The Rutland weekly globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-07-11
VERMONT INSANE ASYLUM.
Report OF Legislative Investigating
Committee.

Report OF Legislative Investigating
Committee.
To Ills E1celLency Hon. Julius Congerse,
Governor 0f Vermont:
The Joint Committee to whom was re-
fcrred a joint resolution of the Senate and
House of Representatives, in relation to the
conduct and management of the Vermont
Asylum for the Insane, located at Brattle-
boro, in the county of Windham, and who
were authorized by joint resolution of the
Senate and House of Representatives to re-
port to your Excellency, on or before the
first day of July next, after the adjourn
mcnt of said two Houses of the Legis-
ature, beg leave to make the following re-
port
The testimony introduced before your
committee on behalf of the people and on
the part of the asylum was very voluminous
so much so, that its publication would ne
cessitate the printing of very considerable
volume, and very much of it would hardly
be profitable reading 1t has been carefully
examined and candidly considered by us,
and we deem it best to embrace only our
conclusions deduced from that evidence.
1t vas matter of surprise to some members
of your committee, to learn at the inspec-
ton of their investigation at the Asylum
was not the property of the State, but
private corporation; we deem it best, there
fore, in order to place the matter under
standingly before the people to give brief
history of its origin and statement of the
aid it has from time to time received from
the State. In 1884, Mrs. Anna Marsh, of
Hnesdale, n. H., by will bequeathed the
sum of ten thousand dollars in trust for the
purpose of founding Hospital for the in
sane, as will be seen from the following eX-
tract of her will:
= 81 give to Samuel Clark, John Holbrook,
Epaphrontus Seymour, John c. llolbrook,
all of Brattleboro, in the county of Wind
| ham, and their successors, ten thousand
dollars, in trust, for the purpose of erecting
and supporting in the county of Windham,
near the Connecticut River, Hospital for
the relief of Insane persons, and in case of
the decease of one or more of said Trustees,
the survivors shall, from time to time, fill
all vacancies, and the said Trustees, being
four in number, shall forever hereafter
have the sole superintendent and direction
of said Insane Hospital. And it is my will
that said Trustees procure an Act of incor-
pOration as soon as may be after my de-
cease"
In Nov 1884, the Legislature passed an act
cooperating the "Vermont Asylum for the
Insane" which act, in words, followed very
nearly the language of Mrs. Marsh's
will. This act is referred to and made a
part of this report. In 1885, the State, by
the act of their Legislature, gave ten thou
sand dollars to be paid in five annual in
| III. go ,rN nj doll nre zach In
1886 the State granted an additional two
thousand dollars. In 1887 four thousand
dollars. In 1910 two annual installments
of two thousand dollars. In l843 three
thousand dollars, making in all twenty
three thousand dollars. We do not find
since the gift in lS43 by the State of three
thousand dollars that any considerable dona-
ton has been made to the institution by the
State or by any corporation or by private
individuals, hence the present property OF
2 the institution has grown from the fund OF
thirty three thousand dollars, received pre-
, yious TO 1874. In 1862 the centre building
= and wings of the institution were burned
= They were Immediately rebuilt, and again
S occupied in 1864. The expense OF rebuild
: ing was about forty thousand dollars. The
whole cost of the institution, as reported
e by the Commissioner for the Insane, in hi
c Biennial report of 1872, was $234,81O 90
C including twelve-hundred acres of land
The present value of the property, as es
. timated by Gov. Holbrook. one of thu
C Trustees, Is $500, 900 90. Your committed
j estimate it at very considerable excess
of that amount. The interest OF the Stat
in this vast property is simply that by TIN
acts of 1910 and 1913, if it ceases to be al
Insane Asylum the State have lien upoi
It for the security for the twenty-thre'
; thousand dollars heretofore invested. Tn
property is owned by private corporation
, the Trustees of which are Asa Keyes, N. Is
Williston, Frederick Holbrook and DAME
J Kellogg.
The Trustees, while refusing TO recogniz
any authority in your committee, yet afiorde
; them free access to all parts of the build
ings and grounds, and inspection of tn
} records and other papers of the institution
, and treated us with uniform courtesy. Il
the progress of our investigation, beside
visiting the Asylums at Northampton, Mass.
and Concord, N. H., Gas directed by join
= resolution of the Legislature,) we yiste
: the Asylum at Brattleboro on three differen
occasions, viz. Oct. 18th, 1872; Nov. 10th
1872; and June oath, 1873. At the time o
1 our first visit, we found the number of pa
4 tents at the Asylum to be four hundre
and eighty-five-a number, as the commit
tee believe, and as the officers of the insti
tuition admit in their testimony, far too larg
r for the capacity Of the buildings comforts
|, bly to provide in this view, your cOmmitte
= Is sustained by the testimony of Commits
q sioner Billiard, who fixes three hundred pa
r tents as the maximum number which (the
: ASYLUM could accommodate. About sever
tysfive of the patients were, at the time