Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-07-10


by the Court of Chancery of Windham
County, whose certificate of the insanity
of any person proposed for admission
should be conclusive proof of the fact.
Under this statute the court appointed
DIR. Rockwell, Sen., the superintendent
of the asylum, medical examiner, and
continued him in that office during the
remainder of his superintendent. This
appointment, as might be naturally ex-
pected opened the door for fraud and
chicanery, upon the part of some of the
! officers Of the institution. At Burling-
ton in Joseph A. Stockton, a
person confined in the asylum, as insane,
was brought before Judge Pierpoint on a
writ of hG6eas corpus, and at that hear
! ing William Rockwell, Jr., on behalf of
the asylum, produced what purported
to be the original certificate of DIR. Rock
well, Sen, certifying to Stockton's in
sanity, which paper was dated, as of the
! date of StocktOn's admission as a
patient; and claimed through counsel
! that the certificate under the statue OF
| 1865 was bar to further proceedings.
Judge Pierpoint so held and recommitted
| Stockton without any examination as to
| his sanity or insanity. Stockton. being
a citizen of another State, applied to the
! United States Courts for relief, which
was afforded him and he was discharged.
| DIR. William Rockwell, Jr., in his testi-
mOuY before the committee. admitted
| that he dated the certificate back; that
it was a copy; that the original was not
in his possession and that in fact he
never, to his knowledge, had seen the
original, and that this paper on which
Stockton was recOmmitted was made
after he (StOckton) had escaped from the
asylum. We deem the foregoing fact
sufficient commentary on the statute of
1855. We believe that legislation look
ing to the guarding of persons against
improper commitment to the asylum,
should be had and would suggest some
thing like the law in Massachusetts pro-
viding in substance that no persons resi-
dent in this State, except only such as
shall be brought by virtue of the certiti-
cate of Court of Record, and under seal,
shall be admitted as a patient, without
the certificate of two physicians, one of
whom shall be the patients family phys
ician, and further, that said certificate
shall not be received without the adj
ditional certificate of justice of the
peace. that the physicians signing such
certificate are physicians in good andreg-
ular standing, and that medical eXamin-
ers be elected by the Legislature to eX-
anime all persons brought from other
States for admission rs patients in said
asylum.
We are satisfied persons have been adj
mitted to said asylum who were not in
sane, who were admitted on the certii-
cate of single physician: hence the
necessity of some law for guarding
and protecting the rights of sane per
sons.
Your committee find that the supplies
of food at the institution are sutfi-
cicnt in quantity and quality, and
we are unanimous in the opinion that
the food is well-Cooked and properly
! served.
At the time your committee visited the
asylums at Northampton and Concord,
they were accompanied by the supern-
tcndent of the Vermont Asylum and
his attorney. From a thorough eNami-
nation Of those institutions we are con
tirmed in our opinion that the modern
improvements have not yet been adopt
ed in the Vermont Asylum, but we found
on our visit on the 21th Of June that eX-
ttcnsive changes are being made Two
additional wings arc in process of cree
ton. each 35x90 one Of which when
completed win be three stories and the
other four stories high. These wings,
we were informed. would give one hun
drcd and twenty additional rooms for
patients, each room hcingSXl0, and nine
feet studding. Each room will he fur
nished with two flues for the reception
of pure air and the expulsion OF foul air,
and it is proposed to warm the entire
buildings, new and old. with steam, and
ventilate them by the most modern OF
ventilating apparatus-thc fan. Nher
the new buildings are completed, the
officers propose 10 remove all the pa
ticnts now in underground apartments
to more pleasant and comfortable quar-.
tcrs above ground. These changes anC
improvements have been in progress
since the appointment of DR. Draper
Superintendent of the institution. DR.
Draper was appointed upon the resigna
ton of Dir. William Rockwell. Jr., anC
took charge of the institution in Febru
airy last.
Your committee were shown the rec.
ord of vote in 1862 by which the
trustees voted to put in steam heating
, apparatus at that time, but the fire OF
that year prevented the carrying out oI
, the vote at that time.
, We feel that we cannot conscientious
lv close this report without earnestly
f recommending the erection of State
, asylum, to be under the watchful eye
Of the good people OF this State, thai
private interests cannot in any way IN
fuenCe the conduct and actions of thC
. officers of the institution, and that The
objects and end of such a charitable in
stitution may be fully and effectually
+ carried out, and this class Of unfortu
: nate beings receive Gas they properly
shOuld) the tendcrest care. Nearly al
of the older States and very many O
the new States, have such institutions
Our pride ought to join hands with on
! sympathies in this matter, and impel II
! TO the construction of an institution il
which we might feel the just gratitica
I ton which Massachusetts, people may
well feel in the contemplation of thu
! asylum at Northampton.
i AT the time of our last visit to thu
asylum, we found the whole number o
q patients in the asylum was 476, o
! which number about 80 were State poor
200 town and INDECENT poor, and the re
mainder we've patients from out Of tn
State.
!; Your committee find that, notwith
standing the drawbacks surrounding thu
institution, the death rate anon!
its patients has been less for ten year
, past than at any other institution of th
, kind in New England, except the New
; Hampshire, at Concord, and but small
per cent. above that. There is yer,
I much in the conduct of the asylum
I which your committee can recommend
We are much pleased with the man
. agement of Dr. Draper, and under hi
s6perintendency, with the improvement
y in buildings, we before mentioned, W
! confidently hope that the various grey
T ances, which we have felt compelled t
. report, as now existing, will soon disap
. pear, and the institution become all tina
its patrons could expect of a pIiyat
, corporation.
/ All of which is respectfully submitte
J this Both day of June, A d, 1878.
{ GEO. A. BALLARD,
!: CALVIN MORRILL,,
! e--- Committee on the part of the Senate