At the annual meeting of the Lock Hospital, on Wednesday,
the Duke of Somerset, the Duke of Cambridge, Earl de Grey and Ripon, the Hon. A. Kinnaird, Sir J. Pakington, and Lord C. Paget all strongly advocated legislation to restrict the spread of contagious sexual disease. All affirmed that the evil had grown to a height in the army and navy which made it a most serious ques- tion of State, and Lord C. Paget stated that he did not despair of seeing a measure already prepared introduced into Parliament this session. We do trust, if anything is to be done, that the authors of the Bill will show some small degree of courage, and do the work completely. They will have no opposition from the aristo- cracy, and much less from the middle class than they expect ; but if the bill is to be carried they must state the truth, and state it without the nauseous prudery they affect.. By the way, why in the world do the Horse Guards allow the army in India to be destroyed in the way it is by this disease ? Native and European opinion are alike on the side of regulation, and ten lines from Sir Charles Wood would save us 5,000 invalids a year. He has no ten-pounders behind him to shout about " French principles."
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