Great was the jubilation in the
Nightingale Cabinet: the day of achievement had dawned at last.
The next two and a half years (1859-61) saw the introduction of
the whole system of reforms for which Miss Nightingale had been
struggling so fiercely--reforms which make Sidney Herbert's
tenure of power at the War Office an important epoch in the
history of the British Army. The four Sub-Commissions, firmly
established under the immediate control of the Minister, and
urged forward by the relentless perseverance of Miss Nightingale,
set to work with a will. The barracks and the hospitals were
remodelled; they were properly ventilated and warmed and lighted
for the first time; they were given a water supply which actually
supplied water, and kitchens where, strange to say, it was
possible to cook. Then the great question of the Purveyor--that
portentous functionary whose powers and whose lack of powers had
weighed like a nightmare upon Scutari--was taken in hand, and new
regulations were laid down, accurately defining his
responsibilities and his duties. One Sub-Commission reorganised
the medical statistics of the Army; another established in spite
of the last convulsive efforts of the Department an Army Medical
School. Finally, the Army Medical Department itself was
completely reorganised; an administrative code was drawn up; and
the great and novel principle was established that it was as much
a part of the duty of the authorities to look after the soldier's
health as to look after his sickness.
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