Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1872-09-19
Massachusetts, General Hospital,
IrRom OUR BOSTON coRREspoSDENI.I
BosroN. Sept. Il. 1872.

Boston, Sept. II, 1872.
Within few weeks History of the Massa-
chusetts General Hospital has been published,
making handsome volume of more than seven
hundred pages, and containing a great deal of
interesting matter. The first edition of this his
tory was published by Mr.. Nathaniel l. Bow
ditch, at his own expense, and for private dis
trbution, in 1851. By his will he gave to the
hospital the copyright of that work and the
plates prepared for it; also the sum of two thou
sand dollars, 10 be put at interest till another
edition shall be deemed desirable by the trustees,
when said sum with its accumulations, or such
part thereof as may be needed, shall be appro-
priated to that object. Mr.. Bowditch left vol
ume of proof sheets, with manuscript editions
and corrections to be used in the new edition,
and suggested that his friend, Mr.. Edward Wig
ellsworth, should superintend the work.
Twenty years passed. Mr.. Bowditch's history
was still sought for by professional men, and
those engaged in the care of hospitals; but it
was difficult to obtain a copy of it. The fund
had increased to more than $500, and the
trustees of the hospital decided to publish new
edition of the history with continuation to the
present time. As Mr.. Wigglesworth had de-
clned the editorship, Rev. George L. Ellis was
appointed in his place, and he has done his work
| in the most noble and beautiful spirit. Moth
ing can be more admirable than his constant
| Difference to Mr.. Bowditeh, than the modes ty
which has not allowed his own name to appear
even on the title page, although his addition to
the history is nearly one-half of the book, and
the labor of editing the other half vastly no
means a light one.
At the beginning of the present century there
was not hospital or insane asylum in Massa-
chusetts, although New York and Pennsylvania
had established such institutions years before.
In August, 1910, DIR. James Jackson and DR..
John c. Warren addressed circular letter to
several rich and influential citizens of Boston,
stating the great need of hospital for the in
sane and the sick, and the improperly of send
ing them to almshouses, where it was impossi-
BILE for them to receive suitable attention. In
February, 1911, a charter was obtained from the
legislature, and grant of the Province house
estate, provided that within five years an addi-
tional sum Of 100000 should be obtained by
private subscriptions aud donations; and that
be received at the hospital In 1918 further
term of five years was allowed in which to raise
the money, and later, the legislature allowed the
state prison convicts to do all the stone work
for both the hospital and insane asylum, which
work was valued at between thirty and forty
thousand dollars. The Province house estate
extended from Washington street back to
CT kor,
80 feet wide and 267 feet deep. 1t was valued
at $4,000. In 1917 the hospital leased this es-
tate to David Greenough for niuety-nine years
for an outright sum of $50, 900. The reversion
of the estate still remains in the hospital, which
will come into possession in 1916, and with the
steady rise ofreal estate in that part of the city,
it is impossible even to guess what the estate
will then be worth. In 1850 it was valued at
over 100000.
Late in the year 1916, land in Charlestown
(now Somerville) was purchased for the insane
asylum; and in the next year land on Allen
street, in the city, for the hospital. On the 4th
of July, 1918, the corner stone of the present
building was laid "by the grand lodge of Massa,
chusetts," "Anno Lucis, 5S1S." Fortunately
other and less questionable dates are given; if
this were the only one, the hospital could claim
an astonishing antiquity. The friends of the
enterprise had worked for it during the eight
years since the issue of DR.. Warren's circular
letter soliciting subscriptions and exciting gen
eral interest in the scheme; and their success
seemed ito double their energy. The original
subscriptions, over 300 in number, varied from
500 to $500, and amounted to about S147, 900.
Legacies and donations soon began to fall due.
In the sixty years since the hospital was first
declared to be needed, these legacies and dona-
tons have amounted to 81 ,1S9,924. The annual
subscriptions for free beds have amounted to
S154, 800, and other subscriptions to about
SILL 900. In many cases the legacies and SUBJ
scriptions have been given especially either to
the hospital or to the asylum, which are in fact
two departments of the same institution, and
are under the same general supervision. In
September, 1921 the first patient was admitted
to the hospital and had the place to himself for
more than a fortnight The next six weeks
brought ten sufferers, and from that time to this
there has been no lack of patients.
lu 1926 the asylum in Charlestown received
the name of the Mclean asylum for the insane,
that being thought the best mode of perpetual
ing the memory of John Mclean, who had left
$4,000 to the institution. The history is a
record of the meetings of the trustees, with all
the business that came before them, showing
the general prosperity of the hospital, but Show
ing also good deal of hard work, and a good
many hard places, with the numerous pull-backs
that were to be expected in such an undertaking,
but were none the less discouraging for that.
However, not trace of dependency is seen in
the records, and the reader cannot fail to notice
the warmth with which all the officers of
the institution are mentioned. They all seem to
have worked efficiently and in the best spirit.
Judging from the votes of thanks to officers who
resigned, and from the tributes to those who
died, one would say that all the saints in this
region had come to serve the sick and suffering
who were gathered here. And | am not sure
that this was not the fact; for it does seem as if
this work, from its beginning, enlisted the sym
pathies of all the good men and women far and
near, and the history is one long story of
earnest selt-sacrificing philanthropy--a story of
which Boston may well be proud,
Scattered all through the reports are senten-
ces that throw flood of light on the economy
and the humanity Of the hospital. February
-, 1929, the superintendent was ordered to pur.
chase "a suitable number of silver spoons for
use, instead of the present pewter ones"
February 81, 1880, Mr.. Gurney's (the superin-
tendent) intended marriage was announced, and
the subject was referred to DR.. Robbins and the
visiting committee. March q, Mr.. Quincy an
nounced that his intended wife had consented to
reside at the hospital. The wedding was cele-
brated in fine style, the house physicians ofici-
ating as groomsmen. Many patients were
present at the wedding visit. 1t was gay
scene; one seldom witnessed in hospital"
The chapter on the ether controversy is long,
and covers the whole ground, giving all the
facts and reports of all the pamphlets on the
subject which were published. 1t is very inter-
esting, and gives the honor Of the discovery to
DR.. Morton, while acknowledging that he owed
something to the advice and suggestions of DR..
Jackson. This account comes properly into a
history of the hospital, for, with just pride the
trustees record the fact that within the walls of
this building were witnessed the first painless
capital operations that were ever performed.
The world at large is in no small degree indebt-
ed 10 the medical and surgical officers Of this