The Press.
London, England, 1855-04-21 00:00:00

Vratabings in arlianttni.

ARMY AND NAVY MEDICAL DEPARTMENTS.
colonel BOLDER° on Tuesday moved for a com-
mittee of inquiry into the state of these departments.
After a general statement of their utter inefficiency,
as tested by late events, he compared the position of
a medical officer in the Quoen's and the Indian ser•
vice. In the .atter, after the expiration of seventeen
years, the medical officer was enabled to retire upon
200/. a Year direct pension, with 3MI. a year in ad
dition from the medical fund ; together an allowance
of 5001 a year. On the other hand, the medical
officer in the Queen's service, after serving twenty-
five years, received but 11. ss. per day, while his re-
tiring allowance was only 13s. a day. Again, place
his case beside that of au officer in the line. The
officer of the line, who might have entered the army
a boy of sixteen, was allowed to retire upon full pay
after a service of twenty-one years, be his rank what
it might. So that, although the medical officer must
necessarily join the service at a considerably later
period of life on account of the time taken up by his
professional studies, his retirement could nut take
place until four years later than that of the officer of
the line. The treatment of officers in the navy was
still worse, where, if there was a preference, it ought
to be shown to the naval practitioner, for whose
teaching a longer time was necessary. But there
ought to be no difference—both classes of medical
officers should be under one general medical board,
and candidates should be allowed to state which
branch of the profession they wished to adopt. A
very 'large number of vessels are without assistant-
surgeons; and lately, youths of eighteen or twenty,
mere dressers at the hospitals, with some theoretical
but no practical experience, had been sent in this
capacity in the Baltic fleet.
Sir J. TitoixoPz seconded the motion, discussing
at some length the evils resulting from the entire
control of the medical department of the army being
vested in a single individual, and the conduct of that
individual, Dr. Andrew Smith. The present system
disgraced the medical profession by the shackles it
imposed, and the medical officers, after a little expe-
rience of the service, got out of it as quickly as pos-
sible.

Mr. PaEL, after making every admission as to the
evil of the actual system, and the importance of of-
fering inducement to men of high medical reputation
to devote their talents to the army and navy, argued
that the shackles of which complaint was made disap-
peared under the exigencies of actual service, that the
Sebastopol committee was now inquiring into the
subject of that, and blue books, containing a vast
quantity of evidence, had lately been circulated. The
Government was now taking steps for the reconstruo
Lion of the whole medical department of the army ;
a commission bad been sent to Paris, and had made
its report; the appointment of the War Secretary of
State had concentrated the authorities which governed
the medical offices of the army ; the successor of Dr.
Smith would be joined with a civilian that the medi-
cal board might be more satisfactorily regulated.
Mr. BRADY attacked with some vehemence the
medical arrangements of the navy. A most impor-
tant medical meeting had lately been held, at, which
four thousand students pledged themselves never to
enter the navy service as long as the present degra-
ding rekulations existed. Unqualified young men
were intrusted with the lives of our sailors, and he
shuddered to think of the results of an action or of
the outbreak of disease.

Admiral BERKELEY, with equal vehemence, asserted
that the health of the seamen was better attended to
than that of any others in the service. A higher
qualification was demanded in the navy than in the
army. During the last year forty-nine assistant
surgeons bad entered the navy, and there was now
not a single vacancy either in the fleet of the Baltic
or of the Black Sea. _ _

Colonel NORTE thought that the Sebastopol com-
mittee could not give the requisite attention to the
subject, and brought forward several proofs of exist-
mg deficiencies.
Mr. G. Et LICE admitted the wretched state of the
army arrangements, to which those of the navy of-
fered a most favorable contrast. The question
wonld resolve itself into one of expense—they must
offer eminent practitioners not less than their gains
by private practice. Still lie thought that it would
be better not to have two committees sitting on the
same subject.
Mr. Muntz, Mr. M. Chambers, and Admiral Pecbell
supported the motion.
Sir G. GREY contendal that the proposition of the
Government was a reasonable one ; let the committee
upstairs make its report, and then appoint another if
necessary. He explained that the young men sent
out to the Baltic had gone as medical supernumera-
lies and not as practising surgeons.
The motion was rejected by a close majority-73
to (it

THE PRESS.

CHARITABLE TRUSTS.

The LORD CHANCELLOR on Monday, on moving the
second reading, explained the principles of the bill
introduced to extend and amend the act of 1853. By
that last bill a board had been created which had
already done a great deal, but which required further
powers to do all that was necessary. The commis-
sioners had largely exercised the power they pos-
sessed at present of giving advice to the trustees of
charities as to their working, and of authorising such
trustees to grant other than agricultural leases, and
in some instances to alienate their property. The
commissioners were likewise empowered to call for
specific accounts from the charity trustees ; but out
of 15,000 charities, not more than 10,000 had made re-
turns. It was now proposed to give the commissioners
power to do themselves what hitherto they had only
been able to recommend to others, subject to a sum-
mary appeal to the Court of Chancery. The powers
for apportioning, exchanging, and partitioning pro
perty were increased—one of the most important
clauses to the Roman Catholic. For a century and
a half certain charities had been attempted to be
constituted for the benefit of Roman Catholic
schools, and for the maintenance of priests, but
which were at the time of being so constituted
illegal; and, therefore, in order to preserve the pro-
perty for the purposes of charity it had been con-
veyed to secret trustees, and the property adminis-
tered in accordance with the wishes of the founders.
These charities had existed for a long period down
to the present time. With regard to a large portion
of these schools, and the maintenance of Roman
Catholic priests and certain places of worship, if
these charities had been constituted within the last
twenty years they would have been perfectly legal.
He proposed to deal with them as had been done
with dissenting chapels some years ago, so that what
might be illegal now might be made legal, and the
only difference would be that instead of being admi-
nistered secretly they would be administered openly.
There probably existed now many charities which
were now wholly illegal, such as those for what was
called superstitious uses; and others which certainly
could not be constituted at the present time. He did
not see that anything could be done with these. But
such charities as were partly legal, partly illegal, and
which, so far as they were legal, must be dealt with
in the courts, must be entirely dealt with as though
the whole were legal.
Lord Sr. LEONARDS would not oppose the bill,
though he objected to the power given to the Lord
Chancellor to appoint as many inspectors as he
pleased at 8001. a year. He would support the
second reading on the understanding that the bill
would be referred' to a select committee.

Earl GRANVILLE acceded to this arrangement.
METROPOLITAN LOCAL MANAGEMENT.

The bill for this object passed the second reading
on Tuesday with little discussion. It was proposed
to refer it to a select committee, a proposition resisted
by Sir B. Hall and others, on the ground of waste of
time. Another suggestion was made by Mr. Wil-
liams—the establishment of a central board elected
by the ratepayers for the purpose of carrying out in
London great public works on a combined system.
Power should be given to that body to raise money
for sewerage payable in fifty years. This last hint
seemed to find favour with Sir B. Hall, who has the
management of the bill. In other respects the prin-
ciples of the bill met with general approval.
NEW HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT.
A vote of 122,209/. for the completion of these
buildings brought out a statement that Sir C. Barry
still considers 651,0001. necessary for the full com-
pletion of his designs, not including the removal of
the law courts, nor the erection of new ones. There
was some dispute as to Sir C. Barry's remuneration.
By the original arrangement with Lord Bessborough,
he was to receive three per cent. on the outlay. This
arrangement Sir C. Barry denied, but he had been
paid on this principle, and the Treasury were pre.
pared to resist all further claim. It was observed
that if the architect was to receive three per cent. on
every picture and statue executed for the house, it
would amount to a perpetual annuity. Sir Charles
had referred a plan to the Treasury for the removal
of the courts of law, but the Treasury has as yet
given no opinion.