296 A Short History of Nursing hours of work, and greatly improved standards of nursing among the Sisters of Charity. In 1906 Pope Pius X had sent out a circular in which nuns were counselled to lay aside false modesty and learn to be efficient nurses. A school of instruction was opened to them in Rome under his own aus- pices. Signora Celli's hospital census showed that forty per cent, of the entire nursing personnel of Italy were religious Sisters (with some monks in men's wards). The general national preference was for the nuns. They were a superior class of women ; their discipline was best, and their cost to the hospitals was less. She then went on to point out the unhygienic conditions of the Sisters' own lives, and their high percentage of illness. She advised leaving the nuns in charge of general ad- ministration and household economy; appointing trained Matrons and head nurses; abolishing the male officials who supervised the lay nurses; sep- arating the ward nurses from the general servants, and relieving the ward personnel from religious rule. The English system of nursing was introduced into Italy by Amy Turton, who lived in Florence in the English colony. She had been accustomed to visit the hospitals as a friendly visitor, and became so impressed with the need of nursing
