San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1895-09-25
A TAXPAYERS KICK
Regarding the Nurse Who Refused
to Furnish the Light With
Small News Item.

In the artlcle III Mondays
LIGHT regarding the Holt-Harris
fight, l noticed a paragraph stat
ing that the nurse at the city hos
pital, when telephoned as to the
condition of Mr.. Holt and officer
Mcconnell, who were wounded in
the fight and taken there for treat
ment, emphatically refused to give
any information regarding their
condition, on the ground that the
LIGHT did not send her dead
head paper.
Now, / do not know who this
nurse is, nor either do | have any
malice against her in regard to not
furnishing the LIGHT with the
news, as l do not care to see it
publish it anymore than any other
paper. | am not partial simply
being a subscriber to the LIGHT, |
therefore like to see it furnish all
the news, which it does, l think,
with more accuracy than any other
paper in the city, but, as a citizen
and taxpayer have right to eX-
press my opinion regarding such
conduct as this, by one who is in
the employ of the city, who, if it
was not for the taxpayer, who is
waiting to get the news through
his paper, would not be receiving
her salary now as she is.
This woman is employed by the
city to stay in the hospital as
nurse and answer telephone calls
and give such other information
as is required. when she possibly
can, but when she is telephoned
by reporter, regarding the condi-
ton of two wounded men who are
at the time in the hospital, and
whose condition the. readers of the
paper are anXiously awaiting to
hear, she fatty refuses because
that paper does not send her dead
head copy.
Now Is this to be tolerated any
longer? Does the city not pay this
woman to attend her duties?
Yes. She is paid by the city and
paid well at that, but to give out
little matter of news in which the
whole city is interested she must
be paid extra, or given the paper
free of. charge, which is equal to
paying her for her paltry services.
If this is tolerated much longer
it will soon be that the newspapers
will have to pay all such impor-
tant 90 personages as this, who
have charge of any public proper
ty in order to get little matter OF
news.
If it was not for the newspapers
how would the people obtain the
news? They can only get it by
consulting their home paper
where they expect to find it, but il
the condition of things keep up as
they now are at the city hospita
the papers will be unable to give
any news at all, except as they car
rustic it up themselves. The city
hospital is public Institution anC
is so regarded by the people, whC
are anxious to know what is goine
on within, and they cannot know
if it is not in the papers. 1t il
therefore the duty of this nurse t,
report the condition of patients
especially where asked, but sh
must refuse such, simply to SHOW
her limited authority l suppose
and tell the reporter that he doe
not send her paper and she will
not tell him, and for him to Grin,
OFF,
It's a shame to the city that any
thing of the kind should be toler
ated by one who lives off the tax
payers money and our city cOun
Gil or Board of Health, or who eve
has charge of the city hospital
should see that this is remedied c
else place some one else in the DC
sition, who can at least treat an
one who desires little informs
ton with respect.
This is not the first time she ha
refused to give information to thi
paper, so the reporter tells me, bu
the LIGHT has been cOnsiderat
heretofore with her and has nc
mentioned anything regarding he
contemplate manner, and whe
it did sosMOnday and | saw tn
article L could not help sayin
something myself.
L hope that | have NOT made M
communication too lengthy, hoy
ever, but | could not help it,
think that an employee of the pc
pie / might say, would be so col
temptible as to refuse to furnish
paper with little matter of new
without wanting something in r
turn for it, especially where IL
news is for the benefit of the pc