gives  us  new  courage  to  persevere  in  our  efforts. 
W'e  insist  upon  regularity  in  the  daily  routine  of 
feeding,  bathing,  rest,  and  exercise.  Some  one 
sarcastically  remarked  that,  "  They  even  have  a 
regular  time  each  day  to  nibble  their  crusts."  This 
occurred  a  year  ago.  The  fact  still  remains,  but  not 
the  sarcasm,  not  the  author  of  it. 

The  hardest  and  most  important  factor  in  the 
whole  problem  of  baby  work  is  the  wet  nurse;  If 
you  have  never  had  to  deal  with  her  you  cannot 
appreciate  the  infinite  tact  and  patience  necessary 
to  keep  her  in  proper  condition,  mentally,  morally, 
and  phj-sically,  in  order  that  she  may  perform  tlie 
function  required  of  her ;  to  teach  her  the  dignity 
and  sacredness  of  her  position  and  her  relation  to 
the  infants  who  depend  upon  her  for  nourisluneut. 
You  may  have  your  own  standard,  your  own  ideal ; 
make  it  just  as  higli  as  possible  for  yourself,  but 
do  not  be  disapijointed  if  all  others  fail  to  reach 
the  same  high  level.  In  time,  however,  this,  too, 
becomes  one  of  the  most  interesting  features  of 
the  work,  and  always  leads  us  out  to  the  same 
practical  though  pathetic  thought — the  baby  needs 
its  own  mother,  and  in  order  to  thrive  well  mus* 
have  its  own  natural  food. 

By  the  employment  of  these  unfortunate  young 
women  we  seem  to  be  using  one  evil  to  overcome 
another,  yet,  if  properly  directed,  both  parties  may 
be  greatly  benefited  by  the  arrangement. 

The  prevention  of  infant  mortality  and  infanti- 
cide are  problems  the  solution  of  which  will  go  hand 
in  hand  with  the  warfare  upon  tuberculosis, 
venereal  diseases,  and  other  social  evils,  and  we, 
as  nurses  and  the  natural  reformers  among  women, 
should  use  our  influence  in  helping  to  create  a 
public  sentiment  against  these  evils  which  will  be 
stronger  than  any  written  law.  We  may  need  to 
dig  deep  into  the  mire  at  times,  but  we  have  only 
to  be  true  to  ourselves  and  our  own  womanhood, 
and  the  clay  will  fall  from  our  hands,  leaving  them 
cleaner  and  purer  than  before.  Here,  again,  the 
pure  light  from  the  baby  eyes  gives  us  new  courage 
to  go  forward  and  renew  our  battle  for  right  and 
justice. 

Emerson  says:  "To  believe  your  own  thoughts, 
to  believe  that  what  is  true  in  your  own  heart  is 
true  for  all  mankind — this  is  genius.  Speak  your 
latent  conviction  and  it  wiU  become  the  universal 
sense.  For  the  inmost  in  due  time  becomes  the 
outmost." 

It  may  require  many  little  "  Davids "  to  slay 
with  his  slingshot  the  modem  "  Goliath  "  who  is 
responsible  for  these  great  and  terrible  evils,  but 
at  least  we  must  do  what  we  can  to  save  these 
little  "  Davids"  while  we  have  them  with  us,  and 
in  time  they  may  become  our  strongest  and  safest 
allies. 


320 


tTbc  Britisb  3ournal  of  H^ursina  Supplement.  [M'ii  le,  ion 


dbc  11^nr5ino  anb  flDibwiferv! 
Conference  an&  lEybibition. 

The  following  are  tlie  arraiigemeute  so  far  as  have 
1hh?ii  .settled  for  the  opening  day,  Wednesdav,  April 
27th  :— 

Her  Royal  Highness  Princess  Christian  of  Sohles- 
Avig-Holsteiu  will  open  the  Conferenoe  at  12.30,  and 
District  Nureing  and  Midwifery  questions  will  be 
dealt  with  on  this  day,  when  the  following  i)ai>ers 
will  be  read — (Chairman,  Dr.  Champneys) : — 

■'The  Combined  Duties  of  District  Nurse,?,  and 
Midwires,"  Miss  Macqueeu  (Nursing  Superinten- 
dent for  England,  Q.V.J. I.).  Discussion  oi^ened  by 
the  Hon.  Lady  A<!land. 

■  The  Prevention  of  Infantile  Blindness,"  A. 
Ximmo  Walker,  Esq.,  M.B.  Discussion  opened  by 
Miss  Blonifield,  Matron  of  Queen  Charlotte's  Hos- 
pital. 

■'  The  Report  of  the  Departmental  Committee  on 
the  Midwives'  Act,"  Francis  E.  Fremantle,  Esq., 
F.R.C.S.  (member  of  the  late  Departmental  Com- 
mittee).    Discussion  opened  by  Miss  Alice  Ciregory, 

Mrs.  Lawson,  of  the  National  Association  of  Mid- 
wives,  and  Mrs.  Stephen  Glauville  will  sj^eak  on 
the  important  question  of  "Direct  Rexwesentation 
on  the  Midwives"  Board,"  and  it  ishoped  that  there 
will  be  full  discu.ssion.  The  question  of  the  "  Regis- 
tration of  Nur.ses "  wUl  also  claim  attention,  on 
which  subject  Miss  Annie  Hobbs  has  promised  to 
prepare  a  paper.  Miss  Lucy  Robinson  will  s^wak  on 
••  The  Living  Wage  for  Alidwives  in  Rural  Dis- 
tricts "  and  "The  Poor  3Iother."  Among  othere 
who  have  consented  to  si>eak  are  JMuriel  Viscountess 
Helmsley,  on  "Creches";  Miss  Gibson,  Matron  of 
Birmingham  AVorkhouse  Infirmary,  on  "  Poor-Law 
Xni-sing  "  ;  Miss  Wilson,  on  "  Nm-sing  in  Small  Un- 
sei>arated  Poor-Law  Infinnaries''  ;  Dr.  Bernard 
Hollander,  on  "  IMental  Nursing  "  ;  Miss  Manley,  on 
"Massage";  Miss  Barton,  on  "Territorial 
Nursing";  Miss  P.  Douglas  Townsend,  on  "  Tlie 
Care  of  the  Feeble-Minded  "  ;  and  !Miss  Eden  has 
arranged  to  give  a  lantei-n  lecture  on  "The  His- 
tory of  Nursing"  on  Friday  evening,  April  29th. 


^be  ni>ibwiv>es'  act  antcnbnient 
Bill. 


One  of  the  points  most  clearly  demonstrated  in 
the  Bill  to  amend  the  Midwives'  'Act,  1902,  is  the 
value  of  societies  through  which  midwives  can 
express  their  needs.  Thus  Mrs.  Law.son,  President 
of  the  National  Association  of  Midwives,  urged 
upon  the  Departmental  Committee  appointed  to 
consider  the  working  of  the  Midwives'  Act,  that 
any  amendment  of  the  Act  should  recognise  the 
claim  of  midwives  on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board. 
While  we  have  not  got  that  in  the  Ijord  President's 
Bill  we  have  come  appreciably  nearer  to  it  by  the 
amending  clause  which  pi-ovides  that  lienceforth 
two  of  the  memlxn-s  of  the  Board  must  be  certified 
midwives,  by  wihich  the  right  of  midwives  to  repre- 
sentation on  their  (Governing  Body  is  recognised. 


]Mrs.  Lawson  also  asked  "  that  in  all  cases  of 
compulsory  notification  of  sending  for  medical  help, 
staiui^ed  forms  should  be  supplied,  as  it  is  often 
difficult  for  the  poor  midwife  to  pay  these  charges, 
and  this  is  therefore  sometimes  a  temptation  to  her 
to  evade  notifying  the  Local  Supervising  Autho- 
rity. The  Lord  President's  Bill  provides  (1)  that 
"  All  forms  required,  to  be  filled  up  and  returned 
to  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  shall  be  supplied 
gratis  by  the  Board  to  certified  midwives.  (2)  Ail 
other  forms  and  books  which  certified  midwives 
are  required  to  fill  up  or  use  shall  be  supplied  to 
them  gratis  by-  the  local  supervising  authority, 
and  (3)  where  any  such  form  is  required  to  be  re- 
turned by  post  to  the  Board  or  the  authority  either 
-the  form  shall  be  supplied  duly  stamped  or  a  duly 
stamped  envelope  shall  be  supplied  with  the 
fonn." 

Other  points  ^-liich  have  been  emphasised  by  the 
National  Association  of  Midwives  are  that  mid- 
wives  cited  to  appear  before  tlie  Board  are  often 
too  poor  to  defray  the  espense_^_of  a  journey  to 
London,  and  that  any  criminal  has  the  i-ight  to  be 
conveyed  free  to  the  place  of  trial  in  Black  Maria 
to  be  tried.  Provision  is  now  made  that  the  Cen- 
tral Midwives'  Board  may,  if  they  think  fit,  pay 
all  or  any  part  of-  the  expenses  of  any  midwife  who 
ma.y  be  required  to  appear  before  them  in  her  own 
defence. 

Another  point  in  which  consideration  is  given  to 
midwives  in  the  new  Bill  is  that  midwives  who  are 
suspended  froin  practice,  in  the  public  interest, 
i.e.,  to  prevent  the  sjiread  of  infection,  may  be 
compensated  for  loss  of  practice. 

It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that  in  all  these  direc- 
tions the  position  of  the  midwife  will  be  improved 
by  the  new  Bill. 


ITbe  Central  HDibwives'  Boarb. 


The  next  exammation  of  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board  w-ill  be  held  on  April  28th,  at  the  Examina- 
tion Hall,  Victoria  Emijankment,  W.C.  The  oral 
examination  follows  a  few  days  later.  Subsequent 
examinations  during  the  year  will  be  held  in  London 
on  June  15th,  August  3rd,  Octolier  24th,  and 
December  16th,  and  on  June  1.5th  and  Oc'toljer  24th 
at  Birmingham,  Bristol,  Leeds,  Manchester,  and 
Newcast  le-on-T  V  ne . 


tlbe  irinion  of  fllMMvives. 


On  Thursday,  April  28th,  a  musical  entertainmeiH 
^\'ill  be  held  at  the  Cavendish  Rooms,  Mortimer 
Street,  W.,  the  profits  of  which  will  be  devoted  to 
the  fund  for  defraying  the  initial  expenses  of  the 
Union  of  Midwives.  Tickets  can  be  obtained  fi'om 
the  Secretaiy,  Union  of  Midwives,  7,  Delamere  Ter- 
race, We.stbourne  Square,  W.,  from  Mesere.  Bailev, 
38,  Oxford  Street,  AV.,  and  from  E.  A.  Wilkins 
and  Son,  -57,  Crouch  End  Hill,  N.,  or  at  the  door. 
Reserved  seats,  2s.  ;  unreserved  seats.  Is.  The  enter- 
tainment will  begin  at  7..30  p.m.  ;  doors  open  at 
7  p.m. 


THE 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

raEv  M£IIISra(€  MACOMB 

EDITED  BY  MRS  BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,     APRIL     23,      1910. 


EMtorial. 


CHILD  CULTURE. 
Is  there  a  nurse  or  midwife  who  has  no 
alTection  for  cliildren?  If  so,  slie  has 
assuredly  mistaken  her  vocation,  for  au  un- 
loved is  an  unhappy  eliild,  and  no  unhappy 
child  will  really  tlirive. 

And  the  opportunities  of  nurses  to  befriend 
the  children  are  innumerable.  Do  we  not 
know  tlie  nurse  with  whom  babies  and 
children  are  always  good?  An  infant  of  a 
few  dajrs'  old  knows  whetlierhis  nurse  cares 
for  him  or  not,  and  older  children  turn 
instinctively — as  flowers  to  the  sun — to  the 
nurse  who  motherstheui.  Nurses  and  mothers 
stand  at  the  gate  of  life,  and  as  they  look 
down  the  vista  of  years  to  come,  their  special 
knowledge  enables  them  to  see  more  clearly 
than  most  people  the  dangers  that  l)eset  tlie 
little  feet  wliic'h  they  help  to  set  on  life's 
highway.  They  see  small  travellers  who 
have  never  beheld  the  light  of  the  sun,  or 
the  beauty  of  the  earth  and  sea,  stumbling 
along  that  road,  because  through  the  sins  of 
tlieir  parents,  or  from  inexcusable  neglect  in 
infancy,  they  are  blind  ;  they  see  others 
stunted  and  wizened  because  drunken 
parents  have  drugged  them  with  alcohol  in 
infancy  aiul  allowed  them  to  grow  up  half- 
starved  and  ill-clad,  to  satisfy  their  own 
cravings  for  drink  ;  they  see  children  who 
through  unwise  indulgence  oa  the  part  of 
their  natural  guardians  grow  up  luidisci- 
plined  and  lacking  in  self-control,  so  that  in 
later  life  they  find  their  way  into  the  refor- 
matory and  the  pi'ison  ;  they  see  children 
whose  parents,  confounding  ignorance  witL 
innocence,  will  send  them  out  into  the  world 
without  a  word  as  to  the  dangers  which 
await  them  morally  and  physically,  and  who, 
Avrecked  and  Ijrokou,  will  pass  into  hosjiitnl 


and  infirmary  wards.  They  see,  again,  the 
poor  little  "come-by-chance,"  whose  pros- 
pect of  life  is  so  much  slighter  than  that  of 
the  child  born  in  wedlock,  and  who  is  an 
easy  prey  to  the  baby  fariner  and  the  mur- 
derer;  and  they  see  other  children  sensitive 
and  misunderstood,  whose  childish  failings 
are  iuuuediatoly  and  severely  reprimanded, 
whose  childish  elforts  to  do  well  pass  un- 
noticed and  unencouraged.  Is  it  any 
wonder  that  the  nurse,  if  she  has  any 
imagination  at  all,  is  saddened  by  the  weight 
of  unnecessary  suffering  whichfalls  so  heavily 
on  little  children,  and  that  she  registers  a 
vow  to  do  all  that  she  can  to  make  life  a 
happier  and  brighter  place  for  them? 

And  she  can  do  so  much.  Health  through 
life  depends  greatly  upon  the  care  bestowed 
on  chihlren  in  infancy,  when  they  are  her 
special  charge.  Infantile  blindness  may, 
through  her  instrumentality,  be  banislietl 
from  the  land  ;  she  can  teach  young  mothers 
— and  they  will  listen  to  her,  for  she  has 
proved  herself  their  friend— that  if  they  wish 
to  rear  healthy  and  mentally  stable  children, 
they  should,  while  nursing,  abstain  from 
alcohol,  and  take  nourishing  food  ;  and  that 
to  drug  a  child  with  spirits  is  to  poison  it. 
They  can  inculcate  the  duty  of  wise  disci- 
pline and  the  cruelty  of  over-indulgence; 
they  can  urge  mothers  to  teach  their  children 
the  vital  facts  of  life  as  they  grow  older  ; 
and  they  can  befriend  the  babies  who  ara 
unwanted  and  uncared-for,  and  claim  for 
them  their  right  to  live. 

The  nurse  or  midwife  who  does  these 
things  is  a  social  worker  of  the  (irst  import- 
ance, for  the  strength  of  a  nation  depends 
on  the  physical  and  moral  welfare  of  its 
people,  and  she  will  help  materially  to  raise 
the  standard  of  both  if  she  attenrls  to  the 
cidturo  of  man  in  the  makinc 


322 


t[)C  36ntisl>  3ournai  or  mursincj.        [aphi  23,  lyiu 


Clinical  1Hotcc>  on  Some  Common 
ailments. 


SOME  FORMS  OF  HEART   DISEASE. 

By  a.  Knyvett  Gordon,  iM.Ji.  (Caiitali.j. 


lu  uousitleriug  the  disease,  ov  rather  group 
of  aihnents  which  comes  next  on  the  selected 
list — namely,  disease  of  the  heart — we  will 
direct  our  attention  chiefly  to  tlie  mechanism 
of  the  process,  and  to  the  explanation  of  the 
symptoms  which  it  produces;  the  treat- 
ment of  the  patient  will  then  be  dealt 
with,  with  special  reference  to  the  occasions 
on  which  the  nurse  will  have  to  act  on  her  own 
responsibility  in  time  of  emergency. 

As  we  all  know,  the  heart  is  a  muscular 
pump,  which  may  be  likened  in  shape  and 
action  to  an  enema  syringe;  at  each  beat,  or 
compression  of  the  bulb,  blood  is  sucked  in 
through  one  tube  and  propelled  out  through 
the  other.  Now,  when  we  compress  the  bulb 
(if  the  syringe  is  a  new  one  and  is  acting  pro- 
perly), the  fluid  comes  out  through  the  one 
tube  only,  and  not  through  both  ends,  this 
being  duo  to  the  fact  that  the  valve  at  the  end 
of  the  tube  which  is  immersed  in  the  basin 
from  which  the  fluid  has  to  be  withdraw^n  is  iu 
working  order.  But  if  the  syringe  is  an  old 
one,  there  will  probably  be  some  regurgitation 
of  fluid  through  the  suction  tube  when  the  bulb 
is  compressed. 

Coming  now  to  the  heart  itself,  the  only  real 
difference  is  that  it  is  practically  a  double 
syringe,  there  being  two  sets  both  of  suction 
and  delivery  tubes ;  the  blood  is  sucked  in  from 
the  system  through  the  inferior  vena  cava,  and 
from  the  lungs  through  the  jjulmouary  vein, 
and  is  ^H'opelled  to  the  luugs  through  tlie  pul- 
monary artery,  and  to  the  system  through  the 
aorta,  and  there  are  many  valves  placed  at 
intervals  throughout  the  circulatoi-y  system  in- 
stead of  the  single  one  on  the  suction  tube  of 
the  enema  syringe.  One  half  of  the  heart,  the 
right,  propels  the  blood  through  the  luugs, 
while  the  left  side  forces  it  into  the  blood 
vessels  of  the  rest  of  the  body ;  inasmuch  as  it 
has  more  work  to  do  than  the  right  side,  its 
walls  are  much  thicker,  and  — probably  for  the 
same  reason — it  is  much  more  ireyuently  the 
site  of  disease,  so  much  so,  in  fact,  that  iu 
these  notes  we  need  not  consider  the  right  side 
at  all.  We  shall  have  to  remember  the  position 
of  two  valves  on  this  left  side,  one  of  which, 
the  mitral,  is  placed  between  the  upper  autl 
lower  halves  (the  auricle  and  ventricle),  and 
the  other  (the  aortic  valve)  guards  the  jmssage 
from  the  ventricle  to  the  aorta,  and  thus  pre- 
vents the  return  of  blood  from  the  system  lo 


the  heart  before  it  has  gone  on  its  proper  course 
round  the  body. 

The  heart  may  become  diseased  in  various 
ways,  but  the  only  kind  of  illness  which  we 
will  take  at  present  is  that  which  occurs  when 
its  valves  become  affected  so  as  to  act  imper- 
fectly. 

Valvular  disease  is  most  frequently  started 
by  an  attack  of  rheumatism,  though  some  other 
ailments,  such  as  scarlet  fever,  typhoid  fever, 
and  influenza,  may  have  pretty  much  the  same 
effect  in  some  cases.  The  valves  become  in- 
flamed and  pieces  of  fibrin  are  deposited  on 
their  surfaces,  so  as  to  prevent  them  from 
closing  properly.  What  happens  at  first  is  that 
there  is  an  obstruction  at  the  orifices  of  these 
valves,  but  sooner  or  later  this  is  masked  by 
the  more  important  change  above  mentioned, 
and  we  get  regurgitation,  or  blood  going  partly 
backwards,  instead  of  entirely  forwards.  For 
our  purpose,  we  can  neglect  the  results  which 
follow  from  obstruction  only,  and  take  those 
symptoms  which  are  due  to  regurgitation. 

Now,  iu  disease  of  the  heart  there  are  two 
sets  of  signs,  those  which  show  what  is  hap- 
pening to  the  heart  itself,  and  those  which  in- 
dicate what  effect  the  disease  (of  the  heart)  is 
having  on  the  circulation.  From  the  physician's 
point  of  view,  the  former  are  of  considerable 
interest,  as  they  throw  some  light  on  the 
mechanism  of  the  heart's  action,  but  it  cannot 
be  too  clearly  laid  down  that  the  important 
j)oint  as  far  as  the  patient  is  concerned  is 
whether  or  not  the  circulation  through  the 
various  organs  of  the  body  is  being  maintained. 
It  is  sui-prisiiig,  for  instance,  how  well  an  ex- 
tensively diseased  heart  will  do  its  work  in 
some  patients,  while  others  will  endure  a  life 
of  misery,  and  on  post-mortem  examination  the 
heart  will  appear  to  have  had  very  little  the 
matter  with  it. 

It  is,  'therefore,  only  necessary  to  refer  very 
briefly  to  the  signs  of  disease  in  the  heart  itself. 
When  a  valve  becomes  obstructed,  the  first 
thing  that  happens  is  that  the  blood  makes  a 
noise  on  passing  through  the  narrowed  orifice. 
This  noise,  or  murmur,  as  it  is  called,  is  heard 
by  the  physician  with  the  stethoscope  when  he 
makes  his  examination.  The  next  event  is 
that,  as  the  heart  muscle  has  to  work  harder 
lo  propel  the  blood  through  the  damaged  valve, 
it  increases  in  size  and  strength  accordingly, 
and  becomes  "  hypertropliied  ";  this  increase 
in  size  can  be  measured  by  percussion  of  the 
chest  wall,  and  the  increase  in  force  of  the  im- 
pulse can  be  felt  with  the  liand  laid  lightly 
over  the  site  of  the  heart  itself. 

So  long  as  the  increase  in  strength  is  suf- 
ficient to  enable  the  heart  to  keep  the  blood 
stream  going  as  before,  nothing  happens,  and 


April  -23,  lOlOJ 


a;be  Britieb  3ournaI  of  IRursina. 


32^5 


the  patient  need  uot  know  liiat  lie  has  a 
diseased  heart  at  all,  but  tliis  very  seldom 
lasts  long,  and  ultimately  the  muscle 
stretches,  so  that  the  aui'icle  or  ventricle  he- 
hind  the  aifected  valve  becomes  a  thin  walled 
sac,  which  is  quite  unable  to  contract  sutti- 
^iently  to  drive  the  blood  adeijuately  along  the 
vessels.  This  tondition  is  known  as  dilatation 
of  the  heart,  and  while  it  is  most  commonly 
due  to  this  deficiency  at  the  valvular  orifices,  it 
may  result  from  obstruction  somewhere  in  the 
blood  vessels  of  the  system,  or  niay  be  due  to 
Weakening  of  the  heart  muscle  apart  from  any 
•obstruction  at  all,  by  an  attack  of  some  acute 
illness,  such  as  typhoid  fever  or  intiuenza,  or 
from  the  effect  of  certain  substances,  as  tea, 
tobacco,  or  alcohol  taken  to  excess  for  a  pro- 
longed period. 

From  what  we  have  seen,  it  will  be 
t  vident  that  the  symptoms  of  heart 
<lisease  depend  on  the  inability  of  the 
heart  to  maintain  the  circXilation  of  the 
blood  at  its  proper  pressure  through  all 
the  jiarts  of  the  body,  whether  that  inability 
be  due  to  leaking  back  of  the  blood  through  a 
damaged  valve  or  to  simple  weakness  of  the 
muscle  from  dilatation.  In  order  to  under- 
stand the  effects  of  the  disease  on  the  patient, 
we  have,  therefore,  simply  to  see  what  will 
happen  when  the  various  organs  receive  an 
inadequate  supply  of  blood. 

Obviously,  in  the  first  place,  the  symptoms 
will  depend  very  much  on  the  amount  of  work 
which  the  heart  is  called  upoii  to  do,  and  in 
some  slight  cases  symptoms  oidy  occur  when 
the  patient  exerts  himself,  so  that  if  he  leads 
a  well  regulated,  sedentary  life,  he  will  feel, 
and  in  fact  be,  quite  well.  Only  there  is  no 
reserve  power  for  emergencies. 

In  the  more  severe  cases  there  will  be  some 
further  signs.  The  pulse  will  be  (juick  and 
irregular,  and,  inasmuch  as  the  blood  has  to  be 
propelled  uphill  to  reach  the  brain,  but  can 
return  from  it  quite  easily,  the  fii'st  effects  will 
be  that  the  brain  gets  too  little  blood  and  be- 
comes anaemic ;  in  the  legs  the  reverse  is  the 
case,  for  the  blood  can  easily  get  there,  but 
returns  with  difficulty.  Hence  we  get,  as  signs 
from  the  brain,  dizziness,  faintness,  and  even 
complete  loss  of  consciousness  in  a  fainting 
fit.  and  in  the  legs  we  have  swelling,  beginm'ng 
at  the  ankles  and  tdtimately  reaching  up  the 
thighs  even  to  the  abdomen,  and,  in  advanced 
cases,  ascites  or  a  collection  ot  scrum  in  t-lic 
abdominal  cavity  itself. 

Then,  as  the  right  side  of  the  lieart  is  unable 
to  keep  up  the  circulation  fluough  the  lungs, 
we  get  shortness  of  breath,  \\hich  in  extreme 
•cases  is  shown  by   an    inability  ot    the   ])atient 


to  breathe  at  all  except  in  the  upright  positioii, 
and  also  some  accumulation  of  Huid  in  tiie 
lower  bronchi,  or  congestion  of  the  lung,  as  it 
is  termed. 

Then,  from  the  deficient  circulation  through 
the  abdominal  organs,  we  get  enlargement  of 
the  liver,  indigestion  from  congestion  of  the 
stomach,  and  albuminuria  when  the  Iddneys 
become  affected. 

All  the  above  symptoms  may  occur  in  disease 
of  any  of  the  different  valves  of  the  heart,  and 
the  distinguishing  feature  between  the  different 
forms  of  cardiac  affections  become  ap- 
parent when  the  heart  is  examined  by  the 
physician,  and  consist  in  differences  in  the 
nature  and  site  of  the  various  murmurs,  and 
alterations  in  the  size  of  different  parts  of  the 
heart.  From  the  nursing  point  of  view,  inas- 
much as  we  do  not  have  to  treat  the  muiinurs, 
but  the  eft'ect  of  the  failure  of  the  muscular 
part  on  the  patient,  we  can  consider  the  treat- 
ment of  all  forms  of  heart  disease  t-ogether. 
{To  be  concluded.) 


Sbeltere. 


"  Oui;  .success  (l<?i)ends  upon  tlic  strengtli  ot  our 
IJurjKise,  aud  if  we  would  uiakc  progros-s  we  must  use 
nnicli  diligence." 

Thomas  a  Kempis. 


Considering  the  supreme  importance  of  fresh 
air  to  the  victims  of  tid^erculosis,  and  the  in- 
fectious nature  of  their  disease,  it  is  a  surprise 
how  much  money  is  still  spent  on  solid  masonry 
in  the  erection  of  modern  sanatoria.  The  ideal 
is  a  structure  as  slight  as  is  consistent  with  the 
comfort  of  the  patient,  and  this  has  led  to 
the  introduction  of  the  canvas  tent  or  shelter 
such  as  is  used  at  Merivaie,  Sandon,  near 
t'helmsford,  where  Dr.  H.  Norman  Alarrett, 
who  designed  it,  is  Resident  Physician,  aud  of 
which,  by  his  courtesy,  we  are  able  to  give  an 
illustration.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  opportuni- 
ties for  infection  to  find  lodgment  in  these 
shelters  are  of  the  smallest,  while  the  patient 
can  have  the  maximum  amount  of  fresh  air 
aud  sunlight. 

Tlie  sides  and  doors  of  the  tents  are  made 
entirely  of  canvas,  suppoi'ted  by  a  framework 
of  wood,  and  the  floor  is  raised  some  twelve 
inches  from  the  ground,  thus  permitting  a  free 
currer^  of  air  to  circulate  beneath  the  tent. 
All  skirting  is  avoided,  so  that  there  is  no  pos- 
sibility of  an  accumulation  of  dust.  The  tents 
are  twelve  feet  square,  which  is  found  to  give 
ample  room  for  the  requirements  of  the  treat- 
ment. 

'i'lie  roof  is  of  a  special  cuniposito  material, 


324 


Zbc  Britisb  3ournal  ot  iRurstng.       [Apni  23, 1910 


through  which  the  Hght  passes  on  the  dullest 
days,  and  the  canvas  sides  consist  of  several 
blinds,  the  canvas  used  being  of  such  a  mesh 
as  to  prevent  the  pores  being  closed  when  the 
canvas  becomes  wet.  If  the  canvas  screens 
are  properly  manipulated  it  is  impossible  for 
the  patient  to  be  in  a  draught ;  these  tents  are 
consequently  a  great  advance  on  verandahs  and 
fixed  shelters,  where  at  times  a  draught  can- 
not be  avoided,  and  even  in  a  wooden  shelter 
working  on  a  pivot  it  is  very  difficult  to  keep 
pace  with  the  vagaries  of  the  vsdnd. 

The  great  advantage  of  the  canvas  tent  above 
described  is  that  even  if  it  is  entirely  closed  it 


tuberculosis  is  a  dissemination  of  knowledge  in 
regard  to  the  disease,  its  dangers,  and  the 
methods  of  its  prevention.  The  book  in  ques- 
tion tells  simply  and  attractively  the  story  of 
the  cleansing  of  one  home  in  Ireland,  in  which 
the  White  Demon  is  rampant.  The  teaching 
is  given  in  the  form  of  a  fairy  tale,  and  told  in 
language  so  simple  that  a  child  can  understand 
it,  and  indeed  the  book  is  used  as  a  class  book 
in  the  schools  in  Ireland,  so  that  every  child 
will  in  time  learn  something  of  the  cause  and 
cure  of  tuberculosis. 

At  the  outset  of  the  story  we  are  introduced 
to  Sheila  Murphy,  sitting    in  the  door  of  her 


A    Tent    Wide    Open,    as    it   Should  be   Whenever   Possible. 


vs'ill  still  be  flooded  with  light,  nor  can  the  air 
be  excluded. 

Treatment  in  these  shelters  is  suitable  for  all 
cases  likely  to  benefit  by  rest  in  the  open  air 
with  general  hygienic  treatment ;  such  as  con- 
valescents from  surgical  operations  and  severe 
illnesses,  neurasthenia,  dyspepsia,  etc.,  and 
special  tents  are  set  apart  for  such  cases  at 
Merivale.  Only  ten  cases  in  all  received,  so 
that  they  can  have  the  same  close  attention 
and  comfort  as  in  a  private  nursing  hon^'e. 

Have  any  of  our  readers  read  that  charming 
book,  "  The  White  Demon,  and  How  to  Fight 
Him,"  by  Mrs.  F.  E.  Eaton?  If  not,  they 
should  do  so  at  once.  The  great  hope  of  the 
future  in  the  war  with  the   white   demoii  of 


mother's  cottage  at  Ballyknock.  "By  her 
side  sat  an  Irish  terrier,  who  every  now  and 
then  thrust  his  moist  nose  into  the  child's  face. 
The  dog  somehow  felt  that  his  mistress  was 
not  in  the  best  of  spirits,  and  required  comfort- 
ing, and  that  sooner  or  later  she  would  pour  all 
the  trouble  into  his  faithful  ears. 

"  '  Listen,'  she  said  at  last,  '  and  I  will  tell 
you.  Eover,  I'm  afeard,  that's  what  I  am. 
Mary  Kate  is  after  telling  me  the  queerest 
news.  Whisper.  She  says  the  ugly  "  White 
Demon  '  can  be  seen  at  nights,  creeping  along 
in  the  mist  and  trlie  shadows.  He  carries  a  bag 
on  his  back  filled  with  '  demon  dust,'  full  o£ 
microbes,  which  he  throws  into  the  houses  and 
yards.     She  says  there  is  hardly  a  eottage  in 


April  23,  1910] 


ZDc  Britisb  3ournal  oi  iflurstno. 


325 


the  whole  village  where  he  has  not  been.' 

"  The  dog  looked  intelhgently  into  his  mis- 
tress' face. 

"  '  Before  you  know  where  you  are,  Kover, 
some  of  this  dust,  \^'hich  is  full  of  what  the 
wise  people  call  "  microbes,"  gets  into  your 
throat,  down  into  your  iusides,  and  then  you 
are  in  a  very  bad  way,  as  they  slowly  but  surely 
eat  you  up  inside.  I  am  thinking  they  have 
been  here,'  and  she  looked  fearfully  round  her 
and  drew  the  dog  closer. 

"  ■  Ifc  was  the  "  white  plague  "  killed  my 
father,  and  my  mother  has  the  same  kind  of 
cough,  with  the  wee  bit  of  colour  in  her  cheeks. 
Mary  Kate  says  she  will  be  taken  next,  and 
when  she  goes  Danny  and  I  shall  be  left  alone 
to  fight  the  Demon  as  best  we  can ! 

"  Here  Eover  lifted  up  his  voice  and  howled. 

"'  It  is  to  the  House  (she  meant  the  Work- 
house) we  would  have  to  go.'  Sheila  got  up 
and  turned  to  enter  the  mean  little  cottage.  To 
her  surprise  it  seemed  full  of  light.  She 
stepped  back  startled,  but  before  she  had  made 
up  her  mind  to  run  away  a  voice  from  the  cot- 
tage spoke  to  her,  and  slie  perceived  all  at  once 
a  beautiful  figure,  standing  in  the  centre  of  the 
lloor,  clad  in  light  flowiug  gannents,  which 
shone  and  glittered  as  she  moved.  In  her  hand 
she  carried  a  lamp. 

"  '  I  am  the  Spirit  of  Light,'  she  said.  '  I 
am  come  in  answer  to  the  cry  of  the  children  of 
Ireland  to  stand  between  them  and  the  White 
Demon  Tuberculosis.'  " 

So  the  Spirit  of  Light  turned  her  lantern  on 
to  the  walls  of  the  cottage,  to  the  floor,  into  the 
corners,  on  to  Sheila  herself,  into  the  little  bed- 
room, into  the  bed  which  Sheila  had  always 
thought  so  clean,  and  disclosed  everywhere  to 
her  horrified  sight,  a  terrible  state  of  affairs, 
on  to  the  dirty  handkerchief  of  the  mother  who 
was  suffering  from  tuberculosis.  Then  she 
opened  the  glass  door  of  her  lantern,  and  ex- 
posed the  pocket  handkerchief  to  the  full  rays 
from  within.  In  a  moment  every  little  rod- 
shaped  demon  lay  motionless  and  dead,  and 
the  dirty  rag  became  snow  white. 

"Pure  sunlight,"  said  the  fairy,  "is  the 
strongest  enemy  the  bacillus  has."  Then  she 
vanished,  and  the  fairy  of  Cleanliness  came 
and  cleaned  the  cottage,  and  the  fairy 
Nourishment  showed  Sheila  how  to  prepare 
food,  and  fairy  Fresh  Air  put  up  one  of  Dr. 
^larrett's  shelters,  and  the  fairies  Cheerfulness 
and  Perseverance  played  their  part,  and  be- 
tween them  all  the  phice  was  made  very  un- 
pleasant for  the  White  Demon. 

The  book  may  be  obtained  from  Maunsel  and 
Co.,  Ltd.,  96.  Middle  Abbey  Street,  Dublin, 
price  Is.  bound  in  cloth,  or  4d.  in  paper. 


3ntcinational  H^cws. 

THE  SWEDISH   NURSES'  ASSOCIATION. 

It  is  with  great  pleasure  we  announce  the 
formation  of  the  Swedish  Nurses'  Association 
at  a  meeting  recently  held  in  Stockholm,  and 
attended  by  nurses  from  various  institutions. 

Thf  meeting  was  opened  by  Sister  Bertha 
Wellin,  who  said  that  there  had  for  a  long 
time  been  a  desire  amongst  Swedish  nurses  for 
greater  unity  amongst  the  members  of  difierent 
associations  and  nursing  institutions.  The 
formation  of  the  Swedish  Nurses'  Association 
(Sveusk  Sjukskoterske-tiduing)  was  the  reali- 
sation of  this  hope  tor  unity  and  conciliation. 

The  difference  in  the  methods  and  the  term 
of  training  in  the  different  schools  had  made 
a  difficulty  as  to  the  definition  of  the  standard 
of  admission  to  the  Association,  but  a  set  of 
rules  drafted  by  a  Committee  fonned  a  basis 
for  discussion  at  the  meeting,  and  these,  with 
some  alterations,  were  accepted. 

The  Governing  Body  of  the  Association,  tha 
head-quarters  of  which  are  at  Stockholm,  will 
consist  of  nine  nurses,  as  follows  :  — 

EEPRESENT.VriVES. 

The  Sophia  Home  (2):  Sister  Emmy  Lind- 
hagen  and  Sister  Elin  Linder.  The  Red  Cross 
(2) :  Sister  Agda  Meyerson  and  Sister  Estrid 
Eodhe.  Fredrika  B re mcrfoTbimdets  Sjxikvaid- 
safdeliningar  (2) :  Sister  Bertha  Welhn  and 
Sister  Anna  Rydstrom.  Sodra  Sveriges  Sjuks- 
koterskehcm  (2):  Sister  Thomasine  Eeuters- 
kicld  and  Sister  Anna  Ponten.  Representative 
of  nurses  not  attached  to  the  above-mentioned 
institutions  (1) :  Sister  Alma  Lagerman. 
Hox.  Officers. 

President :  Sister  Emmy  Lindhagen. 

Vice-President :  Sister  Agda  Meyerson. 

Treasurer  :   Sister  Bertha  Wellin. 

Hon.  Secretary  :  Sister  Estrid  Rodhe. 

We  most  cordially  congratulate  the  Swedish 
Nurses  on  the  formation  of  their  Association. 
We  may  hope  that  the  International  Coun- 
cil of  Nurses  will  have  the  pleasure  of  wel- 
eominjj  the  Swedish  Association  to  member- 
ship at  Cologne  in  1912. 

FROM  INdTa. 

We  are  glad  to  note  in  this  month's 
Xursing  Journal  of  India  it  is  stated  that  "  one 
of  the  first  duties  of  our  Trained  Nurses'  Asso- 
ciation will  be  to  seek  admission  to  the  Inter- 
national Council  of  Nurses,  and  then  to  appoint 
four  delegates  to  represent  us  on  its  Grand 
Council.  By  this  means,  if  our  Association 
includes  trained  nurses  from  all  over  India,  we 
shall  not  only  get  into  close  touch  with  each 
other,  but  into  connection  with  the  nurses  of 
the  whole  world." 


326 


Cbc  IBrftlsb  3ournal  ot  IRursina. 


[April  23,  1910 


IHuvses  of  IRotc. 

MISS  ELMA  M.  SMITH. 

President  uf  the  Hendon  League. 

Miss  Elma  M.  Smith,  President  of  the 
Hendon  Branch  of  the  Central  London  Sick 
Asj'luin  Nurses'  League,  has  held  the  position 
of  Matron  in  the  Poor  Law  Service  for  many 
jears,  first  at  the  Infirmary  in  Cleveland 
Street,  and  later,  when  the  beautiful  new  In- 
finnary  was  built  at 
Hendon  by  the  Central 
London  Guardians,  Miss 
Smith  was  appointed 
Matron  of  the  new 
building.  It  is  indeed 
not  to  be  wondered  that 
she  preferred  the  new 
building,  spacious  and 
convenient,  set  in  the 
midst  of  green  fields,  to 
the  more  confined  quar- 
ters in  Cleveland  Street. 
Miss  Smith  began  her 
professional  career  at 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, where  she  gained 
the  three  years'  certifi- 
cate of  the  school,  re- 
maining on  afterwards 
as  Staff  Nurse.  She 
then  went  to  the  "York 
County  Hospital  as  Sis- 
ter, after  which  she  held 
the  apj)ointment  of 
Home  Sister  at  the 
Hospital  for  Sick  Chil- 
dren, Great  Ormond 
Street,  for  a  year,  and 
of  Assistant  Matron  at 
the  Paddington  Infir- 
mary, when  she  was  ap- 
pointed Matron  of  the 
Samaritan  Hospital, 
Nottingham.  In  1892 
she  was  appointed  Matron  of  the  Central  Lon- 
don Sick  Asylum,  Cleveland  Street,  W.,  and 
in  1900  of  the  Infirmary  at  Hendon,  the  posi- 
tion which  she  still  holds.  In  this  position  jNIiss 
Smith  has  gained  for  herself  the  reputation  of 
an  excellent  Matron,  an  able  administrator,  and 
a  good  disciplinarian,  and  one  to  whom  the 
nurses  look  up  as  kind  as  well  as  just. 

Miss  Smith  has  always  taken  an  active  in- 
terest in  nursing  organisation,  and  was  one  of 
the  professional  patronesses  of  the  first  Nursing 
Exhibition  held  in  this  country  in  1896  at  St. 
Martin's  Town  Hall.  She  was  an  early  mem- 
ber of  the  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland,  and  of  the  Society  for  the  State 


IJegistration  ot  Trained  Nurses,  and  is  also  a 
member  of  the  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital 
Nurses'  League.  In  1907  she  attended  the 
International  Congress  of  Nurses  in  Paris,  and 
she  was  also  present  at  many  of  the  meetings 
of  the  London  Congress  last  year.  ^  is  not 
surjjrising,  therefore,  that  she  should  desire  for 
the  Nurses  of  the  Hendon  Infirmai7  the  bene- 
fits and  pleasure  to  be  derived  from  their  asso- 
ciation together  in  a  professional  League,  or 

that  they  responded    in 

large  numbers  to  her  in- 
vitation to  form  one. 
The  members  have  done 
a  wise  as  well  as  a  grace- 
ful act  in  inviting  JNIiss 
Smith  to  become  their 
first  President,  and  they 
are  to  be  congratulated 
upon  her  acceptance  of 
tlie  position.  She  will 
discharge  the  duties  of 
this  honourable  office  in 
a  way  which  will  re- 
dound to  the  credit  of 
the  League,  and  we  feel 
sure  will  inspire  the . 
members  with  her  own 
sjsacious       breadth       of 


Miss    ELMA 

dent     Hendon   B 
Asylum  i 


.     SMITH, 

nch   Central   Londo 
rses'   League, 


X'3nflniiiere. 

The  Belgian  lay  nurs- 
ing schools  have  now 
their  own  nursing  jour- 
nal, the  first  number  of 
which  has  appeared  this 
month.  Amongst  the 
Editorial  Committee  are 
2ilme.  Cavell;  and  Dr. 
Boulanger  and  Dr.  Ley, 
who  attended  the  Inter- 
national Congress  of 
Nurses  in  Loudon  last  year.  The  journal  claims 
that  the  day  has  gone  by  when  it  is  necessary 
to  renounce  a  normal  life  as  a  preliminary  to 
nursing  the  sick,  or  when  devotion  alone  is  a 
sufficient  qualification.  It  claims  thorough  in- 
struction in  a  hospital  as  necessary  for  training, 
and  desires  to  see  the  nursing  profession  in 
Belgium  accessible  to  young  girls,  and  that  the 
servant  type  of  attendant  should  disappear  and 
be  replaced  bj'  the  "  neurse." 

The  paper  contains  an  excellent  article  on 
"  The  Duties  of  the  Nurse,"  by  Miss  Cavell, 
Directress  of  the  Belgian   School  of  Nursing. 
We  cordially  wish  the  new  journal  a  pros- 
perous career. 


April  23,  1910] 


^bc  Biitisb  journal  of  "Hursdig. 


327 


morality  (n  IRelation  to  Ibcaltb.      Iproeress  of  State  1i\CGi5tration. 


The  Hon.  Albinia  Brodrick,  who  is  Chair- 
man of  the  Section  of  MoraHty  in  Reh\tion  to 
Health  of  the  National  Council  of  Nurses,  is 
forming  a  Committee,  and  the  following  ladies 
have  already  accepted  her  invitation  to  work 
on  it: — Mrs.  Gotto,  Hon.  Secretary  to  the 
Eugenics  Education  Society:  Mrs.  Wethered, 
Dr.  H.  Wilson,  Miss  Amy  iEughes,  Miss  Cur- 
tis, Miss  H.  L.  Pearsu,  Miss  M.  Burr,  Miss 
Hulme,  and  Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick,  ex-officio. 
The  date  of  the  annual  meeting  of  the  National 
Council  of  Nurses  has  not  yet  been  an-anged, 
but  Miss  Brodrick  will  then  present  a  report  on 
the  important  work,  with  which  her  Com- 
mittee will  deal. 


Under  the  auspices  of  the  California  Public 
Health  Association  a  Society  has  been  organised 
which  is  notable  for  the  frankness  of  its  name, 
and  for  the  fact  that  a  woman.  Dr.  Frances  M. 
Greene,  has  been  chosen  as  its  president  by 
the  men  who  greatly  preponderate  in  its  mem- 
bership. The  organisers  regarded  the  term 
"  social  hygiene  "  as  t<x>  elastic,  and  the  word 

prophylaxis  "  as  too  technical  and  obscure 
for  the  layman,  and  decided  to  begin  their  cam- 
paign of  education  by  using  a  perfectly  definite 
title.  The  Society  is  therefore  called  the  Cali- 
fornia Association  for  the  Study  and  Prevention 
of  SjT)hilis  and  Gonorrhoea;  and  it  proposes  to 
treat  these  diseases  frankly  as  infectious,  to 
habituate  the  public  to  hear  and  speak  of  them 
without  embarrassment,  and  thus  to  drag  them 
into  the  light  where  all  men  may  know  and 
avoid  them.  This  is  a  thoroughly  sensible  de- 
cision.   

Messrs.  G.  P.  Putnams  Sons,  24,  Bed- 
ford Street,  Strand,  W.C,  will  shortly 
publish  I\Iiss  Lavinia  L.  Dock's  book,  "  Hy- 
giene and  Morality."  The  book  is  intended 
primarily  for  nurses,  and  anything  from  her 
pen  is  assured  of  careful  study  by  them.  Miss 
Dock  points  out  the  alarming  prevalence  of  the 
venereal  diseases,  the  later  ramifications  for 
which  they  are  often  resixinsible,  and  the 
attempts  made  to  restrict  their  activity  and 
their  virulence.  She  writes  on  behalf  of  the 
numberless  innocent  victims — both  women 
and  childrfti,  and  shows  that  the  attempts  to 
control  prostitution  have  been  partial  in  their 
nature,  and  ill-guided,  because  they  have  un- 
warrantably been  confined  to  only  one  of  the 
infected  sexes. 

IMiss  Dock  exposes  the  fallacy  that  prostitu- 
tion is  a  necessary  evil,  and  insists  that  it  is 
a  disgrace  to  civilisation,  and  should  not  be 
tolerated. 


"Nurses'  Registration.  Oh!  bother,"  ex- 
claimed a  worried  M.P.  to  whom  1  was  speak- 
ing on  the  matter  last  week.  "  My  dear  lady, 
surely  the  Lords  and  the  Budget  are  enough 
to  distract  a  Member  of  Parliament  in  these 
times  without  considering  the  eternal 
feminine." 

"  It  is  just  there  you  are  wrong,"  I  reply. 
"  This  question  of  Nurses'  Registration  is  not 
primarily  a  woman's  question.  It  is  quite 
national  in  scope — indeed,  international.  You 
can't  get  away  from  it.  ^len  must  be  bom  as 
well  as  women.  Baby  hoys  are  helpless  scraps 
of  humanity,  and  must  be  cared  for.  The  little 
rascals  in  youth  suffer  sickness  and  injury.  As 
they  grow  older  they  take  bigger  risks  to  health 
than  girls.  As  men  thej'  are  not  exempt  from 
sickness,  and  sooner  or  later  you  are  going  to 
die — so  don't  forget  it.  Thus  you  require 
skilled  nursing  from  birth  to  death,  and  if  a 
high  standard  of  National  Health  is  to  be  main- 
taned  you  have  got  to  have  your  nurses  trained, 
tested,  supervised,  encouraged,  and  guaran- 
teed, just  as  j'ou  have  by  Act  of  Parliament 
protected  yourself  against  quack  doctors  and 
chemists.  And  even  if  there  is  a  bit  of  woman 
question  about  it,  are  we  not  constantly  in- 
fonncd  that  our  interests  are  safe  in  the  hands 
of  a  male  Legislature?  I  suppose  you  don't 
want  that  assertion  to  be  taken  with  a  grain  of 
salt. ' ' 
-    "Ah!    I  never  realised  all  that." 

"  I  only  ask  you  to  realise,"  I  plead,  "  that 
the  battle  is  to  the  strong.  Through  ignorance 
thousands  of  our  poor  people  are  feeble, 
maimed,  halt,  and  blind.  The  well-instructed, 
well-trained  nurse  is  the  greatest  factor  in 
social  reform  you  have  got.  Give  her  know- 
ledge, give  her  scope,  give  her  status.  Don't 
pooh-pooh  her  wonderful  work  in  the  contemp- 
tuous manner  in  which  women's  efforts  havf 
hitherto  been  kept  cheap.  The  weak  in  nature 
for  ever  appeals  to  the  eternal  mother.  The 
best  nurses  are  mothering  all  the  time,  and 
they  only  ask  that  their  training  and  education 
shall  qualify  them  to  mother  intelligently." 

"  Why  this  registration  question  is  not  only 
of  national  scope,  it  touches  the  very  springs 
of  humanity,"  our  M.P.  excitedly  exclaims. 

"  If  only  I  were  in  the  House  and  could  plead 
our  own  cause,  this  Bill  would  have  been  law 
a  decade  ago,"  I  murmur  with  a  sigh. 

"Ah!  now  we  revert  to  the  eternal  femi- 
nine," he  says,  smiling. 

"  Eliminate  her — do — and  have  a  lovely  dull 
time,"_^I  say  tartly,  "but  in  the  meantime 
please  fnfluence  the  Government  to  attend  to 


328 


?rbe  3i6r(tic»b  3ournaI  of  'Wurslng. 


[April  23,  1910 


the  question  of  National  Health ;  it's  in  a  par- 
lous state,  morally  and  physically,  and  quack 
nursing  won't  improve  it." 

"  I  am  going  to  vote  for  j'our  fiill,  and  get 
friends  to  do  likewise,"  my  new  friend  pro- 
tnises  at  parting. 

I  squeeze  his  hand  gratefully,  and  just  as  1 
rip  down  St.   Stephen's  Hall  I  come  face  to 
face  with  an  ardent  "  anti."       Of  course  we 
smile. 

So  it  goes  on,  "Pull  devil,  pull  baker!  " 
In  oin-  estimation  we  are  both  the  hahcr. 

E.  n.  F. 


^be  £100  IRcGtstration  fun^. 


Brought  forward 

!Miss  W.  J.  Cockrane  (Moscow) 

Mrs.  Hope  Buswell  (Mauritius) 

Collecting  Cards. 
Name  of  Collector:  Miss  B.  Cutler. 

Collected 

Miss  B.  Cutler      


Name  of  Collector:  Miss  H.  Sherlock. 

M.  H.   S.  ..'.         7  0 

M.  Milne                1  0 

:M.  Braye 1  0 

L.  Berrulge             1  0 


.     79 

9 

8 

3 

6 

2 

6 

4 

0 

0 

1 

0 

0 

5 

0 

0 

10     0 


Total     £8.5     5     8 

It  is  satisfactory  that  our  £100  Fund  has 
now  reached  over  £85.  We  hope  that  at  the 
Annual  Meeting  in  May  we  may  be  able  to 
announce  that  the  whole  £100  has  been  con- 

tviluited.  

THE  NIGHTINGALE  CEREMONIAL. 
A  terrible  gloom  will  now  o\'ershadow  the  ■ 
-  forthcoming  meetings  of  the  Superintendents 
and  Nurses'  National  Associations  in  New- 
York.  The  "  Nightingale  Ceremonial,  "  at 
which  an  address  is  to  be  given  in  recognition 
of  jMiss  Nightingale's  Jubilee,  showing  the 
splendid  results  of  her  work  in  nursing  and  hos-' 
pital,  will  be  delivered  by  Br.  William  Welch. 
An  interesting  exhibit  of  books  and  other  things 
concerning  her  is  being  arranged. 

SOMETHING   ABOUT  OLD   SISTERS. 

When  we  offered  a  prize  for  memories  of 
Old  Sisters  ue  hoped  for  .some  interesting  re- 
collections. We  received  but  few.  Surely 
many  nurses  owe  much  to  these  pioneers. 
Next  week  we  shall  have  something  to  say 
about  the  Sisters  we  worked  under-in  the  seven- 
ties— depend  upon  it,  many  were  real  live 
women  full  tif  "  go  "  and  humour. 


^be  3ri0b  It^urses'  Bssociation. 

Miss  Macdonuell,  R.R.C,  President,  occupietl 
the  chair  at  a  meeting  of  the  Iri-^h  Nurses'  Associa- 
tion, held  at  86,  Lower  Leesou  Street.  Dublin,  on 
Friday,  the  1.5th  inst.,  and  intro<luced  51is.s 
Buchanan,  Poor-Law  Guardian,  who  addressed  the 
audience  eloquently  on  "The  Condition  of  the 
Fe€ble-Minde<l  in  Ireland,"  and  showed  tilings  to 
be  in  a  truly  i)itiable  condition. 

The  speaker  told  us  that  the  percentage  liad  risen 
from  1  in  every  640  in  1850  to  1  in  every  187  at  pie- 
sent  date.  As  Miss  Buchanan  pointed  out 
even  allowing  for  badly-kei)t  returns  in  IS.'JO,  and 
also  for  emigration  .since  that  date,  still  the  enoi'- 
mons  increase  was  sufficient  cause  for  drastic 
measures  Ijeing  taken.  At  present  the  Poor-Law 
Guardians  liave  no  ix>wei-s  of  compulsory  detention, 
with  the  sad  result  that  many  of  the  feeble-minded 
and  epileptic  women  return  again  and  again 
through  the  maternity  wards  to  the  vuiion.  Is  it 
any  wonder  that  lunacy  is  on  the  increase? 

And  of  the  prisons;  w-e  were  told  that  they  aie 
being  filled  in  the  same  way  with  these  poor 
creatures.  Time  after  time  they  are  committed, 
one  poor  \\x>man,  only  aged  29  years,  having  as 
many  as  244  offences  against  her.  For  these  not 
wholly  resiionsible  beings  would  not  compulsory  de- 
tention after  a  certain  number  of  convictions  l)e 
beneficial,  even  if  only  for  a  certain  fixed  period. 

Men,  in  the  same  condition,  irresponsible  for  their 
actions,  are  wandering  about,  doing  all  the  haini 
and  wickedness  they  can,  and  periodically  finding 
their  way  back  to  union  or  pnsou. 

Miss  Buchanan  argues  that  if  homes  and  colonies 
were  established  where  these  poor,  afflictrrl 
creatures  could- be  detained,  and  botli  be  looked 
after  and  made  to  work,  they  would  help  to  a  very 
great  extent  to  remove  a  great  national  danger. 
She  also  s]}oke  seriously  of  the  Temperance  ques 
tion,  showing  that  County  Waterford,  which, 
accoixling  to  statistics,  is  the  most  intemijerate 
county  in  Ireland,,  has  also  the  greatest  number  of 
insane  jieoplc,  and  she  appealed  to  all  present  to 
use  their  influence  and  opportunities  to  encourage 
total  abstinence. 

Her  address  was  most  illuminating  and  was 
greatly  appreciated  by  all,  and  a  warm  vote  of 
thanks  was  proposed  by  Miss  Lament,  seconded  -.v 
Mis.s  Reeves,  and  supix)rted  by  Mrs.  Kildare  Treacy 
and  Miss  Violet  Roberts. 

A.  Cahson  R.\e. 


The  Irish  Nurses'  Association  have  heard  with 
satisfaction  that  Mr.  John  Burns,  President  of  tlie 
Local  Govei-nment  Board,  has  rem<wed  his  block 
_o  the  Bill  for  State  Registration.  They  have  no 
donht  that  the  quiet  but  fii-m  .stand  taken  by  the 
Irish  Xurses'  A,ssociatioii,  as  expressed  in  a  letter 
whicli  was  placed  before  Mr,  Burns  through  the 
medium  of  their  good  friend,  Mr.  Wm.  Field,  M.P., 
has  he!i>ed  materially  .to  this  end.  and  we  con- 
gratulate those  in  the  forefront  of  the  battl-g  in 
London — and  ourselves. 

V.   R. 


April  23,  1910: 


Zbc  36ntt5b  3ournal  of  IRursing. 


329 


CraMc  Splint  for  llsc  Hftcr 
XvmpbanGioplast^. 

Mr.  W.  Sampson  Handley,  F.K.C.S.,  in  I  be 
course  of  one  of  the  Hunterian  Lectures  on  the 
Surgery  of  the  Lymphatic  System,  recently 
delivered  by  him,  in  which  his  principal  theme 
was  the  surgery  of  dropsy,  gives  an  example  of 
a  cradle  splint,  made  by  Messrs.  Mayer  and 
Meltzer,  of  Great  Portland  Street,  W.,  which 
i^  here  illustrated,  which  he  uses  after  lymphan- 
gioplasty,  by  which  the  arm  can  be  placed  in  a 
suitable  and  comfortable  position.  The  lecturer 
stated  that  the  dropsical  arm  acquires  most  of 
it?  importance  from  the  excruciating  pain  which 
it  causes — a  pain  which  in  the  worst  cases 
almost  passes  the 
limits  of  endurance. 
This  pain  is  re- 
ferred to  the  whole 
limb,  and  varies 
from  a  duJl  ache  to 
an  intolerable  burn- 
ing agony. 

The  onset  of  the 
dropsical  arm  of 
breast  cancer  is  de- 
termined by  the 
blocking,  not  mere- 
ly of  the  main  lym- 
phatic trunks,  but 
also  of  all  the  col- 
lateral routes  about 
the  shoulder,  by 
which  the  lymph 
could  find  a  pas- 
sage. The  patho- 
logy of  brawny  arm 
is  a  corollary  to  the 
permeation   theorv\ 

The  pei-meation  spreads  from  the  breast 
in  an  ever  widening  circle.  Until  two 
years  ago,  the  lecturer  stated,  the  only  treat- 
ment available  for  cases  of  dropsical  arm,  after 
elevation  had  ceased  to  produce  any  effect,  was 
either  amputation  of  the  arm  or  the  use  of 
morphine.  The  readiness  of  patients  to  listen 
to  the  suggestion  of  amputation  is  the  best  pos- 
sible proof  of  the  intolerable  agony  caused  by 
the  disease.  The  operation  of  lymphangios- 
tomy  is  palliative  only;  it  has  no  claims  to  pro- 
long life,  but  in  favourable  cases  the  effects  are  : 
(a)  Complete  relief  from,  pain  within  twenty- 
four  hours,  unless  the  pain  is  partially  due  to 
some  cause — such  as  nerve  pressure — indepen- 
dent of  the  csdema.  (b)  A  marked  and  rapid 
fall  in  the  tissue  tension  of  the  whole  area 
drained  by  the  silk  threads  which  are  buried  in 
the  subcutaneous    tissues  of    the  arm.         (c) 


liapid  subaiJcuctr  of  the  swelling  in  the  hand 
and  forearm,  (d)  Return  of  power  to  the  para- 
lysed arm  if  the  paralysis  is  of  recent  date, 
(e)  An  improvement  in  the  general  condition 
dependent  partly  on  reUef  from  pain,  and  its 
associated  symptoms  of  insomnia  and  depres- 
sion, and  partly  from  the  abandonment  of 
sedatives. 

The  lecturer  went  on  to  say  that  the  princi- 
pal difficulties  of  the  operation  are  connected 
with  the  maintenance  of  the  silk  in  an  aseptic 
condition.  Owing  to  the  large  area  dealt  with, 
extending  on  to  the  back,  the  necessary 
changes  in  the  posture  of  the  arm,  and  the 
length  of  the  silk  threads,  accidental  contact 
may  very  easily  occur  between  the  silk  and  the 
surface  of  the  skin,  the  edges  of  the  incisions  or 
surrounding  ob- 
jects. I  regard  the 
use  of  masks  as 
essential,  and  the 
silk  ends  not  ac- 
tually dealt  with  at 
the  moment  must 
be  kept  wi-apped  in 
sterile  gauze, 

which  is  also  useful 
to  protect  them 
from  the  edges  of 
the  incisions  as 
they  are  being 
drawn  in  after  the 
probe.  This  method 
contains  modifica- 
tions which  my  ex- 
perience has  shown 
to  be  desirable.  My 
object  has  been  to 
simplify  the  opera- 
tion, to  reduce  the 
number  of  incisions 
necessary,  and  as  a  reasonable  precaution  to 
insert  the  threads  in  such  a  manner  that  they 
can,  if  necessary,  be  withdrawn  with  a  mini- 
mum of  trouble.  All  the  threads  can  be  with- 
drawn by  reopening  the  two  incisions  just 
above  the  wrist.  Fortunately  I  have  never 
been  obliged  to  do  this.  There  is  no  need  to  fix 
the  upper  ends  of  the  threads  by  knotting  them 
together,  as  I  foi-merly  thought,  for  the  silk 
soon  becomes  adherent  along  its  whole  length 
to  the  tissues  in  contact  with  it. 

The  operation  of  lymphangioplasty  should 
not  be  applied  indiscriminately,  but  should  be 
reserved  for  the  severer  degrees  of  lymph- 
stasis  in  which  other  modes  of  treatment  are 
powerless. 

The  whole  lecture,  which  is  exti'emely  inter- 
esting, is  published  in  the  British  Medical  Jour- 
nal of  April  9th. 


330 


<iOC  Biitisb  3ournaI  of  IRursing.       [Aprii  23,  mo 


practical  iPoints. 

It    is  to  the   fact   that   Sir 
The  Pipe  of  Hiram     Maxim    suffers     from 

Peace.  bronchitis,   for  which,   after  a 

severe  attack,  he  sought  re- 
lief at  vai-ious  Continental  resorts,  and  found  that 
the  only  treatment  that  relieved  him  was  the  in- 
halation treatment  at  Nice,  that  we  owe  the  "  Pipe 
of  Peace"  and  the  "Maxim  Inhaler,"  for  he 
turned  his  inventive  genius  to  the  study  of  the 
problem  of  designing  an  inhaler  which  nould  apply 


The  "Pipe  op  Peace. 

the  remedy  dii-ectly  to  the  affected  spot  instead  of 
medicating  the  inside  of  the  mouth,  and  of  dis- 
covering a  way  of  treating  pine  essence  which 
would  have  a  soothing  instead  of  an  irritating 
effect  on  the  throat.  The  defect  of  the  oixlinary 
inhaler  is  that  the  pine  vapour  which  is  drawn 
through  the  mouth  and  nostrils  has  a  tendency  to 
be  absorbed  by  the  first  mucous  surface  «hich  it 
reaches,  and  that  a  long  course  of  inhalations  is 
necessary  before  a  sufficient  quantity  of  vapour 
reaches  the  bronchial  tubes.  If  the  pine  vapour  can 
be  made  to  reach  the  throat  more  directly  better  re- 
sults can  be  looked  for. 

Tlie  "  Pipe  of  Peace  "  solves  the  difficulty  at  the 
root  of  existing  defects  in  apparatus  for  pine  in- 
halation by 
the  simple  ex- 
pedient of  an 
indentation  in 
the  mouth- 
piece,  so 
placed  as  to 
engage  the 
teeth  at  the 
distance  from 
the  end  which  would  convey  the  vapoure  direct  t  ■ 
the  throat.  One  of  the  recognised  drawbacks  to 
pine  inhalation  is  the  liability  of  the  essence  at  the 
Ijeginning  of  an  inhalation  to  set  up  tickling  of 
the  throat  and  coughing.  Sir -Hiram  Maxim  has 
found  by  experimenting  with  the  essences  of  two 
plants,  indigenous  to  his  native  State  of  Maine — 
i.e.,  Wintergreen  and 
Sweet  Birch — that  the 
initial  tickling  is  en- 
tirely obviatetl  and  the 
l>ine  e.ssence  inhaled 
with  a  far  gi'eater  de- 
gree of  comfort.  The 
"Maxim  Inhaler"  is 
X.\8AL  Attachment.  i,itende<l    "for     use     in 

conjunction  with  the  "Pipe  of  Peace"  where 
thix>at  and  lung  disorders  exist,  and  is  used  for  men- 


The  Maxim  Inhaler. 


thol  inlmlations.  A  nasal  attachment  is  also  sup- 
plied for  use  in  cases  of  nasal  and  post-nasal  catarrh. 
The  whole  apijaratus,  with  the  necessary  supplies, 
costs  1.5s.  6d.,  obtainable  from  John  Morgan 
Richards  and  Sons,  Ltd.,  46,  Holboin  Viaduct, 
London,  E.G. 


an  3nternat(onaI  Calamity. 

THE  DEATH  OF  MRS.   ROBB 

It  is  only  a  few  short  weeks  since  English  nurses 
were  bereft,  by  the  death  of  Miss  Isla  Stewart,  of 
a  true  friend  and  a  great  leader,  and  now,  with  ap- 
palling suddenness,  a  crushing  blow  has  fallen  on 
the  American  Nursing  World.  A  brief  message 
flashed  across  the  Atlantic  has  brought  us  the 
grievous  news  of  the  death  on  Friday,  April  loth, 
of  Mrs.  Hampton  Robb  as  the  result  of  an  acci- 
dent. 

It  is  impossible  to  express  the  sorrow  which  will 
be  felt  not  only  in  the  IJnited  States,  but  through- 
out the  whole  nursing  world.  In  America  Mrs. 
Robb  was  recognised  leader,  counsellor,  and  friend, 
in  all  that  concerns  nursing  and  nurses.  A  Cana- 
dian by  birth.  Miss  Isabel  Hampton,  like  so  many 
of  her  countrywomen,  owed  her  ijrofessional  train- 
ing to  the  great  Bellevue  Hospital  in  New  York, 
and  the  United  States  gave  her  scope  for  the  exer- 
cise of  her  genius.  There  is  no  finer  position  in 
the  nursing  world  than  that  of  Superintendent  of 
the  Nurse  Training  School  at  the  Johns  Hopkins 
Hospital,  Baltimore,  and  she  discharged  the  duties 
of  this  office  with  a  distinction  which  brought 
honour  both  upon  the  School  and  upon  herself. 
Her  marriage  with  Dr.  Hunter  Robb,  which  took 
place  in  London,  the  lovely  flowers  which  she 
carried  on  that  occasion,  being  the  gift  of  Miss 
Florence  Nightingale,  in  no  way  lessened  her 
interest  in  nursing.  -  "  Once  a  nurse  always  a 
nurse,"  was  her  motto,  and  she  devoted  herself  to 
the  furtherance  of  nursing  organisation  and  of  the 
interests  of  the  American  Society  of  Superinten- 
dents of  Training  Schools,  and  the  Nurses'  Asso- 
ciated Alumnte — which  owed  their  foundation  to 
her  wise  foresight — and  to  other  public  work.  Des- 
tiny decreed  that  she  should  play  a  great  part  in 
the  evolution  of  nursing,  and,  as  often  happens, 
dowered  her  with  the  qualities  necessary  to  a  leader 
with  lavish  hand.  Splendidly  strong,  physically  and 
mentally,  capable,  forceful,  and  magnetic,  with  a 
personality  which  not  only  charmed  but  com- 
manded respect,  she  was  able  to-  impress  others 
with  her  own  strong  convictions,  and  to  carry  them 
to  fruition  for  the  benefit  of  her  profession  in  its 
early  da.vs,  when  wi,se  guidance  was  of  supreme 
importance. 

Her  presence  in  London  last  year  as  a  delegate 
to  the  International  Council  of  Nurses  was  a  great 
joy  to  her  colleagues,  and  it  is  difficult  to  believe 
that  a  personality  of  such  siiperabnndant  vitality 
has  passed  away. 

Isabel  Hampton  Robb  belongs  not  only  to 
America,  but  to  the  nur.sing  world  at  large,  which 
will  always  feel  the  uplifting  influence  of  her  life. 
revere  her  teaching,  and  keep  her  memory 
fragrant. 


April  23,  1010] 


^Dc  Bvitlsb  3omiial  of  TRm-stn^i. 


331 


Hppointnicnts. 


Matrons. 
St.   Bartholomew's  Hospital,   Rochester. — Mis6  M.  Potc 

Hunt  has  bocii  appoint«Hl  Mjitroii.  She  was 
traintKl  at  St.  liartliolomew's  Hospital.  Ix)iidoii, 
where  she  has  done  Sister's  duties,  and  has  also  had 
expeiience  of  private  nuitsing.  .She  has  liad 
training  in  children's  nursing  at  the  Bclgravc  Hos- 
pital, London,  and  has  held  the  jxisition  of  .Sister  at 
the  Mount  Vernon  Hospital,  Hampst«Aa<l.  on  the 
Women's  Corridor,  and  of  Home  Sistei-  and  Assist- 
ant Matron  at  the  National  Hospital,  Queen 
Square,  Bloonisbury. 

Union  Infirmary,  Shirley  Warren,  Southampton. — Miss 
M.  C.  Brjne  has  tjeen  appointo<]  Matron.  She  was 
trained  at  St.  George's  Infirmary,  Fulliam  Road, 
S.W.,  where  .she  afterwards  held  tlio  ixsition  of 
Sister.  .She  has  also  Ijeen  Night  .Sui)erintendent  at 
the  Infirmary,  Woolwich,  and  Assistant  Matron  at 
the  Southampton  Infirmary.  .She  is  a  certifie<l  mid- 
wnfe  and  certified  masseuse. 

Rosehill  Isolation  Hospital,  Rawmarsh,  Rotherham.— 
Miss  A.  T.  Oldham  has  1kx>ii  apiK>inte<l  Matron.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Victoria  Inlirmary,  Glasgow,  and 
has  held  the  positiou  of  Night  .SuiH'rinten<lent  at 
the  Greenock  Infirmary,  and  of  Matron  of  the  In- 
fectious Diseases  Hospital  for  Worksop. 

City  or  Wakefield  Infectious  Diseases  Hospital. — Miss  B. 
AVhitliam  lias  been  apix>iiited  Matron.  .She  was 
traine<l  at  the  County  Hospital,  York,  and  has  held 
the  position  of  Matix)n  of  the  .Skipton  and  District 
Fever  Hospital. 

Matron  Nihse. 
Foyle  Hill  Infectious  Diseases  Hospital,  Londonderry.— 
Miss  A.  Deane  has  been  appointed  Matron  Nurse. 
Miss  Deane  was  trained  at  Sir  Patrick  Dun's  Hos- 
pital, Dublin,  where  she  has  worked  on  the  Private 
Staff   for   some   months. 

Sisters. 

Liverpool    Stanley    Hospital — Miss  Naomi  Cromie  has 

been  appointed   Sister.      She   was  trained  at   the 

Stanley   Hospital,    Liverpool,   and   has  been    Staff 

Nurse  and  Sister  in  the  Out-patient  Department. 

The  Hospital,  Bridgwater.  -Jliss  Violet  Campbell 
has  l>een  appointe<l  Sister.  Slie  was  trained  at  the 
Cardiff  Infirmary,  where  she  has  done  Sister's 
holiday  duty. 

Home  Sistkr. 
Norfolk  and  Norwich  Hospital,  Norwich. — Miss  M.  T. 
Salisbury  has  been  appointed  Home  .Sister.  She 
was  trained  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and 
has  held  the  position  of  Sister  and  Night  Sister  at 
the  Hospital  for  Sick  Children,  Great  Ormond 
Street,  of  Sister  and  Assistant  Matron  at  the  Kim- 
berley  Hospital,  South  Africa,  and  of  Sister  at  the 
Cancer  Hospital.  London. 

Night  Sister. 

Charing     Cross     Hospital,     Strand,    W.O Miss     Alice 

-Ulaixl  has  been  appointed  to  the  position  of  Night 
Sister.  .She  was  traine<l  at  .St.  Thonia,s'  Hospital. 
London,  and  has  held  the  following  po.st,s: — Charge 
Nui-se  Dr.  F.  C.  Abliott's  Niii-sing  Home,  Bletcli- 
ingley,  Surrey;  and  Night  Sister  and  Ward  Si.ster 
at  the  Royal  Surrey  Comity  Hospital,  (Juildford. 
Miss  Allai'd  is  also  traine<l  in  maternity  nursing. 


Royal  Hospital,  Sheffield — Miss  M.  Mollis  has  been 
appoiuttd  Night  Sister.  She  was  trained  at  the 
Sheffield  Hoyal  Hospital,  and  has  since  been  Sister 
in  the  Children's  Ward,  and  has  done  House- 
keeper's duties  in  the  same  institution.  She  holds 
the  certificate  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board. 
Charge  Nurse. 

Union  Infirmary,  Swansea — Mies  B.  Evaus  has  been 
appointed  Charge  Nurse.  She  was  trained  in  the 
Union  Infirmary,  Swansea. 

Health   Visitor. 

Barking  Urban  District  Council.  -Miss  Maud  A\  eb- 
ster  has  been  appointcil  Health  Visitor,  and  As- 
sistant Sanitary  Ins))e(tor.  She  has  held  appoint- 
ments at  the  West  Ham  Infirmary,  the  South- 
Eastern  Hospital,  New  Cross,  and  the  Isolation 
Hospital,  Barking.     Slie  is  al.so  a  certified  midwife. 

QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S   IMPERIAL  MILITARY 

NURSING  SERVICE. 
Miss     Maria     Wright,     on     her     retirement,     is 
granted  permission  to  retain  the  badge  of  Queen 
Alexandra's  Imperial  Military  Nursing  Service. 

QUEEN     ALEXANDRA'S     MILITARY     NURSING 
SERVICE  FOR  INDIA. 

Nursing  Sister  Miss  Minnie  Elizabeth  Harvey 
has  been  promoted  to  be  Senior  Nursing  Sister. 
Dated  November  7th,  1909. 

Miss  Elsie  Mary  Fraser  has  been  appointed  to 
the  service  as  Nursing  Sister.  Dated  December 
11th,   1909. 

QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE   INSTITUTE 
Transfers  and  Appointments. 

Mi.ss  Edith  M.  Epi»  has  been  appointed  County 
Superintendent  in  Nottinghamshire.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Radcliffe  Intinuary,  Oxfoixl,  and 
holds  the  C.M.B.  cei-tificate.  She  received  her  ois- 
tiict  training  at  Westminster,  and  subsequently 
worked  on  the  staff  of  the  Plaistow  Home.  She  was 
then  apjxiiuted  Assistant  County  Superintendent  in 
Hampshire,  and  has  since  done  temi)orary  work  as 
Assistant  to  tfie  General  Sui)erintendent,  and 
Superintendent  to  the  South  Wales  Association. 
Mi.ss  Epps  also  has  experience  in  private  nursing, 
and  \\oike<l  for  .a  time  in  the  IMilitai-y  Families 
Hospital,  Mauritius. 

Miss  Lucy  Price  has  been  appointed  Sui>erin- 
tendent  of  the  Kingston  Home.  She  was  trained 
at  the  London  Hospital,  and  was  Matron  of  the 
Swanage  Cottage  Hospital  for  three  years.  She 
has  also  held  po.sts  of  resiwnsibility  at  the  Brook 
Fever  Hospital  and  the  Plague  Hospital,  Maitland  ; 
she  worke<l  at  the  Somer.set  Hospital,  Cai^etown, 
and  has  experience  in  private  nursing.  She  re- 
ceived her  district  traini'ng  at  Brighton,  and  has 
worke<l  as  Queen's  Nurse  at  King's  Bromley,  Much 
Ha<lham,  Chalfont  .St.  Peter,  and  Buntingford. 
Miss  Price  hoUls  the  C.M.B.   certificate. 

Mi.ss  Elizabeth  McClym'ont  to  Kingston,  as 
.Senior  Nui-se;  Mis.s  Roisalie  Chadwick  and  Miss 
Lilian  Couleon  to  St.  Helier,  .Jei-s<>y ;  Miss  Olave 
English,  to  Peterborough;  Miss  Hester  Dickson,  to 
Buntingford;  .Mi.ss  DoiX)thy  Bennett,  to  Brixton; 
Miss  Annie  Clayton,  to  Whickliaiii  :  Mi.ss  Helen 
Hortin,  to  Cambridge;  Miss  Mai  ion  Mc.Alister,  to 
Portsmouth. 


332 


Cbc  IBntis'o  3ournal  of  ::rtur5ing.      [Apm  23, 1910 


iRursino  lEcboes. 

The  Couutess  of  Dudley 
is  ou  her  way  back  to  Aus- 
traha,  and  Miss  Amj'  Hughes 
also  Iftt  Euglaud  on  the  loth 
inst.  ou  the  six  mouths" 
leave  granted  by  Queen  Vic- 
toria's Jubilee  Institute,  to 
help  with  the  organisation  of 
a  scheme  of  District  Nursing 
in  Australia.  We  hope  no 
attempt  will  be  made  to  in- 
stitute the  cottage  nurse 
system  in  Australia.  The  skill  of  district  nurses 
required  for  the  poor  and  for  patients  in  the 
bush  should  be  of  "  Queen's  Nurse  "  stan- 
dard. Nothing  but  disorganisation  will  result 
if  the  Australasian  standards  of  efficiency  so 
carefully  conserved  by  the  State  Associations  of 
Nurses  are  tampered  with. 


Mr.  Harold  Boultou,  the  Treasurer  of  the 
Institute,  has  also  left  England  for  Australia 
at  the  invitation  of  Lord  and  Lady  Dudley, 
who  wish  for  his  help  and  advice  in  the  promo- 
tion of  the  district  nursing  scheme.  Mr. 
Boulton  has  only  just  returned  from  Canada, 
where  he  spent  some  time  iu  reorganising  the 
St.  .John  Ambulance  Brigade. 

We  have  received  from  Mr.  H.  Dixon  Kim- 
ber,  the  legal  adviser  of  Miss  E.  Bellamy — the 
nurse  concerned  iu  the  tragedy  at  the  Heme! 
Hempstead  Infinnary — a  letter  commenting  on 
the  reply  of  the  President  of  the  Local  Govern- 
ment Board  to  Mr.  Morton  in  the  House  of 
Commons  in  reference  to  this  case.  Mr.  Burns 
informed  Mr.  ^Morton  that  he  was  entirely  mis- 
taken as  to  the  facts,  and  that  "  Nurse  Bellamy 
was  responsible."  After  stating  the  circum- 
stances, which  are  sufficiently  well  known  to 
our  readers,  Mr.  Ivi«nber  asks  "  what  greater 
demand  for  a  public  enquiry  could  be  needed?" 


The  crux  of  the  matter  is  that  if 
a  definite  standard  of  training-  for  nurses 
were  required  by  the  State  Nurse  Bellamy 
would  not  have  been  placed  in  a  position  of  re- 
sponsibility which  her  training  and  experience 
had  not  qualified  her  to  hold. 


It  is  evident  that  for  the  future  avoidance  of 
such  tragedies  in  institutions  for  whose  effi- 
cient working  a  Government  Department  is 
responsible,  such  Departments  should  press  for 
the  establishment  and  maintenance  of  a'  de- 
finite standard  of  nursing  education  under  a 
legally  constituted  authority. 


We  congratulate  the  parish  of  Barnet  ou 
having  secured  the  sen  ices  of  so  able  a  Guar- 
dian as  ^liss  Hem-ietta  J.  Hawkins,  who  has 
just  been  appointed  to  that  position.  Miss 
Haiskins  takes  a  keen  interest  in  social  pro- 
blen:is,  and  is  a  true  friend  of  the  poor,  by 
whom  she  is  much  loved.  She  is  a  trained 
nurse  of  many  years'  standing  and  wide  ex- 
perience, experience  which  includes  a  know- 
ledge of  Poor  Law  administration  as  she  has 
held  the  position  of  Assistant  Matron  at  the 
Hackney  Infirmary,  so  that  she  has  a  practical 
knowledge  of  Poor  Law  methods,  which  will 
be  valuable  to  her  in  her  present  office.  She  is 
a  certified  midwife,  and  has  also  a  close  ac- 
quaintance with  the  care  of  the  insane,  as  she 
is  the  daughter  of  the  late  Eev.  H.  Hawkins, 
foe  so  many  years  Chaplain  to  the  CoLuey 
Hatch  Asylum,  the  founder  of  the  "  After  Care 
Association,"  to  whose  compassionate  heart 
the  needs  of  the  patients  discharged  from  Asy- 
lums strongly  appealed.  For  some  years  Miss 
Hawkins  did  district  midwifery  in  the  parish  of 
Si.  Saviour's,  Poplar.  As  Ward  Sister  and 
Matron  she  has  had  much  administrative  ex- 
perience, so  that  a  more  useful  member  could 
scarcely  have  been  aj)pointed  to  the  Barnet 
Board  of  Guardians. 


The  new  School  at  the  "  Policlinico  "  at 
Rome  quite  recently  opened  for  the  training 
of  Italian  probationers,  has  begun  with  a  rush, 
and  everyone  has  been  very  busy  getting  things 
into  order.  The  triple  capacity  for  work  of  Miss 
Dorothy  Snell,  !Miss  Amy  Turton,  and  iliss 
Clay  is  equal  to  any  emergency,  so  that  ulti- 
mate success  is  assured  for  this  most  interest- 
ing bit  of  pioneer  nursing.  But  it  would  appear 
that  the  large  staff  already  engaged  will  have 
to  be  supplemented  in  a  few  months'  time,  aud 
Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick  has  undertaken  hy  re- 
quest to  interview  English  nurses  who  feel 
drawn  towards  helping  to  start  the  School 
either  as  Sisters  or  nurses.  Candidates  must 
hold  a  certificate  of  three  years'  training.  A 
little  knowledge  of  Italian  would  be  veiw  use- 
ful, so  that  candidates  selected  on  reseiwe 
might  begin  to  learn  it.  Preference  will  be 
given  to  those  who  are  of  the  Eoman  Catholic 
faith,  but  this  is  not  a  necessity,  as  a  non- 
proselytising  promise  must  be  signed.  The 
Committee  are  doing  all  in  their  power  to 
ensure  the  success  of  the  scheme,  and  it  must 
be  clearly  understood  that  this  institution  for 
training  Italian  probationers  in  wards  which 
will  need  patience  and  perseverance  to  reform, 
is  a  new  undertaking  in  Italy,  and  entails  all 
the  difficulties  which  are  inevitable  in  pioneer 
work.    The  salaries  for  Sisters  are  £42,  and  for 


April  23,  1910] 


ttDC  IBritisb  jjoumal  of  ■Wureing. 


333 


StafE  Nurse  £32,  with  uuiform,  washing,  travel- 
ling expenses,  and  four  weeks'  holidav  a  year. 

On  Wednesday  in  last  week  a  most  interest- 
ing ceremony  took  place  at  the  Highgate  Hill 
Infirmary,  when  the  annual  presentation  of 
prizes  to  the  nurses  was  made  by  Dr.  Downes, 
Local  Government  Board  Inspector. 

The  Clerk  first  explained  the  origin  of  the 
prizes,  a  portion  of  them  being  from  the  Smal- 
ley  bequest,  and  the  others  are  ."-ecured  through 
the  generosity  of  Mrs.  Leonard  Marshall  each 
year.  

Dr.  Downes  said  there  was  nothing  more 
gratifying  than  to  know  how  these  prizes  came 
about,  and  they  formed  a  memento  for  time 
immemorial  of  one  who  was  once  an  inmate 
there,  and  also  a  memento  of  the  devoted  ser- 
vices of  a  lady  Guardian  of  Islington.  He  had 
heard  it  said  that  the  Poor  Law  required  hu- 
manising, but  he  considered  lliat  a  trained 
nurse  was  the  highest  point  in  humanised 
civilisation.  Poor  Law  advanced  the  lot  ot  the 
poor  and  it  was  this  spirit  of  good  which  im- 
bued the  nurses.  Again  the  Poor  Law  never 
tied  its  probationer  nurses  to  its  own  service : 
there  was  a  free  trade  in  the  matter,  and  nurses 
could  exercise  their  own  free  will.  What  the 
future  of  the  Poor  Law  would  be  he  did  not 
know,  but  an  institution  of  that  sort,  and  the 
duties  and  services  such  as  the  nurses  present 
did,  would  never  be  dispensed  with,  and  before 
them  lay  an  ever  increasing  sense  of  duty. 

One  of  the  latest  additions  in  the  ofi&ces  of 
the  Local  Government  Board  was  a  lady  in- 
spector taken  from  a  Poor  Law  institution  and 
she  was  a  great  success.  He  concluded  by 
wishing  the  nurses  present  success  and  happi- 
ness in  their  future  careers. 

Dr.  Downes  now  presented  the  prizes  to  the 
successful  probationers,  the  recipients  being  as 
follows:  — 

Sinalley  Prizes  for  General  Excellence. — 1st, 
a  tie  between  Nurses  Walpole  and  Callan.  2nd, 
Nurse  Holloway.  3rd,  also  a  tie  between 
Nurses  Andrews  and  Rogers. 

Mrs.  Leonard  ^[arshaU's  Prizes  for  Practical 
Ward  Work. — 1st.  Nurse  Morey:  2nd,  Nurse 
Dutton  :  3rd,  Nurse  Graham. 

Certificates. — Nurses  Hawkins.  McNab, 
Frost,  Dutton,  Swabey.  Kavanash.  Graham, 
Mason,  Patey,  Wright.  Stroud.  Elsden  i Mil- 
dred), Artis,  Fair,  Todhunter,  Elsden  (Amy), 
Denson,  MoflBt,  Manning.  Line,  Bartlett,  anol 
Snow. 

Miss  Little,  the  Matron,  thanked  Mrs.  Mar- 
shall on  behalf  of  the  nurses,  who  all  appre- 
ciated her  kindness  very  much.  The  prizes 
were  a  great  incentive  to  good  work,  and  those 
who  had  received  them  were  worthv  of  them. 


fl  JTacultw  of  IHur^uuj. 


At  the  Annual  meeting  of  the  Guild  of  Gra- 
duates of  the  University  of  Wales,  held  at 
Aberystwyth  on  Saturday,  Dr.  Stepheus,  of 
Swansea,  brought  before  the  Guild  a  matter 
of  great  importance  to  the  nursing  profession, 
and  which  is  calculated  to  have  an  imjjortant 
bearing  on  the  future  welfare  of  nurses. 

Dr.  Stephens  had  given  notice  that  he  would 
move  that  the  Guild  request  the  Uuiversity 
Court  to  take  the  necessary  steps  to  foiin  a 
faculty  of  nm-sing  for  the  conferring  of  degrees 
in  the  subject. 

In  moving  his  motion,  the  speaker  said  it 
seemed  to  him  that  such  a  body  as  the  Univer- 
sity could  very  well  take  up  the  question  ot 
the  education,  and  examination  of  nurses,  as 
it  would  raise  the  status  of  the  profession,  and 
place  more  value  on  their  diploma.  There  was 
no  other  authority  which  granted  these  dip- 
lomas and  that  was  all  the  more  reason  why 
Wales  should  take  the  lead,  as  it  would  attract 
a  better  class  of  pei-son,  and  it  would  help  the 
nurses  to  improve  their  professional  prospects. 
At  the  suggestion  of  members.  Dr.  Stephens 
agreed  to  substitute  "  diploma  "  for  degree. 

ilr.  W.  .J.  H.  Davies,  M.A.,  pointed  out 
that  all  graduates  are  expected  to  matriculate 
in  the  University  of  Wales,  and  he  asked  if  the 
nurses  who  would  work  for  the  diploma  would 
be  of  the  same  educational  status  as  the 
women  students.  What  particular  type  of 
nurse  was  it  proposed  to  bring  under  the 
scheme  ? 

Dr.  Stephens  said  it  would  be  a  matter  for 
the  University.  The  difficulty  has  crossed  his 
mind,  but  they  could  hardly  expect  them  to 
pass  such  a  stiff  examination. 

Dr.  Chattaway.  F.E.S.,  London,  said  they 
were  all  in  sympathy  with  the  proposal,  but  hc- 
could  not  help  thinking  it  would  not  pass  in 
the  iorm  in  which  it  was  brought  forward.  To 
begin  with,  the  suggestion  was  not  a  usual 
one  for  a  University.,  as  it  was  entirely  con- 
nected with  clinical  practice,  and  it  seemed  to 
him  that  the  best  method  and  procedure  would 
be  to  approach  the  Board  which  controlled  the 
question  of  the  medical  degree. 

Dr.  Stephens  agreed  to  this  course. 

Miss  Tremaine,  Alexandra  College.  Dublin, 
thought  it  would  be  fatal  to  ask  for  a  degi'ee. 
but,  as  regards  a  diploma  she  agreed. 

A  Committee  was  then  appointed  to  place 
the  matter  before  the  Board. 

The  discussion  is  ven-  interesting  as  showintr 
the  estimation  in  which  trained  nursing  i- 
held,  and  the  recognition  of  the  need  for 
svstematic  training. 


331 


tTbc  iSrittsb  3ournal  of  IRursing. 


[April  23,  1910 


Some  Cbartties   in   tbe    "Mcst 
IRibino  of  l^orhsbire. 

By  Mack  All. 

HOSPITAL  FOR  WOMEN  AND  CHILDREN 

AT   LEEDS. 

11. 

The   Hospital   for    Women   and   Children   is 

one  of  the  most  modern  in  the  West  Hiding. 

Its  walls  of  brick  still  keep  their  original  colour 

and  make  a  spot  of  brightness  in  a  eitj-  noted 

for  its  grimy,  smoke-coloured  building.s. 

From  a  distance   the  hospital   has   the  ap- 
pearance of   being  wedge-shaped.      A  can-iage 


tiasliug  colours.  On  walls,  mantelpiece, 
tables,  and  even  on  the  floor  and  couch  there 
were  pictures,  and  prints  of  world-famed  pic- 
tures. There  were  well-filled  book-shelves  that 
showed  a  catholic  taste. 

Probably  the  thing  that  impressed  one  most 
was  the  profusion  of  plants  and  flowers.  One 
side  of  the  room  has  a  bay  made  by  three 
windows.  Around  these  windows  were  plants 
and  bulbs,  the  latter  giving  an  almost  imme- 
diate promise  of  bloom.  Sacred  lilies  and  other 
pot  plants  were  in  full  blossom. 

The  heating  was  done  by  a  fire  in  a  wide 
tiled  hearth.  The  contrast  between  the  dirty, 
half-melted  snow  outside  and  the  room,  with 


The    Matron    and    the    Nursing    Staff. 


drive  leads  from  a  quiet  street  to  the  main 
entrance.  This  gives  the  idea  of  space,  though 
the  hospital  is  surrounded  by  houses ;  the 
General  Infinnaiy  and  Town  Hall  are  a  few 
hundred  yards  away. 

The  first  impression  on  entering  the  building 
is  one  of  harmonious  colouring  and  coolness. 
The  floors  of  both  corridors  and  wards  are  of 
tesselated  marble,  and  the  walls  are  painted  a 
soft  pale  green. 

The  first  apartment  visited  was  the  sitting- 
room  of  Miss  Wreford,  the  Matron.  In  the 
light  of  a  winter  afternoon  it  looked  a  picture 
of  cosiness   and   comfort. 

The  walls  are  of  green  of  a  darker  shade  than 
the  con-idors,  and  relieved  by  a  dado  in  con- 


its  soft  artistic  colouring  and  sweet  smelling 
flowers,  was  very  striking. 

The  hospital  has  accommodation  for  fifty-six 
patients.  Two  large  wards  contain  twenty 
beds  each.  All  the  windows  are  double,  and 
in  the  wards  radiators  are  fitted  in  every  second 
window. 

At  the  jjresent  time  the  heating  is  done  very 
satisfactorily  by  four  ventilated  stoves  in  each 
ward.  This  form  of  warming  tlie  wards  is  ap- 
preciated by  the  patients,  who  have  a  prejudice 
against  hot-water  pipes  and  radiators. 

The  wards  are  all  lofty  and  lit  by  numerous 
electric  bulbs.  The  two  principal  wards  are 
100  feet  long  and  20  feet  wide.  In  these  the 
beds  are  placed  between  the  windows.     There 


A|)iil  -23.  10101 


Z\K  British  3ounial  of   Ihureina, 


HHr, 


:iiv  no  i-onii'is  anywhere.  This  h6spital,  which 
was  only  built  sjx  years  ago,  seems  to  have  all 
the  modern  improvements. 

The  tables  in  the  centre  of  the  wards  ai-e 
decorated  with  cut  tlowers  and  pot  plants.  The 
necessary  etjuipments  to  a  surgical  ward  are 
kept  well  out  of  sight. 

The  hospital  is  intended  for  diseases  peculiar 
to  women,  and  the  cases  in  the  large  wards  are 
nearly  all  those  of  gynaecological  operations. 
Tiiere  is  one  small  maternity  ward  of  five  beds 
in  charge  of  a  Stafi  Nurse.  This  ward  is 
generally  occupied  by  women  sent  in  by  doctors 
in  Leeds,  and  there  is  a  large  percentage  of 
abnormal  cases.  The  nurses  have  training  in 
monthly  nursing  here,  hot  not  midwifery. 

The  children's  ward  is  bright  and  rather 
small.  The  cases  admitted  to  it  are  little  girls 
or  boys  suffering  from  medical  diseases ;  no 
surgical  cases  are  treated.  Boys  over  six  years 
are  nt)t  admitted  to  the  hospital  either  as  in  or 
outdoor  patients. 

^lost  of  the  patients  in  the  hospital  are 
clrawn  from  the  large  ontdoor  department, 
which  is  open  every  day  except  Satindiiy  and 
Sunday,  and  quite  free. 

There  are  two  resident  surgeons,  one  of 
whom  is  generally  a  lady.  The  patients  seem 
grateful  for  a  doctor  of  their  own  sex.  The 
honorary  staff  consists  of  six  physicians  and 
sui-geons,  most  of  them  well  known  in  the  West 
Riding  as  specialists. 

TFie  musing  staff  are  four  Sisters,  six  §taff 
Nurses,  and  six  probationers.  Sisters  and 
Staff  Nurses  have  had  three  years'  training  in 
general  nursing. 

The  training  for  probationers  is  one  year; 
afterwards  most  of  them  go  to  general  hospitals 
for  their  three  years'  course. 

The  hospital  is  intended  for  acute  cases,  the 
patients  staying  from  three  to  four  weeks  after 
operations.  The  training  and  experience  for 
nurses  in  the  care  of  cases  of  abdominal  sur- 
gery is  very  good. 

The  Nurses'  Home  is  in  what  was  once  the 
old  hospital;  it  is,  therefore,  not  so  convenient 
in  some  ways  as  a  house  built  tor  the  purpose.' 
Each  Sister  has  a  bedroom  to  herself.  A  large 
room  is  shared  by  three  nurses.  The  Matron's 
sitting-room  also  belonged  originally  to  the 
hospital,  which  accounts  for  its  size. 

^liss  Wreford  is  the  most  up-to-date  of 
modern  working  women.  She  is  keenly  in- 
terested in  philanthropic  work  outside  the  hos- 
l)ital,  and  in  all  that  makes  for  beauty  and  the 
betterment  of  the  race.  In  the  same  hour  she 
will  discuss  eugenics  and  "  the  poetry  of  a 
beautifnl  building  "  ;  she  talks  equally  well  on 
the  news  of  the  nursing  world  and  the  result 
of    the    General    Election,    and    she    believes 


that  a  nurse's  outlook  should  .le  wide  enough 
to  make  lier  take  an  interest  in  present-day 
politics  and  all  affairs  of  State. 

On  tile  Committee  of  the  Women's  and 
Children's  Hospital  are  some  of  the  most 
philanthropic  people  in  Leeds.  Perhaps  there 
is  no  more  useful  person  connected  with  the 
hospital  than  the  Secretary  and  Collector,  Mr. 
George  Blackwell. 

One  left  the  Women's  and  Children's  Hos- 
pital feeling  grateful  to  science  for  its  wonder- 
ful alleviation  of  suffering.  At  the  same  time 
there  was  a  thought  at  the  back  of  one's  mind 
that  this  beautiful  institution  and  the  £4,000 
that  it  costs  annuallj-  would  not  be  needed  if 
the  public,  and  especially  the  patients  in  its 
wards,  once  grasped  the  idea  that  it  was  more 
logical  to  preserve  healtii  than  to  restore  it. 

Snoof^s:  Shetcbeb  from  llifc 


His  rif^lit  name  is  Alexander,  and  anyone  more 
belying  the  name  (which  at  once  to  onr  minds 
suggests  greatness  and  strength)  it  wonkl  be  diffi- 
oiilt  to  imagine.  He  was  a  patient  in  one  of  the 
city  hospitals,  a  victim  of  hip-joint  disease,  aged 
13,  very  uiidcrsized,  with  bent  back,  arms,  and  legs 
like  spindles,  and  the  most  angelic  countenance  in 
the  world.  This  had  wrought  haviij  in  the  hearts 
of  the  Sister  and  nurses  of  tlie  ward  to  such  an 
extent  tliat,  when  the  fiat  went  forth  that  Snooks 
must  retiu-n  to  his  home,  they  were  led  to  specially 
interest  a  lady  visitor  in  him,  who  promised  to 
see  what  co\ild   be  done. 

This  lady  knew  of  onr  little  hospital  in  the 
country,  and  after  some  preliminaries  we  agreed  to 
receive  Snooks  for  a  short  time,  to  see  if  change  of 
air  would  improve  his  condition. 

The  hospital  doctor,  when  writing  giving  the 
history  of  the  case,  had  mentioned  casually  that 
the  cognomen  of  Snooks  had  been  bestowed  by  a 
facetious  junior    medico. 

Home  to  Snooks  just  spelled  neglect.  His  most 
vivid  impression  of  it  was  of  being  shut  in  alone 
with  the  baby  for  hours  together;  almost  all  the 
kindness  he  remembered  he  had  received  from 
strangers,  so  that  his  nature  opened  readily  to 
them,  and  his  frankness  won  all  hearts. 

I  went  to  meet  Snooks  at  the  station,  and  found 
him  lying  full  length  on  the  carriage  seat,  a  label 
pinned  conspicuously  on  his  chest,  bearing  the 
words:  ''Snooks. — "This  side  up,  with  care,'"  put 
there  by  the  nurse  who  had  prepared  him  for  the 
journey. 

This  joke  was  Snooks'  great  asset ;  he  was  never 
tired  of  retailing  it  to  everyone  with  whom  he  came 
in  contact  afterwards. 

Snooks  was  our  only  stranger  ;  the  other  patients 
belonged  to  the  neighl)ourhood,  so  had  their  friends 
in  on  visiting  days;  but  Snooks  claimed  them  all 
as  his  property,  too;  and,  between  them  all,  he  was 
ni  danger  of  getting  thoroughly  spoiled. 

He  had  arrived  with  a  purse  "containing  two- 
pence "  (and  felt  a  veritable  Croesus),  but  pennies, 


336 


Zhc  Britisb  3ournaI  ot  IFJurstno.       [April  23,  loio 


and  somotimes  tlireepenny-ljits  ami  sixpences,  rolled 
in  to  such  an  extent  that  in  a  few  weeks  his  riches 
had  accumulated  to  the  amount  of  sixteen  shillings. 

Saving  was  just  a  mania  with  him  at  that  time; 
his  chief  divemon  was  counting  his  money,  and 
this  was  done  surreptitiously,  as  he  had  earned  the 
name  of  miser,  a  title  he  didn't  appreciate.  Hap- 
pily this  phase  didn't  last.  A  boy  in  the  same 
ward  gloried  in  the  possession  of  a  AVaterbury 
Watch :  Snooks  looked  long  and  lovingly  at  his 
hoai-d,  but  the  desire  to  po«ies,s  a  like  timepiece 
was  too  great,  and  well — frugality  flew  to  the 
winds. 

He  had  hitherto  been  loth  to  part  with  the  price 
of  a  stamp  to  send  a  letter  home ;  but  a  new  and 
generous  spirit  had  entered  in,  and  during  one  of 
its  impulses  he  sent  a  postal  order  for  6s.  to  his 
father,  because  the  last  home  letter  had  told  of 
sickness  and  loss  of  work. 

Country  life  was  a  totally  new  experience  to 
Snooks.  Everything  that  could  fly,  walk,  or  crawl 
was  a  terror  to  him :  many  times  his  screams  sent 
us  palpitating  to  the  ward,  only  to  find  him 
agitated  over  an  inoffensive  blue-bottle  fly  or  bee 
which  was  buzzing  iu  his  vicinity. 

But  in  the  bright  days,  when  he  was  carried  out 
into  the  sunshine,  matters  were  much  worse.  What 
with  keeping  the  tail  of  one  eye  on  some  Highland 
cattle  a  distance  of  a  whole  field  away,  watching 
some  sheep  which  occasionally  glanced  at  him 
through  the  fence,  and  keeping  on  the  alert  for  all 
forms  of  insect  life,  he  was  kept  occupied,  and 
despite  all  our  endeavours  to  give  him  confidence, 
didn't  get  half  the  jileasure  out  of  his  surroundings 
that  we  wished  for  him. 

Three  years  later — Snooks  is  still  with  us;  bis 
angelic  counteuanice  is  gradually  changing  into  a 
wizened,  old  look  ;  he  hasn't  grown  an  inch ;  there- 
fore the  face  looks  the  more  weird,  joined  to  the 
deformed  little  body.  Had  be  lacked  attention, 
probably  the  little  life  would  have  been  ended  long 
since,  and  one  wonders  if  it  wouldn't  have  been 
the  happiest  thing  for  him. 

His  intelligence  is  on  a  par  with  his  size;  it 
hasn't  developed  with  his  years,  so  that  under  no 
circumstances  could  he  ever  be  anything  but  a 
charge  to  others.  Poor  wee  man  I  his  relatives 
have  never  expressed  a  wish  to  have  him  back,  and 
we  haven't  the  heart  to  send  him.  Patients  come 
and  go,  but  Snooks  remains.  What  with  periodical 
cleanings  and  re-arrangiugs,  he  has  occupied  nearly 
all  our  beds,  and  cots,  too  (for  he  is  pitifully  accom- 
modating as  to  size),  but  I  expect  as  long  as  he 
needs  it  we  shall  always  manage  to  find  a  corner 
in  the  wards  as  well  as  in  our  hearts  for  Snooks. 

M.iRT  Day. 


A  DISPLAY  OF  NURSING   REQUISITES. 

Messrs.  Garrould  have  this  year  taken  additional 
space  in  the  Midwifery  and  Nursing  Exhibi- 
tion, to  enable  them  to  make  a  greater 
display  of  surgical  instruments  and  nursing 
requisites.  Among  the  novelties  they  will  show 
some  very  handy  wallets  and  District  Nurses'  bags; 
also  a  very  convenient  aseptic  midwife's  outfit  in  a 
square  metal  case,  containing  stei'iliser,  douche, 
syringe,  forceps,  catheter,  scissors,  bottles,  dredger, 


vaginal  pil>es,  nail  brushes,  etc.,  in  fact  every  re- 
quisite for  the  midwife.  The  new:  zymotic  face  pro- 
tector (Garroidd's  patent,  which  has  been  favour- 
ably reviewed)  will  also  be  exhibited.  Another  sec- 
tion will  be  devoted  entirely  to  nurse.s'  uniform*, 
etc. 

Tlie  model  nurseries  will  again  be  one  of  the 
features,  and  Messrs.  Grarixiuld  have  again  been  en- 
trusted with  the  task  of  fitting  up  a  day  and  a 
night  nui-sery.  The  walls  will  be  tastefully  decora- 
ted, the  dado  representing  nursery  rhymes..  The 
very  latest  and  ui>-to-date  furniture  will  be  shown 
in  these  rooms — cots,  bat]is,  food  heatere,  thermos 
flasks,  electric  call  bells,  etc.  A  nui'se  will  be  in 
attendance,  and  has  kindly  consented  to  give  al! 
information  with  regard  to  the  exhibits.  This  sec- 
tion will  be  very  interesting  to  all  nnrs.es  visiting 
the  Exhibition. 


APPARATUS   FOR   STERILISING   MILK. 

A  convenient  apparatus  for  sterilising  milk  and 
other  infants'  tO'od  is  Dr.  Soxhlet's  Feeding 
Apparatus,  which  is  made  ia  a/cooi^ance  with  the 
directions  of  its  inventor,  an  eminent  pi-ofessor  m 
Bavaria,  after  whom  it  is  named.  It  is  supplied 
in  this  country  through  chemists  and  stores,  or 
direct  from  the  Central  Depot,  Eeitmeyer  and  Co.. 
()3,  Crutched  Friai-s,  E.C.  The  simplest  form  of 
apparatus  consists  of  a  metal  saucepan  with  a  fram4 
for  bottles;  ten  bottles  each  holding  150  grammes, 
12  indiarubber  disas,  10  metal  caps  or  sockets,  and 
2  nipples.  The  cost  of  this  apparat\is  is  10s.  With 
its  assistance  the  food  required  for  an  infant  for 
a  whole  day.  or  longer,  can  be  i)re(>ared  at  once  or 
kept  without  any  fear  of  contamination.  Provided 
the  instructions  are  carefully  followed  the  food  in 
the  tx>ttles  is  absolutely  sterilised,  and  remains 
fresh  and  ready  for  use.  The  indiarubber  disc  which 
seals  a  bottle  is  removed  when  required,  and  the 
nipple  attached,  and  the  food  immediately  given  to 
the  child. 


PLASMON. 

The  value  of  the  administration  of  i)hosphorus 
in  an  assimilable  form  has  long  been  known  to  the 
medical  profession,  but  a  vehicle  by  which  means 
it  can  be  administered  is  not  easy  to  find.  A  medi- 
cal contemporary  draws  attention  to  the  value  of 
Plasmon  (supplied  by  the  International  Plasmon 
Ltd.,  66a,  Farringdon  Street,  London,  E.G.),  as  a 
.source  of  phosphorus.  Plasmon  is  a  preparation  of 
the  casein  of  milk,  containing  rather  over  80  per 
cent,  of  pure  protein,  but  its  considerable  content 
of  phosphorus,  in  the  form  of  combination  in  which 
this  exists  in  milk,  is  perhaps  less  generally  recog- 
nised. The  amount  of  phosphorus  in  Plasmon 
proved,  on  analysis,  to  be  eqiiivalent  to  2.66  per 
cent,  of  anhydrous  phosphoric  acid  (P5O,). 
The  various  preparations  made  with  Plasmon — 
Plasmon  oats,  Plasmon  cocoa,  beef  Plasmon,  Plas- 
mon arrowroot,  custard  powder,  and  blanc-mange — 
all  contain  Plasmon  in  varying  amounts.  We  have 
•much  pleasure  in  directing  the  attention  of  onr 
readers  to  the  value  of  the  phosphorus  contained  in 
Plasmon.  We  have  no  doubt  that  the  Plasmon 
preparations  are  already  well  known  to,  and  popu- 
lar with,  them. 


April  23,  1910J 


Cbc  Brlti6b  3ournaI  of  IHursdio^ 


337 


®ur  Jforeion  Xcttcr. 


FROM   SYRIA. 

•'  May  I  reacli 
That  purest  heaven,  he  to  other  souls 
The  oup  of  strength  in  some  great  agony, 
Enkindle  geneoous  ardour,  feed  pure  love, 
Be  the  sweet  presence  of  a  good  diffused, 
And  in  diffusion  ever  more  intense ! 
So  shall  I  join  the  choir  invisible 
AVhose  music  is  the  gladness  of  the  world." 
George  Eliot. 
Morphinism. 
Since  I  last  wrote  to  readers  of  "  The  Journal," 
1  have,  to  use  a  Ouida-i.^h  expression,  been  "  up 
to  my  eyebrows'"  in  work.  The  wards  have  been 
so  full  that  in  a  few  cases  we  were  obliged,  much 
against  all  rule  and  wish,  to  "head  and  tail  " 
the  children.  Many  of  the  patients  were  very  ill, 
and  needed  constant  attention,  these  cases  being 
chiefly  typhoid,  t.vpho-malarial,  nephritis,  pneu- 
monia, a  number  of  surgical  cases,  and  a  mor- 
phinist, for  whom  the  eyes  of  Argus  were  required, 
so  difficult  was  it  to  keep  pace  witli  this  wily 
I)atient.  One  has  read  much  of  the  practice  of 
hasheesh  and  opium  smoking  in  the  Ea.st.  but  I  do 
not  think  it  is  universally  known  to  what  extent 
the  hypodermic  injection  of  morphine  is  used  by 
Orientals.  Sometimes  it  is  simply  for  toothaohe 
or  some  other  small  but  tr.ving  worry,  and  some- 
times to  help  them  through  tho-se  protracted  fasts, 
that  of  Ramadan,  for  in.stance,  which  lasts  one 
month,  and  of  others,  the  tediijm  of  which  we 
AVesterners  have  hut  small  idea.  I  have  l)een  told 
that  in  Syria  the  jiracticc  of  morphia  injections 
was  first  started  by  a  Persian  quack,  who  learnt 
the  custom  in  England.  For  a  long  time  he  always 
administered  the  injection  himself,  telling  his 
numerous  patients  he  had  a  cure  for  every  pain. 
.\t  last  his  clientele  became  ,so  large  he  taught  his 
]i!itients  to  use  the  syringe  for  themselves,  and 
to-day  it  is  a  common  occnrrence  to  see  even  Mo- 
hammedan and,  I  lielieve,  Jewish  women  sitting  in 
a  chemist's  shop  "  trying  the  needles."  Only  the 
other  day  an  instance  of  this  sort  came  under  my 
own  immediate  notice.  I  was  in  "the  town  buying 
se\  oral  things  for  my  wards,  and  on  entering  a 
dri'ggist's  shop  I  saw,  to  my  horror,  a  veiled  woman 
sitting  by  the  counter  trying  different  hypodermic 
needles  on  her  arm,  which  from  shoulder  to  wrist 
bore  innumerable  marks  of  this  depraved  habit: 
1  remonstrated  in  Frendi  with  the  man  who  was 
serving  her.  He  replied,  ■AVliat  can  1  do  ?  I 
<Ietest  to  sell  this  drug,  l)ut  if  I  refuse  she  will 
go  elsewhere.  The  habit  is  formed  since  a  long 
time.  She  wants  a  new  needle,  and  is  trying  which 
suits  her  best.  She  is  a  Jewess  married  to  a  Mos- 
lem. Her  only  cure  is  to  go  into  hospital!  "  But 
to  return  to  the  young  Turkish  soldier,  the  7nor- 
phinist.  wlio  has  been  in  hospital  under  treatment 
for  over  five  months.  He  is  nearly  well  now,  but 
wliat  a  fight  we  have  had,  for  althougli  at  times 
such  a  pleasant,  intelligent  boy,  he  was  certainly 
ji  i.i.if-iiitiHrr  {Inns  I'art  tlr  hi  ritsi'.  The  day  he 
was  admitted  he  was  in  a  most  precarious  state, 
and   looked  just   a  total  wreck  of  a  man  :  he  was 


actompanied  by  his  mother,  a  widow,  who  was 
v*eeping  bitterly  at  the  condition  of  lier  only  son; 
she  assured  us  that  he  wasn't  always  like  this,  so 
ill  and  untidy  and  dirty,  only  since  he  became  a 
soldier,  and  owing  to  the  long  and  dreary  marches 
in  all  sorts  of  weather,  through  burning  heat  or 
drenching  rain,  the  weary  trudge  must  be  ac- 
complished, he  had  suffered  much  from  fatigue  and 
repeated  attacks  of  malaria,  and  had  "  lost  the 
power  to  sleep."  A  comrade  liad  shown  him  the 
use  of  this  ''wonderful  medicine,"  and  so  he  had 
accustomed  himself  to  this  pernicious  habit,  and 
had  become  a  confirmed  morphinist.  From  two  to 
three  grains  a  day  ho  rapidly  increased  the  dose, 
and  was  at  the  time  of  admission  to  hospital  him- 
self injecting  27  grains  in  24  hours.  Sometimes 
the  needle  was  not  withdrawn  from  the  arm,  hut 
left  in  place  while  the  piston  was  refilled  by  his 
devoted  mother  with  a  further  dose,  and  re- 
adjusted, so  that  the  iiatient  was  continuously 
under  the  control  of  this  most  dangerous,  and  in 
many  cases,  demoralising  drug,  while  his  own 
sense  of  self-control  was  lost.  His  condition  can 
only  be  described  as  abject.  Though  only  22  years 
of  age  he  looked  much  older;  he  was  paiuftilly  thin, 
his  face  of  a  sallow,  lustreless  hue,  with  that  hope- 
less, dejected  expression  so  common  in  morphinists. 
At  first  the  doctors  thought  a  sudden  withdrawal 
of  this  drug  would  be  advisable  in  Rasheed's  case, 
but  it  was  found  imixissible,  as  only  a  few  liours 
after  admission  there  were  signs  of  collapse,  and 
so  one-tenth  of  the  accustomed  dose  was  given,  and 
the  patient's  bedside  never  left  night  or  day  for 
the  first  week,  and  for  many  weeks  after  this  one 
and  all  of  us  had  to  he  like  sentinels  on  the  watch, 
never  knowing  from  one  minute  to  another  what 
miglit  happen,  for  our  young  Turk  was  still  in  a 
most  critical  condition.  At  one  period  the  diarrhoea 
was  so  excessive  that  the  question  of  diet  became 
a  serious  difficulty ;  this,  however,  was  soothed  by 
large  injections  of  hot  water  (100  degs.  to  lOo 
degs.).  The  digestion  was  very  much  impaired, 
but  this  was  improved  by  gentle  massage.  The 
case  all  through  was  one  needing  the  most  infinite 
patience, , so  many  "  ups  "  and  "  downs  "  ;  one  day 
we  would  feel  quite  encouraged  at  Rasheed's  pro- 
gress, and  the  next  at  our  wits'  end  when  comjjlete 
collapse  would  seem  inevitable.  Tliis  was  com- 
bated by  caffein,  that  most  useful  of  all  drugs  in 
cases  of  syncope.  Every  day  the  dose  of  morphi.i 
was  being  lessened,  and  the  doctors  hoped  very 
soon  to  reduce  it  to  water  only,  still  the  progress 
was  very  slow  in  spite  of  all  that  was  done  for  the 
patient. 

Im  Rasheed  came  every  day  to  see  her  son 
and  often  brovight  him  a  dish  .she  had  made  with 
her  own  hands  for  his  dinner;  generally  it  was 
some  favourite  tahiech*  such  as  Rasheed's  soul  loved. 
Never  shall  I  forget  the  day  iKiTJeob,  the  faith- 
ful ward-servant,  came  to  me  and  said,  "Oh,  lady, 
see  what  I  find  !  No  wonder  Rasheed  is  still  con- 
sumed with  nior])hia."  H(>  held  in  his  hands  a 
plate  of  steaming  hot  tabie<'h,  with  another  plate 
(Ml  the  top  of  it.  "  Well,  Habceb."  I  replied, 
"  what's  the  matter  with  that^  Didn't  Im  Rasheed 

*  Tabiech :  cooked  stuff,  generally  rice  and  meat, 
tomatoes, 'etc. 


338 


^bc  Briti9b  Journal  of  iRursino.         ^^p"'  ^s.  i9io 


bring  it   lierself?     It's   svire   to  be   good,  for   she 
cooks  so  well."     "  But  look  well  at  it,  lady,"  said 
Habeeb.     And   I  looked  well   and  saw   something 
that  appeared  like  a  piece  of  paper  sticking  out  at 
one  side  of  the  piled  up  steaming  food.     I  drew  it 
out  and  examined   it,   and   whart   do  you   think    I 
found?     Wrapped   up  in  this  paper  was  a  hypo- 
dermic syringe  charged  and  ready  for  use!      And 
this  had  been   a   daily  occurrence   for   some  time. 
No  wonder  Rasheed  made  but  little  progress !    The 
mother  was  called  and  soundly  rated  by  one  of  the 
doctors,   which  she   richly    deserved,   and    was  not 
allowed  to  visit  her  son  for  a  fortnight.    She  vowed 
she  would  not  bring  the  syringe  again  if  only  per- 
mission were  granted  to  see  her  dear  Rasheed,  but 
the  doctors  remained  obdurate,   and  threatened  to 
send   the  lad  home   without  further   treatment   if 
his  mother  made  any  attempt  to  see  him  without 
permission  from  them.     And  now  we  felt  how  we 
had  been  duped,    not  knowing   what   quantity   of 
morphine  had  been  conveyed  to  Rasheed  with  his 
dinner  every  day,  the  task  of  reducing  the  supposed 
quantity  was  indeed  a  difficult  one.     The  following 
Sunday,  three  days  after  this  discovery,  Rasheed 
sprang  from  his  bed,  and  paced  up  and  down  the 
wards    like    a    raving    maniac,   vowing    he  would 
break  open  the  door  of  the  dispensary  to  get  his 
favourite   dowa  (medicine).        He   was  in   a   state 
of   tremulous    excitement,   shaking    from    head   to 
foot,   deathly  pal©  and  perspiring  profusely.     Ha- 
beeb  coaxed  him  back  to   bed,  covered  him   with 
warm  blankets,  and  an  injection  of  black  coffee  was 
given  per  rectum,   and  30  grs.  of  bromide,   whidli 
calmed  his  nerves.       Presently  he  fell  asleep,  for 
which  we  were  thankful.    Oh,  the  weeks  of  anxiety 
that  followed !     I  do  not  remember  any  previous 
case  requiring  such  continual  vigilance,  care,  and 
tact.      Other   drugs,    besides   bromide,   were  tried, 
but,  as  is  well  known  in  all  these  cases,  whatever 
their  value,  the  importance  of  food  and   massage 
is  far  greater.     Once  again  the  morphia  injection 
was  reduced  to  3  grs.  daily,  and  there  was  no  doubt 
now  that  Rasheed  was  really  doing  well ;    liis  ap- 
petite was  getting  towards  the  normal,  massage  was 
given  twice  every  day,  which  did  wonders  for  him, 
and  to-day,  after  5  mouths  in  hospital,  he  is  having 
ordinary  diet,  no  hypo,  injections  Uhe  last  hypo, 
inject,  of  water  only  was  given  a  fortnight  ago), 
and   goes  about  the    wards    and    in     the    gardens 
"clothed    and    in   his   right  mind."     Everyone    is 
getting   very  fond  of   him,   he   has   such  pleasant 
manners,  and  is  so  helpful  with  the  other  patients. 
He  has  just  finished  his    share    of    a     beautiful 
big  screen  which  has  been  re-covered  with  pictures, 
leather  fittings,  and  little  brass  nails  ;  he  has  clever 
fingers,  and  is  most  useful.     His  dear  old  mother 
came   to  see  him  to-day,    and   to    ask    forgiveness 
for     having     retarded     her     son's     progress,     also 
to  ask  us  to   burn    the  syringe   she  brought  with 
his  tabiech.     We  assured  her  that    was  done  long 
ago! 

Dear  Nurses,  any  of  you  who  may  read  this  little 
story,  do  pray  God  fervently  with  me,  "  To  com- 
fort and  help  the  weak-hearted,  and  to  strengthen 
such  as  do  stand,"  and  in  your  prayers  please  in- 
clude Rasheed.  Sister  Marie. 


®ut6it)e  tbe  (Bates. 


WOMEN'S  WORK  AT  THE  JAPAN-BRITISH 
EXHIBITION. 

In  a  few  days  another 
splendid  exhibition  will 
ojien  its  gates  at  Shep- 
herd's Busli,  and  all  the 
lovely  wonders  of  Japan 
will  be  on  view.  In  con- 
nection with  it  an  in- 
teresting Women's  Con- 
--  ^=^  gress  on  "  Aspects  of 
their  \V,  irk ''  i»  lieing  organised.  Under  the  chair- 
manship of  Lady  Strachey,  "Women  in  Local 
Government  "  will  be  discussed  on  June  6tli, 
and  on  the  8th,  experts  will  consider  "  University 
Standai-ds  in  Home  Science."  On  June  9th  the 
.se«.sion  will  be  given  over  to  "Women's  Suffrage." 
with  Jlrs.  Fawcett,  Lady  Frances  Balfour,  and 
Lady  Maclaren  to  the  fore.  "National  Health" 
will  come  in  for  consideration  on  June  10th,  and 
the  following  interesting  si)eakers  will  take  part : 
"  Industrial  Treatment  and  Tuberculosis,"  Dr. 
Jane  Walker;  "  Insi^ection  of  Children  in  Secondary 
Schools,"  Dr.  Tchaykovsky ;  "Inspection  of 
Children  in  Elementary  Schools,"  Dr.  Oorthonie ; 
"Infant  Mortality,"  Mrs.  Scharlieb ;  "Examina- 
tion of  Defective  Children,"  Mrs.  Dickinson  Berry. 
June  11th  will  be  a  specially  interesting  conference 
to  nui-ses,  under  the  chairmanship  of  the  Duchess 
of  Montrose.  It  will  open  with  addresses  on  "  Red 
Cixjss  Organisation  "  and  "Territorial  Nursing,"  by 
Sir  Frederick  Treves  and  Miss  Haldane,  after 
which  Mi's.  Bedford  Fenwick  will  si>eak  on 
"  Nureing  as  a  Profession  for  Women,"  Lady  Her- 
mione  Blackwood  on  "  District  Nursing,"  and  Miss 
H.  L.  Pearse  on  "  The  Social  Sei"vioe  Nui-se." 

Lady  Henry  Bentinck  will  preside  on  July  4th. 
when  a  long  list  of  exi>erts  will  sjieak  on  "  Technical 
Training  of  Women  and  Girls."  At  this  session 
Miais  Adler,  L.C.C.,  brings  forward  "Evening 
Classes  for  Women,"  Mre.  Creighton  "Domestic 
Economy,"  and  Mrs.  Despard  "Consultations  for 
Mothers." 

"  Women  in  Horticulture,"  on  July  5th,  promises 
to  Ije  immensely  interesting.  Tlie  Viscountess  Fal- 
mouth will  be  in  the  chair,  and  the  subjects  are 
legion.  "Lady  Gardenere,"  "Lady  Gardeners  tor 
the  Colonies,"  "Landscape  Garfening,"  "Job- 
bing Gardening,"  "  American  Landscape  Garden- 
ing," "French  Gaidening,"  "Market  Garden- 
ing," and  "  Lady  Florists." 

"Women  in  Agriculture,"  July  6th,  will  bring 
forth  papere  on  "  Lady  Farmers,"  "  Bee  Keeping," 
"Poultry  Keeping,"  and  "Dairying."  Mrs. 
Sidney  Webb  will  attract  a  large  audience  to  con- 
sider "Women  and  the  Fight  Against  Destitution  " 
on  July  7th.  No  doubt  there  will  l>e  some  fine 
speaking  on  "  Women  in  Philanthropy."  Lady 
Henry  Someiiiet  on  "  Temijerance "  can  fill  any 
hall:  then  "Children's  Play  Centres,"  and  Work 
amongst  Soldiei-s,  Sailore,  and  in  Prisons  and  Fac- 
tories will  be  sure  to  attract;  On  July  9th,  the 
closing  day  of  the  Women's  Congress,  "  Physical 
Training  for  Teachers"  comes  under  consideration. 


April  23,  1910] 


Cbe  British  3ournal  of  mursiuG. 


339 


WOMEN  AS  CITIZENS. 

On  May  28tli  a  great  and  <ligmlif<l  i)i'<)C<>e^iou  of 
woraoii  is  to  iiKiicli  tlirough  [ahmIoii  to  tin-  Alliort- 
Hall  to  hliow  how  iiiinK>iX)ii.s  aii<l  liow  ivj)re.s<?ntative 
are  the  women  who  are  now  asking  their  tihare  in 
the  work  of  citizensliip.  All  classes  are  to  be  repre- 
sented, women  doctore,  graduates,  writere, 
actresses,  and  so  on,  and  it  is  hope<l  that  there  will 
he  a  strong  nni'ses'  contingent.  .Some  w<'ll-kiiown 
matrons  and  nni'ses  have  aheady  arrangwl  to  take 
part,  and  all  are  cordially  invited  to  join  the  pro- 
cession, wliicli  will  form  np  on  Victoria  Enihank- 
nient.  Charing  Cross,  at  2  o'clock.  Nunses  may  wear 
uniform  or  not  as  they  wish,  and,  of  ooui-se,  they 
come  as  individual  women  and  not  as  rei>resenting 
any  particular  hospital  or  society.  Further  infor- 
mation as  to  the  nni'ses'  contingent  can  be  had 
from  Aliss  Buckley,  AV.S.P.II.,  4,  Clement's  Inn, 
AV.C. 


BooJ^  of  the  Mccli. 


THE  SUPERFLUOUS  SEX. 

To  facilitate  the  emigration  of  our  terrible 
suiM-rfluity  of  women  a  Committee  of  Colonial  In- 
telligence for  Educated  Women  has  been  forrae<l.  It 
is  pix)posed  to  establish  in  each  colony  an  agency 
which  will  investigate  local  needs.  In  a  public 
ap|)eal  it  is  statetl :  "In  nureing,  in  teaching,  in 
cU"i  ical  work,  and  in  a  score  of  other  activities,  tlie 
Colonies  reiw-rt  that  tliero  is  a  need  of  women'-? 
assistance."  This  may  \k  so,  but  from  nurses  in  most 
of  our  Colonies  we  bear  that  all  the  best  i)aid  iX)Sts 
can  easily  be  filled  from  training  .schools  on  the  spot. 
What  is  wantetl  is  domestic  labour,  and  such  laljour 
as  our  domestic  class  are  not  calle<l  ujwn  to  do  at 
home.  B<.'foi'<>  emigi^ating  to  a  colony  women  should 
put  just  this  on©  question:  "Have  women  votes 
there?  "  and  if  they  have  not  let  them  avoid  it  at 
all  costs.  Wlu'ie  men  di'iiy  the  vote  to  women  they 
deny  equal  iudusti'ial  chances  and  equal  I)ay,  and 
there  is  no  iu'<'d  to  emigrate  to  jH'ovide  cheap  white 
lalKJur  for  the  inevitable  exploiter.  And  don't  for- 
get that  the  new  iniquitous  Constitution  just 
granted  to  United  iSouth  Africa  enfranchises 
coloured  men  and  excludes  white  won)en  fiom 
citizenship! 


THE   HIGHWAY  OF  THE  SUN 

A  small  liook  of  venses,  "  The  Higlnvay  of  the 
Sun  (and  Other  Verses),"  by  Miss  Lina  Mollett — 
sister  of  our  Miss  Mollett— has  just  been  published, 
and  may  be  obtained  from  Mr.  E.  H.  Blakeley, 
11,  Adam  Street,  Strand,  W.C.  Its  dainty  brown 
and  gold  cover  encloses  many  beautiful  little  poems, 
from  which  we  quote  one.  We  should  advise  our 
readers  to  secure  the  booklet,  -price  Is.  ))ost  free, 
without  delay. 

The  Key. 
That  is  the  joy  of  life  ; 

To  work,  to  strive,  and  to  run. 
To  pass  without  rest  from  the  strife, 
When  the  task  is  done. 

Let  me  live  without  fear, 
Holding  a  toil  of  my  own, 

Seeing  a  duty  each  morn  shows  clear 
For  that  day  alone! 


ACCORDING   TO   MARIA.* 

"According  to  Maria'  is  a  book  whose  frank 
aim  is  to  amuse,  and  it  succeeds.  If  you  find  your- 
self taking  life  too  seriously,  take  up  Maria,  and 
you  will  smile,  against  your  will  perhaps,  but  you 
will  certainly  smile,  and  probably  your  companion 
in  the  other  armchair  (Maria  needs  an  armchair) 
will  inquire  with  thinly-veiled  annoyance  what  you 
are  hiughng  at. 

Maria  always  comes  out  top,  for,  as  we  are  told 
on  the  opening  page,  she  has  no  sense  of  humour, 
which,  according  to  the  law  of  compensation,  saves 
her  the  corresponding  amount  of  pain. 

"  Still,  in  spite  of  being  a  philosopher,  she  con- 
fessed to  me  that  one  of  the  greatest  obstacles  in 
her  social  career  was  the  name  Samuel  had  be- 
stowed on  her  in  the  Wesleyan  Chapel  in  Brixton — 
Smith.  Indeed,  she  never  ceased  iiointing  out  to 
him  that  Smith  is  an  impossible  name  with  which 
to  aspire,  and  when  that  is  further  handicapped 
by  retail  groceries,  she  felt  the  burden  too  much 
for   her. 

"  In  a  way  Samuel  had  himself  constructed  the 
rod  that  so  often  smote  him,  for  he  had  once  un- 
luckily told  Maria  that  Mr.  Hicks  had  that 
wonderful  combination,  a  whole.salo  soul  and  a 
retail  eye,  and  Maria,  who  took  no  interest  in 
Mr  Hicks's  so\il  or  his  eye,  treasured  this  remark 
in  order  to  reproach  Samuel  when  she  was  cross, 
with  having  a  retail  soul  as  well  as  a  retail  eye. 

"  Before  she  died,  she  said,  with  considerable 
pathos,  she  wanted  to  think  of  him,  not  as  a 
grocer,  but  as  a  managing  director,  and  groceries, 
when  conducted  in  a  superior  limited  liability  com- 
pany way,  do  not  prevent  anyone  from  mingling 
with  the  noblest  in  the  land,  as  he  would  know  if 
he  read  the  Morniny  I'ost.  .  .  .  Years  after, 
Samuel  described  to  me  with  a  shudder  the  awful 
sun,mer  when  Maria  took  him  to  Switzerland.  He 
couldn't  begin  to  say  how  ho  hated  it." 

They  meet  there  two  Americans,  who  were 
"  going  to  London  to  <lisc()ver  their  coat  of  arms," 
and  much  annoyed  Maria  by  insisting  on  seeing 
Samuel's.  "  But  Maria  told  them  with  much 
presence  of  mind  they  had  left  it  at  home." 

However,  she  persevcringly  ascends  the  social 
scale,  and  no  sooner  is  she  settled  in  Clapham  than 
Diana  is  sent  to  a  select  day  school.  "  But  unfor- 
tunately the  little  Cluirch  of  England  pupils  would 
not  play  w.ith  her  because  it  was  rumoured  she  was 
a  little  dissenter ;  indeed,  it  was  for  this  theo- 
logical reason  that  they   pinched  her." 

Samuel,  however,  was  quite  willing  to  go  to  the 
Established  Church  when  he  recognised  its  broad 
spirit.  As  a  Wesleyan,  his  chapel-going  had  been 
an  uncompromising  function,  and  on  Sunday 
morning  "  he  realised  for  the  first  time  the  com- 
fort of  going  to  a  Church  to  which  he  was  not 
obliged  to  go." 

Samuel,  though  he  is  "  so  tired  of  moving," 
finds  himself  by  and  by  in  West  Kensington,   for 

By  Mrs.  John  Lane.     (John  Lane,  The  Bodley 
Head,  London). 


340 


Zl)C  British  3ournal  of  IRursino. 


[April  23,  1910 


Jtaria  dul  not  know  there  is  "  only  one  Keusingt-on 
liy  Divine  right."  "A  Kensington  which 
sliivcrs  at  the  thought  of  plush,  and  has  probably 
never  heard  of  Tottenham  Conrt  Road."  Now,  in 
the  last-named  thoroughfare  poor  Maria's  soul  is 
vexed  to  discover  wliether  she  prefers  Chiiipendale 
to  New   Art. 

"  I  fiau't  imagine,  she  said,  thoughtfully,  why 
everj-thing  tliatishard  is  liigh  art.  AVhen  fnvnitun' 
is  comfortable,  it  is  not  high  art.  I  can  tell  it 
by  that."  ' 

Diana  is  a  great  anxiety  to  her ;  she  is  fat,  and 
«  rites  poetry.  "  You  know  she  has  been  a  trial  to 
me  ever  since  she  was  baptised.  I  expected,  at 
least,  she  would  be  thin,  but  to  call  her  Diana,  and 
have  her  grow  stouter  and  stouter.  Isn't  it 
awful  I-*  ...  I  only  wish  I  could  convince  her 
what  a  drawback  it  is  to  a  girl  to  look  too  intelli- 
gent. Men  are  so  afraid  of  intelligent  girls;  that 
is  the  reason,  1  suppose,  that  the  women  who  want 
to  vote  are  mostly  unmarried  or  widows." 

■'  I  daresay,"  and  Maria  propounded  this  as  an 
unanswerable  theological  argument,  "that's  the 
«ay  tbe  world  will  end.  All  the  women  will  vote, 
and  then  the  men  will  be  afraid  to  marry  them, 
and  s<i   by  and  by  that  will  be  the  end  of  it." 

H.  H. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

April  2^nd. — Society  for  the  State  Registration 
of  Nurses :  Meeting  of  Executive  Committee,  431, 
Oxford  Street,  4  p.m. 

Ai>rjl  ^JnJ. — ilatrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland.  Valedictory  on  the  late  President  by 
Miss  MoUett,  431,  Oxford  Street,  London,  AV. 
5  p.m. 

April  23rd. — Nurses'  Missionary  League.  The 
Eighth  Annual  Conference  and  Meeting,  Uuivei-sity 
Hall,  Gordon  Square,  London,  W.C.,  10  a.m.  to 
9.30  p.m. 

.lpr/7  267//.— Guy's  Hospital,  S.E.  Post  Graduate 
Lectures.  "Recent  Surgery."  By  E.  C.  Hughes, 
Esq.,  M.C.     Nurses'  Home,  8  p.m. 

April  27th  to  SOth. — Third  Annual  Nursing  and 
Midwifery  Exhibition  and  Conference,  Royal  Hor- 
ticultural Hall,  ViMCPut  Square.  Westminster.  S.W. 
12  to  9  p.m. 

April  2Sth. — Examination  of  Central  Midwives 
Board  «t  the  Examination  Hall,  Victoria  Embank- 
ment, W.C.  The  Oral  Examination  follows  a  few 
days  later. 

.April  2Sth. — Union  of  Midwives.  A  Musical  En- 
tertainment, Cavendish  Rooms,  Mortimer  Street, 
Regent  Street,  W.     7.30  p.m. 

.ipril2'.)th. — Guy's  Hospital  Nurses'  League.  An- 
nual Meeting  and  second  Annual  Dinner.  Nurses' 
Home,  7  p.m. 

April  30t}i . — Meeting  to  consider  Memorial  to 
Jliss  Wa  Stewart,  Clinical  Lecture  Tlieatre,  St. 
Bartholomew'*!  Hospital,  E.C..  3  p.m. 


OLettcis  to  the  £&itoi\ 


Whilst  cordially  inviting  coTn- 
munications  upon  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  we  wish  it 
to  be  distinctly  undersfoua 
that  ire  do  not  in  ant  vim 
hold  ourselves  responsible  jor 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


THE  TEACHING  OF   NURSING    BY   NURSES. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  .Journal  of  yursing." 

De.\e  Mad.am, — I  have  read  with  interest  the  cor- 
respondence in  your  valuable  paper  on  nurses 
giving  the  nursing  lectures  to  the  women  of  the 
voluntary  aid  detachments.  The  objection  that 
nurses  have  not  time  does  not  hold  good  however 
in  the  ca.se  of  nurses  on  the  staff  of  County 
Councils,  whose  sole  duty  it  is  to  teach  nursing, 
first  aid,  hygiene,  eto.,  and  to  coach  students  for 
tlu  County  Council  examiiiations.  The  Surrey 
County  Council's  examination  standard  is  un- 
doubtedly a  higher  one  than  is  that  of  the  St. 
John's,  while  the  Council's  lecture  courses  are 
nearly  always  twice  and  frequently  three  times  the 
duration  of  those  of  the  latter.  The  St.  John's 
lecturers,  though,  of  course,  excellent  as  doctors, 
are  in  many  oases  men  who  have  little  knowledge, 
if  any,  of  teaching,  and  it  is  a  common  occurrence 
for  holders  of  the  St.  John's  certificates  to  apply 
to  members  of  the  County  Council  Staff  for  real 
instruction  in  the  subjects  (first  aid  and  nursing)- 
for  which  they  already  hold  certifica.tes.  Recently, 
in  trying  to  enrol  County  Council  certificate  holders 
ill  a  V.A.D.  Corps,  I  was  told  that  no  certificate 
but  a  St.  John's  or  St.  Andrew's  would  be  accepted, 
and  the  candidates  were  request-ed  to  attend  at 
least  four  out  of  five  lectures  which  would  be  given 
by  a  St.  John's  lecturer,  and  to  pass  the  St.  John's 
examination  before  they  could  be  enrolled.  Is  it 
not  strange  that  four  lessons  should  be  considered 
suflScient  to  qualify  a  student  in  first  aid?  and  yet 
this  is  the  amount  of  instruction  offered  by  the  St. 
John's  Association  to  non-County  Council  certifi- 
cate holders  before  they  can  be  accepted  as  members^ 
of  the  V.A.D.  I  may  add  that  the  Surrey  County 
Council  offered  to  submit  their  students  to  examina- 
tion by  a  St.  John's  examiner,  but  this  was  refused. 
I  am, 

Faithfully  yours, 

M.  Stapyltox 
(Lecturer  on  the  Staff  of  the  S.C.C.). 

20.    Jlortlake   Road,   Kew,  Surrey. 


WORDb  FOR  THE  WEEK. 
Had  the   "old  man"  never  failed  in  his  obliga- 
tions  there    would    nevei-    have     been     the     "  new 
woman." 

Ei.T.A  Whekler  Wilcox. 


To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  -Journal  of  Nursinei.'^ 
Dear  ^Iadam, — Your  correspondent.  Miss  Eliza- 
lietli  Bruiiuing,  is,  as  you  justly  say,  not  a  trained 
nurse:  therefore  I  consider  her  opinion  in  regard 
to  medical  men  ver.ius  trained  nurses  as  teachers, 
of  nursing  does  not  carry  much  weight.  It  might 
ir.terest  her  to  know  that  every  trained  nurse  is 
not  always  nursing  the  sick,  as  she  seems  to 
imagine.  There  are  many  nurses  well  qualified 
for  teacliini;.    who   through   various  causes  are  not 


April  -23,  1910J 


Zbc  Britisb  3omnal  of  IHuremcj 


341 


actively  engaged  in  nursing  work.  Also  my  friend, 
who  has  been  attending  the  lectures  quoted,  is 
most  keenly  interested  in  the  work,  and  as  keenly 
resents  the  extremely  poor  teaching,  if  it  can  be 
given  that  name. 

1  am  not  aware  that  I  said  anything  dispaj-aging 
of  the  St.  John  Ambulance  Brigade ;  and  if  your 
correspondent  will  re-read  my  letter  she  will  see 
that  I  acknowledge  the  good  work  done  by  their 
many  lecturers. 

But  1  am  still  of  the  opinion  that  a  thoroughly 
trained  nurse,  who  has  been  accustomed  to  teach- 
ing, is  much  better  qualified  to  teach  practical 
nursing  than  tlie  most  expert  surgeon  or  physieiau. 
la  regard  to  the  work  in  question  being  volun- 
tary, I  think  good  expert  work,  whether  teaching 
o;-  not,   is  worth  paying  for. 

May  I  ask  Miss  Elizabeth  Brunning,  as  all  the 
St.  John  Ambulance  lecturers  are  such  perfect 
teachers,  why  have  they  required  her  assistance 
at  their  classes?  1  have  often  heard  of  these 
gentlemen  teaching  nui-sing  and  requiring  a  nurse 
to  demonstrate  the  practical  jjoints,  such  as  bed- 
making,  etc.  Surely  if  you  cannot  do  a  thing 
yourself,  it  is  unwise  to  undertake  to  attempt  to 
teach   it  to  others. 

I  cannot  but  think  if  your  correspondent  were  to 
l:<>  into  hospital  for  training  as  a  nurse,  she  would 
quickly  alter  her  opinion  in  regard  to  this  subject. 

Whilst  I  am  writing  on  this  subject  I  would  like 
to  know  if  an  examination  consisting  of  eight 
questions,  five  written  and  three  oral,  is,  in  your 
correspondent's  opinion,  a  sufficient  test  of  the 
amount  of  information  gained  during  a  course  of 
six  lectures,  especially  when  it  may  mean  life  or 
death  for  a  suffering  hunuui   being? 

With  apologies  for  the  length  of  my  letter, 
1   remain, 

Dear  Madam, 
Yours  faithfully, 

M.^RY  Bttrr. 

The  Chestnuts,  Ebford,  Topsham,  S.  Oevon. 


To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursino-' 
Dear  Madam, — I  bog  to  draw  youi-  attention  to 
my  letter,  dated  7th  April.  1910,  which  w-as  ad- 
(lresse<l  to  Jliss  Eden,  apiK>aring  in  the  current  issue 
of  the  British  Journal  of  XmsiNC,  and  to  point 
out  that  the  statement  made  therein — viz.,  "That 
no  exception  can  be  made  to  the  fundamental  rule 
of  this  Association  that  the  lectures  in  "  First  Aid  " 
and  "  Home  Nursing  "  should  be  given  by  qualifitKl 
members  of  the  nursing  profession,"  is  incoiTcctly 
quoted,  no  doubt  through  a  printer's  error.  In  the 
said  letter  I  distinctly  stated  ''  Medical  profession"' 
and  not  "  Nursing  profession." 
Yours  faithfully. 

P.  G.  Darvil-S.mith. 
Assistant  Secretary,  Territorial  Branch. 
St.  John  Ambulance  A,ssociation, 

St.  John's  Gate,  E.G. 
[In  the  copy  of  Mr.  Darvil-Smith's  letter,  sent  to 
us  for  publication,  which  appeared  last  week, 
"  nursing  "  was  written  instead  of  ''  medical,"  The 
mistake  was  not  a  printer's  onx>r.  The  letter  was 
in  reply  to  a  suggestion  made  by  Miss  Eden,  that 


"  Firet  Aid"  and  "Nursing"  lectures  might  be 
given  by  nui«os.  Mr.  Darvil-Smith  stated  that  it 
was  a  fundamental  rule  of  the  St.  John -Ambulance 
Association  that  they  should  be  given  by  "  quali- 
fie<l  membei-s  of  the  medical  profession."  Wo  uope 
this  rule  may  be  revised  at  an  early  date. — Ed.] 


SE  REGISTRATION  BILL. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Dear   Madam, — In   1906    1  became   a  member  of 
the  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of  Trained  , 
Nurses,  and  have  read  with  the  greatest  care  each 
detail  of  the  proposed   Bill. 

^NHiile  heartily  approving  the  progressive  and 
protective  nature  of  the  Bill,  I  venture  to  suggest 
that  many  nurses  will  be  disappointed  that  no 
Government  jirotection  is  afforded  to  the  uniform 
of  a  trained  nurse.  Would  it  not  be  possible  to 
insert  a  clause  protecting  the  uniform  prescribed 
by  training  schools  under  their  respective  sections'? 
At  present  the  nurse's  uniform  is  subject  to  mis- 
appropriations of   many  detrimental   descriptions. 

Also,  is  it  not  feasible  to  apply  legal  restrictions 
to  unqualified  enterprise  in  the  matter  of  iiursing 
homes?  The  latter  consideration. is  responsible  for 
serious  harm  to  the  profession  and  its  repute. 

I  trouble  you  only  from   a  sense  of  necessity. 
Yours  faithfully, 

Mildred  P.\lmer. 

Slough. 

[Many  nurses  feel  strongly  that  uniform  ought 
to  be  protected.  This  could  not  be  done  in  a 
Registration  Bill,  and  is  a  very  difficult  question, 
as  th?  variety  worn  in  hospitals  is  infinite.  No 
doubt  a  Bill  for  licensing  and  inspecting  nursing 
homes  will  some  day  be  passed,  when  Parliament 
finds  time  for  the  consideration  of  questions  of 
social  reform.  Those  homes  which  are  well  con-' 
ducted  are  greatly  injured  by  being  classed  with 
those   which   are   not. — Ed.] 


Comments  ant)  IRepIies. 

Miss  S.  Siddulph-Pinchard,  Henley-on-Thames. 
—Apply  to  the  Matron-in-Chief,  War  Office,  'SMiite- 
hall,  London,  S,W,,  for   information. 


11-loticc. 


THE  SOCIETY  FOR  THE  STATE  REGISTRATION 
OF  TRAINED   NURSES. 

Those  desirous  of  helping  on  the  important 
movement  of  this  Society  to  obtain  an  Act  pro- 
viding for  the  Legal  Registration  of  Trained 
Nurses  can  obtain  all  information  concerning  the 
Society  and  its  work  from  the  Hon.  Secretary,  431, 
Oxford  Street,  London,  AV. 

No  habitual  reader  of  this  journal  can,  we  feel 
sure,  be  content  to  stand  aside  and  let  others 
found  the  future  Profession  of  Nursing.  Now  is 
the  time  to  help. 

OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules   for  competing   for  the    Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  Ije  found  on   Advert i.sement  i)age  xvi. 


342  zbc  Bi'itisb  Journal  of    IHursiiio  Supplement  [Ap"1  23, 1910 

The    Midwife. 


dbe  fIRt^\\nfel"v>  an^  IHursino 
jeybibition. 

Tke  third  Annual  Midwifery  and  Nursing  Ex- 
hibition and  Conference,  which  last  year  was  held 
at  the  Grafton  Galleries,  will  this  year  be  held  at 
the  Royal  Horticultural  Hall,  Vincent  Square, 
AVestminster,  from  Wednesday,  April  27t_h,  to 
Saturday,   April  30th. 

Opening  Ceremony. 
The   Opening    Ceremony    will    be    performed   on 
Wednesday,  April  27th,  at  12.30  p.m.,  by  her  Royal 
Highness  Princess  Christian  of  Schleswig  Holstein, 
who  will  be  supported  by  the  Committee.  . 

The  Conference. 

Wrdnrxddi/.  April  27th,     2 — 5     p.m.        Chairman, 

F.  H.  Champneys,  Esq.,  M.D. 

1.  (a)  Tin'.  LiviiKj  Wiige  for  Midn-ivis  in  Bural 
Districts.  Tin  Poor  Mother:  Miss  Lucy 
Robinson: 

(b)    The  Comhiiud  Duties   of   District   yurses 
and     Midwives.       Miss     Macqueen,    Q.V.J. I., 
Nursing  Superintendent  for  England. 
Discussioii    opened    by    the    Hon.    Lady  Acland. 

2.  The  Prevention  of  Infantile  Blindness.  A. 
Nimmo  AValker,  Esq.,  M.B.  Discussion 
opened  by  Miss  Blomfield,  Matron  of  Queen 
Charlotte's  Hospital. 

3  The  Peport  of  the  Departmental  Committee 
.Ippointed  to  Consider  the  Worl-in(i  of  the 
Midirives'  Act.  Francis  E.  Fremantle,  Esq., 
F.R.C.S.  (Member  of  the  late  Departmental 
Committee).  Discussion  opened  by  Miss  Alice 
Gregory. 

4.  Direct  pepresentation  on  the  Central  Mid- 
wives'  Poard.  Mrs.  Margaret  Lawson,  Presi- 
dent, the  National  Association  of  Midwives. 
Discussion  opened  by  Mrs.  Stephen  Ghmville. 


Thursdaxi.  Aprd  2Sth,  2.30 — 4.30  p.m.     Chairman, 
Sir  Dyce  Duckworth,  Bart.,  M.D.,  LL.D. 

1.  Fever  Nvrsinrj.  Sidney  Phillips,  Esq.,  M.D. 
Discussion. 

2.  The  Duties  of  Prohntioiwrs  in  Provincicd  Hos- 
pitals.   E.  B.  Reckitt,  Esq.,  M.D.    Discussion. 

3.  Women  as  Sanitary  Inspectors  and  Health 
Visitors.  By  a  Lady  Speaker  from  the  Na- 
tional Health  Society.     Discussion. 

4    Mental   yursinfi.      Bernard   Hollander,    Esq., 
M.D.    Discu-ssion.    Edwin  Ash,  Esq.,  M.D. 
6.1o      p.m. — Miss      Maodonald,      Secretary,      will 
speak  on  the    Diploma    of    the    Royal  British 
Nurses'  Association.     V..'?0  p.m.     Concert. 

Friday.  Aprd  29th,  2.30'— 5  p.m.     Chairman,  Miss 
Brodie-Hall. 
1     SiiTsino  and  Training     in     Poor     Law  Infir- 
maries.    Miss  Gibson,  Matron-of  Birmingham 
Infirmary. 
2.  yvTsing    in    TJnscparated     Workhouses,    and 


Reference  to  the  Report  of  the  Royal  Com- 
mission on  the  Poor  Laws.  Miss  Jane  Wilson, 
Workhouse  Nursing  Association. 
3  Feeble-Minded  Unmarried  Mothers  in  Work- 
houses. Miss  P.  Douglas  Townseud.  Dis- 
cussion. 

p.m. — Lantern  Lecture  on  the  History  of 
Nursing,  showing  its  Development  from  An- 
cient Times.     Miss  E.  L.  C.  Eden. 


Saturday,  .ipril  JUth,  2 — 4.30  p.m.     Chairman,  R. 
Murray  Leslie,  E.sq.,  M.D. 

1.  Massaije.  Miss  Manley,  a  Founder,  Incor- 
porated Society  of  Trained  Masseuses.  Dis- 
cussion. 

2.  Maternity  Cluhs.  Miss  Klaaussen.  Discus- 
sion. 

3.  Creches.  .Muriel,  Viscountess  Helmsley.  Dis- 
cussion. 

4.  Territorial  ynrsinij.  Miss  Barton,  ilatron, 
Chelsea   Infirmary.      Discussion. 

7  p.m.  Chairman,  John  Langton,  Esq.,  F.R.C.S. 
State  Reiiistration  of  Trained  yurses.  Paper 
by  Miss  Annie  Hobbs  (read  by  Miss  Mac- 
donald,  Secretary,  Royal  British  Nurses'  As- 
sociation). Discussion :  The  Hon.  Sydney 
Holland. 

Officwl   Invitations. 

W(  dne'sday,  April  27th,  At  Home,  at  the  Mid- 
wives'  Institute,  12,  Buckingham  Street,  Strand, 
from  4  to  6  jj.m.  Cards  of  Admission  will  be  given 
to  Midwives  and  Nurses  applying  for  the  same  at 
the  door  of  the  Conference  Hall. 

Thursday,  .ipril  2Sth,  through  the  kindness  of 
Dr.  Ralph  Vincent  and  the  Council,  Nurses  and 
Midwives  attending  the  Conference  ai'e  invited  to 
visit  the  Infants'  Hospital,  at  4  p.m. 

Friday,  April  29th,  through  the  courtesy  of  tlie 
Matron,  Nurses  and  Midwives  attending  the  Con- 
ference are  invited  to  visit  Queen  Cbarlotte's  Hos- 
pital,  Marylebone  Road,   W.,   at  3.30  -p.m. 

N.B. — In  order  to  obtain  admission  to  these  two 
hospitals,  it  will  be  necessary  to  present  a  printed 
slip.  These  slips  will  be  given  at  the  door  of  the 
Conference  Hall  to  Nurses  and  Midwives  apijlying 
for  the  same. 

The  Exhibition. 

In  the  Exhiliition  midwives  and  nurses  Avill  find 
much  to  interest  them.  The  British  Jouhn.vl  of 
Nursing,  in  which  is  included  The  Midwife,  will 
be  found  at  Stand  IIB,  where  the  Special  Sjiring 
Number,  and  later  the  issue  of  April  30th,  will  be 
on  sale,  beside  other  nursing  publications.  Amongst 
the  exhibiting  firms  will  be  found  many  whose  pre- 
parations and  aiipliances  are  known  and  valued  by 
nurses — Newton  Chambers  and  Co.  (Izal),  Jeyes 
Sanitary  Compounds  Co.,  Ltd.  (Cyllin),  Lewis  and 
Burrows.  Fairchild  Bros,  and  Foster.  AVelford  and 
Sons  (renowned  for  the  supply  of  pure  milk),  the 
Gas  Light  and  Coke  Co.  (whose  gas  fires  are  now  in- 
dispensable in   nursing  homes  and  private  homes), 


April  23,  vjwi  ^he  British  Journal  of  IHiirsino  Supplement. 


3J3 


Bovril  Ltd.  (of  international  reputation),  Cadbury 
Bros  (of  pure  cocoa  fame),  Coleman  and  Coi,  Keen 
Hohinson  (the  friend  of  the  monthly  nurse  and 
mulwili).  Wells  and  Co.  (nursing'  uniforni.s), 
Soulhall  Bros,  and  Barclay  (wlioso  accouchement 
set3  are  so  convenient),  J.  S.  Fry  and  Sons  (whose 
chocolate  is  eagerly  sought  for),  the  Medical  Su))- 
ply  Association  (surgical  appliances  and  rubber  hot 
water  bottles),  W.  H.  Bailey  and  Son,  at 
whose  stand,  and  in  whose  Oxford  Street  establish- 
ment, tho  midwife  who  cannot  find  what  she  needs 
must  Im>  hard  to  please;  Bell  tvnd  Croyden  (.steri listed 
surgioiU  dresisifigM).  The  various  Plasmon  pre- 
parations will  also  be  on  view,  and  Messrs.  Garrould 
will  show  surgical  appliances  and  nursing  re- 
quisites. 

MessiTS.  Lewis  and  Burrows,  22-24,  Great  Port- 
laud  Street,  W.,  coixlialiy  invito  all  nui«es  to  use 
the  rooms  pi^ovided  as  a  "Rendezvous"  for  their 
benefit,  and  supplied  with  magazines  and  papera. 


Hnte^lPaituni  Iba^norrbaoe. 


By  Mi.ss  Gladys  Tatuam. 
Bleeding  due  to  pregnancy  may  be  briefly  divitkxl 
into  throe  classes: — ■ 

(a)  Miscarriage  or  al>ortion. 

(b)  Accidental  ha-morrhage. 

(c)  Unavoidable  hicmorrhage. 

The  terms  miscarriage  and  al)ortion  inclu<le  any 
ble<ling  due  to  sepaiatiou  of  the  ovum,  or  part  of 
it,  up  to  the  seventh  month  (28th  week). 

Miscarriage  is  of  four  kinds;  threatened,  inevit- 
able, complete,  and  incomplete.  When  tho  bleed- 
ing and  pain  are  slight,  and  tho  internal  os  is 
cIonikI,  timely  trcvatmcnt  may  prevent  a  miscarriage. 
The  midwife  must  send  for  a  mwlical  practitioner ; 
but  whikt  awaiting  his  arrival  sho  must  put  the 
patient  to  bed,  keeping  her  completely  at  rest,  and 
see  that  her  diet  is  very  light.  If  the  bleeding  is 
sever*!,  the  pains  strong,  or  the  internal  os  is  open 
the  woman  will  inevitably  miscany.  Medical  aid 
must  at  once  be  sent  for.  Shouhl  the  blooding  be  at 
all  serious  the  midwife  cannot  wait  for  help.  She 
must  give  a  vaginal  douche  at  a  temperature  of 
llo  degs.  Fahr.  to  118  degs.  Fahr.,  a  suitable  anti- 
septic being  adde<l  to  tho  water.  If  tlie  bloeoing 
still  continues  she  must,  if  necessary,  plug  the 
vagina  with  storiliscKl  gauze  or  lint.  Tlie  ijatient 
must  l>e  kept  al)«()lutel}'  quiet,  lying  on  her  back  ; 
her  diet  should  consist  of  warm  milk,  warm  lK)vril, 
etc.,  but  no -stimulants.  Everything  i>asse<l  through 
tho  vagina  must  1m>  sjiv<k1  tor  the  doctor's  inspec- 
tion. This  is  of  im|iortanec  becaii.se  there  are  two 
varieties  of  inevitable  miscarriage,  complete,  and 
incomplete  or  missed. 

('•ompleto  miscarriage,  signifies  that  (ho  wh<)l<! 
ovum  has  come  away;  missed  or  inoonipU't<"  nuMins 
that  some  part  of  the  placenta  or  membraiKW  nas 
Ih'cii  retaliKHl  after  the  rest  of  I  lie  ovum  Wius  ex- 
)M'lle<l.  II  is  finite  likely  that  a  woman  who  is  care- 
less or  ignorant  alxuit  herself  will  not  have  sent 
for  the  mldwile  till  the  decom|xxsition  of  tho  re- 
tained products  has  set  up  blood  ixjisoniug   (Sep- 


raemia),  with  a  high  temi>eratui<'  and  an  offensive 
discharge.  After  sending  for  tho  doctor  the  mid- 
wife must  prepare  the  patient  for  the  operation  of 
having  the  uterus  cleared  out.  If  she  has  time  she 
shoiiftl  wash  the  woman  all  over,  but  in  any  case 
the  vulva  and  surrounding  pai-ts  must  l)e 
thoroughly  cleansed.  An  enema,  and  a  Cyllin 
(1-100)  douche  should  bo  given,  the  bladder 
must  b<>  kept  empty  also.  She  shouhl  arrange  the 
room  an<l  the  bed  as  well  as  circumstances  permit, 
and  see  that  plenty  of  hot  and  cold  boiled  water  is 
at  hand.  No  food  should  be  given,  as  chlorotorin 
will  prolKibly  liave  to  be  administered.  The  patient 
should  be  kept  in  bod  quite  a  week  after  tho  last 
symptoms  of  miscarriage  have  disapi>eared.  The 
treatment  for  collapse  will  be  the  same  as  after 
accidental  ha;morrhage. 

Accidental  ha;morrhage  occui-s  after  the  child 
is  viable,  that  is,  fiioni  the  28th  week  onwaixis. 
It  is  caus<xl  by  tho  separation  of  a  nonnally 
situated  placenta.  Tliis  may  be  brought  aljout  by 
constitutional  disease  in  the  mother,  such  as 
syphilis,  severe  heart  disease  or  anaemia, 
albuminuria,  or  poi.sons  (lead,  etc.),  by  injuries 
such  as  a  blow  or  fall,  and  by  stix)ng  emotion. 
Accidental  ha;niorrhage  may  be  revealed — that  is, 
tho  blood  escaptsi  from  the  vulva — or  it  may  be 
concealed  bythe  blood  being  jx^nt  up  in  the  uterus. 
Hut  whether  it  Ix)  of  the  revealetl  or  concealed  type 
a  woman  suffering  from  it  will  pr<»ent  the  signs 
and. symptoms  of  loss  of  bloo<l.  The  cheeks,  lil)S, 
and  sclerotics  will  Ikj  blanched ;  her  pulse  will  he 
weak,  rapid,  and  towards  the  end  uncountable ;  ner 
respiration  will  Ije  .sighing  and  irregular;  her  sKin 
oold  and  perapiring.  If  she  is  not  too  ill  slie  will 
probably  complain  of  giddiness,  noises  in  the  eare, 
and  want  of  air.  Should  the  hemorrhage  be  con- 
cealed by  Ixjing  pent  up  in  the  uterus  there  unll  be 
a  severe  "tearing"  pain  in  the  alxlomen,  which 
will  appear  tense  and  very  ten<l<'r,  and  uterine  con- 
tractions will  be  absent.  If  the  midwife  diagnoses 
this  oondition  before  the  arrival  of  the  doctor  slie 
must,  if  necessary,  puncture  the  membranes  and 
plX)Ol^ecl  'as  for  tho  levealed  variety,  except  that  sho 
must  use  no  plugging. 

When  the  haiinorrhage  is  revealed  the  blootl 
esoiii^-s  from  tho  uterus.  Having  sent  for  aid  with- 
out <lelay  the  mitlwile  must  apply  a  very  tight 
biiwler.  If  the  os  uteri  Lnteinum  is  only  sligliciy 
dilated,  and  the  bleeding  is  slight,  it  may  bo  suf- 
ticioiit  for  tho  patient  to  lie  still  with  tho  foot  of 
the  l>ed  raised  and  the  binder  on.  But  if  she  begins 
to  show  evident  signs  of  loss  of  blood  the  midwite 
cannot  wait  for  tho  doctor  without  <loing  every- 
thing in  her  power  to  stop  the  bleeding.  She  must 
give  a  vaginal  douche  of  Cyllin  (1-100)  at 
a  t<!miK>iature  of  115  <legs.  Fahr.  to  118  degs.  Fahr. 
If  the  OS  is  only  one-quarter  dilated  she  should  plug 
the  vagina,  it  it  is  wider  oik'Ii  she  should  rupture 
the  membranes  and  stimulate  the  ul<"nis  by  exter- 
nal mas«ago.  If  nece*iaiy  a  full  dose  of  ergot,  ,5i 
in  a  little  water  may  be  given.  Before  giving  this 
and  rupturing  tlu^  iiiembiaiie«  tho  midwif*!  should 
assure  liei-selt  that  the  child  is  in  a  favoiirarjle 
position  to  lie  Ijorii,  because  if  it  is  a  inal-pii<senta- 
tiou  tho  doctor  will  have  greater  difficulty  iu  cor- 


344 


Z\)c  Britisb  3ournal  of  Irturslng  Supplement,   i^^p''' -3. 1'l'^ 


lecting  it  aftor  the  liquor  amiiii  has  escaped  aii<l 
tlie  ergot  acto;!.  All  diuiger  is  not  over  when  the 
blcMling  has  boon  8topi>ecl,  and  the  woman  may  die 
of  shock,  or  sei>sis  later  on.  To  prevent  syncope, 
and  loss  of  bkod  to  the  brain,  the  foot  of  the  bed 
should  be  raised;  and  the  arms  and  legs  firmly 
bandaged.  The  j>ati<Mit  must  not  be  allowed  to  sit 
tip  or  exert  herself  in  any  way,  and  all  e.xcitement 
must  bo  avoided.  Plenty  of  fresh  air  should  bi> 
admitted  into  the  room,  but  the  patient  must  be 
kopt  warm  with  blankets  and  carefully  covered  hot 
water  battles.  It  is  important  to  see  these  are 
adequately  pixjtected  with  a  flannel  cover,  as  it 
would  be  very  discreditable  to  allow  a  patieut  to  be 
burnt  w-ith  au  uncovered  bottle.  Saline  injections 
may  be  ordered  by  the  doctor.  Unavoidable  ante- 
partum hjemorrhage  is  caused  by  an  abnormally 
situated  placenta;  the  condition  is  known  a-s 
Placenta  Prfevia  (Lat.  prje:  before,  via:  in  the 
H  ay,  placenta  in  the  way  of  the  child.) 

When  the  centre  of  the  placenta  is  situated  over 
the  OS  uteri  internum  it  is  called  "  central."  If  it 
is  more  on  one  side  than  the  other  it  is  "  partial,'" 
while  if  only  the  edge  of  the  placenta  covers  the 
OS  it  is  calleii  "  marginal." 

Placenta  Prrevia  is  more  common  in  multipar.ie 
than  in  primiijaife,  and  is  frequently  fatal.  The 
chief  signs  and  symptoms  are  hsemorrhage  un- 
accompanied by  pain,  a  soft,  boggy  swelling  above 
the  pul>es,  and  an  indefinite,  spongy  mass  just 
over  the  internal  os  can  be  felt  on  vaginal  examina- 
tion. Tlie  parts  of  the  foetus  «-ill  jirobably  be  diffi- 
cult to  feel,  and  it  is  likely  to  be  m  an  abnormal 
ixjsition.  After  sending  for  the  doctor  the  mid- 
wife must,  if  the  bleeding  is  at  all  severe,  rupture 
the  membranes  and  put  on  a  tight  binder  in  the 
hope  that  this  will  bring  down  the  presenting  part, 
which  will  press  on  the  bleeding  surface  and  act  as 
a  kind  of  plug.  If  this  does  not  bring  on  pains,  and 
the  doctor  has  not  come,  she  may,  to  sav^e  life, 
be  justified  in  i)erforming  internal  vei-sion. 
Having  made  her  left  hand  and  anu  as 
aseptic  as  possible  the  midwife  must  put  her 
hand  into  the  uterus  and  pull  down  an  arm  or  leg 
to  use  as  a  plug  to  press  on  the  bleeding  part. 

If  the  bleeding  from  Placenta  Prsevia  is  only 
slight,  and  the  patient  is  not  collapsed,  the  midwife 
can  put  her  to  l>ed  with  a  tight  binder  on  and  wai' 
for  the  doctor. 

The  rules  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  require 
a  midwife  to  send  for  a  qualified  medical  prac- 
titioner in  all  cases  of  abortion,  and  of  hsemorrhag'--, 
slight  or  severe,  in  a  pregnant  woman. 


a  Zvttc  :rnciDent. 


Visitor,  who  is  also  a  miilwife:  "  1  did  not  know 
you  had  another  little  giandchihl,   Mrs.  Jones." 

"  No;  I  engaged  with  the  Sistem  up  at  ^ — .  She 
had  a  shockin'  time.  I  done  plenty  of  this  work 
in  my  time,  but  I  am  getting  past  it,  so  I  thought 
it  would  be  be.st  to  have  the  Sisters,  it  was  like 
this;  .she  wiis  took  Iwul  about  four  in  the  after- 
noon, and  I  sends  off  for  them.  It's  a  goodish 
step,  anyway,  and  tho  gal  was  gettin'  bad,  so  I 
examines  her  and  finds  a  cross  birth.     I  says  to  my- 


.sfdf,  'Somethinks  got  to  l)e  done.'  I  gets  my  book 
off  the  shelf  and  ruus  my  finger  down  the  C's  till 
I  oomes  to  cross-birth.  I  reads  it  careful.  I  then 
cleanses  my  finger  thus,"  suiting  the  action  to  the 
woixi  by  sucking  it  well  and  wiping  it  on  her  apron, 
"  and  I  tunis  the  child." 
Inquisitive  Visitor  (mildly);    "And  what  did   the 

Sisters  say  ?  ' ' 

"Oh!  they  didn't  'alf  cany  on,  aud  'ad  the  im- 

pideuce  to  say  it  never  was  cross." 

^be  Central  flDib wives'  Boait*. 

A  ,s[K'cial  UKH'tiiig  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board 
«as  held  at  the  Board  Room,  Caxton  House,  AVest- 
minster,  on  Tuesday,  April  19th,  Dr.  Champneys 
pi^esiding,  to  consider  charges  against  a  number  of 
midwives,  with  the  following  results: — 
Struck  off  the  Roll. 

Margaret  Barnett  (3174)  was  charged  with  neg- 
lecting her  jjatient,  neglecting  to  reix)rt  inflamma- 
tion of  the  infant's  eyes,  etc. 

Henrietta  Cliinn  (6902),  neglect  on  two  charges. 

Margaret  Davies  (487-5),  charged  with  being 
drunk  and  dLsorderly  on  the  public  highway,  and 
being  under  influence  of  drink,  and  totally  in- 
capable of  i>erforming  duties  when  visited  by  tne 
Executive  Officer. 

.\iinie  HardstafF  (10124), charged  with  negligence. 
Her  defence  was,  she  considered  the  Supervising 
Officer  too  exacting,  and  it  was  washing  day. 

Margaret  iljddlemiss  (12101),  charged  with  not 
advising  that  medical  assistance  should  be  sum- 
moned for  an  abnormal  presentation.  She  ad- 
mitted having  attempted  to  turn  the  child.  Also 
accused  of  being  under  the  influence  of  drink. 

Sarah  Timpeon  (5406),  neglect  to  obey  doctor's 
orders  as  to  disinfection ;  also  with  being  drunk 
on  the  public  liighway. 

Mary  Weddell  (11108),  charged  with  neglecting 
patient. 

Elizabeth  White  (7561)  admitted  she  had  made  no 
effort  to  resuscitate  a  child  apparently  born  dead ; 
uncleanly. 

Ann  Whitear  (17.574),  uncleanly ;  neglectful  of 
rules. 

Severely  Censured. 

Elizabeth  Mary  Dean  (7195),  who,  after  being 
informed  by  doctor  that  her  jiatient  was  suffering 
from  puori>eral  fever,  attended  the  confinement  of 
another  woman. 

Hannah  Howe  (2900),  being  under  the  impres- 
sion the  child  was  tongue-tied,  divided  the 
frsenum,  causing  it  to  bleed  to  death.  Wrote  to  say 
she  knew  she  had  no  right  to  do  so,  and  was  very 
sorry.  She  tries  to  increase  the  population  by 
evei"y  effort. 

Elizabeth    Wilding    (9513)    tailed    to    inform    the 
d<;ct.i)r  of   a   ruptured   jjerinenm  ;   the    patient   sub- 
s!><|ue)itly  <lied  of  pu(',i-i>eral  fever. 
Censured. 

Elizabeth  Hill  (1G400),  .uncleanly.  Her  bag,  on 
inspection,  was  found  to  contain  a  pair  of  bedroom 
slipper.s  and  a  pot  of  jam.  She  c<onsidero<l  it  silly 
lo  make  «  fuss  about  it. 

The  reix>i-fc  of  the  remainder  of  the  jieiial  cases 
wOl  api>ear  next  week. 


THE 

liL, 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

fUK  MMRSIKI  MECOIIB 

EDITED   BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.  1.152. 


SATURDAY,     APRIL     30,     1910. 


EMtorial. 


REGISTRATION    IN   A  NUTSHELL. 

Although  the  State  Registration  of  Trained 
Nurses  has  formed  the  subject  of  inquirj' 
during  two  sessions  by  a  Select  Committee 
of  the  House  of  Commons,  which  unani- 
mously reported  in  its  favour,  and  a  Nurses' 
Registration  Bill  has,  after  full  debate,  been 
passed  l>y  the  House  of  Lords,  there  are  still 
some  people  who  do  not  understand  what  is 
involved  in  the  demand. 

Yet  trained  nurses  are  only  asking  that 
the  State  shall  give  them  the  authority  to 
define  the  meaning  of  the  term  trained  (or 
registered)  nurse,  in  order  to  ensure  to  the 
community  that  the  nurses  they  employ  are 
skilled  in  their  professional  duties.  No  per- 
sons may  use  the  terms  registered  medical 
practitioner,  graduate  or  licentiate  in  dental 
surgerj%  and  pharmaceutical  chemist  unless 
they  have  complied  with  the  registration 
laws  governing  their  respective  professions. 
They  must  have  passed  through  a  definite 
curriculum  and  attained  to  the  prescribed 
standard  of  professional  education  before 
thay  are  admitted  to  their  register,  and  on 
such  admission  their  claim  to  professional 
recognition  is  based. 

In  the  same  way  no  woman  may  now  take 
the  title  of  certified  midwife,  or  act  as  a  mid- 
wife, e.Kcept  in  the  case  of  emergency,  unless 
she  has  furnished  the  Central  .\!  id  wives' 
lioard  with  evidence  of  training  and  good 
moral  character,  submitted'herself  to  its  ex- 
amination, and  satisfied  tlie  examiners  that 
she  is  competent  to  conduct  normal  cases  of 
labour.  The  period  of  training  may  be  l^rief 
and  the  scope  of  the  examination  limited  to 
knowledge  which  it  would  be  dangerous  for 
a  midwife  to  lack  ;  but  at  least  a  beginning 
has  been  made — henceforth  there  is  a  line  of 
demarcation  between  the  trained  and   the 


untrained,  and  although  the  midwife  is 
probably  the  worst  paid  skilled  worker  in 
the  community,  it  is  evident  that  women 
value  the  opporti.inity  of  attaining  the 
definite  status  conferred  by  admission  to  the 
roll,  inasmuch  as  over  2,50U  last  year 
paid  the  requisite  fee  and  entered  for  the 
Central  Jlidwives  Board's  examination. 

It  follows  that  the  movement  for  the  regis- 
tration of  nurses  is  a  movement  for  their 
systematic  education  of  which  their  regis- 
tration is  the  evidence,  the  guarantee  which 
they  offer  to  the  public  of  their  skill  and 
efHciencj'.  For  a  midwife  there  is  one  portal, 
and  one  oidy,  by  which  she  gains  access 
to  her  profession — the  examination  of  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board.  But  for  the  nurse 
there  are  at  least  500  general  training  schools 
in  the  United  Kingdom  which  are  willing 
to  certificate  her,  besides  innumerable 
special  hospitals  and  nursing  homes. 

The  advantages  of  a  uniform  examination, 
followed  by  State liegistration, are  so  obvioiis 
that  it  is  incredible  trained  nurses  should 
have  been  working  for  more  than  twenty 
years  to  obtain  the  necessary  legislation. 
But  their  demand  touches  deeper  issues  than 
at  first  sight  appears.  It  is  an  educational, 
an  economic,  a  labour  question  ;  and  when 
has  the  employer  ever  conceded  the  riglit  of 
employees  to  organise,  even  in  the  public  in- 
terest, without  the  most  strenuous  opposi- 
tion ?     That  is  the  question  in  a  nutshell. 

liegistration  laws  for  nurses  have  already 
been  enacted  in  Cape  Colony,  Natal  and  the 
Transvaal,  in  the  Dominion  of  New  Zealand, 
in  twenty-four  of  the  United  States  of 
America,  in  Cermany  and  Belgium.  In 
India,  Canada,  Australasia,  in  various 
British  Colonies,  and  in  many  American 
States,  trained  nurses  are  organised  to 
obtain  legislation — a  proof  of  the 
widespread  realisation  of  the  need. 


346 


Zlie  Britisb  3ournal  ot  iHurelng. 


[April  30,  1910 


fIDeMcal  fIDatters. 


DEFECTIVE   NIPPLES. 

Dr.  H.  B.  Billups  contributes  an  interesting 
note  on  the  above  subject  to  the  British 
Medical  Journal.  He  writes,  in  part: — Very 
much  nowadays  is  written  about  excessive  in- 
fantile mortality,  and  one  of  the  chief  causes 
alleged  is  defective  artificial  feeding.  The 
reasons  for  the  prevalence  of  artificial  feeding 
have  been  frequently  discussed,  but  there  is 
one  reason  on  which  sufficient  stress  is  not 
laid — defects  in  the  nipples  of  nursing  mothers. 
I  have  seen  a  number  of  mothers  who,  although 
they  had  plenty  of  milk  in  their  breasts,  have 
yet,  on  this  account,  been  unable  to  nui-se  their 
babies. 

The  defective  nippies  present  a  variety  of 
appearances.  In  most  cases  the  breasts  and 
areolae  are  normal,  but  the  nipple  is  abnormal. 
There  may  be  an  entire  absence  of  any  pro- 
jecting tissue,  and  it  may  be  replaced  by  a 
crack-like  depression  in  the  centre  of  the  nipple, 
although  there  is  some  projection  of  the  nipple 
beyond  the  surface  of  the  areola.  Sometimes 
the  nipple  projects  somewhat  in  one  part  and 
is  retracted  in  another. 

Where  the  defect  altogether  prevents  suck- 
ling the  disadvantage  to  the  baby  is  obvious. 
and  though  in  many  cases  it  can  eventually 
obtain  milk  from  one  breast  in  sufficient  quan- 
tity, there  is  generally  a  defective  supply  at 
first  at  any  rate.  Further,  as  the  nipple  does 
not  project  properly  the  normal  milking  action 
which  comes  into  play  with  a  well-formed 
nipple  is  impossible,  and  it  is  only  by  taking  a 
large  grasp  of  breast  tissue  and  exerting-  con- 
siderably more  energy  than  usual  that  the  baby 
can  get  the  milk.  There  is  also  much  difficulty 
in  exerting  proper  suction,  and  much  air  may 
be  drawn  into  the  baby's  stomach. 

The  retracted  nipple  is  very  much  more  dif- 
ficult to  keep  clean  and  free  from  external  in- 
fection than  a  normal  ntpple,  and  it  would  be 
interesting  to  know  the  proportion  of  cases  of 
diseases  of  the  breast,  such  as  mastitis,  abscess, 
and  even  cancer,  preceded  by  a  retracted 
nipple. 

The  statement  as  to  the  effect  of  the  pressure 
of  tight  corsets  on  the  nipples  seems  to  be  one 
of  those  theories  which  pass  from  textbook  to 
textbook  without  criticism  or  verification. 
Though  the  condition  is  common,  it  is  not  so 
common  as  would  be  expected  if  it  were  due 
to  such  a  widely  prevailing  custom  as  the  wear-~ 
ing  of  tight  corsets. 

That  corsets  have  little  or  nothing  to  do  with 
the  matter  is  indicated  by  the  condition  of  the 
breasts  themselves. 


W'e  have  therefore  to  seek  for  another  cause, 
and  I  think  it  is  easily  found.  In  various  parts 
of  the  country  where  I  have  worked  I  have 
found  that  it  is  the  custom  of  the  country  mid- 
wives  of  the  old-fashioned  kind  to  pinch  and 
squeeze  the  nipples  of  newborn  babies.  It  is 
done  every  day  when  the  baby  is  washed  and 
is  considered  most  important,  and  it  is  con- 
tinued for  weeks ;  I  remember  a  case  where 
matter  was  being  daily  squeezed  from  the 
breasts  of  a  four  weeks  old  infant. 

I  have  had  some  difficulty  in  ascertaining 
the  reasons  for  this  custom,  as  the  old  ladies 
are  very  reticent,  but  there  would  appear  to 
be  two  distinct  ideas.  One  is  the  removal  of 
milk  from  the  breasts,  and  the  women  who 
have  this  idea  squeeze  the  breasts  of  both  male 
and  female  infants.  The  other  is  that  unless 
squeezed  so  as  "  to  break  the  nipple-strings," 
female  children  will  have  no  nipples  when  they 
grow  up,  and  by  those  who  hold  this  opinion 
the  practice  is  confined  to  female  babies.  In 
the  few  cases  in  which  I  have  observed  this 
custom  critically  I  have  noticed  that  the  pinch- 
ing is  done  in  no  gentle  manner ;  no  doubt  con- 
siderable damage  is  done  to  the  rudimentary 
tissues  of  the  nipple  and  galactophorus  ducts. 
It  is  probable  that  scar  tissue  is  formed  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  the  nipple ;  as  time  goes  on 
this  contracts,  and  as  puberty  approaches  and 
the  breasts  begin  to  develop,  the  strands  of 
abnormal  connective  tissue  cause  retraction  of 
the  nipple  more  or  less  complete  according  to 
the  extent  of  the  scar  tissue. 

It  is  highly  probable  that  the  injury  caused 
to  the  galactophorus  ducts  and  the  pressure  of 
scar  tissue  upon  them  produce  the  obstructions 
of  these  ducts,  giving  rise  to  the  frequently 
non-suppurative  mastitis  so  common  in  primi- 
parae.  I  would  warn  medical  men  not  to  judge- 
too  hastily  that  this  custom  is  not  practised  in 
their  districts,  because  the  old  midwives  know 
medical  practitioners  disapprove  of  their 
methods,  and  therefore  the  babies'  breasts  ar& 
sometimes  pinched  surreptitiously. 

To  sum  the  matter  up,  I  conclude  that  the 
pressure  of  corsets  does  not  cause  these  defec- 
tive nipples,  nor  is  it  generally  a  congenital  con- 
dition, but  that  it  is  probably  due  to  manipula- 
tions by  ignorant  midwives  soon  after  birth. 
This  being  so,  it  is  the  duty  of  doctors  and 
nurses  alike  to  teach  the  women  the  danger  of 
pinching  the  breasts  of  infants,  and  to  see 
that  it  is  not  done.  It  would  be  interesting  if 
practitioners  would  collect  evidence  concerning 
the  infancy  of  the  mothers  whom  they  attend  : 
in  the  last  I  had  I  found  no  difficulty  in  finding 
out  from  the  patient's  mother  that  the  breasts. 
had  been  squeezed  in  infancy. 


April  30, 1910]       jiY)C   36riti3h   journal   ot  murstno. 


347 


Clinical  IRotce  on  Some  Conunon 
ailments. 

SOME  FORMS  OF   HEART   DISEASE. 

By  a.  Knyvett  Gordon,  M.B.  (Cantab.). 
{Concluded  from  page  323.) 

Obviously,  the  first  essential  is  rest,  and  this 
must  be  absolute,  and,  until  all  the  signs  of 
deficient  circulation,  such  as  swelling  of  the 
feet,  have  disappeared,  the  patient  must  not 
be  allovvfed  to  get  up,  even  to  have  his  bed 
made.  From  the  nurse's  point  of  vieve,  the 
tending  of  a  heart  case  is  generally  considered 
to  be  rather  uninteresting  work,  but  it  is  cer- 
tain that  without  skilled  nursing  true  rest  is 
impossible  and  drugs  are  of  little  avail.  As  a 
rule,  it  is  best  that  the  patient  should  be 
nursed  iu  his  own  home,  as  the  bustle  and 
noise  of  a  hospital  ward  are  not  conducive  to 
recovery,  and  inasmuch  as  the  recovering  (but 
not  recovered)  sufferers  have  frequently  to 
be  discharged  to  make  room  for  more  acute 
cases,  the  advantage  gained  from  a  three 
weeks'  stay  in  hospital  is  often  undone  by  the 
excitement  of  his  premature  removal  and  by 
the  visits  of  condoling  neighbours  when  the 
patient  arrives  home.  Both  the  sufferer  and 
the  nurse  have  to  be  very  patient,  for  the  re- 
sults of  the  rest  are  not  so  apparent  as  in  a 
more  acute  case,  though  they  are  none  the  less 
present. 

But  the  nursing  is  really  very  difficult,  far 
more  so,  in  fact,  than  is  usually  supposed,  and 
it  consists  in  ensuring  not  only  that  the  patient 
shall  not  use  any  muscles  unnecessarily,  but 
in  removing  all  sources  of  mental  worry  also, 
and  in  discriminating  between  visitors  that 
help  and  those  who  hinder. 

The  next  essential  is  to  relieve  the  circula- 
tion by  removing  anything  that  obstructs  the 
return  of  blood  to  the  heart ;  thus,  we  have  to 
open  the  bowels  and  keep  them  acting ;  we 
encourage  the  skin  and  kidneys  to  act  by  the 
administration  of  drugs  that  produce  perspira- 
tion and  increase  the  flow  of  urine,  such  as 
acetate  of  potash  and  spirit  of  nitrous  ether. 
If  there  is  a  collection  of  serum  in  the 
abdominal  cavity,  we  remove  it  by  tapping,  and 
we  can  similarly  relieve  the  swelling  of  the 
legs  by  drainage  with  small  (Southey's)  tubes. 
When  the  right  side  of  the  heart  is  in  difficul- 
ties, bleeding  from  a  vein  in  the  arm  is  often 
useful. 

But  we  can  do  more  than  this :  there  is  a 
drug — digitalis — which  acts  du-ectly  on  the 
muscidar  wall  of  the  heart  and  makes  it  con- 
tract more  forcibly,  and  also  increases  the  flow 
of  urine.  Like  all  other  useful  remedies,  it  has 
its    disadvantages,  but    in    suitable    cases    its 


action  is  very  useful  indeed;  whenever  a 
patient  is  taking  it,  a  record  should  be  kept  of 
the  pulse  rate,  and  if  this  falls  below  80,  the 
medicine  should  be  stopped  and  the  physician 
informed.  It  is  especially  important  to  observe 
this,  as  the  next  effect  of  too  much  digitalis  is 
to  make  the  heart  beat  more  rapidly,  so  that 
if  the  preliminai-y  slowing  be  missed,  the  dose 
of  the  drug  may  be  increased  and  poisoning 
result.  Strychnine  is  also  useful,  especially 
when  the  aortic  valve  is  diseased. 

All  the  above  measures  are  suitable  while 
compensation  is  deficient — that  is  to  say, 
until  the  signs  of  circulatory  obstruction  have 
disappeared.  Then  we  have  to  try  and  estab- 
lish some  increased  growth  of  the  heart  muscle 
itself,  and  this  can  be  effected  by  a  series  of 
graduated  exercises.  In  the  so-called  Nauheim 
treatment,  this  is  done  by  making  the  patient 
move  various  muscles,  while  the  attendant 
endeavours  to  prevent  him  doing  so  by  care- 
fully regulated  resistance ;  in  practice  this  is 
usually  combined  with  a  course  of  effervescing 
baths,  which  encourage  the  skin  to  act  also. 

One  word  in  conclusion  on  the  treatment  of 
emergencies  by  the  nurse.  The  chief  of  these 
is  fainting.  Here  the  face  is  pale  and  the 
patient  .loses  consciousness,  and  two  things  are 
necessary — to  lower  the  head  so  that  the  blood 
can  more  easily  reach  the  brain,  and  to  apply 
a  towel  or  sponge  wrung  out  of  hot  water  to 
the  bare  skin  over  the  heart.  It  is  useless  to 
waste  time  by  giving  brandy  during  a  fainting 
fit,  as  it  simply  lies  in  the  stomach 
and  is  not  absorbed  at  all,  though 
if  administered  when  the  patient  comes 
round  it  is  often  useful.  If  the  patient,  how- 
ever, loses  consciousness,  and  the  face  is  deeply 
cyanosed,  the  condition  is  not  a*fainting  fit  at 
all,  and  the  head  should  not  be  lowered;  pro- 
bably bleeding  will  be  required,  or  the  use  of 
some  special  remedy,  such  as  nitrite  of  amyl, 
and  the  physician  should  be  summoned  at  once. 

Another  alarming  condition  is  an  attack  of 
breathlessness,  and  then  the  patient  should  be 
propped  up  in  bed.  The  hypodermic  in- 
jection of  strychnine  and  atropine  is  often  use- 
ful, while  morphia  suits  some  patients  better 
than  anything  else. 

Perhaps  the  most  difficult  task  that  falls  to 
the  lot  of  the  nurse  in  cases  of  heart  disease 
is  to  dissipate  the  fear  of  sudden  death,  which 
is  almost  sure  sooner  or  later  to  bo  implanted 
in  her  by  the  misguided  intervention  of 
relatives,  whose  stock  of  sympathy  is  larger 
than  their  endowment  of  commonsense.  Pro- 
perly managed,  very  many  patients  whose 
hearts  are  more  or  less  extensively  diseased 
live  to  the  allotted  span,  and  are  of  service  to 
the  community. 


348 


Cbe  Bntisb  3ournal  of  mursing,      [Apni  30,  loio 


Ipost^Gra^uate  Xcctures 
(5u\?'6  Ibospltal. 


at 


BRIEF     SUMMARY. 

In  his  second  lecture  ou  "  Recent  Changes  in 
treatment  in  the  Medical  Wards,"  Dr. 
Cameron  fully  described  the  new  method  of 
treating  (sdema  by  the  salt  free  diet.  He  also 
described  the  Lactic  Acid  Therapy,  and  stated 
that  claims  were  being  put  forward  in  favour 
of  the  treatment  of  a  great  variety  of  diseases 
by  means  of  "  Soured  Milk,"  i.e.,  by  introduc- 
ing into  the  alimentary  canal,  active  cultures 
■01  the  Lactic  Acid  organisms.  The  theory  is 
held  that  the  intestines  contain  great  numbers 
of  bacteria,  and  that  they  have  a  useful  task  to 
perform.  In  the  latter  stages  of  digestion  they 
come  to  the  aid  of  the  intestinal  gases  and  fer- 
ments, in  still  further  splitting  up  the  food 
until  the  waste  matter  alone  is  left.  It  is  con- 
sidered by  some  that  certain  conditions  are  due 
to  over  action  of  these  bacteria,  with  the  result 
that  poisonous  products  are  foiTned,  and  the3' 
are  absorbed  into  the  blood  vessels  in  the  wall 
of  the  bowel,  and  so  diffused  into  the 
body  generally.  Neurasthenia,  melancholia, 
multiple  arthritis,  wasting  and  malnutri- 
tion generally  are  a  few  of  the  con- 
ditions which  are  supposed  to  result  from  this 
intestinal  toxaemia.  The  evidence  of  this  in- 
testinal toxaemia.  Dr.  Cameron  piointed  out, 
was  very  unsatisfactory,  and  physicians  in  this 
country  are  profoundly  sceptical  as  to  its  exist- 
ence. In  France,  however,  these  views  are 
held,  and  it  is  in  Paris  that  Professor  Metchni- 
koff  has  introduced  the  method  of  feeding  by 
soured  milk,  which  contains  the  most  powerful 
of  the  lactic  acid  organisms,  the  Bacillus  Bul- 
garicus,  in  the  hope  that  tliis  organism,  which 
is  in  itself  harmless  to  man,  will  survive  the 
danger  of  destruction  in  the  stomach,  and 
flourish  to  such  an  extent  in  the  intestine  that 
the  other  organisms  will  be  destroyed. 

The  great  benefits  d^-ived  from  the  Electri- 
cal Department,  by  the  application  of  heat  to 
the  joints  for  chronic  joint  diseases,  such  as 
osteo  arthritis  and  rheumatoid  arthritis,  and 
also  the  treatment  of  ex-ophthalmic  goitre  bj' 
the  Eontgen  Pays,  were  described. 

On  Tuesday,  "iQth  April,  Mr.  E.  C.  Hughes 
gave  his  first  lecture  on  "  Recent 
Changes  in  Surgery,"  and  compared  the 
treatment  of  appendicitis  and  general 
peritonitis  with  that  of  five  or  ten  years 
ago.  The  operation  itself  is  simpler  and 
can  be  performed  in  a  much  shorter- time,  for 
the  peritoneal  cavity  i.s  not  washed  out,  and  the 
great  danger  of  shock  to  the  i^atient  is  mini- 
mised.    The  mortahty  is  now  much  smaller, 


being  only  from  15  to  30  per  cent.,  whereas  five 
or  ten  years  ago  it  was  as  high  as  from  90  to  99 
per  cent.  The  lecturer  pointed  out  that  the 
after  treatment  lay  very  much  in  the  nurse's 
hands,  the  patient  having  to  be  kept  in  the 
Fowler  position,  which  needs  nice  adjustment 
of  pillows  to  prevent  slipping  back.  In  con- 
trast with  the  old  idea  of  withholding  fluids, 
water  is  given  by  mouth  as  the  patient  desires. 
Rectal  and  subcutaneous  saline  infusion  was 
explained  and  advocated.  Shock,  collapse, 
flatulence,  and  vomiting  were  important  things 
to  note,  and  the  need  for  the  nurse's  observa- 
tion to  report  carefully  on  the  condition  of  the 
patient  was  emphasised,  as  it  might  often  pre- 
vent a  second  operation  being  performed.  For 
collapse  the  use  of  Ernutin  and  Pituitrin  Ex- 
tract instead  of  injecting  strychnine  was  ad- 
vocated and  explained. 

Xeaone  IRcws. 

GUY'S    HOSPITAL    PAST    AND     PRESENT 
NURSES    LEAGUE. 

Tlie  eighth  annual  meeting  and  the  second 
annual  dinner  of  the  Guy's  Hospital  Nurses' 
League,  will  be  held  in  the  Nurses'  Home  on 
Friday  evening,  April  29th,  1910,  after  which 
there  will  be  a  short  exhibition  of  lantern 
slides.  The  dinner  will  be  served  in  the  Nurses' 
Dining-hall  at  7  p.m.  punctually,  and  every- 
one is  looking  forward  to  a  very  festive  t'me. 

The  Sixth  Annual  Exhibition  of  the  Guy's 
Hospital  Nurses'  Photographic  Society  will  be 
opened  in  the  Nurses'  Home  on  the  above  date. 
A  special  effort  is  being  made  to  make  the  Ex- 
hibition a  success,  and  all  Members  interested 
in  photography  are  asked  to  send  in  photo- 
graphs. Entry  forms  may  be  obtained  from 
Miss  Sm'ith,  Hon.  Sec,  G.H.N.P.S.,  Guv's 
Hospital,  S.E. 

GENERAL  HOSPITAL,  BIRMINGHAM,  NURSES 
LEAGUE. 

The  tliird  annual  meeting  (ninth  general 
meeting)  of  the  General  Hospital,  Birming- 
ham, Nurses'  League  will  be  held  at  the  Hos- 
pital, on  Saturday,  May  7th,  at  3  p.m.,  and 
will  be  followed  by  a  social  gathering  at  4.15. 
The  League  was  formed  in  1906,  and  the  first 
meeting  vi-as  held  on  May  1st  of  that  year. 
There  are  now  over  200  members.  The  Hon. 
Secretary  is  Miss  jMcFarlane,  Matron,  the  In- 
firmary, Kidderminster. 

Part  of  the  business  at  the  meeting  will  be  to 
decide  on  the  form  of  the  memorial  which  is 
being  raised  by  past  and  present  nurses  to  the 
memory  of  the  late  Miss  JM.  E.  Jones.  The 
Matron  is  Treasiu'er  of  the  Memorial  Fund,  to 
which  contributions  should  be  sent  by  May  1st. 


April  30,  itiio.       ^xi5e  Britisb  3oiu-nai  or  IHursing. 


349 


IRurses  of  IRotc. 


MISS  A.  CARSONRAE. 

Secretary,  Irish  Nurses'  Association. 
We  have  pleasure  in  publishing  ou  this  page 
the  portrait  of  Miss  A.  Carson-Kae,  the 
newly-appointed  Secretary  of  the  Irish  Nurses' 
Association.  By  birth  Miss  Carson-Kae  is 
Scotch,  but  as  her  mother  was  Irish  she 
belongs  also  in  part  to  the  laud  of  her  adoption. 
She  first  became  interested  in  nursing  through 
belonging  to  the  Samaritan  Society  of  the 
Western  Infirmary,  Glasgow,  as  it  was  one  of 
the  duties  of  the  members  to  visit  a  ward 
regularly  and  take  an  interest  in  the  home 
affairs  of  the  patients. 

In  the  year  1888  Miss  Carson-Rae  entered 
the  National  Hospital  for 
Paralysis  and  Epilepsy,  Queen 
Square,  Bloomsbury,  for  train- 
ing, and  remained  there  for  one 
year ;  during  this  time  she 
was  grounded  in  elementary 
anatomy,  and  received  instruc- 
tion in  massage  and  the  use  of 
electricity,  which  she  subse- 
quent h^  found  of  great  value. 
At  the  end  of  that  time  she  was 
received  at  the  Lady  Augusta 
Stanley  Training  School,  in  con- 
nection with  the  Westminster 
Hospital,  where  she  obtained 
three  years'  training  in  the 
wards,  and  afterwards  had  a 
year's  experience  of  private 
nursing,  leaving  to  take  a  Day 
Sister's  post  at  the  St.  Maryle- 
bone  Infirmary.  Nottiug  Hill, 
W.  After  holding  this  post  for 
eighteen  months,  she  was  promoted  to  the 
position  of  Night  Sister,  which  she  also  held 
for  eighteen  months,  and  has  subsequently 
found  the  administrative  e.xperience  thus 
gained  most  useful. 

Miss  Carson-Rae  was  then  appointed  Assis- 
tant Matron  of  the  Cork  Street  Fever  Hospital, 
Dublin,  and  on  the  resignation  of  the  Lady 
Superintendent  was  invited  by  the  Committee 
to  succeed  her,  which  she  did,  and  remained 
there  for  thirteen  years,  resigning  this  position 
last  December. 

During  her  term  of  oflSce  many  changes  were 
made  for  the  better.  By  aflfiliation  with  other 
hospitals,  Miss  Carson-Rae  was  able  to  organise 
a  Training  School  for  Nurses,  and  found  the 
system  work  well.  A  new  Nurses'  Home  was 
built,  after  which  all  the  nurses  were  able  to 
have  a  separate  bedroom,  a  privilege  which 
they  greatly  appreciated.  For  some  years  the 
hospital  maintained  a  small  private  staff.  It 
also    had    a  Convalescent    Home,   about   five 


miles  away,  where  the  convalescent  patients 
Were  sent  to  convalesce. 

lu  1902  the  Committee  of  Public  Health 
started  a  hospital  for  smallpox  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Liffey,  which  was  furnished  and  equipped 
by  the  authorities  of  the  Cork  Street  Hospital, 
and  was  always  staffed  by  it  when  necessary. 
The  nurses  in  this  way  obtained  valuable 
additional  experience. 

iliss  Carson-Rae  has  always  been  a  keen 
advocate  of  State  Registration  of  Nurses,  be- 
lieving it  to  be  the  only  means  by  which  the 
nursiiig  profession  can  obtain  a  proper  status. 
She  also  desires  to  see  technical  colleges 
established  for  preliminary  education,  in  which 
the  education  of  girls  desiring  to  enter  the 
nursing  profession  can  be  carried  on  on  lines 
which  would  best  fit  them  to 
enter  it  when  they  have  attained 
the  requisite  age. 

She  takes  much  interest  in 
the  International  movement 
amongst  nurses,  and  attended 
the  Paris  International  Confer- 
ence in  1907,  when  there  was  a 
large  contingent  from  Ireland 
She  was  also  present  at  the 
Congress  in  London  last  year, 
and  acted  as  one  of  the 
Stewards  of  the  Nursing  Ex- 
liibition  held  at  Caxton  Hall  in 
connection  with  the  Congress. 
Her  recognition  of  the  import- 
ance of  a  professional  journal 
for  nurses  is  shown  by  the  fad 
that  she  is  a  collaborator  of  the 
British  Journal  of  Nursing, 
and  has  contributed  to  it  some 
interesting  articles. 
It  follows  that  the  Irish  Nurses'  Association 
has  secured  as  its  Secretary  a  lady  of  great 
practical  experience  and  of  liberal  and  progres- 
sive views,  ancj  we  may  hope  that  it  will  pros- 
per and  increase  during  her  term  of  office. 


Miss   A.   CARSON    RAE, 

Secreinri/.   Irish    Xuries'    Axsociation 


^be  3r(5b  IHiirses'  association. 

.\  lecture  was  last  week  delivered  in  Dublin 
by  .Mr.  William  Taylor,  F.R.C.S.I.,  to  the 
members  of  the  Irish  Nurses'  Association.  Mrs. 
Kildare  Treacy   presided.        The   subject   was 

Poisons,"  and  Mr.  Taylor  gave  a  most  in- 
structive account,  not  only  of  poisons  and 
their  antidotes,  but  also  of  the  nurse's  respon- 
sibility, and  which  injections  and  remedies  she 
was  justified  in  using  with  each  particular 
poi.son.  There  was  a  large  attendance,  and  at 
the  dose  a  cordial  vote  of  thanks  was  proposed 
by  Miss  Pate,  seconded  by  Miss  Egan,  and 
supported  by  Mrs.  Kildare  Treacy. 


350 


Z\)C  3Bnti5b  3ournaI  of  mursino,      [Apniso,  1910 


^bc,  fIDatroni?'  Council  of  Great 
Bi-(taiiran6  3rclant). 

A  meeting  of  the  Ma- 
trons' Council  was  held 
at  431,  Oxford  Street, 
London,  W.,  on  Friday, 
April  22nd.  Mrs.  Bed- 
ford Fen  wick  presided. 
There  was  a  large  attend- 
ance of  members.  Before 
the  business  meeting  be- 
gan the  Hon.  Secreta-ry, 
Miss  ^I.  Mollett,  gave 
the  following  Valedictory 
Address  on  the  late  Pre- 
sident, Miss  Isla  Stewart, 
who  had  held  this  office 
from  the  foundation  of 
the  Council . 
:\Iiss  Mollett  said:  — 

VALEDICTORY. 
."Before  the  Council  commences  its  work 
I  have  been  asked  to  voice  the  respect,  the  last 
respect  we  can  pay  to  our  President,  and  to  say 
good-bye.  For  we  meet  to-day  under  the 
shadow  of  a  great  sorrow.  We  have  lost  the 
bravest  and  most  loyal  leader  we  shall  ever 
know. 

Others  may  mourn  with  us  the  death  of  a 
great  Matron,  of  a  wise  woman,  of  one  who 
was  a  power  for  good  in  the  profession,  but 
we  have  also  to  bear  the  loss  of  a  very  dear 
comrade,  who  understood  and  shared  our 
troubles  and  our  difficulties,  and  who  never 
failed  friend  or  foe ;  of  one  who  was  the  soul 
of  honour  and  of  good  fellowship,  and  who  led 
us  most  valiantly  from  the  first  founding  of  our 
Council.  For,  like  the  brave  standard  bearer 
she  ever  was,  she  bore  the  standard  of  right 
and  high  principle  unfalteringly  throughout  her 
career;  she  carried  out  to  the  letter  the  old 
instructions:  "■  Ye  shall  not  fall  back,  nor  fly, 
nor  suffer  it  to  be  wrested  from  you  "  and,  at 
the  end,  might  well  ssiy :  — 

I  did  not  fail,  nor  faint,  nor  fly, 

I  carried  the  banner  all  the  day ; 
WraiJ  it  round  me  when  I  die. 

If  peace  has  its  heroes  as  well  as  war,  as- 
suredly Isla  Stewart  was  pne,  and  had  deserved 
to  bear  the  motto,  "  Ich  dien,"  tor  she  served 
her  God,  her  profession,  and  himianity  well 
and  nobly  with  a  very  single  mind  throughout 
her  life.  We  were  proud  of  her,  and  more  and 
better  than  that,  we  loved  her,  we  love  her 
now,  for  she  had  the  secret  that  gain.s-affection, 
the  kindly  sympathy,  the  warm  heart  that 
beats  for  humanity  and  is  tolerant  of  its  fail- 


ings. We  shall  miss  her;  we  shall  miss  the 
steady  understanding,  the  clear  mind,  that  was 
very  true  and  went  straight  fcr  the  principle 
underlying  the  argument ;  we  shall  miss  the 
courage  that  never  faltered;  nor  shall  we  ever 
forget  how,  in  the  darkest  times,  she  never 
lost  her  brightness,  her  cheerfulness,  her  be- 
lief in  the  ultimate  victory  of  right.  We  miss 
her  to-night.  Hardly  ever  did  she  fail  in  her 
place  at  our  meetings,  and  her  keen  interest, 
her  alert  intellect,  and  ready  speech  gave  a  zest 
to  our  debates.  None  of  you  will  forget  how, 
at  the  last  meeting  we  held  in  this  room,  she 
came,  ill  as  she  was,  to  take  an  interested  and 
animated  part  in  the  subjects  under  discus- 
sion, although  she  had  already  spent  the 
whole  afternoon  at  a  most  exhausting  con- 
ference on  the  State  Registration  Bill.  But  it 
was  her  duty,  and  that  witli  Isla  Stewart  was 
ever  first.  We  shall  miss  her  unswerving  belief 
in  the  future  of  our  profession,  in  its  develop- 
ment, in  the  grand  possibilities  that  he  before 
it.  Whenever  we  felt  inclined  to  doubt,  or 
were  wearied  with  the  endless  and  unscrupu- 
lous opposition  that  barred  the  way,  her  cheery 
and  courageous  optimism  heartened  us  again. 

On  the  square  in  the  old  Swedish  town  of 
Helsingborg  stands  the  statue  of  a  general  with 
a  fine  inscription  :  "He  was  great  in  victory, 
but  greatest  in  misfortune  and  defeat."  That 
was  our  late  President — most  confident,  most 
hopeful  when  things  were  at  their  worst. 

Nothing  did  she  desire  more  passionately 
than  to  see  the  measure  passed  for  which  for 
twenty  long  years  she  had  fought  a  good  fight. 
But  with  victory  in  sight  she  died. 

A  woman  such  as  Isla  Stewart  is  not 
mourned  with  words  but  deeds.  It  remains 
for  us  to  honour  her  memory,  as  she  would 
have  had  us  honour  it,  by  completing  what  she 
aided  to  begin  with  such  high  hopes  and  such 
unselfish  aspirations.  She  never  failed  us ;  we 
must  not  fail  her.  What  she  desired  must  be 
accomphshed. 

"  Les  morts  vont  vite,"  but  the  memory  of 
our  President  will  be  fresh  and  green  with  the 
members  of  this  Council  for  many  and  many 
a  long  day  to  come.  She  has  bequeathed  to 
us  for  all  time  the  recollection  of  a  grand 
woman  with  high  public  principles  and  the 
rarest  private  qualities." 

THE  BUSINESS  MEETING. 

The  minutes  of  the  previous  naeeting  were 
then  read  and  confirmed,  and  the  correspon- 
dence dealt  with. 

Applications  for  Membership. 

The  following  Matrons,  who  applied  for 
membership  were  elected:  — 

Miss  C.  B.  Leigh,  Matron,  Central  London 


April  30,  K'lo:       ^,5^  36nti6b   journal   ot  1l^iui?ini(. 


351 


Sick  Asylum,  Cleveland  Street,  LouJou,  W". 

Miss  Horton,  Matron,  Newark  Hospital, 
Kottiughamshire . 

Miss  M.  Crump,  Men's  Branch,  Metro- 
politan Convalescent  Home,  Bexliill.  - 

Miss  Mabel  Thurston,  Matron,  Christchurch 
Hospital,    New  Zealand. 

Miss  S.  Grace  Tindall,  Matron,  Cama  and 
Allbless  Hospitals,  Bombay. 

Th£  Next  Meeting. 

It  was  decided  to  hold  the  next  meeting  at 
an  important  centre  in  the  provinces. 
Appointment  of  Sub-Committee. 

The  following  members  were  appointed  as  a 
Sub-Committee  to  nominate  a  President,  and 
to  draft  a  Bye-law  regulating  the  appointment 
of  Presidents: — Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwiek,  Miss 
L.  V.  Haughton  (Guy's),  Miss  B.  Cutler 
(Bart's),  iliss  Morgan  (nurse  hon.  secretary. 
Fever  Nurses'  Association),  and  Miss  Mollett, 
Hon.  Secretary. 

Eesolution. 

The  Chairman  communicated  to  the  meeting 
the  news  of  the  tragic  death  of  Mrs.  Hampton 
Robb,  of  the  United  States,  one  of  the  earliest 
hon.  members  of  the  Matrons'  Council,  and 
on  her  proposition,  seconded  by  Miss  Musson, 
the  Hon.  Secretary  was  asked  to  convey  to  the 
American  Society  of  Superintendents  of  Train- 
ing Schools  for  Nurses,  and  to  the  National  As- 
sociated Alumnae  of  the  United  States  the  deep 
sj'mpathy  of  the  Matrons'  Council  with  Ameri- 
can nui-ses  in  their  bereavement. 

Miss  H.  L.  Pearse  having  thanked  Miss 
Mollett  in  the  name  of  those  present  for  her 
address  on  the  late  President,  the  meeting  ter- 
minated. 

M.  ^Iollett, 
Hon.   Sec. 

Zbc  tTerritoi'ial  IHursino  Service. 

PRESENTATION  OF  BADGES  AT  BIRMINGHAM. 

Tlie  annual  meeting  of  the  General  Comniitteo  of 
the  Nursing  Service  (TeiTitorial  Forced  of  War- 
wickshire and  Worcestershire  was  held  at  the 
Council  House,  Birmingham,  on  Wedneeday,  20th 
April,  under  the  presidency  of  Lady  Jane  Carleton. 

Mies  M.  A.  Buckingham  (Queen's  Hospital), 
Principal  Matron.'  gave  a  most  excellent  re- 
port. The  staff  and  reserve  were  complete, 
and  during  the  year  the  nars*«  had  been 
brought  together  on  two  occasions  for  the  inspec- 
tion ot  the  Territorial  Forces  in  Birmingham  by  the 
then  General  Officer  Commanding-in-Chief.  .South 
Midland  Division.  Sir  Ian  Hamilton,  and  also  on 
the  occasion  of  the  King's  visit  to  Birmingham  to 
open  the  new  University,  when  tlie  nurses  were 
provided  with  seats  on  the  stand  in  the  University 
grounds.  Of  the  Matrons  appointed.  Miss  Gibeon, 
of  the  Infirmary,  had  resigned,  and  Miss  Armour, 


Assistant  Matron  of  the  General  InfirmAry, 
AVorcester,  was  elected  in  her  place. 

In  the  afternoon  the  Marquis  of  Hertford  pre- 
sented badges  to  the  matrons,  sisters,  and  nurses, 
and  expressed  the  pleasure  it  gave  him  to  see  such 
a  large  gathering  of  nurses  willing  to  serve  in  the 
hospital  of  the  Territorial  Force.  He  reminded 
them  that  the  Queen  was  the  President  of  the 
Nursing  Association,  and  that  when  Her  Majesty 
distributed  the  badges  to  the  nurses  in  London  she 
intimated  it  was  her  wish  that  that  act  should  be 
taken  to  lepreeent  the  distribution  to  all  the  nurses 
throughout  the  country.  Expressing  satisfaction  at 
the  starting  successfully  of  the  nursing  service. 
Lord  Hertford  said  he  could  honestly  and  prouoiy 
declare  that  no  county  had  done  better  than  War- 
wickshire in  raising  a  territorial  force,  and  there- 
fore it  was  only  just,  and  as  it  should  be,  that  they 
should  also  be  successful  in  forming,  a  nursing  ser- 
vice as  part  of  it. 

First  to  receive  badges  were  the  Principal 
Matron,  Jliss  Buckingham,  and  the  Hospital 
Matrons.  Miss  Musson  and  ^liss  M.  L.  Armour. 

Sisters:  Miss  G.  Hanson,  Miss  E.  HiU,  Miss  E. 
Humphreys.  Miss  L.  G.  Lloyd,  Miss  A.  Thompson, 
Miss  E.  M.  Dowsett.  Miss  E.Holden.  Miss  F.  Lowe. 
Miss  M.  E.  Sharpe,  Miss  E.  L.  Millard,  Miss  E.  M. 
Bradshaw.  Miss  H.  Ison.  Mi»  D.  .Jones,  Miss  ^. 
Lindsay,  Miss  E.  Willes.  Miss  M.  Moore,  Miss  H. 
Eklmonds,  Miss  A.  E.  Alldritt,  Miss  A.  Kerslake, 
Miss  C.  Walker,  Miss  G.  Jackson,  Miss  A.  Hesketh, 
Miss  E.  Ashbany,  Miss  M.  Holberton. 

yurses:  Miss  M.  Burrows.  Miss  M.  Griffiths, 
Miss  M.  Smith,  Miss  M.  Donald,  Miss  M.  M. 
Gregg,  Miss  M.  T.  Shand,  Miss  L.  Allen,  Miss  C. 
Calev.  Miss  K.  Ccoke.  Miss  E.  Ellis.  Miss  H.  Gar- 
lick,"  Miss  B.  Jones,  Miss  E.  Oakden,  Miss  E.  M. 
Pollard,  Miss  B.  Sarsons,  Miss  A.  J.  Siddens.  Miss 

E.  Simpson,  Miss  E.  M.  Whaite,  Miss  B.  Child. 
Miss  M.  Mills,  Miss  A.  L.  Fowler,  Miss  P.  Tucker, 
Miss  A.  Hiscock,  Miss  E.  Williams,  Miss  W.  Fer- 
guson, Miss  A.  G.  Barnes,  Miss  A.  B.  Beeton,  Miss 
M.  Broadbent,  Miss  E.  F.  Colburn.  Miss  H.  G. 
Gumming,  Miss  S.  A.  Rogers,  Miss  A.  R.  Brown, 
Miss  E.  M.  Wedderburn,  Miss  H.  Carlsson,  Miss 
M.  H.  Holt,  iliss  N.  A.  Fellows,  Miss  E.  V.  D. 
von  Schneider,  Miss  E.  M.  Harris,  Miss  F.  L.  H. 
Wilson,  Miss  L.  Biggs,  Miss  A.  Butler,  Miss  E. 
Gall,  Miss  Ethel  Humphreys.  Miss  M.  Lindon,  Miss 
M  Williams,  Miss  A.  Biggs,  Miss  E.  AValker,  Miss 
K  Denning,  Miss  A.  Acton,  Miss  A.  Broadfoot, 
Miss  0.  Donnell,  Miss  A.  Green.  Miss  J.  Macleod, 
Miss  J.  Greatorex,  Miss  E.  A.  Hall,  Miss  K. 
Hornbv,  Miss  C.  Smith,  Miss  M.  Ramsey,  Miss  B. 
Evans."  Miss  E.   B.    Healey,   Miss   G.    Wild.    Miss 

F.  Williams,  Miss  E.  M.  Deakins,  Miss  R.  Day, 
Miss  F.  Taylor,  Miss  E.  Parsons.  Miss  M.  Delany, 
Miss  M.  Hamilton,  Miss  M.  Clernoes,  Miss  E. 
Cleaver,  Miss  M.  Brocksopp,  Miss  A.  M.  Chambers, 
Miss  G.  E.  Toming,  Miss  L.  M.  Watts,  Miss  L. 
Hill,  Miss  J.  H.  Branson,  Miss  A.  Reade,  Miss  A. 
Staite,  Miss  E.  M.  Harrison,  Miss  L.  G.  Smith, 
Miss  B.  L.  Cheeseraan.  Miss  M.  H.  Holland.  Miss 
E    Smith,  Miss  F.  C.  Skinner. 

Miss  Haldane  took  part  in  the  ceremony  and 
si>oke  with  her  usual  inspiring  eloquence. 


352 


^be  Britfsb  3ournal  oi  iRureing. 


I  April  30,  1910 


Zbc  £100  IReQistration  jfunb.      Zbc  IHurses'  flDissionav^  Xeague. 


"85 


s.  d. 


Brought  forward 

Collecting  Cards. 

Name  of  Collector :  Miss  L.  A.  Dixon 

W.  M.  Ransom,  Esq 10     0 

Miss  Jane  Ransom  '  10     0 


Name  of  Collector  :  Miss  M.  Burr 
Mrs.  Sanderson 
Proceeds  of  Christmas  cookery. 

A  Friend  

Miss  Mathew 


Mrs.  Myers'  Cafe  Chantant 
Miss  S.  Grace  Tindall  (Bombay) 

Total      ...      ■    ... 


£1  10 

0 

10 

0 

6. 

6 

5 

0 

2 

6 

£1     4 

0 

.       7     0 

0 

5 

0 

£95     4     8 


jeyanunations  m\i>  Ipriscs. 

ST.  BARTHOLOMEW'S  HOSPITAL.  LONDON. 

At  the  final  examination  oi  nurses  at  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital,  last  week,  27 
nurses  gained  the  certificate  of  the  hospital. 
Miss  Gladys  Margaret  Simms  headed  the  list 
and  will  be  awarded  the  Gold  Medal  given  by 
the  Clothworkers'  Company.  The  following  is 
the  list  of  new  graduates: — (1)  G.  M.  Simms, 
(2)  J.  McGregor  and  H.  M.  Serace  (bracketed 
equal),  (3)  I.  M.  Symonds,  (4)  R.  V.  Irvin, 
(5)  F.  S.  Oldfield.  (6)  E.  M.  Hobday,  (7)  A.  O. 
:\Ianson,  (8)  G.  Farquhar,  (9)  B.  M.  E.  Hes- 
kette,  (10)  F.  O'Connor,  (11)  M.  Maclaverty, 
A.  M.  Newth  and  H.  M.  Watt  (bracketed 
equal),  (12)  G.  Richardson,  (18)  M.  M.  Davis, 
(14)  M.  K.  Minet,  (15)  T.  D.  W.  Lewin,  (16) 
E.  I.  Little,  (17)  E.  Dearberg,  (18)  E.  Hall, 
(19)  M.  Drury  and  R.  McEwan  (bracketed 
equal),  (20)  G.  Cowhn,  (21)  F.  M.  Loveband, 
(22)  M.  C.  Barker,  and  G.  K.  S.  Robson 
(aegrotat). 

Miss  W.  Holt  headed  the  list  of  the  36  nurses 
who  passed  the  first  year's  examination  for 
probationary  nurses,  and  gained  the  Cloth- 
workers'  Company's  prize  of  books. 


RICHMOND   HOSPITAL,   DUBLIN. 

The  Chairman  of  the  Richmond  Hospital, 
Dubhn,  Mr.  Richard  Jones,  last  week  pre- 
sented the  prizes  given  by  the  one  lady  mem- 
ber of  the  Board,  Mrs.  M'Dowel  Cosgrave,  to 
the  nurses  whose  departments  gave  evidence  of 
the  best  care  and  attention  for  twelve  months. 
The  prizes  were  gained  by  Miss  Raleigh,  Chai-ge 
Nurse,  and  Miss  Clara  Willis,  first  class  nurse. 


The  «igbtii  annual  Coufereuce  of  the  Nunses' 
Missionary  League  was  held  at  Univeraity  Ball, 
Gordon  oquare,  W.C.,  on  Saturday,  April  23rd. 
Three  sessions  were  held  during  the  day. 

At  the  morning  session  Nurse  Hoj^e  Bell,  who  was 
to  have  taken  the  chair  and  read  a  paper,  was  un- 
able to  be  present,  and  her  paper  was  read  by  Miss 
Macfee.  Several  other  papere  were  read  dealing 
with  "  What  the  Nurses'  Missionary  League  Stands 
For."  Some  amusement  was  caused  by  the  state- 
ment that  two  were  written  by  close  "  chums  "  from 
opposite  points  of  view.  An  informal  discussion 
then  took  place  upon  the  methods  of  making  the 
League  known  and  drawing  in  fresh  members.  It 
was  generally  agreed  it  was  better  to  interest  the 
nui-ses  who  were  not  keen  on  missionary  work  by 
means  of  working  parties,  talks,  pnayer  for  and 
with  them,  before  urging  membership. 

Miss  Fail-field  gave  a  short  address  ujpon  ' '  Dis- 
cipleship,"  in  which  she  ix)inted  out  that  all  the 
world's  evil  which  weighed  so  heavily  upon  the 
earnest  Christian  worker  could  only  be  swept  away 
by  Chri.">t's  own  metJiod  as  given  in  the  Sermon  on 
the  Mount. 

Tlie  afternoon  session  was  of  a  more  social 
character.  In  the  absence  of  Miss  Lea  Wilson  Mi's. 
Douglas  Thornton  gave  a  short  a<ldre,ss  also  upon 
"  Disciplesihip  and  its  Claims  upon  Member's." 

Music  was  provided  by  students  of  Ti'inity  College 
of  Music,  by  kind  permission  of  the  Directore. 

Tlie  earlier  part  of  the  evening  meeting  was  de- 
voted to  business,  and  in  moving  the  adoption  of 
the  annual  report  Mr.  McAdam  Eccles,  Chairman, 
drew  the  attention  of  the  meeting  to  the  wonderful 
increase  in  the  numlier  of  nui'ses  working  in  the 
mission  field,  during  the  past  five  years  it  had  been 
nearly  doubled.  Five  years  ago  only  10  member's  of 
theN.M.L.  were  working  abroad  ;  now  there  are  94 
memliera,  29  having  sailed  during  the  past  year. 
The  financial  condition  of  the  League  was  also  satis- 
faotoi-y.  A  member  had  generously  given  £34  to  be 
used  as  a  loan  to  missionary  candidates  for  further 
traihing. 

Miss  De  Lasalle  then  gave  a  short  account  of  her 
recent  northern  tour.  In  one  hospital  the  Matron 
gladly  accepted  the  opportunity  the  meeting  gave 
of  urging  her  nurses  to  come  out  as  earnest  Chris- 
tian women.  A  thrill  of  surprise  and  shame  ran 
through  the  meeting  when  .she  said  that  in  .several 
hospitals  Matrons,  Sisters,  and  nurses  told  her  they 
did  not  know  nurses  were  needed  for  mission  work, 
or  that  there  were  any  mission  hospitals.  The  re- 
sult of  her  tour  was  17  volunteers  and  17  home 
workers. 

The  World  Aspect  of  Missions  was  next  dealt  with 
by  Mr.  Lunt,  who  compared  nurses  with  soldiers, 
always  ready  to  go  anywhere  at  the  call  of  duty, 
eager  to  go  where  the  work  was  hardest  and  the 
fight  hottest.  He  said  looking  to  the  East  it  was 
difficult  to  realise  what,  was  happening  there; 
China  had  awakened,  and  was  looking  round  to  see 
what  place  she  was  going  to  take  among  the  na- 
tions.    There  was  the  consciousness  of  something 


April  30,  lUlOj 


abc  36riU3b  3oiunal   of  IHureino 


353 


stiiriug  iiuiong  other  nations — Japau,  Korea,  Siam, 
Persia,  Turkey,  also  among  those  of  our  own  Em- 
pire, India  and  Africa;  these  countries  were  being 
reborn ;  to-day  they  w  ere  in  a  plastic  state  and  be- 
cause we  Westerners  are  ahead  they  were  willing  to 
be  lead  by  us,  and  the  part  they  will  play  depends 
upon  tho  action  of  Englisli  [M'ople. 

God  speaks  through  circumstances,  and  streaked 
through  the  waves  of  oijportunity  is  the  slow  pre- 
paration, then  comes  the  great  opportunity,  and 
Christ  comes  to  His  own.  He  offers  us  a  big  chance 
now  to  do  something  for  Him  :  to  serve.  He  illus- 
trated the  importance  of  accepting  opportunity  by 
Matthew's  call  and  Pilate's  ilioision,  and  spoke  of 
the  necessity  of  well  considering  the  cost  and  de- 
ciding without  haste,  ending  l)y  saying  that  the 
growth  of  the  early  Cliristian  Church  was  due  to 
the  lives  of  the  rank  and  file  rather  than  to  the 
apostles  and  m,artyrs. 

The  Chairman  also  spoke  of  the  necessity  of  being 
ready  to  give  to  Cliina  and  Japan  something  in 
place  of  the  rationalistic  views  which  were  replac- 
ing their  old  religion. 

By  many  little  stories  grave  and  gay  the  Rev.  H. 
G.  Peile  pointed  out  the  effect  upon  the  individual 
life  of  the  knowledge  of  God  and  the  resultant  re- 
sponsibilities, taking  St.  Paul  as  a  concrete  ex- 
ample who  was  spoken  to  by  Christ  on  the  road 
to  Damascus.  When  Paul  received  the  knowledge 
of  Christ,  he  instantly  surrendered  himself — Self 
.Surrender — and  asked  :  "Lord,  what  wilt  Thou  have 
me  to  do?  " — ■"  Service."  The  knowledge  of  God 
brings  the  readiness  to  serve,  which  all  could  do  n 
the  hospital  ward  at  home  as  well  as  abroad,  and 
his  final  piece  of  advice  was:  '"  Serve  God  and  keep 
cheerful." 

Mary  Burr. 


Hppointments. 

Matrons. 

Tooting  Bee  Asylum. — Miss  Ethel  S.  Rose  has  been 
appointed  Matron.  .She  was  trained  at  the  Brad- 
ford Union  Hospital,  and  has  held  the  positions  of 
AVard  Sister  at  the  East  Riding  Asylum,  York- 
shire, for  one  year,  and  of  Night  Sister  at  the 
Eastville  Infirmary,  Bristol,  for  a  similar  period. 
.She  has  also  had  eighteen  months'  experience  of 
privat-o  nursing  in  connection  with  the  Victoria 
Nursing  Homo,  Harrogate. 

Victoria  Hoepital,  Keighley. — Miss  Emily  E.  Fletcher 
has  been  api)oint«l  Matron.  She  was  trained  at 
tho  Royal  Allx>rt  E<lwar<l  Infirmary,  Wigan,  where 
she  has  held  the  positions  of  Night  Sister,  Ward 
Sister,   Tlicatre   Sister,   and   Assistant  Matron. 

The  Nationai  Sanatorium,  Benenden,  Kent.  —Miss  E. 
Koikes  has  been  appointed  Matron.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Manchester  Children's  Hospital, 
Pendlebury.  and  subsequently  held  the  following 
positions:  Sister,  medical  and  surgical  wards,  and 
home  and  theatre  at  the  same  hospital ;  Matron, 
Manchester  Hospital  for  Consumption,  Bowden, 
Cheshire;  and  Matron,  Crossley  .Sanatorium,  Dele- 
mere  Forest,  Cheshire. 


Swansea  and  South  Wales  Nursing  Association.  —  Miss 
Jean  Gilfen  has  been  appointed  Matron.  She  was 
trained  at  the  Royal  Hospital  for  Sick  Children, 
Edinburgh,  and  has  held  the  position  of  Sister  at 
the  Norfolk  and  Norwich  Hospital,  Sister  at  the 
Swansea  General  and  Eye  Hospital,  Night  Superin- 
tendent at  Darlington  Fever  Hospital,  Ward  Sister, 
Home  Sister,  and  Assistant  Matron  at  the  Man- 
chester Children's  Hospital,   Pendlebury. 

NURSE-M.VTRON. 

Isolation  Hospital,  Bognor. — Miss  S.  A.  Mountford 
has  been  appointed  Nurse-Matron.  She  was 
trained  at  the  St.  Marylebone  Infirmary,  London, 
and  has  held  the  position  of  Sister  at  Nover's  Hill 
Hospital,  and  of  Night  Sister  at  the  Borough  Fever 
Hospital,    Deane,   Bolton. 

Assi8T.\NT  ^Matrons. 

Manchester  Children's  Hospital,  Pendlebury. —  Miss 
Bessie  Morris  has  been  appointed  Assistant  Matron. 
She  was  trained  at  the  Wirral  Children's  Hospital, 
Birkenhead,  and  the  General  Infirmary,  Leeds,  and 
has  held  the  positions  of  Staff  Nurse  at  the  Jenny 
Lind  Hospital,  Norwich;  Sister  at  the  Royal  In- 
finnai-y,  Bradfoi-d ;  and  of  Night  Superintendent 
and  Home  Sister  at  the  Manchester  Children's  Hos- 
pital, Pendlebury. 

General  Infirmary,  Oldham. — Miss  Catherine  Suther- 
land has  been  appointed  .\ssistant  Matron.  She 
was  trained  at  the  West  Ixtndon  Hospital,  Ham- 
mersmith, where  she  afterwards  held  the  position 
of  Sister.  She  has  since  held  the  position  of  Night 
Superintendent  at  the  General  Infirmary,  Oldham. 
Matron's  Assistant. 

Leicester  Infirmary,  Leicester. — Miss  Catherine  Agnes 
Lade  has  been  appointed  Matron's  Assistant  at 
the  Leicester  Infirmary.  She  was  trained  at  the 
Royal  Hospital  for  Sick  Children,  Glasgow,  for 
three  years,  and  received  her  general  training  at 
the  Leicester  Infirinary,  remaining  on  afterwards 
as  Sister.  In  January,  1905,  she  joined  tho  staff 
of  the  Registered  Nurses'  Society,  London,  mem- 
bership of  which  she  resigns,  to  return  to  the  post 
offered  to  her  in  the  former  training  school. 
Sister. 

Royal  United  Hospital,  Bath.— Miss  Dorothy  K.  Okey 
has  been  appointed  Sister.  She  was  trained  at  the 
lk>yal  Unitod  Hospital,  where  she  has  acted  as 
Holiday  Sister,  and  was  gold  medallist  of  her  year. 
She  has  also  been  Sister  at  the  Hertford  British 
Hospital,  Paris. 

General  Hospital,  Northampton. — -Miss  Edith  Stutta- 
ford  has  been  appointed  Sister  of  a  men's  medical 
ward.  She  was  trained  at  the  Metropolitan  Hospi- 
tal, N.E.,  and  has  held  the  position  of  temporary 
Night  Sister  at  the  Infants'  Hospital,  Vincent 
.Square,  S.W.,  and  of  Ward  Sister  at  Ivord  Mayor 
Treloar's  Cripples'  Home  and  College,  Alton.  She 
is  a  certified  midwife. 


QUEEN  VICTORIA  S  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
Transfers  and  Appoiiitmenfs. — Mis-s  Martha 
Mearns,  to  Bury;  Miss  Adelaide  Morson,  to  Mal- 
vern Link ;  Miss  Ellen  Knowles,  to  Caldervale; 
Miss  Katherine  Candy,  to  Chepstow;  Miss  Ellen 
Johnson,  to  ijeicester. 


354 


Z.\yc  Bvit'sb  Journal  of  IRiirstnq. 


[April  30,  iniO 


HAursincj  lEcboes. 

At  the  soii-ee  aunuiillT  held 
iu  counection  with  the  Ban- 
gor District  Nursing  Insti- 
tute, a  resolution  expressing 
deep  regret  at  the  death  of 
Miss  Hughes  of  Bryn  Menai 
was  passed.  Miss  Hughes 
devised  her  beautiful  place  to 
the  Queen  Victoria  Nurses' 
Institute,  together  with  a 
handsome  legacy,  for  its 
maintenance.  It  was  also 
after  ten  years'  faithful 
Walmsley,  owing  to  failing 
health,  had  felt  compelled  to  leave  Bangor.  As 
an  expression  of  appreciation  of  her  services, 
she  was  presented  with  a  gold  watch  and  chain 
and  an  illuminated  card  containing  the  names 
of  the  subscribers. 

A  booklet  containing  "  Simple  Instructions 
for  the  Laying  Out  of  the  Dead,"  intended  for 
the  untrained  person  who  may  find  herself  un- 
expectedly called  upon  to  care  for  the  dead, 
has  been  written,  and  is  supplied,  by  two 
Queen's  Nurses,  40,  Onslow  Road,  Richmond, 
Surrey,  price  lid.  post  free.  It  has  a  short 
preface  by  the  Rev.  E.  F.  Russell. 


reijorted      that 
service    Nurse 


The  foundation  stone  has  been  laid  by  the 
Bishop  of  Cloyne  at  Queenstown  of  a  Home  for 
the  community  of  nuns  (Bon  Secours),  who 
work  and  nurse  amongst  the  sick  jjoor.  Cap- 
tain W.  H.  Rushbrook  has  given  £500  and  the 
site  for  the  institution  north  of  the  Cathedral. 


Two  of  the  nurses  of  the  Order — for  they  are 
highly-trained  nurses — will  be  at  all  times 
specially  reserved  for  the  poor  for  nursing  them 
in  their  own  homes,  in  which  blessed  occupa- 
tion they  will  have  more  than  enough  to  do, 
but  others  will  be  provided  for  the  object  if 
necessary.  The  Sisters  will  be  at  the  disposal 
of  the  doctors.  Catholic  and  non-Catholic. 
They  will  be  also  at  the  call  of  the  poor  them- 
selves whenever  sent  for,  and  the  priest  or  Pro- 
testant clerg3^man  who  approaches  them  will 
find  them  in  readiness  to  attend  any  call  of 
Catholic  or  non-Catholic,  and  if  called  to  a  non- 
Catholic  the  Bishop  undertakes  that  they  will 
strictly  confine  their  services  to  nursing,  and 
will  not  interfere  with  the  religious  convictions 
of  those  who  are  not  members  of  the  Catholic 
Church. 


of  the  Convent  of  the  Faithful  Virgin,  Nor- 
wood, has,  tlie  Daily  Telegraph  an- 
nounces, just  celebrated  the  diamond  jubilee 
of  her  religious  profession.  It  was  in  the  year 
1854  that  the  War  Office  appealed  to  Bisiiop 
Grant  of  Southwark  for  ten  Sisters  of  Mercy, 
and  as  only  five  could  be  spared  from  Ber- 
mondsey,  he  appealed  to  Norw-ood  for  the  rest. 
The  Superior  immediately  volunteered,  and 
the  Sisters  eagerly  desired  to  be  selected.  The 
decision  was  made  on  a  Saturday,  and  on  the 
Monday  following,  October  23rd,  1854,  the  Sis- 
ters started  on  their  memorable  journey,  cross- 
ing from  Folkestone  to  Boulogne,  and  then  em- 
barking from  Marseilles  in  the  "Vectis,"  which 
Mother  St.  George  recalls  was  nearly  wrecked 
in  the  Dardanelles.  On  their  arrival  she 
worked  with  Miss  Nightingale  at  Scutari,  and 
has  the  most  pleasant  memories  of  her  kind- 
ness. Only  last  year  on  this  memorable  anni- 
versary Mother  St.  George  wrote  to  Miss 
Nightingale  and  received  a  gratifying  reply. 


Besides  her  work  in  the  Crimea,  she  ha.?, 
worked  in  France,  the  West  Indies,  and  at 
Folkestone,  and  has  now  returned  to  Norwood 
to  the  joy  of  the  children  there.  On  the  occa- 
sion of  her  diamond  jubilee.  Archbishop  Bourne 
called  upon  her,  and  the  Pqpe  sent  congratula- 
tions. Two  others  of  the  little  band  of  Sisters 
of  Mercy  who  saw  service  in  the  Crimea  are 
Mother  Mary  Stanilaus  and  Mother  Anastasia, 
who  are  both  now  at  the  Hospital  of  St.  .John 
and  St.  Ehzabeth. 

We  congratulate  the  Matron  and  nursing 
staff  of  the  Essex  County  Hospital,  Colchester, 
who  at  one  o'clock  on  Sunday  morning 
promptly  dealt  with  an  outbreak  of  fire  in  the 
IJathological  block.  A  night  nurse  gave  the 
alarm  to  the  rest  of  the  staff,  and  under  the 
direction  of  the  Matron,  Miss  Bannister,  and 
with  the  assistance  of  the  dispenser,  Miss 
Cassie,  the  nurses  proved  the  value  of  their 
training  in  fire  drill  to  such  good  purpose  that 
before  the  fire  brigade  arrived,  the  fire,  owing 
to  their  knowledge  and  good  discipline,  had 
been  extinguished. 


One   of  the   nurses   who   accompanied  Miss 
Nightingale  to  the  Crimea,  Mother  St.  George 


Dr.  Anna  Hamilton  and  the  Directors  of  the 
Maison  de  Sant6  Protestante,  Bordeaux,  are  to 
be  congratulated  on  the  very  mteresting  re- 
port, which  is  always  a  record  of  progress,  just 
issued  for  1909.  The  Secretary's  report  refers 
to  the  generous  gift  of  Mile.  Bryant,  a  former 
pupil  and  soiis  cheftaine,  who,  when  recalled 
home  for  family  reasons,  made  a  gift  of  20,000 
francs,  the  interest  of  which  is  to  be  used  to 
double  the  salaries  of  the  two  staff  nurses. 
Miss  Bryant  desired  to  improve  the  financial 


April  !),  miOJ 


Cbc  Brtttsb  3ournal  of  IRursincj. 


355 


position  of  the  staff  nurses,  iiiul  to  ensure  to  the 
Directrice  well  qualified  assistants. 

Dr.  Hamilton,  in  her  report,  pays  a  high 
tribute  to  ]\Iiss  Bryant's  work,  and  to  the  faith- 
fulness with  which  she  discharged  evsry  small 
duty.  She  adds,  "  She  knows  my  gratitude, 
but  I  could  not  let  this  occasion  pass  without 
e.xpressing  it  officially." 

During  the  year  six  new  graduates  have  been 
added  to  the  lunnber  of  nurses  certificated  by 
the  hospital,  in  all  49,  several  of  whom  hold 
the  position  of  Directrice  in  various  French 
hospitals.  Special  care  is  taken  to  prepare  the 
pupils  during  their  training  to  fill  these  impor- 
tant posts,  and  instruction  is  given  in  adminis- 
trative work,  and  by  Mile.  Schweighaiiser  in 
dcmestic  management. 

Miss  Edith  Gregory,  who  now  holds  the 
position  of  Sister  in  the  hospital,  writes  happily 
of  the  work.  She  reports  that  the  pupil 
niu'ses  are  ver3'  intelligent  and  well  educated, 
work  very  hard,  and  are  very  capable. 
They  are  keen  to  be  taught  anything  new.  Miss 
(iregory    speaks    of    Dr.    Hamilton's  work    as 

marvellous."  She  is  very  interested  in  the 
variety  of  food  provided  for  the  patients,  and 
in  the  way  in  which  it  is  served.  We  have  al- 
luded before  to  the  capacity  of  "  Mme. 
Econome  "  in  the  Bordeaux  hospitals.  We 
have  no  one  quite  like  her  in  mis  country. 


K.B.X..\.,  and  that  valiant  "  anti,"  the  Hon. 
Sydney  Holland,  will  act  as  spokesman  for 
the  opposition.  It  would  be  altogether  more 
seemly  if  an  opposing  JMatrou  would  come  out 
in  the  open  and  discuss  the  pros,  and  cons,  of 
this  professional  question  with  her  colleagues. 
As  the  employer  of  the  most  lucrative  nursing 
staf?  in  the  Metropolis,  the  Chairman  of  the 
London  Hospital  is  always  at  a  disadvantage, 
as  .so  long  as  huge  profits  are  made  by  diverting 
the  greater  part  of  the  private  nurses'  fees  to 
the  general  puqjoses  of  the  hospital,  he  can 
never  convince  trained  nurses  who  are 
business  women  that  they  are  not  despei-ately 
in  need  of  State  registration  and  protection. 

Anyway,  we  presume  there  are  some  stal- 
wart bobbies  about  in  the  vicinity  of  Vincent 
Square  on  Saturday  nights  I 


The  Garde  Maladc  Hospiialicrc  announces 
the  formation  of  a  new  section  of  the  "  Union 
Girondine  Anti-alcoolique  "  for  hospital 
nurses,  founded  by  a  group  of  nurses  who 
realise  the  social  duties  which  this  honourable 
title  imposes  on  them.  Our  contemporary 
warirdj-  supports  the  new  movement,  and  pub- 
lishes a  report  of  a  lecture  given  by  a  member 
of  the  conmiittec  of  the  Union  to  the  pupils  of 
the  Bordeaux  Schools,  as  a  result  of  which 
sixty  applications  for  membership  were  at  once 
received.  The  new  association  is  designed  to 
interest  nurses  in  one  of  the  gravest  problems 
of  the  present  time,  the  struggle  against 
inebriety,  and  to  enable  them  to  take  an  effec- 
tive part  in  it.  The  obligations  of  those  who 
join  the  association  are  to  pay  a  small  subscrip- 
tion and  to  promote  its  propaganda  on  all  pos- 
sible occasions. 


Cbe  Burnina  <3iuc0tion. 

On  Saturday,  the  30th  April,  at  7  p.m.,  the 
burning  question  of  the  State  Eegistration  of 
Trained  Nurses  will  be  under  discussion  at  the 
Conference  at  the  Horticultural  Hall,  Vincent 
Square.  S.W.  The  Session  will  open  with  a 
Paper  in  support  of  reform  by  ]Miss  A.  Hobbs, 


practical  Scbeinc  for  1Rc^  Cross 
Morh. 


Next  week  We  shall  publish  an  admirably 
practical  article  by  Mrs.  Netteryille  Barron,  of 
Ascot,  and  a  member  of  the  Leicester  Infirmary 
Nurses'  League,  suggesting  a  "  Scheme  for  the 
Organisation  and  Proper  Management  of  the 
Work  now  being  undertaken  by  the  Branches 
of  the  Royal  Red  Cross  Society." 

It  is  a  very  suggestive  scheme,  and  just  what 
is  required  to  encourage  volunteers  to  come 
forward  who  will  be  allotted  duties  and  taught 
how  to  perform  them. 


H  terrible  ^raocMv 

Our  amiouiK-oiiR'iit  last  week  of  the  sudden  deatli 
of  Mrs.  Hampton  llobb,  which  occurred  on  Satur- 
day, April  16tb,  aroused  the  very  deepest  sympathy 
with  her  colleagues  and  family  amongst  her  friends 
in  this  country.  The  sad  manner  of  her  death 
has  now  become  known.  In  attempting  to  cross 
the  electric  car  tracks  at  Cleveland,  U.S.A.,  the 
city  in  which  she  resided,  and  to  avoid  an  auto- 
mobile she  stepped  on  to  wliat  is  known  as  the 
"  devil's  strip,"  hoping  that  there  would  be  room 
to  stand,  but  this  being  too  narrow  she  was  caught 
and  cruslied  between  two  cars.  AVhen  released 
she  was  unconscious,  and  closed  her  eyes  in  death 
as  she  was  lifted  into  the  automobile  to  be  taken 
to  St.  Luke's  Hospital,  where  it  wa.«  found  that  the 
vital  organs  of  the  chest  wore  mortally   injured. 

Tlie  friend  who  was  with  her,  in  the  emergency 
stepped  forward  instead  of  backward,  and,  al- 
though incapacitated  by  shock,  mercifully  received 
no  injury. 

.Mrs.  liobb's  funeral  took  place  at  her  birtliplace, 
Weliand,  Ontario,  Canada,  on  Tuesday,  April  19th, 
and  indescribable  grief  at  the  manner  of  her  tragic 
death  overshadows  the  whole  American  nursing 
world. 


356 


Cbe   Britisb  3ournal  of    :rtursinq.       [Aphiso.  loio 


^bc  1binM3cab  IHursiiuj  Iboine. 

The  ^latron  oi  the  Hindhead  Nursing  Home, 
Miss  Wortabet  (member  of  the  Matrons' 
Council)  may  well  be  proud  of  having  attained 
the  nearest  approach  to  perfection  which  has 
yet  been  reached  in  England  with  regard  to 
home  hospitals. 

The  Home  was  built  for  the  purpose,  and  is 
situated  amidst  the  most  beautiful  scenery,  850 
feet  above  the  sea  level. 

Forests  of  pine  trees,  heaths  covered  with 
bracken,  heather,  gorse,  and  cranberrj-  bushes. 


all  parts  to  receive  the  treatment,  together 
w  ith  the  benefit  of  the  bracing  air. 

The  Sister  in  charge  and  one  of  the  nurses 
are  both  nurse-masseuses  and  electricians,  and 
all  the  other  nurses  are  chosen  for  the  special 
requirements  of  the  Home  and  cases. 

The  Dowsing  radiant  heat  and  light  baths 
have  proved  particularly  beneficial  to  cases  of 
neuritis,  all  forms  of  rheumatism,  and  skin, 
and  kidney  cases.  The  bath  consists  of  a  com- 
fortable bed,  surrounded  by  specially  made  re- 
flectors, thus  diffusing  and  projecting  the  elec- 
tric heat  on  to  the  body  (which  is  covered  in), 


The   Hindhead   Nursing   Home,    Surrey. 


distant  views  oi  Frensham,  Aldershot,  and  the 
Surrey  hills,  bring  joy  and  hope  to  the  jiatients 
airiving  at  the  home  for  treatment  and  rest. 

An  operating  theatre ;  an  electrical  depart- 
ment fitted  up  with  the  Dowsing  radiant  heat 
and  light  baths,  high  frequency  and  vibrator; 
verandahs  and  Boulton  sheds  complete  all  the 
requirements  for  surgical,  medical,  nerve,  and 
convalescent  cases. 

Cases  of  pulmonary  tuberculosis,  and  mental 
and  infectious  cases  are  not  admitted. 

The  electrical  department  is  quite  a  feature 
oI  the  Home,  as  many  nerve  cases  arrive  from 


a  regulator  controlling  and  ensuring  heat  up  to 
400  degs.  Fahr. 

The  projecting  reflectors  can  be  covered  with 
different  coloured  glass  such  as  red,  green,  or 
blue,   should  the  doctors  order  them. 

The  Home  is  ojien  to  all  the  profession,  and 
the  greatest  London  specialists  send  their 
patients  to  it  where  they  are  under  the  care 
of  ph_ysiciaus  and  surgeons  of  high  standing. 

There  are  ten  private  wards,  drawing-room, 
and  lounge,  apart  from  the  verandahs  and 
sheds  where  the  patients  lie  and  take  their 
meals  in  the  open  air. 


April  30,  1010] 


tti5C  Brltisb  jti^'iHHal  of  IHurslng. 


357 


Miss  Woitabet's  fees  are  iuclusive,  and 
range  from  £6  6s.  upwards,  but  she  receives  a 
limited  number  of  gentlepcople,  who  would 
•otherwise  be  compelled  to  deprive  themselves 
of  treatment  through  lack  of  mearfs,  at  re- 
duced fees.  This  remains  a  private  matter, 
and  they  are  treated  with  the  same  courtesy 
and  consideration  as  all  who  enter  the  home. 
This  cannot  fail  to  be  a  great  boon  to  patients 
so  generously  treated. 

The  house  is  lighted  throughout  with  elec- 
tricity, and  a  certificated  nurse  lady  cook  com- 
pletes her  staff. 

Surely  the  material,  scientific,  and  artistic 
elements  are  happily  combined  in  this  charming 
home,  and  Miss  Wortabet  is  thus  in  a  small 
way  attaining  the  ideal  she  has  set  before  her- 
self for  several  years  past. 

Zbc  Ipassiiui  Bell. 

We  greatly  regret  to  record  the  death  of  Mrs. 
AVilson  (iiri-  Eames),  who  was  a  certificated  nurse, 
and  gold  moilallist  of  St.  Bartliolomew's  Hospital, 
where  she  afterward*  was  api)oiivted  Xight  .Sister, 
and  later  Sister  of  John  Ward.  She  was  a  great 
favourite  in  the  hospital.  She  married  a 
brother  of  her  friend  and  colleague.  Sister  Eliza- 
beth (Mrs.  Arkwright).  a  house  master  at  Rugby, 
where  she  was  very  popular  with  the  boys.  Much 
sympathy  will  be  felt  with  her  husband  in  his 
bereavement.  Mrs.  Wilson  succumbed  to  an  attack 
of  enteric  fever,  which  she  contracted  while  away 
from  home. 


{practical  lEybiDits  tov  IRuvscs. 

Amongst  the  many  exhibits  of  interest  at  the 
Midwifery  and  Nursing  Exhibition,  at  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Hall,  Vincent  Square,  S.W.,  this 
week,  nurses  and  midwives  should  make  a  point 
of  visiting  the  following  stands :  — 

Xewton  Chambers  .\N'n  Co.,  331,  Gray's  Inn 
Road,  AV.C.  (Stand  •2a),  whore  all  the  Izal  disin- 
fectants and  specialities  are  on  view — soap,  izal 
cream,  etc.  A  jjuide  to  practical  disinfection  can 
be  obtained  at  the  stand. 

W.  H.  Bailey  .4ND  Son,  Ltd.,  38,  Oxford  Street, 
W.  (Stand  3a).  Here  is  to  be  seen  a  new  bed-pan 
(the  Belgrave),  very  light,  compact,  practical,  and 
<;heap;  the  Liberator,  which  can  be  used  in  place 
of  a  razor,  and  doe's  its  work  exactly ;  a  new  style 
'of  Queen's  bag,  "  The  Irfiproved  Congress,''  in 
which  the  weight  has  been  still  further  reduced ; 
'  Isola "  flasks  for  keeping  liquids  hot  for  24 
hours;  the  Dilworth  glass  jar;  cotton  wool  scissors; 
a  copper  steriliser,  costing  6s. ;  and  many  other 
interesting  exhibits. 

BovBiL.  Ltd.,  1.52,  Old  Street,  E.C.  (Stand  8a), 
are  showing  their  well-known  preparations. 
Invalid  Bovril,  which  is  unseasoned,  and  ordinary 
Bovril. 

Lewis  and  Burrows,  146,  Holborn  Bars,  E.C. 
<Stand   17a),   have  an   exhibit  of  their   celebrated 


Toilet  Specialities  and  Sick  Room  Requisites, 
many  of  which  they  are  selling  at  reduced  prices 
during  the  exhibition,  instead  of  giving  away 
samples;  thus  their  "  Nurse  "  Clinical  Thermome- 
ter may  be  purchased  at  Is.  and  9d.,  instead  of  the 
usual  prices  at  Is.  6d.  and  Is. 

Faircuij.d  Bros,  and  Foster,  64-6.5,  Holborn 
'Viaduct,  E.C.  (Stand  19a),  are  making  a  special 
display  of  their  well  known  and  highly  valued  pre- 
parations, Panopcpton  (soluble  lean  beef,  and  wheat 
flour),  Pepscnica,  Peptogonic  Milk  Powder  for 
making  fresh  humanised  milk,  and  Zymine  Pepto- 
nising  Tubes,  for  peptonising  milk. 

John  Bell  and  Croyden,  Ltd.,  50,  Wigmore 
Street,  W.  (Stand  23a),  are  showing  a  scale  model 
of  their  sterilising  rooms,  as  well  as  complete 
operating  sets  to  be  had  on  hire,  and  the  complete 
dressings  for  any  given  operation,  sterilised  and 
hermetically  sealed.  We  refer  to  this  firm  else- 
where. 

The  Gas  Light  and  Coke  Co.,  Horseferry  Road, 
Westminster  (Stand  2.5a),  have  an  interesting 
exhibit  of  their  gas  fires,  cooking  stoves,  and  cir- 
culators, califonts,  and  geysers,  for  providing  a 
hot  water  supply. 

Welford  and  Sons,  Ltd.,  Elgin  Avenue,  Maida 
Vale.  W.  (Stand  39a),  are  making  a  speciality  of 
"■  sauermilch,"  prepared  with  organisms  recom- 
mended by  Professor  Metclinikoff,  and  sauermilch 
whey  and  cheese,  in  addition  to  humanised  milk 
and  other  well-known  preparations. 

Cadbury  Bros.,  Ltd.,  Bournville  i^.Stand  48a),  are 
exhibiting  their  delicious  cocoa  es,sence,  as  well 
as  their  various  confections,  which  are  known 
ihroughout  the  world. 

J.  and  J.  Taunton,  Ltd.,  Balsall  Heath  (Stand 
•jOa),  arc  showing  the  "  Elpis  "  Bed  Rest  and  Foot 
Rest,  designed  by  Miss  Huxley,  which  won  a  prize 
at  the  International  Nursing  Congress  Exhibition 
last  year. 

Garrould's,  150,  Edgware  Road,  W.  (btand  Ibl, 
are  showing  many  specialities,  and  they  have  also 
fitted  up  the  Large  Annexe  as  Day  and  Night 
Nurseries,  where  quaint  nursery  furniture  is  on 
view,  and  a  clothes  horse  which  excited  much  atten- 
tion. The  cosy  red  flannel  cape,  with  sleeves,  worn 
by  the  model  nurse  in  the  night  nursery  should  be 
inspected. 

Jeyes  Sanit.^ry  Compounds  Co.,  64,  Cannon 
Street,  E.C.  (Stand  3b),  have  secured  a  splendid 
position,  just  opposite  the  entrance,  for  the  display 
of  their  various  preparations  of  Cyllin.  School 
and  District  Nurses  should  specially  note  their 
soft  soap,  specially  recommended  as  cfiicacious  for 
removing  vermin. 

Coleman  .\nd  Co.,  Ltd.,  Norwich  (Stand  6t>>, 
are  showing  their  wine  tonic,  Wincarnis,  which  is 
well  known  to  nurses. 

The  Nursing  Press,  Ltd.,  11,  Adam  Street, 
Strand,  W.C.  (Stand  lib).  The  British  Journal  op 
Nursing  is  on  sale  at  this  Stand,  as  well  as  the 
Queen's  Nurses'  Mana^ine,  Miss  Lina  Mollett's 
new  poems,  "  The  Highway  of  the  Sun,"  the  paper 
on  "  Morality  in  Relation  to  Health,"  by  the  Hon. 
Albinia  Brodrick,  and  other  nursing  publications. 
Literature  in  relation  to  State  Registration  of 
Nurses  is  also  obtainable. 


3o3 


Z\K  Brittc^I)  3ournal  of  iRursing. 


[April  30,  1910 


Keen,  Robinson,  and  Co.,  Ltd.,  Denmark  Street, 
E.  (Stand  13b),  are  exhibiting  Robinson's  "Patent"' 
Barley  and  ''  Patent  •"'  Groats,  which  are  widely 
appreciated  by  nurses. 

^Iessbs.  Wells  and  Co.,  78,  Aldersgate  Street, 
E.C.  (Stand  27b),  manufacturers'  of  Nurses'  Cloaks 
and  Bouuets,  are  showing  all  their  well-known 
specialities,  and  especially  the  "  Dubleware  " 
Collar  Protector,  which  is  designed  to  prevent  the 
rapid  damage  caused  to  dresses  and  cloaks  by  the 
lineu  collar. 

Mme.  Kate  Camehon,  59,  South  Molton  Street, 
Mayfair,  W.  (Stand  28b),  a  hospital  certificated 
nurse,  is  exhibiting  her  patent  tielted  corset,  and 
ideal  maternity  corset.  Mme.  Cameron  stocks  com- 
fortable corsets  for  nurses  at  motlerate  prices. 

SoriHALL  Bros,  .and  Baecl.^t,  Ltd.,  Birmingham 
(Stand  39b),  should  certaiul.y  receive  a  visit  from 
visitoi-s  to  the  Exhibition.  Amongst  their  new  in- 
ventions is  a  very  convenient  suspender  for  their 
sanitary  towels.  An  excellent  nursing  apron  of 
flannel,  and  waterproof  material  attached,  will  com- 
mend itself  to  monthly  nurses  and  midwives,  and 
their  other  specialities  have  only  to  be  seen  to  be 
appreciated. 

The  Medical  .Scpplt  Association,  228,  Gray's 
Inn  Road,  W.C.  (Stand  43b),  are  showing  a  variety 
of  appliances  useful  to  nurses,  who  should  not  fail 
to  visit  this  stand.  Specially  noticeable  is  a  silver- 
plated  steriliser  which  by  means  of  tubing  can  be 
attached  to  an  ordinary  gas-burner.  The  "  Grevil- 
lite  "  specialities  are  also  noteworthy. 

J.  S.  Fky  and  Sons,  Ltd.,  Lever  Street,  E.G., 
chocolate  manufacturers,  and  makers  to  the  King 
and  Prince  of  Wales,  are  exhibiting  their  pure 
concentrated  cocoa,  malted  cocoa,  and  "  Five  Boys' 
Milk  Chocolate." 


A  very  interesting  exhibit  is  that  arranged  by 
the  Nurses'  Social  Union,  with  a  section  by  the 
Queen  Victoria  Jubilee  Institute.  On  the  walls 
are  striking  diagrams,  e.g..  of  a  sanitary  bottle  for 
an  infant,  and  the  one  with  a  long  tube  forbidden 
by  law  in  several  foreign  countries;  ''the  great 
disease  carrier "  (the  fly) ;  a  method  by  which 
adenoids  are   caused,   etc. 

Exhibits  which  attract  much  attention  are 
the  "  Baby  bin,''  which  is  made  of  quite  an  or- 
dinary crat-e,  and  used  at  first  as  a  cradle.  When 
the  child  is  older  an  ingenious  seat  and  sliding 
table  can  be  inserted,  and  the  child  amuses  itself 
happily  and  in  safety. 

The  chair  carrier,  invented  and  patented  by 
Miss  Sewart,  Queen's  Nurse,  can  be  adjusted  to 
any  chair,  by  means  of  notches  and  pins,  and  the 
handles  are  movable,  to  suit  both  level  ground 
and  stairs.  The  carrier  weighs  only  8  lb.,  and  has 
been  taken  on  a  bicycle  for  miles. 

An  ingenious  device  is  a  steam  kettle  for  an  Irish 
cabin,  arranged  by  one  of  Lady  Dudley's  Nurses. 
A  red  hot  peat  is  put  into  an  ordinary  pot,  first 
warmed  so  that  the  peat  does  not  smoke.  A  kettle 
filled  with  boiling  water  placed  on  the  peat  will 
keep  steam  for  hours. 

A  hat  with  veil  of  mosquito  netting,  and  talc 
window  inset  is  another  exhibit. 


St€dli6C^  Sfcssinos  for  piivatc 
IRurses. 

One  of  the  most  anxious  cares  of  the  Superin- 
t-endeut  of  a  nursing  home,  and  of  a  private  nurse, 
summoned  hurriedly  to  an  operation  case,  is  to  en- 
sure the  certain  sterilisation  of  the  dressings  for 
which  they  are  res[)onsible.  True  most  homes  have 
now  their  own  sterilisere  for  dressings  as  well  as  in- 
struments, but  the  smaller  sterilisei-s  have  not 
always  a  vacuum  producing  apparatus  sufficiently 
stix)ug  to  ensure  dressings  and  l>andages  being 
thoix>ughly  dried  after  sterilisation. 

One  of  Adam  Smith's  classic  arguments  for  the 
division  of  labour  is  that  "the  dexterity  of  tne 
workman  is  increased,"  and  this  is  true  of  the 
technical  work  of  sterilisation — both  machinery  an  I 
mechanic  come  nearest  perfection  when  constantly 
engaged  in  one  employment. 

Realising  this,  Messi^s.  Bell  and  Cixjyden,  of  50, 
Wigmore  Street,  W.,  in  the  heart  of  the  Nursing 
Home  district,  and  most  centrally  situated  for 
private  nui-ses,  have  made  a  speciality  of  supplying 
sterilised  dressings,  bandages,  aprons,  etc.,  and 
here,  at  any  hour  of  the  twenty-four,  they  may  be 
obtained  by  nurses  suddenly  summoned  to  cases  ui 
the  perfect  certainty  that  they  are  aseptic.  A  visit 
to  this  establishment  shows  Maiilore  and  AUiott's 
latest  tyi>e  of  high-pressure  autoclave  installed  in  a 
specially  designed  cham1>er,  glass-lined,  and  with 
rounded  corners.  The  dressings  sterilised  in  this 
disinfeotor  are  subjected  to  steam  for  30  minutes, 
at  22  lb.  vacuum  pressure,  at  a  temperature  of  at 
least  260  degs.  Fahr.  An  automatic  chart  registers 
the  pressure  and  length  of  time  in  the  chaml>er, 
and  there  is  a  counter  check  on  this  also.  Ihe 
dressings,  paeked  in  patent  metal  drums,  are  then 
removed  at  the  other  side  of  the  steriliser,  in  a 
sterile  room,  and  hermetically  sealed  under  abso- 
lutely aseptic  conditions.  A  great  advantage  is 
that  these  drums  are  so  inexpensive  that  they  can 
l>e  destroyed  after  use. 

Surgeons'  own  dressings  are  sterilised  and  kept 
re.ndy,  so  that  they  can  be  instantly  despatched  to 
any  address. 

In  addition  to  dressings,  complete  outfits  for 
aseptic  operations  can  be  supplied  on  hire  from 
21s.,  or  an  operating  table  only  from  7s.  6d,,  and 
the  messenger  will  place  the  table  in  position  for 
the  nurse  if  so  desired. 

The  firm  has  just  brought  out  a  folding  operating 
table  (the  Croyden),  which  seems  to  be  the  last 
word  in  strength,  portability,  lightness,  and  cheap- 
ness. It  is  made  of  steel,  and  the  framework  is 
painted  with  aluminium  paint.  It  must  be  seen 
for  all  its  good  points  to  be  fully  appreciated,  but 
they  are  many,  and  the  cost  is  only  £8  15s. 

Private  nurses  should  certainly  keep  by  them 
the  firm's  list  of  surgical  and  other  necessaries,  and 
of  sick  room  requisites  to  be  obtained  on  hire. 
Maternity  nurses  should  note  that  they  supply  a 
sterilised  maternit.v  outfit  consisting  of  two  accouch- 
meut  sheets  32  x  32  inches,. and  24  x  24  inches,  and 
other  necessaries  for  21s. 

A  model  of  their  sterilisation  rooms  are  on  view 
at  the  Nursing  and  Midwiferv  Exhibition  (Stand 
23a). 


April  30,  1910] 


ZTdc  35riti5b  journal  of  •Muvsing. 


359 


®nr  Jfovcion  Xcttcr. 

FROM   ROME. 

roUcUni:o,   Eoma. 

17th   April. 

Fourteen 
days  ago  the 
little  band 
of  pioneer 
nurses,  with 
their  tirst 
ten  Italian 
probationers, 
took  over  the 
nursing'  of 
the  first-  sur- 
gical paviUon  here — a  small  beginning,  seemingly, 
but  one  which  we  believe  will  have  wide-spreading 
results,  and  is  consequently  worth  whatever  it  may 
cost  in  effort. 

The  fourteen  days  and  nights  have  been 
strenuous — physically  and  mentally.  Five  to  eight 
operations  alternate  days,  dres-sings  of  the 
majority  of  tie  75  patients,  and  •' specialing " 
operations  and  hopeless  cases,  have  prove<l  the  need 
of  further  staff,  and  Miss  Conway  has  come  on  from 
Boixlighei-a  (kindly  .spared  by  Miss  Bryant),  and 
Miss  Beaufoy  is  starting  from  London,  to  aid  with 
hands,  niiuds,  and  tongues  (they  speak  Italian)  in 
the    'great  endeavour." 

It  is  difficult  to  give  details  of  the  work — of  what 
is  being  reformed — for  we  are — in  a  way — guests  in 
a  foreign  land.  We  want  to  help,  not  to  criticise. 
Yeai-6  ago  Miss  Nightingale  wrote  me,  when  I  re- 
turuetl  to  Italy  after  my  year  at  the  Royal  In- 
firmary, Edinburgh: — "Patience  and  prudence,  as 
e.g..  not  extolling  English  things  to  Italians,  or 
saying,   '  I  do  so  and  so  in  Great  Britain.'  " 

Theoretically  speaking,  this  standard  is  the  only 
one  compatible  with  courtesy;  but  reformers  can- 
not always  wear  velvet  gloves.  Much  must  be 
wrestled  with,  much  uprootetl — only  .  .  .  we 
should  always  aim  at  doing  silently.  And  conse- 
quently it  is  not  an  easy  matter  to  write  anything 
that  is  really  true  all  round. 

Another  saying  of  Miss  Nightingale's  often 
conies  Ijack  to  me.  A  year  later,  when  I  was  going 
to  Naples,  leaving  our  first  Roman  pupils  to  the 
nuns  at  .S.  Giovanni,  she  wrote  me: — "I  am  sure 
you  will  remember  it  is  only  personal  work  that  can 
do  thinks.  .  .  .  Stand  your  ground  and  kiss 
your  enemy's  nose  is  one  of  the  secrets  of  life.  .  .  . 
A  large  Tom  oat  of  mine  came  into  the  room  and 
ran  nt  my  two  little  kittens.  The  larger  and 
handsomer  kitten  ran  away.  Tlie  smaller  stood  her 
ground  till  the  big  Tom  cat  came  quite  close,  and 
then  she  kissetl  his  nose  and  made  jjeace. 

Now,  take  up  your  ground,  my  dear  Miss  Turton, 
and  stick  to  it.  .  .  .  €io  on  preseveringly  and 
pixjsper." 

For  all  of  us  these  are  words  of  really  inspired 
wisdom.  If  even  half  of  us  really  succeed  in 
living  them,  success  will  be  a  certainty,  nay,  since 
our  leader  does  live  them,  even  one-third  of  us 
by  following  her,  will  ensure  victory. 

•'  Hold  your   ground,   but    kiss    your     enemy's 


nose."  A  smiling  insistence  of  attitude  in  other 
words,  whenever  certain  that  the  point  to  be  gained 
is  undisputably  right. 

The  first  point  thus  gained,  I  think,  was— screens. 
In  our  hospitals  here  such  "  luxuries "  are  ob- 
tainable only  (and  not  always)  for  the  dying.  But 
the  first  pavilion  now  possesses  scarlet  twill 
screens,  a  vivid  note  in  the  colourless  wards,  and 
one  which,  with  the  really  charming  green  and 
white  frocks  of  the  probationers  makes  up  the  red, 
white,  and  green  of  the  Italian  flag. 

The  first  corollary  of  screens,  systematic  washing, 
is  an  innovation  which  is  almost  invariably  appre- 
ciated. The  routine  evening,  "face,  hands,  and 
back  washng"  causing  gratitude  and  surprise. 

The  first  night  drew  forth  the  remark  from  the 
Suora  in  charge,  "How  quiet  the  wards  were; 
no  one  seemed  to  ring."  -'^nd  the  ctre  amorose 
of  the  flew  nurses  seem  to  make  even  deeper  im- 
pression on  the  patients  than  their  skill.  The  real 
nurse  touch,  voice,  and  manners  are  a  revelation, 
even  when  the  words  are  limited  by  being  in  an 
unknown  tongue. 

Petruccio,  the  pet  boy  of  the  men's  ward,  holds 
conversation  with  his  Sister,  clinging  on  to  her 
finger,  each  holding  to  their  mother  tongue.  In 
the  women's  ward  a  five  months'  baby,  left  by  its 
mother  to  the  nurse's  charge,  thrives  on  its 
biberon,  sleeps  its  six  or  seven  hours  at  night, 
plays  with  its  nurse's  cap  strings  in  usual  baby 
fashion,  and  .  .  .  after  four  or  five  mornings 
of  experience  discovered  that  it  liked  a  bath.  The 
men  take  off  their  white  caps  with  a  royal  sweep  as 
the  Matron  speaks  to  them ;  many  try  to  explain 
how  well  contented  they  are — even  with  the  in- 
creased ventilation  1 

Already  patients  are  leaving  off  calling  perpe- 
tually for  attention  :  they  have  learnt  that  every- 
thing will  be  done  for  them  in  due  time— that 
ought  to  be  done — and  without  "  the  hateful  tip  "  1 

In   conclusion   (for  to-day — but  soon  more  news 
will  follow)  I  must  quote  an  extract  from  Goethe 
which  chanced  to  be  on  the  Worker's  Calendar  the 
4th,  our  day  of  taking  over  the  wards: 
"  Are  you  in  earnest?    Seize  this  very  minute: 

What  you  can  do,  or  dream  you  can,  begin  it; 

Boldness  has  genius,  power,  and  magic  in  it. 

Only  engage  and  then  the  mind  grows  heated ; 

lieoin.  and  then  the  work  will  h(  completed." 

Could  there  have  been  a  better  omened  quota- 
tion for  us,  and  for  Italian  sick  folk? 

M.    A.    TtTKTON. 

practical  (Points. 

Obstinate     hiccough      may 
Hiccough.  sometimes      be       successfully 

checked  by  depression  of  the 
tongue  by  a  spatula  or  spoon. 

When   nourishment  has   to 
Substitute  be  given  to  a  helpless  patient, 

Feeding  Cups.       and  a  proper   feeding  cup   is 
not  available,  a  good  substi- 
tute is  a  small  teapot.    This  method  of  administer- 
ing    nourishment     to    the    helpless    is    frequently 
resorted   to   in   poor  districts  of  the  ;Mctropolis. 


360 


JTbc  Britieb  3ournaI  of  IFiureinfl. 


[Ajn-il  30,  1910 


Booh  of  tbe  Meeh. 


A  MODERN  CHRONICLE. 

Mr.  Winston  Churchill  (U.S.A.)  has  given  us  a 
remarkable  book,  a  distinctive  feature  of  which 
is  an  unusual  power  of  portraiture.  The  people 
live  and  speak  to  us,  and  we  are  caught  up  into 
the  atmosphere  they  create,  be  it  ever  so  unfami- 
liar. In  the  heroine,  Honora,  we  have  the  most 
striking  instance.  She  is  introduced  to  the  reader 
as  a  beautiful  distinguished  child,  living  with  Aunt 
Mary  and  Uncle  Tom  in  St.  Louis,  '■  a  somewhat 
oonservative  old  city  on  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi 
River."  In  spite  of  their  devotion  to  her,  which 
she  warmly  returns,  the  narrow  life  in  the  quiet 
home  wearies  and  frets  the  girl,  who  is  blessed  or 
cursed  with  "temperament." 

We  are  made  perfectly  acquainted  with  gentle 
Aunt  Mary  and  her  husband,  come  under  the 
spell  of  their  peaceful  life,  share  the  joy  of  his 
flowers  with  Uncle  Tom,  at  the  same  time  that  we 
are  being  infected  with  the  restlessness  of  the 
young  thing  who  "  supposes  it  would  be  better  to 
be  contented  where  I  am.  But  its  no  use  trying 
— I  can't." 

"  Sometimes  when  she  looked  in  the  mirror  she 
wa*  filled  with  a  fierce  belief  in  a  destiny  to  sit  in 
the  high  seats,  to  receive  homage,  and  dispense 
botmties.  .  .  To  escape — only  to  escape  from 
the  jjrison  walls  of  a  humdrum  existence  and  to 
soar !  " 

When  she  is  a  tall  slip  of  a  girl  of  sixteen  she 
t.ikes  to  lecturing  her  devoted  slave  Peter,  who, 
a  man  of  thirty,  is  patiently  waiting  for  the  time 
when  he  shall  woo  her. 

"You  ought  to  dress  as  though  you  were  some- 
body, and  different  from  the  ordinary  man  in  the 
street." 

"  But  I'm  not,"   objected  Peter. 

"Oh,"  cried  Honora,  "don't  you  want  to  be? 
I  can't  understand  any  man  not  wanting  to  be.'' 

Her  opiiortunity  comes — she  is  given  a  year  at 
a  fashionable  boarding  school,  and  from  thence 
{ioes  on  a  visit  to  a  school  friend  in  a  luxurious 
country  house. 

Her  beauty  and  charm  bring  lovere  in  plenty,  but 
she  cliooses,  curiou.sly,  a  common-ijlace,  well- 
groomed  and  dressed,  J'omig  financier,  under  the 
double  delusion  that  .she  is  in  love  with  him,  and 
that  she  will  cat  last  attain  her  ideals.  We  are 
enabled  to  get  a  glimi>se  of  her  stat«  of  mind  wlien, 
on  the  day  following  her  engagement,  tne 
"  Vicomte  "  also  sues  for-her  hand.  She  reflects 
regretfully  that  she  might  have  lx>on  a  Vicomtes-ie 
and  lived  in  a  castle. 

"  A  poor  Vioomtesse,  it  is  true." 

Judge  then  her  feelings  when,  after  her 
maiTiage,  she  finds  herself  establi,she<l  in  a  suburb 
in  New  Jersey.  "  Honora's  house,  the  first  on  the 
right,  was  exactly  like  the  other  five.  If  we  look  at 
it  through  her  eyes  we  shall  find  this  .similarity  its 
chief  diiawback."  The  iix>n  of  the  suburbs  entered 
into  her  soul.  adde<l  to  which  .she  gradually  awakens 
to  the  knowledge  that  the  man  she  has  married  is  a 
mere  money-making  machine,  so  that  when  at  last 
she  becomes  possessed  of  a  house  in  New  York  it  is 


to  her  as  the  ashes  of  Sodom,  and  riches  spell  to- 
iler vulgarity.  Surrounded  by  society  of  the  worst 
ta.ste,  she  listens  to  the  pleading  of  Hugh  Cliiltern, 
well  born,  but  wild  and  lawless,  to  divoi-oe  ner 
husband,  which,  according  to  her  maid  is,  in  the 
Western   States,    "  simple  comme  bonjour." 

Her  passionate  determination  to  hold  this  man's- 
love  keeps  the  reader  enthralled.  The  refusal  of  the 
ueiglilxmrhood  which  surrounded  Hugh  Chiltern's 
estate  to  recognise  their  union  angers  and 
embittei's  him,  and  his  waning  love  leaves  poor 
Honora  moi-e  desolate  than  ever.  Disaster,  or  Pro- 
vidence, perhaps,  intervenes,  and  he  is  killed  in  a 
mad  tussle  with  a  vicious  horse. 

But  in  the  end  we  are  led  to  believe  that  tins 
.stormy  life  finds  calm  harbourage  with  Peter,  whose 
faithful  love  remains  unshaken  through  all.  It  is 
iinix>ssible  in  a  short  space  to  even  allude  to  half 
the  character  in  this  absorbing  lxx)k,  all  of  which 
are  sketched  with  convincing  skill. 

H.  H. 


WOMEN   AND  TOTAL  ABSTINENCE. 

The  Women's  Total  Abstinence  Union  will  hold  a 
Public  Meeting  at  the  Caxton  Hall,  on  the  after- 
noons of  May  4tli  and  5th.  On  the  latter  date  Mrs. 
Servante,  the  President,  will  be  in  the  chair  at 
3  i>.in.,  when  the  seven  Leagues  aflSliated  to  the 
Union  will  be  represented  on  the  platform,  nurses 
by  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Eliot  Yorke,  deaconesses  by  Mrs. 
W.  S.  Caine,  and  midwives  by  Dr.  Mary  Rocke. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

April  29th  and  SOth. — Midwifery  and  Nursing: 
Exhibition  and  Conference,  Horticultural  Hall, 
Vincent  Square,  S.W.     12  to  9  p.m. 

April  29th. — Guy's  Hospital  Nurses'  League.  An- 
nual Meeting  and  second  Annual  Dinner.  Nurses' 
Home,  7  p.m. 

April  SOth. — Meeting  to  consider  Memorial  to. 
Jliss  Isla  Stewart,  Clinical  Lecture  Theatre,  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital,  E.G.,  3  p.m. 

May  Srd. — Guy's  Hospital,  S.E.  Post  Graduate 
Lectures,  "  After  Treatment  of  Abdominal  Opera- 
tions." By  E.  C.  Hughes,  Esq.,  M.C.  Xui-ses' 
Home,  8  p.m. 

May  Srd. — The  Infants'  Hospital,  Vincent 
Square,  S.W.  A  Course  of  Lectures  on  Babies 
(price  five  shillings).  I. — The  Chemistry  of  Infan- 
tile Digestion.  By  Dr.  Ralph  Vincent.  Lecture 
Theatre,  5  p.m. 

May  7th. — General  Hospital,  Birmingham, 
Nurses'  League.  Third  Annual  Meeting  at  the 
Hospital,  3  p.m.     Social  Gathering,  4.15  p.m. 

May  11th. — East  End  Mothers'  Lying-in  Home, 
Commercial  Road,  E.  Annual  Meeting,  Mansion 
House,  Lord  Mayor  in  the  chair,  3  p.m. 

May  12th.— G,\iy'&  Hospital,  S.E.  Post  Graduate 
Lectures.  "The  Mental  Factor  in  Disease."  By 
H.  C.  Cameron,  Esq.,  M.D.     Nurses'  Home,  8  p.m. 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK 
"  With   time   and    patience,    the    mulberry    leaf 
becomes  silk." 


April  30,  lOlOj 


tibc  Brittsb  3ournal  of  'fl^urslnOc 


361 


Xettcrs  to  the  jeDitov. 


VkUst  cordially  invUiny  eovn- 
viunictxiions  upon  all  subjectt 
jur  these,  columns,  we  wish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  xve  do  not  in  any  way 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


THE  TEACHING   OF   NURSING   BY   NURSES 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursiny." 

Dear  Madam, — I  am  glad  to  see  that  the  question 
<>i  nursing  being  taught  by  nurses  is  being  taken 
up  now.  There  are  probably  many  doctors  who 
lecture  continually  for  the  St.  John  Ambulance 
.Vssociation  on  Nursing,  and  others,  who  are  well 
up  in  the  subject,  but  there  are  general  practi- 
tioners who  are  arranging  and  giving  the  lectures 
lor  the  Red  Cross  Society  in  their  own  towns  who 
find  the  nursing  lectures  rather  trying.  There 
nuist  be  very  few  doctors  who  nui-se  their  patients, 
and  there  are  many  little  things,  as  every  nurse 
knows,  that  need  experience  and  practice,  as  well 
as  theory.  Matrons,  Sisters,  and  trained  nurses 
are  considered  capable  of  lecturing  to  and  teach- 
ing probationers  in  a  hospital,  women  who  are 
taking  up  nursing  professionally,  thoroughly,  and 
seriously,  and  have  to  be  taught  many  things  of 
which  homo  nurses  would  probably  never  hear. 
Surely  thoy  would  also  be  capable  of  giving  home 
nursing  lectures — and  although  the  lectures  for  the 
Hed  Cross  Society  have  a  serious  object  in  view 
other  than  home  nursing,  the  syllabus  is  practically 
the  same  as  for  the  ordinary  St.  John  nursing  lec- 
tures. 

Miss  Brunning  thinks  that  nurses  would  not 
have  the  time  necessary,  and  that  their  patients 
need  them  in  the  evening  when  lectures  are  gener- 
allj-  given;  certainly  a  private  nurse  in  practice 
would  find  it  difficult  to  give  the  i  ime.  Patients  and 
friends  might  very  reasonably  object,  and  a  private 
nurse  does  not  usually  know  how  long  she  will  be 
with  a  patient,  but  might  have  to  leave  for  quite 
a  different  or  distant  place  before  the  course  was 
finished;  but  all  are  not  private  nurses;  there  are 
Superintendents  of  Homes  and  Institutions,  Ma- 
trons, Assistant  Matrons,  Home  Sisters,  Ward 
Sisters,  or  Staff  Nurses  of  hospitals  who  could 
easily  spare  one  evening  a  week  to  give  the  lec- 
tures in  their  own  district.  A  nurse  when  off  duty 
for  a  certain  time  has  that  time  free,  another  tak- 
ing her  place  in  the  hospital  or  with  the  patient; 
ji  doctor  does  not  know  if  he  will  bo  called  away 
just  as  he  is  starting  out,  or  if  he  will  be  fetched 
away  from  the  lecture ;  he  cannot  feel  free  in  the 
same  way  that  a  nurse  does  when  off  duty.  This, 
of  course,  is  a  minor  detail,  but  I  think  a  nurse, 
except,  perhaps,  a  private  nurse  in  active  practice, 
would  find  time  as  easily  as  «  doctor.  School 
nurses,  district  nurses,  health  visitors,  and  inspec- 
tors of  midwives  generally  have  their  evenings  free, 
many  are  also  lecturers  on  nursing,  hygiene,  first 
aid,  elementary  anatomy,  etc. 


I  am  a  trained  nurse  and  certified  midwife,  and 
have  had  long  experience  in  hospital  as  a  nurse, 
,  also  experience  as  Sister.  I  have  done  district 
nursing,  lecturing,  and  private  nursing,  and  there- 
fore can  speak  from  a  i)rofessional  point  of  view 
from  many  sides. 

I  am,   yours  trulv, 

E.   S.   Sills. 
Oakham. 

Comments  anb  TReplies. 

C.  S.  T.,  LVi/i!>ui!//i.— Thfn;  are  Y.W.C.A.  homes 
in  Rome,  Turin,  and  Milan.  Address  at  latter: 
7,  Via  Guiseppo,  Prina.  The  address  in  Paris  is — 
Students'  Hostel,  93,  Boulevard  St.  Michel.  ' 

Private  JHurse,  TAverpool. — A  very  satisfactory 
oovor  for  an  indiarubber  hot-water  bottle  may  be 
ma<lo  by  knitting  in  a  soft  wool  of  medium  thick- 
ness a  strip,  slightly  wider  and  double  tho  length 
of  the  bottle,  and  then  stitching  tho  two  sides 
together.  The  top  should  be  finished  with  a 
crotchet  edging,  in  which  a  cord  can  be  run. 


NOTICE. 

POLICLINICO  HOSPITAL,  ROME. 
-Ul  jipplications  received  by  Mih.  IV'dl'ord  Fen- 
wick  have  becMi  fonvard<'d  to  Mis.s  Doi-othy  Snell, 
!A[atron  of  the  Policlinioo  Training  School  at  Rome, 
to  whom  ap]5lications  for  the  jxisilion  of  Staff 
Nurse  mav   now    be  sent   direct. 


IRotices. 


THE  SOCIETY  FOR  THE  STATE  REGISTRATION 
OF  TRAINED  NURSES. 

Those  desirous  of  helping  on  the  important 
movement  of  this  Society  to  obtain  an  Act  pro- 
viding for  tho  Legal  Registration  of  Trained 
Nurses  can  obtain  all  information  concerning  the 
Societ.y  and  its  work  from  the  Hon.  Secretary,  431, 
Oxford  Street,  London,  W. 

No  habitual  reader  of  this  journal  can,  we  feel 
sure,  be  content  to  stand  aside  and  let  others 
found  the  future  Profession  of  Nur.«ing.  Now  is 
the  time  to  help. 

CONTRIBUTIONS. 

The  Editor  will  at  all  times  be  pleasetl  to  consider 
articles  of  a  suitable  nature  for  insertion  in  this 
.Journal — those  on  practical  nursing  are  specially 
invited. 

Such  communications  must  be  duly  authenticated 
with  name  and  address,  and  should  I>6  addressed  to 
tho  E<litor,  20,  Upper  Wimpole  Street,  London,  W. 

Advertisements  and  business  communications 
should  be  addressed  to  the  Manager,  British 
Journal  op  Nursing,  11,  Adarn  Street,  Strand, 
W.C. 

OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 

Rules  for  competing  for  the  Pictorial  Puzzle 
Prize  will  bo  found  on  Advertisomiiit  ))iige  xii. 


333         ^bc  36rttisb  3ournal  of   H^ursino  Supplement  [^pi'i  3o,  1910 

The    Midwife. 


Cbc  nDi^\vitcv\?  an^  IRursino 
(Tontcrence. 


The  third  Annual  Midwifery  and  Nursing  Ex- 
hibition was  ojiened  at  the  Royal  Horticultural  Hall 
on  Wednesday,  April  2rth,  by  H.R.H.  Princess 
Christian,  who  was  supported  on  the  platform  by 
Lady  Balfour  of  Burleigh  and  Miss  Alice  Gregory 
and  J[iss  Lucy  Robintion,  certified  midwires.  Dr. 
Champneys,  in  the  name  of  the  Conference,  thanked 
the  Princess  for  her  presence  and  sympathetic 
interest,  and  this  was  seconded  by  Sir  Dyce  Duck- 
worth . 

Her  Royal  Higliness,  m  declaring  the  Conference 
oiJen,  expressed  her  appreciation  of  the  kind  wish 
that  slie  should  open  the  Conference  and  be  its 
President.  It  was  now  forty  years  since  she  began 
to  take  a  deep  interest  in  nursing.  Xurses  could 
not  be  too  perfect  in  order  to  l>e  just  what  the 
doctoi-s  wished  them  to  be. 

The  Princess  accepted  a  handsome  basket  of 
flowers,  in  which  the  Red  Cix>ss  stood  out  against 
a  white  backgi\)und,  presented  by  the  little  son  of 
the  Organising  Secretary  of  the  Exhibition,  Mr. 
Ernest  Schofield. 


THE  CONFERENCE. 

Dr.  C!hanipneys  presided  at  the  opening  Session 
of  the  Conference.  Miss  liuey  Robinson,  certified 
midwife,  presented  the  first  pai)er,  on 

The  Living  Wage  foe  Midwives  in  Rural 
Districts. 

Miss  Robinson  said  that  in  the  villages  and  rural 
districts  fhere  were  various  ways  in  which  midwives 
could  be  maintained.  They  could  work  as  Queen's 
Xunses  in  connection  with  the  Queen  Victoria's 
Jubilee  Institute,  when  they  were  paid  a  fixed 
.salary,  but  the  greater  ijart  of  their  work  was  then 
nui-sing ;  under  C-ounty  Nursing  Associations, 
when  they  also  had  a"  fixed  salary,  and  combined 
nunsing  and  midn-ifery ;  but  all  over  England  there 
were  small  rural  districts  needing  the  services  of 
midn-ives,  and  the  reply  to  the  question:  "Can  a 
living  wage  be  made  out  of  midwifery  alone  ''  must 
be  in  the  negative.  Midwives  must  have  some 
other  means  of  support.  The  average  income  of  a 
rural  midwife  working  on  her  own  account  was 
probably  £16  a  year. 

Sometimes  married  women  added  to  their  income 
\>y  taking  midwifery  cases.  Sometimes  wives  and 
daughters  of  the  clergy  undertook  it.  But  this  did 
not  touch  the  fringe  of  the  question.  In  other 
European  countries  midwives  liad  the  advantage  of 
status,  salaries,  and  pensions.  We  had  now  a 
definite  status,  but  the  office  of  a  midn^ife  was  a 
patriotic  and  sacred  one,  and  she  deserved  assist- 
ance. Even  if  that  assistance  was  represented  only 
by  a  rent-free  cottage  it  would  be  a  great  help 
to  her. 

Referring  to  the  fact  that  women  were  now 
afraid   to  render   assistance   to   lying-in  women  in 


emergency,  Jliss  Robinson  told  a  quaint  story  of  a 
patient  whom  she  had  occasion  to  visit,  who  nad 
been  alone  and  unaide<l  at  the  time  of  her  child's 
birth.  She  had  rendered  first  aid  to  liei-self  with 
considei'able  skill,  "but,"  she  confessed,  "I  Avas^ 
horribly  frightened,  because,  you  know,  it  is  now 
against  the  law !  " 
The  Combined  Duties  of  the  District  Nurses 
AND  Midwives. 

Miss  ilacqueen.  Nursing  Suix>rintendent  for 
England,  Q.V.J. I.,  dealt  with  the  above  aspect  of 
the  midw  ifeiy  question  in  place  of  Miss  Amy 
Huglies,  who  is  on  her  way  to  Australia  to  organise- 
the  district  nursing  there.  Discussing  whether  a 
combination  of  the  duties  of  nui¥«  and  midwife  was. 
desirable,  and  the  standard  for  nurses  in  country 
districts,  Miss  Macqueen  said  that  there  was  lib 
doubt  that  the  best  trained  uui'se  (i.e.,  the- 
thoroughly  trained  Queen's  Nurse)  was  the  best. 
But  there  were  two  difficulties  in  her  employment. 
There  wei'e  only  a  limited  number  of  highly- 
trained  nurses  willing  to  work  in  the  rural  districts, 
and  midwifery  does  not  attract  a  great  many ; 
there  were  not  enough  to  go  round.  And  secondly, 
there  were  often  not  sufficient  funds  available  to 
Ijay  the  salary  of  a  fully-trained  nurse.  Tlie  altei- 
native  was  the  village  nurse,  under  the  supervision 
of  the  Superintendent  of  a  County  Nunsing  Associa- 
tion. 

Tlie  experience  for  six  years  of  the  Queen  Vic- 
toria's Jubilee  Institute  proved  conclusively  that 
the  duties  of  nni¥.e  and  midwife  could  be  combined. 
There  was,  moreover,  a  very  limited  demand  for 
women  who  were  certified  midwives  only,  but  the 
demand  for  midwives  with  twelve  months'  general 
training  as  nui'ses  exceeded  the  supply.  She  was 
not  prepared  to  say  that  this  combination  of  duties 
was  ideal,  but  at  the  present  day  it  met  a  need.  In 
conclusion  Miss  Macqueen  said  that  district  nureing 
was  one  of  the  greatest  preventive  agencies  of 
modern  tinjes. 

The  Discussion  was  opened  by  the  Hon.  Lady 
Acland,  who  said  that  the  work  of  midwives  in  the- 
rnral  districts  was  onerous  and  not  very  ix>pnlaiv 
and  they  should  not  be  expected  to  do  all  they  did 
for  nothing,  or  be  in  constant  anxiety  concerning: 
their  daily  bread. 

Mre.  Eddie  (National  Association  of  JMidwives> 
said  that  nationally  and  collectively  we  paid  for 
Dreadnoughts  for  the  safety  of  the  country,  and 
why  not  pay  nationally  and  collectively  for  mid- 
wives  for  the  same  purpose.  She  was  opposed  to 
combining  midwifery  and  nureing.  She  thought 
midwives  should  si)ecialise  in  the  one  thing  and 
keep  to  that.  She  did  not  approve  of  midwifery 
being  undertaken  for  jxicket-money  wages.  That 
was  keeping  down  the  payments  of  the  women  who 
had  to  maintain  themselves.  She  put  the  living 
wage  for  a  midwife,  at  100  ca.ses  i>er  annum,  at  15s. 
each. 

Dr.  B.vgott  (M.O.H.,  Barking)  commented 
strongly  on  the  fact  that  .some  associations  do  not 


April  yo,  jiiio    ^f5c  ^British  3ournal  of  H^ursino  Supplement. 


363 


allow  midwives  to  attend  single  women  in  their  con- 
finements. The  chikl  would  be  handicapped  all 
through  life,  and  it  .should  at  least  enter  the  world 
under  good  con<litions.  Charitable  ladies  hardly 
realised  the  effect  of  this  rule. 

The  Prevention  op  Infantile  Blindness. 

All  a<lmiral)le  i)iaix>r  on  "  Tlie  Prevention  of  In- 
fantile Blindnetis"  na.s  road  by  Dr.  Nimmo  Walker 
(Liverpool).  He  said  there  were  two  principal 
methods  of  prevention — (1)  piiophylactic,  and  (2) 
curative  treatment.  Under  the  fii-st  heading  ho 
discussed  Crede's  method,  and  asked  whether  it 
was  desirable  for  a  midwife  to  a.«ume  that  the  ■eye.s 
of  every  infant  are  infected,  and  to  treat  them  with 
strong  chemicals,  or  to  atlopt  the  aseptic  meth<Hl. 
In  his  view  the  latter  course  was  the  right  one. 
In  the  fii-st  place  no  anti.septic  was  known  which 
would  infallibly  prevent  infection ;  and  secondly, 
antiseptics  in  unskilled  handfi  might  injure  the  in- 
fant's eyes.  He  described  two  cases  brought  to  the 
St.  Paul's  Eye  Hospital.  Liverixjolj  of  severe  in- 
flammation in  the  eyes  of  two  infants,  at  an  in- 
terval of  three  months.  There  was  no  trace  of  in- 
fection as  the  eau.se,  and  both  cases  were  pi-oved 
to  have  occurred  in  the  practice  of  the  same  mid- 
wife, whose  habit  it  was  to  di'op  a  .solution  of  cor- 
rosive sublimate  into  the  eyes.  Other  objections 
were  that  tho  in.stillation  might  cause  infection, 
and  that  to  toach  a  midwife  to  interfere  with  the 
eyes  in  healtli  was  to  teach  her  to  treat  them  in 
disease.  Better  results  were  obtained  from  the 
aseptic  method  than  fi^om  Creole's  method.  In  evei-j' 
town  there  shoukl  be  a  hospital  with  an  ophthalmic 
dejia rt nient ,  to  which  midwives  shoukl  be  able  to 
sen<l  susi)ect<Kl  oases  on  th«'  first  day.  The  mothers 
should  also  bo  admitted,  because  lx>ttle-fed  babies 
were  handicap|>ed.  He  describe<l  the  succe.ss  of 
this  method  in  connection  with  the  St.  Paul's  Eye 
Hospital,  LiverixK)!.  so  that  infantile  blindness  nad 
been  considerably  reduced. 

Lady  St.  Davids  (Hon.  Secretary  of  the  South 
Wales  Nursing  Association)  said  that  her  interest  in 
the  question  ha<l  first  been  aroused  by  visiting  a 
blind  asylum. 

Miss  Blomfield  (Matron  of  Queen  (Charlotte's 
Hospital)  said  that  in  her  exi)erience  cases  of 
ophthalmia  were  l)y  no  means  invariably  due  to  the 
carelessness  of  the  midwife.  She  thought  that  the 
midwife  should  have  the  power  to  treat  infected 
eyes  with  a  chemical  agent.  It  was  of  the  utmost 
ini]K>rtance  that  treatment  should  begin  im- 
mediately, and  why  should  not  a  well-trained  mid- 
wife have  that  power? 

Mrs.  Law.so]i  (National  As-sociation  of  Midwives) 
8up|)orted  Dr.  Walker's  view.  Slie  advised  those 
who  advocated  routine  treatment  of  eyes  by  a 
chemical  agent  to  drop  a  solution  of  1  in  6,000  per- 
chloride  of  meiouiy  into  their  own  eyes.  She 
thought  they  woukl  have  an   uncomfortable  night. 

Dr.   Uygott,   Mi,ss  Elsie  Hall,  and  other,   having 
taken  part  in  the  discussion.  Dr.  Walker  replied  to 
the  questions  liaised. 
The  Rbport  of  the   Dkpahtment.\l  Committee. 

Mr.  F.  E.  Fremantle,  F.R.C.S.,  then  reviewetl 
the  reix)rt  of  the  Do])artmental  Committee 
apiK)inted  to  consider  the  working  of  the  Midwives' 
Act.     Two  of  the  principal  points  which  the  Com- 


mittee had  to  consider  were  '"  supply  "  and  "  train- 
ing." With  regard  to  the  size  of  tho  Board  he  was 
Iwuiid  to  say  there  was  somewhat  extravagant  re- 
presentation of  medical  men.  TheCommittee  recom- 
mended that  tho  representative  of  the  Midwives' 
Institute  should  Ik<  a  midwife,  and  that  tho  repre- 
sentation of  the  H.B.N. A.  should  be  discontinued, 
as  the  midwives  among  its  membei's  were  a 
negligilile  quantity. 

Miss  Alice  Gregory  (member  of  the  Midwives' 
Committee  of  the  L.C.C.),  thought  that  the  recom- 
mendations of  the  Committee  were  positive  and 
negative.  In  the  positive  cojiclusions  the  interests 
of  the  d<x>toi-s,  rateinayer.s,  and  Central  Midwives' 
Ik)aixl  were  cx>nsidered,  those  of  the  midwives 
glanced  at,  while  the  mother  seemed  to  have  been 
overlooked.  The  negative  conclusions  .stated  that 
there  was  no  nee<l  for  an  increase  of  midwives,  as 
there  was  no  shortage,  but  this  was  only  because 
dii-ty  old  women  were  working  under  the  authority 
of  the  Midwives'  Board,  and  the  putilic  acquiesced, 
as  these  women  were  inexpensive. 

Another  negative  recommendation  was  tliat  the 
standard  of  examination  should  not  be  raised.  AVas 
there  any  reason  why  the  Midwives'  Board  should 
be  coerced  to  keep  it  at  its  present  irreducible 
meditim,  behind  other  European  countries. 

Miss  Gregoiy  was  opposed  to  the  jxiyment  of 
medical  men  by  Boards  of  Guardians,  and  the  con- 
sequent  pauperisation   of  self-respecting  patients. 

Dr.  Bygott  strongly  opixised  the  payment  of 
medical  practitioner  called  in  to  the  a.ssistaiioe  of 
midwives  by  tlie  Poor  liaw  Authoiity.  He  said  the 
way  many  Guaixliaiis  treated  the  sick  was  disgrace- 
ful, and  any  who  had  worketl  amongst  the  poor 
knew  how  they  loatJied  parisli  relief. 

Dr.  Fremantle,  defending  the  reoommendation  of 
the  Committee,  said  that  the  Guardians  were  a 
popularly-elected  authority.  We  might  return  to 
government  by  a  benevolent  despotism,  but  at  pre- 
sent our  form  of  govornment  was  demociiatic. 

Mi's.  Bedford  Fenwick  repudiated  the  ides  that 
any  fonn  of  government  was  democratic  under 
which  women  had  no  votes. 

Direct  Representation  on  the  Central  JIidwivi  s' 
Board. 

Mi'.s.  Margaret  I^wson,  President  of  the  National 
Association  of  Midwii-es.  presente<l  an  excellent 
paiM'r  on  the  above  subject.  She  c>oniim'nt<Kl  on  the 
fact  that  midwives  had  no  strong  a8sociation  at  the 
time  the  Midwives'  Act  was  under  oonsideiiation. 
and  so  they  had  no  voice  in  framing  the  regulations 
by  which  tliey  weiv  governed.  She  sliowed  that  mid- 
wives  are  requireil  to  reixn-t  a  case  of  sejjsis  un<J«r 
penalty,  but  that  a  medical  man  is  jxiid  for  io 
doing;  that  there  is  no  direct  representative  of  the 
midwives  on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board;  and  she 
further  d<',scribed  the  comix)sitioii  of  tlu-  Local 
Su|K'rvisiiig  Authority  under  which  she  works — 
with  some  of  the  members  of  which  .she  is  in 
financial  oomix'tition.  She  claimed  that  there  should 
1«>  at  least  one  norking  midwife  on  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board  and  the  L.S.A.  The  interests  of 
the  niothei-s  were  as  safe  in  the  hands  of  the  mid- 
wives  as  of  any  other  section  of  the  eommunitj-,  and 
they  demanded  a  share  in  shaping  their  own 
destinv 


364       Zi)c  Biitieb  3oui'nal  ot  IRursing  Supplement.   [Apniso,  loio 


Mrs.  Stepieu  Glauville  opened  the  Discussion, 
and  advocated  the  representation  of  the  interests 
of  midwives  through  the  representative  of  the 
jMidwives'  Institute.  She  urged  midwives  to  join 
the  Institute  so  that  they  might  take  part  in  the 
election  of  this  representative. 

The  time  limit  being  reached,  the  Session  was 
brought  to  a  close  with  a  few  concluding  words 
from  the  Chairman.  It  is  very  unfortunate  that 
this  subject  of  vital  importance  to  midw'ives  should 
have  been  the  last  on  the  programme,  and  that 
the  discussion  was  thus  curtailed. 

Afterwards  a  strong  feeling  was  expressed  by 
Manchester  midwives  and  others  that  as  the  dis- 
cussion was  brought  to  a  conclusion  before  any 
members  of  the  audience  had  had  an  opportunity 
of  expressing  their  views  on  this  question  of  Direct 
Representation,  which  is  by  far  the  most  important 
before  the  midwives  attending  the  Conference,  that 
a  further  meeting  on  this  subject  should  be 
arranged. 


At  the  conclusion  of  the  Session  many  of  those 
present  went  on  to  the  Midwives'  Institute,  where 
tea  was  kindly  provided,  and  where  there  was  an 
interesting  little  exhibit,  including  the  wadded 
quilt  on  which  Italian  women  nurse  their  babies, 
and  a  swathe  used  in  the  .same  country. 


Zbc  Central  HDibwlves'  BoarD. 

The  monthly  meeting  of  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board  was  held  in  the  Board  Room,  C'axton  House, 
Westminster,  S.W.,  on  Thursday,  April  •21st,  Dr. 
F.  H.  Cliarapneys  in  the  chair. 

CORBESPONDBNCE. 

The  correspondence  considered  included  a  letter 
from  Dr.  Scurfield,  Medical  Officer  of  Health  for 
Sheffield,  reporting  that  both  an  unqualified  medi- 
cal man,  and  an  unqualified  dispenser,  were  acting 
as  male  midwives  in  that  locality.  He  stated  that 
it  does  not  appear  from  Section  1  of  the  Midwives' 
Act  that  it  is  an  offence  for  an  unqualified  male 
jnidwife  to  undertake  midwifery,  and  considered 
that  the  Act  needed  amending  to  include  male 
midwives.  He  enquired  whether  a  medical  man 
who  sanctioned  the  practice  of  a  male  midwife 
would  be  "  covering"  an  unqualified  practitioner. 
On  the  suggestion  of  Sir  William  Sinclair,  the 
Secretary  was  directed  to  suggest  to  Dr.  Scurfield 
that  he  should  communicate  with  the  General 
Medical   Council. 

A  letter  was  also  considered  from  the  Secretary 
of  the  Kenilworth  Maternity  Nursing  Association, 
inquiring  if  her  Association  was  legally  responsible 
for  the  fee  of  £1  Is.  for  medical  practitioners  called 
in  at  the  instance  of  the  midwives  of  the  Associa- 
tion. The  Board  considered  that  a  letter  already 
written  by  the  Secretary  in  connection  with  this 
matter  answered  the  question. 

The  Secretai-y  reported  that  the  County  Council 
of  Pembroke  had  neglected  to  supply  a,  list  of  mid- 
wives  practising  in  the  county,  and  declined  to 
do  so.  The  Secretary  was  directed  to  inform  the 
Clerk  to  the  Pembroke  County  Council  that  unless 
the   apportionment  due   from   that   Council  to  the 


Central  Midwives'  Board  was  received  by  April 
30th  that  proceedings  would  be  taken  to  recover 
the  same. 

Report  of  Sundino  Committee. 

A  letter  was  received  from  a  c^-rtitied  midwife 
advertising  a  patent  medicine.  It  was  agreed  to 
inform  the  midwife  that  if  she  does  not  forthwith 
di.soontinue  the  us©  of  the  letters  "  C.  M.  B." 
affixed  to  her  name,  and  the  advertising  of  the 
patent  medicine,  she  will  be  cited  to  apjjear 
before  the  Board.  The  displayed  heading  of  lier 
letter  paper  was  as  follows: — "Indigestion  Cure, 
Anti-Dyspeptic  Pills,  in  boxes.  Is.  IJd.,  Is.  9d.,  or 

2s.   9d.     Give  them   a  Trial.      Dr.   to  Nurse   , 

C.M.B.  and  G.T.N.,  Daily  Visiting  Nurse  and  Mas- 
seuse. Resident  Patients  received.  Terms 
moderate." 

Removal  from  the  Roll. 

The  applications  of  14  midwives  for  removal  from 
the  Roll  for  various  reasons  were  granted. 
Procedure  on  Application  to  be  Certified  Under 
Rule  B  2. 

The  Board,  on  the  recommendation  of  the 
Standing  Coinmittee,  passed  the  following  resolu- 
tions, regulating  admissions  to  the  Roll  under  the 
new  rule  sanctioned  by  the  Privy  Council : — 

(1)  "  That  the  form  of  application,  and  the  cer- 
tificate in  support  thereof,  be  the  same  as  use<l  in 
similar  applications  down  to  March  31st,  1905."  (2) 
"  That  the  fee  payable  be  one  guinea."  (3)  "  Tliat 
the  grant  of  a  certificate  without  requiring  train- 
ing or  examination  be  limited  to  those  who  have 
been  practising,  and  desire  to  continue  to  prac- 
tise, as  midwives  in  England  or  AVales."  (4)  "  That 
women  holding  qualifying  certificates,  and  resident 
in  England  or  Wales,  who  produce  evidence  of  good 
character  satisfactory  to  the  Board,  may  be  ad- 
mitted to  the  examination  without  being  required 
'to  undergo  further  training. 

Approval  as  Teacher. 

Tlie  applications  of  W.  E.  Turner,  Esq.,M.R.C.S., 
and  G.  E.  Hely  Hutchinson  Almond,  Esq.,  M.B.. 
for  appix)val  as  teachers,  were  granted. 

Approval  to  Sign  Forms  III.   and  IV. 

Tlie  applications  of  the  following  midwives  for 
approval  to  sign  Forms  III.  and  IV.  were  granted: 
iSIarion  Alice  Bailey  (No.  22926),  Gertrude  Maria 
Gibbings  (No.  27738),  Elizaljeth  Ann  Stephens  (No. 
3112),  Minnie  William.son  (No.  6793). 
Admissions  to  the  Roll. 

In  conformity  with  the  recommendation  of  the 
Standing  Committee,  the  applications  of  the  follow- 
ing midwives  for  admission  to  the  Roll  were 
granted  subject  to  compliance  with  the  resolutions 
of  the  Board  above  stated: — Louisa  Sanders  (Win- 
chelsea),  Leonora  Gilder  (Midhurst),  Mary  Anthony 
(Clyro  Valley,  Hay),  Leviah  Harris  (Rhayader), 
Mary  Ann  Lewis  (Glasbury),  Mary  Jane  Lewis 
(Llanelly),  Margaret  Llewellyn  (Pont  Neath, 
Vaughan.  Neath),  Margaret  Lloyd  (Cefn,  Brecon), 
Dolphin  Price  (Painscastle,  Hay),  Eliza  Ann 
Price  (Llanfrynach,  Brecon),  Margaret  Pritchard 
(Blackrock,  Llanelly).  The  applications  of  Jane 
Lizzie  Jones  and  Emma  Jones  were  also  granted. 

The  date  of  the  next  meeting  was  fixed  for  Mav 
26th. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED  BY  MRS  BEDFORD  FENWICK 


tio.  1,153. 


SATURDAY,     MAY     7,     1910. 


le^ito^al. 


CHARACTER. 

One  of  the  objections  advanced  by  the 
opponents  of  State  Registration  of  Nurses  to 
a  Nursing  Act  is  that  "  you  cannot  register 
character."  No  professional  register  directly 
registers  character,  and  whj- should  nurses  be 
expected  to  do  that  which  is  not  required  in 
other  cases,  in  which  character  is  equally 
impoi'tant.  The  character  of  the  doctor,  to 
whom  we  confide  our  most  cherished 
secrets  ;  of  the  midwife,  to  whom  women 
entrust  their  lives  and  thoseof  their  infants, 
is  of  the  highest  importance,  for  should  the 
midwife  prove  unconscientious  the  patient 
may  pay  the  penalty  with  life  itself.  But 
in  all  these  cases  character  is  indirectly 
registered.  Thus  candidates  for  the  exami- 
nation of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  are 
required  to  produce  evidencs  of  good  moral 
character  from  persons  personally  acquainted 
with  them,  and  are  only  permitted  to  enter 
for  the  Board's  examination  after  satisfactory 
evidence  has  been  furnished.  Similar  evid- 
ence is  demanded  in  the  Nurses'  Registra- 
tion Bill.  The  opposition,  thus  driven  back 
to  their  second  line  of  defence,  assert  "a 
nurse's  character  may  be  satisfactory  at  the 
time  of  registration,  but  may  subsequently 
deteriorate."  The  answer  again  is,  that  for 
the  first  time  the  Register  will  set  up  machi- 
nery by  which  a  nurse  may  be  removed  from 
the  ranks  of  her  profession  for  proved  mis- 
conduct. But  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that 
it  will  be  necessary  frequently  to  p'.it  this 
machinery  into  motion. 

For  the  nurse  training  schools  have  a 
gi'eat  responsibility  to  the  public.  Trained 
nui'ses,  by  reason  of  tlieir  intimate  relations 
with  the  community,  should  be  the  most 
honourable,  self-reliant,  well-disciplined  of 
women,  and  it  is  the  duty  of  those  who 
supervise  their  training   to  see  {hat  only 


pupils  of  this  type  survive  the  winnowing 
process  and  present  themselves  for  examina- 
tion. These  are  not  the  women  who  take 
to  drink,  drugs  and  shop-lifting  as  soon  as 
they  are  out  of  leading-strings,  antl  who  need 
to  report  themselves  at  short  intervals  to 
their  former  training  school,  on  a  modified 
ticket-of-leave  system,  in  order  to  keep 
straight.  What  is  wrong  with  their  system 
that  tlie  authorities  of  the  training  schools 
cannot  ti'ust  the  pupils  they  send  out  ? 

Which  system  produces  the  highest  type 
of  character  in  the  education  of  boys  and 
girls.  The  one  in  which  the  pupils  are 
trusted,  the  development  of  their  individu- 
ality encouraged,  their  honour  taken  for 
granted,,  or  tlie  one  which  assumes  that  the 
pupil  only  keeps  straight  when  constantly 
under  the  supervision  of  masters  and  mis- 
tresses ?  Educational  methods  in  this 
country  are  founded  on  the  former  assiimp- 
tion,  andwe  claim  that  it  has  been  justified. 

At  the  present  time  nurses,  in  many  in- 
stances, suffer  from  over-supervision,  which 
inevitably  produces  atrophy  of  the  highest 
virtues,  and  so  their  superiors  receive  lip 
service  and  servilitj^,  while  below  the  sur- 
face there  is  too  often  an  undercurrent  of 
gruinljling  and  disc(mtent. 

The  professional  ideal  and  the  ethical 
code  of  the  medical  profession  are  extremely 
high — they  have  been  attained  bj^  self- 
government.  A  medical  man  would  con- 
sider it  an  insult,  to  be  required  to  report 
himself  annually  to  the  school  in  which  he 
received  his  professional  training,  in  order 
to  prove  he  had  not  lost  his  moral  character. 
The  same  holds  good  with  nurses,  who, 
like  medical  practitioners,  must  assume  the 
responsibility  for  their  own  profession  and 
eliminate  the  tendency  to  serfdom,  under 
which  the}'  have  no  real  power  t(i  develop 
the  individuality  and  moral  courage  which 
distinguish  the  freeman  from  the  slave. 


36G 


^Dc  Britieb  3ournaI  of  "ffiurelna. 


[May  7,  1910 


nDe^tcal  riDatters. 

THE   USE  OF  BISMUTH   GAUZE  IN   GYNECO- 
LOGIC   WORK. 

Dr.  Solomon  Wiener,  of  New  York,  writing 
in  the  International  Hospital  Record,  says  :  — 

Some  substitute  for  iodoform  gauze  has  long 
been  needed  in  vaginal  work.  One  of  the  most 
important  functions  of  gauze  impregnated  with 
iodoform,  or  one  of  its  derivatives,  is  to  deodo- 
rise the  accumulating  secretions,  which  become 
very  foul  under  the  action  of  the  ever-present 
saprophytic  organisms.  It  is  frequently 
necessary  to  leave  gauze  in  the  uterine  cavity 
and  vagina  tor  from  two  to  five  days,  and  such 
gauze,  if  unmedicated,  soon  becomes  exceed- 
ingly foul-smelling  and  oSensive  alike  to  the 
patient  and  to  those  around  her.  In  addition, 
the  presence  of  decomposing  material  has  a 
most  unfavourable  influence  on  the  smooth 
healing  of  wounds.  lodorom  gauze,  unless  it 
be  very  strong,  is  little  better  than  plain  gauze 
in  this  respect.  It  may  remain  fresh  and  sweet 
for  forty-eight  hours,  but  if  left  in  situ  any 
longer  it  becomes  very  fetid,  especially  in  the 
presence  of  the  increased  secretion  stimulated 
by  the  iiTitating  presence  of  sutures  in  the 
vagina.  The  odour  of  iodoform  itself  is  objec- 
tionable to  many  people.  In  addition,  one  is 
never  certain  that,  given  a  raw  area  and  a  duly 
susceptible  patient,  symptoms  of  iodoform 
poisoning  will  not  supervene.  Moreover,  the 
iodofomi  gauze  as  put  up  in  sealed  tubes  for 
use  in  private  practice  is  quite  expensive. 

For  the  past  four  months,  in  the  gynecologic 
service  of  Dr.  Floriau  Krug  at  Mount  Sinai 
Hospital,  we  have  been  using  gauze  impreg- 
nated with  subuitrate  of  bismuth,  with  highly 
satisfactory  results.  It  is  prepared  by  taking 
two  ounces  of  bismuth  subnitrate,  two  ounces 
of  glycerine,  and  one  quart  of  water.  The 
bismuth  and  glycerine  are  very  thoroughly 
mixed,  warm  water  is  gradually  added,  and  tlie 
mixture  is  continually  stirred  so  as  to  make  a 
fine  emulsion. 

A  portion  containing  about  21  yards  of  gauze 
is  passed  slowly  through  the  emulsion  three 
times,  so  that  it  becomes  thoroughly  soaked, 
and  is  then  wrung  out.  After  the  gauze  is 
dried  it  is  cut  into  strips  of  desired  size,  loosely 
packed,  and  sterilised  by  steam  at  seven  of 
eight  pounds'  pressure  for  thirty  minutes. 

The  gauze  so  prepared  is  snowy  white  in 
colour,  odourless,  soft,  and  smooth.  There  are 
no  grains  of  powder  macroscopically  visible  on 
it  From  plain  unmedicated  gauze  it  differs 
only  in  its  intense  while  colour  and  in  being 
smoother  and  softer  to  the  touch.  From  iodo- 
form gauze  it  differs  in  being  odourless,  abso- 


lutely non-toxic  in  the  quantity  used  in  any  one 
case,  much  softer,  less  irritating,  and  less  ex- 
pensive. (Bismuth  subuitrate  is  from  30  to  40 
per  cent,  cheaper  than  iodoform.)  Finally,  it 
is  far  more  efficient  in  its  action. 

I  have  used  it  in  a  great  many  cases,  and 
have  found  that  after  incomplete  abortions, 
curettages,  plastic  operations  on  the  cervix  and 
vagina,  and  aseptic  vaginal  celiotomies,  it  can 
be  left  in  the  vagina  for  a  week,  if  desirable, 
and  on  removal  it  is  still  perfectly  odourless. 

The  mucosa  is  pale  and  unirritated,  and  there 
is  none  of  the  stench  so  distressing  to  the 
patient  and  all  concerned. 

It  should  be  noted  that  the  gauze  has  not 
the  power  of  deodorising  foul-smelling  pus. 
When,  for  instance,  a  pelvic  abscess  containing 
foul-smelling  pus  is  opened  and  drained  by  a 
post-vaginal  section,  the  gauze  has  little  or  no 
power  to  mitigate  the  fetor. 


PAROTITIS    COMPLICATING    ACUTE 
RHEUMATISM. 

Inflammation  of  the  parotid  gland  is,  says 
the  Lancet,  well  known  to  owe  its  origin  in  a 
majority  of  instances  to  an  infective  process. 
Even  in  the  case  of  mumps,  the  precise 
etiologj'  of  which  is  as  yet  undiscovered,  the 
general  features  are  of  such  a  kind  as  to  leave 
little  room  for  doubt  as  to  the  bacterial  origin 
of  the  disorder ;  while  those  parotid  inflamma- 
tions which  complicate  pneumonia,  peritonitis, 
enteric  fever,  and  the  process  of  rectal  feeding, 
are  traceable  in  each  case  to  micro-organisms. 
The  latest  addition  to  the  list  of  causes  of  paro- 
titis is  acute  rheumatism,  which  is  generally 
acknowledged  to  be  an  infective  disorder, 
although  there  is  disagreement  as  to  the  actual 
micro-organism  ooncemed.  M.  Courtois-Sutfit 
and  M.  Beaufura^  have  brought  together  three 
cases  of  parotitis  complicating  acute  rheuma- 
tism, two  observed  by  themselves  and  one  re- 
corded by  Gouget.  They  have  been  unable  to 
find  other  examples  in  the  literature.  These 
three  cases  are  remarkably  similar  to  each 
other.  In  each  instance  the  attack  was  acute 
and  affected  many  joints ;  the  parotitis 
occurred  either  at  or  just  after  the  period  of 
maximum  intensitj"  of  articular  inflammation, 
and  in  all  three  cases  it  was  the  right  parotid 
gland  which  suffered.  With  the  appearance  of 
swelling  and  discomfort  in  the  parotid  region  a 
slight  rise  of  temperature  occurred ;  but  in  v.  > 
case  did  sujjpuration  occur,  and  in  the  worst 
of  the  three  all  evidence  of  parotitis  had  disap- 
peared by  the  sixth  day.  The  briefness  of  the 
inflammatory  process  and  its  complete  disap- 
pearance under  treatment  with  saUcylate  of 
soda  suggest   a   directly  rheumatic  origin. 


May  7,  1910] 


cl.ic   DBriti^r.   journal   or  IHureing. 


367 


|^ost*Gra^uatc  lectures 
i3i\^'5  Ibospital. 


at 


In  his  seeoud  lecture  on  Tuesday,  April  20th, 
Mr.  C.  E.  Hughes  fully  explained  the  treat- 
ment known  as  "  Bier's  Treatment,"  which 
has  only  been  adopted  in  England  during  the 
last  few  years.  The  treatment  consists  in  the 
production  of  a  passive  hyperaemia  or  excess  of 
blood  in  a  diseased  limb,  organ,  or  tissue,  and 
is  adopted  in  cases  of  inflammation,  acute  and 
chronic.  The  cardinal  signs  of  acute  inflamma- 
tion, e.g.,  an  abscess,  are  redness,  heat,  and 
swelling,  pain,  and  impairment  of  function. 
The  usual  treatment  adopted  to  overcome  the 
inflammation  is  aimed  at  reducing  these  signs, 
but  Bier's  treatment  seems  to  aim  at  produc- 
ing recovery  by  going  to  work  in  the  opposite 
direction.  For  cases  of  acute  inflammation  of 
a  limb,  a  constricting  bandage  is  applied  around 
the  limb  well  above  the  level  of  the  inflamma- 
tion ;  it  is  apphed  lightly  but  firmly  enough  to 
produce  swelling  and  increased  redness  of  the 
whole  limb,  including  the  inflamed  area 
below  the  bandage.  The  bandage  is  applied  for 
a  certain  length  of  time,  is  then  removed,  and 
again  applied,  and  so  on.  The  cases  for  which 
the  treatment  is  suitable  are  some  forms  of 
inflammation,  acute  necrosis  of  bone,  acute 
celluhtis,  whitlow,  boils  and  carbuncles, 
abscesses,  sinuses  and  empyema. 

Bier's  treatment  may  be  produced — (a)  by 
a  constricting  bandage  placed  on  a  limb  above 
the  inflamed  area  firmly  enough  to  impede  the 
venous  return  but  not  the  arterial  supply;  (b) 
by  cupping  glasses ;  (c)  by  means  of  heat,  the 
limb  or  part  being  placed  in  a  hot  air  bath. 

Mr.  Hughes  showed  several  specimens  of 
cupping  glasses  and  explained  how  they  were 
used.  He  also  gave  certain  rules  and  principles 
which  must  be  observed  in  each  case. 


LECTURES  ON  BABIES. 
A  farther  course  of "'  Lectures  on  Babies  "  was 
begun  on  Tuesday,  May  3rd,  by  Dr.  Ealph  Vin- 
cent, at  the  Infants'  Hospital,  Vincent  Square, 
Westminster,  who  lectured  ou  "  The  Chemis- 
try of  Infantile  Digestion."  Dr.  Vincent  is 
most  lucid,  and  treats  a  complicated  subject  in 
a  manner  comparatively  easy  to  follow,  illustra- 
ting his  remarks  with  interesting  experiments 
and  epidiascopic  demonstrations.  The  lecture 
was  well  attended  by  nurses  from  outside,  who 
.■should  be  able  to  assimilate  much  valuable  iu- 
foniiation.  and  to  use  the  practical  hints  given 
to  the  greater  comfort  and  lasting  benefit  of 
that  much  ill-used  person  the  baby,  of  whose 
sufferings,  by  reason  of  unsuitable  food,  no  one 
who  has  had  the  privilege  of  listening  to  Dr. 
Ralph  Vincent  can  have  any  manner  of  doubt. 


a  Scbeine  SugGe0te^  for  tbeOrgan* 
isation  aiiD  proper  flOanaoe* 
ment  of  the  lUorh  now  beino 
'Un^erta^^en  bv  tbe  ffirancbes 
of  tbe  36nti5b  1Re^  Cross 
Socictv?. 

Bv  Mrs.  Netteeville  Babhon 
{Leicester  Infirmary  Nurses'  League.) 


In  order  that  the  work  of  the  above  Society 
may  not  be  rendered  futile  through  (a)  lack  of 
knowledge,  ib)  lack  of  organisation,  it  is  neces- 
sary that  meetings  should  be  held  in  every 
village  from  which  it  is  proposed  to  draw- 
recruits.  At  these  meetings  the  scope  of  the 
work  and  the  detailed  duties  should  be  ex- 
plained by  a  speaker  thoroughly  conversant 
with  a  properly  thought  out  scheme.  Vague 
generalisations  are  useless  at  such  meetings, 
and  do  not  inspire  the  people  with  any  desire 
to  volunteer.  Volunteers  should  be  told  exactly 
what  will  be  expected  of  them,  and  it  should 
be  pointed  out  how  workers  other  than  nurses 
and  bearers  are  a  necessary  part  of  the  scheme. 
Every  encouragement  should  be  given  to 
volunteers  to  come  forward,  and  the  speaker 
should  endeavour  by  going  into  details  to 
arouse  the  audience  to  a  sustained  interest  and 
enthusiasm. 

Volunteers  having  thus  been  obtained,  classes 
for  ' '  First  Aid  ' '  and  ' '  Home  Nursing  ' '  should 
then  be  arranged.  Before  these  classes  it 
should  be  clearly  explained  again  what  they  are 
for.  and  that  only  those  who  agree  to  take  a 
definite  part  in  the  work  will  be  admitted. 
Any  attempt  to  combine  generally  useful  in- 
struction with  the  very  precise  and  specialised 
instruction  requisite  for  Red  Cross  work  should 
be  deprecated.  The  pupils  should  know  that 
they  are  there  for  a  definite  and  noble  pur- 
pose— I.e..  the  care  of  the  sick  and  wounded 
in  the  time  of  war.  That  they  will  also  obtain 
knowledge  valuable  in  their  own  homes  is,  no 
doubt,  true,  but  that  should  not  be  made  an 
essential  part  of  the  scheme. 

Nurses  must  take  both  classes,  but  workers 
other  than  nurses  need  only  take  First  Aid. 

It  is  necessary  for  all  workers  to  take  the 
First  Aid  classes,  in  order  that  in  the  event  of 
war  they  shall  be  recognised  by  belligerents  as 
Red  Cross  workers.  Those  whose  work  is  pre- 
liminary— that  is,  over  before  war  breaks  out 
— need'  not,  of  course,  take  the  First  Aid 
classes. 

Who  is  to  H.\ve  Coktrol? 

This  preliminary  work  being  over,  it  should 
now    be    understood    that    the    control    and 


368 


^bc  Brittsi)  3ournal  of  IRursinfl. 


[May  7,  1910 


maiiageiiieut  of  the  scheme  ought  to  be  in  the 
hands  of  the  medical  men  and  trained  nurses. 

The  classes  are  to  be  given  by  doctors  with, 
wherever  possible,  the  assistance  of  nurses, 
and  afterwards  the  supervision  of  the  workers 
must  also  be  in  the  hands  of  doctors  and  nurses 
who  shall  be  responsible  for  the  efficiency  of 
the  detachments.  A  trained  nurse,  not  neces- 
sarily one  in  the  actual  practice  of  her  profes- 
sion, should  control  all  the  future  organisation. 
She  should  be  responsible  to  the  doctor  or 
doctors  appointed,  and  should  herself  hold 
special  classes  for  all  the  workers  in  the  various 
detachments.  Such  a  trained  nurse,  who 
might  be  called  the  District  Superintendent, 
will  in  the  event  of  w'ar  be  attached  to  one 
temporary  hospital,  but  otherwise  her  duties 
will  be  to  supervise  a  district  in  which  tliere 
may  be  several  temporary  hospitals.  It  would 
be  well  to  limit  her  district  to  three  divisions, 
over  which  she  should  have  the  control,  and  it 
should  be  her  duty  to  see  that  the  workers  in 
these  divisions  are  from  time  to  time  called  out 
for  practice. 

Practices. 

At  these  practices  or  musters  a  doctor,  or  a 
nurse  appointed  by  him,  should  be  present  to 
give  advice.  The  District  Superintendent 
should  not  have  the  power  to  call  for  divisional 
musters,  but  she  should  be  notified  of  the  in- 
tention to  hold  any  such  muster,  and  should 
whenever  possible  be  present. 

Lay  persons  in  control  of  divisional  detach- 
ments should  in  all  cases  of  difficulty  apply  to 
the  District  Superintendent  for  advice. 
Committees. 

Divisional  Committees  should  be  formed  of 
lay  persons.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  these 
Committees  to  collect  the  necessary  funds  and 
also  the  sui^i^Iies,  appliances,  bandages  etc.,  as 
recommended  by  the  District  Superintendent. 
An  accurate  "  roll  "  must  be  kept. 
Efficiency. 

Efficiency  can  only  be  guaranteed  if  the 
workers  are  continually  reminded  of  and 
practice  their  duties.  Musters  should,  there- 
fore be  held  for 

(a)  Determining  the  length  of  time  a  detach- 
ment would  take  to  collect  at  any  given  spot. 

(b)  Determining  the  best  way  to  communi- 
cate with  the  individuals  to  be  called  out  for 
practice. 

It  is  suggested  that  Boy  Scouts  might  be 
utilised  for  this  pui-pose. 

(c)  The  practice  of  individual  duties. 

Keeping  Up  the  Interest. ^ 
With  a  vei-y  little  trouble  the  praetice  of  the 
various  duties  could  be  made  interesting ;  and, 
in  fact,  they  must  be  made  interesting,  or  the 


workers  will  cease  to  attend,  and  the  scheme 
will  fail.  Boy  Scouts  could  be  utihsed  as 
"  wounded."  An  imaginary  battle  could  be 
arranged  and  the  wounded  brought  by  the 
stretcher  bearers,  horsed  waggons,  etc.,  to  the 
"  temporary  hospital  "  or  other  temporary 
base.  Here  could  be  present  the  doctors  and 
nurses,  when  further  instruction  could  be 
given.  Here  also  might  be  the  cooks,  porters, 
and  other  accessory  officials,  who  should  also 
receive  their  definite  orders. 

Frequency  and  Character  of  Musters. 

It  is  suggested  that  these  musters  be  held 
every  two  or  three  months.  During  the  winter 
indoor  meetings  should  be  held  and  classes  for 
invalid  cooking  arranged.  During  the  winter, 
also,  needlework  may  be  done.  Indoor  musters 
held  at  different  houses  all  round  the  division, 
so  that  people  have  not  always  a  long  way  to 
go.  Poultice  making,  putting  a  "  wounded  " 
Scout  to  bed,  changing  his  sheets  and  many 
other  things,  which  will  occur  at  once  to  the 
mind  of  a  trained  person,  can  be  practised. 
Thus,  all  will  be  kept  efficient,  and  the  work 
of  the  Voluntary  Aid  Detachments  made  enor- 
mously more  valuable  in  the  event  of  war. 
Self-Centred. 

Every  division,    large  or  small,    should     be 
absolutely   self-centred,  and  not  until  this  is 
accomplished  should  any  attempt  be  made  at 
co-operation  between  divisions. 
Identity  of  the  Scheme  in  all  Division*. 

Subject  to  density  of  population  and  some 
other  considerations,  the  same  scheme  should 
be  carried  out  in  every  division.  Uniformity 
should  be  as  complete  as  possible,  as  in  this 
way  only  can  efficiency  be  realised.  -  Unifor- 
mity will  also  make  it  much  easier  for  a  worker 
changing  from  one  division  to  another  to  take 
up  the  work  which  she  will  have  already 
learned. 

Changes   in  the  Scheme. 

District  Superintendents  should  meet  from 
time  to  time  for  the  interchange  of  ideas,  and 
no  District  Superintendent  should  inake  any 
important  alteration  in  the  scheme  unless  it 
has  been  previously  agreed  to  at  a  meeting. 

Alterations  or  suggestions  coming  from  Head- 
quarters should  be  sent  to  the  various  District 
Superintendents.  Lay  Committees  are  again 
reminded  that  it  is  their  duty  to  obtain  the 
material,  the  volunteers,  and  the  necessary 
funds.  It  is  management  of  these  various 
items  that  should  be  under  the  supervision  of 
trained  persons — i.e.,  the  District  Superinten- 
dents. 

Below  will  be  found  an  estimate  of  the 
numbei's  of  workers  required  to  deal  with  100 
wounded  or  sick  men,  together  with  a  rough 


Mav 


lOlUl 


Cbc   Bntisb  3onrnal  of  ll^nrsinG, 


'dm 


calculation  of  the  material  and  aecomiiiodatiou 
necessary.  Divisions  should,  however,  not  aim 
at  coping  with  any  definite  number  of  wounded, 
but  should  know  how  many  they  will  be  able 
to  undertake  without  dislocating  their  local 
machinery.  The  calculation  is  based  on  the 
experience  of  the  Royal  Army  Medical  Corps 
and  of  large  and  small  civil  hospitals.  It 
should  always  be  remembered  that  help  from 
headquarters  cannot  be  guaranteed,  und  that 
in  the  event  of  war  it  is  useless  to  even  hope 
for  it. 

One  hundred  sick  and  wounded  distributed 
in  four  wards  of  25  each  :  If  all  are  in  one 
large  hall  not  so  many  utensils  will  be  needed ; 
if  divided  up  further,  more  will  be  needed. 
For  cubic  space  and  other  information,  consult 
handbooks.  Such  matters  will  also  be  taught 
in  the  classes. 

Untrained  Nurses.' 

Numbers  required  in  temporary  hospitals:  — 

Nurses  (women),  25 — i.e..  1  to  4  patients: 
First  Aid  and  Home  Nursing. 

Trained  Nursks. 

Trained  nurses,  2  (or  more  if  they  can  be 
got).  These  might  be  provided  from  the  local 
hospitals  or  they  might  be  trained  amiy  nurses. 
If  there  are  any  trained  ex-nurses  living  in  a 
division  their  services  might  be  utilised.  As 
already  mentioned,  the  District  Superintendent 
will  be  attached  to  her  own  temporary  hospital, 
and  wherever  that  is  the  case  she  should  be 
regarded  as  the  Matron  of  that  hospital.  In 
other  cases  an  incoming  trained  nvu-se  will  be 
the  Matron. 

^Matron's  Assistant. 

In  every  case  a  lay  person  (First  Aid  and 
Home  Nursing)  should  have  been  told  off  to 
assist  specially  the  Matron,  whether  the 
latter  happens  to  be  a  District  Superintendent 
or  a  stranger  appointed  to  be  in  charge. 

Ward  Maids,  8;  two  shifts  of  four.  A  few 
more  would  be  an  advantage. 

Cooks,  6 ;  one  head  cook  and  two  assistants 
in  each  relay.  It  must  be  remembered  that 
these  cooks  will  have  to  provide  the  food  for 
the  staff  as  well  as  for  the  wounded. 

Laundry  Maids,  6;  one  head  and  two  assis- 
tants in  two  shifts. 

.\11  the  above  arc  the  women  necessary  to 
the  (equipment  of  a  temporary  hospital.  Ward 
maids,  cooks,  and  laundry  maids  will  have  to 
take  the  First  Aid  classes,  so  as  to  obtain  the 
Red  Cross  brassards  and  be  recognised  by  bel- 
ligerents. 

Men. 

Men  necessary  to  the  temporary  hospitals 
are :  — 

One  Quartermaster.  The  Quartermaster  is 
one  of    the   most   important    officials,    whose 


duties  must  be  thoroughly  taught  him.     It  is 
not  intended  to  describe  those  duties  here. 

Two  Stewards  (one  for  relief).  These  are 
practically  Assistant  Quartermasters,  and  work 
under  the  Quartermaster. 

Four  Porters  (two  for  relief). 

Two  Carpenters. 

Two  Dispensers. 

One  Clerk.  One  is  the  very  least  you  can 
have.  Ifc  will  be  his  duty  to  keep  an  accurate 
record  of  every  patient  passing  through  the 
temporary  hospital,  and  to  be  able  to  say 
exactly  where  he  came  from  and  whitiier  he 
was  despatched. 

The  above  completes  the  equipment  of  the 
temporary  hospitals. 

In  the  Field. 

This  section,  which  should  really  be  con- 
sidered first,  will  consist  of  3G  men.  It  is,  of 
course,  absui-d  to  lay  down  any  hard  and  fast 
lines  as  to  the  munber  of  men  required,  but 
six  squads  of  six  each  would  be  a  reasonable 
munber. 

There  should  be  six  men  to  each  stretcher, 
and  their  chief  duty  will  be  the  bringing  in  and 
the  taking  away  of  the  sick  and  wounded  to 
and  from  the  temporary  hospital. 
Transport. 

In  this  will  be  required  : — Six  large  waggons, 
each  to  take  two  lying  down  eases.  Six  drivers. 
Orderlies;  these  can  be  taken  from  the  bearer 
(stretcher)  divisions.  '  Two  light  carts  and 
horses,  attached  to  temporary  hospital  for 
bringing  stores  and  other  objects.  Two  drivers 
for  above. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  anyone  w^hose 
duties  will  take  them  to  and  from  the  tem- 
porary hospitals  will  require  brassards,  and 
consequently  such  people  should  take  the  First 
Aid  classes. 

Equipment. 

One  hundred  beds  with  full  bedding, 
blankets,  and  four  sheets  to  a  bed. 

Ward  Linen. — 100  towels;  25  bath  towels; 
2, doz.  roller  towels  ;  tea  cloths;  kitchen  cloths 
and  other  material  for  ward  and  kitchen  use. 

Clothing. — 100  shirts  (not  pyjamas);  50 bed 
jackets  Cflannel) :  25  flannel  shirts  and  pants; 
a  good  supply  of  handkerchiefs. 

Ward  Furniture. — 25  washing  basins,  with 
sponges,  etc. ;  16  bed  pans  (4  to  a  ward),  and 
urinals  (enamel);  20  hot  water  bottles;  medi- 
cine glasses,  thermometers,  spittoons,  feeding 
cups,  etc. ;  25  mackintosh  sheets  (emergency 
beds);  1  large  table  for  each  ward  (4);  4  foot- 
baths; 16  cliairs  and  4  armchairs;  lamps  (oil, 
etc.),  coal,  wood,  matches,  soap,  and  candles. 

Food  rtcqidsitcs  for  Patients  and  Staff. — 
Knives,  forks,  spoons,  plates,  mugs,  and 
kitchen  utensils. 


370 


^l?e  British  3ournal  of  mursing. 


[May  7,  1910 


Although  the  above  equipment  sounds 
alarming,  it  is  absolutely  necessary^  and  any 
scheme  which  does  not  provide  for  it  is  useless. 

Any  division  sufficiently  large  to  cope  with 
100  men  should  easily  be  able  to  arrange  for 
this  supply.  The  best  way  will  be  to  keep  a 
certain  minimum  amount  in  a  central  store, 
and  to  earmark  other  articles  in  private  houses 
as  available  for  use  when  required. 

The  list  of  all  these  articles  is  to  be  kept  by 
the  Quartermaster,  and  it  will  be  his  duty  to 
arrange  for  their  conveyance  to  the  temporary 
hospital  when  wanted  without  any  delay. 
Garments,  ready  for  use,  should,  at  any  rate, 
be  kept  in  a  central  store,  as  also  certain  other 
part  of  the  equipment  not  necessary  to  specify 
here. 

The  requisite  dispensary  equipment,  such  as 
splints,  drugs,  bandages,  and  surgical  ap- 
pliances, will  have  to  be  arranged  for,  and 
splints  and  bandages  should  be  kept  ready  for 
immediate  use. 

The  actual  amount  of  dispensary  equipment 
necessary  should  be  decided  by  the  doctor  in 
charge  of  the  division. 


Zbc  £100  IRcQistration  jfunb. 

£     s.    d. 

Brought  forward       95     4     8 

Sent  in  tnemory  of  the  faithful  ser- 
vices to  the  Registration  Cause  of 
Miss  Isla  Steivart. 
Mrs.  Stabb  2     2     0 


CoLLECTixG  Card. 
'Name  of  Collector:  Mrs.  Lidyard,  E.N.S. 

S.  H 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  F.  K. 
^Irs.  Prentis 

W.  Bird,  Esq 

C.  H.  Schulten     

Sister  Gisby 

S.  G.  L 


Total 


Who  is  going  to  complete  the  £100?  Only 
£1  13s.  4d.  is  now  required.  We  hope  we 
may  announce  next  week  that  this  little  sum 
has  been  collected. 


5 

0 

4 

6 

2 

6 

2 

0 

2 

0 

2 

0 

2 

0 

£1 

0 

0 

.£98 

6 

8 

We  regret  that  owing  to  pressure  on  our 
space  the  report  of  the  last  meeting  of  the 
Society  for  the  State  Eegistration  of  Nurses  is 
held  over  till  next  week. 


(Bn^'0  Ibospital  IWurscs'  !!lcaoue. 

The  Annual  Dinner. 

The  second  Annual  Dinner  of  the  Guy's  Hos- 
pital Nurses'  League,  which  took  place  on  Fri- 
day, April  29th,  was  a  very  delightful  function. 
Dinner  was  served  in  the  great  dining  room  in 
the  Nurses'  Home  at  a  number  of  tables,  the 
Matron  and  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  League, 
Miss  L.  V.  Haughton,  presiding  at  the  chief 
table,  and  Sisters  at  the  others.  On  Miss 
Haughton's  right  was  Miss  G.  A.  Rogers,  Ma- 
tron of  Leicester  Infirmary,  and  on  her  left 
Miss  Victoria  Jones,  a  former  Matron  of  Guy's. 

While  dinner  was  in  progress.  Miss  Haugh- 
ton ascended  the  rostrum,  and  announced  that 
Miss  Swift  was  in  London,  and  she  thought  it 
would  be  the  M'ish  of  the  members  to  send  her 
a  telegram  from  the  League,  a  proposition 
which  was  received  with  much  applause. 

Miss  Haughton  then  read  the  telegram  : 

"  Guy's   Hospital    Nurses'    League   Members  at 
Dinner  greet  you." 
and  this  message  was  despatched  forthwith. 

Coffee  was  served  while  the  members  stood 
about  in  groups,  and  talked  as  only  League 
members  can  talk  when  they  have  the  oppor- 
tunity    of   meeting     their   foiiner    colleagues. 

They  then   reassembled    for    the     business 
meeting,  at  which  Miss  Rogers  presided. 
The  Business  Meeting. 

The  minutes  of  the  last  meeting  were  read 
by  Miss  Smith  and  confirmed. 

The  following  Resolution  was  then  proposed 
by  ]\Iiss  Victoria  Jones,  seconded  by  Miss 
Eowell,  and  carried  unanimously. 

"That  the  Members  of  the  Guy's  Hospital 
Nurses'  League  desire  to  place  on  record  their 
warm  appreciation  of  the  valuable  advice  and  help 
they  have  invariably  received  from  Miss  Swift  as 
Hon.  Secretary  since  1901.  They  feel  it  is  chiefly 
due  to  her  energy  that  the  League  was  founded, 
and  has  attained  its  present  successful  position." 
The  Annual  Report. 

The  Matron,  Miss  Haughton,  then  extended 
a  very  hearty  welcome  to  all  present,  esf)ecially 
mentioning  the  pleasure  it  was  to  the  League 
that  Miss  Victoria  Jones  was  with  them.  She 
said  that  during  the  year  between  80  and  90 
new  members  had  joined  the  League,  mostly 
associate  members  who  had  jjassed  on  to  full 
membership;  146  Sisters  and  Nvu-ses  had  spent 
week-ends  or  nights  off  at  tfie  Cottage  at  Honor 
Oak  Park,  and  700  visits  had  been  paid  by 
members  of  the  nursing  staff  who  had  had  tea 
there  ;  3,570  volumes  had  been  taken  out  of  the 
Library  during  the  year,  and  from  70  to  80 
new  volumes  had  been  added.  There  was  a 
proj)osal  which  would  be  formally  brought  up 
on  a  future  occasion  to  alter  the  rules  so  as  to  ■ 


Maj  7,   1910] 


tTDc  Britisb  30urnai  of  lAursing. 


371 


permit  the  members  to  have  out  a  professional 
book  as  well  as  a  story  book  at  the  same  time. 
The  Musical  Society  gave  an  excellent,  concert 
in  December,  and  would  shortly  give  another. 
The  Debating  Society  was  not  flourishing. 
The  Post  Graduate  Ijcctures  had  been  greatly 
appreciated,  not  only  by  members  of  the 
League,  but  by  nurses  trained  elsewhere. 

The  Hon.  Treasurer,  Mrs.  Fagge,  was  unable 
to  be  present,  but  Miss  Haughton  announced 
tlie  League  accounts  to  be  in  a  much  more 
flourishing  condition  than  in  the  previous  year. 

The  Chairman's  Speech. 

Miss  Rogers,  who  on  rising  to  speak,  was 
warmly  applauded,  said  slie  considered  it  a 
great  honour  to  be  asked  to  lake  the  chair  at 
a  meeting  of  tiie  Guy's  League.  They  might 
wonder  why  she,  a  country  cousin,  had  been 
invited  to  occupy  the  chair,  but  ghe  had  once 
been  Sister  Clinical  at  Guy's,  though  some 
of  those  present  were  jirobably  m  their  cradles 
at  the  time.  Then  it  was  largely  to  the  inspira- 
tion of  Guy's  that  the  Leicester  League  owed 
its  origin,  and  another,  tie  was  that  it  was  to 
(tuv's  the  Leicester  Infirmary  owed  its 
first  ilatron.  Miss  Burt.  When  Miss  Burt  went 
to  Leicester  nursing  was  non-existent.  There 
were  two  night  nurses  for  200  patients,  shd 
their  instructions  were  not  to  stay  in  any  ward 
but  to  walk  through  them  all  at  intervals.  She 
had  been  told  by  a  former  house  surgeon  that 
the  house  staff  used  to  tie  tlie  feet  of  the  night 
nurses  to  the  chairs  in  which  they  were  en- 
sconced, to  bring  home  to  them  that  they  had 
visited  the  wards.  At  that  time  the  fractured 
legs  were  lifted  out  of  bed.  ^liss  Burt  was  not 
there  long,  but  she  left  Leicester  with  a  well- 
organised  school  when  she  returned  to  Guy's. 

"  ^liss  Burt,"  said  Miss  Rogers,  "  was  a  re- 
former. She  was  not  popular — reformers  who 
get  people  out  of  their  anii-ciiairs  rarely  are ; 
but  she  fought  a  good  fight,  and  won  the  vic- 
tory for  you.  I  think  if  she  could  come  back 
now  she  would  find  the  victory  worth  while, 
and  would  not  grudge  the  time  and  labour  she 
spent  in  organising  the  Training  School.  I  am 
only  sorry  she  cannot  see  the  fruit  of  her  work." 

Miss  Rogers  told  an  amusing  story  illustra- 
ting the  need  for  discretion  as  well  as  sym- 
pathy. There  was  once,  she  said,  a  tender- 
hearted elephant  walking  through  a  jungle  who 
accidentally  put  her  foot  upon  a  partridge, 
mother  of  a  brood  of  yoimg  ones,  and  because 
she  was  a  very  tender-hearted  elephant  she  was 
very  sad,  but  saying,  "  I'm  a  mother  myself," 
she  promptly  sat  down  on  the  young  partridges. 

Turning  to  the  fonnation  of  Leagues,  and 
the  part  they  had  played  in  organisation,  Miss 
Rogers  said  that  when  the  third  volume  of  the 


History  of  Nursing  was  written,  she  hoped  it 
would  contain  a  tribute- — no  doubt  it  would — 
to  the  late  Miss  Isla  Stewart,  who  did  so  much 
for  Leagues  in  this  country.  Sne  emphasised 
their  value  in  helping  their  members  to  look 
out  into  the  wider  world  and  see  what  others 
were  doing,  and  to  take  an  interest  in  what  was 
going  on  around  them.  She  also  quoted  some 
of  Lady  Hekii  Munro  Ferguson's  address  on 
"  The  Nurse  as  Citizen  "  to  the  International 
Congress  of  Nurses.  Miss  Rogers  said  that  as 
one  heard  of  fresh  fields  for  nurses  on  all  sides 
it  was  difficult  not  to  feel  a  little  jealous  of  the 
nurses  of  to-morrow,  who  would  see  the  build- 
ing, whose  foundations  had  been  laid  with  so 
much  care^  rising  up.  She  concluded  by  wish- 
ing the  Matron,  Si.sters,  and  Nurses  at  Guy's  a 
happy  and  honourable  career. 

The  result  of  the  ballot  for  the  election  of 
Sisters'  and  Nurses'  Representatives  on  the 
Council  for  the  ensuing  year  was  then  an- 
nounced by  Miss  Smith  as  follows:  — 

Library  :  Sister  Cornelius,  Nurse  Cox.  Or- 
chestra :  Sister  Surgery,  Nurse  Rees.  Hockey 
Club  :  Sister  Florence,  Nurse  Dowley.  Tennis 
Club :  Sister  Theresa,  Nurse  Ilodgkinson. 
Choral  Society:  Sister  Ruth,  Nurse  Hinds. 
Photographic  Society :  Sister  Jentie,  Nurse 
Allen.  Sivimnting  Club:  Sister  Ellen,  Nurse 
Schlagentweit.  Cycling  Club  :  Sister  Addison, 
Nurse  jNIarriott.  Debating  Society:  Sister 
Lj'dia,  Nurse  !Macmanus. 

The  appointments  of  nine  Associate  members 
of  the  Council  were  confirmed,  and  on  the  pro- 
position of  Miss  Haughton,  seconded  by  Sister 
Lilian,  a  cordial  vote  of  thanks  to  the  Presi- 
dent, Mrs.  Bonsor,  and  these  Associate  mem- 
bers of  Council  was  carried. 

Everyone,  Miss  Haughton  .said,  knew  how 
genial  and  delightful  their  President  was. 

Votes  of  thanks  were  also  accorded  to  the 
Hon.  Treasurer,  and  to  Miss  Smith.  The  lat- 
ter, in  replying,  said  that  the  League  was  now 
over  1,000  strong. 

A  hearty  vote  of  thanks  to  Miss  Rogers,  for 
making  a  special  journey  from  Leicester  to 
preside  at  the  meeting,  was  carried  by  accla- 
mation, and  Miss  Rogers  said  that  if  the 
League  would  charter  a  special  train  she  would 
be  pleased  to  see  all  the  members  at  Leicester. 

The  business  concluded.  Miss  Smith  showed 
an  interesting  series  of  lantern  slides,  a  number 
being  made  from  photographs  taken  by  mem- 
bers of  the  League.  Many  of  the  pictures 
were  loudly  applauded.  In  another  room  the 
work  done  by  the  Photographic  Circle  of  the 
League  was  on  view,  and  the  members  are 
wai-mlv  to  be  congratulated  on  the  result. 

M.  B. 


372 


s^Dc  Brttisb  3ountaI  of  fl^ursino.        t^^^y  ^'  ^^^^ 


®ur  (Buinca  prise 

We  have  pleasure  in  announcing  that  Miss  B. 
Widdop,  Royal  Infirmary,  Sheffield,  has  won  the 
Guinea  Pi'ize  for  April. 

Key  id  Puzzles. 

No.  1. — Compericum. 

Comb — pea — ricfc — UM 

No.  2. — Evans  and  Wormull's  Snares. 

E — van  S  &  W-oar-mules  SN-hare-S 

No.   3. — Fry's   Cocoa. 

FR-eyes     Cow-cow 

No.  4. — Sanatogen. 

S-anna-toe-gee-N 

The  following  competitors  have  also  solved  the 
puzzles  correctly :  — 

E.  Beever,  Horrabridge  ;  M.  Dempster,  Loudon  ; 
M.  Newsome,  Pontefract;  B.  Conway,  London;  C. 
C.  D.  Cheshire,  Woking  :  :\I.  G.  Allbrect,  Wake^eld  ; 
E.  Islip,  London ;  E.  McLernon,  Brighton ;  A.  Jary, 
Fakenham;  H.  Ellis,  Milford;  A.  C.  Pettit,  Lon- 
don, K.  Ross,  Stirling;  K.  Dyer,  London;  M.  C. 
Morrison,  Glasgow;  F.  Hales,  Lewisham  ;  M.  Flynn, 
Dublin  ;  F.  GriflSn,  Ilford  ;  Nurse  Archibald,  Leeds  ; 
N.  A.  Fellows,  Birmingham ;  C.  Mackenzie,  Edin- 
burgh;  E.  S.  Sills,  Oakham;  M.  Donnithorne. 
Wick;  A.  Grummitt,  Clifton;  J.  Cook,  Port- 
land; G.  G.  Tate,  London;  C.  Lawson, 
Banff;  F.  Flegg,  Fakenham;  C.  E.  Gard- 
ner, Bentley;  C.  A.  Power,  Belfast;  D.  E. 
Williams,  Hull;  E.  jMa.rsland,  Huntingdon;  M. 
Sutherland,  Glasgow;  R.  L.  Wiseman,  London;  C. 
L.  Hiudley,  Poole;  C.  M.  Loudoun,  Eklinburgh  ;  .T. 
M.  Bruford,  Southport;  C.  Long,  Manchester;  T. 
Foster,  Huddensfield ;  A.  Denny,  Cork;  B.  Howaixl, 
Nonvood ;  F.  B.  Mathews,  Highbury :  N.  I^acey, 
Eastbourne;  F.  Power,  Norwich;  K.  Mackay, 
Edinburgh;  C.  M.  Walker,  Stockport;  L.  Bydmg, 
Belfast;  E.  C.  Wa<le,  London;  E.  Shar'eman, 
Wiandsworth ;  M.  Lewis,  London ;  A.  Derry,  Dub- 
lin;  A.  Mutton,  Plymouth;  T.  Valentine.  Cai-stair.s; 
V.  James,  Huddersfield;  T.  Macdougal,  Glasgow; 
E.  M.  Banner,  Islington;  A.   S.   Morriss,  London; 

C.  Ramsay,  Greenock ;  AL  Bridges,  London  ;  V. 
Newham,  Virginia  Water ;  E.  Dinnie,  Harrow  ;  B. 
Sheard,  Chislehur.st ;  A.  Glass,  Belfast;  M.  Daly. 
Limerick;  K.  S.  Manser,  London;  M.  Woodward, 
Redhill:  E.  M.  Dickson,  Northfleet;  H.  B.  Flint, 
Binningham  ;  E.  A.  Crewes,  Edinburgh;  J.  Wade, 
Walmer;  E.  Wood,  Hami>stead ;  E,  F.  Wliatham, 
Barnsley;  H.  E.  Smith,  AVarriugton ;  K.  Parfitt, 
Mortlake ;  K.  T.  Mostyn,  Swansea;  F.  M.  Wrigley, 
London  ;  M.  Rose,  Leith ;  T.  ilunro,  Aberdeen ;  E. 
H.  L.  Dowd,  Clonskeagh  ;  H.  Cobb,  Attleborough  ; 
B.  Taylor,  Rhyl;  E.  Walkin-son,  Xonvich  ;  M.  Chad- 
wick,  London;  F.  Sheppard,  Tunbridge  Wells;  E. 
Macfarlane,  London;  C.  Trueman,  York;  A.  M. 
Shoesmith,  Durham;  N.  Fingall,  Wexford;  M.  E. 
Clegg,  Liverpool ;  K.  Murley,  Edinburgh ;  M.  E. 
Chick,  Broad  Clyst ;  M.  E.  MacLennan,  Stornoway ; 
M.  L.  Ford,  London  ;  N.  Copelin,  Beckenham  ;  C. 
A.  Williams,  Groombridge;  E.  Drewett,  Slough;  L. 
Waddington,  Leeds;  J.  G.   Powell,   Ngwca.stle;   E. 

D.  Douglas,  Belfast;  K.  King,  Lucan. 

Tile  ndes  for  the  Prize  Puzzles  remain  the 
.same,  and  will  be  found  on  page  xii. 


Ikerncls  of  tbe  (Tonfccence. 

It  is  impossible  in  the  space  at  our  dis- 
posal to  give  a  full  report  of  all  the 
papers  read  at  the  Nursing  and  Midwifery 
Conference.  We  shall,  therefore,  allude  to  the 
chief  points  of  interest.  A  report  of  the  proceed- 
ings on  Wednesday,  April  27th,  appeared  in  our 
issue  last  week. 

THURSDAY,  APRIL  28th. 

Sir  Dyce  Duckwortli,  Bart.,  !M.D.,  presided  at 
this  Session,  aud  spoke  of  the  amazing  progress  ot 
nursing  during  the  last  thirty  years,  and  of  the 
high  position  taken  in  the  nursing  world  by  the 
nurses  of  the  United  Kingdom. 
Fevek  Nur.sing. 

The  first  speaker  was  Dr.  Sidney  PhilliiJS,  who 
said  that  in  no  branch  of  nursing  were  self-sacrifice 
and  skill  more  required  than  in  the  nui-sing  of  infec- 
tious cases.  He  sjpokeof  the  iX)intsto  be  olxserved  m 
the  nui-sing  of  typhoid  fever,  e.g.,  the  temperature, 
a  rapid  fall  in  which  after  the  second  week  was  an 
indication  of  htemorrhage.  A  falling  temperature 
and  a  rising  pulse  were  also  danger  .signals,  reten- 
tion of  urine  must  be  watched  for,  and  the  mental 
condition  carefully  observed.  Acute  mania  might 
suddenly  develop,  and  the  patient  become  suicidal 
or  homicidal.  He  emphasised  the  necessity  for 
plenty  of  space  and  plenty  of  air  for  scarlet  fever 
cases;  the  feeding  of  children  should  be  closely 
superintended,  or  if  their  throats  were  painful 
they  might  half  starve  themselves. 

In  regard  to  measles,  there  was  often  a  slight 
preliminary  rash  before  the  full  rash  came  out. 
In  one  instance  he  saw  such  a  case,  and  diagnosed 
it  as  measles;  the  nurse  called  in  subsequently  gave 
it  as  her  opinion  that  the  case  was  not  one  of 
measles,  and  the  parents,  willing  to  believe  her, 
let  the  boy  return  to  school.  Later,  he  was  called 
in  again,  and  the  nurse  had  to  own  her  mistake. 
He  did  not  report  her,  but  told  her  that  her  fee 
for  an  infectious  case  would  be  £3  3s. ;  in  this  in- 
stance it  would  be  £2  2s. 

In  the  discussion  which  followed,  Miss  Breay  in- 
quired what  training  the  nurse  had  received  who 
ventured  to  dispute  the  doctor's  diagnosis. 

Dr.  Phillips  replied  he  did  not  know  in  the 
least.  .She  was  a  certificated  nurse,  and  cams  from 
an  institution. 

Miss  Breay  pointed  out  that  her  training  was 
an  unknown  quantity.  The  case  afforded  a  good 
illustration  of  the  reasons  why-  many  nurses  were 
working  to  secure  the  definition  and  enforcement 
of  professional  standards.  Dr.  Phillips,  a  member 
of  the  Central  Hospital  Council  for  London,  the 
body  which  is  opposing  the  nurses  m  their  demand 
for  legal  status,  made  no  reply.  Indeed,  there 
was  none  to  make  after  his  significant  admission. 
The  Duties  of  Probationers. 

Dr.  E.  B.  Eeckitt,  surgeon  to  tbe  Boston  Hos- 
pital, Lines.,  read  a  paper  on  the  Duties  of  Pro- 
bationers aud  the  advantage  of  obtaining  training 
in  provincial  hospitals."  He  advised  that  if  a 
Staff  Nurse  took  a  dislike  to  a  probationer  and 
made  her  life  miserable  she  should  go  to  the 
Matron   and  tell  her  her  troubles.        The   Matron 


May  7,  1910] 


Zl)C  I6i1tt9l3  3ourna[  of  iRursfng. 


373 


would  always  be  kind  and  considerate.  As  proba- 
tioners were  often  ambitious,  and  hoped  to  be- 
come Matrons  themselves,  they  should  treat  the 
Matron  as  they  would  hope  to  bo  treated  themselves 
eventually.  He  considered  the  position  of  a  pro- 
bationer in  a  country  hospital  advantageous,  as  she 
saw  more  of  practical  treatment,  and  in  a  few 
months  did  the  work  which  falls  to  Staff  Nurses 
in  larger  hospitals. 

Sir   Dj-ce   Duckworth   then    vacated    the   chair, 
which  was  taken  by  Mr.  .John  Langton,  P.R.C.S. 
Mf.ntal   Xrusi.NG. 

Dr.  Bernard  Hollander  jj:ave  an  interesting 
addi'ess  on  mental  iiui-sing.  He  held  that  any  per- 
Kon  of  average  intelligence  and  proper  training 
could  be  a,  general  nurse,  but  that  in  mental 
iiui-sing  great  responsibilities  were  placed  on  the 
nurse.  She  should  bo  in  reality  a  mental  healer, 
and  count  it  as  her  ambition  to  record  recoveries  in 
her  patients.  The  nurse  was  really  the  doctor  as 
well  as  the  me<lical  practitioner  who  gave  directions 
a.-i  to  the  treatment,  for  the  healing  influence  came 
fiiom  the  nurse  who  was  with  the  patient  all  the 
time.  Further,  she  should  l)c  a  person  of  culture, 
for  many  mental  patients  wore  peifions  of  educa- 
tion and  refinement,  and  it  «  as  her  duty  to  guide, 
CKjnsole,  and  interest  the  patient,  enter  into  his 
thoughts,  and  strengthen  his  will  power. 

The  discussion  w-as  opeiie<l  by  Dr.  Edwin  Ash,  who 
said  health,  concentration  of  mind,  and  tranquility 
were  necessary  qualification.s  in  a  good  mental 
nurse. 

The  R.B.X.A.  Diploic. 

After  a  short  int-emal  Miss  Macdonald,  Secretary, 
6ix>ke  on  the  Diploma  of  the  R.B.N. A. 


FRIDAY.    APRIL  29th. 
Miss  Brodie  Hall,   Voot  Law   Guardian,  occupictl 
the  chair,   and  introduced  Miiss  (liljson,  JIatron  of 
the  Birmingham  Infirmary,  the  reader  of  the  first 
j)aper. 

NtJKSINQ     AND     Tb.UNING     IN     PoOR     LaW 

Infiumaries. 
Miss  Gil)son  said  that  she  was  at  an  enormous 
disadvantage  in  dealing  with  the  subject  allotted 
to  her,  as  the  Reijort  of  the  Royal  CommiK.sion  on 
the  Poor  Laws  had  left  the  whole  future  of  Poor 
Law  nursing  so  undecided  that  until  the  whole 
matter  had  been  threshed  out  it  was  difficult  to 
deal  usefully  witli  the  subject.  The  great  difficulty 
in  efiBcient  Poor  Law  nursing  was  the  small,  un- 
separated  workhouse  infirmary,  and  in  spite  of  all 
the  thought  bestowed  on  this  question  the  jwRitiou 
of  the  Suixjrint<'udeiit  Xui'se  was  not  loss  anomalous 
than  it  was  thirty  yoais  ago.  The  thoix)ughly  trained 
and  equipped  professional  worker  was  subject  to  the 
authority  and  supervision  of  an  nntraine<l  official. 
Further,  although  these  institutions,  even  of  200 
Ijeds,  might  give  a  certificate  which  deceived  the 
unwary,  they  could  not  give  an  efficient  training. 
In  1898  she  had  reatl  a  paper  [at  the  Conference  of 
the  N.U.W.'W.  at  Croydon. — Ed.]  in  wliich  she 
advocated  an  exchange  of  nurses  between  the  large 
and  small  infirmaries,  but  the  scheme  fell  thi-ough, 
probably  because  it  needed  money,  cohesion,  and 
or<iani.sation. 


Miss  Gibtson  said  that  whatever  the  future  held 
in  store,  the  problems  of  the  future  would  be  the 
problems  of  the  past,  and  they  should  strive  to  cul- 
tivate general  interest,  and  be  i)rei)ared  to  work 
together  for  the  general  good,  and  not  for  the  ad- 
vantage of  a  little  corner.  Hor  knowledge  of 
Metropolitan  infirmaries  was  not  large,  but  in  the 
provinces  progress  had  been  unbroken  and  marked, 
and  the  large  infirmaries  afforded  splendid  train- 
ing She  deprecated  a  special  examination  for 
Poor  Law  nurses  which  would  accentuate  the  diflfer- 
ence  between  them  and  nurses  trained  in  civil  hos- 
pitals. They  should  have  equal  chances  with 
others.  Given  the  knowledge  it  was  no  matter 
where  it  was  obtained.  When  State  Registration 
of  Nurses  came  she  hoped  this  would  be  seen  to, 
that  the  examination  would  impose  a  severe  test, 
and  the  Poor  Law  nurses  be  entitled  to  registra- 
tion if  they  fulfilled  the  conditions.  So  the  un- 
deserved feeling  of  the  inferiority  of  the  infirmary 
nurse  would  die  out.  Only  those  would  be  inferior 
who  exhibited  a  lack  of  knowlcd-gc. 

Miss  Edmond  (Superintendent  Nurse)  said  she 
had  trained  under  Miss  Gibson,  and  counted  it  an 
honour.  The  Superintendent  Nurse  in  a  small  in- 
firmary was  often  at  a  great  disadvantage.  She 
was  placed  under  an  untrained  and  uneducated 
man — the  Master,  the  Matron  tried  to  suppress 
her,  and  the  Assistant  Nurses  did  as  they  pleased, 
and  informed  their  Superintendent  that  the  in- 
firmary was  not  a  training  school.  It  was  nearly 
time  that  the  smaller  institutions  were  suppressed. 
Nursing  in  Unsepabated  Workhouses. 

The  next  paper,  by  Miss  Wilson  (Workhouse 
Nursing  Association)  was  read  by  Miss  Venning, 
as  Miss  Wilson  was  unfortunately  not  well  enough 
to  be  present. 

Miss  Wilson  stated  that  the  Gathornc-Hardy  Act 
of  1871  had  not  touched  the  jirovinces  very  much, 
and  Miss  Louisa  Twining  still  felt  how  much  re- 
mained to  be  done,  and  was  disappointed  that 
greater  advances  had  not  boon  made.  The  present 
state  of  transition  was  indicated  by  the  majority 
and  minority  reports  of  the  Royal  Commission  on 
the  Poor  Laws.  Whether  Boards  of  Guardians  were 
mended  as  the  Majority  desired,  or  ended  as  the 
Minority  wished  was  not  of  great  moment.  When 
the  vestries  expired  the  best  members  were  elected 
on  the  Borough  Councils,  and  the  best  Guardians 
would  be  elected  on  the  authorities  which  superseded 
them.  Miss  Wilson  referred  to  the  enormous 
debt  owed  to  women  guardians,  and  to  the  need  of 
public  pressure  in  relation  to  the  care  of  the  sick. 
Amongst  the  points  to  which  she  drew  attention 
was  the  need  for  a  revision  of  the  rules  in  regard 
to  bathing  in  unseparated  workhouse  infirmaries. 
Reform  was  urgent  both  in  regard  to  patients  and 
nurses.  No  nurse,  young  or  old,  should  bath  male 
Ijatients.  She  conchided  by  asking  in  the  name  of 
the  sick  that  reforms  should  be  made  by  Guardians, 
while  waiting  for  an  expression  of  the  will  of  the 
people.  ^ 

llr.  Dixon  Kimber  supported  Miss  Wilson's  view 
that  revision  of  the  bathing  regulations  was  needed. 
The  interi)retation  of  these  rules  was  uncertain, 
and  it  was  a  crying  shame  that  a  Government  De- 
partment responsible  for  the  care  of  the  sick  poor 


371 


<n)c  Brltisb  :^ournaI  of  IRuraing. 


[May  7,  1910 


oould  not  frame  rules  easy  to  bo  understood.  More- 
over, eight-tenths  of  the  recommendations  of  the 
Majority  Rejjort  of  the  Royal  Commission  could 
be  brought  into  force  without  any  legislation,  by  a 
stroke  of  the  pen  of  the  President  of  the  Local 
Government  Board. 

The  following  resolution,  proposed  by  Miss 
Joseph,  and  seK^onded  by  Miss  M.  D.  Briuton, 
was  then  put  to  the  meeting  and  carried : 

"  That  this  meeting  is  of  opinion  that  the  rules 

existing  in    unseparated  Poor  Law   infirmaries  in 

regard  to  the  bathing  of  patients  need  immediate 

revision  by  the  Local  Government  Board." 

Feeble-minded  Un^i.^kried  Mothers  in 

Workhouses. 

The  third  paper  on  Friday  afternoon  was  read 
by  Miss  P.  Douglas  To^nsend  on  the  above  sub- 
ject, who  said  that  feeblemindedness  was  a  term 
of  wide  significance,  but  she  spoke  of  it  as  applied 
to  persons  who  cannot  be  certified  as  insane-  or 
idiotic,  but  who  cannot  take  an  indeiiendent  jjosi- 
tion  in  the  world  without  danger  to  themselves 
and  the  community.  She  gave  a  concrete  example 
of  the  good  work  done  for  unmarried  women  of 
this  class,  and  their  children,  at  a  home  in  North 
Finchley,  where  Guardians  pay  10s.  \ior  mother 
and  5s.  per  child  maintained. 

The  History  of  Nursino. 

In  the  evening  Miss  E.  L.  C.  Eden  gave  her  most 
interesting  lecture  on  the  History  of  Nursing,  illus- 
trated by  lantern  slides,  showing  the  develoiiment 
of  nursing  from  200  b.c.  and  onwards,  to  a 
crowded  audience. 


SATURDAY,  APRIL  30th. 

Dr.  R.  Murray  Leslie  presided  at  the  afternoon 
session  on  Saturday,  when  the  first  paper  was  read 
by   Miss  Annie  Mauley,  a  Founder  of   the  Incor- 
porated Society  of  Trained  Masseuses. 
Massage. 

Miss  Manley  sketched  the  history  of  the  founda- 
tion of  the  Incorporated  Society  of  Trained  !Mas- 
seuses  in  connection  with  the  Midwives'  Institute, 
and  the  growth  of  its  work  from  six  candidates 
examined  in  1894  to  2.50  at  the 'last  examination. 
It  now  holds  an  examination  annually  in  Dublin, 
simultaneously  with  the  one  held  in  London,  for 
which  Miss  Shut'er  acts  as  the  Hon.  Secretary.  It 
gives  a  special  certificate  in  connection  with 
vSwedisli  remedial  agents,  and  its  first  examination 
in  remedial  exercises  was  held  recently,  by  permis- 
sion, at  Guy's  Hospital.  It  also,  at  the  request  of 
the  War  Office,  examines  orderlies  trained  in  mas- 
sage, and  4.5  orderlies  have  received  its  certi- 
ficate. At  a  time  when  women  were  chafing  at 
their  disabilities  it  was  interesting  to  find  a  .society 
composed  entirely  of  women  acting,  by  request, 
as  an  examining  Iwdy  for  men. 

The  Chairman  inquired  what  length  of  training 
the  Society  required  before  examination,  and  was 
informed  that  it  was  4 — 6  months.  He  pointed 
out  that  at  the  Central  Institute,  Stockholm,  two 
full  years'  arduous  training  was  essential,  and 
doctors  hardly  thought  the  usual  three  months' 
training  of  an  English  girl  equal  to  two  years 
in  the  case  of  a  Swedish  one.  That  was  why  the 
doctors  so  often  employed  Swedish  masseuses.     He 


knew  he  was  speaking  for  a  large  number  of  his 
profession  when  he  expressed  the  opinion  that 
three  mouths  was  not  sufficient  time  in  which  to 
acquire  this  important  branch.  Miss  Lucy  Robin- 
son thought  one  point  might  be  brought  to  the 
notice  of  the  medical  profession.  Members  of  the 
I.S.T.M.  pledged  themselves  only  to  work  under 
medical  practitioners. 

The  Chairman  said  it  was  an  important  jjoint, 
but  it  was  not  the  case  with  hundreds  of  people 
calling  themselves  masseuses. 

Maternity  Clubs. 
Miss  Helen  G.  Klaasen  read  an  interesting  paper 
on  Provident  Maternity  Clubs,  showing  the  bene- 
fit of  making  early  provision. 
Cheches. 
In  the  absence  of  Muriel  Viscountess  Helmsley, 
Miss  Fry,  of  Bristol,  spoke  on  creches  rather  from 
an  adverse  point  of  view. 

Miss  Margaret  Rodgers,  sjjeaking  as  an  employer 
of  lalxjur,  said  she  always  gave  women  leave  of 
absence  to  nurse  their  babies. 

Territorial  Nursing. 
The  last  paper  of  the  afternoon  was  presented 
by  Miss  Barton  on  Territorial  Nursing.  Miss 
Barton  described  the  scheme  in  detail,  and  Miss 
Sidney  Browne  spoke  of  the  wonderful  response  to 
the  appeal  for  nurses. 

The  State  Registration  or  Nurses. 
There  was  a  cix>wded  attendance  at  the  last  Ses- 
sion of  the  Conference  on  Saturday  night,  d6vote<l 
to  the  consideration  of  the  State  R^gistiiation  of 
Nui-ses.  Mr.  John  Langton,  F.R.C.S.,  presided. 
and  Miss  Maodonald,  Secretary  of  the  Royal  British 
Nurses'  Association,  read  a  paper  written  liy  Aliss 
Annie  J.  Hobbs,  in  which  the  case  for  Registration 
was  presented  on  the  lines  of  the  Bill  drafted  by  the 
C'entral  Registration  Committee.  If  there  was 
nothing  new  in  the  paper  it  was  because,  as  the 
Hon.  Sydney  Holland,  who  opened  the  discussion, 
truly  said,  there  is  nothing  new  to  be  said  on  either 
side.  The  arguments  on  both  sides  arc  "  as  old  as 
the  mountains." 

Mr.  Holland  explained  that  he  had  not  intended 
to  take  so  pi-ominent  a  part  in  the  pi-ooeedings,  but 
he  had  written  for  a  ticket  of  admission,  and  had 
l>een  announced  as  the  opener  of  the  discu.ss.ion.  He 
asserted  that  Registration  would  do  nothing  to 
lemedy  the  evils  which  he  admitted  existed  in  the 
nureing  world.  All  it  would  do  -nould  be  to  prevent 
an  unregistered  nuiise  fi-om  calling  hei-self 
registered.  He  further  stated  that  not  a  single 
"  London  "  nurse  would  ever  register. 

He  criticised  the  constitution  of  the  General 
Council  for  the  Registration  of  Nurses  in  the  1908 
Bill,  which  we  all  know  was  considerably  altered 
during  the  passage  of  the  Bill  through  the  House 
of  Lords,  and  has  since  been  superseded  by  an- 
other. 

Refen-ing  to  the  conditions  alleged  by  IMiss  Hobbs 
to  exist  in  many  so-called  nursing  homes,  Mr.  Hol- 
land asked  whether  nurses  did  not  work  under  doc- 
tors in  these  homes  ?  Would  the  doctors— though  cer- 
tainly they  were  careless  in  the  sekH^tion  of  nui-scs — 
l)e  content  with  the  nui-ses  described  ? 

The  speaker  said  the  health  and  physical  capacity 


May  7,   1!»1UJ 


Cbc   Britisb   3onrnal   ot  IFiursino. 


of  a  luii-se  niiglit  bo  impaired.  She  iiiiKiit  dovolop 
a  cliix>nic  ooiigli  or  bocomo  drowsy,  liy.steiical,  or 
"dotty,"  feiko  to  drink.  <lnit!?4,  and  sli<)|>-lirtiiip:. 
uiid  all  till!  tini<>  tslio  would  Ix-  K>>nraiit<x^l' by  tlK> 
rfi^iriti'r.  TIk"  black  .sli<.M.'p  iiiit^lit,  ixTha|)s,  bo  re- 
moved, but  H  luit  about  the  piobald  and  groy  on<w? 
[What  about  thorn  now? — Ed.]  Tliero  was  a 
iiemedy — "  t ho  Official  Directory  of  Nurses" — and 
lio  ondeavourod  to  ri-suscitoti'  that  doad  and  buriod 
scheme.  It  was  asked,  he  said,  why  the  opposing 
Matrons  did  not  come  forward  and  discuss  this 
ijiieetion.  They  had  not  tlio  time,  and  they  ought 
not  to  liave  the  time — (a  sentiment  warmly  ap- 
plaudetl  by  a  Matron  present,  who  nevertheless 
finds  time  to  serve  on  the  Army  Nursing  IJoard). 

The  speaker  also  referred  to  the  list  of  the  Cen- 
tral Hospital  Council,  of  Chairmen  of  Hospitals, 
and  Matrons  opposed  to  Registration  of  nurses. 

Mr.  Holland  has  not  one  argument  which  apiieals 
to  reason  and  exporienoe.  We  believe  he  thoi^ougnly 
dislikiw  hi.s  brief,  and  in  our  opinion  was  the  very 
l«.st  man  who  ever  was  intiMided  to.  defend  la  re- 
actionary i>olicy.  In  his  hospital  work  he  has  pix>ve<l 
up  to  tho  hilt  that  pix)gres-i  and  organisation  are 
his  mit'iKr,  and  the  re-organi.sation  of  the  London 
Hospital,  apart  from  the  nursing  department,  is 
the  monumental  evidence  of  his  stupendous 
capacity  for  progress. 

Miss  Beatrice  Kent  said  that  the  position  in  Mr. 
Holland's  mind  was  apparently  statutory  registra- 
tion versus  character,  but  registrationists  were 
just  as  keen  al>out  character  as  he  wa.s,  indeed  all 
tin  graces  in  the  Christian  Kalendar  were  required 
by  a  good  nurse,  but  these  were  not  incompatible 
with  the  attainment  of  adequate  standards  of  nurs- 
iuf.  education.  It  was  possible  for  nurses  to  be 
good  women  even  if  they  did  keep  uj)  with  tlie 
times.  The  only  way  in  which  order  could  be 
brought  out  of  chaos  in  the  nursing  world  was  by 
a  Registration  Act.  The  crux  of  the  registration 
question  was  that  it  touched  economic  interests. 

Sir  Victor  Horsley  said  lie  had  attended  the 
meeting  because  he  wished  to  learn  what  Mr. 
Sydney  Holland  had  in  his  mind  in  regard  to  regis- 
tration of  nunses.  He  knew  he  had  the  Official 
Directory  Bill  in  his  pocket.  Sir  Victor  said  that 
the  views  of  the  medical  profession  were  clear  on 
the  question,  as  expressed  on  three  separate  occas- 
sions  through  the  British  Medical  Association,  so 
much  so  that  he  was  now  asked  what  was  the  good 
of  again  bringing  up  a  question  which  had  been 
conclusively  settled.  It  was  true  that  when  a  de- 
putation was  received  by  the  Prime  Minister,  Mr. 
.Asqiiith  produced  letters  addressed  to  him  privately 
by  Harley  Street  consultants,  but  they  had  not  the 
common  courage  to  attend  a  meeting  of  the  British 
Medical  Association  and  oppose  registration  of 
nurses,  nor  had  any  association  of  medical  men 
c\6r  done  so.  There  had  been  opposition  to  other 
reforms,  but  the  onl.v  effect  was  to  cause  an  expen- 
diture of  money  before  the  day  was  won.  The 
agitation  for  a  rest  day  for  the  Metropolitan  Police, 
in  which  he  was  interested,  had  cost  £20,000,  and 
the  Regi.st nation  of  Nunses  would  probably  co.<rt  as 
much.  He  concluded  b,v  saying  that  the  nursing 
profession  could  only  advance  through  the  passing 
of  a  Registration  Act.  Tho  medical  profession 
found  that  out  for  themselves  in  1858. 


Dr.  Bedford  I'onwick  poinied  out  that  the  argu- 
inei'ts  advanced  by  Mr.  Sydney  Holland  had  again 
ami  again  been  brought  forward  before  tribunals 
capable  of  weighing  and  appraising  their  value, 
and  had  failed  to  influence  the  judgment  subse- 
quently expressed.  A  Select  Committee  of  the 
House  of  Commons  had  in  1895  unanimously  re- 
ported in  favour  of  Registration.  Previously  tho 
■Judicial  Committee  of  the  Privy  Council  had  held 
that  tlie  establishment  of  a  Nurses'  Register  would 
be  of  much  advantage  to  the  public.  In  1908  the 
Houtie  of  Ijoix^Is,  after  careful  consideration  of  the 
Niii-st-N'  R^gistiiation  Bill  (inti^uced  by  Ix>rd 
Ampthill),  passed  it  without  a  division  having  been 
taken  at  any  stag*'.  The  Briti.sh  Mwlical  Associa- 
tion, as  they  hatl  heard,  was  practically  unanimous. 
Everyone  was  agreed  as  to  the  importance  of  cliar- 
acter,  but  when  a  Kegister  of  Nurses  was  proposed, 
technical  efficiency  had  to  he  considered. 

Mr.  Holland  did  not  seem  to  realise  that  tho 
RegiNter  would  not  give  a  nurse  her  case.s,  and  it 
would  Ir*  to  her  own  interest  if  she  wanted  work  to 
ke<'p  up  to  date.  C-ertiiicat-es  once  given  oould  not 
\n:  witlulrawn  ;  they  oould  also  be  stolen  or  forged, 
but  the  entry  of  a  nui-se's  name  in  tho  Rogister 
would  be  unquestioned  testimony  to  her  pi-ofes- 
sioual  qualifications. 

liiastly.  Dr.  Fenwdck  ivointed  out  that  in  spite  of 
Mr.  Holland's  oi>i>osit ion ,  the  movement  for  the 
Registration  of  Nurses  had  steadily  increased  in 
foi-ce. 

Miss  E.  C.  Laurence,  Matix)n  of  the  Chel(«a  Hos- 
pital for  Women,  said  that  in  her  experience  Regis^ 
t  rat  ion  in  Cai)e  Colony  was  a  failure,  and  very  few 
nuiises  registered. 

[Nui-se-s  in  CajK)  Colony  were  firet  registered  in 
1801,  under  the  Medical  and  Pharmacy  Act,  wlien 
it  was  not  realised  tliat  the  professions  of  medicine 
and  nui«.ing.  though  intordejjendent.  are  diverse, 
aiul  the  medical  faculty  have  never  oo-oixiratetl 
with  matTOUs  and  nurses,  and  thus  secured  their 
expt'i-t  advice  and  help  to  make  the  scheme  a 
sucot-ss.  At  the  same  time  it  must  be  re- 
memljered  that  Natal  and  the  Transvaal  have  fol- 
lowed the  example  of  Cai>e  Colony  in  regard  to 
Registration,  fmm  which  it  would  not  appear  that 
the  opinion  in  South  Africa  is  generally  unfavour- 
able roganliiig  the  effect  of  the  Act.] 

Miss  Laurence  said  she  j)eiieionaIly  was  in 
favour  of  Registration.  It  might  not  tie  so  very 
essential  in  London,  but  in  the  ooiiutry  hosiiitaLs  the 
training  of  the  nur.ses  often  deix»nde<l  alwolutely  on 
the  efficiency  of  individual  matrons.  She  thought 
there  should  tie  annual  revision  of  the  register. 

Mis.  Bedford  Fenwick  .said  she  considere<l  Mr. 
Ilolbinirs  remarks  concerning  the  constitution  of 
the  Hi'gist ration  Council  were  misleading.  As  such 
she  was  not  in  favour  ot  the  training  schools  Ix^ng 
lepresiMited.  It  was  their  function  to  train  and 
not  to  form  the  governing  l)ody  of  the  nuiising  pro- 
fession, which  should  be  absolutely  indepen- 
dent. Mr.  Holland  said  there  was  only  provision 
for  one  matron  and  that  of  a  lunatic  asylum,  oil  the 
Council,  but  provision  was  nia<le  f<ir  eight  direct 
representatives  of  the  nui-ses,  and  they  could — and 
no  doubt  would — elect  matrons,  women  whom  they 
could  tru.st  to  look  after  tiieir  interests.     All  classes 


376 


^De  Brit:6b  3ournal  of  IRurstng. 


[May  7,  1910 


of  uuiTses  were  represented  on  the  Council  drafted 
in  the  new  Bill,  three  of  wliom  must  be  matrons. 
All  good  legislation  providetl  that  the  class  governed 
had  roting  powens,  and  the  Registration  Bill  pro- 
ride<l  for  tlie  professional  enfranchisement  of  the 
trained  nurses,  and  thus  gave  them  power  to  do 
their  duty  to  the  sick.  The  Registration  question 
was  primarily  an  educational  one.  Xui-ses  asked 
that  better  educational  facilities  should  be  secured 
to  them,  and  that  their  professional  title  should  be 
defined  by  law.  Of  the  matrons  alluded  to  by  3ir. 
Holland  n  ho  opposed  these  just  demands  best  say 
nothing.  They  were  not  free  agents  as  officials  of 
public  institutions.  To  oppose  their  chairmen  and 
committees  would  be  contrary  to  the  usual  hospital 
etiquette  and  good  discipline. 

Mre.  Fenwick  expressed  her  belief  that  Mr.  Hol- 
land was  really  in  sympathy  with  their  demands, 
although  he  might  not  know  it.  Anyway,  she  hoped 
he  would  not  continue  to  oppose  them.  Tliey 
would  welcome  his  help  to  get  their  Bill  through 
Parliament. 

Dr.  Biernacki  inquired  why  Mr.  Holland  approved 
a  system  of  training,  and  of  giving  a  certifioate  to 
nurses.  "ttTiat  was  the  difference  in  principle  be- 
tween a  hospital  committee  awajding  a  certificate 
and  a  central  authority  doing  so?  The  medical  pro- 
fession did  not  expect  registered  nurses  to  be  "  brass 
angels,"  but  it  did  look  for  a  certain  record  of  pro- 
fessional knowledge.  If  Mr.  Holland  considered 
registration  useless  it  was  strange  that  he  took  so 
much  trouble  to  oppose  it.  If,  on  the  other  hand, 
lie  thought  that  the  ti-aining  in  a  few  hospitals  was 
now  better  than  that  in  others,  and  that  the 
efficient  hospitals  would  be  swamx)ed  if  the  othere 
were  brought  into  line,  that  reason  was  an  ex- 
tremely selfish  one. 

Mr.  Holland  said  that  the  certifioate  of  the  Lon- 
don Hospital  only  guaranteed  its  nurses  while  they 
remaine<l  in  its  service,  and  there  was  a  note  on 
each  certificate  referring  the  public  to  the  hospital. 

Miss  L.  V.  Haughton,  Matix)n  of  Guy's  Ho.spital, 
said  that  Registi-atiou  might  not  l^e  .so  imperative  in 
the  case  of  the  nui-ses  trained  in  the  largest-  hos- 
pitals, but  she  had  for  some  years  Ijeen  matron  of  a 
small  hospital,  and  in  the  interests  of  small  hos- 
pitals it  was  essential.  She  thought  the  large  hos- 
pitals should  consider  their  smaller  brethren.  If 
tlie  teaching  in  all  the  smaller  hospitals  could  be 
brought  up  to  the  minimum  which  would  be  re- 
quired by  a  State  authority  the  nurses  in  many  of 
the  smaller  hospitals  would  have  the  advantage  of 
better  training,  as  many  of  them  had  nothing  like 
that  amount  of  teaching  at  present. 

Dr.  Goodall,  President  of  the  Fever  Nurses'  As- 
sociation, said  that  he  I>elonged  to  two  associations 
which  advocated  registration  of  trained  nurses, 
one  most  influential,  the  British  Medical  Associa- 
tion, and  the  Fever  Nurses'  Association,  which  was 
comparatively  new.  The  latter  association  sup- 
ported the  Nurses'  Registration  Bill  because  it  did 
not  desire  a  separate  register  of  fever  nurses.  He 
was  not  going  to  belittle  the  training,  given  in 
fever  hospitals,  it  was  excellent  in  those  branches 
in  which  experience  was  afforded ;  but  nurses  who 
rf.ceived  this,  partial  training  to  his  knowledge  were 


accepted  by  private  nursing  institutions,  and  sup- 
plied to  the  public  as  fully  trained  nurses,  which 
they  were  not.  This  was  absolutely  unjustifiable. 
There  was  also  in  the  neighbourhood  iu  which  he 
lived  a  large  philanthropic  body  which  gave 
women  training  in  midwifery  and  sent  them  to 
nurse  general  cases  in  the  homes  of  the  poor.  He 
believed  State  Registration  of  Nurses  was  coming 
and  that  fairly  soon. 

The  Chairman  at  this  juncture  reminded  the 
meeting  that  the  time  for  closing  the  Exhibition 
was  past.  So  ended  a  very  interesting  four  days' 
Conference. 


IRurscs'  Social  ITlnion. 


By  the  courtesy  of  Miss  Alexander,  a  very  in- 
teresting meeting  of  the  Union  was  held  at  her 
house,  Campden  Hill,  on  Friday,  April  ■22ud. 
Other  hostesses  were  Miss  Alsop,  Matron  of  the 
Kensington  Infirmary,  and  Miss  Clayton,  Superin- 
tendent of  the   District   Nursing  Association. 

Miss  Alexander,  in  a  few  cordial  words,  welcomed 
the  large  audience  and  introduced  the  speakers. 

Miss  E.  L.  C.  Eden — whom  many  will  remember 
as  having  taken  an  active  part  in  the  International 
Nursing  Congress,  1909  (of  blessed  memory !) — was 
the  chief  speaker.  She  gave  an  admirable  and  in- 
spiring address.  Being  the  Central  Organiser  of 
the  N.S.U.,  she  spoke  with  authority  and  force. 
The  objects  of  this   useful   Union  are:  — 

"  To  keep  nurses  in  touch  with  other  social 
workers  and  with  the  new  developments  of  their 
own  and  kindred  oaUiugs. 

"  To  foster  a  true  sense  of  citizenship  among 
nurses  and  to  utilise  more  completely  their  special 
knowledge,  experience,  and  opportunities  for  the 
welfare  of  the  community. 

"  To  promote  co-ordination  in  nursing  work  by 
mutual  help  and  understanding,  and  to  enable 
nurses  to  lay  before  an  organised  body  the  ques- 
tions that  concern  them. 

'■  To  afi'ord  occasions  for  meeting  fellow  workers 
and  for  recreation. 

"  To  hold  up  a  high  ideal  of  work  and  thought.'" 

The  chief  notes  struck  by  the  speaker  were  co- 
operation .and  citizenship.  She  pointed  out  that 
co-operative  work  was  forceful  and  strong,  while 
individual  work  was  limited;  she  desired  to  see 
nurses  co-operate  in  things  that  endure;  she 
emphasised  the  importance  of  the  social  as  well  as 
the  professional  side  of  the  life,  the  necessity  of 
avoiding  the  danger  of  narrow  professionalism, 
which  is  apt  to  become  aggressive  shoppiness. 
Miss  Eden  made  a  strong  plea  for  the  lonely  nurse, 
who  lives  and  works  alone  in  remote  country  places, 
who  has  no  opportunities  of  keeping  herself  in 
touch  with  new  and  up-to-date  movements;  neither 
is  she  able  to  enjoy  the  relaxation  and  cheerfulness 
of  social  gatherings.  It  was  the  recognition  of  the 
need  of  making  the  lives  of  provincial  nurses  less 
isolated  that  led,  nine  years  ago,  to  the  founding 
of  the  N.S.U.   in  Somersetshire. 

The  enterprise  had  been  so  successfid  that  it  was 
proposed  at  the  meeting  to  form  a  London  centre. 


May  7,   1910J 


Cbc  iSritisb  3omnal  of  IRursmg. 


377 


The  suggestion  met  with  a  ready  response.  The 
readers  of  this  journal  will  certainly  applaud  Miss 
Eden's  remark- tliat  State  Registration  for  nurses 
was  the  most  urgent  reform  of  tire  day. » 

She  considered  that  State  Registration  and  the 
N.S.U.  should  work  hand  in  hand.  It  is,  of  course, 
very  obvious  to  ail  thoughtful  people,  whose  minds 
are  set  to  reform,  that  when  onee  the  nursing  pro- 
fession has  legal  status,  all  branches  of  the  work, 
whether  they  be  social  or  professional,  will  acquire 
a  measure  of  imix)rtauce  and  recognition  that  will 
endure. 

Mrs.  Clare  (ioslett  followed  Miss  Eden;  she  spoke 
in  a  buoyant,  crisp,  and  very  optimistic  vein. 
She  said  that  women  were  naturally  slow  to  c'nm- 
bino,  but  that  they  were  awakening  to  the  impor- 
tance of  it,  and  consequently  the  formation  of 
Unions,  Associations,  and  Leagues  was  a  great 
feature  of  the  day;  she  pointed  out  that  success 
depended  upon  it ;  mutual  advantage  and  pleasure 
can  only  be  attained  that  way.  She  also  spoke  of 
the  dangers  of  the  lonely,  monotonous  lives  that 
many  nurses  lead.  She  urged  upon  all  the  neces- 
sity of  using  every  means  to  prevent  getting  rusty 
by  taking  an  interest  in  all  topical  subjects,  espe- 
cially all  questions  of  reform. 

Mi-s.  Goslett  alluded  to  those  iietix)gressive  people 
nho  rather  pride  themselves  on  being  such,  and 
called  them  "  back  numbers  "  !  She  thought 
nurses  should  form  opinions  for  themselves  on  all 
subjects,   not  excepting  politics. 

Miss  Eden  read  a  letter  from  Miss  Amy  Hughes, 
President  of  the  Union,  expressing  her  regret  that 
shfl  was  unable  to  be  jiresent,  as  she  had  been 
ordered  by  her  Council  to  proceed  to  .\ustralia  with 
the  object  of  organising  a  system  of  district  work 
in  that  country. 

In  connection  with  this  meeting,  an  interesting 
exhibition  of  District  Nursing  ajipliauccs  and 
nunses'  inventions  (of  our  own  an<l  other  countries) 
was  on  view.  Many  of  thehi  we  had  seen  at  the 
Xursing  Congress  Exhibition,  and  wore  well  worth 
onr  second  ins])ection.  It  will  be  .seen  that  the 
jiotent  word  social  in  connection  with  this  I^nion 
is  of  very  wide  applicaton.  Indeed,  the  connota- 
tion of  this  word  is  almost  limitless. 

At  the  close  of  tlie  meeting,  very  liberal  an<l 
dainty  refreshments  wore  served,  and  a  perfect 
babel  of  cheerful  voices  testified  to  the  enjoyment 
of  the  guests. 

Be.virice  Kent. 


6onie  measure  be  inspired  by  the  spirit  of  their 
great  Matron.  She  was  not-  primarily  a  philan- 
thropist ;  her  whole  influence  sprang  from  her 
innate  sense  of  personal  rcspousibilitj- — her  love 
of  learning— the  true  value  of  self-education  and 
evolution.  X  fitting  memorial  should  be  of  an  edu- 
cational nature.  Mrs.  Fcnwick  toiichcd  on  various 
scl-.emes  of  educational  value  to  Matrons  and 
nurses,  and  the  meeting  voted  unanimously  that 
the  Isla  Stewart  Memorial  should  be  of  a  national 
character,  and  take  some  educational  form  to  be 
decided  upon  by  a  Committee  formed  for  the  pur- 
pose. 

It  was  then  agreed  that  the  members  of  the 
League  of  St.  Hartholomew's  Hospital  Nurses 
should  be  informed  of  the  views  of  the  conference, 
and  that  with  power  to  add  to  its  numbers  the 
Committee  should,  with  their  consent  to  act,  be 
formed  as  follows: — Four  Sisters  and  two  nurses 
to  be  elected  by  the  Executive  Committee  of  the 
League,  the  Hon.  Oflicers  of  the  League,  Mrs.  Bed- 
ford Fenwick,  !Miss  Beatrice  CHitler,  the  Pre- 
sidents of  the  affiliated  Nurses'  Leagues,  the  Pre- 
sidents of  the  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland,  the  Scottish  Matrons'  Association, 
and  the  Irish  Matrons'  Association,  a  representa- 
tive of  the  Army  Nursing  Board,  and  the  Society 
for  the  State  Registration  of  Trained  Nurses,  with 
the  majority  of  which  societies  Afiss  Isla  Stewart 
was  warmly  in  sympathy  and  intimately  asso- 
ciated. It  was  agreed  that  donations  in  support  of 
the  Memorial  might  be  sent  to  the  Treasurer  of 
the  League  and  to  Miss  Cutler,  Deputy  Matron  at 
St.   Bartholomew's  Hospital. 


a  IRational  fTDcmorial  to  noiss 
3sla  Stewart. 

On  Saturday  last  a  meeting  to  consider  general 
opinion  on  the  most  acceptable  form  of  a  Memorial 
to  the  late  Matron  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital 
was  held  by  the  courtesy  of  the  Treasurer  in  the 
Clinical  Theatre.  Miss  Cox-Davies,  the  President 
of  the  League  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital 
Nurses,  which  had  convened  the  meeting,  presided, 
and  upon  her  invitation  Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick 
opened  the  discussion,  ami  said  it  was  of  para- 
mount   importance    that    tli.-    M>'inurial    should    in 


3n  flDcmoviam. 


ISLA  STEWART. 

The  editorial  reference  in  the  American  Journal 
oj  Nursing  to  the  death  of  Miss  Isla  Stewart  is 
instinctively  sympathetic.  It  is  written:  "She 
had  a  geniality,  a  genero.sity  of  heart,  a 
laigeness  of  outlook  that  distinguished  her 
among  othere  so  endowed.  Her  opinions  on 
all     subjects     w-ere     liberal      and      l>ix)ad.  Sho 

rejoiced  in  the  full  development  of  individuality, 
yet  cultivated  all  the  avenues  of  oo-oi)eration  ami 
associated  endeavour.  Under  her  sway,  the  school 
at  St.  Bartholomew's  remained,  and  is,  as  it  was 
when  she  took  it,  conspicuous  for  progressiveness 
and  liberality  of  view,  and  those  characteristics  are 
stamped  uix>n  the  women  who  have  trained  there.  ' 

Miss  Dock  writes:  "A  woman  Greatheart  haa 
gone  from  us.  The  grief  of  her  friends  and  com- 
rades is  deep  and  real." 


Till  Irish  Trained  Nurse,  in  referring  to  the 
pas-.iiig  of  our  two  dear  comrades,  says: — "To 
those  who  mourn  them  it  is  a  comfort  to  remember 
that  their  work  lives  after  them.  That  the  example 
of  their  high  ideals,  their  strenuous  lives,  their 
wholo-hearto<I  devotion  to  their  high  vocation,  is 
not  lik<'ly  to  Im-  lorgotten  by  tho,se  who  benefittod  by 
tlu-ir  training,  their  fiiend.sliip.  and  their  oounsol." 


378 


ttDe  Britisb  3ournai  ot  iHuvsing. 


[May  7,  1910 


ISABEL  HAMPTON    ROBB. 


appointments. 


Vi'e  me  oflBcially  informed: — "On  April  loth. 
1910,  Isaljel  Robb  -nas,  in  some  way  whicli 
we  cannot  explain,  caught  between  two  street 
oars  while  crossing  the  street,  on  her  way  to 
meet  her  little  son,  and  so  injured  that  death 
must  have  been,  according  to  the  physicians,  in- 
stantaneous. We  are  thankful  t-o  believe  this,  and 
to  be  spared  the  anguish  of  thinking  that  there 
was  great  suffering.  She  was  taken  at  once  to  St. 
Luke's  Hospital,  and  friends  were  soon  summoned  i 
among  them  Isabel  Secord,  a  Johns  Hopkins'  nurse, 
who  has  been  working  in  Cleveland  during  the  past 
year,  and  of  whom  Mrs.  Robb  had  grown  very  fond. 
It  is  some  small  comfort  to  feel  that  a  nurse  from 
her  own  beloved  school  was  beside  her  and  able  to 
do  the  last  things  that  could  be  done  for  her  here 
on  eaith. 

The  funeral  services  were  held  in  Trinity 
Cathedral  in  Cleveland,  and  the  beautiful  service 
of  the  Church  of  England  was  read  by  Bishop 
Leonard  and  Dean  Du  Moulin,  both  of  whom  were 
warm  personal  friends  of  hers.  Wreaths  of  violet* 
and  other  beautiful  flowers  were  laid  upon  the 
coffin  and  arranged  about  the  chancel,  and  these 
came  from  the  many  societies  in  which  Mrs.  Robb 
had  worked  so  devotedly,  and  from  her  various 
friends  and  associates.  Some  of  the  Societies  re- 
presented were  the  Society  of  Superintendents  of 
Training  Schools,  the  Johns  Hopkins  Alumute 
Association,  the  Nurses'  Associated  Alumna?  of  the 
United  States,  the  Board  of  Managers  of  the  Lake- 
side  Hospital,    and  many   others. 

Miss  Nutting,  representing  the  Society  of  Super- 
intendents of  Training  Schools,  Miss  Maxwell,  re- 
presenting the  League  for  Nursing  Education 
(Superintendents  and  Assistants  of  Schools  in 
Greater  New  York),  and  Miss  Delano,  representing 
the  Nurses'  Associated  Alumnw  of  the  United 
States,  were  i)resent  at  the  services. 

Mrs.  Robb  was  buried  in  Welland,  Ontario,  her 
birthplace,  and  the  home  of  her  family." 


A  friend  who  loved  her  much  WTitcs: — "  I  went 
up  to  Cleveland  as  soon  as  possible  after  I'eceiviug 
the  message.  There  was  nothing  to  be  done,  of 
cxjuree,  but  it  was  some  .small  comfort  to  see  again. 
even  in  death,  the  one  whom  we  all  .so  dearly  loved 
in  life.  Never  had  she  looked  more  sweet  and 
tranquil  and  noble  than  in  death. 

"We  are  all  simply  stunned,  and  not  one  of  us  yet 
can  fully  realise  the  overwhelming  nature  of  the 
calamity  that  has  befallen  us.  That  such  a  radiant 
being,  so  full  of  life  and  stiength  and  i>ower  and 
happiness,  could  be  crushed  out  of  life  iu  one 
moment  seems  almost  too  cruel  a  blow,  and  we  are 
finding  it  hard  to  accept.  I  could  not  help  realising 
on  Saturday,  when  trying  by  telegram  and  tele- 
phone to  reach  some  of  Mrs.  Robb's  friends  and  co- 
workers, how  much  we  owed  the  fact  that  we  knew 
each  other  so  well  to  her  efforts  towards-  uniting 
the  workers  iu  our  schools  and  alumnte  associations. 
Her  plea  for  greater  knowledge  of  each  other,  and 
greater  unity  thix)Ugh  organisation,  was  constant."' 


M.\TR0X. 

Cottage     Hospital,     Hayes,    Middlesex, — Miss     Louise 

Kingham  has  been  appointed  ilatron.  She  was 
traineil  at  the  Royal  Westminst<'r  Eye  Hospital  and 
at  the  Len-isham  Infirmary,  and  ha.s  since  been  Staff 
Nurse  at  the  General  Hospital,  Birmingham ; 
Sister  at  the  South-Ea&teni  Fever  Hospital,  New 
Cross;  Sister  at  Fulham  Infirmary;  and  Assistant 
Matron  at  the  Royal  Institution  for  the  Blind,  Bir- 
mingham. 

Superintendent. 
District  Nursing  Institution,  Coventry, —  Miss  Catherine 
Crabb  has  been  appointed  Sujierintendent,  She 
was  trained  at  Barnhill  Hospital,  Glasgow,  and 
at  the  York  Road  Lying-in  Hospital,  and  received 
her  training  in  district  nursing  at  Portsmouth 
from  1897-1898,  since  which  time  she  has  been 
Sujjerinteudent  of  the  Swansea  District  Nursing 
Association. 

Assistant  Matron. 

Maternity  Hospital,  Liverpool. — Mi,ss  Muriel  Foster 
has  been  ai>ix)inte<l  Assistant  ^latron  and  Outdoor 
.Sui^erintendent.  .S'he  was  trained  at  St.  Tliomas' 
Hospital,  London,  and  at  ^he  British  Lying-in  xios- 
pital,  W.C.,  and  has  lield  the  positions  of  District 
Midwife  at  the  Miller  Hospital,  Greenwich;  Holiday 
Sister  at  the  Hospital  for  Sick  Children,  Great 
Ormond  Street,  W,C, ;  and  Labour  Ward  Sister  at 
Qneen  Charlotte's  Hospital,  London. 
Sister  Housekeeper. 

London  Homoeopathic  Hospital,  W,C. — Miss  Blanche 
Sleap  has  been  appointed  Sister  Housekeeper.  She 
was  trained  at  Guy's  Hospital,  and  has  since  been 
Matron  of  the  Cottage  Hospital,  Buekhurst  Hill, 
and  of  the  Cottage  Hospital,  East  Grinstead. 
Sister, 

Rotunda  Hospital,  Dublin.  -Miss  Isabella  C,  Mander- 
son  has  been  appointed  Sister.  She  was  trained  at 
the  "•  David  Lewis  "  Hospital,  Liverpool,  where  she 
afterwards  held  the  post  of  Sister  in  Charge  for 
over  three  years.  Miss  Manderson  has  also  been 
trained  at  the  Rotunda,  and  acted  temix)rari]y  as 
Staff   Nur.se. 

Night  Sister. 

West.  Norfolk  and  Lynn  Hospital,  King's  Lynn. — Mi«s 
Mildred  Au.stin  has  been  appointed  Night  Sister. 
She  was  trained  at  the  Essex  and  Colchester  Hos- 
pital, and  has.held  the  jwsition  of  Staff  Nurse  at  the 
County  Hospital.  Newport,  and  of  Private  Nurse 
on  the  Staff  of  the  Royal  Hants  County  Hospital, 
Winchester. 


QUEEN   ALEXANDRA'S  IMPERIAL     MILITARY 

NURSING   SERVICE, 
The  undermentioned   Staff    Nurses   resign    their 
appointments.    Dated  April  23rd,  1910  :  Miss  Mar- 
cella  Kearnev  and  Miss  Eveline  D.  Lang. 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRAS  MILITARY   NURSING 

SERVICE   FOR   INDIA. 
Miss  A.   M.   Deaken   has  lieen   appointed  to  the 
Service  as  Nursing  Sister  (Feb.  2ud) ;  Senior  Nurs- 
ing Sister  Miss  M.  Bartleet  has  been  permitted  to 
retire,  with  effect  from  Nov.  7th. 


May  7,  1910] 


^bc  36ritt5b  3oiunal  of  IRuretno 


379 


IHursiitQ  Ccbocs. 

■■  View  Day  "  at  gait's 
will  be  on  Wednesday,  May 
11th,  this  year,  and  during 
•!ie  afternoon  there  will  be 
i  Sale  of  Work  in  the  Great 
Hall  in  aid  of  the  "  Nurses' 
Home  Building  Fund." 
Gifts  for  this  purpose  will  be 
gladly  received  by  the  De- 
puty Matron,  Miss  Cutler. 
It  is  hoped  that  a  substantial 
sum  may  be  raised  for  the 
Home  which  Bart's  Nurses,  for  the  last  quar- 
ter of  a  century,  have  patiently  awaited. 


the  biith  of  the  baby.  We  hope  therefore  that 
the  collection  to  be  taken  by  the  nurses  at  the 
^lansion  House  will  be  a  substantial  one. 


At  a  gathering,  held  at  Preston  on  Saturday, 
of  St.  -John  Ambulance  workers  of  the  North- 
western Counties  of  England,  and  Ireland,  the 
nursing  units  of  No.  4  district  presented  to 
Colonel  Trimble  a  silver  shield,  in  gold  relief, 
which  was  afterwards  handed  over  to  the  dis- 
trict for  annual  competition  amongst  the  nurs- 
ing units  of  Lancashire,  Cheshire,  Westmor- 
land, Isle  of  Man,  and  Ireland.  The  shield,  to- 
gether with  a  silver  cake  dish,  was  given  to  the 
Colonel  in  recognition  of  his  long  services  in 
connection  with  ambulance  work  in  tho 
division. 


The    Annual    Meeting    of    the    East    End 
Mothers'  Home  takes  place   at   the  Mansion 


A     new     Chapel    in    connection  with    Dr. 


The  Recreation  Home  of  the  Danish  Council  of  Nurses,  Vedbak. 


House,  on  Wednesday,  May  11th,  at  3  p.m., 
when  the  Lord  ^layor  will  preside.  The  Home, 
which  is  doing  most  excellent  work,  both  for 
the  mothers,  and  in  the  training  of  pupils,  is 
deserving  of  all  support,  and  works  in  a  desper- 
ately poor  neighbourhood,  so  much  so  that  a 
number,  of  patients  who  booked  to  go  in 
have  been  struck  off  the  I'egister,  the  reason 
being,  for  the  most  part,  that  the  woman  is 
the  sole  support  of  the  home,  and  when  she 
is  imable,  after  a  certain  period,  to  obtain 
work,  {he  whole  family  have  been  compelled  by 
stress  of  hunger  to  enter  the  workhouse  before 


Steevens'  Hospital,  DubUn,  was  dedicated  last 
week  by  his  Grace  the  Archbishop  of  Dublin. 
The  remains  of  ^ladame  Steevens,  founder  of 
the  Hospital,  have  been  removed  from  the  old 
chapel  and  placed  under  the  Communion  table. 
Three  memorial  tablets  are  on  the  walls  of  the 
chapel,  one  in  memory  of  Madame  Steevens; 
the  second  bears  the  following  inscription:  — 
"  Erected  by  the  Governors  in  grateful  remem- 
brance of  the  following  members  of  the  nursing 
staff  who  sacrificed  their  lives  at  the  call  of 
duty :  Edith  Vaughan,  died  1st  February-,  1893 : 
Eva  Goggin,  21st  January,  1897;  Mary  Fur- 


380 


Ctbc   Bntisb  3oiuiial  of    irtursiua. 


L-May  7,  1910 


loug,  22011  September,  1898;  Mary  A.  Burke. 
22nd  October,  1902;  Brigid  O'Grady,  13tli 
June,  1904:  Marv  Ellis,  3rd  March,  190o ; 
Cecilia  E.  Kelly, "  10th  March,  _1905."  The 
third  is  in  memory  of  ilrs.  Haj'es  (the  wife  of 
Dr.  P.  A.  Hayes,  physician,  and  one  of  the 
Governors  of  the  Hospital),  who  devoted  so 
much  of  her  services  to  the  welfare  of  the  in- 
stitution. The  Archbishop  gave  a  brief  address, 
and  hoped  the  chapel  would  prove  a  great 
benefit  to  both  staff  and  patients. 


IReflections. 


The  Danish  Council  of  Nurses  is  a  very  pro- 
gressive body  which  provides  many  advantages 
for  its  members,  amongst  them  the  charming 
Eeereatiou  Home  at  Vedbsek,  of  which  we 
have  pleasure  in  publishing  the  illustration  on 
the  previous  page.  It  is  an  ideally  i-estful  place 
for  tired  nurses,  and  is  no  doubt  very  popular 
with  the  members. 


The  newly  established  home  at  Calcutta  for 
the  nurses  of  the  Bengal  Branch  of  Lady 
!Minto's  Nursing  Association  is  now  open 
for  work.  It  will  be  occupied  by  five 
nurses,  whilst  two  more  will  be  located  in 
Darjeehng. 

The  great  object  of  this  Association  is  to 
supply  well  trained  and  experienced  nurses  at 
rates  which  will  enable  those  who  are  not  too 
well  endowed  with  this  world's  goods  to  em- 
ploy them. 

ZTbc  Xcaguc  of  St.  3obn's  Iboiisc 
IRurses. 


A  general  meeting  of  the  above  League, 
which  was  very  largely  attended,  was  held  at 
St.  John's  House,  Queen  Square,  W.C.,  on 
Thursday,  April  28th. 

Among  the  items  of  business  was  the  elec- 
tion of  a  President  for  the  next  three  years. 
The  retiiing  President,  Sister  Charlotte,  was 
re-elected  by  acclamation,  and  subsequently 
appointed  Miss  K.  Walker  as  Vice-President, 
and  Miss  M.  Burr  as  Hon.  Secretary. 

As  is  usual  with  societies  managed  by 
«omen,  there  was  a  satisfactory  balance  to  the 
credit  of  the  League. 

It  was  decided  to  assist  at  a  sale  of  work  to 
be  held  in  July,  of  which  the  proceeds  are  to  be 
devoted  to  the  re-decoration  of  St.  John's 
House  Chapel.  All  contributions  should  be 
sent  to  the  Sister  Superior. 

It  was  also  agreed  to  communicate  with  the 
St.  John  Ambulance  Association  respecting 
their  rule  that  only  members  of  the  medical 
profession  should  give  the  nursing  lectures  for 
.  tliat  Association. 


From  a  Board  Koo.m  Mirbor. 
The  Lady  Mayoress,  as  President  of  the  City 
of  London  branch  of  the  British  Red  Cross  Society, 
is  approaching  some  of  the  leading  City  firms  with 
a  view  to  getting  their  employees  to  attend,  after 
their  business  hours,  first  aid  (male)  and  first  aid 
and  nursing  classes  (female),  in  order  that  the 
work  of  the  voluntary  aid  detachment  of  the  society 
mav  be  efficient  and  readv  for  use. 


We  regret  to  note  that  the  report  of  Lord  Sand- 
hurst, the  Treasurer  of  St.  Bartliolomew's  Hos- 
pital, is  not  a,  very  rosy  one.  The  appeal  for 
£170,000  has  only  brought  in  £18,630,  and  the 
excess  of  expenditure  over  receipts  was  £5,793 
12s.  5d.  The  amount  received  for  the  rebuilding 
fund  up  to  December  last  was  £144,892.  The  City 
is  not  showing  its  usual  generosity  in  its  treatment 
of  this  historic  liospital,  the  only  general  hospital 
within  the  City  of  London.  The  truth  is  its  digni- 
fied Governors  have  not  yet  acquired  the  knack  of 
picturesque  advertising. 


King  Albert  of  Belgium  has  sent  £500  to  the 
Liverpool  School  of  Ti-opical  Medicine. 

The  Chelsea  Hospital  for  Women  has  received 
from  the  Tiustees  of  the  Zunz  Bequest  a  grant  of 
£2,000  to  name  a  ward  "  The  Annie  Zunz  Ward. 


The  Lord  Mayor  of  Leeds  has  given  a  donation 
of  £50  towards  the  building  fund  of  the  Leeds  new 
Maternity  Hospital.  His  Lordship  has  also  con- 
sented to  preside  at  the  opening  ceremony,  which 
will  be  performed  by  Mrs.  Kendal,  on  May  23rd. 


Speaking  i-ecently  at  Reading  on  Poor-Law  re- 
form. Sir  Rufus  Isaacs  said  that  no  matter  what 
their  politics  there  was  a  feeling  throughout  the 
country  that  something  more  and  something  better 
should  be  done  respecting  the  administration  of  the 
Poor-Law. 

At  tlie  request  of  Dr.  Ravenel.  the  head  of  the 
Department  of  Bacteriology  in  the  University  of 
Wisconsin,  the  girl  students  of  his  department  have 
presented  a  play  in  which  all  the  characters  will  be 
microbes,  or  "bugs,"'  as  the  iiTevereut  students 
call  them.  The  play  depicts  in  a  brief  story  the 
war  of  the  germ  world  against  the  human  race  and 
the  decision  of  goi-m  land  to  exterminate  mankind. 
But  the  action  includes  the  love  affair  of  Teddy 
Tubei-cle  and  Bessie  Bacillus,  a  stenographer. 


WEDDING  BELLS. 
On  the  28th  ult.,  at  St.  Mary's,  Sudeley,  Glou- 
cestershire, the  marriage  took  place  of  Mr.  W. 
Bruce  Clarke,  F.R.C.S.,  senior  surgeon  to  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital,  E.G.,-  and  Miss  Agnes  Mary 
Jackson,  younger  daughter  of  the  late  George 
Mavor  Jackson,  of  Sandford  Lodge,  Cheltenham, 
certificated  in  the  Ti-aining  School  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital. 


.Mav 


1010' 


Cbc  16ritt5b  3curna[  ot  mursing. 


381 


»S'utsi^c  the  6atc5. 


t;ratulato  her.     A  fme  field  of  work  is  open  to  her 
in  her  native  lend. 


WOMEN. 

M  tlie  meeting  of  Uie 
I'ublic  Healtli  Com- 
mittee of  the  Xatioiial 
Union  of  AV  omen 
Workers,  held  on  April 
25th,  Miss  Emily  Janes 
pix>pose<l   a   vote  of  oon- 

dolence  be  sent    to    tlie 

-~'-^~^=^  friends  of  Miss  Isla 
.Stenart.  This  was  carrietl,  all  present  standing, 
aiid  Miss  Janes  was  requestetl  to  convey  the  expres- 
sion of  regret  and  sincere  sympathy  on  the  Com- 
mittee's l)ehalf. 

Every  woman  worth  her  salt  holds  the  name  of 
John  Stuart  Mill  in  the  deepest  respect,  and 
•The  Letters  of  John  Stuart  Mill,''  edited 
by  Mr.  Hugh  Elliot,  will  be  eagerly  read  by 
many.  It  will  be  remembered  he  made  a  very  happy 
marriage  in  1851  with  an  old  friend — Mrs.  Taylor — 
and  the  following  letter,  in  which  lie  expresses  his 
riews  on  the  ivlatious  of  the  sexes  no  doubt 
accounts  for  it. 


'■  Being  about,  if  I  am  so  happy  as  to  obtain  her 
consent,  to  enter  into  the  marriage  relation  with 
the  only  woman  1  have  ever  known  with  whom  1 
would  have  entered  into  that  state;  and  the  whole 
character  of  the  marriage  relation  as  constituted 
by  law  being  such  as  both  she  and  I  entirely  and 
conscientiously  disapprove,  for  this  among  other 
reasons,  that  it  confers  upon  one  of  the  parties  to 
the  contract,  legal  power  and  control  over  the  per- 
son, property,  and  freedom  of  action  of  the  other 
party,  independent  of  her  own  wishes  and  will; 
I,  having  no  means  of  legally  divesting  myself  of 
these  odious  powers  (as  I  most  assuredly  would  do 
if  an  engagement  to  that  effect  could  be  made 
legally  binding  on  me),  feel  it  my  duty  to  put  on 
record  a  formal  protest  against  the  existing  law  of 
marriage,  in  so  far  as  conferring  such  powers;  and 
a  solemn  promise  never  in  any  case  or  under  any 
circumstances  to  use  them.  And  in  the  event  of 
marriage  between  Mrs.  Taylor  and  me  I  declare 
it  to  be  my  will  and  intention,  and  the  condition 
of  the  engagement  between  us,  that  she  retains  in 
all  respects  whatever  the  same  absolute  freedom  of 
action,  and  freedom  of  disposal  of  herself  and  of 
all  that  does  or  may  at  any  time  belong  to  her,  as 
if  no  such  marriage  had  taken  place ;  and  1  abso- 
lutely disclaim  and  repudiate  all  pretence  to  have 
acquired  any  righfs  whatever  by  virtue  of  such 
marriage."  J.  S.  Mru.. 

Would  that  all  men  were  sufficiently  generous  to 
divest  themselves  of  the  "odious  powers"  which 
our  matrimonial  laws  still  confer. 

The  subject  of  Woman  Suffrage  is  treated  in 
many  of  the  letters. 


Speaking  recently  on  behalf  of  Women's  Suffrage, 
Miss  Rathbone,  of  Liverpool,  said  people  had  told 
her  that  the  Woman's  Suffnage  movement  waa 
fizzling  out.  Slio  could  not  detect,  however,  any 
sign  of  collapse  in  the  agitation,  which  hatl  now- 
gone  on  for  nearly  half  a  centui-j-.  Women  wore 
told  that  they  must  not  strive  to  take  any  part  in 
the  making  of  laws,  for  the  reason  that  they  had 
not  the  physical  force  to  sec  that  the  laws  were 
carried  out.  If  this  was  so  why  was  not  the  Cabinet 
chosen  fix)m  the  ivinks  of  prize-fighters? 


Tlie  procession  and  demonstration  in  London  on 
.Saturday,  May  28th,  is  to  be  a  really  fine  spectacle, 
and  the  whole  length  of  the  Embankment,  irom 
Blackfriai-s  to  Westminster,  will  bo  insufficient  for 
the  numbera  who  mean  to  take  paii.  in  it.  Miss 
Pine  and  Miss  Townend,  4,  Clement's  Inn,  W.C, 
are  in  charge  of  the  trained  nurses'  contingent, 
and  we  hope  it  wnll  be  an  iinprcesive  one. 


VERSE. 

The  paths  of  pain  are  thine.    Go  forth 

With  patience,  trust,  and  hope; 
The  sufferings  of  a  sin-sick  earth 

Shall  give  thee  ample  scope. 
Beside  the  unveiled  mysteries 

Of  life  and  death  go  stand. 
With  guarded  lips  and  reverent  eyes, 

-A.nd  pure  of  heart  and  hand. 

Whitiiek. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

May  7th. — General  Hospital,  Birmingham, 
Nurses'  League.  Third  Annual  Meeting  at  the 
Hospital,  3  p.m.     Social  Gathering,  4.15  p.m. 

y[ay  9th. — St.  Pancras  School  for  Mothers. 
Third  Annual  Meeting  of  the  St.  Pancras  Mothers' 
and  Infants'  Society,  St.  Pancras  Town  Hall, 
3  p.m. 

May  10th.— The  Infants'  Hospital,  S.W.  A 
Course  of  Lectures  on  Babies.  11. — Zymotic  En- 
teritis. The  conditions  under  which  the  disease 
arises.  By  Dr.  Ralph  Vincent.  Lecture  Theatre, 
5  p.m. 

May  11th. — View  Day,  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, E.C.  Sale  of  Work  for  the  new  Nurses' 
Home  Building  Fund,  Great  Hall. 

May  11th. — East  End  Mothers'  Lying-in  Home, 
Commercial  Road,  E.  Annual  Meeting,  Mansion 
House,  Lord  Mayor  in  the  chair,  3  p.m. 

May  12th.— Gny's.  Hospital,  S.E.  Post  Graduate 
Lectures.  ''The  Mental  Factor  in  Disease."  By 
H.  C.  Cameron,  Esq.,  M.D.     Nurses'  Home,  8  p.m. 

Mttxj  2Sth. — Procession  of  Women  Suffragists 
from  the  Embankment  to  Albert  Hall,  organised 
by  the  AVomen's  National  Social  and  Political 
Union. 


Tlie  fii-st  woman  licentiate  of  the  Royal  Coflego 
of  Physicians  of  London  is  a  Parsee  lady,  Dossibai 
Rustomji   Cowasji   Patell,   of    Bombay.       We    coii- 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 

"  The  man  who  lias  begun  to  live  more  seriously 
within,  begins  to  live  more  simply  without." 


3S2 


Zm  Brltisb  3onnial  of  ■Wursmg. 


[May  7,  1910 


Xetters  to  the  EMtor. 


Whilst  coTdially  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
Jot  these  columns,  we  xvish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  ue  do  not  in  any  wai 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


THE  RED  CROSS  SCHEME. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing," 

Dear  MadajM. — I  am  most  delighted  to  see  that 
you  are  puhlishing  this  week  an  article  on  the  ahove 
which  badly  requires — so  it  seems  to  me — some 
practical  hints. 

Tlie  working  out  of  this  scheme  appeai-s  to  me 
to  be  in  the  hands  of  well-intentioned  ladies  who 
have  no  knowledge  of  practical  hospital  work  or  or- 
ganisation. Doubtless  in  many  places  there  will  be 
nurses  who  can  help  things  to  be  efficiently  or- 
ganised in  a  workable  manner,  but,  in  small,  re- 
mote country  districts  especially,  there  are  many 
difficulties  in  the  way. 

As  regards  getting  a  doctor  to  give  the  St. 
John's  lectures,  that  in  many  cases  is  almost  an 
impossibility  in  remote  districts.  There  is  usually 
only  one  available  practitioner  for  many  miles  of 
practice,  and  his  time  is  more  than  filled  without 
giving  lectures.  We  are  here,  a  remote  Cumber- 
laud  dale.  We  are  making  a  start  with  a  series 
of  six  lectures  on  Home  Nursing,  under  the  aus- 
pices of  the  County  Council,  whose  syllabus  is  an 
excellent  one.  In  these  lectures  the  greatest  in- 
terest is  taken,  and  in  the  autumn  I  hoije  to  ar- 
range for  a  course  of  St.  John's  first  aicl  lectures 
for  botli  men  and  women.  I  think  that  if  a  work- 
able, intelligent  scheme  be  presented  to  them,  the 
dalespeoijle  will  take  up  the  Eed  Cross  scheme  and 
work  it  well  and  efficiently,  for  I  have  found  out 
by  experience  how  very  good  they  (both  men  and 
women)  can  be  in  times  of  sickness  or  accident,  and 
though  untrained  there  is  much  excellent  material. 
But  it  wants  a  trained  hand  at  the  helm,  and  it 
does  not  seem  to  me  that  nurses  sent  only  when 
the  emergency  arises  and  the  crisis  is  upon  us,  un- 
known to  their  staffs,  can  be  very  successful  heads 
of  these  country  districts.  At  the  head  of  every 
section  (not  necessarily  every  unit)  there  should 
1)6  a  trained  nurse  who  could  superintend  the  work 
of  four  or  five  villages.  The  kind  of  nurse  required 
too  is  one  who  has  had  experience  of  a.dmini,stra- 
tion  as  Ward  Sister  or  in  the  Assistant  Matron's 
department  of  a  ho.spital,  but  I  am  quite  sure  the 
scheme  cannot  be  a  success  as  long  as  it  remains 
of  the  amateur  character  it  at  present  is.  Will  you 
be  printing  the  Red  Cross  scheme  article  as  a  leaflet 
suitable  for  distribution  amongst  my  class?  The 
thanks  of  all  of  us  who  are  trying  to  work  the 
scheme  on  efficient  lines  are  due  to  you,  and  the 
article  I  hope  will  be  widely  circulated.  ' 
Faithfully  yours, 

Mahy  C.  Fair. 

Eskdale  Vicarage,  Boot  S.O.,  Cumberland. 


NO  COMPULSION. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Dear  Madam, — I  was  present  at  the  discussion 
on  '■  State  Registration  "  that  took  place  last 
Saturday  at  the  Horticultural  Hall,  S.W.  I  much 
regret  that  I  did  not,  on  the  spot,  stand  up  and 
correct  two  of  the  Hon.  Sydney  Holland's  pro- 
verbial "  inaccuracies,"  but  perhaps  you  will  allow 
me  to  do  so  throiigh  the  medium  of  your  valuable 
paper. 

Inaccuracy  No.  1, — Mr.  Sydney  Holland  stated 
that  the  London  Hospital  nurses  will  not  register 
should  the  Nurses'  Registration  Bill  become  law. 
I  have  met  many  nurses  trained  at  the  London 
Hospital,  who  are  strongly  in  favour  of  State  Re- 
gistration, and  wlio  also  strongly  resent  Mr.  Syd- 
ney Holland  representing  (I  should  say  misrepre- 
senting) their  views  on  the  subject. 

Inaccuracy  No.  2. — I  understood  Mr.  Sydney 
Holland  to  say  that  the  London  Hospital  does  not 
receive  probationers  who  have  had  iirevious  train- 
ing in  other  hospitals. 

I  have  met  many  nurses  who  have  gone  to  the 
London  Hospital  with  previous  training,  and  one 
of  my  personal  friends  had  been  in  two  hospitals 
before  she  entered  the  London.  I  may  add  that 
she  was  made  Sister  of  a  ward  before  she  had 
finished  her  three  years'  training. 
I  am,  yours  faithfully, 

Annie  E.  Hdlme, 

Superintendent. 

The  Nurses'  Lodge, 

9,  10,  11,  Colosseum  Terrace,  N.W. 

[The  question  under  discussion  of  whether  nurses 
trained  at  the  London  Hospital  or  any  other  hos- 
pital will  or  will  not  register  when  our  Bill  becomes 
law  is  immaterial.  They  will  be  at  liberty  so  far 
ns  the  .i-ct  is  concerned  to  do  as  they  choose.  Re- 
gistration under  its  provisions  will  not  be  com- 
pulsor.v.  The  officials  of  the  lx)ndon  Hospital, 
however,  realise  that  the  moral  effect  of  legislation 
will  be  irresistible,  and  that  unregistered  nurses 
cannot  hope  to  compete  with  those  who  avail  them- 
selves of  the  legal  status  the  Act  will  confer.  Such 
a  discussion  is  futile.  Presumably  London  Hospi- 
tal nurses  are  free  agents !  Anyway  they  will  be 
when  the  Registration   Act  is  enforced. — Ed.] 


Comments  an&  IRepIies. 

Fo.rhams. — The  climate  of  the  Canary  Islands  is 
warmer,  drier,  and  less  relaxing  than  that  of  the 
Azores  and  Madeira.  Santa  Cruz,  the  capital  of 
Tenerift'e,  has  a  mean  annual  temperature  of 
"0.15  degrees  Fahr.  Write  to  the  Chief  Clerk, 
Colonial  Office,  Downing  Street,  S.W.,  and  inquire 
if  the  islands  have  now  a  clean   bill  of  health. 

Miss  M.  P.,  Slough. — AVe  regret  being  unable  to 
write  a  private  letter  a  second  time  on  the  ques- 
tion of  State  Registration,  as  all  information  is 
given  week  by  week  in  this  Journal,  which  is  the 
official   organ  of  the  State    Registration    Society. 


OUR  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing   for   the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


May  7,  1910]   ^bc  Biltisl?  3ournal  of    IHursino  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


383 


^be  Central  flDibwives'  Boar&. 

SPECIAL  MEETING. 

A  bpetial  meeting  of  the  Cential  Mklwives'  Board 
Ha«  lifld  at  the  Board  Room,  Caxton  House,  on 
Tuesday,  April  26th,  to  consider  the  Bill  of  the 
Lord  President  of  the  Council,  introduced  into  the 
House  of  Lords,  to  amend  the  Midwives'  Act.  Dr. 
Champneys  presided. 

Clause  I. 

In  the  discussion  of  Clause  I.  (c),  which  provides 
that  two  certified  midwives  shall  be  appointed 
members  of  the  Board,  one  by  the  Midwives'  Insti- 
tute, Miss  Paget  said  she  considered  it  hard  that 
there  should  be  only  one  representative  of  the 
Midwives'  Institute  on  the  Board,  as  it  was  a  mid- 
wives'  Bill,  and  not  a  doctors',  for  four  of  whom 
provision  was  made  on  the  Board.  She  hoped  the 
Board  would  endorse  the  view  that  the  Midwives' 
Irstitute  should  have  two  representatives,  and  Dr. 
Herman  supported  this. 

Dr.  Champneys  said  the  Board  existed  neither 
in  the  interests  of  doctors  nor  midwives,  but  in 
the  interest  of  the  mothers  of  England,  and  per- 
sonally he  was  only  concerned  to  safeguard  that 
interest. 

Mr.  Parker  Young  considered  the  Midwives'  In- 
stitute was  only  a  small  society,  consisting  of  about 
1,000  members  out  of  a  possible  6,000  trained  and 
certified  midwives,  and  that  to  give  the  Midwives' 
Institute  two  members  on  a  Board  of  thirteen  was 
excessive.  Accordingly  he  and  Mr.  Golding  Bird 
vote<l  against  tho  proposal,  which  was  not  carried. 
CL.\t;sE   '\'II. 

Clause  VII.  provides  that  "every  certified  mid- 
wife shall,  on  or  before  the  31st  of  March  in  each 
j-ear,  send  to  the  Central  Midv.ives'  Board,  on  a 
form  to  be  supplied  by  the  Board  for  the  purpose, 
her  name  and  address,  together  with  a  fee  of  one 
shilling,  and  if  any  certified  midwife  in  any  year 
fails  to  comply  with  this  requirement  her  name  shall 
be  removed  from  the  Roll,  and  thereupon  her  cer- 
tificate shall  be  deemed  to  be  cancelled." 

Miss  Paget  opposed  this  on  the  ground  that  it 
would  confuse  midwives  if  they  were  required  to 
notify  the  Local  Supervising  Authorities  of  their 
intention  to  practice  in  January  and  to  furnisli 
tlie  returns  suggested  to  the  Central  Midwives' 
Boartl  in  March.  It  was  suggested  by  tho  Secretary 
that  if  this  clause  were  enforcc<l  half  the  midwives 
would  be  struck  off  every  year  for  non-compliance. 

The  Secretary  was  directed  to  frame  a  recom- 
mendation as  to  the  desirability  of  an  alteration  in 
the  date  (March  31st). 

C'l..\USE    X. 

Clause  X.  provides  that  "  where  the  Central  Mid- 
wives'  Board  decide  upon  the  removal  from  the 
Roll  of  tho  name  of  any  midwife  they  may,  in  addi- 
tion, ijrohibit  her  from  attending  women  in  child- 
birth in  any  other  capacity." 

The  Chairman  was  strongly  in   favour  of  those 


struck  off  the  Midwives'  Roll  being  prohibited  from 
acting  as  monthly  nurses. 

Cl.^use  XI.  (1). 

Clause  XI.  provides  that  '"  where  a  woman  certi- 
fied under  the  principal  Act,  who  has  not  given 
the  Local  Supervising  Authority  such  a  notice  as 
is  mentioned  in  Section  10  of  the  principal  Act, 
attends  any  woman  in  childbirth  in  any  capacity 
other  than  that  of  midwife,  and  a  duly  quaUiied 
medical  practitioner  is  not  present  at  the  time  of 
the  birth,  she  shall,  within  48  hours  from  the 
birth,  give  to  the  Local  Supervising  Authority 
notice  in  writing  of  the  fact  that  she  so  attended, 
and  if  she  omits  to  do  so  shall  be  liable  on  summary 
conviction  to  a  fine  not  exceeding  five  pounds." 

This  was  warmly  opposed  by  Mr.  Parker  Young, 
who  said  if  it  were  passed  he  should  hesitate  to 
employ  a  trained  midwife  to  nurse  his  cases,  as,  if 
he  were,  not  present  for  the  actual  delivery,  a 
report  of  the  case  would  have  to  l)e  sent  to  the 
Local  Supervising  Authority.  He  instanced  fho 
annoyance  this  might  cause  in  the  case  of  au  un- 
married girl.  It  was  generally  agreed  that  this 
clause  put  the  trained  midwife  in  a  worse  position 
than  the  untrained  person.  Its  deletion  was  re- 
commended, the  Secretary  to  frame  the  reasons. 
Cl.wse  XIII. 

Clause  XIII.  provides:  "A  Local  Supervising 
Authority  may  aid  the  training  of  midwives 
whether  within  or  without  their  area,  and  may 
make  grants  for  the  purpose." 

In  the  discussion  upon  this  clause,  it  was  sug- 
gested as  dt^irable  that  the  Boards  of  Guardians 
should    be    approached    for   the    necessary    grants 
rather   than   the  Local  Supervising  Authority. 
Clause   XV. 

Clause  XV.  provides  that  "  For  the  purpose  of 
exercising  the  powers  of  supervision  over  midwives 
conferred  on  Ix)eal  Supervising  Authorites,  any 
officer  appointed  by  such  an  Authority  for  the  pur- 
pose may  at  all  reasonable  times  enter  any  premises 
which  he  has  reason  to  believe  to  be  a  lying-in 
homo  conducted  for  profit  within  the  area  of  the 
Authority,  and  in  which  he  has  reason  to  believe 
that  a  certified  midwife  is  employed  or  practises, 
or  that  a  woman  not  a  certifie<l  midwife  practises  in 
contravention  of  the  principal  Act,  and  any  person 
who  wilfully  obstructs  such  officer  in  the  perfor- 
mance of  his  duties  shall  on  summary  conviction 
be  liable  to  a  fine  not  exceeding  five  i>ounds." 

Miss  Paget  opposed  this  on  the  same  ground  as 
Clause  XI.  (1),  it  being  another  injustice  to  the 
trained  midwife.  She  pointed  out  that  an  un- 
trained person  might  receive  a  lying-in  woman  for 
pay,  if  a  medical  man  were  in  attendance,  and 
escape  inspection,  whereas  a  certified  midwife 
under  the  same  conditions  would  have  to  be  under 
supervision. 

Mr.  Parker  Young  supporte<l  this  view. 

Dr.  Herman  proposed  that  tho  deletion  y)f  this 
clause  was  desirable.    This  was  carried. 


384        ^be  38rlti3b  3ournal  of  ll^ursino  Supplement,  t^^^y 


7,  1910 


Clause  XVII. 

Clause  XVII.  provides  that  a  medical  practi- 
tioner summoned  on  the  advice  of  a  certified  mid- 
wife in  emergency  shall  be  entitled  to  recover  his 
fee  from  the  Board  of  Guardians  of  the  Poor-Law 
TJniou  in  which  the  woman   resides. 

Miss  Paget  wished  to  substitute  "the  Local 
Supervising  Authority"  for  "the  Board  of  Guar- 
dians," but  the  Chairman  was  of  opinion  that  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board  was  not  an  expert  on  this 
matter,  and  that  it  was  a  question  for  the  House 
of  Commons. 

EXAMINATION   PAPER. 

The  following  are  the  questions  set  at  the 
Examination  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  on 
April  28th,   1910:  — 

1  What  do  you  mean  by  an  antiseptic?  Name 
three  in  common  use  in  midwifery.  State  for  what 
purpose  you  would  use  each  of  those  you  mention, 
and  how  you   would  prepare  them. 

2.  What  symptoms  in  a  pregnant  woman  would 
lead  you  to  susjiect  the  onset  of  eclampsia?  What 
treatment  would  you  adopt  before  the  arrival  of 
a  doctor  ? 

3.  Describe  the  management  of  a  case  of  un- 
complicated twin   labour  at  full  term. 

4.  Supposing  you  had  attended  a  case  of  puer- 
peral septicemia,  describe  fully  what  precautions 
you  would  take  before  attending  another  confine- 
ment. 

5.  What  are  "after-pains"  ?  To  what  causes 
are  they  due,  and  what  treatment  would  you  adopt 
in  a  severe  case? 

6.  Describe  the  normal  appearance  of  the  infant's 
stools  from  birth  until  the  end  of  the  first  week. 
Wliat  clianges  in  them  would  you  think  it  neces- 
sary to  report  to  the  doctor  ? 

THE  SUPPLY  OF   MIDWIVES  IN    LONDON. 

The  Midwives  Act  Committee  of  the  London 
County  C-ouncil  on  April  19th,  as  reported  by  the 
Lancet,  drew  the  attention  of  the  Council  to  the 
Order  in  Council  issued  on  March  14th  last 
authorising  the  Central  Midwives  Board  to  enrol, 
without  examination,  any  women  entitled  under 
Section  2  of  the  Act  of  1902  to  be  certified,  but 
who  failed  to  make  application,  provided  that  no 
one  is  admitted  to  the  roll  in  this  manner  after 
Sept.  30th.  From  evidence  given  before  the  Depart- 
mental Committee  appointed  to  consider  the  work- 
ing of  the  Act  of  1902,  it  appeared  probable  (said 
'  the  Committee)  that  the  number  of  midwives  at 
present  certified  under  the  Act  would  be  insuffi- 
cient in  a  few  districts.  It  was  to  meet  this  diffi- 
culty, apparently,  that  the  Order  in  Council  had 
been  made.  In  London,  however,  so  far  as  could 
be  ascertained,  the  number  of  midwives  was  in 
excess  of  requirements.  In  these  circumstances 
it  seemed  very  undesirable  that  any  addi- 
tion of  insufficiently  trained  persons  should  be 
made  to  the  ranks  of  women  permitted  by  law  to 
engage  in  praftice  in  London,  and  the  Committee 
recommended  that  the  Central  MidwivW  Board 
should  be  asked  to  refrain  from  admitting  to  the 
roll  of  midwives  in  London  any  person  unqualified 
by  examination.     This  was  agreed. 


Zbc  2?irect  IReprescntation  of 

^!^i^wivc9. 


A  meeting  of  Midwives  to  di.scus>s  direct  repre- 
.seutation  on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  was  held 
in  the  Cavendish  Rooms,  W.,  on  Friday,  the  29th 
of  Ajiril.  Mrs.  Robinson,  the  President  of  the  1910 
Union  of  Midwives,  was  in  the  chair. 

Mrs.  Eddy,  a  Committee  member  of  the  National 
A,ssociation,  opened  the  discussion  with  a  very  able 
address  on  direct  i-e presentation .  She  urged  the 
necessity  for  all  midwives  to  band  themselves 
together  in  order  to  obtain  what  is  so  badly  needed 
— a  working  midwife  on  the  governing  body,  and 
reminded  the  meeting  that  at  the  Conference 
at  the  Royal  Horticultui-al  Hall  we  were 
told  that  the  word  "interest"  was  heai-d  too 
frequently ;  we  should  be  all  working  for  the 
interest  of  the  mothei's  and  children.  Mre.  Eddy 
ix)inted  out  that  most  midwives  were  mothers,  and 
therefore  would  work  for  their  interest ;  but  the 
best  way  to  serve  the  mothei's  was  by  having  better 
trained  and  l>etter  educated  women  to  act  as  mid- 
wives — in  fact,  to  raise  the  .status  of  midwives 
altogether.  Tlie  value  of  having  a  working  midwife 
on  the  Board  could  not  be  too  strongly  emphasised, 
as  she  is  the  jjer.son  who  knows  exactly  where  the 
rules  and  regulations  require  alteration,  and  she  is 
the  one  who  could  suggest  improvements  where 
necessary. 

Mr.  Fisher,  the  business  adviser  to  the  Union 
of  Midwives,  drew  the  attention  of  the  meeting 
to  the  excessively  critical  period  through  which  the 
profession  is  now  passing,  the  introduction  by  Lord 
Wolverhampton,  Lord  President  of  the  Council,  of 
the  Bill  which  is  supposed  to  be  a  refoi-m  of 
the  existing  Act,  and  the  apathy  of  the  rank  and 
tile  of  the  midwifery  profession  to  the  importance 
of  these  things.  He  suggested  that  we  should  at 
once  form  a  Parliamentary  Committee  to  deal  with 
Lord  Wolverhampton's  Bill,  and  the  following  mid- 
wives  were  appointed  to  serve  on  that  Committee : 
Mrs.  Lawson,  President  of  the  National  Association, 
Miss  Webb,  Mrs.  Eddy,  Mrs.  Carnegie  AVilliams, 
Mrs.  Gilroy,  and  Miss  Macdonald. 

The  following  resolution  was  then  passed  by  the 
meeting: — "  That  this  meeting  of  midwives  assem- 
bled in  London  on  the'29th  of  April,  1910,  pledges 
itself  to  offer  the  most  strenuous  opposition  to  the 
Bill  recently  introduced  into  the  House  of  Lords 
by  the  Ix)rd  President  of  the  Council  in  deliberately 
ignoring  the  claims  of  midwives  to  adequate  direct 
representation  on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board, 
and  calls  on  all  members  of  Parliament  to  support 
the  claims  of  registered  and  qualified  midwives  for 
direct   representation." 

V.  B.   M. 


To  help  to  defray  its  initial  expenses,  the 
1910  ITnion  of  ^lidwives  organised  a  musical  enter- 
tainment which  was  held  at  the  Cavendi.sh  Rooms, 
AV.,  on  Thunsday,  April  28th,  when  Mr.  George 
Clancy's  Pierrots  w-ere  in  charge  of  the  programme. 
As  there  was  a  full  room,  and  all  the  refreshments 
were  given  by  meml>ers  of  the  Committee,  we  hope 
there  was  a  substantial  balance. 


THE 

Mi 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITEn   nv  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,      MAY      14,      1010. 


EMtorial. 


A   WORLD  LAMENTS. 

Tlie  sorrow  which  has  so  siuhlenly  over- 
wliehned  tlie  nation  by  the  passing  of  its 
King  intimately  touches  tlie  nursing  pro- 
fession, for  his  statesmanlike  breadth  of  view 
and  clear  insight  enabled  King  Edward  VII. 
to  understand  how  important  a  place  trained 
nursing  is  assigned  in  the  healing  art,  and 
in  his  public  utterances  in  relation  to  niirsing 
he  always  gave  practical  proof  of  his  appre- 
ciation of  the  value  of  tlie  work  of  nurses 
to  the  community.  Trained  nurses  had  fre- 
quently 7'eason  to  be  thankful  to  His  ^Majesty 
for  the  high  honour  in  which  he  held  their 
jirofession,  and  they  can  bring  no  better 
tribute  to  his  memory  than  their  gratitude 
for  the  dignity  with  which  he  always  in- 
vested it. 

For  instance,  in  July,  1  U(JS,  His  Majesty 
publicly  stated  :  "  It  has  now,  happily,  long 
been  recognised  that  in  the  alleviation  of 
pain  and  sickness  good  nursing  is  of  supreme 
importance,  and  that  it  is  in  the  interests  of 
the  commiiuity  that  measures  should  be 
taken  to  obtain  skilled  and  ellicient  nurses 
in  increased  nunil)ers  and  to  procure  for 
thenrsuch  advantages  and  prospects  as  will 
retain  them  in  their  profession." 

When  Princess  Louise,  Duchess  of  Argyll, 
attended  the  Jubilee  Congress  of  District 
Nursing  at  Liverpool  last  year  it  was  an- 
nounced that  the  King  had  intimated  to  her 
Royal  Highness  that  he  highly  approved  of 
her  coming  to  Liverpool  for  that  purpose, 
and  hoped  the  Congress  would  result  in 
very  much  good  to  the  cause  of  District 
Nursing. 

Again,  when  King  Edward  presented  the 
colours  to  the  Territorial  Force  at  Windsor 
Castle  last  year  the  ^Matrons  of  the  Nursing 
Service  connected  with  it  were  honoured  by 


the  Royal  command  to  be  present ;  and  when 
the  International  Council  of  Nurses  met  in 
liOndon  in  July  last  it  was  announced  l)y 
the  President  from  the  platform  that  the 
Lord  Cliamberlain  desired  that  the  Congress 
should  be  informed  of  the  special  interest 
taken  by  the  King  in  the  visit  of  its  mem- 
bers to  Windsor  Castle  during  the  Congress 
week.  The  King  wrote  himself  from  Biar- 
ritz instructing  that  special  facilities  should 
be  granted  on  this  occasion,  and  His  Majesty 
specially  singled  out  the  delegates  of  the 
Canadian  National  Council  b\-  permitting 
them  to  place  a  wreath  upon  the  tomb  of 
the  late  Queen  Victoria  in  the  mausoleum  at 
Froginore,  bearing  an  inscription  expressing 
their  loyalty  and  devotion  to  the  Crown. 

In  October  last  the  King,  when  laying 
the  foundation-stone  of  a  new  block  at  the 
Norfolk  and  Norwich  Hospital,  said,  in  the 
course  of  his  reply  to  an  address  from  the 
Governing  Body  :  "  The  encouragement 
which  you  give  to  j'our  nurses  to  join  the 
Nursing  Service  of  the  Territorial  Force 
meets  with  my  most  cordial  approval.  In 
matters  of  life  and  death  the  services  of  the 
trained  nurse  are  no  less  essential  than 
those  of  the  physician  or  surgeon."  And 
during  his  last  visit  to  Biarritz  King 
Edward  visited  the  Nursing  Home  which 
he  founded  there,  and  warmlj^  congratulated 
the  nursing  staff* on  the  valuable  services 
which  they  have  rendered  to  the  British 
colony  in  Biarritz. 

There  are  no  more  loyal  subjects  of  the 
Crown  than  the  trained  nurses  of  the  realm. 
They  participate  in  the  universal  sorrow, 
and  they  profoundlj'  sympathise  in  lier 
bereavement  with  the  gracious  <^)ueen  who 
has  endeared  herself  to  the  whole  British 
people.  To  King  Cieorge  and  his  Consort, 
at  this  sorrowful  time,  they  olfer  their  loyal 
and  respectful  sympatliy. 


386 


5Ibc  Briiijb  3oiunal  of  1Wur«ino 


•^lav  14,  1910 


(iiucen  alcyan^l•a'9  HDcssagc  to 
tbc  IRation. 


Clinical  Botes  on  Some  Conunon. 
ailments. 


BuckiDgham  Palace, 

May  10th. 
From  the  depth  of  my  poor  broken  heart  I 
wish  to  express  to  the  whole  Nation  and  our 
kind  People  we  love  so  well  my  deep-felt 
thanks  for  all  their  touching  sympathy  in  my 
overwhelming  sorrow  and  unspeakable  anguish. 

Not  alone  have  I  lost  everything  in  Him. 
my  beloved  Husband,  but  the  Nation,  too.  has 
suffered  an  irreparable  loss  by  their  best  friend, 
Father,  and  Sovereign  thus  suddenly  called 
away. 

May  God  give  us  all  His  Divine  help  to  bear 
this  heaviest  of  crosses  which  He  has  seen  fit 
to  lay  upon  us — "  His  Will  be  done."  Give 
me  a  thought  in  your  prayers  which  will  com- 
fort and  sustain  me  in  all  1  still  have  to  go 
through. 

Let  me  take  this  opportunity  of  expressing 
my  heartfelt  thanks  for  all  the  touching  letters 
and  tokens  of  sympathy  I  have  received  from 
all  classes,  high  and  low,  rich  and  poor,  which 
are  so  numerous  that  I  fear  it  will  be  impossible 
for  me  ever  to  thank  everybody  individually. 

I  confide  my  dear  Son  into  your  care,  who  I 
know  will  follow  in  his  dear  Father's  footsteps, 
begging  you  to  show  him  the  same  loyalty  and 
devotion  you  showed  his  dear  Father. 

I  know  that  both  my  dear  Son  and  Daughter- 
in-law  will  do  their  Utmost  to  merit  and  keep 
it.  Alexandra. 


Zbc  IRoiJal  Jfnneral  anb  %s>\nQ  in 
State. 

No  more  stately  shrine  couia  ue  cii'>sen  as 
the  last  resting  place  of  the  dead  King  than 
St.  George's  Chapel,  Windsor,  where,  with  all 
honour,  he  will  be  laid  to  rest  on  Friday,  ilay 
20th.  The  opportunity  afforded  to  the  nation 
of  paying  a  last  tribute  of  respect  to  its  late 
Sovereign  during  the  public  lying  in  state  at 
Westminster  Hall,  on  the  three  preceding  days, 
is  keenly  appreciated,  and  many  thousands, 
among  whom  trained  nurses  will  certainly  be 
represented,  will  pass  through  the  Hall  during 
this  time. 


AN/EMIA. 

By  a.  Kxyvett  Gordox,  M.B.  (Cantab.). 

I  have  chosen  the  subject  of  anaemia  for  dis- 
cussion, not  because  its  victims  fall  often  under 
the  care  of  the  trained  nurse — ^for  as  a  rule  they 
are  not  confined  to  bed — but  on  account  of  the 
frequency  with  which  it  afiects  nurses  them- 
selves. ■Moreover,  as  will  be  seen,  it  throws 
some  light  on  the  causation  of  another  disease 
— gastric  ulcer — which  we  will  take  next,  and 
in  which  very  careful  nursing  is  imperatively 
necessary. 

In  the  preceding  articles  we  saw  that  tlie 
fresh  air  which  was  taken  into  the  lungs  with 
each  inspiration  was  absorbed  or  taken  up  by 
the  red  corpuscles  of  the  blood,  and  thus  con- 
veyed to  all  parts  of  the  body.  In  health  these 
red  cells,  which  are  formed  from  the  marrow 
which  is  found  inside  some  of  the  bones,  do 
their  duty  well,  and  take  up  all  the  oxygen  that 
they  can  get,  but  when  for  one  reason  or 
another  they  fail  to  do  this,  the  patient  be- 
comes ill,  and  is  said  to  be  suffering  from 
anaemia  or  "poverty  of  blood." 

Now  there  are  many  causes  of  anaemia,  or 
rather  there  are  many  different  varieties  of  the 
disease.  There  may  be  too  few  red  corpuscles 
in  the  blood,  as  after  a  loss  of  blood  itself,  such 
as  may  follow  haemorrhage  from  a  wound  or 
from  the  uterus  during  a  confinement,  or  even 
from  an  excessive  loss  at  the  monthly  periods, 
and  until  this  loss  is  made  good  by  the  pro- 
duction of  fresh  red  cells,  the  patient  is  an?eniic. 
Or,  again,  the  process  of  formation  of  the  cor- 
puscles may  be  defective,  as  it  is  during  con- 
valescence from  almost  any  severe  illness,  or 
there  mav  be  actual  disease  of  the  bone  marrow 
itself. 

If  we  put  aside  all  these  more  obvious  causes 
of  a  deficiency  in  red  cells,  there  remains  a 
definite  disease  which  is  very  common  amongst 
females  from  the  age  of  14  to  24  or  thereabouts, 
which  is  often  known  as  ansemia,  but  is  pre- 
ferably called  chlorosis,  to  distinguish  it  from 
the  other  forms  of  antemia.  This  name  was 
given  to  it  on  account  of  the  peculiar  greenish 
tinge  of  the  skin  which  it  produces,  chlorosis 
being  simply  the  Greek  for  greenness. 

Here  the  red  cells  are  affected  in  two  ways : 
there  are  not  enough  of  them  in  the  first  place, 
and.  secondly,  each  cell  is  deficient  in  hcemo- 
globin,  which  is  the  name  given  to  the  sub- 
stance by  virtue  of  which  they  perform  their 
work  of  absorbing  oxygen  and  giving  it  up 
again  to  the  tissues  in  exchange  for  the'wastt 
product  carbonic  acid. 


May  u.  loi.i       ^|)o   BntJ5b  SoiuMial  of   IHuielng, 


387 


When  we  come  to  inquire  why  they  contain 
t<x>  little  iKtiuoglobin  we  meet  with  some  diffi- 
culty, because  many  difiereut  reasons  have 
been  giveu  for  the  change,  but  it  is  (juite 
evident  that  the  primarj'  cause  is  a  deficiency 
of  iron,  which  is  essential  to  the  productioii  of 
hcEmoglobin,  and  the  view  which  we  shall  take 
now,  for,  in  my  opinion,  it  best  explains  the 
symptoms  of  the  disease,  is  not  that  there  is 
a  deficient  production  of  iron  (or  rather  trans- 
ference of  iron  from  the  food  to  the  red  blood 
cell),  but  that  there  is  a  destructive  process 
going  on  (or  rather  an  excess  of  the  normal 
destructive  change)  whereby  iron  in  the  cor- 
puscles is  removed  from  them  and  passed  out 
of  the  body. 

Now  in  chlorosis  there  is  invariably  constipa- 
tion, or,  in  other  words,  retention  of  matter 
in  the  bowel  which  should  be  excreted  and  not 
allowed  to  accumulate;  when  this  condition 
is  remedied  the  chlorosis  improves,  and  it  is 
probable  that  certain  poisons,  or  toxins  as  they 
are  called,  are  produced  in  the  stagnant  faeces 
and  absorbed  back  again  into  the  circulation ; 
when  they  reach  the  blood  they  attack  the  red 
cells  and  dissolve  out.  as  it  were,  some  of  their 
contained  hctmoglobin.  This,  however, 
obviously  cannot  be  the  complete  explanation, 
for  chlorosis  is  practically  confined  to  women, 
and  constipation  occurs  in  men  also,  though 
not  nearly  so  frequently,  and  we  have  a  further 
reason  in  the  fact  that  there  is  almost  in- 
variably some  suppression  or  change  in  the 
menstrual  function  also,  which  may  also  result 
in  the  formation  of  toxins  which  have  a  similar 
effect.  Probably  toxins  are  fonned  in  varying 
quantities  in  different  cases  both  in  the 
bowel  and  the  reproductive  apparatus,  but  the 
change  in  the  latter  organs  is  largely  a  result 
itself  of  the  constipation. 

Besides  the  constipation  and  the  menstrual 
troubles,  the  digestion  is  almost  always 
affected.  ^lore  will  be  said  about  this  in  the 
next  article,  but  for  the  present  we  will  men- 
tion that  there  is  in  acute  cases  pain  and  sick- 
ness, sometimes  actual  vomiting,  directly  after 
food,  and,  in  the  more  chronic  illnesses,  pain 
and  heaviness  about  an  hour  after  each  meal. 

The  result  of  the"  deficiency  in  the  blood 
cells  themselves  is  seen  in  two  ways;  firstly, 
the  skin  is  pale,  and  the  mucous  membranes 
(lips  and  gums)  have  also  a  blanched  appear- 
ance, simply  because  the  blood  itself  is  not 
sufficiently  red,  and  there  is  breathlessness  on 
exertion,  on  account  of  the  brain  not  receiving 
as  much  oxygen  as  it  should ;  for  the  same 
reason  dizziness  and  faintness  are  common. 
The  deficiency  in  hoemoglobin  can  be  measured 
accurately  by  withdrawing  a  few  drops  of  blood 


and  comparing  the  tint  when  diluted  with  that 
given  by  healthy  blood,  and  the  number  of 
red  cells  can  be  counted  when  a  drop  of  the 
patient's  blood  is  examined  under  the  micro- 
scope. 

Coming  now  to  the  causes  of  the  chlorosis 
itself,  it  will  be  obvious  that  two  factors  are 
most  prominent — namely,  constipation  and 
want  of  fresh  air.  In  addition  to  these,  the 
presence  of  indigestion  plays  an  important 
point  in  that  what  is  known  as  a  vicious  circle 
is  established ;  inability  to  digest  food  causes 
ansemia;  because  the  body  does  not  receive  an 
adequate  quantity  of  iron,  and  the  ansemia 
causes  indigestion  because  the  blood  circulating 
in  the  stomach  walls  is  of  poor  quality,  and 
therefoi'e  the  stomach  is  weak  and  sluggish  : 
we  then  get  a  state  of  things  which  reminds 
us  of  a  dog  running  after  its  own  tail. 

Let  us  now  inquire  why  chlorosis  is  so  preva- 
lent amongst  nurses.  Firstly,  dyspepsia  is  very 
common,  for  the  simple  reason  that  in  the  vast 
majority  of  hospitals  quite  inadequate  time  is 
allowed  for  breakfast,  and,  whereas  for  a 
nurse's  work  this  meal  should  be  the  most  sub- 
stantial of  the  day  and  the  best  cooked,  it  is 
very  often  the  lightest  and  the  cooking  is  prac- 
tically non-existent.  Who  is  not  familiar  with 
the  clammy  porridge,  the  cold  contract  egg, 
and  the  uninviting  slab  of  bread,  with  its 
scanty  allowance  of  dubious  butter,  that  forms 
the  staple  fare  in  so  many  hospitals?  Inas- 
much also  as  the  majority  of  nurses,  especially 
in  their  first  year,  are  almost  necessarily  tired 
when  they  rise  in  the  morning,  the  temptation 
to  still  further  curtail  the  altogether  insufficient 
period  of  half  an  hour  which  is  usually  allowed 
for  breakfast,  by  snatching  a  few  extra 
moments  in  bed  is  very  strong.  So  the 
first  meal  of  the  day  is  often  bolted  in  five 
minutes,  to  be  followed  by  the  inevitable 
gastric  pain  and  discomfort;  and  when  the 
fuller  and  better  cooked  midday  meal  arrives, 
the  nurse  is  often  too  tired  to  "  fancy  "  it,  and 
consequently  her  dinner  is  followed  by  a 
repetition  of  the  morning's  dyspepsia.  The  net 
result  of  this  is  that  the  staple  article  of  the 
nurse's  dietary  is  tea,  which  can  hardly  be  said 
to  be  a  suitable  beverage  for  the  dyspeptic.  In 
practice  the  appetite  does  not  reappear  until 
the  next  "  time  off."  when  a  raid  is  made  on 
the  nearest  confectioner's  shop,  and  the  nurse, 
on  returning  to  hospital,  is  seen  to  be  decorated 
with  the  inevitable  paper  bag  containing  a 
dietary  which  can  hardly  be  said  to  consist 
mainly  of  digestible  proteid  ! 

Nor  is  this  all.  It  is,  of  course,  essential 
that  the  bowels  should  be  open  daily,  and  for 
this  it  is  a  physiological  necessity  that  the  in- 


388 


G-be   36nti5b  3ournal  of  BurtMiuj,       [May  u,  1910 


testiiie  should  be  stimulated  by  the  pressure 
on  it  of  the  stomach  which  has  been  filled  by 
the  morning  meal.  When  this  Consists  of  a 
cujiful  of  hastily  swallowed  tea  and  a  piece  of 
bread  and  butter,  this  stimulus  is  absent  and 
constipation  results.  It  is  best  that  the  bowels 
should  act  regularly  without  aperients,  but  for 
'the  chlorotic  girl  it  is  better  that  they  should 
act  with  aperients,  such  as  a  daily  dose  of 
effervescent  sahne,  than  not  at  all. 

The  treatment  of  anaemia  resolves  itself  into 
the  abohtion  of  the  above-mentioned  causes 
and  the  administration  of  some  preparation  of 
iron  internally,  but  it  is  not  so  generally  known 
as  it  might  be  that  iron  is  one  of  the  most  diffi- 
cult drugs  to  administer  properly,  for  it  is 
essential  to  suit  the  preparation  to  the  patient's 
digestive  powers.  When  there  is  pain  after 
food,  the  dyspepsia  and  the  constipation  must, 
as  a  rule,  both  be  treated  before  the  iron  is 
given  at  all.  Treatment  of  the  dyspepsia,  too, 
has  often  to  be  preceded  by  the  removal  of 
decayed  teeth. 

Some  of  the  preparations  of  iron  that  are  so 
freely  retailed  by  the  adTCrtising  chemists  and 
patent  medicine  vendors  are  quite  insoluble, 
and  in-  practice  pass  out  of  the  blood  un- 
changed; in  fact,  on  one  occasion  I  placed 
some  "  Blaud  Pills  "  on  a  deal  board  and  suc- 
ceeded in  hammering  them  into  the  wood 
without  breaking  the  pills !  What  use  they 
would  have  been  to  the  faithful  chlorotic  who 
bought  them  under  the  impression  that  they 
would  enrich  her  blood  (and,  I  think,  make  her 
hair  grow  also)  is  not  easy  to  discover. 

Properly  treated,  chlorosis  and  its  conse- 
quences respond  most  readily  to  drugs  and 
hygiene,  but  if  neglected,  or  combated  by  the 
indiscriminate  swallowing  of  patent  medicines, 
they  are  apt  to  involve  the  giving  up  of  the 
nursing  vocation  altogether  by  the  unfortunate 
jjatient. 

Zbc  Cbein(sti*\>  of   infantile 
2)iaest(on. 

Lecturing  on  the  Chemistry  of  Infan- 
tile Digestion  on  Mav  3rd,  at  the 
Infants'  Hospital,  S.W.,  Dr.  Ralph 
Vincent  prefaced  his  remarks  by  ac- 
knowledging that  it  was  the  most  complicated 
subject,  and  he  did  not  propose  to  deal  with 
all  the  processes,  as  that  would  include  a  very 
wide  scope,  but  he  would  explain  the  simple 
and  noiTnal  processes,  and  to  understand  these 
it  was  necessary  to  have  some  ide.a  of  the  ali- 
mentary canal,  which  he  briefly  described  with 
the  assistance  of  diagrams.  He  then  dealt  with 
the  constituents  of  milk,  demonstrating  by  ex- 


periment the  amount  of  fat  to  be  found  in  lich 
cows'  milk  and  the  casein  in  fat  free  milk.  He 
said  that  in  mothers'  milk  there  was  a  large 
proportion  of  whey  proteins,  and  this  should 
also  be  found  in  all  substitutes.  Whey  con- 
tains a  large  amount  of  jDroteins.  If  renuin 
were  added  to  human  milk  it  would  throw' 
down  a  fine  granular  curd.  In  cows'  milk  the 
curd  was  much  larger,  and  dense  and  tough  ; 
it  was  only  necessary  to  modify  the  latter  to  set 
the  natural  curd. 

The  modification  of  cows'  milk  to  suit  the 
needs  of  each  infant  is  the  basis  of  all  Dr.  Vin- 
cent's teaching.  He  showed  very  conclusively 
that  the  common  practice  of  boiling  the  milk 
was  a  mischievous  one,  as  by  this  means  the 
lactic  acid  is  destroyed,  which  alone  controls 
organisms  associated  with  putrefactive  change*, 
for  these  cannot  grow  in  an  acid  medium.  In 
boiled  milk  the  decomposition  is  putrefactive  in 
kind,  and  the  products  of  this  decomposition 
are  highly  poisonous.  Pure  milk  cannot  de- 
com230se,  though  it  may  ttmi  sour.  On  the 
acidity  of  the  alimentary  canal,  the  welfare  of 
the  child  depends.  Another  serious  thing  is  to 
give  an  infant  barley  water,  it  being  starchy, 
and  the  aniylopsin  not  being  present  in  tlii- 
child  till  the  sixth  or  seventh  month  it  cannot 
digest  it.'  ■  Further  the  colon  bacillus  can  live 
upon  it,  and  will  soon  find  its  way  also  into  the 
snuill  intestine,  causing  wind,  which  is  the 
result  of  the  colon  bacillus  and  barley  water. 

After  explaining  the  movements  of  peristal- 
sis, he  described  two  exaggerations:  — 

1st,  Colic,  when  a  large  amount  of  unsuitable 
food  had  to  be  got  rid  of,  peristalsis  instead  of 
being  gentle  became  sudden  and  painful,  tonic 
contraction. 

2nd,  Paralytic  contraction.  A  case  of  maras- 
mus, properly  fed^.and  treated,  may  de- 
velop abdominal  distension.  The  inhibitory 
nerve  fibres,  instead  of  contracting,  give  way, 
and  the  intestine  dilates.  Unless  this  is  con- 
trolled, paralytic  distension  follows.  An  infant 
in  health  will  always  vomit  sour  fluid,  and  this 
unless  it  becomes  excessive  may  be  considered 
a  normal  condition.  Large  curds  excreted  are 
not  necessarily  proteids;  they  are  fovmd  in  the 
motions  of  infants  fed  on  whey  or  even  albu- 
men water.  They  may  be  due  to  cohtis,  caus- 
ing much  mucus  and  debris  to  be  excreted. 


A  quiet  and  increasing  interest  in  the  relation 
of  morality  and  health  is  being  aroused^  and 
the  special  sub-committee  of  the  National 
Union  oi  Women  Workers  which  has  had  the 
matter  under  consideration  has  decided  to  hold 
a  one  day's  Conference  in  London  at  the  end 
of  September.  Valuable  help  in  their  difficult 
s^-ork  should  result  for  rescue  workers. 


Mii\    14.   l'..<lii 


Cbc  Britisb  3ournal  of   a^iusmcj. 


380 


Zbc  lRcIat(on5  of  IRnisino  an^ 
fIDc&icinc. 

Bv  Miss  Mollett 

Matron,   Royal  South  Hants  Hospital, 

Southampton. 


The  lelatiou  between  the  medical  and  musing 
professions,  is  just  one  of  those  subjects  that 
looks  as  if  it  might  be  easily  dismissed  in  a 
few  sentences,  but  is  not  so  readily  dealt  with 
when  one  begins  to  consider  it. 

Xo  one  doubts  the  existence  ot  a  medical 
profession.  Well  organised,  well  equipped, 
holding  a  distinct  mandate  from  tlie  public  to 
act  on  its  behalf  in  all  matters  connected  with 
disease  and  health,  it  enjoys  in  a  really  extra- 
ordinary manner  the  thoroughly  well  deser\'ed 
coufideuee  and  trust  of  the  public. 

And  the  position  of  the  medical  profession  is 
based  on  a  sound  foundation.  It  is  possible  to 
be  peaceful  and  indifferent  enough  to  pass 
through  life  without  troubling  either  a  lawyer 
or  clerg3^man,  but  very,  very  few  of  us  escape 
the  doctor.  He  ushers  us  into  the  world,  he 
assists  us  to  leave  it,  and  in  the  interval  lie 
vaccinates  us,  sees  us  through  measles,  scarlet 
fever,  mumps,  and  the  more  alarming  disorders 
of  our  later  life.  We  look  to  him  to  dehver  us 
from  the  results  of  our  follies  and  misfortunes ; 
it  is  to  him  we  turn  for  relief  from  pain,  for 
help  in  the  thousand  ills  that  the  flesh  is  heir 
to.  No  calling  is  more  well  established  and 
justly  popular  with  all  classes.  None  more 
indispensable.  What  position,  then,  towards 
the  great  masters  of  the  healing  art  does  the 
nurse  hold?  What  nursing  as  a  whole  to 
medicine  ? 

Arguing  from  one  point  of  view,  it  is  quite 
possible  to  doubt  the  need  of  a  nursing  profes- 
sion at  all.  Arguing  from  another,  and  from 
one,  I  believe,  justified  by  results,  it  holds  an 
exceedingly  important  position  m  the  treat- 
ment of  disease.  Xursiug  in  its  simplest  form 
is  older  than  medicine.  Even  in  the  Stone 
Ages  there  must  have  been  some  women  to 
bathe  the  wounds  of  the  brave  who  had  been 
mauled  by  one  of  the  awkward  animals  of  those 
days,  to  lay  him  on  the  softest  skins,  to  bring 
him  drink,  and  to  try  in  a  rough  way  to  make 
him  comfortable.  As  absolute  savagery  passes 
a  desire  arises  in  men. 

They  wish  to  wrestle  with  disease  as  they 
were  used  to  wrestle  with  more  tangible  foes,  to 
match  their  cunning  against  that  of  death,  to 
try  a  fall  with  the  strongest  of  all  powers,  to 
know  the  why  and  wherefore  of  this  terrible 


*  R<>ad     lM>fore    the    International     Coiiffie'i'i    of 
Nurses,    London,   1909. 


uiislortuuc  that  overtakes  the  race,  to  try 
u hither  it  might  be  evaded.  It  is  little  more 
than  superstition  and  ritual,  but  it  is  the  first 
dim  effort  at  investigation  and  treatment,  the 
first  rudimentary  attempt  to  assist  nature  in  a 
cure.  The  medicine  man  has  arrived.  In  the 
meantime  nursing  goes  on  its  way  with  the 
same  old  fundamental  principle,  "  to  make  him 
comfortable." 

But  medicine  is  nothing  if  not  progressive, 
and  as  civilisation  advances  science  is  pressed 
into  its  service,  chemistry  lends  its  aid,  bac- 
teriology opens  new  worlds,  the  art  of  surgery 
extends'  its  borders,  and  finally  the  profession 
of  medicine  decrees  that  nursing  shall  no  longer 
be  carried  on  in  hajihazard  fashion,  but  that  it 
also  shall  be  subordinate  to  scientific  principles. 
The  nurse  of  the  sick  shall  really  be  competent 
to  assist  with  knowledge  and  to  carry  out  with 
skill  her  share  of  the  work.  Slie  shall  count  as 
a  factor  in  the  treatment  of  disease.  She  shall 
assist  the  medicine  man.  Thus  we  arrive  at 
modern  nursing. 

When  this  commonsense  view  became 
generally  accepted,  -the  profession  of  nursin;.' 
grew  with  extraordinary  rapidity.  From  the 
moment  it  dawned  upon  the  public  that  it  was 
possible  to  have  a  tool  trained  to  work  under 
the  doctor  with  intelligent  comprehension,  to 
have  someone  to  lean  on  in  his  absence,  some- 
one who  could  with  knowledge  translate  and 
carry  out  his  orders,  modern  nursing  has  never 
looked  back.  Nurses  have  been,  of  course, 
abused,  they  have  often  been  regarded  as  a 
disastrous  necessity,  but  they  have  been  re- 
garded as  a  necessity. 

"Doctors  and  nurses  were  at  once  des- 
patched ";  so  concludes  the  account  of  many 
an  accident.  "  Sir  Dash  Dash  and  four  trained 
nurses  are  in  constant  attendance,"  runs  the 
report  in  cases  of  illness  in  which  the  public 
are  interested.  During  an  epidemic  the 
country  is  ransacked  for  nurses  to  supply  the 
infected  area.  Wherever  dwells  humanity 
liable  to  be  afflicted  with  disease  or  injury 
thei;e  must  go  the  medical  man.  It  may  be  to 
the  heart  of  Africa,  on  coast.^i  riddled  with 
malaria,  to  plague  camps,  on  battlefields;  but 
where vt-r  it  may  be.  there,  sooner  or  later, 
generally  much  sooner,  he  is  followed  by  the 
nurse.  Just  an  ordinary-  commonplace  woman, 
by  no  means  always  jierfect,  and  often  (being 
human)  making  grievous  mistakes,  but  neces- 
sary, always  necessary,  and  giving,  in  a  very 
curious  way  (if  at  all  worthy  of  her  name)  a 
comfort  and  sense  of  relief  notliing  else  gives. 
We  are  fast  reaching  out  towards  it — we  have 
not  yet  quite  arrived — but  when  the  medical 
and  the  nursing  profession  have  fully  realised 
what   each    must    i)e  and   is   to  the   other,    ,'i. 


390 


^bc  3!6rittsb  3ournal  of  1Rurs(na. 


[IMay  14,  1910 


weapon  will  have  been  forged  to  deal  witli 
disease,  as  finely  welded  as.  a  human  weapon 
can  be. 

The  actual  work  the  nurse  does  as  the 
physician's  or  surgeon's  assistant  varies,  must 
vary,  with  surroundings  and  circumstances. 
We  are  too  often  in  such  matters  the  slaves  of 
custom.  Such  things  are  customary  in  one 
hospital  or  country,  such  in  another.  Many 
things  are  done  by  nurses  to-day  that  were  not 
left  to  them  thirty  years  ago.  It  is  a  matter  of 
small  moment  as  to  what  exactly  are  the  duties 
demanded  of  her  as  long  as  she  is  able  to  fulfil 
them,  and  as  long  as  the  j^rinciple  is  not  lost 
sight  of  that  regulates  the  relative  position  of 
the  two  professions  towards  the  patient.  It  is 
the  duty  of  the  doctor  to  direct,  diagnose,  and 
control;  it  is  the  duty  of  the  nurse  to  obey 
and  carry  out  the  treatment  prescribed  by  the 
senior  partner.  We  have  to  thank  that  senior 
partner  for  a  great  and  illuminating  interest  in 
our  work,  for  making  clear  to  us  what  before 
\\"as  dark  and  uncertain,  for  helping  us  to  build 
a  road  along  which  we  travel  in  safety,  where 
before  we  wandered  on  dubious  side-paths. 

Before  the  medicine  men  gave  tis  their  help 
and  assistance  and  taught  us  to  appreciate  the 
beauty  that  lies  in  the  scientific  and  artistic 
side  of  the  healing  art,  nursing  failed  to  satisfy 
the  craving  of'  a  whole  gamut  of  legitimate 
aspirations  in  our  nature. 

Nursing  was  then  undertaken  either  by  those 
xevy  pei-fecfc  souls  whose  life  was  sufficiently 
filled  by  self-sacrifice,  and  who  desired  nothing 
better  than  to  spend  themselves  for  others ;  or, 
as  unfortunately  there  really  were  not  enough 
idealists  for  the  needs  of  the  sick,  by  those 
who  considered  nursing  as  unadulterated  toil. 
Neither  uplifted  by  a  high  ideal,  nor  refined  by 
the  more  intellectual  side  of  their  work,  these 
often  drifted  to  a  deplorably  low  level. 

As  the  doctor's  assistant,  we  learn  to  take 
that  sane  view  of  illness  which  prevents  us 
from  becoming  morbid,  and  to  find  in  our  ^-ork 
mental  stimulus  and  satisfaction.  But  nursing, 
in  spite  of  all  it  owes  to  its  more  learned,  more 
powerful  partner,  still  holds  an  undeniable 
jiosition  of  it-sown,  a  position  it  owes  to  some- 
thing inborn,  inherited,  that  lies  deeper  than 
learning. 

I  had  occasion  to  write  a  short  time  ago  that 
no  good  nurse  would  ever  desire  to  be  an  in- 
ferior medical  practitioner,  and  I  repeat  that 
statement,  because  I  now  come  to  the  point 
where  the  medical  and  nursing  professions  do 
not  differ — that  they  never  can,  never  should 
do — but  where  the  nursing  profession  asserts 
its  right  to  a  separate  existence. 

Scientific    nursing     is    impossible    without 


medicine  and  surgery  ;  it  is  their  handmaiden, 
their  pupil ;  but  the  nurse  must  never  lose 
sight  of  the  fact  no  good  doctor  would  wish  her 
to  forget — that  she  is  not  only  the  surgeon's 
or  physician's  assistant,  but,  first  and  foremost, 
the  patient's  nurse. 

Where  the  training  of  the  nurse  is  so 
organised  that  she  comes  to  regard  the  doctor 
as  of  more  importance  than  the  patient,  the 
case  as  an  adjunct  to  the  treatment  rather  than 
as  its  cause,  she  is  being  educated  in  a  mis- 
taken moral  atmosphere.  Where  the  atten- 
tion and  deference  paid  to  the  medical  staff  is 
inculcated  with  more  energy  than  kindness 
and  consideration  to  her  patients,  she  is  learn- 
ing false  ethics.  There  will  always  be  the 
danger  lest  the  admiration  with  which  the 
nurse  naturally  regards  the  cleverness,  skill, 
dexterity,  and  knowledge  of  the  medical  man, 
and  the  interest  she  takes  in  the  scientific  side 
of  the  healing  art,  should  lead  her  to  look  with 
something  a  little  like  contempt  on  her  own 
humbler  and  simpler  duties,  on  which  so 
much,  so  very  much,  of  the  patient's  comfort 
depends. 

I  am  always  glad  that  in  England  we  use 
the  old  word,  nursing,  for  the  care  of  the  sick; 
it  expresses  exactly  my  meaning  to-day,  for  it 
is  the  same  w-ord  that  is  used  to  describe  a 
mother  and  her  child — the  mother  nursing  her 
infant.  It  is  the  idea  of  the  woman  nursing 
the  child  of  larger  growth— the  man  or  woman 
helpless  from  sickness ;  the  primeval  idea ;  we 
reach  back  to  our  ancestress  of  the  Stone  Age, 
w©  are  filled  with  the  simple  desire  to  "  make 
him  comfortable." 

W^hen  that  feeling  is  lost,  much  of  the  charm 
of  nursing  is  lost,  too,  for  it  makes  for  some- 
thing that  people  desire  in  sickness.  For  then 
it  is  not  the  interesting  case,  the  scientific 
points,  even  the  new  methods  of  treatment, 
that  hold  us,  but  the  patient,  the  battered  or 
diseased  scrap  of  humanity  before  us,  and  it  is 
just  because  in  nursing  we  may  not  lose  or 
drop  the  old  primeval  instinct,  that  we  must 
retain  our  own  individuality  in  face  of  the  great 
profession  to  which  we  are  so  closely  allied. 

Just  that  and  nothing  more.  Nursing  is 
subordinate  to  medicine  in  so  far  as  it  loyally 
carries  out  the  treatment  prescribed,  but  it  is 
a  voluntary  subordination  for  the  good  of  the 
patient. 

And  we  subordinate  ourselves  gladly,  for, 
with  the  doctors,  we  feel  the  truth  of  those 
lines :  — 

Vor  den  Wissenden  sich  stellen 
Sicher   ists   in   alien   Fallen 
Denn  die  wissen  wo's  Dir  fehlt. 

Thoy  criticise    us    with  knowledge    because 


Mav  14,  191(y 


Zbc  Brlttsb  3ournal  oX  IRiirstno. 


301 


they  know;  their  blame  ii-  the  blame  of 
experts;  their  praise  is  worth  liaving,  because 
they  can  appreciate  our  difficulties.  » 

\Ve  are  ket-u  for  the  samo  things,  we  are 
fighting  side  by  side  for  the  same  object.  They 
teach  us  and  inspire  us,  not  only  by  their 
surgical  skill  and  by  their  scientific  knowledge, 
but  by  their  patience,  their  devotion  to  their 
dut3",  and  their  professional  courtesy.  It 
would  be  a  sad  and  sorry  day  for  the  sick  should 
the  nuree  and  doctor  cease  to  work  together 
in  that  camaraderie,  that  mutual  understand- 
ing, which  is  the  best  of  all  guarantees  for  the 
welfare  of  the  patient. 

.\nd  working  loyally  for  the  dual  duty  that 
yet  is  one,  the  nurse  may  well  remember  the 
old  saying,  apt  and  true,  as  old  sayings  have  a 
trick  of  being: — "Render  unto  Caesar  the 
things  that  are  Caesar's,  and  unto  -God  the 
things  that  are  God's."' 

And  for  the  nurse  the  doctor  is  Caesar,  but 
the  patient  is  God. 


Ipioncer  IHursing  in  3tal^. 

To  read  the  experieiice.s  of  iliss  Grace  Ba.x- 
ter,  R.N.,  Superintendent  of  the  Gesii  e  Maria 
Hospital,  Naples,  related  by  her  in  the  Johns 
Hopkins  Nurses'  Ahnitnce  Magazine,  is  to 
realise  the  difficulties  encountered  by  pioneer 
workers  in  nursing  reform  in  Italv. 


There  had  been  an  empty  ward  in  the  hospi- 
tal for  some  time.  "  Finally,"  writes  Miss 
Baxter,  "  the  Director-General  came  to  me 
one  day  and  said  in  his  short  incisive  way  :  Are 
you  prepared  to  take  over  a  children's  surgical 
ward  and  nurse  it  without  any  extraneous  as- 
sistance (meaning  the  Sarah  Gamps,  who  have 
hitherto  been  the  necessary  appendages  of 
e^  en  those  wards  where  we  have  had  most 
responsibility)?  I  thought  over  my  affairs, 
and  was  startled,  but  remembering  the  slow- 
ness of  Italian  metiiods,  and  the  fact  that  the 
said  ward  was  innocent  of  fmniture,  bedding, 
stoves,  dishes,  surgical  appurtenances,  lighting 
appai-atus,  gas,  hoppers,  and  water  taps,  etc., 
I  said  '  Yes.'  intending  to  prepare  in  the 
morning  for  increasing  my  staff,  which  was 
entirely  insufficient,  while  t'l--  lioinital  got  its 
ward  readv. 


"  Next  day  was  uneventful,  and  at  five 
o'clock,  just  when  I  was  thinking  of  going  off 
duty,  I  passed  the  Secretary  in  the  hall.  She 
said  casually,  '  Those  20  children  are  coming 
in  about  half-an-hour.       They  have  just  tele- 


phoned tliat  liie  tir-;t  batch  has  started  from  the 
Incurable  Hospital ! 

•'  ■  Misericordia!  '  I  cried,  '  Why,  the  room 
is  as  bare  as  a  barn.' 

Then  ensued  a  time  of  wrestling  with  diffi- 
culties at  first  sight  uusurmountable.  The 
night  nurse  seemed  most  unattainable,  for 
under  the  old  system  the  nurses  did  not  stay 
on  at  night.  It  was  supposed  to  be  compromis- 
ing for  a  respectable  Neapolitan  to  stay  in  a 
hospital  at  night,  and  there  was  no  money  to 
pay  a  head  night  nurse.  Happily  one  of  her 
pupils  came  to  Miss  Baxter's  assistance.  '  I 
have  no  objection.'  she  said,  "  to  sitting  up  one 
night  if  you  will  ^lUnw  me  to  k'O  home  and  tell 
mv  father.' 


Thus  began  pandemonium,  and  it  was  quite 
four  weeks  before  the  nightmare  cleared  up. 
The  nur.ses  threatened  to  strike,  and  "  it  was." 
says  Miss  Baxter,  "  a  question  of  who  would 
hold  out  longest,  but  by  discharging  one  and 
threatening,  wheedling,  and  arguing  with  the 
others,  besides  having  the  good  luck  to  find 
more  probationers  at  the  right  time,  I  finally 
won  the  battle  after  six  weeks.  The  nurses  now 
quietly  read  the  daily  lists,  and  go  to  their 
places  on  day  or  night  duty  without  any  dis- 
cussion; and,  in  return  for  their  dociUty,  thej- 
get  their  unifonn  free,  calculated  at  20  cents 
a  night,  fi-om  the  100  dollars  which  Miss  Dock 
was  so  kind  as  to  procure  for  me. 


"  We  have  also  been  able  to  emplo\  iv,  >. 
respectable  night  chaperons,  at  $4  for  fifteen 
nights,  who  take  turns  in  sitting  up  with  the 
nurses,  and  an  English  trained  nurse  as  as- 
sistant by  day,  a  Miss  Bertha  Tulloch  from  St. 
George's  Hospital,  London.  These  last  two 
luxuries  have  been  procured  for  our  school  by 
our  President,  her  Excellency  the  Princess  of 
Strongoli,  who,  while  on  duty  at  Court,  ob- 
tained a  grant  of  2,000  francs  from  the 
Government  for  the  purpose.  We  have 
also  got  a  brand  ne^^•  operating  room  with  a 
graduate  in  charge,  for  the  children's  opera- 
tions.    .     . 


"  Under  these  circumstances  which,  con- 
sidering our  past  difficulties  and  troubles,  con- 
stitute a  real  bed  of  roses.  I  take  this  oppor- 
tunity to  thank  our  dear  Miss  Dock,  and  all 
those  who  have  had  a  part  in  the  donation 
which  came  to  us  through  her,  for  the  real  as- 
sistance they  have  given  us.  The  uniform 
which  my  dreadfully  penniless  nurses  now 
earn  by  their  night  duty,  is,  I  am  convinced, 
largely  responsible  for  their  present  docility." 


392 


Z\K  Britieb  3ountal  ot  murstncj,       '^^^^y  i^-  i^io 


Xeaguc  IRews. 

Miss  Charlotte  Bottomley  Leigh,  whose 
Ijortrait  we  have  pleasure  in  publishing  on  this 
page,  is  a  member  of  the  Matrons'  Council, 
and  the  first  President  of  the  newly-formed 
Central  London  Sick  Asylum  Nurses'  League, 
Cleveland  Street  Branch.  Miss  Leigh  was 
trained  at  the  Hospital  for  Consumption, 
Brompton;  the  West  London  Hospital;  and 
the  Hospital  for  Sick  Children,  Great  Onliond 
Street,  W.C.  She  was  then  appointed  Home 
Sister  at  the  Nurses'  Co-operation,  8,  New 
Cavendish  Street,  on  its  foundation,  a  position 
which  she  held  for  two  years.  She  afterwards 
went  abroad  for  the  winter  months,,  nursing  at 
Mena  House,  the  Pyra- 
mids, Cairo,  in  the 
winter,  and  doing  holi- 
day duties  and  private 
nursing  at  home  in  the 
summer  months. 


Ast/lum 


GENERAL  HOSPITAL,  BIR- 
MINGHAM.  NURSES' 
LEAGUE. 

The  annual  meeting, 
fixed  for  May  7th,  was 
overshadowed  by  the 
tragic  news  of  the  morn- 
ing. Before  the  busi- 
ness of  the  meeting 
began,  the  President, 
Miss  Musson,  refen-ed 
to  the  great  loss  which 
the  nation  had  sus- 
tained in  the  death  of 
so  beloved  and  great  a 
King,  and  proposed  that 
a  resolution  expressing 
the  deep  sorrow  of  the 
members  should  be  recorded  in  the  minute.s. 
This  was  passed  in  silence,  all  the  members 
rising  together. 

After  the  minutes  of  the  last  meeting  had 
been  read  and  confirmed,  the  President  shortly 
addressed  the  members,  and  said  that  no 
special  address  or  lecture  had  been  arranged, 
as  there  was  a  good  deal  of  business  to  transact. 
She  pointed  out  the  importance  of  learning  and 
practising  the  proper  methods  of  holding  meet- 
ings. Trained  nurses  were  frequently  called 
upon  to  attend  or  work  upon  committees ; 
uuich  time  and  trouble  were  wasted  for  want  of 
understanding  the  ordinary  rules  of  procedure. 

The  Secretary  and  Treasurer  (Mis.s  AIcFar- 
lane)  read  her  reports,  which  were  adopted, 
on  the  proposal  of  Mrs.  Boeddicker,  seconded 
hy  Miss  Carless. 

!Miss  Carless  was  elected  a  member  of  the 


Council  in  place  of  Miss  V\^arburton,  who  re- 
tires. The  other  meiubers  of  the  Council  were 
re-elected. 

The  -Matron  was  asked  to  undertake  the 
editorship  of  the  Journal,  and  consented  on 
condition  that  someone  resident  in  the  Hospital 
would  undertake  to  act  as  Sub-Editor.  Sister 
Hadley  agreed  to  assist. 

Miss  Hannath,  in  proposing  that  a  vote  of 
condolence  and  sympathy  be  sent  to  the  League 
of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  Nurses  in  the 
great  loss  they  and  the  whole  nursing  woi'ld 
had  sustained  in  the  death  of  Miss  Isla 
Stewart,  referred  to  the  great  pleasure  she  had 
had  of  meeting  Miss  Stewart  at  the  Interna- 
tional Congress  of  Nurses  last  July,  and  re- 
minded those  present 
that  the  League  owed 
its  existence  largely  to 
Miss  Stewart,  she  hav- 
ing started  the  first 
League  of  Hospital 
Nurses  in  this  country, 
and  assisted  by  her  ad- 
vice in  the  formation 
of  the  G.H.B.  League. 
Miss  Marriott  seconded 
the  resolution,  which 
was  carried  unani- 
mously. The  President, 
as  an  old  Bart's  nurse, 
briefly  thanked  the 
members  for  their  sym- 
pathy, and  said  that  all 
Bart's  nurses  were  glad 
to  know  that  Miss 
Stewart's  work  for  the 
profession  was  appre- 
ciated by  the  nurses  of 
other  schools  and  coun- 
tries. 

The  President  gave  a  short  sketch  of  the 
work  done  dvuing  the  year  towards  the  progress 
of  State  Registration.  After  some  discussion, 
small  alterations  were  made  in  two  of  the 
rules,  and  the  question  of  the  form  of  the 
memorial  to  the  late  Miss  Jones  "was  then  dis- 
cussed. It  was  decided  that  a  brass  tablet 
be  placed  in  the  Chapel,  the  details  being  left 
to  the  Council  to  arrange. 

After  a  vote  of  thanks  to  the  Hon.  Officers 
and  Council,  the  meeting  ended. 


LEIGH, 

(   Biaiich.  Cent 


The  news  comes  from  China  that  nurses  scat- 
tered over  that  immense  country  have  or- 
ganised a  Nurses'  Association,  and  they  are  to 
conduct  a  department  of  nursing  in  the  China 
Medical  Journal,  which  is  published  by  the 
Medical  Missionary  Association  of  China  and 
Korea. 


.M;iy  14,   lUlOj 


(TDC  British  -journal  of  IRurstnG. 


393 


IPoor  law  3nfinnai\}  riDatvons' 
association. 

The  cjuarteily  ineetiug  of  the  Poor  L'aw  In- 
fiimaiy  Matrons'  Association  was  held  at  the 
Whitechapel  Infirmary  on  ^lay  7th.  Miss 
Mowatt  was  in  the  chair,  and  there  was  a  large 
attendance  of  members. 

Before  commencing  the  ordinary  business, 
tii ;  following  resolution  was  unanimously 
j.£issed:  — 

Resolution'. 

"That  the  memliers  ot  the  Poor  ^A^\\■  Infirinary 
-Matroiife'  Asrsociation.  veali>iiig  the  deep  interest 
taken  in  all  matteiis  relating  to  the  interest  of  the 
nursing  profession  by  King  E<lnar<l  VII.  and  our 
iiracioufc  Queen  Alexandra,  wish  to  record  their 
deep  M)i  row  at  the  national  calamity  cause<l  by  the 
d<"ath  ot  His  Majeisty  the  Kin|.  and  to  convey  their 
heart-felt  condolence.^  to  Her  .uajesty.  Queen 
Alexandra,  and  the  other  members  of  the  Royal 
Family." 

Miss  Mowatt  read  a  short  and  interesting 
pfqier  on  the  subject  of  "  The  Choosing  of  Pro- 
bptioners."  This  suggested  many  points  of 
interest  for  the  discussion  whieli  frillnwcd.  qn,! 
if  wliich  all  present  took  part. 


JLbc  3yieb  IHurscs'  association. 

The  I.X.A.  held  the  usual  monthly  meeting 
on  May  Tth,  at  which  there  was  a  large  attend- 
ance. The  following  Eesolutiou  of  sympathy 
to  her  Gracious  ^Majesty  Queen  Alexandi'a  was 
read,  all  the  members  standing  in  sorrowful 
silence  :  — 

Eesolution. 
To  Her  Majesty  Queen  Alexandra. 

"■  Tlie  members  of  the  Irish  Xunses'  Association 
beg  to  offer  Her  Majesty.  Queen  Alexandra,  the  ex- 
pres.<ion  of  tbeir  profound  sympathy  in  this,  her 
hour  ot  tribulation.  They  can  never  forget  His 
Majesty's  keen  and  fatherly  interest  in  everytliing 
concerning  the  welfare  of  nurses.  They  liumbly 
pi-ay  that  God  may  comfort  Her  Majesty." 

The  meeting  was  then  adjourned,  the  mem- 
bers feeling  that  it  was  impossible  to  transact 
any  business. 

IRational  associations  of  IRnrscs. 
^"l.S.a. 

The  annual  meetings  of  the  American 
Society  of  Superintendents  of  Training  Schools 
for  Nurses,  and  of  the  Nurses'  Associated 
Ahunuffi.  will  be  held  in  New  York  next  week, 
thrtt  of  the  Superintendents'  Society  beginning 
on  JMonday,  May  16th,  and  of  the  Associated 
Alumnae  on  Wednesday,  May  18th.  Our 
sympathy  is  with  our  American  colleagues,  who 
will  meet  imder  the  heavy  shadow  of  the  loss 
of  their  beloved  leader,  Mrs.  Hampton  Robb. 


Society  for  State  IRcgistration. 

.A  meeting  ot  the  Executive  Coniniitlee  of  tiio 
■Society  lor  the  State  Registration  of  Trained 
Nuree«,  wa/»  heUl  at  431,  Oxford  Street,  W.,  on 
Friday,  22nd  ult.,  Miss  H.  L.  I'earse  in  the 
chair. 

The  DE.vrH  of  iub  Peesident. 

The  following  resolution  was  pix>posed  from  the 
chair  ajid  passed  in  silence  by  the  members  stand- 
ing:— 

Resolution. 

"  That  this  meeting  of  the  Executive  Committee 
of  the  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of  Trained 
Nurses  desires  to  i)lace  on  record  its  sense  of  the 
irreparable  loss  sustained  by  the  death  of  its  Pre- 
sident, Miss  Isla  Stewart,  the  value  of  whose  most 
faithful  and  courageous  services  to  the  profession 
of  nursing  can  only  be  fully  estimated  by  future 
generations  of  nurses,  who  will  reap  the  result  of 
her  unselfish  and  devoted  labours  on  their  behalf." 
.\x  International  Loss. 

The  Hon.  Secretary  then  ieix>rtod  a.  cablegram 
from  Miss  M.  A.  Nutting,  of  New  York,  con- 
veying the  grievous  news  of  the  death  from 
accident,  of  Mrs.  Hampton  Robb.  She  was  direc- 
ted to  convey  to  the  National  Associations  of 
-•^merioau  Superintendents  and  Nurses  the  deep 
s>orix>w  and  sympathy  ot  those  present  for  the  ine- 
parable  loss  sustainetl  by  the  nursing  world  at 
large.     . 

The  Report  of  the  Hon.  Secretary. 
.  The  Hon.  Secretary  presented  a  report  in  which 
she  referred  to  the  action  in  the  House  of  Commons 
of  those  supporting  the  Registration  Bill,  and 
tlio.se  opposing  it,  and  showed  that  great 
energy  was  '  employe<;l  Jjy  those  who  had 
vested  interests  in  the  work  of  trained  nurses, 
and  opposed  just  legislation.  She  alluded  to  the 
"  freezing  out  "  of  the  nurses'  point  of  view  by  a 
number  of  London  newspapers,  just  in  the  same 
way  as  all  allusion  to  Women's  Suffrage  was  sup- 
pressed so  long  as  women  conducted  their  cam- 
paign in  a  constitutional  manner,  as  trained  nurses 
had  don©  for  twenty  yeare.  Misrepresentation 
and  intimidation  were  weapons  invariably 
used  in  every  reform  movement  which  touched 
vested  interests  in  human  labour,  and  nui-ses 
were  no  exception  to  this  economic  law. 
Nur.see  were'  pressing  for  I>etter  etluoation.'il 
facilities,  and  organisation,  all  over  the  world, 
and  were  making  immense  progress  in  ac- 
complishing their  purpose  of  fitting  themselves  for 
their  responsible  duties.  All  that  was  necessary 
was  to  go  steadily  on — and  continue  their  policy 
in,  the  future  as  in  the  past. 

The  £100  Fcnd. 

The  Hon.  Secretary  reported  that  she  had  re- 
ceived £44  .3s.  8d.  for  the  £100  Fund  since  the  last 
meeting. 

The  Annual  Meeting. 

It  was  decided  to  'hold  the  annual  meeting  in 
London  about  the  last  ^yeek  in  May,  and  to  invite 
the  participation  of  earnest  and  eloquent  registra- 
tionists. 


394 


Zi)c  Britisb  3ournal  ot  mxxsWxQ. 


[May  14,  1910 


The  Office  of  Pbesidext. 

Mrs.  Bodtord  Fomvick,  the  Hon.  Secretary,  was. 
invittKl  to  aetvpt  uoiuiimtioii  us  President ,' as  it  was 
of  the  utmost  imiwrtance  that  the  position  should 
be  filled  by  a  tried  and  loyal  friend,  who 
was  well  acquaintwl  with  the  history  of  the 
movement.  Mi-s.  Fenwick  accepted  the  honour, 
hoping  that  the  work  of  the  Society  in  the 
Registration  cause  would  before  long  be 
accomplished  by  tlie  passing  of  the  Nurses' 
Registration  Bill.  .She  promised  to  continue  to 
work  without  ceasing  for  justice  for  trained  nurses 
whatever  her  official  position  in  tlie  Society  miilit 
bo. 

The  Office  of  Hon.  Secbetaky. 

Miss  M.  Breay,  another  ti'ied  friend,  was  then 
nominated  for  the  post  of  Hon.  Secretary.  Miss 
Breay  accepted  nomination,  as  she  considered  it  of 
the  utmost  importance  that  whatever  work  had  been 
done  in  the  past  should  be  now  carried  on  with 
redoubled  energy  in  the  future. 
New   Members. 

The  following  new  menibei's  were  then  electetl : — 
No.  Name.  Certificate. 

2814     E.  C.  Marston,  cert.,  Great  Northern  Cent. 

Hosp. 
•281.5     R.  Wbiie,  cert.,  St.  Pancras  Inf.,  Highgate. 

2816  E.  Gisby,  cert.,  Grimsby  and  District  Hosp. 

2817  M.  Mcintosh,  cert.,  Baruhill  Hosp.,  Glasgow. 
281«     A.    B.    Hendley,    cert.,    St.    Bartholomew's 

Hosp. ;      Matron,  Children's    Hosp.,   Scio 
House,   vShanklin. 

2819  L.  M.  Stower,  cert.,  St.  Bartholomew's  Hosp. 

2820  G.  A.  Wharton,  cert.,  Bradford  Union  Hosp. 

2821  W.    E.    Farley,   cert.,    North  West  London 

Hosp. 

2822  A.   S.    Wood,  cert.,    Gravesend  Hosp. 

2823  M.  B.   Bathgate,  cert.,  Kingston  Inf. 

2824  J.  B.  M.  Deacon,  cert.,  Kingston  Inf. 

2825  M.   Jarvis,  cert.,   St.  Thomas'  Hosp. 

2826  M.  A.  Norrish,  cert.,  Royal  Inf.,  Bristol. 

2827  A.    P.    Youngjohns,    cert..    General    Hosp., 

Birmingham. 

2828  A.  King,  cert..  King's  College  Hosp. 

2829  M.    E.    Bonshor,    cert..  Royal  South   Hants 

Hosp. 

2830  M.  M.   Donovan,  cert.,   Royal   .South  Hants 

Hosp. 

2831  E.  R.  Tanner,  cert.,  ]Mile  End  Inf. 

2832  E.  B.  Davys,  cert.  St.  Bartholomew's  Hosp. 

2833  J.  M.   G.   Davy,     cert.,     St.    Bartholomew's 

Hosp. 
3834     E.  G.  Clowes,  cert.,  St.  Bartholomew's  Hosp. 

2835  V.  Hubbard,  cert.,  St.  Bartholomew's  Hosji. 

2836  M.  Devereux,  cert.,  St.  Bartholomew's  Hosp. 

2837  C.  Maney,  cert..  General  Inf.,  Leeds. 
The  meeting  then  termiiiated. 

Ethel  (!.  Fenwick.  Hon.  Sec. 


Amongst  the  suggestions  for  Poor  Law  Reform 
adopted  by  th©  Council  of  the  Central  and 
Associated  Chambers  of  Agi'iculture  last  week  w-as 
one  that  the  title  "guardians"  should  be  continued, 
but  "district  home"  should  be  substituted  for 
"  workhouse,"     A  commendable  change. 


Ebe  £100  IReGistratton  Jfun&. 

The  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Society  for  the 
State  A-tegistration  of  Trained  Nurses  begs  to 
thanli  all  those  earnest  friends  of  the  cause 
for  their  help,  and  to  announce  that  as  the 
£100  required  for  furthering  the  passage  of  the 
Nurses'  Kegistration  Bill  through  the  House  o^f 
Commons  has  by  their  generosity  been  re- 
ceived, the  Special  Registration  Fund  is  now 
closed.  The  Hon.  Secretary  would  not,  how- 
ever, discourage  registrationists  from  subscrib- 
ing towards  the  general  purposes  of  the 
Society.  Nothing  can  be  done  without  money, 
and  a  fight  against  vested  interests  for  any 
class  of  women  workers  is  specially  costly, 
especially  when  their  opponents  are  permitted 
to  tap  charitable  futids,  of  which  they  are  the 
trustees,  in  their  campaign  of  obstruction. 

.  £     s.   d. 

Brought  forward       98     6     « 

'   L.  B."        2     2     0 

Mrs.  Andrews  (to  complete  £100)...       1  13     4 

Miss  A.  Warren,  E.N.S 5     n 

Per  Miss  E.  M.  Sixsmith  (Dublin) 

Dr.  Lawler  1     0     U 

Dr.  King 5     U 

Eobert  Tavlor,  Esq 5     0 

T.  W.  Sixsmith,  Esq 5     0 

J.  S.  Darlington,  Esq 5     0 


Total 


2     0     0 


£104     7     0 


practical  points. 

Mr.  S.  G.  Brown  explained 
The  Electric  last  week,  in  a  lecture  at  the 
Stethoscope.  Royal  Society  of  Arts,  before 
the  Institution  of  Electiical 
Engineere,  the  working  of  an  electric  stethoscoiie, 
which  i-aises  the  intensity  of  the  sounds  within  tlie 
human  Wdy  twenty  times  and  more.  Wlion  tlie 
instrument  had  been  applied  to  the  heart  in  a 
number  of  cases,  the  lecturer  said,  the  sound 
of  the  beats  given  out  in  the  telephone  was 
so  loud  as  to  be  heard  by  the  patient  and  all  those 
who  stood  round,  and  the  pa.ssage  of  air  thix)ugh 
the  lungs  was  heard  like  the  roar  of  the  wind 
through  a  forest ;  it  is  believed  that  sounds  in 
tlie  IwKly  hitherto  only  susi>ected  will  now  be  readily 
heard,  such  as  the  passage  of  blood  over  a  surface 
roughened  by  disease. 


The  Cheap 
Steriliser. 


The   Nurses'    Social    Union 
recently       demonstrated       at 
Caxton  Hall  that  an  ordinary 
beer  can  (which  can  be  bought 
at   any   public-house  for   twopence)   makes  an   ex- 
cellent   steriliser   for   instruments,    or    for   boiling 
water  for  a  douche  and  other  purposes. 


-May  14,  101" 


tlDc  3Briti5b  3ournai  of  "Wursfng. 


appointments. 

Assistant  Matrons.  , 

Royal  Infirmary,  Preston.  -Mi^s^  M.  A.  Marks  has 
beeu  ai)i)ointet(l  .Assistant  Matron  at  the  Preston 
and  County  of  Lancaster  Queen  Victoria  Royal  In- 
firmary. She  was  trained  at  the  Clayton  Hospital, 
Wakefield,  and  has  lield  the  position  of  Sister  of 
the  Children's  Ward  and  the  Out-patient  Depart- 
ment at  the  Stockton  and  Thornahy  Hospital, 
Stockton-on-Tees;  Sister  of  a  Women's  Surgical 
and  Gynwcological  Ward  at  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital,  Rochester;  and  Sister  of  Men's  Wards 
and  of  the  Operating  Theatre  at  the  Hospital, 
Rotherham. 

Royal  Eye  Infirmary,  Manchester. — Miss  Ada  Lee 
Thompson  has  heen  appointed  Assistant  Matron. 
She  was  trained  at  the  Infirmary,  Burton-on-Trent, 
and  has  held  the  jjositions  of  Staff  Nurse  at  the 
Coventry  and  Warwickshire  Hospital ;  Sister  at 
the  Royal  Infirmary.  Halifax  ;  District  Nurse  at 
Ambleside;  Night  Sister  at  the  Infirmary,  Roch- 
dale; Sister  at  the  Eye  Hospital,  Birmingham  ;  and 
Assistant  Matron  at  the  Belvidere  Hospital,  Glas- 
gow 

Home  Sistek. 
The  Children's  Infirmary,  Carshalton. — Miss  Floron6e 
Waller  has  been  api>oiiite(l  Home  Si.ster  to  fill  the 
vacancy  caused  by  the  apix>intnient  of  Sister  M.  H. 
Stewait  as  Matron  to  the  Combination  Hospital. 
Annan.  Miss  Waller  was  trained  for  three  year^  at 
the  East  I/ondon  Hospital  for  Children,  Sliadwell. 
and  suUsequently  for  the  same  period  at  King's 
College  Hospital.  After  some  exiierienoe  of  private 
nursing  she  was  api>ointe<l  Ward  Sister  at  the 
Children's  Infirmai-y,  Carshalton,  in  1899.  which 
position  she  ha.s  held  till  the  present  time. 

SiSTEKS. 

Union  Hospital,  Bradford. — Miss  Ethel  Livermore 
ha»  been  appointed  Sister.  She  was  trained  at  St. 
George's  Infirmary,  S.W.,  and  has  held  the  posi- 
tion  of  Sister   at  the   Dudley  Infirmary. 

Royal  United  Hospital,  Bath. — Mitss  .S.  A.  Ballard  has 
been  api>ointe<l  .'sist<'r  oi  the  Children's  Ward.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Royal  I'nitod  Hospital,  and  has 
been  Sister  at  the  Hertford  Briti.sh  Hospital.  Pans. 

StJPEBINIEXDEXT  NuRSE. 

Montagu  Hospital,  Mexborough. — Miss  E.  Pearson 
has  been  aiipipinted  Superintendent  Nurse.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Union  Infirmary,  Keighley,  and 
has  had  experience  of  .private  nursing  in  Winder- 
mere. 

The  Workhouse  Infirmary,  Minster,  near  Ramsgate. — Miss 
Catherine  Emma  Hayes  has  beeu  appointed  Super- 
iptendent  Nurse.  She  was  trained  at  the  Bag- 
thorpe  Infirmary,  Nottingham,  and  has  held  the 
position  of  Sister  at  Toxteth  Park  Infirmary,  and 
of  Superintendent  Xurse  at  Cuckfield  I'nion 
Infirmary. 

Night  Sister. 
Royal  United  Hospital,  Bath.— Mifis    B.    Doniaiu    lias 
been  appointed  Night  Sister.   She  was  trained  at  the 
Stanley    Hospital,    ami    the   Hospital    for    Woun'-' 
Liv<«r]Kx)l. 


Staff  NckSES. 

The  Children's  Infirmary,  Carshalton. — Tlie  following 
.Staff  Nuisicti  have  rec<'ntly  been  apiwinted: — 

Miss  Eva  Lilian  Foote,  trained  for  three  years  at 
the  Southwark     Infirmary. 

Miss  Lily  Roberts,  trained  for  three  years  at  tlie 
Whitechapel  Infirmary. 

Mis>  Minnie  Frances  Wilson,  trained  for  tnree 
yeai-s  at  the  .Southwark  Infirmary. 

QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
FOR  NURSES. 
Transfers  and  Apijointments. — Miss  Lucy  Glass 
is  appointed  Assistant  .Superintendent  at  Leicester. 
Miss  Annie  Moffat  is  appointed  Senior  Nurse  at 
Ardwick  House,  Manchester.  Miss  Elizabeth  Pep- 
per, to  Kettering,  as  Senior  Nurse.  Miss  Nona 
Smyth  Mountford,  to  Pateley  Bridge.  Miss  Ethel 
Coates,  to  Tunbridge  Wells.  Miss  Rose  Elwin,  to 
Clieltenham,  as  Assistant  Superintendent.  Miss 
Janet  Arnott,  to  Carlisle,  as  Senior  Nurse.  Miss 
Sarah  E.  Street-Smith,  to  -A.ckworth.  Miss  Edith 
Hall   and  Miss  Annie   Duncan,  to  Gillingham. 


WEDDING  BELLS. 
Memt)ere  of  the  Registered  Nui-ses'  Society,  431. 
Oxfoid  Street,  W.,  will  wish  to  convey,  through  the 
medium  of  this  journal,  their  hearty  good  wishes  on 
her  marriage  to  Mrs.  Archer  Corbet  (nee  Buxton), 
until  recently  on  its  Supplementary  Staff.  Miss 
Buxton's  ijiarriage  to  Mr.  Archer  Corbet  took  place 
in  Mexico.  City,  D.F.,  a  short  time  ago. 


3n  nOcmoriam. 


The  Bulletin  rrofcssionnd  des  InfirmUrts  r.t 
Gardes-Malaths  from  Paris  offers  its  condolences 
on  the  death  of  Miss  Isia  Stewart  '•  nous 
I'avions  vue  en  France  a  la  Conference  de 
1907,  et  son  souvenir  etait  reste  parmi  nous  comme 
eelui  d'une  personnalite  remarquable  autant  que 
syropathique.  A  sa  famille,  a  ses  amis,  a  la  grande 
famille  des  infirmieres  d'.\ngleterre,  nous  adressons 
nos  oondoleancos  Ics  plus  sinceies  ix>nr  ime  pert*?  si 
vivement  ressentie." 


-  A  touching  memorial  notice  appears  m  .^vfusk 
Siukskiitcrxketianing,  the  Swedish  Nurses'  Jour- 
nal, by  the  editor.  Miss  Estrid  Rodhe,  who  met  Miss 
Stewart  during  the  week  of  the  International 
Congress  of  Nurses  last  year,  and  had  the  oppor- 
tunity of  knowing  her  personally  during;  that  Iiaii|)y 
happy  time. 

Miss  M.  Eugenie  Hibbard,  who,  ais-i  w  iiii  tao  t«o 
delegates  of  the  Cuban  Government,  ^liss  Mar- 
garita Nunez  and  Miss  Mercedes  Monteagudo. 
attended  the  International  Congress  of  Nurses  last 
year,  writes:  "It  is  difiBeult  to  realise  that  one 
who  so  recently  took  an  active  part  in  the  Inter- 
natioiyil  Congress  of  Nurses  has  passed  from  our 
midst.  I  always  associated  great  strength  of  char- 
acter with  her,  and  the  line  from  George  Eliot's 
"  Choir  Invisible"  has  come  into  my  mind:  — 
"The  cup  of  strength  to  some  in  their  great 
agony." 


396 


^De  iffiiitlsb  3oiirual  ot  "Wurstng. 


[May  14,  1910 


IRursing  lecboes. 

At  a  recent  meeting  of  the 
council  of  Queen  Victoria's 
Jubilee  Institute  for  Nurses, 
held  at  the  ofi&ces  in  Victoria 
Street,  Lord  Gosehen  pre- 
siding, affiliation  was  granted 
to  the  following  nursing  asso- 
ciations :  Buckinghamshire 
County,  Chesterton  ^Cam- 
bridge), St.  Helier  (Jersey), 
Chepstow  (Mon.),  Wakefield 
(Yorks),  Llangadock  (Car- 
marthenshire), Tondu  (Glamorganshire),  Gel- 
bridge  and  Straff  an  (county  Kildare), 
Beekington  (Somerset),  Malvern  Link 
(Worcestershire),  and  Newbury  (Berks).  The 
names  of  80  nui'ses  approved  by  her  Majesty 
were  added  to  the  Queen's  Eoll.  It  was  re- 
ported that  a  conference  of  representatives  of 
the  affiliated  associations  would  take  place  at 
Caston  Hall,  Westminster,  on  iMay  27th,  and 
it  was  announced  that  Amy  Lady  Tate,  a  mem- 
ber of  the  council,  has  presented  the  house 
occupied  by  the  nurses  employed  by  the  Brix- 
ton Association,  together  with  an  endowment, 
to  be  held  in  trust  by  the  institute  for  the  Brix- 
ton Association  so  long  as  it  remains  in  affilia- 
tion with  the  institute. 


The  Hospitals  Committee  of  the  Metropoli- 
tan Asylums  Board  has  now  under  considera- 
tion a  letter  from  Matrons  of  its  infectious  hos- 
pitals, forwarding  certain  criticisms  of  the 
Managers'  decision  with  regard  to  the  aboli- 
tion of  the  office  of  Night  Superintendent  of 
Nurses.     The  letter  is  as  follows : 

'"  Ve,  the  under-signed  Matrons  working  in  your 
t~ereral  iiistitntious.  have  liad  our  attention  calle<l 
to  a  statement  in  the  public  press  concerning  some 
proposed  alteration  in  the  terms  of  appointment 
tor  the  Xight  Superintendents  of  the  Fever  Hos- 
pitals. Recognising  as  we  do  the  very  serious  re- 
sponsibility attaching  to  the  office  of  Xight  Supenn- 
Teudeut,  who  has  practically  the  whole  institution 
under  her  control  at  night,  she  being  the 
one  who  must  act  in  such  emergencies  as 
may  arise  in  connection  with  cases  of 
tracheotomy,  intubation,  etc.,  where  the  lives  of 
the  patients  are  sometimes  in  danger,  until  the 
doctor  can  be  summoned,  and  that  the  Night 
Superintendent  is  also  required  to  exercise  dis- 
cipline and  control  over  the  whole  of  the  night 
staff,  we  consider  that  she  should  be  a  pei-son 
possessing  qualities  over  and  above  those  of  an 
ordinary  Ward  Sister,  and  that  frequent  changes 
in  this  office  would  not  be  conducive  either  to  the 
safety  of  the  patients  or  the  general  administration 
of  the  hospital.  If  it  is  desired  to  put  some  limit  to 
the  period  spent  on  night  duty,  we  venture  to  sug- 
gest that,  if  a  suitable  person    is    Xight    .Superin- 


tendent she  should  be  eligible  for  reappointment 
every  year  as  long  as  she  is  found  satisfactory. 
Trusting  you  wUl  give  this  your  earnest  considera- 
tion, we  are,"  etc. 

The  Hospitals  Committee  will  report  to  the 
Board  when  they  have  considered  this  letter. 


At  the  Annual  Meetings  of  the  Women's 
Total  Abstinence  Union  in  London,  the  Nurses' 
Total  Abstinence  League  and  the  Certified  ilid- 
wives'  Total  Abstinence  League  gave  interest- 
ing reports  of  work. 

The  Nurses'  League  reports  a  membership 
of  443.  It  is  encouraging  to  note  that  the 
attitude  of  the  nursing  profession  towards  the 
question  of  total  abstinence  becomes  in- 
creasingly sj"mpathetic,  and  this  is,  without 
doubt,  due,  in  part,  to  the  fact  that  scientific 
and  medical  evidence  speaks  so  clearly  in  its 
favour.  The  League  has  held  several  meetings 
in  Hospitals,  and  Drawing-room  Meetings  have 
been  given  by  the  Dowager  Lady  de  Roths- 
child, Mrs.  Pearce  Gould,  and  others.  A 
Branch  of  the  League  exists  in  Birmingham 
with  78  members. 

The  Certified  Midwives'  League  was  founded 
by  Dr.  Mary  Eocke  in  1905,  and  affihated  to 
the  Women's  Total  Abstinence  Union  in  1909. 
It  has  a  membership  of  460.  Meetings  have 
been  held  in  drawing-rooms  and  at  the  Chapter 
House,  St.  Paul's  Churchyard.  Branches  have 
been  formed  at  Nottingham  and  Oxford. 

Particulars  of  both  these  Leagues  can  be 
obtained  from  the  Secretary,  4,  Ludgate  Hill, 
London,  E.C. 


The  Annual  Meeting  of  the  St.  Pancras 
School  for  Mothers  was  held  at  the  St.  Pancras 
Town  Hall  on  Monday  last,  when  Mrs.  Carl 
ileyer  presided.  The  amiual  report  was  pre- 
sented bj?  Dr.  Sykes,  Medical  Officer  of  Health 
for  the  Borough,  who  said  that  the  work  of  the 
school  fell  under  three  principal  headings — 
educational,  prudential,  and  medical.  The 
medical  element  was,  and  should  be,  a  strong 
one,  and  no  treatment  of  mothers,  no  adminis- 
tration of  artificial  food  to  infants,  and  no  day 
nursing  should  be  carried  on  without  medical 
advice. 


The  next  speaker  was  Dr.  Saleeby,  who  re- 
marked that  babies  and  their  welfare  might  be 
thought  to  be  a  women's  question,  but  it 
touched  men  vitally  also,  and  was  a  national 
one,  in  which  were  involved  the  consideration 
of  race  degeneration,  its  causes,  and  preven- 
tion. In  time  to  come  it  would  be  recognised 
that  the  movement  against  infantile  mortality 
was  one  which  began  in  the  Edwardian  era.  At 
the  close  of  Queen  Victoria's  reign  the  medical 


Mav  14,   ]010^ 


^bc  British  3omnal  of  iRuvtMiiG. 


397 


officers  of  health  were  the  only  people  who 
gave  much  eousideration  to'  the  question.  lu 
1901  the  infantile  mortality  rate  was  154 
per  thousand,  in  1909  it  was  109  per 
thousand.  It  must  not  bf  supposed  that  this 
represented  a  striving  against  natural  facts,  or 
the  keeping  alive  of  babies  who  would  other- 
wise die,  the  progress  made  in  combatting  in- 
fantile mortality  coincid^ed  with  our  under- 
standing.of  the  right  methods  to  pursue.  The 
movement  began  in  France  under  Professor 
Budin.  An\-  method  which  ignored  the  fact 
that  nature  provided  mothers  for  the  making 
and  preserving  of  babies  was  inadequate.  To 
be  effective  in  regard  to  the  infants  work  must 
include  the  preceding  generation.  This  was 
what  the  School  for  ^lothers  was  doing.  An- 
other important  point  was  to  get  the  babies 
born  of  the  right  fathers  and  mothers,  and  he 
was  with  the  School  entirely  in  its  policy  of 
giving  instruction  in  the  choice  of  wives  and 
husbands;  infantile  mortality  would  never  be 
pri-vfuted  until  the  marriage  of  unfits  was  pre- 
vi/ated.  We  were  confronted  with  a  falling 
ijirth-rate,  and  it  was  certain  that  this,  would 
continue.  The  obvious  counteracting  influence 
was  to  let  the  right  babies  be  born,  and  to 
take  care  of  them  when  born.  If  a  larger  pro- 
portion of  babies  survived  this  would  obviously 
be  equal  to  a  higher  birth-rate.  It  was  a  matter 
of  Imperial  importance.  The  decay  of  Kome 
and  Babylon  followed  the  decline  of  the  birth- 
rate. We  heard  much  of  conscription  in  these 
days,  but,  if  conscription  were  enforced,  vast 
numbers  would  be  rejected  because  they  were 
not  fit  to  serve.  Real  politics  were  the  domestic 
ones,  for  life  begins  at  home. 


!Miss  Susan  Lawrence,  L.C.C.,  said  that 
when  children  came  under  medical  inspection 
at  school  age,  it  was  often  too  late  to  remedy 
preventable  evils.  The  London  County  Council 
had,  for  instance,  several  schools  for  the  blind 
which  Were  costly,  and  from  which  the  children 
could  not  be  turned  out  capable  of  self-support. 
An  inquiry  into  the  cause  showed  that  many 
were  blind  as  a  re-siilt  of  infantile  ophthalmia, 
A  "disease  which  depends  on  nursing.'' 


We  conclude  Miss  Lawrence  intended  to 
convey  that  good  imrsing  can  do  much  to  mini- 
mise the  disease  when  present,  but  for  the 
causes  she  must  go  fmther  back,  and  in  Dr. 
Saleeby's  woi-ds  "  get  the  children  born  of  the 
right  fathers  and  mothers."  Only  so  will  the 
disease  be  eradicated.  The  theory  of  the  sur- 
vival of  the  fittest,  of  which  we  often  heard, 
was,  she  said,  crude  and  untenable.  Further 
adverse  conditions  in  the  first  year  of  existence 
4iffeeted  children  in  after  life. 


The  opening  of  the  New  Honie  for  nurses  en- 
gaged by  the  Queen  Victoria  Nursing  Associa- 
tion, at  the  junction  of  Glossop  Road  and 
Houndfield  Road,  Sheffield,  was  preceded  by 
an  At  Home  in  the  Town  Hall,  at  which  little 
l^ady  Elfrida  Fitzwilliam  officiated  instead  of 
her  mother,  Countess  Fitzwilliam,  the  Lady 
Mayoress. 

Alderman.Franklin,  the  hon.  treasurer,  men- 
tioned that  the  Association  was  estabhshed  in 
1903  with  the  object  of  providing  throughout 
the  city  duly  qualified  nurses  to  attend  upon 
the  poor  in  their  own  homes.  It  began  with 
four  nurses  and  a  Superintendent,  and  its 
growth  was  indicated  by  the  fact  that  it  now 
employed  19  nurses  and  a  Superintendent. 

There  was  very  little  in  the  way  of  ceremony 
at  the  fonnal  opening  of  the  new  premises 
which  foUowed  the  meeting.  When  the  little 
lady  from  Wentworth  had  carried  out  her 
simple  duty  she  was  presented  by  the  senior 
nurse  (Miss  Woods)  with  a  beautiful  bouquet 
of  pink  carnations.  .V  bouquet  of  roses  was 
presented  by  the  Matron  (Miss  Hancox)  to  Mrs. 
Franklin,  who  has  done  a  good  deal  of  work  for 
the  Association  in  conjunction  with  the  other 
joint  hon.  secretary,  the  Rev.  T.  T.  Broad. 

We  wonder  the  Irish  poor  who  are  compelled 
Id  sond  their  sick  children  to  local  workhouses 
tlo  not  rise  in  their  wrath  and  insist  upon  the 
Jiocal  Government  Board  providing  a  more  effi- 
cient system  of  nursing  infectious  cases.  At  a 
recent  inquiry  relative  to  the  deaths  of 
two  children  at  the  Lisburn  Workhouse,  it 
was  elicited  in  evidence  that  the  Head  Nurse 
in  charge  of  such  serious  cases  as  scar- 
latina and  diphtheria  was  untrained  and  un- 
certificated. It  would  appear  that  this  niirse 
made  no  use  of  the  clinical  thermometer  or 
juilse  to  ascertain  the  physical  condition  of  one 
fhild— and  seems  to  have  had  the  support  of 
the  doctor,  who  remarked : 

"  You  used  your  common  sense  and  ex- 
perience, and  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
attack  would  be  a  short  one?  " 

"  Yes,"  replied  the  nurse,  "  it  was  short  and 
soon  passed  away." 

So  did  the  unfortunate  child,  who  died  next 

day !  ,    . 

Common  sense  and  experience  are  both  in- 
valuable, but  where  life  and  death  are  con- 
cerned, cannot  be  accepted  in  place  of  techni- 
cal training.  State  registration  alone  can 
regulate  the  present  irresponsible  condition  of 
affairs  in  the  sick  wards  of  country  workhouses. 
We  are  moved  to  speak  out  owing  to  quite  a 
pile  of  newspaper  cuttings  on  the  editorial  table 
disclosing  the  same  neglect  of  poor  people  who 
are  compelled  through  lack  of  means  to  submit 
to  such  treatment. 


398 


XiiK  Britisb  3ouvnal  of  mursing.      tMay  i4, 1910 


Zbc  IbOBpital  Morl^. 

The  annual  meeting  of  the  West  London 
Hospital  Ladies'  Association — a  society  which 
is  doing  most  excellent  work  for  the  patients 
in  that  hospital — was  held  on  Friday,  May  6th, 
in  the  Post-Graduate  College.  The  Countess  of 
Dartrey  was  in  the  chair,  and  the  report  made 
clear  what  a  great  amount  of  good  work  has 
been  accomplished  by  the  Association. 

Through  the  Samaritan  Fund  133  patients 
were  during  the  year  sent  to  convalescent 
homes,  20  received  surgical  appliances,  and  29 
urgent  cases  received  food  and  clothes.  No 
less  than  6,000  cups  of  tea  were  consumed  by 
jjatients  in  the  out-patients'  department,  and 
the  considerable  sum  of '  £240  was  given  by 
these  patients  in  the  short  space  of  eleven 
mouths.  Two  thousand  and  sixty-three  picture 
postcards  of  the  hospital  had  been  sold  through 
the  Matron,  Miss  Nevile.  Amongst  the  sums 
received  were  a  legacy  of  £200  free  of  legacy 
duty,  and  £240  19s.  collected  by  Mary  Countess 
of  Ilchester  towards  the  proposed  Nurses ' 
Home. 

Dr.  Drewitt  referred  to  the  success  of  the 
tea  stall  inaugurated  by  Mrs.  Stephen  Paget. 
Although  the  tea  stand  was  only  a  small  bed- 
room washstand  18  inches  square,  the  out- 
patient department  was  so  crammed  with 
patients  that  until  the  rush  began  to  lessen  it 
was  impossible  to  make  room  for  it  in  the 
waiting  room. 

Like  most  societies  managed  by  women,  the 
association  is  financially  flourishing,  and  closes 
the  year  with  a  balance  to  its  credit  at  the  bank 
of  £550.  Lady  Phillimore,  Mayoress  of  Ken- 
sington, and  Lady  Joicey,  were  added  to  the 
list  of  Vice-Presidents. 

The  Bishop  of  Kensington  pleaded  elo- 
quently for  increased  support  for  the  hospital, 
and  especially  commended  the  personal  interest 
taken  by  the  Ladies'  Association  in  the  hospi- 
tal. The  London  public  as  a  rule,  he  said, 
were  prone  to  delegate  their  responsibility  to 
other  people.  Further,  the  Association  was 
helping  to  lift  the  reproach  from  the  West  of 
London  in  regard  to  the  hospital,  although  it 
threw  into  extraordinary  relief  the  prevailing 
apathy.  It  was,  said  his  Lordship,  disgraceful 
that  the  nurses  of  the  hospital  should  be  in  the 
position  they  were  in  regard  to  accommodation. 
There  were  in  his  diocese  a  dozen  of  the  largest 
hospitals,  and  some  twenty-five  hospitals  and 
infirmaries  in  all.  He  knew  them  from  the 
kitchen  to  the  attics,  and  it  was  a  raire  thing 
not  to  find  comfortable  accommodation  for  the 
nursing  staff.  It  did  not  reflect  credit  on  the 
wealthy  borough  of  Kensington  that  the  nurses 


ot  the  West  London  Hosjiital  should  be  housed 
ao  they  were.  Last  year  £500  was  collected  for 
the  hospital,  chiefly  in  pennies.  This  was  a 
fact  to  flourish  in  the  face  of  the  prosperous 
people  of  Kensington  as  a  rebuke  to  their 
apathy  and  indifference.  In  his  diocese  he  had 
some  of  the  wealthiest  districts  of  the  Metro- 
polis, and  the  worst  slums,  but  if  he  wanted 
money  for  any  purpose  it  would  be  given,  he 
knew,  more  readily  and  liberally  by  the  people 
in  the  little  red  brick  houses  than  by  those  in 
the  mansions  of  the  West  End. 

After  the  meeting  tea  was  served  in  the 
Board  lloom,  and  then  many  visitors  availed 
themselves  of  the  opportunity  to  see  the  wards 
which  look  very  bright,  and  spotlessly  clean 
and  comfortable,  and  also  the  show  of  warm 
garments  made  or  supplied  by  members  of  the 
Ladies'  Association.  Warm  dressing  gowns 
and  nightgowns,  flannel  shirts,  and  petticoats, 
woollies  for  the  babies,  and  many  other  useful 
thintrs  were  there  in  abundance. 


IReflections. 


From  a  Boaed  Eoom  Mirror. 
A  lemarkable  judgment  was.  deUvered  in  ti*e 
House  of  Lfords  on  April  loth,  to  the  effect  that 
any  person  may  lawfully  i>ractise  any  part  of  sur- 
gery, medicine,  or  dentistry,  and  that  the  law  does 
not  prohibit  the  use  of  self-laudatory  language  pro- 
vided that  the  language  used  does  not  imply  the 
l)ossession  of  tlie  qualifications  which  would  entitle 
the  liolder  to  registration.  The  medical  and  dental 
l)rofessions  consider  such  a  pronouncement  teiribly 
dangerous  for  the  public,  and  when  Parliomenr 
reassembles  it  is  probable  a  two-clause  Bill  ^mII  be 
introduced  pix>viding  that  no  unregistered  i>eison 
shall  habitually,  or  for  gain,  practise  medicuie. 
surgery,  or  deufistry,  and  making  it  illegal  for  any 
unregistered  piiaetitioner  to  fill  up  a  medical  cer- 
tificate or  any  document  purporting  to  be  such. 
This  would  put  the  practice  of  medicine  and 
dentistry  on  the  same  footing  as  midwifery.  A 
woman  who  is  not  qualified  or  registered  may.  on 
emergency,  help  in  a.  case,  but  she  must  not  do  it 
"  habitually  or  for  gain."  Jlidwifery  is  thus  pro- 
tected from  the  quack.  Why  not  medicine  and 
surgerv  ? 


The  Royal  Ear  Ho.spital  in  Dean  Street,  Soho, 
the  oldest  special  hospital  for  the  treatment  of  ear 
diseases  in  Europe,  is  under  the  bondage  of  a  heavy 
mortgage  debt,  incurred  six  years  ago  in  rebuilding 
to  meet  modern  requirements.  It  is  hoped  that 
assistance  w^ill  soon  be  forthcoming  in  the  heavy 
task  of  raising  £5,000  to  enable  this  old  foundation 
the  remain  in  the  future,  as  it  has  been  in  the  past, 
one  of  the  great  centres  of  the  realm  for  the  relief  of 
pain  and  suffering. 


May  14,  1910] 


^be  Brltfsb  Journal  of  IRursmcj. 


399 


HAational  association  for  pro* 
\n^ino  IRational  Curative  Ircat* 
mcnt  for  aicobolism  an&'tbc 
©ruG  Ibabit. 

A  big  title,  and  for  that  reason  a  symbol  of  the 
greatuess  of  its  aims  and  the  sound  scientific  basis 
upon  wliich  it  rests. 

For  the  purpose  of  making  known  the  existence 
of  the  Association  to  those  who  are  unacquainted 
with  it,  and  consequently  to  enlist  their  sympathies 
and  co-operative  help,  an  "  At  Homo"  was  recently 
given  at  the  AVomen's  Institute,  in  Victoria  Street, 
by  JIr<N.  Clarke,  JIiis.  Barnes,  and  Miss  Beatrice 
Kent. 

An  enjoyable  programme  of  music  was  provided, 
and  in  the  interval  of  the  parts  a  paper  was  read 
by  Miss  Home  dealing  with  the  subject  matter. 
To  all  those  nurses  and  others  who  were  not  ablft 
to  be  present,  and  who  are  interested  in  the  great 
problem  of  inebriety  and  the  greater  cause  of  pre- 
ventive and  curative  treatment  (and  who  is  not-') 
a  brief  recapitulation  of  the  liistory,  aims,  objects, 
and  methods  of  the  .Vssociation  will  doubtless  be 
a  welcome  enlighteumont. 

Nine  years  ago  a  lady  became  possessed  of  a 
doctor's  prescription,  which  had  been  carefully 
prepared  after  many  experiments,  for  the  i)urpose 
of  creating  alcoholic  aversion  in  inebriates.  The 
lady,  herself  a  trained  nurse,  knew  the  value  of  it, 
and,  anxious  to  make  the  be.st  possible  use  of  it, 
took  council  with  a  few  friei\ds,  with  the  result 
that  they  formed  themselves  into  an  Association  : 
but  just  when  they  were  about  to  invite  the  co- 
operation of  the  medical  profession,  this  little 
jjhilanthropic  band — for  various-  family  and 
domestic  reasons — became  disbanded,  and  so  the 
good  work  ceased  at  its  inception.  Only  for  a  time, 
however ;  after  a  short  period  of  quiescence,  the 
Association  was  re-formed  and  Active  A\ork  l>egun. 

The  basis  of  operation  is  this :  —To  co-operate 
with  the  medical  profession,  to  show  any  medical 
man  the  prescriptions  who  is  willing  to  try  the 
experiment,  which  many  have  done,  and  have  ex- 
pressed their  sympathy  with  the  treatment  and 
their  entire  satisfaction  with  the  results. 

The  prescriptions  are  not  given  broadcast  to  the 
medical  profession  at  present,  for  this  reason  only : 
because  it  i.s  felt  that  if  this  were  done,  there  would 
be  no  guarantee  whatever  that  every  doctor  would 
use  them  without  alteration.  The  success  of  the 
treatment  depends,  not  on  any  special  drug,  hut  in 
the  comhination  of  drugs  and  the  method  of  ad- 
ministration. The  Association  has  been  recom- 
mended by  a  doctor  to  adhere  to  its  principle  of 
making  the  prescriptions  public  to  the  medical  pro- 
fession to  the  extent  it  does  only.  It  will  readily 
be  seen  that  if  the  prescriptions  were  in  any  way 
modified,  and  unsatisfactory  results  followed,  the 
treatment  would   at  once  be  discredited. 

Other  objects  of  the   Association   are :  — 

"  To  endeavour  to  educate  the  public  to  reali.se 
rhr,t    :,h..^...v.,,r,    ;,,vl   the   drug   habit   are   definite 


maladies  requiring  therapeutic,  sympathetic,  and 
individual  treatment  for  as  long  as  each  case  may 
require,  just  as  in  other  illnesses. 

"  To  treat  the  poor  gratuitously  as  long  as  public 
support   is  forthcoming. 

"To  treat  persons  of  limited  means  at  a  cost 
which  covers  medicinal  and  office  expenses  only. 

"To  keep  in  touch  as  far  as  possible  with 
patients  when  convalescent,  and  to  endeavour  to 
obtain  employment  for  them  if  needed." 

Thus,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  treatment  is  pei- 
fectly  orthodox,  as  there  is  an  absence  of  secrecy, 
and  no  case  is  treated  without  medical  supervision. 
The  Association  has  no  financial  interest  whatever 
in  the  concern — merely  philanthropic.  The  co- 
operation of  all  is  earnestly  invited  by  various 
methods :  — 

1.  By  annual  subscriptions  to:- — General  Fund 
for  organisation  work ;  free  treatment  fund ; 
philanthropic  home  fund. 

2  By  becoming  members  (fee,  from  Is.  per 
annum),  which  constitutes  helping  in  the  following 
ways :  — 

(a)  By  making  the  aims  and  objects  of  the  Asso- 
ciation known. 

(())  By  helping  to  collect"  for  the  proposed  philan- 
thropic home  and  free  case  fund. 

(c)  By  procuring  new  members. 

(rf)  By  visiting  patients  when  required. 

(e)  By  helping  to  find  work  for  patients  when 
cfjuvalcsconts. 

(/)  By  helping  to  collect  clothes  for  patients  re- 
quiring a  fresh  start  in  life. 

Further  particulars  may  be  obtained  from  the 
Secretarv  at  the  office,  65,  TJpiJer  Gloucester  Place, 
N.W. 

The  success  of  the  treatment  has  so  far  been 
so  great  as  to  justify  its  claim  to  being  l>oth 
rational  and  curative.  It  has  also  been  tried  in 
Dr.blin,  and  all  medical  men  report  favourably  on 
it  It  is  to  be  earnestly  hoped  that  the  readers 
of  The  British  Journal  of  Nursing,  an  organ 
which  stands  for  progress  and  reform,  \vi]l  not 
treat  this  merely  as  an  item  of  professional  news, 
but  will  do  all  in  their  x>ower  to  help  forwai-d  this 
great  cause.  The  Association  keeps  in  toiich  with 
the  patients,  and  proofs  can  bo  obtained  of  cases 
where  there  has  been  no  return  of  alcoholism  six 
nnd  eight  yeai-s  after  treatment.  This  is  siirely 
encouraging.  B.   K. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

May  17th.— Tho  Infants'  Hospital,  S.W.  A 
Course  of  Lectures  on  Babies.  III. — Zymotic  En- 
teritis. The  Signs  and  'Symptoms.  Prevention 
and  Treatment.  By  Dr.  Ralph  Vincent.  Lecture 
Theatre,  5  p.m. 

May  27th. — Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute. 
Conference  of  representatives  of  afliliated  Associa- 
tions.    Caxton  Hall,   AVestminster. 

May  SStli. — Procession  of  Women  Suffragists 
from  the  Embankment  to  Albert  Hall,  organised 
by  the  Women's  National  Social  and  Political 
I'liioii. 


400 


^De  35iit(5b  3oiu-nal  of  IHursina. 


[May  14,  1910 


©iitsibe  tbe  (Bates. 


Bool?  of  tbe  Meel?. 


Bh.: 


WOMEN. 

The  Royal  College  of 
Phjsicians  have  added 
the  Bedford  College  for 
^^'omeii,  London,  to  the 
list  of  iustitutious  re- 
cognised by  the  Con- 
joint Examining  Board 
for  instruction  in 

Chemistry,   Physics,   and 


At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Women's  Total 
Abstinence  Union,  held  at  Denison  House,  A'aux- 
liall  Bridge  Road,  Mr.  F.  G.  Mackereth  gave  de- 
tailed results  of  investigations  which  he  bad  made 
on  the  subject  of  alcohol  drinking  by  school  chil- 
dren. In  one  school  alone,  he  said,  it  was  found 
that  40  per  cent,  of  the  children  drank  alcohol 
regularly.  If  the  same  proportion  obtained  all 
round  there  must  be  some  300,000  child  drinkers 
in  London,  and  probably  in  all  the  large  towns  and 
districts  there  must  be  some  2,000,000  who  drank 
alcohol.  This  was  an  enormous  danger  to  the 
national  life.  Of  all  the  countries  in  Euroiie  only 
Norway  and  Sweden  seemed  to  be  free  from  the 
practice.  The  proportion  in  New  York  was  .stated 
to  be  58  per  cent. 


Miss  Fanny  Brough  ojjened  the  Women's  Press, 
a  shop  and  publication  department  for  the  Wo- 
men's Social  and  Political  I'nion,  in  the  Charing 
Cross  Road,  on  Thursday  in  last  week.  jNIiss  Evelyn 
Sharp  said  the  shop  evidenced  the  great  progress 
the  Women's  Press  had  made.  In  1906  they  sold 
£60  worth  of  literature  at  Clement's  Inn.  The 
sales  leapt  to  £2,000  in  1908,  and  last  year  rose  to 
£7,000.  They  were  now  selling  at  the  rate  of 
£1,000  worth  a  month. 


Tlie  Women's  Local  Government  Society  has  been 
invited  to  occupy  the  first  two  days  of  the  Women's 
Congress  at  the  Japan-British  Exhiliition,  on  .June 
6th  and  7th.  Lady  Strachey,  President,  will  take 
the  chair  on  tlie  oi)ening  day,  and  her  address  will 
I>e  followed  by  short  speeches  by  women  adminis- 
tratore  on  County,  Borough,  Parish,  and  Town 
Councils.  The  .services  required  fiom  a  Poor-Law 
Guardian  will  lie  set  forth. 

On  June  7th,  under  the  presidency  of  Lady 
O'Hagan,  information  will  be  given  as  to  the  work 
of  women  officials  in  special  branches  of  local 
government,  and  the  following  subjects  will  be  dis- 
cussed:— 

"  Sanitary  Inspection,"  by  Mrs.  Greenwood. 
"  Inspection  of  Slidwives."  by  Miss  Burnside. 
"  Infants'  Life  Protection,'"  by  !Miss  Zannetti. 
"  Women  Inspectors  in  AVorkhouses, "  by  Mis. 
Shaw.  "Women  as  Relieving  OfScei-s,"  by  Miss 
Baker.  "Women  as  Factoiy  Insi>ectors,"  by  Mi-s. 
H.  J.  Tennant. 

There  will  be  no  charge,  after  admission  to  the 
Exhibition,  for  attending  these  most  interesting 
conferences. 


A  WINNOWING.* 

Jack  Weston,  according  to  his  own  testimony, 
died  and  came  back  to  life  again.  According  to- 
medical  expert  opinion  it  was  a  case  of  suspended 
animation.  But  whichever  solution  may  be  the 
right  one,  it  is  about  the  effect  that  this  experience 
had  on  him,  that  the  whole  story  is  concerned. 
Jack  is  of  a  type  that  is  familiar  to  us  in  Mr. 
Benson's  works.  A  University  man,  young,  easy- 
mannered,  good  looking,  a  sportsman,  and  amply 
supplied  with  all  those  things  that  are  desirable 
from  a  worldly  point  of  view.  "The  most  remark- 
able tiling  he  had  accomplished  in  his  twenty-five 
years  of  life  «as  his  recovery  from  an  attack  of 
syncope,  which  Sir  James  Martin  had  actually 
mistaken   for   death."' 

The  opening  chapter  describes  his  disemljodied 
state,  ill  which  he  is  able  to  view  calmly  and  de- 
tachedly  the  circumstances  t^onnected  with  his 
death,  and  to  see  rehearsed  various  stages  of  his 
past  life.  , 

•■  For  exami)le,  it  seemed  he  was  a  boy  again — 
how  old  he  did  not  consider.  There  was  a  sense  of 
ecstatic  well  being  within  him,  of  tremendous  and 
vital  youth.  From  within  the  house  a  piano 
.  .  .  poured  forth  a  torrent  of  melody,  and  he 
knew  that  his  mother,  dead  years  ago,  was  playing. 
His  father  came  out  and  stood  beside  him,  silent 
and  smiling,  but  his  face  was  altered,  and  it  was 
plain  he  was  a  rcvenanf,  yet  not  terrible,  only  a 
little  strange  and  mysterious.  .  .  It  seemed  as 
though  he  had  returned  from  a  long  journey  and 
all  was  well  again.'' 

Jack  Weston  comes  back  to  life  with  an  over- 
whelming sense  of  awe,  and  of  his  unfitness  to  die. 
He  determines  to  alter  his  old  careless  ways,  and 
to  use  life  for  its  highest  purpose. 

"  Of  course  you  see  all  the  difference  this 
makes,"  he  said  quietly  to  his  wife. 

"Difference — why?"'   asked  Mary. 

•■  Why,  yes,  the  whole  difference.  You  must  see 
that  I  can't  possibly  go  on  with  this — this  footling 
sort  of  life.  I've  got  another  chance,  thank  God — 
and.  by  George  I  — " 

Naturally  Mary  cannot  follow  him  all  at  once  in 
his  exaltation ;  indeed,  she  secretly  considers  that 
his  brain  is  temporarily  unbalanced.  She  asks 
Dr.  Baising. 

"Did  he  tell  you  he  actually  died,  and  saw 
himself  in  bed?  " 

■'  He  said  something  of  the  sort :  of  course  that 
was  simply  a  delusion — a  kind  of  self-suggestion. 
That  kind  of  thing  is  quite  common,  compara- 
tively speaking." 

But — but  you  are  quite  sure  it  was  not  death?  '" 
■  Quite  sure,  Mrs.  Weston." 

"Well — tha'nks  very  much,"  said  the  girl. 

She  confides  her  perplexity  in  Lady  Sarah,  a  girl 
of  her  own  age. 

"  He  has  discovered  that  the  highest  life  in  the 
world  is  to  be  a  monk,  and  he  wants  to  be  one, 
and — '' 

"And  what  about ?  "' 

*  Bv   Robert   Hugh   Benson.     (Hutchiii.s.oii  and  Co.> 


-May  14,  1910] 


<Ibc  36rlti9l>  3ournai  or  ■fl-iursmo. 


401 


■■  Yes,  just  so.  Well,  it  appears  I've  got  to  be 
a  min.  (No,  really  don't  laugh.)  But  that's  his 
thteiful  idea.  It  seems  he  can't  be  oue,  without 
I'lii  the  other.  .  .  And  I  won't,  so  he  can't. 
-Mijiik  and  nun  indeed  I  "  * 

She  smiled,  a  little  disconsolately. 

Poor  Mary  1  We  feel  that  this  is  asking  a  little 
too  much  of  her.  However,  he  abandons  this 
notion,  but  stipulates  that  in  matters  that  do  Hot 
actually  affect  her,  he  is  to  be  allowed  individual 
freedom . 

He  next  proposes  that  they  should  live  a  much 
more  simple  life. 

••  Of  course,  if  you  are  quite  clear  you  want  to 
go  on  living  here  I  sui)])Ose  we  must.  .  .  But 
it  seems  big  for  two  people,  doesn't  it?  Now,  I 
thought  we  might  get  rid  of  this,  and  move,  let's 
say,  to  one  of  the  gamekeeper's  cottages.  Would 
you  mind  that  very  much?  " 

"  Yes,  dear,"  she  said  gently,  "  I  sliould  mind  it 
very  much:   indeed,   I  couldn't  dream  of  it." 

Partly  won  over  by  secret  conviction,  and  partly 
her  loyalty  being  aroused  by  the  violent  opposi- 
tion of  their  friends  and  neighbours,  she  gradually 
begins  to  see  eye  to  eye  with  hira,  and  ends  in 
being  eager  with  him  to  embrace  the  religious  life. 
Jack,  by  this  time,  has  begun  to  tire  of  his  self- 
chosen  austerities,  and  by  degrees  resumes  his 
former  mode  of  living. 

.\t  this  time  he  goes  to  South  Africa  to  play 
cricket  for  England,  in  which  sport  he  excels,  and 
there  dies.     Mary  enters  the  Convent  he  built. 

One  cannot  be  sure  at  times  when  ^fr.  Benson 
wishes  to  be  taken  seriously.  The  book  is  very 
obviously  written  in  the  interests  of  the  Church  of 
Rome,  but  we  suggest  that  it  is  here  presented  in 
a  form  calculated  rather  to  repel  than  attract,  and 
the  sublime  (perhaps  intentionally)  is  often  near  to 
the   ridiculous. 

But  it  is  all  very  disappointing,  and  we  cannot 
lielp  feeling  regret  that  Jack  should  have  missed 
the  mark  after  all,  and  jja.ss  in  the  midst  of  his 
•'  footliiir;  ■■  ;i   second  time  into  the  Unknown. 

H.  H. 


l>cri5C. 


THE  ISLANDS  OF  THE  BLEST 
Far,  far  they  lie:    beyond  yon  puiple  mist 

That  blonds  in   s<^)ft  oonfnsion   sea  and   sky; 
lii'hind  yon  bank  of  solid  amethyst, 

Those  changing  hues  of   richest  pageantry : 
AVhere  sinks  the  sun,  leaving  his  throne  on  high. 

Beneath  the  crim'Soned  waters  of  the  West; 
Far,  far  in  utmost  bounds  Hesperian  lie 

Those  blissful  homos  of  never-ending  rest. 

The  isles,  the  happy  isles,  the  islands  of  the  West. 
Frnnris  Lav  JMfhain. 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK 
It  would  be  a  master  stroke  if  those  Great 
Powers,  honestly  bent  on  peace,  would  form  a 
League  of  Peace,  not  onl.v  to  keep  the  peace  among 
themselves,  hirt  to  prevent  by  force  if  necessary 
its  being  broken  by  others, 

Throdore  Eoosevrlt   at  Chrisiiania. 


Xcttcrs  to  the  EDitor. 


^  Whilat     cordially     inviting    com- 


munications upon  all  subjects 
lor  these  columns,  we  wish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  we  do  not  in  any  way 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  out 
correspondents. 


NO  COMPULSION. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing.' 

Dear  Madam. — In  reply  to  ^Miss  Hulme's  none  too 
courteous  letter,  allow  me  to  .say  that  when  I  said 
that  no  London  Ho.spital  nurses  would  register  I 
was,  of  course,  .si)eaking  generally.  Some  excep- 
tions there  will  alw  ays  be  to  every  custom.  At  any 
rate  it  Avas  only  a  prophecy,  and  I  %-enture  to  pro- 
phesy that  if  Registration  ever  comes  into  being 
there  will  be  at  flret  a  good  number  of  nurses  all 
over  the  country  who  will  register,  but  that  in  a 
vei-y  few  years  veiy  few  will  do  so. 

It  is  our  rule  at  tlie  London,  as  at  many  other 
hospitals — St.  Thomas',  and,  I  think,  Bart's, — not 
to  take  nurse.s  who  have  had  previous  training. 
But  here  again  exceptions  are  made,  and  in  our 
staflt  of  over  700  nurses  at  the  London  I  dare  say 
there  may  be  20  who  have  had  previous  training. 
Y'oui-s  faithfully, 

Sydney  Hollaxd. 

P.S. — In  reply  to  your  Editorial  note,  the  nurses 
at  the  Ix>ndon  Hospital  will  certainly  be  "free 
agents." 

21.  CHieshani  Street,  S.W. 


THE  BRITISH  RED  CROSS  SOCIETY. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  yursing." 
Dear  Madam, — I  am  extremely  interested  in  Mrs. 
Nettorville  Barron's  interesting  scheme  for  the 
organisation  of  work  in  connection  with  the  British 
Re<l  Cross  Society.  In  my  opinion  every  effort 
should  be  made  to  .secuie  the  services  of  thoroughly 
trained  nurses  for  the  temi)orary  hospitals  as  Red 
Cross  workers,  and  I  believe  this  could  easily  be 
done.  In  the  village  in  which  I  live  there  are  quite 
a  numljer  of  nurses  who  could  be  relietl  upon  to 
give  their  services  in  a  time  of  inva-sion,  includuig 
a  holder  of  the  Royal  Retl  Cross,  me  former  Matron 
of  the  looal  h().'ipit«l.  a  former  sister  in  a  large 
London  Hospital,  and  half-a-dozen  more.  They 
may  be  l)eyond  the  age  limit  for  the  Tenitorial 
Force  Nui-sing  Service,  but  they  could,  and  would, 
frivo  ex-|>ort  h«'Ip  in  the  temporary  hospitals. 
Yours  faithfully, 

A  Practical  Pebsox. 


THE  TEACHING  OF  NURSING   BY  NURSES. 
To  the  Editor  nf  the  "  British  Jonrnal  of  Nursing." 

Dear  Madam, — I  read  with  much  interest  in 
the  Journal  Nurse  E.  S.  Sills'  letter.  She 
.speaks  of  the  general  practitioners  who  are  ar- 
ranging lectures.  I  suppose  .she  means  in  counties 
and  towns  out  of  London.      I  can  only  .speak  for 


402 


^be  BrUieb  3ournal  of  IRursing. 


[^lay  14,  1910 


London,  as  my  experience  out  of  Loudon  has  been 
very  limited,  but  in  London  both  at  medical  mis- 
sions and  district  work  I  have  had  many  years, 
and  have  always  found  the  St.  John  Ambulance 
lectures  up  to  date,  many  of  the  members  making 
a  bed  quite  equal  to  a  nurse.  As  I  have  friends  at 
several  hospitals  as  nurses  in  Loudon,  they  tell 
me  that  as  soon  as  the  Sisters  are  off  duty  they  are 
glad  to  rest  or  take  fresh  air.  I  have  a  friend 
who  is  Matron  of  a  hospital  in  London,  but  she  is 
not  able  to  spare  any  time  to  assist  the  doctor 
with  the  St.  John  Ambulance  lectures.  I  think 
you  will  agree  with  me  that  in  hospitals  nurses 
have  very  little  time  to  give,  and  I  find  most 
prefer  the  <loctoi'.s  to  give  the  lectures.  I  do 
not  think  midwives  or  health  visitors  would  be 
able  to  give  the  St.  John's  lectures  as  it's  quite  a 
different  branch  of  teaching.  Again,  I  have  had 
many  ambulance  students  say  they  would  rather  a 
doctor  gave  the  lectures  than  a  nurse,  as  the 
former  is  not  so  harsh,  and  has  more  patience,  and 
will  show  us  things  that  are  iilainer  for  us  to  under- 
stand. All  our  work  is  up  to  date,  and  the  lec- 
turers are  from  good  hospitals,  and  teach  both  first 
aid  and  nursing  in  a  perfect  manner. 
I  am,  yours  truly, 

Eliz.^beth  Beunxixg. 
St.  John's  Road,  Penge,  S.E. 


INDIAN  WOMEN  AND   NURSING  APPOINTMENTS 

To  the  'Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursinr/." 
De.\r  MAD.iM, — I  notice  a  reference  in  your 
number  of  April  2nd  to  the  question  asked  in  Par- 
liament by  Mr.  Kelly,  in  regard  to  whether  positions 
Kke  that  of  Matron  and  Superintendent  of  Nurses 
in  the  General  Hospital,  Madras,  are  open  to 
Indian  nurses.  I  should  like  to  point  out  that  so 
far  no  Indian  women  of  sufficient  education  and 
executive  ability  to  take  such  positions  have  be- 
•  come  professional  nurses.  Nursing  has  yet  its 
place  to  make  among  them.  The  few  women  who 
go  in  for  a  public  career  have  become  doctors  and 
teachers,  and  the  nurses  in  training  in  our  hospita4s 
are  very  largely  young  girls  from  mission 
orphanages  or  women  from  lower  class  families, 
and  none  of  these  are  caijable  of  working  indepen- 
dently. Some  women,  like  one  Brahmin  widow  of 
whom  I  heard,  take  a  training  in  order  to  be  of 
service  in  their  own  .families  in  time  of  need,  but 
they  would  not  think  of  taking  up  general  practice. 
A  European  nurse  who  was  leaving  a  case  in 
Bombay,  where  circumstances  were  not  suitable  for 
a  European,  advised  the  man,  a  wealthy  Indian, 
to  get  a  native  nnr.se  for  the  patient.  He  said  he 
would  not  have  an  Indian  nurse,  as  they  were  all 
fallen  women.  This  is,  of  course,  a  slanderous 
exaggeration,  but  it  gives  an  idea  what  public 
opinion  is,  and  the  difficult  task  a  nurse  may  have 
to  retain  a  good  reputation.  I  was  told  of  one 
midwife  whose  husband  accompanied  her  to  the 
house  for  every  case  she  had,  that  it  might  be 
understood  that  she  was  not   like  others. 

I  called  the  attention  of  a  prominent  Brahmin 
gentleman  in  Akola  to  this  question,  and  aSked  him 
if  there  were  any  Indian  women  who  had  the  train- 
ing for  such  positions,  and  he  said,  "Not  one!'' 


Questions  are  sometimes  asked  in  Parliament 
which  seem  to  reflect  on  the  impartial  administra- 
tion of  the  Indian  Government,  but  in  reality  show 
an  ignorance  of  the  conditions  which  prevail  out 
here.  Mr.  Kelly  may  be  assured  that  those  who 
are  training  Indian  nui-ses  have  as  the  ideal  towards 
which  they  are  striving  the  developing  of  a  nurse 
quite  fitted  for  such  positions,  and  a  projjer  status 
for  her.  And  there  is  no  doubt  that  when  the 
conditions  and  the  women  are  ready  the  openings 
will  be  freely  made  for  them. 

Yours  sincerely, 

Etha  Butcher  Klosz. 


CONGRATULATIONS. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Having  read  the  article  of  Congratulations, 
Miss  Patell  begs  to  thank  the  Journal  for  wishing 
her  a  prosperous  future. 

[Miss  Patell  is  the  Parsee  lady  who  has  the 
honour  of  being  the  first  woman  licentiate  of  the 
Royal  College  of  Physicians. — Ed.] 


NOTICE. 

Jliss  Mollett,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Matrons' 
Council,  Royal  South  Hants  Hospital,  Southamp- 
ton, has  received  some  leaflets  from  and  by  Dr. 
Helen  Wilson,  on  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  noti- 
fication of  syphilis,  and  will  be  glad  to  send  copies 
to  an.y  member  of  the  Council  who  forwards  a 
penny   stamp  for   postage. 

Miss  Breay,  431,  Oxford  Street,  London,  W., 
will  be  grateful  for  a  copy  of  the  Annual  Re 
port  of  the  Matrons'  Council  for  1902,  if  any  mem- 
ber has  one  which  she  does  not  require. 


motices. 

CONTRIBUTIONS. 

The  Editor  will  at  all  times  be  pleased  to  cx>nsider 
articles  of  a  suitable  nature  for  insertion  in  this 
Journal — those  on  practical  nursing  are  specially 
invited. 

Such  communications  must  be  duly  authenticated 
with  name  and  address,  and  should  be  addressed  to 
the  Editor,  20,  Upper  Wimix)le  Street,  London,  Vv  . 

Advertisements  and  business  communications 
should  be  addressed  to  the  Manager,  British 
Journal  of    Nursing,   11,    Adam    Street,  Strand, 

w.c. 

The  SOCIETY  FOR  THE  STATE  REGISTRATION 
OF  TRAINED  NURSES. 

An  application  form  for  those  who  wish  to  Ijecom© 
merabei-s  of  the  Society  for  the  State  Registration 
of  Trained  Nur.ses  will  be  found  on  page  iv.  of  cover. 
It  will  soon  be  too  late  to  help  on  the  important 
work  of  this  .Society.  No  habitual  reader  of  this 
journal  can,  we  feel  sure,  be  content  to  stand  aside 
and  let  others  found  the  future  Profession  of 
Nursing.    Now  is  the  time  to  help. 

OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 

Rules  for  competing  for  the  Pictorial  Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  sii. 


Mnv  .1.  loini  ^1,^.  British  3ournal  of  IHureino  Supplement.       ^os 

The    Midwife. 


noateinitv)  Clubs. 


Miss  Helen  Klaasseu,  in  her  paper  on  Mater- 
nity Clubs,  read  before  the  recent  Conference  of 
Nurses  and  Midwives,  drew  attention  to  the 
low  state  of  public  opinion  with  regard  to  pro- 
vision for  the  needs  of  a  woman  at  the  time 
of  her  confinement.  She  urged  tiie  necessity 
for  the  education  of  mothers  in  thrift,  and  for 
iir^proved  methods  of  helping  women  at  these 
times. 

She  gave  some  account  of  the  Wakefield 
Babies'  Welcome,  and  of  the  work  which  has 
been  done  from  St.  George's  and  St.  Thomas's 
Hospitals.  In  a  more  recent  experiment,  tried 
in  some  South  London  parishes,  an  attempt  has 
been  made  to  get  women  to  join  a  Provident 
Maternity  Club  five,  six,  or  seven  months  be- 
fore the  expected  date  of  confinement.  A  visit 
is  paid  to  the  expectant  mother  with  the  object 
of  getting  her  to  think  out  for  herself  what  her 
coming  needs  will  be.  The  aim  is  not  only 
to  help  the  woman  to  estimate  the  cost  of  her 
needs  and  to  arrange  for  the  collection  of  regu- 
lar fragments  sufficient  to  provide  for  all  that 
is  wanted,  but  to  encourage  thrift  and  fore- 
sight in  a  much  deeper  sense.  The  woman's 
personal  hygiene,  the  securing  of  reliable  at- 
tendance, the  engagement  of  lier  professional 
attendant  in  good  time,  the  making  of  sensible 
baby  clothes  are  all  matters  as  important  as  the 
putting  by  of  savings,  and  require  an  equal 
amount  of  forethought. 

Below  is  a  copy  of  a  Parish  Provident  Ma- 
ternity Club  member's  card  :  — 


Provident  Maternity  Cmn. 
Jit'iiiboi-s   to   be    married    women,    living    in    tho 

Parish  of  St.  . 

5f«>nilM>i«  slioiikl  join  the  Club  seven  months  (or 
at  least  six  months)  before  the  expectetl  date  of  con- 
finement. All  provi.Mon  .should  I>e  completed  one 
month  before  that  date. 

The  table  below  should  be  filled  in,  and  aiTange- 
ment«i  will  be  made  for  payments  to  be  collected 
each  week. 

£       K,      d. 

Doctor     

^lidwife       

Attendant      

Baby   clothes,   etc 

Kxt  ra    non rishmen t 


caunot  be  withdrawn  until  the  time  of  the  confine- 
ment, oi-  of  the  member's  removal  from  the  parish. 
When  the  mon<'y  is  neetled,  a  [jost-caid  should  Ije 
sent  to  the  Secretary,  who  will  call  and  arrange  tor 
tho  rei>ayment.  Reimyment  can  be  made  in  one 
sum,  or  in  weekly  instalments. 


Hon  Secret  ai-j- 


Weekly    i>aynient.s   at    ]H-r   week 

The  money  (excepting  that  for  baby  clothes,  etc.) 


The  relief  of  maternity  cases  is  also  dealt 
with  by  these  Parish  Clubs. 

If  the  Secretary  of  the  Club  finds  a  woman 
unable  to  put  by  for  all  that  is  necessary  for  a 
satisfactory  time  of  lying  in,  she  reports  the 
circumstances  to  the  Maternity  Club  Com- 
mittee, who  may  then,  at  their  discretion, 
admit  the  woman  as  a  member  of  the  Club,  if 
she  agrees  to  put  by  according  to  the  scale 
thought  suitable  by  the  Committee.  In  such 
a  case,  if  the  member  fulfils  her  agreement, 
the  Club  will  see  that  the  woman  has  all  that 
is  necessary  at  the  time  of  confinement. 

If  any  woman  who  has  planned  for  a  satisfac- 
tory time  of  lying  in  and  has  made  her  pay- 
ments regularly,  suffers  unexpected  misfortune 
before  her-  confinement,  it  is  always  found  pos- 
sible to  obtain  help  for  her  through  local  chari- 
table relief  agencies. 

In  the  discussion  which  followed  the  paper, 
much  interest  was  shown  in  the  chronically 
poor,  the  unthrifty  and  disreputable.  In  reply"- 
ing,  the  reader  of  the  paper  pointed  out  that 
help  at  the  time  of  confinement  is  only  one  out 
of  many  needs  of  the  chronically  pooV.  Some 
people  think  that  mothers  need  food  when 
nursing,  others  that  school-children  need  food, 
others  even  that  unemployed  men  seeking  work 
need  food.  It  was  lier  opinion  that  all  people 
require  food  at  all  times;  women  certainly  re- 
quire food  before  the  confinement,  as  well  as 
after.  Dealing  with  chronic  poverty  is  a  matter 
for  the  State,  which  we  hope  will  reform  its 
poor  laws  at  an  early  date. 

Attention  was  drawn  to  the  anomaly 
in  the  action  of  many  Guardians  who 
provide  a  doctor  for  midwifery  cases, 
whereas  the  class  above  that  which  falls  upon 
their  help,  employs  the  less  expensive  mid- 
wife. The  provision  of  a  doctor  only,  for  per- 
.sons  who  cannot  afford  to  pay  a  nurse  is 
not,  in  Miss  Klaassen's  opinion,  adequate. 
An  ex-parish  doctor  (Dr.  Bygott)  said  he 
was  glad  to  hear  this  point  raised,  as  he  had 
had  great  difficulty  in  connection  with  mater- 
nity cases.  He  only  got  over  his  difficulties  by 
taking  his  wife  with  Kim  when  he  attended 
])arish  cases,  so  that  she  could  act  as  nurse. 


401 


Zbc  Brttisb  Journal  of  IHursino  Supplement,  [^ay  u,  1910 


Conference  of  Jnspectors  of 
flI^i^\vive5. 


FORMATION   OF  AN  INSPECTORS' ASSOCIATION 

An  informal  meeting  of  Inspectors  of  Midwives 
was  held  at  12,  Buckingham  Street,  Strand  (by 
kind  permission  of  the  Midwives'  Institute  Com- 
mittee) during  the  Midwifery  and  Nursing  Con- 
ference week.  The  meeting  was  convened  by  Miss 
du  Sautoy,  tlie  Iiisix>ctor  for  Somei'set.  About  40 
Inspectors  were  present. 

Among  subjects  discussed  were  quarterly  and 
annual  reports,  puerperal  fever  cases,  still-births, 
im  estigation  of  mode  of  practice,  penal  procedure 
(Section  8  of  Midwives  Act),  method  of  keeping 
reports  of  midwives  and  inspections,  payment  of 
doctors,  question  of  formation  of  Inspectors'  Asso- 
ciation. In  considering  "  the  working  of  the  Act," 
a  resolution  w'as  proposed,  seconded,  and  passed 
unanimou.sly,  "that  in  the  opinion  of  the  Inspectoi-s 
of  midwives  it  is  expedient  that  notice  of  any 
change  in  the  rules  of  the  Central  Midwives  Board 
should  be  at  once  sent  to  all  Local  Supervising 
Authorities."  The  Convenor  was  asked  to  send 
this  to  the  Central  Midwives'  Board. 

The  question  of  payment  of  doctors  sent  for  by 
a  midwife  was  discussed,  and  the  general  opinion 
«as  that  the  Local  Supervising  Authority  should 
undertake  this.  Whether  they  should  ever  try  to 
recover  the  fees  paid  or  not  was  not  an  agreed  upon 
point,  but  all  present  seemed  to  be  thoroughly 
against  payment  by  Boards  of  Guardians,  chiefly 
owing  to  the  stigma  of  pauperism   involved. 

It  was  agreed  that  an  Association  of  inspectors 
sliould  be  formed,  details  to  be  left  to  the  Convenor, 
and  that  an  annual  conference  should  be  held. 
The  meeting  lasted  three  hours,  and  closed  with  a 
vote  of  thanks  to  the  Midwives'  Institute  and  to 
the  Chairman. 

All  Inspectors  who  could  do  so  were  asked  to 
meet  on  the  last  day  of  the  Conference,  and  discuss 
the  amended  Bill,  but  no  resolution  was  pr->sed 
with  regard  to  it ;  vei-y  few  Inspectors  were  able 
to  remain  in  Loudon  till  that  day. 

Particulars  re  the  Inspector's  Association  can  be 
obtained  from  Miss  du  Sautoy,  16,  Elm  Gi'ove, 
Taunton. 

TTbe  Central  fll^i^^vi\>e5'  Boar^. 

PENAL  Cases. 

Struck  off  the  Roll. 

Mary  Backhouse  (804),  charged  with  not  advising 
medical  assistance  for  patient  with  rigor,  nor  did 
she  take  the  temperature,  though  present  at  the 
time.  Said  she  had  seen  similar  cases  come  all 
right. 

Sarah  Beeston  (11991),  neglect  of  disinfectants 
and  of  reporting  offensive  lochia  and  rigors. 
Patient  died. 

Ann  Foley  (978),  did  not  report  rigor,  sickness, 
and  abdominal  pain,  nor  inflammation  of  the  in- 
fant's eyes ;  she  did  not  wash  the  infanf  at  birth, 
but  wrapped  it  up  and  went  home  to  prepare 
dinner. 


Frances  Rebecca  Llewellyn  (11893),  did  not  ad- 
vise medical  assistance  in  a  case  of  recurrent 
hremorrhage  during  a  period  of  five  weeks  previous 
to  confinement.  Patient  died  suddenly;  was  found 
to  have  placenta  prsevia. 

Esther  Letherin  (189-53),  drunk  on  duty. 
Pleaded  having  taken  whiskey  for  cold,  and  not 
being  used  to  spirits.  No  other  charge  being 
against  her,  may  apply  for  reinstatement  later. 

Mary  Ann  Neale  (4807).  neglected  to  advi.se 
medical  assistance  for  purulent  ophthalmia. 

Susanna  Thomas  (16786),  refused  pereistently  to 
submit  bag  and  appliances  for  inspection,  defence 
being  that,  as  she  is  Welsh,  she  cannot  under- 
stand directions  in  English. 

Elizabeth  W^illiams  (4001),  did  not  advise  medical 
assistance  for  inflammation  of  infant's  eyes.     The 
sight  of  one  eye  lost  in  consequence. 
Sevehelt  Censured. 

Mary  Frankham  (236),  a  portion  of  the  placenta 
having  been  retained,  and  the  temperature  high, 
with  rigor;  did  not  advise  medical  assistance. 

Alice  Turner  (19429),  failed   to  notify   death   of 

infant   in   proper   form ;    also  a  second   charge   of 

having,  in    the    case    of    another    infant,  advised 

medical  assistance,  arid  failed  to  notify  the  same. 

Censuked. 

Elizabeth  Anderson  (520),  did  not  advise  medical 
assistance  for  inflammation  of  infant's  eyes.  It 
was  shown  that  the  midwife  walked  four  miles  each 
way  to  this  case  daily. 

Adjoubned. 

Jane  Robinson  (5134),  negligence  on  several 
charges.  Defence  for  not  taking  temperature  at 
rigor,  experience  teaclies  her  when  temperature  is 
raised. 

Charlotte  Flanagan  (1.5702),  negligence  on 
several  counts ;    uncleanly. 

Mary  Adkins  (1385),  case  adjourned  ;  to  be  re- 
I^rted  on  in  three  and  six  months. 

C.iirTIOSED. 

Elizabeth  Baveretock  1^10281)  did  not  send  for 
doctor  in  case  of  adherent  placenta ;  patient  died. 

Adelaide  Barker  (8979)  cliarged  with  neglect  of 
patient  and  want  of  cleanliness. 

Arabella  Matilda  Hopton  (10731),  charged  with 
neglecting  to  send  for  a  doctor,  symptoms  of  puer- 
peral fever  having  developed  after  the  tenth  day. 

Sarah  .lane  Long  (2350)  neglected  to  send  for 
medical  assistance  for  symptoms  of  pueri>eral 
fever,  and  with  having  given  douches  with  an 
enema  syringe. 

Sarah  King  (23594),  charged  with  (a)  patient 
suffering  from  loss  of  blood,  did  not  advise  medical 
assistance ;  (h)  though  engaged  to  attend,  did  not 
do  so.      Defence,   illness. 

Ax  Altern.\tive. 

Emma  5Ieasom  (12005)  neglecte<l  to  report  in- 
flammation in  infant's  eyes,  .and  other  charges; 
to  send   up  her  register;rf)r  be  struck  off  Roll. 

Sarah  .lane  Cix>we  (21434)  refused  to  submit  hei 
bag,  appliances,  etc.,  for  -inspection.  Ordered  to 
send  up  certificate  or  be  struck  off  the  Roll. 

Maria  Penfold  (6704),  negligence  and  incom- 
petence.    To  resign  or  be  struck  off  Roll. 


THE 

li&i 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED   BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.  1,155. 


SATURDAY,     MAY     21,     1910. 


EMtorial. 


THE     WORK    OF    SCHOOL    NURSES. 

At    the    present    time   there   is   a  great 
demand  for  nurses  who  are  not  onh'  well 
trained   professionally,   bnt    who    are,    by 
education  and   position,  qualified   to  cope 
with  the  responsibilities  and  dilliculties  with 
which  they  are  constantly  confronted,  and 
in  no  branch  of  nursing  is  this  more  neces- 
sary than  in  school  nursing,  where  the  rela- 
tions of  nurse  and   parent   need  tact  and 
delicacy  on  the  part  of  the  former  if  her 
objects    are    to    be    achieved    thoroxighly 
and  pleasantly.     It  is  therefore  regrettable 
there     is    some     danger     that     education 
authorities     should,     for     the     sake      of 
clieapness,    sanction    the    employment    as 
school  nurses  of  women  trained  only  in  the 
rudiments  of  nursing,  and  drawn  from  the 
same  station   in  life  as  tlie   parents,  with 
whom  they  have  to  deal.    In  relation  to  ques- 
tions of  health,  cleanliness,  and  the  bringing 
up  of  children,  parents  of  the  working  classes 
will  often  receive  and  act  upon  advice  wisely 
tendered  to  them  by  one  to  whom  they  look 
up    and    respect,    but    the    hard-working 
mother  of  a  family  may  be  pardoned  for 
resenting  what   she  regards  as  the   inter- 
ference of  a  young  girl  of  her  own  class, 
with   a   brief   and  inadequate  training  in 
nursing,    in    respect    to   the   care   of    her 
children. 

A  very  sore  subject  with  most  parents  is 
the  cleansing  of  children's  heads,  and  they 
are  immediately  on  the  defensive  when,  after 
due  examination,  it  is  intimated  to  them  by 
the  nurse,  acting  as  the  agent  of  the  Educa- 
tion Authority,  that  such  cleansing  is  needed. 
Much  tact  and  discretion  are  necessary  in 
order  that  this  part  of  a  nurses  work  may 
be  accomplished  with  the  least  amount  of 
friction,  and  practical  experience  is  also  a 


guide  as  to  the  best  method  to  be  pursued. 
Thus  a  school  nurse  under  the  Devon  Educa- 
tion Committee,  whose  work  in  tliis  connec- 
tion has,  in  some  instances,  been  so  greatly 
resented  that  it  has  been  necessary  for 
her  to  be  shadowed  bj'  police  in  the  per- 
formance of  her  duties,  has  found  that  the 
ser\'ing  of  official  notices  on  the  parents  of 
school  children  whose  heads  are  not  clean,  is 
greatly  resented.  The  nurse  now  visits  the 
homes  of  the  worst  cases  after  inspecting  the 
children  in  the  schools,  and  has  found  her 
advice  as  to  the  treatment  of  the  heads  wel- 
comed, as  well  as  other  suggestions  in  regard 
to  health  matters.  It  is  quite  possible  for  a 
nurse,  when  visiting  a  parent  and  instruct- 
ing her  as  to  the  necessary  measures  to  be 
adopted,  to  assuage  heroiitraged  feelings  by 
speaking  of  the  liability  to  infection  of 
clean  heads  in  a  mixed  school,  where  chil- 
dren sit  side  liy  side,  and  where  caps  and 
hats  may  be  interchanged  during  playtime, 
and  to  enlist  her  sympathy  and  help  ;  for  just 
as  scarlet  fever  and  measles  run  through  a 
school  if  not  promjitly  dealt  with,  so  pediculi 
are  quickly  communicated  from  child  to 
child,  even  to  the  children  of  the  cleanest 
and  most  careful  parents,  and  all  should 
feel  an  interest  in  co-operating  with  the 
nurse  to  eradicate  this  evil. 

It  will  be  seen  that  in  this  instance,  and 
in  many  others  connected  with  liygiene  and 
cleanliness,  the  way  in  which  the  situation 
is  presented  to  the  parents  is  all  important, 
and  Education  Authorities  cannot  be  too 
particular,  or  too  careful,  in  the  selection  of 
the  nurses  upon  whom  these  important  and 
delicate  duties  devolve.  It  should  be  recog- 
nised that  to  hold  ollice  as  a  School  Nurse . 
is  to  be  a  public  servant  whose  work  is 
expert  and  honourable,  and  who,  therefore, 
should  command  confidence  and  respect 
from  the  parents  of  the  chihlren. 


406 


^Dc  Bvttisb  Journal  of  "Wursma. 


[May  21,  1910 


nDc&ical  flOatters. 


RECENT  SURGERY. 

In  his  last  lecture  on  "  Eecent"  Surgery," 
at  Guy's  HosiDital,  ilr.  E.  C.  Hughes  reviewed 
the  various  cures  for  cancer  that  had 
been  tried  during  the  last  few  years.  He 
first  gave  a  description  of  the  difierent  kinds 
of  cancer  of  the  breast,  and  showed  why  the 
disease  was  so  baffling  and  difficult  to  cure,  and 
also  why  the  many  so-called  cures  proved 
futile.  Many  attempts,  he  said,  had  been  made 
to  cure  cancer  on  medical  lines,  but  they  had 
all  fallen  into  abeyance,  except  the  caustic 
treatment,  which  would  always  be  used  by 
the  ignorant  quack. 

Cancer  cures  were  also  being  prepared  in  the 
laboratory.  Doyen  had  prepared  a  serum  by 
repeatedly  injecting  cultures  of  the  Micrococ- 
cus Neofomians  (which  he  and  others  thought 
was  the  responsible  organism  of  cancer)  into 
animals,  and  subsequently  drawing  off  the 
blood.  He  obtained  results  which  he  claimed 
as  satisfactory,  but  the  method  has  fallen  into 
abeyance,  as  it  was  shown  to  be  useless. 
Other  experimenters  used  a  vaccine  consisting 
of  measured  doses  of  the  killed  cultures  of  the 
iNIicrococcus  Neofomians,  which  they  sup- 
posed to  be  the  cause,  b\it  this  method,  too,  has 
been  given  up  as  of  no  avail. 

The  most  promising  of  the  bacterial  methods 
is  that  of  Coley's  fluid,  and  some  of  the  results 
are  wonderful.  Coley  injects  sterilised  unfil- 
tered  cultures  of  the  Streptococcus  of  Erysipe- 
las mixed  with  Bacillus  Prodigeosus.  Gi«at 
care  must  be  taken  in  giving  the  fluid,  so  as  to 
prevent  chill.  The  average  duration  of  treat- 
ment in  successful  cases  was  about  two  to 
three  months,  but  the  fluid  had  been  given 
for  long  periods,  2i  to  4  years,  without  doing 
any  harm. 

Save  in  cases  of  rodent  ulcer,  X  rays  had 
proved  very  disappointing,  the  treatment  being 
only  local;  it  does  not  in  any  way  affect  the 
secondary  deposits  in  parts  of  the  body  other 
than  that  under  exposure.  It  is  impossible  to 
administer  a  sufficiently  strong  exposure  to 
modify  growths  in  the  viscera  without  injury 
to  the  skin,  but  in  cases  where  the  disease  is 
superficial  treatment  by  X  rays  almost  always 
relieves  pain,  retards  growth,  and  produces  re- 
trogressive changes,  aiid  enables  many  patients 
to  resume  their  everj'day  life. 

Radium  has  also  been  tried,  and  Abbe  has 
achieved  wonderful  successes  with  it,  but  he 
has  unlimited  quantities  at  his  coimnand. 
When  it  is  possible  to  use  it  in  grammes  instead 
of  millegrammes,  a  great  advance  may  take 
place  in  its  usefulness. 


The  High  Frequency  apparatus  has  been 
used  during  the  last  few  years,  and  the  treat- 
ment is  known  as  Fulguration.  The  patient  is 
put  under  an  ansesthetic,  and  the  electric  spark 
applied  for  a  period  of  5  to  40  minutes,  after 
whicli  the  cancerous  growth  is  removed,  and 
the  wound  is  again  exposed  to  the  spark  for 
about  5  to  15  minutes  to  kill  any  remaiDiuL' 
cancer  cells.  At  the  time  of  operation  and 
after,  cases  seem  satisfactory,  yet  later  the  can- 
cer again  occurs.  It  is  found  to  be  of  no  us«r 
when  the  cancer  has  reached  inaccessible  parts. 
It  is,  however,  -a  useful  method,  as  it  makes 
the  patients  more  comfortable  for  the  time 
being,  the  absence  of  pain  when  compared  witli 
the  extreme  pain  after  an  extensive  cutting 
operation,  is  very  marked. 

The  Lecturer  also  gave  a  short  description 
of  the  Opsonic  Treatment,  which  has  beer 
so  much  in  use  since  1906. 

ZYiVIOTIC  ENTERITIS. 

The  second  lecture  in  the  course  of  "  Lcl-- 
tures  on  Babies,"  which  is  being  delivered  by 
Dr.  Ealph  Vincent  at  the  Infants'  Hospital, 
Vincent  Square,  was  on  Zymotic  Enteritis  and 
the  condition  under  which  the  disease  arises. 

He  said  that  this  was  the  most  fatal  disease 
of  infancy,  and,  despite  the  advances  whieli 
sanitation  has  made,  no  corresponding  improve- 
ment is  observable  in  the  infant  mortality 
rates..  On  the  contrary,  epidemic  diarrhcea 
(the  official  name  of  the  disease),  is  steadily 
increasing  as  a  factor  in  the  causation  of  death.s 
among  infants  under  one  year  of  age. 
Diarrhoea  which  formerly  caused  the  death  6i 
10  per  cent,  of  the  infants  who  die  h«s  in- 
creased in  half  a  century  to  15  per  cent. 

There  has  been  a  vast  improvement  in  theu- 
general  environment,  but  the  problem  of  inf  aiK' 
mortaUty  still  remains,  because  of  the  increase 
of  these  diseases — prematurity,  pneumon'.n, 
and  diarrhoea. 

The  increase  in  the  proportion  of 
deaths  from  respiratorj^  diseases  is  pro- 
bably closely  connected  with  the  in- 
ciease  in  diarrhoea.  Healthy  infants  are 
not  very  frequently  attacked  by  serious  disease 
of  the  lung  as  a  primary  affection.  Infant.s 
ma*t  liable  to  suffer  from  zymotic  enteritis  in 
its  most  fatal  form  are  those  in  whom  alimen- 
tary disorders  have  been  established  for  some 
time.  The  disease  is  so  fatal,  that  it  is  of 
greater  moment  to  consider  the  methods  by 
which  it  may  be  prevented,  than  its  cure.  For 
with  the  most  expert  treatment  the  recovery  of 
the  infant  is  really  dependent  on  the  dose  of 
poison  received,  the  pr-ecise  virulence  of  the 
poison,  and  the  vigour  of  the  infant. 

It  is  in  no  sense  an  infectious  disease,  and 


May  21. 1910]       ^ij^  JSritisb  Sourual  of  '.Ruvsma. 


407 


cannot  !)c  c'juveyed  by  contagion.  Between 
the  circumstances  of  the  jKior  Irish  breast-fed 
baby  living  in  London,  and  those  of  the  infant 
warded  in  the  Infants'  Hospital,  ther^  is  a 
wide  dit*ereuce,  and  also  a  remarkable  corres- 
pondence. Both  are  fed  on  pure  raw  milk, 
and  both  are  immune  from  the  disease.  The 
organisms  which  produce  zymotic  enteritis 
esdst  in  the  mouth  of  every  healthy  infant,  but 
they  cannot  attack  milk  in  its  natural  state, 
and  it  cannot  be  too  strongly  emphasised  that 
these  organisms  of  putrefaction  do  not  directly 
pixxluce  the  disease,  even  when  myriads  of 
them  reach  the  alimentary  canal  of  the  infant 
they  ai'e  unable  to  attack  it.  Their  action  is 
one  which  is  exercised  entirely  on  the  milk 
whether  inside  or  outside  the  infant. 

The  efiective  cause  of  zvmotic  enteritis  is 
not  the  organisms  which  finally  promote  its 
production,  but  the  method  by  means  of  which 
the  infant  has  been  deprived  of  its  natural  safe- 
guards against  them.  The  fundamental  char- 
acteristic of  the  natural  food  of  the  infant  is 
that  it  is  a  raw  tiuid. 

No  serious  amehoration  in  the  mortality 
arising  from  this  disease  can  be  anticipated 
until  the  fullest  protection  of  pure  raw  milk  is 
secured  for  every  Infant,  and  special  precau- 
tions must  be  taken  at  times  when  heat  and 
dust  are  prevalent,  to  secure  that  the  milk  for 
the  use  of  infants  shall  be  preserved  fresh  and 
unboiled. 


Zbc  "Dowaocr  Ouccn  of  S^vc^cn 

anO  the  3ntcrnational  Council 

of  TRiu-^cg. 

The  following  letter  has  been  received  by 
Miss  L.  L.  Dock,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Inter- 
national Council  of  Nurses,  from  the  Dowager 
Qu^en  Sophia  of  Sweden.  In  appreciation  of 
her  Majesty's  personal  interest  in  the  work  of 
the  Council  and  the  Ixjndon  Congj-ess  a 
specially  bound  volume  of  the  Transactions  has 
been  sent  to  her. 

High  Grove,    Pinner, 
De.\r  Miss  Dock.  6th  March,  1910. 

Her  Majesty  the  Dowager  Queen  of  Sweden 
commands  me  to  express  her  ^lajesty's  best 
thanks  for  the  Council  of  Nurses'  kind  gift  of 
its  Report.  IfXiO. 

Bflieve   me,   yours   sincerely. 

OSSBAHR. 

Chamherlain  in  AHendancc. 


Since  the  London  Congress  the  Swedish 
Nurses,  whose  professional  attitude  inspired 
confidence    and    admiration,  "have    formed    a 

Swedi>h  Nurses'  Association. 


THotcs  on  Cubcrculau  Ibip  Bl^caec. 

The  Hip  .Joint. 

ii.e  l..p  ;,'.:it  is  formed  by  the  superior  ueua 
of  the  femur,  which  articulates  with  the  aceta- 
bulum. Tht:  acetabulum  (^or  cotyloid  cavity  i  is 
formed  by  junction  of  the  three  bones  of  tiie 
pelvis,  viz..  the  ilium,  ischium,  and  pubes.  Ar- 
ticular cartilage,  synovial  membrane,  and  tat 
line  the  cavity,  and  cover  the  head  of  the 
femur,  and  the  capsule  encloses  the  joint  (being 
strengthened  by  many  other  important  liga- 
njents),  and  completely  surrounds  the  surgical 
neck  of  the  femur.  The  greater  and  lesser  tro- 
chanter are  situated  outside  the  hip  joint,  and 
give  attachment  to  many  of  the  deep  muscles 
of  the  thigh. 

Injury  to  the  Tempor.aby  Cartilage. 

Before  passing  on  it  may  be  well  to  men- 
tion that  in  the  child,  temporary  cartilage  will 
be  found  in  the  pelvis,  and  also  at  the  ends  of 
shafts  of  the  long  bones.  It  is  from  these  pads 
of  temporary  cartilage  growth  takes  place  in 
the  limb.  If  the  limb  receives  injury  the  car- 
tilaginous cells  are  thrown  out  of  action,  the 
bony  cells  at  once  become  active,  causing  per- 
manent shortening  of  the  limb,  which  will  be 
more  noticeable  as  the  child  gi-ows. 

Recogsitiox  -Ocd  Cause  of  Hip  Disease. 

In  ascertaining  the  previous  history  of  a 
child  with  tubercular  hip  disease,  there  is 
usually  a  tubercular  history,  and  also  the  ac- 
count of  a  fall  or  blow,  perhaps  quite  of  a  slight 
nature.  Some  inflammatory  condition  has  re- 
sult-ed.  which  assists  the  tubercle  bacilli  (al- 
ready in  the  blood  stream)  to  multiply  and  set 
up  mischief  in  this  joint. 

One  of  the  saddest  features  of  hip  disease  is 
that  it  is  rarely  placed  under  proper  treatment 
until  the  disease  has  become  well  estabUshed. 
It  is  therefore  the  duty  of  all  nurses  to  be  able 
tv  recognise  certain  abnormal  conditions,  and 
bring  them  to  the  notice  of  a  medical  man,  or  of 
a  parent  of  the  child.  A  child  suffering  from 
hip  disease  in  the  first  stage  will  suffer  no  pain 
and  stand  as  below. 

First  position. — Patient  bends  knee  out- 
wards, everts  and  abducts  foot,  stands  with 
one  foot  away  from  the  qjher,  and  will  be  re- 
luctant to  move.  In  this  position  the  diseased 
leg  looks  longer  than  the  healthy  one. 

Second  position. — Anterior  curvature  of 
spine,  termed  "  Lordosis."  Patient  has  the 
appearance  of  an  exaggerated  waist.  This  con- 
dition must  not  be  confused  with  a  similar  one 
seen  in  rachitis. 

Tliird  position. — Patient  bends  knee  inward* 
and  foot  outwards.  Lordosis  is  also  present. 
Patient's  leg  has    the    appearance     of    being 


408 


Zt)e  Briti^b  30urnai  of  IHursfnG. 


[May  21,  1910 


shorter  than  the  healthy  Hnib. 

Fourth  iwsitioH. — Leg  fixed  and  shortened. 
The  muscles  of  the  thigh  waste  from  the  be- 
ginning of  the  disease,  but  are  not  ai  first  no- 
liceable.  Abscesses  may  or  may  not  be  pre- 
sent. 

Usual  Treatment  of  Hip  Disease. 

Eest. 

Fresh  air. 

Good  nourishment  and  cod  hver  oil.    Rarely 
in  the  houses  of  the  poor  can  this  be  obtained. 
Scrupulous  cleanliness  should    also   be  added, 
with  regular  care  of  the  teeth. 
Tueatmext. 

.hitiioxins  at  present  hold  the  field, 
Tubereuline,  and  other  similar  prepara- 
tions. These  appear  to  be  helpful,  unless  the 
pus-germ  predominates,  or  one  or  other  of  the 
internal  organs  have  become  affected.  It  is 
well  to  thoroughly  examine  the  urine  on  com- 
ing into  touch  with  a  new  case.  This  is  usually 
done  by  the  medical  man  or  the  nurse. 

Best. — This  means  complete  rest  of  both 
limbs  equally.  A  single  bed,  fracture  boards, 
even  mattress  are  all  needed:  "tie-downs" 
made  of  webbing,  arm-holes  with  chest  strap, 
and  a  leather  strap  passed  through  the  ami- 
holes  and  fastening  on  to  side  of  bed  are 
humane  and  helpful,  preventing  the  child  sit- 
ting up.  Extension  of  varying,  weight  (with 
cradle  which  prevents  pressure  of  clothes) 
steadies  the  leg,  and  prevents  friction  in  the 
joint,  extension  is  always  beneficial  in  the 
earlier  periods,  but  does  not  seem  to  help  much 
in  long  standing  cases  with  much  shortening, 
save  when  an  operation  "  excision  "  or  another 
has  been  performed. 

A  pillow  in  the  earlier  stages  is  not  desirable. 
Sandbags  should  always  be  used.  Splints  will 
be  selected  by  the  surgeon^ — as  a  rule — in  the 
earlier  stage,"  double  Listons  with  extension 
and  cradle  are  applied,  both  limbs  are  thus 
kept  on  the  same  level  by  a  pillow  when  the 
child  needs  attention. 

In  the  second  position  a  single  Liston  on  the 
healthy  limb,  well  sandbagged,  is  used,  while 
the  affected  limb  is  raised  on  an  inclined  plane 
with  extension  to  a  suiScient  height  to  bring 
the  back  flat  on  the  bed.  After  this  treatment 
has  been  kept  up,  1*e  leg  is  usually  found  able 
to  be  gradually  lowered,  and  the  anterior  curve 
to  disappear.  Great  care  must  be  exercised  in 
this  position  to  keep  the  pelvis  level  and  the 
limb  at  rest.  Blocks  under  the  foot  of  bed 
are  useful  when  extensions  are  used. 

In  the  later  conditions  the  splints  usually 
employed  are  Thomas's  single  or  double  as  the 
ease  requires — the  double  one  made- -on  the 
pattern  of  the  ii="-)   -nic'l-  ■>"-=■.   in  a 


of 


double  hip  disease,  i>  prfK-ralile  to  the  variety 
with  body  pad  qnd  abducted  legs  from  the 
nurse's  point  of  view,  for  the  child  will  need  to 
be  taken  out  of  this  splint  more  frequently. 
This  incurs  the  danger  of  the  pelvis  being 
moved.  The  pads  are  also  unsanitary  where 
the  condition  is  much  advanced,  and  sinuses 
are  present.  Another  point,  the  child  is  not 
happy  in  one  of  this  pattern  as  a  rule.  A  modi- 
fication of  the  other  pattern,  with  legs  ab- 
ducted (should  this  be  found  necessary  by  the 
surgeon)  api>ears  easy,  and  much  more  con- 
venient. The  care  of  the  back  in  hip  disease 
must  always  be  a  consideration. 

Fresh  air. — For  the  tubercular  child  an  abun- 
dance of  fresh  air  is  essential.  Open  air  treat- 
ment on  a  modified  scale  has  the  most  happy 
results,  especially  if  suitshine  is  abundant. 
Sea  air  and  an  absence  of  the  dust  of  the  high- 
way are  also  beneficial.  In  carrying  the  patient 
otit  of  doors  the  um'se  must  have  the  healthy 
limb  next  her,  and  support  the  pelvis  with  one 
hand.  Well  ventilated  rooms  and  open  win- 
dows and  cleanliness  are  a  necessity. 
Nourishment. 

A  generous  diet,  varied  and  including  some 
fats,  bacon  fat  and  drij)ping  being  very  helpful. 
Some  preparation  of  cod  liver  oil  is  t:eiitr:illy 
ordered  and  taken  well. 

WOUXDS. 

In  old  standing  hip  cases  there  are  frequently 
many  sinuses ;  a  change  of  the  kind  of  dressing 
used  is  most  valuable.  Boracic  seems  specially 
to  suit  children,  and 'as  a  rule  dry  sterilised 
dressings  are  to  be  prefeiTed,  carried  otit  on 
aseptic  lines  daily.  When  healing  has  been 
accomplished,  a  prolonged  rest  of  li  years  in 
bed  or  lying  out  of  doors  should  be  enforced. 
Too  much  hurry  in  this  respect  means  disap- 
pointment and  further  mischief. 
Mental  Coxditiox. 

Tubercular  children  are  usually  divided  into 
two  classes,  the  Phlegmatic  and  the  Acute.  It 
has  been  my  experience  that  hip  disease 
usually  attacks  the  acute  type  of  child.  I  give 
this  merely  as  a  hypothesis,  having  no  statis- 
tics to  go  upon. 

]\Ientally  they  need  training  and  teaching 
just  as  much  as  their  healthy  brothers  and 
sisters.  Usually  they  learn  quickly,  especially 
simple  handicrafts,  and  no  one  can  doubt  the 
great  benefits  accruing  to  children  who  are  thus 
employed ;  singing  is  also  a  valuable  and  much 
loved  occupation.  On  looking  over  these 
notes,  I  find  I  have  barely  mentioned  the  sub- 
ject of  extensions.  On  this  point  I  would  like 
a  busy  children's  Ward  Sister's  opinion  as  to 
which  is  the  best,  and  most  easily  applied. 
^Iadge  Suttox. 


Mav  21.  U'lii 


Zi)c  Britisb  3ournal  ot  iHiirsiiuj. 


409 


Ipatboijciicsis  an&   (Treatment 
of  6out. 

All  intcrcbtiiig  discussion  on  the  paiu'j;.'-ii'>:? 
and  treatment  ot  gout,  as  reported  by  the 
Britisli  Medical  Journal,  took  place  recently  at 
the  Berlin  Society  for  Internal  Medicine 
and  Children's  Diseases.  It  was  introduced 
by  Dr.  Brugsch,  whose  researches  on  gouty 
uictabolisni  in  collaboration  with  \h\  Sehitten- 
helni,  are  well  known.  In  his  opening  remarks 
he  assumed  it  to  be  established  that  gout  was 
caused  by  a  disturbance  of  the  nuclein  ex- 
changes, but  added  that  analysis  of  the  blood 
showed  that  there  was  no  retention  of  uric 
acid  in  gouty  subjects,  nor  any  diflference  in 
this  respect  between  them  and  normal  persons. 

Dr.  Hesse,  of  Kissingen,  compared  gout  with 
diabetes,  both  being  disorders  of  nutrition 
which  require  dietetic  treatment  and  are  unin- 
fluenced by  drugs.  As  he  considered  the  neces- 
sary data  for  constructing  a  suitable  dietary  did 
not  exist,  he  had  made  a  fresh  analysis  of  the 
chief  articles  of  food  by  the  method  of  Krueger 
and  Schmidt,  and  found  that  veal  contained 
1.3  per  cent,  of  nuclein,  liver,  kidney,  and 
brain  0.4  per  cent,  to  0.2  per  cent.,  butcher's 
meat  and  poultry  0.18  to  0.19,  pigeon  a  little 
less,  0.15  per  cent.  There  was  no  difference 
between  white  and  red  meats,  but  fresh  water 
fish  (0.20  per  cent.)  contain  more  nuclein  than 
salt  water  fish  (0.13  per  cent.).  Oysters  be- 
longed to  the  former  group  and  caviare  to  the 
second.  The  principal  vegetables  contained  a 
little,  but  milk  and  eggs  were  practically  free. 
He  thought  it  possible  with  these  data  to  pre- 
pare a  suitable  diet  table,  but  it  proved  to  be 
monotonous,  and  he  recommended  the  addition 
of  a  certain  amount  of  nuclein-containing  food 
in  accordance  with  the  proved  tolerance  of  each 
individual,  just  as  carbohj'drates  are  added  to 
a  diabetic  diet.  The  strictness  of  the  diet  must 
depend  upon  the  gravity  of  the  case,  which 
should  be  estimated  by  taking  into  account  all 
the  general  clinical  considerations. 

In  a  table  of  the  pnrin  free  content  of  certain 
foodstuffs  prepared  by  Miss  Catherine  I.  Wil- 
liams, of  Universitv  College,  Bristol,  the  purin 
content  of  meat  and  poultry  is  from  0.09  per 
cent,  (muttonl  to  0.2  per  cent,  (beef),  salmon 
and  halibut  0.1  per  cent,  to  0.11  per  cent.,  cod 
and  plaice  0.05  per  cent,  to  0.07  per  cent., 
potatoes  0.002  per  cent.,  and  peas  0.039  per 
cent.  She  did  not  detect  any  nuclein  in  milk, 
butter,  eggs,  cheese,  rice,  flour,  and  bread. 
With  the  aid  of  her  table,  it  is  easy  to  prepare 
a  purin-free  diet  table,  which  should  exclude 
butcher's  meat,  poultry,  fish,  tea,  coffee,  cocoa, 
and  alcohol. 


Z\K  Tlxelations  of  IHuvsinG  an^ 
HDeDicine.- 

15v  lIuiiKin  Sk\estre,  M.D. 


HlSTOKlCAL  KeL.^TION. 

From  time  immemorial  the  relationship  be- 
tween nursing  and  medicine  has  been  a  close 
and  constant  one,  it  may  be  said  to  be  a  part- 
nership in  which  nursing  has  always  been  the 
senior  partner.  Professor  Osier,  in  one  of  his 
writings  mentions  a  tradition  of  Eve  nursing 
her  grandson,  Enoch,  and  instructing  his 
mother,  Mahala,  how  to  comfort  and  soothe 
him,  a  tradition  we  may  well  believe  to  be  tnae. 

This  is  neither  the  time  nor  the  place  for  me 
to  enter  into  an  account  of  the  time  when  wo- 
men combined  the  two  professions  in  one,  or 
when  they  were  to  a  large  extent  in  the  hands 
of  men-.  In  the  histories  of  medicine  and  in 
that  charming  work,  "  A  History  of  Nursing," 
much  interesting  information  will  be  found, 
bearing  on  what  may  be  called  the  historical 
relation  of  the  two.  I  merely  wish  to  draw 
your  attention  to  this  aspect  of  the  subject,  for 
traditions  are  not  only  of  value  in  helping  us 
to  avoid  mistakes,  but  also  in  forming  ideals 
and  inspiration  for  future  efforts. 

Scientific  Relation. 
"  One  "of  the  darkest  periods  in  nursing  was 
undoubtedly  in  the  eighteenth  century,  and  it 
is  only  in  the  last  50  years  that  much  progress 
has  been  made,  and  that  nursing  has  risen  to 
be  a  profession.  The  progress  has  been  truly 
astounding.  It  is  one  that  very  few  people 
even  among  doctors  and  nurses,  realise  or  un- 
derstand, and  what  is  more,  this  progress  is 
bound  to  be  maintained,  for  as  long  as  the 
science  of  medicine  advances  that  of  nursing 
will  advance  also,  and  the  time  cannot  be  far 
off  when  highly  skilled  nursing  will  be  con- 
sidered, more  generally  than  it  is  at  present, 
to  be  in  reality  a  branch  of  medicine.  This 
brings  me  to  the  second  part  of  my  subject, 
namely,  the  relationship  in  scientific  subject.s. 
In  the  training  for  medicine,  or  for  the  matter 
of  that,  of  any  science,  keen  observation  and 
minute  exactness  of  detail  are  most  essential, 
and  are  early  inculcated  into  the  student. 
Surely  these  are  among  the  very  quaUties  that 
are  required  in  nursing.  Further,  those  whose 
lives  are  passed  among  the  sufferers  of  ill 
health  require  to  have  some  knowledge 
of  the  laws  that  govern  good  health, 
and  of  the  normal  functions  of  the 
various  parts  of  the  human  body ;  this  is  ob- 
tained in  the  study  of  anatomy,  physiolojjy, 

*  Read  before  the  International  Congress  of 
Nurses,  London,  1909. 


410 


^bc  Britisb  3ournal  of  IFiurstncj. 


[May  21,  1910 


and  hygiene,  and  these  are  among  the  subjects 
that  students  of  medicine  and  nursing  are 
taught.  It  is  true  that  the  studies  of  the  former 
are  carried  to  an  advanced  degree,  but  then  a 
higher  degree  of  expert  knowledge  is  required 
from  them,  and  it  does  not  detract  from  the 
fact  that  both  should  have  a  good  grounding  in 
the  elements  of  these  sciences. 

This  need  of  scientific  training  should  be 
more  recognised,  for  its  importance  is  becoming 
greater  day  by  day,  one  or  two  instances  of  the 
necessity  of  this  will  not  be  out  of  place.  It  is 
not  too  much  to  say  that  the  majority  of  opera- 
tions in  the  present  day  are  completely  depen- 
dent for  their  success  on  the  aseptic  environ- 
ment of  the  patient,  and  this  depends  on  the 
most  minute  care  of  the  part  of  all  those 
\^•ho  are  in  any  way  brought  m  contact  with 
the  patient,  and  I  need  not  remind  you  that 
any  want  of  the  appreciation  of  the  dangers  or 
any  want  of  exactness  in  detail  may  leave  a 
weak  link  in  the  aseptic  chain,  and  this  will 
bring  about  one  of  those  surgical  calamities 
that  all  so  deeply  deplore.  Attention  has  been 
called  to  this  need  in  a  recent  editorial  in  one 
of  the  journals  devoted  to  nursing,  as 
follows:  — 

"  It  is  obvious  that  if  the  aseptic  ritual  is  to 
be  thoroughly  carried  out,  nurses  must  not  only 
be  prepared  to  give  exact  effect  to  the  directions 
they  receive,  but  they  must  also  understand 
the  rules  which  are  the  basis  of  the  aseptic 
method,  and  must  bring  their  intelligence  to 
bear  upon  their  work  so  that  it  may  be 
thorough  in  every  detail." 

It  is  not  only  in  this  branch  of  medicine,  but 
m  others,  that  this  scientific  spirit  is  required. 
It  is  sometimes  said  that  typhoid  fever  is  a 
disease  essentially  for  nursing,  and  it  is  true 
that  skilled  nursing  is  invaluable,  but  however 
careful  and  conscientious  a  nurse  may  be, 
unless  there  is  a  keen  observation  and  a  trained 
intelligence  to  value  correctly  the  facts  ob- 
served, an  early  perforation  may  be  overlooked 
and  many  precious  hours  lost. 

Instances  need  not  be  multiplied  of  this  value 
of  the  leaven  of  science.  It  is  a  part  of  the 
nurses'  training  to  which  attention  is  not  al- 
ways sufficiently  paid ;  different  training  schools 
have  different  standards,  and  there  is  no  recog- 
nised i^ortal  of  entrance. 

It  would  be  a  great  gain  to  nursing,  to  medi- 
cine, and  to  the  public  alike  if  there  was  a  re- 
cognised standard  of  knowledge  required,  as 
there  is  in  the  case  of  other  professions.  It  is 
not  to  be  supposed  that  this  increase  of  scien- 
tific training  is  advocated  at  the  expense  of 
other  qualities  required  in  nursing,  but  rather 
that  more  attention  should  be  paid  to  it,  for  it 


would  lead  to  a  greater  interest  in  the  work,  a 
greater  efiiciency,  and  in  the  end  would  be  of 
greater  assistance  to  medicine.  I  have  often 
thought  that  medicine  would  gain  much  if  some 
skilled  and  observant  member  of  your  profes- 
sion would  write  of  disease  out  of  the  fulness 
of  knowledge  gained  by  a  long  experience  at  the 
bedside. 

That  troubles  arise  from  increased  knowledge 
is  not  the  case,  and  this  idea  had  been  refuted 
repeatedly  by  experience,  not  only  in  this  but 
in  other  fields  of  learning  as  well.  Dangers  he 
in  half  knowledge,  and  with  a  closer  scientific 
relationship  a  deeper  sense  of  responsibihty 
and  a  greater  confidence  in  each  other  would 
develop. 

In  the  address  of  the  President  of  your 
Council  the  future  expansion  of  nursing  was 
clearly  and  admirably  outlined,  inasmuch  as 
the  two  jjrofessious  are  not  only  associated  in 
the  relief  of  suffering,  but  in  the  future  will 
be  associated  in  the  maintenance  of  good 
health.  All  the  greater  necessity,  there- 
fore, for  an  increase  in  the  standard  of  training 
and  knowledge. 

Ethical  Eelation. 
It  is  not  for  me  to  enlarge  upon  the  many 
advantages  that  nursing  has  been  to  medicine, 
not  the  least  has  been  that  the  work  of  medi- 
cine has  been  made  easier  to  the  practitioners. 
With  the  advent  of  tlie  nurse  the  sense  of  relief 
to  the  doctor  to  feel  that  there  is  a  skilled  and 
responsible  person  in  charge  has  to  be  felt  to 
be  appreciated.  And  who  has  not  seen  order 
come  out  of  chaos,  and  the  fretted  nerves  of 
patients  and  friends  soothed  and  quieted.  In 
fact,  we  may  look  upon  nursing  in  the  abstract 
as  a  therapeutic  agent  of  great  value,  a  reme- 
dial application,  sometimes  pleasant,  some- 
times unpleasant,  but  nearly  alwaj's  beneficial. 
Another  aspect  of  the  subject  which  has  to 
be  considered  may  be  called  the  ethical.  It  is 
an  interesting  and  a  significant  fact,  that  Miss 
Nightingale  in  her  writings,  especially  in  the 
"  Notes  on  Nursing,"  makes  no  remarks  on  the 
relationship  of  nurses  and  doctors,  and  I  sup- 
pose that  no  one  had  greater  difficulties  to  con- 
tend against  or  overcame  them  so  successfully. 
To  lay  down  any  set  rules  for  the  guidance  of 
the  two  professions  in  this  relationship  to  each 
other  would  be  well  nigh  impossible,  nor  do 
I  feel  tempted  to  undertake  such  a  Herculean 
task  that  would  be  boinid  to  end  in  failure. 
With  the  ever-increasing  knowledge  of  medi- 
cine and  the  greater  requirements  therefore  in 
nursing,  fresh  problems  are  constantly  arising 
and  the  relations  of  the  two  have  to  be  modi- 
fied. Also  the  work  is  carried  on  under  such 
varied  conditions  that  rules  which  would  apply 


May  21,  1910; 


^hc  Brittsb  3oiunal  of  iHnrstnG. 


411 


in  one  case  would  certainly  not  apply  in  an- 
other. One  or  two  broad  principles,  however, 
stand  out  clearly.  The  ultimate  object  o^  both 
is  the  same,  namely,  the  alleviation  of  suffer- 
ing, and  surely,  there  is  scope  enough  and  to 
spare  for  the  two  to  work  side  by  side  with  the 
same  end  in  view. 

Further,  as  a  greater  knowledge  of  the  pro- 
blems of  disease  is  required  from  the  profes- 
sion of  medicine,  so  the  directions  which  are 
dictated  by  this  expert  knowledge  and  techni- 
cal skill  .should  be  carried  out,  and  it  is  recog- 
nised that  this  is  done  by  the  profession  of 
nursing.  Just  as  it  is  the  duty  of  the  practi- 
tioners of  medicine  to  be  loyal  to  each  other  and 
to  those  who  work  in  co-operation  with  them, 
so  it  is  incumbent  for  those  engaged  in  nursing 
not  only  to  show  loyalty  to  each  other  but  jus- 
tice to  those  who  happen  at  the  time  to  be 
working  in  co-operation  with  them.  Finally, 
the  application  of  common  sense  and  that  in- 
definable quality  we  call  tact  should  be  suffi- 
cient to  solve  many  of  the  so-called  ethical 
difficulties.  In  the  structure  that  goes  to  build 
up  our  complex  system  of  civilisation,  the  two 
professions  are  units  that  are  closely  allied; 
everywhere  all  doors  are  opened  to  us,  and  the 
right  of  way  granted;  we  belong,  in  fact,  to  the 
privileged  classes.  We  must  not  pride  ourselves 
too  much  on  this,  for  the  privileges  are  few, 
and  the  responsibilities  heavy. 

Personal  Relations. 

The  last  aspect  of  the  subject  is  the  personal 
relationship  between  doctor  and  nurse,  and 
here  I  am  faced  with  the  most  difficult  and  at 
the  same  time  the  most  pleasant  part  of  my 
task. 

The  priest,  physician,  and  nurse  are  found 
foraiing  a  trinity  wherever  suffering  and  sick- 
ness are  present,  and  there  should  be  complete 
harmony  between  them. 

That  the  personal  relationship  between  doc- 
tor and  nurse  is  on  the  whole  of  the  happiest 
description  there  is  no  need  for  me  to  em- 
phasise. When  we  come  to  analj'se  on  what 
this  rests  we  find  that  several  factors  are  pre- 
sent— a  community  of  interest,  a  due  regard  for 
the  difficulties  and  dangers  of  each  other's  call- 
ing, a  mutual  confidence  in  matters  referring 
to  the  welfare  of  the  patient,  and  a  mutual 
respect  which  increases  with  experience.  The 
world  would  be  indeed  a  very  dull  place  if  we 
all  thought  alike  and  acted  alike,  and  it  is  right 
that  each  should  maintain  their  own  indivi- 
duality, and  while  maintaining  their  indivi- 
duality the  golden  rule  of  humanity  as  an- 
nounced by  Confucius  should  be  bom  in  mind — 
"  What  you  do  not  like  when  done  to  yourself, 
do  not  do  toothers." 


Iboniagc  to  tbc  ^ca^  lUiiuj. 

St.  George's  Chapel,  Windsor,  where  King 
Edward  VII.  will  be  laid  to  rest,  is  intimately 
connected  with  the  history  of  the  dead  King, 
foi-  to  this  chapel  he  was  carried  for  his  bap- 
tism, and,  at  its  altar  rails,  he  awaited  his 
bride. 

Many  magnificent  wreaths  and  floral  tributes 
have  been  forwarded  to  Windsor  from  hospital 
committees  and  medical  and  nursing  societies, 
a  number  of  which  were  on  view  in  London 
during  the  early  days  of  the  week. 

The  wreath  "selected  by  Mr.^.  Bedford  Feu- 
wick,  Hon.  President  of  the  International 
Council  of  Nurses,  was  gorgeously  lovely.  Up- 
on a  foundation  of  cycas  leaf  palm,  rose 
coloured  Richmond  roses,  and  deeply  purple 
flowers  made  a  royal  effect.  The  card  attached 
was  inscribed :  — 

"  The  International  Council  of  Nurses. 

"  From  the  2.5,000  members  of  the  affihated 
National  Councils  of  Nurses,  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland,  Canada,  the  United  States  of 
America,  Germany,  Denmark,  Holland,  and 
Finland. 

"  In  grateful  remembrance  of  the  Royal 
Courtesv  of  a  Great  Sovereign. 

"  Windsor,  Saturday,  July  •24th,  1909." 

It  will  be  reiriembered  that  owing  to  the 
kindness  of  the  late  King  a  nevei--to-be- 
forgotten  happy,  happy  day  was  spent  at  Royal 
Windsor  during  the  great  International  Con- 
gress week  last  summer — and  never  again  on 
earth  will  meet  our  best  and  dearest. 

The  students  and  nurses  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital,  of  which  King  Edward  was 
formerly  President,  each  sent  the  shield  of 
the  hospital,  beautifully  carried  out  in  white 
stocks  and  purple  violets,  iringed  with  orchids, 
and  the  Nurses'  Co-operation  sent  its  Badge, 
carried  out  in  deep  crimson  and  white  flowers. 

A  most  striking  and  beautiful  tribute  was 
that  sent  "  in  loyal  devotion  "  by  Queen  Alex- 
andra's Imperial  Military  Nursing  Service, 
which  was  exhibited  in  the  window  of  Messrs. 
W.  Brooks  and  Son,  of  Regent  Street,  W.  The 
design  of  the  Badge  of  the  Service  was  carried 
out  in  scarlet  geraniums,  white  stocks,  white 
heather,  and  laurel  leaves.  The  cross,  with  the 
letter  .\  in  the  centre,  was  enclosed  in  an  oval 
ring,  bearing  the  name  of  the  Service  in  red 
letters  on  a  white  ground,  surmounted  bv  a 
crown,  and  below,  resting  on  the  fringe  of  laijrel 
leaves,  was  its  motto,  "  Sub  eruce  Candida." 
A  knot  of  ribbon  with  streamers  (the  actual 
ribbon  from  which  the  badge  of  members  of  the 
Service  is  suspended)  completed  the  design. 

Much  satisfaction  has  been  gi%'eu  to  mem- 


41-2 


^bo   :t6nti6b  Sournal  of  mursina. 


_AIay  -21,  1910 


bers  of  the  various  Nursing  Services  by  the 
thoughtful  allotment  of  places  to  them  on  the 
Horse  Guards  Parade  on  the  morning  o"f  Friday, 
:\Iay  20th.  Fifty  members  of  Queen  Alexan- 
dra's Imperial  Military  Nursing  Service,  fiftv  of 
Q.A.I.M.N.S.  Eeserve,  and  fifty  of  the  Terri- 
torial Force  Nursing  Service  will  thus  be  en- 
abled to  pay  a  last  tribute  of  respect  to  their 
Sovereign  as  the  procession  passes  from  West- 
minster Hall  to  Windsor.  All  the  members  of 
these  Sei-vices  will  wear  uniform.  The  former 
were  selected  by  the  generals  commanding 
divisions,  and  at  the  special  request  of  ]\Iiss 
Becher,  Matron-in-Chief,  all  ranks  were  re- 
presented. In  the  case  of  the  Eeserve  prefer- 
ence was,  as  far  as  jjossible,  given  to  the 
senior  members  of  the  Service  in  the  order  in 
which  they  joined,  certainly  the  fairest  way  of 
alloting  tickets  so  eagerlv  sought  after. 


Xcague  IRews. 


The  School  Nurses'  League. 
A  meeting  of  the  School  Nurses'  League  was 
held  at  the  Education  Offices,  Victoria  Em- 
bankment, E.G., on  May  10.  Miss  H.L.Pearse, 
the  President,  took  the  ehair,  and  about  50 
nurses  were  present.  The  nurses  wished  to 
send  an  expression  of  their  profound  regret  at 
the  death  of  King  Edward  and  their  sympathy 
with  Queen  Alexandra,  and  this  was  accord"- 
ingly  done.  The  President  then,  in  a  few 
words,  explained  what  fonii  it  is  hoped  the 
Memorial  to  :\Iiss  Isla  Stewart  will  take. 
]^Iiss  Phillips  having  resigned  as  delegate  to  the 
National  Council  of  Nurses,  and  on  the  Execu- 
tive Committee,  Miss  Parkmau  was  elected  as 
delegate  to  the  National  Council  of  Nurses,  and 
^liss  Marsland  was  elected  to  serve  on  the 
Executive.  The  whist  drive,  which  should 
have  taken  place  on  May  7th,  was  deferred 
to  June  4th,  and  it  was  agreed  that  there 
should  be  a  summer  excursion  to  Boxhill  on 
Saturday,  -July  2nd. 

L.  M.  Gkiffin. 


limit  of  40  has  cut  out  some  extremely  eligible 
candidates,  and  greatly  restricted  the  choice  of 
the  Committee. 


^bc  3ii5b IRuvscs'  association. 

The  Irish  Nurses'  Association  held  their  first 
summer  meeting  on  May  13th.  By  kind  in- 
vitation of  Miss  Huxley,  President,  Irish  Ma- 
trons' Association,  and  Mrs.  Manning,  to  spe- 
cially meet  Miss  Haughton,  Matron  of  Guy's 
Hospital,  the  members  were  entertained  to  tea 
in  the  Waverley  Hotel  on  the  summit  of  Howth 
Hill.  Needless  to  say,  there  was  a  very  large 
attendance,  so  many  of  Miss  Haughton 's  old 
friends  and  nurses  being  only  too  glad  to  have 
this  opportunity  of  seeing  her  again.  The 
weather  was  lovely,  and  all  enjoyed  the 
delightful  afternoon,  and  were  very  grateful  to 
their  kind  hostesses. 


IProgrcss  ot  State  IRcGistration. 

THE  SOCIETY   FOR  THE  STATE    REGISTRATION 
OF  TRAINED   NURSES. 

The  Annual  Meeting. 

The  annual  meeting  of  the  above  Society  will 
be  held  on  Thursday,  June  2nd,  at  the  Medical 
Society's  E-ooms,  11,  Chandos  Street,  Caven- 
dish Square,  London,  at  4  p.m. 

A  Eesolution  of  Condolence  with  the  Society 
at  the  irreparable  loss  which  it  has  sustained 
by  the  death  of  its  faithful  President,  Miss  Isla 
Stewart,  will  be  proposed. 

The  Annual  Eeport  will  be  of  unusual  in- 
terest, as  it  reports  the  co-operation  of  medical 
and  nursing  societies  in  a  Central  Committee 
to  further  the  registration  of  nurses  by  Act 
of  Parliament,  and  the  almost  universal  de- 
mand of  trained  nurses  in  every  country  for 
legal  organisation.  It  is  hoped  that  a  very- 
large  number  of  members  will  find  it  con- 
venient to  be  present,  to  prove  that  opposi- 
tion to  their  just  demands  cannot  damp  down 
their  conscientious  ardour. 


Hn  Jmportant  Hppomtmcnt.  '^"'^  ^""-^  ^fSHf"^""""  ff""* 


Six  candidates  have  been  selected  by  the 
Treasurer  and  Almoners  from  applicants  for  the 
^'acant  post  of  Matron  and  Superintendent  of 
Nursing  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  E.C., 
for  i-ecommendation  to  the  Election  Committee. 
The  six  ladies  selected  hold  the  position 
of  Matron  to  general  hospitals  of  repute.  The 
election  will  take  place  on  INIay  26th.    The  age 


Carried  forward 104     7     0 

Sent    in    'memory    of    the    fattliful 

services  to  the  Registration  Cause 

of  Miss  Isla  Stewart. 

Miss  C.  W.  Clephan        -5     0 

Miss  Bool,  R.N. S.  ...     ■ 5     0 

Total      £104  17     0 


.Mav  21.  lOlO; 


Cbe  KrUieb  3oiirnaI  of  IFmrsiiifl. 


413 


Hn  Open  Jlcttcr  to  nor.  Sv^Onco 
Ibollau^. 

Deab  Sib, — It  is  said  that  a  man  is  known  by  his 
opiuious.  Let  me  be  kind,  aud  express  the  hop* 
tliat  you  will  be  measured  by  your  work — done  in 
a  spirit  of  rare  enthusiasm  for  one  of  Loudon's 
4;reatest  hospitals. 

As  for  your  opinions — they  are  a  mere  accident. 
They  predicate  a  knowledge  of  the  nursing 
problem,  which,  although  you  are  profoundly  cou- 
r-uced  you  possess  it,  largely  remains  outside  the 
area  of  your  consciousness.  You — and  many 
unother  opponent  of  State  Kegistration — look  out 
trom  your  little  sheltered  world  and  believe  that 
all  is  well — or  well  enough.  It  is  only  given  to  a 
few  to  rise  superior  to  their  environment,  and  you 
aro  not  one  of  them.  "  Great  is  the  Goddess  of 
propinquity.'' 

It  is  not  in  the  well-ordered  surroundings  of  a 
leading  hospital  aud  nursing  school  that  you  will 
rind  the  reasons  which  make  State  Registration  a 
necessity.  There  are  those  who  do  not  accept  such 
surroundings  as  their  ultimate  horizon ;  but  I 
expect  you  would  class  them  as  unrepresentative. 

Of  course,  one  so  objective  as  yourself  cannot 
it-alise  the  experiences  of  others:  for  yon,  the 
•  vil  wrought  by  the  sham  nurse  is  too  small  an 
affair  to  call  for  drastic  reform.  The  sham  nurse 
interests  you  as  little  as  the  hypothetical  inhabi- 
tant of  Mars.  And  yet  she  exists — the  woman 
whose  only  right  to  the  title  of  trained  nurse  is 
that  she  w  as  dismissed  from  some  hospital  for  one 
of  half-a-dozen  reasons ;  the  woman  whose  little 
store  of  well-paraded  knowledge  was  obtained  in 
some  special  hospital ;  the  w  oraan  who  has  never 
lieen  in  a  hospital  at  all,  but  has  gained  a  meretri- 
cious smattering  of  nursing  facts  at  the  expense  of 
odd  patients.  General  practitioners  know  her  only 
too  well,  and  through  their  great  Association  they 
have  expressed  themselves  in  favour  of  Registra- 
tion. Those  who  fight  epidemics  know  her  too, 
and  in  all  the  seven  hundred  fever  hospitals  of 
England  it  would  be  hard  to  find  a  dozen  medical 
men  or  Matrons  who  do  not  hold  The  same  view. 
Finally,  the  nurses  who  go  out  into  the  arena  to 
tight  for  a  living,  find  her  competing  with  them, 
and  the  majority  of  private  nurses  are  of  the  same 
opinion.  The  recent  little  comedy  of  a  protest 
against  Registration  does  not  refute  the  last 
statement. 

Why  do  you  opiK)se  Registration  ?  You  give 
reasons,  of  course,  and  later  on  1  will  refer  to  the 
chief  one — such  as  it  is.  But  at  the  moment  I  am 
thinking  of  your  motive,  since  one  always  lies 
behind  a  policy.  Can  it  be  that  you  disapprove  of 
those  who  are  in  the  forefront  of  the  movement  in 
favour  of  Registration?  Surely  not!  Again,  are 
you  afraid  that  the  halo  which  is  acquired  by 
nurses  who  train  at  your  school  will  lose  its  bright- 
ness if  they  share  a  register  with  others  who  have 
nut  the  advantage  of  belonging  to  an  institution 
liresided  over  by  you  .^  That,  too,  is  impossible  to 
lielieve.  It  would  be  e.tprif  <le  corps  at  its  very 
worst — mere  selfishness,  tinctured  by  vanity. 
On  the  whole,  therefore.  1   must  conclude  that 


your  altitude  towards  Registration  does  not  repre- 
sent a  policy,  but  is  the  outcome  of  what  I  am 
compelled  to  call,  for  want  of  a  politer  word — 
prejudice. 

This  brings  me  to  your  argument.  Prejudice  is 
not  founded  on  reasoning,  so  that  any  argument 
put  forward  in  support  of  it  is  bound  to  be  disin- 
genuous or  trivial.  It  will  be  in  keeping  with  the 
courteous  intent  of  this  letter,  and  with  my  opinion 
of  you,  if  I  call  yours  trivial. 

You  harp  on  the  statement  that  Registration 
will  not  be  a  guarantee  of  character,  or — after  a 
time,  at  any  rate — of  efficiency.  Now,  do  you 
really,  at  heart,  believe  in  the  soundness  of  this 
objection  P  You  are,  1  assume,  a  practical  man, 
and  must  know  that  this  is  an  imperfect  world, 
full  of  compromise ;  that,  while  we  remain  in  it, 
we  have  to  accept  the  relative  in  place  of  the 
absolute.  No  register — not  even  that  of  the 
medical  profession — offers  an  absolute  guarantee  of 
character  and  efficiency.  But  such  a  register  does 
imply  that  every  person  whose  name  appears  on  it 
has  been  duly  trained  for  work  and  responsibility 
of  a  particular  kind,  and  is  in  this  sense  no  sham ; 
aud  it  also  implies  that  the  individual  has  not 
grossly  transgressed  the  laws  of  the  land.  No 
amount  of  hair-splitting  can  disprove  this  relative 
value  of  a  register.  It  is  an  obvious  fact  which 
explains  the  existence  of  the  one  for  medical  men. 
And  so,  also,  the  nurses'  register  would  be  merely 
a  relative  test,  general  in  application,  and  there- 
fore simple  in  use,  by  which  all  concerned — medical 

men,   the  public,   and  nurses   themselves could 

detect  the  genuine  (not  necessarily  the  perfect) 
nurse,  as  against  the  sham.  As  an  alternative,  it 
has  been  suggested  that  those  who  want  a  trained 
nurse — perhaps  at  a  moment's  notice — should 
make  inquiries  regarding  her  record.  It  is 
a  proposal  that  is  not  helpful,  but  merely 
irritating  to  those  who  would  have  to  make  the 
inquiries.  The  time  has  passed  when  the  selection 
of  a  nurse  could  be  put  on  the  same  footing  as  the 
appointment  of  a  housemaid. 

I  have  said  that  your  opinions  are  a  mere 
accident,  but  you  will  gather  from  this  letter  that 
I  attach  considerable  importance  to  them.  This  I 
am  compelled  to  do,  because,  owing  to  your  posi- 
tion as  Chairman  of  a  great  hospital,  and  your 
known  interest  in  nursing  matters,  they  have  much 
weight  with  those  who  have  no  chance — not  even 
yours — of  forming  opinions  of  their  own.  In  end- 
ing let  me  express  the  sincere  hope  that  you  may 
yet  change  your  attitude.  You  are  the  protagonist 
among  those  who  are  opposing  Registration,  and 
in  so  far  as  Registration  would  safeguard  the 
public,  and  remove  from  one  of  the  highest  and 
most  respected  callings  its  present  element  of  mer- 
cenary deception,  a  grave  responsibility  rests  on 
your  shoulders.  The  change  in  your  views  will 
come  when  you  realise  that,  in  the  wider  world 
outside  the  walls  of  a  hospital,  the  conditions  as 
regards  nursing  are  remotely  different  and  im- 
measurably more  complex.  May  the  time  come 
soon  ! 

1    .ini.   dear   Sir, 

Yours,  etc., 
X. 


414 


^bc  36nti5l)  3oui-nal  of  IRursino. 


[-May  21,  1910 


appointments. 


ilvTltOXS. 

District  Asylum,  Elgin,  N.B — Miss  iiaiy  McNlcol 
lias  Ikm^u  ai>iK)iuted  Matron.  She  was  trained  at 
the  Western  lufiiTuary,  Glasgow,  and  has  since 
held  the  x)ositions  of  Charge  Xui-se  at  the  Belletield 
Sanatorium,  Lanark,  "Ward  Sister  at  Shoreditcii 
Infirmary,  and  Assistant  ilatron  at  Stirling  Dis- 
trict Asylum,  Larbert,  N.B. 

AssiST-\NT  Matrox. 

South-Western  Hospital,  Stockwell,  S.W. — Miss  .  E. 
B.  Foster  has  been  appointed  .Assistant  Matron. 
She  was  already  an  officer  under  the  Metropolitan 
.\syliims'  Board,  and  has  held  the  appointment  of 
Assistant  Matron  at  the  Gore  Farm  Convalescent 
Hospital,  Dartford.  from  ii  hich  she  ha.s  been  trans- 
ferred to  Stockwell. 

SiSTEltS. 

Royal  Mineral  Water  Hospital,  Bath. — Miss  Emily 
Hughes  has  been  ap[)ointed  Sister.  She  was  trained 
at  the  General  Hospital.  Birmingham,  where  .she 
also  actetl  as  Ward  Sister.  She  has  also  done 
Holiday  Sister's  duties  at  the  Orthopjedic  Hospital 
in  the  same  city,  and  has  had  experience  of  private 
nursing. 

Sister  Housekeeper. 

Charing  Cross  Hospital,  Strand,  W.C. — Miss  Kathleen 
S.  Stewart  has  been  appointed  Sister  Housekeeper. 
She  was  trained  at  the  General  Infirmary,  Sunder- 
land, and  at  the  Royal  Maternity  Hospital,  Edin- 
burgh. She  has  since  had  charge  of  the  District 
Nursing  and  also  of  Wards  and  the  Theatre  at  the 
Deaconess  Hospital,  Edinburgh,  and  has  been 
Holiday  Sister  and  Holiday  Assistant  Matron  at 
the  Royal  Hospital  for  Sick  Children,  Edinburgh  : 
and  Xight  Superintendent  and  Housekeeper  at  the 
General  Infirmary,  Sunderland.  She  holds  the  cer- 
tificates of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  and  the 
Scottish  Board  of  Obstetric  Nursing. 


QUEEN   ALEXANDRA'S  IMPERIAL     MILITARY 

NURSING   SERVICE. 
The  following  ladies  have  received  appointments 
as  Staff   Nui«e: — Miss   G.    Parkes,    Miss  M.    \>  ar- 
burton,  Miss  J.  L.  Blakelv.  Miss  D.  C.  Isaacson. 


QUEEN   VICTORIAS  JUBILEE    INSTITUTE. 
FOR    NURSES. 
Ininsfers      and      Appniitfiiiriifs. — Miss      Louise 
Downer,   to  St.  Buryan ;     Miss    Gladys  Frape,  to 
Kingston;  !Miss  Grace  Wright,  to  Watford,  Train- 
ing Home. 


3n  riDenioiiani. 

Isabel  Ha.mi'Tox  Robb. 
We  have  received  the  following  notice,  sent 
officially  by  Mias  Mabel  Wilson,  R.N.,  Secretary  of 
the  League  for  Nui-siug  Education,  New  York  City : 
At  a  special  meeting  of  the  League  for  Nursing 
Education,  New  York  City,  held  April  •iSnd. 
1910,  the  following  resolutions  were  unanimously 
adopted : — 

Whereas :  We  have  learned  with  profound  sor- 
row of  the  death  of  our  colleague,  Isabel  Hampton 
Robb: 

Be  it  resolved :  That  in  the  death  of  Mrs.  Robb, 
ne,  as  Sujjerintendents,  lose. one  of  our  most  able 
and  inspiring  co-workers,  and  the  uui-siug  profes- 
sion suffere  an  irreparable  loss  in  being  deprived  of 
one  of  its  most  brilliant  membeis. 

ilrs.  Robb's  unceasing  efforts  for  the  advance- 
ment of  nursing  education,  combinetl  with  mental 
endowments  of  a  high  order,  made  her  a  leader  in 
the  profession,  and  a  splendid  example  of  noble 
womanhood. 

Eesolved:  That  we  tender  to  her  family  our 
heartfelt  symi>athy  in  their  great  Ijereavement. 

Eesolved:  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be 
forwarded  to  the  family  of  our  late  a.ssociate,  and 
that  they  be  sent  for  publication  to  the  American 
Journal  of  Nursing,  and  to  other  medical  and 
nursing  journals. 

.\xxa  C.  Maxwell,  R.N.. 
Mary  A.  Samuel,  R.N. 
M.^BEL  Wilson,  R.N., 

Committee. 

IsLA  Stewart. 
"  The  nurses  of  India,"  says  the  Xursinri  Journal 
of  India,  '"  are  called  upon  with  those  all  over  the 
world  to  mourn  the  death  of  Miss  Isla  Stewart.  .  . 
In  losing  her  England  loses  one  of  the  very  best  of 
her  workers  for  all  that  goes  to  uplift  nui-sing  and 
make  it  more  efficient."  Miss  Pritchard,  of  Lady 
Miuto's  Indian  Nur.sing  Association,  one  of  lUis* 
Stewart's  jmpils,  sends  an  appreciation  of  "  this 
noble  woman's  life  and  work  ''  to  the  same  journal. 


NURSES  WANTED  FOR  THE  STRANGERS 
HOSPITAL,  RIO  DE  JANEIRO. 
In  our  advertisement  columns  will  be  found  de- 
tails of  two  vacant  jKists  for  trained  and  certificated 
nurses  in  the  Strangers'  Hospital,  Rio  de  Janeiro, 
Brazil.  Tlie  nurses  are  needed  immediately,  the 
contract  is  for  three  years,  and  the  salary  £70,  £7.5, 
and  £80  per  annum.  It  is  essential  that  one  of 
those  selected  should  speak  German.  Now  that 
yellow  fever  has  been  almost  stamped  out  at  Rio 
there  need  be  little  appreliension  of  contracting  it. 
Application  should  be  made  at  once  to  Mrs.  Bed- 
ford Fenwick,  20,  Tpper  AVimpole  Street,  London. 


Miss  Janet  Stewart,  St.  Leonard's,  Moffat,  N.B.. 
wishes  to  thank  those  kind  friends  and  societies 
who,  on  the  10th  of  ilarch,  sent  such  beautiful 
flowers  and  loving  tributes  to  her  sister,  Miss  Isla 

Stewa  rt .  

THE  PASSING  BELL. 

We  deeply  regret  to  report  the  death  from  buriits 
of  a  young  nui«e.  Miss  F'lorence  Jane  Litchfield. 
employed  at  Beddington  Corner  Isolation  Hospital, 
whose  dress,  whilst  reading  a  paper  with  her  back 
to  the  fire,  I>ecame  ignited.  It  is  surmised  that  she 
might  have  had  a  cliance  of  her  life  if  she  had  gone 
into  her  children's  ward  and  thrown  herself  on  one 
of  the  beds.  But  rather  than  alarm  her  little  charges 
she  ran  ijast  the  ward  door  and  down  the  corriaor. 
Evei-y  shred  of  clothing  was  burnt  oft'  her.  and 
flhen  put  to  be<l,  wrapped  in  oiled  clothes,  she 
faintly  asked  the  Mati-on  to  look  after  iier 
"kiddies."  So  brave  and  considerate  a  woman  is 
deeply  mourned  by  all  who  knew  her. 


May  21,  101 


dbe  Brttisb  3ournaI  of  IRiirsmg. 


41.: 


TRursmg  lEcbocs. 

Miss  Xightiugale,  6.M., 
received  the  following  tele- 
gram of  congi-atulatiou  from 
the  Kiug  on  her  90th  birth- 
day on  the  12th  of  May:  — 
"On  the  occasion  of  your 
Wth  birthday  1  offer  you  my 
heartfelt  congratulation,  and 
trust  that  you  are  in  good 
health. — George  R.  &  I." 

A  telegram  was  imme- 
diately Sent  on  behalf  of  Miss 
Nightingale  expressing  respectful  thanks  to  his 
Majesty  for  his  gracious  congratulation.  Miss 
Nightingale's  birthday  was  celebrated  very 
quietly,  since  she  is  an  invalid. 


Sir  WilUam  -J.  Collins.  M.D.,  F.R.C.S., 
M.P.,  will  preside  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the 
Asylum  Workers'  .\ssociation,  of  which  he  is 
President,  which  will  he  held  on  May  25th,  at 
11,  Chandos  Street,  W.,  at  3  p.m.  The  pro- 
ceedings will  include  the  presentation  of  medals 
to  nurses  and  attendants  for  long  and  meri- 
torious service,  and  of  an  illuminated  address 
to  the  President  and  a  Testimonial  to  the  Hon. 
Secretary,  Dr.  Shuttleworth,  in  commemora- 
tion of  the  passing  of  the  Asylum  Officers' 
Superannuation  Act. 


The  author  writes  of  what  he  knows,  not  a 
travesty  of  hospital  life  conjured  in  the  brain 
of  the  sentimental  novelist. 

It  is  evident  that  the  path  of  the  School 
Nurse  working  under  the  Devon  Education 
Committee  is  beset  with  difficulties,  from  the 
letters  of  irate  parents,  one  of  whom  WTote  "  to 
the  lady  inspector  of  children's  heads":  "  I 
am  capable  of  keeping  my  children's  heads 
clean  without  your  help.  1  have  had  six  chil- 
dren going  to  school  for  the  last  30  years. 
Never  had  an\-  complaints  before.  If  there  is 
any  more  of  your  impudence  I  shall  see  further 
into  it.  "  One  man  threatened  "  to  comb  the 
nurse's  hair  if  he  got  hold  of  her,'"  and  yet  an- 
other objected  to  the  waste  of  pubUc  money 
involved  in  the  nurse's  inspection,  and  .sug- 
gested an  ^examination  of  the  mental  faculties- 
of  the  promoters  of  the  sehen^e,  or  that  they 
should  be  provided  with  furnished  apartments 
in  the  Devon  and  Exeter  Asylum.  From  which 
it  will  be  gathered  that  the  position  of  school 
nurse  is  not  a  bed  of  roses. 


The  Fever  Nurses'  Association  are  to  have 
the  privilege  of  holding  their  Annual  Meeting 
in  the  fine  offices  of  the  Metropolitan  Asylums 
Board  on  the  Victoria  Embankment,  on  May 
23rd,  when  it  is  expected  that  there  will  be  a 
large  attendance  of  members  of  this  young  and 
energetic  Association. 


The  current  issue  of  the  "  Woniuii  at  Hoine 
contains  a  story  by  Mr.  Stephen  Townesend, 
"  .\.  Leaf  from  a  Hospital  Day-Book,"  and 
many  nurses  will  recognise  the  hospital  in 
which  the  incident  related  occurs,  where 
"  nothing  broke  the  stillness  of  the  ward 
but  the  mellow  •  cooing  of  the  pigeons, 
and  the  ceaseless  patter  of  the  foun- 
tain in  the  hospital  square,"  and  also  Sister 
Mary,  "  Little  Sister  "  as  she  was  spoken  of 
by  all  who  loved  her — and  this  was  indeed 
by  all  who  knew  her  well^possessed  of  a  keen 
observation,  an  unfailing  intuition,  which  com- 
bined with  twenty  years'  experience  in  the 
chief  surgical  female  ward  of  a  leading  London 
hospital,  had  made  her  an  expert  in  diagnosis." 
It  is  a  tragic  story,  but  well  written,  as  is  to 
be  expected  of  the  author  of  "A  Tliorough- 
bred  Mongrel."    Moreover,  it  is  a  true  picture. 


We  frankly  regret  that  the  wealthy  and  in- 
fluential women  who  have  organised  the  North 
and  South  Wales  District  Nursing  Associations 
have  adopted  the  insufficient  standard  of  one 
jear's  training  for  nurses  to  be  supplied  to  the 
poor.  It  seems  going  back  in  nursing  stan- 
dards to  before  the  flood.  Speaking  at  Bangor 
the  Hon.  Mrs.  H.  Lloyd  Mostyn  said  :  "  They 
ali  knew  the  value  of  Queen's  Nurses,  and 
highly  did  they  appreciate  them.  The  wonder 
was  how  this  country  got  on  without  them,  and 
never,  to  her  mind,  was  a  movement  more 
needed  than  that  which  produced  the  Queen's 
Nr.rses.  They  wished  it  were  possible  to  have  a 
Queen's  Nurse  in  every  parish  and  district  in 
the  country,  but  there  were  not  enough  funds. 
So  it  had  been  decided  to  provide  in  future  a 
supply  of  village  nurses,  who  will  have  had  12 
months'  district  and  maternity  training,  and 
wil'  be  certified  under  the  Midwives'  Act.  The 
cost  of  training  a  village  nurse  was  £60 1  ' ' 


These  workers  are  therefore  legally  "  certi- 
fied midwives,"  and  should  be  called  and 
classed  as  such — "skilled  nurses  "  after  nine 
months'  experience  they  cannot  be.  How 
is  it  that  wealthy  leisured  women  are  content 
to  provide  for  the  poor  a  standard  of  nursing 
which  they  would  not  utihse  in  their  own 
homes?  "The  excuse  that  there  are  "not 
enough  funds  "  is  surely  a  sorry  one.  In 
plain  parlance  because  a  person  is  poor,  a  cheap 
and  semi-trained  woman  is    considered    good 


416 


vtoe  5i5inti5l)  Souvual  ot   mursmg. 


.Mav  21,  1910 


enough  for  his  ueeJs.       A  sickly  travestv  of 
true  charity. 


The  Board  of  the  Kimberlej  Hospital,  South 
Africa,  at  the  annual  meeting,  congratulated 
the  subscribers  on  the  success  of  the  institu- 
tion as  a  training  school  for  nurses,  which  is 
proved  by  the  successes  achieved  by  the  nurses 
during  the  year.  During  the  absence  of  Miss 
Gibson,  the  Matron,  on  six  mouths  holiday,  the 
duties  were  most  satisfactorily  performed  by 
Miss  J.  C.  Child,  who  has  now  taken  a  Govern- 
ment appointment  in  Basutoland  with  the  best 
wishes  of  the  Board. 


The  Executive  Committee  of  the  Ceylon 
Nursing  Association  report  that  by  the  addition 
of  four  Nursing  Sisters  secured  through  the 
Colonial  Nursing  Association,  the  Staff  now 
consists  of  a  Matron  and  ten  Sisters,  a  proof 
of  the  way  in  which  the  services  of  nur.ses,  once 
provided  for  a  community,  are  appreciated. 
The  Association  was  founded  only  16  years  ago 
by  a  few  public  spirited  ladies  with  a  single 
nurse.  The  accommodation  at  the  Home  is 
now  quite  inadequate,  and  it  is  estimated  that 
a  sum  of  f  4,000  is  required  for  the  necessary 
txteusious,  including  the  Nurses'  Quarters,  a 
Maternity  Ward,  and  a  Surgical  Ward,  and 
thanks  to  their  Excellencies  Sir  Henry  and 
Lady  McCuUum  and  other  good  friends,  it 
seems  probable  that  the  whole  of  this  sum  will 
shortly  be  collected. 


Miss  Wald  and  Miss  Waters,  from  the 
Nurses'  Settlement,  New  York,  have  gone  to 
-Japan.  Training  schools  for  nurses  in  .Japan 
owe  much  to  sound  American  teaching. 


In  The  Xursing  Journal  oj  India,  "  C.E.M.  " 
tells  the  following  little  tale  under  the  heading 
of  ■■  Nurses  Beware  I  "  : — "  In  one  of  the  large 
hospitals  in  Bombay  a  nurse  sat  watching  a 
patient  who  was  seriously  ill.  Down  swooped 
a  crow,  picked  up  a  chnical  theiTuometer,  and 
sitting  on  a  ledge  out  of  reach,  regarded  the 
nurse  provokingly.  '  Oh,  crow,'  cried  the 
nurse,  '  let  me  have  my  thermometer;  it  is  a 
lialf-minute  one,  and  I  shall  have  to  pay  for  it,' 
but  the  crow  only  croaked,  'Oh,  no,  Nurse; 
what  is  the  use  of  my  living  so  close  to  the 
hospital,  and  watching  the  doctors  and  nurses 
all  day  long,  if  1  do  not  learn  anything?  Now 
I  shall  be  able  to  take  the  temperatures  of  all 
the  sick  crows  in  our  neighbourhood,'  and, 
winking  maliciously  at  the  nurse,  away  he  flew. 
The  nurse  thought  it  hard  that  she  should  have 
to  pay  for  the  thermometer,  but  the  hospital  is 
a     Government    one,    with  plenty  of  red  tape 


about,  and  on  inquiry  it  was  found  that  there 
exists  no  fund  for  replacing  articles  stolen  by 
crows  !  Therefore  nurses,  beware  '.  Those  in 
authoritj'  only  smiled,  saying,  '  The  thermo- 
meter should  have  been  put  in  a  safe  place, 
out  ot  reach  of  a  crow.'  "   Query,  but  where? 


"  The  Dauphines  of  France,"  by  ■Mr.  Frank 
Hamel,  is  a  work  of  entrancing  interest — these 
wives  of  the  heirs  to  the  French  Throne — them- 
selves not  always  interesting,  are  made  so  by 
the  circumstances  of  the  times  in  which  they 
played  a  more  or  less  forceful  part. 

Marie- Joseph  de  Saxe,  the  mother  of  the 
last  three  Bourbon  kings,  with  only  two 
dauphines  of  France  to  follow  her,  was  the 
second  wife  of  the  son  of  Louis  XV.  Her  hus- 
band died  of  small-pox  in  the  life-time  of  his 
father,  and  ]Marie-Joseph  insisted  on  acting  as 
his  nurse,  and  remained  with  him  day  and 
night.  "  I  am  no  longer  dauphine,"  she  re- 
marked to  those  who  uttered  remonstrance. 
"  I  am  nothing  but  a  sick  nurse."  When  they 
begged  her  to  consider  her  own  health,  she  re- 
phed,  "  What  would  it  matter  if  I  died,  pro- 
vided that  he  lives,  and  that  France  owes  him 
to  my  tenderness  and  care.  There  are  plenty  of 
other  daupliines  to  be  had  if  it  should  cost  my 
whole  self  to  save  the  dauphin." 


Apparently  there  were  brusque  medicos  in 
those  days.  The  specialist  Pousse  was  called 
in  to  attend  the  Iving's  son.  He  knew  very 
little  of  the  Court,  and,  seeing  Marie-.Joseph 
by  the  bedside,  dressed  in  very  plain  clothes, 
he  gave  instructions  that  her  orders  were  to 
be  closely  followed,  because  she  seemed  to 
anticipate  all  the  patient's  requirements.  Then 
he  turned  to  her  and  said  brusquely,  "  What's 
your  name,  nurse?"  Another  mediciil  atten- 
dant replied  for  her,  and  upon  hearing  she  was 
the  dauphine,  Pousse,  nothing  taken  aback, 
cried,  "  Ah,  well,  when  I  see  our  smart 
Parisian  ladies,  playing  the  precieuse,  and 
fearing  to  enter  their  husband's  sick-room,  I 
will  send  them  to  learn  in  this  school." 


The  dauphin  was  not  told  the  disease  from 
which  he  suffered,  but  suspecting  the  truth,  he 
asked  his  wife  to  embrace  him,  believing  she 
would  refuse  if  his  smTnises  were  correct.  But 
she  did  as  he  asked  without  showing  the  slight- 
est sign  of  fear  or  repulsion. 

Magnificent  and  costly  fetes  celebrated  his 
recovery,  although  throughout  France  the 
people  were  starving.  Some  years  later  Marie- 
Joseph  lost  her  husband  from  consumption, 
and  she  never  became  Queen  of  France. 


:\Iay  •_>!,  lOlu 


Zbc  Bi'itisb  3ournal  ot  TRursiuG. 


411 


(Tbc  Ibospital  MorI^. 

THE  CHILDREN'S  INFIRMARY,  CARSHALTX>N. 

Tlu-  (jprniiig  of  thf  ChililiLirs  liifiniiiiiy.  e'ar- 
shalton,  is  probably  one  oi  the  most  benefieeiit 
works  ever  carried  into  effect  by  a  Cabinet 
Minister,  and  one  which  Mr.  John  Burns  will 
always  be  able  to  look  back  upon  with  un- 
feigned satisfaction  as  having  been  accom- 
plished during  his  term  of  office  at  the  Local 
Government  Board.  For  through  the  opening 
of  this  Infinnary  at  Carshalton  the  sick,  the 
crippled,  the  halt,  and  the  maimed  waifs  of  the 
London  slums,  who  drift  into  the  Metropolitan 
Poor  Law  infirmaries,  are  now  removed  from 
these  institutions,  where  often  they  were  for- 
merly treated  in  the  general  wards  with  the 
adult  patients,  and  taken  to  their  own  In- 
firmary       on . 

the  breezy 
Surrey 
Downs,  where 
they  live  in 
the  open  air, 
and  grow  fat 
and  rosy  and 
well,  or  are 
nursed  and 
cared  for,  in 
ideal  sur- 

roundings. 

The  Infir- 
mary is  about 
a  mile  and  a 
half  from  the 
station,  and 
it  is  a  climb 
up  hill  all  the 
way.  The 

Asylums 
Board  thoughtfully  provides  for  the  con- 
venience of  the  members  of  the  staff  who  may 
be  off  duty  a  motor- 'bus,  which  conveys  ntn-ses 
to  the  station  for  the  2.30  up  train  every  day 
(Sunday  excepted),  and  meets  the  down  train 
at  9  p.m.,  and  later  trains'  if  it  is  notified  that 
there  will  be  passengers.  Therefoi'e  nurses  can 
spend  a  long  half-day  in  town  if  they  so  desire. 

Motors,  indeed,  are  a  great  feature  at  Car- 
shalton, and  small  wonder  when  we  consider 
that  the  extent  of  the  grounds  is  100  acres.  The 
dinners,  the  stores,  the  washing,  and  many 
other  things  are  delivered  by  motor,  and  the 
distances  to  be  covered  may  be  judged  by  the 
fact  tliat  even  the  dinners  cannot  be  delivered 
to  all  the  wards  in  less  than  an  hour.  Our 
illustration  shows  motors  in  daily  use  for  the 
service  of  food  and  stores.  A  bicycle 
is  provided  for  the  use  of  the  Matron  (Miss 
AVinmill)  and  the  Night  Superintendent  on  their 
rounds,  and,  though  the  Matron  in  her  more 
deliberate  and  stately  progress  of  daily  inspec- 


Children's     I 
Food    and 


tion  has  not  yet  adopted  it  as  a  means  of  loco- 
motion, it  is  found  very  essential  by  the  Night 
Superintendent,  especially  when  summoned 
hastily  in  case  of  sudden  emergencies. 

The  administrative  block,  in  which  the  Ma- 
tron and  liesident  Medical  Officers  have  their 
quarters,  has  a  long  frontage  over-looking  the 
valley.  The  wards  are  divided  in  streets,  four 
blocks  of  eight  wards  in  a  street,  and  there  is 
accommodation  in  all  for  1,000  patients.  In 
the  acute  wards  there  is  a  Sister  in  charge  in 
each  block,  in  the  convalescent  wards.  Staff 
Nurses,  with  probationers  working  under  them, 
are  on  duty.  They  are  supervised  by  Home 
Sisters,  each  of  whom  lives  in  her  own  adminis- 
trative block  near  her  street,  and  visits  the 
wards  periodically  during  the  day,  and  is  sum- 
moned always  in  case  of  need. 

In    connec- 

I  lection  with 
each  ward 
there  is  a 
eloak  room 
\\'  h  e  r  e  the 
nurses  keep 
their  cloaks 
and  goloshes, 
for  these  are 
essential  con- 
sidering tlie 
distances  in 
the  open 
which  they 
have  to  cover 
to  reach  their 
dining  room. 

The  wards 
are  charming, 
with  windows 
looking  right 
over  to  Epsom  and  Banstcad,  and  opening 
on  to  verandahs  and  balconies  on 
which,  day  and  night,  children  he  in  their  beds 
in  the  pure  and  splendid  air,  overlooking  as 
fair  and  typically  English  a  view  as  can  be 
seen  within  many  miles  of  London.  The  rich 
pastures,  the  ploughman  ploughing  his  furrow, 
the  ricks  of  hay,  and  the  rolling  nieadowland, 
all  testifying  to  the  spaciousness  and  beauty 
of  the  country  unspoiled  by  the  hand  of  man, 
are  seen  for  the  first  time  in  their  lives 
by  many  of  the  patients.  Surely  they  will  be 
an  abiding  memory  with  the  children  when 
they  return  to  the  London  tenements  which 
pass  for  home. 

Not  the  least  benefit  of  their  infirmary  is  the 
discipline  and  order  which  prevail  there.  It 
has  its  own  corps  of  boy  scouts,  which  ]")r. 
Oriffin,  who  acts  as  commanding  officer,  was 
good  enough  to  parade  when  I  visited  the  In- 
firmary. The  boys  were  manifestly  proud  of 
belonging  to  the  corps.and  carried  out  the  direc- 


nfirmary,     Carshalton. 
Linen    Motors. 


418 


(Tbe  Brltisb  3ouvnal  of  IFiursinG.        [May  21, 1910 


tions  given  by  their  sergeant  smartly. and  well. 
Each  section  has  a  distinctive  name,  and 
colours,  and  the  esprit  de  corps  inculcated  is 
most  valuable  training.  One  pathetic  section 
was  composed  entirely  of  cripples. 

The  boys  are  fortunate  in  finding  in  Dr. 
Pugh,  the  Medical  Superintendent,  and  Dr. 
Eeade  and  Dr.  Griffin,  Eesident  Medical  Offi- 
cers, friends  who  take  a  real  interest  in  their 
general  welfare. 

I  must  not  forget  to  mention  the  great 
kitchen,  where  the  potatoes  are  pared  bj' 
electricity;  the  steam  laundry,  where  an  in- 
credible amount  of  washing  is  accomplished 
weekly;  the  stores  from  which  are  issued  all 
tlie  sujiplies  and  clothing  down  to  shoes  and 
handkerchiefs  for  this  great  family,  also  tooth- 
brushes, for  every  child  has  a  peg  for  his  or  her 
towel,  brush  and  comb,  and  tooth-brush;  the 
carefully  kept  mortuary;  and  the  motor  gar- 
age; and  even  so  I  feel  a  certain  sympathy 
with  the  Queen  of  Sheba,  so  would  you,  0 
reader !  by  the  time  you  had  walked  round  that 
mighty  pilace.  You  would  find  there  was  no 
more  strength  left  in  you,  and  tiiat  neither  had 
you  realised  one  half  that  there  is  to  see,  and 
that  you  were  not  able  to  tell  one  half  when 
you  tried  to  relate  its  wonders.  But  this  at 
least  Londoners  can  be  assured,  that  it  would 
be  impossible  for  the  children  for  whom  it  is 
responsible  to  be  better  cared  for  in  better  sur- 
roundings. The  bread  bill  of  the  Infirmary 
must,  one  would  imagine,  be  enormous,  for  an 
hour  or  two  spent  in  that  bracing  air  puts  a 
keen  edge  on  to  one's  appetite. 

_  M.    B. 

NONFLAM. 

Flannelette  is  a  favourite  material  with  the 
poorer  classes,  owing  to  its  warmth,  cosiness, 
and  cheapness ;  its  grave  drawback  is  its  inflam- 
mability, and  many  deaths  have  occurred,  both 
of  children  and  adults,  through  flannelette 
clothing  igniting.  The  Departmental  Com- 
mittee on  Coroners'  Law  took  evidence  at  con- 
siderable length  on  the  question  of  flannelette, 
which  is  printed  in  a  Bluebook  recently  pub- 
lished, and  the  lesson  of  this  is  the  imperative 
necessity  of  using  a  material  which  does  not 
readily  ignite.  Such  a  materal  is  "  Nonflam," 
supplied  by  the  patentees,  Aytoun  Street,  Man- 
chester, which  gained  the  only  awards  given  at 
the  Franco-British  Exhibition  for  a  per- 
manently fire  resisting  flannelette.  The  advan- 
tage of  this  is  so  obvious  that  everyone  who 
buys  flannelette  should  insist  on  having  the 
variety  known  as  "  Nonflam."  When  this  ma- 
terial is  procurable  it  should  be  illegal  for  any 
one  to  subject  little  children  to  the  danger  of 
a  terrible  death  by  fire,  through  using  an  in- 
flammable flannelette. 


IReflections. 


From  a  Board  Eoom  jMirror. 
The  bazaar  in  aid  of  the  Hospital  for  Women, 
Solio  Square,  \vill  take  place,  as  originally  arranged, 
on  Jlay  2-lth  and  25th,  in  the  new  hospital  build- 
ings, i^or  the  concert  on  the  second  day  the  Earl 
of  Shafte.?.bnry,  the  Hon.  ili-s.  Stuart  Anderson, 
Mme.  Louise  Dale,  Mrs.  George  Swinton,  Mr.  C. 
Harden  Coffin,  Mr.  Maurice  Farkoa,  and  Miss  Lena 
Ashwell  have  pix)niised  their  services.  The  bazaar 
is  being  promoted  with  the  object  of  raising  £4,o00 
to  complete  the  rebuilding  fund  and  to  put  uie 
hospital  in  a  position  to  claim  a  conditional  gift  of 
£3,000  from  King  Edward's  Hospital  Fund.  There 
is  a  long  list  of  titled  stall-holders,  and  we  maj' 
hope  that  money  which  otherwise  would  have  been 
required  to  take  an  active  part  in  the  festivities 
of  the  London  season  may  be  spent  in  charity,  and 
find  its  way  into  the  coffers  of  this  most  useful 
hospital. 


Dr. '.Samlxyn  has  telegraphed  from  Rome  to  Mr. 
James  Cautlie  that  the  Pellagra  Field  Commission 
ha.s  definitely  proved  that  maize  is  not  the  cause  of 
Pellagra.  The  parasitic  conveyer  is  the  Simidium 
reptans. 


The  late  Mr.  Thomas  Home,  of  High  Street, 
Solihull,  Warwickshire,  whose  estate  is  valued  at 
£38,866,  has  left  his  nurse,  Miss  Emma  Elizabeth 
Moulton,  an  annuity  of  £300.  The  bulk  of  his  for- 
tune is  left  equally  between  the  Lifeboat  Institu- 
tion, the  Birmingham  Eye  Hospital,  and  the 
General  Institution  for  the  Blind,  Edgbaston. 


Mr.  Charles  Smith,  of  64,  Carlton  Hill,  N.W.. 
whose  estate  is  valued  at  £132,470,  left  £2-5,000 
for  charities,  suggesting  that  £1^000  shoidd  go  to 
each  of  the  following  London'  hosjjitals: — St. 
Mary'.s,  St.  George's,  St.  Bartholomew's,  Vt. 
Thomas's,  Guy's,  Univei^ity  College,  Charing 
Cross,  Middlesex,  King's  College,  Royal  Free, 
Cancer  (Fulham  Road),  Brompton,  and  Samaritan 
Free. 


Sir  James  and  Lady  Roberts,  of  Milner  Field, 
have  made  a  most  generous  gift  to  the  York-shire 
Home  for  Incurable'  Children,  presenting  the 
premises  recently  used  as  the  Clifton  College, 
Harrogate.  The  new  Home  for  Incurables  will  be 
muoh  larger  than  the  building  now  occupied,  and 
will  acoommodate  at  least  all  the  forty-five  cots 
which  are  subscribed  for  at  pre.sent.  Clifton  Col- 
lege is  in  a  delightful  situation  on  the  south  side 
of  the  town.  Sir  .Tames  and  Lady  Rol>erts  have 
purchased  the  building,  and  are  having  such  alteri- 
tions  made  as  are  nece.ssarj-  to  adapt  it  to  its  neiv 
uses.  It  is  a  substantial  structure,  and  quite  up  t.,> 
date  in  all  its  api>ointments,  having  fireproof  stair- 
cases aitd  lieing  fitted  -with  electric  light.  Tlie  gitt 
has  l)een  resolved  upon  as  a  itiemorial  of  the 
youngest  son  of  Sir  James  and  Lady  Robei'ts, 
iVIa.ster  .Jack  Roberts,  who  was  dromied  some  years 
ago  under  tragic  circumstances  at  Portru.sh  while 
staying  there  with  his  parents  on  a  holiday. 


-May  21, 1910]       ^ii^^  TBvxtidb  ^ouniai  or  H-UiriJinG. 


419 


Iprofeesional  IRcvicw. 

OUR  BABY, 

It  is  proof  of  the  popularity  of  'Our  Baby," 
Mrs.  J.  Langton  Hewer's  well-known  boot  for 
mothers  and  nurses,  that  it  should  have  reached 
its  twelfth  edition,  and  that  70,000  copies  have 
now  been  issued.  It  is  published  by  Messrs.  J. 
Wright  and  Sons,  Ltd.,  of  Bristol,  in  paper  covers 
Is.  6d.  net,  or  in  leather  2s.  6d. 

It  deals  with  the  care  of  the  newborn  infant, 
and  next  with  its  outfit;  the  necessity  for  pro- 
tecting tlie  lungs,  the  skull,  the  abdomen,  for  the 
use  of  poi-ous  clothing. 

A  chapter  is  devoted  to  the  infant's  food,  and 
to  the  importance  of  a  mother  nursing  her  child. 
AVe  read:  "A  hand-fed  baby's  life  is  threatened 
with  numberless  drawbacks  and  dangers,  to  which 
a  breast-fed  baby  is  not  even  exposed.  It  has  been 
■conclusively  shown  that  a  breast-fed  baby  is  prac- 
tically immune  from  infectious  diseases — e.g., 
measles — and  that  dangerous  diarrhoea  is  very 
rare.  One  in  every  six  infants  born  in  the  British 
Isles  dies  before  it 
reaches  a  year  old, 
and  the  vast  majority 
of  these  are  hand- 
fed." 

The  conditions 
under  which  a  mother 
should  not  nurse  her 
child  are  enumerated  as 
follows  :(1)  If  she  be  con- 
sumptive or  markedly 
scrofulous.  (2)  If  she 
be  suffering  from  any 
acute  disease  —  eg., 
typhoid  fever,  in- 
iiammatiou  of  the 
lungs.  (3)  If  she  be 
in  a  state  of  great 
general  debility.  (4) 
If,  after  a  fair  trial, 
she  have  excessive  back-ache,  faintness,  continual 
prostreition ;  or  if  her  periods  should  return  at  all 
profusely. 

The  various  methods  of  managing  a  "  Ixittle 
baby "  are  described,  ass's  milk,  as  supplied  by 
"V\'elford's  Suney  Dairies,  l)eiiig  mentioned  as  one 
alternative  to  mother's  milk.  The  methods  of 
modifying  cow's  milk  are  detailed,  and  the  use 
■of  a  Soxhlet  apparatus  advocated  for  sterilising 
and  pasteurising    purposes. 

One  chapter  is  devoted  to  "'  Baby's  Troubles,'' 
beginning  with  vaccination.  "  Many  mothere," 
it  is  stated,  "  have  very  strong  objections  to 
having  their  children  vaccinated,  which  they  base 
on  the  following  grounds:  (1)  It  pains  the  child; 
(2)  it  may  introduce  diseases  and  even  cause  death  ; 
(3;  it  is  quite  unnecessary  and  practically  of  no 
value." 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  idea  of  inflicting 
pain  on  an  infant,  and,  indeed,  of  introducing  the 
vaccine  into  its  system  is  distasteful  to  many 
mothere.  At  the  same  time  no  mother  who  has  live<l 
in  a  country  where  vaccination  is  not  the  rule, 
and    seen    how    many   hundreds    die    during    an 


(B)  (C) 
V.\Rious  Kinds  of  Lice  (Gbeatly  Magnified). 
(A)   Head  Louse,  chiefly  found  in  the  scalp.     (B) 
Egg  of  Head  Louse  attached  to  a  hair  magnified, 
and  (C)  natural  size.     (D)  Louse   found  on  the 
hairy  parts  nf  the  body.     (E)  Body  Louse. 


epidemic,  and  the  virulence  of  the  disease  even 
in  those  cases  which  do  not  end  fatally,  would 
hesitate  to  afford  her  child  protection  from  so 
terrible  a  disease  at  the  small  price  of  the  tem- 
porary discomfort  caused  by  vaccination. 

Skin  Affections. 
An   interesting   section  of   the  book   is  that  on 
skin  affections,  including  naevus,  or  mother's  mark, 
red  gum,   sweat  rash   (sudamina),  eczema,   nettle- 
rash  or  urticaria,  boils,  ringworm,  the  itch,  and, 
lastly,  lice  or  pediculi.    The  accompanying  illustra- 
tions show  the  various  kinds  of  lice  greatly  mag- 
nified— i.e.,   the  head   louse,  and  the   egg  of    this 
louse  attached  to  a  hair.     The  eggs  are  of  an  oval 
shape  and  glued  to  the  hair.    A  hair  of  the  natural 
size  with  an  egg  glued    to    it  is  also  shown.       As 
nurses  are  aware,  great  irritation  is  caused  by  lice, 
and  sometimes  eczema,  especially  that  form  which 
is  situated  at  the  back  of  the  neck,  and  the  neigh- 
bouring glands,    are   often   enlarged. 
Worms. 
There  are  three  varieties  of  worms  by  which  a 
child  may  be  affected 
— the   tape  worm,   the 
round  worm,   and  the 
ihread      worm.       The 
symptoms      (when 
^f&   present)     are     irrita- 
*■      tion    and     consequent 
scrat-ching       at       the 
anus,   grinding  of  the 
teeth,    picking   at  the 
nose,    disturbance     of 
the  bowels,  ai*d  capri- 
cious      appetite,      to 
which     we     may    add 
rise     of     temperature 
and  feverishness ;    but 
in      many      instances 
the  presence  of  worms 
gives       rise       to      no 
symptoms   at  all. 
Tape  worm  rarely  infests  an  infant.    Flat  pieces 
of  worm   are  passed  in  the  motions  of  the  child. 
A  cure  will  not  take  place  until  the  head  of  the 
animal  is  passed. 

Bound  worms  are  several  inches  long,  and  have 
son:ewhat  the  appearance  of  the  common  earth 
worm.  One  or  more  may  be  present,  usually  one. 
They  may  be  expelled  through  the  mouth  by 
vomiting.  The  drug  usually  given  (tinder  a 
doctor's  orders)  is  santonin,  which  is  given  at  bed- 
time and  followed  by  a  dose  of  castor  oil  in  the 
morning. 

Thread  Worms. — The.se  worms,  when  present, 
usually  exist  in  large  numbers.  They  are  about 
a  quarter  of  an  inch  in  length,  and  inhabit  the 
lower  bowel.  They  often  escape  from  the  antis  and 
crawl  about  in  its  vicinity.  They  are  treated  by 
injections  of  salt  and  water  (a  teaspoonful  to  a 
pint)  into  the  lower  bowel,  or  an  infusion  of 
quassia  of  the  same  strength  may  be  given.  For 
young  children  not  more  than  three  or  four  ounces 
of  the  injection  should  be  given  at  a  time.  Occa- 
sionally santonin  is  prescribed  in  place  of  the  in- 
jections. 


BO 


Zb€  Brittsb  Journal  of  IRuremg 


[May  21,  1910 


In  all  cases  of  suspected  worms  it  is  important 
that  the  motions  should  be  carefully  examined 
(and  saved  for  the  inspection  of  the  medical  at- 
tendant) as  it  is  impossible  to  arrive -at  a  correct 
diagnosis  unless  the  worms  or  their  eggs  be 
seen. 

The  illustrations  on  this  page,  which  appear  in 
"  Our  Baby,"  give  an  excellent  idea  of  the  various 
kinds  of  worms. 

Ailments    of  the  Eyes. 

Under  this  head- 
ing the  various 
forms  of  ophthal- 
mia are  described, 
also  ulcer  on  the 
cornea,  which  de- 
notes ill  health.  It 
is  always  accom- 
panied by  pain, 
watering  of  tlie 
eye,  and  a  fear  of 
light.  The  eye 
generally  waters  n 
good  deal,  and 
the  child  will  ab- 
solutely refuse  to 
allow  it  to  be 
looked  at.  The 
general  treatment 
consists  of  tonics, 
good  food,  and 
fresh  air.  The 
medical  attendant 
will  probably 

order  atropine 
lotion  to  be 
dropped  into  the 
eye,  and  perhaps 
a  blister  on  the 
temj)le.  It  is  im- 
portant that  medi- 
cal advice  sliould 
be  obtained  with- 
out delay,  as  neg- 
lected cases  of 
corneal  ulcer  may 
end  in  destruc- 
tion of  the  eve- 
ball. 

I  n  fl  ammation 
of  the  roots  of  the 
eyelashes  is  a  very 
common  disordei- 
among  poor  chil- 
dren. The  fol- 
lowing is  the  de- 
scription given  by 
Mrs.   Hewer :  — 

"  The  edges  of  the  lids  become  red  and  irritable, 
and  a  thick  secretion  is  poured  out  whicli  glues  the 
lids  together.  Scabs  form  and  the  lashes  drop  out 
forming  a  very  unpleasant  spectacle.  The  great 
line  of  treatment  is  cleanliness  and  tonics.  The 
scabs  should  be  bathed  off,  and  a  little  dilute  yellow 
oxide  of  mercury  ointment  smeared  on.  A  child 
that  has  once  had  the  disease  is  very  liable  to  have 
it  again." 


KovND   Worm. 
{Ahouf  lialf  natural 
ske.) 


The  E.\h. 

Otitis,  or  inflammation  of  the  middle  ear,  is 
briefly  described.  It  is  very  painful  and  reveals 
itself  in  fever,  loss  of  appetite,  and  tenderness  be- 
hind the  ear.  The  child  probably  cries  persistently 
and  rolls  its  head  from  side  to  side.  At  an  early 
stage  hot  fomentations  and  poultices  may  give  re- 
lief, but  medical  assistance  should  always  be  sum- 
moned without  delay.  If  suppuration  takes  place 
the  pus  is  pent  up,  and  the  abscess  is  usually  opened 
by  the  surgeon 
before  it  bursts, 
when  relief  is  ob- 
tained. Trained 
nurses  know  that 
such  cases  require 
the  greatest  care 
and  cleanliness  in 
nui-sing. 

Drugs  such  as 
aconite,  bromide 
of  potassium, 

calomel,  oisium. 
and,  we  must 
add,  bicarbonate 
of  soda,  should 
never  be  given 
without  medical 
direction.  Bicar- 
bonate of  soda 
has  a  corrosive 
action  on  the 
coats  of  the 
stomach,  whicli 
may  be  very  in- 
jurious if  it  is 
given  indiscrimi- 
nately. 

Rheum.itism. 
Mrs.  Hewer 

points  out  that 
this  disease  i> 
very  apt  to  be 
overlooked,  espe- 
cially in  yotint; 
children,  as  the 
joint  pains  are 
often  very  slight, 
and  are  put  dow  n 
by  the  mother  or 
nurse  to  ''  gi-ow- 
ing  pains."  The 
serious  thing 
about  rheuma- 
tism in  young 
children  is,  that 
the  heart  is  so 
very  liable  to  be- 
come affected.  Heart  disease  in  children  is  always 
dangerous  and  oft«n  fatal.  St.  Vitus'  dance  may 
follow  an  attack  of  rheumatism. 

If  a  child  complains  of  pains  in  its  ankles,  knees, 
or  wrists  the  best  thing  to  do  is  to  keejD  it  warm  in 
bed,  and  send  for  a  doctor.  In  some  cases  mus- 
cular rather  than  joint  pains  are  complained  of. 
Should  the  heart  be  affected  tliere  may  be  vomiting, 
breathlessuess,  fever,  and  pain  in  the  stomach. 


Thread  Worms  (about  natural  sizr). 


May  21,  1910] 


CDC  JSvitieb  ionrnal  of  IRurslng. 


421 


lie  is 


W. 


Out5i^c  tbc  Gates. 

WOMEN. 

It  1.-.  iKit  improbable 
tliat  a  Higeiicy  Dili  will 
1)0  slioitly  laid  botoic 
Parliament  providing 
tor  the  administraiion 
.~1 '  HlllB|||y|yi[[B|H|8|  h!^  of  the  Government 
-"-I   iS5Tw»SBi-!3  I  sliould         the         Crown 

dfscond  to  the  young 
Duke  of  Cornwall  beiore 
it  suggested  that  the  Duke 
ot  Coniiauglit  should  be  appointed  Regent.  Why 
is  Queen  Mai-y  to  be  parsed  over?  Surely  we 
have  evidence  enough  of  the  beneficence  of  the 
regency  of  Queen  Mothei-s.  AA"e  have  only  to  point 
to  the  wonderful  influence  of  Queen  Cliristina  of 
Spain,  and  her  success  dining  the  minority  of  King 
Alfonno.  who  owes  so  much  to  her  discriminating 
care.  By  all  means  let  us  have  all  the  mother  in- 
fluence we  can  get  in  royal  and  political  circles,  it 
always  makes  for  the  general  good. 

At  the  fii-st  professional  examination  in  anatomy 
and  physiolog.v  for  the  diploma  of  Fellow  of  the 
Royal  College  of  Surgeon-^,  held  on  May  oth,  (ith, 
10th.  11th.  12th,  and  1.3th,  13-5  candidates  pre- 
sented themselves,  of  whom  73  per  cent,  were  re- 
ferred and  27  yter  cent,  were  approved,  among 
whom  ifc  Miss  >[.  M.  Basden.  Royal  Free  Hospital, 
who  is  the  first  lady  to  pass  this  examination,  tor 
which  six  ladies  entered. 

An  important  conce.ssion  to  women  medical 
students  has  been  made  by  the  Board  of  Governore 
of  the  Leeds  General  Infirmary,  who  have  decided 
to  admit  women  students  to  the  i)racfice  of  the  In- 
firmary. As  the  lectures  and  laboratory  coui'ses  of 
the  Me<lical  School  of  the  University  are  already 
open  to  women,  the  step  taken  b.v  the  Infirmary 
Board  will  enable  women  to  receive  the  whole  of 
their  mtxlical  education  in  Leeds. 

The  Convention  drawn  up  by  the  Congress  for  tne 
Prevention  of  the  White  .Slave  Traffic  and  the 
.Suppression  of  Obscene  Literature,  held  in  Paris, 
is  publishe<l.  AVith  regard  to  the  white  slave  traffic 
it  is  recommonde<l  that  punishment  be  inflicted  for 
all  incitements  to  immorality  .and  the  like,  whether 
or  not  various  acts  constituting  the  offence  have 
been  aceompli.shed  in  different  countries.  The  con- 
tracting parties,  whose  legislation  i.s  at  present  in- 
sufficient for  the  punishment  of  these  offences, 
agree  to  take,  or  propose  to  their  respective 
legislatures,  niea-sures"  )ieceft.sary  for  the  condign 
punishment  of  such  offences.  As  for  obscene  litera- 
ture and  the  like,  it  is  recommended  that  its  pub- 
lication. im|x>rtntion.  transport,  sale  or  advertise- 
ment of  any  kind,  shall  be  made  punishable. 

Mr.  G.  Strangways  Collins  draws  attention  to 
the  frequent  use  of  the  spur  by  hunting  women. 
Ladies'  .spurs  are.  he  says,  vei-y  cruel  instruments, 
in  the  form  of  intensely  sharp  spikes,  and  cruelty  is 
inevitable  when  they  are  use<l.  Surely  no  lover  of 
Tiorses  could  u.se  .so  l>arbarous  a  weapon  on  the 
:good  horse  who  serves  her  well. 


THE  SOUL 
We  cannot  describe  the  natural  history  of  the 
soul,  but  we  know  that  it  is  divine.  All  things  are 
known  to  the  soul.  It  is  not  to  be  surprised  by 
any  communication.  Nothing  can  be  greater  than 
it,  let  those  fear  and  those  fawn  who  will.  The 
soul  is  in  her  native  realm  ;  and  it  is  wider  than 
space,  older  than  time,  wide  as  hope,  rich  as  love. 
Pusilanimity  and  fear  she  refuses  with  a. beautiful 
scorn;  they  are  not  for  her  who  putteth  on  her 
coronation  robes,  and  goes  out  through  universal 
love  to  universal  po'wer. 

1?.  AV.  E.MKHSON. 

VERSE. 

It  was  but  tlie  lightest  woui  oi   ;in-  Ivmg, 
When  he  was  neither  merry  nor  sad ; 

It  was  but  a  very  little  thing, 
Yet  it  made  his  servant  glad. 

He  gave  a  look  as  it  befell, 

Between  a  smile  and  a  smothered  sigh. 
Whether  he  meant  it,  who  can  tell? 

p,,^  r^,^  •vnn   went  out  to  die. 

From  The  Kin(j, 

AIaRT    E.    COLEBrDGE. 


COMING    EVENTS. 
May  2()th. — Funeral  of  his  late  Gracious  Majesty 
King  Edward  VII. 

Man  Joril. —  Fever  Xurses'  Association,  Annual 
(jeneial  Aleeting,  Chief  Offices  of  the  Aletropolitan 
Asylums' -Board.  A^ictoria  Embankment.  3  p.m. 

May  24th.— The  Infants"  Hospital,  S.AV.  A 
course  of  lectures  on  Babies.  lA'. — '"  The  Produc- 
tion and  Modification  of  Pure  Cow's  Alilk."  By  Dr. 
Ralph  Vincent.     Lecture  Theatre.     .5  p.m. 

May  25th. — Asylum  AA'orkers'  Association.  Annual 
General  Meeting.  11,  Cliandos  Street,  Cavendish 
Square,  AA".  Chair,  Sir  AA'illiam  .1.  Collins,  M.D., 
F.R.C.S.,  M.P..  President,  3  p.m. 

May  26th. — Central  Midwives'  Board,  Monthly 
Meeting.  Offices  of  the  Board,  Caxton  House, 
S.AA'.    2.45  p.m. 

May  27th. — Queen  A'ictoria's  Jnbilee  Institute. 
Conference  of  representatives  of  affiliated  Associa- 
tions.    Caxton  Hall,   Westminster. 

May  Slst. — The  Rural  Midwives'  Association. 
Seventh  Annual  Meeting.  3,  Grosvonor  Place, 
S.AA'.,  by  kind  permission  of  the  Lady  Esther 
Smith.  H.  J.  Tennant,  Esq.,  M.P.,  in  the  chair. 
3  p.m. 

June  2nd. — The  Society  for  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Xurses.  Annual  Alecting,  11,  Chandos 
.Street,  Cavendish  Square,  W.,  4  p.m. 

June  6th. — Opening  of  Women's  Congress  at  the 
Japan-British  Exhibition.  "  The  Co-oi>eration  of 
AA'omen  in  Tjocal  Government." 

June  Iftth  (po.stponed  from  May  28th). — Proces- 
sion of  AVomen  .Suffragi.sts  from  the  Embankment  . 
to  Albert  Hall.  oigani~*'d  by  the  AVomcu's  National 
.Social  and  Political  Union. 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 
"It  is  a  greater  thing  to  make  another  strong 
than  it  is  to  carry  his  load." 


422 


^De  Biitlsb  3ournal  of  IRurstng. 


[May  21,  1910 


Xetters  to  tbe  EMtor. 


Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  we  wish  it 
to  he  distinctly  understooa 
that  we  do  not  in  ant  wai 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  out 
correspondents. 


as  such  in  an  Act  of  Parliament. 
Yours  faithfully, 

Ceutified  Midwife. 


OUR  GUINEA  PRIZE. 
Dear      Madam,  ■ —  1     have     much     pleasure     in 
acknowledging  the  receipt  of  one  guinea  for  picture 
puzzle  prize. 

Wisliing  your  paper  eyery  succes^s. 
Yours  faithfuUy, 

Bessie  WiDDor. 
The  Royal  Infirmary,  Sheffield. 


MALE  MIDWIVES. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — It  is  an  interesting  fact  tliat 
under  the  Midwires'  Act,  1902,  while  women  are 
prohibited  from  taking  the  name  and  title  of  mid- 
wife, and  from  habitually  and  for  gain  attending 
women  in  child-birth,  otherwise  than  under  the 
direction  of  a  qualified  medical  practitioner,  men 
can  do  both  these  things  with  imijunity,  and  not 
only  can,  but  do,  as  you  recently  showed. 

It  is  clear  that  the  Act  needs  amending  to  pro- 
hibit the  practice  of  unqualified  men,  or  they  may 
enter  into  most  unfair  competition  with  certified 
inidwives,  to  say  nothing  of  the  danger  to  which 
patients  who  employ  them  may  l)e  subjected.  More- 
over, although  the  male  midwife  is  entirely  un- 
regulated, and  there  is  no  rule  to  comi>el  him  to 
send  for  medical  Assistauoe,  yet,  as  he  cannot 
give  a  death  certificate,  he  will  be  practically  forced 
to  summon  medical  assistance  in  serious  cases.  This 
opens  up  further  problems.  Would  a  doctor  sum- 
moned on  the  advice  of  an  unregistered  male  mid- 
wife Ije  covering  unqualified  practice,  and  so  be 
liable  to  have  his  name  removed  from  his  profes- 
sional registei',  if  he  went  to  the  assistance  of  a 
lying-in  woman  at  the  ixjquest  of  a  male  midwife, 
and  how  can  he  enforce  i>ayment  of  his  fee  if  the 
husband   repudiates  his  claim  ? 

Other  interesting  points  opened  up  are :  How 
should  an  amendment  of  the  Act  be  worded?  '•  Xo 
woman  shall  habitually  and  for  gain  attend  women 
in  child-birth  .  .  .  unless  she  l)e  certified  under 
this  Act  "  cannot  be  changed  to  no  person,  as  the 
Api>eal  Court  of  the  House  of  Lords  lias  decided 
that  a  woman  is  not  a  person,  so  that  if  amended 
in  that  way  it  would  apply  to  men  only,  and  con- 
fusion would  be  woi'se  confounded.  It  will 
apparently  have  to  read,  "  no  man  or  woman  "  m 
every  instance  in  which  it  is  desired  to  include  botii, 
and 'lastly,  one  wonders  what  the  judgment  in  the 
Edinburgh  gnaduates'  appeal  to  the  House  of  LoixJs 
would  have  been  had  the  Midwives'  Act  originally 
iKven  worded  .so  as  to  prevent  unqualified  i>eii&oiis 
from  iiractice.  It  could  hardly  have  been  held  that 
a  woman  was  not  a  pei'Son  had  she  been  described 


DIRECT   REPRESENTATION   OF  MIDWIVES. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — May  I  thank  you  for  making  a 
.stand  for  the  direct  representation  of  midwive®  on 
their  own  governing  body  ?  \Miy  are  we  to  be  ex- 
cluded from  all  authority,  and  be  entirely  managed 
Viy  doctoi-s,  nurses,  and  tlie  leisured  classes?  v./ne 
result  of  this  injustice  is  amply  apparent — we  can- 
not make  a  living  wage.  That  fact  proves  that  our 
l^rofessioiv  Ls  mismanaged  by  those  who  control  't. 
Yours  truly, 

A  M.\nchester  Midwife. 


(Eomments  anb  IRcplies. 

Itifirnianj  Matron. — '  A  History  of  Nursing,"  by 
Miss  Adelaide  \utting  and  Miss  L.  L.  Dock,  is  just 
the  work  you .  require.  The  two  volumes  issued 
bring  the  history  of  nursing  down  to  the  year  18T.">. 
The  third  volume,  which  is  now  in  preparation, 
will  bring  it  up  to  date,  and  will  apjjear  at  the  end 
of  this  year.  The  work  is  published  by  G.  P.  Put- 
nams  Sons,  24,  Bedford  Street,  "VV.C.  'ine 
majority  of  nurses  know  nothing  of  the  history  ot 
their  profession, 

IRoticcs. 

The  British  Journal  of  Nursing  is  the  official 
organ  of  the  following  important  Nursing  socie- 
ties ;  — 

The  International  Council  of  Nurses. 

The  National  Council  of  Trained  Nurses  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland. 

The  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland. 

The  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses. 

The  Registered  Nurses'  Society. 

The  School  Nurses'  League. 

As  their  official  organ  is  widely  read  by  the  mem- 
bers of  these  societies,  the  Editor  will  at  all 
times  be  pleased  to  find  space  for  items  ot  news 
from  the  Secretaries  and  members. 


CONTRIBUTIONS. 

The  Editor  will  at  all  times  be  pleased  to  consider 
articles  of  a  suitable  nature  for  insertion  in  this 
Journal— those  on  practical  nursing  are  specially 
invited. 

Such  communications  must  be  duly  authenticated 
with  name  and  address,  and  should  be  addressed  to 
the  Editor,  20,  Upper  Wimpole  Street,  London,  \v . 

Advertisements  and  business  communications 
should  be  addressed  to  the  Manager,  British 
Journal  of  Nursing,  11,  Adam  Street,  Strand, 
W.C. 

~  OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 

Rules  for  competing  for  the  Pictorial  Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


May  21, 1910]    ^[^c  Bdtisb  3ouvnal  of  H^ursiiuj  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


423 


Hn  Jnterestino  Case. 

POSSIBLE    SUPERFCETATION. 
I'aia  4.     Age  3l'.     Previous  labours  and  pregnan- 
cies  normal;  general    health   good;    no   history   of 
kidney  disease;  one  miscarriage  of  5  months. 

The  present  pregnancy,  swelling  of  hands,  feet, 
and  legs  from  the  fourth  month ;  considerable  in- 
crease after  seventli  month.  There  was  no  historj' 
of  headache,  sickness,  disturbance  of  vision,  no 
ana?mia. 

On  admission,  the  examination  of  urine  showed 
a  heavy  deposit  of  albumin,  and  the  Esbach  test 
2.8  %.  Feet,  legs,  and  abdominal  walls  were 
(Edematous,  and  pitted  on  pressure  to  the  depth  of 
J  of  an  inch. 

On  abdominal  examination,  the  uterus  was  much 
distended,  and  the  fundus  an  inch  below  the  ensi- 
form  cartilage.  Twins  were  diagnosed,  both  with 
vertex  presenting,  one  head  entering  brim  and 
the  other  on  right  side  of  pelvis  above  brim.  Foetal 
heart  sounds  were  lieard  on  left  side  of  abdomen 
below  umbilicus  156  beats  to  the  minute,  and  an- 
otlier  on  right  side  in  the  flanks  136.  There  was 
considerable  liquor  amnii. 

On  vaginal  examination,  no  oedema  of  external 
parts,  the  os  uteri  the  size  of  a  two-shilling 
piece,  1st  vertex  presenting,  the  head  very 
small  and  freely  movable,  half  an  hour  later 
the  patient  had  three  pains,  and  the  first  twin  was 
born,  a  boy  weighing  3  lbs.  9  ozs.,  length  16^  inches, 
witli  all  the  signs  of  a  premature  baby  of  about  32 
weeks,  wrinkled  appearance,  weak  cry,  skin  red, 
and  a  considerable  amount  of  lanugo  on  face  and 
Ixjdy. 

On  second  vaginal  examination,  the  os  was 
somewhat  retracted,  anterior  lip  cedematous,  the 
presenting  part  of  second  child  very  difficult  to 
reach,  per  abdomen  head  above  the  brim.  An  hour 
later  pains  again  began.  On  vaginal  examination 
the  cervix  was  found  to  be  cedematous  all  round, 
membranes  were  then  artificially  ruptured,  the 
presenting  part  entered  the  brim  in  the  2nd  vertex 
position.  Fairly  strong  pains  every  eight  minutes, 
but  as  no  advance  was  being  made,  the  second 
child,  a  boy,  was  delivered  with  forceps  four  hours 
after  the  birth  of  the  first.  Weight  6  lbs.  4  ozs., 
length  19  inches,  with  the  appearance  of  a  full 
term  child. 

The  placenta  was  expelled  10  minutes  later.  Ap- 
parently there  was  one  placenta,  but  on  careful  in- 
spection there  was  a  line  uniting  the  two  portions 
which  could  be  easily  separated,  the  vessels  in 
the  smaller  portion  were  smaller  than  those  of  the 
larger  portion.  There  were  two  complete  sacks. 
Amount  of  hremorrhage  7  ounces. 

Twenty-four  hours  after  delivery  patient's  face 
became  puffy,  but  the  amount  of  albumin  had  de- 
creased to  .8  per  cent.  Patient  was  put  on  milk 
and  fish  diet,  otherwise  there  wiis  no  other  treat- 
ment. On  the  fifth  day  a  marked  decrease  of 
oedema,  tlie  Esbach  test  showed  a  decreased 
amount  of  albumin,  .1  %. 


Points  of  interest  in  this  case  are  the  disparity 
of  weight  and  length  in  the  babies,  and  the  ques- 
tion arises  was  it  a  case  of  superfoetation? 

The  oedema  and  albumin  were  probably  due  to 
excessive  pressure  incident  to  the  twin  pregnancy. 

Tlie  patient  was  discharged  on  the  13th  day  in 
very  good  condition ;  there  was  still  some  albumin 
in  the  urine,  probably  owing  to  the  ureters  not 
being  in  their  normal  condition. 

The  small  child  was  entirely  breast  fed,  aud  ex- 
ceeded its  birth  weight  by  2i  ozs. 

The  larger  child  lost  considerably  the  first  few 
days,  but  made  a  steady  advance  until  its  dis- 
charge, when  it  was  3  ozs.  below  birth  weight. 
The  feeding  of  this  baby  was  supplemented  with 
modified  cow's  milk. 

E.  F.  AVells. 


JLbc  Central  flDlbwives'  Boar&. 


APRIL    EXAMINATION. 
List  of  Successful  C.andid.\ies. 

At  the  examination  of  the  Central  Alidwives' 
Board,  held  in  London  on  April  28th,  1910,  the 
number  of  candidates  examined  was  3.53,  of  whom 
308  pa.'?sed  the  examiners.  The  jiercentage  of 
failures  was  12.8. 

London. 

British  Lying-in  Hospital. — E.  S.  Anness,  S. 
Brewer,  L.  S.  Chew,  E.  B.  Simon,  S.  Stuart,  M.  E. 
AVillfion. 

City  of  London  Lying-in  Hospital. — P.  G.  Austin, 
G.  E.  D.  Bignold,  S.  A.  G.  Blyth.  A.  W.  Fnaser, 
M.  L.  Hodgson,  A.  L.  Hughes,  W.  Taylor,  B.  M. 
Williams,  V.  Wisbey. 

Clapham  Maternity  Hospital. — H.  E.  Barham, 
L.  Eyre,  L.  Hetherington,  E.  G.  Ibbotson,  G.  F. 
Kaplan-Ingol,  M.  Tlirc>sher. 

Ea.'it  End  Mothers'  Home. — M.  Anders,  L.  C. 
Coleman,  A.  M.  Everington.  C.  F.  S.  Field,  M. 
Hemsley,  M.  M.  Jarvi.s.  E.  Lupton,  L.  G.  Martin, 
C.  E.  Moore,  M.  E.  O'Sullivan,  F.  E.  Par.sons.  E. 
Taite. 

General  Lying-in  Hospital. — A.  H.  Anthony,  E 
M.  Campion,  E.  Clarke,  H.  L.  Constable,  L.  B. 
Cotes,  X.  Cowell,  C.  A.  Creer,  F.  C.  Dampier.  O. 
Fisher,  R.  B.  Fitchett.  X.  T.  Frost,  E.  JI.  Gran.sbv, 

E.  F.  HaggLs.  M.  O.  Haines,  H.  M.  W.  Hoeth,  A. 
Iremonger,  E.  M.  Jones,  M.  Jones.  M.  L.  Joseph, 
S.  K.  Latham,  A.  A.  Laver,  C.  Lishman.  F.  M. 
MorrLson,  A.  P.  Smaitt,  C.  Street,  E.  M.  Tliorold, 

F.  Walker,  E.  Wasteneys,  M.  51.  Whitehouse,  E. 
Winstanley,  I.   M.  Yonge. 

Gull's  Institution. — A.  Clifton,  M.  A.  D.  Colling, 
wood,  U.  Hogg,  M.  C.  Levis,  M.  K.  Tyson,  M.  H. 
R.   Watkins. 

Greenwich  Union  Infirmary. — M.  J.  Page,  F.  S. 
Pool. 

Kensington  Union  Infirmary. — E.  M.  Coxhill,  E. 
E.  Wilson. 


*2i        ^be  Bvitisb  3ournal  of  IHursiuQ  Supplemeiu.  t^^^y  21, 1910 


LqikIou  Hospital.— Ji..  Adcock,  D.  M.  Borland,  M. 
A.  Edwards.  K.  M.  Hawkins,  R.  S.  C.  Jessurun, 
J.  C.  King.  K.  M.  llilburn. 

Middlesex  Hospital.— A.  G.  Garner,  B.  A. 
Latham.  M.  J.  Pear&ou,  X.  M.  Stearns,  A-.. Thomas. 
yew  Hospitaljor  Women. — M.  J.  ilanson. 
Queen  Charlotte's  Hospital. — A.  L.  Barnes,  M. 
A.  Bt'll,  R.  J.  Brant,  E.  il.  Brecknell,  O.  Clare,  G. 
M.  Dawson,  L.  Froatliy,  E.  Fulford,  A.  R.  Higgs, 
C.  A.  G.  James.  E.  J''  Mansfield.  A.  F.  Millward, 
H.  M.  Minton.  A.  JM.  PoUett,  J.  Prickett,  M.  E.  M. 
R«ndle.  E.  Richards,  E.  M.  A.  Rosser,  F.  A.  Shawe, 
E.  J.  Sinner,  M.  M.  U.  Stapylton-Smith,  G.  L- 
Teale.  A.  W.  Terheggen,  E.  X.  Turner,  W.  M.  -U. 
"Wauklin,  E.  G.  Whittingham. 

■•  Itegioris  Beyond"  Missionary  Union. — R.  M. 
Jackson. 

Snlration  Army  Maternity  Hospital.— X.  Amson, 
E.  M.  C■owla^^d,  V.  Eoll,  G.  K.  Frape,  E.  G.  Gould, 
S.  J.  Hall.  :M.  I.  Hvams.  K.  E.  E.  Hyde,  R.  G. 
.Jones,  B.  H.  Mann,  H.  M.  Parker,  M.  A.  Tomp- 
kins. 

^horeditch  Union  Infirmary. — E.  M.  Reade. 
West    Ham    Workhouse.— C.    M.  Gridley,  C.  A. 
Lee,  .J.  Linton. 

Provinces. 
.VdcrshrA,  Louise    Margaret    Hospital. — H.  Tat- 
tei-sall. 

Bradford  Union  Hospital. — M.  Croot. 
Brighton  and    Hove    Hospital    for  Women. — F. 
Adams,  E.  Cockeram,  M.  A.  Donnelly,  M.  "«'.  Ellis. 
A.     E.    Hackwood,    L.    Hotine,     P.     Simi^son,     L. 
Twidale. 

Bristol  Boyal  Infirmary. — E.  M.  Awbery,  A.  Jen- 
kins, E.  C.  Peers. 

Cheltenham  District  Nursing  .issociation. — B. 
M.  Taylor. 

Chatham,  Military  Families'  Hospital. — E.  Day, 
A.   Flamauk. 

Devon  and  Cornwall  Training  School.- — C.  M. 
Coad,  S.  J.  Coraerford,  E.  Penney. 

Edmonton  Union  Infirmary. — M.  E.  Dennis,  N. 
Mann. 

Esse.v  County  Cottage  Nursing  Society. — G. 
Walsh. 

Gloucester  District  Nursing  Society. — L.  E. 
Downer,  E.  Knowles. 

Hull  Lying-in  Charity. — K.  J.  Fall. 
Ipsicich  Nurses'  Home. — E.  M.  Aldis,  E.  R.  Dale, 
H.  Fiske,  A.  A.  Poole,  A.  :\I.  A.  "Watson. 

Manchester  St.  Mary's  Hospitals. — F.  M.  Wil- 
kinson. 

Nen-castle-on-Tync  Maternity  Hosiiital. — G.  E. 
Pollock. 

Nottingham  WorMouse  Infirmray. — E.  Richards. 
Plaistow  Maternity  Charity. — E.  E.  Baker,  C. 
Bigg,  A.  Byrne.  R.  Chri.stey,  D.  E.  Clinch.  B. 
Connolly,  F.  M.  Darrington.  .J.  C.  Golden,  J.  Greg- 
.son.  R.  M.  Harl>ord.  1.  C.  Heather,  C.  Jackson,  K. 
A.  James,  C.  E.  .Jenkins.  L.  E.  .Jovce.  C.  A.  Mac- 
donald,  "SI.  Moody,  A.  W.  Orr,  A.  Paish,  G.  S. 
Piirdy,  E.  Race,  L.  Robinson.  I.  M.  Smyth,  F.  M. 
Silencer.  L.  B.  Summers.  M.  A.  Tliorae,  M.  A. 
Tilley.  L.  E.  Turner.  E.  M.  AVilber.  E.  E.  Wilkins, 
L.  A.  Williams,  I.  AVilthew,  A.  Worthington,  P. 
Young. 


.•<h>tiicld,  ./cs.sop  Hospital.— 11.  G.  Dixon,  G. 
Munuoch,  E.  A.  Potterill-Tilney,  E.  Schofield,  -M. 
Walmsley. 

Woolicich,  Home  for  Mothers  and  Babies. — M. 
Luty. 

Woolwich,  Military  Families  Hospital. — E. 
Moore,  F.  E.  A.  Rich.ardson. 

ScOTL.\ND. 

Aberdeen  Maternity  Hospital. — M.  A.  Xelson. 

Dundee  Maternity  Hospital. — W.  E.  Terrier,  A. 
M.  F.  H.  Hall-Honghton,  E.  B.  .Jones,  F.  a. 
O'Sullivan,  J.  J.  Patei-son. 

Edinburgh  Royal  Maternity  Hospital. — A.  S. 
Carter,  F.  M.  .Johnston,  F.  S.  Maddock,  J.  D.  Tait. 

Glasgow    Maternity    Hospital. — E.   M.   Carr,  M. 
W.  Xicoll,  M.  Smith,  M.  Swan. 
Irel.\nd. 

Dublin,  Botunda  Hospital.— H.  C.  Thomas,  F.  R. 
Woodrooffe.  Pkivate  Tuition. 

M.  A.  Acton,  M.  Aklrich,  X.  Ansell,  J.  Arin- 
strona,  D.  Aspa,  E.  Barlow,  S.  Barnaixl,  M.  C. 
Bawden,  E.  AV.  Bevan,  E.  E.  Birsnall,  M.  A. 
Bishop.  F.  F.  Blake,  C.  M.  Brown,  M.  Bullett,  I>. 
E.  Cartlidge,  R.  Clark.  B.  M.  Collins,  R.  Collins 
L.  M.  Cook.  M.  Cook,  R.  T.  Cooi>er,  E.  E.  M.  Cot 
terell,  C.  A.  Dallender,  A.  Davies,  M.  Davies,  M. 
K.  Dinsmore,  M.  E.  Dossetter,  E.  S.  Epgrave.  L. 
M.  Fear,  R.  Fisher,  C.  J.  Fleming,  S.  A.  Free,  .\1. 
Garner,  B.  A.  Glass,  E.  Gooch,  M.  Goodacre,  J. 
Gon-y,  E.  S.  Gostling,  A.  M.  Granger,  M.  C. 
Greengrass,  A.  M.  Haggar,  A.  M.  E.  L.  Haines, 
E.  A.  Hale,  L.  R.  Hammond,  C.  Y.  Henderson, 
A.  M.  Hodder,  A.  Holmes,  A.  E.  Horner,  N.  S. 
Jones,  M.  Iving,  E.  E.  Knight,  M.  J.  Llewellyn,  E. 
A.  I^ong.  H.  Lfouch,  M.  Lusk,  F.  A.  McPhei-son, 
A.  Maskell,  L.  A.  Xoon,  M.  A.  N.  Ochse.  M.  Owen, 
L.  Park,  E.  Paraons,  J.  Reid,  A.  K.  Roche,  E. 
SandncU,  E.  A.  Siebert,  E.  Sisterson,  E.  Spence, 
A.  E.  Stevens,  A.  S.  Taylor.  M.  C.  Thompson. 
C.  M.  Thurston,  B.  L.  C.  Tomlinson,  M.  S.  Ver- 
non, E.  Vest,  F.  E.  Walker,  M.  J.  Watkins, 
M.  E.  West,  M.  M.  Whale,  M.  "WTiite,  E. 
AViddop,  M.  AViUiams,  E.  Willis.  E.  A.  Wood,  E.  L. 
AVorley.  E.  Wright,  A.  I.  Youson. 

DIRECT     REPRESENTATION    OF     MIDWIVES 
ON     THE    C.MB. 

The  Union  of  Midwives  has  approached  the  Ijord 
President  of  the  Council  on  the  subject  of  the  direct 
representation  of  midwives  on  their  governing 
body,  stating  that  the  Committee  are  of  opinion 
that  no  Bill  will  be  acceptable  to  midwives  that 
does  not  lay  the  foundation  for  a  comprehensive 
representation  of  directly  elected  midwives  on  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board. 

Sir  Almeric  Fitzroy,  Clerk  to  the  Council,  has 
informed  Aliss  Macdonald,  Secretary  of  the  t^nion, 
tliat  "  the  Jjord  President  is  of  opinion  that  no 
useful  purpose  would  be  served  by  his  receiving  a 
deputation  from  the  Union  of  Midwives  "  on  the 
question  raised  in  her  letter.  It  is  greatly  to  be  re- 
gretted that  the  Lord  President  has  declined  to 
receive  a  deputation  on  this  vital  subject,  but  it 
must  be  remembered  that  Lord  Wolverhampton,  in 
his  .\mendment  Bill,  has  for  the  first  time  ensured 
the  i)resence  of  two  midwives  on  the  Board. 


THE 

WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED  BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,     MAY     28.     1910. 


le^ito^al. 


THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  GREAT   PROCESSION. 

No  one  who  witnessed  the  pageant  of 
yriday.  last  week,  as  the  dead  King  was 
earned  to  his  rest,  could  fail  to  be  impressed 
by  the  universal  sorrow  which  was  the  domi- 
nant note  of  the  sad  ceremony  and  which 
was  manifest  not  only  in  the  bearing  of  the 
King  as  he  rode  behind  the  bier  of  his  dead 
Father,  but  in  that  of  the  humblest  of  his 
subjects.  The  great  crowds  mourned  a 
friend  as  well  as  a  King,  and  the  day  of 
national  mourning  gave  but  outward  ex- 
pression to  the  general  grief. 

No  less  remarkable  was  the  homage  of  the 
world's  Kings  and  Princes  who  took  part  in 
that  great  procession,  and  nothing  could 
have  demonstrated  more  forcibh*  the 
international  goodwill  inspired  by  King 
Edward  VI 1.  in  his  brief  reign  than  that 
eight  reigning  monarchs  should  have  set 
aside  weighty  affairs  of  state  in  order  to  pay 
a  personal  tribute  of  respect  to  the  King 
who  had  a  genius  for  friendship — a  friend- 
ship freely  extended  to  the  great  French 
arid  American  Republics,  as  well  as  to 
countries  governed  by  constitutional  mon- 
archs. 

When  the  glittering  procession  of  the 
world's  Rulers  had  passed,  all  eyes  turned 
iu  sjmipathy  aud  loyal  devotion  to  the  Queen 
Mother,  who  with  a  marvellous  courage 
bore  herself  as  beseemed  a  daughter  of  the 
Danish  Vikings.  On  all  sides  her  sorrow, 
her  endurance,  her  fortitude,  rivetted  yet 
more  closely  the  ties  by  which  she  is  united 
to  the  land  of  her  adoption. 

In  all  the  great  procession  there  was  no 
more  moving  spectacle  than  that  of  the 
King's  riderless  charger,  Kildare,  who  with 
drooping  head  followed  the  gun-carriage  ; 


and  of  Caesar,  [lis  Majesty's  favourite  wire- 
haired  ten-ier,  who  has  l)een  inconsolable 
for  his  loss,  and  who  trotted  along  in  charge 
of  Maclean,  King  Edward's  gillie  and  gun 
loader,  who  wore,  the  Stuart  tartan.  The 
loyal  heart  of  a  dog  is  untouched  by  the 
majesty  of  sovereignty  and  owns  only  as 
its  sovereign  the  man  who  can  win  its  affec- 
tion. No  courtier,  but  brimming  over  with 
loyal  devotion,  C;esar  loved  and  was  be- 
loved. Who  had  a  better  right  to  a  promi- 
nent place  in  such  a  procession  ? 

The  late  King  had  no  more  devoted  sub- 
jects than  the  trained  nurses  of  the  King- 
dom, and  many  hundi'eds  took  their  places 
in  the  crowd  to  give  expression,  for  the  last 
time,  to  their  loyalty  to  the  dead  Sovereign, 
and  many  also  visited  Westminster  Hall 
during  the  Lying-in-State,  when  special 
facilities  were  given  them  to  obtain  access 
to  the  Hall  by  way  of  Palace  Yard.  This 
thoughtfulness  for  a  busy  section  of  workers 
was  greatly  appreciated  by  the  trained 
nurses,  and  numbers  availed  themselves  of 
the  privilege  thus  extended. 

Amongst  the  thousands  of  wreaths  sent  to 
Windsor  many  beautiful  ones  were  sent  by 
hospital  nurses  and  nursing  associations, 
and  it  will  be  gratifying  to  them  to  know 
that  the  names  of  the  senders  will  be  copied 
and  bound  up  into  a  special  vobime,  and 
the  thanks  of  the  Queen-Mother  will  be 
extended  to  all. 

Friday,  May  20th,  will  abide  in  the 
memory  of  the  British  people  as  the  day  of 
an  ovation  worthy  of  the  great  Monarch 
whom  it  was  desired  to  honour.  But  far 
more  is  it  memoral)le  as  a  day  in  which 
King  and  people,  and  distinguished  visitors 
of  every  degree  were  united  by  one  common 
sentiment — grief  for  the  loss  of  a  widely- 
sympathetic  arid  kingly  man. 


426 


Zhc  Britisb  Journal  ot  IFiurstna. 


[May  28,  1910 


(TDe^tcal  HDatters. 


THE  MENTAL  FACTOR  IN   DISETASE. 

In  his  final  lecture  on  "  The  Mental  Factor 
n  Disease,"  at  Guy's  Hospital,  Dr.  Cameron 
said  he  thought  it  would  be  useful  to  nurses  to 
discuss  the  relation  that  mind  and  body  bear 
upon  each  other  in  disease.  The  public  is  quite 
familiar  with  the  names  of  common  diseases 
and  with  the  chief  organs  of  the  body,  and  the 
sensations  of  the  patient  are  commonly 
regarded  as  evidence  of  organic  disease.  The 
physician,  as  a  rule,  on  the  other  hand,  bases 
his  diagnosis  not  upon  a  symptom,  but  upon 
the  physical  signs  of  disease.  A  symptom  is 
that  which  a  patient  himself  teels  or  euSers, 
together  with  all  that  the  physician  learns  by 
conversation  with  him,  or  generally  by  observa- 
tion of  him.  In  eliciting  physical  signs,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  physician  brings  his  trained 
and  practised  special  senses  in  order  to  bear 
upon  the  patient — the  eye,  the  hand,  the  ear,  ' 
inspection,  palpation,  percussion,  and  auscul- 
tation. 

If  the  result  of  this  physical  examination  is 
negative,  generally  speaking  the  conclusion  is 
that  the  disease  is  functional,  that  the  symp- 
toms are  to  be  explained  by  no  gross  visible 
disease,  but  by  the  over-sensitiveness  of  the 
receptive  and  sensory  apparatus  of  the 
patient.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  physical  signs 
of  disease  are  found,  then  the  symptoms  be- 
come full  of  meaning  and  importance.  A  group 
of  symptoms  in  one  place  may  rightly  be  re- 
garded as  an  expression  of  the  exhausted  state 
of  the  nervous  system. 

A  physician  often  sees  on  the  same  day  two 
patients  suffering  from  heart  disease — one  who 
is  so  insensitive  that  he  can  hardly  be  per- 
suaded of  his  own  disabilities,  and  the  second 
with  a  similar  condition,  who  is  utterly  in- 
capacitated by  the  same  symptoms,  yet  the 
physical  condition,  the  real  capacity  for  work, 
and  the  expectation  of  life  of  these  two  patients 
may  be  the  same. 

In  hospital  one  often  sees  the  ill  effect  a 
sudden  or  unexpected  death  will  have  upon 
the  more  sensitive  patients;  only  last  month 
a  patient  died  in  one  of  the  wards  of  heart 
disease  of  a  sort  not  usually  fatal,  a  few  hours 
after  the  death  of  his  neighbour  in  the  next 
bed,  whose  case  from  the  first  was  hopeless. 

The  efPect  of  the  mind  upon  the  body  is  most 
obvious  in  functional  disorders,  those  in  which 
(were  a  post-mortem  possible)  we  should  find 
nothing  to  account  for  the  variety  of  symptoms 
presented  during  life.  These  patients  are 
described  as  hysterical,  neurasthenic,  and 
neurotic,  and    these   words    are    used    by  the 


public  without  any  clear  idea  of  their  meaning. 

In  trying  to  explain  the  meaning  of  these 
words,  "  hysteria  "  and  "  neurasthenia,"  it  is 
well  to  remember  that  every  man  and  woman 
has  normally  in  their  composition  certain 
elements  of  hysteria  and  neurasthenia.  The 
hysterical  subject  is  usually  a  young  woman, 
although  children  and  men  sometimes  suffer  as 
well.  She  comes  of  a  family  of  highly  strung 
emotional  people,  who  feel  pleasures  keenly 
and  suffer  reverses  of  fortune  correspondingly 
acutely.  At  times  she  is  wont  to  be  aggres- 
sively happy,  and  is  capable  of  extraordinary 
exertion  both  mental  and  physical,  and  at  other 
times  she  is  depressed  and  irritable,  unable  to 
give  her  mind  to  any  project  and  exhausted  by 
the  slightest  exertion.  This  undisciplined  way- 
wardness forms  the  soil,  and  the  seed  which  we 
call  "  auto-suggestion  "  flourishes  here  greatly. 
If  someone  shuts  a  window,  such  a  subject 
suffers  genuinely  something  of  tue  pain  of  suf- 
focation. When  "  auto-suggestion  "  becomes 
still  more  powerful,  and  produces  more  striking 
but  similar  results,  we  may  use  the  word 
"  hysteria,"  a  disease  with  a  variety  of  symp- 
toms, most  of  which  mimic  the  symptoms  of 
organic  disease. 

.  Neurasthenia  is  comparatively  a  new  word, 
and  means  "  nerve  weakness."  Unlike 
hysteria,  with  its  varied  mimicry  of  diseases, 
the  symptoms  of  neurasthenia  are  not  varied, 
although  sooner  or  later  'pain  in  this  or  that 
situation  generally  becomes  marked.  It  is  the 
attitude  of  the  mind  which  is  characteristic ; 
such  patients  are  depressed,  careworn,  and 
worried,  often  resentful  of  examination  and 
sympathy,  though  obviously  miserable.  It  is 
an  effort  to  talk,  even  the  voice  seems  tired, 
utterly  without  occupation  they  allow  time  to 
drift,  doing  silly  things  not  because  of  any  real 
impairment  of  reason,  but  because  utterly  in- 
trospective, they  are  inattentive  to  all  that  is 
going  on  around  them,  and  soon  the  concentra- 
tion of  thought  upon  their  own  condition  pro- 
duces its  own  results,  complaints  of  various 
aches  and  pains  begin  to  be  made ;  they  are 
taken  from  specialist  to  specialist,  and  some- 
times operations  are  performed  to  try  and  cure 
the  disease,  which  prove  unsuccessful  because 
the  symptoms  are  only  the  result  of  an  ex- 
hausted state  of  the  nervous  system,  in  part 
the  cause  of,  and  in  part  the  result  of,  general 
want  of  nutrition  of  the  whole  body. 

Weir  Mitchell,  the  American  physician,  was 
among  the  first  to  appreciate  this  fundamental 
fact  and  to  deduce  from  it  that  the  proper 
method  of  cure  was  to  secure  rest  for  the  mind 
and  at  the  same  time  to  restore  the  nutrition 
of  the  body  to  the  place  from  which  it  had 
slipped. 


May  2a,  1010; 


vlljc  Bntisb  3ouruai  or  IHursina. 


427 


His  treatment,  ab  is  well  known,  consists  of  : 

Firstly,  removing  the  patient  to  a  new 
environment  and  enforcing  complete  seclusion 
under  the  care  of  a  firm  but  sympathetic* nurse. 

Secondly,  rest  in  bed  for  six  weeks  or  two 
months. 

Thirdly,  massage  and  electrical  treatment 
practised  daily  to  take  the  place  of  exercise, 
and  to  induce  appetite  and  sleep. 

Lastly,  the  diet  is  generally  increased  until 
the  body  weight  of  the  patient  is  restored  to 
the  normal. 

In  conclusion,  to  return  to  the  point  from 
which  we  started,  even  in  organic  disease  many 
of  the  most  distressing  symptoms  are  of  the 
same  nature.  The  degree  of  suffering  of  a 
patient  with  heart  disease,  for  example,  is 
largely  determined  by  the  afluteness  of  his 
sensations.  The  blunted  stolid  labourer  will 
feel  little ;  others,  more  delicate,  will  be  ner- 
vous, depressed,  and  miserable,  so  that  opium, 
which  quiets  their  apprehensions,  is  at  times  a 
more  useful  drug  than  digitalis,  which  increases 
the  power  of  the  heart  beat.  It  is  for  this 
reason  that  nursing  can  never  be  mere 
mechanical  work :  the  nurse,  who  is  the  con- 
stant! companion  of  the  patient,  is  more  im- 
portant taan  the  doctor  with  his  drugs  and 
stethescope,  for  she  must  coax  and  entice  the 
patient  back  to  health. 


ZYMOTIC  ENTERITIS. 
Its  Symptoms  and  Treatment. 

In  the  third  lecture  on  The  Care  of  Infants, 
delivered  at  the  Infants'  Hospital,  Vincent 
Square,  S.VV.,  on  Tuesday,  May  17,  Dr.  Ralph 
Vincent  took  for  his  subject  Zymotic  Enteritis, 
its  Symptoms  and  Treatment.  He  opened  his 
lecture  by  referring  to  the  different  light  which 
the  study  of  bacteriology  and  the  discoveries 
by  Lister,  Pasteur,  Koch,  and  others  had 
thrown  on  disease  of  all  kinds.  He  said  that  in 
the  past  week  only,  an  interesting  discovery 
had  been  made  by  Dr.  E.  \V.  Allen,  that  it 
w-as  possible  to  grow  rapidly  the  tubercle  bacil- 
lus from  the  toxin  it  produced.  This  organism, 
as  a  rule,  was  diflBcult  to  stain,  and  slow  to 
grow,  tending  to  show  that  the  whole  question 
of  tuberculosis  turned  on  the  degree  of  the 
resistance  that  it  met,  as  other  infective  bacilli 
actually  prepared  the  way  for  it. 

These  discoveries  were  gradually  altering  our 
whole  ideas,  and  instead  of  being  at  the  end  of 
discoveiy  we  are  only  at  the  beginning  of  it. 

He  pointed  out  in  negation  of  the  idea  that 
zymotic  enteritis  is  infective,  the  points  of  dis- 
similarity between  it  and  other  infectious 
diseases.  In  the  latter  one  suddenly  heard  of 
a  large  number  of  cases  in  one  town  or  place. 


It  would,  perhaps,  extend  consecutively  to  the 
next  place  and  so  on.  In  epidemic  (so  called) 
diarrhoea  the  disease  attacks  infants  simul- 
taneously in  many  towns  far  apart  where  ob- 
viously contact  could  not  explain  it,  and  infants 
were  found  to  be  immune  in  the  dirtiest  and 
most  crowded  parts.  In  the  hospital  these 
cases  are  never  isolated,  as  transference  is  im- 
possible. Next,  organisms  in  this  complaint 
are  never  fouud  in  the  blood  or  spleen  (as,  for 
instance,  in  enteric),  because  it  is  an  organism 
that  never  gets  into  the  tissues  or  superficial 
mucous  membranes.  But  the  albuminoid 
toxins  it  produces  get  into  the  blood  stream 
and  produce  a  state  of  absolute  intoxication. 
In  its  worst  forni  it  will  probably  kill  the  infant 
whatever  is  done  for  it. 

The  organisms  when  prepared  from  putrefy- 
ing milk  closely  resemble  snake  venom,  and  the 
prognosis  is  collapse  and  rapid  death. 

The  disease  very  seldom  starts  in  a  healthy; 
infant,  and  something  like  a  revolution  must 
take  place  in  the  intestinal,  tract  before  it  can 
occur. 

It  is  tremendously  associated  with  acidity 
and  alkalinity,  and  must  be  produced  by  the 
gradual  neutralisation  of  acid  in  the  alimentary 
canal.  When  this  becomes  alkaline  the  infant 
is  prepared  for  the  worst  type  of  zymotic  en- 
teritis. In  the  early  stages  a  certain  amoiint  of 
acid  is  still  being  made,  though  there  is  some 
sickness  and  diarrhcBa.  Suddenly  acute  symp- 
toms set  in,  vomiting  and  diarrhoea.  Motions 
are  offensive,  and  of  a  rice  water  character. 
The  child  is  an  ashy  grey  colour,  and  suffers 
from  intense  thirst.  In  this  state  very  little 
can  be  done.  The  poison  has  so  thoroughly 
taken  hold  that  the  organs  are  no  longer  cap- 
able of  being  stimulated,  though  at  first  they 
appear  to  respond. 

No  food  at  all  should  be  given,  as  it  would 
be  quite  impossible  for  the  infant  to  digest  it 
until  in  an  altogether  different  condition. 
Sugar  and  water  is  about  the  best  thing,  as. 
sugar  maintains  something  like  energy,  and 
gives  the  heart  muscle  some  sort  of  food, 
though  it  does  not  create  structure.  Plenty  of 
water  to  satisfy  the  thirst,  and  for  the  purpose 
of  bathing  the  tissues  to  eliminate  the  poison. 
The  colon  may  be  irrigated  with  salt  water  of 
the  strength  of  ordinary  saline  solution. 

If  albumen  water  is  given  it  should  be  of  the 
strength  of  one  egg  to  the  pint.  Milk  should 
be  very  carefully  edged  in  between  feeds  of 
albumen  water  and  sugar  water.  Fat,  0.50 ; 
whey  proteids,  0.25;  caseinogen,  nil;  alkalinity, 
10.00.  This  is  supplied  by  lime  water  which 
should  be  freed  of  chloride  of  calcium  by  wash- 
ing the  lime  in  three  waters,  and  then 
thoroughly  shaking  it  up. 


428 


Cbc  Britisb  3ournaI  of  IRurstno. 


[May  28,  1910 


an  3ntcvc6t(no  Case. 

THE   HISTORY  OF  A   PIECE  OF  &RASS. 

"  Boys  will  be  boys,"  ■ive  are  told  wheu  some 
untoward  piece  of  mischief  has  occurred,  but 
sometimes  these  boyish  pranks  become  very 
costly  to  the  boys'  parents,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  danger  to  the  Hfe  of  the  boys,  as  occurred 
in  the  following  case.  For  the  clearer  under- 
standing of  this  history  we  will  call  the  boy 
Tom,  it  is  not  his  real  name,  but  that  doesn't 
matter. 

One  day  at  school  Tom  was  playing 
"  Whoop  "  in  the  school  garden,  and  to  wile 
away  the  time  was  doing  what  thousands  of 
other  school  boys  have  done  before  him  with- 
out any  serious  consequences,  nibbhug  a  piece 
of  grass,  when  a  school  fellow  running  up  be- 
hind him  slapped  him  on  the  back,  with  the 
result  that  the  grass  disappeared  down  his 
throat. 

This  was  the  history  of  the  ^case  when  I  was 
called  in  the  following  day  to  nurse  poor  Tom, 
whose  temperature  has  risen  to  105.2,  with  a 
corresponding  rise  in  pulse  (118)  and  respira- 
tion (38),  he  had  vomited  the  night  before,  but 
no  trace  of  the  grass  could  be  found. 

During  the  following  nine  days  the  tempera- 
ture rose  in  the  evening,  often  reaching  104.6, 
and  in  the  morning  drojaping  to  99.8  or  100; 
once  during  each  of  the  first  three  days  he 
-vomited,  but  nothing  but  food,  which  of  course 
was  restricted  to  a  milk  diet. 

The  doctor,  whilst  thinking  the  illness  was 
the  result  of  the  grass,  treated  him  for  pneu- 
monia, as  there  was  a  decided  "  spot  "  on  the 
left  lung,  and  open  air  treatment  was  adopted. 

On  the  eleventh  day  the  temperature  fell  to 
99,  and  with  many  slight  rises  during  the  next 
three  weeks  gradually  became  normal,  when  it 
was  decided  that  my  services  would  no  longer 
be  required. 

Three  nights  before  I  left,  the  temperature 
again  rose  to  102,  but  as  the  following  morning 
it  was  normal  again,  it  was  thought  to  be  due 
to  some  excitement  at  my  leaving;  a  week  be- 
fore I  left  I  had  taken  Tom  to  a  seaside  town 
on  the  east  coast  as  it  was  thought  a  more 
bracing  air  would  bring  renewed  health. 

Four  days  after  I  left  I  was  wired  for  again, 
in  the  meantime  Tom's  temperature  had  risen, 
and  a  specialist  fi-om  the  next  town  had  been 
called  in  for  consultation,  and  had  diagnosed 
-consumption,  and  the  patient  was  again  placed 
under  the  open  air  treatment. 

Then  began  a  very  serious  struggle  for  life ; 
poor  Tom  from  a  robust,  sturdy  boy  lost  flesh 
so  rapidly  that  he  became  almost  a  skeletpn. 
Bis  terhperature  kept  up  between  101.8,   and 


104.8,  with  rapid  pulse  and  respirations;  his 
breatli  was  most  offensive,  and  a  very  large 
amount  of  pus  was  coughed  up.  Specimens  of 
sputum  vi'ere  sent  to  London  for  examination ; 
the  first  time  tubercle  bacilli  were  discovered, 
the  second  time,  which  was  about  a  fortnight 
later,  only  a  very  small  quantity  were  traced, 
the  third  time,  a  fortnight  later  still,  only  pus 
was  reported. 

After  eleven  days  of  this  severe  fight  against 
the  great  enemy,  the  temperature  dropped  to 
99.6,  but  rose  again  the  next  day,  wheu  there 
were  very  evident  signs  of  heart  failure,  and 
in  the  afternoon  Tom  seriously  collapsed.  The 
pulse  became  verj'  intermittent  and  thready, 
and  a  terrible  fear  possessed  us  that  we  were 
going  to  lose  in  this  great  struggle ;  injections 
of  strychnine  were  then  prescribed,  and  Tom 
rallied  tor  the  n:ioment.  The  injections  were 
given  at  first  about  every  eight  hours,  but  very 
soon  they  had  to  be  given  more  frequently, 
sometimes  five  times  in  the  24  hours,  as  signs 
of  collapse  were  constant.  The  temperature 
during  this  week  (the  third  after  the  relapse 
and  the  eighth  from  the  beginning  of  the  ill- 
ness) gradually  fell  until  it  twice  touched 
normal,  but  still  it  was  necessary  to  adminis- 
ter strychnine  three  and  sometimes  four  times 
a  day. 

During  the  ninth  week  the  temperature 
varied  from  99.8  to  normal;  only  once  did  it 
rise  to  101.2,  but  the  heart  was  still  in  rather 
a  serious  condition  as  shown  by  the  condition 
and  frequency  of  the  pulse,  which  fluctuated 
between  104  with  32  respirations  per  minute, 
to  54  and  32  respirations;  but  gradually  the 
pulse  steadied  and  the  strychnine  injections 
were  given  less  frequently,  until  a  few  days 
later  they  were  entirely  discontinued. 

Diet  during  these  weeks  had  been  a  very 
serious  difficulty.  Everything  jDossible,  such 
as  milk,  beaten  eggs,  Valentine's  meat  juice, 
etc.,  had  been  tried,  but  only  the  very  smallest 
quantities  had  been  taken,  especially  while  the 
heart  had  been  in  such  a  critical  condition. 
The  first  signs  of  a  returning  appetite — if  such 
it  could  be  called — were  hailed  with  joy  when 
Tom  swallowed  two  teaspoonfuls  of  a  very  soft  ■ 
rice  pudding,  which,  being  a  favourite  dish,  I 
had  prepared  myself,  hoping  to  tempt  him. 

During  all  these  weeks  the  amount  of  pus 
coughed  up  had  gradually  decreased  until  the 
doctor  said  the  lung  abscess  had  healed,  yet  In 
spite  of  this  the  breath  remained  more  or  less 
foetid,  so  much  so  at  times  that  very  close 
proximity  with  my  patient  became  almost  un- 
bearable. 

By  the  end  of  the  tenth  week,  Tom  began  to 
show   decided   signs   of   returning   health,    his 


May  28,  1910] 


Zbc  iSrttisb  3ournal  of  mursing, 


429 


temperature,  pulse,  and  respirations  all  be- 
came more  normal.  Only  once  were  there  any 
alarming  symptoms,  when  toward  th6  end  of 
this  week  his  pulse  became  intermittent,  and 
he  again  showed  signs  of  possible  collapse,  au 
injection  of  strychnine  was  at  once  adminis- 
tered and  the  bad  place  bridged  over;  then 
gradually,  but  very  gradually,  Tom  began  to 
take  some  interest  in  life  again. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  eleventh  week,  he 
began  to  get  up,  and  the  doctor  brought  his 
scales  and  weighed  him ;  his  weight  was  then 
4  stone  7  lbs. ,  and  he  a  boy  of  13  years  ! 

At  the  end  of  the  twelfth  week  he  was  taken 
out  for  the  first  time  in  a  bath  chair;  during 
that  week  he  gained  4  lbs. ;  the  next  week 
3  lbs.,  and  very  slowly  resumed  his  normal 
weight;  but  that  was  not  until  six  or  eight 
weeks  later. 

Peediug  up  with  all  kinds  of  wholesome 
nourishing  things  was  the  order  of  the  day,  with 
constant  fresh  air. 

His  first  walk  was  taken  nearly  fifteen  weeks 
from  the  day  he  swallowed  the  grass,  and  on 
his  return  his  temperature  (per  rectum)  was 
99.6,  but  subsided  towards  evening ;  his  actual 
weight  was  then  5  stone  12  lbs. 

For  the  next  three  weeks,  after  any  slight 
exertion,  his  temperature  would  rise,  but  be- 
yond that  there  were  no  ill  eSects,  and  his  pro- 
gress towards  health  was  steady  though  slow. 

About  the  seventeenth  week  he  was  taken 
to  London  to  see  a  specialist,  who  had  been 
called  in  to  see  him  twice  during  his  worst 
days;  the  morning  we  started  his  breath  was 
terribly  offensive,  and  on  arriving  at  Waterloo 
Station,  and  getting  out  of  the  train,  the  boy 
suddenly  vomited  on  to  the  platform.    At  once 

1  hastily  gathered  up  the  vomited  matter  for 
examination,  and  there,  after  causing  such 
serious  trouble,  in  fact,  almost  the  death  of 
Tom,  was  the  piece  of  grass  which  had  been 
swallowed  four  months  before.  On  investiga- 
tion, it  proved  to  be  a  piece  of  flowering  grass. 
the  stalk  was  still  green,  and  was  about  li  to 

2  inches  long,  with  several  husks;  it  now  re- 
poses in  the  museum  of  one  of  the  London  hos- 
pitals. 

We  continued  our  journey  to  the  doctor  with 
hearts  full  of  joy  and  thanksgiving;  his  pre- 
scription was  a  long  stay  in  Switzerland,  where 
I  accompanied  my  patient  and  had  the  great 
delight  of  watching  his  return  to  complete 
health  and  strength. 

Once  again  th2  sputum  was  examined  for 
tubercle  bacilli,  and  a  guinea  pig  was  injected, 
but  happily  without  any  reaction  whatever.  All 
this  happened  some  years  ago.  To-day  Tom  is 
preparing  for  Sandhurst  stronger  and  healthier 


than  ever  in  his  life  before,  as  a  troublesome 
throat  weakness  entirely  disappeared  as  the 
result  of  the  open  air  treatment. 

Tom's  parents  estimated  that  piece  of  grass 
cost  them  altogether  nearly  £1,000,  to  say  no- 
thing of  the  terrible  worry  and  anxiety  during 
those  never  to  be  forgotten  four  months. 

I.  J.  M.  B. 


Some  Jfmtbcr  IRotcs  on  tbe 
Doluntar^  Hlb  Scheme  of  tbe 
Britisb  1Re^  Cro69  Society. 


Bv  M.\RY  C.  Fair. 


Mrs.  Netterville  Barron's  well  thought  out 
scheme  in  connection  with  the  above  appears 
to  me  in  many  ways  an  excellent  skeleton  plan 
on  which  voluntary  aid  societies  may  be 
worked.  I  should  like  to  emphasise,  however, 
again,  the  fact  that  though  in  towns  and  large 
villages  there  will  be  no  difficulty  in  obtaining 
the  necessary  instruction  for  the  untrained 
workers,  in  the  remoter,  more  isolated  small 
country  places  where  very  likely  in  time  of  war 
or  national  stress,  the  makeshift  hospital  might 
be  of  the  utmost  value,  it  is  very  difficult  in- 
deed under  existing  rules  to  find  means  to  ob- 
tain the  teaching  especially  of  nursing.  My 
own  opinion  is  that  as  far  as  possible  existing 
machinery  should  be  utilised.  Most  excellent 
lectures  are  given  by  county  council  lecturers 
on  home  nursing  who  are  usually  trained 
nurses  and  also  trained  lecturers.  These  lec- 
tures can  be  arranged  for  in  any  district  at  a 
very  small  cost.  Here  we  charge  2d.  a  lecture. 
We  have  had  two  lectures  out  of  a  course  of 
nine.  We  are  a  scattered  rural  community, 
seven  miles  from  the  railway  in  a  wild  moun- 
tain district.  At  the  first  lecture  41  women 
V  ere  present,  at  the  second  43,  and  others  are 
coming  to  the  succeeding  lectures,  many  having 
io  come  three,  four,  five,  or  six  miles  to  do  so. 
The  greatest  interest  is  shown,  and  the  lecturer 
i'Ot  only  expounds  the  theory  of  elementary 
nursing  to  her  audience,  but  also  gives  practi- 
cal demonstrations  and  a  practice  class  to  such 
as  desire  it,  a  privilege  eagerly  taken  advantage 
of.  She  is  a  trained  nurse,  and  also  a  most 
excellent  teacher  who  puts  forward  the  points 
to  be  learned  in  a  manner  very  easy  to  grasp 
aui  act  upon.  Now  many,  both  doctors  and 
nurses,  though  knowing  their  own  work  per- 
fectly, cannot  impart  their  knowledge  success- 
fully to  others  :  they  have  not  the  gift  of  teach- 
ing. In  a  country  place  you  may  have  a  capital 
doctor  but  an  extremely  bad  teacher,  and  very 
likely  you  have  no  nurse  at  all,  or  at  the  best, 


430 


Jibe  Brittsb  3om'nal  of  IHuremg 


[May  28,  1910 


a  cottage  nurse  wirh  a  tew  months'  training, 
utterly  unabie  to  teach.  Would  it  "not  be  a 
better  plan  to  take  advantage  of  the  excellent 
lecturers  provided  by  the  County  Councils? 
After  the  course;  of  lectures  .^uch  of  the  students 
as  would  do  so  could  be  examined  by  a  St. 
John's  examiner,  and,  if  eligible,  receive  a  cer- 
tificate of  fitness  to  serve  as  an  untrained  nurse 
in  a  voluntary  aid  hospital.  The  First  Aid  is 
a  different  matter;  that,  I  do  think,  is  best 
taught  by  a  doctor.  Of  course,  the  entire  staff 
of  a  hospital  under  the  scheme  must  possess 
the  First  Aid  Certificate  of  the  St.  John's 
Ambulance;  the  nurses  must  have  it  in  addi- 
tion to  their  certificate  of  competency  in 
elementai-y  nursing.  I  think,  too,  that  in  very 
thinly  populated  districts,  where  it  is  not 
always  possible  to  raise  men  to  carry  a  stretcher 
in  eixiergencies,  it  is  as  well  that  the  women, 
too,  should  be  taught  how  to  load,  unload,  and 
carry  a  patient  in  a  stretcher,  I  myself  can 
do  so.  * 

There  is  one  moi-e  point  that  might  with  ad- 
vantage be  opened  for  discussion ;  that  is  the 
aim  of  a  Red  Cross  Society.  It  is  primarily,  of 
course,  to  give  aid  to  the  sick  and  wounded  in 
time  of  war,  but  I  think  it  should  be  organised 
with  a  view  to  any  national  or  common  emer- 
gency, say  a  great  disaster  on  some  colossal 
scale.  The  ^Messina  earthquake  is  an  example. 
Here  the  Italian  Red  Cross  gave  assistance.  A 
big  epidemic  is  another  example,  say  a  great 
outbreak  of  typhoid  or  cholera.  I  do  not  know 
what  the  financial  basis  of  the  British  Eed 
Cross  Society  is,  but  one  of  the  first  things  to 
be  done  is  to  see  that  it  is  a  good  one — that 
there  are  fully  adequate  funds  in  capable  hands. 
In  time  of  war  it  is  of  no  use  looking  to  the 
military  authorities  for  help  or  equipment; 
they  have  more  than  enough  to  do  to  supply 
their  own  forces.  The  Red  Cross  must  be  a 
body  that  is  self-supporting,  that  can  even  at 
a  pinch  give  aid  to  the  Territorial  Hospitals  in 
the  way  of  stores  or  funds ;  and  to  be  of  the 
utmost  value — the  value  that  it  should  have — 
it  must  have  ample  funds. 

The  letter  of  the  "  Practical  Person  "  in  the 
British  Jourx.\l  of  Nursing  for  May  14th 
contains  a  good  idea.  There  must  be  many 
retired  nurses,  who,  though  under,  say  50-55 
years  of  age,  are  still  too  old  for  the  Territorial 
Service.  Why  should  not  a  roll  of  such  of  these 
ladies  who  are  willing  to  serve  in  time  of  war 
in  a  voluntary 'aid  hospital — not  necessarily  in 
their  own  fown  or  village,  for  there  are  many 
little  places  absolutely  without  trained 'nurses 
where  one  would  have  to  be  supplied — be 
made  ? 

I  would  also  suspest  that  the  Matron  of  the 


nearest  hospital  of  thirty  beds  or  over  should  be 
appointed  as  an  cx-officio  member  of  the  lay 
committees  of  ladies  in  charge  of  districts.  She 
would  be  a  most  invaluable  adviser  on  the  sub- 
ject of  equipment  and  stores  required.  These 
ladies,  it  must  be  remembered,  will  have  the 
task  of  raising  the  equipment  for  the  temporary 
hospitals,  and  many  of  them  have  the  very 
haziest  ideas  of  what  is  necessary.  Trained 
nurses,  unless  they  have  been  in  the  admini- 
strative department  of  a  hospital,  are  not  much 
use  here,  but  a  Matron's  or  Assistant-Matron's 
advice  would  save  much  trouble,  and  probably 
waste  of  money.  I  put  forward  these  few  ideas 
difhdently,  but  I  do  earnestly  wish  to  be  of 
what  use  I  can  in  this  matter  of  the  Eed  Cross, 
and  other  people  may  be  able  to  set  forth  im- 
provements thereon  or  make  valuable  sugges- 
tions. All  at  present  seems  a  trifle  chaotic, 
but  order  is  being  gradually  evolved,  and  it  is 
at  this  stage  that  useful  suggestions  are  likely 
to  be  helpful. 


Miss  Mary  C.  Fair,  Eskdale  Vicarage,  Boot 
S.O.,  Cumberland,  will  be  pleased  to  enter  into 
communication  with  those  who,  like  herself,  are 
anxious  to  help  the  Voluntary  Aid  Scheme  of 
the  British  Red  Cross  Society. 


Svmpatb^  wttb  tbe  »Slncen 
fIDotbcr. 


Lord  Goschen  presided  at  a  special  meeting 
of  the  Council  of  the  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee 
Institute  for  Nurses  held  at  58,  Victoria  Street, 
S.W.,  last  week,  when  the  following  resolution 
of  condolence  with  Queen  Alexandra  was 
passed :  — 

May  it  please  Your  Majesty. — Tlio  Council  of 
Queen  Victoria's  Institute  for  Nursing  the  Sick 
Poor,  mindful  of  the  active  and  generous  sympathy 
which  Your  Majesty  has  always  shown  with  tlie 
work  of  the  Council,  and  witli  the  efforts  of  the 
Queen's  Nurses,  apiiointetl  by  yourself  to  alleviat-e 
the  suffering  of  the  poor,  and  to  raise  the  standard 
of  health  and  happiness  in  their  homes,  beg  leave, 
on  tlieir  own  behalf  and  on  behalf  of  the  officers  of 
the  institute,  and  of  all  the  Queen's  Nurses,  to 
tender  to  Your  Majesty  the  humble  expression  of 
their  profound  sympathy  and  of  their  sorrow  in  the 
iri'epai'abl©  loss  which  the  whole  nation  has  sus- 
tained ;  a  loss  which  is  nowhere  more  deeply 
mourned  than  among  the  suffering  poor  for  whom  it 
is  the  privilege  of  your  nui-ses  of  labour. 


At  the  last  monthly  meeting  of  the  Dublin 
St.  Lawrence  Home,  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee 
Institute  for  Nurses,  a  resolution  of  sympathy 
with  Queen  Alexandra,  the  Patron  of  the  Insti- 
tute, was  passed. 


U&y  -28,  1910] 


^be  Britisb  3ournai  ot  iHursmo. 


431 


TRcpl\?   to   Open   Xcttcr 
H^ccjistration. 


on 


Kiieusworth   Hall, 

Roystou,  Herts. 
Dear  Madam  X.* 

May  1  presume  that  the  writer  of  the  open 
letter  to  me  is  a  lady,  as  the  letter  is  anonymous  !•" 
I  thank  you  for  the  tone  of  your  letter,  so  different 
to  many  that  have  appeared  attributing  to  me 
every  sort  of  evil  motive  to  account  for  my  attitude 
on  this  question.  I  appreciate  this.  Candidly, 
it  may  he  silly  and  weak  to  admit  it,  but  I  do  feel 
it  when  the  opinion,  which  1  honestly  hokl  because 
I  believe  that  Registration  would  be  bad  for 
nursing  and  nurses  generally,  is  attributed  to  some 
mean  and  petty  motive.  Even  you  are  not  quite 
free  of  this  form  of  suggestion.  You  say  that  my 
attitude  is  the  outcome  of  prejudice.  Prejudice  1 
AVhy  should  I  be  prejudiced  against  auy  suggestion 
if  1  thought  it  would  help  nurses  or  nursing!-'  1 
dislike  alluding  to  myself,  but  I  will  ask  you 
whether  my  whole  liospital  life  of  now  1.5  years  has, 
or  has  not,  been  devoted  to  raising  the  standard 
of  nursing,  and  to  improving  the  condition  of  their 
work  and  surroundings?  1  know  this  will  sound 
conceited,  and  will  probably  be  so  described,  but 
your  letter  is  personal,  and  so  perhaps  just  for  once 
I  may  claim  that  what  I  have  tried  to  do  may  be 
considered,  and  "called  in  aid." 

The  first  paragraph  of  your  letter  is  devoted  to 
an  attack  on  the  "  sham  nurse,''  but  you  know  as 
well  as  I  do  that  Registration  will  not  touch  the 
sham  nurse.  If  doctors  who  engage  sham  nurses 
now,  if  doctors  who  send  patients  to  nursing  homes, 
where  only  sham  nurses  are  employed,  if  these  doc- 
tors are  content  now,  they  will  be  content  then. 
They  are  careless  now,  they  will  be  careless  then. 
True  Registration  would  guarantee  that  a  regis- 
tered nurse  had  not  been  convicted  of  "  grossly 
transgressing  the  laws  of  the  land."  So  far  so 
good,  but  what  a  little  way  it  takes  us !  And  look 
on  the  other  side.  Registration  would  be  a  "  con- 
tinuing guarantee"  of  a  woman  who  might  be  unfit 
to  nurse  a  guinea  pig,  let  alone  a  human  being. 
Is  this  not  an  evil?  The  advocates  on  your  side  are 
fond  of  quoting  Lord  Crewe,  who  said  this  was  "  a 
question  of  national  importance,"  but  ho  also  said 
that  he  would  not  think  of  engaging  a  nurse  simply 
because  she  was  on  a  Register.  I  do  nob  pretend 
to  quote  his  exact' words  spoken  in  the  House  of 
Lords,  but  they  were  to  that  effect. 

An  official  Directory  of  Nurses  would  distinguish 
the  sham  from  the  trained  nurse,  and,  though  not 
an  ideal  scheme,  would  at  any  rate  not  have  the 
serious  objection  that  being  in  the  Directory  was 
any  guarantee  of  a  nurse's  fitness  for  employment. 
It  would  only  guarantee  that  she  had  had  the 
training  and  experience  opposite  to  her  name. 

Once  more  1  thank  you  for  the  courtesy  of  your 
letter. 

Yours  faithfully, 

Sydney  Holland. 

*  X  is  a  medical  man. — Ed. 


IPioaicso  ot  state  llvcoistiation. 

The  Lady  Helen  .Muiiro  Ferguson  will  pre- 
side at  the  annual  meethig  ot  the  Society  for 
the  State  liegiBtration  of  Nurses,  on  the  2nd 
of  June,  and  has  kindly  consented  to  give  a 
short  address.  Lady  Helen  will  speak  on  the 
inspiring  and  unceasing  efforts  for  the  advance- 
ment ot  nursing  of  the  late  President,  Miss  Isla 
Stewart,  and  those  who  have  previously  had 
the  privilege  of  listening  to  this  most  eloquent 
and  channing  speaker — for  without  doubt  Lady- 
Helen  ilunro  Ferguson  is  the  finest  woman 
speaker  in  this  country — will  gratefully  appre- 
ciate her  kindness  in  accepting  the  invitation  to 
take  the  chair  upon  an  occasion  which  must 
bring  home  to  many  members  of  the  society 
their  irreparable  loss. 

In  the  June  issue  ot  the  Xineteoiih  Century 
and  After,  Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick  has  a  paper 
on  "The  State  Eegistratiou  of  Trained 
Nurses,"  in  which  she  writes  that  the  eflSciency 
of  trained  nursing  is  impaired  at  the  present 
time  by  two  causes  :  — 

(1)  The  chaotic  condition  of  nursing  educa- 
tion, and,  in  consequence,  the  lack  of  standards 
and  discipline. 

(2)  The  temptation  to  purveyors  of  nurses  to 
supply  to  the  public  semi-trained  persons  at 
highly  profitable  rates. 

REGISTRATION   IN   CANADA. 

The  Canadian  Nurse  announces  that  "once 
more  the  nurses  of  Ontario,  led  by  the  Provin- 
cial Graduate  Nurses'  Association,  have  sent 
out  circulars  on  the  subject  of  Eegistration  for 
Nurses  to  Alumnse  Associations,  Hospital 
Superintendents,  Hospital  Boards,  and  all  who 
are  interested  in  the  education  of  nurses, 
hoping  that  in  the  near  future  the  Parliament 
of  Ontario  may  consider  the  subject  and  pass 
an  Act  giving  Canadian  nurses  the  same  privi- 
leges and  responsibilities  that  their  sister  nurses 
in  many  other  countries  enjoy.  In  the  public 
interest,  the  consideration  of  this  question 
should  not  be  longer  delayed.  We  hope  that 
ere  long  this  reform  will  be  accomplished." 
We  hope  .so,  too;  we  wish  our  Canadian  Sisters 
all  the  success  they  deserve.  Every  overseas 
Dominion  that  grants  legal  stattis  to  trained 
nv.rses  makes  it  more  difficult  to  deny  them 
justice   at  home. 

Registration  is  so  burning  a  question  that  it 
is  difficult  to  keep  pace  with  its  progress.  Space 
has  not  been  available  for  the  publication  of 
the  interesting  rephes  sent  from  the  various 
States  to  Miss  L.  L.  Dock's  enquiries.  We 
hope  to  continue  the  series  of  letters  next 
week. 


■J  32 


Zbc  BrittsF)  3omnaI  of  iRursfno. 


"Mav  28,  1910 


Jfever  IHurecs'  association. 

ANNUAL   MEETING 

B3'  the  oourt-esy  of  the  Managers  of  the  Metro- 
politan Asylums'  Board  the  Aiimial  Meeting  of  the 
Fever  Nurses'  Association  wa^  held  in  the  Board 
Room  at  the  OflSoes  of  the  Board  on  the  Victoria 
Embankment,  on  Monday  afternoon  last.  Dr.  E. 
W.  GoodaU,  President  of  the  Association,  was  111 
the  chair,  and  was  supported  by  Dr.  Eoord 
Caiger,  Hon.  Treasurer;  and  Dr.  Biernacki  and 
Miss  L.  A.  Morgan,  Hon.  .Secietaries. 
President's  Address. 

In  opening  the  proceetlinys  of  the  day  Dr.  Good- 
all  tendered  his  thanks  to  the  Council,  in  whom 
fhe  election  of  officers  is  ve>^t«l,  and,  thix)ugh  the 
Councd,  to  the  general  body  ot  niembere  to  whom 
the  Council  is  responsible,  '  foi-  re-electing  him  to 
the  presidential  chair  for  another  term  of  office. 
Events  of  the  Ye.ik. 

The  President  said  that  since  the  firet  annual 
meeting,  held  just  a  year-  ago  in  that  chamber. 
inore  than  one  event  of  importaiice  to  the  Associa- 
tion had  taken  place.  Perliaps  the  most  note- 
worthy was  the  agreement  of  various  societies  in 
connection  with  the  question  of  State  Registra- 
tion of  Nurses,  whereby  they  had  fmmed  one  Bill 
in  the  place  of  the  three  w  hich  were  being  promoted 
by  as;  many  groups.  The  Fever  Nurses'  Associa- 
tion was  represented  at  the  Conference  held  early 
in  the  present  year  to  discuss  the  drafting  of  a  Bill. 
when  the  representatives  of  the  Council  of  the 
Association  were  listened  to  most  courteously.  In 
the  Bill  then  drafted  the  delegates  of  the  Associa- 
tion succeetled  in  getting  ciau.ses  inserte<l  which 
afford  a  distinct  recognition  of  the  value  of  tne 
training  obtained  in  a  fever  hospital.  '■  Your  repre- 
sentatives," said  Dr.  GoodaU,  '•  were  much  gratified 
at  the  sympathetic  reception  they  received  at  the 
hands  of  the  delegates  from  the  other  societies,  to 
all  of  whom  our  A-ssociation  owes  a  debt  of 
gratitude.  But  our  heaviest  debt  is  owed  to  one 
to  whom  it  cannot  be  repaid — the  late  Matron  of 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital.  The  Council's  report 
states  that  '  .she  took  a  deep  interest  in  all  matters 
connected  with  fever  nursing.'  That  was  chiefly  be- 
cause she  had  once  been  Matron  first  of  a  .small- 
pox, and  then  of  a  fever  hospital,  and  therefore 
possessed  a  pei-sonal  and  intimate  acquaintance 
with  the  subject,  and  some  of  us  are  proud  to  re- 
member that  these  hospitals  were  institutions,  and 
she  was  an  officer,  in  the  same  Service  in  which  we 
are  working  to-day." 

After  refen-ing  to  the  conrtitution  of  the  per- 
manent Central  Registration  Committee,  under 
the  chairmanship  of  Lord  Ampthill,  Dr.  Goodall 
said  that  as  the  Fever  Nunses.'  Association  had 
obtained  recognition  in  the  Bill  it  was  bound  to 
take  an  interest  in  its  welfare.  He  proceeded  to 
say  that  the  Bill,  in  charge  of  Mr.  Muni-o  Ferguson, 
liad  to  encounter  not  only  ill  luck  in  the  ballot,  but 
also  ill  will.  "  We  have  recently  heard,"  he  con- 
tinued, "and  shall  hear  again  in  the  near  future, 
a  great  deal  of  talk  alrout  fhe  reform  of  the  House 
of  Lords.     I  wi.sh  we  could  hear  as  much  about  the 


relorm  ot  the  House  of  Commons,  more  especially 
:i.  respect  of  its  methods  of  procedure.  It  appears 
to  the  ordinary  onlooker  nothing  short  of 
scandalous  that  a  single  member  should  have  the 
power  of  stopping  the  progress  of  a  Bill  of  this 
kind  by  the  simple  but  effective  process  known  as 
•  blocking.'  Months  of  labour,  hundreds  of  pounds 
of  money,  may  be  wasted  in  a  moment  without 
warning,  by  a  single  member  of  the  House,  who, 
as  often  as  not,  is  quite  ignoivint  of  the  merits  of 
the  Measure  he  has  brought  to  the  ground.  He 
may  have  acted  merely  to  oblige  a  friend.  To  the 
■C'Utsider  the  action  appears  to  Ive  the  height  of 
cowaixlice  on  the  part  of  the  instigator  of  it,  for 
it  is  inconceivable  that  anyone  who  was  not  afiiaid 
01  open  discussion  should  act  in  so  underhand  a 
manner.  But  discussion  in  that  place  is  the  last 
thing  desii-ed  by  opponents  of  this  kidney." 

Dr.  Goodall  said  he  had  been  much  surprised  to 
hear-  recently  that  an  opinion  had  been  expressed 
in  an  influential  quarter  that  the  passage  of  tuia 
Bill  into  law  would  lead  to  a  deterioration  in  tne 
staffs  of  fever  hospitals,  because  it  leaves  without 
definition  the  value  of  a  training  in  fever  nursing. 
Tliere  were  at  least  five  ways  in  which  a  Xunses' 
Registration  Bill  could  deal  with  fever  training. 
lit  It  oould  ignore  it,  which  would  be  a  disastrous 
calamity.  (2)  It  could  go  to  the  other  extreme, 
and  admit  nurses  whose  sole  qualification  was  a 
fever  training  to  the  general  register,  which  would 
l>e  gix)ssly  unjust  to  general  trained  uui-ses,  and 
fraught  with  harm  to  the  public.  <3)  A  separate 
Register  of  fever  nurses  could  be  instituted,  com- 
jiarable  to  the  Mental  Nurses'  Register,  set  up  by 
the  present  Bill — a  proposition  embodied  in  the 
Bill  for  the  Registration  of  Nurses  in  Scotland  in- 
troduced last  year,  but  the  Fever  Nui'ses'  Associa- 
tion did  not  favour  the  institution  of  such  a 
Register,  because  it  held  it  to  be,  on  the  whole, 
detrimental  to  the  public  interest.  (4)  Fever 
nureing  oould  be  treated  as  worthy  of  recognition 
as  an  addition  to  general  training — the  attitutle  of 
the  present  Bill  towards  it.  Dr.  Goodall  said  he 
had  no  hesitation  in  asserting  that  the  inscription 
of  the  proposed  Bill  upon  the  Statute  Book  would 
improve  the  nureing  in  fever  hospitals.  (5)  A 
Regist lotion  Bill  could  provide  a  place  for  fever 
training  by  means  of  reciprocal  training — i.e.,  the 
recognition  of  the  special  fever  course  as  part  of 
general  training,  which  wa-s  not  discountenanced 
in  the  Registration  Bill.  Only  two  of  these 
methods,  that  of  reciprocal  ti-aining.  and  the  re- 
cogiiition  of  the  additional  qualification,  were- 
worthy  of  consideration,  and  the  latter  w^as  at  the 
present  time  the  more  feasible. 

The  Associ.4tion's  Scheme  of  Te.uning. 

Dr.  Goodall  then  referred  to  the  gratification  of 
the  Council  that  the  Association's  scheme  of  tl^aill- 
ing  had  been  adopted  by  so  many  im]>ortant 
authorities  throughout  the  kingdom  which  have 
large  fever  liospitals  under  their  control.  He 
looked  forward  to  beneficial  results  from  the  adop- 
tion of  the  scheme. 

He  then  specially  addressed  the  junior  nurse 
members  of  the  Association,  and  pointed  out  fhe 
importance  of  their  work  in  hospitals  which   were 


May  28,  1910] 


Cbc   36nti5b  3ournaI   of  IRursing. 


433 


not  only  "  isolation  "  but  "•  isolated, ■■  to  which  pa- 
tients were  removed  against  their  will,  and  jn  which, 
«is  three-quarters  of  the  patients  were  children  under 
t«n  years  of  age.  they  were  too  young  or  too 
Ignorant  to  complain,  still  less  to  criticise.  The 
members  of  the  fever  hospital  who  came  most  in 
contact  with  the  public — i.e..  the  patient  and  his 
friends,  were  the  nurses,  beginning  with  the 
ambulance  nui'se,  and  their  management  was  more 
judged  by  the  nursing  staff  than  by  any  other 
means,  a  fact  which  it  had  taken  some  authoriti^. 
a  long  time  to  find  out.  Let  nurses  remember  the 
tradition  of  their  calling,  which  was  as  high,  if  not 
higher,  than  that  of  any  other. 

AxNc.u,  Repobi  of  ihe  Council. 

The  Council  reported  that  729  nurses  had  now 
been  registered  by  the  Association.  It  detailed  the 
policy  of  the  Association  in  regard  to  .'?tate  Regis- 
tration of  Trained  Xurses,  and  put  on  record  the 
kind  support  the  delegates  of  the  Association  to 
the  Central  Registration  Committee  had  received 
from  the  late  Miss  Isla  Stewart,  who  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Association. 

It  also  reported  that  the  Association's  scheme  of 
training,  which  has  as  its  basis  a  syllabus  of  lec- 
tures, and  a  schedule  of  ward  work,  has  now  been 
a<lopted  by  the  following  hospitals: — The  Metro- 
politan Asylums'  Board's  Hospitals  for  acute  cases, 
the  City  Hospital.  Edinburgh,  the  City  Fever  Hos- 
pital, Leeds,  the  City  Fever  Hospital.  Sheffield.  Tne 
Fever  Hospitals  at  Southampton,  Xorwich,  "Will^e- 
den,  Brighton,  Sunderland.  East  Ham.  Ilford. 
Greenock,  Paisley,  and  Plaistow.  .Joint  training 
between  general  and  fever  hospitals  was  referred 
to  as  one  of  the  objects  of  the  Association. 
Report  of  Hex.   TsEAstTREB. 

Dr.  Foord  Caiger  presented  a  very  satisfactory 
fialanoe-sheet,  showing  a  balance  of  over  £7.5.  Dr. 
Caiger  said,  however,  that  at  present  the  headings 
of  expenditure  were  not  very  numei-ous,  but  as  the 
superannuation  age  of  nui-ses  was  fixed  at  65  it  was 
a  question  whether  in  the  future  there  might  not  be 
scope  for  a  Benevolent  Fund  to  provide  nursee 
with  crutches  or  false  teeth  during  the  last  ten 
or  fifteen  years  of  their  sen-ice  I  Dr.  Caiger  also 
referre<l  to  his  obligation  to  Miss  Morgan  for  the 
way  in  which  the  books  had  been  kept. 

Officers  .^xd  Xew  Members  of  Couxcil. 

The  officers  elected  by  the  Council,  on  April  2.5th. 
f<ir  the  ensuing  year  were  as  follows:— Pre^idcnf. 
Dr.  Goodall;  Vice^Prcsidenti,  Dr.  Brownlee,  Dr. 
Cuff,  Dr.  Pearson,  Miss  Bann,  Mrs.  Doran,  Miss 
Drakard.  and  Miss  Carson  Rae;  Hon.  Treasurtr 
arid  Chairman  oj  Executive  and  Education  Com- 
Ti,ittees,  Dr.  Foord  Caiger;  Hon.  Secretaries,  Dr. 
Bi»-rnacki  and  Miss  Morgan:  Hon.  Begistrar,  Miss 
B.  Scott. 

The  following  ladies  and  gentlemen  were  elected 
at  the  meeting  to  fill  the  vacant  seats  on  the 
Council:— Dr.  J.  Biernaeki,  Dr.  R.  M.  Bruce.  Dr. 
.J  B.  Bvles,  Dr.  J.  .J.  Clarke.  Dr.  H.  Lister.  Dr. 
.1  T.  Kitchin,  Miss  C.  L.  Burton.  Mrs.  F.  E.  M. 
Day,  Miss  A.  E.  Lewis,  Miss  L.  A.  Morgan,  Miss 
Knott,  and  ^liss  Jessie  Stewart. 

The  meeting  concluded  with  votes  of  thanks  o 
the  officers,  after  which  tea  and  coffee  were  served. 


(Ibe  3sla  Stewart  fIDcmonal. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  Isla  Stewart  Memorial 
C-ommittee  was  held  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital, 
on  Saturday,  21st  inst. 

Upon  the  proposal  of  Miss  Cox-Davies,  Mrs.  Bed- 
ford Fenwick  was  unanimously  elected  Chairman 
of  the  Committee. 

Mrs.  Andrews,  who  is  kindly  acting  as  Secre- 
tary pro  tern.,  reported  replies  from  the  majority 
of  Leagues  and  Societies,  accepting  representation 
on  the  Committee,  and  from  others  stating  that 
the  matter  would  be  considered  at  the  next  meeting 
of  their  committees. 

Opinion  was  apparently  unanimous  that  the  Na- 
tional Memorial  should  be  of  an  educational  char- 
acter, and  that  its  ultimate  aim  should  be  the  or- 
ganisation of  a  Post  Graduate  Course  for  Matrons 
in  the  Teaching  and  Supervision  in  Training 
.Schools  for  Xur5e.5,  and  in  the  General  Administra- 
tion in  Training  Schools  and  Hospitals. 

Mrs.  Fenwick  pointed  out  that  at  present  no  such 
post  graduate  teaching  was  available  in  England, 
but  that  such  a  course  had  been  endowed  through 
the  munificence  of  Mrs.  Helen  Hartley  Jenkins,  at 
Teachers'  College,  Columbia  University,  New  York. 
in  oo-operation  with  the  American  Society  of 
Superintendents  of  Training  Schools  for  Nurses, 
and  that  the  curriculum  had  been  inaugurated  un- 
der the  Director  of  the  Department  of  Nursing  and 
Health,  Professor  M.    Adelaide  Nutting,   R.N. 

Miss  Cox-Davies  proposed  that  no  time  be  lost 
in  inaugurating  the  Memorial  to  Miss  Isla  Stewart, 
that  pending  the  full  organisation  of  the  Coni- 
mi'tee  when  an  appeal  for  funds  would  be  made  to 
place  the  National  Memorial  on  a  sound  financial 
basis,  the  members  of  the  League  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital  Nurses  should  be  asked  to 
subscribe  a  sufficient  sum  to  meet  the  expenses  of 
an  "Isla  Stewart-  Scholar,"  to  be  selected  from  tho^ 
trained  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  to  be  en- 
tered as  a  student  at  Teachers'  College  next  Sep- 
tember for  the  one  year's  term  of  instruction  in 
Nurses'  Education,  for  which  a  certificate  is  given, 
with  residence  at  Wliittier  Hall,  which  adjoins  th? 
College.  The  estimated  cost  of  the  entire  expenses 
of  such  a  scholar  was  £160. 

This  suggestion  wa.s  enthusiastically  agreed  to. 
and  Mrs.  Andrews  was  directed  to  write  to  Miso 
Nutting  for  full  particulars  of  the  course,  and  it 
was  agreed  that  the  matter  should  be  brought  be- 
fore the  annual  meeting  of  the  League  on  June 
2-5th  next. 

Mrs.  Fenwrick  pointed  out  that  the  knowledge  of 
such  a  scholar  would  be  of  the  utmost  use  in 
organising  such  a  course  for  matrons  in  England, 
and  that,  moreover,  the  time  was  rapidly 
approaching  when,  under  the  Nurses'  Registration 
Act.  such  knowledge  would  be  invaluable  lor 
teachers  and  inspectors  of  nursing — a  new,  and  she 
hoped  a  well  paid,  branch  of  work  for  trained 
nurses  which  the  organisation  of  nursing  as  a  pro- 
fession under  statutory  authority  would  make 
obligatory. 

An  Hon.  .Secretary  was  nominated  subject  'o 
her  consent  to  act. 


434 


Ct)^  T&viti^h  journal  of  IHursing.  [May  28,  loio 


Mis<s  Cutler,  Assistant  Matron,  Nurse*  Home, 
St.  UartlioloiiicH's,  kindly  consent-ed  to  receive 
donations  towards  the  cost  of  the  "  Isla  Stewart 
Scholar"  scheme,  the  whole  sum  for  which,  we 
feel  sure,    will  soon   be   subscribed. 


Sister  Agnes  Karll,  President  of  the  Inter- 
national (Council  of  Nurses,  has  most  kindly  sent 
from  Berlin  10s.  to  the  funds  of  the  Society  for 
State  Registration  of  Trained  Nui-ses,  in  memory 
of  Miss  Isla  Stewart,  and  £1  towards  the  Isla 
Stewart  Memorial  Fund.  We  all  appreciate  her 
symi)athy. 

Hpponument0. 

Mathons. 

Home  of  Recovery,  Hunstanton. — Miiis  M.  H.  Sher- 
lock has  been  api>ointed  Matron  of  the  Home  of 
Recovery,  Hunstanton,  the  Convalescent  Home 
attached  to  Addenbrooke's  Hospital,  Cambridge. 
Miss  Sherlock  has  been  a  Ward  Sister  at  the 
Leicester  Infirmary  for  twenty-four  years,  and 
Secretary  to  the  Leicester  Infirmary  Nurees' 
League  since  its  formation  in  1903.  AVe  con- 
gratulate Miss  Sherlock,  better  known,  i>erbai>s, 
as  Sister  Helena,  on  her  api>ointment,  but  it  will 
be  difficult  to  picture  the  Leicester  Infirmary 
without  one  who  for  so  many  years  has  taken  an 
intimate  part  both  in  the  work  of  the  institution 
and  in  the  public  work  for  the  betterment  of  her 
profession.  In  her  new  post  she  will,  we  do  not 
doubt,  continue  the  unselfish  work  for  the  public 
good  w-hich  has  been  characteristic  of  lier  in  the 
liast. 

Lowestoft  Hospital.— Miss  A.  M.  Timbrell  has  been 
apiK)inte<]  iMatron.  She  was  trained  at  Guy's  Hos- 
pital, London. 

Cottage  Hospital,  Abingdon. — Miss  Horspool  has 
been  appointed  Matron.  She  was  trained  at  Guy's 
Hospital,  S.E.,  and  has  held  the  position  of  Nui-se 
at  the  Downs  Infirmary,  Sutton,  Surrey. 

IVIankwearmouth     and    Southwick     Hospital,    Sunderland 

Miss  Maigaret  A.  Kanson  has  lieen  apix)iuted 
Matron.  Slie  was  trained  at  the  Royal  Infirmary, 
Xewcastle-on-Tyne,  and  at  the  City  Ho.spital  in 
the  .same  place,  and  has  held  the  position  of  Night 
Sister  and  Housekeeping  Sister  at  the  Royal  In- 
firmary, Newcastle-on-Tyne ;  and  of  Housekeeping 
SLster  at  tlie  Royal  Infirmary,  Bradford. 
Assistant  M.^teon. 

The  Birmingham  Royal  Institution  for  the  Blind.  — Miss 
Ethel  A.  Knight  has  been  appointed  Assistant  Ma- 
tron. She  was  trained  at  the  Rochford  Infirmary, 
and  has  since  been  nurse  at  the  Mildmay  House, 
Torquay,  and  Assistant  Matron  at  Sandwell  Hall, 
West  Bromwich. 

Sisters. 

Blackburn  and  East  Lancashire  Infirmary.  — Miss  Jessie 
MoGuffoy  has  been  appointed  Sister  of  the  Men's 
Medical  Ward.  She  was  trained  at  the  Royal  In- 
firmary, Liverpool,  wOiere  she  has  been  TJieatre 
Sister,  and  has  done  four  years'  private  nursing 
for  the  same  in.stitution. 

St.  Luke's  Hospital,  Halifax.— Miss  Jennie  Paterson 
luis  been  appointed  Sister.     She  was  trained  at  St. 


Luke's  Hospital,  Halifax,  and  has  held  the  position 
of  Holiday  Staff  Nurse  at  the  Children's  Hospital, 
Glasgow,     She  is  a  certified  midwife. 

Victoria  Hospital,  Folkestone.  —  Miss  Eugenie 
Smith  has  been  appointed  Sister.  She  was  trained 
at  the  General  Hospital,  Nottingham,  and  has  held 
the  positions  of  Sister  at  the  Royal  Buckingham 
Hospital;  Charge  Nurse  under  the  Metropolitan 
A.sylums  Board;  and  Night  Sister  at  the  Infants' 
Hospital,  Vincent  Square,  S.W. 

Royal  Hospital,  Sheffield.  —  Miss  N.  Greenwood  has 
bui'u  apixiinted  Sister.  She  was  trained  at  the 
Royal  Hospital,  Sheffield,  and  the  Lodge  Moor 
Fever  Hospital   in  the  same  city. 

Night  Superintendent. 

Royal  Asylum,  Perth. — Miss  Isabelle  Eraser  has  been 
appointed  Night  Superintendent.  She  was  trained 
at  the  Royal  Asylum,  Aberdeen,  and  has  held  the 
position  of  Charge  Nui-se  at  the  Royal  Infirmary, 
Montrose,  and  of  Assistant  Matron  at  the  District 
Asylum,  Inverness. 

District  Nurse. 

District  Nursing  Association,  Old  Hill. — Miss  Agnes  B. 
Sanderson  has  been  appointed  District  Nurse.  She 
was  trained  at  the  General  Hospital,  Leith. 


QUEEN  VICTORIAS  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE 
FOR  NURSES. 
Transfers  and  Appointmetits. — Miss  Elizabeth 
Barlow,  to  Darwen,  as  Senior  Nurse;  Miss  Mar.v 
Parkinson,  to  Burnley ;  Miss  Emily  Ridsdale,  to 
Nantwicli ;  Miss  Rhoda  Christey,  to  Bridgwater  ; 
Miss  Katherine  Hyde,  to  Kingston ;  Miss  Teresa 
Giblin,  to  Torquay. 


EXAMINATIONS. 

The  final  examination  of  nunses  at  the  C-entral 
London  Sick  A.sylum,  Hendon,  lias  ju.st  been  liphl, 
the  examiner  being  Mr.  A.  J.  Pepper,  M.S.  All 
the  candidates  were  successful  in  passing  the 
examination. 

Their  names  are  as  follows: — Miss  B.  Heath, 
Mi.ss  J.  Brazier,  Miss  G.  M.  Rapson,  Mr.  R.  Butler, 
Miss  E.  Muniby,  Miss  A.  S.  Cruickshank,  Miss  S.  E. 
Bates,  Miss  M.  Johnston,  Miss  N.  Dalton,  Miss  J. 
Hind,  Miss  M.  Pearoe,  Miss  M.  Anderson. 


THE  ASYLUM  WORKERS'  ASSOCIATION. 
Gold  and  Silver  Medals. 
The  Executive  Committee  of  the  Asylum 
Workere'  A.ssociation  have  awarded  the  gold  and 
silver  medals  of  the  Association,  given  for  long  and 
meritorious  seiTice,  for  the  year  1910,  to  the  fol- 
lowing members: — 

Gold. 
Att.  B.  Thomas,  Joint  Counties  Asylum,  Carmar- 
then. 

Nurse  A.  Fraser  (Matron),  Robben  Island,  South 
Africa. 

Silver. 
Att.  E.  W.  Fraser,  Isle  of  Man  Asylum. 
Nui-se  E.  Ashfield,  Colney  Hatch  Asylum, 

These  medals  are  being  presented  as  we  go  to 
press  by  the  President,  Sir  William  J.  Collins, 
M,D,,  M.P.,  at  the  annual  general  meeting,  at  '1, 
Chandos  Street,  Cavendish  Square,  W. 


May  28,  i9Kr         f^jjQ  38r(ti5b  jc'unial  of  Itturslng. 


435 


Oti  tlie  occasion  of  tlie 
fuiiLial  of  King  Edward  tlio 
Governors  of  St.  George's 
IlospitaJ  (of  which  institution 
his  late  Majesty  was  jjatron), 
iiaving  in  respectful  and 
grateful  remembrance  the 
gracious  and  active  interest 
which  his  late  Majesty  was 
)leased  to  take  in  all  hospi- 
tals and  desiring  to  mark 
tfieir  loyal  sympathy  with 
King  George,  decided  to  invite  representatives 
of  the  larger  voluntary  Loudon  hospitals  to  he 
present  al  Hyde  Park  Comer  during  the  Pni- 
cession  and  at  the  ^Memorial  Service  in  the  Hos- 
pital Chai)el  after.  Tlie 
Chairman,  Secretary, 
Matron,  and  two  repre- 
sentatives of  the  nurs- 
ing staffs  received  in- 
vitations which  Were 
in  many  instances  ac- 
cepted with  great 
pleasure. 


Miss  McCall  Ander- 
son, the  Matron,  with 
the  help  of  her  sister, 
welcomed  the  guests 
with  the  utmost  cor- 
diality, at  about  7.30 
a.m.,  when  tea  and 
coffee  were  served. 
After  the  passing  of 
the  Procession,  lun- 
cheon was  provided, 
and  a  corps  of  neat 
nurses   who  were    sta-  Mrs.  w.  h 

tioned     in     the     hall,  Editor  of  "The  Xur. 

guided  the  guests  to  the  wards  where  many 
were  greatly  interested  in  the  good  work  of  the 
hospital.  We  think  this  hospitality  was  a  very 
happy  thought,  and- it  was  greatly  appreciated, 
especially  by  Matrons  and  nurses. 


of  other  important  hospitals  to  give  the  Council 
the  privilege  of  visiting  such  institutions,  where 
much  is  to  be  seen  and  admired. 

We  have  pleasure  in  presenting  to  our  readers 
the  accompanying  portrait  of  ]Mrs.  Klosz,  E.N., 
the  Editor  of  Tlie  Nvrsiiuj  Journal  of  India. 
Mrs.  Klosz  was  trained  at  the  .Johns  Hopkins 
Hospital,  Baltimore,  U.S.A.,  and  is  registered 
in  the  state  of  Maryland.  She  is  also  a  mem- 
ber of  the  British  Society  for  the  State  Re- 
gistration of  Trained  Nurses,  which  she  joined, 
not  from  any  hope  of  jjersoual  benefit,  but  in 
order  to  help  on  the  good  work.  Mrs.  Klosz 
at  present  lives  at  Akola,  C.P.,  India,  and  by 
undertaking  the  position  of  Editor  of  The  Nurs- 
ing Journal  of  India  recently — a  journal  which 
l)romises  to  be  of  great  benefit  to  nurses 
in  India — has  given  fresh  proof  of  her  desire  to 
serve  her  profession. 


By  the  kindness  and  courtesy  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  the  General  Hospital,  Birmingham, 
a  meeting  of  the  Matrons'  Council  of  Great  Bri- 
tain and  Ireland  will  be  held  at  that  fine  insti- 
tution in  July.  Miss  Musson,  the  Matron,  and 
Miss  Mollett,  have  the  arrangements  in  hand, 
and  it  is  hoped  that  the  members  will  have 
the  pleasure  of  meeting  Matrons  from  the  sur- 
rounding hospitals,  and  of  interesting  them  in 
the  work  of  the  Council.  This  promises  to  be 
an  unusually  interesting  gathering,  and  we 
hope  it  may  be  an  incentive  to  the  authorities 


Miss  Stansfeld,  in- 
spector to  the  Local 
Government  Board, 
after  three  inspections, 
has  made  a  report  on 
the  nursing  arrange- 
ments at  the  Mile  End 
Infirmary,  which,  in 
her  opinion,  are  ur- 
gently in  need  of  re- 
organisation. Miss 
Stansfeld  states :  — 

"  I  was  not  satisfied 
as  to  the  methods  of 
ward  administration  and 
nursing,  or  that  the 
nurses  had  a  sufiBcient 
acquaintance  with  the 
principles  of  surgical 
KLOSZ,  R.N.,  cleanliness.       The     ward 

«!/  Journal  of  India."  sisters  or   charge   nurses 

liave  all  received  their  training  at  the  ilile 
End  Infirmary,  and  have  had  no  experience 
of  nuiTsing  outside  its  walls.  I  feel  sure 
that  the  nureing  at  this  infirmary  has  suffered 
from  this  cause.  Many  of  the  probationere  are  not 
educationally  fitted  to  pi-ofit  by  the  instruction  in 
such  .studies  as  anatomy,  physiology,  and  the  theory 
of  nui'sing.  Also,  I  regret  to  say,  I  have 
evidence  of  a  very  unsatisfactory  tone  among  them. 
As  a  staff  they  have  little  resp)ect  for  authority,  and 
are  always  at  variance  among  themselves." 


Miss  Stansfeld  is  of  opinion  that  the  staff  is 
numerically  insufficient,  and  states  that  she 
observed  patients  who  need  the  most  careful 
skilled  nursing  instead  of  the  hurried  attend- 
ance which  is  all  that  is  possible  at  present. 
She  adds,  on  the  information  of  the  assistant 
medical  officer,  that  the  morning  washing  of 


436 


^be  Britieb  3ournal  of  IFturetng, 


[May  28,  1910 


the  patients  and  the  bed-making  frequently 
begins  at  one  a.m.  to  enable  the  nurse  to  get 
round.  She  describes  the  Matron  as  the  only 
untrained  Matron  of  a  metropolitan  infirmary. 
The  officers  concerned,  who  have  commented 
on  this  report,  admit  the  accuracy  of  some  of 
the  statements,  but  say  that  the  washing  of 
patients  at  one  a.m.  refers  to  those  who  need 


IReflecttons. 


The  Matron  has,  we  believe,  held  this  posi- 
tion for  many  years,  and  was  appointed  at  a 
time  when  untrained  ilatrons  were  frequently 
appointed.  We  may  suggest  that  she  might 
reasonably  be  pensioned  by  the  guardians. 

There  have  been  frequent  resignations  of 
nurses  and  other  officers,  and,  at  the  request  of 
the  Local  Government  Board  the  whole  ques- 
tion is  being  considered  by  the  Guardians. 

A  feeble  old  lady,  named  Catherine  Bridle* 
(74),  was  charged  at  Westminster  with  begging 
at  Belgrave  Road.  Interest  attached  to  the  de- 
fendant in  consequence  of  her  statement  that 
she  was  a  nurse  in  the  Crimean  campaign.  It 
was  stated  by  the  police  that  defendant  was  in 
receipt  of  an  old  age  pension.  Mr.  Francis  :  If 
I  convict  her  she  will  lose  it  Constable  ;  Yes, 
sir.  Mr.  Francis  :  Then  I  won't  do  that.  She 
is  an  old  lady.   "  Don't  come  again,"  he  added. 

We  wonder  if  her  statement  that  she  was  a 
nurse  in  the  Crimea  was  true  ?  Poor  old  dear  ! 
No  doubt  whatever  her  work  has  been — it  has 
been  so  badly  paid  that  she  could  not  save  a 
penny  for  old  age.  At  their  present  rate  of 
remuneration  village  and  cottage  nurses  and 
midwives  will  find  themselves  swelling  the 
ranks  of  those  who  starve,  or  eat  unpalatable 
pauper  fare  when  working  days  are  done. 

Sir  Archibald  and  Lady  Campbell  of  Succoth 
kindly  entertained  about  50  members  of  the 
nursing  staff  of  the  Stobhill  Hospital,  Glasgow, 
in  their  beautiful  grounds,  on  Saturday  last. 
The  weather  was  charming,  and  a  very  pleasant 
afternoon  was  spent. 

The  American  Society  of  Superintendents  of 
Training  Schools  for  Nurses  celebrated  on  May 
19th  the  50th  anniversary  of  the  founding  of  the 
first  training  school  for  nurses  in  London  with  a 
great  meeting  at  Carnegie  Hall,  New  York.  The 
proceedings  included  numerous  tributes  to  Miss 
Florence  Nightingale,  whom  Mr.  Choate,  ex- 
Ambassador  to  Great  Britain,  pronounced  to 
be  "  one  of  the  great  heroines  of  the  race.'' 

Addresses  were  also  given  by  the  Bishop  of 
New  York,  Professor  Faii-field  Osborn,  Presi- 
dent of  the  American  Museum  of  Natural  His- 
tory, and  Dr.  W.  M.  Polk,  Dean  of  Cornell 
University. 


From  a  Board  Room  Mikkor. 
Mr.  Cosmo  Bousor,  the  popular  Treasurer  of 
Guy's  Hospital,  has  been  elected  President  for  the 
year  of  the  British  Hospitals  Association.  The 
objects  of  the  Association  are  the  consideration  of 
all  subjects  in  connection  with  hospital  manage- 
ment. It  is  hoped  to  hold  an  annual  conference. 
The  Secretary  of  the  Royal  Free  Hospital,  Mr. 
Com^ad  Thies,  has  been  elected  Treasurer  of  the 
Association,  whilst  the  joint  Honorary  Secretaries 
appointed  are  Mr.  A.  William  West,  Treasurer  and 
Chairman  of  St.  George's  Hospital,  and  Dr.  D.  J. 
Mackintosh,  M.V.O.,  the  Medical  Superintendent 
of  the  Western  Infirmary  at  Glasgow. 


Mr.  F.  Tendi-on,  of  Tunbridge  Wells,  has  left  to 
charitable  institutions  specific  bequests  to  the 
amount  of  £6,500  and  the  residue  of  his  esta,t«, 
which  will  apparently  amount  to  about  £35,000, 
equally  between  the  London  Hospital,  the  Tun- 
bridge Wells  General  Hospital,  and  the  Society  for 
the  Relief  of  the  Distressed. 


The  late  Dr.  Stanley  Atkinson,  a  much  respected 
member  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board,  has  left 
£5,000  to  be  distribute<l  as  follows :— £4,000  to  the 
Congregational  Schools  at  Caterham ;  £500  to  the 
Congregational  School  at  Milton  Mount,  Gi^ves- 
end ;  £500  to  ten  (or  rnore)  deserving  peiisons  con- 
nected with  the  Congregational  Chapel  at  Latimer 
Road,  Stepney. 

The  Chief  Commissioner  of  Metropolitan  Police 
has  issued  the  following  communication  on  the 
ambulance  work  aooomplished  during  the  Lying-m- 
State  and  Funeral  Procession  of  the  late  King: — 
"  The  St.  John  Ambulance  Association  supplied 
ambulances  at  thirty-five  stations  along  the  line 
of  route,  and  the  Church  Nureing  and  Ambulance 
Brigade  of  Women  and  Girls,  supplied  six.  In 
addition  there  was  a  stretcher  l}earer  section  of  the 
2-5th  Batn.  County  of  London  Regiment.  Owing 
to  the  heat  and  tiie  long  wait  all  these  stations 
were  kept  fully  employed  on  the  20th  insf.  Ihe 
Commissioner  of  Police  desires  to  express  to  these 
Associations  his  grateful  thanks  for  the  invaluable 
aid  they  rendered,  not  only  on  this  day,  but  also 
on  Tuesday,  Wednesday,  and  Thui-sday  of  the 
Lying-in-State.  It  should  be  added  that  beyond 
these  civilian  stations  the  Military  Ambulance 
Corps  rendered  substantial  aid  to  all  comei's;  and 
to  them  also  the  thanks  of  the  public  are  due." 

The  following  are  the  returns  of  the  St.  Jolm 
Ambulance  Brigade  for  May  20th  : — 

Total  number  of  all  ranks  on  duty,  1,163. 

Total  number  of  cases  treated,  6,014. 

The  stations  at  which  the  largest  numl>er  of 
casualties  were  treated  are  as  follows: — Apsley 
Gate,  645;  the  Mall,  opposite  Marlborough  Yard. 
.593;  .Jermyn  Street,  348;  in  the  Green  Park, 
opposite  Half  Moon  Street,  304:  Seymour  Street, 
Edgware  Road,  270;  Grosvenor  Road,  230:  Honse 
Guards  Avenue,  253;  and  Marble  Arch,  250.  Of 
these  cases  20  were  removed  to  hospital. 


Mav  28,  lOlO"" 


tlbc  36riti5b  3ournaI  ot  Wursina. 


437 


IRursimj  in  (Iana^a. 

Every  effort  is  being  made  by  philanthropic 
societies  to  induce  trained  nurses  to  emigrate 
to  Canada,  on  the  ground  that  their  services  are 
much  needed  in  the  West  of  the  Dominion.  It 
is  true  that  there  are  many  districts  where  the 
services  of  a  trained  nurse  are  urgently  needed, 
but  there  is  no  certainty  of  adequate  remunera- 
tion, and  we  cannot  too  strongly  impress  upon 
nurses  the  importance  of  securing  appoint- 
ments at  salaries,  upon  which  they  can  live, 
before  emigrating. 

A  nurse  who  neglects  this  advice  will  pro- 
bably find  that  the  only  means  open  to  her  of 
making  a  living,  while  waiting  to  establish  a 
professional  connection,  is  by  doing  housework, 
and  housework  in  Western  Canada  means  hard 
work  such  as  few  EngHsh  servants  would  be 
willing  to  undertake. 

Miss  L.  K.  Beynon,  dealing  with  the  ques- 
tion of  the  demand  for  nurses  in  Canada,  in 
The  Lady,  takes  the  same  view,  and  says:  — 

'"  Thoee  who  wisli  to  come  to  Canada  at  once 
must  be  preparefl  to  do  housework  until  they  can 
get  established  in  lyome  small  town  or  thickly- 
settled  country  district.  .  .  .  The  nunsee  must 
arrange  for  them.selves  and  not  blame  the  country 
if  they  do  not  find  work  immediately  on  arrival  at 
Winnipeg."'  .  "I  might,  however,  add  that 

the  country  is  somewhat  to  blame,  for  as  yet  the 
nurees  in  Western  Canada  have  no  system  of  regis- 
tration to  keep  the  .standard  up,  and  shut  out 
those  who  pix)fes«  to  have  had  complete  training 
when  they  are  the  veriest  amateurs,  and  should 
not  be  classed  among  professionals  at  all.  How- 
ever, the  fight  for  registration  and  a  higher 
«^tandard  is  now  going  on.  and  the  time  is  probably 
not  far  distant  when  the  nurses  of  Western  Canada 
will  have  adequate  protection  and  a  reasonable 
standard." 

Miss  F.  Wilson,  Lady  Superintendent  of  the 
Winnipeg  General  Hospital  Training  School  for 
Nurses,  writing  to  us  on  this  subject,  says  that 
she  receives  during  the  year  a  large  number  of 
letters  from  graduates  of  the  Old  Country  in- 
quiring about  coming  to  Canada  to  carry  on 
their  work.  In  the  course  of  her  letter.  Miss 
Wilson  makes  the  following  admirably  prac- 
tical suggestion:  — 

•  •  I  think  it  would  be  so  much  better  for  those 
who  wish  to  nurse  in  Canada  to  train  here,  as  they 
would  be  much  bett*r  oquippe<l  for  the  different 
conditions  to  be  met  with  in  this  country  by  doing 
M).  and  I  would  strongly  advise  tliose  who  are 
)>lanuing  to  nurse  in  Canada  to  consider  the 
advisability  of  training  here.  There  are  good  open- 
ings for  graduate  nurses  throughout  the  West. 
but  naturally  the  doctors  prefer  nui-ees  trained  in 
■C'anatla.  I  would  be  plea-sed  to  consider  any  goo<l 
applications  from  those  who  wish  to  train  in  the 
W.-~t,   and  enter  the  Winnipeg    General    Ho<ipital 


Training  School,  if  they  communicate  witli  mo.  Wi> 
require  well  e<luoate<l,  retine<l  women,  over  22  and 
under  34  years  ot  age,  with  a  certificate  of  health 
fixMU  a  piiy.sician,  and  also  a  certitioato  fiom  their 
clerg\man  as  to  chai'acter.  Our  pupils  receive  in- 
struction in  nietlical  and  surgical  nursing,  obstet- 
rics, infectious  diseases,  district  nui'sing,  dietetics, 
and  cooking,  and  the  course  is  three  years,  in- 
cluding probation  term  of  two  montlis." 

We  should  advise  those  who  wish  to  qualify 
for  nursing  in  Canada  to  communicate  with 
Miss  Wilson. 

aapasia  in  Cap  auD  Hpron. 

John  Bull  is  a  paper  which  as  a  rule  circulates 
more  widely  amongst  men  than  women,  but  we 
advise  all  nurses  to  read  this  paper  weekly  while 
the  discussion  on  Nursing  Homes  which  began  in 
the  issue  of  May  14th  is  continued.  Those  who 
have  for  so  long  been  working  for  State  Registra- 
tion of  Trained  Nurses  will  find  in  these  articles 
ample  justification  for  their  contention,  while 
surely  the  most  obstinate  ani-registrationist  must 
reconsider  his  or  her  jjosition.  Nurses  know  that 
these  articles  contain  a  plain  unvarnished  state- 
ment of  facts,  and  that  for  the  sake  alike  of 
patients,  nurses,  and  reputable  Nursing  Homes,  it 
is  imperative  that  immediate  action  should  be 
taken  to  secure  the  registration  of  trained  nurses, 
and  the  inspection  and  registration  of  Nursing 
Homes. 

M.4XT  NrBsiNG  Homes  Little  Bettee  th.\n 
Brothels. 

A  nurse  in  an  article  in  the  above  Journal  of 
May  14th  writes  that  "  For  the  sake  of  the  great 
general  public  the  time  has  come  when  it  is  impera- 
tive that  the  question  as  to  the  respectability  or 
otherwise  of  many  West  End  Nursing  Homes  should 
be  threshed  out." 

She  further  states  that  she  is  in  a  position  to 
prove  that  many  of  these  Homes  are  "  little  better 
than  brothels." 

Referring  to  the  question  of  State  Registration 
of  Nurses,  the  writer  rightly  points  out  that  it 
is  '•  opposed  merely  by  a  tiny  but  determined 
group,  who  see  in  such  a  measure  a  threat  to  their 
own  hitherto  despotic  control  of  nursing  affairs.'" 

.She  proceeds  to  show  that  the  life  of  a  private 
nurse  is  always  unnatural,  and  '  if  work  is  always 
too  hard,  pay  nearly  always  too  low,  and  rational 
amusement  reduced  almost  to  the  level  of  the  non- 
existent, it  ought  to  be  recognised  as  ridiculous  to 
expect  a  high  moral  tone.  That  in  spite  of  sucli 
conditions  among  the  vast  body  of  professional 
nui-ses  serious  crime  is  unknown  is  a  high  tribute 
to  the  innate  morality  of  womanhoo<l  in  tho  lace 
of  direct  incentive  to  the  reverse.  Their  oppor- 
tunities and  temptations  are  perhaps  unique.  That 
because  of  bad  conditions  the  less  conscientious  and 
the  morally  weak  gain  recreation  at  a  fearful  price 
oan  hardly  be  a  matter  for  surprise,  and  it  is  on 
this  weakness  that  the  proprietors  of  certain 
Nursing  Homes  trade.  Be  that  as  it  may,  there 
is    a     growing     ff»eling     among     well-to-do    people 


438 


Cbe  ffirUieb  3ournaI  of  IFiureinfi. 


['Slay  28,  1910 


against  these  institution^^,  and  the  volunit;  ot 
scandalous  tales  wliich  roll  forth  whenever  they 
are  mentioned  makes  one's  ears  tingle  even  to 
think  of.'' 

Of  one  West-End  Institution  it  is  reported  that 
"  This  Home  is  known  tor  the  fact  that  '  in  turn 
or  out,  it  was  always  the  younger  and  prettier 
nurses  who  were,  if  possible,  put  on  duty  with,  or 
sent  away  to  attend,  male  patients,  and  the  wliole 
place  is  a  hot-bed  of  scandal,  bad  management, 
and  consequent  notoriety.'  " 

Under  the  heading,  "  A  Widespread  System  of 
Social  Vice  and  Infamy,"  the  subject  is  further 
discussed  in  the  issue  of  May  21st,  where  we  read  : — 

"It  is  now  evident  that  under  the  titles  of 
'  Nureing  Homes,'  '  Homes  of  Rest,'  '  Massage  In- 
stitutes,' etc.,  there  is  in  London  a  vast  network 
of  establishments  catering  for  the  gratification  of 
the  most  depraved  and  abandoned  forms  of  vice  and 
infamy,"  a  statement  which  is  amply  supportetl  by 
evidence.  The  articles  are  to  be  continued  in  sub- 
sequent issues,  and  we  commend  them  to  the  atten- 
tion of  the  hospital  world. 
The  Nursing  Profession  and  the  White  Sl.we 
Tr.^ffic. 

Ckmfirmatory  evidence  of  the  conditions  whereby 
so-called  nursing  and  massage  homes  are  in  reality 
nets  spread  wide  in  the  interest  of  the  '\Miite  Slave 
Traffic  is  to  be  found  in  a  series  of  j^apers  rei^rinted 
from  M.A.P.  in  a  sixpenny  booklet  entitled  "The 
White  Slave  Traffic,"  published  at  17  and  18,  Hen- 
rietta Street,  W.C.  Every  nurse  should  spend  six- 
pence on  this  booklet  and  read  especially  the  chap- 
ter on  the  above  subject.  We  agree  w-ith  the  writer 
that  "it  is  jjarticularly  abominable  when  advan- 
tage is  taken  of  medical  terms  and  professional 
titles  to  cloak  the  most  hideous  malpractices." 

In  this  article  massage  establishments  are  more 
particularly  dealt  with,  and  young  women  are 
warned  as  to  the  real  nature  of  many  of  these 
places. 

The  editorial  remarks  of  the  Practitioner  on  the 
subject  of  veil«l  advertisements  are  here  quoted : — 

"  The  action  of  the  local  authorities  in  driving 
Aspasia  and  her'  more  shameless  followers  from  off 
the  public  streets  has  led.  amongst  other  devices, 
to  a  system  of  disguise.  Hence  it  hapvjens  that,  in- 
cluded among  the  adverti-sements  of  nureing  homes 
and  institutions  for  massage,  etc.,  are  adver- 
tisements of  places  where  Aspasia  revels 
supreme.  ...  It  is  intolerable  that  Aspasia 
should  adopt  as  a  disguise  one  of  the  noblest 
callings  to  which  her  purer  sistei-s  can  devote  them- 
selves. ' ' 

This,  the  article  continues,  is  the  indictment  of 
a  medical  journal,  and  every  right-minded  man 
or  woman  will  agree  that  this  abuse  of  a 
nurse's  uniform  must  cease.  As  the  result 
of  a  recent  prosecution  it  ti'anspii-ed  that 
the  so-called  nurses  in  one  of  these  establishments 
drew  the  princely  salary  of  ten  shillings  weekly 
each.  Anything  more  they  made  for  themselves 
as  they  could.  The  woman  in  charge  of  the  house  was 
paid  a  considerable  sum  for  the  treatment  she  was 
to  supply,  and  which,  of  cour.se,  was  duly  supplie<l 
by  her  poor  slaves.     In  this  particular  instance  the 


line  had  been  over-stepped,  and  the  attendants 
were  kept  in  a  semi-nude  condition,  hence  tUe 
l>olice  intervention. 

We  have  directed  attention  to  these  appalling 
conditions  because  publicity  is  the  surest  metnod 
of  grappling  with  the  evil.  Further,  the  article 
referred  to  points  out  the  necessity  for  the  regi.^v- 
tration  of  nurses  by  the  State,  and  draws  attention 
to  Loixl  Ampthill's  Bill.  It  claims  that  the  efilect 
of  such  a  Bill  would  be  as  much  for  the  pi-otec- 
tion  of  nurses  as  of  the  public,  and  declares  :  "Were 
a  Bill  on  these  lines  passed  into  law  there  would 
l>e  an  end  to  the  scandal  of  the  massage  establish- 
ment, an  end  to  the  spurious  nurse,  and  an  end  to 
the  procuress — for  that  is  what  she  really  Ls — who, 
by  means  of  alluringly-worded  advertisements, 
attracts  young  girls  to  a  doom  in  oomparison  with 
nhich  the  streets  are  as  nothing.  No  more  detest- 
able or  atrocious  misuse  of  the  nui^ses'  uniform  can 
be  imagined.  ...  It  is  high  time  that  the 
medical  authorities  looked  to  guarding  with  greater 
jealousy  the  honour  of  their  sister  profession." 


THE   PURE   FOOD   EXHIBITION. 

The  Pure  Food  and  Allied  Trades  Exhibition,- 
which  opened  on  Monday  at  the  Royal  Horticul- 
tural Hall,  Westminster,  and  is  remaining  open 
throughout  the  week  is  the  first  of  its  kind  held 
ill  this  country,  but  it  should  have  a  steadily  in- 
creasing popularity,  not  only  because  of  the  attrac- 
tive exhibits,  but  that  the  public  may  know  what 
to  avoid  in  the  way  of  faked  and  unwholesome 
foods.  For  instance,  after  practical  illustration  of 
the  methods  by  which  some  cocoas  are  adulterated 
by  such  substances  as  ochre,  sulphate  of  lime,  and 
red  lead,  they  will  turn  with  relief  to  the  one 
exhibited  by  the  Frame  Food  Co.,  Ltd.,  Standen 
Road,  Southfields,  S.W.,  which  is  guaranteed  pure. 

Again  coffee  is  adulterated  with  such  nauseous  . 
material  as  ground,  scorched,  and  dried  livers,  pro- 
bably of  an  unclean  character ;  potted  meats  are 
spiced  to  conceal  the  flavour  of  decomposition ;  and 
fillets  of  haddock  may  be  a  cheap  variety  of  fish, 
dyed.  No  description  of  the  way  faked  food  is 
produced,  however,  can  make  the  same  impression 
a?  a  sight  of  the  ingredients  used.  Our  readers 
should  see  them  for  themselves. 


A  DESERVING  CHARITY. 

A  Bazaar  in  aid  of  the  Rebuilding  Fund  of  the 
Hospital  for  Women,  Soho  Square,  W.,  was  held  in 
the  new  building  on  Tuesday  and  Wednesday  of 
this  week.  The  new  wards  were  utilised  for  this 
purpose,  and  it  is  manifest  that  when  they  are 
opened  to  patients  they  will  be  bright,  airy,  and 
sjiacions,  with  a  pleasant  outlook  over  the  green 
square. 

Energetic  stallholders  offered  many  attractive 
wares  for  sale,  the  provision  stall,  the  flower  .stall, 
and  one  devoted  to  baskets  of  many  kinds  being 
extremely  attractive.  The  nursing  staff  of  the 
hospital  had  a  miscellaneous  stall,  where  many 
dainty  articles  had  a  ready  sale.  An  afternoon  con- 
cert on  Wednesday,  and  a  cinematograph  entertain- 
ment on  both  days  were  great  attractions,  and  we 
hope  a  substantial  sum  will  be  realised  for  this 
deserving  charity. 


-May  28, 1910]       ^,^j.   jbntisb  3ounial   ot   mureiiig. 


439 


©utsibe  tbe  Gates. 


WOMEN. 

Tlie  National  Union  of 
Women  Workers  of 
Great  Britain  and  Ire- 
land will  hold  their 
annual  meetings  and 
Conference  at  Lincoln 
from  October  10th  to 
13th.  The  genei-al  sub- 
jects at   the   Conference 

■Rill  be   Problems  of   Child   Life   and    Educational 

Ideals. 


The  Women's  National  Health  Association  of 
Great  Britain  is  being  organised  much  on  the  lines 
of  the  National  Health  Society.  It  aims  to 
arrange  health  lectures  for  women — more  particu- 
larly young  wives  and  mothers — throughout  Lon- 
don and  the  provinces  on  such  subjects  as  the  fol- 
lowing: Feeding  and  rearing  of  children:  Value 
of  food-stuffs ;  Sick  room  cookery ;  Value  of  open 
air ;  Care  of  the  teeth ;  Alcohol  and  its  relation  to 
health;  Dust  and  disease;  How  to  assist  sanitary- 
insijectors  and  health  officers;  Improved  lavatory 
accommodation  ;  Maternity  cltibs ;  The  care  of 
mothers  before  and  after  confinement:  Creches; 
What  a  girl  should  know  about  her  health;  and  to 
introduce  personally  into  the  homes  of  the  country 
the  practical  details  of  personal  and  domestic 
hygiene. 


.\t  the  free  public  meeting  in  support  of  Votes 
for  Women,  to  be  held  at  the  Queen's  Hall  ou 
•June  6th,  at  3  o'clock,  Mr.  ManseU  Moullin.  Con- 
sulting Surgeon  to  the  London  Hospital,  will  speak. 
No  doubt  many  nurses  will  be  present.  We  are 
always  thankful  to  note  a  medical  man  with  the 
courage  of  his  opinions  on  this  most  important  of 
all  questions. 


The  Women's  Life  Society  of  Liverpool  desire 
to  "  register  a  protest  against  the  grounds  upon 
which  the  present  inequality  in  respect  of  mis- 
conduct has  been  defended  "  before  the  Royal  Com- 
mission on  Divorce  by  certain  witnesses.  It  has, 
therefore,  addressed  a  letter  in  which  it  calls  atten- 
tion to  this  matter  which  virtually  concerns  the 
moral  and  legal  status  of  women  in  respect  of 
divorce  to  Lord  Gorell,  Chairman,  and  to  Lady 
Frances  Balfour,  and  Mrs.  H.  J.  Tennant,  mem- 
bers of  the  Commission. 


The  letter  argues:  — 

(1)  That  no  sanction  for  such  views  is  to  be  found 
in  the  whole  of  the  literature  touching  on  marriage. 

(2)  That  the  attempt  to  estimate  the  injury 
caused  by  misconduct  of  either  of  the  parties  misses 
'■  the  moral  and  social  problem  involve<l — namely, 
the  well-being  of  the  family  and  child  life  as  con- 
ditioned by  the  moral  and  physical  health  of  the 
parents."  Only  within  the  pale  of  monogamic 
marriage  is  parentage  legitimate,  and  immoral  con- 
duct on  the  part  of  one  parent  is  an  injury,   not 


only  to  the  other,  but  to  the  "  offspring  and  to  tbe 
whole  fabric  of  social  life." 

(3)  How  far  misconduct  may  be  regarded  as 
accidental  must  be  regarded  in  the  light  of  the 
■■  question  as  to  with  whom  such  "  accidental  '  mis- 
conduct is  likely  to  take  place.  Misconduct  with 
a  pure  woman  would  imply  a  very  deliberate  and 
sedulously  pursued  intention ;  with  an  immoral  one 
a  choice  of  company  which  .  .  .  cannot  be  held 
consistent  with  due  regard  for  the  rights  of  the 
wife,  or  family,  or  of  society.  Along  the  paths  of 
dalliance  ''accidents'  belong  to  the  category  of 
high  probabilities."  » 

(4;  "  As  to  whether  the  maintenance  of  a  separ- 
ate establishment  by  a  man  would  be  consistent 
with  the  affection  due  to  his  wife,  an  offer  of  mar- 
riage carrying  with  it  provision  for  such  a  condi- 
tion would,  by  the  overwhelming  majority  of 
women,  be  rejected  with  scorn." 


Booh  of  tbe  Uleeh. 


■OLIVIA  L.  CAREW."' 

■'  She  is  the  funniest,  primmest  little  thing  you 
ever  saw.  .  .  but  she  is  awfully  pretty  by  the 
way.     .  She  knows  how  to  dress  herself  for  one 

thing.  .  .  Here's  this  child  now  as  crude  and 
raw  as  a  Nonconformist  savage,  if  you'll  excuse  the 
apparent  absurdity.  Yet  put  her  in  favourable 
growing  c'rcumstances,  and  1  believe  she  would  end 
by  astonishing  us.  At  the  moment  she  is  just  a 
stilted  little  prig.  .  .  All  the  same,  she  interests 
me.     I  wonder  what  you'll  think  of  her?  " 

Carew  thought  her  the  loveliest  little  creature 
he  had  ever  seen. 

Her  little  pronouncements  were  delivered  with 
such  an  air  ot  finality,  her  statements  were  so  posi- 
tive, her  self-possession  so  assured,  that  in  fancy  he 
saw  the  American  flag  streaming  behind  the  fair 
head  with  all  that  the  spangled  banner  expressed 
of  independence,   coolness,   and  self-confidence. 

Dick  Carew,  wildly  enamoured  of  her,  proposes 
after  an  acquaintance  of  a  few  days,  and,  in  spite 
of  her  assertion  that  "  Marriage  would  hinder  her 
career  "  (though  she  has  not  made  up  her  mind 
what  it  is  to  be),  persuades  her  to  accept  him. 

Dick  has  the  soul  and  temperament  of  an  artist, 
and  Olivia  as  yet  has  only  the  conventional  outlook 
of  a  prim  schoolgirl,  whose  affections  have  never 
been  awakened. 

"  She  was  by  training  and  still  more  by  nature 
a  rigid  puritan  in  morals  and  manners."  Her  cold 
and  repellant  attitude  to  him  after  their  mar- 
riage estranges  his  affection,  and  in  Siena,  where 
he  has  taken  her,  they  drift  apart,  he  finding  a 
more  congenial  companion  in  Sylvia  Carnegie,  an 
old  acquaintance. 

■'  Sylvia  has  the  gift  of  eternal  youth,"  was  the 
comment  of  one  of  her  friends.  "  One  day  we  shall 
wake  np  with  astonishment,  and  find  she  is  an  old 
woman.     But  she  will  never  be  middle  aged." 

Together  they  revel  in  picture  galleries,  and  de- 
light in  the  Cathedral,  while  OHvia  is  vexing  her- 
self about  doing  the  "  right  thing  "  in  sight-seeing. 

*  By  Netta  Syrett.    (Chatto  and  Windus). 


440 


Znc  Britisb  3ournal  of  "Kursing. 


[JMay  28,  1910 


'■  Tho  streets  seem  very  narrow,''  observed 
Olivin.  "and  exceedingly  dirty,"  glancing  at  her 
tiny,  slender  shoes.  "  But  I  suppose  they  are  in- 
teresting monuments?  Historical  buildings,  and 
so  on?  " 

"  Fi-ightf ully  faistorioal."  returned  Sylvia,  laugh- 
ing.    "  Do  have  a  tomato  sandwich." 

"Can  you  get  me  a  lis-t  of  books  I  ought  U) 
get?  "  pursued  Olivia,  fixing  her  grave  eyes  upon 
her  hostess.  "I  have  Baedeker,  of  course,  but  I 
want  to  study  the  place  from  an  historical  point  of 
view." 

Olivia  iu  her  turn  finds,  as  she  imagines,  a 
kindred  spirit  in  Hugh  Alison,  a  novelist  of  some 
repute,  who,  attracted  by  her  beauty,  and  amused 
by  her  unconscious  pedantry,  flattei-s  her  into  be- 
lieving that  she  jxissesses  literary  talent,  and  half 
in  idleness  and  half  in  earnest  succeeds  in  fascinat- 
ing her  for  the  time  being,  and  awakening  lier 
imagination. 

Up  to  this  point  the  book  is,  for  the  most  part, 
pleasant  reading,  and  it  is.  a  pity  that  a  disagree- 
able element  should  be  inti-oduced  into  it,  for  poor 
little  Olivia   falls  an  easy  prey. 

"  Olivia  sat  with  down-bent  head,  her  thought.* 
whirling  fautasticallj-,  grotesquely,  Dick?  But 
Dick  was  gone  for  ever.  So  vividly  that  his  very 
voice  rang  in  her  ears.  She  remembered  inco- 
herent little  phrases  of  his.  And  now  there  was 
another  man  who  would  .say  the  .same  things,  shei 
supposed.  And  by  this  time  she  had  learnt  that 
it  wasn't  wrong  to  listen.  If  it  were  true  sne 
could  only  learn  that  way?  But  then  she  was  a 
married  woman."  This  is  the  prelude  to  a  sordid 
intrigue  of  which  Hugh  Alison  very  quickly  tires. 
It  is  altogether  unwortJiy  of  the  undoubted  talent 
of  the  authoress.  One  must  feel  regret  th,it  the 
pen  that  can  sketch  so  charmingly  ''the  things 
that  are  lovely ''  should  be  used  for  any  other 
purjx)se.  In  some  subtle  way  we  are  made  to  feel 
that  evil  is  called  good  and  good  evil — when  neces- 
sary. 

The  liakon  between  Hugh  and  Olivia  is  not 
defended,  for  the  simple  reason  that  it  did  not 
succeed.  But  of  Sylvia's  contemplated  union  with 
Dick,  her  friend  Mary,  quite  a  normal  married 
woman,  remarks:  "I  am  sure  Sylvia  will  be  very 
happy.  I  wish  it  were  all  different  and  simpler. 
But  I  am  glad  all  the  same." 

These  situations  seem  to  have  an  attraction  for 
JNIiss  Syiett,  for  in  another  otherwise  charming 
book  of  hens,  about  an  otherni.se  charming  woman, 
"  Ann  Page,"  we  remember  that,  though  for  no 
apparent  reason,  she  chose  to  dispense  with  the 
maniage  ceremony,  she  was  surrounded  with  a  sort 
of  halo. 

This  easy  immorality,  though  not  exactly  re- 
commended, or  even  approved,  is  accepted  com- 
fortably by  apparently  quite  respectable  people,  in 
a  manner  that  is  profoundly  disagreeable,  and  the 
volume  that  we  oi)ened  with  pleasurable  anticipa- 
tion we  close  with  di^ta.^te.  niul  a  seii-^f  of  promise 
unfulfilled, 

H,   H. 


Coinino  lEvcnts. 


May  27th. — Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute, 
CJonference  of  representatives  of  affiliated  Asaocia- 
tions,     Caxton  Hall,   Westminster, 

May  2Sth. — The  Lord  Mayor  opens  new  Nurses' 
Home.  City  of  London  Asylum,  Stone,  near  Dart- 
ford. 

May  Slst. — The  Rural  Midwives'  Association, 
Seventh  Annual  Meeting,  3,  Grosvenor  Place, 
S,W,,  by  kind  permission  of  the  Lady  Esther 
Smith.  H.  J.  Tennant,  Esq.,  M,P,,  in  the  chair. 
3  p,m. 

May  5isf,— The  Infants'  Hospital,  S,'W.  A 
Course  of  Lectures  on  Babies,  V, —  '  Clinical  Cases 
illustrative  of  various  diseases  and  their  treat- 
ment." By  Dr.  Ralph  Vincent.  Lecture  Theatre, 
■5  p.m. 

■June  2nd. — The  Society  for  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses,  Annual  Meeting,  Chair,  The 
Lady  Helen  Munro  Ferguson,  11,  Chandos 
Street,  Cavendish  Square,  W,,  4  p,m, 

June  2nd. — The  Lord  Mayor  presides  at  a  Meet- 
ing to  inaugurate  the  Jubilee  of  British  Home  and 
Hospital  for  Incurables,  Streatham,  Mansion 
House, 

June  7th. — Territorial  Force  Nursing  Service, 
City  and  County  of  London,  Mansion  House,  Exe- 
cutive Committee,  3  p,m.  Special  Meeting,  Grand 
Committee,  4  p,m. 

The  Women's  Congeess. 
June    6th    to    11th. — Japan-British  Exhibition. 
Great  Hall,  Cascade  Cafe. 

June  6th  and  7th. — "  The  Co-operation  of  Women 
in  Local  Government." 

June  8th. — "A  University  Standard  in  Hom& 
Science," 

June  9th. — "  Woman's  Suffrage  "  and  "  The  Wo- 
man's Charter," 

June  10th. — "  National  Health," 
Jane  11th. — "  Nursing."     Chair,  Her   Grace  the 
Duchess    of     Montrose.        Red     Cross     Organisa- 
tion :       Sir     Frederick      Treves.       The     Trained 
Nurse's  Sphere  in  Red  Cross  Work :    Mrs.  Netter- 
ville  Barron.    Territorial  Nursing :   Miss  Haldane. 
Nursing  as  a  Profession;    Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick. 
Social  Service  Nursing:  Miss  H.  L.  Pearse, 
June  12th. — Hospital  Sunday. 
June  18th  (postponed  from  May  28th). — Proces- 
sion of  Women  Suffragists  from  the  Embankment 
to  Albert  Hall,  organised  by  the  Women's  National 
Social  and  Political  Union. 


movb  for  tbc  mcc\{. 


EARTHLY  SORROWS.  TRANSIENT, 
Then  let  the  woes 
And  joys  of  earth  be  to  the  deathless  soul 
Like  the  swept   dew-drop   from  the   eagle's 

wing, 
Wiien,  waking  in  his  strength,  he  sunward 
soars. 

SiGOtniNET. 


May  28,  I'JlUj 


Zyyc  «itt:sb  3om-nal  of  "tturstnq. 


441 


Xettcrs  to  tbe  lEMtor, 


^  \yhilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
munirations  upon  all  lubiecti 
for  these  columns,  we  luisk  ii 
to  be  distinctly  understood 
that  ice  do  not  in  ant  wa? 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


AN  EMERGENCY  RESOLUTION. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Xursing." 

Deab  Madam. —I  do  hope  that  at  our  annual 
meeting,  on  June  2nd,  some  resolution  will  lie 
pasrs«d  dissociating  pure-minded  and  decent 
trained  nurses  from  the  fraudulent  and  immoral 
women — wearing  our  unifonn  for  vicious  purix)S«s 
— on  the  streets  and  in  Massage  Homes!  As  a 
private  nui-se  I  am  constantly  made  to  feel  the 
suspicion  and  contemi>t  of  the  genei-al  public  for 
"  trained  nurses."  If  the  Government  delay  much 
longer  to  treat  well-trained,  lionourable  women 
justly,  and  with-hold  fix)ra  us  legal  status  and  a 
legal  title,  no  seIf-re.speoting  women  will  Ijeconie 
trained  nui-ses.  Tlie  present  condition  of  affairs,  as 
■ex]X)sed  in  the  press,  is  a  scandalous  shame,  and  a 
gix)es  injury  to  our  work,  and  an  abominable 
public  danger.  Would  it  be  possible  to  place  our 
case  before  the  new  King  and  Queen,  as  the 
Government  refuses  to  do  justice  to  so  deserving  a 
body  of  workers  for  the  community  as  tiained 
iiureee  are.' 

Yours  truly, 
Member,  State  Registration  Society. 

[An  Emergency  Resolution  will  Ije  placed  on  the 
agenda  for  discussion  at  the  annual  meeting  ol  the 
Society  for  the  State  Registration  of  Trained 
XniTses.  We  have  thus  week  heard  of  two  ladies 
who  intended  to  enter  hospitals  for  training  who 
Tiave  cancelled  their  agreements  on  the  ground  that 
thev  do  not  care  to  be  cla!»e<l  with  prostitutes. — 
Ed.'] 

MALE  MIDWIVES. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  yursing.' 
Dear  Madam, — I  hope  that  any  Amendment  to 
the  Midwives'  Act  will  contain  a  clear  provision 
that  it  is  illegal  for  anyone^  man  or  woman,  to 
pj-actice  midwifery  except  a  registered  medical 
practitioner  or  a  certified  midwife.  Wliy  should  an 
ignorant  man  be  allowed  to  deliver  a  woman  when 
it  is  illegal  for  an  ignorant  woman  to  do  so,  or  at 
all  events  a  woman  who  has  not  proved  her  right 
to  be  on  the  Midwives'  Roll.  It  was  surely  a  great 
oversight  in  the  Act  that  men  should  have  unre- 
stricted licence  to  practise,  wliile  women  must 
henceforth  give  evidence  of  knowledge,  and  be 
brought  under  supervision  and  inspection.  It  may 
be  the  law,  but  it  is  not  justice.  I  cannot  but 
think  that  if  the  attention  of  the  Lord  President  of 
the  Council  were  drawn  to  this  danger  to  lying-in 
women  and  injustice  to  midwives  that  a  clause 
would  be  introduced  into  his  Bill,  as  could  easily 
be  done,   making  men  and  women   midwives  equal 


before  the  law.  If  a  poor  woman  is  to  be  attended 
by  an  ignorant  person  at  all,  let  it  be  a  woman 
and  not  a  man.  A  woman  may  attend  a  sister 
woman  from  kindly  feeling;  an  unqvialifiod  man 
surely  does  so  only  with  the  object  of  money-mak- 
ing, and  it  is  about  as  unnatural  and  repulsive  a 
piece  of  avarice  as  can  well  be  imagined. 
Faithfully  yours, 

An  Indignant  Midwife. 


THE   HUMANE   SLAUGHTERING   OF  ANIMALS. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Madam, — It  may  not  be  generally  known  by  the 
inhabitants  of  Great  Britain  that  they  are  the 
only  civilised  people  in  the  world  without  a  com- 
prehensive abattoir  system,  and  that  in  London 
and  the  provinces,  for  the  most  part,  the  killing 
of  animals  designed  for  meat  is  still  carried  on  ex- 
clusively uflder  antiquated  methods,  though  the  ad- 
vantages of  the  public  over  the  private  slaughter- 
house have  been  repeatedly  demonstrated  by  recog- 
nised authorities,  official  and  otherwise. 

It  is  many  years  since  the  late  Professor  New- 
man publicly  protested  against  the  cruelties  prac- 
tised on  animals  in  private  slaughter-houses,  and 
the  Rev.  Canon  Barnett,  Sir  Benjamin  Ward 
Richardson,  Mr.  H.  F.  Lester,  of  the  Humani- 
tarian League,  and  other  social  reformers,  called 
attention  in  the  press  to  the  dangers  to  health  and 
morals  caused  by  the  presence  of  butchers'  shambles 
in  the  crowded  centres  of  the  Metropolis  and  other 
large  towns. 

The  following  important  recommendation  occurs 
in  the  Report  of  the  Admiralty  Commission  ap- 
pointed by  the  last  Conservative  Government  to 
consider  the  humane  slaughtering  of  animals : 
"  That,  in  the  interests,  not  only  of  humanity,  but 
of  sanitation,  order,  and  ultimate  economy,  it  is 
highly  desirable  that,  where  circumstacos  permit, 
private  slaughter-houses  should  be  replaced  by  pub- 
lic abattoirs,  and  that  no  killing  should  be  per- 
mitted except  in  the  latter,  under  official  super- 
vision." 

When  we  compare  the  methods  of  the  Danish 
l)eople,  for  instance,  as  illustiiated  by  their  system 
of  slaughtering  and  veterinary  inspection  at  Copen- 
hagen, with  our  old,  "  inhuman,  and  insanitary 
methods"  of  private  butchery,  we  may  cease  to  be 
surprisetl  at  the  rapid  spread  of  cancer  and  tuber- 
cuhjsis  in  our  midst.  The  example  of  Denmark 
should  bo  a  powerful  lesson  in  humanity  and  pro- 
gress to  the  people  of  the  British  Isles. 

HlMANITARIAN. 


Comments  nni>  "Replies. 

.1  Foreign  .Vur^c— Apply  to  Mrs.  Wilson, 
Swe<lish  Clinique  and  Massage  School.  16,  York 
Place,  Baker  Str<H>t,  W.  It  is  necessary  to  be 
extremely  circumspect  in  applying  for  training  in 
this  branch,  and  we  have  pleasure  in  recommending 
the  al>ove  institution. 


OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing  for   the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


4^2        zbc  Brltisb  3ouvnal  of  IWursino  Supplement,    ^^^^y  '^^'  ^^lo 

The    Midwife. 


2)iiect  IReprescntation    of   ^D^^* 
wives  on  the  flDl^wtves'  Boar^. 

Bx  Mrs.  Lawson, 

President  of  the  i^ational  Association  of 
Midwives. 

In  1902,  for  the  first  time,  Parliament 
stepped  in  to  regulate  the  Midwifery  Profes- 
sion ;  previously  midwives  managed  their  own 
work  in  their  own  way,  and -trained  in  the  insti- 
tutes of  their  own  choosing.  Eegulations  were 
undoubtedly  necessary  as  a  safeguard  to  the 
general  public,  and  also,  we  believe,  to  the 
real  interest  of  our  profession,  if  properly 
framed  and  administered.  With  regulations,  as 
such,  we  have  no  quarrel,  but  as  individuals 
and  as  a  profession  we  do  keenly  feel  the  in- 
justice of  being  denied  a  voice  io-the  counsels  of 
the  administrative  bodies.  The  regulations 
would  have  been  of  a  far  different  character 
had  a  strong  national  body  of  midwives  existed 
with  power  to  elect  one  or  more  of  their 
members — icorking  midivives — to  represent 
their  views  on  the  C.M.B. 

It  may  be  contended  that  midwives  would 
look  after  their  own  interests  only,  and  take  a 
selfish  attitude  generally,  but  we  have  the  inter- 
ests of  general  public  at  heart;  but  if  this  was 
feared,  why  give  another — a  rival  interest — so 
much  representation,  and  with  no  more  guaran- 
tee for  their  greater  solicitude  concerning  the 
public  safety? 

Far  more  logical  would  it  be  to  have  barred 
the  whole  professional  interest,  whether  doctor 
or  midwife,  and  have  left  to  outsiders  the  task 
of  regulation. 

Take  some  of  the  regulations  :  — 

1.  Breech  cases.  Take  breech  cases  in 
primapariE.  Although  we  know  the  treatment 
is  to  leave  to  nature,  we  are  compelled  to  send 
for  a  medical  man.  Whatever  may  be  said  as 
to  the  need  for  an  untrained  woman  to  do  this, 
surely  it  is  not  necessary  for  the  trained  mid- 
wife. 

2.  Ophthalmia  Neonatorum.  Different  treat- 
ment is  meted  out  to  the  midwife  and  medical 
man.  A  midwife  is,  under  penalty,  to  report 
such  cases,  but  in  a  good  many  districts  a 
medical  man  has  a  small  fee  for  reporting  the 
same. 

3.  Compulsory  notification  of  rise  of  tem- 
perature. In  my  district  the  medical  nian  has 
a  fee  for  this;  the  midwife  is  suspended.  If 
in  a  rise  of  temperature  disinfection  is  neces- 
sarv,  should  it  not  be  doublv  so  for  the  medical 


man,  considering  he  has  so  much  other  infec- 
tious work  to  do.  If  it  is  necessary  for  the  well- 
being  of  the  community  that  the  midwife 
should  be  disinfected,  why  not  apply  the  same 
regulation  to  the  medical  man,  and  so  remove 
the  feeling  amongst  patients  that  it  is  only  the 
incompetence  of  the  midwife  that  has  occa- 
^jioned  this? 

Medical  practitioners  not  under  supervision. 
themselves,  etc. 

4.  Piecords,  etc.  Payment  for  compulsory 
notification  by  medical  practitioner,  penalty  for 
failure  to  notify  same  to  the  midwife ;  why  not 
apply  the  same  rule  to  all? 

In  so  many  oases  there  is  preferential  treat- 
ment. Why?  Because  the  whole  administra- 
tion is  in  the  hands  of  a  rival  interest,  which 
not  only  dominates  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board  but  all  the  Local  Supervising  Authori- 
ties through  the  country. 

Take  the  composition  of  the  Central  Mid- 
wives  '  Board  :  — Appointed  by  Lord  President 
of  the  Council,  a  medical  man,  a  woman  not 
a  midwife ;  Royal  College  of  Surgeons,  a. 
medical  man;  Society  of  Apothecaries,  a 
medical  man;  Incorporated  Midwives'  Insti- 
tute, a  medical  man;  Association  of  County 
Councils,  a  lawyer;  Queen  Victoria  Jubilee 
Nurses,  a  woman  not  a  ipractising  midwife; 
Royal  British  Nurses'  Association,  a  woman 
not  a  midivife. 

So  you  see  the  midwives  of  the  country  were 
not  taken  into  account  at  all  when  representa- 
tion was  given. 

Now  take  the  composition  of  the  Supervising 
Authority  of  my  own  district: — - 

The  Lord  Mayor. 

Twelve  Councillors,  of  whom  three  are 
doctors. 

Four  co-opted  members,  all  doctors. 

The  ^ledical  Ofiicer  of  Health  and  the  Super- 
visor, again  both  doctors. 

So,  you  see,  her©  the  preponderance  of 
opinion  is  medical,  as  the  lay  person  is  always 
liable  to  be  influenced  by  a  professional 
element. 

Note  the  new  proposals.  We  claim  that  we 
should  have  a  fair  share  of  representation  be- 
fore the  medical  interest  gets  additional 
strength. 

The  Bill  to  amend  the  Midwives'  Act,  intro- 
duced by  the  Lord  President  of  the  Council, 
provides  that  the  Central  Midwives'  Board 
shall  consist  of  two  persons  to  be  appointed  by 
the   Lord   President  of    the    Council    Tone   ai 


.Mav  2a,  uno 


Cbc  JBrltlsb  3oimial  ot  IHursiiiG  Supplement.        -ws 


woman),  one  person  by  the  Local  Government 
Board,  four  duly  qualified  medical  practi- 
tioners, two  certified  midwives  (one  to  be  ap- 
pointed by  the  Incorporated  Midwives'  Insti- 
tute and  one  by  the  lloyal  British  Nurses' 
Association),  four  persons  appointed,  one  by 
the  County  Councils'  Association,  one  by  the 
Association  of  Municipal  Corporations,  one  by 
the  Society  of  Medical  OSicers  of  Health,  and 
one  by  the  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute. 
Is  this  fair  to  our  profession'?  We  feel  most 
strongly  that  it  is  grossly  unfair.  We  know  it 
is  quite  natural  for  bodies  appointing  repre- 
sentatives to  choose  a  medical  man  on  the 
ground  that  he  has  expert  knowledge ;  but 
whilst  we  admit  that  it  is  fair  that  the  medical 
interest  should  have  a  certain  amount  of  repre- 
sentation on  these  grounds,  we  urge  that  it  is 
absolutely  wrong  for  us  to  have  none  at  all. 
Remember  that  every  action  of  the  C.M.B. 
deals  with  matters  vitally  affecting  our  daily 
work  and  the  means  whereby  we  gain  our 
livelihood,  and  where  almost  with  a  stroke  of 
the  pen  this  means  can  be  taken  from  us,  for 
which  we  have  worked  and  paid  and  spent  the 
greater  part  often  of  our  lives  in  developing. 

I  wish  to  state  that  I  have  no  feeling  against 
medical  men  and  women,  for  I  number  some  of 
them  amongst  my  best  friends;  they  have 
looked  after  their  own  interests,  good  luck  to 
them.  I  wish  the  midwife  had  been  only  half 
as  wise. 

In  many  working  class  districts  the  interests 
of  the  doctor  and  midwife  often  clash ;  a  case 
lost  to  one  is  a  gain  to  the  other.  As  a  working 
man's  wife  under  present-day  conditions 
cannot  afford  to  purchase  the  services  of  a 
doctor  and  a  trained  nurse,  naturally  the  mid- 
wife has  to  fulfil  the  functions  of  both. 

There  is  a  fair  competition  to  which  all  must 
submit,  but  it  is  an  unfair  competition  which 
gives  one  interest  power  to  regulate  the  other. 
Is  it  sufiiciently  realised  that  in  giving  this 
amount  of  power  to  the  medical  side  of  the 
profession  we  are  also  giving  them  a  jx)wer  to 
protect  and  safeguard  their  own  interests  to 
the  limitation  of  ours?  For  this  power  of  ad- 
ministration includes  not  only  the  power  to 
say  how  we  shall  do  our  work,  but  also  deter- 
mines what  amount  of  training  we  shall 
receive.  It  is  to  their  interest  that  this  train- 
ing should  be  limited  as  far  as  possible. 

The  1902  Act  intended  us  to  be  useful  to  the 
community,  but  as  our  powers  are  curtaili^d 
and  our  training  limited  by  the  ruling  of  the 
medical  interest  the  intentions  of  the  Act  (u.i 
practically  frustrated.  Therefore  until  the 
fullest  training  can  be  obtained  and  oppor- 
tunity for  development  provided  the  intentions 


of  the  .\ct  will  be  still  further  obstructed  by 
shutting  out  the  more  highly  educated  and  in- 
telligent women,  who  would  otherwise  be  at- 
tracted to  the  profession. 

The  system  of  supervision  is  wrong  to  my 
mind  as  long  a.s  the  midwife  is  not  taken  into 
the  confidence  of  the  administrative  bodies.  It 
is  always  "  you  imist  do  this  "  or  "  you  must 
do  that  "  under  petialty.  What  do  we  get  as  a 
result  of  these  methods?  Is  it  possible  to  get 
the  best  results  from  any  body  who  are  con- 
tinually coerced?  Coercion  does  not  tend  to 
develop  the  best  side  of  human  nature.  Even 
the  most  careless  can  rise  to  a  sense  of  respon- 
sibility if  properly  dealt  with.  I  contend  that 
by  giving  the  midwife  a  proper  share  of  repre- 
sentation, taking  her  into  the  confidence  of  the 
administrative  bodies,  and  securing  her  ad- 
vice and  assistance,  much  good  will  result. 

As  a  first  step  towards  better  training  and 
development  we  urge  the  direct  representation 
of  midwives  on  the  C.M.B.  By  this  we  mean 
a  working  midwife — the  mere  fact  of  a  woman 
holding  a  midwifery  certificate  does  not  qualify 
her  to  represent  the  working  midwives  who  are 
affected,  as  she  is  not,  by  the  regulations — who 
shall  be  elected  by  her  fellow  midwives  to  re- 
present the  views  that  have  been  properly  dis- 
cussed within  their  common  council. 

Before  the  advent  of  the  National  Associa- 
tion this  point  was  completely  overlooked,  and 
we  still  strongly  maintain  our  conviction  that 
the  appointment  of  a  working  midwife  on  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board  and  Local  Supervis- 
ing Committees  is  the  only  means  of  securing  a 
proper  administration  of  the  Act,  viz.,  fair 
competition  between  the  rival  interests  and 
complete  guarantee  for  the  safety  and  well 
being  of  those  important  members  of  the  com- 
munity, the  mothers  of  the  nation. 

We  claim  to  have  the  interests  of  the 
mothers  and  children  at  heart  as  deeply  and 
sincerely  as  any  other  man  or  woman  in  the 
country.  We  come  in  close  touch  with  women 
at  times  when  they  need  all  the  confidence, 
help,  and  courage  with  which  we  can  inspire 
them.  We  know  what  complete  trust  is  placed 
in  us — we  know  the  diflBcult  cases  with  which 
we  are  called  upon  to  deal,  and  we  know  that 
the  issues  of  life  and  death  are  in  our  hands. 
For  this,  and  because  of  this,  we  demand  a 
voice,  a  share  in  shaping  our  destiny.  We 
know  better  than  any  other  what  we  need  to 
make  us  fit,  confident,  and  strong,  to  render  us 
capable  of  fulfilling  the  duties  entrusted  to  our 
care.  We  midwives  disclaim  the  right  of  any, 
be  they  who  they  may,  to  say  that  they  have 
the  well  being  of  the  mothers  of  the  nation 
more  at  heart  than  we. 


444        ^bc  ffiritlsb  3ouvnal  of  ll^uvstno  Supplement,  t^ay  28, 1910 


©peninG  of  'JLee^s  flDatevnit\> 
Ibospital. 

L«?d&  new  Maternity  Hospital  was  formally 
opened  at  noon  on  May  23rd.  The  sun  shone,  while 
the  soft  breezes  brought  welcome  coolness.  Over- 
head was  a  blue  sky.  and  even  the  smoke  from  in- 
dustrial Leeds  did'  not  ascend  to  Hyde  Terrace, 
where  the  new  hosi)ital  is  situated. 

Many  kind  friends  of  the  hospital  were  seated 
on  the  balcony  at  the  side  of  the  hospital.  In  the 
centre  of  a  group  of  nurses,  in  neat  out-door 
uniform,  was  Miss  Edwards,  the  newly-appointed 
Matron,  in  a  navy-blue  uniform  dress  and  be- 
coming white  cap. 

The  Lord  Mayor  occupied  the  chair,  and  tlie 
Dedication  Service  was  conducted  by  the  Lord 
Bishop  of  Ripon  and  the  Vicar  of  Leeds,  the  whole 
audience  joining  in  the  sweet  singing  of  "Now 
Thank  We  -\11  Our  God." 

Mi-s.  Robert  Hudson,  the  Hon.  Secretary,  read 
the  President's  address,  in  which  the  opening  of 
the  firet  maternity  hospital  in  Lee<ls,  four  years 
ago,  was  referred  to,  and  the  good  work  done  in  a 
small  way  was  described,  as  the  hospital  contained 
lint  sixteen  beds. 

Over  one  thousand  cases  have  been  treated  by  tne 
Maternity  Hospital,  many  of  these  being  external 
cases  attended  by  the  district  midwife. 

A  word  of  thanks  was  given  to  the  honorary 
workere,  who  investigated  all  ca-ses,  visited  the  Hos- 
pital, and  collected  funds ;  to  the  honorary  medical 
staff  for  their  skill  and  kindness,  and  to  the  nursing 
staff  for  their  efiBcient  services. 

Thirty  niidwives  have  l>een  trained  at  the  old 
Matei-nity  Hospital,  and  have  gained  the  C.M.B. 
certificate,  while  twenty-three  nurses  have  been 
given  the  hospital  cei-tificate  as  monthly  nui-ses. 
The  present  building,  with  the  grounds  attached, 
was  presente<l  to  Leeds  for  the  purpose  of  a  mater- 
nity hospital.  It  has  been  altered  and  fitted  up  at 
the  cost  of  £7,000,  and  now  contains  sixty  beds 
in  all,  thirty-three  of  these  being  available  tor 
patients,  the  others  being  for  the  staff,  both  nui-sing 
and  domestic. 

£5,000  has  already  been  subscribed,  and  the  Com- 
mittee asked  for  another  £5,000,  so  as  to  start 
with  a  small  sum  in  hand. 

The  address  then  dealt  with  the  future  of  the 
hospital,  and  its  twofold  aims — viz.,  to  save  life 
and  preserve  health;  to  train  nurses  and  mid- 
wives  for  work  principally  in  the  \^^t  Riding  of 
Yorkshire. 

The  Committee  ^^•ere  happy  in  having  secured 
Miss  Edwards,  of  the  Liverpool  Maternity  Hos- 
pital, as  Matron,  and  Miss  Moor,  of  the  Rotunda 
Hospital,  Dublin,  as  Assistant  Matron,  and  an 
adequate  staff  of  nui-ses. 

A  word  of  praise  wa.s  accorded  to  the  Misses 
Marsh,  and  especially  to  Miss  Caroline  Marsh,  who 
had  l>een  an  indefatigable  worker. 

The  Mayor  followe{l  with  a  happy  little. speech, 

and  called  upon  Mrs.  Kendal  to  open  the  hospital. 

Thereupon      ^Irs.     Kendal,     charming    as    ever, 


stepiied.to  the  front  of  the  platform  and  said,  in  a 
loud,  sweet  voice:  "I  formally  announce  the  Leeds 
Maternity  Hospital  to  l>e  now  open."  She  then 
went  on  to  say  how  pleased  she  was  to  be  there  at 
the  beginning  of  such  an  institution,  "started  by 
those  in  tlie  sunshine  for  those  in  the  shadows  of 
life."  She  knew  that  the  mothers  would  appreciate 
the  kindness  and  skill  sliown  them  in  their  dark 
day.  She  hoped  that  all  the  babies  who  should  first 
see  the  light  in  Leeds  Maternity  Hospital  would 
grow  up  to  be  good  citizens. 

Mrs.  Kendal  spoke  very  feelingly  about  the 
.  whole  world  being  at  present  in  mourning,  and  said 
how  glad  she  was  that  this  opening  ceremony  had 
not  been  postponed,  because  she  was  sure  that  its 
object  was  one  which  would  api>eal  to  the  Queen 
Mother  even  in  the  initlst  of  her  sorrow.  Mrs. 
Kendal  went  on  to  tell  of  Queen  Mary's  sympathy 
for  the  little  ones,  and  of  her  numerous  visits  to 
the  slums  of  East  Lambeth. 

Tlie  speaker  ended  by  describing  herself  as  a 
"working  woman,"  and  her  own  contribution  to 
the  hospital  as  a  "  tiny  gift."  She  then  presented 
to  the  hospital  a  large  framed  picture  of  the  Queen 
Mother,  and  also  one  of  Queen  Mary,  with  the 
hope  that  these  might  be  the  firet  pictures  to 
adorn  the  walls  of  the  new  Maternity  Hospital. 

Mi-s.  Kendal  was  warmly  thanke<l  for  her  services 
and  charming  speech,  and  the  hospital  was 
characterised  as  an  "  Institution  for  the  service  of 
God  and  of  woman." 

Mils.  Bickersteth,  who  moved  a  vote  of  thanks 
to  the  Lord  Mayor  and  Lady  Mayoress,  dwelt  on 
the  educational  value  of  such  an  institution  to  the 
poor  mothers,  and  on  the  privilege  of  supporting 
such  a  charity. 

As  the  company  were  about  to  separate  Mrs. 
Kendal  called  for  three  cheers  for  Queen  Mary, 
which  were  heartily  given.  The  singing  of  tne 
National  Anthem  then  brought  the  morning's  pro- 
gramme to  a  close. 

Mack  All. 


OPHTHALMIA  NEONATORUM. 

The  Council  of  the  British  Medical  Association 
states  in  its  annual  report,  published  in  the  Supple- 
ment to  the  British  Medical  Journal,  that  it  has 
adopted  the  following  recommendations  of  the 
Ophthalmia  Neonatorum  Committee,  and  taken  the 
necessary  action  to  carry  them  into  effect. 

(«)  That  the  Local  Government  Board  be  urged 
to  take  all  steps  in  its  jiower  with  a  view  to  ophthal- 
mia neonatorum  being  made  compulsorily  notifi- 
able, and  that  the  Divisions  of  the  Association  be 
requested  to  urge  this  upon  the  Local  Authorities. 

(b)  That  the  Divisions  of  the  Association  be 
urged  to  use  every  effort  to  secure  the  carrying  out 
of  the  suggestions  contained  in  paragraphs  (b),  (c), 
{(l),  and  (/)  of  the  Recommendations  as  finally  ap- 
proved. 

((■)  That  representations  be  made  to  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board  and  Privy  Council,  by  deputa- 
tion if  necessary,  that  the  presence  of  purulent 
vaginal  discharges  should  be  included  by  the  rules 
of  the  Midwives'  Board  among  the  conditions  for 
which  medical  help  should  be  summoned. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED  BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,     JUNE     4,     1910. 


EMtorial. 


WOMEN'S    WORK    OF    NO    VALUE. 

Tlie  bestowal  of  the  Matronsliip  of  St- 
Bartholomew's  Hospital  upon  an  applicant 
holding  au  inferior  certificate  shows  how 
negligible  a  quantity  is  women's  work— ^ 
the  work  which  the  late  Matron  and  genera- 
tions of  Bart.'s  nurses  have  loyallj^  given  to 
■that  school,  proud  of  its  high  standards,  its 
efficiency,  its  honour.  Thej'  have  built  up 
its  reputation  with  care,  until  to  hold  a 
Bart.'s  certificate  is  equivalent  to  holding  a 
foremost  position  in  the  nursing  world. 

And  what  is  now  the  position  of  that 
nursing  school — the  value  of  its  certificate? 
By  the  action  of  the  authorities  the  school 
is  condemned,  the  certificate  degraded — for 
surely  if  the  election  committee  had  con- 
sidered that  one  of  its  certificated  pupils 
was  capable  of  superintending  the  school, 
the  most  elementary  sense  of  justice  would 
have  prevented  them  from  appointing  a 
stranger;  and  if,  in  the  last  thirty  years  the 
school  has  not  been  able  to  train  one 
nurse  capable  of  assuming  its  direction, 
the  Governors  should  ask,  as  the  outside 
world  is  asking,  to  the  detriment  of  the  certi- 
ficate, and  the  prestige  of  Bart.'s  nurses, 
"  Wliat  is  wrong  with  the  training  at  St. 
Bartholomew's  llospital  ?  " 

The  recent  appointment  is  one  of  the 
strongest  arguments  which  could  possibly 
be  advanced  in  favour  of  the  State  Registra- 
tion of  Trained  Nurses.  It  was  wisely 
said  by  the  late  Jliss  Louisa  Stevenson, 
"  Without  the  firm  foundation  of  the  Parlia- 
mentary franchise  for  women,  there  is  no 
permanence  for  any  advance  gained  by 
them."  So,  until  a  standard  of  nursing  edu- 
cation is  defined,  there  is  no  security  that 
in  a  few  minutes  a  committee  of  laymen 
may  not  destroy  the  prestige  of  a  certificate 


which  it  has  taken  many  years  to  establish 
—a  prestige  wliich  has,  it  must  be  remem- 
bered, a  definite  commercial  as  well  as  pro- 
fessional value. 

We  do  not  assume  that  the  authorities  of 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  have,  of  malice 
prepense,  injured  the  reputation  of  their 
nursing  school  and  done  its  piipils  this 
injury.  They  are  evidently  ignorant  of  the 
value  of  women's  ^vork,  and  do  not  appre- 
ciate that  to  the  hospital,  as  well  as  to  indi- 
vidual nurses,  the  reputation  of  its  school 
is  important.  In  the  case  of  medical  appoint- 
ments they  are  restricted  to  the  considera- 
tion of  applications  from  registered  medical 
practitioners,  the  fact  of  whose  registration 
denotes  the  attainment  of  a  professional 
standard  decided  by  the  heads  of  the  medical 
profession.  Nursing  education,  in  spite  of 
the  strenuous  efforts  of  trained  nurses  to 
secure  legislation  regulating  their  pro- 
fession, is  still  in  a  chaotic  condition,  and 
the  soundness  of  the  training  of  any  school, 
therefore,  depends  largely  upon  the  con- 
scientious determination  of  a  Matron  that 
the  nurses  trained  under  her  authority  shall 
have  an  efficient  practical  instruction  before 
being  sent  out  to  the  pul^lic  as  thoroughly 
qualified.  How  high  a  standard  has  been 
maintained  at  St.  Bartholomew's  under  the 
late  Matron  all  the  world  knows  !  What  is 
the  guarantee  of  its  permanence?  None! 
The  lesson  for  all  nurses  to  take  to  heart  is 
that  without  the  foundation  of  a  definite 
standard  of  nursing  education,  defined 
under  State  authority,  there  is  no  security 
that  the  fruit  of  long  years  of  work  maj'  not 
be  wrested  from  them.  Those  who  desire 
to  belittle  that  work  will  leave  no  stone 
unturned  to  prevent  their  attaining  regis- 
tration, for  reasons  which  are  sulliciently 
apparent.  The  moral,  therefore,  is  to  re- 
double the  elTorts  already  made  to  secure  it. 


446 


tlbc  Britisb  Journal  of  IRursiug, 


[June  4,  1910 


riDcblcal  riDatters. 


THE   PRODUCTION    AND   MODIFICATION   OF 
PURE  COWS'  MILK. 

On  Tuesday,  May  24111,  at  the  Infants'  Hos- 
pital, S.W.,  Dr.  Ralph  Vincent  gave  his  fourth 
lecture,  his  subject  being  The  Production  and 
Modification  of  Pure  Cows'  Milk. 

He  began  by  describing  the  cow  sheds  at  the 
special  farm  of  the  hosjiital  at  Sevenoaks.  The 
floors  are  of  concrete,  and  there  are  no  drains 
inside  the  sheds,  but  all  impurities  are,  by 
means  of  gulleys,  conveyed  to  the  drains  out- 
side. The  sheds  are  fitted  with  hydrants,  by 
means  of  which  they  are  flushed  twice  a  day, 
immediately  before  the  cows  enter  to  be  milked, 
the  object  being  that  the  walls  and  floors  being 
wet  it  is  impossible  for  dust  from  them 
to  settle  in  the  milk.  Fodder  is  prepared  be- 
fore the  cows  enter.  The  sheds  are  carefully 
ventilated,  and  there  is  plenty  of  light.  The 
animals  only  enter  these  for  milking  purposes, 
and  never  at  any  other  times,  and  while  it  is 
not  considered  advisable  to  have  the  cows  out 
night  and  day,  on  account  of  the  cold,  which 
affects  the  supply  of  milk,  they  are  sheltered 
when  necessary  in  very  large  sheds  roughly 
covered  in.  The  floors  are  of  chalk  firmly 
pressed,  as  it  is  found  that  concrete  is  too  hard, 
and  produces  sore  feet  and  knees. 

As  to  the  feeding,  all  the  ordinary  "  milk 
producers,  "  such  as  cotton  cake,  oil  cake, 
brewers'  grains,  are  strictly  forbidden.  Hay, 
oats,  bean  meal,  bran,  and  mangels  are  given, 
with  a  sufficient  supply  of  grass,  but  the  cows 
are  fed  immediately  before  being  turned  out 
to  prevent  too  much  green  food  being  con- 
sumed.   Thus  a  balanced  ration  is  arrived  at. 

The  process  of  milking  is  carried  out  with 
strict  att-ention  to  sterilisation.  The  product 
from  each  cow  is  weighed  and  taken  at  once  to 
the  milk  rooms,  and  placed  in  the  separator. 
So  soon  as  it  is  separated  it  is  passed  over  the 
cooler,  and  in  a  very  few  minutes  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  milk  is  reduced  to  48  degs.  or  even 
37  degs.,  at  which  temperature  organisms  can- 
not develop.  It  is  then  sent  a  distance  of  30 
miles  in  churns  with  double  covers,  which  are 
sealed.  In  the  transit  the  temperature  is  never 
found  to  have  risen  more  than  two  degrees. 

The  thing  to  aim  at  in  substitute  feeding  is  to 
secure  the  same  qualities  as  in  natural  food, 
and  no  artificial  product  should  be  allowed  to 
enter  the  milk.  Mother's  milk  goes  direct  to 
the  offspring,  and  while  everything  connected 
with  milk  or  milking  is  to  be  thoroughly  steri- 
lised, the  milk  itself  must  be  left  untouched. 
There  is  no  use  for  cooked  milk. 

In  the  case  of  children  of  very  poor  parents. 


it  is,  of  course,  impossible  to  carry  out  these 
elaborate  directions  and  prescriptions,  but  the 
principle  of  the  thing  can  be  carried  out  by 
using  as  far  as  it  can  be  procured  pure  raw  milk 
to  start  upon  and  to  make  what  is  known  as  fat 
whey.  .  As  a  rule,  in  the  making  of  whey,  the 
precipitate  catches  the  greater  part  of  the  fat, 
but  if  the  following  directions  are  carried  out, 
the  difficulty  will  be  overcome. 

Put  one  pint  of  cold  milk  into  a  jug,  add  to 
it  about  four  drops  of  very  strong  rennin,  place 
the  jug  in  a  saucepan  of  cold  water,  and 
slowly  warm  the  milk  to  a  temperature  of  100 
degrees.  All  the  time  stir  with  a  spoon  to 
prevent  the  fat  from  catching  in  the  curd,  the 
spoon  also  keeps  the  curd  down,  and  by  exclud- 
ing the  curd  all  other  elements  ai'e  pressed 
closer  together.  This  is  the  production  of  fat 
whey. 

Milk  may  be  added  cautiously  to  the  whey  as 
the  infant  is  able  to  take  it,  starting  with  the 
proportions  of  whey  six  parts,  of  milk  one  part, 
and  very  gradually  increasing  the  milk  as  ob- 
servation dictates.  These  simple  directions  for 
substitute  feeding  of  infants  should  be  of  great 
value  to  those  nurses  who  minister  to  the  poor 
in  their  own  homes. 


HOSPITALS  IN  SHIPS  AT  SEA. 

There  has  reached  us,  says  the  Lancet,  in  the 
reports  of  the  International  ^Medical  Congress 
held  at  Budapest,  a  very  interesting  paper  on 
the  Hospital  Establishment  of  Passenger  Ships 
by  Dr.  Dupuy  and  Dr.  Villejean.  They  give  us 
excellent  plans  of  the  hospital  establishments 
on  board  French  ships  of  all  kinds,  from  the 
sailing  schooner  A^of re  Dame  du  Salut,  hospital 
ship  for  the  fishermen  of  St.  Pierre  and  New- 
foundland, to  the  Loire,  with  her  large  accom- 
modation for  sick  convicts,  and  the  extensive- 
range  of  hospital  cabins  in  the  new  ships  La 
France  and  La  Plata.  In  their  latest  plan,  that 
of  the  hospitals  in  La  Plata,  one  of  a  group  of 
four  ships,  we  find  20  beds  for  women,  22  for 
men,  besides  an  isolation  hospital  with  10  beds 
for  men  and  8  for  women — all  on  the  upper 
deck,  and  apparently  at  the  fore-end  of  the 
superstructure,  while  on  the  deck  above  the 
medical  officer  has  his  consulting-room  which 
in  emergency  can  be  used  for  an  operating- 
room.  Besides  all  this,  most  recent  French 
ships  seem  to  have  one  or  two  cabins  for  luna- 
tics. Dr.  Dupuy  and  Dr.  Villejean  have  made 
a  thorough  and  most  careful  study  of  the  whole 
question,  as  is  shown  by  the  tale  of  the  .im- 
provements they  desire,  including  a  special 
operating  room,  a  mortuary,  also  to  serve  as 
post-mortem  room,  and  a  bacteriological 
laboratory. 


Juue  4,   1910] 


Zryc  British  Journal  of  'Wursing. 


44' 


Clinical  IHotce  on  Some  Common 
ailments. 


GASTRIC  ULCERATION. 

Bv  A.  Knvvett  Gordon,  M.B.  (CaDtab.). 


In  considering  the  subject  of  anaemia,  we  saw 
that  in  women  who  suffer  from  that  disease,  a 
certain  amount  of  indigestion  was  not  only  not 
uncommon,  but  might  be  said  to  be  an  afmosb 
invariable  accompaniment  of  their  condition. 
We  noted,  too,  that  while  the  indigestion 
aggravated  the  anfemia,  the  ansemia  also  of 
itself  produced  dyspepsia,  in  that  the  blood 
going  to  the  stomach  was  of  poorer  quality  than 
in  the  healthy  subject. 

As  a  rule,  if  the  anaemia  and  the  dyspepsia 
receive  attention — and  it  is  very  necessary  to 
treat  both,  and  not  the  anaemia  only — the 
appetite  improves  and  the  patient  recovers 
from  her  gastric  troubles  as  the  quality  of  the 
blood  is  altered,  and  no  serious  disease  of  the 
stomach  remains. 

But  this  is  nob  always  the  case ;  there  comes 
a  time  in  the  course  of  the  anaemia  when  the 
stomach,  instead  of  merely  acting  badly,  be- 
comes the  site  of  disease,  and  very  serious 
disease,  too.  In  order  to  understand  what 
happens  then  we  must  go  back  for  a  moment 
and  consider  the  physiology  of  digestion  as  it 
occurs  in  Wealthy  people. 

When  the  food  passes  into  the  stomach  it 
meets  with  the  gastric  juice,  which  is  composed 
mainly  of  weak  hydrochloric  acid  and  a  ferment 
called  pepsin,  the  object  of  which  is  to  convert 
the  insoluble  proteids  in  the  food  into 
soluble  peptones.  This  juice  is  poured 
out  from  the  mouths  of  numerous  little 
glands  which  together  make  up  the  lining 
of  the  stomach  or  mucous  membrane, 
as  it  is  sometimes  called.  Below  this  mucosa 
is  a  little  loose  tissue  containing  blood  vessels 
which  carry  blood  to  the  glands,  and  deeper 
still  is  a  thick  layer  of  muscle  which  serves  to 
keep  the  stomach  moving  during  digestion. 
Outside  this  again  is  the  thin  coating  of  peri- 
toneum, which-  covers  the  stomach  and 
intestines. 

Now,  if  we  examine  the  stomach  of  a  man 
who  has  been  dead  for  a  day  or  two,  we  find 
that  all  or  nearly  all  the  mucosa  has  disap- 
peared, because  it  has  been  digested  by  the 
gastric  juice  still  remaining  in  the  glands. 
Why,  then,  does  this  not  occur  while  the 
patient  is  alive?  Obviously  because,  while  the 
blood  is  circulating,  there  is  something  in  it 
which  prevents  the  gastric  juice  having  any 
effect  on  the  glands  themselves,  and,  in  point  of 
fact,  this   something  is  a  weak   alkali,  which 


serves  to  protect  tiie  mucosa  from  the  action 
of  the  acid  in  the  gastric  juice. 

Now,  we  saw  that  in  antemia  the  circulating 
blood  was  of  poor  quality  because  it  was 
deficient  in  iron,  but  this  is  not  all ;  it  is  also 
apt  to  coagulate  or  clot  while  it  is  still  in  the 
vessels.  The  effect  of  this  is  obviously  to  cause 
the  death  of  those  glands  which  were  formerly 
supplied  by  the  obstructed  vessel,  and  the 
patch  thus  affected  is  soon  digested,  so  that  an 
ulcer  is  produced. 

But  in  practice  the  ulceration  does  not 
always  stop  sharply  at  the  mucous  membrane ; 
it  may  go  deeper  and  attack  one  of  the  blood 
vessels  running  in  the  next  layer,  so  that  a 
quantity  of  blood  is  shed  into  the  stomach 
itself,  or  it  may  penetrate  furtlier  still  into  the 
muscle  and  ultimately  make  a  hole  in  the  jjeri- 
toneum,  so  that  the  contents  of  the  stomach 
escape  into  the  general  peritoneal  cavity,  and 
set  up  a  train  of  symptoms  there. 

Now,  let  us  come  back  to  the  patient.  What 
are  the  signs  which  show  us  that  the  simple 
indigestion  of  anaemia  has  passed  into  the  very 
grave  condition  of  gastric  ulcer? 

Firstly,  there  is  a  change  in  the  character  of 
the  pain ;  in  ulceration,  this  is  usually  intense 
and  limited  to  a  spot  at  the  pit  of  the  stomach, 
though  it  may  be  felt  also  in  the  form  of  a  dull 
aching  at  one  or  other  side  and  radiating  round 
to  the  back  when  the  ulcer  is  at  the  back  of 
the  stomach ;  it  occurs  directly  after  food,  and 
is  often  accompanied  by  vomiting.  It  has 
always,  incidentally,  puzzled  me  why  so  many 
young  women — I  am  not  thinking  just  now 
especially  of  nurses — go  on  with  their  usual 
occupation  while  they  are  suffering  from  acut^ 
pain  and  sickness  after  every  meal,  and  do  not 
seek  advice ;  often,  of  course,  it  is  because  they 
are  afraid  of  losing  their  occupation,  but  in 
many  this  is  not  the  case,  and  some  women 
seem  to  tolerate  almost  any  degree  of  pain  in 
the  stomach  after  food  without  complaining. 
Another  symptom  is  vomiting  after  meals,  but 
as  this  is  followed  by  a  cessation  of  the  pain,  the 
sickness  again  is  often  not  taken  very  seriously. 
The  tongue  is  usually  large,  pale,  flabby,  and 
indented  by  the  teeth  at  the  sides,  but  may  be 
in  acute  cases  small  and  red.  Inasmuch  as 
the  patient  either  vomits  her  food,  or  else 
digests  it  incompletely,  she  soon  loses  flesh, 
and  ultimately  feels  so  weak  that  she  is  oom- 
pelled  to  give  in. 

At  any  stage  in  the  illness  the  most  charac- 
teristic symptom  of  gastric  ulcer  may  appear — 
namely,  vomiting  of  blood.  Usually  a  large 
quantity  is  brought  up,  so  that  the  patient  be- 
comes faint  or  may  lose  consciousness  com- 
pletely :     more  rarely,   however,   the   blood  is 


448 


viDC  Britisb  Journal  of  mursino. 


Mune  4,  1910 


vomited  in  smaller  quantities,  and  may  then 
be  thought  to  have  come  from  the  lungs ;  when 
the  bowels  are  moved  the  blood  appears  in  the 
stools  in  the  form  of  a  black  tarry  mass. 

Or  the  complaint  may  even  be  ignored  until 
the  ulceration  has  penetrated  right  through  the 
stomach  wall,  and  perforation,  as  it  is  called, 
occurs.  Here  there  is  sudden  intense  pain  in 
the  abdomen,  with  collapse,  cold  extremities, 
a  small,  quick  pulse,  and  rigidity  of  the 
abdominal  wall:  later  on,  unless  prompt  treat- 
ment is  secured,  peritonitis  sets  in,  as' shown 
by  vomiting,  swelling  of  the  abdomen  from  the 
presence  of  free  fluid  in  the  abdominal  cavity, 
rigors,  tenderness  of  the  abdominal  wall,  and 
ultimately  death  from  .septicaemia  or  blood 
poisoning.  As  the  pain  of  perforation  almost 
always  becomes  easier  when  peritonitis  (or 
rather  effusion  of  pus  into  the  peritoneal  cavity) 
supervenes,  the  patient  often  thinks  she  is 
better,  and  does  not  seek  relief,  but  it  is  the 
merciful  ease  which  is  so  often  the  precursor  of 
death  in  dangerous  illness. 

Gastric  ulcers,  however,  do  not  always  per- 
forate, and  it  often  happens  that  the  attack  is 
followed  by  recovery  for  a  short  time,  but  the 
pain  after  food  continues,  and  the  patient 
passes  into  a  condition  of  intractable  dyspepsia, 
which  is  often  due  to  the  parts  round  the  ulcer 
becoming  matted  together  by  adhesions,  so  that 
the  stomach  is,  as  it  were,  tied  into  knots  and 
bound  down  to  neighbouring  organs  so  that  it 
cannot  move  properly.  Or  if  the  ulcer  is  near 
the  outlet  of  the  stomach,  this  may  become 
narrowed,  and  the  stomach  then  sfretches  be- 
hind the  obstruction  until  it  becomes  a  thin 
walled  sac  in  which  the  food  lies  and  putrefies 
until  the  accumulations  of  three  or  four  meals 
are  vomited,  and  the  patient  feels  better  until 
the  stomach  fills  up  again. 

What  are  we  to  do  for  our  patient?  This 
depends  largely  on  the  time  at  which  she  gives 
in,  for  in  the  early  stage,  when  there  is  jiain 
and  sickness  only,  it  is  usually  possible  to  cure 
her  by  rest,  appropriate  diet,  and  treatment  by 
drugs.  Firstly,  it  is  a  great  advantage,  even  in 
apparently  mild  cases,  to  start  by  confining  the 
patient  to  bed  and  insisting  on  the  provision  of 
a  trained  nurse,  who  will  be  sympathetic  but 
absolutely  rigid  in  restricting  the  patient  to  the 
prescribed  diet,  the  essential  feature  of  which 
is  that  the  food  should  be  given  in  very  small 
quantities  and  frequently,  so  that  the  patient 
never  satisfies  her  hunger.  The  food  should  be 
fluid  only,  and  if  the  patient  can  take  milk  this 
w-ill  suffice,  but,  if  not,  albumen  water^  whey, 
and  so  on  may  have  to  be  substituted;  the 
bowels  are  opened  freely  by  saline  aperients 
and  preparations  of  bismuth  with  alkalies  are 
given  before   the  food.     A   gradual  change  is 


subsequently  made  to  a  solid  diet  and  the 
normal  mode  of  life,  and  when  the  stomach  can 
digest  ordinary  food  the  anaemia  is  treated  by 
whatever  preparation  of  iron  is  found  to  agree 
best  with  the  particiilar  patient. 

But  if  hsematemesis  (vomiting  of  blood) 
-occurs,  the  patient  must  be  kept  flat  in  bed  and 
all  food  by  the  mouth  withheld;  nutrient 
enemata  will  now  be  necessary,  and  the  thirst 
which  always  follows  a  loss  of  blood  must  be 
combated  by  the  administration  of  large  quanti- 
ties of  salt  solution  by  the  rectum,  and  I  need 
hardly  add  that  it  depends  very  much  on  the 
skill  of  the  nurse  whether  the  rectal  injections 
of  food  and  fluid  are  retained  or  not ;  without 
the  presence  of  a  trained  nurse,  feeding  by  the 
rectum  is  imj)ossible. 

If  perforation  occurs,  the  only  possible  treat- 
ment lies  in  prompt  opening  of  the  abdomen 
and  sutui'ing  of  the  ulcer,  with  drainage*  of  the 
peritoneal  cavity  for  a  few  days. 

Apart,  however,  from  this  now  well  recog- 
nised necessity  for  surgical  intervention,  much 
good  can  often  be  done  in  intractable  ulcera- 
tion of  the  stomach  (when  perforation  has  not 
occurred)  by  the  operation  of  gastro-enteros- 
tomy,  which  consists  in  the  making  of  openings 
in  the  stomach  and  the  upper  part  of  the  in- 
testine and  sewing  the  margins  of  each  hole 
together,  so  that  the  food  and  secretioiis  pass 
straight  from  the  stomach  into  the  intestine 
without  irritating  the  ulcerated  surface ;  at  the 
same  time  any  adhesions  interfering  with  the 
movement  of  the  stomach  can  be  dealt  with 
also,  but  there  is  no  doubt  that  were  patients 
with  indigestion  to  present  themselves  for 
treatment  earlier  than  they  usually  do,  the 
necessity  for  surgical  procedures  would  often 
be  obviated. 

TREATMENT  OF  INJURIES  OF  THE  HEART. 

j\lr.  -J.  Bland  Suttou,  in  a  lecture  on  the 
treatment  of  injuries  of  the  heart,  delivered  at 
the  Middlesex  Hospital,  and  reported  in  the 
British  Medical  ^Journal,  said  that  severe  in- 
juries to  the  heart  are  still  as  fatal  as  formerly 
because  life  is  destroyed  so  quickly  that  surgery 
has  no  chance  ;  punctured  wounds  of  the  heart 
leading  to  hsemo-pericardium  are  submitted  to 
surgical  treatment  with  fair  prospect  of  suc- 
cess, and  if  there  be  no  concurrent  wound  of 
the  pleura  the  chances  of  success  are  great. 
The  method  of  saving  life  in  such  circum- 
stances may  be  definitely  foiTuulated;  it  con- 
sists in  exposing  the  pericardium  by  fashioning 
an  osteoplastic  flap  from"  the  chest  wall  and 
turning  it  to  one  side  so  as  to  expose  the  peri- 
cardium; then,  in  opening  this  membrane  and 
exposing  the  heart,  finding  the  wound,  and 
closing  it  by  means  of  sutures. 


June  4,  1910]        (^j^-  36riti3b  3oiunal  of  IRuremG 


44f* 


2)0  IRurses  Zulh  Shop— fl  protest. 

Every  month  or  so  one  ot  the  lay  papers 
lamentingly  alleges  that  nurses  habitually  talk 
"  shoj)."  If  that  is  not  adding  insult  to  in- 
jury, 1  don't  know  what  is.  Does  there  live  a 
nurse  who  has  not  been  bored  to  tears  through 
patients  or  their  friends  talking  of  diseases? 
Most  people  have  an  idea  that  it  is  immoral 
for  a  nurse  to  think,  much  less  talk,  of  any- 
thing under  the  sun  but  the  illnesses  of  their 
patients.  Every  little  ache  or  pain  they  have 
ever  felt  since  the  day  they  were  weaned  is,  or 
should  be,  of  absorbing  interest  to  the  nurse; 
all  their  waking  hours  are  devoted  to  giving  her 
a  full,  true,  and  particular  account  of  these 
aches  and  pains,  and  when  they  have  finished 
they  begin  at  the  beginning  and  go  through 
them  all  again.  If  the  supply  of  personal  har- 
rowing details  runs  out,  they  tell  her  of  every- 
thing that  has  ever  happened  to  their  friends, 
or  even  to  their  cats,  dogs,  or  horses. 

Last  summer  I  was  nursing  the  son  of  an  old 
colonel,  who  had  an  idea  that  1  ought  to  enjoy 
myself,  and  insisted  upon  my  joining  his  guests 
at  a  garden  party.  At  first  I  refused,  because 
I  had  only  uniform,  but  he  said  that  did  not 
matter  in  the  least,  for  the  uniform  was  so 
pretty ;  so  in  the  end  I  had  to  give  in.  In  the 
garden  he  introduced  m^e  to  a  very  pretty 
widow,  who  entertained  me  with  a  full,  detailed 
account  of  her  late  husband's  last  illness. 

He  had  Bright's  disease  !  Fancy  discussing 
Bright 's  disease  in  a  lovely  garden,  blazing 
with  flowers !  I  tried  to  get  away  from  her, 
tried  to  make  her  interested  in  the  flowers,  the 
tennis  players,  the  pretty  dresses,  and  the  blue 
mountains  shimmering  in  the  distant  haze,  but 
all  to  no  purpose.  She  would  talk  of  nothing 
but  what  the  nurse  said,  what  the  doctor  said, 
what  her  husband  said  and  felt,  and  her  own 
feelings.  When  she  could  think  of  no  more 
distressing  details,  she  wanted  to  know  if  I 
thought  anything  more  could  have  been 'done 
for  him,  and  was  surprised  to  find  that  I  did 
not  know  the  nurses  she  had,  even  by  name, 
although  they  came  from  London. 

At  this  juncture  the  dear  old  Colonel  came 
to  tell  us  that  tea  was  ready,  and  I  managed 
to  steal  away  while  he  was  finding  her  a  com- 
fortable seat.  The  Colonel  sent  a  youth  of 
some  twenty  tennis  seasons  to  see  that  I  had 
all  I  wanted.  He,  having  brought  up  a  strong 
detachment  of  strawberries,  cream,  and  cakes, 
proceeded  to  put  out  of  sight  a  very  good  tea. 
I  nobly  followed  his  example.  ' '  Now, ' '  thought 
I,  "  we  can't  talk  diseases."  But,  alas,  I  was 
mistaken ! 

"Ripping  place,  this,"  said  the  youth. 


"  Beautiful,"  said  I.  "I  don't  wonder  that 
people  used  to  worship  the  mountains.  Are 
they  not  grand,  from  hefe?" 

"  Yes,  they  are.     Do  yoii  climb''  " 

"  No,  I  don't  care  for  paths  smaller  than  a 
pony  track." 

"  Oh,  I  don't  call  that  climbing.  Last  week 
I  was  up  on  that  point  which  you  can  just  see 
to  the  left  of  the  big  cedar  tree.  It  is  a  great 
height,  and  very  stiff  climbing.  There  was  a 
chap  killed  up  there,  and  I  wanted  to  see  the 
place  where  he  came  to  grief.  They  had  re- 
moved his  body,  but  there  was  all  the  blood 
fresh  upon  the  rocks."  And  he  helped  himself 
to  more  strawberries. 

I  felt  sick,  and  the  grand  mountains  began 
to  look  terrible,  but  I  was  determined  to  think 
of  life  and  sunshine,  so  asked  if  he  had  seen 
the  Colonel's  new  motor. 

"Yes,  rather,"  said  he;  "it's  a  clincher. 
Do  you  like  motoring?" 

"  Very  much  indeed,"  said  I,  "  especially  in 
such  a  hilly  district  as  this.  It  would  be  cruel 
t<D  drive  here,  the  hills  are  so  steep." 

"  I  quite  agree  with  you.  Have  you  ever  been 
in  a  spill?" 

"  Xo,  thanks  be,  and  hope  I  never  shall  be." 

"  I  was  in  a  bad  one  once,  going  down  the 
Sunrising.  on  Edgehill.     Do  you  know  it?" 

"  Yes,  and  cannot  understand  why  anyone 
should  motor  down  it.  The  other  hill  is  more 
beautiful,  Bnd  not  so  dangerous." 

"Oh,  well,  you  know  it's  more  exciting  on 
the  Sunrising.  There  were  three  of  us;  one 
was  killed  on  the  spot,  and  he  was  such  a  nice 
fellow,  and  we  two — that  is,  my  brother  and 
I — spent  the  next  few  weeks  in  a  nursing  home 
getting  patched  up.  I'm  all  right  now,  but  my 
brother  had  to  have  his  right  leg  off." 

Then  followed  a  vivid  description  of  their 
injuries,  how  they  looked  and  felt,  and  a  very 
lengthy  account  of  the  nursing  home.  Just 
imagine  it — a  nursing  home  at  a  garden  party  ! 
Instead  of  the  roses  I  could  smell  carbolic,  and 
in  place  of  the  mignonette,  iodoform.  I  hastily 
pulled  out  my  watch,  and  said  I  must  go  in. 
And  I  went  in,  and  played  patience  (which  I 
loathe). 

Why  does  not  someone  found  a  Society  for 
the  Abolition  of  Diseased  Conversations?  We 
have  an  anti-corset  crusade,  and  movements 
for  the  suppression  of  tobacco,  swearing,  and 
other  things  far  less  obnoxious.  I  used  to 
think  that  people  talked  about  diseases  to  me 
because  I  was  a  nurse,  but  this  is  evidently 
not  so.  Last  autumn  I  was  staying  with  a 
patient  at  an  hotel  where  no  one  knew  that  I 
was  a  nurse,  and  yet  the  conversation  centred 
on   bodily  complaints.     One    afternoon    there 


450 


Zhc  Briti6b  3ournal  of  IRurstna. 


[June  4,  1910 


■were  about  twenty  ladies  taking  tea,  and,  as  it 
happened,  there  were  no  men  present.  Some- 
one had  just  come  from  visiting  a  friend  who 
was  in  a  nursing  home;  so  the  conversation 
ran  upon  operations.  They  all  seemed  to  have 
had  very  serious  ones,  with  the  exception  of 
one  lady,  a  fat,  fair  dame  of  fifty,  who  seemed 
distressed  at  not  being  able  to  relate  any  ter- 
rible experience  of  her  own  until  a  dreadful 
woman,  with  a  penetrating  voice,  described  her 
sufferings  when  she  had  hysterectomy  done. 

Then  the  fair  and  portly  one  beamed,  and 
gasped  out  in  a  tremendous  hurry,  "  I  had  a 
little  dog  once,  such  a  dear,  little  dog,  and  she 
had  just  that  operation,  and  the  poor,  little  dear 
died." 

I  could  not  put  on  an  expression  serious 
enough  for  the  occasion,  so  left  the  room. 

Another  day  I  listened  to  the  various  conver- 
sations in  the  drawing-room.  It  was  raining, 
so  we  had  more  than  the  usual  number  indoors, 
and,  having  no  one  to  talk  with,  I  took  notes. 

"  Have  you  been  to  any  of  the  Suffragette 
meetings,  Miss  Brown?" 

"  Oh,  no,  Major.  I  think  the  Suffragettes 
are  dreadful  women  I ' ' 

"  I  quite  agree  with  you,  and  I  think  if  some 
of  them  were  sent  to  China  it  would  be  a  good 
thing.  There  they  would  learn  how  well  off 
women  are  in  England.  Women  are  of  no 
account  there ;  they  throw  the  girl  babies  into 
the  river." 

"  So  I  have  heard,  but  is  it  true?  Did  you 
ever  see  them  do  it?" 

"  Yes;   I  got  a  good  snapshot  once." 

"  How  horrible!     I  wonder  the  people  who 

do  it  are  not  haunted  for  the  rest  of  their  lives. ' ' 

"  I  don't  know  that  it  is  so  horrible.    It  is 

better  that  they  should  be  drowned  than  grow 

up  Suffragettes." 

Here  the  two  were  interrupted  by  half  a 
dozen  newcomers,  and  the  conversation  turned 
on  rinking  and  the  various  injuries  they  and 
their  friends  had  received  when  pursuing  this 
pastime.  One  lady  still  had  her  arm  in  a  sling 
as  the  result  of  an  accident  a  month  before. 
I  turned  my  attention  to  a  little  party  sitting 
in  a  palm-sheltered  comer. 

"  Then  the  nurse  gave  her  opium." 
"  Eeally,  Lady  Helen?    How  wicked!" 
"Yes;    and   she  was  a  trained  nurse,  too, 
with  excellent   testimonials.      Of    course   the 
poor  darling  died." 

I  had  heard  this  story  before,  so  moved 
away.  I  found  a  comfortable  seat  near  a 
remarkably  healthy-looking  woman",  who 
seemed  to  be  doing  most  of  the  talking  in  her 
small  circle. 

"  I  am  trying  the  sour  milk  cure  now,"  she 


said,  "  and  it  is  doing  me  ever  so  much  good." 
"My  dear  Mrs.  Launay,"  said  one  of  her 
hearers  impressively,  "  pray  do  not  take  too 
much  sour  milk.  I  have  heard  that  it  causes 
cancer.  Why  not  try  Sanatogen?  So  safe, 
you  know,  and  so  good  for  the  nerves.'' 

"  Oh,  I  don't  believe  in  things  giving  you 
cancer.  If  we  believed  all  those  stories  we 
should  die  of  starvation.  I  went  without  salt 
once  for  six  months  because  someone  told  me 
that  it  caused  cancer;  then  Charles  turned 
vegetarian,  because  meat  is  said  to  cause 
cancer;  and  we  left  off  fish,  because  that  gives 
one  leprosy.  We  must  not  have  oysters  for 
fear  of  typhoid,  and  milk  is  not  safe,  as  it  may 
come  from  a  tubercular  cow — and,  you  know, 
with  my  nerves,  it  is  absolutely  essential  that 
I  should  eat  plenty  of  good  nourishing  food." 

I  turned  from  the  nervous  lady  to  listen  to 
a  merry  party  recounting  their  adventures  at  a 
recent  ball ;  but  they  soon  went  out  for  a  walk 
in  the  rain,  and  again  I  heard  the  voice  of  the 
authority  on  diet.  She  had  given  up  foods  by 
this  time,  and  was  discussing  doctors. 

' '  I  have  never  met  such  clever  doctors  any- 
where else;  they  are  simply  wonderful.  One 
man  of  whom  I  heard  got  blood-poisoning,  and 
the  poison  spread  over  the  whole  of  his  body. 
Of  course,  had  he  been  anywhere  else  he  must 
have  died ;  but  this  doctor  simply  drew  all  the 
poison  out  of  his  body  to  one  finger,  and  then 
amputated  the  finger!" 

General  chorus  of,  "  How  very  wonderful !" 

To  return  to  my  own  patients.  My  last  one, 
who  was  nearly  seventy,  never  talked  of  any- 
thing but  diseases.  She  said  she  had  had 
chorea  of  the  brain ;  and  when  she  was  a  child 
she  had  mumps,  but  hers  were  worse  than 
most  peoples,  because  she  had  them  in  her 
stomach.  She  thought  it  was  due  to  the  care- 
lessness of  her  wet  nurse,  who,  she  was  sure, 
had  neglected  her  most  shamefully. 

I  am  now  longing  for  a  dumb  patient  who 
cannot  write,  so  that  I  can  have  a  rest  from 
diseases. 

Of  course  there  are  exceptions,  even  among 
patients,  who  take  an  interest  in  something 
beside  diseases.  I  heard  the  other  day  of  a 
chaiTning  lady,  who  said  when  her  nurse  first 
arrived — "You  know  I  don't  want  a  nurse 
exactly.  What  I  want  is  a  well-educated  lady 
to  be  a  companion  to  me — one  who  would  slip 
off  her  skirt,  put  on  a  coarse  apron,  and  scrub 
a  room  out ! ' ' 

_  M.  H. 

Miss  -Janet  Stewart  sends  £2  2s.  6d.  for  the 
State  Registration  Fund,  "  an  object  so  dear 
to  her  late  sister's  heart." 


June  4,  1910] 


^bc  British  3ournaI  of  IFiursinG, 


451 


an  3ncrc^it>Ic  3nju9ticc. 

There  is  always  cousolatioii — wliei*  one  has 
suffered  an  unmerited  wrong — in  having  public 
opinion  ,  recognise  the  injury,  and  offer  un- 
solicited its  hearty  condolence,  and  that  the 
appointment  of  Matron  and  Superintendent  of 
Nursing  made  last  Thursday  by  the  authorities 
of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  is  stigmatised 
throughout  the  nm-sing  community  as  "  an  in- 
credible injustice,"  and  that  genuine  sympathy 
is  felt  for  every  nurse  certificated  in  the  school  is 
some  solace  for  those  women  who  have  suffered 
unmerited  affront.  On  the  'phone  and  through 
the  post  messages  and  letters  have  poured  into 
this  office,  and  all  express  indignation  at  the 
cruel  slur  which  the  new  appointment  reflects 
on  the  life's  work  of  a  much  respected  dead  col- 
league, and  reali.se  the  professional  injury  to 
every  woman  trained  and  certificated  in  the 
nursing  school  to  which  she  literally  devoted 
her  life. 

Sacrilege. 

Some  day  perhaps,  but  not  now,  we  may 
touch  reverently  on  those  last  conscious  hours 
when  Death  was  very  near  our  dear  Isla 
Stewart.  This  only  will  we  say — if  she  recog- 
nised the  Shadow,  to  her  last  conscious  hour 
she  ignored  it  with  the  sublime  courage  and 
dignity  she  maintained  throughout  the  two 
years  she  was  a-dying.  Did  she  suffer  in 
silence  and  alone  as  acutely  as  those  who  loved 
her  and  saw  her  fading  away?  We  shall  never 
know,  but  this  we  do  know — as  she  lived  so 
she  died,  strong  and  dutiful,  and  that  for  all 
the  23  years  during  which  she  held  office  as 
Matron  and  Superintendent  of  Nursing  at 
Royal  "  Bart's  "  its  honour  was  the  breath  of 
her  nostrils. 

Whence  then  emanates  this  insidious  breath 
of  slander,  calculated  to  defame  the  dead? 
That  her  work  was  not  well  done,  her  nursing 
staff  insubordinate,  that  her  pupils  are  unfit  to 
succeed  her  in  office,  and  who  jeered  forth  that 
parrot  cry  throughout  the  hospital  world  :  "  No 
Bart's  nurse  need  ajjply  "? 

It  is  an  open  secret  that  prominent  anti- 
registrationists  have  used  all  the  influence  they 
possess  to  capture  what  is  mistakenly  con- 
sidered the  stronghold  of  State  Registration, 
for  a  London  Hospital  candidate. 

Apparently  they  have  succeeded. 

Are  cruel  wrongs  ever  effected  by  righteous 
methods  ? 

Never. 

Tyranny  does  not  hesitate  to  crush  the  living, 
why  consider  the  reputation  of  the  dead? 

Power  is  no  longer  held  by  skeleton  hands. 

Power  is  to  the  living. 

Urasp   t. 


The  Fates  Propitiol's. 

But  even  this  devious  diplomacy  could  not 
have  succeeded  had  the  authorities  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital  loyally  supported  the  in- 
disputable claims  of  their  own  Nursing  Staff. 

In  no  hospital  until  recent  years  have  the 
official  relations  between  the  secretarial  and 
nursing  departments  been  more  harmonious  iu 
character,  or  the  discipline  more  excellent. 

We  regret  that  circumstances  have  altered 
these  desirable  relations. 

The  widely  circulated  statement  that  "  the 
Sistei-s  are  not  iu  hand,"  and  that  it  is  neces- 
sary that  a  stranger  should  rule  over  them 
and  "  bring  them  to  their  proper  level  "  is, 
we  opine,  merely  the  retort  courteous. 

A  serious  breach  of  discipline  within  the 
walls  has  occurred,  and  that  certain  STsters, 
bitterly  resenting  the  cruel  anxiety  its  con- 
tinuance caused  their  dying  Matron,  took  action 
is  also  true.  But  in  placing  before  the  Trea- 
surer facts  which  for  the  honour  of  the  Hos- 
pital they  considered  it  right  that  he  should 
know  they  acted  from  a  sense  of  public  duty, 
and  were  in  no  sense  "  insubordinate." 

Their  action  incurred  resentment,  and  every 
woman  certificated  in  the  School  has  been 
called  upon  to  pay  the  penalty. 

No  Bart's  Nurse  Need  Apply. 

To  fill  an  office  of  the  utmost  responsibility, 
that  of  a  Matron  and  Superintendent  of  Nurs- 
ing of  one  of  the  largest  general  hospitals  in 
the  iMetropolis,  the  following  advertisement 
appeared :  — 


s 


T.     BARTHOLOMEW'S     HOSPITAL. 


Office  of    M.\tron  and    Svperintendent 
OF  Nursing. 


Notice  is  hereby  given  that  an  Election 
Committee  will  be  held  on  the  26th  May, 
1910,  to  elect  a  MATRON  and  SUPERIN- 
TENDENT of  NURSING  to  this  Hospital. 

Candidates  must  be  Certificated  Nurses, 
and  of  an  age  not  exceeding  40  years. 

The  salary  of  tlie  office  will  be  £250  per 
annum,  with  board,  residence,  attendance, 
and  washing. 

Candidates  are  required  to  lodge  36  copies 
of  their  application  and  testimonials  with 
the  Clerk,  St.  Bartholomew's  .  Hospital, 
from  whom  further  information  may  be 
obtained,  on  or  before  the  7th  May. 

No  candidate  for  the  oflSce  shall,  either 
directly  or  indirectly,  canvass  any  member 
of  the  Committee  or  any  Governor. 

THOMAS  HAYES, 

Clerk. 

It  will  be  observed  that  no  time  of  training 
is  defined  for  which  the  "  certificate  "  should 
be   awarded.        No  further    qualifications   are^ 


452 


Cbe  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRursinG, 


[June  4,  1910 


required.  It  is  not  specified  that  the  candidate 
should  be  an  educated  gentlewoman,- that  she 
should  have  held  any  similar  position  of  autho- 
rity, that  she  should  have  been  in  charge  of  a 
training  school  for  nurses,  or  should 
have  been  responsible  for  the  training 
and  control  of  nurses,  or  of  ad- 
ministrative duties.  The  advertisement 
contained  one  important  proviso,  an  age  limit 
of  40,  and  therefore  whilst  requiring  no  quali- 
fications, it  made  ineligible  for  this  responsible 
post  the  majority  of  those  ladies  who  had 
earned  it,  and  operated  adversely  in  the  case  of 
the  six  leading  Matrons  certificated  at  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital,  whose  ages  were  care- 
fully scanned  in  the  hospital  records.  Can 
we  wonder  that  such  an  extraordinary  ad- 
vertisement aroused  the  suspicion  that  some 
favoured  candidate  did  not  possess  these  neces- 
sary qualifications? 

So  strongly  did  the  xiurses  certificated  in  the 
School  feel  that  the  appointment  of  a  stranger 
would  be  an  unmerited  injustice,  that  some  250 
who  were  independent  took  the  constitutional 
step  of  forwarding  the  following  memorial  to 
the  Ti^easurer  and  Almoners,  which  merely 
received  a  curt  acknowledgment  from  the 
Clerk:  — 
Memorial  to  the  Tkeasureh  and  Almoners  of  St. 

Bartholomew's  Hospital. 
Mt  Lord  and  Gentlemen, — 

We,  the  undersigned,  having  been  trained  and 
certificated  as  nurses  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, and  being  deeply  interested  in  the  welfare 
of  that  great  institution,  and  in  the  reputation 
and  status  of  its  Nursing  School,  venture  most 
respectfully  to  submit  to  your  Lordship  as 
Treasurer,  and  to  the  Almoners,  the  following  con- 
sideratious :  — 

1.  For  the  last  thirty  years  the  Nursing  School 
attached  to  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  has  been 
steadily  growing  in  importance  and  professional 
prestige,  not  only  in  the  United  Kingdom,  but  all 
over  the  world. 

2.  During  that  time  it  has  trained  and  certifi- 
cated hundreds  of  nurses,  many  of  whom  have 
obtained  positions  of  great  responsibility  and  in- 
fluence, and  who,  by  their  professional  skill  and 
personal  characteristics,  have  worthily  maintained 
the  traditions  of  their  training  school,  and  brought 
distinction  upon  it. 

3.  Owing  to.  the  late  age  at  which  probationers 
are  admitted  to  the  best  training  schools,  usually 
23  years,  the  extended  contract  for  service,  usually 
four  years,  and  the  increasing  competition  in  tlie 
nursing  world,  subseq\:ent  promotion  is  slow.  To 
serve  an  adequate  period  of  experience  as  Sister  of 
"Wards,  Home  Sister,  Assistant  Matron,  and 
Matron,  the  age  before  a  woman  can  qualify  for 
the  few  most  responsible  positions  in  her  profession 
has  of  late  years  considerably  risen. 

4    Tn   this  connection  the  insistence  of   an   age 


limit  of  40  for  the  vacant  post  of  Matron  at  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital  is,  in  our  opinion,  unfor- 
tunate, as  it  excludes  the  great  majority  of  the 
nurses  trained  at  that  hospital  who  have  since 
obtained  apxMintments  of  importance,  and  have 
shown  by  their  successful  administration  in  such 
positions  fitness  for  the  high  office  of  Matron  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital. 

5.  To  prove  how  hardly  this  age  limit  may  affect 
otherwise  eligible  applicant*,  may  we  give  as  an 
instance  the  case  of  the  Matron  of  the  Oeneral 
Hospital,  Birmingham,  age  43,  who  was  trained  at 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and  was  twelve  years 
in  its  service  as  probationer.  Staff  Nurse,  Sister, 
and  Assistant  Matron.  She  was  also  the  Gold 
Medallist  of  her  year.  Since  leaving  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's in  1906,  she  has  earned  for  herself  the 
highest  reputation  as  a  first-class  administrator  and 
trainer  of  nurses.  This  lady  is,  by  the  terms  of 
the  advertisement,  prevented  from  applying  for  the 
position  of  Matron  and  Suiierintendent  of  Nursing 
at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital. 

6.  There  are  other  trained  and  certificated  nurses 
of  the  Hospital,  now  Matrons  of  General  Hospitals, 
who,  were  it  not  for  the  above-mentioned  age  limit, 
would  as  candidates,  we  feel  sure,  deeply  impress 
the  Governors  by  their  merits. 

7.  Within  the  last  few  years  the  Matronships  of 
other  great  Hospitals  and  Nursing  Schools — e.g., 
those  of  St.  Thomas's,  King's  College,  and 
Guy's  have  fallen  vacant,  but  in  none  of  these 
instances  have  the  Governors  found  it  necessary  to 
advertise  the  office ;  they  have  invited  ladies 
trained  under  their  direction  to  assume  the  position 
of  Matron,  thus  proving  that  they  have  confidence 
in  their  educational  methods,  and  consider  their 
pupils  as  efficient  as  any  available  in  the  profession, 
and  by  such  preferment  have  greatly  encouraged 
and  gratified  every  nurse  whom  they  have  certifi- 
cated. Indeed,  the  i^recedent  has  now  been  estab- 
lished at  St.  Thomas's,  Guy's,  the  Royal  Infirmary, 
Edinburgh,  and  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Glasgow,  of 
applying  to  the  Nursing  School,  the  principle  which 
has  worked  so  well  in  connection  with  all  the  lead- 
ing Medical  Schools,  of  awarding  with  preferment 
their  most  distinguished  pupils. 

8.  Hitherto  the  Nursing  School  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital  has  ranked  with  those  of  St. 
Thomas's,  Guy's,  and  the  London  as  one  of  the 
four  leading  Training  Schools  for  nurses  in  the 
Empire,  with  the  result  that  its  certificated  nurses 
can  compete  on  equal  terms  with  others  for  prefer- 
ment in  their  profession.  Should  the  Governors  of 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  consider  it  necessary 
to  supersede  their  own  pupils  and  to  place  a  lady 
trained  elsewhere  at  the  head  of  its  School,  we,  its 
Certificated  Nurses,  feel  that  it  would  inevitably 
reflect  adversely  on  the  value  of  its  certificate,  and 
depreciate  the  status  and  prestige  of  the  School 
which  is  now  held  in  so  much  honour. 

9.  We  would  add  that  our  colleagues,  still  work- 
ing in  the  Hospital,  are  not  associated  in  our  action 
in  approaching  the  Treasurer  and  Almoners;  as  a 
matter  of  discipline,  we  have  not  taken  them  into 
consultation,  but  we  cannot  fail  to  be  aware  that 
their  feeling,  like  our  own,  is  deeply  stirred,   an3 


June  4.  19101 


Zt)C  British)  3ournai  of  Ittursing. 


453 


that  discipline  aud  liosjiital  etiquette  alone  prevent 
them  from  subscribing  to  this  Memorial. 

10.  We  are  emboldened  by  the  harmonious  rela- 
tions which  have  always  existed  between  the 
Gtovernors  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  and  their 
Nursing  Staff  to  address  this  Memorial  to  the 
Treasurer  and  Almoners,  feeling  sure  that  due 
consideration  will  be  given  to  the  views  which  we 
have  advanced. 

We  are, 
My  Lord  and  Gentlemen, 

Your  obedient  Servants, 

The  result  of  the  election  proved  that  no 
recognition  whatever  was  to  be  given 
to  the  meritorious  work  of  hundreds  of 
nurses  who  during  the  past  thirty  years 
have  built  up  the  first  class  reputation 
of  the  School,  in  spite  of  every  domestic  dis- 
comfort, which  without  complaint  they  have 
endured,  in  the  dangerous  and  insanitary  tene- 
ments in  which  they  hre  housed. 

Qui  s 'excuse  s '.accuse. 

The  excuse  for  this  ruthless  treatment  is  that 
"  the  best  candidate  was  appointed  "  ! 

Having  eliminated  all  "  Bart's  "  women  who 
are  Matrons  of  hospitals  with  medical  schools 
attached  by  imposing  the  age  limit  of  40,  only 
one  candidate  of  the  first  rank  was  recom- 
mended to  the  Election  Committee — Miss 
Davies,  Matron  of  St.  Mary's  Hospital,  Matron 
of  No.  3  Hospital,  Territorial  Force  of  the  City 
and  County  of  London,  and  Certified  Midwife. 
This  lady  was  trained  for  three  years,  and  cer- 
tificated at  King's  College  Hospital,  and  has 
held  the  positions  of  Sister  and  Assistant 
Matron  at  University  College  Hospital,  Matron 
of  Queen  Charlotte's  Hospital,  where  she 
proved  herself  so  able  an  administrator  that  by 
request  she  assumed  the  Matronship  of  St. 
Mary's  Hospital,  a  position  she  has  held  for 
four  years  with  the  greatest  distinction.  To 
compare  this  record  of  professional  achieve- 
ment with  that  of  the  elected  candidate  is 
unnecessary." 

We  have  only  to  add  that  from  far  and  wide, 
except  by  the  inspired  press,  the  treatment 
of  "  Bart's  "  nurses  is  unsparingly  condemned. 

H  public  fIDcetinQ. 

A  Public  Meeting  will  be  held  at  the  Medical 
Society's  Eooms,  11,  Chandos  Stre(-t,  Caven- 
dish Square,  London,  W.,  on  Monday,  June 
6th,  at  7.30  p.m. 

"  To  consider  the  position  of  the  Nursing 
School  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and  to 
take  such  action  as  may  be  desirable." 

The  chair  will  be  taken  by  Miss  Maud  Ban- 
field,  cert.  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  late 
Superintendent,  Polyclinic  Hospital,  Phila- 
delphia, U.S.A. 

It  should  be    clearly  understood    that    the 


meeting  is  convened  by  the  nurses  certificated 
from  St.  Bartholomew's  who  hold  positions  in- 
dependent of  the  Governors.  They  realise  that 
the  prestige  of  their  certificate  is  seriously  de- 
preciated, and  their  professional  status  thereby 
injured.  Those  who  sympathise  with  the  object 
of  the  nicetirif.'  will  be  welcome. 


(Sluecn's  3ubilee  (Tontei'cncc. 

A  Conference  convened  by  the  Queen  Vic- 
toria's Jubilee  Institute  between  representa- 
tives of  the  affiliated  Nursing  Associations  in 
England  and  Wales  was  held  on  May  '27th  at 
Caxton  Hall,  S.W.  Mr.  E.  O'Brien  Furlong 
presided  in  the  unavoidable  absence  of  Viscount 
Goschen.  The  first  paper  presented  was  by  Dr. 
A.  Shadwell  on  Poor  Law  Refoi-m,  which 
was  read  by  'Mr.  D.  F.  Pennant.  There  were, 
said  Dr.  Shadwell,  in  relation  to  the  Report  of 
the  Royal  Commission  on  the  Poor  Laws  three 
principal  points  of  view — that  of  the  sup- 
porters of  the  Majority  Report,  which  was 
drastic  in  its  suggestions,  proposing  a  minor 
revolution;  that  of  the  supporters  of 
the  Minority  Report,  which  was  still 
more  drastic,  its  suggestions  proposing  a  com- 
plete revolution;  and  that  of  the  Independent 
Reformers.  Both  the  Majority  and  Minoi-ity 
Reports  advocated  the  abolition  of  Boards  of 
Guardians,  but  differed  with  regard  to  the  con- 
stitution and  functions  of  the  authority  pro- 
posed to  replace  them.  The  Majority  advo- 
cated the  formation  of  a  Public  Assistance 
Authority  composed  jointly  of  the  County  or 
County  Borough  Council  and  members  of 
voluntary  bodies  on  a  statutory  footing.  The 
Minority  aimed  at  preventing  rather  than  re- 
lieving destitution,  the  work  to  be  undertaken 
by  Committees  of  the  County  and  County 
Borough  Councils.  If  the  IMinority  Report  were 
adopted.  Dr.  Shadwell  considered  that  Nursing 
Associations  might  as  well  put  up  the  shutters 
at  once.  The  authors  probably  knew  nothing, 
and  cared  less,  about  such  Associations,  and 
one  of  the  leading  principles  of  the  scheme  was 
to  supersede  voluntary  agencies.  District 
Nursing  was  probably  one  of  the  greatest 
agencies  for  the  prevention  of  destitution,  be- 
cause it  gave  help  at  the  right  time,  of  the  right 
sort,  and  in  the  right  place,  but  when  public 
authorities  with  a  bottomless  purse  undertook 
the  same  work  as  voluntary  agencies,  the  latter 
died  of  inanition,  because  the  public  would  not 
pay  for  both.  If  he  were  a  betting  man,  he 
would  put  his  money  on  the  Independent  Party, 
which  proposed  reform  rather  than  revolution. 
In  a  recent  debate  in  the  House  of  Commons, 
the  Prime  IVIinister,  Mr.  Balfour,  and  the  Pre- 


454 


«n)e  Brttisb  iournal  of  IRursing. 


IJuue  4,  1910 


sideut  of  the  Local  Government  Board  all 
seemed  averse  to  drastic  changes. 

Several  delegates  having  discussed  minor 
points,  Mr.  Pennanib^said  that  the  object  of  the 
Conference  was  to  consider  the  attitude  to  be 
adopted  towards  the  proposals  :  (1)  Were  they 
in  favour  of  interference  by  public  authorities ".' 
(2)  Were  they  opposed  to  officialising  voluntary 
institutions  ? 

One  delegate  pointed  out  that  in  many  parts 
of  the  country  it  was  impossible  to  get  support 
for  voluntary  associations. 

.A  delegate  from  Portsmouth  j^oiuted  out 
that  Nursing  Associations  existed  as  a  means 
to  an  end,  and  that,  whichever  Eeport  was 
adopted,  nurses  would  still  be  required.  The 
question,  he  thought,  was  how  Nursing  Asso- 
ciations were  going  to  adapt  themselves  to  the 
requirements  of  the  future.  If  they  worked 
within  limits  with  the  constituted  authority, 
and  kept  up  the  standard,  the  work  of  the 
nurses  would  go  on. 

Another  delegate  referred  to  the  ditfieulty  of 
obtaining  grants  from  Boards  of  Guardians,  be- 
cause the  work  of  the  Q.  V..J.I.  was  not  confined 
to  the  poor,  and  Guardians  therefore  objected 
to  su^jporting  it. 

The  inevitable  question  of  the  attendance 
and  remuneration  of  medical  men  when  called 
in  by  a  midwife  under  Rule  E  18  of  the  Central 
Mid  wives'  Board  was  next  discussed  by  the 
Rev.   W.  Buckland. 

ilr.  D.  F.  Pennant  (Hon.  Secretary,  Queen's 
Institute),  discussed  the  question  of  provident 
nursing,  and  said  that  fifty  years  ago,  when 
District  Nursing  was  a  new  idea,  it  was  gratui- 
tous, but  the  idea  of  the  provident  system  was 
now  gaining  favour.  Contributions  might  be 
made  on  the  lines  of  an  insurance  against  ill- 
ness, as  a  voluntary  contribution,  or  a  thank- 
oSering. 

In  regard  to  the  State  taking  over  the 
nursing  of  the  sick  poor,  Mr.  Pennant  inquired 
whether  a  Government  nurse  could  ever  do  all 
that  a  Queen's  Nurse  could  achieve.  He 
thought  the  provision  of  district  nurses  by  the 
State  a  counsel  not  of  perfection  but  of  despair. 
A  discussion  took  place,  in  which  apparently 
afHuent  delegates  present  seemed  quite  certain 
of  the  desirability  of  payments  by  the  poor. 

Miss  Lovegrove,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the 
Federation  of  Metropolitan  Nursing  Associa- 
tions, read  a  paper  on  School  Nursing,  and 
advocated  that  a  different  set  of  nurses  should 
attend  the  children  in  their  own  homes  from 
those  appointed  to  visit  the  schools. 

Mr.  Treacher  Collins,  F.E.C.S.,  member  of 
the  visiting  staff  of  the  Pioyal  Ophthalmic  Hos- 
pital, City  Road,  E.G.,  spoke  of  the  importance 


of  training  in  eye  work  for  District  Nurses,  and 
said  that  his  hospital,  recognising  the  impor- 
tance of  such  training,  approached  the  Q. V.J.I. 
and  asked  them  to%allow  their  nurses  to  come 
to  the  hospital  for  «  month's  instruction; 
eventually  it  was  agreed  that  the  time  should 
be  a  fortnight,  and  109  District  Nurses  had 
been  ti'ained  in  tbis  waj-  for  one  week  in  the 
wards  and  one  week  in  the  out-patient  depart- 
ment. No  mention  was  made  of  this  in  the 
report  of  the  Q.V^J.I.  He  would  still  like  the 
term  extended  from  a  fortnight  to  a  month. 


Iproavess  of  State  IReoistration. 

At  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Society  for  the 
State  Registration  of  Trained  Nurses,  at  which 
the  Lady  Helen  Munro  Ferguson  will  preside, 
the  following  resolutions  will  be  proposed:  — 
Ox  THE  Death  of  the  Beloved  President. 

The  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of  Trained 
Nurses  desires  to  place  on  record  its  profound 
sorrow  at  the  death  of  its  President,  Miss  Isla 
Stewart. 

The  Nursing  Profession  has  been  deprived  of  a 
most  insijiring  and  courageous  leader,  and  lias  suf- 
fered an  irreparable  loss,  by  the  death  of  one  of  its 
most  brilliant  members. 

Miss  Stewart's  unceasing  efforts  for  the  advance- 
ment of  nursing  education  and  organisation,  com- 
bined with  her  mental  endowments,  and  generous 
breadth  of  character,  removes  from  our  ranks  a 
splendid  example  of  noble  womanhood. 

Bcsolvcd  that  we  tender  to  the  nursing  staff  of 
St.   Bartholomew's    Hospital    our    heartfelt    sym- 
pathy in  their  great  bereavement. 
Dissociation  in  the  Public  Mind  of  Tr.aixed 

Nurses  fro.m  Criminals  and  Prostitutes. 

The  Society  for  the  Stato  Registration  of  Trained 
Nurses,  in  Annual  Meeting  assembled,  desires  to 
direct  the  attention  of  the  public,  and  of  Parlia- 
ment, to  the  injury  done  to  well-trained  ^and  re- 
putable nurses,  and  nursing  homes,  by  the  ex- 
ploitation of  their  professional  uniform,  and  of 
bogus  nursing  and  massage  homes,  for  criminal 
and  vicious  purposes. 

This  Society  calls  upon  the  Government  to  give 
facilities,  without  delay,  for  the  passing  of  a 
Nurses'  Registration  Bill,  and  upon  Local  Authori- 
ties to  provide  for  the  inspection  and  registration 
of  Nursing  Homes — a  provision  which  would  be 
welcomed  by  Homes  of  reputable  standing — in 
order  that  the  members  of  an  indispensable  and 
honourable  profession  may  be  dissociated  in  the 
public  mind  from  criminals  and  prostitnt-es. 
A  Hospitable  Invitation. 

Mrs.  Walter  Spencer  extends  a  most  kind 
and  cordial  invitation  to  those  present  at  the 
meeting  to  go  on  to  tea  at  2,  Portland  Place, 
W.,  which  is  close  to  Chandos  Street.  We  are 
sure  many  will  gladly  avail  themselves  of  this 
hcfipitality. 


June  4,   lOlU 


Cbe  JBrltieb  Sournal  of  IPiursina. 


455 


Our  Guinea  IPiijc 

We  have  pleasure  in  announcing  that  Miss  E. 
Douglas,  Maternity  Hospital.  Belfast,  has  won  the 
Guinea  Prize  for  Mar. 

SoLniOXS  OF  PCZZLES  FOE  MaY. 

No.  1. — Soxhlet's  Feeding  Apparatus. 

Socks-H-LET-S  feeding  a-parrot-US 
No.  2. — Red  White  and  Blue  Coffee. 

R-head,  ^^'H-ere-T,  &  blew  cow-fee 
No.  3. — Benger's  Food. 

bee-N-G-ears  food 
No.  4. — Lactopeptine. 

lay-C-toe-pea-P-tin 

The  following  competitors  have  also  solved  the 
puzzles  correctly :  — 

F.  Egan,  London;  E.  A.  Hood.  Ewell ;  E.  Share- 
man.  Wan<lsworth ;  A.  Tary.  Fakeuham ;  J.  M. 
Bruford,  Southport :  F.  Flegg.  Fakenham :  F.  M. 
Sharp,  Castle  Bromwich ;  N.  Copelin,  Beckenham  ; 
T.  Daly,  Dublin;  C.  Lane,  Stirling;  S.  S.  Sher- 
ring,  Liverpool ;  A.  L.  Etheridge,  London :  E.  Spen- 
cer. London;  S.  Arthur,  Slough;  A.  Gibson,  Alness; 

E.  E.  Please,  DorkHng ;  J.  Wade.  Walmer;  N.  A. 
Fellows,  Edgbaston:  V.  Fuller,  Chailey;  M.  Burr, 
Ebford  ;  C.  Lindsay,  Edinburgh  ;  M.  Feast,  Becken- 
ham :   K.  Parfitt,  Mortlake  :   A.  Grunimitt.  Clifton  ; 

F.  Hales,  Yarmouth ;  E.  Marsfand,  New- 
town;  K.  Ross,  Stirling;  A.  Mutton,  Ply- 
mouth; L.  Walker.  Nantwich;  G.  Smart, 
Cork  ;  M.  C.  Morrison,  Glasgow  ;  M.  L.  Ford.  Lon- 
don ;  C.  Mackenzie,  Edinburgh :  F.  Merry,  Jlan- 
chester ;  C.  T.  Carter,  Liverixwl :  E.  C.  Ragg.  Cux- 
iiagh;  M.  A.  Cole.  Marlow :  C.  C.  D.  Cheshire, 
Woking;  R.  Leigh.  Lympston  :  M.  Chick.  Broad 
Clyst ;  V.  James.  Huddersfield ;  A.  G.  Lavton,  Lon- 
don; A.  W.  Winrara.  Edinburgh:  A.  Derrv.  Dub- 
lin', J.  Cook.  Portland ;  H.  Ellis,  ililford  :  M'.  WUes. 
Sheffield;  A.  M.  Ware.  London;  E.  S.  Sills,  Oak- 
ham ;  M.  Bridges.  London  ;  H.  Cobb.  Attleborough ; 
F.  B.  Mathews.  London ;  C.  M.  Loudoun,  Edin- 
burgh;  K.  Foster,  Wicklow ;  M.  Modlin,  Briston  ; 
A.  M.  Afton,  Exmouth :  A.  M.  Shoesmith,  Dur- 
ham ;  B.  Lane,  Sheffield  ;  K.  Hayter.  Brighton  ;  C. 
Masters,  Belfast:  H.  R.  Flint.  Birmingham;  F.  L. 
Arnold,  Belfast;  T.  O'Grady.  Cork:  E.Macfarlane, 
London;  E.  D.  Hari>er.  Falkirk:  E.  M.  Banner. 
Islington ;  L.  Ryding,  Belfast  ;  E.  Beever.  Horra- 
bridge ;  M.  Newsome,  Pontefract :  A.  Kemp,  Wal- 
mer; M.  Daley,  Limerick;  K.  T.  Mostyn.  Swansea 
F.  Gadd,  Cromer;  M.  Xorthwood,  Nottingham;  F 
Dowd,  Clonskeagh;  T.  Lavell.  Margate:  E.  M 
Smith,  Hendon  :  V.  Newham,  Virginia  Water;  T 
Vosa.  Aberdeen  :  E.  Dinnie.  HaiTow :  E.  Watkin 
son,  Norwich;  F.  >r.  Wrigley,  London;  E.  Heath 
cote,  Clapton;  B.  Taylor,  Rhyl;  K.  King.  Luoan 
W.  Haviland.  London;  A.  Rhind.  Oxford:  E 
Drewett.  London;  H.  E.  Smith.  Warrington;  L.  A 
Dixon,  Hitchin  ;  E.  T.  Marshall,  London  ;  M.  Law 
son.  Perth  :  F.  Williams.  Hawtenstall :  F.  Sheppard 
Tunbridgc  Wells:  G.  G.  Tate.  London;  A.  S 
Morriss,  London :  B.  Slieard,  Chislehurst  :  C 
Mandling,  London;  M.  E.  McLennan,  Stornoway. 

The  Tuitv,  for  the  Prize  Puzzles  remain  the  same 
and  will  be  found  on  Page  sii. 


aa^luni  lUorkcrs'  association. 

The  meeting  of  the  Asylum  Workers'  Association 
on  Wednesday,  May  25tk,  was  a  very  special  occa- 
sion, for  the  Association  was  jubilant  over  the 
passing  of  the  Asylum  Officers'  Superannuation  Act, 
which  provides  definite  and  assured  pensions  to 
those  employed  in  Asylums'  service. 

The  AsYLtTii  Officehs'  Scpebanktatios  Act. 

The  chair  was  taken  by  the  President,  Sir  Wil- 
liam J.  Collins.  M.D.,  F.R.C.S.,  M.P.  The  annual 
report,  being  in  the  hands  of  the  members,  was 
taken  as  read,  and  the  Pre-sident  briefly  described 
the  pitfaUs  which  the  Asylum  Officers'  Superannua- 
tion Bill  had  avoided.  Ht-  mentioned  especially 
Dr.  Shuttleworth  and,  in  Parliament,  Mr. 
Charles  Roberts,  M.P.,  Sir  John  Jardine, 
M.P.,  Lord  Monk-Bretton,  and  others  as  those  to 
whom  the  asylums  officers  owed  a  special  debt  of 
gratitude.  He  could  not  say  they  had  much  for 
which  to  thank  the  Government  departments,  but 
Mr.  M.  L.  Waller,  Private  Secretary  to  Lord  Glad- 
stone, had  been  very  sympathetic. 
The  Report. 

The  report,  moved  from  the  chair,  and  seconded 
by  Dr.  Bower,  who  spoke  of  Sir  William  Collins' 
adroitness  in  securing  the  passage  of  private 
members'  Bills,  was  carried,  and  Sir  William 
Collins  re-elected  President  for  the  ensuing  year.  ■ 
The  President,  in  returning  thanks  for  his  re-elec- 
tion, said  that  as  the  present  year  would  be 
his  fourth  year  of  office  he  had  thought  he  might 
be  laid  by  in  lavender,  but  he  might  perhaps  still 
be  useful  to  the  Association  in  Parliament  in  con- 
nection with  the  Nurses'   Registration  Bill. 

Dr.  Finegan  spoke  of  the  gratitude  of  Ireland  to 
Sir  William  Collins  in  connection  with  the  Super- 
annuation Act,  and  said  that  Ireland  was  just  as 
keen  about  the  Nurses'  Registration  Bill  as  any 
other  part  of  the  United  Kingdom. 

PBESENT.4TI0X  OF    MeD-VLS. 

The  presentation  of  medals  for  long  and  meri- 
torious service  to  asylum  attendants  and  nurses 
always  gives  one  pause  for  thought.  Does  the 
public  really  understand  in  the  least  degree  what 
has  gone  to  the  earning  of  those  medals  ?  Listen  ! 
Medallists,  1910.— Go/d.^Attendant  B.  Thomas. 
Carmarthen  Asylum.  40  years'  service  in  one 
asylum  ;  Miss  B.  Fraser.  Matron  of  Bobben  Island 
Asylum,  S.  Africa,  3o  years'  service.  (This  medal 
was  received  for  Miss  Fraser  by  Dr.  Greenlees, 
Superintendent  of  the  Asylum,  who  spoke  of  the 
great  honour  done  to  South  Africa  by  the  award  of 
this  medal  for  the  first  time  outside  the  British 
Isles.  Robben  Island,  as  they  probably  knew,  was 
the  island  to  which  South  African  criminals,  lepers, 
and  lunatics  were  sent.  Miss  Fraser  began  her 
work  at  Aberdeen,  and  did  excellent  work  in  Car- 
lisle and  Grahamstown  before  going  to  Robl)en 
Island.)  Si/r>r.— Attendant  E.  W.  Fraser.  Isle  of 
Man  Asylum,  28  years'  service:  Nurse  E.  .\shfield. 
of  Colney  Hatch  .\sylum,  with  27  years'  service. 
Bronze. — Two  special  bronze  medals  were  also 
awarded,  although  those  who  received  them  had 
not  spent  all  their  time  in  nursing  the  sick.  At- 
tendant A.  G.  Neale,  of  Colney  Hatch  Asylum, 
with  42  years'  service  in  one  asylum;    and  Atten- 


456 


^]5C  BilKsb  3oiirnal  of  IRiivsing. 


June  4,  1910 


dant  G.  E.  Moore,  of  Coliiev  Hatch  Asylum,  with 
41  years'  service  in  one  asylum. 

Phesextation  to  the  Pkesideni. 

The  next  business  was  the  presentation  of  an 
illuminated  address  to  the  President,  which  re- 
corded the  grateful  thanks  of  asylum  workers 
throughout  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  to  Sir  Wil- 
liam J.  Collins,  D.L.,  J. P.,  M.D.,  M.S.,  F.R.C.S., 
B.Sc,  M.P.,  President  of  the  Association,  for  his 
unwearying  efforts  on  their  behalf,  and  successful 
promotion  in  Parliament  of  the  Asylum  Officers' 
Superannuation  Act,  which  received  the  'Royal 
Assent  on  December  3rd,  1909,  the  passing  of 
which  beneficent  measure  was  due  to  his  wise  and 
energetic  guidance." 

Dr.  Pasmore,  who  made  the  presentation,  said 
that  Sir  William's  period  of  Presidency  would  be 
illumined  by  this  beneficent  Act,  and  Dr.  Shuttle- 
worth,  who  handed  to  Lady  CoUins  a  basket  of 
beautiful  flowers,  plumbago,  mauve  iris,  ferns,  and 
mauve  ribbons,  spoke  of  the  help  public  men  re- 
ceived from  the  ladies  of  their  household. 

Sir  William  CoUins  briefly  returned  thanks  to 
Dr.  Pasmore  for  his  "flowers  of  rhetoric,"  and  to 
Dr.  Shuttleworth,  on  Lady  Collins'  behalf,  for  the 
"  flowers  of  the  field." 

Pbeseni.\tion  to  the  Hon.   Secheiart. 

On  behalf  of  the  Asylum  Workers  of  the  United 
Kingdom,  the  President  then  presented  to  Dr. 
Shuttleworth,  the  Hon.  Secretary,  an  address 
testifying  to  the  personal  regard  and  affection  in 
which  he  was  held  by  them,  and  because  he  had 
with  rare  devotion  and  self-denial  made  the 
amelioration  of  the  lot  of  asylum  workers  his  par- 
ticular solicitude,  and  by  his  dogged  determina- 
tion and  ever  ready  tact  been  instrumental  in 
securing  the  passage  into  law  of  the  Asylum  Ofiicers' 
Superannuation  Act.  This  was  signed  by  Sir  Wil- 
liam Collins,  as  President,  and  also  by  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  Medico-Psychological  Association.  It 
was  accompanied  by  a  miniature  of  Dr.  Shuttle- 
worth,  by  Gabrielli,  a  typewriter  and  desk,  and  a 
cheque  for  £2.30. 

Sir  William  Collins  said  Dr.  Shuttleworth  pos- 
sessed the  arts  of  diplomacy  and  what  Pitt 
described  as  the  first  essential  of  a  politician, 
"patience,  patience,  patience."  He  had  also  zeal, 
indomitable  industry,  and  fixity  of  purpose,  and 
further  craft  and  subtlety — the  wisdom  of  the  ser- 
pent under  the  demeanour  of  the  dove. 

He  concluded  by  remarking  on  the  applicability 
of  the  following  lines  to  Dr.  Shuttleworth  :  — 
"  You  need  no  sculptured  monument 
Your  fame  to  tell. 
Your  fame  will  live,  oh,  could  we  all 
Acquit  ourselves  as  well." 

Dr.  Shuttleworth  cordially  returned  thanks  to 
the  President  for  his  flattering  words  and  to  the 
Association  for  its  generous  gifts.  The  miniature 
would  fall  to  Mrs.  Shuttleworth  as  her  share  of 
the  spoils,  and  the  generous  cheque  would  enable 
him  to  employ  a  typist. 

The  meeting  concluded  with  the  usual  votes  of 
thanks,  and  tea  was  afterwards  served  by  kind 
invitation  of  Mrs.  Shuttleworth. 


appointment0. 


Ladt  Superiniexdext. 

Drumcondra  Hospital,  Dublin — Miss  Dora  Hutchin- 
son has  been  appointed  Lady  Superintendent.  She 
was  trained  at  Sir  Patrick  Dun's  Hospital,  Dublin, 
where  she  has  held  the  position  of  Staff  Sister, 
Sister  in  Charge  of  the  Operating  Theatre,  and 
Assistant  Matron.  She  has  also  had  experience  of 
private  nursing. 

Matrons. 

St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  E.G.  — Miss  Annie  Mcin- 
tosh has  been  appointed  Matron  and  Superinten- 
dent of  Nursing  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital. 
She  was  trained  at  the  London  Hospital,  where,  for 
the  last  seven  years  she  has  held  the  post  of 
Matron's  Senior  Assistant. 

Derbyshire     Hospital    for    Sick     Children,     Derby Miss 

Dorothy  Haines  has  been  appointed  Matron.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Poplar  Hospital  for  Accidents, 
London,  E.,  and,  on  gaining  her  three  years'  certi- 
ficate, held  the  position  of  Staff  Nurse  for  a  year 
in  the  same  institution.  She  has  subsequently  held 
the  following  appointments: — Staff  Nurse  for  ten 
months  at  Charing  Cross  Hospital,  Sister  at  the 
Manchester  Children's  Hcspital,  Pendlebury,  and 
successively  Night  Sister,  Home  Sister,  and  Assis- 
tant :Matrou  at  the  Children's  Hospital,  Myrtle 
Street,  Liverpool. 

Sisters. 

General  Hospital,  Stroud. — Miss  R.  Hooten  has  been 
apiwiuted  Sist-er.  She  was  trained  at  the  Royal  In-  . 
firmai-)',  Derby,  and  has  held  the  position  of  both 
Day  and  Night  Sister  at  the  Birmingham  and  Mid- 
land Ear  and  Tliroat  Hospital,  of  Night  Sister  at 
the  Guest  Hospital,  Dudley,  and  of  Assistant 
Matron  at  the  Retreat,  York. 

Superintendent  Nurses. 

Workhouse  Infirmary,  Bishop's  Stortford. — Miss  M.  E. 
Pryce  has  been  appointed  Superintendent  Nurse. 
She  was  trained  at  Brownlow  Hill  Infirmary,  Liver- 
pool, and  has  held  the  position  of  Superintendent 
Nurse  at  Gressenhall  Infirmary,  Derenam,  Norfolk, 
and  of  Sister  at  the  Bethnal  Green  Infirmary,  Lon- 
don.    She  is  a  Certified  Midwife. 

Workhouse  Infirmary,  Stratton  St.  Margaret,  near 
Swindon. — Miss  Helen  6.  Dunn  has  been  appointed 
Superintendent  Nurse,  She  was  trained  at  the 
Eastville  Infirmary,  Bristol,  and  has  held  the  posi- 
tion of  Charge  Nurse  at  the  Swindon  and  High- 
worth  Union,  where  she  has  now  been  promoted  to 
the  position  of  Superintendent  Nurse. 


QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE    INSTITUTE 
FOR   NURSES. 

Transfers  and  Appointments.— yihs  Christmas 
Prentice,  to  Horncastle  ;  Miss  Louisa  Attree,  to  En- 
field ;  -Miss  Alma  Fryer,  to  Withington ;  Miss  Eliza 
Spencer,  to  Cleckheaton  ;  Miss  Elizabeth  Farquhar- 
sou,  to  Lumley ;  Miss  Maud  Taylor,  to  Gothering- 
ton ;  Miss  Amy  Townsend,  to  Kirton-in-Lindsey ; 
Miss  Ethel  Coates,  to  Grimsby ;  Miss  Ada  Barton- 
Tharle,  to  Tunbridge  Wells. 


June  4,   1910] 


Z,iic  3Britl9b  3ournai  oi  iHurslng. 


457 


^be  Scottish  local  (Bovcnimcnt 
Boai^. 


NuHSEs'  Examination. 
On  May  3i-d,  4th,  and  5th  the  Local  Ooverument 
Board  held  at  Glasgow  University  and  Glasgow- 
Western  Infirmary  an  examination  for  the  certifi- 
cation of  trained  sick  nurses.  Thirty-eight  candi- 
dates presented  themselves  for  examination.  The 
examiners  were  Dr.  J.  O.  Affleck,  Edinburgh;  Dr. 
D.  J.  Mackintosh,  Medical  Superintendent  of  the 
Western  Infirmary,  Glasgow;  and  Dr.  A\'.  J. 
Hichard,  Medical  Officer  of  Govan  Poorhouse, 
Glasgow,  who  were  assisted  iu  the  practical  part  of 
the  examination  by  Miss  H.  Gregory  Smith, 
Matron  of  Western  Infirmary,  Glasgow,  and 
by  Miss  F.  A.  Merchant,  Matron  of  the 
Eastern  District  Hospital,  Glasgow.  The 
subjects  of  examination  were  (a)  elementary 
anatomy  and  physiology ;  (b)  hygiene  and  dietetics ; 
(c)  medical  and  surgical  nursing;  and  (d)  mid- 
wifery. The  following  candidates  have  passed  in 
the  subjects  indicated  (those  whose  names  are  dis- 
tinguished by  an  asterisk  having  now  passed  in  all 
the  subjects  of  examination  are  entitled  to  the 
certificate  of  efficiency  granted  by  the  Local  Govern- 
ment Board) :  — 

*  Elizabeth  Aitken  (c)  and  (A) :  '  Catherine  C. 
Baillie  (c) ;  Agnes  Bruce  (d) ;  *  Helen  T.  Davidson 
(a)  and  (c) ;  Helen  C.  Donald  (a);  Anna  M.  E. 
Fry  (a) ;  Jeanie  W.  F.  Henderson  (d) ;  *  Isabella 
Hepburn  (c) ;  Beatrice  P.  Hinderwell  (d) ;  Helena 
•J.  M'D.  Irving  (b)  and  (d);  Jessie  Jolinstone  (d) ; 
Catherine  M.  Kippen  (d) ;  *  Margaret  Laurie  (c) ; 
*  Elizabeth  J.  Murison  (b)  and  (c) ;  Christina  S. 
Murray  (a)  and  (b) ;  Annie  B.  jrCoU  (d) ;  Flora 
M.  Macdonald  (d) ;  Lena  Macdonald  (a);  *  Jane 
T.  M'Intosh  (c)  and  (d) ;  Annie  M'lvor  (b) ;  Isabella 
R.  Mackenzie  (b) ;  *  Jessie  D.  Mackenzie  (c) ; 
*Angusina  Macmillan  (b)  and  (c) ;  Agnes  B.  Macnab 
(a)  and  (b) ;  Euphemia  C.  MacNaught  (a) ;  Agnes 
H.  Pafcon  (a)  and  (b) ;  Elizabeth  A.  Ross  (a)  and 
(b) ;  Elizabeth  H.  Scott  (d) ;  Maggie  Sievewright 
<d) ;  Elizabeth  T.  Simpson  (a)  and  (b) ;  Maggie 
Steele  (a)  and  (d) ;  Jeanie  G.  Tait  (d) ;  Jeanie  Toll 
(a) ;  Agnes  Westwood  (b) ;  Helen  Whittaker  (a) 
^.nd  (b). 


ttbc  Ipassino  36cll. 

We  greatly  regret  to  report  the  death  from 
drowning  of  Miss  Casserby,  a  niirse  at  the  Royal 
Military  Infirmary,  Dublin.  Miss  Casserby  and 
Miss  Lindsay,  another  nurse  from  the  same  insti- 
tution, went  on  a  visit  to  some  friends  near  Kin- 
sale,  and,  when  bathing,  one  of  them,  who  was 
unable  to  swim,  got  out  of  her  depth.  The  nurse, 
who  could  sw'im,  went  to  the  rescue,  but  was  unable 
to  bring  her  friend  ashore.  When  their  distress 
was  observed,  a  boat  was  launched  and  Miss  Lind- 
say eventually  brought  to  shore  in  an  unconscious 
condition,  but  Miss  Casserby  unhappily  was 
drowned.  We  tender  our  sincere  sympathy  to  the 
relatives  of  the  deceased  nurse. 


fl^ursino  JEcboes. 

.\  Coulerence  of  represen- 
iiilivcs  of  County  Nursing 
Assouiations  and  of  the  Coun- 
cil of  the  Queen  Victoria's 
.Jubilee  Institute  for  Nurses 
was  held  at  the  headquarters 
of  the  Institute,  Victoria 
Street,  last  week,  under  the 
Presidency  of  Mr.  George 
Franklin.  Amongst  the  sub- 
jects discussed  were  the 
usual  practice  as  to  payment 
of  the  doctor's  fee  where  he  had  been 
called  in  at  the  request  of  a  nurse  to  a 
case  which  was  not  one  for  parish  relief.  The 
following  resolution  was  ultimately  agreed 
upon: — "That  the  Institute  be  asked  to 
organise  a  deputation  to  the  Lord  President  of 
the  Council  pointing  out  the  importance  of  pro- 
viding for  the  payment  of  the  doctor's  fee  in 
midwifery  cases,  and  pressing  for  such  amend- 
ment as  will  secure  the  payment  of  the  fee." 
In  regard  to  obtaining  midwifery  scholarships 
for  Queen's  Nurses  it  was  agreed  that  County 
Councils  be  approached  with  a  view  to  ascer- 
taining whether  an  extension  of  the  facilities 
for  midwifery  training  could  be  made  to  include 
Queen's  Nurses  as  well  as  less  highly  trained 

women.  

The  Hospitals  Committee  of  the  Metro- 
politan Asylums  Board  have  recommended 
the  award  of  a  gratuity  of  £50  to  Miss 
N.  A.  March,  Assistant  Nurse,  who  is  in- 
capacitated by  a  malady' contracted  in  the  dis- 
charge of  her  duty.  

The  Lord  Mayor  of  London,  who  was  accom- 
panied by  the  Lady  Mayoress,  on  Saturday  last 
opened  the  new  Nurses'  Home  which  has  been 
erected  at  the  City  of  London  Mental  Hospital 
at  Stone,  Dartford.  The  new  Home  will 
accommodate  38  nurses,  and  has  large  recrea- 
tion and  reading  rooms,  and 'quarters  for  the 
Matron  and  Assistant  Matron.  Alderman  Sir 
George  Wyatt  Truscott,  Chairman  of  the  Visit- 
ing Committee,  presided  at  luncheon,  which 
was  served  to  a  large  number  of  visitors,  and 
presented  the  Lady  Mayoress  with  a  silver 
framed  photograph  of  the  senior  nurses,  and  the 
Lord  Mayor  with  a  signet  ring.  The  Lord 
Mayor  .spoke  of  the  need  of  a  Home  where  the 
nurses  could  spend  their  leisure  hours  away 
from  their  work,  and  with  pleasure  declared  it 
open.  The  Home  was  then  inspected,  and  the 
Lady  Maj'oress  presented  certificates  to  sevcriil 
nurses  who  had  recently  passed  the  first  aid 
examination  of  the  St.  John  Ambulance  Asso- 
ciation. 


458 


tlbe  Britisb  3ournaI  of  IRurstna. 


[June  4,   1910 


The  current  issue  of  the  St.  John's  League 
Neivs  contains  many  interesting  items.  Its 
Financial  Report  shows  a  balance  on  the  right 
side,  besides  a  deposit  in  the  Post  Office  Savings 
Bank.  The  articles  include  one  on  the  estab- 
lishment of  cordial  relations  between  members 
of  existing  Leagues,  an  interesting  account  of 
a  trip  to  Belgium,  and  extracts  from  letters 
from  Paris  during  the  floods,  and  from  Korea. 


The  Kingston  InfirmaTy  Nurses'  League 
Journal  contains  an  admirable  portrait  of  the 
President,  IMiss  A.  Smith,  and  much  interest- 
ing matter.  The  members  of  the  League  sent 
a  message  of  condolence  to  her  Majesty  the 
Queen  Mother,  and  received  the  following 
reply:—     . 

"  Queen  Alexandra  deeply  appreciates  your 
sincere  sympathy." 

There  is  an  interesting  letter  from  Anacortes 
and  about  Babies  Homes  in  India. 


The  Ladies'  Linen  League  is  admirably 
organised  at  Northampton  General  Hospital, 
and  on  the  leaflet  issued  the  sizes  and  prices 
of  everything  required  is  accurately  stated,  and 
patterns  are  provided  so  that  everything  should 
be  made  as  required  and  in  the  most  practical 
form. 


Miss  Mabel  Annie  Slater,  a  professional 
nurse,  has  sustained  her  claim  in  a  case 
heard  by  Sir  WiUiam  Selfe,  under  the  Work- 
men's Compensation  Act  last  week  in  the  West 
London  County  Court,  when  the  Community 
of  the  Sisters  of  St.  John  the  Divine  sought  to 
have  an  award  made  under  the  Act  reduced. 
Miss  Slater  had  been  engaged  by  the  Sisters, 
and  was  nursing  a  patient  early  in  1908,  when 
she  received  a  prick  in  the  left  hand  from  a 
safety  pin,  with  the  result  that  blood  poisoning 
supervened,  and  after  two  operations  the 
thumb  and  two  fingers  were  left  useless.  The 
Judge  said  the  injury  must  seriously  interfere 
with  the  work  of  a  professional  nurse.  He  saw- 
no  reason  why  the  amount  of  the  award  should 
be  reduced,  and  the  application  was  refused 
with  costs. 

The  terrible  death  of  an  infant  at  the  Monsall 
Fever  Hospital,  Manchester,  by  hanging,  on 
the  facts  as  sworn  in  evidence  are  almost  in- 
conceivable. It  is  stated  that  the  child  was 
seventeen  months  old,  and  isolated  as  a  scarlet 
fever  patient.  The  night  nurse  did  not  visit 
the  ward  between  1.40  and  2.2.5  a.m.,  as  she 
was  in  charge  of  34  children  with  scarlet  fever, 
and  was  getting  their  breakfast  ready.  On  re- 
visiting the  ward  she  was  horrified  to  find  that 
the  infant  had  got  between  the  bars  of  the  cot 


and  was  hanging  by  his  shirt  band,  with  his  feet 
six  inches  from  the  floor  strangled  and  dead. 
She  was  "  too  upset  "  to  lift  hun  into  bed,  so- 
he  was  left  hanging.  A  medical  officer  was  sent 
for  when  the  Night  Sister  arrived,  but  it  i& 
asserted  did  not  visit  the  ward  for  six  hours, 
and  apparently  nothing  was  done  to  resuscitate 
the  child.  The  mother  asserts  that  she  was 
informed  by  telegram  that  the  child  died,  of 
heart  failure,  and  permission  was  asked  for  a 
post-inorte7n.  Apparently  the  doctor  was  not  at 
the  inquest.  These  are  the  facts  baldly  stated. 
No  comment  could  add  to  their  lurid  horror ,. 
but  if  infants  of  this  tender  age  are  isolated 
and  not  continuously  watched,  the  least  the 
authorities  can  do  is  to  provide  safe  cots- 
covered  over  with  netting.  We  wonder  what 
was  the  training  of  the  nurse  who  left  the  un- 
fortunate child  hanging  because  she  was  too- 
upset  to  do  anything  else. 


At  the  Annual  Meeting  of  King  Edward's 
Coronation  Fund  for  Nurses,  held  at  86,  Lower 
Leesou  Street.  Dublin,  last  week,  when  there 
was  a  large  attendance  of  supporters  of  the 
Fund,  the  Annual  Eeport  was  read  by  Sir 
Andrew  Eeed.  who  stated  that  142  nurses  are 
now  registered  members  of  the  Society.  Grants 
of  £10  each  were  made  to  five  members  who 
applied  for  help  during  the  year,  and  one  of 
iE12.  One  of  the  applicants  was  working  at 
her  profession  in  the  County  of  ]Mayo  and 
auother  in  Galway.  Resolutions  of  condolence 
with  their  Majesties  King  George  Y.  and  Queen 
Mary,  and  with  Queen  Alexandra,  on  the 
lamented  death  of  the  late  Sovereign,  were 
moved  by  Miss  Kelly,  Lady  Superintendent  of 
Dr.  Steevens'  Hospital,  and  seconded  by  Miss- 
Lamont,  Superintendent  Irish  Branch  Q.Y.J. I. 

The  President  of  the  Royal  C-ollege  of  Sur- 
geons (Surgeon  Lentaigne),  in  moving  the- 
adoption  of  the  report,  said  that  the  Society 
was  most  valuable  and  greatly  needed.  Nurses- 
who  had  to  go  through  a  most  exacting  period 
of  training,  and  who  were  often  dehcately  nur- 
tured and  delicately  minded,  had  difficult  and 
arduous  duties,  and  required  great  skill  and 
great  aptitude,  and  sometimes  almost  super- 
human patience. 

Miss  Kelly  and  :\riss  MacDonnell,  R.R.C., 
were  elected  members  of  the  Council  under 
Rule  1-5,  and  Miss  Lamont  (Q.Y.J. I.),  Miss- 
Shuter  (late  Lady  Superintendent  of  the  Royal 
City  of  Dublin  Hospital),  Miss  Powell  (late- 
Lady  Superintendent  Charlemont  Hospital), 
Miss  Butler  (Lady  Superintendent  Sir  Patrick 
Dun's  Hospital),  and  Miss  Eamsden  (Lady 
Superintendent  Rotunda  Hospital),  were  the- 
nurses  elected  bv  ballot. 


June  4,  1910] 


Zhc  IBtitieb  3ournal  of  iRurslng. 


459 


On  May  25th  the  Irish  Nurses'  Association 
had  its  second  excursion  of  the  season  to  Kil- 
liney  Hill.  There  was  a  good  attendance ; 
some  came  by  cycle,  some  by  tram  afid  train, 
but  all  met  at  Victoria  Gate  Lodge,  where  tea 
was  served  at  4.30  p.m.  The  Hill  was  then 
climbed,  and  everyone  was  well  repaid  by  the 
lovely  view.  The  weather  was  magnificent. 
The  nurses  sat  in  groups,  feasting  their  eyes 
and  getting  a  good  supply  of  fresh  air.  All 
■were  reluctant  to  leave  when  "duty  "  called 
them  back. 


■Reflections. 


Members  of  the  Ulster  Branch  of  the  Irish 
Nurses'  Association  spent  a  most  enjoyable 
afternoon  at  Whitehead  on  Thursday  in  last 
week.  These  excursions,  which  are  arranged 
ior  their  enjoyment,  are  greatly  appreciated  by 
the  members. 


We  are  very  pleased  to  note  that  both  North 
and  South^ — at  Belfast  as  well  as  Cork — Eoman 
•Catholic  religious  nursing  Sisters  are  joining 
the  Irish  Nurses'  Association,  thus  taking  their 
part  in  this  national  movement  for  the  benefit 
■of  nurses  and  the  sick.  Some  of  the  most  in- 
fluential Bishops  in  Ireland  are  well  acquainted 
"with  proposed  legislation  through  the  Nurses' 
Registration  Bill,  and  their  approval  is  most 
helpful  to  the  movement. 


Mr.  Fisher,  Prime  Minister  of  the  Common- 
wealth of  Australia,  and  Mr.  Deakin,  the  leader 
of  the  Opposition,  have  addressed  a  joint  letter 
to  the  Australian  public  appealing  for  financial 
support  to  the  Countess  of  Dudley's  bush  nurs- 
ing scheme  as  a  memorial  to  King  Edward. 


Sister  Agnes  Karll,  the  President  of  the 
International  Council  of  Nurses,  sends  sym- 
pathy for  the  death  of  our  late  King,  and 
is  so  glad  that  so  beautiful  a  wreath  was  sent 
to  Windsor  in  memory  of  King  Edward  the 
Seventh's  kindness  to  the  membei^s  of  the 
Council  last  July. 

Sister  Karll  will  be  in  Zurich  all  summer, 
after  a  tour  to  the  centres  of  the  German 
Nurses'  Association  in  the  large  cities  of  South 
Germany.  She  is  preparing  to  engage  in  the 
most  useful  work  of  translating  "  A  History  of 
Nursing,"  by  Miss  Nutting  and  Miss  Dock; 
this  will  be  of  the  utmost  value  to  German 
nurses,  and  greatly  appreciated  by  them. 
Sister  Karll  is  still  in  the  fray.  As  she  says, 
"  if  progress  is  to  be  made,  combat  can  never 
finish."  She  is  already  busy  making  arrange- 
ments for  the  welfare  of  foreign  nurses  for  the 
Congress  of  1912,  so  that  she  may  show  us 
■"  how  warmlv  she  feels  for  all  our  interests." 


From  a  Boars  Room  Mirror. 
The  members  of  the  Board  of  Management  of  the 
Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh,  have  presented  an 
Address  to  the  King  on  his  Accession  expressing 
their  devoted  loyalty  and  heartfelt  sympathy,  and 
to  the  Queen  Mother  one  of  respectful  and  heart- 
felt sympathy  in  her  grievous  bereavement. 


The  first  meeting  of  the  Metropolitan  Asylums' 
Board,  after  its  reconstitution  for  the  three  years 
ending  May  loth,  1913,  took  place  on  Saturday. 
For  the  post  of  chaimian  for  the  year  Mr.  Jackeon 
Hunt  and  Mr.  AValter  Dennis  were  nominated,  and 
the  latter  was  elected  by  36  votes  to  23. 


The  Treasurer  of  Guy's  Hospital  always  issues  a 
very  explicit  report.  For  last  year  it  states  that 
the  wards  never  rendered  greater  service  to  the 
poor,  the  8,933  in-patients  accommodated  being 
substantially  in  excess  of  the  number  for  any 
pi'evious  year  in  the  existence  of  the  charity.  The 
new  out-patient  department  was  completed,  occu- 
pied, and  its  cost  discharged,  and  a  sufficient  in- 
come received  to  meet  the  year's  expenditure.  The 
governors  contemplate  measures  for  further  necee- 
sary  works.  Some  of  these,  the  re-building  of 
Clinical  House,  including  an  increase  of  beds  for 
special  departments  and  the  provision  of  separate 
war<ls  for  children,  were  montione<l  in  the  previous 
report.  A  fuller  list  comprises,  inter  alia,  a  new 
oi)©iiating  suite,  new  residences  for  certain  officers 
and  servants  of  the  hospital,  and  an  extension  of 
the  Henriette  Raphael  Nui-ses'  Home,  and  these 
latter  works,  because  of  their  urgency,  the 
governors  have  been  compelled  to  undertake  with- 
out further  delay.  The  cost  of  the  whole  scheme  of 
improvement  and  extension  will,  it  is  estimated,  bo 
covered  by  the  £60,000,  for  which  a  preliminary 
appeal  was  is>sued  twelve  months  since.  We  hope 
every  penny  will  soon  be  subscribed.  Gny's  nuraea 
are  very  well  oared  for,  their  liome  a  model,  and 
"  Matixjn  "  always  one  of  their  own. 

All  cases  of  pulmonary  tuberculosis  attending  the 
out-patient  department  at  Middlesex  Hospital  are 
now  notified.  Arrangements  have  been  made  with 
the  Education  Department  of  the  London  County 
Council  for  the  attendance  of  a  certificated  lecturer 
in  cookery,  who  instructs  the  niirses  in  invalid 
cookery,  and  already  there  have  been  satisfactory 
results.  The  course  forms  part  of  the  regular  cur- 
riculum, and  is  one  of  the  most  important  parts 
of  a   nurse's  training. 


At  St.  Thomas's  it  is  hoped  that  the  new  mater- 
nity ward  will  be  opened  in  October.  In  the  X-ray 
department  4,020  patients  were  treated  during  the 
vear.  The  total  expenditure  last  year  was  £63,431, 
an4  the  income  £62,650,  including  an  anonymous 
donation  of  £5,000.     

The  Colchester  Hospital  appears  to  be  faced  with 
a  serious  position.  There  is  a  total  deficiency  of 
£4,000. 


460 


Zbc  ^Brittsb  3ournaI  of  IRurstng. 


[June  4,  1910 


^be  IRonnal  treatment   of 
Hlcobolisiu. 

To  attend  a  meeting  upon  the  subject  of  inebriety 
has  not,  perhaps,  a  very  attractive  sound  about  it: 
and  possibly  fifteen  or  twenty  years  ago  it  nould 
have  been  dull,  uninteresting,  and  unsatisfying. 
But  those  who  have  eyes  to  see  and  ears  to  hear 
will  have  observed  what  a  great  advance  has  been 
made  in  social  science.  A  speaker  said  a  little 
while  ago  that  if  you  leave  out  science  in  your 
efforts  at  reform,  however  good  and  kindly  your 
intentions  may  be,  you  will  fail. 

.\11  things,  even  those  with  most  dull  sounding 
names,  can  be  made  to  appeal  to  the  minds  of  men 
and  women  if  the  matter  is  dealt  with  not  only 
Bympathetically  but  scientifically.  Is  not  this 
almost  the  same  as  saying  commonsense  must  be 
abundantly  utilised  in  dealing  with  social  problems. 

This  is  what  impressed  me  forcibly  while  listening 
to  the  interesting  epeeches  made  on  behalf  of  the 
Normal  Treatment  Association  at  a  drawing-room 
meeting  at  Grosvenor  House  by  the  kind  permis- 
sion of  the  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Westminster  on 
May  26th.  One  other  point  was  also  very  notice- 
able— namely,  the  note  of  hopefulness  and  optimism 
which  all  the  speakers  struck,  obviously  the  effect 
of  the  greater  understanding  of  this  difficult 
problem. 

The  report  for  the  past  year  was  in  every  way 
satisfactory. 

The  Secretary,  Mr.  Porteous,  briefly  described 
the  objects  of  the  Association  and  the  method  of 
treatment,  the  chief  features  of  which  are:  — 

1.  Its  inexpeusiveness :  the  inclusive  cost  is 
£3  3s.  Twenty-four  bottles  of  medicine  (composed 
of  the  special  combination  of  drugs)  have  to  be 
consumed,  one  for  every  waking  hour  for  24  days. 

2.  Its  convenience  and  secrecy :  the  patient  can 
be  treated  in  his  or  her  own  home,  which  renders 
it  unnecessary  for  the  friends  to  know  about  it, 
and  ordinary  occupations  need  not  be  interrupted. 

3.  The  reliability  of  the  treatment.  The  failures 
BlV.  supposed  to  be  not  more  than  7  or  8  per  cent., 
and  in  nearly  every  case  of  failure  it  has  been 
proved  that  the  conditions  of  the  treatment  have 
not  been  faithfully  carried  out. 

The  audience  had  the  advantage  of  listening  to 
the  two  brothers  Chapman — the  Rev.  Hugh  Chap- 
man, Chaplain  of  the  Royal  Chapel  of  the  Savoy; 
and  Mr.  Cecil  Chapman.  Police  Magistrate — both 
of  them  friends,  faithful  and  true,  to  the  great 
cause   of   women's  enfranchisement. 

The  latter  spoke  in  a  very  optimistic  vein.  He 
denounced  despair  as  a  cruel  thing,  and  affirmed 
that  no  inebriate  need  be  despaired  of,  and  warned 
his  hearers  of  the  ineffectiveness  of  lip  sympathy 
only,  urging  upon  them  the  duty  of  "  doing  some- 
fhing"  to  help  the  poor  victims.  One  way  in 
which  everyone  could  help,  he  said,  was  to  help 
them  to  find  work  after  treatment. 

The  Rev.  H.  B.  Chapman  referred  to  the  sorrows 
of  life  as  the  grim  skeletons  in  the  cupboards,  and 
added  earnestly  that  the  curse  of  inebriety  was 
"the  national  cupboard'';  it  belonged  to  us  all, 
and  needed  the  key  of   love  to  open   it.      In   his 


estimation,  we  could  best  show  our  loyalty  to  our 
late  King  by  doing  something  practical  for  the- 
good  of  our  fellow   creatures. 

Lady  Constance  Lytton  made  a  short  and  in- 
teresting speech,  emphasising  the  importance  of 
preventive  work  and  the  necessity  of  subsidising 
sympathy  with  active  service  in  the  cause  of 
humanity. 

The  Chairman,  General  Sir  Edward  Chapman^ 
K.C.B.,  proposed  a  rote  of  thanks  to  the  speakers 
and  to  the  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Westminster  for 
their  kindness  in  lending  their  house,  after  which 
the  proceedings  terminated. 

The  offices  of  the  Association  are  at  91,  Victoria; 
Street,  Westminster,  S.W. 

B.   K. 


Soutballs'  IRurses'  Companion 
an^  Xaun&rv>  38ooh. 

Everyone  who  knows  Messrs.  Southall  Brtis.  and 
Barclay,  Ltd..  Bull  Street,  Birmingham,  know& 
that  everything  they  do  is  well  done,  and  there  are 
many  people  who,  having  dealt  with  this  firm  for 
the  last  half-century,  always  write  to  them,  in  pre- 
ference to  dealing  nearer  home,  for  drugs  and  pre- 
parations, of  whose  high  standard  they  can  be 
absolutely  a.ssured  if  they  come  fix>m  this  old-estab- 
lished firm.  But  though  it  has  been  founded  since 
1820,  it  keeps  in  the  forefront  with  modern  de- 
mands, and  has  recently  brought  out  a  Xurses' 
Companion,  and  Laundry  Book,  which  would  bo 
most  valuable  to  any  obstetric  nurse. 

In  a  compact  space  it  includes  a  great  variety  of 
useful  information,  such  as  obstetrical  tables.  Post 
Office  regulations,  the  principal  antiseptics  used  in: 
midwifery,  their  uses  and  strength,  the  tempera- 
ture of  baths,  the  clothes  required  for  an  infant,, 
necessaries  for  a  confinement,  a  dentition  table, 
notes  on  muscular  development,  notes  on  the  arti- 
ficial feeding  of  infants,  and  on  invalid  cookery. 
The  meaning  of  Latin  terms  used  in  prescriptions, 
the  law  as  to  the  registration  of  births  and  deaths, 
and  much  more  besides,  including  illustrations  of 
some  of  Southairs  well-known  specialities  for  ma- 
ternity cases,  calendars  for  two  years  ahead,  space 
for  the  record  of  cases,  and  printed  laundry  lists 
with  counterfoil.  All  maternity  nurses  should 
possess  one  of  these  handy  Companions,  which 
Messrs.  Southall  are  willing  to  supply  to  them  on- 
application. 

X'lEspciancc  preparations. 

We  have  pleasure  in  drawing  attention  to  "  L'Es- 
perance  Preparations,"'  supplied  by  Mme.  Gertrude 
Hope,  7,  Sotith  Moulton  Street,  W..  which  include 
many  dainty  toilet  preparations.  In  Mme.  Hope's 
salons  special  treatment  can  be  applied  for  the 
discolouration  of  the  skin  which  sometimes  ocetirs^ 
after  residence  in  the  tropics.  Superfluous  hairs 
are  also  removed  by  electrolysis,  on  which  subject 
consultations  and  advice  are  given  free,  personally 
or  by  letter.  Pupils  are  also  taught  this  delicate 
manipulation,  and  special  terms  are  given  to  hos- 
pital nurses. 


June  4,   1910: 


Cl?c  36nti?b  3ournai  or  IHur^mg. 


46r 


Gut9i^c  tbc  Gates. 


BIANCAS  DAUGHTER  •      * 

This  story  opens  with  a  t>all  in  a  London  house, 
where  Creighton  Blake,  ail -elderly  man,  recognises 
a  beautiful  young  girl,  by  an  extraordinary  resem- 
blance, as  the  daughter  of  a  woman  he  had  years 
ago  taken  from  the  husband.  The  husband,  as  we 
are  told  later  on  in  the  story  in  the  words  of  an 
old  servant,  '■  froze  her  like  wid  his  sharp  tongue 
and  quare  ways — she  feared  him,"  and  young, 
loving,  and  longing  to  be  loved,  she  found  in 
•Creighton  Blake,  that  for  which  she  looked  in  vain 
from  her  husband.  "  Sure  it  was  many  times  they 
was  together  in  the  garden — the  little  gaarden  wid 
the  owld  wall  round  ut.  She  wud  always  have  me 
there,  too.  But  I  remember  wan  time — the  last 
time.  Mister  Fleming  he  kern  there  and  found 
thim — not  that  they  had  been  ast«aliu  away  to 
mate  there.  They  did  it  open.  He  was  in  his  black 
rage,  and  did  not  pick  and  choose  his  words. 

■'  '  And  what  kind  of  a  woman  do  ve  call  yourself, 
then  ?  ' 

■'  An'  she  says,  lookin'  in  his  eyes — 

"  'A  slave,  Pender.  A  slave  waitin'  for  death. 
<Jod  send  it  soon  I  '  says  she     .     .     . 

"  Then  she  kim  away,  and  we  went  down  through 
the  house  and  out,  and  I  wint  wid  her  across  the 
gaardens  to  the  wood  lanes.  He  was  waitin'  there. 
An'  she  kissed  me  wance  and  rode  away." 

That  happened  years  before,  and  the  little  babe 
that  she  left  behind  is  the  beautiful  Vittoria 
Fleming,  who  has  so  startled  Creighton  Blake  by 
the  likeness  to  her  dead  mother. 

Pender  Fleming  is  about  as  repulsive  a  person 
as  one  can  imagine.  "  A  stout  man,  with  a  great 
pallid  face,  and  a  slow  unwieldy  body.  He  had  a 
very  high  and  hairless  brow,  and  his  eyes,  like  his 
face,  were  pale.     .     .  His  lower  lip  protruded  a 

little,  and  when  he  was  displeased  or  was  immersed 
in  gloomy  thought,  he  outthrust  it  still  more." 
Still  one  can  well  sympathise  with  him  in  his  anger 
against  Richard  Blake,  the  son  of  his  wife's  lover, 
when  he  offers  himself  as  the  husband  for  his 
daughter.  And  we  quite  agree  that  "the  very 
fact«,  whatever  softening  and  extenuating  circum- 
stances may  have  draped  them,  were  clear  enough 
and  even  to  Mrs.  Pudley,  who  was  a  very  modern 
person  and  no  prude,  they  seemed  to  loom  very 
iiigh  across  the  path  of  Vittoria  Fleming  and 
Richard  Blake — an  insurmountable  obstrxiction, 
with  Rue  Bnrree  printed  black  across  it." 

Vittoria,  it  must  be  remembered,  had  been 
brought  up  in  entire  ignorance  of  her  mother's 
history,  and  from  the  first  meeting  she  is  strongly 
attracted  towards  Richard,  who,  though  by  no 
n.oans  indifferent  to  her,  "  wa.s  fighting  for  what 
he  loved  best  in  the  world,  his  freedom  and  peace 
of  mind,"  and  is  determined  to  stifle  the  feeling  she 
has  aroused  in  him. 

"They  jiarted  and  went  their  different  ways, 
Blake  morosely  to  his  club,  and  Vittoria,  her  head 
very  high  and  a  flush  on  her  cheek,  to  her  cousin's 
home.  -An  older  and  wiser  woman  would  have 
realised  that  the  man  was  paying  her  powers  a  high 

*  By  Justus  Miles  Forman.  (Ward,  Lock,  and 
Co.,  London.) 


compliment  by  trying  to  avoid  her.  .  .  .  She 
beat  one  small  hand  on  the  table  before  her. 
■  Tliat"s  over  and  done  with.  I  think  we  shall  be 
able  to  get  on  without  Mr.  Richard  Blake.  There 
seems  to  be  a  number  of  other  people  in  the 
world.'  " 

Wounded  and- piqued  she  accepts  Beau  Temple,  a 
middle-aged  man,  who  has  been  all  her  life  devoted 
to  her.  "It's  possible,  Vittoria;  it's  just  possible 
that  I  could  make  you  happy.  What  do  you 
think?     ....'" 

The  face  of  Ricliard  Blake  came  before  Vittoria's 
eyes.    She  imagined  him  to  say : — 

"You  might  as  well  answer  '  Xo '  to  this  good 
man  before  you,  and  so  have  done  with  it,  for  you 
do  not  love  him.  and  will  never  love  anyone  in  the 
world  but  me.  I  do  not  love  you,  and  do  not  want 
you,  but  I  will  come  between  you  and  all  other 
men  so  long  as  you  shall  live,  and  you  shall  never 
forget  me.  Xow  answer  "'  Yes '  to  Beaumont 
Temple  if  you  dare." 

But  she  answei"s  yes  all  the  same.  We  feel  all 
the  while  that  Beau  will  never  attain  to  his  desire, 
and  are  justified  when  young  Richard  reappears. 
After  stormy  and  violent  scenes  with  Vittoria's 
father,  and  generous  surrender  from  Beau,  we  leave 
them  ' '  down  in  the  gardens  beside  the  gold  fish- 
pool." 

Beau  Temple  said:  '"  They  look  very  happy — one 
of  them  has  her  head  on  the  other's  shoulder." 

The  Frenchman  drew  a  little  sigh. 

Ah,  si  jeunesse  savait  I  " 

•"Knew  what?  "  demanded  Beau. 

"  What  it  costs,"  said  Raoul  de  Gourcy.  I  was 
thinking:  of  how  much  pain  there  has  gone  info  the 
making  of  that  happiness  downi  yonder." 

A  brave  and  gallant  gentleman  squared  his 
shoulders  and  reared  his  head. 

"  It's  worth  it,"  he  said. 

_  H.  H. 

COMING    EVENTS. 

Juiir  oth. — Public  Meeting.  To  consider  the 
present  position  of  the  Xursing  School  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital.  Medical  Society's  Rooms, 
11,  Chandos  Street,  W.,  7.30  p.m. 

The  Women's  Coxgeess. 

Jnne  Oth  to  11th. — Japan-British  Exhibition. 
Great  Hall,  Cascade  Cafe.    3  to  -5  p.m. 

June  6th  and  7th. — "  The  Co-operation  of  Women 
in  Local  Government." 

June  8th. — "  A  University  Standard  in  Home 
Science." 

June  9th. — "  Woman's  Suffrage  "  and  "  The  Wo- 
man's Charter." 

June  10th. — "  National  Health." 

June  11th. — "Nursing."  Chair,  B.ei  Grace  the 
Duchess  of  Montrose.  Territorial  Nursing  and  Red 
Cross  Organisation  :  Miss  E.  S.  Haldane.  Japanese 
Red  Cross  Work :  Miss  Ethel  McCaul.  The  Trained 
Nurse's  Sphere  in  Red  Cross  Work  :  Mrs.  Netter- 
ville  Barron.  Nursing  as  a  Profession:  Mrs.  Bed- 
ford Fenwick.  District  Nursing :  The  Lady  Her- 
mione  Blackwood.  Social  Service  Nursing:  Miss 
H.  L.  Pearse.  

WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 
Drudgery — the  grey  angel  of  success. 


462 


<IDC  Brittsb  Journal  of  IRursino        ^'^'"'^  ^'  ^^^* 


Xcttev5  to  tbc  leMtor. 


ir/n7i<  cordially  inviting  com- 
munications  upon  all  subjecta 
/or  these  columns,  we  icish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understood 
that  we  do  not  in  ant  WAt 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


REGISTRATION  WILL  GO  FAR.    - 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Jourrial  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — Allow  me  to  congratulate  you  on 
the  able  and  open  way  in  whicli  you  have  taken 
up  the  subject  of  West  End  nursing  ( 'r)  institu- 
tions. For  a  long  time  past  I  have  been  in  the 
habit  of  warning  young  nurses  against  these 
homes,  as  you  never  know  what  you  might  get  let 
in  for,  having  had  experience  of  London  institu- 
tions, and  the  class  of  nurses  employed  by  many. 
Registration  will  go  far  to  meet  the  evil,  but  I 
fear  will  not  clear  it  out  entirely.  Only  a  system 
of  registration  of  the  homes,  with  adequate  inspec- 
tion, and  a  bureau  that  would  give  information 
about  the  places  to  nurses  applying  for  posts,  would 
combat  tlie  evil  successfully.  A.  M.  A. 

Exmouth. 


THE   REMEDY  IS-STATE   REGISTRATION. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  ■Journal  of  yursing." 

MADAjr, — May  I  claim  the  courtesy  of  your 
columns  to  defend  a  class  of  institutions  which  at 
the  present  moment  is  being  subjected  to  unjusti- 
fiable assault. 

In  their  search  for  sensational  copy,  certain 
papers  have  recently  engaged  in  attacks  on 
"  Nursing  Homes,"  and  furnished  their  cfedulous 
public  with  liighly  spic^  and  lurid  details  of 
vicious  and  illegal  practices  committed  within  the 
walls  of  these  so-called  Nursing  Homes.  Of  course, 
it  is  impossible  to  deny  that  nefarious  practices  are 
committed  at  certain  of  these  establishments,  and 
that  their  pix)prietoiis  continue  to  liide 
their  guilt  from  the  eyes  of  the  police 
by  labelling  their  establishments  "  Nureing 
Homes,"  "  Rest  Homes,"  and  so  forth.  All 
this  is  common  knowledge,  and,  although  the 
scandal  exists  and  may  even  have  assumed  the  pro- 
portion which  has  been  alleged,  the  police  authori- 
ties may  be  trusted  to  do  their  duty  and  exercise 
due  vigilance  in  the  interests  of  public  morality. 
If  it  should  be  necessary  to  quicken  their  watch- 
fulness, perhaps  the  present  campaign  may  be 
justified,  but  as  one  intimately  associated  with  the 
conduct  of  a  Nursing  Home.  I  wish  to  protest  as 
vigorously  as  I  can  against  the  great  harm  that  is 
being  done  by  this  indiscriminate  denuncLatiou  of 
Nursing  Homes. 

To  many  people,  especially  those  of  restricted 
means,  a  Nursing  Home  often  supplies  a  real 
want  and  is  oftentimes  a  veritable  godsend,  as  often 
the  only  alternative  is  the  general  ward  of  a  public 
hospital  with  its  necessarily  rigid  discipline  and 
lack  of  privacy,  from  which  so  many  people  shrink. 

That  in  some  Nursing  Homes  not  justly  entitled 


to  that  honourable  distinction  abuses  exist,  is  no 
excuse  at  all  for  wild  and  whirling  attacks  on  in- 
stitutions which  fulfil  an  excellent  purpose  and  are 
the  means  of  alleviating  a  great  amount  of  suffer- 
ing without  the  excessive  exiieuditure  and  incon- 
venience involved  in  home   nursing. 

For  such  abuses  as  do  exist  the  remedy  is  a  very 
simple  one,  and  has  been  agitated  for  by  all  the 
proprietors  of  legitimately  conducted  Nursing 
Homes  for  many  years  past;  that  remedy  is — State 
Registration.  Were  this  compulsory,  such  evils  as 
are  now  being  dragged  before  the  public  eye  could 
not  exist.  Establishments  which  are  rightly  con- 
ducted have  even  now  no  need  to  shun  the  light  of 
day,  but  with  universal  Registration  there  would, 
be  no  possibility  of  the  title  "  Nursing  Home " 
ever  being  degraded  in  such  a  way  as  at  the  present 
time.  Nor  would  there  be  the  necessity  for  that 
lurid  journalism  which  massacres  the  innocent  as 
well  as  the  guilty  by  frightening  the  timid  and 
ignorant  public. 

Thanking  you  for  your  courtesy  in  inserting  this 
letter. 

Yours  obedientlv, 

Z. 


DIRECT    REPRESENTATION    ON    THE    CENTRAL 

MIDWIVES'  BOARD. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Deab  Madam. — I  read  with  much  pleasure  the 
admirable  paper  by  Mrs.  Lawson  on  the  Direct  Re- 
presentation of  Midwives  on  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board  in  your  last  issue,  and  thank  Mrs.  Lawson 
for  it.  The  position  which  she  takes  up  is  quite 
irajireguable — representation  of  the  class  governed 
on  the  governing  body.  It  is  a  fundamental  prin- 
ciple of  good  government  all  the  world  over.  It  is 
further  imperative  that  such  representatives  should 
be  sent  to  their  governing  body  by  the  electorate 
of  certified  midwives.  If  this  fact  is  conceded  I 
think  the  point  insisted  upon  by  Mrs.  Lawson  that 
the  midwife  should  at  the  present  time  be  engaged 
in  active  practice  a  minor  one.  Not  that  I  mini- 
mise the  importance  of  representation  of  the  in- 
terests of  practising  midwives,  but  that  I  do  not 
think  the  electorate  should  be  restricted  in  its 
choice,  of  a  representative.  I  should  like  to  see- 
a  midwife  elected  who  has  not  simply  gained  her 
certificate,  but  has  practised  after  obtaining  it, 
and  this  I  think  the  electorate  might  be  trusted 
to  ensure,  but  the  important  point  to  my  mind  is 
that  she  is  sent  to  the  Board  by  the  certified  mid- 
wives,  and  sits  there  at  their  will.  She  will,  there- 
fore, have  to  know  and  further  the  wishes  of  her 
constituents  just  as  much  as  the  ordinary  member 
of  Parliament. 

Yours  faithfully. 

Certified  Midwife. 


1Hot(<-e0. 


OUR   PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules   for  competing   for  the     Pictorial    Puzzle- 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


June  4,  loiu    zbc  Brltisb  Journal  of  IRursino  Supplement.        463 

The    Midwife. 


(Tbe  dentral  niMbwiPcs'  Boait». 

A  meeting  of  tli.i-  Central  .Midwives'  liourd  was 
held  at  the  Board  Eoora,  Caxton  House,  Westmin- 
ster, on  Thur,«lay,  ;May  26th. 

At  the  l>eginning  ot  the  proceedings  Dr.  Champ- 
ness.  Chairman  ot  the  Board,  move<l  resolutions  ot 
sympathy  with  the  King  and  tlie  Queen  Mother  in 
the  grievous  loss  which  they,  in  oonimon  with  the 
Empire,  have  .sustainetl  by  the  death  of  his  late 
Majesty,  and  itc,  humble  congratulations  to  King 
George  on  his  accession  to  the  'Jlirone. 

Repoki  of  Stanuisc  Committee. 
A  letter  was  received  from  the  Clerk  of  the  l^on- 
dou  County  Council  stating  that  in  the  opinion  of 
the  Council  there  is  no  necessity  for  admitting  to 
the  Roll,  within  the  County  of  London,  anyone  who 
does  not  possess  a  certificate  of  training  in  mid- 
wifery. A  letter  was  also  received  fix)m  the 
Bolton  Midwives'  Association  asking  the  Board  not 
to  admit  to  the  Roll  under  Rule  B  2  anyone  resident 
in  Bolton  unless  qualified  by  examination. 

A  letter  was  received  from  a  certified  midwife 
inquiring  as  to  her  obligation  to  undertake  a  case 
for  which  she  had  been  engaged,  but  to 
which  she  was  not  summoned  until  four  hours 
after  the  baby  had  been  bom.  The  Board  decided 
tliat  the  midwife  be  informed  that  she  infringed 
no  rule  of  the  Board  in  declining  to  undertake  a 
case  under  the  circumstances. 

In  connection  with  a  complaint  made  by  Dr. 
H.  Scurfield,  Medical  Officer  of  Health  for  the  City 
of  Sheffield,  as  to  the  practice  of  unqualified  male 
midwives,  the  Board  decided  to  make  representa- 
tions to  the  Privy  Council  as  to  the  desirability  of 
amending  the  law  so  as  to  prevent  the  jjractice  of 
midwifery  by  unqualified  men. 

The  Chairman  said  that  the  present  position  was 
that  it  was  illegal  for  an  uncertified  w'oman,  but 
not  for  an  unqualifie<l  man.  to  act  a.s  a  midwife, 
a  position  which  was  quite  absurd.  It  was  quite 
unnecessary  to  call  in  a  man  other  than  a  registered 
medical  practitioner,  but  at  present  any  male  per- 
son could  deliver  any  woman. 

In  reply  to  a  question  from  Miss  Paget,  the 
Chairman  said  that  the  men  referred  to  in  Sheffield 
were  an  unqualified  medical  man  and  an  unqualified 
dispenser.  He  considered  the  practice  of  mid- 
wifery should  be  restricted  to  doctors  and  certi- 
fied midwives. 

The  applications  of  four  women  for  removal  from 
the  Roll  were  granted. 

In  connection  with  alleged  irregularities  in 
training  at  the  Royal  Derby  and  Derbyshire  Nurs- 
ing Institution,  it  was  decided  to  admit  pupils  who 
present  schedules  signed  by  a  competent  authority 
to  the  June  examination,  but  that  application  by 
the  lecturer  and  chief  midwife  for  recognition  must 
be  made  if  the  institution  desires  to  train  pupils  in 
future. 

Dr.  Nettie  Bell  Turner  was  placed  on  the  list  of 
supernumerary  examiners. 


In  connection  with  the  new  rule  sanctioned  bv 
the  Privy  Council,  under  which  the  admission  of 
midwives  to  the  Roll  without  examination  is  sanc- 
tioned for  a  further  period  (up  to  September  30th 
1910),  at  the  discretion  of  the  Board,  the  following 
midwives  weie  admitted  to  the  Roll  :— 
Appuc.\tions  fob  Certificates  under  Rule  32. 
The  following  applications  for  certificates,   under 

Rule  B  2,  were  granted: 

Sarah  Catherine  Abbott,  Lettie  Bailev.  Susan 
Barnes,  Ellen  Best,  Mary  Jane  Bishop,  EUen  Blee 
Mary  Agnes  Clayforth,  Caroline  Cook.  Elizal)eth 
Earn,  Clara  Godsell,  Harriet  Hallett,  Emma  Har- 
rington, Annie  Hughes,  Margaret  Hunter,  Sarah 
Annie  James,  Elizabeth  Jones,  Mary  Anna  Jones, 
Florence  Jordan,  Annie  Keegan,  Ann  Keogh,  Sarah 
Leigh,  Elizabeth  Mellor,  Sarah  Meredith.  Ida  Jane 
Nicholson,  Elizabeth  Preeoe,  Elizabeth  Preston, 
Fanny  Prince,  Mary  Ann  Pugsley,  Elizaljeth  Rack- 
straw,  Elizabeth  Redsell,  Jane  Ann  Richardson, 
Mary  Ann  Roe,  Caroline  Rolfe,  Mary  Rolph,  Alice 
Rose,  Elizabeth  Scragg,  Elizabeth  Seed,  Eliza  Shew- 
ring,  Alice  Shuttleworth,  Jane  Smith,  Elizabeth 
Hamilton  Speirs,  Ellen  Sijooner,  Maria  Stewart, 
Fanny  Varge,  Catherine  Watson,  Hannah  Whit- 
field, Catherine  Beatrice  Wood,  Eliza  Cheesman. 

Tlie  applications  of  33  were  refused,  and  II  ad- 
journed for  further  inquii-y. 

The  Standing  Committee  recommended  that,  un- 
less under  special  circumstances,  no  application 
from  a  woman  who  had  already  failed  to  pass  the 
Board's  examination  be  submitted  for  considera- 
tion by  the  Board. 

Miss  Paget  opposed  this  on  the  ground  that  they 
were  recognising  women  with  no  training  at  all, 
and  that  candidates  who  presented  themselves  for 
the  Board's  examination  had  at  least  had  some 
training. 

The  Chairman  said  that  they  had  not  t-ested  the 
knowledge  of  the  former  applicants,  but  if  the 
Board  enrolled  women  whose  knowledge  had 
been  tested  in  their  examinations,  and  who  had 
been  rejected  because  they  were  incompetent,  it 
would  assume  an  indefensible  position.  Neverthe- 
less, the  Board  decided  to  adopt  this  course. 

It  was  decided  after  some  discussion  not  to  con- 
sider applications  from  women  who  had  attained 
the  age  of  70. 

The  application  of  the  authorities  of  the  Leeds 
Maternity  Hospital  for  its  recognition  as  a  train- 
ing school  was  granted,  as  was  that  of  the  Lam- 
beth Union  Infirmary,  subject  to  its  being  made 
clear  that  the  216  deliveries  last  year  were  intern 
and  not  extern. 

The  applications  of  the  following  doctors  for  ap- 
proval as  teachers  were  granted: — Dr.  Robert 
-Vpplegarth  Hendry,  Dr.  Henrv  MonciieflF  Macgill. 
Dr.  Clifford  White,  F.R.C.S.,  Dr.  JIargaret 
Mitchell  Ritchie. 

The  applications  of  the  following  midwives  for 
api)roval  to  sign  Forms  III.  and  IV.  were 
granted:— Maude    Evelyn     Farrar     (No.     29826), 


464 


^bc  Bi'ittsb  3ounial  of  IWursino  Supplement.  [J"°e  4,  loi 


Cecilia  Jarvis  (No.  493),  Edith  Emily  Smith  (No. 
24673). 

Secretabt's  Report  ox-  Examination. 

The  Secretary  presented  his  report  on  the  April 
examination,  which  showed  the  percentage  of 
failures  to  be  12.8.  The  Chairman  said  that  they 
started  with  a  percentage  of  failures  of  22  per  cent. 
The  decrease  was  not  due  to  a  lowering  of  the 
standard,  but  to  the  better  teaching  of  the  pupils. 
It  is  further  interesting  to  notice  that  the  failures 
at  the  last  examination  from  the  training  schools 
were  9  per  cent.,  from  the  private  tuition  candi- 
dates 20.9. 

The  next  meeting  of  the  Board  was  fixed  for 
June  30th. 


^be  ^vainina  of  riDibwives. 

The  Duchess  of  Hamilton  presided  at  the  fifth 
annual  meeting  of  the  Woolwich  Home  for  Mothers 
and  Babies  (iraining  School  for  District  Mid- 
wires)  held  at  the  Deanery,  St.  Paul's,  on  Tues- 
day last.  Canon  Holmes,  referring  to  the  decreas- 
ing population,  said  that  those  who  worked  among 
the  cottage  homes  knew  there  was  no  greater  dan- 
ger to  the  country  than  the  untrained  nurse.  Dr. 
J  S.  Fairbairu  stated  that  the  training  imposed 
for  the  certificate  of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board 
was  altogether  too  short  for  those  who  had  not  had 
previous  hospital  work.  The  loss  of  infant  life  was 
appalling,  and  it  would  pay  the  State  to  do  some- 
thing. Miss  A.  S.  Gregory  also  pointed  out  that 
England  lagged  far  beyond  Continental  nations, 
which  insisted  on  longer  periods  of  training. 


ITbe  IRural  flDiDwives'  association. 

The  seventh  annual  meeting  of  the  Rural  Mid- 
wives'  Association  was  held  on  Tuesday,  May  31st, 
at  3,  Grosvenor  Place,  by  kind  permission  of  Lady 
Esther  Smith. 

In  the  unavoidable  absence  of  Mr.  H.  J.  Ten- 
nant,  M.P.,  through  illness,  Dr.  Champneys  occti- 
pied  the  chair. 

Dr.  Champneys,  in  his  opening  speech,  gave  a 
short  history  of  the  movement.  He  said  that  the 
Act  which  came  into  force  this  year  had  stopped 
the  offices  of  the  friendly  neighbour  except  in  cases 
of  emergency,  and  at  first  it  seemed  likely  there 
would  be  an  appalling  shortage  of  midwives  ready 
to  take  their  places.  But  that  fear  was  not  likely 
now  to  be  realised,  and  indeed  from  some  places  the 
report  came  that  there  were  too  many.  The  Lon- 
don County  Council  state  no  more  are  required  in 
the  County  of  London,  so  that  the  question  resolved 
itself  into  one  of  redistribution. 

A  great  many  midwives  who  presented  them- 
selves for  examination  did  not  intend  to  practise 
at  all,  but  in  April,  1909,  about  one-third  of  those 
wlio  presented  themselves  intended  to  practise  as 
rural  midwives,  which  was  a  very  satisfactory  pro- 
portion. He  suggested  to  benevolent  people  that 
instead  of  always  endowing  beds  or  cots  in  hospi- 
tals, they  should  endow  a  midwife  for  some  rural 
district,  the  remoter  the  better. 

Mrs.  C.  Hobhouse  said  that  the  older  members  of 


the  Society  would  remember  that  at  first  they 
aimed  at  supplying  women  trained  in  midwifery 
only,  but  of  late  years  the  demand  that  they 
should  also  have  general  training  had  enormously 
increased.  This  training  was,  of  course,  de- 
sirable, amongst  other  reasons  because  in  some 
districts  they  might  have  weeks  of  enforced  idle- 
ness owing  to  the  scarcity  of  cases.  The  additional 
training  brought  with  it  very  considerable  increase 
in  expense  so  that  in  future  they  would  have  to 
raise  the  fee  to  subscribers  from  £12  12s.  to 
£14  14s. 

Dr.  Downes  pointed  out  the  importance  of  work- 
ing in  harmony  with  the  local  medical  men.  He 
warmly  advocated  the  necessity  of  giving  mid- 
wives  general  training  as  nurses  also,  and  said  that 
in  Holland  they  were  required  to  hold  a  two  years' 
certificate  of  general  training,  and  were  only 
obliged  to  have  effected  ten  deliveries.  He  wished 
that  Poor  Law  Guardians  would  see  the  necessity 
for  making  more  provision  for  the  nursing  of  their 
out-door  sick  poor.  In  the  rural  districts,  where 
suitably  trained  nurses  were  provided,  if  tBey  were 
to  pay  in  proportion  to  the  services  rendered  it 
would  solve  a  great  difficulty. 

Mrs.  Arthur  Holland  said  that  the  Surrey,County 
Council  had  provided  courses  of  lectures  to  mid- 
wives,  the  lecturer  being  Dr.  Mary  Rocke.  The 
Local  Committee  had  also  purchased  several  books 
to  lend  to  midwives. 

Dr.  Sydney  Stephenson  said  that  the  real  reason 
of  his  presence  that  afternoon  was  that  he  should 
speak  about  ophthalmia. 

From  a  quarter  to  a  third  of  the  blindness  in  this 
country  was  due  to  that  disease ;  99  out  of  every 
100  cases  could  be  prevented.  He  came  to  speak 
very  willingly,  for  he  was  sure  that  if  the  public 
once  understood  what  was  the  cause  of  this  terrible 
affliction,  it  would  insist  that  it  should  be  pre- 
vented. He  had  little  doubt  that  in  time  notifica- 
tion of  this  disease  wotild  be  compulsory.  He  con- 
sidered that  any  trouble  in  this  respect  would  be 
well  rewarded  if  they  coidd  save  one  single  child 
from  the  eternal  night  of  blinded  sight. 

Dr.  Fegan  dwelt  on  the  absolute  necessity  of 
cleanliness,  not  comparative,  but  actual.  He  said 
that  in  a  large  poor  district  he  had  made  up  his 
mind  to  purge  the  Roll,  and  he  had  done  it  success- 
fully. There  were  large  numbers  of  medical  men 
and  forty  midwives,  and  he  had  got  rid  of  19  un- 
desirables. Their  one  object  must  be  to  insure 
immunity  during  parturition  for  mother  and  child. 
He  would  ask  Dr.  Downes  to  represent  to  the 
Local  Government  Board  the  desirability  of  the 
payment  of  the  full  fee,  £1  Is.,  to  medical  practi- 
tioners, called  in  by  midwives  to  att*nd  cases  with 
"  which  they  are  unable  to  deal,  as  at  present  medi- 
cal practitioners  often  received  no  fee  at  all.  He 
was  glad  to  know  of  the  extended  time  of  grace  for 
registration,  and  had  caused  it  to  be  widely 
known. 

Mr.  Fremantle,  in  commenting  on  Dr.  Stephen- 
son's remarks  on  ophthalmia,  quoted  a  comment  of 
the  late  King  on  the  subject:  "If  preventible, 
why  not  prevented?" 

With  the  usual  votes  of  thanks,  the  meeting 
then  terminated. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 

rME:  imnsiiKi  n^coiip 

EDITED  BY  MRS  BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,     JUNE     11,     1910. 


l£^itovial. 


PROFESSIONAL     DAMAGE. 

The  splendid  pul)lic  meeting  convened 
by'nurses  trained  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, which  we  report  in  another  column, 
demonstrated  convincingly  the  solidarity 
of  Bart.'s  nurses  in  their  attitude  towards 
the  recent  appointment  made  to  the  ^latron- 
ship  of  that  historic  hospital,  and  in  regard 
to  the  policy  to  be  pursued  in  connection 
with  it.  It  demonstrated  most  clearly  also 
that  jniblic  opinion  is  with  the  nurses. 

There  was  deep  feeling  at  the  action  of 
the  Election  Committee  in  ignoring  the 
high  standard  of  "nursing  education  and 
practical  training  which  it  had  been  the 
pride  and  life-work  of  their  late  Matron  to 
maintain,  bj"  the  selection,  as  her  successor, 
of  a  Matron's  Assistant  from  the  London 
Hospital,  Avhere  the  certificate  awarded  after 
two  years  work  is  oC  indefinite  value. 

There  was  strong  indignation  at  the  pro- 
fessional damage  inflicted  on  every  certifi- 
cated Bart.'s  nurse  by  the  same  committee  by 
its  contemptuous  depreciation  of  the  cer- 
tificate of  their  school  in  the  public  mind. 
Nevertheless,  true  to  their  training,  they 
made  their  public  protest  in  a  manner, 
which,  though  effective,  was  dignified,  and 
worthy  of  the  traditions  of  St.  Bartholomew's, 
so  that  no  one  could  fail  to  recognise  it  as 
the  protest  of  disciplined  women,  placing  a 
strong  restraint  upon  themselves. 

No  animus  was  exhibited,  still  less  was 
self  interest  the  motive  of  the  meeting.  It 
was  a  loyal  defence  of  the  silent  and  defence- 
less dead,  and  a  self-respecting  expression 
of  determination  to  uphold  professional 
standards.  For  twentj'-eight  years  the 
certificate  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital 
has  stood  to  the  world  as  a  guarantee  of  a 
well-defined  standard  of  nursing — it  means 


that  each  woman  who  has  earned  it  has 
passed  through  a  systematic  three  years 
term  of  practical  service  in  the  wards  and 
the  necessary  theoretical  instruction,  and, 
after  examination,  has  been  certificated  as 
eflicient.  No  nurse  who  does  not  hold  this 
certificate  is  eligible  for  promotion  to  a 
Sister's  post. 

At  the  London  Hospital,  from  which 
institution  the  Election  Committee  have 
seen  fit  to  promote  a  Matron's  Assistant, 
who  has  never  had  an  independent  charge, 
to  the  position  of  Matron  and  Superinten- 
dent of  Nursing  at  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital,  a  certificate  is  awarded  after  the 
short  term  of  two  years'  experience.  No 
definite  curriculum  of  training  is  secured  to 
the  pupil,  even  in  this  inadequate  term,  as 
during  the  two  years  she  may  be  called 
iipon  to  do  clerical,  domestic,  or  office  work, 
or  may  even  be  promoted  to  the  position  of  i 
Sister.  Perhaps  this  is  why  no  examination 
is  considered  requisite  for  second-year 
nurses.  The  certificate  is,  moreover,  qiiali- 
fied  by  the  addition  of  remarks  at  the 
discretion  of  the  Matron,  in  spaces  left  for 
that  purpose,  and  by  "  damning  with  faint 
praise "  may  be  practically  useless  to  its 
possessor. 

Is  it  surprising  that  Bart.'s  nurses  should 
be  indignant  that  it  is  proposed  to  place 
their  school  under  the  superintendence  of  a 
lady  holding  a  certificate  so  inferior  to  their 
own? — a  certificate  which  does  not  even 
guarantee  that  the  holder  has  spent  the  in- 
adequate period  of  two  years  in  the  wards 
of  the  London  Hospital,  while  their  own 
certificate,  as  we  have  shown,  stands  for 
three  years'  practical  training  and  work  in 
the  wards,  tested  by  examination  at  its  con- 
clusion. 

As  it  appears  that  the  Election  Com- 
mittee are   unwilling  to   protect  the  pro- 


466 


ZlK  Biitisb  journal  of  IRurslno. 


[Juue  11,  1910 


fessional  staUis  of  their  own  nurses  and  the 
high  standard  of  practical  work  of  which 
they  have  been  justly  proud,  is  it  sur- 
prising that  the  nurses  have  taken  the 
defence  of  their  certificate  into  their  own 
hands  ?  We  think  that  it  will  be  conceded 
that  it  is  in  extremelv  able  ones. 


flDc^ical  flDatters. 


SUN  BATHS  AND  NATURE  CURE  METHODS. 

Dr.  Flora  Murray,  in  the  course  of  a  series  of 
lectures  delivered  at  Baylis  House,  Slough, 
as  reported  in  the  British  Health  Review,  ex- 
plained the  great  therai^eutic  value  of  sun 
baths  and  deplored  the  fact  that  they  were  not 
employed  in  hospitals  and  convalescent  homes. 
She  pointed  out  that  by  means  of  sun  baths 
the  temperature  of  the  body  is  raised,  the  cir- 
culation stimulated,  the  oxidation  of  proteids 
rendered  more  complete,  and  the  elimination  of 
waste  products  by  the  skin  and  lungs  more 
rapid.  Such  a  stimulant  are  they  for  the  entire 
nen"ous  system  that  the  brain  becomes  more 
active,  and  the  improved  metabolism  gives  a 
sense  of  well  being  and  vitality  to  the  whole 
body.  Dr.  Murray  pointed  out  that  though  the 
maximum  of  benefit  is  derived  from  a  proper 
"  Cure  "  sun  bath  as  administered  in  a  Nature 
Cure  Sanatorium,  benefit  could  be  derived  even 
in  an  ordinary  bedroom,  and  she  ridiculed  the 
idea  that  we  have  not  sufficient  sunlight  in  this 
country  for  the  pui-pose,  saying  that  even  in 
the  winter  we  neglect  to  avail  ourselves  of  the 
rays  of  the  sun  as  we  might.  Only  three  things 
are  required  for  a  sun  bath: — light,  air,  and 
privacy,  the  best  effect  being  obtained  when 
the  rays  of  the  sun  fall  direct  upon  the  body — • 
not  through  glass — the  entire  surface  of  the 
skin  being  exposed,  and  the  bath  being  taken  in 
the  open  air,  wet  compresses  being  used  to 
protect  the  head  and  nape  of  the  neck.  Dr. 
Murray  pleaded  for  the  establishment  of 
facilities  for  sun  baths  in  all  hospitals,  sana- 
toria, convalescent  homes,  open  air  schools, 
gymnasia,  etc.  Turning  to  the  consideration  of 
Nature  Cure  methods  in  general,  Dr.  Murray 
pointed  out  that  the  more  we  cultivate  civilised 
occupations  the  greater  is  the  strain  laid  upon 
the  nervous  system,  and  consequently  the 
greater  the  need  to  turn  to  Nature  Cur© 
methods  in  order  to  correct  this.  She 
insisted  on  the  importance  of  _  exposing 
the  whole  body  systematically  to  the 
influence  of  light  and  air,  and  up- 
on bathing  and  rubbing  the  body,  per- 
fonning  deep  breathing  .exercises  and  syste- 
matic general  physical  culture,  living,  eating, 
and  sleeping  as  much  as  possible  in  the  open 
air,  and  adopting  a  correct  diet.     She  advised 


those  to  whom  these  ideas  were  new  to  go  and 
study  them  in  a  Nature  Cure  Sanatorium,  and 
then  caiTy  them  into  home  life.  Dr.  Murray 
had  much  to  say  that  was  interesting  as  to  the 
curative  power  of  the  earth  itself,  and  advised 
sleeping  not  merely  in  an  air  hut  but  right  out 
in  the  open.  Dr.  Hector  Munro  mentioned 
that  in  his  experience  in  India  cases  of  fatal 
sunstroke  were  invariably  heavy  meat  eaters 
and  drinkers  amongst  Europeans,  and  he  in- 
stanced a  European  who  had  been  very  ill  at 
first  on  going  out  to  India,  and  who  on  study- 
ing the  habits  of  the  natives  detemiined  to  live 
as  they  did,  adopting  two  light,  non-flesh  meals 
a  day,  with  the  result  that  he  not  only 
recovered  his  health,  but  achieved  a  fitness  and 
power  of  endurance  he  had  never  known  before, 
and  to  the  astonishment  of  everyone  he  was 
able  to  walk  long  distances,  like  a  native,  in 
the  intense  heat  of  the  Madras  hot  season, 
without  any  sort  of  head  covering. 

THE  PATHOLOGY  OF  MALARIA. 

Major  Ronald  Ross,  in  a  lecture  on  the  causes 
of  malaria  delivered  last  week  at  the  Eoyal  In- 
stitution, dealt  with  the  pathology  of  malaria 
and  its  history  in  Europe.  In  the  Homeric 
period  there  was  no  mention  of  malaria,  neith;?r 
was  there  in  the  writings  of  the  poet  Hesiod, 
who  lived  in  a  valley  which  was  now  highly 
malarious. 


LECTURES  ON   BABIES. 

On  Tuesday,  last  week.  Dr.  Ralph  Viuceno 
gave  his  fifth  and  last  lecture  on  Babies  at  the 
Infants'  Hospital,  Vincent  Square,  on  "Clinical 
Gases,  Illustrative  of  Various  Diseases  and 
Their  Treatment." 

Several  convalescent  infants  were  shown  in 
the  lecture  room. 

Case  I. — ^Intense  atrophy,  admitted  at  the 
age  of  nine  months,  weighing  9  lb.  3  oz. ;  after 
treatment  for  five  months,  13  lb.  2  oz.  Still 
gaining  weight. 

Case  II. — Congenital  specific  disease,  ad- 
mitted with  temp.  103  degrees.  Head  re- 
tracted. Had  been  given  mercury,  grs.  ij. 
every  day  since  Jan.  4th.  Ready  to  be  dis- 
charged on  condition  of  mercurial  treatment 
being  continued.  Dr.  Vincent  drew  attention 
to  the  incessant  and  frenzied  crying  of  cases  of 
this  kind. 

Case  III. — Scorbutus,  due  to  cooked  food. 
Had  been  admitted  with  typical  tenderness  of 
the  legs,  due  to  haemorrhage  under  the  peri- 
osteum, the  knees  tightly  swollen  and  shiny. 
Marked  apprehension  of  being  touched.  It  had 
been  most  difficult  to  find  any  food  the  infant 
could  digest. 

Case  IV. — Intestinal  obstruction. 

Case    V. — Atrophy. 

Case  VI. — Broncho  Pneumonia. 


June  11, 1910]        ^jfjc  iBritisb  3ournal  of  IRursino. 


467 


Zhc  lestimation  of  tbc  3&loo^ 
IPvcssurc. 


Dr.  George  J.  Heuer,  Assistant  Resident 
Surgeon  at  tlie  Johns  Hopkins  Hospital,  Balti- 
more, contributes  to  its  Nurses'  Alumnce  Maga- 
zine an  interesting  article  on  the  above  subject. 
He  writes: — The  practical  importance  of 
estimating    the    blood 


pressure  in  man  has 
long  been  recognised 
both  by  physicians 
and  physiologists. 
Previous  to  the  intro- 
duction of  instru- 
ments of  greater  or 
less  precision,  the  pal- 
pating finger  was  the 
blood  pressure  appara- 
tus of  the  physician, 
who,  by  digital  com- 
pression of  the  vessel 
wall,  was  able  t^ 
judge  more  or  less 
accurately  the  arterial 
tension  of  his  patient. 
While  this  was  an  imperfect  means  of 
estimating  blood  pressure,  especially  in  the 
absence  of  instruments  for  comparison,  the 
idea  of  measuring  it 
by  compression  of  the 
vessel  wall  was  im- 
portant, and  has 
formed  the  basis  up- 
on which  all  the  in- 
struments for  measur- 
ing arterial  pressure 
have  been  con- 
structed. 

Although  consider- 
able work  had  been 
previously  done  upon 
the  determination  of 
the  blood  pressure, 
especially  by  Marey, 
no  practical  instru- 
ment for  estimating 
the  arterial  tension 
in  man  had  been  de- 
vised until  Von  Basch 
in  1887  published  a 
description  of  his  in- 
strument. He  had 
previously,  in  1881. 
described  an  instru- 
ment to  which  he 
gave  the  name  of 
sphygmomanometer  for  determining  the  human 
blood  pressure,  but  it  had  not  proven  to  be  of 
practical  usefulness.    The  instrument  which  he 


The  Von  Basch  Sphygmomanometer. 


described  in  1887,  called  by  the  same  name, 
embodied  the  principles  of  his  first  instrument, 
w-as  a  distinct  improvement  over  it,  but  still 
was  open  to  several  objections.  It  is  shown  in 
the  accompanying  cut.  Fig.  1.  As  originally 
described,  it  consists  of  a  metal  cylinder  (B) 
called  an  air  pelotte  (seen  in  vertical  section 
in  upper  part  of  cut)  over  one  end  of  which  is 
tied  a  rubber  membrane  and  the  other  end  of 

which  is  connected  by 

j  a  rubber  tube  with 
the  manometer  [A). 
By  means  of  the  cock 
(D)  the  entire  system 
is  filled  with  air  under 
low  pressure  so  that 
the  rubber  membrane 
bulges  a  little.  In 
using  the  instrument, 
the  cylinder  (B)  is 
placed  along  the 
course  of  a  blood 
vessel,  the  slightly 
bulging  membrane 
in  contact  with  the 
skin.  Pressure  is 
exerted  upon  it  until 
the  vessel  is  obliterated — that  is,  until  the  pulse 
disappears  below  the  point  of  pressure.  The 
pressure  necessary  to  accomplish  this  is  read 
off  the  manometer 
and  is  equal  to  the 
blood  pressure.  While 
such  an  instrument 
gives  a  fairly  accur- 
ate value  of  the  blood 
pressure  in  superfi- 
cially placed  vessels, 
such  as,  for  example, 
the  temporal  artery, 
it  becomes  less  re- 
liable when  used  to 
determine  arterial 

tension  in  vessels 
deeply  placed  or 
covered  by  a  thick 
layer  of  muscle  or  fat. 
Since  the  appear- 
ance of  the  Von  Basch 
S  p  h  ygmomanometer, 
a  number  of  different 
instruments  have 
been  described.  His 
instrument  was 
adapted  chiefly  to 
estimate  the  systolic 
or  maximum  blood 
pressure ;  and  the 
greater  number  of  the  instruments  which  have 
followed  are  adapted  to  the  same  purpose. 
Witli  others  the  diastolir'  nr  minimnm  nrAocnr<i 


468 


Z]K  Bi'ttisb  3ournal  of  iRursing. 


[June  11,  1910 


may  be  estimated,  while  with  one  or  two,  such 
as  the  Erlangei-  instrument,  both  systolic  and 
diastolic  pressures  can  be  determined.  The 
principle  in  all  is  much  the  same.  The  im- 
provements have  been  the  substitution  of  a 
leather  or  canvas  pneumatic  cuflf  for  compres- 
sing the  vessel,  and  the  use  of  some  inexpen- 
sive, convenient  form  of  manometer  by  which 
the  pressure  can  be  read  off  in  millimeters  of 
mercury. 

Of  the  various  instruments  invented,  that  of 
Riva-Eocei  has  proven  the  most  practically 
useful  for  general  hospital  and  outside  work, 
and  is  the  one  which  is  at  present  used  in  the 
Johns  Hopkins  Hospital.  It  was  first  described 
by  Eiva-Rocci  in  1896,  and  since  that  time  has 
undergone  various  modifications,  the  most  im- 
portant perhaps  being  the  substitution  of  a  wide 
for  a  narrow  pneumatic  cuff  as  in  the  original 
instrument.  It  has  been  experimentally  tested 
by  a  number  of  investigators  and  found  to  be 
sufficiently  accurate  for  general  purposes.  The 
principle  on  which  it  is  constructed  is  the  same 
as  that  of  the  Yon  Baseh  instrument — that  is, 
it  measures  the  amount  of  pressure  necessary 
to  obliterate  the  pulse  peripheral  to  a  point  of 
constriction. 

The  instrument  which  is  used  at  present  in 
the  hospital  is  shown  in  Fig.  2.  It  consists  of 
a  broad  leather  cufi  (A)  on  the  inner  surface  of 
which  is  a  flat  rubber  bag  connected  with  a 
rubber  tube  with  a  mercury  manometer  (B) 
and  through  it  with  a  double  rubber  bulb  (C). 
Compression  of  the  air  through  this  system 
causes  the  mercury  in  the  chamber  of  the 
manometer  to  rise  in  the  tub^(D)  which  is 
provided  with  a  millimeter  scale  so  that  the 
height  of  the  column  can  be  read  off  in  milli- 
meters of  mercury.  The  determination  of  the 
systoUc  or  maximum  blood  pressure  with  this 
instrument  is  very  simple  :  it  consists  in  deter- 
mining the  amount  of  pressure  necessary  to 
completely  obliterate  the  artery — that  is,  to 
prevent  a  pulse  from  passing  through  the  region 
under  compression.  The  cufi  is  placed  around 
the  arm  between  the  elbow  and  shoulder,  and 
snugly  but  not  too  tightly  buckled  in  place; 
then  with  the  fingers  on  the  radial  artery  at 
the  wrist,  so  that  the  pulse  can  be  most  easily 
felt,  the  bulb  (C)  is  "  pumped  "  until  the  pulse 
at  the  wrist  disappears.  During  the  act  of 
pumping,  air  is  forced  into  the  rubber  bag  under 
the  leather  cuff,  causing  compression  of  the 
brachial  artery  until  it  is  obliterated:  at  the 
same  time  the  pressm-e  causes  the  mercury  in 
the  tube  (D)  to  rise.  Since  the  pressure 
throughout  the  system  is  everywhere  equal, 
the  height  of  the  column  of  mercury  in  the  tube 
will  measure  in  millimeters  the  pressure  neces- 
sary to  obliterate  the  artery.    The  moment  the 


pulse  at  the  wrist  disappears  indicates  the 
maximum  or  systolic  pressure  in  the  brachial 
artery.  As  the  pressure  is  lowered  again  by 
allowing  the  escape  of  air,  the  pulse  at  the 
wrist  reappears.  The  first,  faintest,  palpable 
return  of  the  pulse  at  the  wrist  is  used  to  indi- 
cate the  blood  pressure,  and  is  measured  by 
the  height  of  the  mercury  column  at  which  this 
occurs.  Thus  the  blood  pressure  as  obtained  in 
practice  is  slightly  lower  than  the  actual  blood 
pressure,  the  error  depending  upon  the  delicacy 
of  touch  and  the  practice  of  the  individual 
taking  it.  The  error  should  not  be  great,  and, 
generally  speaking,  two  individuals  taking  the 
same  blood  pressure  should  be  able  to  read 
values  within  five  millimeters  of  each  other. 
The  average  blood  pressure  in  young  adults 
varies  between  110  and  120  millimeters  of 
mercury ;  in  older  adults  is  found  to  be  between 
120  and  140.  In  children  it  is  lower,  and  with 
increasing  age  it  generally  rises.  Prolonged  rest 
in  bed  may  cause  it  to  fall  to  85  or  90  even  in 
adults,  while,  under  pathological  conditions, 
such  as  nephritis,  it  may  rise  to  220  or  even 
300.  The  absolute  value  of  the  systolic  blood 
pressure  is  often  of  not  so  great  importance  as 
the  relative  change  in  the  blood  pressure ;  espe- 
cially is  this  true  in  the  acute  medical  and 
surgical  conditions  in  which  rapid  rises  or  falls 
in  the  blood  pressure  may  be  expected. 

It  is  not  the  purpose  of  this  short  note  to 
enter  into  a  discussion  of  the  various  medical 
and  surgical  conditions  in  which  the  estimation 
of  the  blood  pressure  is  of  value.  As  a  means 
of  clinical  diagnosis;  in  following  the  results 
of  therapeutic  treatment,  and  in  the  field  of 
surgery,  its  usefulness  has  steadily  increased. 
Because  of  this  increasing  use  it  has  become 
necessary  that  every  nurse  should  be  able  to 
take  accurate  blood  pressm-e  observations  in 
order  that  she  may  follow  her  cases  intelli- 
gently. Especially  in  certain  surgical  condi- 
tions, such  as  states  of  increased  intracranial 
pressure,  it  is  of  the  greatest  importance  to 
follow  the  blood  pressure,  for  it  furnishes  one  of 
the  most  rehable  means  the  nurse  has  of  know- 
ing the  condition  of  her  patient. 


XcaQue  IRews. 

SHADWELL  NURSES'  LEAGUE. 

The  annual  re-union  of  the  Shadwell  Nurses' 
League — the  League  of  the  Nurses  of  the  East 
London  Hospital  for  Children — was  recently 
held  at  the  hospital.  We  are  asked  to  state 
that  any  former  nurses  or  Sisters  wishing  to 
join  the  League  are  requested  to  communicate 
with  Miss  M.  E.  Knight  (Hon.  Sec),  Eaphyus, 
Horsham,  Sussex. 


Juae  11,  1910] 


Zbc  Britisb  3oiii:nal  of  "Wurstng. 


469 


^be  Stan^ar^  of  IHiu-suuj  at  Bart's 

The  Public  Meeting,  held  at  the  Medical 
Society's  Eooms  ou  Monday,  June  6th,  "  to 
consider  the  position  of  the  Nursing  School  at 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and  to  take  such 
action  as  may  be  desirable  "  upon  the  appoint- 
ment of  a  Matron's  Assistant  from  the  Loudon 
Hospital  to  the  position  of  Matron  and  Super- 
intendent of  Nursing  at  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital,  to  succeed  the  late  Miss  Isla  Stewart, 
although  convened  only  at  a  few  days'  notice, 
was  crowded  to  the  doors,  every  available  seat 
in  the  room  was  filled,  and  far  out  into  the 
passages,  and  the  room  beyond,  the  standing 
room  was  also  occupied.  It  is  estimated  that 
three  hundred  nurees  and  their  supporters  were 
present,  and,  even  before  the  meeting  opened, 
it  was  quite  evident  that  the  strong  detemiina- 
tiou  animated  everyone  present,  that  the  splen- 
did work  for  humanity  and  the  professional  repu- 
tation of  their  late  Matron  should  not  be  con- 
temptuously ignored  without  the  strongest 
possible  protest,  and  that  the  value  of  the 
Bart's  certificate  should  not  be  depreciated 
without  the  reason  for  this  injustice  being  in- 
quired into.  The  feeling  through  the  room  was 
electric,  and  there  w'as  no  question  that  the 
meeting  was  of  one  heart  and  one  mind. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  Miss 
Maud  Banfield  icert.  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital), formerly  President  of  the  American 
Society  of  Superintendents  of  Training  Schools 
for  Nurses,  who  called  upon  the  Secretary, 
Mrs.  Shuter  (cert.  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospi- 
tal) to  read  the  notice  convening  the  meeting. 

Mrs.  Shuter  then  reported  letters  and 
telegrams  of  warm  support  and  sym- 
pathy too  numerous  to  read,  in- 
cluding letters  from  members  of  the  Scot- 
tish Nurses'  Association,  and  from  the  Irish 
Nurses'  Association.  The  following  are  of 
special  interest :  — 

Dear  Mrs.  Shcteb, — In  case  I  may  l>e  prevented 
from  attending  your  meeting  at  the  last  moment, 
I  am  writing  to  you  to  say  how  I  sympathise  with 
the  nursing  staff  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital, 
in  having  a  nurse  from  another  institution — and 
that  one  the  London — put  over  their  heads.  Un- 
less the  Electing  Committee  are  in  possession  of 
knowledge  which  is  not  available  to  the  rest  of 
us,  I  can  conceive  of  no  step  more  calculated  to 
damage  t"he  prestige  of  the  St.  Bart's  nurses  in 
the  eyes  of  the  public  than  this  one,  or  to  under- 
mine the  feelings  of  loyalty  of  the  Bart's  Staff  to 
their  own  institution. 

I  can  understand  that  the  present  staff  are 
unable  to  express  their  feelings  openly  and  freely 
on  the  subject,  having  due  regard  to  the  question 
of     discipline,     so     that     I     am      glad     to     see 


that     the     matter     is     being     taken     up     outside. 
I  wish  you  every  success.     FrOm  what  1  have  heard 
in  conversation  with  other  Bart's  men  there  is  a 
cousiderable  feeling  of  indignation  abroad. 
Very  truly  yours, 
Leonard  Dobson,  M.D.,  Lond., 
Governor  of  .Vf.  Barfholomevr's  Bospital. 


Dear  Mrs.  Shuter, — I  learn  that  you  are  ar- 
ranging for  a  meeting  to  be  held  to-night  to  protest 
against  the  appointment  of  a  Matron  to  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital,  who  has  not  been  trained  in 
that  institution.  I  regret  exceedingly  that  I  can- 
not attend  this  meeting,  and  hear  what  transpires, 
for  ou  the  face  of  it,  and  unless  adequate  explana- 
tion is  forthcoming,  it  seems  to  me  that  a  grave 
slight  has  been  passed  on  a  large  number  of  ladies 
who  have  in  no  way  deserved  such  treatment. 
Yours  sincerely, 

Richard  Reece,  M.D., 
Governor  of  St.  Bartholomew' s  Bospital. 


De-ir  Madam, — 1  am  very  sorry  that  it  is  impos- 
sible for  me  to  be  present  on  Monday,  as  I  much 
wished  to  join  in  the  protest  against  what  can 
only  be  described  as  an  unwarrantable  and  un- 
provoked attack  on  the  good  name  and  the  reputa- 
tion of  our  Nursing  School.  Fortunately  these 
stand  K)  high,  and  are  so  firmly  grounded,  that  no 
attack,  from  whatever  quarter  delivered,  can  do 
more  than  provoke  amazed  contempt. 

But  it  has  been  a  great  shock  to  all  of  us,  who, 
like  myself,  have  always  had  the  firmest  belief  in 
the  mutual  loyalty,  honour,  and  good  faith  of 
Bart's  and  its  government. 

There  is  no  meml>er  of  the  Xureing  School,  oither 
past  or  present,  from  the  most  exi)erienced  Matron 
to  the  youngest  probationer,  who  does  not  under- 
stand, and  feel,  that  an  intentional  slight  has  been 
cast  upon  a  body  who  were,  to  a  woman,  loyal  to 
their  great  Alma  Mater  and  her  teachings. 

It  is  an  insult  to  many  memories  that  the  successor 
to  our  late  Matron  should  have  been  chosen  from  a 
hospital  with  a  lower  standard  of  training  than 
St.   Bartholomew's  Hospital. 

I  have  no  doubt  but  that  our  protest  will  take 
such  a  dignified  and  effectual  form  as  shall  make  it 
worthy  of  the  traditions  of  Bart's. 
I  am,  dear  Madam. 
Yours  faithfully, 

M.    MOLLETI. 

(cert.  St.  Bartholomev:' s  Hospital.  Matron 
Boyal    South    Hants  and   Southampton 
Hospital). 

The  following  telegram  ]\Irs.  Shuter  said  she 
read  with  special  pleasure  as  it  was  from  a  lady 
who  for  five  years  had  held  the  position  of 
Sister  at  the  London  Hospital:  — 

"  Sorry  impossible  to  attend  meeting.  To  me  it 
seems  incredible  that  the  authorities  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital  should  have  offered  so 
gratuitous  an  insult  to  the  memory  of  their  late 
Matron,  and  to  their  own  training  school.— 
K.  V.  Macixtyre,  Matron,  Infirmary,  Wigan." 


470 


Cf?e  30rltisb  3onrnaI  of  mursina. 


[June  11,  1910 


The  Chairman's  Address. 

Miss  ]Maud  Banfield,  in  opening  the  meeting, 
said  that  the  question  under  discussion  was 
not  a  small  matter  concerning  only  those  pre- 
sent, perhaps  it  affected  them  least  of  all ;  but 
it  concerned  the  future  of  nursing,  and  of 
Bai-t's  probationers.  It  was  a  great  grief  to 
Bart's  nurses  to  think  that  the  work  of  the  23 
years  of  her  life  which  their  late  Matron  had 
given  to  the  advancement  of  its  School  seemed 
for  a  moment  discounted  by  the  election. as  her 
successor  of  a  lady  who  had  taken  a  stand  in 
opposition  to  the  late  Miss  ,Stewart.  The  ap- 
pointment set  the  hands  of  the  clock  back  to 
reaction,  in  the  hospital  whose  Matron  had 
taken  a  foremost  place  in  promoting  not 
only  the  advancement  of  nursing,  but  of 
women's  work  generally.  It  might  frankly  be 
admitted  that  the  question  of  registration  of 
nurses  had  very  possibly  something  to  do  with 
this  matter,  and  it  must  be  understood  that 
registration  concerned  the  public  even  more 
than  the  nurses.  When  nurses  asked  for  regis- 
tration they  were  not  moved  by  self-interested 
motives,  but  were  asking  for  the  protection  of 
the  public.  Was  any  hospital  which  did  not 
protect  the  public  the  friend  of  the  pubHc? 

Miss  Banfield  spoke  of  the  reputation  of 
Bart's  nurses  abroad,  and  specially  of  two  who 
had  worked  as  she  had  done  in  Philadelphia, 
whose  reputation,  though  they  were  foreigners 
in  a  foreign  countrv,  had  spread  all  over  the 
United  States. 

She  refei-red  also  to  the  late  Miss  Catherine 
Loch,  who  organised,  and  was  first  Superin- 
tendent, of  the  Indian  Army  Nursing  Service, 
and  to  the  work  of  Bart's  nurses  in  the  Navy 
and  Military  Nursing  Services.  It  was  quite 
impossible  to  suppose  that  there  had  been  a 
sudden  slump,  and  that  no  one  of  them  could 
be  found  capable  of  assuming  the  position  of 
Matron  and  Superintendent  of  Nursing — if  the 
old  traditions  were  to  be  carried  on.  "  Ladies 
and  gentlemen,"  said  the  Chairman,  "  what 
is  the  matter,  don't  they  want  a  high  standard, 
don't  they  want  high  ideals?  The  cynics  say 
that  ideals  are  uncomfortable  things,  but  a 
person  without  ideals  is  dull,  and  a  nation 
without  ideals  is  wicked." 

Eesolutiox  I. 
The  Chairman  then    called   on  Miss  E.   B. 
Kingsford   (cert.  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital) 
to  move  the  first  resolution,  as  follows :  — 

This  Meeting  of  Trained  Nurses  and  others  in- 
terested ill  the  efficient  care  of  the  sick,  desires  to 
express  the  widespread  regret  which  is  felt  that  the 
Election  Committee  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital 
have  selected  a  lady  from  the  London  Hospital, 
where     a     two     years'     certificate       of      training 


is  awarded,  to  be  Matron  and  Superinten- 
dent of  Nursing  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, and  is  strongly  convinced  that  the 
decision  will  cause  the  gravest  injury  to 
tha  prestige  of  its  time-honoured  Three  Years' 
Certificate  of  Nursing,  and  imperil  the  efficiency 
and  success  of  the  Nursing  School  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital. 

This  Meeting  is  of  opinion  that  by  their  action 
the  Election  Committee  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital  have  (1)  publicly  expressed  their 
want  of  appreciation  of  the  arduous  and 
self-sacrificing  work  done  for  the  Hospi- 
tal and  the  public  for  the  past  23  years  by 
the  late  revered  Matron ;  (2)  their  conviction  that 
not  one  of  the  nurses  trained  under  her  direction 
is  worthy  of  selection  to  succeed  her  in  office,  and 
(.3)  that  thereby  they  are  condemning  both  the  effi- 
ciency of  the  educative  work  of  their  medical  and 
nursing  staffs,  and  also  the  methods  adopted  by  the 
Governors  themselves  for  the  management  of  a 
great  public  and  historic  institution.  " 

In  view  of  the  action  taken  by  the  Election  Com- 
mittee this  meeting  considers  that  a  Public  Inquiry 
should  be  immediately  made  into  the  methods  of 
management  of  the  Nursing  School  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital,  by  the  whole  body  of  Governors. 

This  meeting,  furthermore,  is  strongly  of  opinion 
that  the  said  Public  Inquiry  should  also  investigate 
the  condition  of  the  Nurses'  Home  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital,  which  has  for  years  been  con- 
demned as  insufficient  for  the  accommodation  of 
the  Nursing  Stait,  as  insanitary,  and  as  a  death- 
trap in  case  of  fire  for  the  nurses  who  occupy  the 
antiquated  houses  which  compose  the  Home. 

The  Protest. 

Miss  Kingsford  said  that  it  was  with  very  "mixed 
feelings  that  she  rose  to  move  this  resolution.  She 
was  proud  that  her  voice  should  be  the  one  selected 
to  be  raised  in  protest,  and  she  was'filled  with  in- 
dignation that  such  a  vindication  of  their  late 
Matron,  and  the  work  she  did,  should  be  necessary. 
Miss  Stewart  was  straight,  loyal,  high  principled. 
She  inculcated  these  virtues  into  every  nurse 
trained  under  her,  and  she  always  had  at  heart  the 
good  of  the  whole  nui-sing  profession.  It  was  with 
a  feeling  of  burning  indignation  that  her  pupils 
learnt,  while  lettere  of  respect  for  her,  and  admira- 
tion for  her  work,  were  still  being  received- fi^om  all 
parts  of  the  world,  that  that  work  was  put  aside, 
by  the  very  people  for  whom  it  had  been  so  loyally 
performed. 

Beyond  this  Miss  Kingsford  drew  attention  to  the 
depreciation  of  the  value  of  the  Bart's  certificate  by 
the  action  of  the  Committee,  that  certificate  for 
which  those  who  held  it  had  toiled  for  three  years 
in  the  wards,  at  the  cost  of  personal  discomfort 
in  the  antiquated  Home,  in  order  that  they  might 
win  the  certificate  they  coveted.  Now  that  the 
value  of  that  certificate  had  been  so  depreciated 
was  it  not  time  that  Bart's -nurses  were  adequately 
housed  ? 

The  Chaimian  called  on  Mvs.  Stabb  to 
second  the  resolution. 

Mrs.   Stabb   (cert.,   St.   Bartholomew's  Hospital) 


June  11, 1910]        ^fjc  Biltlsb  3ournal  of  IRuisino. 


471 


expressotl  lior  amazement  and  intliijnatiou  at  tlio 
ai>ix>intment  against  whicli  tlie  meeting  was  called 
to  piotetit.  When  she  first  lioard  ot  it  she  thought 
it  just  a  joke  in  very  bad  taste — it  seemed  too  out- 
rageous to  be  true.  She  siwke  of  the  whole-hearted 
enthusiasm  and  self-sacrifico  of  Miss  Ste\);art  in  her 
work,  not  only  for  the  good  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Training  School,  hut  for  the  whole  nursing  profes- 
sion. Amongst  other  things,  Miss  .Stewart  felt  most 
stiy>ngly  the  absolute  nece.ssity  of  a  minimum  of 
three  years'  training  in  the  wards  for  all  nur,ses. 
Tlie  speaker  said  .she  felt  most  acutely,  as  all 
Bart's  nui-ses  did,  the  slight  and  insult  to  Mi'-; 
Stewart's  memory  that  a  lady  trained  in  the  School 
was  not  apiM>inted  as  her  successor,  and  that  in- 
dignation was  increase<l  tenfold  by  the  fact  that  the 
institution  from  which  the  new  Matron  came  grants 
its  eertificato  at  the  end  of  two  years.  Had  there 
been  no  good  women  trained  under  Miss  Stewart 
available  for  the  ix>st,  and  well  equipped  for  it, 
Bart's  nurses  could  have  made  no  complaint  of  tue 
Governore  going  outside  their  own  liospital,  but 
even  then  they  had  a  right  to  exi>ect  the  authorities 
would  have  made  a  three  year.s'  certificate  a 
sine  qua  non,  and  that  the}'  would  have  appointed 
a  lady  who  had  already  held  a  Matron's  post — but 
the.v  did  neither, 

Tiiose  who  loved  Miss  Stewart  had  been  united 
in  one  common  bond  of  sorrow — they  were  now 
united  in  one  common  sentiment.  All  felt  most 
truly  tliankful  .she  had  pas,sed  away,  and  liad  been 
spared  this  cruel  blow,  which  would  assuredly  have 
bix)ken  her  loyal  heart. 

The  Chairman  then  invited  Mrs.  Bedford 
Fenwick,  formerly  ^latron  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital,  to  supijort  the  resolution. 

Mrs.  Betlford  Fenwick  said  that  she  ardently  sup- 
ported every  clause  of  the  Resolution,  because  a 
sense  of  righteous  indignation  prompted  her  to 
instantly  ptx)test  against  an  incredible  injustice  to 
tlie  living  and  the  dead. 

"Who,"  she  asked,  "could  have  imagined  that, 
with  teal's  still  salt  in  the  mouth  for  the  loss  they 
have  so  recently  sustained,  that  hundreds  of  Bart's 
nnnses,  during  the  pa-st  sliametul  wtM^k,  should  liave 
cried  passionately,  '  Thank  (rod  she  is  dead,'  and 
that  it  is  a  relief  to  us  to  know  that  our  dear  Isla 
Stewart  sleeps  serenely  in  lier  little  green  grave. 
She  had  a  tender  heart  ;  ingratitude  ba,se  and  bitter 
might  liave  broken  it. 

"Her  faithful  .sistei-s  stand  sentinel,  knowing 
full  well  that  no  ]>ow€r  of  evil  can  tarnish  her 
fame.  To-night  we  must  make  that  quite  clear. 
Callous  and  cruel  has  been  the  indignity  offered 
to  her  memory,  but  a  record  of  such  noble  ser- 
vice, such  blessed  kindness,  such  exquisite  loyalty 
in  every  relation  of  life  jjossesses  a  sweet  savour, 
an  imperishable  and  exhilarating  essence,  which  is, 
and  must  for  ever  remain,  a  joy. 

"  She  has  out-soafetl  the  shadow  of  our  night." 
Mrs.  Fenwick  then  read  the  letter  sent  by  the 
King  (then  Prince  of  Wales),  President  of  the  Hos- 
pital, to  Lord  Sandhurst,  the  Treasurer,  on  the 
occasion  of  Miss  Stewart's  death,  when  Sir  Arthur 
Bigge  wrote: — 

"  His  Royal  Highness  ha<l   known  Miss  Stewart 


for  some  years,  and  fully  reali.ses  what  a  great 
power  for  good  she  vrai^,  not  only  in  the  administra- 
tion, but  as  a  i)ersonal  influence  in  the  hospital." 

And  an  extract  from  the  Report  of  the  Treasurer 
to  the  Governors,  April,  1910,  in  which  Lord  Sand- 
hurst writes:  — 

"  As  head  of  the  nursing  staff  Miss  Stewart  did 
much  to  improve  the  .system  of  education  and 
training  of  the  nui'ses,  and  thereby  secured  greater 
efficiency  in  the  nur.sing  of  the  Hospital,  which  I 
under-staud  from  the  medical  staff  is  of  an  un- 
usually high  standard, 

"  Although  my  personal  acquaintance  with  Miss 
Stewart  extended  over  little  more  than  a  year,  I 
frequently  had  occasion  to  consult  her  on  matters 
of  imjiortance,  and  I  at  once  realised  that  the  Hos- 
pital had  in  her  an  officer  of  very  exceptional 
ability." 

With  this  official  testimony  before  them  Miis, 
Fenwick  thought  the  Governors,  whom  she  has 
always  found  reasonable  men,  would  want  to 
know,  as  that  meeting  wanted  to  know,  why  Miss 
Stewart's  pupils  had  been  iXMialised,  and  hei-  .sy.steni 
ignored,  by  the  Election  Committee,  which  had 
api>ointed  a  Matron's  Assistant  to  succeed  her  in 
office. 

Mi-s.  Fenwick  referred  also  to  the  jwint  in  the 
resolution,  that  the  lady  appointetl  came  from  a 
hospital  where  nureing  is  guaranteed  after  an  in- 
sufficient two  years'  term  of  training,  and  to  the 
consequent  depreciation  of  the  value  of  the  St. 
Bartholomew's  certificate  of  three  years'  training 
in  the  wards.  All  the  world  over  that  certificate 
has  been  the  open  sesame  to  professional  prefer- 
ment of  the  highest  responsibility. 

Mrs.  Fenwick  contrasted  the  conditions  at  St, 
Bartholomew's  where  the  remuneration  was  good, 
no  sweating  of  private  nurses  permitted,  and 
where  liberty  of  speech  and  conscience  were  con- 
ceded to  all,  and  thus  loyalty  to  authority  main- 
tained, with  those  at  the  Loudon  Hospital,  where 
a  certificate  is  awarded  after  two  years'  experience, 
for  which  upwards  of  £100  must  if  possible  be  paid, 
or  in  lieu  thereof  a  further  term  of  indentured 
labour  is  exacted,  when  at  least  this  sum  is  de- 
ducted from  the  fees  paid  for  the  services  of 
nurses  on  the  private  staff.  The  system  was  frankly 
commercial. 

She  then  referred  to  the  action  of  the  authori- 
ties at  St,  Thomas's,  Guy's,  and  King's  College 
Hospitals  within  recent  years,  who  invited  dis- 
tinguished Matrons,  trained  in  their  own  schools, 
to  return  and  superintend  the  School  of  their  Alma 
Mater.  Why  was  not  this  done  at  Bart's,  and  even 
if  it  was  thought  wise  to  advertise  the  post,  why 
was  an  age  limit  inserted  known  to  exclude  all  the 
most  prominent  women  trained  in  the  School,  and 
why  did  the  advertisement  require  no  substantial 
professional  experience  from  candidates  for  so  im- 
portant a  post.  The  appointment  made,  when  first 
announced, seemed  so  incredible  and  monstrous  that 
it  was  considered  a  libel  on  the  Election  Com- 
mittee, But  this  unspeakable  thing  had  been 
done. 

"We  want,"  said  Mrs.  Fenwick,  "an  inquiry 
because  we  want  to  know  why  this  outrage  has 
been  perpetrated.     Alas!    man   is  very  much   man 


Zbc  36riti6b  Journal  of  iHursina. 


[June  11,  1910 


where  women's  work  is  concerned.  May  we  assume 
without  presumption  that  the  Committ-ee  and 
Aledical  Staff  at  Bart's  have  been  dazzled  by  the 
men  out  of  the  East — have  been  told  how  lucrative 
is  the  exploitation  of  nursing  labour?  Have  they 
had  a  peep  at  that  wonderful  balance-sheet 
and  noted  the  huge  profits,  estimated  at  not  less 
than  £15,000  a  year,  wrung  out  of  the  nursing 
staff  at  the  London  Hospital?" 
The  Challenge. 

■'But,"  continued  the  speaker,  "this  appoint- 
ment is  not  a  question  for  any  one  section  of 
nui-ses.  or,  indeed,  for  trained  nurses  as  apart  irom 
the  whole  community  of  working  women. 

"This  grave  injustice  is  no  unintentional  act. 
Primarily  it  injures  the  worthy  staff  at  Barf's,  but 
it  is  a  Challenge,  and  an  intimation  to  the  whole 
nursing  profession  that  no  professional  co-opera- 
tion, no  demand  on  their  part  for  just  professional 
organisation,  no  protective  legislation,  no 
liberty  of  conscience,  no  freedom  of  speech, 
no  degree  of  self-government  shall  be  theirs 
— unless  those  who  claim  them  are  prepared  to 
pay  the  price  of  no  professional  promotion.  That 
is  the  challenge  which  the  autocratic  trustees  of 
charitable  funds  fling  down.  That  is  one  of  the 
reasons  why  we  are  here  to  ask  for  justice  to-night. 
'  Xo  professional  promotion  for  registratiouists ' 
must  be  met  at  once  by  the  demand  for  immediate 
legislation  to  protect  nurses  from  coercion  and  per- 
secution if  they  act  according  to  the  dictates  of 
conscience  for  the  benefit  of  the  public  and  their 
profession." 

The  Nurses'  Home. 

In  relation  to  the  last  Clause  of  the  Resolution, 
Mrs.  Fenwick  pointed  out  that  for  thirty  years  ttie 
housing  of  Bart's  nurses  had  been  a  discredit  to 
the  House. 

The  Treasurer,  in  his  report  to  the  Governors 
in  April,  1909,  wrote  of  the  Xurses'  Home:  — 

"  I  need  not  dwell  upon  the  general  unsuitahility 
of  the  existing  accommodation,  and  the  inefficient 
provision  of  lavatories  and  bath-rooms,  but  I  must 
express  the  extreme  anxiety  with  which  I  regard 
the  possibility  of  a  fire  occurring  in  certain  parts 
of  the  Home,  the  structural  arrangements  being 
such  that,  in  the  event  of  an  emergency,  the  con- 
seqiiences  could  not  fail  to  be  very  serious." 

As  far  back  as  1886  plans  were  drawn  for  the 
new  Nurses'  Home,  but  space  was  not  then  avail- 
able; when  it  was  secured  a  new  Out-patient  De- 
partment and  Quarters  for  the  Resident  Medical 
Staff  were  found  to  be  imperative.  When  the 
latter  was  opened  in  1904  the  night  nurses  were 
promoted  to  the  insanitary  quarters  vacated  by  the 
resident  medical  staff. 

She  believed  a  resolution  stood  on  the  minutes 
that  on  the  completion  of  the  Out-patient  Depart- 
ment no  further  block  should  be  erected  until  after 
the  new  Nurses'  Home,  but  by  1908  the  palatial 
Pathological  Block  had  been  built,  and  the  Nurses' 
Home  Fund  of  £6,000— £2.000  of  which  had  been 
collected  and  given  by  the  Nursing  Stafi — was  bor- 
rowed for  this  purpose.  Almost  incredible  but 
true.  A  Home  in  which  the  lives  of  the  nurses 
were  safe  must  be  provided. 


An  Atpe.^l   to   Cesah. 

Mrs.   Fenwick   concluded: 

Let  us  appeal  to  Caesar,  and  to  the  great  body  of 
Governors  to  enquire  into  the  reason  for  this  ap- 
pointment, let  them  know  how  deeply  every  Barfs 
nurse  resents  the  indignity  to  the  memory  of  Miss 
Isla  Stewart,  and  the  depreciation  of  her  profes- 
sional status. 

With  all  my  heart  I  support  the  resolution. 
In  moving  it.  Barfs  nurses  are  inspired  by  no  ill 
feeling,  but  by  commendable  self-respect.  I  hope 
the  resolution  will  receive  the  warm  support  of  the 
meeting,  and  will  be  carried  unanimously. 

Open  Discussion. 

The  Chairman  then  invited  discussion. 

Mr.  T.  W.  Craig,  who  stated  he  had  oome  from 
the  country  to  attend  the  meeting,  said  that  he 
spoke  not  as  a  medical  man,  or  one  who  was 
interested  in  exploiting  nurses,  but  as  the  "  man  in 
the  street."  The  public  had  a  great  interest  in 
the  training  of  nuiises,  and  the  questiou  involved 
was  a  question  of  standards.  There  was  a  strong 
feeling  on  the  pait  of  the  lay  public  that  they 
wanted  no  retix)gi~ade  step  in  regard  to  .uunsing 
standards.  He  hoped  the  appointment  would  not 
be  allowed  to  go  through  without  a  strong  api>eal 
to  Ciesar.  The  support  of  brave,  independent 
spirits  in  the  nureing  profession  was  needed  to 
fight  a  wrong  of  this  kind.  He  would  like  to 
know  if,  as  had  been  stated,  many  of  the  Governors 
were  innocent,  who  was  the  guilty  party. 

The  Chairman  said  that  what  Governoi-*  and 
Trustees  did  not  know  about  their  own  hospitals 
was  perfectly  incredible. 

Mrs.  TurnbuU  inquired  whether  any  lady 
Governors  were  on  the  Election  Committee,  and 
was  answered  in  the  negative,  though  two  of  the 
Governors  are  fully-trained  nurses. 

Mrs.  Shuter  said  that  neither  Bart's  nurses  nor 
the  public  would    take  this    affront    lying    down. 
They  would  press  for  an  inqtiiry  and  a  public  report 
of  the  result. 
Speech  of  the  President  or  the  B.4Ht's  Leagce. 

Miss  Cos-Davies  (cert.  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, Matron  of  the  Royal  Free  Hospital)  remarked 
that  a  good  deal  had  been  said  by  ladies,  holding 
the  certificate  of  the  school,  no  longer  engaged  in 
active  work.  She  spoke  as  one  at  present  holding 
the  office  of  Matron  of  a  ho'spital  with  a  medical 
school  attached,  and,  as  President  of  the  League  of 
St.  Bartholomew's  Nurses,  founded  "by  Miss  Isla 
Stewart,  and  including  nearly  700  nurses  holding 
the  certificate  of  the  hospital ;  as  the  spokeswoman 
of  these  nurses,  many  of  them  holding  positions  as 
Matrons  of  important  hospitals,  who  loved  their 
late  Matron,  and  who  inspired  by  her  to  do  so  had 
loyally  served  the  hospital  and  the  medical  staff. 

Nurses  were  what  their  Matron  made  them,  and 
if  Barfs  Nurses  were  without  reproach — though 
at  the  present  moment  there  were  many  to  throw 
stones  at  them — it  was  due  to  Miss  Stewart's  teach- 
ing. They  worked  before  the  public  in  hospitals 
and  elsewhere,  and  their  work  could  speak  for  it- 
self.    Let  anyone  come  and  inspect  it. 

They  were  there  that  night  to  defend  the  good 


June  11, 1910]         ^j^c  Biitisb  Sounial  of  IHursino, 


473 


name  of  their  late  Matron,  and  in  the  name  of  tho 
700  nK)men  holding  the  certificate  of  the  hospital, 
and  associated  in  the  League,  she  said,  as  they 
would,  she  knew,  wish  her  to  say,  that  they  were 
bitterly  resentful  of  the  affront  placed  upon  Miss 
Stewart.  Many  of  them  owed  every  bit»of  their 
professional  success  to  her.  She  tried  to  make  good 
nurses  of  them,  and  good  women  also,  straight, 
true,  conscientious,  self-sacrificing,  ready  to  think 
first  of  the  sick,  loyal  to  those  who  governed  them. 

And,  if  the  Governors  thought  for  any  reason 
that  fresh  Vilood  was  advisable,  Bart's  nurses  were 
willing  loyally  to  accept  their  decision.  Had  awoman 
been  selected  with  wide  professional  ex- 
perience, she,  and  others  also,  would  have 
held  out  the  hand  of  warm  friendship 
to  her;  but  they  were  not  ready  to  accept 
anyone  who  held  a  lower  qualification  than  the 
Bart's  certificate.  The  protection  of  the  standard 
for  which  that  certificjito  stood  was  a  trust  to  Bart's 
nui'ses  from  their  Inte  belove<l  Matron,  and  as 
President  of  the  Bart's  L<>agne  she  felt  it  her  duty 
to  speak  on  that  League's  behalf. 

Tlie  resolution  was  also  supported  by  Dr.  Kings- 
ford,  Dr.  Bonney,  and  others,  and  a  fund  in  con- 
nection with  the  exi>en6e<»  was  opened  by  Mr.  T.  W. 
Craig  with  a  pix>mise  of  £5.  and  of  as  many  guineas 
and  smaller  sums  by  othere  in  the  room. 

The  resolution  was  then  carried  unanimously 
with  the  greatest  enthusiasm. 

EESOLfTION  II. 

The  Chairman  then  called  upon  Miss 
Beatrice  Kent  to  move  the  second  resolution. 

That  copies  of  the  foregoing  Resolution  be  sent 
to  his  Most  Gracious  Majesty  the  King  as  President 
of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  to  every  Governor, 
and  to  the  Members  of  both  Houses  of  Parliament, 
-with  the  humble  and  earnest  Petition  of  this 
Meeting  that  a  Public  Inquiry  stall  be  immediately 
made  by  the  whole  body  of  Governors  into  tie  mat- 
ters referred  to,  and  that  justice  shall  be  done  to  the 
memory  of  a  noble  woman,  to  the  body  of  women 
trained  under  her  direction,  and  that  the  very 
grave  dangers  to  life  by  fire  shall  be  averted  from 
the  nurses  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  by  the 
erection  forthwith  of  a  new  Nurses'  Home. 
A  Corporate  Right. 

Miss  Kent  said  slie  was  not  a  St.  Bartholomew's 
nurse,  but  she  c]aime<l  her  corporate  right,  as  a 
member  of  the  nursing  profession,  to  move  tne 
resolution.  She  regarded  the  appointment  as  an 
act  of  intimidation.  In  regard  to  the 
Nurses  Home,  nui-ses  were  public  servants,  and  it 
wa.s  a  public  duty  to  st>e  that  their  accommodation 
was  sanitary,  safe,  and  comfortable. 

The  resolution  was  seconded  by  Miss  E.  C.  Parry 
(cert.,  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital),  suppoi-te<l  by 
Dr.  Hanson,  Dr.  Flora  Murray,  Mr.  Robert  Baker, 
and  others,  and  also  carried  unanimously. 

A  most  remarkable  and  sucoeesful  meeting,  at 
which  many  matrons  not  trained  at  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's, and  ladies  of  social  [xisition,  were  present 
to  support  Bart's  nui'ses  in  their  claim  for  justice, 
oonchide<l  with  a  hearty  vote  of  thank.s  to  the 
Chairman,  who  had  conducted  the  meeting  with 
great  intelligence  and  tact.  M.  B. 


^bc  Socict\>  foi  tbc  State  TRajis* 
tration  of  ^raine&  IRurses. 


There  was  a  very  crowded  meeting  of  members  at 
the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Society  for  the  Stat« 
Registration  of  Trained  Nurses,  at  which  Lady 
Helen  Munro  Ferguson  presided,  at  11,  Chandos 
Street,  W.,  on  Thursday,  June  2nd. 

The  minutes  of  the  last  Annual  Meeting  having 
been  read  and  confirmed,  Lady  Helen  gave  the  fol- 
lowing address  from  the  chair. 

The  Chairman's  Address. 

1  think  that  what  we  are  all  most  conscious  of 
here  to-day  is  of  the  gap  in  our  ranks.  It  is  pro- 
bably not  so  much  the  business  to  be  transacted, 
which  has  brought  this  large  meeting  together 
as  the  thought  of  the  friend  and  leader  who  has 
passed  away.  No  one  is  more  conscious  than  I  am 
of  the  diflSculty  of  adequately  expressing  our  sense 
of  the  loss  of  Miss  Stewart.  1  cannot  speak  from 
personal  knowledge  of  her  professional  achieve- 
ments, of  the  qualities  she  displayed  in  discharging 
the  duties  of  her  ofiBce,  but  her  success  is  known  to 
the  world  and  the  professional  positions  which  she 
filled  (which  Lady  Helen  enumerated)  show  the 
high  estimate  in  wbich  she  was  held  by  the  whole 
nursing  profession.  But  perhaps  it  is  fitting  that 
one  who  knew  her  best  outside  her  special  environ- 
ment should  speak  of  her  to-day.  What  impressed 
me  most  in  Mies  Stewart  was  her  wisdom  in  a 
different  capacity.  Her  gifts  of  mind  and  charac- 
ter were  of  the  high  order  which  makes  a  man  or 
woman  an  effective  force  in  any  position.  I  knew 
her  best  in  the  committee  room,  where  she  fought 
an  uphill  battle,  and  for  many  years  she  was  a 
leader  in  the  Registration  movement,  in  which  the 
.  promoters  had  to  contend  witb  many  adverse  cur- 
rents  and  mysterious  undercurrents. 

Then  there  was  a  comet  in  the  firmament,  a 
•comet  with  a  wondrous  tail,  upsetting  to  reason- 
able influences,  but  still  Miss  Stewart  went 
serenely  on.  No  check  upset  her  equanimity,  or 
daunted  her  courage.  In  fighting  hard  for  a  cause 
she  maintained  her  equilibrium.  We  are. ail  apt 
to  make  things  we  have  very  much  at  heart  some- 
what personal  matters,  but  Miss  Stewart  was  of 
too  big  a  nature  for.  that.  She  always  conducted 
argument  with  courtesy,  appreciatetl  her  opponent's 
point  of  view,  and  was  ready  to  compromise  when 
compromise  did  not  aft'ect  the  principles  at  stake. 

We  are  glad  fhat  she  lived  long  enough  to  see 
eight  important  societies,  whose  representatives 
meet  as  one  committee  under  the  chairmanship  of 
Lord  Ampthill,  united  in  support  of  one  Registra- 
tion Bill.  By  this  agreement  the  Registration 
movement  has  reached  a  different  and  more  hope- 
ful stage.  There  are  still  difficulties  to  be  faced. 
We  stili  have  our  comet  blazing  over  tlie  East  End 
of  London — (A  Voice  :  And  over  the  City) — but  the 
best  test  of  any  woman's  work  is  that  it  should 
prosper  after  she  has  passed  away.  It  proves  that 
her  aims  were  high,  her  cause  just,  and  her 
moth<Hl3  right.  AVhat  Miss  ,Stewart  worked  for  you 
may  win,  and  raise  the  standard  of  nursing  in  this 
country.     There  are  many  ready  to  carry  on  her 


474 


Zbe  Britisb  3ournal  ot  H^ursino  [J^^e  n,  loio 


work,  and  what  you  gain  will  uot  ouly  boiietit  vour 
owu  profession,  for  improved  status  canuot  be 
gained  by  one  set  of  workers  without  the  benefit 
being  extended  to  those  in  other  branches. 

In  Miss  Stewarfs  country  it  used  "to  be  the 
custom  to  ra'ise  a  cairn  on  the  mountain  side  in 
memory  of  the  dead.  Every  friend  of  the  deceased 
person  lirought  a  stone,  until  at  last  the  cairn  was 
raised  high  and  stood  out  as  a  landmark,  a  noble 
and  lasting  monument. 

Each  one  can  do  something  to  help  on  the  work 
for    State    Registration,    which   she   had   so    much 
at  heart,  to  import  into  it  her  big-heartedness,  and 
wide  sympathy,  and  so  raise  a  lasting  memorial  to 
the  leader  whom  we  mourn  to-day. 
Resoltjtion. 
Miss  Heather   Bigg,    Matron    of  Charing   Cross 
Hospital,  then  moved  the  following  resolution:  — 
The  .Society  for  the     State    Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses  desires  to  place  on  record   its 
profound  sorrow  at  the  death  of  its  President, 
Miss   Isla   Stewart. 

The  nursing  profession  has  been  deprived  of 
a  most  insjiiring  and  courageous  leader,  and 
has  suffered  an  irreparable  loss,  by  the  death  of 
one  of  its  most  brilliant  members. 

Miss  Stewart's  efforts  for  the  advancement 
of  nursing  education  and  organisation  were 
unceasing,  her  mental  endowments,  and  gener- 
ous breadth  of  character  of  the  highest  order, 
and  her  death  removes  from  our  ranks  a  splen- 
did example  of  noble  womanhood. 

Eesolved  that  we  tender  to  the  nursing  staff 
of  St.   Bartholomew's  Hospital    our    heartfelt 
sympathy  in  their  great  bereavement. 
It  was  seconded  by  Miss  L.  V.  Haughton,  Matron 
of   Guy's  Hospital,   who  said  she  regarded  it  as  a 
privilege   to  second  the    resolution    recording  the 
Society's  sense  of  the  irreparable  loss   it  has  sus- 
tained by  the  death  of  its  President. 

The  resolution  was  iiassed  in  silence  by  the  meet- 
ing, everyone  in  the  room  standing. 

Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick,  Hon.  Secretary,  then  said 
that  our  loss  in  this  country  had  been  deeply  de- 
plored by  our  colleagues  in  America,  and  they  also 
had  by  the  death  of  Mrs.  Hampton  Robb,  through 
a  sad  accident,  lost  a  very  dear  leader  and  friend. 
The  Executive  Committee  had,  on  behalf  of  the 
members,  expressed  their  grief  and  sorrow  to  the 
members  of  the  American  Society  of  Superinten- 
dents of  Training  Schools  for  Nurses,  and  she  had 
received  the  following  letter  from  Miss  M.  Helena 
Macmillan,  R.N.,  Hon.  Secretary:  — 
Dear  Mrs.  Fenwick, 

The  American  Society  of  Superintendents  of 
Training  Schools  for  Nurses  has  instructed  me  to 
return  most  grateful  thanks  to  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee of  the  Society  for  the  State  Registration 
of  Trained  Nurses  for  its  expression  of  sorrow  and 
sympathy  with  us  in  our  great  loss. 

"^'ill  you  be  so  good  as  to  convey  to  your  Society 
our  most  heartfelt  thanks  and  appreciation  of  its 
message  of  sympathy. 

Believe  me. 

Yours  truly,  - 
M.  H.  McMillan, 

Secretary. 


The  Annual  Report. 
Mrs.  Fenwick  then  presented  the  Annual  Report, 
which  recorded  that  128  new  members  had  joined 
the  Society  during  the  past  year,  making  a  total  of 
2,844  since  it  was  formed,  and  further,  that  the 
two  Scottish  Associations  and  the  Irish  Nurses'  As- 
sociation were  also  working  actively  for  the  same 
end.  The  most  important  events  referred  to  were 
the  formation  of  the  Central  Registration  Com- 
mittee, and  the  introduction  of  a  Nurses'  Registra- 
tion Bill  with  the  support  of  all  the  Societies  repre- 
sented upon  it  into  the  House  of  Commons. 

The  Fund  opened  by  the  Executive  Committee  on 
November  26th,  with  the  object  of  raising  £100, 
had  met  with  gratifying  support,  and  £105  17s.  had 
been  contributed  to  it. 

The  audited  accounts  showed  a  balance  in  hand  of 
£49  4s.  lOd. 

The  Election  of  Hon.  Officers. 
Mrs.  Bedford  Fenwick  was  tlien  unanimously 
elected  President  of  the  Society,  on  the  proposition 
of  Mre.  Walter  Si>enoer,  seconded  by  Miss  L.  A. 
Morgan ;  and  Jliss  IM.  Breay  Hon.  Secretary,  on  the 
proposition  ol  iMiss.  Beatrice  Kent,  seconded  by 
Miss  Barton. 

The  Executive  Committee. 
The  Executive  Committee  was  reelected,  Miss 
Elinor  Pell  Smith  being  elected  to  fiU  the  vacancy 
caused  by  the  resignation  of  Miss  M.  Helena  Sher- 
lock, delegate  of  the  Leicester  Nurses'  League,  to 
whom  a  6i>ecial  vote  of  thanks  was  passed. 

Th.e  following  ladies  were  added  to  the  Com- 
mittee : — Miss  Elma  Smith,  President,  Hendon 
Branch,  and  Miss  C.  B.  Leigh,  President,  Cleve- 
land Street  Branch,  Central  London  Sick  Asylum 
Nurses'  League;  Miss  M.  Wright,  Matron,  Stobhill 
Hospital,  Glasgow,  and  Miss  A.  Carson  Rae,  Secre- 
tary, Irisli  Nuiises'  Association. 
Resolution. 
The  following  Emergency  Resolution  was  then 
moved  by  Miss  H.  L.  Pearse  :  — 

The  Society  for  the  State  Registration  of 
Trained  Nurses,  in  Annual  Meeting  assembled, 
desires  to  direct  the  attention  of  the  public, 
and  of  Parliament,  to  the  injury  done  to  well- 
trained  and  reputable  nurses,  and  nursing 
hoimes,  by  the  exijloitation  of  their  ijrofessional 
uniform,  and  of  bogus  nursing  and  massage 
homes,  for  criminal  and  vicious  purposes. 

This  Society  calls  upon  the   Government  to 
give  facilities,  without  delay,  for  the  passing 
of  a  Nurses'  Registration  Bill,  and  upon  Local 
Avithorities  to  i^rovide  for  the  inspection  and 
registration   of    Nursing    Homes — a    provision 
whicli  nould  be  welcomed  by  Homes  of  reput- 
able  standing — in  order  that  the  members  of 
an    indispensable    and    honourable     profession 
may  be  dissociated  in  the    public    mind  from 
criminals  and  prostitutas. 
Miss  Pearse  said  that  there  was  no  doubt  what- 
ever that  the  evil  referred  to  in  the  resolution  was 
a   crying  one,  of  which  most     nurses  were  aware. 
The   remedy    was   State  Registration     of    Trained 
Nurses,   and  inspection  and  supervision  of  nursing 
homes.     The  genuine  homes  would   cordially    wel- 
come  insiJection,  and   the   other   kind   would    have 


June  11,  I'Jlu; 


ZlK  36i1tlsb  3oiirnal  of  IRursino^ 


47.3 


to  close  their  doors,  or,  perhaps,  open  them  to  the 
police.  There  was  immediate  need  for  dealing  with 
this  matter.  The  amount  of  blackmail  carried 
on  in  bogus  nursing  homes  and  massage  establish- 
ments led  to  a  terrible  degradation  of  iKirsing  in 
the  public  mind. 

JIi-s.  Bedford  Fenwick,  in  seconding  the  resolu- 
tion, said  the  exploitation  of  nui-sing  homes  had 
been  an  abominable  scandal  for  years  past,  which 
of  late  yeai-s  had  increased  in  %-irulence  and  im- 
pertinence, and  could  only  be  stamped  out  by  re- 
gistration and  inspection.  Many  conscientious 
women  were  con(Jucting  nursing  homes  in  a  most 
admirable  manner.  These  homes  were  a  blessing 
and  convenience  to  the  public,  who  should  help  to 
keep  up  a  high  standard. 

Traine<l  nui-sas  were  a  t>ody  of  honourable  and 
hard-working  women  who  loved  their  work.  They 
were  very  u.sefid  to  the  community,  and  the  public 
owed  them  some  reparation  tor  its  long  neglect  of 
their  interests. 

Tlie  rt\solution  was  carried  unauimou.sly,  and 
after  a  hearty  vote  of  thanks  to  Lady  Helen  Munro 
Ferguson,  for  her  kindness  in  presiding,  the  mem- 
bers adjourned  to  2,  Portland  Place,  on  the  kind 
invitation  of  Mrs.  Walter  Spencer,  who  most  hos- 
pitably invited  the  whole  meeting  to  tea,  an  invita- 
tion which  was  greatly  appreciated. 


Hppointincnts. 


^be  Scottisb  flDatrons  Hseociation 


The  quarterly  meeting  of  the  Scottish  Ma- 
trons' Association  was  held  on  Saturdaj",  May 
28th,  in  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh.  iMiss 
Gill,  Hon.  President,  presided.  Twenty-two 
members  were  i^resent.  Many  letters  of  apology 
for  absence  were  received. 

The  following  resolution  was  put  from  the 
chair  and  passed  :  — 

"  That  we,  the  members  of  the  Scottish  Matrons' 
Association,  beg  to  record  our  sympathy  with  Queen 
Alexandra  in  the  grievous  bereavement  which  has 
befallen  her,  and  our  deep  sense  of  the  less  sus- 
tained by  all  who  work  in  hospitals  and  kin- 
dred institutions,  together  with  the  whole  nation, 
in  the  death  of  his  Most  Gracious  Majesty  King 
Edward  VII.,  who  ever  granted  his  special  sym- 
pathy to  the  sick  and  suffering." 

The  resolution  was  embodied  in  a  letter  of 
condolence  to  Queen  Alexandra,  and  forwarded 
through  the  Secretary  for  Scotland. 

Miss  Gill  stated  that  a  laurel  wreath  had 
been  sent  to  London  for  the  King's  funeral  in 
the  name  of  the  Association. 

Nine  new  members  were  elected. 

Di-scussion  followed  on  various  subjects.  It 
was  suggested  that,  at  next  meeting,  a  paper 
be  read  by  a  member. 

On  the  conclusion  of  the  meeting,  Ihe  Presi- 
dent entertained  the  members  to  tea  in  her 
rooms.  This  was  much  appreciated.  A  very 
pleasant  hour  was  spent,  making  and  renewing 
acquaintance  with  distant  members. 


'      Matrons. 

Retford  Hospital  and  Oiapeneary,  Notte. — Miss  Lillie 
Gee  has  been  appointed  Matron.  She  was  trained 
at  the  City  of  London  Infirmarj",  where  she  held 
the  position  of  Staff  Xurse  for  a  year.  She  has 
also  been  Xight  Sister  at  the  General  Infirmary, 
Oldham,  Sister  of  the  Male  Vards  and  Theatre  at 
the  General  Infirmary,  Wrexham  ;  Surgical  Sister 
of  Male  and  Children's  Wards  (with  Ophthalmic 
Division),  at  the  Bury  General  Infirmary  (Lanes; ; 
and  of  Home  Sister,  Theatre  Sister,  and  Assistant 
Matron  at  the  same  hospital.  She  has  also  been 
Matron  at  Ebbw  Vale  Accident  Hospital,  Mon- 
mouthshire. 

Lowestoft  and  District  Maternity  Association. — Miss 
EtJiel  Dixon  has  been  appointed  Matron.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Royal  Southern  Hospital,  Liver- 
1KX)1,  and  has  held  the  i>ositions  of  Queen's  Xurse  at 
Darlington,  Suiwrinteiulent  of  the  District  Xuniing 
Home,  Swan.sea.  and  Inspector  of  Midwives  under 
the  Hanip.shiro  County  Council. 

Leasowe  Castle  Convalescent  Home  for  Railwaymen.— 
Miss  E.  Salsbury  has  been  api)ointed  Matron.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Xorth-Eastern  Hospital,  Lon- 
don, and  has  held  the  positions  of  Sister  ai  the 
Southwark  Infirmary,  East  Dulwich ;  Sister  and 
Night  Sister  at  the  Children's  Hospital,  Pendle- 
bury ;  and  Assistant  Matron  at  the  Seaside  Con- 
valescent Home,  Seaford,  Sussex. 
AssiST.\NT  Matron. 

Stirling  District  Asylum,  Larbert,  N.B. — Miss  M.  Jones 

has  been  appointed  an  Assistant  Matron.  She  was 
trained  at  St.  Mary's  (Islington)  Infirmary,  and 
has  held  the  positions  of  Staff  Nurse  at  the 
National  Hospital :  Sister  at  the  General  Hospital, 
Wolverhampton ;  Sister  at  the  County  Hospital, 
Durham ;  and  Sister  at  the  District  Asylum,  Mel- 
rose. Sisters. 

The  Blackburn  and  East  Lancashire  Infirmary,  Blackburn. 
— Miss  Tessie  McGuffoy  has  been  appointed  Sister. 
She  was  trained  at  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Liverpool, 
where  she  has  Ijeen  Sister-in-Chnrge  of  the 
oi>erating  theatre.  .She  has  also  had  experience  of 
private  nureing. 

The  Infirmary,  Tiverton. — Miss  Maljel  Hartley  has 
been  appointed  SLster.  She  was  trained  at  the 
Royal  Infirmary,  Halifax,  and  has  hold  the  ]x>sition 
of  .Staff  X'urso  at  the  Hospital  for  Women,  Soho 
Square,  W.C.  She  has  also  had  experience  of 
private  nursing. 

SISTER-HOCSEKEEPER. 

Royal    infirmary,    Bradford Miss     Edith      Crichtcn 

has  been  appointed  Sister-Housekeeper.  She  was 
trained  at  the  County  Hospital,  Lincoln,  where  she 
held  the  position  of  Sister.  She  has  also  been  Night 
Sister  at  the  Queen's  Hospital,  London,  and  tem- 
porary Home  Sister  and  Assistant  Matron  also. 
School  Nurses. 

Education  Committee,  Notts  County  Council. — The  fol- 
lowing ladies  have  been  appointed  School  Nurses 
under  the  Notts  County  Council;  — 

Miss  B.  Watkins,  who  has  held  the  position  of 
School  Nurse  and  Health  Visitor  at  Huddcrsfield. 

Miss  Collier,   who  has   been     District  Nurse   at 


476 


Zbc  Britisb  3oiirnaI  of  IRursiiiG. 


[June  11,  1910 


Maus£eld  Woodhouse,  and  recently  Health  Visitor 
in  Birmingliam. 

Miss  LucT  Marriott,  who  has  had  experience  of 
District  Nursing  and  Private  Nursing,  and  has 
worked  as  Health  Visitor  under  the  Notification  of 
Births  Act  at  Retford. 

Lady  Health  Visitor. 
Monmouthshire  Educational  Committee. — Miss  Hilda 
Blanch*'  Richaidt-  has  been  appoint-e<l  Lady  Health 
Visiter  under  the  Educational  Committee  of  the 
Monmouthshire  District.  She  was  trained  at  the 
Gre.at  Xonhern  Central  Hospital,  and  the  London 
Fever  Hospital,  Islington,  and  since  1908  has  been 
a    member    of     the    Registered     Nurses'     Society. 

London.  

QUEEN  ALEXANDRAS  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 
NURSING  SERVICE. 
MLss  Caroline  Helen  Keer,  R.R.C.,  on  her  retire- 
ment, is  granted  permission  to  retain  the  badge  of 
Queen  Alexandra's  Imperial  Military  Nursing  Ser- 
vice, in  recognition  of  her  long  and  meritorious 
service. 

Miss  Mary  Warburton  to  be  Staff  Nurse  (pro- 
visionally).   Dated  May  18th,  1910. 


QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE  INSTITUTE. 
Transfers  and  Appointments. — Miss  Florence 
'W^orthington,  to  Goole;  Miss  Catherine  West,  to 
Bolsover :  Miss  Alice  Middleton,  to  Dukinfield; 
Miss  Ellen  Nicholls,  to  Worcester,  as  training  mid- 
wife: Miss  Eva  Wood,  to  Penzance  (Madron);  Miss 
Ada  Borlase,  to  Redruth ;  Miss  Alice  Matthews,  to 
Tondu ;  Miss  Caroline  Lee,  to  Dunvant ;  Miss 
Bertha  Ashworth,  to  Darwen ;  Miss  Edith  Berry, 
to  Hastings;  Miss    Elizabeth    Richards,   to  Llan- 

gadock.  

THE  PASSING  BELL. 
We  regret  to  record  the  death  of  Miss  Mary  Jane 
Millard,  who.  tor  tlie  past  twenty-one  years,  has 
■worked  in  Bath  in  connection  with  the  District 
Nursing  Institution,  as  a  District  Nurse,  in  the 
districts  of  Walcot  and  Larkhill. 

The  funei-al  service  took  place  at  Clirist  Church, 
where  there  was  a  large  congregation,  chiefly  oom- 
po,sed  of  former  patients  of  Miss  Millard,  and  was 
conducted  by  Preb.  B.  Norton  Thompson.  Besides 
the  near  relatives  there  were  also  present  ^liss  Gas- 
kell,  Superintendent  of  District  Nurses,  and  many 
members  of  the  nureing  staff.  Miss  H.  A.  Hope, 
Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Bath  District  Nureing  In- 
stitute ;  Mrs.  Muller,  Secretary ;  Mrs.  Carter, 
Sub-Treasurer;  and  Miss  Watson,  a  member  of  the 
Committee  of  the  Bath  Maternity  Charity.  There 
were  many  gifts  of  flowers  from  patients. 


We  greatly  regret  to  record  the  death  of  Miss 
Mary  White,  for  twelve  years  Superintendent  of 
the  Nurses  of  the  Northumberland  County  Nursing 
Association  (of  which  the  Duchess  of  Northumber- 
land is  President),  who  died  and  was  buried  at 
Cologne  on  her  return  from  Ober-Ammergau,  where 
she  had  been  to  see  the  Passion  Play.  It  will  be  a 
consolation  to  her  friends  to  know  that  her  sister, 
the  Superintendent  of  a  Nurses'  Home  in  Glasgow, 
wa*  with  her.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Seddon,  3'icar  of 
Painswick,  Gloucestershire,  also  a  friend,  was  with 
the  party,  and  conducted  the  funeral  service. 


IHiuslng  JEcboes. 

The  report-of  the  (Council 
of  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee 
Institute  to  her  Majesty 
Queen  Alexandra  for  the 
year  1909  states  that  during 
the  year  fresh  arrangements 
have  been  made  in  regard  to 
the  training  of  Queen's 
Nurses,  and  associations  can 
now  be  supplied  much  more 
rapidly  than  twelve  months 
ago,  unless  the  nurse  is 
required  to  hold  the  certificate  of  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board,  in  which  case  there 
is  still  considerable  difficulty.  In  1909  there 
were  214  Queen's  nurses  added  to  the  Eoll,  and 
136  village  nurses  have  been  trained  at  a  cost 
of  approximately  i£6,199.  The  expense  of  this 
training  has  been  borne  by  County  Nursing  As- 
sociations, with  the  help  of  County  Cpuncils 
towards  the  cost  of  th^  midwifery  training. 
There  is  also  a  demand  ior  special  training  in 
different  directions,  i.e.,  for  work  amongst 
school  children,  and  to  combat  tuberculosis. 


I\Iiss  --^my  Hughes,  the  General  Superinten- 
dent, has  been  left  free  to  devote  herself  to  de- 
veloping and  supervising  the  organisation  as  a 
whole,  and  to  advising  on  the  many  questions 
and  problems  which  are  brought  to  the  Insti- 
tute for  solution  and  help,  by  the  appointment 
of  Miss  Macqueen  to  the  newly  created  post  of 
Nursing  Superintendent  for  England.  The 
general  supervision  of  this  great  organisation 
is  incompatible  with  systematic  superintend- 
ence of  the  branches  without  great  strain  upon 
the  official  concerned,  and  the  appointment  of 
Miss  Macqueen  is  one  upon  which  the  Institute 
is  to  be  congratulated. 

By  the  kindness  of  Miss  Hastie,  a  meeting, 
in  support  of  women's  suffrage,  to  which 
all  nurses  are  cordially  invited,  will  be  held 
at  49,  Norfolk  Square,  W.,  on  Wednesday, 
June  loth,  at  3.30  p.m.  The  Hon.  Mrs.  Haver- 
field  will  preside,  and  the  meeting  will  be  ad- 
dressed by  Mrs.  Pankhurst.  Tea  will  be  served 
at  0  p.m. 

The  Guildford  District  Nursing  Association 
so  much  appreciated  amongst  the  poor  is  now 
enlarging  its  sphere  of  work  by  including  mid- 
wifery. A  small  charge  will  be  made,  consist- 
ent with  the  means  of  the  patient,  but  these 
fees  will  not  cover  the  increased  annual  expen- 
diture. It  is  earnestly  hoped  that  this  state- 
ment by  way  of  appeal,  may  receive  generous 
recognition  from  a  large  number  of  new  sub- 
scribers. 


June  11,  1910] 


Zbc  Britisb  3ournaI  of  lAursing. 


477 


Nowhere  is  the  work  oi  nurses  oi  greater 
value  than  in  the  outlying  parts  of  the  Empire, 
and  the  readers  of  this  journal  know  that  much 
good  pioneer  work  has  been  done  by  Miss  E. 
M.  Newman,  in  far  Kashmir.  Last  year  a 
Mission  Dispensary  was  opened  at  Rainawari, 
of  which  the  Governor,  Sahib  Manmohan  Xath 
Koul,  who  was  unavoidably  prevented  by  ill- 
ness from  being  present,  in  his  speech,  sent 
for  the  opening  day,  wrote  as  follows  :^— 

"  All  of  you  are  perhaps  perfectly  well  aware 
of  the  efforts  made  and  the  labours  taken  by 
Miss  Newman  in  connection  with  the  Mission 
Dispensary  at  Rainawari.  The  pains  taken  by 
the  lady  for  the  acquisition  of  the  land  and 
construction  of  the  building,  the  opening  cere- 
mony of  which  is  being  performed  to-day,  are 
worthy  of  much  credit  and  praise,  ^liss  Sahiba 
has  been  displaying  so  much  perseverance  and 
sympathy  with  the  public  that  everywhere 
wherever  1  have  had  occasion  to  go  she  has 
been  highly  praised  and  respected  by  the  public. 
Miss  Sahiba  has  earned  wide  reputation  for  her 
kindly  treatment,  and  ibis  adds  much  to  her 
credit.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  Zenana  Mis- 
sion Hospital  is  an  unmixed  blessing  for  the 
pubUc  which  is  better  imagined  than 
described." 

Miss  Newman  reports  that  now  the  stafi  are 
working  in  the  airy  new  dispensary  they  cannot 
think  how  they  managed  to  live  and  work  in 
the  httle  native  house  for  six  long  years.  She 
is  specially  grateful  for  gifts  of  pomegranate 
trees  for  the  garden,  as  so  many  women  with 
fever  ask  her  for  a  pomegranate. 

Dr.  Valintine,  the  Inspector  of  Hospitals  in 
New  Zealand,  has  initiated  a  scheme — and  has 
suggested  it  should  be  carried  out  by  the  Hos- 
pital Boards  of  the  Dominion — by  the  new  Hos- 
pitals and  Charitable  Institutions  Act,  of  bring- 
ing within  reach  of  the  sick  and  lying-in  women 
in  far  distant  country  districts  the  aid  they  so 
sorely  need.  The  Boards  have  not  had  time  to 
consider  fully  this  part  of  their  duties,  says  Kai 
Tiaki,  but  the  nurses,  anticipating  the  calls  for 
their  services,  are  now  adding  midwifery  train- 
ing to  their  general  nursing.  This  is  the  right 
course — experience  in  midwifery  added  to  efiS- 
cient  nursing  experience —  not  insufficient  nurs- 
ing knowledge  tacked  on  to  a  short  midwifery 
course,  the  system  so  unwisely  advocated  in 
rural  districts  in  this  country. 


On  the  occasion  of  the  presentation  of  medals 
-and  certificates  to  the  nurses  of  the  Johannes- 
burg Hospital,  on  April  30th  by  Mrs.  van  der 
Berg,  Mrs.  Magill,  Nursing  Superintendent, 
presented  a  report  on  her  department,  which 
numbers  101  Sisters,  nurses,  and  probationers. 
During  the  year  Sister  Brown  has  resigned  the 


position  of  Home  Sister  on  her  appointment 
to  the  Matronship  of  Barberton  Hospital. 
Sister  Turner  has  been  appointed  Home  Sister 
and  Staff  Nurses  Clapp  and  Bryan  Sisters  of 
wards.  Twenty  third-year  nurses  have  passed 
the  hospital  examination,  and  been  awarded 
certificates,  and  fifteen  have  passed  the  exami- 
nation of  the  Transvaal  iledical  Council.  The 
Gold  Medal  was  won  by  Nurse  Allison,  and  the 
Silver  Medal  by  Nurses  Moore  and  Stewart 
with  equal  honours.  Mrs.  Magill  again  records 
her  conviction  that  a  post-graduate  course  of 
lectures  on  the  newer  methods  prevailing  in 
European  hospitals  could  not  fail  to  improve 
the  general  standard  of  nursing  throughout  the 
hospital,  and  would  be  greatly  appreciated. 

Zbc   ^cmtorial    jforcc    IHiu^ing 

Service  of  tbe    Citv  an^ 

Conntv)  of  '2lon^on. 

A  meeting  of  the  Executive  Committee  of 
the  above  Service  was  held  at  the  Mansion 
House  on  Tuesday  last.  The  Lady  Mayoress 
presided. 

Lady  Dimsdale  was  appointed  to  serv© 
on  the  Isla  Stewart  Memorial  Committee; 
Miss  H.  L.  Pearse  to  a  seat  on  the  Executive 
Committee ;  and  Lady  Susan  Gilmour  to  repre- 
83nt  the  Executive  Committee  on  the  Standing 
Committee  of  No.  2  General  Hospital. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Grand  Committee, 
which  followed,  the  following  ladies  were 
elected  members  : — Miss  McCall  Anderson,  St. 
George's  Hospital;  Miss  Cox-Davies,  Royal 
Free  Hospital;  Mrs.  Ewart;  Lady  French; 
Mrs.  Fuller;  Miss  Haldane ;  Lady  Hamilton; 
Miss  Hamilton;  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Henniker; 
Lady  Maud  Hoare ;  Miss  Amx  Hughes,  Queen 
Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute  for  Nurses;  the 
Countess  of  Jersey;  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Maxse; 
Mrs.  Hope  Morley;  Lady  Portman;  Lady 
Sandhurst;  Lady  Blanche  Granville  Smith; 
Lady  Esther  Smith. 

No.  1  General  Hospital. 

Miss  Cox-Davies,  Matron  of  the  Royal  Free 
Hospital,  trained  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hos- 
pital, and  President  of  the  League  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital  Nurses,  was  unanimously 
elected  Principal  Matron  of  No.  1  General  Hos- 
pital, in  the  place  of  the  late  Miss  Isla  Stewart, 
an  appointment  which  is  calculated  to  be  very 
popular,  as  the  hospital  is  entirely  staffed  by 
certificated  Bart's  nurses. 

The  Lady  Mayoress  at  Home. 

The  Lady  Mayoress  most  kindly  invited  the 
members  of  Committees,  and  the  whole  Nurs- 
ing Staff,  to  a  reception  at  the  Mansion  House 
on  the  evening  of  October  10th.  This  hospi- 
tality will  be  anticipated  with  great  pleasure. 


478 


(XF)e  Britisb  3ournaI  of  IRursing. 


[June  11,  1910 


■(Reflections. 


Fkom  a  Board  Room  Mikrok. 
Tile     Queen,     who     has     always   shown    a    great 
iut-erest  in  our  ho»i>itals.  has.  during  the"  past  week, 
forwarded   a   i>resent   of   flowers  to  .several   Metro- 
politan hosijitals. 


officei-s  tor  Freetown.  We  may  hope,  therefore,, 
that  this  prompt  action  will  result  in  the  extinction 
of  the  yellow  fever  mosquito,  and  consequently  of 
the  disease. 


Her  Majesty  Queen  Alexandra  has  given  permis- 
sion for  the  new  wing  to  te  added  to  the  British 
Home  and  Hospital  for  Incurables  in  connection 
with  the  Charity's  Jubilee  in  1911,  to  be  named  th»^ 
Queen  Alexandra  wing. 


We  are  glad  to  learn  that  the  Hospital  tor 
Women,  Soho  Square,  will  receive  the  sum  of 
£1.000  as  the  result  of  the  recent  bazaar. 


The  Ti'ustees  of  .Smith'fe  (Kensington  Estate) 
Cliarity  have  sens  a  donation  of  £536  to  the  Hos- 
pital for  Women,  Soho  Square,  for  the  Rebuilding 
Fund.  The  building  is  Hearing  completion  and 
will,  it  is  hoi>ed,  be  ready  for  occui>ation  by 
patients  in  July.  There  is  still  £2,500  needed  to 
finish  the  work  and  oi>en  the  hospital  free  from 
debt. 

At  the  quarterly  meeting  of  the  Governors  of  St. 
Mary's  Hospital,  Paddington,  at  iihich  Mr.  W. 
Austen  Leigh  presidecf,  refereiice  was  made  in  the 
annual  rei>ort  to  the  unsa.tisfactory  financial 
position  of  the  hospital.  Despite  the  contribution 
of  £1,000  from  King  Edward's  Hospital  Fund  for 
London,  specially  for  the  reduction  of  the  debt,  the 
end  of  the  year  found  it  increased  by  £2. 534.  Tlie 
amount  of  the  debt  is  now  £9,782,  while  the  total 
investments  available  to  cover  deficiencies  of  in- 
come are  valued  at  only  £9,852.  The  average  cost 
of  an  occupied  bed  in  hospitals  of  similar  standing 
is  £81  IDs.  9d. ;  at  St.  Mary's  it  is  £77  3s.  5d. 


At  the  Annual  Court  of  Governoi-s  of  the  Hos- 
pital for  Sick  Children,  Great  Ormond  Street,  last 
week,  at  which  Mr.  Arthur  Lucas  i)re.sided,  it  was 
stated  in  the  annual  report  that  the  Committee 
had  been  driven  to  take  a  step  never  forced  upon 
them  before,  and  to  sell  out  £9,598  of  the  general 
fund  to  pay  oft  the  debt  incurred  to  the  bankers, 
and  to  meet  current  expenditure. 


Sir  Alfred  Keogh,  late  Medical  Director  of  the 
Army  Medical  Service,  will  distribute  the  prizes 
to  the  students  of  the  Medical  School  of  St. 
Thomas's  Hospital  on  Thursday,  June  23rd,  at 
3  o'clock. 


The  Colonial  Office  has  taken  prompt  action  to 
deal  with  the  outbreak  of  yellow  fever  at  Sekondi, 
West  Africa,  where  there  have  been  eleven  cases, 
all  except  one  proving  fatal,  eight  of  the  victims 
being  Euroi>eans.  There  have  also  Ijeen  two  fatal 
oases  at  Freetown.  Immediately  the  outbreak  was 
notified  the  Earl  of  Crewe,  K.G.,  Secretary  of  State 
for  the  Colonies,  summoned  an  emergency  meeting 
of  the  Advisory  Medical  and  Sanitary  Committee 
for  Tropical  Africa,  and  acted  through  the  Com- 
mittee's advice.  Sir  Rubert  Boyce,  Dean  of  the 
Liverpool  School  of  Tropical  Medicine,  immediately 
offere<l  his  services,  and  with  a  stafif  of  six  medical 
officers  has  left  for  Sekondi,  and  two  otlier  medical 


Dtpbtbcria  "  darrlers." 

The  persistence  of  the  diphtheria  bacillus  in  the 
throats  of  apparently  quite  healthy  persons  is  one 
of  the  most  difiicult  problems  in  connection  with 
the  control  of  that  disea.se.  Tins  fact  has  for  some 
time  past  been  engaging  the  attention  of  Medical 
Officers  of  Health,  School  Medical  Officei-s,  Xaval 
and  Military  Surgeons,  and  private  practitionei-s 
alike,  and  the  first  step  in  dealing  with  an  out- 
break" of  the  disease  Ls  now  by  general  consent  to 
find  the  ''carrier." 

Some  useful  notes  in  this  connection*  may  be 
found  in  a  manual  on  "  Disinfection  and  Sterilisa- 
tion," by  Dr.  F.  W.  Andrewes,  Pathologist  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital.  Dr.  Andrewes  uttei's  a 
warning  against  relying  on  antitoxin  alone  in  the 
treatment  of  diphtheria.  He  jroints  out  that  tue 
antitoxin  acts  as  an  antidote  to  the  i>oison  formed 
by  the  diphtheria  bacillus,  but  it  has  little  germi- 
cidal action  upon  the  bacilli  themselves,  which  may 
continue  to  flourish  in  the  throat,  though  their 
evil  effects  are  antagonised.  It  is  therefore  of 
essential  importance  to  apply  local  disinfectants  to 
the  seat  of  the  disease.  Dr.  Andrewes  shows  tnat 
whilst  in  most  cases  the  diphtheria  bacilli  vanish 
from  the  throat  within  a  week  or  a  fortnight  from 
the  time  the  membrane  has  disapi>eared,  there  are 
other  cases  in  which  they  persist  much  longer.  It 
is  generally  known  that  they  may  be  found  after 
cultivation  for  months  after  the  disease  has  gone, 
indeed  cases  are  on  record  when  they  were  still 
virulent  in  their  effect  upon  animals  six  months 
after  the  attack  of  diphtheria.  Dr.  Andrewes  sug- 
gests various  measures  for  the  local  disinfection  of 
the  throat,  and  amongst  suitable  gargles  and  sjjrays 
he  includes  Izal  (1  in  100,  or  even  stronger  if  the 
patient  can  bear  it).  , 

Messre.  Xewtou,  Chambers,  and  Co.,  Ltd.,  who 
have  asked  us  to  draw  attention  to  Dr.  Andrewes' 
remarks  state  that  they  do  so  because  they  have 
received  a  number  of  inquiries  from  medical  men 
regarding  the  use  of  their  Izal  for  diphtheria 
oarriei-s.  and  they  feel  they  may  with  propriety 
quote  an  accepted  authority  in  the  professional 
journals.  Messrs.  Xewton,  Chambers,  and  Co.  also 
ask  us  to  draw  attention  to  a  report  on  the  value 
of  Izal  as  a  gargle  by  Dr.  Knyvett  Gordon,  some- 
time Jledical  Superintendent  of  the  Monsall  Fever 
Hospital  at  ilanchester,  copies  of  which  they  will 
send  to  medical  practitioners  on  receipt  of  a  post- 
card addressed  to  thei'r  laboratories  at  Thorncliffe, 
near  Sheffield. 


June  11, 1910]        ^f^c  jBiitisb  Soumal  of  Wursing. 


479 


"Science  in  nDOi>ei-n  Xife." 


The  fifth  volume  of  the  above  work  has  been 
issued,  and  should  claim  wide  interest  in  the  nurs- 
ing profession.  It  contains  surveys  of  Agriculture, 
Philosophical  Biology,  Physiology  and  Medicine, 
and  Anthropology.  We  have  been  led  through  the 
sciences  in  evolutionary  order,  from  the  Ice  Age 
down  to  wireless  telegraphy,  the  properties  of 
radium,  the  serum  treatment  of  diseases,  and  the 
treatment  of  consumption.  A  chapter  devoted  to 
the  subject  of  Public  Health  reviews  the  lowering 
of  the  death-rate,  eradication  of  disease,  legislation 
for  phthisis,  reports  of  the  Registrar-General,  pul- 
m<mary  tuberculosis,  cancer,  enteric  fever,  small- 
pox, scarlet  fever,  etc.  Charts  showing  death-rates 
from  all  causes  and  from  phthisis  show  that  since 
1838  the  death-rate  from  all  causes  has  gone  steadily 
down.  The  death-rate  from  phthisis  has  decreased 
per  million  persons  from  3,000  in  18-53  to  1,200  in 
1905.  In  1869  enteric  fever  claimed  380  per  million 
persons,  while  in  1905  it  was  reduced  to  120.  Small- 
pox has  almost  gone  from  among  us,  and  scarlet 
fever  because  of  its  less  malignant  form  is  less  fatal. 
In  woeful  and  remarkable  contrast  stands  out  the 
deaih-rat«  from  cancer.  From  1851  it  has  increased 
steadily  from  300  to  900  per  million. 

The  publishers — the  Gresham  Publishing  Com- 
pany— ^are  to  be  congratulated  on  the  production  of 
such  a  useful  and  much  required  work. 

E.  A.  S. 


®ur  JforeiGu  letter. 

FROM   THE  UNITED  STATES. 

DeasEditoh, 
— You  must 
have  a  little 
account  of 
the  annual 
meetings 
which  have 
iust  taken 
'     -       J — qcBJTl"^ —        ---  L.,^      place;  as 

\    ^vV^ — -^^"'-'"  you       know, 

V —  the  two  socie- 

ties though  not  meeting  this  year  as  a  Federation, 
yet  met  in  the  same  week  and  with  programmes 
arranged  so  that  members  of  both  could  go  to  aU 
the  sessions ;  the  Superintendents  had  two  days 
and  the  Alumnie  three,  while  the  other  was  given 
to  a  joint  session  at  Teachers'  College,  where  occu- 
pations for  invalids  and  convalescents,  mental  and 
nervous  cases,  and  the  handicapped  were  most  in- 
structively and  helpfully  treated  of. 

The  meetings  were  good  and  full  of  interest, 
and  important  questions:  they  were  serious  and 
quiet,  and  no  entertainments  or  merrymakings  took 
place.  A  public  meeting  in  Carnegie  Hall  was  de- 
voted to  the  commemoration  of  Florence  Xightin- 
gale's  life  and  influence.  It  was  also  a  serious 
occasion,  and  while  the  large  hall  was  packed  with 
nurses  and  others  who  desired  to  show  their  homage 
to  the  venerable  pioneer  nurse,  there  was  nothing  of 
the  worldly  spirit  therein,  but  more  the  atmosphere 
of  a  tribute  to  one  who  m.iy  at  any  moment  pass 


into  the  beyond.  Bat  more  personal  and  appealing 
was  the  exhibit  of  her  writings,  portraits,  and 
photographs,  letters,  and  other  mementos  which 
was  arranged  in  excellent  style  and  effectiveness  at 
Teachers'  College.  This  was  a  really  valuable  and 
interesting  collection,  and,  with  the  exhibit  of  work 
done  by  patients,  will  remain  on  view  for  some 
weeks  to  come.  Tea  served  at  Teachers'  College  on 
the  afternoon  of  the  joint  day  was  the  only  social 
occasion,  and  brought  together  a  large  assemblage 
of  nurses  from  all  over  the  country. 

The  event  of  greatest  value  and  significance,  as 
you  no  doubt  will  agree,  was  the  establishment  of 
a  memorial  to  Isabel  Hampton  Robb.  A  joint 
committee  representing  the  two  societies  presented 
the  suggestions,  and  outlined  the  first  steps  to  take, 
and  the  nucleus  of  a  permanent  committee  has  been 
formed.  It  was  decided  to  create  scholarships  for 
nurses  desiring  to  take  special  post-graduate  work, 
as  the  form  that  this  memorial  shall  take,  and  I 
feel  sure  that  this  is  of  all  things  the  one  that 
would  have  made  our  lost  leader  most  happy,  for 
it  unites  all  that  she  stood  for  in  the  progress  of 
the  nursing  profession  with  that  personal  care  for 
the  individual,  and  that  human  warmth  of  helpful- 
ness which  always  made  her  own  personality  so 
lovable  and  strong. 

A  farther  suggestion  made  by  Miss  Delano  does, 
I  think,  complete  in  a  quite  admirable  way  the  har- 
mony of  the  memorial  with  Mrs.  Robb's  broadly 
catholic  world  interests.  She  proposed  that  the 
scholarships  should  not  be  limited  to  any  one  insti- 
tution of  learning,  but  should  be  applied  anywhere — 
"  perhaps,"  as  she  wisely  said,  "  to  educational 
institutions  that  are  not  now  in  existence,  and  that 
we  cannot  naturally  know  of.  We  do  not  know 
just  how  the  nursing  education  of  the  future  will 
develop,  or  what  forms  it  will  take :  and  let  us 
create  this  fund  to  be  used  for  the  needs  of  nurses 
in  preparing  for  any  form  of  sperial  work.  Per- 
haps some  will  wish  to  take  the  study  courses  of 
the  schools  of  philanthropy,  some  will  want  to  go 
to  Teachers'  College,  others  may  want  what  we 
cannot  now  foresee."  All  details  of  administra- 
tion will,  of  course,  have  to  be  worked  out  by  a 
suitable  committee  or  central  executive  board. 
Moreover,  the  scholarships  need  not,  of  course,  be 
of  the  same  amount,  but  may  vary  according  to  the 
special  need.  This  suggestion  was  hailed  with  the 
deepest  and  most  cordial  approval  by  the  whole 
assemblage,  and  three  thousand  dollars  were  pro- 
mised before  the  sessions  closed.  It  was  agreed 
that  we  would  work  for  not  less  than  fifty  thousand 
dollars  (£10,000),  and  that  as  much  more  than  this 
as  we  could  get  would  be  all  the  better,  as  there 
need  be  no  limitation  on  the  sum  total.  Miss  Hay, 
Superintendent  of  the  Illinois  Training  School  for 
Xurses.  was  chosen  as  Chairman  of  the  Fund  Com- 
mittee for  the  ensuing  year.  Appeals  for  gifts  are 
to  be  made  through  all  the  ramifications  of  our 
nurses'  organisations,  and  naturally  hospital  direc- 
tors and  all  the  many  groups  of  people  who  have 
been  associated  with  Mrs.  Robb  in  her  manifold 
activities  may  also  contribute. 

Xow  I  shall  tell  you  a  little  of  the  personal  side 
of  the  meetings.  Our  dear  Miss  Linda  Richards, 
the   first  woman   in  the   United  States  to  gain   a 


480 


Zbc  Bvitisb  3o(irnal  of  IHuisduj. 


[June  11,  19ia 


diploma,  was  not  there,  but  she  was  made  au 
honorary  life  memlior  of  the  Superintendents' 
Society.  She  has  retired  to  private  life,  and  is,  I 
am  sorry  to  saj-,  quite  lame;  were  it  not  for  this 
she  would  be  absolutely  as  useful  in  active  work  as 
ever,  as  she  is  still  young  and  vigorous  in  looks,  in 
spirit,  and  in  general  health — her  colour  rich,  her 
eyes  radiant.  She  is  writing  some  memoirs,  and 
keeps  hold  of  a  thousand  individual  interests  in 
the  lives  and  problems.of  the  many  women  she  lias 
trained. 

Miss  Drown  was  not  present.  She,  too,  is  very 
far  from  strong,  and  has  not  been  on  duty  for  a 
long  time.  Miss  Mclsaac  was  there,  and  is  one  of 
those  having  taken  on  a  wonderful  rejuvenation 
since  her  departure  to  the  farm.  Her  profession 
does  not  leave  her  in  i>eace ;  she  is  on  the  Journal 
directors,  does  a  great  deal  of  writing,  and  was 
elected  by  the  AlumuEe  as  Inter-.State  Secretary,  an 
officer  whose  opportunities  of  usefulness  are  simply 
unlimited. 

Before  the  day  closed  on  which  she  was  elected 
she  received  an  urgent  call  to  go  to  California  to 
help  work  out  problems  there.  Miss  Banfield  has 
gone  back  to  England;  Miss  AValker  has  retired  to 
private  life,  and  was  not  at  the  meetings;  neither 
was  Miss  Snively,  who  will  conduct  her  last  com- 
mencement exercises  at  the  Toronto  General  this 
June  and  then  retire  on  the  very  nice  annuity  that 
has  been  given  her  by  the  hospital.  Miss  Nevins 
was  there,  chipper  and  energetic  as  ever ;  Miss 
Genevieve  Cook  was  there,  having  quite  Recovered, 
and  presented  the  report  of  the  Committee  on  Re- 
organisation, which  was  considered  this  year  and 
will  be  finally  adopted  next  year.  Our  societies  are 
like  big  lusty  children  that  have  outgrown  all  their 
clothes,  all  our  constitutions,  by-laws,  qualifications, 
and  requirements  are  much  too  small ;  we  are  burst- 
ing out  of  them  in  every  direction,  and  will  have 
to  throw  them  all  away  and  get  a  new  outfit. 

Miss  Nutting,  of  course,  was  there,  and  pre- 
sided with  her  usual  charm  and  dignity  over  the 
Superintendents'  Society ;  Miss  Delano  has  made 
a  remarkable  President  for  the  Alumnae,  and  was 
unanimously  re-elected.  She  has  gone  much  over 
the  country  in  the  last  year  in  connection  with  her 
Army  and  Red  Cross  work,  and  is  going  out  to 
the  Philippines  in  the  coming  year. 

Crops  and  sheaves  of  splendid  young  women  are 
growing  up;  it  is  a  most  refreshing  and  encourag- 
ing spectacle.  One  feels  so  perfectly  easy  in  one's 
conscience  about  going  to  sit  down  by  the  fire  and 
spin.    Let  the  young  ones  take  up  the  battle. 

There  is  a  canny  enemy  in  sight  to  be  driven 
away — the  men  who  are  simply  fretting  to  get  all 
the  reins  in  their  own  hands.  And  I  have  become 
so  convinced  that  we,  in  common  with  all  women, 
need  the  ballot  for  self-defence  and  further  pro- 
gress, that  I  have  swept  everything  excej^t  my 
International  Council  and  Journal  work  off  my 
decks,  and  am  going  to  devote  myself  in-future  to 
the  work  of  digging  and  ploughing  for  the  vote. 

So  with  best  wishes  that  you  may  soon  get  it  too, 
I  am  as  ever,  faithfully  and  sincerely, 

L.  L.  Dock,  R.N. 


©utsibe  tbc  (Bates. 


WOMEN. 

The  King's  action  in 
conferring  the  first  of 
the  birthday  honours 
upon  the  Queen  will 
commend  itself  to  all 
women.  His  Majesty 
has  been  pleased  to  com- 
mand "  as  Sovereign  of 
the  Most  Noble  Order  of 
title  and  dignity  of 
a  lady  of  that  Most  Noble  Order  be 
conferred  upon  her  Majesty  the  Queen  "  ;  ae  hus- 
band he  has  bestowed  on  his  wife  the  highest 
honour  which  is  his  to  give. 


Nurses  in  active  work  cannot  give  a  great  deal 
of  time  to  the  Women's  Suffrage  movement,  but 
many  can,  if  they  will,  join  the  great  procession, 
organised  by  the  Women's  Social  and  Political 
Union,  on  Saturday,  June  18th,  which  is  to  be 
"the  most  sjilendid  and  marvellous  demonstration 
that  has  ever  been  known,  not  only  in  London,  but 
in  history."  Members  of  over  a  dozen  of  the  best- 
known  and  most  important  Suffrage  Societies  will 
join  the  procession,  and  from  every  part  of  the 
country  Women  of  all  professions  and  trades  will 
come  to  walk  under  their  own  special  banner,  in  a 
procession  that  will  stretch  for  over  two  miles  along 
the  chief  streets  of  the  Metropolis. 


The  procession  will  form  up  on  the  Embankment 
at  5. -30  p.m.,  start  at  6.30  p.m.,  and  march  to  the 
Albert  Hall  for  the  great  meeting,  at  which  Mrs. 
Pankhurst  will  preside.  Nurses  wishing  to  join 
their  special  contingent  under  their  own  banner, 
must  join  it  by  5. -30  at  Section  E  3,  close  to  the 
Temple  Station.  Those  who  can  do  so  should  com& 
in  indoor  uniform ;  if  this  is  impossible,  then  wear- 
ing the  colours,  with  outdoor  uniform  or  ordinary 
dress. 


Although  part  of  the  Hall  is  reserved  for  those 
walking  in  the  procession,  it  is  advisable  to  secure 
tickets,  a  few  of  which,  at  6d.  each,  can  still  be  ob- 
tained from  Miss  Trim,  143,  Church  Street,  Ken- 
sington. The  Hon.  Secretaries  for  the  Nursing 
Contingent,  Miss  Townend  and  Miss  Pine,  appeal 
to  every  nurse  in  sympathy  with  the  women's 
movement,  to  join  the  contingent,  and  hope  that 
the  Nursing  Profession  will  send  a  contingent 
worthv  of  the  occasion. 


Mrs.  George  Cran,  writing  to  the  Weekly  Times, 
makes  an  urgent  plea  for  the  emigration  of  mid- 
wives  and  monthly  nurses  to  Canada,  and  the 
X>osition  of  women  on  the  outlying  farms  of  the 
Dominion,  approaching  their  confinements  with- 
out any  prospect  of  any  assistance — except  possibly 
that  of  some  half-breed,  whose  knowledge  of  the 
elementary  rules  of  cleanliness  is  le«s  than  nothing 
— is  sufiEciently  heart-rending.  At  the  same  time 
nurses  must  remember  that  in  Canada  they  would 


June  11,  1910] 


Zbc  Britlsb  3ournaI  of  IRursino. 


481 


have  iifither  civic  eiifiaucliist'inont  nor  prolV^sional 
enfraucliisemeiit  through  State  Kegistration,  and 
their  position  is  therefore  very  precarious.  If 
Canada  desires  the  assistance  of  Knglisii  women  it 
should  pass  a  Women  Enfrancliisement  Bill  without 
delay ;  but  in  our  opinion  Englishwomen  are  not 
well  advi&e<l  to  emigrate  to  any  country  where 
they  have  not  the  security  afforded  by  the  Parlia- 
mentary franchise.  The  suggestion  made  by  Mre. 
Cran,  that  the  only  way  to  get  at  the  lonely  farms 
is  through  bands  of  itinerant  midwives,  a  sort  of 
mobile  corps  unattached  to  any  town  or  building, 
but  working  under  effeeient  direction,  is  a  very 
practical  one,  evidently  the  outcome  of  a  personal 
kiiowle<lge  of  the  requirements  of  the  country. 


Bool?  of  the  imcclK. 


DAISYS  AUNT* 

"  Daisy's  Aunt  "  is  a  very  slight  story,  but,  told 
by  Mr.  Benson,  it  is,  of  course,  readable.  But, 
truth  to  tell,  the  interest  lags  a  little,  and  the 
shuttlecock  of  conversation,  in  which  he  usually  ex- 
cels, does  not  fly  with  the  same  light  certainty  of 
return  as  usual. 

The  people  of  these  pages  are  of  the  leisured 
class,  with  for  the  most  part  pleasant  dispositions, 
whose  motto,  "  il  faut  s'amuser,"  is  accompanied 
by  a  determination  to  marry  if  possible  wisely  but 
certainly  well. 

Daisy  says,  "  I  am  hard  and  worldly  and  disgust- 
ing, but  I  want  to  be  right  at  the  top  of  the  tree, 
and  if  I  married  Willie  I  should  just  be  Mrs. 
Carton.  ...  I  want  such  a  lot  of  things  to 
make  me  happy — all  there  is,  in  fact — and  poor, 
darling  Willie  hasn't  got  all  there  is.  He's  the 
sort  of  man  I  should  like  to  marry  when  I'm  forty- 
three.  He  would  be  quite  charming  if  one  were 
forty-three.  He's  quite  charming  now,  if  it  comes 
to  that,  .  .  .  but  he's  too  devoted.  That's  one 
reason  for  not  marrying  him." 

"  I  don't  think  it's  a  good  one,  though,"  re- 
marked Gladys. 

"  Yes,  it  is.  Because  a  man  always  expects  from 
his  wife  what  he  gives  her.  He  would  be  absolutely 
happy  living  with  me  on  a  desert  island,  but  he 
would  tacitly  require  that  I  should  be  absolutely 
happy  living  with  him  on  a  desert  island.  Well, 
I  shouldn't — I  shouldn't — I  shouldn't — I  should 
not!  Is  that  clear?"  Daisy  gave  a  great  sigh,  and 
leant  over  the  folded  door  of  the  hansom. 

"  I'm  not  sure  if  I  want  to  marry  Lord  Lond- 
field  or  not,"  she  said,  "  but  I'm  perfectly  certain 
I  don't  want  him  to  marry  anyone  else.  I  think 
I  should  like  him  to  remain  wanting  to  marry  me, 
while  I  did  not  want  to  marry  him.  .  .  .  Oh, 
don't  look  shocked ;  it's  so  silly  to  look  shocked, 
and  so  easy." 

But  then  Daisy's  Aunt  Jeannie  returns  after  a 
year's  absence,  and  discovers  insuperable  difiBculties 
in  the  way  of  the  fulfilment  of  Daisy's  ambitions. 
She,  still  being  a  young  and  charming  woman,  con- 

*  E.  F.  Benson.  (Thomas  Xelson  and  Sons, 
I^ondon.) 


ceives  the  idea  of  attracting  Ix>rd  Londtield  to 
herself  in  order  to  save  Daisy  the  pam  that  dis- 
closure of  the  truth   would  give  her. 

''  It  is  an  intolerable  role,"  said  Lady  Notting- 
ham. "  You  cannot  play  with  love  like  that.  It 
is  playing  heads  and  tails  with  a  man's  life,  or, 
worse,  you  are  playing  with  his  very  soul." 

"  And  a  month  afterwards  it  will  be  he  wlio  will 
be  playing  with  another  woman's  soul,"  said 
Jeannie  quietly.  .  .  .  "'I  am  only  making 
myself  the  chance  woman  with  whom  he  happens  to 
think  himself  in  love  at  the  time  when  he  pro- 
poses to  settle  down  and  marry.  He  shall  pro- 
pose marriage  therefore  to  me.  ...  I  will  do 
my  best  that  Daisy  shall  never  know,  ,  ,  .  I 
cannot  measure  his  possible  suffering  against 
Daisy's.  It  is  through  him  that  the  need  for  doing 
this  has  come." 

We  learn  the  reason  for  this  when,  her  tactics 
having  succeeded,  Lord  Londfield  passionately  re- 
proaches her. 

"  I  am  here  to  tell  you  that  you  have  done  an 
infernally  cruel  thing,  for  I  take  it  that  it  was  to 
separate  Miss  Daisy  and  me  that  you  did  it;  it  is 
only  just  I  should  know.  By  my  love  for  you  .  .  . 
I  bid  you  tell   me." 

Then  Jeannie  commanded  her  voice  again. 

"  You  were  in  Paris  two  years  ago,"  she  said. 
"  There  was  a  woman  there  who  lived  on  the  Rue 
Chalgron.    She  called  herself  Madame  Rougierre," 

"  Well?"  he  said, 

"  Daisy's  sister,"  said  Jeannie  with  a  sob. 

H,  H 


COMING    EVENTS. 
The  Women's  Congress, 

June  6th  to  11th. — Japan-British  Exhibition. 
Great  Hall,  Cascade  Cafe.     3  to  5  p.m. 

June  10th. — "  National  Health." 

June  11th. — "  Nursing."  Chair,  Her  Grace  the 
Duchess  of  Montrose.  Territorial  Nursing  and  Red 
Cross  Organisation  :  Miss  E.  .S.  Haldane.  Japanese 
Red  Cross  Work  :  Miss  Ethel  McCaul.  The  Trained 
Nurse's  Sphere  in  Red  Cross  Work  :  Mrs.  Netter- 
ville  Barron.  Nursing  as  a  Profession:  Mrs.  Bed- 
ford Fenwick.  District  Nursing:  The  Lady  Her- 
mionc  Blackwood.  Social  Service  Nursing:  Miss 
H.  L.  Pearse. 

June  12th. — Hospital  Sunday, 

June  loth. — Meeting  for  Nurses  on  Women's  Suf- 
frage, 49,  Norfolk  Square,  W.  Chair,  Hon.  Mrs. 
Haverfield.  Speaker,  Mrs,  Pankhurst,  3.30  to 
5.30  p.m. 

June  18th  (postponed  from  May  28th). — Proces- 
sion of  W^omen  Suffragists  from  the  Embankment 
to  Albert  Hall,  organised  by  the  AVomen's  National 
Social  and  Political  Union, 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 

"  Queen  Elizabeth  was  said  to  be  the  exception 
which  proved  the  rule  that  women  were  unfit  to 
rule,  but  Queen  Victoria  proved  that  Queen  Eliza- 
beth was  no  fluke," 

Sir  George  Reid, 
Congress  of  Women,  Japan-British 
Exhibition. 


482 


Zbc  Biitisb  3oiu*nal  of  miu-sincj. 


[Juue  11,  1910 


Xettci'6  to  tbe  lEMtor. 


Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
munications upon  all  subjects 
for  these  colum7is,  we  xcish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  we  do  not  in  ant  wat 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


PROVIDENT  NURSING. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Deae  Madam, — In  ooimectioii  with  the  question 
of  Provident  Nursing,  which  was  raised  at  the  in- 
teresting Conference  convened  by  the  Queen  Vic- 
toria's Jubilee  Institute,  and  reported  in  your 
last  issue,  I  siiould  like  to  suggest  that  if  district 
nursing  associations  are  financed  by  the  patients 
whom  the  nurses  serve,  it  is  only  just  that  they 
should  lie  to  a  large  extent  managed  by  them 
also.  They  would  then  be  able  to  decide  a  question 
whicli  is  now  very  often  decided  for  them  by  ladies 
of  leisure — whether  the  nurse  employed  should  be 
fully  ti-ained  or  no.  In  my  exi>erience  the  poor 
appreciate  the  value  of  the  services  of  a  fully- 
trained  nurse,  and  would  be  prepared  to  make 
sacrifices  in  order  to  obtain  one,  while  to  the  aver- 
age wealthy  philanthropist  it  seems  quite  sufficient 
that  they  should  be  supplied  with  a  certified  raid- 
wife  with  a  superficial  smattering  of  nursing.  The 
skilled  artisan  appreciates  the  necessity  of  thorough 
ti'aining  in  a  way  that  the  average  .Society  lady 
rarely  does  until  the  question  touches  her  person- 
ally, then  her  eyes  may  be  opened. 

I  should  like  to  see  Friendly  Societies  make 
arrangements  for  supplying  visiting  nurses  as  part 
of  their  benefits,  in  the  same  way  that  they  supply 
medical  attendance,  the  additional  sum  to  be  paid 
by  membeiB,  for  this  benefit  could  easily  be  worked 
out  on  a  business  basis. 

Yours  faithfully, 

Independent. 


TRAINING      IN     SMALL     HOSPITALS. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  .Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — Having  followed  with  much  in- 
terest the  question  of  State  Registration,  there  is 
one  thought  which  occurs  to  my  mind,  and  that  is, 
what  ■nill  hapi^en  to  the  nurses  who  train  in  uos- 
pitals  of  less  than  100  beds? 

After  all,  it  is  not  every  girl  who  possesses  the 
necessary  phy.sioal  ability  to  go  through  a  four 
years'  course  of  hard  training,  however  much  she 
may  wish  it.  Consequently,  if  she  is  to  be  trained 
at  all  it  must  be  in  a  smaller  hospital,  where  the 
rush  is  not  so  great. 

The  majority  of  these  hospitals  train  their  pro- 
bationers for  three  years ;  they  receive  no  salary  the 
first,  and  about  £12  the  second,  and  £15  the  third 
year,  and,  as  a  rule,  attend  some  first-class  lectures. 
Tliey  have  also  one  advantage  at  least,  as  it  is  their 
privilege  to  attend  operations  more  frequently  than 
would  fall  to  their  lot  if  training  in  a  bigger  school. 


Our  smaller  hosi^itals  do  a  good  work,  and  if  after 
three  yeare  in  one  of  these  the  certificate  is  to  count 
for  nothing  who  will  -be  found  wiling  to  do  it? 

M.  R.  W. 

Reigate  and  Redhill  Hospital, 
Redhill,  .Surrey. 

[It  is  probable  that  when  State  Registration  of 
Xui-ses  comes  into  force  the  training  facilities 
afforded  by  the  smaller  hospitals  will  be  utilised  aa 
never  before,  and  that  by  affiliation  in  gi-oups, 
which  afford  experience  in  the  various  necessary 
branches,  they  will  become  important  factors  in  the 
scheme  of  nursing  education,  and  the  nurses  they 
train  be  qualified  for  registration. — Ed.] 


OUR  GOOD  NAME. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — I  am  thankful  to  see  that  our 
Registration  Society  is  coming  out  against  those 
dangerous  so-called  Massage  Homes.  R  is  too 
humiliating  that  decent  women  — such  as  we  are — 
should  be  associated  in  the  public  mind  with  the 
most  depraved  persons.  I  have  written  to  our 
local  M.P.  on  the  question,  and  urged  him  to  in- 
terest others  in  the  matter,  and  help  by  getting  a 
Registration  Bill  through  Parliament  to  provide- 
for  a  distinguishing  title  for  "  registered  nurses." 
If  this  sort  of  scandal  goes  on  the  very  women  the 
public  require  as  nurses  will  not  train. 
Yours  trulv, 

(Mrs.)  E.  C.  Stock. 
Hampstead. 

[We  should  advise  all  earnest  Registrationists  to- 
do  likewise,   appeal  to  M.P.'s — Ed.] 


Comments  an&  IRepUes. 

Parish  Nurse. — We  should  advise  you  to  write  to. 
the  Secretary  of  the  Claphara  Blaternity  Hospital, 
Jeffrey's  Road,  Clapham,  S.W.  We  think  you  would 
find  that,  upon  payment,  the  case  might  be  received 
there,  and  that  a  j>ersonal  as  well  as  a  professional 
interest  would  be  taken  in  the  patient. 

Candidate,  Birmingliam. — You  will  find  the  Ma- 
trons of  both  the  large  General  Hospitals  in  Bir- 
mingham in  sympathy  with  the  movement  for  the- 
higher  education  of  Trained  Nui«es. 


IRotices. 


CONTRIBUTIONS. 

Tlie  Editor  will  at  all  times  be  pleased  to  consider 
articles  of  a  suitable  nature  for  insertion  in  this 
Journal — those  on  practical  nursing  are  specially 
invited. 

Such  communications  must  be  duly  authenticated 
with  name  and  address,  and  should  be  addressed  to 
the  Editor,  20,  Upper  Wimpole  Street,  London,  W. 

Advertisements  and  business  communication.': 
should  be  addressed  to  the  Manager,  British 
Journal  of    Nursing,   11,    Adam   Street,  Strand, 

w.c. 

OUR  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing   for   the     Pictorial    Puzzlfe 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


June  11, 1910]  ^|)c  Biltish  3oiu-nal  of  ll^ursiiuj  Supplement. 


483 


The    Midwife. 


Constipation  in  3nfant9. 

In  the  May  number  of  Tlie  Practitioner, 
which  is  devoted  exclusively  to  the  considera- 
tion of  constipation,  an  article  appears  by  Dr. 
Eric  Pritchard  entitled  "  Constipation  in 
Infants." 

Many  of  the  points  brought  forward  by  Dr. 
Pritchard  are  of  especial  interest  to  midwives 
and  extremely  instructive.  He  shows  that  the 
infant  is  in  grave  danger  of  acquiring  the  habit 
of  constipation,  for  not  only  is  it  liable  to  suffer 
from  all  the  causes  which  affect  the  adult,  but 
also  from  the  absence  of  voluntary  effort  and 
from  certain  anatomical  disabilities  of  the 
bowel,  which  predispose  to  inertia.  The  colon 
in  the  infant  is  relatively  longer,  more  con- 
voluted, and  muscularly  weaker  than  in  the 
adult;  so  that  it  is  easily  overdistended  and 
even  permanently  dilated  and  kinked  by  flatu- 
lence resulting  from  overfeeding. 

At  the  same  time  a  certain  quantity  of 
resistant  material  is  needed  to  develop  its  mus- 
cular powers,  and  mothers  and  nurses  are 
warned  that  the  passage  of  formed  motions  of 
firm  consistence  and  small  calibre  are  not 
necessarily  an  indication  of  constipation  re- 
quiring treatment;  but  that,  on  the  contrary, 
they  imply  strong  peristaltic  contractions,  and 
provide  excellent  exercise  for  the  intestinal 
muscles. 

Great  stress  is  laid  upon  the  importance  of 
establishing  the  intestinal  function  on  a  firai 
basis  of  habit  from  the  very  beginning,  and 
upon  the  danger  of  administering  strong  purges 
during  the  first  few  days  of  life.  Dr.  Pritchard 
demonstrates  that  meconium,  owing  to  its 
physical  qualities,  is  admirably  designed 
as  a  medium  of  resistance  to  the 
first  untrained  efforts  of  peristaltic  move- 
ment. These  first  efforts,  he  reminds 
us,  modify  all  subsequent  reactions, 
which,  as  with  all  nervous  reactions,  depend 
upon  past  experience,  especially  first  experi- 
ence, and  become  associated  with  a  certain 
stimulus  or  series  of  stimuli,  so  forming  a 
habit.  If  the  gentle  stimulus  of  meconium  be 
replaced  by  a  dose  of  castor  oil,  it  is  obvious 
that  future  reaction  to  natural  stimuli  will  be 
much  modified,  meconium,  colostrum,  or  milk 
becoming  comparatively  useless. 

Dr.  Pritchard  even  goes  so  far  as  to  say  :  "  I 
know  of  no  series  of  doses  of  purgative  medicine 
which  are  responsible  for  so  much  constipation 
at  any  time  of  life  as  the  single  dose  of  castor 


oil  which  clears  out  meconium  from  the  bowel 
of  the  newborn  infant." 

For  the  same  reason,  he  strongly  deprecates 
over-stimulation  of  the  rectum  by  suppositories 
and  injections.  Here  the  nerve  mechanism  is 
specially  sensitive  and  very  easily  dislocated, 
and  if  an  unnaturally  strong  stimulus  is  applied 
the  normal  stimulus  of  foecal  matter  is  by  con- 
trast rendered  inactive. 

He  continues  to  say  :  "  The  tone  and  activity 
of  the  muscles  which  are  concerned  in  the  peri- 
staltic movements  are  under  the  control  of  local 
nervous  mechanisms,  which  in  turn  are  co- 
ordinated and  reinforced  by  a  stream  of 
efferent  nerve  impulses  emanating  from  spinal 
and  cerebral  centres."  Thus  it  is  easy  to 
understand  that  constipation  is  a  common 
symptom  in  any  disease  which  causes  derange- 
ment of  the  nervous  system.  Children  suffer- 
ing from  rickets  and  nervous  debility,  menin- 
gitis, hydrocephalus,  and  mental  deficiency  are 
all  liable  to  constipation. 

A  pre-existing  condition  of  diarrhoea  is 
another  frequent  source,  severe  attacks  ex- 
hausting the  nervous  centres  and  enfeebling  the 
muscle  of  the  bowel  walls. 

Of  the  forms  of  constipation  due  to  food 
causes,  a  deficient  quantity  is  common  in 
breast-fed  infants,  while  overfeeding  is  more 
often  found  with  bottle-fed  children  and  among 
the  upper  and  middle  classes.  For  the  former, 
Dr.  Pritchard  reconmiends  "  test  feeds  " — that 
is  the  weighing  of  the  infant  before  and  after 
it  is  put  to  the  breast  in  order  to  discover 
whether  it  is  taking  a  normal  quantity.  If  a 
deficiency  is  shown,  supplementary  feeds  must 
be  given,  modified  according  to  symptoms 
which  indicate  in  what  respects  the  milk  is 
defective.  Constipation  in  overfeeding  ^is,  in 
Dr.  Pritchard 's  opinion,  caused  by  the  decom- 
position of  an  excessive  amount  of  food  in  the 
bowel,  the  products  of  which  poison  the  nerve 
centres.  This  form  is,  of  course,  easily  cor- 
rected. 

In  every  case  the  treatment  of  constipation 
depends  largely  upon  a  coiTect  diagnosis  of  the 
cause,  and  some  very  interesting  points  are 
given  in  respect  both  to  this  question  and  to 
the  curative  treatment.  Diet,  drugs,  irriga- 
tion, massage,  and  electricity  are  all  considered. 
While,  however,  these  methods  are  somewhat 
beyond  the  nurse's  or  midwife's  province,  the 
hints  as  to  prophylactic  measures  are  of  the 
greatest  value  to  her.  Briefly,  he  summarises 
them  as  follows  :  — 


484 


ZTbc  Bvitisb  3ournal  of  HAursino  Supplement-  [J™e  n,  loio 


1.  Never  employ  aperients,  purgatives, 
enemata,  or  suppositories,  especially  during  the 
first  few  weeks  of  life. 

2.  In  breast-feeding  make  certain,  by  means 
of  the  "  test  feed,"  there  is  neither  underfeed- 
ing nor  overfeeding. 

3.  In  breast-feeding  correct  quantitive  and 
qualitative  defects  by  supplementary  feeding. 

4.  Induce  regularity  of  "  habit  "  by  syste- 
matic training. 

In  fact,  the  one  insistent  note  throughout  the 
article  is  the  absolute  necessity  of  establishing 
and  maintaining  a  settled  habit  of  daily  evacua- 
tion, by  persistent  and  deliberate  training,  and 
without  the  use  of  unnat>u-al  stimulants. 

M.  F. 

Zlic  IReebs  of  tbe  Britisb  %^im^ 
in  Ibospital. 

Mr.  C.  E.  Farmer,  Chairman  of  the  British  Lying- 
in  Hospital,  Endell  Street,  writes  bringing  before 
the  public  the  needs  of  that  institution,  which  has 
ministered-  to  the  wants  of  very  poor  married  women 
since  1749.  "  The  Hospital  is,"  he  says,  "  notwun- 
standing  the  exercise  of  most  stringent  economy, 
now  overdi'awn  at  its  bankers  to  the  extent  of  more 
than  £1,000 — which  it  has  no  means  of  paying  ex- 
cept by  the  sacrifice  of  a  portion  of  its  small  in- 
vested capital.  Any  contributions  would  be  most 
gratefully  received  by  myself  or  the  Secretary  at 
the  Hospital,  and  woidd  relieve  a  very  real 
anxiety."  It  is  strange  how  backward  the  public 
are  in  helping  Lying-in  Hospitals,  many  of  which 
like  the  British,  are  doing  splendid  work. 


Zbe  IRo^al  iTDaternit^  Ibospital, 
i6C)int>nrGb. 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  subscriber's  to  the 
Edinburgh  Royal  Maternity  and  Simpson  Memorial 
Hospital,  held  at  79,  Lauriston  Place,  last  week,  at 
which  Sir  Robert  Cranston  presided,  it  was  state<l 
that  the  number  of  patients  taking  advantage  of 
the  benefits  of  the  Hospital  was  1,914,  which  was 
more  than  double  what  it  was  five  years  ago.  The 
vei-y  fact  of  its  success,  however,  and  the  necessity 
arising  from  it  for  a  greatly  Increased  nui-sing 
staff,  has  caused  a  serious  strain  on  the  resources 
and  appliances  of  the  Hospital.  Tlie  director's  are 
now  appealing  for  a  sufficient  sum  to  enable  them 
to  provide  a  hospital  which  will  meet  all  the  re- 
quirements of  the  best  modern  obstetric  pi'actice. 
Last  year  the  income  amounted  to  £1,825,  and 
the  expenditure  to  £2. .522. 

The  Chairman  said  that  certain  things  were 
needed  wliich  could  be  done  if  they  had  the  money. 
He  did  not  say  the  well-being  of  the  patients  was 
aflfected,  but  the  room  was  cramped  altogether, 
and  the  provi-sion  for  the  nurses  was  most  unsatis- 
factory. 


S>ircct    IRepi'Csentation    of    fn^i^* 

wives  an^  tbe  flDi^vvives' 

3n5titute. 

The  Midwives'  Institute  has  addressed  a 
memorial  to  Lord  Wolverhamiiton,  Lord  President 
ot  the  Council,  on  the  subject  of  the  Amending  Bill 
of  the  Midwives'  Act,  in  which  we  regret  to  observe 
that  no  claim  is  put  forward  for  the  direct  repre- 
sentation of  midwives  on  the  Central  Midwives' 
Board,  and  that  the  Midwives'  Institute  even  de- 
sires to  render  insecure  one  of  the  two  seats  for  the 
first  time  assured  to  midwives  by  the  Lord  Presi- 
dent of  the  Council  in  his  Bill. 

Midwives  have,  indeed,  reason  to  be  grateful  to 
Lord  Wolverhampton  for  having  admitted  the 
principle  which  the  Midwives'  Institute  so  far  has 
not  recognised,  that  certain  seats  on  the  Central 
Midwives'  Board  should  be  allotted  to  certified  mid- 
wives,  and  for  having  definitely  projiosed  th^t  the 
Board  should  be  constituted   as  follows:. — 

Two  persons  appointed  by  the  Lord  President  of 
the  Council. 

One  person  appointed  by  the  Local  Government 
Board. 

Four  duly   qualified  medical   practitioners. 

Two  certified  midicives. 

■Four  persons  appointed  by  (1)  the  County 
Councils  Association,  (2)  the  Association  of  Muni- 
cipal CoriJorations,  (3)  the  Society  of  Medical 
Ofiicers  of  Health,  and  (4)  the  Queen  Victoria's 
Jubilee  Instittite. 

We  do  not  think,  in  their  justifiable  desire  for 
direct  representation,  that  midwives  have  suflB- 
ciently  realised  their  indebtedness  to  Lord  Wolver- 
hampton for  recognising  their  rigTit  to  representa- 
tion on  their  governing  body  and  making  provision 
for  it.  It  is  a  right  never  claimed  for  them  by 
the  Midwives'  Institute,  and  even  opposed  by 
members  of  that  Society — an  inconceivable  attitude, 
to  our  mind,  for  any  midwife  to  assume.  But,  this 
being  so.  we  can  hardly  be  surprised  that  the  Mid- 
wives"  Institute  is  officially  endeavouring  to  obtain 
the  substitution  of  the  word  person  for  certified 
midirife  in  regard  to  the  representative  of  the 
Royal  British  Nurses'  Association,  thus  proposing 
to  render  insecure  one  of  the  two  seats  granted 
to  midwives  by  the  Lord  President,  while 
it  claims  that  a  second  representative,  "  not  of 
necessity  a  midwife,"  shall  be  granted  to  the  Mid- 
wives'  Institute. 

In  regard  to  "  direct  rejiresentation  "  of  mid- 
wives  on  their  Governing  Body,  the  ofiicial  organ 
of  the  Institute  states:  "  We  have  always  clearly 
understood  that  the  Midwives'  Institute  has  never 
taken  up  any  attitude  of  objection  or  opposition  to 
direct  representation,  for  no  such  scheme  has  ever 
yet  come  within  the  range  of  practical  politics." 
Surely  a  more  feeble  attempt  at  self-justification 
could  never  have  been  penned.  If  the  Midwives' 
Institute  desires  to  be  regarded  as  "in  any  -way 
representing  the  1-5,000  practising  midwives  on  the 
Roll,"  it  is  its  duty  to  see  that  such  a  scheme  is 
brought  within  the  range  of  practical  politics. 
Those  who  are  not  for  us  are  against  us. 


No.   1,159. 


WITH  WHICH  IS  INCORPORATED 
EDITED  BY  MRS   BEDFORD  FENWICK 


SATURDAY,     JUNE     18,     1910. 


EMtorial. 


ADEQUATE  EDUCATIONAL  STANDARDS. 

An  attempt  is  being  made  to  obscure  the 
real  issue  in  connection  witli  the  mueh- 
criticised  appointment  to  the  .Matrouship 
of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  on  the  ground 
that  the  appointment  is  resented  because 
the  selected  candidate  is  an  anti-registra- 
tionist. 

The  shibboleth  of  registration  does  not 
atfect  the  question  at  issue,  except  on  the 
wide  ground  for  which  registration  stands — 
adequate  educational  standards,  for  the 
many  as  well  as  the  few  ;  for  libei'ty  of  con- 
science on  professional  matters,  and  the 
right  to  act  according  to  its  dictates  ;  for  all 
that  liberality  of  view  on  nursing  matters 
which  results  from  professional  know- 
ledge, wise  judgment,  and  a  just  and  wide 
outlook.  This  liberty  of  conscience  has 
always  been  conceded  to  the  nurses  at  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital  under  the  rule  of 
the  late  Matron,  who,  while  guiding  and 
inspiring  them  both  by  precept  and  prac- 
tice, always  studiously  refrained  from 
undue  influence  and  avoided  the  slightest 
attempt  at  coercion.  Her  mode  of  teach- 
ing in  relation  to  the  duty  of  nui-ses  to  their 
profession  at  large  was  to  place  before  them 
what  she  believed  to  be  right,  and  then  to 
invite  them  to  study  the  question  for  them- 
selves and  form  their  own  conclusions.  By 
this  method  St.  Bartholomew's  nurses  have 
developed  on  self-reliant,  broad-minded 
lines,  and  the  traditions  of  their  school  have 
made  them  veiy  tenacious  of  their  liberty  of 
conscience  and  of  their  right  to  act  in 
accordance  with  its  dictation. 

To  what  purpose  have  they  used  their 
liberty  ?  For  no  selfish  end,  but  to  en- 
deavour to  secure  throughout  the  nursing 
world,  for  the  benefit  of  the  sick  public,  the 


same  high  standards  which  they  themselves 
practise  and  have  learnt  to  regard  as  essen- 
tial. Surely  the  Governors  have  reason  to 
be  proud  that  their  nursing  staiT  are  in  the 
van  of  progress  in  connection  with  the 
maintenance  of  high  ideals  and  high  stan- 
dards for  the  profession  at  large.  Nothing 
could  redound  more  greatly  lo  their  credit, 
nothing  could  be  a  greater  guarantee  to  the 
Governore  that  the  nursing  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital  must  be — as  the  medical 
staff  have  assured  the  Treasurer  that  it  is 
— of  an  unusually  high  standard.  This 
excellence  has  been  attained  because  the 
individual  members  of  the  nursing  staff  are 
inspired  by  a  high  sense  of  professional 
duty,  and  realise  individually  tlieir  respon- 
sibility as  members  of  a  corporate  profession 
to  do  their  share  in  keeping  its  practice  at 
a  high  level. 

There  is  all  the  difference  in  the  world 
between  such  loyal,  intelligent  service  and 
that  which  depends  for  its  efficiency  on  an 
autocratic  government — the  form  wliich 
finds  favour  at  the  London  Hospital — where 
the  Matron  has  the  power  of  dismissal  of  the 
nursing  staff,  subject  to  an  ajjpeal  to  the 
House  Committee,  an  appeal  wliich  is  futile 
because,  as  a  matter  of  discipline,  the  House 
Committee  could  not  reinstate  a  jirobationer 
already  dismissed  by  the  Matron. 

The  application  of  the  methods  of  govern- 
ment employed  in  the  London  Hospital,  in 
relation  to  its  nursing  school,  to  the  nursing 
staff  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  would 
be  a  complete  reversal  of  the  great  prin- 
ciples to  which  we  have  alluded,  and  upon 
which  we  maintain  the  success  of  the  Nurs- 
ing School  at  St.  Bartholomew's  has  been 
based.  There  is  no  doubt,  therefore,  in  our 
mind  that  the  new  departure,  if  persisted 
in,  would  be  most  prejudicial  to  the  welfare 
of  that  historic  hospital. 


486 


Zbc  Biitisb  3ournal  of  IRursing. 


[June  18,  1910 


nDel)ical  fIDatters. 


A  JOURNEY  THROUGH   THE  AIR   FROM   A 
MEDICAL  STANDPOINT. 

"  Recent  achievements  in  the  science  of  aero- 
travelling  have,"  says  the  Lancet,  "  given  a  de- 
cided stimulus  to  the  idea  that  general  locomo- 
tion through  the  air  is  within  sight.  It  cer- 
tainly seems  that  difficulties  are  rapidly  being 
surmounted,  but  still  the  risks  are  very  great; 
the  weather  must  be  favourable  for  one  thing, 
and  then  there  must  be  no  hitch  in  the  motor 
engine.  After  all,  no  air-trip  as  yet  can  be 
started  with  the  same  certainty  as  a  trip  by 
laud  or  by  sea.  The  method  of  progression  is 
under  fair  control,  but  stability  under  all  condi- 
tions is  not  yet  amongst  the  triumphs  won. 
Supposing,  however,  that  it  was,  the  fact  has 
then  to  be  realised  that  a  trip  through  the  air 
will  involve  a  good  deal  of  nerve.  The  giddy 
height  will  have  to  be  faced,  the  sudden  swoop 
down  or  rise  upwards  with  their  disagreeable 
effects  for  a  great  many  people  will  have  to  be 
reckoned  with.  Sea-sickness  is  a  terror  to 
many  people,  and  the  chances  are  that  air-sick- 
ness will  be  worse.  Most  persons  again  have 
experienced  the  unpleasant  feeling  in  a  lift 
when  it  commences  its  descent  or  in  a  swing 
when,  like  the  pendulum,  it  swings  back.  Not 
a  few  people  refuse  to  stand  close  to  the  edge 
of  a  cliff  or  to  trust  themselves  to  look  down 
into  a  vast  chasm  of  space  immediately  be- 
neath their  feet  owing  to  vague  feelings  of  gid- 
diness, fears  of  falling  arising  out  of  a  sense  of 
a  jeopardised  equilibrium.  And  yet  these  same 
people  converse  glibly  about  the  nearness  of 
the  day  when  aero-traffic  will  be  an  accom- 
plished fact,  and  point  in  support  of  their  view 
to  the  enormously  rapid  advances  which  motor 
traffic  in  the  streets  has  made.  When  the 
question  is  carefully  considered  in  detail  it  will 
be  conceded  that  there  is  hardly  anything  that 
is  comparable  between  the  air  motor  and  the 
land  motor  from  the  point  of  view  of  attaining 
practical  success.  The  problem  in  the  case  of 
the  former  is  so  complicated  by  the  first  re- 
quirement'— the  conquest  of  that  great  force 
which,  do  what  we  will,  pulls  us  back  again 
to  earth  the  moment  we  dare  to  rise  from  its 
surface.  No  special  motor  appliance  is  re- 
quired to  keep  afloat  on  the  sea  or  to  keep  a 
stable  position  on  land,  but  we  can  only  gain 
support  in  the  air  bj'  means  of  moving  ma- 
chinery analogous  to  the  wings  of  a  bird  or  by 
utilising  a  buoy  or  a  substance  which  is  much 
lighter  than  air,  and  which,  therefore,  tends 
to  float  upon  it.  The  machinery  in  the  fonner 
case  must  obviously  be  well-nigh  perfect  and 
incapable  of  breaking  down,  while  the  difficulty 


in  the  latter  case  is  the  enormous  bulk  of  float- 
ing gas  that  must  be  used.  In  short,  the  ad- 
vances yet  to  be  made  in  order  to  bring  avia- 
tion within  the  practical  afiairs  of  daily  life 
must  still  be  very  far-reaching.  Then,  assun 
ing  the  great  consummation  has  been  reached 
will  the  human  organisation  be  able  to  stanJ 
aviation  ?  This  is  by  no  means  certain,  having 
regard  to  the  constant  changes  of  atmospheric 
pressure — with  their  marked  effects  upon  the 
respiratory  and  circulatory  processes — which  a 
journey  through  the  air  must  entail." 

The  above  article  shows  that  it  is  not  proba- 
ble that  aero-travelling  will  be  adopted  for  some 
time  to  come  as  a  popular  mode  of  convey- 
ance. 


BACTERIA  IN  THE  EYE  OF  THE  NEW  BORN. 

Dr.  McKee  states  in  the  Montreal  Mrdical 
■Journal  that  Eosenhauch  after  examining  the 
conjunctival  sacs  of  two  hundred  jiew  bom 
babies  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  conjunc- 
tival cul-de-sac  is  absolutely  clear  immediately 
after  birth.  After  twenty-four  hours  the  bac- 
terial flora  is  constant.  It  is  not  to  be 
differentiated  from  the  adult.  The  Staphylo- 
coccus non  pyogenes,  non  liquefaciens,  and  the 
Bacillus  xerosis  are  constant  inhabitants. 
Other  micro-organisms  are  only  sporadic. 
Pathological  micro-organisms  are  seldom  found 
and  then  only  a  few.  Twenty-four  hours  after 
birth  the  conjunctival  sac  was  never  free  from 
micro-organisms.  Gonorrhceal  infection  is 
hardly  possible  during  birth,  but  usually  occurs 
during  the  first  couple  of  days  of  life. 


ELECTRIC    AN/ESTHESIA. 

Dr.  Louise  G.  Eobbinovitch,  of  New  York, 
recently  gave  a  demonstration  before  a  large 
assemblage  of  physicians  and  surgeons  in  Hart- 
ford, Conn.,  of  the  possibilities  of  electric 
anaesthesia.  The  electricity  was  applied  in  the 
case  of  an  amputation  of  four  toes,  necessitated 
by  gangrene  supervening  after  frostbite,  by  Dr. 
Jklarcus  RI.  -Johnson.  The  operation  lasted 
forty-five  minutes,  and  the  patient  laughed  and 
talked  freely  with  the  doctors  the  whole  time, 
being  unconscious  of  any  unpleasant  sensa- 
tions, even  when  the  bone  was  separated  with 
bone  forceps.  The  Medical  Record  reports  that 
this  is  the  first  time  in  the  annals  of  surgery 
that  electricity  has  been  used  for  anaesthetic 
purposes  on  man,  and  the  demonstrator  was  a 
woman. 

THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  FOOD. 

In  the  preventive  treatment  of  consumption. 
Sir  Thomas  Barlow,  regards  good  food  of 
primary  importance.  Pure  milk,  good  butter^ 
bacon,  and  well  cooked  vegetables,  he  cod- 
siders  necessary. 


June  18,  1910 


Zl)c  »rlti5b  Journal  of  'ttursina. 


487 


flDcntal  IRursino. 

Bv  BeRX.\RD  HoLLAXDtK,    M.p. 

"  Meutal  "  Nursing  is  regarded  by  some  as 
if  it  were  inferior  to  medical  and  surgical 
nursing.  Indeed,  it  is  thouglit  so  easy  of  per- 
formance and  to  require  so  little  knowledge 
and  skill  that  in  this  branch  of  nursing  more 
than  any  other  we  have  a  large  number  of  men 
and  women  who  never  had  any  special  training. 
This  is  quite  a  wrong  conception,  and  arises 
from  the  belief,  equally  false,  that  all  an  insane 
person  needs  is  "  safe  custody,"  and  that  there 
is  nothing  that  can  be  done  by  way  of  treat- 
ment. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  much  more  is  needed 
for  this  branch  of  the  work  than  the  require- 
ments of  medical  and  surgical  nursing.  The 
observation  of  pulse  and  temperature,  dressing 
of  wounds,  observation  of  secretions  and  ex- 
cretions of  patients,  the  general  anatomy  of  the 
body  and  the  diseases  to  which  it  is  subject — 
all  this  is  knowledge  fairly  easily  acquired  and 
possible  to  the  ordinary  intelligence  after 
definite  training.  Not  so  with  mental  nursing, 
which  requires  a  great  deal  more. 

The  mental  nurse  might  know  all  that  can  be 
learned  about  the  body  and  the  brain,  and  be 
familiar  With  all  their  diseases,  and  yet  not  be 
fitted  for  a  mental  nurse,  unless  she  has  studied 
both  mind  in  order  and  mind  in  disorder, 
normal  mind  and  deranged  mind.  She  might 
even  get  accustomed  to  the  "groove"  of 
asylum  nursing  and  treatment,  but  for  private 
work,  in  my  opinion,  the  "  ideal  "  nurse  cannot 
be  trained,  she  must  be  born  for  her  vocation : 
for  a  mental  nurse  should  be  something  more 
than  a  nurse.  As  the  constant  companion  of 
the  patient  she  is  the  real  doctor  of  the  mind. 
The  physician  sees  the  patient  only  for  a  few 
minutes  each  day  or  perhaps  only  once  or  twice 
a  week,  whereas  she  is  constantly  with  him  or 
her,  and  it  is  to  a  great  e.Ktent  her  influence 
which  determines  his  recovery. 

Whereas  the  medical  and  surgical  nurses 
watch  the  "  disease,"  the  mental  nurse  must 
study  her  "  patient."  The  knowledge  of  the 
different  mental  disorders  alone  will  help  her 
little,  for  she  cannot  treat  the  disease  ;  she  has 
.to  treat  the  patient  as  an  individual.  It  is  her 
business  to  keep  alive  the  personality  of  the 
patient,  to  individualise,  and  not  to  treat  the 
patient  as  one  of  a  mass.  For  this  purpose  she 
must  study  and  become  acquainted  with  the 
peculiarities  of  the  constitution,  temper,  and 
disposition  of  her  patients,  and  must  observe 
whether    his  natural    disposition   has    become 

•  An  addre,9s  delivered  at  the  Nursing  Conference, 
liondon . 


.  x.iugerated  or  his  original  characteristic  has 
changed. 

The  meutal  nurse  is  with  her  patient  so  con- 
tinually, and  sees  him  or  her  under  such  vary- 
ing conditions,  that  the  help  which  she  can 
render  is  incalculable.  She  notices  his 
behaviour,  habits,  and  peculiar  meutal  mani- 
festations, and  can  obsei-ve  and  distinguish 
what  is  nomial  and  abnormal;  what  is  a 
manner  to  which  he  has  been  accustomed  and 
what  is  one  which  he  has  acquured  since  his 
illness. 

Quite  a  number  of  qualifications  are  there- 
fore expected  of  a  mental  nurse.  She  is  to 
know  not  only  ordinary  nursing,  medical  and 
surgical,  to  have  a  knowledge  of  brain  diseases 
and  of  mental  disorders,  but  she  is  also  to  have 
a  knowledge  of  psychology  and  human  nature ; 
and  there  is  still  something  more  wanted.  If 
she  is  to  bring  about  the  recovery  of  her  patient 
then  the  healing  influence  must  come  from  her 
personality,  her  words,  and  her  actions.  The 
doctor  will  direct  her,  can  tell  her  what  to  do, 
but  with  her  rests  the  actual  work.  Therefore 
certain  characteristics  are  needed  in  her — 
heart,  judgment,  patience,- good  temper.  Her 
own  character  must  recommend  itself  to  the 
patient.  She  is  to  guide,  console,  and 
encourage  her  patients,  and  she  must  possess 
general  culture  in  order  to  interest  the  person 
in  her  charge,  of  whatever  station  in  life  and 
whatever  education. 

A  large  number  of  insane,  at  all  events  in 
private  care,  are  sufficiently  sensible  that  they 
themselves  desire  to  get  rid  of  their  morbid 
ideas  and  delusions.  Often  they  will  confess  to 
the  nurse  the  private  soitow  which  in  their 
opinion  excited  their  present  condition,  or  else 
she  herself,  by  careful  observation,  may  recog- 
nise the  psychical  origin  of  their  troubles. 
Therefore  she  must  gain  the  confidence  of  her 
patient  by  affection,  sympathy  with  his  feel- 
ings, by  listening  to  the  story  of  his  life.  She 
must  know  when  to  speak  and  when  not  to 
speak,  when  to  act  and  when  not  to  act.  She 
must  conquer  her  own  likes  and  dishkes.  her 
own  prejudices  and  antipathies,  and  put  herself 
as  much  as  possible  in  the  position  of  the- 
patient,  thinking  his  thoughts  and  feeling  his 
feelings.  Then  she  will  be  able  to  leam  to 
control  him  :  if  there  is  excitement,  to  allay  it ; 
if  there  is  fear,  to  remove  it ;  if  there  is  anger, 
to  dispel  it. 

I  know  that  it  will  be  said  that  I  expect  a 
mental  nurse  to  be  a  perfect  angel.  Theoreti- 
cally, I  do.  Her  work  demands  it.  At  all 
events  she  should  be  an  angel  in  disguise — that 
is  to  say  in  her  intercourse  with  her  patient, 
although  behind  that  cloak  of  sweetness  and 


488 


ebc  Bvitisb  3ournaI  of  IRursinG. 


[June  18,  1910 


agreeableness  she   must   display    the    utmost 
tirmness. 

Since  mental  states  influence  bodily  states, 
aud  the  reverse,  bodily  states  influence  mental 
states,  it  is  not  only  the  mental  condition  of  a 
patient  that  requires  her  care,  but  also  his 
bodily  health  and  appearance.  Moreover, 
mental  patients  often  neglect  themselves,  and 
because  a  i^atient's  reason  is  dethroned,  he 
needs  all  the  more  urgent  care — that  the  body 
is  clean,  tidy,   and  unobjectionable. 

Insgine  patients  often  refuse  their  food,  and 
the  nurse  wiil  discover  whether  a  patient  does 
,  s6  in  consequence  of  a  delusion  or  because  food 
in  general,  or  some  particular  food  for  some 
reason,  is  repugnant  to  him.  Needless  to  say, 
that  no  mental  patient  should  drink  alcohol; 
it  is  poison  to  his  brain,  however  small  in 
quantity  or  weak  in  quaUty.  In  order  not  to 
awaken  a  desire  in  him,  mental  nurses  should 
never  drink  with  his  knowledge,  and  never  in 
his  presence. 

Many  people  have  the  wrong  idea  that  all 
huiatics  are  dangerous,  raving  mad  and 
desperate  people,  whose  actions  are  those  of 
beasts  of  the  field,  and  whose  language  is  that 
of  Billingsgate  and  the  dockyard :  that  lunatics 
have  staring  eyes,  dishevelled  hair,  and  dis- 
ordered clothing.  Whereas  the  truth  is  that 
many  of  them  do  not  even  betray  their  abnor- 
mality to  strangers  either .  by  their  speech  or 
liy  their  appearance.  In  private  work  a  mental 
nurse  will  see  patients  who  still  recognise  that 
their  brain  is  not  working  properly,  and  who 
know  that  they  lack  control  over  it.  Gradually 
their  strange  sensations  or  beliefs  become 
•  realities  to  them,  but  even  then  they  need  not 
be  demented,  but  some  one  or  more  functions 
are  out  of  gear. 

According  to  the  normal  primary  mental 
capacities  we  get  a  variety  of  symptoms.  There 
are  three  processes  which  may  become 
deranged;  viz.:  thinking,  feeling,  and  acting. 

We  may  get  false  perceptions  giving  rise  to 
hallucinations  and  illusions;  the  memory  may 
get  defective,  and  thinking  either  slow  or  over- 
active, giving  rise  to  a  rapidity  of  thought  and 
'incoherence.  Or  else  the  intellect  may  be 
clear,  but  the  emotions  deranged,  and  with 
deranged  emotions,  as  a  rule,  the  actions  ai'e 
abnormal.  Thus,  excessive  fear  may  give  rise 
to  melancholia :  excessive  suspicion  to  delu- 
sions of  persecution  ;  excessive  pride  or  vanity 
to  delusions  of  exaltation,  and  so  on. 

A  knowledge  ,of  psychology  and  a  practical 
acquaintance  with  human  nature  will  thus 
help  immens.'-ly  in  the  understanding  and  treat- 
ment of  the  patient. 

(To  be  concluded.) 


.   ^De  TRclattons  of  IHurslna  an^ 
flDeMcine  in  (Bcrnian^.-- 

By  Elizabeth  vox  der  Plaxitz. 
The  relations  between  doctor  and  nurse  have 
of  old  been  rendered  difficult  in  Germany  for 
two  reasons :  firstly,  because  of  the  excessive 
submissiork  to  the  doctor  of  Sisters  belonging 
to  religious  orders;  and  secondly,  because  of 
the  frequent  dependence  of  doctors  upon  the 
management  of  the  hospitals  of  religious  com- 
munities. 

As  a  proof  of  the  first  statement  I  give  the 
following  one  :  — 

A  mother  House  dismissed  one  of  its  Sisters,' 
a  girl  of  the  educated  class,  because  she  had 
refused  to  help  the  doctor  on  with  his  goloshes 
and  to  turn  up  his  trousers,  this  being  con- 
sidered a  refusal  to  obey  orders  when  on-duty. 
As  a  proof  of  the  second  statement  the  fol- 
lowing one :  — 

A  doctor  resigned  work  at  a  hospital,  because 
against  his  stringent  orders  the  bandage  had 
been  changed  by  a  nun  after  trepanning,  after 
washing  with  camomile  tea,  because  the  Mother 
Superior  wotild  not  allow  any  deviation  from 
the  ordinary  rule,  which  obliged  the  Sisters  to 
change  the  bandages. 

In  modern  times  the  difficulty  of  bringing 
about  the  right  relations  between  both  profes- 
sions seems  to  increase  still  moi-e.  The  growing 
number  of  educated  women  in  the  nursing  pro- 
fession makes  it  necessary  for  the  doctors  to 
take  a  different  position  from  formerly,  when 
in  the  majority  of  cases  the  nurse  of  a  lower 
social  rank  was  subject  to  the  professional  man, 
and  besides  was  the  member  of  a  community 
teaching  that  humility  is  one  of  the  first  duties. 
Many  doctors  find  it  inconvenient  to  be 
obliged  to  show  certain  consideration  and  more 
self-control,  which  is  necessary  when  working 
with  an  educated  woman,  and  so  they  prefer 
the  uneducated,  low-class  nurse,  whom  they 
can  treat  unceremoniously. 

Among  the  nurses  the  sore  point  is,  of  course, 
frequently  the  want  of  a  proper  sense  of 
dignity,  the  tendency  to  flirt,  besides  the 
endeavour  to  render  personal  services,  in  order 
to  secure  less  severe  criticism  of  their  own  pro- 
fessional inefficiency,  which  is  owing  to  our  de- 
ficient system  of  training. 

As  in  very  few  institutions  the  Lady  Super- 
intendent has  a  position  worthy  of  her  educa- 
tional responsibility,  as  she  is  mostly  too  over- 
worked or  too  unfitted  to  have  sufficient  educa- 
tional influence  on  the  Sisters,  it  is  exceedingly 
*  Read  before  the  International  Congress  of 
Xiii'ses.  London,  Jnlv,  1909. 


June  18,  1910] 


^be  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRureino. 


489 


difficult  with  regard  to  tliis  question  to  find 
proper  ways  and  means  in  the  hospitals. 

The  tone  of  the  relations  betweeik  doctors 
and  nurses  of  course  depends  on  the  personalitj' 
of  the  women  and  the  Medical  Director. 

If  the  head  doctor  has  no  respect  for  woman- 
hood, it  is  generally  wanting  in  his  subor- 
dinates, and  very  frequently  when  the  doctor 
is  obviously  in  the  wrong  with  regard  to  a 
Sister,  the  medical  direction  will  all  the  same 
take  his  part,  and  nothing  is  left  to  the  Sister 
but  to  go  if  she  will  not  submit  quietly. 

As  long  as  we  have  to  reckon  with  a  great 
number  of  avei-age  individuals  in  both  profes- 
sions, and  as  long  as  all  the  power  is  in  the 
hands  of  men,  these  difficulties  will  continue 
to  exist. 

If  a  Sister  of  high  personal  excellence,  such 
as  our  vocation  demands,  works  under  a  doctor 
of  the  same  quality,  the  relations  are  regulated 
in  the  most  satisfactory  manner  with  regard 
to  all  concerned  in  the  most  natural  way 
without  any  assistance  or  reflection. 

In  the  interest  of  the  sick  \t  is  most  desir- 
able that  there  should  be  no  doctors  who  lose 
all  self-coutrol  in  the  oiieratiug-room,  so  that 
instruments  are  thrown  aboiit  by  them  and 
rough  language  is  used,  or  who  are  capable  of 
making  bad  jokes  at  the  sick  bed  and  of  carry- 
ing on  doubtful  conversations. 

It  is  also,  for  the  same  reason,  desirable  that 
there  should  be  no  foolish  or  liypersensitive 
Sisters. 

Let  us  hope  that  the  growing  self-organisa- 
tion of  the  Sisters  may  enable  them  to  gain 
the  necessary  self-discipline,  and  may  develop 
the  necessary  respect  on  the  part  of  the 
doctors. 

Zbc  npatrons'  Council  of  (Brcat 
Britain  an&  3reianD. 

A  meeting  of  the  Matrons'.  Council  will  be 
held  by  the  courtesy  of  the  Board  of  Manage- 
ment at  the  General  Hospital,  Birmingham, 
on  Friday,  July  15th.  The  business  meeting 
will  be  at  3  p.m.,  at  which  the  new  President 
will  be  elected.  State  Registration  of  Nurses 
will  be  discussed  at  4.30.  We  hope  a 
good  contingent  will  make  up  a  party  from 
I-iondon.  It  is  a  very  easy  journey,  and  no 
doubt  a  very  happy  day  will  be  spent. 

The  busy  capital  of  the  ^lidlands  is  an  ex- 
cellent centre  for  many  interesting  excursions, 
and  for  those  who  can  spare  time  to  stay 
several  day.s  ^VaI^^•^ck,  Kenilworth,  Lichfield, 
and  Stratford-on-Avon  are  all  within  easy 
reach.  — 


^be  Jfatc  of  St.  Bartbolomcw'^ 
Ibospital. 

The  appointment  of  a  lady  who,  by  every 
rule  and  standard  of  the  Training  School  of  the 
Great  Hospital  of  St.  Bartholomew's  is  de- 
clared to  be  incompletely  trained,  to  be  Head 
of  the  Nursing  Staff  is  a  blow  almost  crushing 
in  its  severity  to  the  professional  status  of 
nurses.  Wheresoever  the  ^ews  travels 
throughout  civiUsation,  every  nurse  hearing  it 
will  feel  that  an  uimierited  slur  has  been  cast, 
and  a  grievous  injury  has  been  done,  to  one  of 
the  most  important  training  schools  in  the 
world,  and  to  every  nurse  who  holds  its  certi- 
ficate. .. 

During  tlie  past  thirty  years  a  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's nurse  has  held  in  the  nursing  world  a 
position  of  unquestioned  eminence.  In 
America,  India,  and  in  our  Dominions  Beyond 
the  Seas,  a  nurse  "  trained  at  Bart's  "  goes 
in  her  nursing  capacity  unchallenged.  At 
home  and  abroad  no  other  London  institution 
has  ever  appealed  to  the  imagination  of  the 
people  in  the  same  way  as  St.  Bartholomew's 
with  its  record  of  eight  centuries  of  healing. 
No  other  hospital  has  succeeded  in  inspiring 
greater  faith  and  confidence  than  is  felt  in  the 
nurses  who  hold  its  time-hono\ired  three 
years"  certificate.  Whether  rightly  or  wrongly 
I  do  not  say,  but  hitherto  from  nurses  them- 
selves as  well  as  from  the  public  at  large,  it 
has  been  conceded  that  a  Bart's  certificate 
gives  to  a  nurse  a  status  in  her  profession  which 
has  been  suri)assed  by  no  training  school  in 
the  world,  and  equalled  by  few. 

The  Great  Hospital  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
and  her. position  as  a  School  for  Niirses  has  been 
sueugthened  by  tradition.  Founded  in  reli- 
i::ou,  maintained  by  pious  men  and  women, 
tin-ough  the  ages  this  lovely  old  hostel  has 
given  sanctuary  to  the  sick  within  its  gates, 
and  to  the  nurses  who  tended  them.  Even 
amongst  the  old  Gamps  who  in  the  course  of 
time  replaced  the  Sisters  of  ilercy  were  found 
good  women  and  true,  who  gave  comfort  and 
consolation  to  the  inmates,  and  did  their  poor 
best  in  their  nursing. 

So  that  when  the  reformation  came  some 
thirty-three  years  ago,  and  nursing  as  a  skilled 
•art  was  iptroduced  into  the  Hospital,  the 
mediaeval  ideal  lived  again,  and  self-sacrifice 
and  devotion  to  the  sick  were  shown  by  the 
nurses  as  in  the  old  days  when„the  holy  nuns 
and  monks  healed  the  sick  hy -faith,  by  herbs, 
and  by  simples. 

At  Bart's  a  true  and  tender  Spirit  of  Nursing 
has  always  inspired  the  work.     Tradition  dies 


490 


Zrbe  Britieb  3ournal  of  IRursing, 


[June  18,  1910 


hard,  but  in  these  times  of  radical  upheaval 
ideals  are  quickly  destroyed.  The  rank  which 
St.  Bartholomew's  now  holds  amongst  training 
schools  for  nurses  is  a  valuable  asset  to  the 
hospital. 

Not  without  toil  and  stress  and  anxious  care 
has  this  position  been  attained.  And  health 
and  life  have  been  given  in  the  process  of 
reaching  this,  so  high  a  standard.  Is  it  all  for 
nothing  that  such  noble  sacrifice  has  been 
given  ?  Shall  the  influence  of  one  alien  in  tradi- 
tion and  spirit  be  allowed  to  undemiine  and 
to  undo  the  fine  work  that  has  taken  the  best 
years  of  many  lives  to  accomplish  ? 

I  do  not  say  that  the  high  honour  yielded 
to  the  Bart's  nurse  is  more  deserved  by  her 
than  by  nurses  attached  to  other  schools.  I 
do  but  emphasise  the  point  that  the  honour  has 
been  given — given  ungrudgingly.  And  speak- 
ing from  that  jjoint  I  would  venture  to  urge 
that  it  lies  with  the  existing  Staff,  men  and 
women,  attached  to  the  Hospital,  to  maintain 
that  position  of  honour. 

If  now,  at  this  crisis,  St.  Bartholomew's 
men  and  women  are  timid  or  careless,  much 
honour  will  assuredly  slip  away  from  them. 
If  they  permit  this  great  wrong  to  be  done,  the 
hospital  must  lose  prestige  and  credit.  St. 
Bartholomew's  may  degenerate  from  a  blessed 
House  of  Healing  into  a  factory  where  the 
bodies  of  the  poor  are  taken  in  for  more  or 
less  successful  repair.  A  factory  where  the 
patients  count  as  numbers,  and  the  nurses  are 
classed  as  hands.  A  factory  where  all  humanity 
is  crushed  down  in  the  machinery  of  Organisa- 
tion, of  financial  exploitation,  and  where  the 
v^-elfare  of  the  poor  and  sick  is  lost  sight  of 
under  the  self-advertising  methods  of  wire- 
pullers and  of  the  man  who  turns  the  handle. 

To  us  outside  who  are  given  a  wider  view 
than  is  obtained  by  the  inmates,  it  appears  that 
the  custodians  hold  the  citadel,  but  the  sappers 
and  miners  are  at  work,  and  an  emissary  from 
a  hostile  camp  has  gained  a  foothold  and  is  to 
have  the  loan  of  the  keys !  It  sounds  like  a 
bombastic  confidence  trick  on  the  part  of  the 
custodians.  Nevertheless  we  are  assured  that 
the  error  has  been  committed  inadvertently, 
and  in  sleepy  good  faith,  the  victims  not  per- 
ceiving the  motive  of  the  wire-pullers. 

It  is  for  the  large  body  of  men  and  women 
interested  in  the  welfare  of  the  hospital  to 
warn  these  custodians,  and  to  put  before  them 
the  train  of  disastrous  results  that  must  in- 
evitably follow  if  the  ill-advised  decision  is  up- 
held. 

Nor,  I  venture  to  submit,  should  the  public 
and  the  subscribers  allow  this  great  injury  to 
he  done  to  an  institution  almost  national  in  its 
■character. 


No  attemj)t  can  be  honourably  made  to 
bolster  up  a  financial  deficit  by  the  exploitation 
of  nurses'  labour.  '  The  public  has  a  right  to 
demand  that  the  nurses  sent  out  from  a  hos- 
pital for  private  nursing  shall  be  completely 
trained,  as  they  are  from  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital.  The  cheap  device  displayed  in 
the  announcement  from  the  London  Hos- 
pital that  nurses  are  returned  to  the 
wards  between  their  priva;te  cases  can  only  de- 
ceive the  unwary.  Such  visits,  occasional  and 
fitful  as  they  must  be,  cannot  complete  a 
nurse's  training.  The  acknowledgment  that 
such  snatches  of  experience  are  necessary 
ought  to  demonstrate  the  insufficiency  of  a 
two  years'  certificate,  which  necessitates  the 
practice.  In  fact,  this  system  of  returning 
nurses  on  the  private  staff,  to  the  wards,  re- 
sembles the  plan  adopted  in  the  elementary 
schools  of  arranging  for  the  poorer  pupils  to 
attend  as  "  half-timers."  Such  pupils  earn 
money  outside,  for  their  necessitous  parents, 
and  "  return  to  their  classes  "  between  whiles, 
to  complete  their  education.  In  the  rough  and 
tumble  of  working  class  life  the  system  an- 
swers. But  we  do  not  find  that  these  poor 
"  half-timers  "  are  ever  elevated  to  the  posi- 
tion of  Superintendents  of  Schools,  nor  given 
charge  as  Inspectors  of  Schools. 

Were  the  grand  old  hospital  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's to  be  destroyed  by  fire  or  by  earthquake, 
tens  of  thousands  of  loyal  supporters  would  join 
forces  in  re-building  and  in  restoring  her.  But 
if  at  this  crisis,  through  ineptitude  and  careless- 
ness, the  p)restige  and  credit  of  the  hospital  be 
lost,  no  povser  on  earth,  nothing  short  of  an 
act  of  God  can  ever  restore  our  great  hospital 
to  the  present  proud  position  it  holds  in  the 
hearts  and  minds  of  the  English  people.  Its 
great  reputation  is  founded  on  the  good  faith 
and  benevolence  of  its  Governors — and  the 
high  standard  of  skill  and  loyalty  of  the 
medical  and  nursing  staffs.  The  prestige  of  the 
Nursing  School  cannot  be  betrayed  without 
disastrous  results  to  the  reputation  of  all  con- 
cerned. 

Henriett.\  Kenealy, 
(Cert.  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital). 


BART'S  NURSES  BULLIED. 

The  savage  onslaught  made  on  Bart's  nurses 
for  daring  to  appeal  to  Caesar,  by  Sir  Henry 
Burdett,  a  Governor  of  the  Hospital,  in  the 
pseudo  professional  journals  he  controls,  is  an 
object  lesson  in  the  boundless  autocracy  of 
the  professional  philanthropist,  where  women 
and  liberty  of  conscience  axe  concerned. 

Let  us  hope  his  fellow  Governors  will  dis- 
sociate themselves  from  this  form  of  intimida- 
tion . 


June  18,  ini(» 


Z\K  Bvitisb  3ournal  of  IRursino. 


491 


^Siuotes  from  private  letters. 

By  rEliMlSf^liiN. 

■■  As  Bart's  nurses  me  the  uiily  nurses  in  a 
leading  London  Hospital  who  eannot  appar- 
ently expect  promotion  from  tlie  authorities, 
why  train  there  '.'  ' ' 

"  The  Loudon  Hospital  people  are  eoming  in 
for  a  good  bit  of  adverse  criticism  over  this 
Bart's  business,  but  believe  me,  I  prefer  their 
l>roteetion  of  pupils  to  the  disloyal  lack  of  ap- 
preciation at  Bart's." 

"  What  do  the  Bart's  staff  consider  their 
Sisters  and  nurses— sort  of  glorified  ward 
maids?  " 

"  Nothing  injures  a  hospital  so  much  as  a 
nursing  row.  Guy's  and  the  London  suffered 
for  years  after  their  flare-ups  in  '79  and  '91." 

"Some  of  our  women  (St.  Thomas's)  wci-e 
in  for  the  post.  I  am  truly  thankful  (and  1 
should  think  they  are)  that  they  did  not  get  it — 
it  is  so  I'ough  on  Bart's." 

Whom  the  gods  wish  to  destroy  they  first 
make  mad  ' — a  most  crazy  affair." 

"  Several  of  my  husband's  family  have  been 
trained  at  Bart's.  He  thinks  the  selection 
most  unjust,  and  considers  if  Bart's  can't 
train  a  Matron  in  twenty-three  years,  the 
stxjiier  its  Nursing  School  is  shut  up  the  better. 
If  he  did  not  know  to  the  contrary  from  per- 
sonal e.Kperience,  he  woidd,  of  course,  conclude 
that  the  medical  staff  are  dissatisfied  with  the 
nursing.  This  is  what  is  so  injurious  to  tlie 
status  of  the  School." 

"  I  am  not  a  Bart's  nurse,  but  I  revered 
!Miss  Isla  Stewart,  and  am  boiling  over  this 
business.  I  iiope  a  pnblic  inquiry  will  be  held, 
and  then  we  shall  get  to  the  bottom  of  it.  No 
more  consultations  with  Bart's  men  for  niy 
husband,  and  let  every  Bart's  nurse  married  to 
a  doctor  influence  her  husband  in  like  manner." 

"  Every  nurse  respected  Miss  Isla  Stewart, 
and  her  own  nurses  loved  her.  I  warmly  ap- 
prove of  all  the  President  of  our  League  said 
at  the  meeting  on  Monday,  especially  that  the 
protection  of  the  standard  for  which  the  certi- 
ficate stands  was  a  trust  to  Bart's  nurses  from 
their  late  beloved  ilatron." 

"  I  had  not  tlie  pleasure  of  knowing  the  late 
Miss  Isla  Stewart,  but  as  a  medical  woman 
had  followed  her  wonderfully  in.spiring  in- 
fluence in  the  nursing  world.  With  our 
Gracious  King,  many  professional  women 
'  realise  what  a  great  power  for  good  she  was, 
as  a  personal  influence  in  the  hospital.'  " 

"  In  life  no  one  did  more  for  the  uplifting  of 
nursing,  and  the  care  of  the  sick  than  our  late 
dear  ]\Iatron,  and  the  indignity  she  has  suffered 

in     deatll     will     in-ohjihlv    nrrmse    tln'    lieeessiirv 


I'lurgy  lo  iaml  iIk-  Itegistralion  Bill — a 
n;eusiu-e  of  reform  she  had  so  much  at  heart — 
right  on  to  the  Statute  Book." 

"  This  war  on  nursing  standards  should  result 
in  impressing  Parliament  with  the  necessity  of 
defining  one,  the  sooner  the  better." 

■'  This  appointment  has  affronted  our  inner 
conscience.  It  proves  the  contemptuous  in- 
difference (jf  men  to  the  right  of  women  to  con- 
scientious convictions,  or  why  is  the  noble 
woman  so  tenacious  of  the  personal  rights  of 
her  subordinates,  to  be  superseded  by  a  woman 
from  a  school  of  thought  so  diametrically  differ- 
ent".' What  Bart's  nurses  consider  right,  Lon- 
don nurses  are  represented  to  consider  wrong. 
It  is  an  act  of  great  tyranny  to  place  a  coni- 
nmnity  of  working  women  under  the  autho- 
rity of  a  persoji  whose  opinions  are  so  strongly 
antagonistic  to  what  they  feel  to  be  right.  The 
l)ublicity  of  the  affront  adds  to  its  cruelty.'.' 

"  There  can  be  but  one  end  to  this  struggle. 
Liberty  of  conscience  and  speech  must  be  con- 
ceded to  hospital  nurses,  and  recent  events 
have  provefl  tiiat  jji-otectiou  from  coercion  can 
only  be  guaranteed  to  the  workers  through  just 
laws." 

^bc  3nspire&  press. 

The  Westminster  Gazette,  a  paper  which 
may  be  regarded  in  every  nursing  controversy 
as  the  partisan  supporter  of  London  Hospital 
politics,  has,  we  learn,  aroused  a  sense  of  justi- 
fiable indignation  at  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospi- 
tal by  its  inspired  article  on  the  burning  ques- 
tion of  the  Matron's  appointment.  This  paper 
announces  that  "  those  best  qualified  to  speak 
for  the  feelings  of  the  nurses  are  emphatic  in 
their  assertion  that  the  new  Matron  will  have 
at  her  command  a  thoroughly  loyal  and  devoted 
staff."  Bart's  nurses  have  authorised  no  one 
to  "  speak  for  their  feelings  "  which — in  loyalty 
to  the  high  standard  of  their  Training  School  of 
their  devotion  to  their  hospital,  and  their  deep 
and  sincere  love  for  and  gratitude  to  their  dear 
dead  ^Iatron,tht'y  will  express  for  themselves — 
with  all  due  regard  to  the  good  discipline  they 
have  always  maintained — at  tlie  right  time — in 
the  right  quarter. 

dbe defence  of  IRmsiiuj  Stan^ar^5^ 
Committee. 

{Tlir  St.  BurthoJonnir'x  Hospital  Three  Years' 
Certificate.) 

Mrs.  Shuter,  as  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  above 
Committee,  has  forwarded,  as  directed  by  the 
Resolutions  passed  at  the  Public  IMeeting  on 
Monday.  June  Gth.  a  copy  of  the  Eesolutions  to 


492 


Cbc  36ntisb  3ournal  of  "fi^ursing. 


[June  18,  1910 


His  Majesty  the  King,  to  the  Governors  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital,  and  to  the  Members 
of  both  Houses  of  Parliament,  humbly  praying 
that  a  Public  Inquiry  should  be  immediately- 
made  into  the  methods  ot  management  of  the 
Nursing  School  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospi- 
tal, by  the  whole  body  of  Governors. 

We  are  informed  by  Mrs.  Shuter 
following  sums  have  been  subscribed 
mised  in  support  of  the  Committee's  w 

Mr    T.  W.  Craig  

Mrs.  Andrews 
Mm.    Bedford    Fen  wick 
Dr.  Xetterrille  Barron 
Mrs.   NettervLUe  Barron     ... 
A   Leagne   Meinl>er    ... 

K.  B.  

Mrs.  Shuter 

Mrs.   King  Roberts 
Miss  Hulme     ... 
iMiss  Pine 
Miss  Townend 
Mrs.   Bonney 
Miss  J.   Hnrlstou 
Miss  Macvitie 

Miss  B.  Kent  

Miss  Heron 

Miss   Cartwriglit 

Mi-s.  Hadfield 

£30     3     6 
Subscriptions   will    be    gladly    received    and 
acknowledged  by  Mrs.  Shuter,  Hon.  Secretary, 
Cleveland  House,  Chiswick  Lane,  W. 


that 

:   the 

and 

.Pi' 

o- 

■ork 

£ 

s. 

d. 

0 

0 

0 

■5 

0 

0 

3 

3 

0 

3 

3 

0 

2 

2 

0 

2 

2 

0 

2 

0 

0 

1 

0 

1 

0 

1 

0 

1 

0 

1 

0 

1 

0 

10 

0 

5 

0 

5 

0 

2 

6 

2 

6 

2 

6 

3n  riDcmoriam. 

Dear  Mad.\.m,— On  behalf  of  the  New  Zealand 
Trained  Nurses'  Association  I  wish  to  express  to 
you  my  sense  of  the  great  loss  the  nursing  profes- 
sion has  sustained  in  the  death  of  Miss  Isla  Stewart. 
She  had  so  long  been  in  the  forefront  of  aU  advance 
in  hospital  management  and  the  training  of  nurses 
that  even  in  this  distant  part  of  the  British 
Dominions  her  name  is  well  known  and  honoured. 

I   will  be  glad  if  you  will  kindly  inserti  in  your 
pages  this  sincere  expression  of  regret  from  mem- 
bere  of  the  nureing  profession  in  New  Zealand. 
I  am,  dear  Madam,  yours  faithfully, 

Hesiek  Maclean,  R.N., 
President  of  the  New  Zealand  Ti-ained 
Nurses'  Association. 
Wellington,  April  29th,  1910. 

Miss  M.  D.  Farquharson,  Lady  Superintendent 
of  the  Bendigo  Hospital,  Victoria,  writes  with 
deep  feeling  expressing  sorrow  at  the  death  of  Miss 
Isla  Stewart,  and  offering  sympathy  to  her  friends. 
"  It  was  with  much  sympathy  we  read  in  your 
paper  the  full  account  of  her  obsequies — we  have 
heard  so  much  of  her  grand  work — and  the  loss 
sustained  by  the  whole  profession.  I  wish  to  add 
-a  fe%v  words  of  very  true  esteem  for  so  great  a 
member  of  our  profession." 


lProerc55  ot  State  TKcgistvation. 

John  Bull  last  week  published  the  first  in- 
stalment of  its  Special  Commissioner's  report 
on  "  Nursing  Homes,"  who,  under  the  heading 
of  ■■  Nurses  and  E-egistration,"  writes  :  "Accus- 
tomed as  1  am  to  most  professional  and  indus- 
trial workers,  my  investigations  amongst  nurses 
have  been  a  revelation.  The  environment  of 
the  sick  room  seems  to  have  left  them  power- 
less to  act  in  their  own  defence.  There  is  not 
a  single  genuine  nurse  but  who  realises  that 
her  profession  is  being  degraded,  yet  the  great 
majority  are  content  to  allow'  the  existing  state 
of  affairs  to  continue  rather  than  bestir  them- 
selves and  demand  registration.  Credit,  how- 
ever, must  be  given  where  credit  is  due."  Hav- 
ing attended  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Society 
for  the  State  Eegistration  of  Nurses  on  Thurs- 
day, .June  2nd,  he  gives  i^romineuee  to  its 
business. 

The  Commissioner  goes  on  to  report  an  inter- 
view with  the  Hon.  Sydney  Holland,  at  which 
he,  of  course,  objected  to  registration,  stating 
that  the  only  possible  solution  to  the  whole 
question  was  a  Nurses'  "  Who's  Who."  A  most 
feeble  substitute.  What  the  nurses  and  the 
public  want,  and  must  have,  is  a  Nurses' 
"What's  What." 


We  congratulate  the  nurses  of.  Massachusetts, 
and ,  especially  Miss  Eiddle,  President  of  the 
State  Association,  upon  whom  the  brunt  of 
the  conflict  has  fallen,  upon  having  at  last 
succeeded  in  securing  State  registration  after 
a  long  struggle  against  bitter  opposition.  The 
Bill  was  signed  by  the  Governor  on  April  29th. 
The  Board  of  Eegistration  in  Nursing  will  be 
composed  of  three  nurses  holding  diplomas 
from  different  training  schools  for  nurses,  with 
eight  years'  subsequent  experience,  a  phy- 
sician who  is  Superintendent  of  a  hospital  hav- 
ing a  training  school  for  nurses,  and  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  State  Board  of  Eegistration  in 
Medicine.  Massachusetts  is  one  of  the  older 
New  England  States,  where  progress  is  slower 
than  in  the  more  progressive  ones,  and  it 
speaks  well  for  the  constancy  and  determina- 
tion of  the  nurses  of  the  State  that  they  have 
been  able  to  secure  their  Eegistration  Bill  in 
spite  of  the  forces  arrayed  against  them. 


FINANCIAL  SUPPORT  FOR  STATE  REGISTRATION 

The  President  of  the  Society  for  the  State 
Eegistration  of  Trained  Nurses  begs  to  grate- 
fullv  acknowledge  the  following  subscriptions : 

£    s.  d. 
Miss -J.  C.  Child  (Basutoland)       ...  10     0 

Miss  E.  Fisher  (Leedsl       5     0 


Total 


15     0 


June  18.  Irtlii 


^bc  ffintisb  3oiirnal  of  IRursino, 


493 


She  3apan=36nti5b  lerbibiiion. 

THE   NURSING   SESSION   OF  THE  WOMEN  S 
CONGRESS. 

Lady  Helen  Jliinio  F«'i^ii.xjii  presided  at  tlie 
Nursing  Session  at  the  Japan-British  Exhihitiun  on 
Sat  unlay  last. 

In  opening  the  session  L#ady  Helen  said  tUat 
those  who  had  organised  it  were  fully  aware  that  it 
was  im[x>s.sible  to  do  justice  to  such  a  subject  as 
nuitsing  iu  two  short  horn's,  hut  when  the  whole 
work  of  women  was  uudei'  review  it  was  felt  that 
the  nursing  of  the  sick,  which  had  been  practised 
since  the  closing  of  the  Garden  ot  ikleii,  niu.st  be 
included  in  the  sc-ope  of  the  Conference. 

Nursing  was  a  branch  of  work  which  especially 
appeale<l  to  women  who  ventur€<l  without  the  home 
circle  to  earn  their  living.  Statisticians  stated  that 
there  were  a  round  million  of  women  in  the  king- 
dom who  must  compulsorily  remain  single.  Nursing 
satisfied  not  only  the  mental  but  all  the  instinct*, 
of  the  feminine  nature,  including  the  maternal  in- 
stinct. In  the  life  of  a  district  nurse,  for  instance, 
there  was  practically  unlimited  scope,  and  all  the 
talents  which  might  have  gone  to  the  making  of 
one  home  were,  in  a  district  nurse,  at  the  service  of 
the  country  in  making  many  home*. 

There  was  no  profe.s.sion  open  to  women  in  which 
the  more  feminine  women  could  so  well  obtain  self 
espres-sion.  The  happiest  mortals  were  those  whose 
work  and  inclinations  led  them  in  the  same  direc- 
tion.' 

Many  yeare  of  hard,  mental,  and  physical  work 
went  to  the  making  of  a  nurse,  although  some 
people,  especially  in  their  more  robust  and  healthy 
moments,  thought  that  a  little  knowledge  and  much 
good  will  were  sufficient,  e.specially.  for  .<)onie  mys- 
terious reason,  for  the  nurses  ot  the  sick  poor  in 
rural  districts. 

In  calling  upon  Miss  E.  S.  Haldane,  LL.D.,  to 
pre.sent  the  fii-st  paper  the  Chairman  said  that  the 
British  Red  Cross  Society  offered  women  the  only 
opfiortunity  they  could  have  of  taking  an  effective 
part  in  national  defence.  How  great  a  part  that 
might  Ite  was  shown  by  the  women  of  Japan 
and  of  France.  The  latter  were  prepared  to  offer 
their  (iovernineiit  4-5  field  hospitals  of  100  be<ls  eacn. 
which  could  mobilise  with  any  corps.  They  also 
offered  stationary  territorial  hospitals,  which  woum 
accommodate  35.000  sick  and  wounded,  four  ot 
which  would  be  ready  nine  days  alter  mobilisation, 
and  the  rest  sixteen.  British  women  were  sup- 
posed to  1(0  competent  to  deal  with  any  situation, 
and  she  believed  an  api)oal  had  only  to  be  made  to 
them  fjy  the  Re<l  Cro^s  .*vK-iety  to  secure  an  im- 
mediate re»,iK)iise. 

Terbitobhi.  Nursing  and  Red  Cross 
Onc.^Nis.^Tios. 
Miss  Haldane  prefaced  her  paper  by  saying  that 
she  wished  to  say  a  few  words  about  a  new  move- 
ment in  the  country,  a  new  development  of  the 
Territorial  scheme,  which  was  as  they  knew,  very 
largely  a  re-organisation  of  the  old  Volunteer 
Force.  The  material  ready  to  hand  in  that  Force 
was  taken  and  welded  into  a  new  organisation;  a 


real  army  of  home  defence,  a  task  which  the  nation 
had  taken  up  with  splendid  enthusiasm.  What 
was  almost  lacking  in  the  older  Force  was  an  effi- 
cient medical  service.  It  was  of  little  use  to  have 
300,000  men  or  more  to  defend  our  shores  unless 
provision  was  made  to  relieve  the  army  of  the  sick 
and  wounded  by  their  removal  to  the  rear  in 
orderly  fashion.  By  means  of  a  diagram  Miss  Hal- 
dane then  described  how  this  removal  was  to  be 
accomplished,  and  the  way  in  which  women  could 
work  for  the  Army,  as  really  as  if  they  shouldered 
the  musket  and  handled  the  sword.  There  was 
opportunity  for  all  who  were  physically  fit  to  put 
their  hands  to  the  work,  through  Voluntary  Aid 
Detachments  established  all  over  the  country,  and 
the  formation  of  which  was  unlimited.  Each  de- 
tachment was  registered  at  the  War  Office,  and 
would  be  periodically  inspected.  The  movement 
wa-s  a  peace  movement,  and  the  training  received 
in  first  aid  and  nursing  by  the  members  of  the  de- 
tachments would  be  useful  to  them  in  civil  life,  in 
which  small,  and  unfortunately  large,  accidents 
also,  were  not  infrequent.  The  nation  must  be 
organised,  down  to  the  last  pin,  whether  for  peace 
or  war. 

Jap.^nese  Red  Cross  AVork. 

Miss  Ethel  McCaul,  R.R.C.,  then  presented  the 
nest  j»per  on  Japanese  Red  Cross  Work.  Miss 
McCaul  said  she  had  the  good  fortune  to  see  the 
Japanese  Red  Cross  Society  at  work  in  time  of 
war,  and  it  was  an  example  to  every  other  country. 
She  attributed  its  remarkable  success  to  its  national 
character,  and  likened  its  work  to  a  silken  thread 
woven  into  the  life  of  the  nation.  The  Japanese 
War  Office  and  Red  Cross  Society  worked  hand  in 
hand. 

The  Japanese  nation  were  willing  to  have  or- 
ganised control  over  their  sentiments,  which  they 
put  into  the  keeping  of  their  Red  Cross  Society. 
The  Society  was  first  founded  in  1877,  and  ac- 
ceded to  the  Geneva  Convention  in  1886.  At  the 
present  time  it  had  a  million  members,  and  an 
income  of  nearly  £1,000,000  per  annum.  Interest 
in  Red  Cross  work  in  time  of  war  was  easy  to 
arouse,  but  Japanese  genius  had  conceived  the 
idea  of  keeping  this  interest  alive  in  the  absence 
of  excitement,  in  time  of  peace. 

In  time  of  peac-e  the  Red  Cross  Hospitals  were 
used  for  civil  purposes,  the  headquarters  being  at 
Tokio,  where  there  is  a  hospital  of  700  l>eds.  They 
also  had  the  monopoly  of  training  Red  Cross 
nurses,  of  whom  there  were  a  reserve  of  3,000.  Each 
nurse,  when  her  three  years'  training  was  com- 
])leted,  was  bound  to  work  for  the  Society  for  15 
years,  if  required,  but  she  was  free  to  marry 
or  to  work  elsewhere. 

To  Japan  belonged  the  honour,  not  generally  re- 
cognised, of  obtaining  the  neutralisation  of  hos- 
pital ships. 

The  Ladies'  Volunteer  Nursing  Association  in 
Japan  was  a  Society  within  a  Society.  In  other 
countries,  women's  work  was  allowed  to  drift,  but 
in  Japan  it  was  systematised,  and  the  offices  of  the 
Red  Cross  Society  became  factories  and  workshops 
for  the  Government   in  war. 


494 


'^bc  'JBrltisb  3ournal  of  mm  sing.        [Ju"t  is,  1910 


Nursing  as  a  Profession. 

Mrs.  Bedford  Feuwick,  who  presented  the  next 
paper,  said  that  the  fundamental  .attraction  of 
nursing  as  a  profession  for  women  was  that  it 
satisfied  the  higher  attributes  of  feeling  which 
were  so  intimately  connected  with  a  woman's 
brain,  and  combined  skilled  scientific  work  with  the 
qualitie.s  of  mind  synchronised  in  synipatliy,  one  of 
the  most  extraordinarily  forceful  powers  in  the 
world.  Without  this  quality  of  sympathy,  or  piti- 
fi'lness  for  suffering  in  all  its  forms,  a  nurse,  how- 
ever technically  perfect,  would  never  be  first  rate, 
for  the  inspiration  and  essence  of  nursing  were  due 
to  the  temperament  and  trained  character  of  the 
woman. 

There  was  a  current  idea  that  temperament  had 
nothing  to  do  with  mentality,  and  a  crude  line  of 
demarcation  was  often  drawn  between  them,  but 
the  brain  was  the  guiding  influence  of  everything 
physical,  and  this  line  of  demarcation  could  not 
be  maintained.  Many  delicate  .shades  of  feeling 
went  to  make  temperament,  and  the  best  nurse  was 
the  one  who  was  most  highly  sensitised.  The 
sympathy  of  the  nurse,  conveyed  in  every  touch 
and  action,  rather  than  in  words,  was  a  most 
poteut  factor  in  the  healing  of  the  sick. 

To  fa.shion  so  delicate  an  implement  as  the  ideal 
nurse  out  of  uncultured  and  uncouth  material  wa.s 
ail  almost  impossible  ta.sk.  The  highest  tyi)e  of 
women  were  needed  as  probationers,  and  it  required 
generations  of  culture — a  culture  not  confined  to 
any  one  class — to  produce  the  l>est  material. 

Mre.  Fenwick  referred  to  the  resiwnsibility  of  the 
Sujierintendents  of  training  schools  in  the  selection 
and  training  of  pix)l>ationers,  because,  owing  to  the 
lack  of  definite  standards  in  itursing  education, 
the  quality  of  that  education  dei>ended  to  a  very 
large  extent  upon  the  Superintendents,  and  the 
reputation  which  a  school  had  acquired  during  the 
mati'onship  of  a  lady  under  whose  direction  a  high 
standard  of  nur.sing  had  l^een  maintained  might 
si>eedily  deteriorate  under  the  supernitendence  of 
one  with  lower  ideals  and  less  practical  knowledge. 

The  speaker  also  showed  that  the  fact  that  the 
training  schools  for  numes  are  organised  a.s  a  neces- 
sary adjunct  to  a  hospital,  rather  than  primarily 
as  educational  institutions,  had  been  prejudicial 
to  their  development.  She  urged  as  inii>erative  that 
the  standard  of  ediication  of  nur.ses  should  be  de- 
fiuetl  and  controlled  by  the  State,  and  thought  tnat 
until  this  wa-s  done,  and  a  legal  status  conferred  on 
nui-ses  who  have  fulfilled  the  prescribed  curriculum, 
many  desirable  women  would  enter  other  profes- 
sions which  were  l)etter  organised,  to  the  lossof  tlve 
nursing  profession  and  the  public. 

District  Nursing. 
Lady  Hermione  Blackwood,  who  next  dealt  with 
district  nursing,  has  had  experience  of  the  work 
both  as  a  Queen's  Nui-se  and  occasionally  as  an 
Assistant  Inspector  of  Queen's  Nurses.  She  sjwke 
of  the  beginnings  of  district  nursing  in  Liverpool, 
and  said  that  lor  many  years  it  was  looked  ujwn  by 
the  rank  and  file  of  nurses  themselves  as  a  laudable 
i\ork,  perhaps,  but  as  a  branch  of  nursing  only  suit- 
able for  hospital  failures  and  the  half  trained.    The 


speaker  said  that  as  lately  as  1900,  when  she  was  in 
hospital,  great  surprise  and  regret  were  expre.s.sed 
at  a  clever,  fully-certificated  nurse  deciding  to  go  in 
for  district  nursing.  It  was  looked  ui>on  as  tlie 
waste  of  a  good  nurse. 

AVithin  the  last  three  or  four  years  the  ixxsition 
of  the  district  nurae  had  changed  altogether.  A 
great  wave  of  enlightenment  had  spread  over  tiie 
kingdom  in  regard  to  the  need  of  better  and 
healthier  conditions  in  the  homes  of  the  ixior,  and 
in  schools  and  factories.  Preventive  woik  was  tlie 
great  feature  of  the  modern  school  of  hygiene,  and 
it  was  now  l>eiiig  acknowledged,  as  it  had  never 
been  acknowledged  l)efore,  that  the  district  nurse 
was  one  of  the  very  best  agents  that  could  Ije  found 
to  do  this  work.  In  consequence  new  paths  of 
work  were  being  oi>ened  to  her  every  day,  and  more 
and  more  was  being  exi^ected  of  her. 

Lady  Hermione  emphasised  the  necessity,  for  the 
employment  of  thoroughly  trained  nurses  in  dis- 
trict work,  and  contended  that  £3'0-£3.5  could  not 
be  considered  an  excessive  salary  for  a  highly 
trained  worker,  who  is  doing  immense  service  to 
the  community  in  the  way  of  preventive  work. 
The  Nurse  as  a  Social  "Worker. 

Miss  H.  L.  Pearse  said  that  the  positions  open 
to  trained  nurses  as  workers  for  the  good  of  the  com- 
munity increased  constantly,  as  the  effect  of  sys- 
tematic training  uixui  character  was  more  fully 
realised.  The  nurse  who  had  this  training  had  a 
l)eculiar  aptitude  for  social  work,  and  nurses  were 
now  l>eing  appointed  as  health  visitors,  nunses  m 
factories,  sanitary  in-sjiectors,  inspectors  under  the 
Infants'  Life  Protection  Act,  and  last,  but  not 
lea.st,  as  .school  nunses.  Even  before  the  Board  of 
Education  decreed  that  medical  insi>ection  of  scliool 
children  was  to  l)e  carried  out.  nunses  working 
under  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute  had — all 
honour  to  it — visited  some  schools  here  and  there, 
but  there  was  no  attempt  to  deal  with  the  prouiem 
as  a  whole  until  the  London  County  Council  took 
the  matter  up.  Since  then  the  number  of  school 
nui'ses  had  largely  increased  all  over  the  countiy. 

In  the  time  allotted  to  the  tliscussiou  of  tlie 
I>aiJei'S  Mrs.  Netterville  Barron  urged  that  trained 
nurses  with  a  knowledge  of  organisation  should  be 
allotted  a  larger  place  in  the  Red  Ci'oss  movement. 

Mme,  Thouniaian  spoke  of  the  need  for  trained 
nursing  in  Annenia,  and  Miss  Pooock,  formerly  an 
Army  Sister,  spoke  of  the  need  for  registration 
of  nui-ses,  and  her  own  experience  of  a  nurse  who 
had  a  four  years'  certificate,  and  during  the  wliole 
of  her  training  had  never  nunsed  a  woman. 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  CONSUMPTION. 

The  National  Association  for  the  Prevention  of 
Consumption  and  other  Forms  of  Tuberculosis  is 
undertaking  a  new  educational  campaign.  A 
special  appeal -committee  has  been  appointed  to 
collect  funds  for  the  campaign,  which  is  to  be  car- 
ried out  by  means  of  travelling  tuberculosis  ex- 
hibitions, caravans  with  lantern  slides,  popular  lec- 
tures, an  information  bureau  for  the  Press  and 
public,  and  the  distribution  of  leaflets. 


Juno  18,  lOld^ 


^l)c  jfiiitisb  3ournal  of  mmsino. 


49.- 


HppomtniciUs: 


AsSISlAM      MMltON.      , 

Bagthorpe       Inftrmary,       Nottingham. —  Miss  Alice 

Holiiii's  liiis  iji'i'ii  uppoiiLti'd  .\^^lstallt  Matron.  Slie 
was  tniiiuHl  for  three  years  at  tlie  Bagthorpe  Iii- 
firinary,  and  has  held  the  position  of  Sister  in 
Patience  Ward,  and  also  in  "  Mat(M-nity."  She  is 
a  certified  iniilwife. 

SiSTICRS. 

Bagthorpe  Infirmary,  Nottingham  — Miss  Mary  L. 
Meails  has  hecn  appointed  Sister.  She  was  trained 
at  tlie  Xortli  Kvin;it<in  Intirniary,  Leicester,  where 
she  has  held  the  position  of  Staff  Nurse.  She  is 
a  certified   midwife. 

Miss  M.  Savery  has  also  been  appointed  Sister  at 
the  Bagthorpe  Infirmary.  She  was  trained  at  the 
Burnley  rnion  Infirmary,  and  has  been  Staff 
Nurse  at  thr  Citv  Isolation  Hospital,  Seacroft, 
SbeHieM. 

Bradford  Union  Hospital. — Mi.ss  Ada  C.  Ambrose 
has  Ihhmi  ai)p<)int<Hl  Sister.  She  was  trained  at  tlie 
Salford  Koyal  Hospital,  ilanchester,  for  fonr  years, 
and  has  held  the  [vosition  of  t'harge  Nurfie  at  the 
Haywood  H<i>pital.   Bursleni,   foi'  2'^  years. 

Royal  Eye  and  Ear  Hospital,  Bradford. — Miss  Jessie 
Ker  lias  been  appointed  Outpatient  Sister.  She  was 
traine<l  at  the  Infirmary,  Oldham,  and  has  held 
the  position  of  Charge  Nurse  at  the  Jubilee  Hos- 
pital, Colne,  and  Sister  of  the  Ophthalmic  Block 
at  the  Koyal  Derbyshire  Infirmary.  . 

Si8TE1!-IN-ChAU0E. 
The    Ida    Convalescent    Home    for    Children,    Scarborough 
— MIns  MM<l<'line  I-lillniaii  lia,--  been  api>oint<'<l  Sister. 
She  was.  traiui-d  foi-  «m<'  yeai    at  the  Cbiblicn's  Hor^ 
pital,     Nottingham,     and     toi-    three    years    at    tlie 
licicestor  Intiiniary,  and  for  five  years  was  Si.ster  of 
the  C^hiklren's  Surgical   Ward  and  Tlieatn-  in  the 
same   hospital.      Since   leaving    the    Infirmary   Miss 
Hillman  has  held  the  iKjsition  of  Sister  at  the  East 
London  Hos|>ital  for- ("hildreii,  Shadwell,  E. 
SlTI'KHINTEXDKNT   NuRSK. 
Workhouse    Infirmary,    Reading.   -Miss  K.  B.  Slack  has 
been     appointe<l     Suju'rintendent     Nurse     at      the 
Workhouse    Infirmary,    Heading.      Miss   Slack  was 
trained  at  Brownlow  Mill  Infirmary,  where  she  also 
held  the  jjositions  of  Ward  Sister,  Theatre  Sister, 
Home  Sister,  and  As,si.stant  Matron.     She  has  also 
had  some  experience  of  private  nursing. 
Ni.itsi:. 

Tendring   Union    Infi^ary Miss  Uo.se   E.  Viles  has 

been  a[)iK>inted  Nurse.  She  was  trained  at  St. 
Mary  Islington  Infirmary,  and  has  been  Staff  Nurse 
at  the  National  Hospital  for  the  Paralysed  and 
Epileptic,   London.      She   is  a   certified    midwife. 

SCIIOOI.     Nll'.SKK. 

Lancashire  Education  Committee — Thefollowiugnnrst's 
have  been  api>ointe<l  to  assist  tlu'  School  Medical 
Inspectors: — 

Mi.ss  Annie  Jane  Owen,  trained  at  the  General 
Infirmai-y,  Bury,  Lancashire,  where  she  siibse- 
<|iu'ntly  held  the  ix>sition  of  Night  Sister.  Sine  lias 
also  been  Nurse-in-Charge  at  the  Elsnick  Smad- 
pox  Hospital,  Night  Si.ster  at  the  Royal  Maternitv 
Hospital.  Edinburgh,  and  TemiX)rary  Di.strict 
Nurse  at  Poultonde-t'ylde. 

Miss  Mary  Ross  McLean,  trained   at  the  .Stanley 


Hospital.  LiveriKjol,  wheie  she  worked  in  the  out- 
patient department,  and  as  Sister  in  a  surgical 
ward.  She  had  also  had  charge  of  the  nursing  de- 
partment at  the  Si>ecial  School  lor  Cripples  and 
Mentally  Defective  Children,  Orwell  Road,  Liver- 
l)ool . 


QUEEN   ALEXANDRA'S  IMPERIAL     MILITARY 

NURSING   SERVICE. 
The  under-mentioned  .Sitiff   .Nurses  are  confirmed 
in  their  appointnniits.  their  jxriods  of  provisional 
service  having  e.xpiivd : — Miss  Jessie  Findlater  and 
Miss  Mary  S.  Mason. 

Miss  Elizabeth  Mary  Collins  to  be  Staff  Nurs.> 
(provisionally).    Dated  May  2oth,  1910. 

QUEEN  VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE    INSTITUTE 
FOR    NURSES 

Her  JIaje.sty.  Qiummi  Ah'xandiia,  has  been 
graciou.sly  ploase<l  to  approve  the  appointment  (to 
date  April  1st,  1910)  of  the  following  to  be  Queen  s 
Nui-ses: — 

England  and  Wales. 

Hannah  Holme  Gravt>son,  Evelyn  Hessie  Fur- 
minger,  Mabel  Kathleen  Griffiths,  Alice  Ireland. 
Mary  Jane  Agues  Mcllwrath.  Millie,  Owen,  Louie 
Rol>erts.  Hannah  .\melia  Walton,  Annie  Caldwell, 
Frefh-rika  AVilhelinina  Carolina  Cramer,  Olave 
Engli.sh.  Alice  Maud  Johnson,  ICIU'U  Johnson,  Mary 
Ann  Susannah  Sewell,  Edith  Ashton,  Sarah  Alice 
Hewson,  Anna  Carolina  Ferdinaiide  Zerhuscn,  Amy 
Liimina  Margaret  Edge,  Adelaide  House,  Florence 
Annie  Meader,  Annie  (ieorge.  Annie  Claj'ton,  Sara 
Helen  Mitchell,  Olivia  Kemp,  Annie  Maria  HoUick. 
Mary  Elizabeth  Millhouse.  Rachel  Elizabeth  Cross. 
JOdith  Davenport  McDonald,  Janet  Margaret  Nes- 
bitt,  Margaret  Emily  Ni.xon.  Margaret  'Walker 
McLellan,  Frances  Eleanor  Stirling,  Annie  Sarah 
Evans,  Lilias  Christie  Gibson.  Elizabeth  Cami)bell 
Murray,  Julia  (Jilniour  Fra.ser,  Lilian  Mary  Leatli- 
ley,  Elsie  Mary  Noel,  Agnes  Stirrat  Clements, 
Catherine  Ann  Duncan,  Ethel  ilartha  Emuss, 
Helen  Hortin,  Ellen  Peiuberton,  Esther  Cathcart 
Smith,  Mildrtnl  Toinlinson,  Mary  Yoiiatt,  Ti!l-e 
Thomijson  Fitzgerald,  Gwla<lys  Mary  Griffiths,  Lois 
Gwenllian  Griffiths,  Mabel  Agnes  Ryder,  Louisa 
Ethel  Cheetham.  Annie  Duncan,  Adelaide  Sarah 
Hawtin,  Juli<>t  Hilda  TillotMJii,  Maud  Annie 
Frai'ices,  Margaret  Relph,  Leinbje  van  der  Mey, 
Emma  F'' ranees  Rice.  Constance  Maud  Marie  Eales, 
Louisa   Mary   Mooney. 

Scotland. 

Anne  Cameron.  Cristina  Fiulay,  Hannah  Gray. 
Lucy  Barbara  Drumniond  Hay,  Jane  McMartin, 
.lane  Fra.ser  Ross,  Agnes  Stodd.art.  JIargaret  Car- 
ruthers  Thomi)son,  Margaret  Janet  Weir,  Janet 
Briggs,  Jessie  Lind&ay,  Annie  Macphei-son,  Mar- 
garet W'hitelaw. 

lUELAND. 

Katie  Bradfield.  Nora  Teresa  Buckley,  Nora 
Teresa  Collin.s,  May  Hickson.  Agnes  Hughes,  Mar- 
garet May  Antouine  Kilkelly.  Ro^anne  Touer. 


Trtnisfers  and  Appoinfmeiits. — Miss  J.  'VN'^right, 
to  Clitheroe;  Miss  E.  Campion,  to  Caversham  ;  Miss 
E.  Coates,  to  Grimsby;  Miss  M.  Norman,  to 
Coventry. 


496 


Zbc  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRursing. 


[June  18,  1910 


IRursmg  Ccboes. 


The  accompanying  picture 
ot  !Miss  Florence  Nightingale 
is  circulated  in  America  as  a 
postcard,  in  charming  tones 
ot  sepia,  the  profits  going  to 
-Ip  to  build  a  "  shack  " 
tor  nurses  who  have  con- 
tracted tuberculosis.  We 
feel  sure  that  the  great  foun- 
der of  nursing  as  a  profession 
could  not  desire  that  her 
portrait  should  be  put  to  a 
better  use  than  it  is  by  the  Illinois  State  As- 
sociation of  Trained  Nurses. 


Miss  L.  L.  Dock's  book, 
Morality,"  which  is  a 
Manual  for  Nurses  and 
others,  giving  an  outline 
of  the  medical,  social, 
and  legal  aspects  of  the 
venereal  diseases,  is  now 
pubhshed  by  G.  P.  Put- 
nam's Sons,  24,  Bedford 
Street,  Strand.  The 
author  tells  us  that  the 
plan  of  the  manual  has 
grown  from  the  scope  of 
a  paper  presented  by 
her  to  the  Interna- 
tional Congress  of 
Nurses  in  London  in 
July,  1909,  in  which  the 
chief  purpose  aimed  at 
was  the  same  as  that 
followed  in  the  present 
book,  to  reiterate  the 
social  significance  of  the 
venereal  diseases,  and 
the  crusade  upon  which 
women  should  enter  in 
regard  to  them.  There- 
fore, though  the  book  is 
meant  primarily  for  the 
nursing  profession,  with 
its  manj"  thousands  of 
members,  it  has  not  been  arranged  simply  as  a 
text  book  on  diseases,  and  the  author  hopes 
it  may  be  useful  to  many  other  women  as  well. 
We  cordially  welcome  the  volume,  and  hope  to 
review  it  at  length  in  an 'early  issue. 


tioner  in  hospital,  twenty-one  Queen's  candi- 
dates receiving  district  training,  and  two  re- 
ceiving special  midwifery  training  in  the  Scot- 
tish District  Training  Home.  During  the  three 
months  twelve  Queen's  candidates  entered  the 
Home,  and  thirteen  completed  their  six 
months'  training  there,  and  were  engaged  by 
committees  of  affiliated  branches  at  Buckie, 
Duart,  Dundee,  Dreghorn,  Fort  Augustus, 
Kirkcaldy,  Lochore  and  Glencraig,  Newington, 
and  Perth.  Three  new  branches  were  formed 
locally  and  affiliated  to  the  Institute  in  the  dis- 
tricts of  Ceres,  Fort  Augustus,  and  Lochore 
and  Glencraig.  The  Superintendent  and  In- 
spectors made  one  hundred  inspections  ot 
nurses  in  local  branches,  and  reported  on  them 
to  the  Executive  Committee,  who  forwarded 
reports  to  the  local  Committees.  During  the 
three  months  1,781  cases 
were  nursed  in  Edio- 
burgh  by  nurses  from  29, 
Castle  TeiTace,  involv- 
ing 33,622  nursing  visits. 
The  receipts  for  the 
quarter  were  £492 
15s.  4d.,  and  the  expen- 
diture £784  lis.  lid.  A 
legacy  of  £100  was  in- 
timated from  the  late 
Airs.  Mary  Jamie. 


FLORENCE    NIGHTINGALE. 
Established   the   First   Training   School   for   Nurses, 

1660—1910. 


The  quarterly  report  of  the  Scottish  Council 
of  Queen  Victoria's  Jubilee  Institute  states 
that  there  are  now  329  Queen's  Nurses  in  Scot- 
land working  under  21.5  Nursing  Associations 
affihated  to  the  Scottish  Branch  of  the  Insti- 
tute. The  Scottish  Council  are  directly  re- 
sponsible for  ten  Queen's  Nurses,  one  proba- 


Some  Matrons  and 
others  have  met  to  dis- 
cuss a  Nurses'  Memorial 
to  the  late  King,  and  we 
beheve  a  scheme  for 
homes  for  old  nurses 
was  generally  approved. 
We  do  not  think  any 
scheme  for  a  "  glorified 
workhouse,"  as  one  Ma- 
tron describes  it,  would 
meet  with  veiy  wide 
support.  Nurses  are  so 
tired  of  being  patronised 
and  pauperised.  Pen- 
sions for  Queen  Vic- 
toria's .Jubilee  Institute 
Nurses  have  been  proposed  as  a  memorial,  as 
their  salaries  are  far  too  limited  from  which  u> 
save  for  old  age.  Whether  as  a  memorial  to 
the  late  King,  a  very  sincere  friend  of  nurses, 
or  not,  a  scheme  of  pensions  for  Queen's  Nurses 
is  urgently  required.  No  class  of  w-orkers  de- 
serve consideration  more,  or  are  more  de- 
servedly jwpular  with  all  classes. 


Mrs.  ^McT^aurie,  who  has  resigned  the  post  of 
Matron  of  the  Driffield  Cottage  Hospital  after 
holding  it  for  36  years,  has  been  presented  witli 
a  silver  teapot  and  a  purse  of- gold. 


Juno   lc<,   V.iU), 


^hc  IBvitieb  3ournal  of  IRursmg. 


497 


^bc  Ibospital  ii^Ilorl^. 

THE  MEDICAL  MISSION  HOSPITAL,  PLA^STOW   E. 

Bv  -Miss  M.  L.  L)akli.ng. 

Eastward  of  the  East-End,  hidden  away 
among  wharfs  and  warehouses  and  innumerable 
monotonous  streets,  there  has  existed  since  the 
year  1888  in  the  heart  of  "  Old  "  Canning 
Town  an  unjjretentious  dispensary  to  which 
day  by  day  flock  numbers  of  women  and 
children  from  the  whole  region  round  about; 
and  week  by  week,  on  Thursday  evenings, 
troops  of  factory  girls  from  the  immediate 
neighbourhood  and  from  further  afield,  from 
Poplar,  Silvertown,  and  Tidal  Basin. 

As  an  outgrowth  of  this  busy  dispensary 
there  was  stai;ted  in  1894  a  small  temporary 
hospital  at  538-540,  Barking  Road.  A  few 
years  later  the  present  building  was  opened. 

It  is  called  "  The  Medical  Mission  Hospital 
in  connection  with  the  Canning  Town  Women's 
Settlement,"  and  is  situated  in  Balaam  Street, 
the  only  desirable  site  available  at  the  time. 

Not  far  off,  St.  Mary's  Hospital,  started  in 
connection  with  the  well-known  church,  St. 
Mary's,  Plaistow,  has  earned  on  its  very 
valuable  work  for  many  years ;  but  though  so 
near  one  another,  the  work  of  the  two  institu- 
tions does  not  overlap,  for  St.  Mary's  patients 
are  from  populous  Plaistow,  and  the  Medical 
.Mission  Hospital  draws  its  patients  chiefly  from 
crowded  Canning  Town.  , 

The  little  hospital  was  opened  on  October 
16th,  and  its  "  birthday  "  has  since  been  cele- 
brated year  by  year  as  a  "  Gift  Day." 

Weeks  beforehand  the  Matron  and  staff  are 
busy  in  their  so-called  leisure  moments  sending 
circulars  and  writing  to  their  friends  on  behalf 
of  the  hospital.  Circulars  are  also  posted  to 
old  patients  and  are  placarded  up  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood. 

When  Gift  T)ay  finally  arrives  the  little  hos- 
pital presents  a  gay  appearance.  Flags  and 
lanterns,  kindly  lent  by  one  of  our  best  known 
steamship  companies,  adorn  the  entrance,  and 
the  corridors  and  various  rooms  on  the  ground 
floor  are  soon  piled  high  with  a  multitudinous 
array  of  gifts — groceries,  nursing  appliances, 
ward  linen,  fruit,  flowers,  toys,  all  carefully 
entered  in  a  book  against  the  donor's  name, 
are  skilfully  displayed  on  stalls  erected  for  the 
o<:easion. 

Meanwhile  the  visitors,  having  presented 
their  offering,  are  conducted  round  the  hospital. 
Ex-patients  abound,  and  are  the  most  generous 
and  most  delighted  to  revisit  their  former  tem- 
porary residence. 

Little  children  come,  shyly,  and  clasping  a 
screw  <:>f  paper  containing  some  pink  or  pale 


blue  ribbon  as  their  gift,  or  a  little  bunch  of 
flowers.  Thrifty  housewives  arrive,  and 
proudly  pre-jent  home-made  jam.  (There  are 
thrifty  housewives  even  in  the  region  eastward 
of  the  East -End.) 

Not  only  on  Gift  Day,  and  when  the  entrance  ' 
is  gay  with  flags  and  the  stafi  is  awaiting  their 
arrival,  do  visitors  find  their  way  to  the  Balaam 
Street  Hospital.  I  am  not  speaking  of  the 
many  who,  having  heard  of  the  excellent  work 
done'  by  the  Settlement,  or  being  interested  in 
hospitals,  come  to  visit  us.  These  are  always 
welcome,  are  shown  over  the  institution,  and 
seldom  leave  without  expressing  their  approval 
of  the  pretty  wards  and  the  up-to-date  appoint- 
ments. It  is  not  of  these  visitors  I  would 
speak.  It  is  a  frequent  sight  on  Sunday  morn- 
ing to  see  seated  on  the  bench  in  the  patients' 
entrance  two  somewhat  pathetic  little  figures, 
albeit  with  very  sharp  expectant  little  faces — 
Alec  and  Eosie,  ex-typhoid  cases,  and  the  most 
grateful  patients  that  ever  were. 

For  hours  they  will  wait,  even  after  refresh- 
ments— which  are  scarce  at  home —  have  been 
provided,  until  they  have  seen  all  the  members 
of  the  hospital  staff  with  whom  they  are 
acquainted.  Then  suddenly  they  arise,  reluc- 
tantly, and  hand  in  hand  wander  off  again. 

Perhaps  Alec's  gratitude  is  accentuated  by 
the  remembrance  that  it  was  through  the  hos- 
pital the  dream  of  his  life  was  fulfilled.  He 
saw  a  Christmas-tree ! 

"  Nurse,"  he  whispered  to  his  night  nurse 
during  his  early  convalescence,  "  I  wishes  I 
could  take  them  toys  what  Matron  gave  me 
home."  (A  few  broken  toys.)  "  'Cause  then 
I  could  put  'em  in  my  Christmas  stocking.  I 
alius  hangs  up  my  stocking,  but  I  never  finds 
nought  in  'em!" — a  long  sigh  and  a  visionary 
look  upwards.  "  It  would  be  not  'alf  nice  to 
see  a  Christmas-tree!" 


AN  IRISH  JAUNT. 

On  June  8th  the  members  of  the 
Irish  Nurses'  Association  made  an  excur- 
sion to  Lucan.  By  kind  invitation  of 
^liss  Reeves  and  Miss  Golding  they  were 
entertained  to  tea  at  "  The  Lodge."  There 
was  a  very  merry  gathering.  After  tea  Captain 
Vesey's  demesne  was  visited,  also  the  salmon 
leap,  and  lovely  bouquets  of  wild  flowers,  now 
in  such  exquisite  profusion  in  Ireland,  were 
gathered  and  taken  home  as  a  memento  of  a 
most  delightful  afternoon.  W^hat  wise  nurse 
was  it  who  said  that  niu-ses  must  not  only  work 
together,  but  play  together.  It  is  thus  they 
come  into  happy  and  sympathetic  social  rela- 
tions— all  the  better  for  professional  co-oper-^- 
tion.  ■ 


498 


Z\K  Britisb  3ournal  of  IRursing. 


[June  18,  191U 


Ipiactical   points. 

A  pillow  case  half  filled  with 
A  Comfortable       brai\    makes    a  very  comfort- 
Cushion,  able  cushion  for  the  legs  of  a 
patieut  suffering  from  oedema. 
Little  depressions  can  be  made  in  the  bran  for  the 
heels,  which  relieves  the   pressure   and  consequent 
pain  that  is  so  distressing  iu  these  cases.     Bran  is 
cooler  than  down  or  feathers,  and  has  the  further 
merit  of  being  cheap. 


IRcflections. 


The  Zymotic  Face 

Protector  with 
Laryngeal  Mirror. 


Most  nurses  are  acquainted 
with  the  Zymotic  Face  Pro- 
tector, patented  by  ^lessrs. 
Garrould,  1-jO,  Edgware 
Road,  to  which  we  have  al- 
ready drawn  attention  in  these  columns,  and  which 
is  a  light  aluminium  mask  with  a  glass  window, 
which  can  feasily  be  removed  for  sterilisation. 
Not  .so  many  are  aware  that  it  can  now  be  obtained 
with  a  laryngeal  mirror  at- 
taclied  with  ball  and  cup 
fittings.  The  face  jirotector 
effectually  shields  the  face 
from  involuntary  expector- 
ation when  attending  to  or 
examining  a  patient's 
throat  in  cases  of  diph- 
tlieria  and  other  infectious 
throat  complaints,  and  it  is 
therefore  very  convenient 
that  a  laryngeal  mirror 
should  be  attached  to  it, 
as  accidents  are  specially 
liable  to  occur  when  in- 
specting a  throat  with  the  aid  of  a  mirror.  The 
price  of  the  protector  is  10s.  6d.,  or,  with  mirror 
attached,  £1  Is. 


Dr.  Thomas  Button  recom- 
Instructions  for  mends  that  regular  attention 
Cleansing  Heads,  should  be  paid  to  the  hair  of 
school  children,  as  even  the 
cleanest  children  are  liable  to  be  infested  with 
vermin.  The  presence  of  vermin  causes  sores  on 
the  scalp  and  enlargement  of  the  glands.  All 
vermin,  including  nits,  may  be  easily  removed  by 
carrying  out  the  following  simple  directions:  — 
For  Bemoving  Vcrm'ni. — The  hair  should  be  well 
washed  every  other  night  for  a  week  with  the  fol- 
lowing lotion :  One  tablespoonful  of  Cyllin  soft 
.soap  to  one  pint  of  hot  water.  The  hair  should 
be  well  rubbed  with  this  lotion  for  five  minutes, 
then  rinsed  with  warm  water.  For  Keepinri  the 
Hair  Free  from.  Vermin. — Girls'  hair  should  be 
worn  tied  behind  in  a  pigtail.  Boys'  hair  should 
be  cut  very  short.  All  children's  heads  should  be 
washed  once  a  week  with  the  above  lotion. 


WEDDING    BELLS. 

Tr.vpnei.i. — Stew.\et. — On  the  7th  inst.,  .at  St. 
Bartholomew-the-Groat.  .Smithfield,  by  the  Rev. 
M.  G.  Davis.  Francis  Cyril  Trapnell,  of  Beckenhqm, 
to  Ann  M.  J.  Stewart,  of  Moffat,  N.B.,  and  late 
Sister  Casualty,  St.  Bartholomew's  HospitalJ  E.G. 


From  a  Board  Room  Mirror. 

The  King,  who  became  Sovereign  Hea<l  and' 
Patron  ot  the  Order  of  the  Hospital  of  St.  John  of 
.Jeru.salem  in  England  on  the  death  of  King  fjd- 
ward,  has  accepted  the  office  of  Patron  of  its 
ambulance  department,  the  St.  .John  Ambulance 
As.sociation. 


Professor  Howard  Marsh  will  distribute  the 
prizes  at  the  annual  garden  party  at  Guy's  Hospi- 
tal on  Tluirsday,  July  7th. 


In  an  api)eal  on  behalf  of  the  Charing  Cross 
Hospital,  the  Chairman  states  that  for  the  i>ast 
seven  years  the  institution  has  carried  on  its  work 
under  the  serious  disability  of  a  crushing  burden  of 
debt  (£8-5, 000),  incurred  in  making  the  hospital 
efficient  and  comi)lete  according  to  modern  require- 
ments. It  has  been  determined  to  make  a  supreme 
effort  to  lift  this  burden  of  debt  once  and  for  all. 
Tile  api>eal  will  be  called  "  The  Charing  Cro^  Hos- 
pital Coix)nation  Year  Appeal  to  raise  funds  to 
l)ay  off  the  mortgage  of  £8.5,000,  and  to  enable  the 
cU>sed  wards  to  be  i'e-oi>ened  for  the  sick  and 
suffering,"  it  is  hoped  that  there  will  be  a  ready 
response  to  tbe  appeal  when  the  time  comes. 


J»Ir.  G.  H.  Radford,  Memlier  for  Islington,  East, 
on  Monday  last  presented  a  Bill  in  the  House  of 
Commons  for  the  registration  of  professional  ac- 
countants. When  Army  Horses,  as  well  as  Teachers,. 
Architects,  Accountants,  and  other  professional 
workers  are  registered,  ijerhaps  Parliament  will 
have  time  to  attend  to  the  nurses,  and  to  protect 
the  public  from  bogus  nursing  homes  conducted  by 
negroes. 

In  consequence  of  a  generous  gift  of 
£4,000  by  the  Lord  Mayor  of  Newcastle 
(.Sir  'V\'.  H.  Stephenson),  the  managers  of  the 
Philip.son  C'hildren's  Sanatorium  at  Stannington 
will  now  be  able  to  build  their  second  wing  of  the- 
institution.  The  wing  is  to  be  named  "  The  Lady 
Stephenson  Wing,''  (erected  by  her  daughters  in 
loving  memory  of  their  mother).  It  is  hoped  in 
this  new  wing  to  benefit  hundreds  of  children 
suffering  from  local  tuberculosis,  for  whose  renef 
there  is  at  present  no  adequate  provision. 


There  have  been  no  fresli  cases  of  yellow  fever  .n 
British  West --Africa  since  May  26th.  Unhappily  all 
the  previous  cases,  nine  of  the  twelve  being 
Europeans,  ended  fatally. 

Dr.  Wilkinson,  who  has  established  a  dispensary 
at  Lambeth  for  the  treatment  of  tuberculosis 
patients  with  tuberculin,  has  based  his  views  that 
this  is  an  essential  remedy  upon  experience  in  New 
South  Wales.  .  He  considers  that  one  enormous 
advantage  of  this  dispensary  treatment  is  that 
|)atients  can  receive  it  and  go  away  to  their  work, 
and,  in  many  cases,  can  work  all  the  time  if  the 
disease  is  not  too  advanced.  His  exiierience  is 
that  9o  per  cent,  of  cases  taken  in  the  early  stage 
can  be  cured,  and  any  case  can  be  treated  for  six 
months  for  less,  than  £1. 


■June  18,  1010] 


Sbc  Biitisb  Journal  of  ll^ursino. 


409 


®iu-  Jforcion  Xctter. 

NURSING      IN     CANADA. 

The  R<?«k1- 
fiiceatt  ached 
to  the  Hos- 
pital iov  Sick 
Children  at 
T  o  r  o  11  t  o, 
which  the 
nurses  owe 
to  the 
generosity,  of 
Mr.  Ross 

Robertson ,  is  one  of  the  finest  and  most 
complete  Honie.s  for  nnrees  in  the  world,  and 
Miss  Louise  Brent,  the  Lady  Smjerintendent, 
and  President  of  the  Association  of  Super- 
intendents of  Training  Schools  in  Canada,  recently 
welcomed  a  conference  of  graduate  nurses  there. 
Many  most  interesting  matters  were  discussed, 
amongst  them  the  value  of  school  nursing,  by  Miss 
Linda  Rogei-s,  the  Sup<^rvisiiig  Nui-ee  of  the  Board 
of  Education  for  the  Province  of  Ontario,  who 
spoke  enthusiasticalTy  respecting  the  prospects  of 
preventive  nursing. 

Mrs.  Ciutterbuck  spoke  of  the  work  of  the 
Heather  Club,  organised  to  care  for  consumiitives 
under  fourteen  years  of  age.  Their  work  had  been 
•  confined  to  a  verandali  at  the  Island — an  exquisite 
breezy  spot  on  tlie  lake — but  through  the  kindness 
of  Mr.  Kpss  Robertson,  a  pavilion  will  be  available 
for  the  future. 

Miss  Janet  Xeilson,  the  city's  nurse  for  tubercu- 
losis, spoke  of  the  great  difficulties  met  with  in 
lier  work,  mainly  arising  from  ignorance,  poverty, 
and  improper  sanitation.  Some  of  the  people  had 
a  belief  that  once  the  disease  was  contracted  it  was 
fatal.  The  campaign  in  the  city  was  not  adequate 
liy  any  nn'aiis  to  the  need. 

Mrs.  Mill  Pellatt  warmly  advocated  State  Regis- 
tration of  Nurses,  and  out  of  this  question  Mrs. 
C.  J.  Currie  spoke  of  tlie  menace  of  those  who 
entered  the  profession  of  nursing,  in  a  commercial 
spirit,  and  to  judge  by  the  following  resolution  the 
lack  of  legal  status  resulting  in  high  professional 
ideals  amongst  trained  nurses  as  a  whole,  has  had 
the  same  depressing  influence  on  nurses  in  Canada 
as  it  has  at  home.  Tliis  resolution  was  snpix)rted 
by  Miss  Boll  Crosby,  the  President  of  the  A8.socia- 
tion  : — "  That  in  view  of  the  marked  decline  of  in- 
terest in  nursing  as  a  profession  by  the  graduates 
of  more  recent  years,  this  association  feel  that  this 
reflects  and  foretells  a  lower  professional  standard, 
which  must  inevitably  reach  not  only  to  the  disad- 
vantage of  the  training  schools  as  such  but  to  the 
standing  of  the  profession  at  large,  and  recom- 
mends that  steps  bo  taken  by  the  Superintendents 
of  training  schools  to  more  thoroughly  inculcate  in 
undergraduates  the  ethics  of  the  profession  and  the 
importance  to  the  undergraduate  herself  of  taking 
Mil  active  interest  in  association  work." 
F.thics  of  nursing  were  discussed  at  length. 
A  Can.\di.\n  Branch  of  the  Army  XrnsiNa 

RE.SERVE.  I 

A  Canadian  branch  of  the  Army  Nursing  Re- 
serve has  been  formed  at  Toronto. 


An  enthusiastic  meeting  to  discuss  it  was  also 
held  at  the  Nurses'  Residence.  His  Honour  the 
Lieutenant-Governor  presided,  and  said  they  had 
met  to  evolve  from  the  various  nurses'  organisa- 
tions a  still  further  organisation  that  would  be 
available  for  service  in  time  of  war,  whose  mein- 
l)ers  would  l>e  bound  to  turn  out  as  skilled  nurses 
to  work  in  the  field,  who  would  undertake  the  same 
obligation  for  military  duty  that  militiamen  take. 

Colonel  Jones  read  a  description  of  conditions 
on  the  Potomac  during  the  Civil  "War.  '♦  That," 
said  he,  "  brings  us  to  the  actual  condition  of 
things  after  a  great  battle.  That  might  happen 
in  this  country  at  any  time.  Have  we  realised  tliat 
there  is  need  in  Canada  for  an  organisation  to  help 
the  militia?  We  have  not.  We  are  exactly  in  the 
position  that  the  South  was  fifty  years  ago." 

First  alhiding  to  the  Crimean  war,  and  to  the 
work  of  Florence  Nightingale,  Colonel  Jones  ex- 
plained that  the  South  African  war  had  shown  the 
need  of  certain  reforms.  One  result  was  the  forma- 
tion of  the  Army  Nursing  Reserve.  Nurses,  he 
said,  would  for  the  first  time  attend  the  Niagara 
caniiJ. 

On  motion  of  Miss  Snively,  seconded  by  Miss 
Brent,  the  meeting  unanimously  resolved  "that 
this  meeting  of  representatives  of  combined  associa- 
tions of  trained  nurses  do  hereby  resolve  that  there 
be  formed  and  organised  a  Canadian  branch  of  the 
Army  Nursing  Reserve." 

A  provisional  committee  was  appointed,  and  a 
resolution  adopted  inviting  his  Excellency  the 
Governor  General  to  be  flie  patron  of  the  Associa- 
tion. It  will  soon  be  realised  that  the  institution 
of  this  Reserve  is  one  of  the  most  important  move- 
ments in    Canada. 

^[iss  Snivelt's  Last  Report. 

After  «,  quarter  of  a  century's  invaluable  work 
for  the  sick  in  our  great  Dominion,  Miss  Snively, 
the  Lady  Superintendent  of  the  General  Hospital, 
Toronto,  presented  her  last  Report  of  the  Nursing 
.•School  .she  has  sulXM^•ise<l  with  such  couspicuous 
success  for  so  many  yeais  at  the  graduation  exer- 
cises on  May  26th.  The  report  was  satisfactory 
in  every  jiarticular,  and  the  granting  of  certificates 
to  this  year's  class  brings  the  total  ntimber  up  to 
560. 

Possibly  the  most  Interesting  item  in  the  report 
referred  to  Canada's  corps  of  Army  Nurses.  The 
six  nurses  selected  to  go  to  Niagara  Camp  go  as 
lieutenants,  commanded  by  Miss  Hatch,  who  is 
at  present  taking  a  military  nurse's  course  in  the 
Royal  Military  College  at  Kingston.  It  is  the  first 
time  in  the  history  of  Canadian  soldiery  and  nurs- 
ing that  a  nurse  has  gone  to  a  training  oamp  to 
do  hospital  work,  and  the  six  selected  are  privi- 
leged indeed. 

Scholarships  and  Prizes. 

Many  scholarships  and  prizes  were  awarded  at 
this  charming  ceremony,  and  the  thirty-ci^ht 
graduatesdeeply  appreciated  the  honour  that  the 
.signature  of  their  revered  Lady  Superintenilcnt, 
••  Mary  A.  Snively"  was  inscribed  on  their  certi- 
ficates— the  last  sho  would  sign.  Thus  joy  and  sor- 
row are  for  ever  with  us  in  this  human  life — but 
always  "joy  conieth  in  the  morning." 

M.VPLE  Le.\f. 


500 


Z\K  Biitisb  3ournhl  of  IHursing. 


[Juue  18,  1910 


®ut6(&e  tbc  Gates. 


WOMEN. 

SIdiuff,  the  Journal  of 
the  Women's  National 
Health  Association  ot 
Ireland,  has  always  in- 
formation of  value  to 
impart,  and  a  paper  m 
this  month's  issue  on 
"  The  Medical  Inspec- 
tion of  Schoolchildren," 
by  Professor  T.  Jones,  of  Queen's  University,  Bel- 
fast, is  arresting.  He  writes:  "  Industrialised, 
urbanised  society  has  conspired  to  rob  the 
child  of  its  right  to  health. 

"  When  Queen  Victoria  ascended  the  throne  in 
1837  there  was  not  a  single  Act  in  the  Statute  Book 
of  England  framed  for  the  welfare  of  children. 
When  .she  died  there  were  over  100.  Fntil  a  few 
years  ago  the  right  of  a  child  to  food,  clothing, 
and  such  decent  treatment  as  would  make  life  just 
possible  were  things  unknown  in  English  law.  But 
in  the  late  Queen's  reign  we  began  to  deal  with  the 
more  glaring  abuses.,  We  saved  the  child  criminal 
from  transportation  and  from  hanging;  we  saved 
the  child  slaves  from  crawling  in  coal  mines,  and 
workhouse  children,  from  being  auctioned  to  the 
factory  owners :  we"  saved  the  young  Africans,  a.s 
Charles  Lamb  called  them,  from  climbing  chim- 
neys: we  took  the  children  out  of  the  agricultural 
gangs  of  the  brickfields.  We  have  humanised  the 
treatment  of  the  juvenile  offender,  checked  the 
cruelty  of  brutal  parents  and  baby  farmers ;  shel- 
tered the  orphan  and  destitute.  The  State  has 
played  the  detective's  part,  and  has  pilloried  the 
more  repugnant  abuses.  It  has  dealt  with  one 
abnormal  class  after  another,  and  made  provision 
for  it.     And  all  this  is  well. 


"  But  the  preventive  reformer  is  more  and  more 
bidding  us  pay  more  heed  to  the  normal  types. 
He  .sees  social  laws  at  work.  If  you  -sow  ignorance 
you  reap  inefficiency ;  if  you  .sow  rotten  houses  and 
over-crowd  them  you  reap  high  birth  rates  and  high 
death  nates:  if  you  sow  juvenile  street  trading  you 
will  reap  l)eggars.  thieves,  and  criminals:  if  yon 
sow  casual  labour  you  will  reap  ca.sual  cliaracteiis : 
if  you  sow  poverty  you  reap  di,sea-se  and  de,stitution 
and  a  whole  brood  of  social  ills.  All  these  seeds, 
which  we  ought  not  to  have  sown,  we  have  sown, 
and  the  result  at  its  worst  is  Dublin,  or  Dundee,  or 
West  Ham." 


Piv>fe6Sor  Jones  is  pessimistic  about  the  reform  of 
the  adult,  hut  hopeful  of  the  childfen.  gi-aniing 
that  children  are  born  with  vai^ying  powers,  the 
environment  which  calls  these  powers  into  activity 
is  within  our  control,  education  is  possible. 


"  But  it  is  an  education  which  embraces  the  whole 
surroundings,  and  which  acknowledges  that  nature 
has  furnished  the  plant,  and  that  man  prepares  the 
.soil  and  climate.  For  that  is  the  correct  analogy  to 
use.  '  I  think  that  much  of  our  failure  in  educa- 
tion,'  Mrs.   Bosanquet  has  truly  said,    '  is  due  to 


oTir  approaching  it  in  the  spirit  of  the  builder 
rather  than  that  of  the  gardener.'  Let  us  think 
of  education  as  gardening,  and  by  and  bye  we  may 
give  the  children  of  our  streets  the  same  chance  as 
we  give  the  flowers  in  our  parks,  with  results  as 
beautiful." 


On  Tuesday  afternoon,  Mr.'  Shackleton  asked 
leave  to  introduce  the  Parliamentary  Franchise 
(Women)  Bill  in  the  House  of  Commons.  He  spoke 
on  behalf  of  a  Committee  which  unofficially  repre- 
.sented  every  section  in  the  House.  The  Bill  was 
looked  upon  as  one  intended  to  conciliate  all  those 
who  held  different  views  with  regard  to  the  en- 
franchisement of  women.  He  said  the  Bill  satis- 
fied the  supporters  of  female  suffrage  for  the  mo- 
ment, because  it  gave  them  a  first  start  as  electors 
in  Parliamentary  divisions. — Mr.  F.  E.  Smith  op- 
posed.— A  division  was  at  first  challenged,  but  it 
was  not  persisted  in,  and  the  Bill  was  brought  in 
and  read  a  first  time. 


•Boo\\  of  tbe  Meef?. 


CANADIAN   BORN  * 

"  Put  me  somewhere  west  of  Selkirk 
When  the  prairie  roses  bloom. 
Where  you  run  clean  out  of  fences 

And  a  man  has  elbow  ixiom. 
Let  me  ride  u[>on  the  pilot 

'Wlien  the  fir.st  through  train  goes  out ; 
Let  me  hear  the  settlers  welcome  it 
With  joyous  ringing  shout." 

Elizabeth,  Lady  Merton,  with  her  young  invalid 
bix)ther,  is  travelling  on  the  great  Canadian  Pacific 
Railway,  of  which  their  father  had  been  one  of  the 
earliest  and  largest  shareholdei-s.  "  When  it  was 
known  that  his  son  and  widowed  daughter  desired 
to  cross  from  Quebec  to  Vancouver  the  authorities 
insLsted  on  placing  one  of  the  officials  cars  at  tLeir 
disposal. 

'•  It  was  ia  the  wil<iei-aiess  that  the  spell  had  oome 
upon  her;  in  fliis  vast  space,  some  day  to  be  the 
home  of  a  new  race :  on  these  lakes,  the  playground 
of  the  Canada  of  the  future  :  in  these  fur  stations 
and  scattered  log  cabins;  above  all.  in  the  great 
railways  linking  east  and  west,  that  she  and  her 
brother  had  come  out  to  see.  ...  At  North 
Bay.  with  the  sunrise,  they  had  ploughed  into  the 
wilderness— into  the  thousand  miles  of  forest  and 
lake  that  lie  between  old  Ontario  and  Winni- 
peg.    .     .     ." 

"  Dinner  is  ready,  my  Lady! 

"  Tlie  dinner  was  good,  as  u.sual — in  Elizabeth'.* 
eyes  monstix)usly  good.  There  was  to  her  some- 
thing rei)ellent  in  such  luxurious  fare,  enjoyed  Iv 
strangere,  on  this  tourist-flight  through  a  country 
so  eloquent  of  man's  hard  wrestle  with  rock  and 
soil,   with  winter  and  the  wilderness." 

From  which  it  will  be  seen  that  Canada  beckons. 

During  the  holding  up  of  the  train  for  twenty- 
four  homs  on  account  of  a  sink-hole,  a  sort  of  quick- 
.saiid  that  has  caused  the  line  to  .sink,  Ehzabeth".= 
adventurous  .spirit  makes  her  acquainted  with 
a  young  Canadian  engineer  in  charge  of  some  con- 

*  Smith  Elder  and  Co.,  Waterloo  Place,  S.W. 


June  18,  1910] 


^bc  36ritisb  3ounial  of  IRursincj. 


501 


structioii  work  in  the  Rockies,  and  "  by  flashes  she 
bi'tiaii  to  fwl  ill  him  iwiiiothing  besi<le  which  her 
own  raptures  fell  silent. 

"  Had  alie.  after  all,  hit  upon  a  man — a' practical 
man — who  was  yet  conscious  of  the  ix)mance  of 
Canada.     .     .  .She  liko<]  the  fine  bare  head  and 

the  general  expiossiou  of  varied  life  that  the  man's 
personality  produ<e<l  upon  her.  Her  sym])athies, 
her  imagination  were  all  tumbling  towards  tne 
Canadians  no  kvis  than  towards  their  country.  In 
spite  of  his  blunt,  simple  six-och  came  out  the  deejx'r 
notes  of  feeling,  richly  steeped  in  those  mortal 
things — earthly,  humorous,  or  terrible — which  make 
up  human  life.     .     .     . 

■'Once  amid  a  driving  storm-shower,  and  what 
seemed  to  lier  unbroken,  formless  solitudes,  sud- 
denly a  tent  by  the  railway  side  and  the  blaze  of 
a  fire;  and  as  the  train  .slowly  passed  throe  men — 
lads,  ratlier — t>merging  to  laugh  and  to  beckon  lo 
it.  The  tent,  the  fire,  the  gay  challenge  of  the 
young  faces,  and  the  English  voices,  ringed  by 
darkness,  and  wild  weather,  brought  the  teare  liack 
to  Elizabeth's  eyes.     Slie  scarcely  knew  why." 

"  '  Settlers  in  their  first  year,'  said  Anderson, 
•smiling,  as  he  waved  back  again. 

"  But  to  Elizabeth  it  seemed  a  parable  of  the 
new  Canada.     ..." 

As  we  are  told  that  two  days  in  a  private  car  in 
Canada  goes  as  far  as  a  month's  acfiuaintance  else- 
where, we  are  not  surprised  later  on  in  the  book  to 
find  her  asking  herself  the  question  : 

"  Could  she — could  she  marry  a  Canadian  ?    . 
Could  she,   pos.'>es.se<l  by   inheritance  of  all  that   is 
most  desirable  and  delightful  in  English  society — 
could  she  tear  herself  from   that  old  soil  and  that 
dear  familiar  environment. 

But  of  course  .she  can,  and  for  their  honeymoon 
they  go  to  the  Rockies,  in  order  that  they  may 
gratify  a  passionate  wish  of  Elizabeth's  to  get  for 
once  beyond  Ijeaten  tracks  and  surprise  the  un- 
known. 

"  When  wo  are  old,"  said  Elizabeth,  softly,  slip- 
ping her  hand  into  Andei-son's,  "  will  all  this 
courage  die  out  of  us?  Now,  nothing  of  all  this 
vastiK«s,  this  my.stery,  frightens  me.     .  .     Hut 

when  one  is  feeble  and  dying  will  it  all  grow  awful 
to  me  ?  Suddenly,  shall  I  long  to  creep  into  some 
old,  old  corner  of  England,  and  feel  round  me  close 
walls  and  dim,  small  rooms:  and  dear,  stuffy, 
familiar  streets  that  thousands  aiul  thousands  .)f 
feet  have  woni  before  mine?  " 

We  hoix-  that  no  shadow  in  the  future  overcast 
her  i)erfoct  happiiVess  with  Andei-son.  "  A  union 
begun  long  before  lior  niarriag<'  in  the  depths  ot  the 
spirit,  when  her  heart  first  went  out  to  Canada — to 
the  beauty  of  the  Canadian  land,  and  the  freedom 
of  Canadian  life." 

This  book  is  bound  to  uplift,  and  should  be  widely 
read.  It  sets  free  the  imagination  to  soar  in  vast 
spaces.  "  in  heights  l)e.voiid  heights,  and  glories 
beyond  glories"  ;  to  dr<^ini  of  gorgeous  ,suns(>ts  and 
the  calls  of  wild  Ijirds.  of  flowers  of  untold  beauty, 
and  to  revel  in  the  storm  and  wind.  It  presents  as 
striking  a  contrast  as  is  possible  to  much  of  tlie 
sioklv.   uiihealthv  literature  of  the  pre.sent  day. 

H.   H. 


THE  HILLS  OF  REST. 
Beyond  the  last  horizon's  rim, 

Beyond  a<lventuie's  farthest  quest, 
Soinewliere  they  rise,  serene  and  dim. 

The  happy,  happy  Hills  of  Rest. 

I'pon  their  sunlit  slopes  uplift 

The  castles  we  have  built  in  .Spain — 

While  fair  amid  the  summer  driit 
Our  fadetl  gardens  flower  again. 

.Sweet  houi-s  we  did  not  live  go  by 
To  soothing  note  on  scento<l  wing; 

111  golden-lettered  volumes  lie 

The  songs  we  tried  in  vain  to  .sing. 

They  all  are  there  ;  the  days  of  dream 

Tliat  build  the  inner  lives  of  men  ; 
The  silent,  sacred  y<'ais  we  deem 

The  might  Ik-,  and  the  might  have  been. 
Albert  Bigelow  Paine, 
Xvrxcs'  Jonrnal  of  tlir  Pacific  Coaxf. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

Jiiiir  iGfh.— The  Secretary  to  th.>  ''  Nightingale 
Fund"  and  Mrs.  Bonliam  Carter  "At  Home"  at 
the  Nightingale  Home,  St.  Thomas's  Hospital 
(Central  entrance,  Palace  Road),  4  to  C>.30  p.m. 

June,  18th  (postponed  from  May  28th). — Proces- 
sion of  Women  Suffragists  from  the  Embankment 
to  Albert  Hall,  organised  by  the  Women's  National 
Social  and  Political  Union. 

June  25th. — General  Meeting,  The  League  of 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  Nurses,  Clinical  Lec- 
ture Theatre,  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  E.C., 
3  p.m.     Social  Gathering,  4  p.m. 

June  30th. — Meeting,  Central  Midwives'  Board, 
Caxton   House,   S.W. 

Ju}y  1st. — Association  for  Promoting  the  Train- 
ing and  Supply  of  Midwives.  Annual  Gathering 
of  Midwives.  By  kind  jiermission  of  Mrs.  Penn, 
42,  Gloucester  Square,  H.vde  Park,  W.  Badges  to 
midwives  will  be  presented.     3  p.m. 

July  11th. — The  Society  of  Women  Journalists. 
Reception  by  the  President,  Lady  McLaren,  43, 
Belgrave   Square,  S.W.     10  p.m. 

July  nth. — East  End  Mothers'  Home.  Annual 
Meeting,  The  Mansion  House,  by  kind  permission 
of  the  Ix)rd  Mayor.    3  p.m. 

July  1.5th. — Meeting  of  the  Matrons'  Council, 
General  Hospital,  Birmingham,  3  p.m.  Meeting, 
Addresses  on  .State  Registration  of  Nurses,  4  p.m. 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 

I  iinmbly  join  in  the  prayer  to  .Mniighty  (Jod  that 
He,  in  His  great  mercy,  may  give  mo  .strength  *o 
follow  in  the  footsteps  of  my  father,  and  that  I 
may  be  enabled  to  continue  his  >efl'orts  to  oon- 
.solidate  the  foundation  of  peace  among  the  Powers 
of  the  world  and  to  promote  the  spirit  of  good  will 
among  all  cla.sses  of  my  subjects  here  at  home. 
King  George. 


50-2 


Zbc  Bi1t(0b  Journal  of  TRiusing. 


[June  18,  1910 


Xcttcrs  to  tbc  je&itor. 


Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
viunjrations  upon  all  subjectB 
for  these  columns,  we  tcish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  we  do  7wt  in  ant  way 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


OUR  GUINEA  PRIZE. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Deah  Madaji, — I  have  great  pleasure  in  ackuow- 
ledging  tlie  cheque  for  one  guinea,  which  I  received 
yesterday  mo^'ning,  thanking  you  very  much  for 
same. 

I  remain,   yours  faithfully. 

Elizabeth  Douglas. 
Maternity  Hospital,  Belfast  Tnion. 


SCALPS. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — The  writer  of  weekly  puffs  of  the 
London  Hospital  in  a  London  daily  paper  has 
I)ointe<l  out  with  great  gusto  that  in  addition  to 
several  other  hospitals  of  a  more  or  less  insignifi- 
cant status,  which  are  now  '■  matroned  "  by  ladies 
trained  at  the  London  Hospital  "  To  these  may 
now  be  added  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital.''  Poor  - 
old  Bart's!  Fancy  after  eight  centuries  of  pre- 
cedence being  paraded  as  a  London  Hospital  scalp! 
It  is  enough,  I  imagine,  to  make  Rahere  turn  in 
his  grave.  It  is  incredible  that  members  of  the 
Medical  Staff  at  Bartholomew's — themselves  so 
tenacious  of  their  own  jirestige  and  procedure — 
should  have  consented  to  humiliate  their  devoted 
nursing  staff  by  this  outrage  to  every  instinct  of 
professional  feeling,  and,  by  their  insult  to  her 
memory,  trample  upon  their  devoted  allegiance  to 
their  dear  dead  friend  and   Matron. 

.\  Deeply  Affronted  B.aet's  NrRSE. 


THE   HIGHER  TRAINING   OF  THE   MIDWIFE. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Editor, — I  have  seen  in  the  British  Jour- 
.Vai,  of  Xcrsing  the  paper  read  at  the  Conference 
at  the  Royal  Horticultural  Hall,  Westminster,  by 
Mrs.  Lawson.  I  was  deeply  interested,  as  there 
were  a  few  questions  I  should  have  liked  to  ask 
had  there  been  an  opportunity.  I,  with  others,  was 
deeply  disappointed  when  the  Chairman  did  not 
ap](oint  a  deputy  in  his  place.  Mrs.  Lawson,  in 
the  course  of  her  remarks,  pointed  out  the  necessity 
for  the  higher  training  of  the  midwife.  At  present 
a  pupil  has  the  choice  of  either  entering  a  hospital 
or  attending  a  course  of  lectures  at  a  training 
school,  and  getting  her  practical  work  with  a  mid- 
wife, or  she  can  attend  a  course  of  lectures,  and 
get  her  certificate  signed  by  a  medical  man  with 
whom  she  has  attended  twenty  cases.  Now.  with 
all  due  respect  to  the  medical  man,  he  ,may  feel 
that  he  can  conscientiously  fill  in  that  pupil's 
paper,  but  can  that  pupil  have  received  a  good 
training  in  the  practical  w-ork  of  the  midwife? 
I    must  confes.s  1   am    puzzled.      I     should   like   to 


know  who  instructs  the  pupil  as  to  how  to  wash  the 
patient,  to  see  to  the  making  up  of  the  patient's 
bed,  the  preparation  of  her  hands  and  of  her  own 
and  the  doctor's  instruments,  how  to  attend  to  the 
infants'  eyes,  cord,  mouth,  bath,  etc.  Of  course, 
these  questions  may  seem  superfluous  seeing  that 
a  medical  man  signs  the  paper.  But  I  only  ask^ 
a^  the  authorised  midnife  is  expected  to  instruct 
in  all  that  and  much  more. 

Yours  etc. 

Abernethv. 


To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Dear  M.adam, — The  article  on  "'constipation  in 
infants  "  in  your  last  i,ssue  was  very  interesting.  In 
reading  it  one  thing  vividly  impressed  itself  upon 
my  mind — the  responsibility  of  midwives  who  treat 
infants  of  tender  age  for  constipation  and  other 
conditions  for  which  a  doctor  is  not  summoned. 

We  are  told  that  "  no  series  of  doses  of  purga- 
tive medicine  are  responsible  for  so  much  constipa- 
tion at  any  time  of  life  as  the  single  dose  of"  castor 
oil  which  clears  out  meconium  from  the  bowel  of 
the  newborn  infant."  Yet  this  single  do.se  is  given 
in  the  most  lighthearted  fashion  by  the  majority 
of  midwives — the  less  they  know  the  more  light- 
heartedly. 

Is  it  not  time  that  we  followed  the  example  of 
our  Continental  neighbours,  and  insisted  that  mid- 
wives,  in  view  of  the  grave  responsibilities  they  are 
called  upon  to  undertake,  had  a  longer  training 
than  the  minimum  of  three  months.  A  woman 
with  no  previous  training  as  a  nurse  may  cram 
enough  in  three  months  to  get  through  the  exami- 
nation of  the  Central  Midwives'  Board.  Can  she 
as  well  gain  sufficient  knowledge,  and  confidence  ■ 
founded  on  practical  experience — not  the  danger- 
ous self-complacency  begotten  of  ignorance — to 
make  her  really  practically  efficient? 

Should  w©  consider  any  probationer  in  a  hos- 
pital, however  promising,  competent  to  undertake 
the  nursing  of  a  patient  under  direct  supervision, 
and  why  then  should  it  be  expected  that,  at  the  end 
of  three  months'  training,  women  frequently  drawn 
from  a  less  educated  class  than  the  average  proba- 
tioner should  be  competent  to  assume  full  charge 
of  a  mother  and  infant,  including  a  certain  amount 
of  treatment  ?  They  may  have  done  well  during 
training  under  close  supervision.  The  test  comes 
when  they  are  left  alone  to  work  on  their  own 
initiative.  I  for  one  would  gladly  see  the  terms 
of  training  for  midwives  who  have  had  no  pre- 
vious experience  as  nur.ses  raised  to  a  year — as  a 
beginning. — Yours  faithfully, 

C.   M.   B. 


U^otices. 

CONTRIBUTIONS 
The  Editor  will  at  all  times  be  pleased  to  consider 
articles  of  a  suitable  nature   for  insertion  in   this 
Journal — those   on   i)ractical   nursing   are   specially 
invited. 

OUR   PUZZLE   PRIZE. 
Rules    for   competing   for   the     Pictorial    Puzzle 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


June  18,  ir<iu   ^^^^;  Britisb  3ournal  of  IHursmo  Supplement. 

The    Midwife. 


-0.3 


Zbc  jfeebina  ot  flDotbers. 

Two  of  the  most  serious  problems  with 
which  the  nation  is  confronted  are  infantile 
mortality,  and  physical  deterioration,  and  both 
are  due  to  a  considerable  extent  to  the  same 
cause,  the  insufficient  feeding  of  women  when 
carrying  and  nursing  their  children.  Is  it  pos- 
sible that  a  child  should  be  vigorous,  or  grow 
up  into  a  healthy  man  or  woman,  when  the 
mother  has  been  half  starred  while  the  child  is 
still  unborn,  or  that  when  born  her  milk  should 
nouxish  it,  when  the  food  she  takes  for  the  sup- 
port of  two  lives  is  not  sufficient  for  her  own 
wants  ? 

Many  points  indeed  centre  round  this  ques- 
tion of  food.  It  has  been  asserted  that  the  drink 
problem  has  its  origin  to  a  great  extent  in  the 
food  problem,  for  the  craving  for  drink  is 
especially  strong  in  those  who  are  insufficiently 
fed.  and  this  again  is  a  factor  aSeeting  the 
physical  and  mental  stability  of  the  child. 

It  is  probable  that  the  importance  of  the  food 
question  would  have  been  recognised  before 
now,  but  for  the  uncomplaining  patience  with 
which  women  of  the  poorer  classes  accept  priva- 
tion as  a  matter  of  course,  and  their  righteous 
independence,  so  that  it  is  often  difficult  to  get 
them  to  accept  the  food  so  essential  to  them 
and  their  offspring.  Even  if  they  are  induced 
to  do  so,  if  sent  to  them  in  their  own  homes 
mothers  will  frequently  deny  themselves  that 
other  members  of  the  family  may  be  better 
fed,  so  the  action  of  the  St.  Pancras  School 
for  Mothers  in  providing  mothers'  dinners  at 
lid.  a  head  at  the  ^Mothers'  and  Babies'  Wel- 
come, 6,  Charlton  Street,  Euston  Road,  X.W'., 
to  be  eaten  on  the  premises,  is  an  example 
worthy  of  imitation,  and  one  in  which  midwives 
should  interest  those  in  a  position  to  spread 
the  good  work  throughout  the  country. 

The  small  payment  meets  the  objection  that 
the  women  are  being  "pauperised,"  which  is 
heard  when  "  free  dinners  "  are  suggested. 
But  how  comes  it  that  we  press  our  hospitality 
on  our  well-to-do  neighbours,  and  insist  that  if 
we  feed  our  poorer  ones  they  must  at  least 
make  a  payment  sufficient  to  cover  the  actual 
expenses,  we  are  so  afraid  of  pauperising  them? 
"  Thank  you,  mum,  but  it  sticks  in  your 
throat  if  you  can't  pay  for  it,"  was  the  in- 
variable reply  of  the  mother  of  a  young  infant, 
whose  husband  was  out  of  work,  when  urged 
to  accept  free  dinners  at  the  Babies'  Welcome. 
The  husband  had  an  excellent  character,  but 


could  get  no  regular  work,  and  the  baby  will 
in  aU  probabihty  carry  to  its  grave  the  stigmata 
of  its  mother's  privations. 

Physical  deterioration — infantile  mortahty — 
is  it  any  wonder  that  they  are  becoming  a 
national  peril  when  mothers  are  half-starved, 
when  they  work  hard  up  to  the  day  of  their 
confinement  and  leave  hospital  at  the  earliest 
possible  moment  because  their  husbands  are 
out  of  work,  and  the  family  must  starve  until 
they  once  again  take  up  the  task  of  bread- 
winners. 

But  are  such  women  anxious  for  "  pauperi- 
sation "  in  the  way  of  free  dinners?  Listen 
again  to  the  experience  of  "  The  Welcome." 

"  One  of  our  greatest  difficulties  has  been  to 
persuade  the  most  deserving  mothers  to  come 
^  at  all  when  they  cannot  pay  for  themselves.  It 
is  the  commonest  occurrence  first  to  have  ex- 
cuse after  excuse  offered  for  non-attendance, 
and  then,  at  last,  the  truth  '  I  don't  like  eating 
food  I  can't  pay  for,'  sometimes  with  the  ad- 
dition, '  I  can't  enjoy  my  dinner  anyway  when 
I. know  they've  got  nothing  at  home.'  "  When 
such  women  do  come  there  is  naturally  a  great 
inclination  to  bring  the  '  next  baby  '  with 
them,  and  then  to  get  portions  of  their  own 
dinner  into  the  little  hungry  mouth."  Surely 
help  may  be  extended  to  such  women  by  their 
more  fortunate  sisters  without  incurring  the 
charge  of  "  pauperising  "  them.  Is  it  not 
an  honour  to  help  those  who  struggle  .so 
bravely,  unselfishly,  and  uncomplainingly  with 
adversity,  at  a  time  when  those  in  better  cir- 
cumstances are  surrounded  with  every  care 
and  comfort?  Can  we  not  prove  that  we  un- 
derstand something  of  the  sacredness  of 
motherhood,  and  that  we  consider  it  a  privilege 
to  help  those  who  are  bearing  life's  burden  .so 
bravely. 

And,  indeed,  it  may  not  only  be  a  privilege, 
but  an  imperative  duty,  to  see  that  the  mothers 
of  the  nation  are  properly  fed  while  they  are 
"  having  their  babies."  It  is  to  their  offspring 
that  the  country  must  look  for  national  de- 
fence, and  if  the  infant  mortality  remains  as 
high  as  at  present,  if  the  children  who  survive 
grow  up  stunted,  weakly,  and  physically  unfit 
the  nation  will  be  in  a  perilous  condition.  The 
instinct  of  self-preservation,  if  no  higher  mo- 
tive, should  compel  us  to  make  tardy  repara- 
tion to  the  underfed  and  starved  mothers  who 
are  bearing  the  burden  of  Empire.  We  must 
see  to  it  that  they  can  rear  healthy  children, 
not  those  who  are  half-starved  and  physically 
unfit. 


504 


Zbc  ©ritisb  3ournal  of  HAurstUQ  Supplement.  [J"»e  is,  1910 


Zbc  ]Ea5t*len^  HDotbers'  Ibomc 

Tlie  annual  nitH-tini;  of  t\u?  Kjist-End  Mothore' 
Homo,  396,  Commercial  Road,  E.,  is  to  be  liekl  at 
the  ^lansion  House  on  Monday,  July  11th,  when 
the  Right  Hon.  the  Loi'd  Jlayor  will  preside,  'ihe 
meeting  was  originally  fixed  for  May  11th,  but  was 
postponed  owing  to  the  death  of  the  late  King. 

No  one  who  visits  the  Home  can  fail  to  recognise 
that  it  is  doing  a  splendid  work  amongst  some  of 
the  poorest  women  of  the  East-End,  not  only  at  tue 
actual  time  of  the  confinement  but  afterwards,  tor 
the  Matron,  !Mis%  Anderson,  lives  for  the  Home  and 
its  patients,  and  keeps  in  toucli  with  them  and 
their  babies  through  a  most  jwpular  mothere'  meet- 
ing and  other  agencies.  As  a  training  school  tor 
midwives  the  Home  ranks  high. 


expenses  of  the  midwife  should  not  be  placed.  The 
memorial  contends  that  the  payments  should  be 
made  by  the  municipal  authority  as  a  nuitter  of 
public  health,  just  as  the  fees  of  a  doctor  who  is 
called  in  by  the  police  are  paid. 


Zbc  HmenMiHi  Bill  of  tbe 
nDit)\vive6'  act. 


THE  PAYMENT  OF  THE   DOCTOR'S    FEE. 

A  memorial  has  been  sent  to  members  of  both 
Houses  of  Parliament  by  the  National  Committee 
for  the  Prevention  of  Destitution  in  opposition  to 
Clause  17  of  the  Amending  Bill  of  the  Midwives' 
Act,  introduced  into  the  House  of  Lords  by  the 
Lord  President  of  the  Council.  That  clause  would 
compel  Boards  of  Guardians  to  pay  the  fee  of  a 
doctor  when  summoned  on  the  advin  oi  ;i  midwife 
in  an  emergency.  This  payment  is  (an oi dm^  to 
the  memorial)  by  implication  parochial  relief,  and 
enables  the  Board  to  declare  it  a  "  relief  on  loan." 
The  effect  of  the  clause  would  be,  in  the  view  of 
the  Committee, 

(a)  To  make  compulsorily  into  paupers  thousands 
of  thrifty  and  hard-working  wage-earners'  families, 
without  any  application  or  consent  on  their  part; 
(5)  to  subject  the  unfortunate  women  and  their 
households,  notwithstanding  their  thrift  and  pro- 
vision, compulsorily  to  the  hated  visits  and  inves- 
tigations of  the  Poor  Law  relieving  officer  and  to 
the  stigma  of  pauperism ;  (c)  to  imijose  on  these 
thousands  of  working-class  households  a  new  pe- 
cuniary liability  (in  the  form  of  having  to  repay 
to  the  Board  of  Guardians  whatever  fee  the  Board 
may  choose  to  pay  the  doctor),  for  which  there  is  at 
present  no  statutory  warrant. 

Further,  the  clause,  as  the  memorial  points  out, 
would  greatly  impede  the  working  of  the  Act.  The 
reluctance  to  summon  a  doctor  in  emergencies, 
which  it  has  taken  some  trouble  to  overcome  in 
midwives  and  patients  alike,  would  spring  up 
again  as  soon  as  it  was  realised  that  the  presence 
of  the  doctor  involved  the  stigma  of  pauperism. 
The  arrangement  in  force  in  some  of  the  larger 
towns  at  the  -fjrosent  time,  by  which  the  fee  is 
paid  by  the  Town  Council  when  the  patient  is  un- 
able to  pay  has  worked  well.  If  the  payment  is 
made  by  Boards  of  Guardians,  this  involves  either 
visits  by  the  relieving  officer,  the  summoning  of  the 
father  before  the  Board  to  answer  questions  as  to 
his  means,  or  the  entry  of  the  sum  as  parochial 
relief  without  the  kiiowledge  and  consent  of  the 
recipient.  It  is  a  position  in  which  a  man  or  a 
woman  who  has  made  provision  for  defraying  the 


Zbc  IRepresentatton  of  flDk^wtves 
on  tbe  Central  flDibwives'  JBoart). 

AVe  publish  the  following  note  at  the  request  of 
the   Council  of  the   Midwives'    Institute: — 

The  Incorix)i-ated  Midwives'  Institute,  12,  Buck- 
ingham Street,  London,  W.C,  wishes  to  call  the 
attention  of  all  certified  midwives  to  the  Amending 
Bill  of  the  Midwives'  Act  now  before  the  House  of 
Lords. 

It  is  generally  recognised  that  midwives,  of 
whom  there  are  nearly  30,000  on  the  Roll,  are  most 
inadequately  represented  on  the  Board  that  governs 
them. 

It  was  through  the  efforts  of  the  Midwives'  in- 
stitute that  any  representation  of  midwives  was 
secured  in  the  Bill  of  1902.  In  spite  of  irfuch 
opjKxsition  the  Institute  obtained  nomination  of  a 
representative  (a  medical  practitioner)  to  the 
Central  Midwives'  Board. 

After  six  years'  exi>erience  of  the  working  of  the 
Act,  and  a  very  large  increase  in  the  numbers  of 
the  Midwives'  Institute  and  its  Affiliated  Associa- 
tions, it  is  evident  that  the  time  ha.s  come  to  claim 
more  repre,sentation  of  midwives,  and  the  Institute 
i.s  now  asking  for  two  nominees,  one  of  whom  snail 
be  a  midwife. 

The  Midwives'  Institute  is  in  no  way  opjKksed  to 
the  principle  of  direct  representation,  if  jjiactic- 
able ;  but  as  that  would  involve  the  election  by 
ballot  of  a  certified  midwife  by  the  30.000  mid- 
wives  on  the  Roll,  it  haixlly  .seems  at  present  to 
come  within  the  iiange  of  practical  politics.  Tue 
Midwives'  In.stitute  therefore  appeals  to  bodies  and 
societies  of  midwives  to  co-operate  by  affiliating 
with  the  Midwives'  Institute,  in  order  to  participa'te 
in  the  nomination  and  election  of  a  representative 
on  the  Central  Midwives'  Board  ;  in  this  way  obtain- 
ing direct  representation  of  their  membere. 

The  interests  of  the  practising  midwives  \\iri  at 
present  be  best  secured  by  such  representation 
tlirough  associations  united  to  one  centre,  and_  it  is 
greatly  hoped  that  the  younger  members  of  tlie 
profession  will  help  to  consolidate  the  work  of  the 
pioneers.  Ultimate  success  depends  on  the  solidarity 
of  a  ^^•hole  profession  united  in  a  oommon  cause — 
viz.,  the  protection  of  the  lives  of  mothers  and 
their  children,  the  improvement  in  the  status  and 
training  of  the  midwife  l>eing  a  necessary  corollary. 

Instead  of  saying  that  the  Midwives'  Institute 
is  now  asking  for  two  nominees  on  the  Central  Mid- 
wives'  Board,  one  of  whom  shall  be  a  midwife, 
would  it  not  be  more  correct  to  say  that  in  addition 
to  the  midwife,  whom  the  Lord  President  has  pro- 
vided it  shall  appoint,  the  Midwives'  Institute  de- 
sires another  nominee  not  a  midwife,  and  also  that 
the  privilege  which  the  Lord  President  proposes  to 
grant  to  the  Royal  British  Nurses'  Association  of 
■  nominating  a  midwife,  shall  be  withdrawn,  and  the 
word  "  person"  substituted  for  "  midwife." 


EDITED  BY  MRS  BEDFORD  FENWICK 


No.  1,160. 


SATURDAY,    JUNE     25,     1910. 


lEMtortal. 


IN  THE  HEART  OF  THE  PEOPLE. 

No  one  who  saw  the  great  procession  on 
Saturday  last,  when  thousands  of  women 
marched  from  Blackfriars  to  the  Roj'al 
Albert  Hall  to  support  the  demand  for  their 
enfranchisement,  and  no  one  who  toolc  part 
in  the  nursing  contingent  could  fail  to  be 
profoundly  impressed  by  the  place  which 
trained  nni-ses  have  won  in  the  esteem  and 
-affections  of  the  people.  Cheers,  blessings, 
words  of  encouragement  and  appreciation 
were  showered  upon  them  all  along  the 
route ;  men  raised  their  hats,  women  flut- 
tered handkerchiefs,  little  children  were 
taught  to  remove  their  hats  as  the  nurses' 
contingent,  headed  by  its  purple  banner 
bearing  the  Red  Cross  passed  along.  "'  It's 
the  nurses ;  take  off  your  hat,  Tommy — 
they're  good,"  said  one  motlier  to  a  child  of 
some  four  summers,  ^lany  of  the  nurses 
Av ore  indoor  uniform,  and  bright,  fresh,  and 
spotlessly  clean  they  looked,  though  some 
had  been  up  all  day  and  on  duty  the  pre- 
vious night. 

After  all,  it  is  not  surprising  that  the 
nurses  were  popular.  Had  not  they  or  their 
colleagues  nursed  many  of  the  cro^vd  from 
death  back  to  life  in  hospital  wards  or  in 
their  own  homes?  Are  thej'  not  looking 
after  the  little  children  in  the  schools,  and 
after  our  soldiers  and  sailors  at  home  and 
abroad  ?  Of  the  opinion  of  our  defenders 
there  could  be  no  doubt.  As  the  procession 
passed  the  Knightsbridge  Barracks  tliemen 
crowded  the  balconies  and  cheered  and 
waved  and  shouted  to  the  echo  as  the 
niirses  marched  past,  and  "the  soldier's 
friend  "  was  the  word  passed  along.  Those 
who  headed  the  contingent  were  kept  busy 
bowing,  nodding,  smiling,  and  waving  to 
the  crowd  all  the  time.    And  how  well  they 


understood  one  another !  That  was  the 
secret  of  the  nurses'  popularity.  On  Satur- 
day they  were  marching  heads  high,  their 
faces  set  towards  victory  ;  but  the  crowd 
had  a  vision  of  them  otherwise,  passing  up 
and  down  busy  wards  with  a  kindly  word 
for  all,  bending  over  the  sick  and  dying  in 
the  lone  night  watches,  fighting  for  the  life 
of  the  husband,  the  wife,  or  the  little  child, 
rejoicing  as  skill  and  devotion  were  re- 
warded b}'  the  return  of  the  patient  to 
health,  or  tenderly  consoling  those  whom,  in 
spite  of  eveiT  effort  put  forth,  death  had 
bereaved. 

It  was  in  such  scenes  as  these  that  the 
intimate  understanding  between  the  crowd 
and  the  mirses  on  Saturday  last  had  its 
origin — scenes  which  have  enshrined  them 
in  the  heart  of  the  people.  Who  shall  say 
that  the  nurses  had  not  deserved  the  confi- 
dence shown  in  them  which  went  straight 
home  to  their  hearts? 

Even  in  their  battle  for  high  standards  of 
proficiency  they  were  working  forthegood  of 
the  people,  and  the  people  understood.  The 
greeting  they  received  was  a  triumph 
which  no  section  of  workers  could  have 
failed  to  appreciate.  "  Get  your  registration 
soon,"  called  one ;  and  received  the  reply, 
"  Your  !)lessings  to-daj*,  registration  to- 
morrow." 

Nor  were  the  police  behind  the  crowd  in 
their  tribute  of  resj^ect.  Many  hands  went 
to  the  salute  as  the  nurses  passed  b}',  and 
near  the  Albert  Hall  a  constable  begged  for 
a  flower  from  the  sheaf  carried  by  a  nurse. 
Then  up  went  the  hands  of  half-a-dozen  men 
in  blue,  and  minus  her  bouquet,  but  with 
the  words  "  the  Fence  is  with  you  "  sound- 
ing in  her  ears,  she  entered  Albert  Hall  to 
join  in  the  pa-on  poured  forth  l)y  thousands 
of  voices  to  the  soid-stirring  music  of  the 
"  Marseillaise." 


506 


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[June  25,  1910 


flDebical  (TDatters. 


FOREIGN   BODIES  IN  THE  AIR  PASSAGES. 

Dr.  Eiekmaii  J.  Godlee,  Consulting  Surgeon 
to  the  Hospital  for  Consumption  and  Diseases 
of  the  Chest,  Brompton,  in  a  lecture  delivered 
at  the  hospital  on  the  above  subject,  and 
published  in  full  in  the  Lancet,  said,  in 
part: — When  a  foreign  body  has  passed  into 
one  of  the  main  bronchi  it  may  for  a  time  cause 
such  slight  symptoms  that  the  patient  and  the 
medical  man  can  hardlj-  believe  it  to  be  reallj- 
there.  It  is  true  in  my  experience  of  such  a 
body  as  a  collar  stud,  a  piece  of  bone,  an  ear 
of  barley  grass,  a  pin  two  inches  long,  or  the 
end  of  a  vulcanite  tracheotomy  tube.  There 
may,  indeed,  be  complete  absence  of  physical 
signs  in  the  case  of  such  an  object  as  a  pin,  or 
if  it  be  a  smooth  thing  like  a  bead  there  may 
be  no  departure  from  the  normal  physical  signs 
except  such  as  are  due  to  a  slight  deficiency  of 
an  entry  of  air  into  that  part  of  the  lung  which 
corresponds  to  the  partially  obstructed  bron- 
chus. If,  however,  it  be  a  piece  of  bone  or  a 
piece  of  meat,  decomposition  at  once  sets  in, 
and  then  the  mischief  which  has  started  in  the 
lung  may  be  very  serious  indeed,  and  of  a  pro- 
gressive character. 

Classification  of  Foreign  Bodies. 
It  has  been  suggested  that  such  foreign 
bodies  as  enter  the  air-passages  should  be 
divided  into  hard  and  soft,  which  is  a  useful 
enough,  though  by  no  means  an  accurate,  clas- 
sification. It  is  useful  in  cases  where  imme- 
diate removal  is  to  be  attempted.  If  a  hard 
object  can  be  caught  by  the  forceps,  and  the 
forceps  hold,  out  it  comes  if  it  does  not  break, 
but  a  soft  object  may  be  nibbled  at  again  and 
again  without  materially  diminishing  its  dimen- 
sions. But  there  are  other  classifications  that 
might  equally  well  be  made:  for  example,  into 
living  and  dead.  We  have  all  heard  of  the 
leech  and  the  round  worm  that  have  made 
their  way  into  the  trachea,  and  I  almost  envy 
the  emotion  that  will  be  experienced  by  the 
first  observer  who  sees  such  an  animal  or  the 
grub  of  a  dipterous  insect  through  the  broncho- 
scope. Seeds  such  as  those  of  peas  and  grass 
are  also,  of  course,  alive,  and  may  swell  and 
perhaps  germinate,  and  these  are  the  foreign 
liodies  that  carry  in  along  with  them  other 
forms  of  life,  such  as  the  organisms  that  pro- 
duce actinomycosis,  or  the  various  fomis  of 
mould  which,  when  they  have  gained  a  footing 
in  the  lung,  produce  such  frightful  ravages.  If 
one  were  to  stretch  the  definition  of  foreign 
bodies  and  include  amongst  them  substances 
like  iron  filings  or  minute  fragments  of  stone 
or  coal,  it  is  clear  that  a  great  many  more 
diseases  would  have  to  be  discussed  than 
naturally  find  a  place  in  this  lecture. 


Again,  there  are  some  foreign  bodies  which,, 
when  once  they  have  come  to  a  standstill,  do- 
not  shift  their  position,  such  as  a  tooth  sitting, 
astride  on  the  septum  between  two  separating 
bronchi,  whilst  there  are  others  which  though 
dead  have  a  proper  motion,  which  may  conduct 
them  any  distance  and  in  any  direction. 
Needles  will  find  their  way  into  the  heart  or 
into  the  distant  parts  of  the  body,  and  blades 
of  awned  grass  or  corn,  which  the  unwary  are- 
so  fond  of  putting  into  the  mouths,  start  on 
their  travels  almost  like  living  creatures.  This- 
specimen  was  extracted  from  the  back  of  a 
small  child  who  was  supposed  to  have  had 
whooping-cough,  though  the  nurse  knew  that  a 
piece  of  grass  had  been  "swallowed."  The- 
medical  man  thought  the  emerging  grass  was 
the  core  of  a  boil,  and  was  rather  astonished, 
when  the  whole  ear  was  extracted  by  his- 
forceps. 

JIOVEMENTS  OF  THE  BrONCHI. 

It  may  be  asked  why  such  objects  should, 
make  these  journeys  at  all?  We  are  so  un- 
conscious of  any  of  the  movements  inside  our 
own  bodies  that  it  is  difficult  to  imagine  the- 
chuming  and  pulsating  and  elongation  and' 
shortening  which  are  constantly  taking  place- 
throughout  our  economies.  Moreover,  if  we 
start  with  the  idea  that  the  root  is  a  very  fixed: 
part  of  the  lung,  it  might  be  thought  that  a- 
foreign  body  which  had  once  reached  this 
haven  would  remain  quietly  at  anchor  there,, 
but  radiography  and  the  bronchoscope  have- 
upset  all  these  notions,  and  we  can  now  submit 
to  the  scrutiny  of  the  eye  questions  which  pre- 
viously were  only  matters  of  reasoning  or- 
surmise. 

Aseptic  and  Septic  Foreign  Bodies. 
The  automatic  movement  of  the  ear  of  barley 
grass  has  led  us  a  long  way,  but  I  think  there 
is  no  need  to  go  further  and  to  ask  if  deglutition 
has  any  effect  on  the  movements  of  the  bronchi 
or  to  refer  to  the  general  movements  of  the 
body.  Enough  has  been  said  to  account  for' 
the  journey,  not  only  into  the  smaller  bronchi,, 
but  to  the  periphery  of  the  body.  And  so,, 
returning  to  the  question  of  the  classification  of 
foreign  bodies,  we  must  consider  what  is,  per- 
haps, the  most  important  of  all — namely,  of 
those  which  may  be  called  aseptic,  from  those- 
which  are  either  septic  at  the  time  of  introduc- 
tion, or  which  quickly  decompose  or  form 
favourable  niduses  for  the  growth  of  micro- 
organisms. Amongst  the  latter  are  includetJ 
pieces  of  flesh  or  other  kinds  of  food,  which 
may  gradually  become  disintegrated;  and^ 
worse  than  these,  fragments  of  bone  or  clotb 
or  cotton  wool,  which  are  practically  indestruc- 
tible. I  have  seen  so  many  cases  of  bronchi- 
ectasis and  pulmonary  abscess  following  at  a 


June  25,  1910] 


Zbc  »rit(9b  3ournal  of  "Mursing. 


507 


short  interval  on  some  nasal  operation,  as  to 
make  its  almost  certain  that  something  like  a 
fragment  of  an  adenoid  growth  or  some  morsel 
of  cotton  wool  which  has  been  inspired  at  the 
time,  has  been  the  starting-point  of  the  disease, 
and  I  therefore  have  never  adopted  the  semi- 
erect  position  for  these  operations.  The  risk 
of  such  an  occurrence  must  surely  be  less  when 
the  head  is  hanging  over  the  table,  and  I  there- 
fore commend  this  consideration  to  those  who 
are  specially  engaged  in  this  line  of  practice. 


Ib^Olcne  mt>  flDoralit\>. 

The  book  on  the  above  subject  bj'  Miss  L.  L. 
Dock,  R.N.,  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Inter- 
national Ck)uncil  of  Nurses,  is  intended 
as  a  Manual  for  Nurses  and  others, 
and  gives  an  outline  of  the  Medi- 
cal, Social,  and  Legal  Aspects  of  the 
Venereal  Diseases.  It  is  divided  into  three 
parts.  Part  I.  :  The  Venereal  Diseases.  Part 
II. :  Prostitution;  and  Part  III.  :  The  Preven- 
tion of  Venereal  Disease. 
Part  I. 

The  author  states  that  the  venereal  diseases 
are,  in  the  commonly  accepted  order  of  their 
gravity.  Syphilis,  Gonorrhoea,  and  Chancroid. 
Historically  they  are  of  great,  and  probably  un- 
known, antiquity.  SyphiHs  is  caused  by  a 
micro-organism,  the  Spirochete  pallida  of 
Schaudinn.  This  micro-organism,  the  specific 
and  invariable  cause  of  syphilis,  has  not  long 
been  known  with  certainty,  though  long  before 
its  actual  demonstration  medical  specialists 
had  suspected  its  existence.  After  the  work 
of  Pasteur  had  given  new  direction  to  medical 
and  surgical  study,  and  had  caused  the  doctrine 
of  the  action  of  micro-organisms  as  the  cause 
of  infectious  disease  to  be  accepted,  active 
search  and  research  went  on  in  laboratories  all 
over  the  world  to  discover  the  germ  of  this  as 
well  as  of  other  diseases,  but  for  20  years  or 
more  these  ended  in  failure  until  a  commission 
of  experts  was  formed  under  the  lead  of 
Schulze,  Professor  of  Zoology  in  the  University 
of  Berlin,  and  the  investigation  directed  to- 
wards the  discovery  of  the  syphilitic  virus  was 
by  him  entrusted  to  Schaudinn  and  Hoffman, 
who,  in  1905,  were  able  to  demonstrate  the 
micro-organism.  It  is  not  yet  definitely  settled 
whether  it  belongs  to  the  bacteria  or  the  pro- 
tozoa, but  this  practically  unimportant  un- 
certainty may  be  ended  any  day.  The  Spiro- 
chcpte  pallida  cannot  survive  for  more  than  a 
few  hours — six,  Andrews  says — outside  of  the 
human  body.  After  that,  its  infectious  power 
is  lost.    It  is  destroyed  by  exposing  for  an  hour 


to  a  ten4)erature  of  124  degrees  Fahr.  It  needs 
moisture,  and  if  dried  dies  quickly,  but  even 
with  moisture  is  very  perishable  when  removei 
from  its  human  host.  This  readily  perishable 
quality  and  early  loss  of  pathogenic  power  is  of 
the  highest  importance  in  considering  the  sub- 
ject of  contagion  by  direct  mechanical  contact 
with  infected  objects,  and  has  a  definite  bear- 
ing on  practical  methods  of  disinfection  and  oa 
the  avoidance  of  direct  infection  from  inani- 
mate objects  and  personal  contact. 

After  describing  the  symptoms  of  the  disease, 
^liss  Dock  quotes  the  pronouncement  of  Pro- 
fessor Osier  that  every  feature  of  the  acquired 
disease  may  be  seen  in  the  congenital  form. 
Most  nurses  and  midwives  are  acquainted  with 
the  appearance  of  an  infant  suffering  from  con- 
genital syphilis.  It  is  distinctive  and  unmis- 
takable. They  probably  do  not  reaUse  that 
"  The  congenitally  syphilitic  infant  is  intensely 
infectious.  Fournier  says  :  Nothing  is  so  dan- 
gerous to  its  surroundings  as  a  syphilitic  in- 
fant." Little  or  no  emphasis  is  laid  on  this 
point  in  the  lectures  given  to  midwives  ani 
monthly  nurses,  but,  in  the  light  of  present 
knowledge  such  teaching  cannot  be  withheld 
without  grave  responsibility  for  the  conse- 
quences of  its  neglect. 

The  author  refers  to  a  suggestive  article  by 
Ravogli,  who,  while  not  meaning  to  be  under- 
stood that  syphilis  is  the  determining  cause  of 
crime,  does  believe  it  to  be  one  of  the  predis- 
posing factors  of  crime.      Thus  he  writes  :  — 

A  strange  relation  exis+ti  between  syphilis,  crime, 
and  prostitution — cases  of  prostitution  which  can- 
not be  explained  by  poverty  or  by  special  accident 
have  to  '  be  attribute*!  to  hereditary  sypliili'i. 
Prostitution  and  crime  go  liand  in  hand,  and  in  the 
families  where  the  brotliere  are  criminals  the 
sistere  are  pix)stitutes.  Syphilis  is  the  tie  between 
crime  and  prostitution  when  it  causes  the  affections 
of  the  n<Tvous  system  resulting  in  moral  degenera- 
tion. 

Dealing  with  the  Source  and  Spread  of 
Syphilis,  the  author  points  out  that  a  distinc- 
tion must  be  made  beween  fa)  cause ;  (b)  source 
or  breeding  place ;  (c)  mode  of  spread  of  any 
infectious  disease. 

In  this  connection  she  writes: — Those  con- 
tagions that  are  called  familiarly  filth  diseases, 
do  not  cease  being  filth  diseases  when  they  are 
conveyed  into  clean  homes  to  strike  down 
cleanly  living  individuals.  In  the  study  of 
every  infectious  disease  knowledge  of  the  breed- 
ing place  or  native  haunt  of  its  germ  is  of  the 
utmost  importance  for  practical  hygiene.  ,  ,  . 
The  breeding  place  of  nil  venereal  diseases 
without  exception  is  the  social  institution 
called  prostitution,  or  sexual  promiscuity;  in 
the  debasement  and  degradation  of  what  should 


508 


Zbc  Biitisb  3ournal  of  IHiusina, 


[June  25,  1910 


'be  the  highest  and  ^ost  revered  of  physical 
powers,  those  involved  in  the  act  of  generation. 
Bred  and  cultivated  in  prostitution, .venereal 
diseases  spread  thence  through  the  community, 
attacking  the  innocent  as  well  as  the  guilty, 
the  pure  as  well  as  the  impure,  just  as  typhoid 
fever  is  no  respecter  of  persons,  no  matter 
how  strict  their  own  personal  sanitary  stan- 
dards may  be. 

How  or  why  the  parasitic  powers  of  the 
Spirochcete  pallida  first  declared  themselves  in 
unlawful,  not  in  lawful,  sexual  intercourse,  is  a 
mystery.  But  it  is  certain  that  this  organism 
is  never  met  with  in  the  relation  of  marriage 
unless  it  has  been  brought  from  without.  .  . 
However  their  derivation  might  be  traced,  pros- 
titution is  now  as  certainly  the  abiding  place 
and  inexhaustible  source  of  this  as  of  other 
germs  of  venereal  disease,  as  the  ixiarshy 
swamp  is  the  abode  of  the  malaria-caiTying 
mosquito,  or  the  polluted  water  supply  of  the 
typhoid  bacillus. 

The  important  things  to  know  are :  That 
syphilis  is  cultivated  in  prostitution,  and  thence 
spread  through  the  community  in  ways  classi- 
fied by  Bulkley  as  follows  :  (1)  Inherited ;  (2) 
Marital;  and  (3)  Extra  Genital. 

That  syphilis  is  not  more  frequently  con- 
veyed by  incidental  contact  than  is  actually  the 
ease  is  due  to  the,  fortunately,  very  short  hfe  of 
the  germ  outside  the  human  body. 

The  second  chapter  of  Part  I.  deals  with 
Gonorrhcea  and  Chancroid.  The  specific  micro- 
organism of  the  former  was  discovered  by 
Neisser  in  1879,  and  as  it  is  usually  seen  in 
-pairs  is  sometimes  called  the  Diplococcus 
■  gonorrhcece.  It  is  cultivated  with  difficulty, 
and  does  not  survive  many  transplantations, 
yet  transplanting  does  not  lessen  its  virulence. 
It  can  live  for  years,  or  indefinitely,  in  the 
human  tissues  in  a  dormant  or  latent  state,  a 
characteristic  which  gives  the  disease  a  spe- 
cially uncertain  character,  and  makes  it  quite 
as  treacherous  as  syphilis,  if  not  even  more  so. 
It  is  primarily  a  genito-urinary  disease,  and 
may  extend  through  the  whole  of  the  genito- 
urinary tract,  and  become  a  systemic  infection. 
It  is  a  potent  cause  of  sterility,  and  of  infantile 
ophthalmia  and  blindness. 

Chancroid,  or  venereal  sore,  is,  the  author 
states,  by  far  the  simplest  and  least  dangerous 
of  the  three  diseases  under  consideration.  It 
is  always  located  on  the  genitalia.  If  properly 
treated  from  the  outset,  from  four  to  six  weeks 
suffice  for  cure.  It  only  runs  a  prolonged  course 
when  neglected. 

{To  be  continued.) 


The  book  is  published  by  G.  P.  Putnam's 
■Sons,  24,  Bedford  Street,  Strand,  price  6s. 


fIDental  IRursiiiG.-' 

By  Bernard  Hollander,  M.D. 
(Concluded  from   page  4SS.) 

The  great  distinction  between  sanity  and  in- 
sanity is  the  presence  or  absence  of  the  power 
of  self-control.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  mental 
nurse  to  train  her  patient  in  the  habit  of  self- 
control,  of  governing  himself,  not  to  get  angry 
on  the  slightest  provocation,  not  to  become 
gloomy  on  the  slightest  misfortune,  not  to  be- 
come anxious  or  to  torment  himself  with  re- 
proaches. Every  little  success  of  hers  will  help 
to  give  her  further  control. 

The  patient  must  be  taught,  whatever  his 
feelings  and  impulses,  not  to  carry  them  into 
action.  A  normal  man  if  thwarted,  even  if  he 
gets  angry,  will  not  at  once  proceed  to  fight, 
but  in  certain  forms  of  insanity  a  word  and  a 
blow  follow  almost  immediately.  Many  of  the 
patients  have  never  learned  to  exercise  dis- 
cipline over  their  thoughts  and  feelings,  and 
many  of  them  were  allowed  as  children  to  carry 
every  impulse  into  action.  Certainly  the  finest 
results  amongst  the  mentally  affiicted  are  ob- 
tained through  the  process  of  re-education, 
teaching  them  proper  adaptation  to  surround- 
ings and  self-restraint. 

The  insane  have  fixed  ideas  and  habits  which 
they  have  not  the  power  in  themselves  to 
change,  and  later  on,  as  the  disease  progresses, 
have  not  the  desire  to  change.  In  the  first 
case  their  will  power  and  energy  must  be 
strengthened;  in  the  second,  where  they  are 
not  willing  to  change,  their  thoughts  must  be 
directed  into  other  channels. 

It  would  not  do  to  confute  the  erroneous 
assertions  of  such  patients,  or  deny  the  reality 
of  their  perceptions,  which  are  real  to  them,  or 
to  impute  them  to  their  imagination.  But  one 
may  tell  them  that  their  perceptions  will  sooner 
or  later  become  different.  To  deny  their 
existence  is  to  assure  them  that  we  do  not 
understand  their  case. 

Nothing  is  more  injurious  to  a  mental  invalid 
than  allowing  him  to  indulge  in  his  morbid 
thoughts  uninterruptedly.  One  way  of  direct- 
ing the  morbid  ideas  of  the  patient  into  other 
channels  is  by  supplying  him  with  recreation 
and  occupation.  They  divert  the  brain  from  its 
pathological  activities  and  concentrate  the 
attention  on  the  work  in  hand.  The  occupa- 
tion will  depend,  of  course,  on  the  strength  and 
energy  of  the  patient,  his  intelligence,  inclina- 
tion, and  habits. 

Our  aim  is  to  help  to  dislodge  injurious 
thoughts  by  substituting  fresh  intei-ests,  so  that 

*  An  address  delivered  at  the  Nursing  Conference, 
London. 


June  25, 1910]        ^{^Q  USHttsb  Joumal  of  IRursino. 


509 


they  will  in  time  crowd  out  lii»  morbid  ideas. 
The  mental  nurse  should  therefore  interest  her 
patient,  talk  and  read  to  him,  tell  hisn  anec- 
dotes and  news,  should  vary  his  occupation, 
and  altogether  get  him  away  from  self. 

She  should  make  his  room  attractive  and 
home-like,  for  often  a  carefully  chosen  picture 
on  the  wall  helps  to  arrest  his  attention  and 
divert  it  into  other  channels ;  and  exercise,  of 
course,  is  essential,  otherwise  the  pent  up 
energy  will  spend  itself  in  worry,  irritability, 
quaiTelsomeness,  or  destructiveness. 

Ln  order  to  help  the  patient,  she  should  try 
to  find  out  all  the  things  that  encourage  him, 
and  show  him  at  once  where  he  has  succeeded. 
She  should  help  the  patient  to  help  himself, 
so  that  he  wants  to  do  the  things  he  ought  to 
do,  will  want  to  think  the  way  he  should,  will 
want  to  feel  the  way  he  used  to  feel. 

She  should  not  discuss  the  patient's  illness 
or  prospects  in  front  of  him,  should  he  guarded 
in  her  speech:  for  some  paticnis,  if  nervous 
and  anxious,  weigh  every  word  they  hear  and 
frequently  misinterpret  it.  Sometimes  they 
cling  to  a  chance  observaton  of  no  significance 
which  one  happens  to  have  made,  and  attach 
the  greatest  importance  to  it.  If  the  nurse 
tries  to  pacify  their  anxiety  by  explaining  the 
error,  they  imagine  that  from  tenderness  she 
is  keeping  the  awful  truth  from  them. 

A  nurse  should  never  tell  a  patient  that  he 
is  insane.  Far  better  to  ascribe  his  trouble  to 
bodily  defects  or  some  disorder  of  the  circula- 
tion that  afiects  the  brain,  than  to  let  him 
recognise  that  he  is  a  lunatic  and  irresponsible. 
Nor  is  the  word  "  incurable  "  to  be  used. 
Patients  sometimes  recover  when  one  least  ex- 
pects it,  and  others  get  sufiBciently  well  to  be 
allowed  a  certain  amount  of  liberty,  though 
they  will  remain  mental  invalids  for  the  rest  of 
their  life.  We  may  think  they  are  incurable, 
but  we  ought  not  to  tell  them  so. 

The  mental  nurse  should  never  coerce  a 
patient  when  she  can  persuade  him.  She 
should  give  him  no  chance  of  resistance.  If 
she  has  studied  her  patient  there  will  be  no 
need  for  using  force.  She  will  notice  the 
symptoms  preceding  the  violence,  and  she  will 
never  keep  things  in  sight  of  him  which  would 
suggest  destruction.  If  she  keeps  everything 
of  possible  injury  out  of  the  room  of  a  patient 
who  is  given  that  way,  she  will  have  no  acci- 
dents. To  prevent  an  impulsive  outbreak  of  a 
patient  is  easier  than  to  calm  him  when  he  is 
about  to  make  an  assault. 

If  the  patient  has  confidence  in  the  nurse,  he 
will  follow  him  or  her  where  he  would  not 
follow  others.  I  have  seen  a  violent  maniac 
resist  for  hours  the  united  efforts  of  four  or  five 


of  the  strongest  men,  and  in  a  few  minutes  led. 
away  without  disturbance  by  one  person,  whoso 
only  means  of  coercion  were  mildness,  tact^ 
and  fiiTnuess. 

Barred  windows  and  closed  doors  are  in  most 
cases  only  necessary  to  save  watchfulness.  At 
Woodilee  Asylum,  Glasgow,  in  the  Keception 
House  for  recent  cases,  there  have  been  15,000' 
patients  without  restraint.  No  day  nurse  has 
keys,  ward  doors  arc  open  all  day,  and  the 
windows  open  night  and  day. 

These  are  some  of  the  main  requirements  of 
an  "  ideal  "  nurse.  All  of  them  can  be  put  in. 
one  word — namely,  "Psychotherapeutics." 
Just  as  some  nurses  learn  massage  or  the  ap- 
plication of  electricity,  so  every  man  or  woman- 
qualifying  as  a  mental  nurse  should  have 
studied  psychotherapeutics.  This  would  bring- 
about  a  revolution  in  our  treatment  of  the  in- 
sane. 

If  wc  had  more  such  "  ideal  "  nurses,  less 
patients  need  be  sent  to  asylums.  It  is  to  the 
advantage  of  the  patient  to  associate  as  long  as 
possible  with  healthy  beings.  In  the  asylum 
individual  treatment  is  not  possible,  the  patient 
cannot  get  out  of  his  mental  groove,  and  he  is 
one  of  a  mass  of  patients. 

Asylums  have  been  made  brighter  and  more 
sanitary,  and  numerous  other  improvements 
have  been  made,  but  the  recovery  rate  has 
remained  about  the  same.  What  we  want  is 
a  mental  hospital  staffed  by  highly  cultured 
psychological  nurses.  This  has  yet  to  come. 
Meanwhile  we  can  do  privately  a  great  deal,, 
doctor  and  nurse  helping  one  another  to  bring 
about  the  recovery  of  the  patient. 


^bc  IPrevention  of  Disease. 

THE  WAR  AGAINST  TUBERCULOSIS. 

"  Prevention  is  better  than  cure  "  is  » 
maxim  with  which  from  our  childhood  we  have 
been  familiar.  Curiously  enough,  it  is  only  in- 
comparatively  recent  years  that  it  has  been  ap- 
plied to  the  science  from  the  exponents  of  which 
we  might  have  supposed  the  maxim  emanated, 
i.e.,  medical  science,  and  the  treatment  of 
disease. 

Now,  however,  it  is  becoming  a  realisable 
ideal,  and  in  no  branch  of  medicine  has  greater 
progress  been  made  than  in  the  treatment  of 
consumption,  which  is  no  longer  regarded  as  a 
hereditary  evil,  which  sounds  the  death-knell' 
of  the  victim  on  its  appearance,  but,  as  a  defi- 
nite infection,  curable  if  appropriately  treated 
in  time. 

The  irradicable  hopefulness  of  the  consump- 
tive is  now  justified  by  scientific  knowledge,  by 
the  recognition  of  the  germ  causing  the  evil. 


510 


Zhc  ]!6i"ittsb  Journal  of  iRursinQ. 


[June  25,  1910 


and  the  knowledge  of  the  conditions  under 
•\vhich  the  germ  multiplies,  and  the  treatment 
to  which  it  yields.  It  is  now  knowri  that  in- 
sanitary and  ill-ventilated  houses,  and  insuf- 
rieient  food  render  those  subjected  to  them  an 
easy  prey  to  the  ravages  of  the  germ  of  tuber- 
culosis, and  since  the  infection  once  present 
may  be  conveyed  far  and  wide,  as  a  matter  of 
self -protection  as  well  as  of  public  duty,  it  be- 
hoves the  community  as  a  whole  to  grapple 
with  the  question,  which  is  not  one  for  the 
medical  profession  alone,  but  is  of  social  and 
political  importance. 

Fresh  air,  good  food,  and  decent  living  con- 
ditions for  the  million  are  of  urgent  importance 
for  the  protection  of  the  pubhc,  and  what  is 
true  as  regards  tuberculosis  is  true  with  regard 
to  many  other  diseases. 

Thus  the  work  of  preventive  medicine  be- 
comes of  extreme  importance.  To  the  new 
school  the  reception  and  treatment  of  patients 
in  hospitals  is  of  secondary  importance  to  the 
prevention  of  disease ;  just  as  it  is  better  sur- 
gery to  preserve  an  injured  limb  than  to  am- 
putate it  in  the  most  brilliant  manner. 

The  modern  medical  officer  of  health  desires 
the  elimination  of  slums,  the  medical  super- 
vision of  school  children,  and  recognition  and 
treatment  of  tuberculosis  in  its  earliest  forms, 
in  fact,  the  prevention  of  the  disease  instead 
of  temporary  alleviation,  or  cure,  when  it  has 
gained  a  foothold. 

Next  month,  beginning  on  July  1st,  and  last- 
ing over  five  days,  the  "  National  Association 
for  the  Prevention  of  Consumption  and  other 
forms  of  Tuberculosis  "  will  hold  its  Amiual 
Conference  at  Edinburgh,  including  a  Tuber- 
culosis Exhibition  in  the  New  College  Build- 
ings, Mound,  for  which  the  following  pro- 
gramme is  announced :  — 

Jidy  1st. — Opening  of  the  Tuberculosis  Ex- 
hibition by  the  Countess  of  Aberdeen. 

Jnhj  2nd. — "  School  Morning,"  when 
scholars  and  teachers  in  all  the  schools,  as  far 
as  that  is  possible,  will  be  addressed  by  great 
medical  authorities.  This  "  Tuberculosis  Morn- 
ing "  in  the  schools  will  have,  it  is  hoped,  good 
results  in  impressing  upon  the  young  the  wis- 
dom of  precautions  against  tubercuosis. 

Inauguration  of  Eoyal  Victoria  Hospital 
Farm  Colony.  Part  of  the  work  of  the  Asso- 
ciaetion  is  to  promote  such  farm  colonies  where 
the  sufferer  froin  tubercidosis  can  win  back 
health  under  conditions  of  open-air  industry. 

July  3rd. — Special  service  for  University 
students  and  visitors  and  address  by  Professor 
Osier,  Regius  Professor  of  Medicine  at  -Oxford 
University. 

July  4th. — Tuberculosis  Conference.  Discus- 
sions on  "  The  Avenues  of  Infection  in  Tuber- 


culosis "  and  "  Preventive  Measures  and  the 
Administrative  Control  of  Tuberculosis." 

Amiual  meeting  of  the  National  Association 
for  the  Prevention  of  Consumption,  chairman. 
Lord  Balfour  of  Burleigh.  Addresses  by  dis- 
tinguished visitors. 

Reception  by  the  Lord  Provost,  Magistrates, 
and  Council  of  the  City  of  Edinburgh. 

July  5th. — Tuberculosis  Conference  in  Rainy 
Hall.  Discussions  on  "  The  Incidence  of  Tuber- 
culosis in  Childhood  "  and  "  The  Working  Man 
in  Relation  to  Tuberculosis." 

The  exhibition  will  include  illustrative  ex- 
hibits grouped  as  follows  : — (1)  Extent  of  tuber- 
culosis ;  (2)  Cause  of  tuberculosis ;  (3)  Breeding 
grounds  of  tuberculosis ;  (4)  Spread  of  tuber- 
culosis ;  (5)  Tuberculosis  amongst  children ;  (6) 
Prevention  of  tuberculosis ;  (7)  Cure  of  tuber- 
culosis; (8)  Pathological;  (9)  Historical  and 
literary. 

The  campaign  against  tuberculosis  in  New 
York  has  been  conducted  on  similar  lines,  one 
of  the  methods  being  to  hire  sites  at  prominent 
street  comers  in  the  city,  to  provide  there  for 
public  use  literature  on  the  subject  of  consump- 
tion and  telling  exhibits,  showing  the  incidence 
of  consumption  in  dirty  and  dark  localities. 
Further,  at  short  intervals,  a  phonograph  gives 
a  short  lecture  on  the  prevention  and  treat- 
ment of  tuberculosis. 

It  is  interesting  to  learn  that  the  reason  for 
selecting  Edinburgh  as  the  meeting  place  of 
the  above  Conference  is  that  in  the  northern 
capital  the  best  example  of  working  a  Dispen- 
sary sj'stem  for  the  prevention  of  consumption 
is  to  be  found,  and  the  Conference' will  thus 
have  the  advantage  of  a  practical  demonstra- 
tion, on  the  spot,  of  the  methods  which  have 
been  employed  with  great  advantage.  Dele- 
gates are  expected  to  attend  the  Conference, 
not  only  from  the  United  Kingdom  and  the 
Continent,  but  also  from  the  United  States  of 
America,  so  that  it  should  result  in  much  prac- 
tical usefulness. 

IRursino  IB^vt  ^augbt  b\)  IRurees. 

The  St.  John  Ambulance  Association  has 
withdrawn  from  the  voluntaiw  aid  scheme  for 
the  aid  to  the  sick  and  wounded  in  the  event  of 
invasion,  promulgated  by  the  ^Yar  Office  in 
August  last,  under  which  scheme  the  Ambu- 
lance Department  of  the  Order  of  St.  John  of 
Jerusalem  in  England  undertook  to  give  the 
preliminary  training  required  in  first  aid  and 
nursing  to  candidates  for  the  Voluntary  Aid  De- 
tachments. The  course  is  now  clear  for  the 
organisation  of  a  more  modern  curriculum,  in 
which  we  may  hope  practical  nursing  will  be 
taught  by  nurses. 


June  25, 1910]         ^|,c  Brltlsb  3ournaI  of  IRurstno. 


511 


Zbc  Cnanhe   ot   the  *Sluce« 
riDotber. 


The  members  of  the  International  Council  of 
Nurses,  who  through  the  Hon.  President,  Mrs. 
Bedford  Fen  wick,  sent  a  wreath  of  choice 
flowers  to  Windsor  at  the  time  of  tiie  funeral 
of  the  late  King,  "  In  grateful  remembrance 
of  the  Royal  Courtesy  of  a  Great  Sovereign," 
will  be  touched  to  receive  the  thanks  of  the 
Queen  Mother,  whose  gracious  card  of  acknow- 
ledgment we  reproduce  on  this  page. 

The  task  of  acknowledging  the  thousands  of 


ber  tlie  m^vvi-to-be-foiijotten  day  at  Windsor  last 
summer.'  It  is  a  wonderful  thing  to  be  a  ruler 
when  one  is  a  power  for  good,  not  in  your  o"i; 
country  alone,  but  all  over  the  world." 


(Tbc  Ipassino  Bell. 

ANOTHER  TRAGEDY. 
The  Nursing  Journal  of  India  for  June  brings 
tlio  sad  news  of  the  death  of  Miss  Jane  Winifred 
TIiori)e,  Hon.  Secretaiy  and  Treasurer  of  the 
Association  of  Xur.sing  Superintendents  of  India, 
and  of  the  Trained  Nurses'  A,ssociation  of  India,  as 
well  as  JIanager  of  the  _  new  Journal  published 
under  the  authority  of  these   Associations,  all  of 


V^  BUCKINGHAM     PALACE 


floral  tributes  sent  as  a  last  mark  of  respect  to 
the  late  lung  must  have  been  enormous,  and  a 
general  acknowledgment  through  the  press 
might  well  have  sufficed.  The  personal  thanks 
of  Queen  Alexandra  will,  therefore,  be  greatly 
appreciated,  by  none  more  than  by  the  mem- 
bers of  the  International    Council    of  Nurses. 


Baroness  jMannerheim,  President  of  the  Fin- 
nish Nurses'  Association,  and  Matron  of  the 
Surgical  Hospital,  Helsingfors,  writes:  — 

"  Our  Association  was  so  ploa'^n]  and  proud  tliat 
its  name  was  one  of  those  inscribetl  on  tlie  wreath 
ofiered  by  the  International  Council  of  Xurses  to 
your  great  King.  AVe  would  liave  loved  to  take 
onr  i>art  in  the  cost,  and  wish  to  know  if  this  would 
still  bo  possible.  We  have  all  mourned  your  .splen- 
did King  in  our  hearts,  and  most  gratefully  remem- 


which  owe  llieir  origin  laij^aly  to  her  initiative 
and  professional  spirit.  Our  contemporary  says;^ 
"  She  has  filled  a  large  place,  and  will  be  long  re- 
meml>ere<l  as  a  pioneer  in  uniting  and  helping  tor- 
ward  the  nursing  profession  in  India." 

Miss  Thor|>e  was  also  a  member  of  the  Matrons' 
Council  of  (jreat  Britain  and  Ireland,  and  the 
Indian  Collalwrator  of  this  Journal. 

Miss  Tlior|)e  met  with  her  death  with  ti^gic  .«ua- 
denness.  On  the  morning  of  May  20th  her  body 
was  found  in  the  moat  below  the  wall  of  the  Fort 
at  Belgaum  whore  her  bungalow  is  situated.  It  i> 
known  that  she  intended  to  get  up  to  see  the  comet, 
and  while  on  the  Fort  wall  to  get  a  better  view 
of  it  she  nnist  have  fallen  over.  The  place  of  .so 
single-heartetl  and  loyal  a  worker  for  the  general 
good  will  1k'  difficidt  to  fill.  To  her  bereaved 
colleagues  in  India  we  offer  our  sincere  sympathy. 


312 


Zbc  Bintisb  3ournal  of  Iftursing.  J^^^e  25,  loioj 


Cbe  Battle  of  tbc  Stan&ar&6. 

What  are  known  in  the  nursing  wc«-Id  as  the 
"London  Hospital"  jjapers,  in  other  words 
those  ^^Jaich  "  freeze  out  "  and  suppress  every 
letter  and  article  addressed  to  them  in  support 
of  nurses'  opinions  concerning  their  own  affairs, 
which  clash  with  those  of  their  employers,  the 
distributors  of  advertisements,  have  during  the 
recent  lively  protest  been  busy  attempting  to 
batten  down  what  Miss  Luckes,  of  the  London 
Hospital,  calls  "  this  strangely  unreal  contro- 
versy," by  the  usual  vulgar  invective  in  the 
■  quack  nursing  press,  and  by  insidious  misrepre- 
sentation in  the  inspired  dailies. 


document  which  has  nothing  to  do  with  her 
Certificate  of  training  as  such. 


The  point  at  issue  in  this  dispute  is  one  of 
nursing  efficiency.  Women  thoroughly  trained 
and  certificated  under  the  three  years'  com- 
plete curriculum  in  force  at  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital,  hotly  resent,  and  rightly  so,  a  woman 
who  "  secured  her  certificate  "  after  only  two 
years'  training  at  the  London  Hospital — a  stan- 
dard unanimously  considered  insufficient  hy 
the  authorities  of  every  first  class  nvrsi7ig 
school  in  the  kingdom — being  given  authority 
over  them  as  Superintendent  of  Nursing.  This 
is  the  just  cause  of  complaint  of  every  certifi- 
cated "  Bart's  "  nurse.  And,  in  protesting 
against  the  depreciation  of  their  efficient  stan- 
dard, their  time-honoured  Three  Years'  Cer- 
tificate— they  have  the  sympathy  of  every 
nurse  who  holds  a  certificate  of  equal  value. 

How  are  the  mighty  fallen !  Imagine  the 
Matron  elect  of  the  Royal  Hospital  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's having  recourse  to  the  publication 
of  her  nursing  qualifications  in  the  quack  nurs- 
ing press!  Sir  Henry  Burdett,  a  Governor  of 
St.  Bartholomew's,  in  his  furious  and  ill-ad- 
vised advocacy  of  his  London  Hospital  candi- 
date, gives  away  her  case  in  his  journal. 


Under  the  heading  of  "  Miss  Mcintosh's  Cer- 
tificate," he  publishes:  "The  following  is  a 
verbatim  copy  of  the  Certificate  of  three  years' 
training  of  the  new  Matron  of  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's Hospital."  The  Certificate  of  Training 
is  then  printed,  in  which  it  is  stated  that  Miss 
Annie  I\IcIntosh  .  .  completed  her  full 
terni  of  two  years'  training  in  the  medical  and 
surgical  wards  of  this  Hospital,  both  on  day  and 
night  duty. 

This  certificate  of  training  is  signed  first  by 
the  Matron,  under  whose  signature  that  of  the 
Chairman  appears,  and  is  dated  3rd  day  of 
March,  1899. 

An  addendum,  dated  April  3rd,  1900, 
states  that  Annie  Mcintosh  has  completed  her 
third   year   in  the  service   of   the  hospital — a 


The  Governors  of  the  "  London  "  oertify 
their  nurses  as  fully  trained  after  two  years  in 
the  hospital.  Why  squirm  and  attempt  to 
evade  the  truth  ?  And  we  repeat  the  two  years' 
certificate  is  not  a  guarantee  that  the  whole 
time  has  been  spent  under  supervision  in  the 
wards.  

In  support  of  these  assertions,  the  following 
evidence  of  the  Chairman  of  the  London  Hos- 
pital, before  the  Select  Committee  of  the  House 
of  Commons  on  the  Registration  "of  Nurses,  in 
1904,  in  reply  to  questions  from  the 
Chaimian  of  the  Committee,  Mr.  H.  J. 
Tennant,  M.P.,  concerning  sending  out  par- 
tially trained  private  nurses,  is  conclusive. 

Question  597 . — Mr:  Holland  :  Nurses  are  not 
sent  out  now  until  they  liave  done  two  years 
in  the  hospital,  except  in  exceptional  circum- 
stances. 

Question  598 :  Do  you  not  think  you  ought  to 
state  the  fact  that  she  has  not  had  three  years' 
training  ? 

Mr.  Holland:  No,  none  of  our  nurses  have 
had  three  years'  training.  I  could  mention  a 
number  of  good  nurses  holding  leading  hospital 
appointments,  e.g.,  Matrons  of  Westminster, 
Metropolitan,  Addenbrooke's  Cambridge,  Rad- 
clifie  Oxford,  Poplar,  Bristol,  Principal  Ma- 
tron, Q.A.I.N.  Service,  and  so  on,  who  had 
not  had  three  years'  training." 

Thus  the  statement  made  by  Sir  Henry  Bur- 
dett that  ^liss  IMcIntosh  holds  a  ' '  certificate  of  • 
three  years'  training  "  is  not  ti-ue.  With  the 
statement  that  she  was  in  the  "  service  "  of  the 
hospital  for  a  third  year  Bart's  nurses  have  no 
concern.  What  odd  jobs  she  may  have  per- 
formed, as  "  required  by  the  Matron  "  from 
the  day  she  was  awarded  her  two  years'  cer- 
tificate of  training  is  not  their  business. 
They  resent  a  woman  with  an  inferior  certifi- 
cate superintending  their  professional  work 
and  signing  their  certificates,  and  no  verbosity 
on  the  part  of  Miss  Luckes  or  abuse  in  the 
press  will  convince  them  that  their  resent- 
ment is  not  just. 


In  this  connection  we  are  reminded  by  a 
"  Londoner  "  that  many  find  themselves  han- 
dicapped by  service  instead  of  training,  as  the 
three  years'  certificate  is  thus  denied  to  them 
at  the  London.  As  Office  Sister,  in  her  tWrd 
year,  she  states  that  one  of  her  weekly  duties 
was  to  carry  up  100  pairs  of  clean  sheets  to  as 
many  bedrooms  in  the  Home,  "  presumably  to 
save  the  housemaid  varicose  veins  and  flat 
feet." 


June  25,  1910] 


Zbc  Britisb  3oiirnal  of  TRursing, 


513 


Zbc  Defence  of  .IRursino   Stan* 
^ar^5  Comniittee. ' 


{The   St.  Bartholomew's  Jlospltal  Three  Years' 
Certificate.) 
The  following  Memorial  has  been  sent  to  the 
•Governors  of  St.  Bartholomew's    Hospital,  by 
Mrs.  Shuter,  on  behalf  of  the  Defence  of  Nurs- 
.ing  Standards  Committee:  — 
To  THE  Governors  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital. 
Sib  or  Madam, — As  a  Public  Meeting  has  been 
held,  at  which  the  enclosed  resolutions  were  passed 
unanimously,  it  is  felt  to   be  fitting  that  a  brief 
account  should  be  laid  before  the  Governors  of  St. 
Bartholomew's    Hospital,  individually,  concerning 
the    matters  to   which  public   attention    has  thus 
•been  drawn. 

1.  For  the  last  twenty-nine  years,  the  efficiency, 
the  success,  and  the  usefulness  of  the  Nursing 
Department  of  the  Hospital  has  been  steadily 
rising,  with  advantage  to  the  Institution  and  to 
the  sick  of  all  classes.  The  Nursing  Staff  believed 
that  their  arduous  work  was  appreciated  by  the 
Medical  Staff  and  the  Governors,  a  belief  in  which 
they  were  encouraged  by  the  Treasurer  having 
stated  in  liis  official  report  for  1909,  on  the 
authority  of  the  Medical  Staff,  that  the  Nursing  of 
the  Hospital  was  "  of  an  unusually  high  .standard." 

■  2.  In  recent  years  it  has  been  recognised  in  the 
leading  Nursing  Schools,  as  for  many  years  it  has 
been  in  the  Medical  Schools,  that  it  is  for  the  good 
■of  every  school  to  attract  to  its  service  the  best 
•class  of  workers,  by  establishing  a  high  standard  of 
proficiency,  by  maintaining  a  keen  esprit  de  corps, 
and  by  rewarding  with  preferment  the  most  dis- 
tinguished pupils.  Wlien  a  vacancy  for  the  head 
of  the  Nursing  Department  occurs,  the  promotion 
of  a  former  pupil  of  a  Nursing  School  to  the 
honourable  position  of  Matron  adds  to  its  prestige, 
and  is  a  source  of  encouragement  to  every  pupil, 
past  and  present.  This  course  has  been  wisely 
adopted  by  the  leading  hospitals  in  London,  Edin- 
burgh, and  Glasgow,  and  it  was  the  natural  expec- 
tation of  St.  Bartholomew's  nurses — when,  for  the 
first  time  under  modern  nursing  conditions — it  is 
important  to  remember  this  fact — a  vacancy 
■occurred,  that  the  new  Matron  would  be  one  who 
had  been  trained  by  the  late  revered  Matron,  Miss 
Isla  Stewart,  and  had  proved  her  cajjacity  to  hold 
so  responsible  a  .post. 

3.  The  greatest  surprise  and  regret  ■were,  there- 
fore, felt  when  the  advertisement  of  the  vacant 
post  appeared,  and  it  was  found  that  the  unusual 
•  course  had  been  adopted  of  fixing  an  age  limit  of 
40  for  applicants.  This  at  once  excluded — and  it 
is  most  respectfully  submitted  that  it  was  intended 
to  exclude — a  number  of  certificated  nurses  of  St. 
Bartholomew's  who  now  hold  the  post  of  Matron 
at  large  London  and  Provincial  Hospitals,  who  are 
greatly  respected  in  their  profession,  and  whose 
merits  and  qualifications,  could  they  have  been 
applicants  for  the  vacant  post,  must  have  deeply 
impressed  the  Election  Committee;  and  in  competi- 
■tion  with  whom  the  appointment  of  a  Matron's 
.Assistant   would  have  been  improbable.     Nor  did 


the  advertisement  require  any  further  professional 
qualifications  whatever  beyond  that  '-candidates 
must  be  certificat.J  nurses,"  so  that  the  thr.-o 
vears'  terra  of  training  and  certification,  so  long 
the  standard  oi  the  Nursing  School  of  St.  Bar- 
tholomew's Hospital,  was  not  obligatory. 

■  So  much  apprehension  was  aroused  by  the  terras 
of  the  advertisement,  that  a  Memorial  was  signed 
by  260  Certificated  Nurses  of  St.  Bartholomew's, 
and  presented  to  the  Treasurer  and  Almoners.  As 
that  Memorial  only  received  a  curt  acknowledg- 
ment from  the  Clerk,  and  as  it  sets  forth  the  whole 
position,  it  is  respectfully  submitted  that  its  con- 
tents should  be  communicated  to  the  Governors. 

4  On  May  26th,  the  Election  Committee  ap- 
pointed as  Matron  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital 
a  lady  who  is  one  of  the  assistants  of  the  Matron  of 
the  London  Hospital,  and  trained  in  that  Institu- 
tion, which  certifies  its  pupils  as  proficient  after 
only  two  years'  work  in  the  wards — a  standard  con- 
sidered insufficient  by  all  other  leading  hospitals, 
by  the  Local  Government  Board,  and  certain  other 
Government  Departments,  for  the  Nursing  Service 
of  the  Territorial  Force  of  the  City  and  County  of 
London — No.  1  (Jeneral  Hospital  of  which  is 
entirely  staffed  by  nurses  holding  the  necessary 
qualification  of  a  three  years'  certificate  from  St. 
Bartholomew'.s  Hospital — and  by  the  Governors  of 
St.  Bartholomeir'.-^  Hospital  since  1881,  irhen  the 
three  years'  si/sttm  of  training  before  certification 
was  adopted.  It  is  needless  to  emphasise  the  depre- 
ciation of  the  value  of  the  three  years' 
certificate  of  St.  Bartholomew's  and  of  the  high 
standard  of  training  enforced  for  twenty-nine  years 
by  the  Governors,  which  must  follow  the  decision 
of  the  Election  Committee  that  the  two  years' 
certificate  of  the  London  Hospital  is  a  sufficient 
qualification  for  the  Matron  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital,  if  the  Governors  permit  that  decision  and 
judgment  to  be  finally  accepted. 

5  This  is  considered  a  fitting  opportunity  to 
call  the  attention  of  the  Governors  to  the  condition 
of  the  ancient  houses  composing  the  Nurses'  Home. 
For  many  years  these  houses  have  been  considered 
ineanitaiy  and  in  many  ways  defective.  Only  last 
year  the"  Treasurer  reported  to  the  Governors  on 
their  "  general  unsuitability,"  and  added  '•  I  must 
express  the  extreme  anxiety  with  which  I  regard 
the  possibility  of  a  fire  occurring  in  certain  parts 
of  the  Home— the  structural  arrangements  being 
such  that  in  the  event  of  an  emergency  the  conse- 
quences could  not  fail  to  be  very  serious." 

It  is  very  respectfully  submitted  to  the  Governors 
that  the  continuance  of  such  dangers  and  discom- 
fort to  their  Nursing  Staff,  and  the  reasons  why 
the  sarae  have  been  permitted  to  continue  for  so 
many  years,  deserve  their  earnest  and  speedy  con- 
sideration. 

6.  The  nurses  feel  confident  that  the  great  body 
of  Governors  cannot  be  aware  of  the  facts  now  sub- 
mitted to  them  ;  that  they  will  not  approve  of  the 
lack  of  appreciation  shown  by  the  Election  Com- 
mittee of  the  devoted  services  rendered  for  twenty- 
three  years  to  the  Institution  by  the  late  :Mi3s  Isla 
Stewart,  whose  efforts  have  caused  the  Nursing 
Department  to  be  held  in  the  highest  esteem 
throughout  the  whole  nursing  world ;  or  that  with 


514 


^\K  Bi'itisb  3ournal  of  IRursino. 


[June  2o,  1910 


a  free  and  open  election  a  lady  trained  under  her 
wise  supervision  could  not  have  been  found,  pos- 
sessing the  highest  qualifications,  to  succeed  her 
in  office. 

It  is  therefore  most  earnestly  and  respectfully 
submitted  that  the  Grovernors  of  St.  Bartholomew's 
Hospital  should  individually  take  action  at  this 
important  juncture,  by  demanding  that,  on  their 
behalf,  a  public  inquiry  should  be  made  into  the 
matters  now  brought  before  their  notice. 
I  am,  Sir  or  Madam, 

Your  obedient  sei-vant, 

Ellen  Shuter,  Hon.  Sec. 
Cleveland  House,  Chiswick  Lane,  London,  W. 
June  1.3th,  1910. 


(Siuotes  trom  iprivatc  Xetters. 

Br  Permission. 

"  I  send  you  a  guinea  for  the  Defence  of 
Nursing  Standards  Fund,  and  only  wish  it  was 
£100. 

"  I  should  say  Bart's  feels  much  as  we 
should  as  a  nation,  if  we  had  to  accept  the 
cadet  of  a  hostile  and  inferior  Power  in  the 
place  of  the  Peace  Maker,  just  as  we  are  all 
mourning  for  him  with  so  much  genuine  grief." 

"  This  appointment  (at  Bart's)  is  a  direct 
vote  of  censure  on  the  Nursing  Department,  by 
the  Election  Committee — to  which  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  ]Medical  Staff  have  subscribed 
— outsiders  can  come  to  no  other  conclusion. 
This  is  the  reason  we  want  a  public  inquiry." 

"  It  may  interest  you  to  know  that  I  have 
decided  not  to  train  at '  Bart's,'  but  elsewhere. 
L  want  my  certificate  signed  by  a  Matron  hold- 
ing a  Three  Years'  Certificate." 

"  Even  old  '  Londoners  '  feel  the  injustice 
of  this  appointment.  We  '  Londoners  '  expect 
Miss  Liickes  to  have  trained  her  successor,  and 
if  the  Committee  don't  think  a  Matron  capable 
of  that  thej-  should  find  one  who  is."  ("  Lon- 
doners "  may  rest  assured  on  this  point. — Ed.) 
■  "  We  are  being  assured  with  emphasis  on  all 
sides  that  this  appointment  was  unpremedi- 
tated. How  providential  for  the  selected  can- 
didate that  slie  is  only  "  thirty-nine,"  as 
stated  by  Miss  Liickes  in  the  Westminster 
Gazette  on  the  16th  inst.,  and  that  she  had  not 
passed  that  fateful  Rubicon,  her  fortieth  birth- 
day— the  age  limit  so  carefully  inserted  in  that 
astounding  advertisement." 

"  I  hear  an  outburst  of  indignation  was  ex- 
pected over  this  appointment,  so  the  lady  in 
question  was  hustled  ofi  to  Switzerland'  for  a 
holiday,  as  Miss  Liickes  puts  it,  '  out  of  reach 
even  of  the  echoes  of  this  strangely  unreal  con- 
troversy.'        But  the  Evening  Neivs  man  has 


stolen  a  march  on  the  Matron  of  the  London 
Hospital,  and  run  Miss  Mcintosh  t<.>  earth  at 
Grindelwald,  where  he  showed  her  the  news- 
paper reports  of  the  protest  1  When  invited  to 
confide  in  this  enterprising  reporter,  she  inti- 
mated she  preferred  to  converse  on  the  '  glow 
that  was  shining  at  that  moment  over  the 
heights.' 

"  When  asked  if  she  expected  to  introduce 
any  new  methods  at  Bart's,  she  replied : 

"  '  I  cannot  tell  at  present.' 

"  How  about  bringing  the  Sisters  '  to  their 
proper  level?'  That  little  item  in  the  pro- 
gramme must  not  be  allowed  to  lapse." 

"  Coming  events  cast  their  shadows  before 
them !  But  is  not  the  Matron  of  the 
London  Hospital,  just  «  little  previous  in 
awarding  the  Bart's  Gold  Medal?  According 
to  her  exceedingly  specious  and  impertinent 
statement  in  the  Westminster  Gazette,  the 
paragon  of  all  the  virtues,  which  the  London 
Hospital  is,  with  so  much  self-sacrifice  be- 
stowing as  jNlatron  upon  Bart's  (with  equal 
generosity  we  hasten  to  deprecate  the  neces- 
sity for  this  noble  abnegation !)  '  secured  her 
certificate  for  knowledge  of  medical  and  sur- 
gical nursing  in  a  manner  that  would  have 
entitled  her  to  a  gold  medal  from  Bart's.' 
Considering  that  the  ilatron  elect  '  secured' 
her  certificate  '  after  an  insufficient  two  years' 
training,  it  may  interest  ]Miss  Liickes  to  know 
that  at  Bart's  she  would  have  been  re- 
quired to  gain  the  necessary  skill  and  ex- 
perience of  a  thoroug)ilij  trained  nurse  by  work- 
ing under  skilled  supervision  for  a  third  year,' 
and  passing  first,  a  final  examination  before 
being  eligible  for  this  much  coveted  honoui* — an 
honour  several  of  our  most  distinguished  gra- 
duates might  have  advanced  as  applicants  lor 
the  post  of  Matron  to  tlioir  Alma  Mater,  had 
not  the  age  limit  of  40  '  cut  them  out  '  of  com- 
peting with  a  Matron's  Assistant  from  the 
London  Hospital,  aged,  according  to  Miss- 
Liickes,  39." 

"  Nothing  will  convince  the  Nursing  World 
at  large  that  this  is  a  clean  business." 

"  No  protestations  upon  the  part  of  Miss 
Liickes  will  reconcile  Bart's  nurses  to  the  de- 
preciation of  their  professional  status.  They 
are  unanimous  in  the  opinion  that  a  highly 
trained  gentlewoman  should  have  been  selected 
to  fill  the  place  of  the  eminent  Matron  they 
have  lost." 

"  I  feel  the  doctors  can't  have  played  the 
game,  and  I  do  feel  for  all  those  excellent 
women  at  Bart's  being  insulted  like  this." 

"  This  place  (Bart's)  is  like  a  charnal 
house." 


June  25,  1910 


Zbc  asiitieb  3oin:nal  of  "Wursliuj. 


fil5 


Hppointmcnt3. 


Matron. 

Newport  and  Monmouthshire  Hospital,  Newport,  Mon.-- 
Miss  Margaret  Atk«?y  ha.'*  been  apiwinto*!  Matron. 
She  was  trained  at  Guy's  Hospital,  wlier<j  sli«  lia-s 
lield  the  positions  of  Ward  Sister,  Assistant  and 
Acting  Home  Sister,  and  Night  Superintendent. 

Farnham  Isolation  Hospital,  Surrey.  -Miss  E.  F.  Mann 
has  been  appointed  Matron.  She  was  trained  at 
St.  Thomas's  Hospital,  and  has  held  the  positions 
of  Sister  and  Night  Superintendent  at  Monsall 
Fever  Hospital,  and  of  Sister  at  the  Royal  \n- 
tirmary,  Bristol. 

Cottage  Hospital,  East  Crinstead. — Miss  Leonora  Gar- 
lett  has  been  ap[K)inted  Matron.  She  was  traiiHMJ 
"at  the  Westminster  Hospital.  Ijondon,  and  has  boon 
on  the  private  nureing  staff  of  that  institntion. 
Assistant  Matrons. 
Shirley  Warren  infirmary,  Southampton. — Miss  Florence 
Cross  has  been  appointed  Assistant  Matron.  She 
was  trained  at  the  .Shoredit<:h  Infirmary,  and  has 
held  the  position  of  Maternity  and  Theatre  Sister 
at  Shirley  AVarren  Infirmary,  where  she  has  al.si) 
acted  temporarily  on  several  occasions  as  Assistant 
Matron  and  Night  Superintendent. 

Clayton  Hospital  and  Wakefield  General  Dispensary.  - 
Miss  Emily  Wade  has  been  appointed  Assistant 
Matron.  She  was-trained  at  the  Royal  Infirmary, 
Shejheld,  and  the  Jessop  Hospital,  Sheffield,  and 
has  held  the  positions  of  Out-patients  Sister,  Sister 
of  tlie  Women  and  Children's  Wards,  and  Night 
Sister  at  the  Stanley  Hospital,  Liverpool ;  Night 
Superintendent  at  the  Hospital  for  Women,  Soho 
Square,  London;  and  Sister-in-Charge  of  the  Dis- 
trict Jlidwifery  Home  in  connection  with  the 
Liverpool  Jfatornity  Hospital  and  Ladies'  Charity. 
Si.stkhs. 

Creat  Northern  Central  Hospital,  Holloway,  N. — Miss 
Gertrude  Piper  ha.s  been  appointed  Sister.  She 
was  trained   at  St.  TIiouku's  Hospital,  S.W. 

Jessop  Hospit::l  lor  Women,  Sheffield. — Miss  E.  Ixing- 
staff  has  been  appointed  Sister.  She  was  trained 
at  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Bristol,  where  she  has  held 
the  position  of  Sister.  She  is  also  a  certified  mid- 
wife and  has  been  Sister-in-Charge  of  the  Mid- 
wifery department. 

XicHT  Sister. 

Borough  Hospital,  Bolton. — Miss  Caroline  L.  Mackay 
has  ben  appointed  .\iL;hl  Sister.  She  was  trained 
at  ilu-  Royal  Infirmary.  Liverpoiol,  and  ha.s  held  the 
position  of  Sister  at  the  Borough  Isolation  Hospi- 
tal, Ipswich,  and  of  Charge  Nurse  at  the  City  Hos- 
pital, Fazakerley,  Livprp<i<il. 
Ntitsi;. 

King  Edward  Sanatorium  lor  Infectious  Diseases,  Guern- 
sey  Aliss   Mary     Newsome     has     been     appointed 

Nurse.  She  was  trained  at  the  Leigh  Joint  Hos- 
pital, and  has  held  the  position  of  Staff  Ntirse  at 
the  Baguley  Sanatorium,  Senior  Charge  Nurse  at 
the  Stockport  Isolation  Hospital,  and  Nurse  Ma- 
tron at  the  Spennynioor  Isolation  Hospital. 
School    Xcrsk. 

Education  Committee,  Borough  of  Leigh — Miss  Ann 
Gallimore  has  been  appointed  School  Nurse.  She 
was  trained  at  the  Accident  Hospital,  Mansfield, 
and  St.  Mary'-  11. ^^i.''''^-   MAnrhester. 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRAS  IMPERIAL  MILITARY 
NURSING   SERVICE. 

Miss  Elizabeth  A.  Wilkinson,  Matron,  is  placed 
ou  retired  pav  on  account  of  ill-health.  Dated 
May  2Ist,  1910.  ^     ,,  ^ 

Miss  Lavinia  E.  C.  Steen,  Sister,  to  be  Matron, 
vice  Miss  E.  A.  Wilkinson.    Dated  May  2l8t,  1910. 

The  under- mentiomKT  Staff  Nurses  resign  their 
apix>intment.s:— :Miss  H.  M.  B.  Carter,  Miss  H.  C. 
Johnston   (.lune  18th). 


QUEEN  ALEXANDRA'S  MILITARY   NURSING 

SERVICE  FOR  INDIA. 
Miss  N.  M.  Carter  is  admitted  to  the  Service  a.s 
Nursing  Sister   (Jannar-j'   loth). 


QUEEN   VICTORIA'S  JUBILEE    INSTITUTE 
FOR   NURSES 
Transfers   and  Appointments. — Miss  Ethel  Ban- 
nister, to  Quedgeley ;  Miss  Emily  Firth,  to  Leeds, 
Hunslet  Home. 


Es.lMIKATION    FOR    THE     ROLL    OF    QuEEN's    NuBSES, 

June  IG,  1910. 

1.  Outline  a  simple  lecture  to  slum  mothers  on 
the   prevention   and  treatment   of   tuberculosis. 

2.  Describe  :   (a)  The  uterus  and  its  appendages  ; 

(b)  The  methods  for  reviving  an  asphyxiated  infant. 

(c)  An  ideal  feeding  bottle. 

3.  Wliat  conditions  in  a  town  tend  to  increase 
infant  mortality.  In  what  way  can  a  nurse  assist 
in  reducing  sucli  mortality. 

4.  If  when  visiting  school  children  in  their  own 
homos  you  found  a  bad  case  of  pcdicuH  capitis,  how 
would  you  proceed  to  deal  with  it. 

5.  State  fully  how  you  would  prepare  for  au 
operation  for  empyema  in  a  district,  and  the 
methods  you  would  subsequently  employ  when  dress- 
ing the  case. 

6. — What  advice  would  you  give  as  to  the  dis- 
posal of  all  waste  products  in  a  country  district 
where  no  refuse  is  collected  and  where  there  is  no 
water  carriage  system  ? 


On  Tuesday.  June  Hfh.  the  marriage  was  cele- 
brated of  Mi-s.  liouise  Emily  Riiss,  widow  of  the  late 
Norman  Willis  Russ,  Esq..  to  Mr.  William  J.  Par- 
kinson Smith,  b«rrietor-at-law.  The  bride,  who 
looke<l  cliarming,  was  given  away  by  her  brother, 
Mr.  Percy  Cobley.  She  wore  a  becoming  white- 
cloth  costume,  and  a  large  white  leghorn  hat 
trimmed  with  an  ostrirh  feather  and  powder  blue 
tulle.  She  was  attended  by  ono  bridesmaid,  Miss 
Mary  K.  (Uxldard,  in  «  gown  of  dull  grey  crepon 
and  «  black  picture  hat.  A  large  number  of 
rolative.s  an<l  friends  of  the  bride  and  bridegroom 
attended  the  service,  including  many  of  tae 
bride's  colleagues  on  the  Registered  Nurses' 
So<'iety.  of  which,  until  recently,  she  has  been  a 
member.  Breakfast  was  Mibsequently  served  at 
the  University  Hotel,  and  the  bride  and  bridegroom 
left  subsequently  for  the  Italian  lakes. 


516 


^be  Brttisb  3ournaI  of  IRurslng, 


[June  25,  1910 


IHureing  jEcboes. 

The  Executive  Committee 
of  the  Colouial  Nursing  Asso- 
ciation, of  which  Lord 
Ampthill  is  President,  in  pre- 
senting the  Fourteenth  An- 
nual Eeport  is  once  again 
able  to  record  a  further  ex- 
tension of  work.  During  the 
year  the  Committee  has 
selected  a  Nurse  JNIatron  for 
the  Tai  Koo  Hospital,  Hong 
Kong,  recently  built  and 
equipped  by  one  of  the  leading  fimis 
in  the  East  for  the  benefit  of  their 
employees.  Additional  private  nurses  have 
been  supplied  for  Ceylon,  Shanghai,  and  Ma- 
drid. New  appointments  under  Government 
have  been  occasioned  by  the  opening  of  the 
Lady  Eidgway  Block  attached  to  the  Lady 
Havelock  Hospital,  Colombo,  and  by  the 
building  of  a  new  hospital  at  Warri,  in  Southern 
Nigeria.  A  Matron  has  been  appointed  to  the 
Government  Hospital,  Nairobi,  East  Africa, 
and  additions  have  been  made  to  the  Nursing 
Staff  m  the  Nikosia  Hospital,  Cyprus,  the 
Colonial  Hospital,  Sierra  Leone,  and  the 
General  Hospital,  Nassau,  in  the  Bahamas. 
At  the  request  of  the  Foreign  Office,  a  nurse 
has  also  been  supplied  for  work  in  the  Protec- 
torate of  Zanzibar.  The  total  number  of  nurses 
at  work  during  the  last  11  months  has  been 
220;  of  whom  69  have  been  employed  as 
Private  Nurses,  and  151  by  Government. 


An  excellent  feature  of  the  Eeport  is  the  ap- 
pended list  of  nurses  with  their  training  and 
appointments,  %vith  a  map  indicating  the  places 
where  they  are  employed  and  the  scope  of  the 
Association's  work. 


The  Scottish  Branch  of  the  Association,  of 
which  Lady  Balfour  of  Burleigh  is  President, 
reports  a  slight  increase  in  the  number  of  ap- 
plicants for  posts.  We  notice,  with  pleasure, 
that  the  Nursing  Committee  of  the  Scottish 
Branch  includes  Miss  Gill  (Lady  Superinten- 
dent, Eoyal  Infirmary,  Edinburgh),  Miss 
Cowper  (Superintendent  of  Scottish  Branch, 
Q.V..J.I.),  and  Miss  K.  Burleigh  fLady  Super- 
intendent, Eoyal  Hospital  for  Sick  Children, 
Edinburgh),  a  professional  proportion  which 
compares  very  favourably  with  that  of  the 
English  Nursing  Committee. 


The  usual  annual  public  meeting  of  this  As- 
sociation was  abandoned  this  year  owing  to  the 
national  mourning,  and  in  its  place  a  general 


meeting  of  the  council,  committee,  and  sub- 
scribers was  held  last  week  in  the  Australian 
Conference  Eoom,  Imperial  Institute,  for  the 
transaction  of  foniial  business.  Financial  as- 
sistance has  been  afforded  from  the  funds  of 
the  Association  where  help  was  needed  in  the 
poorer  Colonies,  and  the  executive  committee 
ask  for  continued  support  in  forwarding  the 
cause  of  skilled  nursing  wherever  the  need  for  it 
is  experienced,  whether  it  be  in  the  British 
Colonies  and  dependencies,  or  among  the  many 
isolated  British  communities  which  are  to  be 
found  in  every  part  of  the  world. 


Air.  H.  Dixon  Kimber  has  written  to 
the  Times  in  reference  to  the  reply  given 
recently  in  the  House  of  Commons  to  Mr.  Alor- 
ton  by  the  President  of  the  Local  Government 
Board,  respecting  the  letter  of  his  Department 
to  the  Workhouse  Nursing  Association,  refus- 
ing the  Association's  request  for  a  public 
inquiry  into  the  Hemel  Hempstead  tragedy. 
Mr.  Kimber  complains  that  in  that  letter  Nurse 
Bellamy  is  referred  to  in  a  manner  which  he 
is  advised  by  counsel  is  a  libel  on  his  client, 
when  the  passage  complained  of  is  taken  with 
the  context,  and  that  had  it'been  written  by 
an  individual  she  would  have  had  her  redress. 


Mr.  Kimber  shows  that  both  the  Master  and 
his  wife — the  Superintendent  Nurse — knew  of 
the  condition  of  a  patient,  who  subse- 
quently died,  late  the  previous  _ night,  but 
neither  thought  it  necessary  to  send  for  the 
doctor  or  even  to  see  the  man  or  the  nurse  the 
first  thing  on  the  Monday  morning.  "  Yet  this 
imtrained  assistant  nurse  is  charged  with 
criminal  neglect  for  not  doing  what  the  trained 
Superintendent  Nurse  did  not  think  it  neces- 
sary to  do,  and  for  not  carrying  out  instructions 
which  she  never  received. ' ' 


The  Special  Committee  appointed  by  the 
Guardians  to  investigate  the  question  recom- 
mended that  the  Master  and  Matron  be  in- 
formed that  they  could  not  be  exonerated  from 
efficiently  supervising  their  subordinates. 
"  Elaborate  new  bath  rules  were  also  formu- 
lated for  the  approval  of  the  Local  Government 
Board. ' ' 


Mr.  Kimber  asserts  that  Mr.  Bums'  main 
desire  seemed  to  be  to  shield  his  Department 
and  those  concerned  with  the  institution  in  a 
superior  position  to  his  client,  though  this  could 
only  be  achieved  at  the  expense  of  a  young 
woman,  whose  character  was  her  only  means 
of  livelihood. 


June  25, 1910]        ^f^c  Bdtfsb  3ournaI  of  IRurslna. 


517 


State  registration  of  trained  nurses  would 
toon  afford  protection  both  for  nurses  and 
patients. 

The  Hackney  Guardians  have  adopted  the 
recomiuendatiou  of  the  lutinnary  Coaimiltee 
that  tliey  should  provide  proper  and  adequate 
aecoiiiinodation  for  the  female  nursing  staff  in 
lieu  of  the  cottages  in  Crozier  Terrace,  in  spite 
•of  the  protest  of  one  of  their  number  (Mr. 
Arnold,  Stoke  Newington),  who  invited  the 
whole  Board  to  support  him  in  voting  against 
it,  as  a  protest  against  the  action  of  the  Assess- 
iment  Committee.  Mr.  Herbert  Grant  said  that 
if  ever  there  was  a  paragraph  in  any  report 
•whicli  demanded  serious  attention  by  the 
Board  it  was  this  paragraph.  Was  Mr.  Arnold 
not  ashamed  of  the  prespiit  black  spot,  the  fes- 
tering sore  which  had  existed  for  so  long  on  the 
Board's  site,  houses  overrun  with  rats,  and 
festering  with  every  possible  neglect  that  the 
conditions  of  life  could  make  sordid  and  dis- 
tressful? The  probationers  were  so  disgusted 
with  the  conditions  in  ^\llich  tliey  were  forced 
to  live  that  it  was  difficult  to  keep  any. 
"Whether  in  Poor  Law  government  or  in  any 
•other  walk  of  public  life  they  had  no  right  to 
trafhe  as  pawns  in  the  f^ame  of  party  politics 
with  the  lives  of  the  staffs  dependent  on  them. 
Mr.  Bates  said  that  anyone  who  had  been 
through  these  cottages  knew  what  live  stock 
was  there,  in  fact,  some  of  the  members  of  the 
Board  themselves  got  "  all  alive  "  when  in- 
specting. The  places  had  been  a  perfect  dis- 
grace to  the  Board  ,and  the  only  wonder  was 
that  they  got  any  staff'  to  stop  there  at  all. 
Nurses  are  a  long  suffering  class,  but  we  think 
so,  too. 

There  are  now  14,000  nurses  on  the  books 
of  the  Royal  National  Pension  Fund.  One  hun- 
dred and  forty-seven  nurses  entered  upon  their 
annuities  during  the  year,  bringing  the  total  of 
nurses  drawing  their  aimuities  to  1,077,  re- 
ceiving at  the  rate  of  over  £26,000  a  year. 


At  the  last  Executive  Meeting  until  after 
the  summer  holidays  of  the  Irish  Nurses' 
Association,  fifty-nine  new  members  were 
admitted.  We  are  glad  to  know  that  the 
Association  has  greatly  increased  in  numbers 
during  the  present  year,  and  does  not  intend 
to  rest  satisfied  until  every  Irish  nurse  is  a 
member.  

'The  Ulster  Branch  of  the  Irish  Nurses'  As- 
sociation thoroughly  enjoyed  a  lovely  picnic 
last  week  at  Mount  Devis.  The  members  drove 
out  in  brakes  from  Belfast,  and  as  the  weather 
was  perfect  everyone  present  enjoyed  them- 
selves immensely. 


■Reflections. 

FUOM    A    BOAIID   KOOM   MiRROB. 

TIi«  annual  meeting  of  the  British  Medical 
Association  will  be  held  in  the  University  of  Lon- 
don and  the  (uljacoiit  oolh'giatc  buildings  at  South 
Kensington,  on  July  22nd  and  23rd,  and  during 
the  following  week.  The  papers  cover  a  very  wide 
range  of  interest,  and  the  social  functions  include 
a  conversazione  given  by  the  Lord  Mayor  and  Cor- 
jjoration  at  the  Guildhall  on  .July  27th. 

Mrs.  F.  M.  Zarifi  and  Mrs.  L.  Lucas  have  sent 
to  tlie  Univeiisity  College  Hospital  £1,000  each  for 
the  endowment  of  beds  in  response  to  the  special 
appeal  for  £10,000. 

The  Governors  of  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Bristol, 
have  instructetl  the  Committee  to  proceed  with  the 
erection  of  a  new  wing  at  a  cost  of  £70,000,  of 
which  half  has  been  raised.  Mr.  Samuel  White  has 
promised  that  if  it  is  named  the  King  Edward 
Memorial  Wing,  and  £30,000  of  £35,000  required 
are  subscribed  in  the  nest  twelve  months,  he  will 
give  the  remaining  £5,000. 

The  Philipson  Children's  Sanatorium  at  Stanning- 
ton  lias  been  open  two  yeai-s,  and  lias  done  very 
good  work.  The  original  jilan  is  now  to  be  oom- 
plet.ed  by  the  building  of  the  second  wing — owing 
to  the  munificence  of  Kir  W.  H.  Stephenson,  Lord 
Mayor  of  Newcastle.  'J'ho  Committee  have  grate- 
fully decided  to  name  it  "  The  Lady  Stephenson 
AVing,"  ercctetl  by  her  daughters  in  loving 
memory  of  their  mother.  We  hope  the  new  wing 
will  benefit  hundrc«ls  ol  children  suffering  from  local 
tuberculosis. 

The  Third  International  Congress  for  School 
Hygiene  takes  place  in  Paris  on  August  2nd  and 
the  five  following  day.s.  The  last  Congress  was 
held  in  Loudon  in  1907.  The  President  of  the 
Organising  Committee  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland 
is  Sir  Lauder  Brunton.  The  programmo  of  the 
Congress  is  divide<l  into  general  and  sectional 
meetings.  Dr.  James  Kerr,  the  Chief  Me<lical 
Officer  of  tlie  Ixnidon  County  Council  Education 
Department,  is  one  of  tlie  few  speakers  allotted  to 
the  general  meetings,  for  which  the  three  follow- 
ing subjects  have  tieen  arranged: — (1)  Uniformity 
of  Metho<l  for  Physical  Examinations  in  Schools; 
(2)  Sexual  Etlucation ;  and  (3)  the  Training  and 
Appointment  of  the  .School  Doctor.  Almost 
everything  <^oncerniug  the  hygiene  of  the  school 
and  the  health  of  the  scholar  will  be  found  at  the 
exhibition.  Class-rooms  are  to  be  cquipixxl  accord- 
ing to  the  styles  of  different  countries,  and  several 
rooms  will  bo  decorated  by  the  Society  of  Art  in 
the  schoolroom.  The  President  of  the  Congress  is 
the  French  Minister  of  Public  Instruction. 


THE  SOCIETY   FOR  THE   STATE    REGISTRATION 
OF  TRAINED   NURSES 
The  Prosiilent  gratefully   acknowledges  the  fol- 
lowing donations: —  £    s.  d. 
Miss  G.  A.  Rogers  (Leicester)  ...     1     1     0 
Miss  I.  G.  Baxter  CNaples)         ...         11     0 


51S 


Zhc  Britisb  3oufnaI  of  IRnrsing. 


[June  25,  1910 


Cbe  "  auenbur^s "  IRusl^a. 

It  is  imiK)ilaiit  that  when  infants  get  beyond  the 
age  of  nine  or  ten  months — i.e.,  when  they  begin  to 
cut  their  teeth,  showing  that  the  time  for  more 
solid  food  has  arrived,  that  such  food  should  be 
supplied,  and  in  a  form  which  is  suited  to  the 
newly-developed  and  develoiiing  powere  of  the 
child. 

The  "AUenburys"  Rifeks  win  be  found  well 
suite<l  to  sujjply  the  need  at  this  period.  They  are 
baked  from  specially  selected  flour's,  rich  in  proteid, 
or  mu.scle-forming  constituents,  and  are  liked  and 
readily     taken.       Moreover,    most    children    when 


teething  instinctively  gnaw  and  nibble  at  hard 
substances,  and  the  "AUenburys"  rusks,  if  eaten 
dry,  mechanically  aid  the  eruption  of  teeth.  if 
added  to  hot  milk  and  i\ater,  and  sweetened,  they 
provide  an  easily  assimilable,  semi-solid,  and 
nourishing  meal.  They  ai-e  al.so  much  liked  by 
adults,  eaten  as  biscuits  with  butter  and  cheese. 
They  are  issued  in  tins  at  Is.  6d.  and  3s.  9d. 
Messi's.  Allen  and  Hanburys  will  l>e  pleased  to  send 
a  sample  tin  of  the  rusks  for  trial  to  any  nur.se 
making  application  to  37,  Lombard  Street,  E.G., 
and  also,  if  desired,  .samples  of  "AUenburys" 
Diet,    which  has  a  wide  popularity. 


(Blaro. 


Most  mothen?  in  tliese  days  know  the  importance 
of  human  milk  for  infants,  becaOse  such  milk, 
under  normal  conditions,  is  jjerfectly  suited  to  the 
needs  of  the  baby.  While  the  next  best  substitute 
is  oow's  milk,  it  will  )>e  readily  understood  that  the 
milk  designed  by  nature  for  a  healthy  young  calf 
is  unsuited  without  alteration  for  a  normal,  much 
less  a  delicate,  infant.  And  the  reason  is  not  far 
to  seek.  Apart  from  the  fact  that  the  constituents 
of  oow's  and  mother's  milk  are  blended  in  different 
proportions,  it  niu.st  be  remembered  that  a  calf  has 
four  stomachs,  consequently,  when  the  large  clots 
consequent  upon  the  action  of  the  gastric  juice  on 
the  milk  in  the  stomach  of  the  calf  are  formed  they 
stay  there  till  thoroughly  digested. 

In  the  ease  of  a  baby,  digestion  takes  place 
mainly  in  the  intestines;  and  while  mother's  jnilk, 
which  forms  a  light  curd,  is  suited  to  this  process, 
unmodified  cow's  milk  is  eminently  unsuited.  Few 
mothers  can  modify  oow's  milk  with  sufBci<''it 
arcuracy.   ovp:i    it   tliey   can    irlv   mi>.t:i    a   pure   m:l!v 


supply,  to  be  certain  of  a  milk  always  modified  m 
the  correct  proi>ortions.  Glaxo  is  a  modified  dried 
milk,  which  is  now  placed  upon  the  market  with 
the  hoiie  of  meeting  this  ^^^ant.  The  strong  points 
about  Glaxo  are: — (1)  The  proprietoi-s  control  the 
milk  supply.  (2)  It  is  made  only  from  milk,  with 
added  cream  and  lactose,  and  owing  to  the  process 
used  the  curd  in  the  milk  undergoes  a  physical 
change,  which  prei-euts  the  fonnation  of  a  dense, 
leathery  clot.  (3)  It  is  proved  in  practice  that 
alternate  feeds  of  Glaxo  and  mother's  milk  can  be 
given  without  causing  digestive  disturbance,  and  its 
value  as  a  substitute  for  mother's  milk  is  proved 
by  its  adoption  by  the  corporations  of  important 
towns  during  recent  years.  (4)  It  is  germ  free,  and 
therefore  keeps  indefinitely.  (5)  As  it  is  really 
dried  milk,  all  that  is  necessary  when  making  it  is 
to  add  water  in  the  right  proportion.  The  wholesale 
agents  for  Grept  Britain  are  Messrs.  Biiand  and 
Co.,  Ltd.,  INIayfair  Works,  S.W. 


flDore  IHews  of  tbe  IRurses'  don* 
veniion  in  IRevv  l^oih.    ^j^. 

Feom  a  Cohkespondent. 

On  Wednesday  afternoon.  May  18th,  the  Ameri- 
can Society  of  Superintendents  and  the  Asso- 
ciated Alumna;,  met  together  in  the  Horace  Mann 
Auditorium  of  Teachers'  (College.  Dr.  Wood,  Pro- 
fessor of  Physical  Education  in  the  College,  i>re- 
sided  over  the  meeting,  and  Dean  Russell  delivered 
the  address  of  welcome  to  the  delegates.  It  was 
extremely  gratifying  to  find  in  such  prominent 
educationalists  such  a  sympathetic  attitude  toward 
the  work  of  nursing  bodies  and  such  an  appreciative 
grasp  of  the  problems  which  they  are  seeking  to 
meet.  Dean  Russell  spoke  o"f  the  recent  develop- 
ments in  other  departments  of  professional  educa- 
tion, and  particularly  emphasised  the  need  of  pre- 
ventive work  in  teaching  and  nursing  as  well  as 
in  medicine.  He  indicated  some  of  the  directions 
in  which  expansion, and  improvement  were  needed 
and  emphasised  particularly  the  necessity  of 
thorough  educational  preparation  in  the  training 
schools.  In  this  connection  he  spoke  most  warmly 
of  the  work  of  Mrs.  Robb,  and  paid  a  very  high 
tribute  to  her  personal  character  and  influence, 
and  to  her  splendid  judgment  and  vision.  Dean 
Russell  spoke  also  of  the  work  which  the  Nursing 
Department  in  Teachers'  College  had  been  doing, 
and  of  the  new  course  for  the  training  of  nurses  in 
social  work. 

The  remainder  of  the  session  was  devoted  to  a  dis- 
cussion of  invalid  occupations.  Miss  Tracy  read 
a  paper  on  "  the  training  of  the  nurse  as  instruc- 
tor in  invalid  occupations."  She  showed  the  great 
necessity  of  occupational  work  in  the  various  phases 
of  illness  and  convalescence,  and  the  importance 
of  some  comiirehensive  training  which  would  en- 
able the  nurse  to  adapt  the  work  to  the  tastes  and 
capacities  and  conditions  of  the  patient.  Such  a 
course  is  regularly  carried  out  in  the  Training. 
School  connected  with  the  Adams  Nervine  Hospi- 
tal, where  Miss  Tracy  is  Superintendent. 

The    ])aper  by  Dr.    Mary   liOwson    Neff   was  en- 


Tune  20,  lOinj 


^hc  Britisb  3ournaI  of  IRursino. 


}10 


ntlfd  "  Success  and  failure  in  tlic  use  of  occupation 
as  a  therapeutic  agent."  Dr.  Xeff  traced  the 
progress  of  the  work  in  the  treatment  of  the  insane. 
She  showed  the  evils  of  the  old  life  of  idleness  and 
inaction  in  institutions  for  the  insane  and  the  in- 
evitable results  of  apathy  or  irritability  nhch  often 
counteracted  the  best  of  their  treatment.  She 
shewed  the  great  improvements  which  had  followed 
the  introduction  of  systematised  carefully  pre- 
scribed occupations,  games,  and  pastimes,  and  in- 
dicated the  lines  along  which  mental  specialists 
were  working  at  the  present  time.  Dr.  Neff  em- 
jihasised  the  great  importance  of  intelligent  direc- 
tion and  co-operation  from  the  nurses  in  such 
cases,  and  the  necessity  for  special  training  in 
these  branches. 

Dr.  Herbert  Hall,  of  Marblehead,  Massachusetts, 
followed  with  a  very  interesting  paper  on  "  Manual 
Work  as  a  Reniwly."  Dr.  Hall  has  made  a  very 
careful  study  of  the  effects  of  this  work  cure  in 
neurasthenia.  In  Marblehead  they  operate  regular 
craft-shops  with  trained  designers  and  craftsmen, 
who  work  in  pottery,  hand-weaving,  wood  carving, 
etc.,  and  the  whole  estaBlishment  is  on  a  strictly 
economic  basis.  The  patients  come  in  from  homes 
or  boarding  houses,  and  their  work  is  prescribed  for 
them  according  to  their  strength,  condition,  and 
adaptability.  Fatigue  is  carefully  guarded  against, 
but  the  patient  soon  becomes  so  interested  and  ab- 
sorbed in  his  work,  that  he  forgets  his  troubles  and 
his  sick  fancies,  and  gradually  gains  in  self-con- 
•trol  and  a  healthy  interest  in  life.  Dr.  Hall  is 
convinced  that  the  work  cure  is  on©  of  the  most 
valuable  agents  in  their  work  of  mental  re-construc- 
tion. The  economic  side  of  the  question  is  also  of 
considerable  importance  in  a  great  many  cases. 

Dr.  Wood  nest  called  >ipon  Dr.  Livingston  Far- 
rand,  who  was  in  the  audience.  Dr.  Farrand  spoke 
briefly  on  "  Occupational  Work  for  Tuberculosis 
Patients,"  showing  what  had  been  done  in  that 
direction,  particularly  in  out-door  work,  and  enu- 
merating the  great  benefits  which  had  resulted, 
morally  and  economically,  as  well  as  from  the 
therapeutic  standpoint.  He  believed  that  such  a 
solution  of  the  problem  of  occupation  for  tuber- 
culosis patients,  was  feasible  and  practicable,  and 
liighly  valuable,  whetlier  in  sanitariums  or  home. 

Dr.  Dow,  Professor  of  Fine  Arts  in  Teachers'  Col- 
lege, then  discussed  the  contribution  of  art  to  in- 
struction in  this  field.  }le  showed  how  the  sim- 
plest materials  and  nioiits  could  be  utilised  to 
produce  most  artistic  results,  and  how  children  as 
well  as  adults,  might  be  trained  to  see  and  appre- 
•oiate  the  artist  element  in  simple  and  ordinary 
surroundings. 

The  delegates  and  their  friends  were  then  invited 
to  repair  to  the  Educational  Museum,  where  quite 
a  large  collection  of  work  from  various  sauatoriunis, 
liospitals,  institutions  for  the  blind,  insane,  ot^-.,  had 
been  set  up.  !>ruch  of  this  work  is  unique,  and  all 
of  it  suggestive  as  illustrating  the  ijossibilities  of 
manual  occupations  in  the  treatment  of  disease. 

The  Educational  Museum  contains  another  most 
interesting  exhibit  which  had  been  gathered  from 
many  sources  for  this  occasion.  It  is  a  collection 
of  the  writings,  photographs,  autograph  letters, 
■  etc.,  of  Florenop  Xightingale. 


A  beautiful  statuette  ot  ■•The  l.afiy  of  the  Lamp  " 
was  loaned  by  the  School  for  Xnr.ses,  Johns  Hop- 
kins Hospital.  The  many  books,  pamphlets,  letters, 
pictures,  etc.,  were  very  kindly  loaned  from  public 
and  private  libraries,  both  here  and  abroad.  A 
complete  bibliography  of  all  lur  writings  and  of 
much  interesting  biograi)hical  material  had  been 
compiled  and  copies  were  distributed  to  the  mem- 
bers of  the  two  societies. 


FLORENCE    NIGHTINGALE  COMMEMORATION. 

Immediately  following  the  afternoon  session,  ~a 
reception  was  held  in  the  Kindergarten  lloom,  to 
which  all  delegates  were  invited.  Among  those  who 
assisted  in  receiving  the  guests  were  Dean  and  Mrs. 
Kussell,  Mrs.  Jenkins,  Dr.  AVood,  Miss  Goodricli, 
Miss  Maxwell,  Miss  Ridell,  and  Miss  Nutting. 
Those  of  the  guests  who  wished  to  see  the  College 
and  especially  the  new  Household  Arts  Building, 
were  conducted  through  by  students  of  the  nursing 
department.  A  large  number  of  the  delegates  were 
present  at  the  reception,  and  it  is  hoped  that  a 
very  real  personal  interest  in  the  College  and  in  its 
nursing  department  will  be  the  result  of  the  closer 
acquaintance. 

In  the  evening  the  exercises  in  commemoration 
of  the  Fiftieth  Anniversary  of  the  founding  by 
Florence  Nightingale  of  the  First  Training  Sch(M>l 
for  nurses  were  held  in  Carnegie  Hall.  The  lM)dy 
of  the  building  was  reserved  for  delegates  of  lion, 
societies,  while  the  boxes  and  balconies  were  o<'cu- 
l)ied  by  invited  guests  and  pupils  from  the  training 
schools  of  New  York  Hospitals.  The  Hall  was  beau- 
tifully decorated  with  American  and  British  flags— 
the  large  Union  Jack  in  the  centre  being  draped 
in  bla<k  in  recognition  of  the  recent  death  of  the 
British  King.  The  platform  was  banked  in  palms 
and  flowers.  It  was  occupied  by  the  officers  of  both 
nursing  societies  by  the  speakers  and  many  others 
especially  interested  in  nursing  affairs.  The  .sur- 
])liced  choirs  of  St.  George's  Church  of  the  Cathe- 
dral of  St.  John  the  Divine,  occupied  the  centre 
of  the  platform  in  the  rear,  the  whole  making  a 
most  effective  picture. 

The  meeting  which  ensued,  opened  with  an  organ 
voluntary,  by  ^Ir.  Homer  Norris,  followed  by  a 
hymn  in  which  the  audience  joined.  The  Von. 
Archdeacon  Nelson  offered  the  prayer  of  invocation, 
in  the  absence  of  Archbishop  Greer.  The  opening 
address  was  delivered  by  Professor  Henry  Fairfield 
Osborn,  of  Columbia  University.  Professor  Osl)orn 
is  a  son  of  that  Mrs.  Osborn  who  took  such  an 
active  part  and  interest  in  the  founding  of  Belle- 
vue,  and  who,  with  her  family,  has  always  been 
such  a  staunch  supporter  not  only  of  that  institu- 
tion, but  of  nursing  and  nurses  generally.  Profes- 
sor Osborn  spoke  of  those  earlier  days,  and  of  th  » 
part  which  Florence  Nightingale  played  in  the  es- 
tablishment of  high  ideals  and  practical  methods 
of  hospital  and  training  school  administration  '.v. 
America. 

Col.  John  Van  R.  Hoff  represented  the  Ameri- 
can Army  in  his  appreciation  of  Florence  Nightin- 
gale as  the  Soldiers'  Nurse.  His  tribute  to  her 
nnd  to  her  followers  in  Army  nursing  was  very 
freely  and  sincerely  given,  and  there  could  be  no 
question   as  to  the  high  estimatio.i   in   which  CoL 


520 


Z\K  Biitisb  3ournal  of  IRursing. 


[June  25,  1910 


Hoff  holds  the  work  of  nursing  in  Army  organisa- 
tion, nor  of  the  qualifications  he  would  expect  in 
the  women  who  volunteer  for  Army  work.  He 
closed  with  an  appeal  for  a  thorough  organisation 
of  the  Red  Cross,  as  an  adequate  jjreparation,  not 
only  for  war,  but  for  those  national  disasters  and 
calamities  which  seem  inevitable. 

The  Hon.  Joseph  Choate,  late  Ambassador  to 
England,  took  for  his  theme,  "  What  Florence 
Nightingale  did  for  Mankind."  It  surely  was  a 
subject  to  inspire  an  orator,  and  Mr.  Choate 
entered  himself  into  it  unreservedly.  It  would  be 
impossible  to  indicate  the  range  of  the  historical 
field  which  he  covered,  or  to  follow  him  through  the 
many  details  of  Florence  Nightingale's  early  life 
and  training,  the  fearful  conditions  in  the  armies 
and  her  work  there,  to  the  later  incidents  of  her 
life  and  the  wide-reaching  results  of  the  nursing 
movement  which  she  initiated. 

The  nursing  body  is  much  indebted  to  Mr. 
Choate  for  his  very  comprehensive  and  under- 
standing appreciation  of  the  work  of  their  great 
foundress,  and  the  public  generally  for  a  most 
graceful  and  eloquent  tribute  to  a  world  heroine. 

Dr.  Polk  followed  with  an  address  on  "  The  In- 
fluence of  the  Trained  Nurse  upon  Developments 
in  Medicine."  Dr.  Polk  was  one  of  the  earliest 
supporters  of  the  modern  movement  for  intelligent 
scientific  nursing  of  the  sick — and  is  still  one  of 
our  sanest  and  staunchest  advisors.  He  is  none 
the  less  earnestly  listened  to  because  he  realises 
certain  limitations  and  dangers  in  the  field  of 
nursing,  but  they  are  the  limitations  of  narrow, 
personal  aims  and  ignorance — rather  than  the 
dangers  of  "  over  education  " — which  we  are  so 
often  warned  against. 

Near  the  close  of  the  meeting  the  Chairman, 
Mr.  Osborn,  read  a  message  which  had  just  been 
sent  Florence  Nightingale  from  the  Associated 
Nurses  of  America,  saying  that  the  many 
hundreds  of  nurses  gathered  together  that  even- 
ing sent  her  their  greetings  of  love  and  devotion, 
and  that  they  cherished  her  unperishable  name 
and  example  as  a  guiding  star  in  their  work. 

The  Right  Rev.  Monsignor  Lavelle,  representing 
the  Roman  Catholic  Archljishop  of  New  York, 
closed  with  the  benediction. 

The  evening  was  one  to  be  long  remembered — 
one  of  the  notable  events  in  modern  nursing,  re- 
markable for  its  simplicity,  dignity,  and  impres- 
siveness. 


®utsi^e  tbc  (Bates. 


We  are  glad  to  note  the  Indian  Pioneer  is 
supporting  the  demand  for  the  State  Registra- 
tion of  Nurses.    We  find  it  stated — 

"The  registration  of  hospital-trained  nurses  in 
India  would  be  a,  great  benefit  to  the  public  and 
nurses  alike,  and  surely  it  is  time  this  registration 
was  effected.  Medical  officens  and  public  would 
then  know  when  employing  nui^ses  who  and  what 
they  were,  and  all  fully-trained  nurses  would  wel- 
come anything  which  would  definitely  show  their 
status.  A  better  cla-ss  of  nurse  would  ooihe  tor- 
ward  if  it  was  known  that  at  the  end  of  the  train- 
ing period  nurses  would  have  some  sort  of  hall- 
mark, and  not  be  classed  with  the  unqualified,  aa 
tbev  are  now." 


WOMEN. 

The  new  Regency  Bill 
provides  that  if,  on  the 
demise  of  his  present 
Majesty,  whom  God  long 
preserve,  any  child  of 
His  Majesty  succeeds  to 
the  Crown  while  under 
the  age  of  eigliteeu 
years.  Her  Majesty 
Queen  Mary  shall  be  the  guardian,  and  have 
the  care  and  tuition  of  such  child  until  the 
child  reaches  the  age  of  eighteen.  It  goes  on  to 
enact  that  Her  Majesty  Queen  Mary  shall,  until 
that  time,  have  full  power  and  authority  in  tlie 
name  of  the  child,  and  under  the  style  and  title 
of  Regent,  to  exercise  and  administer  the  Royal 
power  and  government  of  this  realm  and  of  the 
Dominions  and  Territories  belonging  to  the  Crown. 
Any  other  ariiangement  woidd  have  been  most  un- 
popular. 


A  demonstration  in  favour  of  the  Conciliation 
Committee's  Woman  Suffrage  Bill  will  be  held  at 
Queen's  Hall  on  the  evening  of  Tuesday,  the  28th 
inst.  Tlie  meeting  is  convened  by  the  National. 
Union  and  London  Society  for  Women's  Suffrage, 
and  among  the  speakers  will  be  the  Earl  of  Lytton, 
Chairman  of  the  Conciliation  Committee.  Lady 
Frances  Balfour  will  take  the  chair,  and  Mrs, 
Henry  Fawcett  is  also  expected  to  speak. 


Who  that  was  present  at  the  magnificent  meet- 
ing at  the  Albert  Hall  last  Saturday  will  ever 
forget  its  inspiration  ?  It  was  remarkable  not  only 
because  the  greatest  building  in  the  Kingdom  was 
filled  to  overflowing,  but  because  of  the  spiritual 
force  which  pulsated  through  it,  with  a  strength 
which  must  carry  all  before  it. 

The  resolution  of  the  evening,  proposed  from  the 
chair  by  Mrs.  Pankhurst,  and  seconded  by  the  Earl, 
of  Lyt'ton,  was  as  follows: — "That  this  meeting 
calls  upon  the  Government  to  grant  '  facilities  '  for 
the  Woman  Suffrage  Bill,  now  before  Parliament, 
so  that  it  may  pass  into  law  this  session ;  andi 
pledges  itself,  regardless  of  personal  cost  or  sacri- 
fice, to  push  forward  the  campaign  for  the  emanci- 
pation of  women  until  victory  be  won." 

With  one  exception  ("  perhaps,"  remarked  the 
Chairman,  "  Mr.  F.  E.  Smith  is  present  ")  the  vast 
audience  pledged  itself  enthusiastically  to  the  reso- 
lution. 

"  Deeds  not  words  "  is  the  motto  of  the 
W.S.P.U.,  and  the  Treasurer,  Mrs.  Pethick  Law- 
rence, reminded  the  meeting  that  "money  speaks." 
It  accepted  the  challenge,  and  contributed  £5,200' 
to  the  war  chest.  Other  speakers  were  Miss 
Christabel  Pankhurst  and  Miss  Annie  Kenney,  and 
the  Chairman  struck  a  note  of  hopefulness  for 
many  by  remarking  that,  as  soon  as  the  Women's 
Suffrage  Bill  was  passed,  other  legal  reforms  which 
had  been  waiting  for  long  weary  years  for  women's 
votes  to  push  them  through  would  soon  become 
law. 


[June  25, 1910  ^{jc  ^Siitlsb  301111131  Of  IRuratiifi. 


j-21 


Bool?  ot  tbc  IMicch. 


NORTHERN  LIGHTS* 
Last  week  we  reviewed  '"Canadian  Born  "  ;  tlie 
book     under    review    this    week    also    deals    with 
Canada,  but  "  Northern  Lights,"  containing  a  col- 
lection of  short  stories  by  Sir  Gilbert  Parker,  is 

'  too  good  to  miss,  and  we  advise  our  readers  to 
secure  it.  The  first  story,  "  A  Lodge  in  the  AVil- 
derness,"  is  the  story  of  the  mating  of  a  white  man* 
with  an  Indian  woman — Mitiahwe,  daughter  of 
Otjuita,  the  Swift  Wing. 

•■  Four  years  had  come  and  gone,  and  all  the 
tribe,  and  all  who  came  and  went,  half-breeds, 
traders,  and  other  tribes  remarked  how  happy  was 
the  white  man  with  his  Indian  wife.  They  never 
saw  anything  but  light  in  the  eyes  of  Mitiahwe, 
nor  did  the  old  women  of  the  tribe   who  scanned 

;  her  face  as  she  came  and  went,  and  watched  and 
ivaited  too  for   what  never   came — not  even  after 

:  four  years." 

"  Mitiahwe  had  been  so  happy  that  she  had  not 
really  missed  what  never  came;  though  the  desire 
to  have  something  in  her  arms  which  was  part  of 
them  both  had  flushed  up  in  her  veins  at  times,  and 
made  her  restless  till  her  man  had  come  home 
again.  Then  she  had  forgotten  the  unseen  for  the 
seen,  and  was  happy  that  they  were  alone  together 
— that  was  the  joy  of  it  all,  so  much  alone  to-  ■ 
gether."  But  the  time  came  when  Mitiahwe  longed 
for  a  child,  not  for  her  own  sake  only,  but  because 
she  feared  to  lose  her  man. 

Suddenly,  with  a  light  in  her  eyes,  she  ran  to 
a  corner  of  the  lodge  and  from  a  leather  bag  drew 
forth  a  horse-shoe  and  put  it  over  the  door,  for  her 
man  had  told  her  "  if  the  heart  prays  for  a  thing 
hid  from  all  the  world  then  it  brings  good  luck." 
So  with  faith  in  her  talisman  she  told  Dingan  that 
which  he  wished  would  come  to  pass,  and  that 
night,  as  he  slept,  she  got  quietly  out,  and  going 
to  the  door  of  the  lodge  reached  up  a  hand  and 
touched  the  horse-shoe.  "  Be  good  medicine  to 
me,"  she  said.  Then  she  "prayed.  "O  sun  pity 
me,  that  it  may  be  as  I  have  said  to  him.  O  pity 
me,  great  Father." 

"  In  the  days  to  come  Swift  Wing  said  that  it 
was  her  medicine  when  her  hand  was  burned  to 
the  wrist  in  the  dark  ritual  she  had  performed  with 
the  Medicine  Man  the  night  that  Mitiahwe  fought 
for  her  man — but  Mitiahwe  said  itwas  her  medicine, 
the  horse-shoe — which  brought  oneof  Dingan'.s  own 
people  to  the  lodge,  a  little  girl  with  Mitiahwe's 

•  eyes  and  form  and  her  father's  face.  Truth  has 
many  mysteries,  and  the  faith  of  the  woman  was 
great;  and  so  it  was  that,  to  the  long  end, 
Mitiahwe  kept  her  man.  But  truly  she  was  alto- 
gether a  woman,  and  had  good  fortune." 

There  are  many  other  stories — stories  of  the 
courage  and  prowess  of  white  women  in  a  country 
etill  primitive,  where  woman  is  not  a  useless 
member  of  society,  but  counts  in  the  scheme  of 
things.     "  Tbe   Stroke  of  the  Hour,"  the  tale  of 


liow  Loisette  carried  the  reprieve  which  saved  the 
life  of  an  innocent  man,  and  the  story  of  "  Buck- 
master's  Boy,"  aro  excellently  told.  Did  Buck- 
master  really  slay  his  boy's  murderer,  after  all?  The 
rccador  must  decide. 

Then  there  is  the  tale  of  the  heroism  of  Jinny 
Ijong,  who,  on  the  night  before  what  should  liave 
been  her  wedding  day,  shot  the  "  Dog  Nose 
Rapids  " — an  almost  impossible  task — iu  response 
to  an  appeal  to  her  to  save  a  man's  life. 

Finest  of  all,  perhaps,  is  "The  Stake  and  the 
Plumb-Line  " — the  tale  of  a  wife  in  a  thousand — of 
a  man's  successful  struggle  x\  itii  the  drink  demon — 
of  Jim  Templeton's  venture  alone  into  the  camp 
of  the  Cree,  to  bring  to  justice  the  chief  responsible 
for  the  murder  of  a  white  trailer.  Arrowhead,  the 
chief,  surrendered  to  him,  but  a  terrible  storm 
enveloped  Jim  Templeton  and  .\rrowhead  the 
heathen,  and  in  the  awful  struggle  between  man 
and  nature  that  followed  the  cajjlive  t)ecame  the 
leader.  The  red  man  had  the  craft  of  the  plains, 
the  inherent  instinct,  and  guided  his  captor  into 
camp;  and  when  Jim,  spent  and  exhausted,  was 
well  nigh  dead.  Arrowhead  once  more  saved  his  life 
and  took  control  of  the  situation — six  white  men 
under  the  command  of  a  human  murderer.  The 
scene  was  dramatic,  but  as  the  minutes  passed  the 
colour  came  back  to  Jim's  face,  his  eyes  opened 
with  a  new  light  in  them.  He  was  saved  liy  his 
Indian  prisoner  and  comrade. 

P.  G.  Y. 


COMING    EVENTS. 

June  25th. — General  Meeting,  The  League  of 
St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital  Nurses,  Clinical  Lec- 
ture Theatre,  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital,  E.C., 
3  p.m.     Social  Gathering,  4  p.m. 

June  28th. — Demonstration  in  support  of  the 
Conciliation  Women's  Suffrage  Bill,  Queen's  Hall, 
Langham  Place,  W.  Chair,  the  Lady  Frances 
Balfour,  8  p.m. 

June  SOth. — Meeting,  Central  Midwives'  Board, 
Caxton  House,   S.W. 

July  1st. — Association  for  Promoting  the  Train- 
ing and  Supply  of  Midwives.  Annual  Gathering 
of  Midwives.  By  kind  permission  of  Mrs.  Penn, 
42,  Gloucester  Square,  Hyde  Park,  W.  Badges  to 
midwives  will  be  presented.     3  p.m. 

July  7th.  —  Meeting,  Executive  Committee, 
Society  for  the  State  Registration  of  Nurses,  4.'?], 
Oxford  Street,  I^ondon,  W.,  4  p.m.    Tea. 

July  11th. — The  Society  of  Women  Journalists. 
Reception  by  the  President,  Lady  McLaren,  43, 
Belgrave  Square,  S.W.     10  p.m. 

July  11th. — East  End  Jf others'  Home.  Annual 
Meeting,  The  Mansion  House,  by  kind  permission 
of  the  Ix)rd  Mayor.    3  p.m. 

JwJy  iCt/i.— Meeting  of  the  Matrons'  Council, 
General  Hospital,  Birmingham,  3  p.m.  Meeting, 
Addresses  on  State  Registration  of  Nurses,  4  p.m. 


•   By  Gilbert   Parker.     (Methuen   and   Co.,   36, 
Essex  Street,  W.C). 


WORD  FOR  THE  WEEK. 

Victory  I 
Mrs.  Fanlihurst  at  the  Alhcrf  Hall. 


522 


Zbc  Bvitisb  Jourithl  of  IRurstng. 


[June  25,  1910 


letters  to  tbe  CMtor. 


^  Whilst  cordially  inviting  com- 
munications upcn  all  subjects 
for  these  columns,  we  wish  it 
to  be  distinctly  understooa 
that  we  do  not  in  ant  way 
hold  ourselves  responsible  for 
the  opinions  expressed  by  our 
correspondents. 


PROVIDENT  NURSING. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Dear  Madam, — I  should  like  to. support  the  sug- 
gestion of  your  correspondent  that  friendly  socie- 
ties should  add  trained  nursing  to  the  benefits  they 
offer  to  their  members.  Could  not  nurses  who  have 
the  time,  offer  to  address  Friendly  Societies  on  this 
subject,  and  explain  to  them  the  advantage  it 
would  be  to  them,  and  how  often  the  poor  have 
to  pay  now  at  high  rates  for  services  of  so-callea 
nurses  whose  ignorance  is  a  positive  danger  to 
them.  Yours   faithfully. 

Justice. 


THE  FEEDING  OF  HOSPITAL  NURSES. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Madam, — The  Committee  of  the  National  Food 
Reform  Association  contemplate  calling  a  Confer- 
ence at  an  early  date  to  discuss  the  feeding  of 
nurses  in  hospitals  and  other  institutions.  In  the 
arrangements  for  such  a  meeting,  they  are  natur- 
ally anxious  to  secure  the  counsel  and  co-operation 
of  some  of  the  leading  hospital  and  Poor  Law 
Matrons,  from  whom,  as  well  as  from  others  in- 
terested, they  would  be  glad  to  hear. 

They  would  be  much  obliged  if  you  would  kindly 
give  publicity  to  their  intention  in  your  columns. 
Yours,  etc., 
Ohas.  E.  Hecht,  Secretary, 
National  Food  Reform  Association. 
178,  St.  Stephen's  House, 
Victoria  Embankment, 

Westminster  Bridge,  London,  S.W. 


MENTAL  NURSING. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 

Deab  Madam, — I  read  with  much  interest  Dr. 
Bernard  Hollander's  remarks  on  mental  nursing  in 
your  issue  of  last  week.  His  claim  for  nurses  of 
general  culture,  as  well  as  of  high  professional 
attainments,  to  care  for  the  insane  is  entirely  jus- 
tified. In  the  past  the  sum  of  suffering  to  which 
the  insane  were  subjected  not  only  by  callous 
mental  attendants,  but  also  from  unintelligent 
narrow,  and  stupid  ones  must  have  been  enormous. 

Education  more  than  anything  else  begets  under- 
standing and  sympathy  with  persons  of  diverse 
opinions,  but  the  nurse  of  limited  education  and 
circumscribed  outlook,  although  excellent  and 
worthy,  is  often  a  veritable  blister  to  tbe  genius 
whose  reason  is  unstable,  and  who  is  mentally 
isolated  when  shut  up  with  an  uneducated  atten- 
dant. It  is  very  remarkable  whenever  a  specialist 
speaks  of  the  qualifications  necessary  for  a  nurse 
he  or  she  claims  that  that  special  branch  needs  the 
beat  and  highest  type.    We  heard  it  reiterated  over 


and  over  again  at  the  International  Congress  of 
Nurses  last  year.  Whether  the  subject  was  hospital, 
nursing,  district  nursing,  school  nursing,  nursing 
in  the  army,  abroad,  or  in  the  mission  field,  the  cry 
was  always  the  same — the  opportunities  of  this 
branch  are  so  great,  its  needs  so  unique  that  we 
need  nurses  of  the  highest  standard,  the  best  type. 
Proof  conclusive  it  seems  to  me  that  the  nursing 
profession  needs  educated  gentlewomen  to  enter  it 
in  increasing  numbers  as  probationers,  and  that 
the  opportunities  for  them,  when  trained,  are 
almost  illimitable.  To  attract  such  women,  it  is 
manifest  that  the  training  of  nurses  must  be  put 
on  a  proper  educational  basis,  not  left  to  the  sport 
of  chance,  as  it  is  now  under  lay  committees,  and 
heads  of  training  schools  selected  by  them  in  the 
most  haphazard  fashion. 

I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Yours  faithfully, 

Three  Years'  Certificate. 

REFORMS  IN  OUR   MINES. 

To  the  Editor  of  the  "  British  Journal  of  Nursing." 
Madam, — As  there  seems  to  be  some  prospect  now 
of  fresh  regulations  tieiiig  made  with  regard  to  our 
mines,  is  it  too  much  to  hope  that  the  welfare  of 
the  four-footed  workers,  the  pit  ponies,  may  also 
receive  some  consideration,  and  that  they  may 
be  put  under  proper  supervision  ?  Tlie  admission 
that  the  number  of  inspectors  is  wholly  insufficient 
to  see  that  th«  present  rules  with  regjard  to  human 
workers  are  properly  carried  out  certainly  implies- 
that  they  can  have  no  time  even  to  think  of  the 
ponies.  A  mass  of  evidence  has  been  collected  by 
the  Equine  Defence  League,  which  shows  that  uie 
conditions  under  which  they  are  often  called  upon 
to  work  are  horrible  beyond  description.  Covered 
witli  sores  and  raw  wounds,  often  lame,  Bometimea- 
with  an  eye  knocked  out,  or  even  in  some  caeeQ 
quite  blind,  they  are  liable  to  be  kicked  and  cuffed 
by  the  boys,  and  kept  at  their  work  sometimes  as 
much  as  20  hours  at  a  stretch  without  food  or  even 
water.  When  we  know  the  callousness  wath  which 
horses  are  treated  by  some  men  above  ground, 
where  there  is  always  the  chance  of  being  called 
to  account,  one  may,  unfortunately,  form  some 
opinion  of  the  sort  of  treatment  they  may  receive 
at  the  hands  of  rough  men  where  there  is  little 
supervision  and  no  public  opinion  to  restrain  them. 
Mr.  Churchill  has  a  unique  opportunity  of  in- 
stituting a  beneficent  and  much-needed  reform. 
I  remain,  yours  faithfully, 

Editor,  "  Animals'  Friend." 

1Rotice0. 


CHANGE  OF  DATE. 

The  meeting  of  the  Matrons'  Council  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland  will  be  held  at  Birmingham  on 
Saturday,  July  16th,  instead  of  Friday,  July  15th, 
as  previously  annoiinced.  Information  as  to  trains 
and  railway  fares  will  be  sent  early  in  July  to 
members  of  the  Council.  A  notice  to  the  earn© 
effect  will  be  published  in  this  Journal  on  July  6th. 
OUR  PUZZLE  PRIZE. 

Rules  for  competing  for  the  Pictorial  Puzzle- 
Prize  will  be  found  on  Advertisement  page  xii. 


june25,  loio:  ^fjc  Biltisb  3ournal  ot  iRursino  Supplement. 


523 


The    Midwife. 


an  3neypen9ive  ■|bomc*nDa&c  (t>\[k 
"Kcfrifeerator. 


We  commend  to  the  attention  of  midwives 
and  nurses  the  following  article  by  Dr.  Alfred 
F.  Hess,  of  New  York  Citv,  and  published  in 
the  A'urst's'  Journal  of  tht  Pacific  Coast.  The 
simple  contrivance  herein  described  should  be 
the  means  of  preserving  the  lives  of  many  in- 
fants in  the  hot  weather. 

Individuals  and  communities  are  now  much 
interested  in  the  question  of  pure  milk  for  the 
infants  of  the  poor.  A  more  rigid  supervision  is 
gradually  being  enforced  over  all  those  who 
handle  milk — the  farmer,  the  dairyman,  the 
wholesaler,  and  the  retailer.  Although  these 
efforts  cannot  be  too  highly  commended,  too 
little  stress  has  been  laid  ou  the  importance  of 
the  care  of  the  milk  in  the  home  of  the  con- 
sumer. No  matter  how  carefully  the  milk  has 
been  obtained  and  guarded  up  to  the  time  it  is 
retailed,  even  if  it  is  pasteurised  or  certified, 
it  will  be  rendered  unfit  for  food  after  standing 
in  a  room  at  summer  heat  for  a  few  hours.  That 
this  is  a  real  danger  is  known  to  all  who  have 
tended  babies  in  the  tenement  houses  in  sum- 
mer. Most  of  the  people  in  poor  circumstances 
have  no  ice  or  an  insufificient  supply,  so  that 
the  milk  is  kept  at  a  temperature  of  from  50 
degs.  to  70  degs.  Fahr. 

For  some  months  I  have  been  endeavouring 
to  devise  a  simple  and  inexpensive  means  for 
keeping  milk  in  summer — one  that  will  be  with- 
in the  reach  of  the  mother  in  the  tenement 
house.  After  considerable  experimenting.  I 
can  recommend  the  following  box  for  this  pur- 
pose : 

An  ordinary  packing  case  was  obtained;  it 
had  been  made  for  bottled  water,  and  measured 
on  the  inside  13  by  18  inches  and  was  Hi 
inches  in  depth.  Sufiicient  sawdust  was  placed 
in  this  box  to  make  a  substantial  layer  on  the 
bottom.  On  this  was  set  a  tin  can,  tall  enough 
to  hold  a  quart  bottle  of  milk  and  8  inches  in 
diameter,  and  around  this  was  placed  a  cylin- 
der of  tin  a  little  larger  in  diameter  than  the 
can.  The  cylinder  was  then  surrounded  by 
sawdust.  The  lid  of  the  can  was,  of  course,  left 
free.  The  ice  box  was  completed  by  nailing 
about  50  layers  of  newspaper  to  the  lid  of  the 
case.  The  total  cost  of  such  an  apparatus  is 
the  cost  of  the  tin  can,  which  may  be  25  or  50 
cents,  according  to  the  quality.  The  box  and 
sawdust  can  be  obtained  free  from  a  grocer. 


To  test  the  value  of  the  box,  a  quart  of  milk 
was  placed  in  the  can  and  surrounded  by  6  or 
7  pounds  of  ice ;  that  is  to  say,  less  than  5  cents 
worth.  The  room  temperature  was  81  degs. 
Fahr.  The  elficacy  of  the  refrigerator  was  de- 
monstrated by  the  fact  that  twenty-four  Ijours 
later  the  temperature  of  the  water  in  the  can 
was  33  degs.  Fahr.,  the  milk  in  the  bottle  37 
degs.  Fahr.,  and  that  even  after  forty-five 
hours  the  temperature  of  the  water  had  risen 
only  to  50  degs.  Fahr.  and  the  milk  to  52  degs. 
Fahr. 

Numerous  variations  from  this  type  of  box 
were  found  to  keep  out  the  heat.  A  somewhat 
larger  box  was  found  more  desirable.  Excelsior 
may  be  substituted  for  sawdust.  All  that  is 
necessary  is  that  the  can  containing  the  ice  be 
surrounded  on  all  sides  by  a  material  which 
conducts  heat  poorly.  Care  sBould  be  taken 
that  the  can  rests  on  sawdust  and  not  directly 
on  the  wooden  floor  of  the  case.  Should  the 
case  be  rather  shallow  for  the  can  newspapers 
should  be  laid  between  the  two.  To  prevent 
rusting  a  little  soda  may  be  placed  in  the  can 
every  day. 

The  apparatus  described  above  will  keep  two 
quart  bottles  of  milk,  or  four  eight-ounc«- 
feeding  bottles.  The  great  majority  of  mothers 
in  the  tenements  keep  the  day's  supply  of  milli 
in  a  quart  bottle  and  possess  but  two  or  threif 
nursing  bottles.  As  the  ideal  method  is  to 
have  as  many  bottles  as  there  are  feedings  in 
the  course  of  the  day,  it  was  determined  to 
make  such  minor  modifications  in  the  ice  box 
as  would  allow  of  this  procedure.  To  this  end 
a  tin  can  was  obtained  which  was  SJ  inches  in 
diameter  and  cost  30  cents.  It  was  sufiBciently 
large  to  admit  a  wire  bottle  holder  costing  45 
cents  and  containing  eight  bottles.  A  case  IB 
inches  square  was  employed  to  hold  it.  The 
ice  was  cracked  into  smaller  pieces  than  before, 
6  or  7  pounds  being  used,  and  the  wire  holder 
with  its  bottles  (previously  cooled  Ln  running 
water)  was  then  set  on  the  surface  of  the  ice, 
or  rather  gently  pressed  down  into  the  ice. 
Within  one  hour  the  temperature  of  the  milk 
fell  from  67  degs.  to  55  degs.  Fahr.,  and  con- 
tinued to  fall.  After  twenty-four  hours  it  was 
at  39  degs.  Fahr. 

The  bacterial  content  of  the  milk  was  7,000 
bacteria  to  the  c.c.  when  it  was  obtained.  After 
twenty-four  hours  the  milk  in  the  refrigerator 
had  risen  to  42,000  to  the  c.c.  A  sample  of 
the  same  milk  left  at  a  t^mperafure  of  73  degs. 
Fahr.  showed  12,360,000  bacteria  to  the  c.c. 


524        zbc  Britisb  3ournal  of  IWurstng  Supplement.  ^J^-^e  25, 1910 

Will  mothers  take  the  trouble  to  improvise 
ice  boxes  of  this  description?  From  an  ex- 
perience with  mothers  who  consult  the  dispen- 
saries I  can  say  that  they  are  anxious  to  do  all 
in  their  power  to  protect  their  babies.  Many 
would  be  quick  to  profit  from  the  lesson  if  they 
saw  a  model  of  the  ice  box,  were  told  how 
cheaply  it  can  be  constructed,  how  it  will  econo- 
mise ice,  and,  finally,  how  its  employment  will 
aid  in  saving  the  baby  from  an  attack  of  the 
much-dreaded  summer  complaint.  The  cost  of 
such  ice  boxes  can  be  considerably  reduced  if 
they  are  made  in  large  quantities,  so  that  wdth 
private  and  municipal  co-operation  they  could 
be  supplied  for  much  less  than  the  above 
figures. 

Refrigerators  of  this  design,  one  and  a  half 
feet  square  by  fourteen  inches  deep,  have  been 
distributed  among  the  children's  dispensaries, 
dairy  kitchens,  nurses'  settlements,  and  kin- 
dred organisations  in  New  York  City,  where 
they  are  being  demonstrated  to  mothers.  It  is 
hoped  that  this  article  may  encourage  other 
communities  to  similar  action  in  aid  of  the  poor 
babies. 


number  of  bo7id-fide  midwives  would  desire  to 
vote  for  a  direct  representative. 

In  regard  to  the  method  of  voting.  Lord  Wol- 
verhampton's Bill  to  amend  the  Midwives'  Act 
provides  that  the  Central  Midwives'  Board 
shall  annually  supply  to  every  certified  mid- 
wife a  form  on  which  she  is  required  to  send  her 
name  and  address  to  the  Board.  What  could 
be  simpler  than  that  once  in  three  years  a 
ballot  paper  for  one  or  more  direct  representa- 
tives to  be  elected  by  the  certified  midwives  on 
the  Roll,  should  be  issued  at  the  same  time? 

"  If  there  be  first  the  willing  mind  "  we  can 
see  no  difficulty  in  providing  the  necessary 
m.achinery  for  the  election  of  direct  representa- 
tives. 

The  medical  profession  can  and  do  vote  for 
their  own  representatives;  why  not  the  mid- 
wives  also? 

W'e  look  forward  to  the  day  when  objections 
will  cease  to  be  put  forward,  when  we  shall  all 
"  stop  talking  and  begin  to  saw  wood." 


association  of  3nspector5  of 
fIDl^\vuK&. 


fID.m  Depot. 


At  the  Nui-ses'  Settlement,  New  York,  a 
daily  supply  of  milk  of  an  unusually  high  grade 
is  received  every  morning,  bottled  under  asep- 
tic conditions,  and  sold  at  the  market  price. 
In  case  of  need  it  is  given  without  cost. 


Direct  IRepresentatton. 


A  criticism  made  on  the  proposal  for  the 
direct  representation  of  midwives  on  the  Cen- 
tral Midwives  Board  is  that  none  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Board  are  elected  by  this  method. 
It  is  a  curious  plea  to  which  the 
obvious  reply  is:— "Why  should  they 
be?"  The  Central  Midwives'  Board  is 
not  the  Governing  Body  of  the  Medi- 
cal Profession,  or  of  County  Councils,  or  of  the 
other  societies  represented  upon  it,  which  would 
suffer  no  hardship  if  they  were  excluded,  but 
the  midwives,  whose  Governing  Body  it  is, 
suffer  a  distinct  wrong  so  long  as  any  one  of 
their  number  who  desires  to  have  a  share  in  the 
government  of  her  own  profession  may  not  do 
so.  With  regard  to  the  objection  that  so  many 
midwives  are  at  present  untrained  that  does 
not  prevent  their  having  the  right  to  represen- 
tation if  they  choose  to  exercise  it.  As  a  mat- 
ter of  practice  it  is  found  that  illierate  and  ig- 
norant people  do  not  as  a  rule  make  use  of  civic 
privileges,  and  it  is  not  probable  that  a  large 


By  kind  invitation  of  Dr.  Macrory,  a  meeting 
was  held  at  22,  St.  Stephen's  Mansions,  West- 
minster, S.AV.,  on  Saturday,  June  4th,  to  draw  up 
rules,  etc.,  for  the  formation  of  the  above  Associa- 
tion, to  be  submitted  to  a  general  meeting,  which 
it  was  proposed  should  be  held  in  London  on  the 
last  Saturday  in  September. 

Any  Inspector  who  wishes  to  become  a  member 
should  write  for  piarticulars  to  !Miss  du  Sautoy,  16, 
Elm  Grove,   Taunton. 

tlbe  Central  fIDibwives'  SJoarb. 


EXAMINATION    PAPER. 

June  loth,  1910. 

1.  WTiere  is  the  female  bladder?  What  other 
structures  are  in  close  relation  with  it?  What  are 
the  signs  that  it  is  overfull  ?  What  are  the  causes 
of  this  condition,  and  how  would  you  remedy  it? 

2.  A  woman  has  been  in  labour  for  six  hours.  On 
vaginal  examination  "  no  presentation  can  be  made 
out."  What  are  the  causes  which  lead  to  such  a 
condition,  and  what  is  vour  duty  with  regard 
to  it? 

3  Describe  the  symptoms  of  shock  following 
severe  post  partum  hsemorrhage,  and  state  how  you 
would  treat  it. 

4  What  questions  should  be  asked  and  what 
points  should  be  observed  on  the  first  two  visits 
during  the  lying-in  ? 

0  ^^'hat  are  the  causes  of  cracked  nipples,  and 
how  would  you  treat  this  condition  when  it  arises? 

6  Wiat  are  the  directions  of  the  Central  Mid- 
wives'  Board  with  regard-to  the  prevention  of  in- 
flammation of  the  eyes  in  new-born  children? 


THE  HOSP  r^^^:';,. .;  >-^,^.  ^^. 


RT 
1 

B75 
V.44 


The  British  journal  of  nur- 
sing 


Biologic*^ 
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