March 20, 1923
There are one or two facts concerning the Grand Carnival hospital appeal that appear to need stating so that the public, and particularly the contributing public, shall know both why the appeal is being made and why there appears to be some little element of dissatisfaction on the part of members of the Mildura hospital committee and others concerned in the conduct of the Easter Fair.
The Grand Carnival committee, it is well known, have always contemplated the making of big gifts to the hospital and other Mildura institutions, but before they can do anything really great in that direction they must first assure the stability of the carnival as an annual function; and they dare not promise in advance what they will do for the hospital.
Just about the time that Dr Henderson made his recent grave disclosures concerning the hospital's needs, the carnival committee were considering the Beauty Contest as a means of advertising the carnival. It was suggested to them that if all the profits of the Beauty Contest could be allocated to the hospitals, the committee would feel more free to devote its carnival profits, if any, to the building up of a reserve.
The suggestion was adopted, and the Beauty Contest, as a charity scheme, was duly launched.
Perhaps no one had expected that it would be taken up at once with such enthusiasm; but the fact that it started with a rush proved that the community was aching for just this pleasant form of diversion, and the fact that it had the charity hall-mark gave it at once an assurance of success.
But certain members of the hospital committee, and divers ladies responsible for stall at the hospital fair are said to be complaining that the new stunt is inimical to the old, and that the hospital fair will be a failure.
A practical-minded person would be tempted to ask: "And what matter if it does?"
Will it not rather advertise the fair, and awaken interest in it, and make it a more assured success?
There is no lady on any of the Beauty Contest committees that will not cheerfully give her services during fair-time to the hospital committee. And, in any case, there is a wealth of unused talent and idle time needing only to be drawn on by the committee.
The whole situation needs to be viewed in proper perspective.
An attempt is being made to raise a large sum of money for hospital building and maintenance purposes.
If £3,000 could be raised it would not be too much; it £1,000 were raised it would alleviate the hospital's present distress.
The hospital committee have their hardy annual, the fair; some other equally public-spirited gentlemen have promulgated a scheme of money raising under the title of The Beauty Contest.
Other hospitals are in it, but Mildura will benefit to the largest amount.
The fair will raise money, the concerts and sports and other stunts will also raise money.
What in the name of plain common sense can it matter to the hospital committee how the money comes, so long as the public are induced to contribute three times as much as they otherwise would, and to enjoy the process of painless extraction?
