The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-10-20
nv John ELrRErH WATKINS.


twashington. d. C., october Is. 1919
RE We growing crazier!
~ The census office finds thas
- y within six years the insane u
8our asylums have increased from 1851
20 eos,s per 100. 600 OF our popuiation.
- nd that lunacy is increasing through
ont the entire wond was Announces
she other day by the FAMOUS Dr'
arorbes winsiow, who at the same
.ims made the grim prediction tnSt
..,bsra will be more lunatics In tne
ia than sane people three hundred
,arS hence" that we are rapidly
snnroaehing a mad world
triaAous picture this. II the ma
so-it,. is 10 rule by direct vote In the
golden future. wha, is posterity to DO
=, thc sad year 22l2. when that ma
,nrtty is MAD? Haunted by such
horrible thought, ! rushed over the
river the other day 10 seek cohsoia-
.ion from Uncle Sans chief anenist'
r,r william A. White, superintendent
~ the Governme ntal Hospital for the
1asane. DR.. White refused TO tremots'
nor did his color hianeh-
An Aiarmist View. says Aiienist.
..Dr Forbes Winslows view is I'M
Sonnr.dIy an alarmists one, quotn
- ut is based apparently upon the
assumption that single social cohoi-
,ion may ne isolated from ali other
social conditions and considered alone
.pd by itself. When so considered the
natural tendency would propaniy De as
Dr WINSTON has suggested. but social
.ond;rions are not TO be SO simply con-
Sfdered. They are always extremely
conplex by being surrounded and an
spanced by other conditions that mod
5,sv the results. There is hardly Nv
ing species to-day, but what, II II Went
on producing at its normal rate witn-
ont being interfered with by SURROUND
ing and modifying conditions. would IN
a rnaryelousiy short time populate the
entire surface OF ,he globe. But we
know that this does not happen In
tart Il YOU will measure off plot OF
ground a few feet square IN when
ar, contained plants and animals OF
numerous species and habits any one
OF which. II left to itself. would popu-
late the globe in a few years, you will
SrSd al the end of few months that
the relative proportion between the
several species has not materially
Syaried. This fact was pointed out
many years ago on the basis of actual
observation by Darwin
Insanity Increases With Longevity.
DR. Winslow is quoted as stating
slso that in every part of the world
scip,lization is advancing. and SO In
Sanity is bound 10 advance. ] added.
lis insanity necessary accoIapdni-
mem Of advanced civilization? Will
moi, higher intelligence. produced by
advancing civilization. conquer more
and more the tendency toward mad
ness"
..The much moo,ed question as to-
ha of NJ
.cicent to higher civilization is difficult
10 answer" DR.. White replied. Two
matters suggest themselves for con-
In the first place it Is fair
10 presume that as the struggle Tor
existence has. through the ages, shift
ed from a struggle that throws the
mator part OF mans work upon his
muscular system to Struggle that
throws a greater part Of his work up
on his mond--that as this cnange mas
taken place. his brain. which Is sub
iee,ed 10 a greater amount OF use. may
suffer more frequently from disease
And second il must be remembered
that with advancing civilization the
problem Of preventive medicine mas
come more and more to the front. and
that human life is prolonged materially
beyond what il used to be. The great
est incidence OF INSANITY - pet~c cH tA@c
ages Of approximately thirty and forty
a yerv much larger proportion of peo-
pie to-day live to this period OF life
than used to be the case. Therefore
The increas. Of civilization may produce
., inSease in the actual number OF
the insane by the mere fact OF proiong-
ing human life"
"Anthropologists have advanced the
.neorv that sasages are insane, as COM
pared with enlightened man Is not
the reverse Of DR.. Winslows rule,
therefore. the true tendency The low
e- We get in a scale of civilization. Is
there no, more insanity / further
asked.
so far as / know" said the alienist.
insanity does net increase the lower
,xe 60 in the scale of civilization
before the eugenics congress the
-otha- day DR.. Mott stated that the gem
.raI increase In lunacy Is more appar-
en-. than real Do you agree Win
r,in,- was the next question
a do agree with Dr. Mott"
is MT the Utensils conception OF
Insanity steadily widening. with the
-ss;,.t. tlA,, many cases are TOW reocg-
-,ized and appear in tire sfatasncs
w15toh were formerly overiooked!'
.Ip.aufts" Not q Medical Tern.
Tho general answer TO this Gues-