Annual Report on the Lunatic Asylum Jubbulpore for the year 1884.
As usual this Report will take the form of comments on the Statements
furnished at the end of the year.
STATEMENT 1 shows that 133 Males 99/Females 34 remained at the beginning of the year.
12 Males 10/Females 2 were admitted since: 2 males were re-admitted, bringing the
total population up to
147
Males
11/Females
36
Males
5
/Females
3
total population up to 147 Males 111/ Femal es 36 ; of these 8 Males 5 /Females 3 were discharged
cured, they have continued well ever since.
2 males were discharged otherwise; one, a European, was transferred to the
Colaba Lunatic Asylum ; another to the Central Jail.
4 Males 2/Females 2 died, leaving 133 Males 102/Females 31 remaining in the asylum at the
end of the year.
Of the 8 individuals who were discharged cured, 7 were under treatment
for " acute mania, " very much the most hopeful form of insanity ; the aver-
age period each was under treatment was 8½ months. The eighth was admitted
for dementia in 1878 and discharged after over six year's residence in the asylum,
she was a criminal lunatic. Early in 1878 she was noticed to be strange in her
manner: then it was said she grew violent, when her husband tied her up and
took her to a neighbouring village with the intention of having the evil spirit
with which they supposed she was possessed, knocked out of her ! It was said
that she received very rough treatment; she escaped and fled towards her own
village : on the way she came across a neighbour's child, took up a stick and
killed her. She was a strong powerful woman, aged about 30 years : she was
under my observation in the Havalat, and at the trial I deposed that during
this time I could not discover any sign of insanity about her. In this opinion
the Sessions Judge concurred, but the evidence left no doubt in his mind that
she was insane at the time that she committed the act; accordingly he
acquitted her on that ground, and recommended that she should be made over
to her husband as soon as the official visitors considered that it could be done
with safety.
During the six years she was in the asylum she was very quiet and rational;
but for a long time the visitors hesitated to discharge her until time had proved
that the cure was permanent. This forms another illustration of the manner
in which the gratification of the homicidal impulse often removes all signs of
the insane condition which prompted it.
Two harmless lunatics, idiots, were re-admitted from the Damoh district;
they were discharged by the official visitors in 1883 as not being proper cases
for treatment in a Lunatic Asylum under provisions of Chief Commissioner's Book
Circular No. 31 of 1877 ; but the Deputy Commissioner managed to get them
sent back again : as we were pressed for room at the time in consequence of two
wards being re-roofed, they were with the consent of the official visitors, kept in
the Main Dispensary. They were both in bad health when received back in the
Asylum, suffering from chronic dysentery, in addition one had chronic rheumatic
anthritis, which completely crippled him ; both were sent from Damoh in a cart.
One died subsequently of his sickness, the other is slowly improving. They
were perfectly harmless and never gave any trouble while in the Dispensary.
One was there for nearly 4 months till he died ; the other was there for a year.
The daily average number under treatment was 133.86 against 137.20 for
the year preceding ; of these 100.75 were males and 33.11 were females.
Males 20
STATEMENT 2 treats of criminal lunatics. In 1884 there remained 28 Males 20/ Femal es 8 ;
2 males were admitted during the year, being the lowest number admitted
since 1879.
One named Ladley was found to be insane while undergoing a term of 6
months' rigorous imprisonment in the Saugor Jail; on the expiry of his sentence
he was found to be still insane and unfit for discharge, and the visitors recom-
mended his transfer to the non-criminal list.