New-York tribune., 1872-08-31
MApHoUsEs AND THEIR METHODS.
From The BrookyE Daily Eagle, Aug. 5O -,
rbroroh parversitv Or IN indulge a thu

MADHOUSES AND THEIR METHODS
From The Brooklys Daily Eagt, Aug. 30. 49,,
Through perversity, or to indulge o thick
and thin defense Of private madhonses me ,6 o. u
truth Of statements reporter, late an inmate may
have to say of the Bloomingdale Asylum IL decres
the mode pursued to obtain Information was dlsreputa
6ie and that everything Mr. Chambers has 70 wae VIZ
should be considered as 1t had never peen It Sa at
all, The Post quite frantically inquiries II we
anG George and such
"every knows and trustsT II Chamoers rs 70 p
wave OF the hand is oberate Chambers as an emily
il there is hereafter TO be no such person., the
wonld seem to be violation OF The Posts premise by
itself Nevertheless why should not MI Cnaoerls rshot ~
WardS We know of no reason why he snouiul anG y
Schultz is we believe leatnersTreIrit rSensIist and
as such has been correspondent traveller ana 1vr
The conditions and presnmptons are hens than
Schultz and Ward both put together HIS lnteec.a et
and their vulgar and commonplace vocatons @ dnneds
takngmp with what butchers reject anu 70 ae m ~
stocks bonds, and other forms OF mere Pnsy Sious re-
pations altogether below the thonghtiu ud uniting
ned work writing for public journal nd ana put
on paper things mankind are thinking ana ow
mental power which, while they do not Prevddns eve pec
from being excellent GnyerS them hea from eminence
in the world OF ideas This Is papabe that II
was pSnyes p0Ssyey ana Tnfina CABOT Wards with gentle
men whose very occupation requires hgh menta pome d
a ana pe both precommitted to defend and eulogize
BlOomingdae right or wrong MI s 9, t tei
comprises exactly what occurred Ths deIense VI D. an an
institution by rating 1t above an M ha co11ected
with IT, has been rendered very transparent on tns side
Of the river 1t was the NHw All coasderate Citizens
OF Brooklyn when they don't want 10 Oe haIu On INA.
Conmisson yet don't want give an impression that
would identity them with it, simply shrug their should
| ers in an impeachng manner, WHICH Aneii0"u' "i0
T5e Pds. impeachment of the means Mr.. Chambers
employed ignores all the circumstances that lea 10 ~ an
That paper treats Asylum as "prvate or semi
private affair" liable TO no responsibility ana GROSSLY
deceitfu spy. 1t estimates that reporter had no more
get or go there % t9a1 ars nto bv ne To%
| what are the facts Bloomlngdale came 70 pe a com
paned Of ssry sIsa In reaans Ts the prodncon Of
| s'patients" alleged and aiterward Nn one case
SaSnS hosa ws the and the Of
the Asylum displayed cunning and unsc1upulousness
ments calling for reform the Tombs Courts AT the
time the former employees OF the Asylum scemy my
were horrible. Several former inmates testified TO- the
things What were the answers OF tne
| for examination No. Willingness to allow myestl,
gaton No Well what did they dol Iaey %IaRPed sdPed
that hSt''' their dignity forbade, reply Hay Hay
ployes who attested their utterances by oath were
ana Ihe M e SroSc Close raasoners and
nersons of decided culture still The abuses
abuse would Mt lay The Governor of the state OF
New. York came out in special statement lie reclted
that last Winter he recommended law putting al asy-
ums under State control and legal supervision He de-
cared Governor that law was defeated by Se effort
of the managers Of this BlOomngdale Asylum but
mat enough oft saved to authorize the Governor to
appoint a special commission TO examine institutions for
the insane when In his Judgment they called or IL Ac
cordngy he appointed Chancellor Anderson, Attorney
General Barlow, and DE- Hunsueh; Commission 10 IN
ouire into such abuses the following; NOncoInpn-
ance with the laws OF commitment maltreatlneht OF pa
tients defective food prohlbon ana m Oh az
correspondence eyasions OF the orders OF
others OF nature involving cruelty and swlndnng. IL
was 20 ascertain the facts about an asylum charged
| with abuses and holding itself superior alike to in
quiry and responsibility 1t was 10 tell the real STATE
OF things, and under orders to do nothing else tlat
| a reporter was detailed work up the Institution.
The Post which can hardly quarrel with his purpose,
consider It," but because took peculiar way TO go at
it, Could ne have efiectuay done otherwise III ne had
| Shown the "outside Of the cup" All newspaper men
know what inadequate, superficial, partial access is
1 ly in Bloomingdae. 1t essential that he become
an unsuspected part of the life OF the Asylum for
| That he feigned insanity is not discreditable
thing. The discredltable thing Is that the doctors @
been made TO the doctors on the ground that
they couldn't expected to know suspect that the
patient was shamning, and that they had right to
rely on the representations OF his friends rms Is al
error The evidences OF insanity are well-known They
are written down and published The evidences OF sim.
uated insanity as wel.known Mental science ana
competent doctor may make mistakes about your liver,
your lungs your intestinal difficulties But the brain
| has been open book TO physicians, ever since IL
found that all insanity disease OF the brain mat
ter Just rheumatism disease Of the bone matter.
AS simple fact, no man can successfully simulate IN
worthy 10 consider the question at ALL
| Had the dOctOrs-so-called-who jumped TO the
clusiOn" that Julius Chambers was insane studied up
his manifestations, they would have found that there
business him OF nothing less characteristic
than insanity, which both silly aud DOisterous, but
| never so In pursuance OF papaDle plan, or at
| exact intervals. Beside. 1t was the duty OF
| the doctors TO rely upon no assurances OF
| the friends" To competent physicians, lay
and opinions. 1t plain ALSO that the doctors
suned Chambers to be insane, when tney should have
presumed the They at once hypothecaed IRA
tlOnaty, that only being allowable after every other
several other diseases as well OF diseases OF
the mind) such as seeplessness, nervousness. light
headedness, quickness OF pulse, and gratuitOusy
crbed them mental disorder on the suggestion OF lay
men, whO because they were aymen and seeming rela
tyes were be particularly discarded In making up
Asylum doctor, and Mr.. George Cabot Ward committed
too papabe TO need restatemen aud they condemn
| themselves.
The fact is, great good has been done already II
the roof be raised from single madhOuse lnucn tho
better The way taken 10 do 1t the only open.
To do the examination publicly TO make the re-
porter the instrument OF those who have shown them
selves interested Withholding the main facts and In
whitewashing the rest To do the thing by "cOnmls-
sion Is little BETTER bnt makes the examiners the sure
dupe OF the managers. By the facility with which sane
people generally be and taken up. and
derers let is hardly too much to say that the mad
doctors have become the enemies or the Innocent ana
the buwark OF the criminal classes and the abuses they
are capable OF magnhed enfod by the irrespons-
bty Of the indefensble system OF private madhouses