New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-10-27

, chinery made under contract has peeh
held up In order that II may DC re-
placed by oeo machinery. a.
Az regards the Metropolitan nos,
pital on Blackwel's Island, 1t Is stated
that the building designated as the
main or general hospital has q capacity
of CSC beds, while the tuberculosis nos
initial has g64 beds. The report adds
"Bcd springs, stored IA room on
each floor during the day, are laid III
the aiales in the evening, and gn THESE
the excess patients spend the night;
An illustration can be found in Ward
n. female surgical, with 81 beds and a
night census of 1866 81 patients on the
floor. Ward G, male surgical, 68 BEDS,
with 107 patients; 80 on the moor AT
night. The overcrowding and discom-
fort are worse than appear even from
these significant figures, for the mum
her OF beds permanently In the WARDS
Ia greater than the law allows, ar
snace and distance between beds con-
sidered
Hospitals Overcrowded.
Conditions in the months when nos
pitals are normally crowded can De uh-
derstood from the records, when snow
that in one day, March Is last, mere
were 1850 beds and population Vi
1892. In the tuberculosis inhrmaIy
there was an excess OF 200 patients
causing overcrowding and great us
trcss." III.
AT the time of the grand jury's yist
10 the hospital, the report adds tneIc
were 1000 empty beds in private hos,
pitals throughout the city. "whicn eouIu
have received the excess patients %
miserably situated .,
Tho renort further states that chill
dren suffering from highly contagious
diseases were placed IN beds WIN those
rot contaminated, and that child pa,
tients "of necessity associate WIN auuit
patients, some Of low type ha'lnS
contagious diseases. altogeth1r an uh-
desirable and dangerous CONDITION.
Tho stables. kitchens and iceboXes
are condemned as unsanitary and hltny,
and the food served to tuberculosis
natients is condemned as entirely un.
suitable. members Of our committee
tho report adds. "felt it TO be unft for
human consumption. 1t was noted that
the patients under observation AT the
tables left the food uneaten, though
thew were evidently hungry. Many pa
tients were questioned, and all stated
the reason they left so much OF WhaI
food they did get was that they sim
ply could not swallow IT aud that the
beef was frozen Argentine.
"Some OF this meat, produced ana cut
bv order Of the committee, showed why
IL could not be eaten bv anv one. least
Of all by those sick with tuberculosis
II looked unwholesome, was odorous
,vJ If tho Doorost quality.
1--WE find that this institution, Ike
others visited, suffers most from the
ineniciency, neglect or instructed Ell
fort of the auth orities Of the depart
ment. As result of our Investigations,
which were carefully made, involving a
number of trips to the institutions
named. We have reached the conclusion
| that the method Of controlling or man
I aging the Department OF Charities by
/ a commissioner appointed by the Mayor
! is no longer satisfactory. The risks OF
/ securing an incompetent are too many
Recommend New Board.
Owe recommend that at the earliest
moment legislation be secured to place
the Department Of Charities under the
MANI ment and control Of a board
the members Of which shall be classi-
fed as TO terms Of service, so that only
a few shall retire or be added yearly,
while the department may continue a
constructive and intelligent policy year
after year.
THAT this board, called the board of
charities, or board of civic social SER
vice, or any name TO be chosen, be com
posed of an equal number of repre-
sentative citizens, appointed by the
Mayor, but nominated equally by the
leading Jewish, Protestant and Catholic
charitable institutional organizations,
H. whole number being IS, Is, q or
more, as may be determined"
When Commissioner Kingsbury was
informed of he contents Of the pre-
sentiment and the recommendations
made to the grand jury he contented
himself with the statement that he
would be glad to get hold of the facts
upon which the body had made its re-
port and would act accordingly. Many
Of the conditions described, he said,
were already known to him, and he was
making plans to remedy them.