H.—l

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3944. I understand that when you heard some question had been raised about them you took possession of them ? —Yes, and locked them up, and they have been in my possession ever since. It was about a fortnight afterwards that I found accidentally that the temperature had been up before operation. 3945. At what hours are the temperatures taken—morning and evening respectively ?—Between 8 and 9jo'clock, morning and evening. I asked some time afterwards who took these charts. 3946. Would the entry be made in the evening by the one nurse, and in the morning by the nurse who originally made the entry? —No; because we change the nurses at 6 o'clock in the morning. 3947. But you understood in this case that the entries were made by one person?—l understood so. 3948. Did you see Mrs. S before she went to the operating-room?— No. The first I saw of her was in the operating-room. 3949. Had you been in the ward that morning?— No. 3950. Do you remember as a fact whether Dr. Batchelor had been in the ward that morning ?■— I do not know myself. 3951. By whose orders was the patient sent down ?—That I cannot say. She was not sent down by mine. 3952. The order should come, should it not, either from you or from the surgeon who is going to operate ? —Yes. 3953. How are orders of this kind conveyed ? Direct to the nurse?— Usually; but the rule is that I give the order. 3954. You say the rule is that you should tell the nurses? —Yes. 3955. Did you do so in this case?—l did not. 3956. In this case was there any consultation prior to operation ?—No. 3957. You were present at this operation. Was there anything particular to mention about it?—l cannot see these operations. 3958. I suppose you administer the antiseptics at the head of the bed, and have to watch the head of the patient ? —Yes. 3959. After the operation she was taken where ? —Back to No. 7 ward, and placed in the corner bed. 3960. You did not attend her before operation, as she was under Dr. Batchelor's charge ? — Yes. I never attended her in any way except to give her chloroform. Ido not attend the patients, except in the absence of the doctor in whose care they are, or in cases of emergency; but I frequently attend to them before they have been seen by members of the staff. 3961. By whose orders was she put back into that bed ?—I think the nurse put her into the same bed that she had occupied before. 3962. Dr. Batchelor has nine or eleven beds under his control? —He has nine. 3963. Tell us, in a general way, does he choose where they shall be put?—He chooses his own beds. Sometimes he chooses different beds. 3964. When did you first hear or notice that there was anything wrong with Mrs. S ?-- The same night —the 15th. Her temperature was then about 102°. 3965. Who called your attention to it ?—The night nurse. 3966. What did you do ?—I saw her. She complained of headache, and I ordered her antipyron to reduce her temperature. 3966 a. When did Dr. Batchelor come to see her?—l think he saw her the next morning. 3967. Plow did she get on ? Was she getting worse? —She seemed to get better for a little, then her temperature would go up occasionally. Once or twice I was called in to see her. She had taken anti-pyron several times during the interval, which, I think, accounted for the lowering of her temperature. 3968. How did she continue to go on? You thought she was a little better?—On the Saturday, five days after the operation, she was very peculiar, and on the Sunday night her temperature went up to 105°. I stopped the anti-pyron on the Friday. 3969. Did Dr. Batchelor see her then?— No. Apparently there was nothing to account for it. I could not see anything. There were no other symptoms than the rise of temperature. 3970. When you were administering the anti-pyron did Dr. Batchelor see her?—He saw her every day, and dressed her daily himself. It was usually-at night, when nobody was about, that her temperature went up. 3971. On the Sunday night it went up very much, did it not ?—Yes ; at 12 o'clock, I believe, she had a rigour. 3972. The Chairman.] That was about midnight ? —Yes. The next morning she had pain in the lower part of the abdomen, and peritonitis commenced to set in. On the Sunday morning there had been some pain in the lower part of the abdomen ; from that time she grew gradually worse, and died on the Tuesday night, 22nd July, at about 3.40. 3973. Mr. Chapman,] During all this time Dr. Batchelor had been in attendance upon her?— He did not see her on the Sunday, because he was at Seacliff that day. 3974. Did he make any request to have her removed from the ward ?—No. 3975. Or to have any other patient removed from the ward ? —No. 3976. There are one or two cases in this list that I want you to look at. Please run your eye over it. By the way, you prepared it yourself, did you not ? It is a list of cases, is it not, in which there have been operations ?—Yes ; it is copied out of the books. 3977. Operations followed up by deaths, in which there were no consultations?— Yes. 3978. They are Dr. Batchelor's cases, are jhey not?—l think they are all Dr. Batchelor's cases,