3
Statement No. IV shows the previous occupations of the insanes admitted
during the year 1898. Soldiers (mostly Europeans) form the majority, viz. 37,
beggars and mendicants numbered 25, merchants and traders 22, clerks 17,
labourers 16, domestics servants 15, and cultivators 14. In 36 cases the occupa-
tion was not ascertained, and 33 had no occupation.
Statement No. V gives the ages of the insanes admitted according to sex.
Under 20 there were 15 insanes (12 males and 3 females), between 20 and 40
there were 215 (183 males and 32 females), between 40 and 60 years of age
there were 49 (36 males and 13 females), and above 60 years 3 (1 male and
2 females).
Statement No, VI treats of the various types of insanity with the result
of the treatment of each form, and is summarised in the following table:—
Idiocy ... ... ... ...
Mania, acute or chronic ... ...
Melancholia ... ... ...
Dementia, including acquired ... ...
Mental stupor ... ... ...
General paralysis of the insane ... ...
Delusional insanity ... ... ...
Declared to have recovered, or not yet diag-
nosed... ... ... ...
Total ...
Re-
mained.
37
387
128
205
2
1
1
...
761
Admit-
ted.
9
133
85
42
1
...
12
...
282
Total.
46
520
243
247
3
1
13
...
1,043
Re-
covered.
...
50
16
14
...
...
...
...
80
Im-
proved.
1
32
23
17
2
...
5
...
80
Died.
...
26
12
17
...
...
...
...
55
Statement No. VII gives the alleged causes of insanity among the lunatics.
Of the 1,043 cases, the cause is given in 493 and is unknown in 550. Physical
causes are credited with 378 cases, and moral with 115. Of the former, the use
of intoxicating drugs and abuse of spirits contributed 141 cases, previous
attacks 59, epilepsy 34, fever 31, hereditary causes 30, congenital diseases 21,
masturbation 18, injury to head and destitution 8 each, sunstroke, childbirth
and sexual excess 6 each, syphilis 3, uterine disorder and hypochondriacal causes
2 each, and old age, climate and overwork 1 each.
Among the criminal insanes charged with crimes of violence, the following
are the alleged causes, as far as they can be ascertained:—
Ganja smoking ... ...
Spirit drinking ... ...
Fever ... ... ... ...
Puerperal fever ... ...
Fever and persistent headache.
Epilepsy
...
... ...
Injury to head ... ...
12
2
1
1
1
9
1
Hereditary ... ... ...
Grief ... ... ... ...
Religion ... ... ...
Anger ... ... ... ...
Anxiety ... ... ...
Previous attack
...
...
Masturbation ... ... ...
3
2
3
1
1
1
1
In 37 such cases the cause is not known.
Statement No. VIII is a return of the sick in the asylum hospitals (for
diseases other than insanity), with the results. On 1st January 1898 there
remained 39 patients under treatment, and 473 were admitted during the year,
making a total of 512 against 561 in 1897. Of these, 419 were cured, 9 dis-
charged otherwise (8 made over to friends and 1 removed to the Plague hos-
pital), and 55 died, leaving 29 on the sick roll on 31st December 1898. The
daily average number of sick was 41.2 (males 30.3 and females 10.9) as com-
pared with 49.0 (males 38.9 and females 10.1) in the previous year. The chief
causes of admission were ague, dysentery, debility, diarrhœa, epilepsy, phthisis
chronic, rheumatism, ulcers, aiæmia and Bright's disease. Of the 55 deaths,
9 were due to dysentery, 8 to phthisis chronic, 7 to diarrhœa, 5 to anæmia,
4 each to debility and Bright's disease, 3 each to paralysis and epilepsy, 2 to
remittent fever, and one each to idiopathic anæmia, old age, cerebral hæmor-
rhage, empyema, cirrhosis of liver, albuminuria, heat apoplexy, asphyxia from
hanging, concussion of the brain and rupture of the spleen.