PALACE OF HEALING

Without the persistence of the indefatigable Mrs. Wilson, some quite marvelous achievements by courageous individuals who have dedicated their lives to others would never have been brought to popular attention--therefore the inevitable growls about this author's sunny-surface treatment of personalities, her pudding style, must be somewhat muted. This story of the founding and history of the remarkable Dr. Clara Swain Hospital in Bareilly, India, does not arouse quite the same interest as her inspirational biographies, mainly because the character of a group effort is more diffuse and difficult to convey. Dr. Clara Swain, the first woman missionary doctor in Asia, founded her hospital in 1872 and her struggle to obtain medical training in the United States, her backing from a women's Methodist society, represented a triumph of female determination over male skepticism and downright opposition. Mrs. Wilson traces the pioneer beginnings of this hospital for women, the later years when men were welcomed as patients and staff members, the present when the hospital under the supervision of Dr. Ernest Sundaram becomes an Indian institution, retaining its Christian tradition. Packed with anecdotal accounts of the physical expansion of the hospital, this has a predictable inspirational appeal, although not of as much general interest as last year's Handicap Race.