The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-03-01
TUESDAY MORNING., MARCH 1.
BY TELEGRAPH.
THE INSANE HOSPITAL.
More Testimony Favorable to the
Hospital.
THE LODGES KEPT SUFFICIENTLY
WARM. -. - uD
Especial Despatch to the Press. |

Especial Despatch to the Pressl
AUGUSTA, Feb. %.
DIR. Harlow was the first witness before the
Insane Hospital committee this morning. He
was asked by Mr.. Baker to state the facts re-
lative to the case of premature birth at the
hospital which has been testified to-. The pa
tient he said, was admitted in 1876, and the
last of July he was called to her room by the
attendant. He found good deal of fowage
and Immediately sent for Miss Ham, who had
good deal of experience with lying-in
women. He was in the room only few min
utes and made no examination of the body. 1t
is not their custom to make examinations, he
said, but to call in attendants from outside in
order to save reports. The woman was put to
bed and delivered of fGtus. She was then
removed to the sick room. There was nothing
about her to indicate her condition previous to
her confinement. He had no suspicion of her
condition when he was called. gAfter shelhad
been in the sick room about four weeks it be-
came necessary to put her back in the hail.
She had been subject to paroxysms before her
confinement. After that for some time it was
thought that she was going to recover, but she
did not. Her husband came to see her in
August and expressed no dissatisfaction at
what had been done. She is still in dement,
cd state. He did not think that he ever order
ed the patient bandaged. Miss Ham told me
what the matter was when she came after .me
after she had examined the patient.
TESTIMONY OF MISS HAM.
Miss Ham testified she had been accustomed
to see the patient in question every day and
did not discover her condition till the day of
her confinement when DR.. Harlow called her.
She then discovered it and called the doctor.
The patients insanity was intermittent before
confinement and afterwards. Subsequently it
increased. She is now quiet. She did not
think the increase of her mania was due to her
being taken from the sick room to the ward.
The child had been born when shesgot to the
room. Her condition was then plain but
few moments before it might have required a
personal examination to determine it,
DIR. Harlow was recalled and asked about
the case of Mr.. Peabody. He replied that he
was i'll at the time and was suffering from gen.
eral paralysis. He was very uncomfortable
patient because of his uncleanliness Dr. Har-
low said that as he passed along his rounds he
was accustomed to look into his COON. 1t is
no. true that he did not see him for two weeks
He was receiving some special treatment, but
his case was regarded as incurable.
DR.. sANBoRN's TESTIMONY.
DR.. Sanborn presented the case book con-
tanning the minutes of the case of premature
birth He was familiar with the case before
the miscarriage. The woman was very insane,
violent at times, and then very reticent. When
ouo 40 OouiiiOus oOiHpOIdIily buo ptCduo Uot-
ter. (Dr. Butler here stated that no claim was
made that the woman was made more insane
by being put back into the ward.) DIR. San
born read from the record showing that the
woman was married and had three children.
She was taken very suddenly in the night be-
fore she came to the hospital with COMMISSIONS
losing all consciousness, month before the
birth Of her second child. The book showed
that the patient had been troubled with
diarrhea before confinement, and he thought
this was the cause of her miscarriage. There
was nothing to indicate her condition,
TESTIMONY OF DIR. CAKES.
DR.. Cakes testified that fowage in the early
stages OF pregnancy was not necessarily evil
dence that a miscarriage was about to take
place. An attack of diarrhea often causes
miscarriage. Ii a case of the kind described
had occurred in his practice he should have
made an examination. He might haveitrusted
it to an attendant if he knew the attendant
was good one. He said he was aware that it
was the practice of the officers of the hospital
not to make personal examinations. The trus-
tees had not thought best to take any action in
the matter.
TESTIMONY OF A LADY WHO HAS SON IN
THE PRIVATE.
By Mr.. Baker-You heard the testimony of
the treatment of your son?
Yes, sir.
Was that case brought to your attention
shortly after it occurred?
No, sir. He has always said to me that no
more violence had been used toward him than
was required, and he retains his care for the
truth. l came to the conclusion that some
times 1t was necessary to take him from the
private and confine him in order to secure the
safety of the other patients.
By Mr.. Butler-How did you examine into
the case? Who did you inquire of?
1 asked what his mental condition was when
visited him, and was told by Drs. Harlow,
Neal and Sanborn, and one Of the attendants
who had him in charge that he had someti mes
stated.
He is there now?
Yes, sir. l think he is perfectly safe there
CAPT. LAKIN's TESTIMONY.
By Mr.. Baker-Will you state about the
heating arrangements of the lodges?
The lodge rooms are located on the sides of
the third wings, as we call them, at the north
erly and easterly ends. The method of heat
ing the wings and lodges is about the same, by
indirect radiation mainly. This is the produc-
ton OF heated air at some point and conduct
ing it to the place where it is to be used. The
lodges are cut off from the wings by a parti-
ton. The several floors of the lodges commu-
nicate with the contiguous lodges Each lodge
is for the use of that floor. The system of heat
ing and ventilation is distinct from any other
part OF the building. The coils that heat them
are located directly under the floor of the base
ment. The coils are little less than .one-half
mile In length, and are constructed of one
inch pipe passing under each of the lodges.
The heat from this coil is conveyed up by fiues
in the wall OF the room, and entesr the hall be-
tween the lodges by little holes near the top
OF the hall. There has been no change except
IN putting In new pipes since I have been
there. The present winter we have not run
the fires as late as previously 1t has been the
custom after the steam is turned off from the
rest OF the building to continue it to
a Inoc hi xx,sv IL L
in to carry the steam from the boiler to the
lodges while the engineer is away, so that now
there is steam in the lodges all the time,
Sometimes we have put in small local coils in
the end of the lower lodge hall on the male
SIDE. Ever since l have been there it has
seemed to be question whether there was
heat enough in the lodges, and examinations
have been made by the trustees to ascertain
regarding the matter. The superintendent
has always thought there was heat enough.
The orders to put in that pipe this winter came
from the trustees. A record has been kent
this winter, as often as once in three hours, of
the temperature in the halls. Thermometers
have often been carried into the lodges to as
certain how warm they were. Four years ago
went in with some of the trustees. and the
room was found warm enough. The thermom-
eter outside stood at 1So below zero. My i'm
preston is that the thermometer in the lodge
showed about $50, and the fires were banked
earlier than usual. This experiment has been
tried several times, and came to the conclu-
sion that they were warm enough.
have known times when the lodges could not
be got warm enough, but this was because the
air was taken from outside and not allowed to
come in contact with the coil in the basement
enough to warm it. The limit of the superin-
tendent is from $50 to 100, and if it falls be-
low this the attendant is under orders to re-
port the case to the superintendent by tele-
phone. ] was in with DIR. Cakes, I think,
when the temperature was only 56o. have
no reason to think that any one in the lodges
has ever suffered from cold, but I have that
they have suffered from heat, as previous to
THIS winter no thermometers have been dis
tributed about the building. 1t is one of the
duties of the night watch TO see if any one is
suffering from the cold, and baggage rooms
are arranged SO that clothing may be OBJ
tanned.
By Mr.. Butler-Are there not patients who
hardly know their condition and would not
know whether they were warm enough or
not?
Yes, sir, 1 think there are
Do you think the heating arrangement il
warm?
Yes, sir. We can drive them all ont doors
with the heat. By keeping record we are
burning less coal and shall probably save 200
or 800 tons, notwithstanding the severity of
the winter. ~
What is the percentage charged on the goods
furnished to patients?
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