Teth Feb, Front the documents printed in another column our readers will learn the preset position of the Nursing Home that it was decided to establish as the Permanent Memorial of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. he series begins with the letter—published in our columns last' July—addressed by the Permanetit Memorial Committee to the Governors of the General Hospital, inviting. their ce-operation; to which the Governors replied that they "sympathised" with the Committee's objects, but did not know how they could Then followed a proposition the Committee that the Hospital should engage from them six trained English nurses at cost of "I's, 600 a month, inclusive to which the Governors replied that it seemed th them impossible that two sopatate organisations of nurses could work satisfactorily in one Hospital. On this the Committee submitted a new suggestion. They. have the disposal of 'I'ls, 20,000; collected or promised, and they proposed to-hand this over to the Governors of the Hospital, who should build with it a separate wing, tobe called the "Victoria Wing," this new wing to be placed entirely under the management of certificated nurses, with facilities for the training of pro-batloners. hey added that the Municipal Council would perhaps, if this scheme were adopted, give up their Nursing Home, which is known to be rin. at a considerable loss, and make' the Hospital a grant equivalent to this loss, 'Io this the Governors replied that the sum of 'I'ls, 20,000 was utterly insufficient for the scheme proposed; that the Victoria Wing' would be practically a separate Hospital, built upon lines which from the start would preclude all hope of its ever being worked to cover cost that the Committee had taken no account of the value of the land required; and that, in a word, the scheme was impracticable.
'Yhis completed the negotiations with the Governors of the Hospital, and what the Committee now propose is to get the municipality to provide them with 'a site, in consideration of the in: ition they' propose to establish being open to all foreigners, and to- erect a Nursing Home to contain eight first-class and four second-class beds. There would be five nurses, who would also be to a certain extent available for outside work, and probationers would be taken and trained, which would offer another career on the spot for the girls of Shanghai, The rough estimates appended to the documents show results varying between a deficit of Ts. 1,565 a year and a surplus of is. 625, according to the patronage extended to the new Home.
Without any idea of disparaging the General Hospital, which has been for many years and still is exceeding well matiaged and could not possibly be dispensed with, it must be conceded that there is undoubtedly a general demand for the establishment of a Nursing Home. It may be objected to the present scheme of the Committee that it is practically a new hospital for the well-to-do; but unless a much larger sum than is at present available is subscribed, or the scheme is so widened as to make it a general institution and invite contributions from all nationalities, is at present inevitable, We pre sume that at the forthcoming Ratepayers' Meeting the matter will be fully discussed on the proposition that a site shall be given by the Municipality for the proposed Home; and'we hope that if the Committee can show that there is a reasonable prospect that the Nursing Home will vot be allowed to become a burden on the Council, the request of the Committee will be granted. The experience of the Council's: Home shows that the services of trained English nurses are in constant request here now, and it is also very desirable that Shanghai should have an motitation in which can be trained in this useful and honourable career.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.