Dentist Wanted!
p. 66 · Read in the full issue
From Our Own Correspondent
Rarotonga, Jan. 22.
THE only dentist resident here (Mr.
Hodgins) was drowned recently; and the community now is anxious about a successor.
Officials are granted passages to New Zealand at not infrequent intervals, and can there obtain expert dental attention.
Such facilities are not open to the ma jority of European residents, and cer tainly not to the native population. If
the island be left long without a dentist one cannot help wondering what will be come of those persons who had their teeth recently extracted by Mr. Hodgins, and, at the time of his death, were await ing sets.
Whilst heartily approving of govern mental economy, local opinion is against it taking this form and considers that the small annual sum necessary to pay a dentist for part-time school-clinical work (and which would also be in the nature of a guaranteed minimum salary) might be balanced by discarding a teacher or some other not wholly indispensable official.