The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1912-02-23
INSANITY SHOWS
Large INCREASE
Statistics Reveal Big Gain
in Asylums.
South and West Are Exceptions
to the General
Rule.

|
growth in the general population Of
the country during the past decade
the population of the insane asylum
Of the country has increased with
more than double that ratio-25 per
cent.
| There are now, according to statis-
f. Dana Durand, Director of the Gen.
sus, 1s7,i5i mentally unsound persons
confined I'm institutions which were
canvassed by the Bureau Of Census
During 1910 6o,Go3 were admitted to
the institutions, and considerably
smaller number discharged.
But even these figures fail to repre-
sent the real prevalence Of mental I'M
balance among the American people to-
day, for many of them die, many are
transferred to institutions which were
not canvassed and many have been
discharged either as cured or as
harmless patients.
| AS to the distribution of insanity
throughout the country there are
apparently fewer instances in the
West and in the South. These sections
are not, strictly speaking, centers of
population, like the overcrowded cities
of the East
150,15l IN 1901
The census taken prior to the alst
canvas was compiled in 1901, and at
that time there were I5015l insane
persons in the asylums of the United
States, and the number committed
during the year was 1862.
Therefore in the six years from 1901
to 1910 there was an increase of 3d.
S03, or 2i.S per cent. in the number Of
persons confined in insane asylums,
and an increase of 1881, or 22.1 per
cent, in the number annually ad-
mitted to such institutions. This in
crease of 1898 in the population OF
insane asylums. taking in a period of
N six years, means an annual increase
= Of 600.
The number of insane per 10000
lpopulation increased from els in 1914
to 65.3 in 1910. Accepting these figures
as basis for conclusions. it would
appear that the number Of persons
becoming insane in community of
100000 persons was greater by "A in
1910 than 1t was in 1904. yet it must
. be remembered that these figures in
: clude only patients who have been
admitted to hospitals.
AS to the vast number of cases
where the attacks do not warrant
eminent has absolutely no data. The
census office for this reason is Of the
opinion that the increase I'm insanity
as shown by the figures may really be
nothing more than straw increase
due to the present day methods Of
caring for persons mentally unsound
and that the growth in the insane
population is really due to the fact
that greater numbers of insane per-
sons are being sent to hospitals for
treatment than ever before. This
angle of the matter is supported
somewhat by the fact that the instl-
buttons in which unfortunates of this
character are cared for have increased
from ASS in 1901 to 472 in 1910
LARGE RELATIVE PROPORTION.
As to the prevalence. whether it is
really increasing or whittier nor
NAL and uniform ratio is being pre-
served. it is startling to consider that
the insane population of the United
States is larger than that of city
like Columbus. o.
Massachusetts holds the record for
the number of insane in ratio to the
population of the State. The figures
of the census office show that on
January !. 1910. there We're SAG in
sane per 100000 in that State. New
York has closed second with 3i31 for
every 100000. There is little doubt
that in these States better provision
is made for the care of the mental
ly unsound than in almost any other
State in the Union, and. then. too,
the patients confined In the asylums
| In New York and Massachusetts, are
by no means all Massachusetts, and
New York folks.
| In the case of the New England
States, especially, there are many pa
tents drawn from the neighboring To-
calities. as the excellence of the Mas
sachusetts institutions is marked.
The District of Columbia far outranSs
both New York and Massachusetts in
the number of insane confined In its
asylums. but this cannot be taken as
meaning there is greater prevalence
Of insanity here. because most of the
insane population is confined In the
Government Hospitals for the Insane