The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1897-07-01
BY "NEMO."

Some Rambling Thoughts.
| BY "NEMO."
copyrighted by Dave & Tabor.)
Continuing our comments upon tht
question of the proper care of the fee
ble-minded, let me, in order to empha
size the demand for prompt and genera
action, make lengthy mention o.
some facts set forth by E. P. Bicknell
Esq, Secretary of the Indiana State
Board of Charities. I have no special
reason for selecting Indiana above other
States-for all have the same condi.
tions to contend Without his state.
ments are near at hand where / am
writing this, and they speak with
greater authority than my unsupported
statements would do.
He says: "The great, threatening
danger from the increase of feeble
mindedness, is the frequency, almost
certainty, with which it is passed from
parent to children" -
"Take the fact that there are over 5000
feeble-minded persons in Indiana to-
day, OF whom about one-half ere wo-
men, and think of that in its relation
to the other fact that 100 feeble-mind-
ed women, of whom we have partial
records, are the mothers of at least 149
feeble-minded children, and the real
significance and danger of the situation
begins to be apparent" He then gives
many family histories in Indiana, one
of which must be inserted here as a
typical one, that ought to arouse my
readers from any lethargy in regard to
the subject and force them to determi-
nation that such things must stop, and
because they must, they can be made
to.
In one of the southern Indiana
counties is family, of which from one
to six members have been in the poor
asylums at all times for thirty and prob
ably forty years. Many of the MEM
bers have died, but their descendants
have always been ready to take their
places in the ranks of pauperism and
vice. It is impossible to secure COM
plete record of this family, but from
the fragmentary history which is availa-
BILE and which includes probably not
more than half the whole number OF
members, the following facts are taken /:
One of the oldest of the family now
living was born in 1923. He is feeble
minded. His first wife was feeble
minded. Four children we're the re-
suit of this marriage, two sons and two
daughters. All we're feeble-minded.
These children were named Mary, Mar
garet, Andrew and George Washington.
The first wife died and in his old age
this man married a second time, his
second choice being also feeble-mind-
ed woman. The two daughters who
we're born to the first wife OF this man
we're, as I have said, feeble-minded.
Both are living to-day and are inmates
of the poor asylum. Neither has ever
Mary has BONE six or seven
children. Two or three have been dead
for years and their mental condition is
not positively known. Two daughters
now living are in the school for feeble
and son, who died within a
few wears, was feeble minded. A third
daughter is feeble-minded and is the
wife OF feeble-minded man. They
are not In the poor asylum, but live in
a neighboring county, where they are
given assistance by township trustee.
This couple has one child, of whose
mental condition have no informa
tion. The other sister, Margaret, has
a daughter, feeble-minded and unmar
ried, who works in another county, and
a feeble-minded son now in the school
for feeble-minded. This woman has
also borne two or three other children
now dead, but all said to haye been
feeble-minded. OF the son, Andrew,
we have no record. He is dead and
probably died in youth. The son,
George Washington, married a feeble
minded woman and a feeble-minded
son was born to them. George Wash
ington afterwards separated from his
wife and later married second feeble
minded woman. Before marriage this
woman had borne an illegitimate child
by George Washington. This child
was also feeble-minded. It should be
remembered that nearly all the persons
referred to in this family record have
been during the whole or part OF their
lives burden upon the community.
Every member of the family, SO far as
known, has been feeble-minded. Prob
~e H. E.