The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1877-02-16
West virginia Insane Asylum.

Editors OF the Register:
| learn that an effort has been made
to require the Superintendent and as
sistsnt of the Asylum to reside outside
OF the Hospital. Certainly 1t the per,
sons who advocate any such measure had
ki. Town the injurious effects such law
| would have upon the proper manage
,neut of an in .titution of this kind, they
would not urge such measure. l tcel
warranted in making this assertion from
! the fact that know personally the great
| necessity of the officers being constantly
ON duty, which under the bylaws they
are required to be, day and night.
The directors of most OF the hospitals
in the L nitcd States require the Superln-
/ tendent and his assistants TO live IN the
hospital as ours does; and so important
is il considered that they should be pres
ent at all times, night or day, that 1t Is
very rare occurrence that DR.. Camden
and DIR. Kunst are absent for even few
moments at the same time, day or Mig ut.
But WHY should any one desire the legls-
lsture to take the control OF this lnstitu-
tion ont of the hands Of the directors, or
hammer them in any. manner In the
r,rarement OF it? Has it been badly
managed in any manner2 Has there
been AIRY extravaganza or neglect OF duty
on the part of any one connected
with it? Let US see how the
cost of running this institution
compares with the cost OF other and SIM
| liar institutions.
the cost per week at the Weston Asy-
Inn for each patient, which includes
board, clothing, medicine and pay of Off
GERS a nd attendants, is S2.3S. AT WI
iiamsburg, Va, it Is "a II; Central Vlr'
GINA Asylum, S4.2O. Kansas, $50
Rhode Island, $50 Mary and, Se.'o
Trxas S7.s5. Utica, n. u, $3.50. Penn
sylysnia, 800. Thus IL will be seen
That four hundred patients were kept
last wear nj the Weston Asylum for So,
600 less than tho same number were kept
in Virginia.; over 100000 less than the
same number were kept in NebraskS
for; $4,000 less than the same number
were kept in Kansas for; SllOOOo les:
than the same number were Eelr IL
MARYLAND for, and $4,000 less than the
same number were kept in Pennsylva
MIA for.
Now with these figures, and they are
tskcn from the official reports of those
institutions, is it wise or good policy for
the LEGISLATURE to undertake to hamper
in any manner the doctors IN their man
anement of the institution? The gentle.
men comprising the Board are selected
from all sections of the State, and vlsl
the institution twice year 10 make
personal inspection Of the building sne
management. 1t cannot be said tina
the Board, after examining into the
maparement and necessities OF the IN
s,itutiI n, are not more capable OF pre-
scribing the proper rules for governing
the institution than the Legislature, nine
! ,enths of the members having never seer
the institution or had an opportunity
of knowing It's wants. A very small
increase per capita per week on 492 pa
tients now in the Hospital, would aggre
gate considerable sum in year, ant
unless the Legislature wants to take TIT
responsibility of such an increase, prud
ence would dictate, let well enough alone
see that Committee is to be ap
, pointed 10 investigate the management
of the Asylum, which considering all tn
misrepresentation that have been writ
ten about it, is we'll enough and we hop
the committee will obtain from the Ed