The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-01-22
If State Fails to Authorize
Improvements at Easthav~
cn 1t Will Mean Expense to.
County.
IlNFIRMARY MUST BE !
GREATLY ENLARGED
If State Will Not Care for Its
Insane, It Is Argued, Then
Wayne County Will Be
Obliged To.

An ultimate outgrowth of the ref09t
al of the legislature to make an appFu
priation for the purchase OF additiouo
ground and for the erection OF morn
buildings at the Eastern Indiana hDoe
pital for the insane. will be thA&
Wayne county and possible oth&
counties in Eastern Indiana. whic&
send their insane to that instituti6e
will have to solve the question ofc&a
ing for their insane themselves. ~
It is probable and seems positivGHs
that Wayne county will solve Its parts
of the question within the next two
years by the construction Of another
building at the county inArmary that
will be used exclusively for housing
the insane Of the county. II the ercce
plan. then probably additions will b~A
constructed to both the mems and tho
women's wards for the men and wom.
en- insane respectively. The failure
of the state to see the necessity Oes
meeting this problem will cause biz
expense to the county. vs.
New Building Needed. 81
Already an agitation for the con
struction OF new building. or the
erection OF additions to the present
buildings at the infirmary. Ii we'll un.s
der way and this will be the most linz
p0rtsnt matter discussed atrtho elreh@
ruary meetings Of the board Of county
commissioners. Chairman Rober&
Beeson OF the board while IN tho city
on Saturday, stated that several ha1E
spoken to him about the urgency oGs
the matter. Including Judge Henry c.
Fox of the circuit court
| Chairman Beeson Ii in favor or con.s
structing the wards Immediately H.
order that the county VIII be In q state
OF preparedness, providing he finds
that the sentiment In the county ID the
| same as 1t was several months ago.
Unless Wayne county takes this
! most positive step, dissimilar to any
which any other county OF Its size tn
the state has taken. 1t will have tn|
care for its male idAane at the county
Jail and the women insane at tho
Home for the Friendless. The unpops
ularity OF this system has been en-
phasized repeatedly. The jail and thu
Home for the Friendless are not res
garded as the proper places to treakS
people mentally affected. Also thos0s
who are authority on the subject ofs
charities and corrections declare such
procedure 10 manifestly unfair to-
those who are confined In these inss
stitutions for misdemeanors Howevs
er. the fact that little Improvement -.
made by insane confined In such in.s
stituti0ns IL the principal argument
against the present plan
important Question.
Two years ago the question was M.
/ permost in the minds OF Wayne coun-
ity citizens. Then the construction of
wards for the insane was dispensed|
with because the county oficials wers
led to believe that the state would
take steps this year to meet its obiigss
atoms. Superintendent 8. E. Smit1E
had been practically beeh assured that
an appropriation would be made By
the legislature which would make pos
sible the purchase OF 4 farm adjacent
to the hospital grounds and the con-
struction OF several colony houses for
the housing Of the insane. However.
Ipolitics played its part in defeat Of
this assurance. Furthermore II Was.
hoped that the Eastern Indiana hos
pital would be greatly relieved by the
transfer OF patients TO the newly ops
ened Southern Indiana hospital at
Madison. 1t did temporarily but the
demand on both institutions imme-
Idiateiy became 80 great that the bcne-
fit to the local institution was of brief
duration.
Patients from the county cannot bCs
admitted to the state institution Inn
lmediate1y upon being declared per-
sons Of unsound mind. II they are.
dangerous. and many Of them are
and unless their relatives can AFFORD
to send them to private sanitariums,
they are placed in one Of the jails to.
await admfttancc. Sometimes this II
three months. often a year Two or
three years ago. patients had to wait
as long as two or three years before
this could be accomplished.
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