The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-18
Georgia State Sanitarium Is
 Now Under Fire
TRUSTEES DENY REPORT
Legislative Investigation Is To Be Made To Determine Truth of Charges and To Correct
 Evils If They Exist.

Atlanta, August 1Z-(Special.) )-Trustees
 and officials of the state sanitarium are
 much aroused over the charges which
 have been made against that institution
 and the legislative investigation which is
 to be made as a result of them.
 The trustees take the position that there Is nothing whatever wrong with
 the institution, except its inability to do
 certain things which they think ought to
 to be done, because of scant appropria-
 tions given them by the legislature This
 is as far as they go except to admit that
 there are occasional abuses which will
 occur, they say, in any institution of the
 magnitude of this one, and which they as-
 sert are very promptly dealt with by
 the discharge of the guilty party or par
 ties.
 The commission appointed by Governor
 Smith to investigate the institution, in it's report to the legislature submitted on the last day of the session goes some- what further than this and calls atten- tion to alleged bad sanitary and health conditions, the poor condition of certain buildings and to the quality of certain of the help employed.
 It was this report which led to the leg islature in it's closing hours to appoint joint committee to look into the af- fairs of the state sanitarium where more than 5000 insane persons, including epi- leptics and idiots, are kept at an annual cost to the state of nearly $450,000.
 Some comment has been made upon the fact that epileptics are kept at the same institution with the insane. The answer of the trustees is that this is a wrong which the legislature has not seen fit to
 remedy.
 The annual toll which tuberculosis
 takes of the inmates Is attributed to the failure of the legislature to make pro-
 vision for the isolation and proper treat
 ment of this class of patients Coupled with the investigation there has been persistent rumor that some
 changes will probably be made in the board of trustees of the santarium at
 the expiration of the terms of the present
 members, December 5, 1909. The new board of trustees will be announced by
 Governor Brown probably the latter part
 of November or the first of December.
 It has generally been the policy to
 make few changes in the board of trus- tees of this institution, but Governor
 Smith set a new precedent by making al- most a clean sweep. Everything consid-
 cred. there is considerable speculation as to what members of the present board, | if any, will be reappointed.
 There is little besides honor in the I position of trustee of the state sanitarium They receive their travelling expenses and 4 per day while actually engaged in the duties incident to their position. The present board is composed of the following members: Judge Thomas c.
 Lawsin of Eatonton, J. T. Brantley of Blackshear, Richard Johnson of Gray, Isaac Hardeman of Macon Dr. Thomas R. Wright of Augusta, Dr. Thomas M.
 Hall of Middledgeville, Dr. E. B. Black
 of Atlanta, Dr. J. Frank Harris of Pavc, W. A. McCurry of Fairburn and K. T. Alfriend of Dublin.
 Eradicatlng Cattle Tick. The action of the legislature in making | a 5000 appropriation, the first of any con- | sequence the state has yet given, to assist in the work of eradicating the cat | tie tick, which is responsible for Texas fever, has stimulated an interest already | in the cattle industry in certain counties, ! and several will make application for the | necessary work to be begun within their ] limits.
 | Putnam county in the central section ! of the state has asked the department l of agriculture for assistance in this direc- 1 ton, and it is understood Morgan and l Greene counties in about the same sec | ton of the state will also make applica- ton.
 1 The appropriation, however, is small l one and very little could be done with it . were it not for the fact that the national | department of agriculture lends material
 assistance in this direction to those states which show any disposition to help them l selves.
 1 The national department had threatened l to withdraw from Georgia in connection | with this work unless the state made an l appropriation to assist in 1t. This 5000 | appropriation by the general assembly | will at least keep the work alive. In only three counties in Georgia has | the cattle tick been finally eradicated- Union Towns and Rabun, but the na- l tional government has not yet given these l finally, clean bill of health. The work Of eradication Is approaching completion in Stephens, Habersham and White, and