The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-11-11

ton is of equal Importance with tina
already considered.
In the first place we may lay j
down as an accepted law, that it is ou
duty to use every legitimate means il
our power to limit as far as possible tn
sufferings of our fellows, from what
ever cause arising. This leaves for ou
consideration the one question :-HoV
far can we legitimately 60 in relieving
suffering?
For our purpose all sufferers may b,
divided into two classes: Q) those il
which hope forms the background ant
brightens the outlook, however gloomy
and fearful the present may be anC
(2) those in which there is no glimmel
of hope, and there is nothing TO looh
forward to but the peace aud quiet o
the grave.
With the first class we have nothing
here TO do. They may very we'll bt
left in the hands of the medical profes
sional. Their sufferings are often crue
but the hope which burns in the dis
tance i'm most cases makes them tol.
erable and when they become intoler:
able there is reason at their call tC
guide them.
With the second class it is different.
Here there is no hope no light in the
distance to induce the weary one to
struggle on nothing anywhere around
but blackness and despair. TO this
class belong at least So per cent. of our
idiots, who number between forty and
fifty thousand large percentage OF
our epileptics, who are almost equally
numerous the thousands of vacuous
dement's who are hidden away in asy-
lums, workhouses and other such
homes of the living dead thousands of
hopelessly chronic melancholiacs
whose lives are long drawn out agonies
thousands more of hopeless maniacs,
whose lives are culse to themselves
and 10 those nearest and dearest to
them, toget er with ell those who, al
though not deprived Of reason, are so
cruelty torn by incurable disease that
they daily pray for delverance in
death and are joined in that prayer by
all who love them What Hell Of
suffering do these make up!
Let Us look for a moment at these
various classes separately. The idiots
and the vacuous dement's are the most
OF the idiots two thirds are
scrofulous {Dr. w. w. Ireland), over
25 Der cent. are epileptic DR..
Langdon Down and Others) about
20 per cent. are paralysed; about
the same proportion crippled and
deforned, some almost out of all re-
semblance to humanity;a a like number
are blind and us many more mute! A
large number of these creatures are
more degraded than any brute beast.
Their habits are beyond description.
They know nothing of pleasure and
little of peace. Indeed large num-
ber are wholly incapable of exper-
fencing leasurable feeling. The oul y
sensations which they experience in
their course through life are painful,
when not in pain their lives are as void
of sensation as that of cabbage.
Their lives may be said to be vegetable
with the unfortunate power added of
experiencing pain. These trebly-curs-
ed creatures only exist to suffer. Their
existence is dark pathway from the
grave. Punctuated by periods of suf-
fering but not illuminated by single
ray of pleasure, Shakespeare says -
the miserable have no o ther medicine but
only hope"
but these, the miserable Of the miser.
able, are denied even the plea sures of
hope for them there is no hope.
1t is all very well TO talk of educat-
ing the weakininded and 10 visit in
stitulions ostensibly for the reception