The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-02-25
TO CORRECT ABUSES
Bills introduced in the Senate, to
Regulate the Care Of the
Insane.
State Made to Look After Many
Who Could Be Provided for
at Home.

Extensive reforms for the hospitals for
the the insane are Proposed ~ q serles OF
erville of Brown. That there is great
need for reform in certain directions
seems plain from the first, report of the
board of control. In the short time this
board has been in existence it has fire.
quently been brought to the attention of
the members that there exist abuses in
the commitment of persons to the hos
pitfalls and asylums for the insane and to
the school for feeble minded Too fire.
quently churches have been compelied to
assume the expense of caring for de-
mented persons and inbecileS, simply be-
cause relatives were unwilling, though
not una BILE, to support them This shirk
ing of responsibility has resulted in filling
six institutions Of the state to their ut
most capacity. entailing tremendous ex
pense to the state.
One of Senator Somerviles measures
would require each county to pay SIS per
year for each person from within its Dor
ders. IN hospital, asylum or school for
feeble minded. This is at the rate Of $1.50
per week or. about half Of the esti-
mated expense for maintenance. The judge
OF probate at the examination for com
mitment would determine the legal resi-
dence of the defendant The counties,
however, would have the privilege of re-
covering from the relatives or estates of
the persons thus committed the money
paid to the state under this law.
This bill is in line with a bill presented
yesterday, designed to prevent state hos
pitfalls from receiving patients inlbecile or
infirn from old age.
It. is believed that if these measures
should become operative, they would
greatly reduce the present population in
the six state institutions at st. Peter,
Rochester, Fergus Falls, Hastings, AnolSa
and Faribault.
Expo Appropriation.
The sequel Of the visit of Lieutenant
Governor Ray w. Jones and Speaker Bah
cock, with several legislative members
and clerks, to st. Louis. appeared in the
senate this morning in a bill to increase
the appropriation for the Louisiana Pur-
chase Exposition to 100000. 1t was in
troduced by Senator G. B. Ward Of Alex
andria, one of the party which made the
trip.
| Keep Them Locked Up.
/ Senator K. A. Smith believes that it is
! less expensive and more agreeable to the
| public to keep habitual criminals in JAIL
He sent in a bill this morning which
would make twenty-five years the
| minimum sentence for confirmed crooks,
this sentence to be passed on conviction
| of felony of such criminals as have
! previously been convicted of a felony in
| this or another. state and have served
terms in the state penitentiary and nave
not been pardoned. -.- d, .s,-assr.. !. ,.,-4z,
! -. To Provide for Pathways,
J., A bill by Senator F.. S. McNamee Of
st. Paul would grant authority to nu-
inequalities to set apart any street or ave-
nue. or any portion of the highways of the
city as parkways and authorize the proper
bodies to pass measures regulating the
traffic thereon and for bidding thesu OF
certain classes Of vehicles. Whether such
i a law would hold as regards Hennepin
and Iyndale avenues in Minneapolis
would be a serious question should the
bill be passed. a...
Steam Engineers Bill = z
:. duplicate Of house bill to regulate
steam engines was presented to the senat
by Senator Barker. 1t provides a penalty Of
either fine or Imprisonment for engineers
who take charge of engines with a great.
er horse power than the class for which
they are licensed to operate.