The Sun.
London, England, 1859-09-06 00:00:00

The greater caution exercised in granting licenses

has led to a diminution in the number of private
asylums, in the course of 10 years, from 146 to 114,
The payments for patients do not always in these
houses secure a proper return, and many abuses in
this respect appear to exist. The sale of licensed
houses, when the patients are " turned over" to a
new proprietor like so many head of cattle, is to
be generally discountenanced as a gross abuse.
The subject of attendance, and especially nightly
attendance, is discussed at some length by the
board, and its importance much insisted on. The
practice of "secluding" patients, or locking them
up alone, is under strict surveillance, aid in several
cases a more generous diet, including the use of
beer, has been ordered and insisted on in spite of
frivolous excuses—" an ample diet being generally
very desirable, and often absolutely necessary to
the restoration of insane patients." The Earl's•wood
Idiots' Institution is reported as improved, there
having been much room for improvement. It is
regretted that the military authorities persist in
neglecting to erect an asylum for insane soldiers.
Sailors arc provided for, but soldiers are farmed
out and made a source of profit to private pro-
prietors. The Commissioners urge the necessity of
early legislation to remove the hardship entailed on
the insane and their families by the present dila-
tory.and expensive provisions of the law for the
administration of the property and income of insane
persons of very limited means. The Lunacy Act of
1853 is reported to be a failure in this respect. The
neglect of lunatics in the island of Jersey is also
adverted to as a crying evil, but the case has been
already taken up by " the States." The treatment
of single patients is very sad. One gentleman,
under the care of a market gardener (an ex-attend-
ant at a hospital), was ultimately removed to an
asylum. Other special reports are truly distress-
ing.

In connexion with the subject of single patients
it is important, observe the Commissioners, to con-
sider how completely many are at the mercy of
attendants of a low grade, who are almost their only
companions. During the past year, upon the
occasion of a visit by a member of the Board to an
insane gentleman, a single patient, in St. John's-
wood, his attention was drawn to the general
character and proceedings of attendants in that
neighbourhood, and to an association entiitled

" The Lisson drove Association of Attendants on
Persons Bodily or Mentally Afflicted." According
to the statement of the visiting Commissioner's in-
formant, many of the members of the association
are very disreputable characters, and, having ob-
tained employment through the medium of the
association, grossly neglect their patients. Two es-
pecially were mentioned as notorious for drunken-
ness and profligacy •, and a third, as having
been engaged from the association by a lady to
attend upon her insane san, and whom she had
dismissed for gross neglect and other misconduct.
It appeared upon inquiry, that the practice of many
attendants is to leave their patients from 10 o'clock
at night till two or three in the mormig, an Ito go
out constantly during these hours to drink with
their companions. It is painful. to be informed
that the insane are frequently neglected—for long.
periods unvisited—by their own relatives, and that
the patients feel it acutely. The Board think that
the law should afford every facility for such visits,
because, as a general rule, they are conducive to
the patient's good. The Commiesioners conclude
by regretting that there appears to be little pros-
pect of obtaining possession of the land purchased
near Dartford for the erection of an asylum for the
pauper lunatics of the city of London before next
Christmas or the spring of 1860. A State
" Criminal" Asylum is to be builfon Bagshot-heath.
6,985 lunatics (2,413 males, and 2,572 females) were
admitted into county and borough asylums in 1858,
while 2,614 were discharged (1,965 recovered). On
New Year's-day last there remained on hand 15,842
lunatics, of whom 1,673 were deemed curable ; 11
were found lunatic by inquisition, 326 were crimi-
nals, and 1,354 were chargeable to counties and
boroughs. 1,858 lunatics remained in hospitals on
the Ist of January, 1859 ; 904 were admitted, and
607 discharged (341 recovered) last year. In the
metropolitan licensed houses there were 2,551
lunatics on hand last New Year's-day (331
deemed curable, 132 found lunatic, and. 36
criminals). 119 only were chargeable to the
public. 1,287 were private, and 1,264 pauper
lunatics. In the provincial houses 2,523 lunatics
remained on the Ist of January last, of whom 179
were chargeable (413 only deemed curable.) Thus,
there were altogether 22,774 lunatics in durance on
the Ist of January, 1859 (14 137 in the naval hos-
pitals), and of these 2,773 were deemed curable.
300 were lunatics by inquisition,
crimi-
nals, and 1,652 chargeable to 682
counties or wereboroughs.
4,889 of the 22,911 were private, and 18,022 pauper
patients. We have at length exhausted the con-
tents of this painful blue-book.

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The Continental letters mention that the Russian
Government have made an arrangement with Messrs.
Rothschild to take the whole of the balance of the recent
loan which was not subscribed abroad, and which had
therefore been taken at St. Petersburg. on Government ac-
count. Nothing, however, has tranfored in London either
to oonfirm or contradict the statenist,