Sessional_Paper_1896 — Page 720

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The Colonial Surgeon visits this Ilospital, does he not?-I know he visits the Hospital, but I do not know what he does there. I have visited it occasionally on my

own account.

During his daily visits to the Hospital would he be likely to see these hundreds of cases of septicemia and blood-poisoning?—I do not know that he goes through all the wards now daily. In fact he does not.

Mr. WHITEHEAD-These hundred cases you spoke of did not occur all at once ?- No.

THE PRESIDENT-Do you know the system in vogue at the Hospital just now? -I have an idea. The Colonial Surgeon goes through and takes a casual look round. He cannot examine every case; he goes to the receiving ward and sees cases that have come in during the last twenty-four hours and the dead bodies in the mortuary. If there is anything he could see in a second then he is supposed to see it, but it is impossible for a man to hunt round the Hospital every day and see every case. I do not know from my own knowledge what he does there.

Mr. WHITEHEAD-Have you sent in to the Government any reports from time to time on the state of affairs in the Tung Wa Hospital ?--I sent in a report at the time of the plague, and I have sent in one or two special minutes in the visiting surgeon's book. I have not been in authority at the Tung Wa Hospital.

Can you refer us to these minutes ?--The Government has them.

I mean any of your special reports, not the one on the plague ?--There was one which the Government thought it better to keep out.

(THE PRESIDENT at this point left the meeting to get a copy of the report referred to.)

Dr. Ho KAI-You do not know that the drainage of the Hospital has been re-laid under the superintendence of a European engineer ?--I know that there was practically no drainage before that.

Have you paid any attention to the drainage recently ?--It is possibly too soon to criticise the drains there. The last time I was there, there were some horrid smells.

Dr: HO KAI-That is a common complaint throughout the Colony.

(THE PRESIDENT, having returned, read the following extract from Dr. Lowson's, "Report on the Epidemic of Bubonic Plague in 1894," which extract by order of the Government was omitted from, and not published in, Dr. Lowson's report accompany- ing his letter dated Hongkong 1st March, 1895):-

THE TUNG WA HOSPITAL.

In a report on the Plague to the Government written by myself on the 17th May, 1894, the following paragraph appeared :—

Dangerous Ground.

A Sanitary and Medical view of the Tung Wa Hospital.

"The question of dealing with the Tung Wa Hospital must now be seriously considered. I cannot denounce this hot-bed of medical and sanitary vice in sufficiently strong terms. I venture to say that if the question of allowing this to remain was to be submitted to the Public Health Authorities at home they would order its immediate abolition. Here I know that a political element enters into the question, but I doubt if those who have supported it most would do so now if they knew what a Dis- grace and Danger to the Public Health of Hongkong it is."

After an even more intimate knowledge of this place I can now only reiterate what I then said,

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