Insanity: Its Causes and PreventionStearns, Henry Putnam
Science
Insanity: Its Causes and Prevention
Stearns, Henry Putnam
Psychiatry -- Early works to 1900
The third is that of the new Hospital for the Insane at Worcester, Mass.;
and of the admissions here last year, we find that more than forty-two per
cent. were from the above-named classes.
The fourth is that of the Western Pennsylvania Hospital, and of the
admissions here, thirty per cent. were of these classes; while an
examination of the occupations of those admitted to the Somerset and Bath
Asylum, England, shows that nearly forty per cent. were of persons
similarly circumstanced.
In these statistics I have included those persons who, in the reports, are
classed as _domestics_, _laborers_, and persons of _no occupation_. I have
not included wives of laborers, or persons whose occupation was
"_unknown_." I think it may fairly be assumed that, in the case of
laborers, those who dig and shovel and labor on the public works, or in
other places, under supervision, and in the case of domestics generally
throughout the country, not one in ten has ever had any training or
education in any special line of service before they undertook to earn a
living in following these avocations; that, in fact, they could not do any
thing else.
Possibly reports of other asylums might show statistics varying somewhat
from these, but I take it that these are sufficiently accurate for my
purpose, which is to show from what class of persons, so far as an
education in any of the ordinary employments is concerned, a very large
percentage of the admissions to our State hospitals comes. Without doubt
a still larger per cent. of the admissions to some of the county asylums
in England comes from this class of persons.
But so far we have shown only the per cent. the admissions of this class
sustain to that of all admissions to asylums. Their true significance will
appear only when we bear in mind the percentage this class of persons
sustains to the whole population. The whole number of domestics, common
laborers, and persons of no occupation, must be small as compared with the
whole number of persons above fifteen years of age, and from whom
admissions to asylums come. If, therefore, this amounts to more than one
third of all admissions, it must amount to a very much higher per cent.
than comes from any other class in the community to these asylums.
It may be proper to add to the above classes of persons the no
inconsiderable number who, throughout the States, are engaged as mere
operatives in our factories and manufacturing establishments. Many of
these are engaged, and have been for years, in tending to some portion of
machinery which is nearly automatic in its operations, and which requires
little or no special training or education on the part of the operative.
There might also be included, for my present purpose, that not
inconsiderable class whose education for any business has been only
partial, and who, with little previous training, have assumed the full
responsibilities of such business.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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