The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-01-24

sbt - ~.
somnia and headaches TO a slight degree,
only. when previous to retiring one night
i felt a heavy feeling arouad my chest
and went to the window to get more air
and then 10 bed. ] did not sleep; was
sitting up In bed when suddenly every
thing seemed to pass out OF sight; then /
felt a burning sensation, as II I was be-
ing sptjHtwe lepgthriss with a knife.
I loSI ineau(pts pr few seconds; on
feesSp 900 klfh insense burning all
Sve1}n& Sody, E@d 81 could not cool
*xavStv. i1$sSthp weak on the
right side and unable .t9lspeak distinctly,
and my head felt as II IN iron cap were
being pressed down upon 1t. In two days
/ had recovered my usual strength and
went to work. / continued to suffer from
insomnia, and began to worry about my
future and family, and suffered from head
aches aud pains In the right leg and
knee and over the spine. These symp-
toms lasted over two years.
The patents friends state that during
the last two and a half yearg he has boon
confused more or less at times, mildly ex-
citable and emotionable, aud during such
periods has had difficulty with his speech.
He lost mis- employment and through un-
reasonable Jealousy became a source OF
apprehension and a menace TO his family.
SO he was taken to Wards Island, and is
now slowly wearing out his life.
"Of the duration OF the disease ii is
said that the 1900 cases were under asylum
care an average period of eleven months
each and had an average duration previ-
Gus TO admission Of fifteen and three
fourths months each; this woulo make q
total average duration Of twenty-six and
~three-fourths months, and may be consid-
cred as the minimum average, X being
difficult to obtain accurate data as TO the
invasion of the disease in some cases. A
small number OF cases with more accurate
histories raised the average to about
t~wenty-eight months. The duration OF
treatment, or period of asylum restraint,
In all the cases does not equal the period
OF duration previous TO Admission, a
unique feature, and argues that the
greater portion Of the paretic's diseased
life is passed in a state OF quiet dementia,
motor disturbance predominnting
throughout the disease. OF tho whole
number OF cases considered 1900 lasted
less han five yesrs, but SO lasted from five
TO ten years; twelve from ten TO fifteen
years; one twenty-five years and one
thirty-iive years. Among those lasting ff-
teen years was that OF a man who, four
teen years ago, was released by a jury
trial from the asylum as a sane man. The
name is not given.
Ii is worth noting that among the 1900
patients 80 nations and more than $50 &C.
equations were represented. Although
the census OF the entire asylum shows
that two-thirds of the inmates are OF for
eign birth and more than so per cent.
are OF foreign parentage. Americans
took the lead among the paretics, there
being 1876 whites and 44S colored natives.
Germany came next. with 1886; Ireland
had 2i4, England Il, and France 81.
The balance was very evenly divided
among 20 nations. There were two
Chinese paretics. The common notion
that actors are particularly subject to the
disease IS not substantisted by the facts.
There were about as many paretic doctors
and lawyers as actors, but there were no
preachers. In TACT no trade or profession
p~redisposes a person to paresis, but out
OF the whole 1900 there were 169 laborers,
80 clerks, 40 tailors, 81 dryers, 80 bar
tenders. 32 painters, 80 cigar makers, 81
carpenters, 20 salesmen, 2S shoemakers,
20 walters, % merchants, 20 m%achinists,
l6 printers, l6 butchers, II bakers, 16
BARRIERS. 10 engineers, 10 pedders, IA
cooks, 10 musicians, 10 porters, ~ black
smiths, aud SO on, including one man
from the Rogues Gallery, No. 1878.
Because ''vital and mortuary statistics
show that a mans means of livelihood is
not'' a factor in causing the disease,
there is left San inherited tendency as
highly probable n a common cause
staring us in the face"
1t will be feen from the following table
that paresis rarely occurs during adele
scence, and while it frequently attacks
early manhood 1t usually selects its vic
Tins from those mature in years. Thir-
teen hundred deaths were distributed
through the various periods of life, as
follows: