Evening star., 1950-02-03
Wants Nation Wide Reformation
OF Treatment of Mental Cases

OF Treatment of Mental Cases
To the Editor of The Star: -..
In a recent letter correspondent asked
Congress to look into commitments to hos
pitfalls for the insane. But Investigations are
a waste of valuable time and money. They
usually are tipped off and everything is put
in apple-pie order grass cut, shrubbery
trimmed, front Offices cleaned, all beds made
up with white spreads, all patients sent out
on work duty, employees alerted to extra-f
behavior and drilled on how to answer any
and all questions. The personnel of mental
hospitals are skilled in the art of deception.
Investigations therefore result in the usual
whiteWaShing.
Obviously there is need for prompt and
effective action toward asylum reform. We
need revision of the present lunacy laws on
a Nationwide scale. If a person is insane
in one State Ca menace to himself or So
ciety). he should be equally so in another.
The present system Of certihcation and
detention lends itself to conspiracy, error
and gross abuse. -
Today there are confusing technicalities
in the different States. They show differ
ences IN definition, detention, diagnosis,
commitment, legal procedure, admission Of
old folks parole and discharge.
DR.. George S. Stevenson of the United
States National Committee for Mental
appealed for more humane treatment and
care of mental patients throughout the
world. He asked delegates to the Interna-
tional Mental Hygiene Conference to help
put an end to cruelties inflicted on mental
patients and to clear up inhuman conditions
in many mental institutions He said, Some
OF the institutions are antiquated. crowded
and filled with yermin'
GROVER C. FRETWELL
Curator of Austrian Pictures Tells
OF His Impressions of American Public
To Che Editor Of The Star:
The interview which you kindly published
in your issue of January 26, under the head
ing %. c. Queries on Cash Value of Art Hit"
seems to omit two points I was anxious to
make and has led to a very unfortunate
Interpretation of some of my remarks.
Asked to compare the reactions of the
European public with those of the Washing
ton public, pointed out that in Europe it
was on the whole very difficult to attract
the ordinary person to art exhibitions of this
kind. In this country. judging by the truly
enormous attendance figures it is the broad
strata of the population who must have
provided the bulk of the visitors
also said that was touched and deeply
moved by the appreciation and almost reli-
gious respect for the great masterpieces of
art which often saw reflected in the faces
of the people moving about the exhibition
1t is against this background that my
remarks should be read I should be very
unhappy if, for instance, the word naive"
which I used would be construed in any
derogatory fashion. 1t was meant to de-
scribe the spontaneous approach of the aver
age man and woman to these great works
of art.
Needless to say, the interview as published
puts me in very awkward position since
1t could be read as criticism, which I in
no way intended. AS a matter of fact I
and all my countrymen are immensely
pleased at the reception the exhibition re-
ceived in Washington, which went far beyond
our most ambitious hopes
E. H. BUSCHBEEK,
Curator Picture Gallery, Vienna.