H.—l9b.

118

[D. ROBERTSON.

42. And that they sent a representative to inspect the hospital arrangements, and that representative made a report which was published at the foot of your letter?— Yes. 43. This [produced] is the report which you have been good enough to bring for the information of the Commission?— Ye*. [Newspaper letter and report put in.] 44. Subsequently your committee raised further funds?— Yes, to the amount of about £13. 45. And you sent it to the camp to Major Fyffe?—No, to Major MoGuiru. 46. Who is he? —So far as 1 know he was Major Fyffe's successor. 47. The Chairman.] He was Superintendent of the Auckland Hospital?—l do not know that. After Major Fyffe went away he took our donations. We handed him the money exactly as we had done to Major Fyffe when he was in charge of the hospital. 48. He expended the money on an operating-couch, a chest of drawers, and a lamp?— Yes. The chest of drawers was for keeping surgical instruments in and bandages. The drawers were labelled for that purpose, 49. Mr. Salmond.] It was in March that you visited the camp?— The 7th March. 50. I suppose at that time there was no serious disease at Trentham Camp?— Not as far as I know. 51. You know, 1 suppose, that at that time any serious cases were taken to the Wellington Hospital?—l can only say, from my own experience and that of my committee, the Wellington Hospital ambulance was passing through Petone at least once a day; and that was our purpose in offering these donations, so that the hospital at the camp might be equipped in order to treat the cases out there if necessary. 52. You know that as a matter of fact at that time all the serious cases were taken to the Wellington Hospital?—l do not know it, except what I have seen in the newspapers. 53. Do you suggest that any serious cases were kept in this marquee you have described?— 1 cannot suggest that, I might say that Major Fyffe told us that many of the cases could have been treated out there. 54. I only wish to understand your complaint? —I am not a complainant in that sense; but having written to the papers and seen the Trentham Camp Hospital, I thought it was my duty to come and justify those statements when the Commission sat. 55. There is no suggestion that you have been wrong is so doing: I only want to ascertain what are the precise nature of your suggestions?— For the purpose of alleviating such suffering as there was to the best of our power. 56. You think there ought to have been some well-equipped hospital at Trentham? —Most certainly. 57. And that the marquees you saw were not up to the mark? —No, they were not up to the mark. They had to be shifted, and when it rained the beds had to be turned round. 58. Do you suggest that any hardships were occasioned to the men by the action of the authorities in regard to these marquees? —It could hardly be called hardships, but according to the doctor's statement the conditions could have been improved. 59. You do not think that the arrangements were sufficient for the treatment of the men who were not brought into Wellington Hospital as serious cases ? The Chairman: I do not think this witness can give us that information; that is for the medical men to say. He is only speaking of what he saw, and from what Dr. Fyffe told him. Mr. Gray: I ask that Dr. Purdy, who has a complete answer to what has been said by this witness, should be allowed to make an explanation. I think this should be taken at once. The Chairman: We shall never get through if we proceed in that manner. If we note your statement that Dr. Purdy informs you that he has a complete answer to what has been said, that will be sufficient for the present. Mr. Gray: Very well, sir, I am content.

Dr. De Latour further examined. (No. 27.) The Chair man: We have received from the Public Works Department some particulars about the area of the camp. The area of the original camp was 5 acres, area of hutment camp 31 acres. A telegram lias come in this morning from Mr. Seddon, tho clerk of works at Trentham, to this effect: Area covered by present hutments about 23 acres. 1 suppose that means the area actually covered, but the 31 acres would be the area covered when all the hutments are erected. Mr. Salmond: I understand the plan will be ready on Monday or Tuesday. 1. Mr. Skerrett.] Have you further investigated the question of the situation of the latrines, the site of which you said was afterwards occupied by hutments or tents?— Yes; this is a diagrammatic plan illustrating the photographs'. [Plan put in and explained by witness to Commissioners.] 2. Have you anything to say about the provision of latrine accommodation generally at the camp?— The latrine arrangements are good if there are a sufficient number of pails. I do not know how many there are, but there ought to be 8 per cent. 3. Are you now referring to the night conveniences or to the permanent conveniences?— The permanent conveniences. In the trenches there should be 8 per cent. [Plan of trench latrines put. in.] The trench should be about I ft, wide and about 8 in. or 9 in. deep. The sods should be taken off carefully and packed aside, and then the earth is scooped out, Each man covers his own excrement before he leaves the trench. They should have a non-commissioned officer in charge as military police to.see that every man covered his own excrement before he left, This trench would only last about twenty-four hours. There should be 8 per cent, of the trenches; each trench 1 yard long. This drawing only shows four of them.