"'Mentally defective person' means a person who, owing to his mental condition requires oversight, care, or control for his own good or in the public interest, and who, according to the nature of his mental defect, and to the degree of care, oversight, or control deemed to be necessary, is included in one of the following classes:-- "_Class I:_ Persons of unsound mind--that is, persons who, owing to disorder of the mind, are incapable of managing themselves or their affairs. "_Class II:_ Persons mentally infirm--that is, persons who, through mental infirmity arising from age or decay of their faculties, are incapable of managing themselves or their affairs. "_Class III:_ Idiots--that is, persons so deficient in mind from birth or from an early age that they are unable to guard themselves against common physical dangers, and therefore require oversight, care, or control required to be exercised in the case of young children. "_Class IV:_ Imbeciles--that is, persons who, though capable of guarding themselves against common physical dangers, are incapable, or if of school age will presumably, when older, be incapable, of earning their own living by reason of mental deficiency existing from birth or from an early age. "_Class V:_ Feeble-minded--that is, persons who may be capable of earning a living under favourable circumstances, but are incapable from mental deficiency existing from birth or from an early age of competing on equal terms with their normal fellows, or of managing themselves and their affairs with ordinary prudence. "_Class VI:_ Epileptics--that is, persons suffering from epilepsy." This is similar to the classification in the English Mental Deficiency Act, which also includes the following definition:-- "'Moral imbeciles'--that is, persons who from an early age display permanent mental defect, coupled with strong criminal or vicious propensities, on which punishment has little or no deterrent effect." In the opinion of the Committee it is very important that a similar definition should be included in any amendment of the New Zealand Act. A Magistrate may order the committal to an institution of any person coming within these definitions if he is satisfied that such person is mentally defective and two medical men give a certificate to that effect. Persons coming under the description in Classes I, II, III, or IV are committed to the mental hospitals, but there seems to be considerable reluctance both on the part of medical practitioners to certify and of Magistrates to commit to a mental hospital epileptics and those described as "feeble-minded." Evidence was given before the Committee to the effect that there would not be the same disinclination to send these classes of patients to a special institution such as a farm colony or an industrial colony.