The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-11-16 00:00:00

THE PRINCE'S INCOME

(From the Times of Friday.)
As this important subject will one day come under consi-
deration, and is already exciting some speculation, the fol-
lowing extract from the Annual Register, explaining the
course observed in the case of George IV. white Prince of
Wales, may be read with interest :

`• On the 23d of June,-1783, the Chancellor of the Exche-
quer delivered a message from his Majesty, recommending
to the house the consideration of a separate establishment
for the Prince of Wales. The said message being afterwards
taken into consideration, the house was informed that his
Majesty had graciously resolved to take on himself the an-
nual charge of his son's establishment, without laying any
additional burden on his subjects; that £50,000 was to be
settled on the Prince, to be paid out of the Civil List; and
that all that was demanded was £60,000 as a temporary aid
to equip him at his outset in life. This sum was accordingly
voted, and an address of thanks presented to his Majesty."
It may be well to remark, that the subject of a separate
maintenance for the Prince of Wales is usually brought
under the consideration of parliament during the session im-
mediately preceding the birthday on which his royal highness
will have arrived at the age of 21. So, in the instance of
George IV., as that period would have been completed on
the 12th of August, 1783, the message from the Crown re-
commending the consideration of a separate establishment
for his royal highness was sent down to the House of Com-
mons on the 23d of June in that year.

In alluding to this grant of a separate income to the Prince
of Wales, Wraxall, in his Memoirs, says, Notwithstanding
the ascendant which Fox exercised over the Cabinet, and in
particular over the Chancellor of the Exchequer, an event
occurred at this time, where his influence proved unequal to
overcome the obstacles opposed to it. The Prince of Wales
approaching the period of his minority,a separate establish-
ment became requisite for him; and Carlton-house, which
had not been habited since the decease of the Princess Dow-
ager of Wales in 1772, was chosen as his future residence.
The income proper for his royal highness's support became
necessarily a subject of discussion among the members of the
administration, and produced great difference of opinion.
Fox thought that the sum of 4300,000 would not be more
than adequate to maintain his sfate ; while Lord John Caven-
dish, in whose immediate official department the business lay,
conceived that the moiety of the sum might suffice, under the
circumstances of the country, and the encumbrances on the
civil list. His Majesty being of the latter sentiment, it was
adopted; and Lord John 'having acquainted the House with
the gracious determination of the Sovereign not to call on
his people for any additional aid to his civil list, but to take
on himself the present expense of the heir apparent, limited
his demand to the sum of £60,000, as a temporary supply to
the Crown, and an outfit. Pitt instantly stood up, and having
expressed his perfect approbation of the proposition, as by
no means unreasonable or excessive, passed some very high
encomiums on the Prince then, addressing his discourse
pointedly to the Secretary for Foreign Affairs, he observed
that rumours had been circulated, in a manner which seemed
to stamp them with authenticity, of a very extraordinary na-
ture. "fhose rumours,' continued he, ' asserted that it had
been the intention of some of the King's Ministers, contrary
to his avowed wishes, whose paternal affection for his subjects
suggested very different ideas to his royal mind, as well as
contrary to a due consideration for the exhausted condition
of the country, to have proposed a very enormous sum for
the Prince of Wales's establishment. He rejoiced exceed-
ingly at finding those reports practically done away on this
evening; but he trusted that ministers would take the pre-
sent occasion to rise in their places, and to deny that there
ever existed the slightest foundation for such assertions. On
so important a point he confidently expected that they would
furnish the house with an ample explanation.' Fox, thus
whichow ro paolswe ad
ws eethl
ta(r)ancl
y-
,OO a year, that fact formed itself a suf-
ficient called on, rose, and i:htatthca
smtahied yvottoenne
tit
ioecri iteshreietd
sanswer
ex:osl ioteh e
question. But, he added, that former
Princes of Wales had received larger grants from parliament
for the support of their dignity.' Having expatiated with
equal eloquence and warmth of colouring on the eminent, as
well as shining, virtues of the Prince, not omitting the honour
of his ready obedience on the present occasion to his Majes-
ty's pleasure, the secretary thus proceeded If however,
it had remained with me to advise, or had it been my pro-
vince to make the application of this day to the house, I do
not hesitate to repeat that I should have asked for a much
larger sum. But, as the person who possesses the best right
to decide upon that point has not coincided with me in senti-
ment, it becomes my duty to obey, and to act implicitly by
his opinion.' The vote then passed without a dissentient
voice.

The late Mr. Fanning, of Waterford, has bequeathed to
the poor of that city X 30,000.

"Ivery document issuing from a public institution yyhich
tewls to elucidate the sulject of insanity cannot bi. 4 prove
interesting to the philanthropist and medical ph4asopher.
We have perused with attention and interest the statistics of
the Retreat near New To an establishment erected pur-
posely for the reception aid treatment of persons belonging
to the Society of Friends. The report which is just published.
exhibits the experience of hat institution from its origin in
1796 to the year 1840. Tic Retreat was opened for the re-
ception of patients in the simmer of 179 G. It was originally
only designed for 30 patiens, but it is now capable of afford-
inc accommodation to about 100. During the 44 years the
number of admissions has been 615, of which 282 were
males, and 333 females. As 146 of these cases were re-ad-
mitted ones, the number of persons treated was 469 ; or 223
men and 246 women. Of the 469 cases admitted there were
415 who were members of, )r connected with, the Society of
Friends, and 54 not so connected. But of every 100 cases
of all descriptions received into the Retreat during the 40
years, the proportions disciarged under the several heads,
and remaining under care at the end of that period, are
shown in the following table :
Males. Females. Mean.
Recovered.
Improved
7.2 10.6

Unimproved

Died •
Remaining

24.8 20.7 22.6
13 9 15.6 14.8

Of those connected with the Society of Friends, 22 per
cent., and of others 37 per cent., had suffered from more than
one attack of mental disorder when first admitted into the
institution; of 415 patients, 228, or about 55 per cent., were
resident in cities or large towns, and 101, or 24 per cent.,
from small towns and villages ; and 88, or 21 per cent., from
more completely rural districts. A very interesting table is
given below, showing the rank or profession of those who
have been admitted during the 40 years.

_
Men. Women
Gentlemen and gentlewomen l4 50
Clergymen of the Church of England 1
Military officers..
Physicians and surgeons
Solicitor
Architects and artists
Literary persons
Schoolmasters, governesses, &c.
Merchants, &c 7
Manufacturers
Tanners and carriers 6
Farmers, &c
Wives and daughters of farmers
Agents, clerks, and commercial travellers
Chyinists and druggists
Persons in various descriptions of trade
Wives and daughters of the same .. 30
Ship captains and sailors 4
Housekeepers. .
Seamstresses
Shopmen and shopwomen
Domestic servants 2 40
Mechanics and artisans
`'hives and daughters of ditto
19
Shoemakers 5
Tailors 3
Weavers G
Exact rank not known 4

It appears that the mean age at the origin of the disorder
was 34, the men on the average being attacked two years
earlier than the women. With regard to the origin of the
disorder, nearly one-third of the whole cases admitted were
found to be attacked at from 20 to 30 years. With reference
to the influence of marriage some important facts are ad-
duced, as the following statement will prove. Of the patients
admitted from 1796 to 1840, there were

Unmarried

Married, but having had no offspring
Married, with offspring
Widowed, but having no offspring
Widowed, with offspring .

Men. Women
144 166

8 14
5.1 41
3
14 21

It appears from the above table that of the patients sub-
jected to treatment for the last 40 years two-thirds, or 66 per
per cent. (64 per cent. for the men and 68 per cent. for the
women), had never been married. Of those who had been
married only one-fifth bad never had offspring.
We now proceed to the consideration of the probable
causes of the mental disorder. The causes of insanity are
generally divided into predisposing and exciting, physical
and moral. Of all the causes of mental disease, those which
have a tendency to predispose the brain to take on that pe-
culiar morbid action which generally gives rise to insanity
are of the most importance. These causes are frequently
insidious in their character, and therefore are often altogether
overlooked. The predisposing causes are divided into physi-
cal and moral.

The following tables illustrate their operation :
PREDISPOSING CAUSES.
PHYSICAL. Men. Women
Hereditary tendency..
Fright to the mother, followed or met by
premature birth 2 2
Congenital weakness of mind in various
degrees

Decided congenital peculiarty of mind
Extreme degrees of melancholy or nervous

temperament

Lactation by parent strongly predisposed....
Period of senility (average age of attack, 72
years)

2EI
19 4

5 3
1 0

Insufficient exercise, or the stooping posture 2 0
Fever
li ickets
Apoplexy and paralysis
Epilepsy
Blindness
Chorea 0 2
Hysteria
Hypochondriacal tendency ..
Dyspepsia, &c. ,
Gout and Rheumatism......
Injudicious bloodletting ....
Spermatorrhoea
Irregular secretions
intemperance and free living

7 13
O 3
O 1
1 0
O 7
12 1

In the 413 persons 232 laboured from physical predis-
position ; with regard to the hereditary predisposition, it
should be recollected that the cases were not considered of
an hereditary character the history of which had only been
characterized by the existence of insanity in collateral blood
relatives, it being obvious that cases of this kind do not
necessarily establish any direct hereditary transmission.

The following were the moral predisposing causes :
Neglected or perverted education, in three Men. Women
cases very indulgent, in one very rigid 4 1
111-regulated temper and disposition 5 9
Solitary mode of life 0 1
Mental disquietude 4 10
Political enthusiasm 2 0

Excitement connected with religious hopes,
fears, and apprehensions 5 7
No predisposing causes known B3 81
A table is given showing the exciting causes of the disor-
ders, so far as these were stated or could be ascertained :

PHYSICAL EXCITING CAUSES

Fevers and febrile diseases
Mechanical injuries of the head,
Inflammation of brain
Apoplexy and paralyses
Neuralgia and cephalgia ..
Hysteria
Dyspeptic and liver disorders..
Unnatural propensities
Irregular or suppressed secretions
Puerperal disorders Protracted or suddenly subsiding lactation.. 0 2
Checked perspiration .
Suppressed skin eruptions
Suddenly subsiding diarrhoea 1 0
Long continued ill-health ...........
Loss of sleep from fractured arm
Severe scald in infancy 1 0
Injudicious use of mercury
Intemperance..
Use of opium and spirits..
Generally dissipated and dissolute conduct 2 0
The following tabular statement presents a view of the

Men. Women.
9 8
8 3
4 2
4 2

0 3
3 10
6 0
0 10
0 9

MORAL EXCITING CAUSES

Joy from elated anticipations ..........
Fear or terror
Sorrow from the death of relatives
Unhappy marriages ............
Domestic distress
Anxiety respecting livelihood and pecuniary
losses
Anxiety as to the success of business
Anxiety from perplexing
..trusteeships and
other affairs . ......
Disappointed plans and hopes.. ......
...
..
Disappointed affections
..........
Disappointed matrimonial plans
........
Great changes in mode of life.. ... . .
..
.... .. . .. .. . .
.
Excessive mental exertion
..... •
Long and anxious nursing .........
Remorse

Men. Women
3 0
6 2
5 15
1 2
2 12

19 14
JO 1

5 0
2 3
9 21
4 3
0 2
2

0 4
9 0

............
Excitement connected with religion, ticc .. 3
No exciting cause known ................ 84 89
From the above table it is established that of the 135 per-
sons in whom the exciting cause appears to have been of a
moral character, there were 112 arising from sorrow,
anxiety, and disappointment from various causes. With re-
lation to the influence of ill-directed religious feelings in the
production of insanity, Mr. Thurnam observes that the his-
tory of the Retreat fully confirms the truth of Dr. Prichard's
remark, that " the circumstance of the mind of a lunatic
being occupied during the period of Isis disease with ideas
and feelings connected with an invisible world is no proof
whatever that the disarrangement of his understanding was
produced in the first instance by impressions related to the
same subject." Although the hopes and fears connected
with religion and a future state did not in many cases ope-
rate as a cause of insanity, they in many instances materially
modified the character of the disorder. In 162 cases of me-
lancholy, 42 persons were afflicted with fear connected with
a future state. In nine out of 52 cases of monomania the
hallucinations assumed a decidedly religious character.