Thirty-second annual report of the resident physician of the Belfast District Hospital for the Insane Poor of the counties of Antrim and Down, and the county of the town of Carrickfergus : from 1st April, 1861, to the 31st March, 1862.

  • Belfast District Hospital for the Insane
Date:
1862
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Thirty-second annual report of the resident physician of the Belfast District Hospital for the Insane Poor of the counties of Antrim and Down, and the county of the town of Carrickfergus : from 1st April, 1861, to the 31st March, 1862. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    practice of sanding the wet floors in the rooms and corridors appears to prevail here. (Signed) “ROBERT PEEL. “ November 15, 1861.” In reference to the above remarks of Sir Robert Peel, the Resident-Physician feels called upon, respectfully, but decidedly, to state :— 1. That the “ wards and every part of the corridors,” together with “the beds arranged with clean linen,” were precisely in their “ordinary” daily state, in every respect^ on the “occasion” of Sir Robert Peel’s (entirely unknown and unexpected) visit; a “fact” subsequently corroborated by some of the Governors themselves, who happened to be at the Institution during the period of his visit. 2. That the “Matron not accompanying” Sir Robert Peel and his “party of visitors” (a lady with a gentleman) was neither necessary nor required, and would have been quite out of place when the chief officer of the Institution undertook to do so. But, further. Sir Robert Peel was not unaware that the official whom he has specially named had recently been the subject of a dangerous illness, which quite unfitted her for an exertion of this kind, as he must himself have perceived when he conversed with her in the Board-Room previously to his departure. 3. That, in regard to the alleged “ ]3rejudicial practice of sanding the wet floors,” no sand has ever been used for such purpose. Sir Robert Peel, however, may have been deceived by the fact that his visit occurred immediately after the usual and stated scouring of the day-rooms and corridors, and whilst a very small portion only of one of the latter was not sufficiently dry to have the , freestone swept off at the early hour at which his visit took place, viz.:—eleven o’clock. (Signed) ROBERT STEWART, M.D.