The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-10-25

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various wards. The work of the inmate
does not amount to much, for his condition
does not warrant putting him to a com
pulsory task.
The excellence of the system with which
two thousand irresponsible. insane persons
are handled and managed and cared for is
due to the earnest work of DR.. George f.
Edenharter and the cooperation of the
board of trustees, which at the present
time includes r. L. Kennedy, of Center
Point. president; Eli Marvin, of Frankfort,
treasurer, and Albert NJ. Adams, of Rock
vile, secretary. DIR. Edenharter is superin-
tendent of the institution and has spent
the last ten years of his life working and
planning for the Improvement of the hospi-
tai and the methods of management. Much
assistance has been given him by the secre-
tary Of the institution, Cornelius Mayer.
DR.. Edenharter was appointed in May OF
1893, under the administration of Governor
Matthews, as superintendent of the hospi-
tai. He was reappointed by both Governor
Mount and Governor Durbin. In his ten
years connection with the institution as
administrator DR.. Edenharter has made the
hospital as complete and as modern as any
in the country. AS the result of the send
ing of the reports to experts in insane hos
pital work, DR.. Edenharter has received
many letters of parise. which have declared
the institution unequaled in the country.
not excepting the famous hospital at Johns
Hopkins University.
NINETEEN NEW BUILDINGS.
DR.. Edenharter has been instrumental
since his superintendency in the building
Of nineteen new buildings on the grounds,
the most important of which are the new
hospital for the sick insane, which Is con-
sidered one of the most modern hospitals
in the country, and the pathological depart
ment, in which medical students are given
an opportunity to study the diseases of the
brain and mind. The hospital for the sick
insane was planned by DIR. Edenharter after
several years of thoughtful study. Light
and ventilation were the leading factors
which control it's plan of construction. The
General Assembly of 1899 appropriated sl10.-
coo for the erection of the hospital build
ing. 1t has but recently been completed
and equipped and will be opened shortly to
the sick inmates. The hospital consists of
five distinct buildings, all of which are
connected by corridors. The administra-
ton building forms the central feature and
is directly connected with the department
for men and the department for women.
1t contains reception rooms for the visitors,
various offices and supply rooms on the
first floor and sleeping rooms for the clint
cal assistants on the second floor. The
departments for the men and the women
to the right and left Of the administration
building contain surgical wards on the first
floor and medical wards on the second. All
bathrooms and lavatories throughout are
In separate buildings, independent of the
wards. The operating department Is on the
first floor. Directly connected with the
departments for the men and women In the
rear of the entire group of buildings are
the general dining rooms, storage rooms and
kitchen. The connection is by means Of
corridors, amply provided with cross ven-
tilation. Throughout the whole hospital
every room is we'll provided with windows
and systems of cross ventilation, so that
draughts or odors from one part of the
hospital cannot reach another part. There
is no sewer connection whatever between
the two different rooms.
PATHOLOGICAL DEPARTMENT.
The pathological department has also
been recently established, and a new
building provided for the purpose. DR..
Edenharter's object in having a pathology
ical department was for the purpose of
providing the hospital staff with facilities
for scientific work directly connected with
the cases in the wards, and to afford OBJ
portunities to the students of the medical
colleges of the city to study insanity i'm
its various forms so that when they carry
on a general practice they may know
how to treat i~ncipient cases and hence
go 49, e.
money. The work of the pathological de-
partment is proving unusually successful,
the students coming out twice and three
times a week.
In looking into the culinary part of the
work of the hospital proper one is again
surprised at the magnitude of the prob
lem. In the dining room of the women's
department $50 women of unbalanced
minds are fed three times daily. Most of
the service is done by employed labor, al
though a number of TRUSTEES are made
use Of. 1t has been suggested that more
Of the inmates be put to employment
around the institution, but DR.. Edenharter
stoutly opposes such a view. He maintains
that an insane person is a sick person
and his or her lot is bad enough without
being put to work. The inmates are well
fed, as a few figures for the purchasing
record will show. For the month of Oc-
tober contracts were let for $4,000 pounds of
fresh beef, 5000 pounds of pork, 5000 pounds
of ham, $500 pounds of lard, I,5OO dozen
eggs, 300 gallons Of oysters, 1900 pounds of
butter crackers, 100 bushels of potatoes.
go barrels Of flour, 165 gallons Of milk per
day, 10000 pounds of sugar, $500 pounds of
beans. 1,500 pounds of cheese, 5000 pounds
of green coffee, 200 dozen of canned
peaches. 600 pounds of tea and many other
staples Of like nature. All the baking is
done in the kitchen of the institution. At
| present 500 loaves of bread are consumed
each day by the inmates, and in addition
1000 rolls and 400 pounds of cake are baked
each week. Fruits in season are also fur
nished the unfortunates.
OFFICERS IN CHARGE.
As has been stated, most of the work is
done by employees. Thirteen officers are in
charge of the various departments. In the
department for men ninety-nine employees
are kept, while in the department for the
| women the employees number 107. In the
laundry seventeen persons are employed,
in the sewing department eleven, in the
dining rooms sixteen, etc. The total num-
Der employed at the institution is 32S. their
aggregate salaries amounting to $91, S2S. 95
per year.
The hospital for the insane is made as