RETORT ON TIIE TEZPUR LUNATIC ASYLUM.
13
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s fuel,
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i small
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e been
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nk the
. Two I
hrougli
3 of the
is could
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nnatics,
ers has
was, as
3ver seen anything in my constant intercourse with, and supervision of, my patients which
Jvvould lead me to suppose that violence was ever used. There can be no doubt of this fact
■that patients received into the Asylum with the character of being violent, intractable, and
dangerous, even murderous, have on no one occasion shown themselves such in the
Msylum,—in fact, the first week or two seems to have such a soothing effect that one is
inclined at times to doubt whether the characters given with the patients have been written
%i jest or earnest. I look on this as a sign that, on the whole, the keepers are kind to those
under their charge. Tear may play a part in keeping patients quiet in the presence of a
fbnllyhig keeper, but in an Asylum like this the keeper in charge of any body of the
lunatics is constantly changed, and no one man has a certainty of being present to
Jintimidate the lunatics when spoken with.
no
Garden, Manufactures, fyc. {Statement No. 11).— No manufactures have been
attempted, and 1 do not see my way at present to introduce such as would be profitable,
fthough 1 am anxious to do so. The great majority of the lunatics seem unfit for any but
most ordinary agricultural labour, and those who perform this, except under a degree of
compulsion, are very few.
34. The distribution of occupation, &c, has been—
Clearing the compound .,
In the garden
Books
Miscellaneous light work
Sweeper
Repairs of buildings
Unable to work
Sick in hospital
Total
Daily average
...
13-99 1
...
2-33
...
2-98 >
...
2-89
...
2-39
...
2-89
...
0-72 )
...
G-23J r
...
40-42
Total.
27-47
12-95
35. No cash has been received during the year, but the value of the vegetables,
turmeric, ginger, and mustard-seed, &c, grown within the precincts and used in the Asylum
has amounted to Rs. 197-11-3, and I do not think myself that more could have been
done with the materials at command. The average number entered as employed during
the year in the garden, which has rendered this profit, was 2'33, such being the number
that could be trusted with the garden tools; bat, as much of the weeding, &c, was done by
other insanes, strict account or valuation of whose labour could not be kept, these figures
are under the actual number who may be said to have been employed in the garden. Other
works of a really profitable nature have been carried out by the lunatics, but no cash credit
taken. Thus, all the cooking has been done, and so the wages of cooks, probably Rs. 20
per month, saved. Much of the repairs of buildings has also been done by them, which
was formerly carried out by hired labour, such as plastering, leeping of the barracks, &c.
A considerable amount of the drainage also has been done by them, and the precincts
also owe their extreme cleanliness and neatness, almost beauty, to their labour.
36. The old and worthless compoundcr, who never showed himself fit for a
position requiring so much energy and knowledge, has taken his discharge and gone to his
home, and been replaced by a highly intelligent native, formerly a vaccinator in Nagpur,
who shows at present (I cannot speak for the future) every signs of becoming a highly
useful member of the establishment.
37. Of Babu Nibaran Chandra Banerjee, the overseer, I have only to repeat what I
said in my last report, that he is a well-qualified, well-conducted, and zealous subordinate,
apparently with his heart in his work.
scapes.
to their
nguagc,
to com-
have I