22
ANNUAL REPORT ON LUNATIC ASYLUMS.
The following table shows the ages, health on admission, disease causing death,
and period of residence in the asylum of the fatal cases :—
Name.
S. Venkannah ..
S. R. Lakshinanha ..
M. Atchaya .. ..
Unknown (Bellow) ..
P. Kottapoku ..
G. Atchanah .. ..
O. Venketruthnum ..
K. Kristamah ..
B. Sibo * .. ..
M. Seetaramudu ..
P. Atchamah .. ..
P. Seshama .. ..
Age.
28
25
40
40
30
26
57
45
13
46
21
28
Health on
Admission.
Bad .. ..
Do
..
..
Fair .. ..
Indifferent ..
Do. ..
Fair .. ..
Not recorded.
Do.
Very bad .. ..
Fair .. ..
Bad .. ..
Do. .. ..
Disease causing
Death.
General debility.
Apoplexy
General dropsy..
Do. ..
Cirrhosis
of
liver.
Dysentery ..
Do. ..
Do. ..
Do. ..
Paralysis of the
insane.
Softening of the
brain.
Dysentery ..
Residence in
the Asylum.
Y.
1
0
1
0
0
1
11
17
1
1
0
0
M.
3
6
2
5
4
4
11
4
2
7
7
2
D.
25
11
12
21
22
22
15
6
19
4
0
26
Remarks.
Civil males.
Criminal males.
Civil females.
The general work of cleaning and sweeping the grounds and drawing water
is performed by the patients and watermen; and some gardening has been done
during the year.
The vegetables are sold to the contractor for the patients.
The making of baskets and date-mats is still continued, and a certain number
of men help to repair the torn clothing.
The amount of Rs. 63-0-7 was realized by the sale of vegetables, baskets, and
date-mats during the year.
Intermittent fever has been very prevalent since October last in the neighbour-
ing village of Waltair, and a few of the lunatics also suffered from a similar kind
of fever; the type of fever was quotidian of a rather severe form, requiring large
doses of cinchona alkaloids to subdue it. This village has for some years past been
considered very healthy, and the only apparent cause of the recent epidemic of
fever is the unusually low level of the sub-soil water, resulting from a total failure
(locally) of the north-east monsoon.
The principal causes of sickness have been ague, diarrhoea, dysentery, debility,
&c.
One female civil lunatic and one criminal male lunatic escaped during the year.
The female escaped through the negligence of the ayah, but was recaptured by the
Police and has since been discharged as cured.
The criminal male lunatic escaped twice and was recaptured by the Police once,
and he has been in the custody of the Police since his second escape, but managed
to effect his escape from the Subsidiary Jail, in which he was confined, and is still at
large. This man is very quiet, but is particularly cunning in planning his escapes.
On the occasion of his second escape from the asylum he was shut up at night in
the guard-room in one of the corners of the verandah of the criminal ward as it was
considered more secure than the ward itself. The Warder on duty was apparently
asleep in front of the door of this guard-room and was awakened by some noise at
the gate of the enclosure, and on going there found one of the Venetian windows of
the ward propped up against the door; he then returned to the guard-room and
found that this lunatic had removed the tiles from the verandah roof and had thus
escaped. On ascertaining this an alarm was raised and the asylum premises
searched, but the man had completed his escape by getting over one of the gates of
the asylum compound.
At present too much depends on the vigilance of the Warders on duty at night
time; there are 8 Warders, all of whom are on duty during the day and four of
whom are on duty at the different wards every alternate night, consequently it
* An epileptic.