The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-11-15
INSANE IN STATE
County Commissioners
Must Report.
The Fine OF $500 Will be Imposed if
Blanks are Not Filled. Annual
Report Will be Made in
January.

The State Board of Charities is
endeavoring to obtain full and ac-
curate census of the insane persons in
North Carolina. and has sent to the
various boards of county commission
ers throughout the State question
blanks, which the boards must. by
law, fill out. These blanks properly
filled contain data as TO the penal and
charitable institutions OF the counties,
and such other Information as may
be desirable concerning the defective
and important classes.
The State Secretary of the Board
states that the reports of 1903 and
1903 were only partially made. not
Withstanding many efforts TO get
them. These reports included in the
! annual reports to the Governor of the
Board OF Public Charities are now i'll
| the hands of the public printer. where
that of 1903 has been since May,
903. and rhat of 1904 since April,
| 1904. owing to the delay in publish
| ms its reports the Board has been
Handicapped. In September a new
set Of blanks were mailed TO all
! Boards of Commissioners and COM
plete tables are being made of the in
formation thus received. AL counties
should have reported by the first Mon
| day ~ November Those not report
| ing within a reasonable time viii be
| subject to the penalty Of fine OF
( $500. 1t is earnestly hoped that such
| drastic measures may not be neceS-
/ sary, but the work OF the Board, the
| Secretary stated. cannot be done
satisfactorily without reports from all
and some measures win be taken to
enforce the law.
/ The reports represent 40 counties.
OF these. four do not maintain homes:
seven of these have not yet reported
| the jails: one has not reported the
/ home; making fortv-tWo Jail and for
ty-four home reports. The large coun-
! les of Mecklenburg. Guilford Bun
| combe. ana others, are not included in
/ the list
The reports are supplemented by
( eighteen visitors TeDorts from coun-
| ties not yet reported by the2Iommis,
/ sioners, making sixteen additional
| iails.
| Combining the two sets Of reports
! it is found that there are in Jail in
! ifty-eight counties, fourteen whites
and twelve blacks-twenty-s In
the homes of fiftv-nine counties: in
( sane fifty three whites. forty-seven
colored--total, 100. Reported a.
/ feeble minded, 232; of these forty-fve
! epileptic and six other eoileptics; in
! all fifty-one epileptic.. Total so far
reported as mentally. defective. 364,
| with thirty-eight counties vet 10 be
heard from. These reports are for
! the county institutions.
In addition to The reports made by
/ the commissioners there are blanks
forwarded 70 tho visitors (246 men
and s women at presently. twice
year. These visitors are exercising
an eleVating influence over the county
institutions and carry cheer. kind
words and often substantial comforts
to the inmates. They make semi-an-
nual reports which are also included
in the annual report of the Board of
Public Charities. In this way the
number of insane in the homes and
jails can be accurately obtained, but
it has always been impossible to OBJ
tain the number of insane in private
homes An ATTEMPT was made sew
eraI years ago by the board To get
these statistics through the county
superintendentS OF health. a second
time the sheriffs were tried and in
1908 and 1904 through the commits
sioners These statistics are impor-
tant and show the need Of enlarging
the hospitals to meet not only the
number excluded from treatment for
years rast. but there should be room
for the yearly increase in order that
the disease may be combatted in It's
/ icipiency.
The reports include a report
of the county convict camps
These especially are receiving the at
tentOn of the Board. investigations
having been made IN several counties.
The double reports of the camps will
also appear in the next annual re-
port Of the Board which is made 10
the Governor on the first Tuesday in
January.