Sessional_Paper_1895 — Page 561

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I have the

He is in

for me to see on the following day and take notes of, especially fever cases, charts taken by Mr. Ü-I-KAI, one of the passed men of the Medical College. our service at the Hospital and he goes round with me as interpreter: then I examine all the dead bodies, all those brought in and all those of persons who have died in the Hospital. All this goes into a book, and is sent down to the Registrar General. This arrangement has been in force during the last month, and takes from an hour to an hour and a half.

Dr. PRESTON.-Is it only a temporary duty?

Then

Dr. AYRES.-I have to continue it so long as there is no one else to do it. I go along Queen's Road; I have got patients as far as No. 1 Station and No. 2 Station, and I make calls at Praya Road and Queen's Road on the way back. I generally have one or two or three cases on the list, and sometimes they are pretty bad cases.

In the plague time I had to cover the whole distance out to Kennedytown and right to Jardine's gates and during that time I had three or four bad fever cases.

Then I come back to the Club, and go through the patients in the Central District, all about Shelley Street, Peel Street, Stanley Street, &c.; I have got there Police Officers and Officers belonging to the different departments. Sometimes I visit the Gaol and the Central Police Station; there are three families in the Central Station. Then I go home. If I get home to tiffin at three o'clock I am lucky. From three to five I see patients at my own house. Doctors call from the ships to have their diplomas verified; doctors on board ship may take charge of Europeans but not Chinese unless I have seen their diplomas and verified them,

Dr. PRESTON. They come ashore for that?

Dr. AYRES.-They bring me their diplomas. If they are registered I merely look their names up in the last register and give them their certificates that they are qualified men. After that I may have to see some patients. Generally I get an hour and a half in the Club; that is my sole recreation, or in the summer time I go for a swim perhaps twice or thrice a week. After dinner I have the Government letters to work at and the drafts to prepare for the clerks first thing in the morning when I go to the office. During the plague time I wrote on an average every night till four o'clock and very often till dawn.

THE PRESIDENT.-Just now you have additional duties to perform at the Govern- ment Civil Hospital?

Dr. AYRES.-Yes; and I may have to stop and assist with operations and con- sultations.

Mr. THURBURN.-The Tung Wah visitation is not supposed to be your work; it is meant to be the work of the Assistant of the Civil Hospital?

Dr. AYRES.-I proposed that the Assistant there should do it, but he said it was not in his agreement and it certainly was not. Then as they refused to give him any- thing extra, he declined to do it. He was getting only $120 per month.

Mr. MCCONACHIE.-Was he not bound to do it?

Dr. PRESTON.-He was a free-lance?

Mr. MCCONACHIE.-I understand you are referring to Dr. Lowson.

Dr. AYRES.-They did not bind him down in any way; I am speaking of Dr. Lowson's brother. He is not in the Government service. We had no hold over him at all. He joined the service simply as a favour to his brother. The duty of visiting the Tung Wah falls upon me. I have a lot of outside questions to deal with, such as sanitation, and have occasional reports to make.