The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1889-11-13

the WINDOWS, so tDaI the patent can
neither break out glasses, and hang him
self 10 the center bars of the sash, nor get
piece of glass with which to cut vein.
At the same time, the watch can, and is
required, every thirty minutes during the
night, to look into the room, which they
do without disturbing the patient, by look
ing through a square in the door, covered
with the same heavy wire screen. Patients
with this mania sleep on mattresses on
the floor, as such have been known often
to set their bedsteads upon end and hang
themselves to the upper cross-rail.
For epleptics or those liable to spasms
in the night, the posts of the bedsteads
are sawed off, so that the patient sleeps
only eight inches from the floor, so that
if, in a CONFUSION, he should roll off the
bed, he viii not be crippled. Why not
put them on the floor, like those with
suicidal mania? Here is DR.. Wright's
answer: Because they sometimes, in
their spasms, get the clothes wound
around their nose and mouth and smother,
but in falling eight inches, they free them
selves from the bed-clothes." Don't you
see how all little details have been
thought of?
And then that disease-breeding slop
pen, where often were the accumulations
of the refuse OF a week, and the stencil
could be detected hundred feet away, is
now cleaned every night
But the grandest achievement of the
present administration for the preserva-
ton of the lives and limbs of the incapa-
bles who have been intrusted to its care,
is the local fire brigade, which consists of
every sane man woman and child in the
asylum, reinforced by such insane persons
as are capable of understanding an order
For the benefit of the fifty thousand
readers OF THE SENTINEL the doctor gave
the reporter an exhibition of the work of
the brigade, that the people who had
loved ones in the hospital might know
that they were as well protected against
that most horrible of all deaths as human
ingenuity, energy and zeal could protect
them. Understand first, that each ward is
simply long wide hail with small bed
rooms on each side. At either end is a
door. Just outside the door at one end is
water tap, with enough hose attached to
reach the entire length of the ward. In
each ward also is a telephone, connected
with the central Office, and in each are
three attendants. This much by way of
explanation. Everything is going on as
usual among the two thousand sane and
insane inmates OF these immense struct-
ures. We are out on the lawn between
the two main buildings, when DR.. Wright
suddenly blows a peculiar signal
on dog whistle. The large steam
whistle at the bOiler-house responds with
five short blasts and one long one, and
this repeated. But before the first long
blast had ceased men and women could
be seen running at breakneck speed in
every direction, seemingly in inextricabe
confusion; but it took only moment to
81 81, ohoo L.
than two minutes, as indicated by watch,
from the time the first blast was given by
the whistle the male and female employees
except the attendants, were in line in the
front and rear of the two buildings, ready
to receive and care for any patients who
might Jump from a window, or, in the
confusion, attempt to escape, and in the
same time the field and garden hands had
one stream OF water on the building, and
in two and one-half minutes two streams
were being thrown twenty feet above the
roof of the female department. In the
meantime, inside the buildings one at
tendant had hustled the patients to the
end of the ward farthest from the hose
and water-tap before mentioned, had these
look under every bed and in every place
where a frightened insane person might
hide, then, after locking every bedroom
door to prevent anyone from returning
there, or getting any place except in the
main hall, stood guard over them. An
other attendant uncoiled the hose
and stood ready TO turn on the
water. while third stood with
telephone to his ear, awaiting orders
from the main office. The old fire legisla-
tions required attendants and all employees
to save property; the new regulations re-
quire them'to save the lives and limbs of
the patients as the doctor is OF the opin-
ion that human life is more valuable
than any amount of property, the people
of the state who have unfortunate friends
in the hospital will doubtless sleep sound
er when they read this, and thank God
that the doctor is of that opinion.
These Improvements are all very good,
and commendable," says a taxpayer, "but
what assurance have we that our interests
will be conserved, and that our money will
not be wasted or stolen ?"
That leads to a few remarks about the
system of bookkeeping adopted by the
present board and superintendent. 1t is
simply the old double-entry system, with
an account opened for every article that is
used in or by the institution. and each ar
ticle is debited with all amounts received
and credited with all amounts drawn out
on acquisitions for consumption. At the
end OF each month an invoice is taken the
books balanced, and the books and invoice
compared. The balance is carried forward
to new account. At the end of October
the books were found in error TO the ex-
tent OF two and one-half pounds of butter,
and one spool of thread, out of fifty gross
of spools that had been handled. The err
ror in butter is supposed to have originated
in differences in the weights of
the cans and jars in which it was
packed. Both errors were in favor of
the state. All bills of purchase are, of
course. carefully checked by the store
keeper, for he is responsible forthe amount
shown by these bills. When the goods
are checked into the store they can only
get out in one way, and that is as follows:
Each head of department makes out on
blank a requisition for what he wants.
This he takes to the superintendent. DR..
Wright; if all right, he approves il; if not,
he changes ii in accordance with his opin-
ion of the needs of the department and
then approves it. Until he does append
his signature it is as valueless as piece of
blank paper. The form of the requisition
is as follows:
CENTRAL INDIANA HOSPITAL FOR INSANE.
lS.
Storekeeper:
Issue the following named articles for use exclu-
sively in and and for this hospital: