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TREATMENT OF INSANE PERSONS.

Many people who are not familiar with the subject of insanity, and insane persons, imagine that they are all wild, furious, and uncontrollable, and hence none but giants can safely have the care of them; but those impressions are very erroneous in a large proportion of cases; and I will make a few more remarks in regard to their necessary treatment, which may be of great service in many cases. First of all, when any person is taken insane, from whatever cause, their friends should never show any signs of being afraid of them, and they should in all cases adopt a tone of command and authority over them; and when once you get the mastery or command, then always manage to retain it, but do it with kindness, and never with abuse or even apparent malice; and should they be wild and furious, or dangerous then confine them with as much ease as possible, and be careful to let them know that they must submit to your authority; but never obtain any submission from any promises which you never intend to fulfill, for in no case should deception be resorted to in order to bring them into subjection.

Should their minds become filled with delusions, or wild fancies upon any subject; in some cases no notice should be taken of them, at other times it may be best to humor them in their false notions, and at others they should be treated with sarcastic ridicule, or contempt, and the proper mode to ascertain which will be the most effectual can only be ascertained by experiment, but in all cases treat them in a friendly manner, and use no force, when persuasion will accomplish the object; let kindness be the universal motto.

If all cities and towns were furnished with the proper apparatus for confining those who must be confined, so that when persons are first attacked with insanity, their friends could have the proper means of confining them at their own houses for a short time, they would undoubtedly in nine cases in every ten be able to keep them at home until they would be entirely restored to reason, and they would be restored in half of the time that they would if they once become inmates of that prison of which they have a perfect dread.

The wristers and muffs are made of leather, and are sufficient to confine the hands, so that no injury can be done to themselves or others. The strong chair is made of stout hard wood, and is made to confine the arms and feet, and they can do no injury to themselves or others, and are confined to any location, so that they can be found where they are left.

There is the French invented Maniac Bedstead, to confine them at night, and is intended for suicidal or violent patients, and is made about two and a half feet square, and long enough for the tallest man. It is a box made of plank, and a cover which is a sort of rack, a little oval, with five strips running lengthwise and hooped across with five hoops of iron, at equal distances apart, and fits upon the top, or the top of the box is sawed off all round four or five inches deep to make the cover, and is fastened on by four hooks and staples near each corner, and when a person is put into it, they will be likely to be found in the morning if it is made strong enough! Any carpenter can make one of them, or the strong chair. Any person could obtain the wristers and muffs of Mr. Chandler Tuttle, of Augusta, for about five dollars. If cities and towns would furnish the above articles for their alms houses, where they have them, and keep them to lend to their citizens, in many instances they would save the trouble and expense of sending their insane to the Hospital, and frequently would save hundreds of dollars, and much anxiety of their friends.

It is supposed to be the duty of the trustees, in addition to their duty in relation to the financial affairs, to see that the patients are abused or unjustly detained, but in relation to the abuses or unjust detention, so far as complaints have been made, it is my opinion that they were never known to interfere against the officers in favor of the patients unless they were compelled to do so by some person from the outside; and knowing that to be the fact, I will make a suggestion for the consideration of the public which is, that there ought to be for all hospitals or prisons, whether public or private, a committee of visitors, to be drawn from the Jury box, of about five persons, and to be drawn from as many different towns, none of which should be in the town where the hospital is located, whose duty it should be to visit the hospital for the express purpose of looking after and investigating any charges, of every name and nature, of abuses or wrong detention or imprisonment, and for them to make a record of their doings, which should be subject to the inspection of their successors in office, and for none to serve in that capacity for a longer term than three or six months.

CHAPTER XI.

I am about to close for the present. In doing so I cannot forego making a few observations, illustrative of the damning effects, morally and physically speaking, my incarceration has had upon me as I stand related to the community in which I move. Now, for instance, suppose I was to go to a public house, drink, get intoxicated -- a very common occurrence in the community -- and what is quite as common, knock somebody down or destroy something, or go into a warm discussion of politics or religion. What would the community say of me? Crazy, of course; look out, he's mad ! and under such circumstances I have every reason to believe that I would be seized, carried off, and again be incarcerated in that atrocious Inquisition, more terrible to me than death at the stake or on the gibbet. Hence, I and all similarly situated, must be watchful, cautious and prudent, and evade all such dangerous grounds upon which my more fortunate fellow beings may roam and frolic on, with perfect impunity.