A critical summary of the evidence before the Royal Commission upon the Contagious Diseases Acts, 1866-1869 / prepared for the National Association for the Repeal of the Contagious Diseases Acts, by Douglas Kingsford.

  • Kingsford, D. P. W. (Douglas P. W.)
Date:
[1869]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A critical summary of the evidence before the Royal Commission upon the Contagious Diseases Acts, 1866-1869 / prepared for the National Association for the Repeal of the Contagious Diseases Acts, by Douglas Kingsford. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

    57/130 (page 7)
    U.479-80; 14,483 11,747; 15,026-8; 17,377-8 Kep- Ven. Com. 2477 Ho. I.df. Evce. 187; 189; 385; 398; 536; 588-9; 617; 677 ; 728; 742 ; 854 8055-6 486-7 11,747-9; 12,934; 18,163 7079; 14,476; 14,517; 14,735; 17,311; 17,848; 80,137; 20,302 applications are made and the “ worst cases are then selected for admission, being taken in according to the number of vacancies.” Thus, the fact that women patients at these voluntary hospitals are badly diseased proves only the eager competition for admission, and the insufficiency of accommodation provided. Mr. Acton in his book “Prostitution” (p.247) puts it forcibly. He says:—The same necessity of selection which is imposed upon the house-surgeon by the restricted number of beds at his disposal works evil in another way (He must) take as in-patients only those most malignant and comphcated cases. . . Competition among cases is as it were invited, the premium of a bed is held out for successful severity, and it is no exaggeration to say that the invitation is responded to and the prize contended for by the unfortunate out-patients who find themselves from week to week ‘ not eligible through seniority,’ ‘ not yet bad enough ’ to be taken into the house. The devices therefore to which they frequently resort in order to qualify are, first to throw away the hospital medicines, and then, reckless of consequences to society, to pursue the best known means of aggravating dis- ease, viz., drunkenness, debauchery, and utter self-neglect.” (c.)—In the subjected districts many prostitutes do everything they can to avoid being sent into hospital, though knowing that they are diseased. But this fact merely exemplifies the disad- vantage (pointed out in detail below) of hospitals, necessarily more or less on the footing of penal institutions, supplemented by police machinery for driving patients into them. A great majority of prostitutes wiU always hate, and avoid being driven into, such institutions. As opposed to the above facts, one has a mass of evidence given before the Venereal Commission and the Lords’ Committee, tending to show that prostitutes are quite willing and generally most anxious to obtain medical treatment, and that they take much trouble and travel long distances in order to gain admission to hospitals. And before the Commission there is evidence that under the voluntary system at Devonport (tried from December 3rd, 1863, till March 31st, 1865) all the beds provided were kept full [Inspector Anniss however, “from information received,” contradicts those who might be supposed to know, on this point]; that voluntary hospitals in London, Bristol and Liverpool have proved an entfre success ; and that generally prostitutes when diseased are most anxious to obtain medical treatment. It is stiU objected, however, that there are many perverse or reckless prostitutes who would not