Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1868-10-27
"Western Lunatic Asylum" at Staunton

To the humane and contemplative the Wes-
tern Lunatic Asylum of this place furnishes
subiect of great interest The visitor, with his
nreconceiyed ideas that he is about to enter
Pandemonium on earth and expects his blood
to be frozen with horror on visiting the apooe
of hundreds of the insane, as soon as ne enters
the gate and catches view OF the beautlful
grounds within the enclosure begins to feel emo
t;ons of admiration and pleasant surprise, and
70 wonder if he has not mistaken the place,
and entered upon the beautifully ornamented
grounds of private gentleman blessed with
vast wealth and highly cultivated taste. lie
masses I'D the gravelled walk, admiring the va
r;otv number and beauty of the flowers bloom
inc on either hand, and thinks of Millions des-
cription of Paradise, instead OF Dante S Inferno
as he had previously expected In this MOOD
of revolutionized feelings he ascends the steps
and enters the Building which he finds we'll
arranged for the purpose for which it was de-
stoned and is used, and kept in the neatest
stvle. He feels that the genius of Order relgns,
and unconsciously looks for the placard: "A
place for everything, and everything IN It's
place He meets with polite reception, en-
tiers his name upon the register OF visitors, and
is conducted through the various apartments
of the spacious buildings. He becomes strange
" pleased with the place, and almost envles
the occupants their neat, orderly, peaceful and
comfortable home At 3 o'clock Z. NJ. on Sab
bath he revisits the Asylum, and attends di-
vine service in the Chapel, where, to his sur
prise, he finds the most quiet and st-behaved
congregation he ever saw, composed almost en-
tirely of the patients of the Asylum. At the
conclusion of the services he takes his depart
ure, seemingly with reluctance his bosom Tiled
with emotions of thankfulness that there is In
the State such an Asylum, SO we'll conducted,
for that unfortunate class who have greater
claims than any other upon the sympathles OF
mankind.
He makes the acquaintance of DR.. Francis
T. Stribng, the distinguished Superintendent
and Physician of the Asylum-is struck with
his gentle, polite and ahable manners, and does
not fail to observe the combined frmness and
kindness in his character which has enabled
him to attain such remarkable success in gov
erning and attaching to him the patients under
his superintendent, whose obedience, conf
dence and affection he uniformly secures. He
becomes deeply interested in the history and
management of that benefcient institution. He
reads the bound volumes Of the reports con-
tanning the information he desires, and becomes
satisfied that to Dr. Stribling more than to any
one else is due the distinguished honor of i'm
pressing upon the Asylum that marked charac-
ter which has made it justly famous, as one OF
the best managed institutions Of the kind in
this or any other country. He rids himself of
all the prejudices which he had before, in com
mon with the majority of the people, enter
tanned in reference to sending friends to an in
sane asylum He learned that insanity was the
result of physical disease-that no stigma at
tached to it any more than to fever or head
ache-that in the asylum patients were merely
under the care of skiful physicians, where they
could be better treated and live more comforta-
bly than at home He learned also the impor
tant fact that Of those patients whose friends
were wise enough to send them to the asylum
In the early stages Of the disease nine out of
ten were restored to health and clothed in their
right minds, WnllSC OF InOSe WHOSE lTlenuS un-
wisely kept them at home till the disease had
assumed chronic form, only one IN ten was
restored to health and sound mind.
We would appeal to the friends of persons
thus unfortunately afflicted not to hesitate a
moment about sending them to the asylum,
and would impress 1t upon them that It is their
duty to secure their admission as soon as posi-
bic after learning that their minds are diseased.
When we commenced this article it was with
the view chiefly of mentioning some interesting
facts connected with the statistics of insanity,
but having written the above, we must, for
want of space, postpone to another time what
we wish to say concerning them