The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-02-09

to read, while the great majority does
neither.
Like most asylums, this one. too. has
its great man, that is, its patient who
believes himself to be somebody of I'M
portance. Here it is a small, tlack-set,
hright-eyed, gray-bearded man who fol-
lows. visitors about with the frankest.
most childish curiosity, and who mag
ines himself the head of all the railways
in the world, and bestows passes upon
all and sundry in q, way that would
ruin any but an imaginary railway
He will issue orders for this man to
be moved to this or that station with all
the confidence in the world; yet this has
not been his business, for he was origi-
nally coffee reaster.
One day-much resembles another in an
institution, and here is a sample, winter
day, its work and play at Hastings. Rise
at $50 and breakfast at Z. After break
fast all those who can work do SO until
II 80, when they come in to prepare for
dinner at y; after this meal, worN is
resumed at 1 until 5, then the evening
meal, and rest or recreation until bed
time. Some smoke, some read little,
others play cards or checkers, while
more sit silent, and apathetic, and as
silently and mechanically go to bed, to
go through the same routine tomorrow
and the next day, and the next, until
death releases them.
But though this is q sort of retreat for
the chronic and incurable cases, there
have been patients discharged even from
here, as either cured or in so amehorated
a condition that their friends could once
more take charge of them. Since it's
opening, two years ago, eight in all have
been SO discharged. One of these cases
owed his trouble to overstudy, another
to smoking excessively, a third to in
diligence in alchohol, and several to grip
and pneumonia.
Down in the superintendent Office
there are some interesting figures. Here
is it shown that the average age of those
now here is "A years, that 1G3 are unn.ar-
ried. 81 married, which would seem to
prove that marriage either has the effect
of keeping a man rational, or it may
simply kill him without stopping at mere
ly driving him insane. Be the cause what
it may, the proportion CT married men
to unmarried men in asylums is very
small.
AS to nationality there are SO Scandi-
navians, 20 Irishmen, Is Germans, and
only IS Americans. Physicians diner as
to why the Scandinavians furnish so
many patients to the asylums. Some as
sert that they believe it due to the habit
of drinking pure alcohol diluted only
with a little water, that has become so
common among this race of late years,
while other medical men hold that it is
because of the frequent intermarriage of
close relatives which it seems is custom
among them. Bohemians come next in
the list, while the other Municipalities
furnish one each.
Many of those who had illusions or de-
lusions before they came to this asylum,
seldom speak of them now. The long
stay in the receiving asylurls appears to
exert some restraining influence upon
them in this way. And another interest
ing phase is that while many of the pa
TENTS can remember, often vividIy
enough, occurrences that cook place be-
fore they were committed to the asylum
they can remember nothing apparently
that has happened since their commit
ment. This may, of course, be partly due
to the regularity and a certain mCnotony
that necessarily accompanies institution
life