Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1899-03-02

Respectfully submitted.
Dated Feb. 10, 1899.
E. 2. ARPIN,
VIM. HOOPER,
JOHN Juno
The following is the correspondence
submitted by the foregoing committee.
Madison, Wis, Dec, 5, 1899.-E. P.
Arpin, Grand Rapids, Wisconsin,
Dear Sir: The Board Of Control has
already acknowledged receipt Of your
favor of Nov. 18th in relation to the
building Of an insane asylum in your
county and improves its earliest OPP
pOrtunity to answer it more fully.
Soon after we received your COM
muncatiOn we received a similar one
| from Trempeleau county and we have
been communicated with informally
| by the officers and citizens OF several
other counties on the same subject.
Hence the board felt it necessary to
settle upon and declare what it con-
sidered the best policy as to the erec-
| tiOn and location of future county
asylums. Enclosed please find the
result Of that deliberatiOn.
You will perceive that while there
seems to be no haste for the erection
of more county aSylumS when the
time comes for their erection the
preference is given to the northern
and northwestern portions OF the
state. and the counties Of Douglas,
Ashland Marinette and OcOntO are
suggested as proper counties for the
erection of an asylum in one Of them
in the first instance. None Of these
counties have applied for permission
to erect an asylum, although citizens
of some Of them have discussed the
subject with the board. If it is deSir-
able to issue bonds in order to defray
the expense of building the inStitu-
ti0n probably some Of these counties
are barred by constitutional provision
and it is doubtful whether either of
them will care within the next two or
three years to erect an asylum.
Wood county has the next prefer
ence. This because Of its more favor
able location as well as its early appli-
cation for permission to build.
Instead Of writing you fully in re-
gard to the erection of such an asylum
at the present time we would greatly
prefer personal interview with you
and your committee so that if it is
found later that it is desirable tC
build an asylum in your county during
the next two Or three years it might
be well for you to come here and &C
over the whole subject together in q
personal interview and the board will
be very glad, of course, to give you all
the information it possesses and al
the aid it can in furtherance of your
enterprise.
Signed:
STATE BOARD OF CONTROL,
BY VIM. P. Lyon, Vice Pres.
The following statement of the facts
and considerations which should gov
ern in deciding upon applications fol-
leave to erect additional county aSy
lums for the insane, was adopted by
, the board:
First. The county authorities O.
the counties Of Wood and Trempea
leau have recently communicated
with this board concerning a COntem
plated proposition to build in each OF
said counties an asylum for the
chronic insane. and similar infOrma
communications have heretofore beer
received from the authorities and Citi
ZcnS of her counties each of which
counties it is understood is disposed tt
erect such an asylum, it seems deSir
, able and necessary that statement
should be made Of existing condition!
and the principles upon which The
board should act in authorizing Of
refusing to authorize the erection O.
additional county insane aSylumS.
Second. There is yet room in the
county aSylumS Including the one il
. Washington county now nearly ready
for inma es) without unduly crOWding
any of them, for nearly or quite three
hundred additional inmates. 1t i!
understood that neither of the state
hospitals, nor the Milwaukee county
hospital for the insane. are filled t
their capacity.
Third. The increase of the insane
; in the hospitals and asylums of this
state for the past few years has beer
about one hundred per year, and il
: may (the board thinks) be safely
assumed that the annual increase fOl
a few years in the future will not bt
greater. Hence, there seems little
danger that those institutions viii
become crowded during the next three
. years.
Fourth. For the above reasons the
b' lrd thinks it would not be gOOC
policy to authorize the erection Of any
additional county asylum, unless it is
we'll understood that but few inmates
can probably be assigned to it for the
next three years, except those charge
: able to the county in which the aSy
lum is located.
Fifth. InaSmuch as q large major
ity of the county aSylumS are located
in the southern and eastern cOuntie!
Of the state, and quite a large per
centage of the inmates thereof are
chargeable to the northern and north
, western counties, many Of them re
mote from any Of those aSylumS, the
, board prefers that the next asylum;
erected be in the northern or north
western portion of the state, say il
Douglas, Ashland. Marinette or OcOntC
: county. But if neither Of those
, counties desire to erect an asylum
, within the next three years, the boarC
is of the opinion that Wood county
should be authorized to do so, subject
to the conditions above expressed
; Should Wood county not build. Trem
pealeau county should next be pre-
feTred.
Sixth. When it becomes proper tt
authorize the erection Of another asy
, lum in one Of the southern counties
WaukeSha county should have The
preference.
Dated Dec l, 1895
: STATE BOARD OF CONTROL.
BY VIM. p. Lyon, Vice Pres.
) Madison, Wis. Dec IA. 1S9S.-E. P
: Arpin, Grand Rapids, Wisconsin,
r Dear Sir: The board has received
your letter of the 18th inst.
r 40 I,