The Press. — London, England, 1858-10-16 00:00:00

Tll E PRESS, OCTOBER 16, 1858 1000 must be the oonsequences of over-crowded dwellings—l speak not only of health, but where two, three, or four families are living in a crowded house, or in a room, where the sexes are blended—can you wonder at any amount of sin, can you wonder at any amount of vice, can you wonder at anything which we cannot mention its this mixed assembly occurring? I maintain that in this state of things there is an actual impossibility of giving moral edu cation—l maintain that it is positively impossible—l maintain that these classes cannot be taught. You have no means whatever of approaching them; and if you did succeed in bringing their children for a time to ragged selioola and to other institutions, those wretched children go back into the midst of those scenes of vice, of infamy, of bestiality, and in the midst of all they hear, and all they see, they unlearn in one hour all that has been given to them in the preceding three. It also assumes a political and social aspect. Now, lam quite convinced that there is a time coming, and that at no great distance, when we really shall be in want of hands for all the industrial, social, and military purposes of the country. I know that many people will say that, looking at the tables of mortality, upon the whole life is prolonged. That may be so if taken on the great average, but L want to know whether the pro longation of that life is the prolongation of a useful and worthy life, or if only that life is prolonged ; that the disease is not so fatal as to kill, but that it still continued as violent to cripple, to destroy, and to enervate the energies of the working population. There is no doubt that there may be many subsidiary events, and many sub sidiary causes for those events; but if we come to gene• ralize, we shall find the main source of repairing the evils to which we allude to arise from two causes—from bad water and from bad air•. Wherever we have applied the remedy of good v. 4ter and good air, in every instance the circumstances have ensued which we predicted, and in every instance, depend upon it, they will be found to have the same result. We need not dwell upon the sanitary regulations for the army and barracks ; but I think, also, that you must look very attentively to all regulations affecting quarantine, and inquire most minutely whether quarantine is not of itself a grand delusion. And whether the best quarantine is not to be found in the regulations for cleanliness of ships, in regulations for the cleanliness of towns, in regulations for the cleanliness of the country at large, and whether it is possible by any caution of yours to keep out disease when you yourselves are doing everything you can to engender it. And amongst your other remedies you must resort to parks and playgrounds. There is another thing to be considered. I should like to see g 5 iunasiums attached to every one of our schools, for 1 believe that sneh exercises ought to be an essential part of education. I should like to see every woman of the working _lasses have some knowledge of cookery. I am certain, from experience of the working classes, that they are ten times more improiident and wasteful than the wealthiest people of the land. It arises from a variety of causes, one of which is ignorance. With regard to the remedy, all that society can do it ought to do to remove the difficulties and impedimenta, and to do what in us lies to give to every man full, fair, and free opportunity, without let or hindrance, to exercise all his moral, intellectual, physical, and spiritual energies, so that every one may be able to do his duty in that state of life to which it bath pleased God to call bun. and suggested that hospitals should be erected with a view to their receiving as much direct sunlight as possible. Dr. FARR and Mr. RAWLINSON both expressed astonishment at the knowledge displayed and prac. tical suggestions made in Miss Nightingale's paper. Conversaziones, which were brilliantly attended, took place in the evening at St. George's hall. The exhibition of pictures of the Liverpool Academy was thrown open to members. The Philharmonic Society issued invitations to 150 of the non-resident members, and conversational meetings of the mana gers of reformatory schools and ragged schools were also held. During the proceedings a very curious fact was brought to light. It had been arranged that the Lord Chancellor of Ireland, who is President of the Jurisprudence and Amendment of the Law Depart ment, should also have delivered his address ; but a telegram was received from him stating that just as he was stepping into the steamer at Kingston to cross to Liverpool it was brought to his notice that, as keeper of her Majesty's conscience in Ireland, he could not quit that country without her Majesty's permission under the sign manual. He had tele graphed for this to Balmoral, and intended to leave as soon as the constitutional embargo should be removed. THE SECTIONS. In the sections papers were read in the depart ments of Jurisprudence, Education, Punishment and Reformation, Social Economy (including Deci mal Coinage), and an hitherto undesignated number in the department of Public Health. MISS NIGHTINGALE ON HOSPITALS. An interesting paper was read b 3 Dr. HOLIAND, which had been contributed by the celebrated Miss Florence Nightingale, entitled " Notes on the Health of Hospitals." Alter some general prefatory observations, the writer stated that many years' ex perience in hospitals in all countries and climates, even admitting to the full extent the great value of the hospital improvement in recent years, had led her to the conclusion that much of the suffering and mortality which now prevailed might be avoided. The defects often consisted in the sites, but chiefly in deficient ventilation and overcrowding. In every case the Wag followed from ascertained sanitary ex perience. There were no two words about which there had been more nonsense talked than contagion and infection. Contagion had always resulted from the want of sanitary arrangements. It had been the groundwork of almost every false reasoning, and the excuse for the superstition of the quarantine law and the general neglect of sanitary law. Perhaps no word had ever done more harm, and it was a striking proof of what a mighty thing a word was. What did it mean ? It implied the communication of disease from person to person by contact. Suffice it to say that, in the ordinary sense of the word, there was no such thing as contagion ; and the imponderable nonentities which made up the list of contasions might be dis missed to the limbo of extinct superstitions. Just as there was no such thing as contagion there was no such thing as inevitable infection. Infection was always the result of carelessness and ignorance in hospitals. Infection, bad management, and bad construction were in hospitals convertible terms. Mies Nightingale insisted 311 the importance of building large hospitals so as to avoid the evils of overcrowding, which had caused so many deaths at Scutari. Second to fresh air, she would place light as next in order to promote the recovery of a patient, TILE QUEEN'S COLLEGE. Lord BROUGHAM presided on Wednesday evening at the anniversary meeting of the Queen's College, to which, as the proceedings formed part of the pro gramme of the National Association, a great number of members and associates were attracted. Sir JOHN BAKINGTON, in proposing a resolution urging the extension of general education not only in colleges for the middle and upper classes, but also in colleges and schools for the instruction of the working man, made a most able speech. The right honourable gentleman remarked that the fact could not be disguised that a large portion of the population was in a state of ignorance which was inconsistent with their welfare, and op• posed to the welfare of the nation, to promote which it was necessary that every effort should be employed to cultivate the intellects of our country men. He cordially concurred in the sentiment which he had the honour to submit to the meeting, and he congratulated his noble friend Lord Brougham upon now presiding over the meeting of an institu tion, the foundation-stone of which his lordship laid three and twenty years ago, and which had been suc cessful in promoting the education of the working classes. He also congratulated the town of Liver pool upon its reformatory for juvenile offenders, and upon its free library, the munificent gift of Mr. W. Brown. Before closing his remarks lie ventured to draw attention to the fact, that the building iu which they were then assembled was originally intended for a mechanics' institution, but it was not so now, and be wished to throw out a caution against neglect of that means of education in their anxiety to estab lish colleges. THE DUKE OF RUTLAND AND LORD J. MANNERS IN LEICESTERSHIRE. THE annual meeting of the Waltham Agricultural Association, which was numerously attended by the gentry and others interested in the agriculture of the district, was succeeded by a dinner, under the presidency of his Grace the Duke of Rutland. Lord J. Manners, M.P., Chief Commissioner of Works, was also present. The noble duke, in proposing " The Army and Navy," said : There never was a time when both services stood higher in the estimation of this country, both for their fortitude and bravery when before the enemy two years ago in Russia and now in India. I believe that their bravery and their fortitude have never been surpassed— not only their fortitude in the field, but, what is still more trying to the British soldier, their fortitude under the influences of a bad climate and disease. I am glad to see that a feeling is now abroad in favour of keeping up our establishments. With the rest of the world, 1 was at Cherbourg this year, and I saw those magnificent forts bristling with guilt:, and the magnificent fleet that came from Toulon on that occasion. It was in.leed a magnifi cent spectacle. lam not, however, one of those who are called alarmists. At the same time that I wish to see our establishments kept upon a proper and a secure footing, my belief is that the Emperor of the French is perfectly sincere end perfectly honest when he says that he wishes to cultivate the alliance of this country. I believe it because, though I believe him to be ambitions. I think his ambition is of a higher nature than that of wishing to invade a neighbouring country. My belief is that he is ambitious of raising France still higher than she is at present in the scale of nations: that he will do an by encouraging her industry—her industry in her agricab ture, her industry in her commerce and her manufactures, and not by lying waste, if he were even able, the fields of his neighbours, for that must and would react against the prosperity of his own country. (" Hear, bear," and ' cheers Hia grace, in returning thanks for his health, thus alluded to the advantages conferred by agricultural societies : He was fully convinced of the great advantage of such societies in bringing people together, who. perhaps, other. wise might not so often meet, and of enabling them to compare the different experiments they had made, as well as to impart to each other the information that might have been derived since the preceding year. With respect to politica, he believed they had generally laid down • rule which had not always been carried out in other agricultural societies—namely, that whenever political measures seemed to touch upon their interests, or upon the general int Tests of the agricultural body, they should form a proper subject to b:: discussed at their meetings. The object of their society was the benefit and the extension of agriculture, and they had therefore always considered that whatever added to the prosperity of agriculture or took away from that prosperity, was a fit subject for comment at their annual dinner. At the same time he did not think that at the present moment there were anyquestions astir in the public mind which peculiarly affected the agricultural interest. lie would therefore merely say that, though there was much that he regretted in the past, he looked forward with hope and confidence to the fatale. He begged to give them " Prosperity to the Waltham Agricultural Association." ( Cheers. ) In responding for the health of " The Members for the County," Lord Joum MANNERS, having apologized for the absence of his colleague, Mr. Farnham, who bad attended the meetings of the society for twenty years, on the ground of illness, took occasion to allude to the social aspect of such gatherings : It has been said by Mr. Gillett, and said very truly, that at first the great philosophers of the day were apt to look then an an unmitigated i eu a d tteh o- de down upon and affect to deride these agricultural meetings. y remember ter ey t d h , e aat curseplCho w l o , s o to 1p and t derided a ll o t m e nts sh d e ton and b e s efforts that were being made to aid and stimulate agriculture in the country through the machinery of associations of this character. But agricultural associations have now established themselves throughout the length awl breadth of the land, and I was enabled to-day by the kindness of your corrcuittee to distribute prizes to the old warriors of agriculture, and also to the strinliugs who have this day won their spurs in the ploughing field, without fear of the criticism of a hostile press, and totally disregarding the philosophers who used to be so indignant at these meetings. I, for my part, am disposed to attach very great importance to social gatherings such as these. It is not only that they bring together members of the various classes which compose our rural community, but at these meetings hints are thrown out and suggestions are made which I am bold enough to say have tended in many instances most materially to promote, not only the cultivation of the land, but to increase the comfort and elevate the moral and social position of those by whom the land is cultivated. I will take one point by way of illustration. I can remember some years ago the effect produced in this ball by a speech of the admirable rector of this parish on the all-important subject of the cottage accommodation of the labouring classes, and yet at this moment I know no sight more pleasing as one rides home from hunting than to witness the progress which has been made in improving tho dwellings of the peasantry. It is not only by these endeavours that the social and moral condition of the peasantry has been elevated, but we cannot help seeing that the beauty of the landscape has also been materially improved. I hope the position I now unworthily hold in her Majesty's councils will plead my excuse in your eyes if I say that in an architectural point of view it does not cost a halfpenny more to erect a pretty than it dues an ugly cottage. Speaking of Cherbourg, the noble lord said : My brother has touched upon a subject which un doubtedly attracted far more attention than any of the measures introduced in the late session of Parliament, or which had any connection with the subjects which have brought us here to-day. He has said—and I entirely coincide in everything he said in respect to Cherbourg — that he did not see in the great and magnificent works which were presented to our view anything to occasion un necessary alarm in the minds of the people of this country. But although I quite agree with him that there is nothing to create alarm, I confess that I did read with pain and surprise some of the observations which have been made in public by other members of that illustrious body to which I, thanks to your kindness, belong. I can understand a man being so essentially John Bullish in feeling as to abstain from going to Cherbourg at all, but I can not understand gentlemen in the position of rrembers o f Parliament witnessing this magnificent exhibition, receiving, as we all did, the most hearty and cordial re ception, not only from the Emperor of the French, bat from every one of his subjects there present, seeing the cordial and amicable fooling.* whirl) pervaded all classes o f that vast assemblage, and then coming home and venting all kinds of unmanly sneers and sarcasms against a grea t :, a gallant, and a friendly people. So far from seeing th e erection of the great works at Cherbourg any pmcf of ill wi g towards England, or any sign of impending hostili am myself disposed to see in the cordiality , frankness, a n dthe openness with which all the works were submitted to n inspection of the whole people of England, had they to see in disposed or able to go thither — l am dis p osed these great works a pledge r ather for future peace; inasmuch as they afford, on the one side (with tbe_veprn ePr:. preparations which this country and her Majesty's u ment may take on the other ), a natural means of d ,'fence from hostile aggression, and thus g ive a pledge and security for future peace. (Cheers.) Passing ou to the subject of education, Lord John Manners proceeded to say : I I