The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-11-22
HEALTH OF INSANE PRONOUNCED GOOD Report Made on Condition of
 Institutions NEGRO HELP IS A FAILURE pr. searey Says White Help Had to se Substituted at the Mount Vernon
 Hospital for Negro
 Nurses.

The report of the trustees anu OhiNSAs "a the Alabama Insane hospitals, the Bryce at Tuscaloosa, and the Mt. Vernon at Mt. Vernon, Just submitted to the gov ernor. makes some interesting showings The general health of the inmates has been good and there have been no cpl denies within the time covered by the re- port, the year ending September 30 last. Negro help has proven failure at the Mt. Vernon hospital, where negro pa tients are cared for, and white nurses have been substituted The patients are managed along humane lines. though more room is badly needed. The trustees highly compliment the management Of the hospital and the work of Dr. J. T. searcy, the efficient superintendent.
 The outside work at the hospitals has made a fine showing. The production Of vegetables and farm truck has been very large and has been used to great advan- tage In the expenses of the institution, and has been, therefore. great saving. A great deal of fruit has been cared for. A number of new improvements have been made including a laundry, infirmaries at both hospitals and increase in the water supply.
 The statements of patients show that there were on the books the beginning of the year ending September 30. 1922 pa- tients, 1922 white and 300 colored. This number has been increased and decreased from time to time leaving the figures l7SS under care, 495 of whom are colored. There are 1s9 coloreo men and 2a0 colored
 Ar. al The total number admitted to the two hospitals during the year was 5ss, of whom iee were negroes; 241S were treat ed and 1s1 died There were S97 appli- cants, 123 of whom were declined.
 Negroes Failure.
 A very interesting feature of the re- port of pr. Searcy, the superintendent, was that which has to do with the ef- fort to develop negro helpers as nurses and attendants for the negro hospital at Mount Vernon. For two years we work ed faithfully" says Dr. Seacy, ito get suitable negro men and women. We spent considerable money advertising and sending out employees in the southern part of the state to find coiored attendants. They so generally proved inefficient and untrustworthy and were so unstable in their connection with the hospital, we de- cided last year to employ white men and women. Considering all the worry and additional expense of obtaining and keep ing suitable negro nurses the white nurses have proven less expensive and greatly more efficient. A noticeable change was at once observed in the care Of the pa- tients and in their satisfaction. The gen.
 f4.4- txa 6a a ' Q O. ment of the wards Is very apparent. Patients Admitted.
 The total number of patients admitted since the opening of the hospital In lSbl is 50n men and 42zl women total of 1892. Of this number 1505 men and l2Zo women, 2730 in all died.
 Of the number of patients from each county during the last fiscal year, Jeff ferson leads with 142 white and 47 col ored; Mobile comes next with 11S whites and 60 colered, while Montgomery Is third with 49 whites and 37 colored. Tuscaloosa Is fourth with 52 whites and "A colored. Covington county is the lowest on the list, having only G. all white. Winston has whites, Baldwin whites and colored, and Houston whites and coi- ored Sixty-two counties have less than fifty, and five more. There Is one patient
 
 Louisiana. How they came to be thus designated is not made plain.
 Democratic Statistics.
 Of the admittances for the year there were 97 single white men and 75 single white women; married white men g7 anc married white women 110. There were 31 white widows and 10 white widowers Two men were divorced and two women. r,... 50 married, 12 widowed and one di- vorced. Forty colored men were single, 31 married. widowed and one divorced.
 There were five white persons received under l5 years; 31 from 15 to 20; 53 from 20 to 25; 56 from 25 to 3O 103 from 30 to 40: 30 from 40 to 50; 47 from 50 to 60; 2s from 60 to 70; 12 from 70 to S0 Of the negroes there were under 15; A from 15 to 20; S4 from 20 to 25; S7 from 25 to 30; IA from 30 to 40; 123 from 40 to 50 59 from 50 to 50; ,36 from 60 to 70; IS from 70 to 80
 Causes and Forms.
 Causes of insanitary are given as fol- lows: From epilepsy, 54; auto-intoxication Te; senility. 35; alcohol. s4; arrested devel- opment, 25 predisposition 2SS. Drugs, cpium cocaine and tobacco are credited with 22; domestic troubles g; paresis. 12; AaiihH5itiH, ' hc OthttS die Hidue up Ul g number Of other troubles known to re- suit in failure of intellect.
 The forms of insanity are given as fol- lows; Idiocy, 10; imbecility. co., dementia, primary, l12; dementia, secondary. 27; mania, l62; melancholia, 11; other causes, 94 Deaths resulted from the following causes: Tuberculosis, 49; dysentary, II; senile debility, 25; epilepsy, IS: maniacal exhaustion. 19; heart disease, IS; chronic nephritis, ,2; suicide, 2; gastro-enteritis, 12; cerebral apoplexy, 3; paresis, z; mania a-potu, 2; .cn from other causes.
 More Money Needed
 After reporting on the good conduct of the institution by the steward, MT. w. c. Harris. Dr. Searcy discusses the rather hard task he had to keep the expenditures down to the limit He says: with the in- creased cost of supplies, and with higher wages in all departments. as well as the constant necessity of enlarging all the plants of the hospital to meet the increas- ing demands and the necessity of making additional room for increasing number of patients, we have been able only with the closest economy and management to keep the expenditures within the per capita of S2.50 week. The sum from this source, however will not provide for the neces- sary improvements forshadowed in my last report and all the more urgent now.
 Treasurer's Report. The report from the treasurer shows receipts from the state as follows: First |