Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1905-06-10


Kraphic account of tent life as tried
,nder his direction for large number
Of insane consumptives- The follow
ing extracts are from his paper in the
Directory OF Institutions and Societies
dealing with Tuberculosis in the
United States and Canada:
That consumptive insane patients
may be kept, and treated, to their ad-
vantage and incidentally to the adj
vantage of their fe1lowinmates, in
canvas tents, and throughout the sew
oral seasons of the year, has been
demonstrated in the recent history OF
the Manhattan State Hospital, East
The experiment upon the success or
which this claim is advanced has COW
cred period of forty months.
In all hospitals for the insane the in
mates are classified according to the
form of mental disturbance. To take
hom all these classes any suffering
from tuberculosis and put them to-
gether in one tent was serious prob
lem. This, however. has been very
successfully done. The original plan
vas to use the camp only about five
months during each summer.
The camp first established consist
ed of two large dormitory tents,
twenty by forty feet-each containing
twenty beds, with smaller tents of
different shapes, about ten by ten
feet, for the accommodation of the
nurses. the care of the hospital stores,
pantries and a dining tent for such
patients as were able to leave their
beds and tents, and go to the table for
their meals. Running water was Sc
cured by means of underground pipes,
and the safe disposition of waste and
sewage was also provided for.
AS has been said, it was expected to
continue the camp only through the
summer and as far into the autumn
as favorable weather might render
justifable. But when in the late au-
tumn it was found that the favorable
experience continued, it was decided
to attempt to carry the experiment,
on a moderate scale, into, or even
through. the approaching winter. The
camp. as first established, had been
placed upon an elevated knoll adjacent
to the riverside and purposely exposed
to the full force of the summer
breezes. For the winter experiment
it's site was removed to the center of
the island, where trees and buildings
fnterposed to act as wind-break to
northeast which are to be expected in
that locality. The number of patients
was reduced to twenty, those in whom
the disease was most active being re-
tanned and the others being returned,
for the time being, and much against
their will. to the buildings. One large
tent suffices for the housing at night
of the reduced number of patients.
CT n o.
room for day use, with the accessory
tents before mentioned, and large
stoves were placed in them, here and
there, with wire screens surrounding
them to protect the patients, and a
liberal use of asbestos and other fire
proof material and arrangements for
the prevention of fire.
To make a long story short, it has
remained in continuous use, not only
throughout the first winter, but
through the two succeeding winters
and intervening seasons, up to the
date Of the present writing The scope
of its employment has been gradually
enlarged until all patients in whom
there are active manifestations Of
tuberculosis average of forty
three out of total census of about
2,o0O-are isolated therein, and there
has been parallel enlargement of the
elements of the plant.
The isolation of the tuberculosis pa
tients has reduced to a minimum the
danger of infection of other patients
and of employees. The patients them
selves have suffered no injury or hard
ship, but have, on the contrary. beer
Enthusiastically benefited. This is shown
among other ways, by a decrease il
the death rate from pulmonary tuber
culosis, both absolute and relative
and by a marked general increase il
bodily weight, amounting in the cast
of enc patient to an actual doubling o
the weight-from eighty-three to on.
hundred and sixty-six pounds-in four
teen months of camp residence.
Mental Improvement has as gener
al rule been the concomitant of physi
cal. not only among the patients in tn
tuberculosis camp, but also in RI,
others, and in the former class thi
has been somewhat of an anomaly
MY experience, and think that o
others, has been that when phthisi
and insanity co-exist they are apt t
alternate as to the prominence of thei
several manifestations-the menta
symptoms being more pronounce
whilst the physical are in allegiance
and vice versa. Under the tent treai
ment we have found a general dds
position toward accord in the NANTES
tations, Improvement in both respect
proceeding concurrently, and some c
the discharges from the hospital whic
gave most satisfaction to us at tn