LUNATIC ASYLUMS IN BENGAL.
33
of the culverts and drains could not have been carried out by means of free
labour for probably less than five or six times the amount actually expended."
Employment.
20. A large portion of the inmates was put to some employment, viz.
71 per cent., and this percentage has been gradually altered, inasmuch as in
January there was only 32 per cent., whereas in December there was a per-
centage of 82 of the males at work. As an example of the employments,
October is selected. In this month 82.8 per cent. of the strength was employed
as follows:—
Garden ... ...
Cook-house ... ...
Oil-making ... ...
Wheat-grinding ... ...
Morah-making ... ...
Basket-making ... ...
Weaving ... ...
Tailoring ... ...
Twine-spinning ... ...
Manufacturing of aloe fibres ...
Soorkee-pounding ... ...
27.6
3.8
10.5
10.5
3.1
1.4
1.2
3.1
1.9
6.3
8.4
Grass-cutting ... ...
Water-carrying ... ...
Hospital Assistants ...
Masonry ... ...
Cleaning ... ...
Cotton cleaning ... ...
Other light labours ...
Total ...
9.6
0.6
0.6
0.5
7.8
0.5
2.6
100.
Deaths.
21. Eleven deaths occurred during the year. Regarding one of the
cases, Mr. Birch writes—" The death from peritonitis merits special mention
on account of its peculiarity. Intestinal worms was the actual cause. The
patient was admitted on 13th February with peritonitis and suppression of
urine, and he died on the 16th February. On post-mortem examination the
usual appearances of severe peritonitis were observed. The ileum and jejunum
were full of round worms, the former being almost black and ulcerated in
many places; the upper part of this gut was found to be perforated, and
through the opening 20 rounds worms had escaped into the peritonial cavity.
The cœcum and colon also contained round worms. Altogether 424 of the
parasites were taken from the intestine.
" Talim Singh, whose death is ascribed to round worms, was admitted on
2nd March into hospital, he having been observed to vomit round worms. He
died on March 9th; during this interval he vomited 105 and voided per rectum
295 round worms. The intestines were found after death to be deeply con-
gested and ulcerated, and 332 round worms were removed from them."
Solitary
confinement.
22. Solitary confinement hardly exists, inasmuch as each lunatic put in a
separate cell has a small airing court in which he spends a good part of each
day under charge of a keeper or keepers. The daily number so separated was
1.42, or 0.6 per cent. of strength. On over two occasions this kind of separa-
tion had to be persisted in for two or three weeks at a time. Thirty-three indi-
viduals were confined on 86 occasions, the periods of such confinements aggre-
gating 520 days, or 15.7 days a year for each of those separated. No other
form of restraint has been employed.
Asylum garden.
23. The asylum garden supplied vegetables for the use of the inmates
for 224 days of the year. This ought, Mr. Birch thinks, to have been better
had there not been a deficiency of water for irrigation. Wells in the garden
are much required.
Hospital case-
book.
24. As to the hospital case-books, Mr. Birch writes—" The Deputy
Surgeon-General of the Dinapore circle procured some of the forms which are
used for noting cases at the Royal Edinburgh Asylum, and it seemed to me
that they would prove so useful in facilitating the important work of case-taking
that I had 500 copies privately printed for use in this asylum. All the hospital
cases are now written on these sheets, and thus without trouble every point is
noted in detail and in systematic order. I would beg to suggest that these
forms (of which I send a copy) be adopted by the Medical Department and
supplied to asylums. It occurs to me, too, that it would be a good thing if a
few such forms were distributed to every Civil Surgeon for use when called upon
to report concerning the mental condition of a patient prior to his admission
into an asylum. We should certainly then see fewer of the meagre statements
which sometimes accompany patients. But few medical officers have had the
opportunity of studying insanity, and the form which is to be found in Bucknill
and Tuke's treatise would greatly assist them when investigating a case."
e