The Express.
London, England, 1852-10-11 00:00:00

BETHLEHEM HOSPITAL.

(Fees IL* Dad" Netes.l

That Committee of Bethlehem Hospital meets, it
is said, to-day. BENTHAM and SYDNY.Y SMITH, men
who started from two different points of observation,
and who were guided in their investigations by prin-
ciples totally different, came nevertheless to the same
conclusion as to the value of committees in general.
They both thought that as committees met to trans-
act business, the chance was that the transaction of
the business before the committee would fall solely
into the hands of the most practical man. Experi-
ence too often comes in to bear testimony to the coy-
rectums of the decision of both philosophers. Com-
mittees generally servo as scapegoats for the sins of
one or two practical men. In the case of Bethlehem,
the small committee seems to have resolved itself into
one man—the Treasurer, and his sins have been
heavy enough.
But there are times when the matters brought be-
fore a committee arc of such a nature that the slumber-
ing responsibility of each member cannot fail to be
roused. His own personal feelings are excited, and he
refuses to put his eolscience in the keeping of ano-
ther, and vindicates his own right to come to a
conclusion and to act upon it. The late (Apo-
sures of the treatment experienced by lunatics in
Bethlehem Hospital are of a nature to warrant each
person in a committee appointed to watch over the
management of this institution to exercise his own
individual judgment. If the members do not feel
this responsibility and act upon it now, we can
scarcely imagine that they have paid, as they ought
to have done, attention to the extraordinary evidence
brought before Lord titiArrEsaritv, and published,
from the secret report, fur the benefit of the whole
country in the columns of the Doily News. Nothing
has been done to shake the validity of this evidence,
and we have therefore the strongest right to expect
that the committee to-day will do their duty, and act
upon information which has been brought before
them.

The committee will in the first place be struck
with the insufficiency of the medical staff; as testi-
fied by the facts brought forward in the evidence
to which we have alluded. The evidence of the
Treasurer, the supreme officer of the establishment,
will be sufficient to prove this part of the case. "
state to you in candour," said this chief offixr of the
establishment whew all these zruelties have ken
perpetrated, " with regard to the medical staff, that I
have never front the first been satisfied that / had a
sufficient medical staff. I feel that one resident
:medical officer is not sufficient for so large
an institution. I ought to have two resi.
dent ones, who should take the entire control
of the whole establishment, and it should never under
any circumstances be without one." 'I here are few
persons who have read the evidence taken before the
Commissioners in Lunacy who m ill not echo the
wishes of the Treasurer (a reluctant s itness, be it ob-
served) on this point.
The insufficiency of general supervision is the next
point that must come under the notice of the com-
mittee. It is utterly impossible—to take one soli-
tary case—that such scenes, as were described in the
Daily News of Saturday, could have taken place
under a system of government which included good
superintendence. In that report we read that in
one department of the hospital fifteen at least of
the female, patients are stripped stark naked before
they are put to sleep on straw. Such a state of
things could never have grown up under a sufficient
medical and general supervision.
It is scarcely possible, after having read the evi-
dence published in our columns, and comparing it
with evidence of a similar nature respecting other
institutions, to avoid coming to the conclusion that.
when establishments of this kind are not preserved
from possible mabadministratiou and corruption by
subjecting them to the direct influence of public
opinion, they must degenerate. We have had suffi-
cient proof of this assertion in the evidence brought
before bothhouses on the occasion of a committee being
appointed to examine into the condition of private
mad-houses. These asylums, while they were not
subject to public supervision and control, were the
abodes not only of misery, but of crime. The legis-
lature has now practically thrown them open to
public supervision, and the consequence has been
that although there have been a few instances of mall
treatment, the general conduct of these institutions
has been good. The public eye should be kept upon
Bethlehem, and the press should report the proceed-
ings of its managing committee.
Another point which will need the sedulous atten-
tion of the committee is the amount of restraint and
confinement to which the patients are sub-
jected. Nothing is so well established by the
whole history of lunatic asylums as the prin-
ciple that mere restraint does but little, whereas
effective superintendence does much. Ifanwell
is • case in point. In that asylum there is no
painful restraint, but there is constant vigilanoe.
In other words, good keepers and not iron bars are
needed. The private asylums for paupers, might,
in this respect, give lessons to Bethlehem Hos-
pital. There is no point, however, more
worthy of the attention of the committee
than the revision of the medical staff of the
Hospital. Every one who is acquainted with
the working of the public medical institutions in
London knows that, in many instance, the medical
names on the list of the officers give any thing but
a true indication of the working force of the esta-
blishment. It is considered right and proper that
each hospital shall have on its staff the names of as
many medical celebrities as possible, and a committee
will very frequently willingly dispense with the
active services of an eminent medical man if he will
but allow his name to figure on their list. It is
notorious that in some instances such persons
have allowed their names to be put down upon
the sole condition that they are never to
be called upon to act. This should not be
allowed. One of the first steps towards making
Bethlehem Hospital take its proper share in the
medical treatment of lunatic patients, is the require-
ment of actual duties from each member of the staff.
Let there be more dostors for work and less for
show. It may be impossible to get the great medical
authorities in oases of lunacy to give up a large por-
tion of their private practice in order to attend to a
public asylum, but this difficulty may bo met by
increasing the number of working medical men, and
leaving to the others the duty of actual super-
intendence.

So much for the details which it will be the duty
of the committee to investigate to-day. In the mean
time it must be remembered that a no less important
duty devolves upon the City of London. The City
is the guardian of BBethlehem and its patients, and it is
incumbent surely upon all those who have so impel..
tent a trust, to take care that none but good and
fitting men should be chosen to fill important offline.
An appeal to Parliament must be made if the City
authorities are unequal to their duties.
We speak now only of suggestions that may be
acted upon to-day. It rests with the committee to
atone for post misdeeds or to prepare for future and
heavy condemnation. From the number of letters
which have reached us upon the subject we feel how
completely the general public sympathise with us in
the desire to obtain better treatment for the unhappy
patients confined in Bethlehem. One universal
feeling of surprise and disgust has been mani-
fested by those who now learn with startled
horror how the 20,0001. a year is spent
by the governors who rule over the lunatics
in St. George's-fields. It is difficult at first to believe
such atrocities possible in a civilised country in the
middle of the nineteenth century—to believe that
the most pitiable of all human afflictions should sub-
ject its victims to still heavier pangs—that those who
have lost their reason and their liberty should bo
further punished to gratify the diabolical malice of
the servants especially . paid to watch over their
weakness, and to minister to their wants. The
cruelties in Bethlehem have been so abominable,
that it takes time to appreciate the full enormity of
these offences against afflicted humanity. A still
stronger feeling must inevitably succeed to that
already existing on the subject, unless the committee
take to-day such steps as will show a determination
to prevent the recurrence of these madhouse sins and
scandals in future.

THE SOUTHAMPTON RIFLE CLUS.—The autumnal
meeting of the Southampton Hifi* Club is to take place on
the 13th inst. A piece of plate is to be shot for. This
prize is to be open to gentlemen and members of any rifle
club. A cup is also to be shot for, open to all competitorst
and a piece of plate worth 61., open to non-commissioned
officers of any branch of her Majesty's service—yeomanry,
pensioned, constabulary, foraat.necpers, and gamekeepem.