APPENDIX FLAW OF 30 SEPTEMBER 1780
Whereas, the late regulations for conducting theaffairs of the general hospital are in many respects defective; and itis necessary that the same be revised and amended, in order that the sickand wounded may be properly provided for and attended, and the businessof the hospitals conducted with regularity and oeconomy; therefore,
Resolved, That there be one director ofthe military hospitals, who shall have the general direction and superintendanceof allthe hospitals to the northward of North Carolina; that, within the aforesaidlimits, there be three chief hospital physicians, whoshall also be surgeons; one chief physician, who shall also be a surgeon,to each seperate army; fifteen hospital physicians, whoshall also be surgeons; twenty surgeons mates for the hospitals; one purveyor,with one assistant; one
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apothecary; one assistant apothecary; and to eachhospital a steward, matron, orderly men and nurses, as heretofore:
That the director, or, in his absence, one ofthe chief hospital physicians, be empowered and required, with the adviceandconsent of the Commander in Chief, or commander of a seperate army, toestablish and regulate such a number of hospitals, atproper places, for the reception of the sick and wounded of the army, asmay be found necessary:
That the director be authorised and instructedto enjoin the several chief hospital physicians, and other officers ofthe hospitalsunder his superintendance, to attend at such posts or stations as he mayjudge proper, and also to attend and perform suchduties, at any post or place, as a change of the position of the army,or other circumstances, may from time to time makenecessary, and shall be required by the Commander in Chief; and that, incase of any dispute concerning their seniority orprecedence, the director shall determine the same in the first instance,the party supposing himself aggrieved being at liberty toappeal for redress to the Medical Committee.
That in time of action, and on any other emergency,when the regimental surgeons are not sufficient in number to attendproperly to the sick and wounded that cannot be removed to the hospitals,the director, or, in his absence, the nearest chiefhospital physician, be empowered and required, upon request of the chiefphysician and surgeon of the army, to send from thehospitals under his care, to the assistance of such sick and wounded, asmany surgeons as ran possibly be spared from thenecessary business of the hospitals:
That the director, or, in his absence, two ofthe chief hospital physicians, shall make out and deliver, from time totime, to thepurveyor, proper estimates of hospital stores, medicines, instruments,dressings, and such other articles as may be judgednecessary for the use of the hospitals; also direct the apothecary or hisassistant, to prepare and deliver medicines, instruments,dressings, and other articles in his possession to the hospitals and surgeonsof the army and navy, as he or they may judgenecessary:
That the director authorise and instruct the purveyorand apothecary to supply, for the use of the regimental surgeons, suchmedicines and refreshments as may be proper for the relief of the sickand wounded, before their removal to a general hospital,and to be dispensed under the care, and at the direction of the chief physicianof the army:
That the director, or, in his absence, the chiefhospital physicians, respectively, be empowered occasionally to employsecondmates, when the number of the sick shall increase so as to make it necessary,and to discharge them as soon as thecircumstances of the sick will admit:
That the director, or, in his absence, the chiefhospital physicians, respectively, shall appoint a ward master for eachhospital, toreceive the spare regimental cloathing, arms, and accoutrements of eachsoldier admitted therein, keeping entries of and givingreceipts for every article received, which, when the soldier shall be discharged,shall be accounted for by the said ward masterwith the commanding officer of the regiment to which such soldier belonged,or the officer directed to take charge of theconvalescents from the said hospital; or, in case of the death of the soldier,shall be accounted for with, and delivered to thequartermaster of the regiment to which the said soldier belonged; and theward master shall receive and be accountable for thehospital cloathing, and perform such other services as the chief hospitalphysician shall direct.
That the director shall make returns of all thesick and wounded in the hospitals, once every month, to the medical committee,together with the names and ranks of all the officers and others employedin the several hospitals:
That the director be required to employ such partof his time as may be spared from the duties before pointed out to him,invisiting and prescribing for the sick and wounded of the hospitals; andthat he pay particular attention to the conduct of theseveral officers in the hospital department, and arrest, suspend and bringto trial, all delinquents within the same:
That the duty of the chief hospital physiciansshall be, to do and perform all the duties herein before enjoined themto do in theabsence of the director; to receive and obey
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the orders of the director, made and deliveredto them in writing, to superintend the practice of physick and surgeryin thehospitals put under their particular care by the director, or which, bythe order of the commander in chief or the commander ofa seperate army, may be by them established; to see that the hospital physiciansand other officers attending the same, do theirduty; and make monthly returns to the director, of the state and numberof the sick and wounded in the hospitals under theircare; and also make returns to the director, and to the medical committee,of all delinquent officers, in order that they may bespeedily removed or punished; and to take measures that all such sick andwounded as are recovered and fit for duty bedelivered weekly to the officer of the guard, to be conducted to the army:when present at any hospital, to issue orders to theproper officers for supplying them with necessaries; and generally, inthe absence of the director, to superintend and controulthe business of such hospitals, suspend delinquent and remove unnecessarynon-commissioned officers, making report to thedirector; and, when in their power, to attend and perform or direct allcapital operations:
That the hospital physicians shall take chargeof such particular hospitals as may be assigned them by the director: Theyshallobey the orders of the director, or in his absence, of the chief hospitalphysician: They shall have power to suspend officersunder them, and to confine other persons serving in the hospitals undertheir charge, for negligence or ill-behaviour, until thematter be regularly inquired into: They shall diligently attend to thecases of the sick and wounded of the hospitals under theircare, administering at all times proper relief, as far as may be in theirpower: They shall respectively give orders, under theirhands, to the assistant purveyor or steward at the hospital, for the issuingprovisions and stores, as well as for the procuring any other small articlesthat the exigencies of the hospital may require, and which the store isnot provided with, having always a strict regard to oeconomy, as well asthe welfare of the sick then to be provided for: They shall make weeklyreturns to thenearest chief hospital physician, of the state of the hospitals under theirrespective care.
The mates shall each take charge of and attendthe patients assigned them and perform such other duties as shall be directedby the director, chief or other physicians and surgeons.
The chief physician and surgeon of the army shallbe subject to the orders and controul of the director: His duty shall betosuperintend the regimental surgeons and their mates, and to see that theydo their duty: To hear all complaints against the saidregimental surgeons and mates, and make report of them to the director,or, in his absence, to the Commander in Chief orcommanding officer of a seperate army, that they may be brought to trialby court-martial for misbehaviour: To draw for andreceive from the purveyor a suitable number of large strong tents, beds,bedding and hospital stores, and from the apothecary,or his assistant, proper medicines, for such sick and wounded persons ascannot be removed to the general hospital withsafety, or may be rendered fit for duty in a short time. He shall alsosee that the sick and wounded, while under his care, areproperly attended and provided for, and conveyed, when fit to be removed,to the general hospital; for which last purpose, heshall be supplied by the quartermaster general, with a proper number ofconvenient waggons and drivers; he shall have asteward, which he is to appoint, to receive and properly dispense sucharticles of diet and refreshment as shall be procured forthe sick; and also shall appoint such a. number of nurses and orderly menas may be necessary for the attendance of the sickand wounded under his care. He shall cause daily returns to be made tohim of all the sick and wounded which have beenremoved to the hospitals, all that remain in the hospital tents, all thatare become fit for duty, all that are convalescent, and allwho may have died, specifying the particular maladies under which the sickand wounded labour, and shall make a monthlyreturn thereof to the director, who shall add it to his general hospitalreturns, to be transmitted monthly to the MedicalCommittee.
That whenever any regimental surgeon or mate shallbe absent from his regiment, without leave from the chief physician andsur-
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geon or commander of the army where his duty lies,the said chief physician and surgeon shall have power to remove suchsurgeon or mate and forthwith appoint another in his stead.
That the purveyor provide, or cause to be provided,all hospital stores, medicines, instruments, dressings, utensils, and suchother articles as shall be prescribed by the written order of the director,or two of the chief hospital physicians, and deliver, orcause the same to be delivered, upon written orders, under the hands ofthe director, or chief hospital physician, or one of thehospital physicians, having the charge of a particular hospital, or ofa chief physician and surgeon of the army, which, withreceipts thereon for delivery of the same, shall be his sufficient vouchers.He shall be allowed a clerk, and as many storekeepers as occasion may require, and the director shall approve of. Heshall also pay the salaries of the officers, and all otherexpences of the hospitals. He shall render his accounts every three monthsto the Board of Treasury for settlement, and makeapplication for money to the Medical Committee, before whom he shall layestimates of articles necessary, which shallpreviously have been approved and signed by the director or two of thechief hospital physicians; at the same time he shallrender to them an account of the expenditure of the last sum of money advancedto him; and the said Medical Committee shalllay such estimates before Congress, with their opinion thereon:
That the assistant purveyor shall procure suchsupplies, and do and perform such parts of the purveyor's duty, as by himshallbe particularly assigned to him.
That the apothecary and his assistant receive,prepare and deliver medicines, instruments and dressings, and such otherarticlesof his department, to the hospitals and army, on orders in writing fromthe director or either of the chief hospital physicians, orchief physician and surgeon of the army; and that he be allowed as manymates as occasion may require, and the director shallapprove of:
That the director, or in his absence, the chiefhospital physician, shall appoint a steward for each hospital, whose dutyit shall be to purchase vegetables and other small articles, under thedirection of the purveyor, and to receive hospital stores from thepurveyor, and provisions from the commissary general, and issue the samefor the use of the sick and wounded, agreeably tothe order of the physician and surgeon attending such hospital; the stewardto account with the purveyor for all such issues:
That the director, or, in his absence, the chiefhospital physician, appoint a proper number of matrons, nurses, and others,necessary for the regular management of the hospitals, and fix and ascertaintheir pay, not exceeding the sums heretoforeallowed; and point out and prescribe their particular duties and employments,in writing, which they are enjoined to observeand obey:
That the director, with two chief hospital physicians,be empowered to fix the pay of second mates, and of such clerks, storekeepers, and other persons, as may occasionally be employed; and also makesuch regulations, and point out and enjoin, inwriting, such further particular duties for the several officers in thehospital department, as they may judge necessary for theregular management of the same; which duties shall always be consistentwith, and in no wise contradictory to any of the dutiesherein before particularly enumerated, and which being reported to, andapproved of by the Medical Committee, shallthereupon become obligatory to all those concerned:
That the quartermaster general furnish the hospitaldepartment, from time to time, as occasion may require, with such a numberof horses and wagons as may be necessary for removing the sick and wounded,and for transporting the hospital stores; butthat no other horses than those belonging to the officers of the department,for which forage may be herein allowed, be keptseperately and at the expence of the department.
That no person concerned in trade, on his ownaccount, shall be suffered to act as an officer in the hospital or medicaldepartment of the army:
That no officer or other person in the hospitaldepartment, except the sick and wounded, be permitted to use any of thestoresprovided for the sick:
That the director, chief hospital physicians,
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and the chief physicians and surgeons of the army,physicians and surgeons, purveyor, apothecary, assistant purveyor, andassistant apothecary, be appointed and commissioned by Congress; the regimentalsurgeons and mates to be appointed asheretofore:
That the director, with the advice and concurrenceof two of the chief hospital physicians, appoint all hospital mates, whichappointments shall be certified by warrants under the hand of the director;in which appointments no person shall be admittedunder the age of twenty-one years:
That all the officers in the hospital or medicaldepartments, shall be subjected to trial by courts-martial for all offences,in thesame manner as officers of the line of the army.
Resolved, That the pay and establishmentof the officers of the hospital department, and medical staff, be as follows:
Director, one hundred and fifty dollars per month,two rations for himself, and one for his servant, per day, and forage fortwohorses:
Chief physicians and surgeons of the army andhospitals, each, one hundred and forty dollars per month, two rations perday,and forage for two horses:
Purveyor and apothecary, each, one hundred andthirty dollars per month:
Physicians and surgeons of the hospitals, each,one hundred and twenty dollars per month, one ration per day, and forageforone horse:
Assistant purveyors and apothecaries, each, seventy-fivedollars per month:
Regimental surgeons, each, sixty-five dollarsper month, one ration per day, and forage for one horse:
Surgeons' mates in the hospitals, fifty dollarsper month, one ration per day:
Surgeons' mates in the army, forty-five dollarsper month, one ration per day:
Steward for each hospital, thirty-five dollarsper month, one ration per day:
Ward master for each hospital, twenty-five dollarsper month, one ration per day.
Resolved, That none of the aforesaid officers,or other persons employed in any of the hospitals, be entitled to rationsofprovisions or forage when on furlough.
Resolved, That the chief physician of thearmy be allowed a two horse covered waggon for transporting his baggage:
That the several officers abovementioned shallreceive their pay in the new currency, emitted pursuant to a resolutionofCongress of the 18th day of March last; and that they be allowed and paidat the rate of five dollars of said currency per month for every retainedration; and shall each be entitled annually to draw cloathing from thestores of the cloathier general, in the same manner and under the sameregulations as are established for officers of the line, by a resolutionof Congress of the 25th November, 1779:
That the returns for cloathing for officers inthe medical staff (regimental surgeons and their mates, who are to drawwith theregimental staff, excepted) be signed by the directors, or one of the chiefhospital physicians; and such cloathing shall bedelivered either by the cloathier general or any sub-cloathier in the statein which the officer to receive cloathing shall reside, inthe same manner as is provided in the cases of other staff officers nottaken from the line:
That the several officers whose pay is establishedas above (except the stewards and ward masters) shall at the end of thewarbe entitled to a certain provision of land, in the proportion following,viz.
The director to have the same quantity as a brigadier-general;
Chief physicians and purveyor, the same as a colonel;
Physicians and surgeons and apothecary, the sameas a lieutenant colonel;
Regimental surgeons and assistants to the purveyorand apothecary, the same as a major;
Hospital and regimental surgeons' mates, the sameas a captain;
That the former arrangements of the hospital department,and all resolutions heretofore passed touching the same, so far as theyare inconsistent with the foregoing, be repealed, excepting that the hospitalsin the southern department, from North Carolina to Georgia, inclusive,be continued under the same regulations as heretofore, until the furtherorder of Congress.
SOURCE: Ford, Journals of theContinental Congress, 18: 878-88.
