A Public Scandal.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume IV, Issue 559, 20 January 1891, Page 3

A Public Scandal.

The N.Z. Hera’d thus comments on the present aspect of affairs in regard to the Auckland Hospital :—The determination of the Government to appoint Dr Gi es and Dr Hassell as Commissioners for the enquiry into the charges against the superintendent of the Hospital cannot be considered satisfactory. To appoint two local officials to enquire into the conduct of a brother official is hardly fair either to them or to him. It is expecting too much of human nature to ask them to be impartial judges in such a case. It, would requires Brutus to be impartial under such circumstances ; and we do not know of any Brutus among our colonial officia's. Dr Gi es, it is said, has an unvarying record for m >king things pleasant fur the accused in xuch inquiries. He has been empoyed frequently on such commissions, and the process and the result have I een uniform y the same. To Dr Hassed acting there are strong objections. He is the medical superintendent uf the Lunatic A»y<utn, just as Dr Gubins is the medical supe*iuteudem of he Hospital. Il is surely a mistake to make ihs one a judge in any charges against ihe mher, Dr Hassell will naturally dunk <hat it may be his turn soon to have the charges made against h>m ; and then, as a matter i f course, Dr Ooihua would be appointed to iDvesugaie. It is very Eekh m that in this cuhmy any i-üborrihiait ofii.uie have the courage io impeach the con luot cf their superior officers; they are too much eft aid of losing their “ billets,” and they know that »f hey do not succeed all bone of entering official life ag>iin is lost. Wnen, therefore, we do find an ins ance of the kind the pub ic has a right to demand a rigorously impartial inq dry, I’ub io opinion has been thoroughly aiuured tbopt. tbi«.nia’U)r, and a mere wbr.e» washing'* enquiry will satisfy nobody, We observe that h- Boaid will have to pay all he expenses ot the inquiry. What expenses uan tbeie be lo pay, unless a shorthand clerk is employed Surely these twogentlem- n, whose whole time is paid fo» by the Government ac a very handsome rate, will not expect lo be paid extra for doing this work? If a subs: it Ute has t» be engaged to Liie Asylum uf courao he would nave to be pai 1, but as the euquiry cannot hat more than a coup e of days this would noi amnuut t « much. But what is the I ispta or of Hospitals paid fur, uniras iq undertake auch questions «s those ? What possible objection could there ba to the appointment of Dr Macgregor, whose official duiy it is, and who h;»8 no local or personal interest in the mat‘er. If with him had been associated a non—medical niau, not au official, from some other part of the colony, there could have been no reasonable ground of complaint, and the decision of such a Commission would have been accepted aa final.