Annual Reports.
No. 738.
GENERAL DEPARTMENT.
Bombay Castle, 24th March 1879.
Letter from the Surgeon General, Indian Medical Department, No. S.B.-93, dated
10th March 1879—Submitting the Annual Administration and Progress Report
of the Insane Asylums in the Bombay Presidency for the year 1878.
RESOLUTION.—Government are gratified to observe that this report has
been submitted within the date prescribed, and they hope that the Surgeon
General, Indian Medical Department, will show a similar praiseworthy prompti-
tude as regards the other annual reports which have to be sent in by him.
The facts of the past year are clearly and concisely summarised by Dr. Hunter
in his report, which, with the précis of the reports from the different Superin-
tendents and the various appendices, contains all that is requisite on the subject.
2. The examination of statement No. I. shows that the whole number of
lunatics confined in 1878 was 829, as compared with 869 in the preceding year.
Of these, 681 were males and 148 females, and the total number remaining in
the asylums at the end of the year was 580, comprising 463 males and 117
females. There were admitted during the year 202 males and 40 females.
There were discharged 185 males and 23 females, 63 of the former and 8 of the
latter having been cured, while 110 males and 14 females are described as
improved, and 10 males and 1 female left the asylums unimproved. There
were 41 deaths, as compared with 56 in 1877 The daily average of lunatics
confined was 594.2 as against 598.9 in the previous year.
3. From statement No. II. it appears that the numbers of criminal lunatics
rose from 106 in 1877 to 111, comprising 106 males and 5 females. Of these
12 males and 1 female were discharged and 6 males died, leaving 88 males and
4 females in confinement at the close of the year.
4. In statement No. III. are mentioned the religions, sexes, and residences
of the patients admitted into the asylums during 1878. Of the 92 Christians,
84 were Europeans, Hindus numbered 93, Musalmans 66, and Pársis 2. It is
gathered from statement No. IV. that among the new admissions there were
66 European soldiers, 8 Native soldiers, and one European sailor.
There
were 20 cultivators, 31 labourers, 49 paupers and mendicants, and 23 petty
tradesmen and dealers. Particulars are given in statements Nos. V. and VI. of
the ages of patients newly admitted, and of the prevalent types of insanity,
which need not be repeated here.
5. The causes of insanity are specified in statement No. VII., and corre-
spond for the most part with those assigned in previous reports. To the use of
gánja 142 cases are attributed, to alcohol 46, while 33 were hereditary and con-
genital; 25 were due to epilepsy, 50 to grief, 10 to fright, and 7 to religious
excitement. In 397 cases no cause could be assigned. The chief causes of
physical sickness were fevers—335 cases as compared with 298 in 1877—and
diarrhœa and dysentery, of which there were 95 cases as against 110 in the pre-
vious year. The mortality amongst the patients was for the most part assign-
able to these three causes, as well as epilepsy, old age, and debility.
6. An abstract of statement No. IX. is given at paragraph 13 of the report,
and from this it appears that the total receipts, including Rs. 1,00,449-9-10 re-
ceived from the Treasury, were Rs. 1,12,337-8-11. In the expenditure appear
the items of Rs. 10,207-8-5 remitted to the Treasury on account of paying-
patients, and Rs. 1,669-10-8 on account of sales of garden produce, so that the
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