IN FERCOLONIAL
MEDICAL JOURNAL OF AUSTRALASIA.
vol..
XI. No. I. JANUARY 20, 1906.•‘ buperat, ecce, suis nova nostra Australia doctis, Quod discis, cornites, jussus ab arte, doce."
preolbrittiat Abbte
AN ADDRESS.
By A. JEFFREYS WOOD, M.D., B.S. Melb.
Hon. Medical Officer, Children's Hospital, Melbourne.
[Delivered at the Annual Meeting of the Medical Society of Victoria, January 1906.]
MR. PRESIDENT AND GENTLEMEN,—
It would ill become me if I did not express to you the deep sense of gratitude I feel towards you as members of the Medical Society of Victoria for having elected me your President for the past year. When I look hack on the names of those who have pre- ceded me, I feel that the honour of having my name linked with theirs is one that I shall always feel proud of.
My presidential year was the jubilee year of the Society, as we completed our 50th year on 17th July, 19o5; and on this occasion I think it would be wise if we paused for a time and looked back on our past, reviewed our present position, and inquired into the possibility of improving our position in the future.
The first medical men to land in Victoria were Drs. Janson, Bowden, and Hopley, who were attached as medical officers to Lieutenant-Colonel Collins' Expedition, which left England in April, 1803, with 299 convicts, and landed at Sorrento in Octo- ber, 1803. The settlement was a failure, and was abandoned on 21st May, 1804, when the convicts were shipped to Hobart, leaving the celebrated Buckley behind them.
In 1835 Batman arrived from Tasmania and started a settle- ment on the south bank of the Yarra, and arranged with Dr.
Alexander Thomson to come from Van Diemen's Land to Port Phillip as medical officer, and in 1836 this gentleman arrived, and
2 Intercolonial Medical Journal. Jam. 20, 1906
was recognised by the Sydney authorities as Colonial Surgeon until 12th April, 1837, when Dr. Patrick Cussen was sent from Sydney to assume the role of Colonial Surgeon.
Dr. Thomson subsequently went to the Geelong district, where he practised his profession, and took a keen interest in politics.
Another medical man, Dr. Barry Cotter, also arrived in Mel- bourne from Van Diemen's Land about the same time as Dr.
Thomson; an advertisement in the Port Phillip Gazette of January, 1839, intimated that Dr. Barry Cotter was in active business, and offered for sale at his surgery, at the north-east corner of Queen and Collins streets, such delicacies as sago, turpentine, candied lemon, bluestone and corrosive sublimate.
This shop of Dr. Barry Cotter's was the first druggist's shop in Melbourne. It was situated on a half-acre block purchased by Mr. G. W. Umphelby for 161. The English, Scottish and Aus- tralian Bank now stands on part of the block. When this shop was pulled down the Angel Inn was erected in its place; it was celebrated as being the first hotel in Melbourne with a billiard- room.
In 1842 Kerr's directory gives the first roll of registered legally qualified medical men residing in Port Phillip :-
Physicians—Jonathan Clarke, Assistant Colonial Surgeon, Geelong; Patrick Cussen, Assistant Colonial Surgeon, Mel- bourne; Farquar M'Crae, J.P., " La Rose," Moonee Ponds, Mel- bourne; Henry Lewis O'Hara, Little Bourke-street, Melbourne;
Arthur O'Mullane, Little Collins-street, Melbourne; Forster Shaw, Bayview Cottage, North Corio; William Byam Wilmot, Coroner for the District, Melbourne.
Surgeons—James Frederick Palmer, Flinders-street, Mel- bourne; John Patterson, R.N., Agent for Immigration, Mel- bourne; Charles John Sandford, Collins-street, Melbourne; David John Thomas, Bourke-street, Melbourne; Henry Watson, Col- lins-street, Melbourne.
In addition to the above nineteen, there were eleven physicians and ten surgeons who had not complied with the law, which made it compulsory for medical men to submit their qualifica- tions to the Medical Board in Sydney before they could secure recognition in the Courts of Law.
Inter. J n1 J Presidential Address. 3
Jan. 20. 1906
In 1845 a Medical Board was established for Port Phillip, consisting of Drs. Cussen, Godfrey Howitt, W. B. Wilmot, and E. C. Hobson.
FIRST MEDICAL SOCIETY.
On 16th May, 1846, a meeting of members of the Medical profession was convened by a requisition, signed by Drs. Howitt, Wilmot, and Cussen, and held at the Prince of Wales Hotel, Flinders-lane East. Eleven medical men were present, and five others wrote, regretting their absence. It was resolved at this meeting to form a Medical Society, to be called the Port Phillip Medical Association. The objects of this Association were to be the promotion of medical knowledge, and a more free profes- sional intercourse.
The first office-bearers were—Dr. Cussen, president; Dr.
Wilkie, vice-president; Dr. Black, treasurer; and Dr. Keatinge, secretary.
A quarterly report was presented to the members by the Com- mittee on 6th October, 1846. In this report the Committee said that it reflected great credit upon the members that at all their meetings they had displayed towards each other the greatest courtesy and forbearance. The Committee also referred with honest pride to the 47 Rules of the Association, which had provided ample material for discussion for four months, no assis- tance having been obtained from any previously existing set of rules.
SCALE OF FEES.
One of the first acts accomplished by the Association was to adopt a scale of fees for the guidance of their members; and, in the light of some remarks made at the Ethical Section of the last Congress by the President, there are more unlikely things than the possible imitation of this scale, that was originally adopted on iith September, 1846 :—
1st Class. znd Class. 3rd Class.
s. d. s. d. s. d.
Fee for a single consultation at home ... to 6 7 6 5 0 Visits at the patient's house in town. Not
more than three visits to be charged in 7 6 5 0 2 6 one day. Visits between g p.m. and First Visit -
8 a.m., double fee ... ... ... to 6 7 6 5 o
B 2
Y
4 Intercolonial Medical Journal. Jan. 20, 191:*
In chronic cases requiring long attendances, the full charges are not expected.
1st Class. 2nd Class..
Mileage to be charged at 5 0 3 0
Night Journeys.—An additional fee will be made.
1st Class. 2nd Class. 3rd Class.
Vaccination ... ... to 6 7 6 5 0
Midwifery, in town ... ... 105 0 63 0 42 Consultations in midwifery to be the same as midwifery fees.
Other consultations,
This scale was amplified on i3th October, 1846, considerable help being derived by the Association from a table of fees drawn up and adopted by the medical practitioners of Aberdeen in January, 1829. This original Aberdeen scale is preserved in the minute-book of the Port Phillip Medical Association.
This recognition of three classes, with regard to medical fees,.
dates back to the third Millenium B.C. In 1903 the French savants made a valuable discovery at Susa, when they discovered a monument containing engraved upon it the laws of King Ham- murabi, who ruled over Babylon and Mesopotamia. Mr. G.
H. Hogg, of Launceston, in the " Australian Medical Gazette,"
January, 1904, quotes the following from this oldest code of laws in the world :-
" If a doctor has treated a gentleman for a severe wound with a bronze lancet and has cured the man; or has opened an abscess of the eye of a gentleman with a bronze lancet, and has cured the eye of the gentleman, he shall take ten shekels of silver. For
a poor man, five shekels of silver. If he be a gentleman's servant, the master of the servant shall give two shekels of silver to the doctor."
The meetings of the Association were held at the Prince of Wales Hotel, at members' houses, and in the Board Room of the Melbourne Hospital. The first paper of any importance read before this Association was one read by Dr. D. J. Thomas. The manuscript of this paper is in the possession of the Society, and should be carefully pre served, dealing, as it does, with the introduction of ether as a general anaesthetic into Melbourne. The title of the paper is,
" The Inhalation of the Vapour of Ether with Cases," by D. J.
Thomas, Surgeon to the Melbourne Hospital. This paper was
•
tutor. 31 ed. J ni.i Presidential Address. 5
Jan. 20, 1906 j
read on 7th September, 1847, and the notes of the first case amesthetised with ether in Melbourne are carefully set down.
On 1st August, 1847, Mr. Egan was brought over ioo miles from the country in a spring cart, having had his left arm and hand badly lacerated by a gun bursting. When first seen, his pulse was 140, and he was much fatigued with his journey.
Warm water dressings were applied to the sloughing wound, and he was given a drachm of laudanum, and slept well all night. The following morning a consultation was held with Dr.
Playne, and amputation was agreed upon. Dr. Thomas then writes :—" I set to work, and was kindly assisted by Drs. Playne, Greeves, and Campbell. The inhaling apparatus was applied to his mouth by means of the mouth-piece, his nostrils closed, and, after about a dozen inhalations, his pulse became nearly imper- ceptible, his eyes fixed, and the whole of his muscular system relaxed. The mouth-piece was removed, and his jaw dropped.
The arm was removed below the elbow; a long anterior and, short posterior flap being used to cover the stump. The period from the first incision, to the separation of the arm from the body with the saw, occupied forty seconds ; and, during that time, he continued in the same fixed position. He spoke not a word, moved not a muscle, but sat fixed and powerless ; but, during the time of taking up the arteries (not aware that his arm was off) he exclaimed, " It is no use giving me that mouth gas, you must do it without." The ligatures had all come away by the 8th day, and 3 weeks later the patient left town for the country. Morton first gave ether for Warren in the Massachu- setts General Hospital on 16th October, 1846, and ten months later we find the principle of general anaesthesia recognised and put into practice in the remotest parts of the world.
This paper, embracing, as it did, a record of 5 cases, in which anaesthesia had been induced with ether, was freely discussed, and a hope was expressed that it should be forwarded to the
" Australian Medical Journal " for publication. The journal thus referred to was published in Sydney, and had a short existence, dating from August, 1846, to October, 1847. One suggestion, gravely made by Dr. Wilkie during the discussion, was that in all surgical cases in which it was proposed to employ ether as an anwsthetic an experimental trial of the ether should be
Intercolonial Medical Journal. aan. 20, 1906
made in each case the day before the operation, so that, in the event of a fatal result following an operation, the operation, and not the ether, would be shown to be the cause of the death.
The meetings of this Association were held every month, and an annual dinner was held each year until 1851, when it was determined to abandon the dinner, owing to the small number of members. The last minutes entered in the minute-book of the Port Phillip Medical Association are dated loth November, 1851, and a pencil note at the end of the minutes tells us that the Society was dissolved, the books sold, and the debts paid.
The minute-book of this Association was handed to the trustees of the Melbourne Public Library, and it remained in their hands until 7th October, 1885, when Dr. Thomas Black presented it to the Medical Society of Victoria; and, in a letter he sent with the book, he stated that the only surviving members of this first Medical Society at that time were Sir Charles Nicholson, Dr. William Campbell, and Dr. Black; since that time these names have also been added to the list of those that have t,assed away.
From November, 1851, to 7th May, 1852, there was no Medi- cal Society in Melbourne; but, on the latter date, a meeting of members of the medical profession was held at the Bull and Mouth Hotel, and it was resolved to form a Victoria Medical Association, for the purpose of promoting the whole interests of the profession. Amongst the early members of this Associa- tion the following well-known names appear :—Drs. Youl,
Wilkie, Tracy, Black, and Gillbee. On igth July, 1852, a set of rules were adopted, and good work was begun by systemati- cally inspecting the City of Melbourne, and reporting on its insanitary condition.
A sub-committee was appointed to consider the best means of securing a grant of land for the purpose of building a hall in October, 1853; but, apparently, nothing further was done at that time.
Two years after the birth of the Victoria Medical Association, a rival society sprang into existence; this was called the Medico- Chirurgical Society of Victoria. This Society originated at a meeting held on 6th June, 1854, at the office of the Chief Medical
Inter. Med. Jn1.1 Presidential Address. 7
Jan. 20, 1906
Officer, Dr. M'Crea ; the object of this Society was the promo- tion of all branches of 1VIedical Science.
In August, 1854, a special meeting of the Victoria Medical Association was called to consider the question of amalgamating the two Societies, and on 18th July, 1855, a joint meeting of the members of the Victoria Medical Association and of the Medico-Chirurgical Society was held at the Melbourne Hospital, and the amalgamation of the two Societies was effected, and the name chosen for the new Society was the Victoria Medical Society. The original office-bearers of our Society were—Presi- dent, Dr. Turnbull; Vice-presidents, Drs. Lucas and Mother- well; Treasurer, Mr. Ford; Secretary, Mr. Black; Committee, Drs. Tracy, Collins, Maund, and Webster. The minute-book, containing the transactions of the Victoria Medical Association, and the first minute-book of the Medical Society of Victoria, are in our library; but the minute-book of the Medico-Chirurgical Society of Victoria is not to be found. Dr. Hutchinson was the last secretary of this Society, and possibly he retained possession of this book.
The name, Victoria Medical Society, was changed to the Medical Society of Victoria in 1856, and has remained unaltered ever since, although an attempt to alter it to that of the Faculty of Medicine was only defeated by the casting vote of the chair- man, Dr. Tracy, on 3oth June, 186o.
The proceedings of the Society for the past 5o years may well be compared to a post graduate school that has provided an unbroken course of instructions to its members, including in its • transactions the gradual evolution of medicine and surgery up to modern times.
The general welfare of the whole community has always been a leading feature in the work of the Society ; long before the Board of Public Health was appointed, resolution after resolution appeared on the minutes urging on the various Governments of the day the necessity of appointing such a board, and the still greater necessity for a proper system' of sewerage.
Amongst our most prized assets at the present time we value our hall and library most; and, although we do not own the
"Intercolonial Medical Journal," our history is so bound up in its volumes that we feel it is an integral part of ourselves. First,
8 Intel-colonial Medical Journal. Jan 20, 1908
with regard to the hall in which we sit to-night, to review its history we must go back to 24th February, 186o, when a deputa- tion from the Society waited on the Hon. Commissioner of Lands and Survey, requesting him to grant the Society a piece of land for the purpose of building a hall. The request was favourably received, and an acre of land was granted to the Society, with the proviso that a suitable building should be erected on the ground before the end of 1861. This acre of land was at the corner of Drummond and Victoria Streets, Carlton, separated from
the Trades' Hall by a right-of-way. Year after year suggestions were made with regard to raising funds to build, but no one man rose to the occasion; and finally, in July. 1866, a letter was received from the Secretary of the Lands and Survey Depart- ment intimating that the land was gazetted for sale. During the early part of 1877 Dr. Aubrey Bowen discovered that a small allotment at the corner of Brunswick-street South, and Albert- street, East Melbourne, was not alienated from the Crown and he advised his committee to apply to the Government for a grant of this small block. This advice was followed, and, after much correspondence and delay, the site was eventually gazetted as having been reserved for the Medical Society of Victoria. In the work of obtaining the land, Dr. Bowen had associated with him Dr. Jonasson, Mr. Girdlestone, and Dr. Neild.
After being instrumental in finding and securing this block of land for the Medical Society of Victoria, Dr. Bowen devised the plan of raising money to build by means of debentures, and also co-operated with Mr. Lloyd Tayler, the architect, in draw- ing the plans for the hall.
The Society met for the first time in this hall on 9th January, 1878, on the occasion of their twenty-third annual meeting. A sum of £1045 was raised by means of 209 i5 debentures, bearing interest at 6%, and Drs. Cutts, Martin, and Bowen were appointed trustees for the building. The interest on the debentures continued as a drain on the funds of the Society for many years, then a number of members gave up their debentures in exchange for life membership; others presented their debentures to the Society; other debentures were redeemed, so that in 1895 the sum that was due on outstanding debentures had been reduced to £213.
Presidential Address. 9
Inter. Med. Jnl. 1
Jan. 20. 1908
On 3rd April, 1895, a letter was received from Mrs. Aubrey Bowen, stating that she had forwarded a cheque for £213 to the treasurer of the Medical Society of Victoria to redeem all out- standing debentures, and so free the Society's hall from debt.
Thus the site on which the hall now stands was obtained from the Government in 1882, chiefly through Dr. Bowen's personal exertion. The idea of raising the money by debentures was Dr.
Bowen's, and it was through Mrs. Bowen's handsome donation that the hall was finally freed from debt in 1895. The present trustees of the hall are Dr..Chas. Ryan, Dr. J. P. Ryan, Professor Allen, Dr. John Williams, and Dr. Jamieson.
THE LIBRARY.
Although the first cheque forwarded to London from Mel- bourne, for the purpose of purchasing medical books, was a cheque for £25, sent by the Port Phillip Medical Association to
Mr. Simmonds, of London, on 4th August, 1846, our present library does not date back as far as that, for the library collected by that Association was sold in 1851.
The first order for our present library was sent by the Victoria Medical Association to Messrs. Smith, Elder and Co. on 15th August, 1852. The first order sent by the Medical Society of Victoria met with disaster, the books going down in the Schorr.
berg, which was wrecked off Cape Otway.
The plan of ordering books from London for the library ceased at the beginning of 1857, when it was resolved to order books through Mr. Geo. Robertson. Duplicate books at this time were disposed of to members by auction.
The want of a hall to place the books in was a source of trouble to the Society during its early days, and the trustees of the Public Library were interviewed with regard to the question of having the books kept in that building; but the rules of the Public Library did not permit the removal of any books from the building, so nothing was done.
The books were kept at Mr. Buzzard's shop in Bourke Street until 5th October, :857, when he wrote, asking the committee to remove them. They were then taken to a Mr. Baker's establish- ment. The next move was to the rooms of the Medical Dispensing Co., of which the proprietors were medical men in Melbourne.
10 Intercolonial Medical Journal. ,,Jan. 20, 190&
In July, 1861, they were placed under the charge of the librarian at the Mechanics' Institute; but in September of the same year Mr. Gillbee reported that he had found the books and periodicals in a state of confusion, and the journals open to the inspection of everybody. The porter's lodge at the Melbourne Hospital was then chosen, and it was agreed to allow the porter
£m a year to look after the library. The books remained in the porter's bedroom until 187o, when the Medical Society and its library moved to the hall of the Royal Society in Victoria- street; here the books remained until March, 1873, when they were once more removed to the shop . of Mr. Ogg, pharmaceu- tical chemist, IIz Collins-street East, and there the books remained until 1878, when they were finally removed to where you now see them, on the shelves in our own hall.
The total number of volumes in the library, bound and unbound, at the commencement of 19o5, were 1647, and the value placed upon them for insurance purposes was i1o13; but this sum would never replace the volumes if by any chance they should be destroyed by fire. Amongst the old books there are excellent copies of Crooke's " Body of Man," printed in 1631;
Browne's " Muscles of the Human Body, 1697; and Lazarus. Riverius on " The Practice of Physic," printed in 1678.
The general books are catalogued under the Card system, and classified under the Dewey system, and it is now easy for a. member to find any volume that may be present in the library.
Amongst many librarians who have laboured so well in the interests of the members in building up our splendid library of reference, Mr. John Holden Webb's name will always stand fore- most. For years his untiring enthusiasm was successful in com- pleting many valuable sets of journals; and when he retired from his position he was able to say that any reference in Neale's.
digest was available on the shelves of the library, a truly great work, and one that the members of the Society can never forget..
Bookcases were presented to the Society by Dr. Haig and Dr.
Gresswell; and Dr. Patrick Moloney made a present of the oleo- graph, " The Anatomy Lesson."
THE JOURNAL.
" The Australian Medical Journal " was first suggested by Dr..
1Vlaund at a meeting of the Medical Society of Victoria on 25th
ter. Mad 3n1.1 Presidential Address. 11
Jan. 20, 1906 J
August, 1855; ten days later a Sub-committee reported to a special meeting in favour of starting a journal, to be called the
" Australian Medical Journal." At first the Society published the journal quarterly, and the annual subscription was Li.
The management was placed in the hands of a Committee of six, consisting of two editors, a treasurer, a secretary, and tw;) other members of the Society.
The first quarterly issue of the journal appeared on 1st January, 1856; when the editors were Drs. Maund and Black, and the publisher Mr. Buzzard.
On 8th June, 1857, the Committee reported that there were no funds to meet the expense of issuing the next quarterly number of the journal, and it was resolved to ask Mr. Buzzard under what terms he would assume the entire management of the journal. He offered to take over the journal if he were given Is% of the returns, exclusive of advertising; but the Committee, having unsuccessfully tried to get Mr. Buzzard to accept io%, determined to continue to publish the journal themselves.
In 1858, Mr. Goodhugh, of Messrs. Goodhugh and Hough, offered to take over the journal, provided the Society continued to supply the manuscript, and take ioo copies of the journal.
This arrangement came into force at the beginning of 1859;
but on 17th October, 1859, the Society resolved that it would no longer be responsible for any liabilities of the medical journal, nor share in any profits derived from the sale of the journal.
In 186o the Journal was published by Messrs. Wilson & Mackinnon, who continued its publication until the end of 1866, and since that
time the journal has been issued regularly from Messrs. Still- well and Co.'s office.
The first editors were Drs. Matind and Black. Dr. Thomson acted from 1859 to 1861. Then Dr. Neild became editor, and continued to act in that capacity for seventeen years, during which time his devotion to the journal was the sole factor in saving it from the fate that has so often befallen medical journals.
We may all look back with most grateful and envious feelings at the success that attended Dr. Neild's energies in keeping this journal alive at times when other men would willingly have let it cease.
12 Intercolonial Medical Journal. Jan. 20, 1900
The completion of the fiftieth year of this journal is solely due to the zeal and energy displayed by Dr. Neild during these troub- lous times, as well as to his skill as a writer.
Professor Allen was editor from 1878 to 1881, when Dr.
Jamieson assumed control of the journal until 1887. Drs. Moore and Syme followed Dr. Jamieson, and since that time Drs. Syme,
Stawell. Wilkinson, Lewers, and A. J. Wood have acted as
,editors.
Issued at first as a quarterly publication, it was issued • every month after 186.i.
It has not existed for half a century without rivalry in Victoria.
In 1862 Mr. F. Bailliere commenced the " Australian Medical and Surgical Review," which had a brief career.
In 1869 the " Australian Medical Gazette " was commenced as the organ of a Society called the " Victorian Medical Associa- tion ;" this journal was published regularly for four years, and died, like the Society it represented, of inanition. The four volumes of this journal are in our library, and some of the articles reflect the warmth of feeling that then existed amongst sections of the profession, when all did not seem to be unity, peace, and concord.
In 1894 a more formidable rival appeared in Melbourne, called the "Intercolonial Quarterly Journal of Medicine and Surgery,"
Drs. Gardner and Grant acting as editors.
The appearance of this quarterly followed twelve months after the Medical Society of Victoria had commenced to supply the Lancet " to its members, in place of the " Australian Medical Journal." This journal was started by its editors in order to put the abstract proposition, " That it is desirable to found an Australasian Medical Journal," made at the Sydney meeting of the Intercolonial Medical Congress, in 1892, into practical form. Its first year was a most successful one, but the adoption of the
" Australasian Medical Gazette " by the various intercolonial branches of the British Medical Association as their official journal deprived the quarterly at once of its intercolonial circu- lation; and in its third year, 1896, an amalgamation was effected with the " Australian Medical Journal," and the new journal, under the name of the " Intercolonial Medical Journal of Austral- asia," has continued to be issued regularly every month. As a means for securing exchanges for our library, it is invaluable
Inter. Med. Jnl.1 Presidential Address.
Jan. 20, 1006 1
to the Society, and members have always shown the greatest loyalty towards it. In its early days, although the journal' belonged to the Society, the transactions of the Society did not appear regularly in it; but, at the beginning of 1865, it was adopted as the official organ of the Society, and since that date the journal has steadily recorded the transactions of the Medical Society of Victoria.
In order to encourage country members to continue to sub- scribe to the Society, and recognising the small return these members were getting for their annual subscription, it was.
determined, in 1894, to supply members of the Society with the
" Lancet " in place of the " Australian Medical Journal." The step met with general favour amongst the members, but, happen- ing, as it did, simultaneously with the starting of the " Inter colonial Quarterly," it was a serious blow to the circulation of the local journal.
OTHER MEDICAL SOCIETIES.
Since 1855 the Medical. Society of Victoria has continued to hold its position as the leading Medical Society in Victoria, although various other Societies have been started.
In 1869 a Society was formed, called the " Victoria Medical Association ;" it lasted for four years, but, as its objects were chiefly personal, it died of inanition.
On 11th September, 1879, a meeting was held at Dr. Neild's house in Collins-street to consider the question of establishing a branch of the British Medical Association in Victoria. It was then resolved that a meeting of the profession be called, and that a proposal should be submitted for the formation of a Victorian branch. The meeting was held a fortnight later, when thirty members of the profession enrolled themselves as the first members of the branch. The first council consisted of the follow- ing medical men :—President, Mr. Gillbee ; vice-president, Dr.
Cutts; hon. secretary, Dr. Henry; hon. treasurer, Dr. Graham;
members of council, Drs. Neild, M`Millan, Rudall, Jamieson, Browning, and Morrison.
Mr. Gillbee, the first President, in his retiring address, disavowed
any feeling of rivalry with the Medical Society of Victoria, which Society, indeed, had furnished the bulk of the members of the Branch Association.
14 Intercolonial Medical Journal. Jan. 9.0, 19043
As soon as the Victorian branch was formed, the council communicated with the other colonies, urging on them the desirability of establishing similar branches, and in February, 188o, the New South Wales branch was inaugurated, and the first council was elected in March of the same year.
The South Australian branch was really started before the Victorian branch; but, owing to the fact that the members of the profession were so scattered, it was found difficult to get the applications for membership certified to from the personal know- ledge of at least two certifying members. Consequently, it was not until 14th September, 188o, that the branch was recognised by the parent Association, being 16 months after the inaugural meeting of the branch in Adelaide.
The Melbourne Medical Association was started by Dr.
Goodall in 189o, and it has always been to the fore in promoting the social side of professional life, a side that the Medical Society abandoned when the annual dinners ceased.
The Medical Defence Association is the youngest of the Vic- torian Medical Associations, and the work it does is of the greatest importance to the whole of the profession.
It would be an invidious task to attempt to individualise former members of the Society to whom we owe so much; the success of the past is not to be ascribed so much to any individual, or group of individuals, but rather to that spirit of brotherhood engendered by such a Society as ours. At the same time, we cannot forget that Her Most Gracious Majesty the late Queen Victoria recognised the fact that, amongst our members was one
who stood, and still stands, at the head of the medical profession of Australia; and, in bestowing the honour of knighthood on Sir Thomas Fitzgerald, the late Queen honoured the most bril- liant surgeon of our time, and a man whom we are all proud to call our friend. To Sir Thomas Fitzgerald the profession in Melbourne owe the deepest debt of gratitude for ever upholding the best traditions of our profession. He has always been a friend to the young practitioner, and those of us who were fortu- nate enough to be present at the dinner given to him on 22nd July, 1897, will never forget the way in which the medical profes- sion attended to do their share in emphasising their approval
of the man on whom the first Knighthood in Australia had fallen
Inter. Med. JnI.1 Presidential Address. 15
Jan. 20, 1906 j
purely on account of professional knowledge and eminence.
So much for our past.
Our present state is one that we may justly feel proud of; we now have 313 effective members, io hon. members, and it corres- ponding members, a larger roll than we have ever had before.
Our hall stands free from debt, and the treasurer's report shows that we have a balance of £140 beyond our other assets.
During the oast twelve months there have been several meet- ings of representatives from the Victorian branch of the British Medical Association, from the Medical Defence Association, and from our own Society to deal with matters of general interest, affecting the whole profession of Victoria, and the greatest harmony and good fellowship have marked these conferences.
The monthly meetings are better attended than at any time during our career; and, large as our hall is, the question of sitting accommodation for members is one that must shortly engage the attention of the Committee. The preparation of a business paper for the monthly meeting is not so much a task of where can we look for business, as what must be left out ? In fact, the question of sections for the transaction of work of a special kind must be seriously considered before long. Already the ophthal- mologists have recognised that the amount of work they can do amongst themselves is far greater than they were able to do at the general meetings of the Society. Similarly the members of the staff at the Children's Hospital have initiated a Pediatric Society, where work applying to the study of diseases of children will receive the attention that is gradually being extended to it all over the world. While all these little Societies are composed of members of our parent Society, still each newly-created Society means a fresh annual subscription, whereas a judicious amalga- mation of all present existing Societies, under the one head, with
a slightly increased subscription to the parent Society, would be a saving to everybody, and the special work could be still more effectively carried on in sections, thus giving the special work a much wider field on which to draw for the attendance at their meetings, as well as being of immense clinical interest to the whole body of members.
The training of the medical man for useful work in Medical Society life is commenced in the Medical Students' Society. It
16 IntercoIonia! Medical Journal. Jan. 20, 1906
is continued in the Medical Societies after he graduates, and this training in time fits him to take a prominent position in the trans- actions of the Medical Cogresses, which have now been held at 3-yearly intervals for the past eighteen years throughout the various Australasian States and New Zealand. In these meetings of Congress valuable work has been done; but far better work could be effected if a greater supervision was exercised over the papers that are read at these meetings. Subjects of general interest to the whole profession should be chosen for special consideration, and papers invited from the recognised leaders of the profession, and the general body of the profession could then express their views in discussion, rather than in a number of short, uninteresting papers, of which the great bulk of the transactions up to the preesnt time consist. Congress work is a powerful factor in advancing and diffusing knowledge throughout the medical profession of the Commonwealth, and also in the preven- tion, and alleviation, and cure of disease. It is, according to Senn, the highest post graduate work done in the profession, and it behoves us all to get the greatest benefits possible out of these triennial meetings of the profession. Up to the present time the social side of Congress meetings has predominated, and the proverbial Australian hospitality was seen at its zenith during the last Congress at Adelaide; but, at the same time, there was a generally expressed opinion that such meetings might well do more in the way of uesful work, and less in the way of social functions.
One useful step taken at the last Congress was the suggestion that a committee should be appointed, representing the various Medical Societies throughout the States, to consider the best means of amalgamating the various Societies under one Associa- tion.
There is a general, as well as a local, side to many questions that arise in various Societies, and it is well for the profession to be at times unanimous, and to speak with one voice through a parent Association that embraces every State and town throughout, the Commonwealth. An erring member of the pro- fession that may sink his interest in the welfare of the general profession for the sake of some slight personal emolument will be made to feel his position far more keenly if he knows that
Presidential Address. 17
later. Med. Jn1.1 Jan. 20. 1908 j
the treatment meted out to him by a local branch in one State will also stand against him throughout every town and State in the Commonwealth. This movement on the part of the Ade- laide Congress must therefore be my excuse in treating of the future of the Medical Society of Victoria. In a letter I recently received from a leading practitioner in Sydney he speaks of the Medical Society of Victoria as being the stumbling-block in the way of a general amalgamation of the whole profession throughout Australasia. It may be flattering to feel that we are a powerful body in the profession, but it cannot add any lustre to our Society to feel that our independent existence is retarding in any way the progress of the welfare of the profession through- out the Commonwealth.
Over 70 years ago Sir Charles Hastings and his colleagues founded a Society dedicated to the proposition that medical men should help one another; and it is our duty to endeavour to leave no stone unturned to give effect to this principle in its most general sense, and not in a spirit of parochialism.
Two propositions have been suggested whereby the profession throughout Australasia might be effectively amalgamated; the first, that a new Association should be created on the same lines as the American Medical Association, and called the Australasian Medical Association; and the other, that all the present Medical Societies throughout the Commonwealth should become branches of the British Medical Association.
In New South Wales the branch of the British Medical Asso- ciation speaks for the whole State; and the amount of benefit that has resulted to the profession, as a whole, in that State, is very great. It is very natural in consequence of the great power possessed by this branch of the Association that in Sydney they should view with feelings of distrust anything that would in any way interfere with their present powerful position.
In Queensland the amalgamation of the chief Medical Society of that State with the local branch of the B.M.A., was effected some years ago, with considerable advantage to the general pro- fession.
In South Australia and in West Australia the British Medical Association branches are the most powerful Societies in the
18 Intercolonial Medical Journal. J/1.11 20, 1906
States. And in Tasmania there is at present no Medical Society beyond a local Medical Defence Association.
Reviewing the position of the other States, it would seem by far the easiest plan for the members of the Medical Society of Victoria to become members of the Victorian branch of the British Medical Association.
The question of the amalgamation of the Medical Society of Victoria with the Victorian branch of the B.M.A. has been one that has exercised the minds of the office-bearers of the two Socie- ties for years, and attempt after attempt has proved ineffectual;
but, now that we have celebrated our jubilee, we might well abandon the name we have so long been proud of, and carry on more unselfish work under the banner of the British Medical Association, which waves not only over the greater number of the members of the profession in Great Britain and Ireland, but over the members of the medical profession throughout most of the British colonies.
Union must be our future aim, and if the following proposition should receive the support of the members of the Medical Society of Victoria, I do not think it would take many months to effect a complete organisation of the profession throughout the States.
The proposition is that the present members of the Victorian branch of the Medical Association should elect the present members of the Medical Society members of their branch.
That on a fixed date the two Societies should declare all offices vacant, and that at a meeting of the two Societies a new Council should be elected, and that our hall and library, and the funds of the two Societies should become the common property of all.
A number of details will, of course, have to be arranged with regard to the trustees and the government respecting the hall;
but, after all, it will only be a change in name.
The necessity for organisation of the profession is daily becom- ing more and more obvious. The days are past when a medical man can stand aside from medical politics and pursue the even tenor of his way without detriment to himself or to his col- leagues." It is certainly unfortunate that such should be the case; but if we did not recognise the fact, and act accordingly, we would not be living up to that fundamental proposition that medical men should help one another.
Inter. Med. Jun Obstetrics and Gyncecology.
Jan. 20. 1906 19
Let us then approach this question of union with all earnest- ness; and when the whole profession throughout the Common- wealth is united, and, at the same time, affiliated with the great British Medical Association, we will gain in public reputation, and reach that status which our disinterested and humanitarian work deserves.
In conclusion, I once more thank you for the honour you conferred upon me in electing me your president for the past year. I have also to gratefully acknowledge your courtesy and forbearance to me whilst in the chair. My year of office has been a truly pleasant one to me, and I will never forget the valuable assistance I have received at all times from our Honorary Secre- tary, Dr. Balfour. We often forget that when all is going smoothly someone is responsible for the smoothness, and the tact and energy of the secretary is the real secret of peaceful work in a Society.
OBSTETRICS AND GYN1ECOLOGY.
By G. ROTHWELL ADAM, M.D., C.M.
Lecturer on Obketrics and Gynecology, University of Melbourne.
Hon. Surgeon, Women's Hospital.
In commemorating the jubilee of the Intercolonial Medical journal, the editors are marking an event of unique historical interest to the medical profession of the whole of Australia. For time was, when the Australian Medical yournal (the precursor of the present publi- cation) alone supplied a record of the work done in the various departments of Medicine over the whole continent, including Tasmania and New Zealand.
It may with truth be said that no branch of the art and science of Medicine has shown more activity during these fifty years than
the sister subjects of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. In this respect, the influence of the old world is manifest, for there enormous strides have been made in at all events co-ordinating our knowledge and experience of obstetrics, and more especially in diseases special to women. Indeed, gynaecology, as it is now understood, has come into being during this period, and it is a cause of congratulation, and perhaps some pride, that the pioneer Medical Journal of Australia has played a worthy part in recording the progress made in these
C 2
'20 Intercolonial Medical Journal. Jan. 20, 1906 departments. One instance will serve to illustrate the live interest taken in gynaecology, while yet an infant science :—Richard Tracy, at the time of his death in 1874, held a conspicuous record for a notable percentage of recoveries from ovariotomy, no other operator of the period being in a position to show, even with what to-day looks an infinitesimal number of cases, a hundred per cent. of recoveries.
No account of the part played by this Journal in recording the progress of obstetrics and gynaecology would be complete without reference to the Women's Hospital of Melbourne. This institution, for long the sole special representative of these departments in the whole of Australia, was established in 1856 in temporary premises in Albert Street, East Melbourne, by a band of philanthropic ladies and gentlemen headed by Drs. Maund and Tracy. In fact, it is to the perseverance and energy of these two medical men that we to-day are indebted for the deserving charity formerly known as the Melbourne Lying-in-Hospital and Infirmary for Diseases of Women and Children.
In order to show the esteem in which Dr. Maund was held, it may be worth while quoting from the second annual report of the hospital on the occasion of his death—" During the past year, the committee have had to deplore the loss of the earliest promoter of this institution, the late Dr. Maund. In conjunction with Dr. Tracy, he had taken the entire responsibility connected with the leasing of the temporary hospital in Albert Street, and by his untiring zeal and devotion to its interests, fostered the growth of this charity during all the early stages of its development."
At that time, and for many years after, obstetrics formed the main work of the hospital, the study of diseases of women being then an infant art—it could scarcely be called a science—and was dealt with chiefly by means of an out-patient department. When, however, the renewed interest awakened in gynaecology began to assert itself here, in the early eighties, the need of extending the accommodation to meet the new order of things was sorely felt. Accordingly, at the request of the medical staff, composed of Drs. Fetherston,
Balls-Headley, Rowan and Burke, the Committee decided to separate the two departments, and house them under different buildings, each with its own honorary medical staff. The fear of puerperal sepsis—or puerperal fever as it was then called—was so potent, that the most stringent rules were drawn up to prevent com- munication between the two sets of nursing and resident medical
Inter. Bled. Jn
J Obstetrics and Gyncecology. 21
Jan. 20. 1906
staffs. It may be now confessed that the results were not com- mensurate with those precautions. The doctrine of personal asepsis outrivals that of quarantine. The hospital, in its endeavour to extend its usefulness both to the indigent parturient woman and the education of obstetrics, is now about to establish an extern obstetric department somewhat on the lines of the Dublin Obstetric Schools.
The occupants of the chair of Obstetrics and Diseases of Women at the University of Melbourne have, as might be expected, exercised no small influence on the progress of obstetrical and gynmcological practice. For, with the exception of the comparatively short time Dr. Jamieson lectured on these subjects, the teacher of the systematic class has had the advantage of being in the position of taking his students to the bedside, and there practically instructing them.
The first occupant of the chair, Richard Tracy, has already been adverted to. He was followed by Dr. Martin, who unfortunately did not live sufficiently long to make the influence of his teaching felt. Dr. James Jamieson succeeded to the vacancy, but after some years of conscientious labour, exchanged to the more congenial chair of Medicine.
The accession of Dr. Balls-Headley, who followed Dr. Jamieson, was marked by a distinct change in the teaching of the subjects, prominence being given to gynaecology which, owing to the advances made in surgical technique, had become popular, and might with truth he said to have passed from the domain of the physician to that of the surgeon. The present lecturer, believing that the immediate need of the young practitioner is a sound practical knowledge of obstetrics, endeavours to attain his end by instituting tutorial classes, whereby the student gains some acquaintance of the mechanism of labour and obstetric operations before entering the hospital.
Before closing this fragmentary account of the history of obstetrics and gynmcology, embraced within the period 1856 to the present date, it may be of some interest to note the progress that has been made in these departments of medical practice. If it be not possible to point to any important original contribution to our knowledge in these subjects, we may at least maintain with some feelings of satisfaction that here, in this distant land, at the periphery, so to speak, of medical intellectual activity, no points have been neglected, and that our every-day practice is well abreast of current thought.
Im
22 Intercolonial Medical Journal. Jan. 20, 1906
It will be readily understood that progress in obstetrics must of necessity be slow. The pregnant or parturient woman is merely fulfilling a physiological law with, as it has been aptly put, great pathological possibilities. It is these possibilities that attract the obstetrician.
The application of bacteriological science, with its corollary of Listerism, to obstetrics, made clear many problems formerly hidden in mystery, and approached according to tradition. The contagiousness of puerperal fever maintained by Oliver Wendel Holmes, Sir J. Y. Simpson and Semmeliveiss, became an accepted fact in the early eighties, and, as a consequence, the outbreaks of the epidemic types of the disease, formerly only too frequent, have vanished. Within the period under notice, a considerable advance has been made in recognising the causes and consequences of delay in labour. As evidence that this is so, it may be stated that cases of vesico-vaginal fistula, formerly so common, are now rarely seen in the gynaecological wards of the hospital.
But it must not be supposed that no good results were obtained before the advent of aseptic midwifery, for on referring to the first annual report of the Women's Hospital, presented by Dr. Maund to the Victorian Medical Society, and published in the Journal, it will be found that one hundred women were delivered, with no deaths.
It is also very significant of the excellent work done fifty years ago, that a paragraph in the second annual report from the same hospital states that, from the opening of the hospital on August 1856 to September 7, 1858, 245 patients were admitted, amongst whom happily no death has taken place. In later years, major obstetric operations, undertaken with the object of preserving both the lives of the mother and infant, have been successfully performed. Dr.
Balls-Headley performed the first Porro-Csarean operation, pre- serving the lives of mother and child, and the writer had similar success with the first symphysiotomy, while Dr. M. U. O'Sullivan can show the splendid result of nine consecutive Caesarean sections, with one maternal death and the survival of all the children.
The progress in gynxcology during the period under review has, in common with advances in other parts of the world, been more marked than that exhibited in obstetrics. The marvellous stimulus given to pelvic and vaginal surgery by Marion Sims, Emmet, Sir Spencer Wells, and Lawson Tait, has its reflex in Victoria. For, in
Inter. Med. Jn1.1 Obstetrics and Gyncecology. 23
Jan. 20, 1908 J
addition to the work of Richard Tracy mentioned before, plastic operations on the cervix uteri and perinmum were largely done by
Drs. Balls-Headley and Rowan.
It is somewhat interesting to note that, while the change from what may be called a medical gynecology to surgical methods of treatment came gradually in older countries, the transformation in Victoria, at all events, was sudden. As a consequence, the .gynmcologist of that period was the subject of much adverse criticism, but on showing how well up in the line of progress he was, the work then done, subject of course to much modification, holds good to this day.
It may he truly said that, when this Journal began its existence fifty years ago, gynmcology was not, but now is. Yet, although many problems have found a satisfactory solution and absolute line of treatment in many instances laid down, much remains to be done.
For example, is it certain that the last word has been said regarding the management of fibroid disease of the uterus ? Opinion as to the necessity, or even the advisability, of operative measures in all myo- mata has not yet crystallised. And, again, granting operation advisable, do we find unanimity as to whether it shall be a complete Or partial hysterectomy or only a myomectomy ?
Apart from such debatable questions within the ology itself, the art and science is threatened with a greater destruction —ab- sorption. In two hemispheres, east and west, warning notes have been sounded that gynaecology has outlived its usefulness, and can well become a part of general surgery.
The question may pertinently be asked—Is there nothing more in gynmcology than surgical dexterity ? Doubtless, the writer of the article, " Obstetrics and Gynmcology," in the future centenary number of this Journal, will be able to give a satisfactory answer.
But it does seem as if there must be some intrinsic vitality in an .art which, during the past twenty-five years, has given health and .extended usefulness of life to women.
24 Intercolonial Medical Journal. Jan. 20, 1906 SEWERAGE SYSTEM OF MELBOURNE.
By W. THWAITES, M.A., M.C.E.
The Melbourne Sewerage System is designed to carry off all the polluted, domestic and manufacturing, water supply of the , Metropolis, together with all dejecta from the inhabitants. All rain water is excluded from the sewers, except under very excep- tional circumstances.
The chief difficulties in dealing with the sewerage of Melbourne were
(i) The large area over which the population is scattered; only very limited areas have from 6o to 65 persons per acre, while many of the outlying suburbs have only from 5 to zo persons per acre.
(2) The extensive areas of comparatively flat country, only a little elevated above high water mark.
(3) The absence of an outfall within a reasonable distance of the City.
The scheme carried out is a bold and comprehensive one, of very simple design, and comparatively easy to maintain.
Twenty-four Municipalities are included in the Metropolitan Area, with portions of two other outlying districts.
There are 112,816 tenements in the Metropolis, occupied by a little over 500,000; out of these houses it is proposed to connect, as soon as possible, 106,700, leaving only about 6000 properties undealt with in the thinly populated outlying areas.
Detail surveys have been completed of 110,151, leaving a balance of only 2665 still to deal with.
Plans have been plotted to a scale of 4oft. to one inch of 107,646, the unplotted houses numbering 5170.
Reticulation sewers are now available for 83,100, leaving only 23,60o tenements still to provide for.
There are now 74,611 tenements actually connected with the Sewerage system, besides 1330 in progress.
The unreticulated tenements are distributed amongst the Municipalities thus, October 31, 1905 :-
Brunswick ... 5142 Malvern ... 1347 Hawthorn 20I Essendon ••• 333o Preston ... 876 Melbourne 193 Williamstown 3177 M oorabbin ... 833 N unawading 193
Inter. Med. JnI.1
Jan. 20, 1906 Sewerage System of Melbourne. 25
Collingwood . 277o Heidelberg ... 690 Prahran 146 Northcote 2390 Footscray 672 Flemington 63 Brighton 2205 Fitzroy 649 Port Melb. 49 Caulfield 1628 Kew 612 North Melb. ... 17 Coburg 145o
Boroondara 1393 St. Kilda 419 South Melb. ... 6 Contracts are now being proceeded with in Essendon, Coiling wood, Caulfield, Footscray, Kew, St. Kilda, and Hawthorn.
The houses already connected are provided with 82,774 water closets, 55,272 baths, 40,888 sinks, 32,076 sets of washing troughs, 16,022 lavatories, 7174 stables, 1436 paved yards, 1390 cellars.
778 slop hoppers, 141 latrines, and too dairies.
All this work has been carried out under a Sewerage By-law, which has been made to agree, as far as possible, with the best modern sanitary practice; there are some improvements which could be made, but they are only in minor details.
All water closet cisterns discharge a three-gallon flush, and alt traps have a 24in. seal.
In order to assist the householder, a system of deferred pa) ments was initiated, which has worked remarkably well.
Up to November 28th, 31,245 houses, out of about 75,000 completed, had been carried out by the Board. The total expen- diture was £751,788-the owners of 6658 premises agreed to pay on completion, and 24,574 were started on deferred payments entirely, in 40 quarterly instalments extending over ten years, with 5 per cent. on the standing balance—the month's grace had not expired in the other thirteen houses.
The outstanding balance was only i250,152, as a large number of houses entered on the time payment list have been already paid for in full. The first house was only connected in August, 1897—eight years ago.
Nearly all the plans of house connections are prepared by the Board's officers, only in the larger buildings, under the superin- tendence of architects, are the plans generally prepared outside.
If an owner desire, the Board is obliged to prepare a plan and give an estimate of the work to be done. This estimate, if accepted by the owner, beomes a tender,. and the Board is obliged
26 Intercolonial Medical Journal. Jan. 20, 1906
to carry out the work for the amount of the estimate, but having this estimate, the owner has a guide as to whether it would be most advantageous to him to accept any private offer made to him, or the Board's estimate.
An owner can either ask the Board to carry out the work at actual cost, or accept the Board's estimate, or ask the Board to call public tenders, in which case the Board also puts in a tender, and the lowest offer, whether from private tenders or the Board, is accepted.
In all cases of the Board carrying out the work, in whatsoever way, the owner has the right of repaying the Board by deferred payments.
All this work in connection with the connecting of houses adds materially to the capital expenditure of the Board. Up to June 3oth, 1905, £478,415 had been advanced out of the Board's capital towards the house connection work, but the house owners owed the Board £257,707 at this date, leaving a net charge against capital of 1220,708, which covered the cost of connecting 71,689 houses, or an average cost of £3 Is. 6d. per tenement completed.
In other cities the greater portion of this sum would be paid directly out of the pockets of the ratepayers.
During the year 1904, the amount of water supplied daily varied from 227 gallons per tenement to 1o8,141 houses in the month of September, to 355 gallons to 108,564 tenements in December, while for the same period the sewage discharged varied from 245 gallons from 65,16o tenements in July to 289 gallons from 62,110 tenements in March. February yielded 304 gallons from 61,380, but a large proportion of this was due to heavy rains flooding the streets and entering the open tops of manholes and ventilators in the street sewers.
During 1905 the average amount of sewage pumped in January was 18,41o,000, equal to 268 gallons from 68,683 houses, falling in July to 231 gallons from 72,070, and rising in October to
18,410,000, or 249 gallons per tenement from 73,866 houses.
The sewage system has scarcely affected the water supply demands in winter, while in summer it materially reduces waste in flushing down yard drains, which is not nearly so necessary now that all the foul waters are carried under ground, and it has
Inter. IN,q1 Sewerage System of Melbourne. 27
Jan. 20. 1906 I
also brought about a great improvement in the sanitary condition of the soil immediately around the people's residences.
The pick up system starts from the boundary of the private property. A branch is provided at the public cost to every rated property, and in those of higher valuation, two or more. These branches, in other towns, are paid for at the cost of the property owner, while in Melbourne they have been paid for out of the public capital, and the Board has, in cheapening cost to the ratepayers, not only laid the branches in the main streets up to the boundaries of the private property, but also reticulated every existing lane, passage, alley, or court which the owner or occupier of two or more houses or buildings adjoining thereto, or proper- ties abutting thereon, have the right to use, or do commonly use
as a means of access to or drainage from such houses or buildings or properties.
These provisions have added most materially to the number of miles of sewers laid at the public expense.
November 3oth, 1905, being:—
MILES.
The totals up to
FEET.
Public Streets ... ••• 352 2,662 Public Rights of Way ... 166 ' 2,631
Private 71 69 1,618
Branches 146 2,360
734 3 , 99 1
In most cities of the world, only those in the public streets would be laid at the cost of the public, viz., 3524 miles, the remain- ing 382/ miles would have been paid for by the private owners.
This expenditure of public capital, to cheapen cost to the individual ratepayers, is always a subject for comment by visiting sanitary engineers from other parts of the world.
Even compared with the sister capital of Sydney, Melbourne sewerage reticulation is much more extensive for the same num- ber of houses provided for.
On June 3oth, 1904, Sydney controlled 82,215 tenements, with 6101 miles of sewers, whereas in Melbourne it took 791 miles to
provide for 81,958 tenements.
Intercolonial Medical Journal. Jan. 20, 1908
The actual number of miles of sewers and drains connected with the Pumping Station on November 6th, 1905, was:—
MILES. CHAINS. FEET.
House Connections 1,034 7 to
Branches to Houses 146 35 5o
Private Passages... 69 24 34
Public Rights of Way 166 39 57 Public Streets ... ... 352- 40 22
Main and Branch Sewers ... 78 44 6
1,847 31 47
This total length of sewers is just about the distance between Melbourne and Cape York, the extreme northerly part of Queens- land, or about the distance, in a direct line, between Melbourne and Perth.
Every point of the Metropolitan Area is so governed by the sewers of the scheme, that the sewage from any part, without sub- sidiary pumping, will gravitate to the wells at the Pumping Sta- tion.
The house connection drains start with 4in. stoneware, moulded Portland cement, or cast iron pipes, increasing to 6in., 9in., i2in., I sin., and 18in. stoneware, moulded Portland cement, or Monier pipes-2iin. and 24in. Monier, or brick and cement concrete, or cement concrete pipes, gradually increasing to sewers of 8ft. 6in.
and 9ft. diameter, entering the Pumping Station. There are two general pick-up systems, the southern and the northern.
The sewers are kept clean by periodical flushing, or by auto- matic syphons, discharging from 90o to r800 gallons of water in one or two minutes. These syphons are of the ordinary field type, but certainty of action is obtained by an ejector worked by the pressure of the local water supply, brought into play by a float, which does away with their unreliability of action through loss of vacuum.
The ventilation of the sewerage system is assisted by vent columns of from 4in. to 15in. diameter, and from t8ft. to 1241t.
long.
