Evening star., 1921-11-27
FHtyYears Ago
In The Star

The presence in the District of Co.
lumbia Of the Government Hospstai fsr
e.. the Insane has always
Sanity Average proved a source of
Explained, District Isl r RESIDENT. ssss.t VIII, so
have been confnonted'b by inquisitive stat.
isticians on the score OF the average of
sanity In this community. 1t appears
that this was 4 troublesome matter fifty
years ago. according to The Star OF
November Il, 1871.
Some of the newspapers which have
received the last circular from the cen
sus Office in this city are greatly trou-
bled in mind to account for the fact that
in the District of Columbia there Is one
mad man in every 275 Of the population.
or about four times the proportion ac-
credited to most of the states. To save
some Of the anxious journalists who arr
wrestling with this weighty problem
from themselves being reckoned in this
portion OF the tables at the next census
II they continue to worry about 1t, We
rise to explain that IL Is not owing 10
counting Congress in, as some suppose
but that the Government Insane Asylum
to which all the lunatics in the Army
and Navy are sent, Is located In this
District. This, too, will account for
that other puzzling fact TO which refer
ence is made, that the number of male
persons affected by insanity is almost
three times as great as that OF the
opposite sex"
Wednesday. November %, 1871, an
election was held in the District for
delegates To
Great Majority for the lower
Improvement Loan. ,srr,tor,sl ~ ,ss[ s
islature, with referendum on the sub
ject of the improvement loans. The Star
Of the next day. November %. said:
"The result of the election is ex-
ceedingly gratifying to all who desire
that this seat of the federal government:
| should be worthy in all respects Of its
position as the capital of a great nation.
For many years old fogyism prevailed
I and our people were taunted with their
want Of enterprise.
The election of President Lincoln
and the war which followed infused
a new spirit into our people, and after
the war attempts were made to i'm
prove and beautify Washington, but
what was done was in accordance
with no general system, and the re-
suits produced were not as they ought
to have been. considering the amount
Of money expended. There was, con-
seQuently. great dissatisfaction on
the part of public-spirited citizens,
and the result was an application to
Congress for change of our form
of government This application was
granted, and we all know what fol-
lowed. The board Of public works,
composed of five gentlemen Of ac-
knowledged worth and ability, CON
ceived a proper idea of the respon-
sibility attached to their position, and.
instead Of contenting themselves with
patching broken pavements. agreeu
upon a general system Of street I'M
provements and sewerage whiCll
would benefit all parts of the District
To carry out this plan. money was re
quired, hence the proposition for q
ments. This was passed by the leg
islative assembly in spite of the op-
ponents of progress who had yea
after year fought every appropriation
for improvements inch by inch They
carried the case into the courts. am
then came the injunction proceedings
already familiar to our readers. TIL"
legislative assembly had in the mean
time passed another bill, submitting
the proposition for a loan Of 81 zoe. 900
to vote Of the people. The election
was held yesterday, and the result is
that the people of the District have
given majority Of Is, 546 in favor of
special improvements - -