The next day I entered on my duties. On taking my seat in the consulting-room the master brought in and laid before me a large volume, the Workhouse Medical Relief Book. I turned over the pages for the week, and noticed the names and extras ordered for the sick. I saw that ham, sausages, tripe, fish, eggs, were entered rather frequently. At last I said to the master, who was standing by, "You surely have not all these people on the sick list in the House! I did not see a third of this number when I went over the House yesterday." "Yes," he replied, "they are here;" on which I said, "Let everything remain as entered in the book until I can arrange to go over the establishment and see them all, which I will do this week." I then went through the sick and infirm wards. On going through the wards I ordered what in my judgment was necessary for the sick in the way of medicines, much to the astonishment of the head nurse, who stared at me in a half-dazed manner. There was one patient with a very foul and offensive ulcer, for whom I ordered a charcoal poultice: she came to me before I left the House to ask me "what I meant." I replied, "A charcoal poultice." She then said, "I never heard of such a thing before." I then asked her how long she had been there; she said eight years. The next day I had occasion to order a carrot poultice; I met with the same astonishment and ignorance of what was meant. At last she frankly stated that she was about to learn her duties, for nothing of the kind had ever been used by her before; and further, she said that as she never had any medicine to give the people, she had not troubled herself much about the patients; indeed, I learned on inquiry that she used to be in waiting to see the doctor each morning, and so soon as he was gone she considered her duties were over, and she returned to her own sitting-room till next day. I could never get her to give my medicines as directed. Apart from this indifference as to medicines, she was kind to the patients and respectful to me. On the male side I found a superintendent nurse who really knew her duties. She confirmed the statement voluntarily made by Mr. French, that no medicines were ever provided for the sick. She also said that the Guardians knew all about it, and that they treated it as a great joke. This was not correct as regards some of the Guardians, as I subsequently ascertained. It was known to the St. James's section of the Board, but repudiated by those of St. Anne's. Seeing that we had had a medical inspector and self-called medical adviser for five years, whose duty it was to visit this Workhouse infirmary, his failure to discover these omissions was in the highest degree remarkable; but then the system prevailed at the Local Government Board, and our Workhouse Infirmaries Association had utterly failed to alter it. The reason for all this was not far to seek.