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This constitutional habit is apparently at all times merely a predisposing cause, and never generates insanity, unless assisted by some more exciting cause. In some of the patients, the existence of this constitutional predisposition is mentioned, but the number is few, and therefore has not been embodied in these statistics.

In idiocy, properly so termed, the mental disease or imperfection exists without the intervention of any external influence, the person being born in that condition. Fourteen of the patients were of this class. Twenty-three more are arranged under the head of imbeci1ity. In some of these also the disease was congenital.

There are one thousand one hundred and eighty-six patients, the causes supposed to have been productive of whose disease are recorded. These are arranged in the following tables, being divided according to the general method, into physical causes or those which act immedi-ately upon the body, and mentalcauses -sic- or those whose influence is primarily exerted upon the mind.

ALLEGED CAUSES OF DISEASE.

1ST -- Physical.

2ND -- Moral Causes

Of the patients whose disease was supposed to have originated from physical causes, there were 664; of whom 379 were males, and 285 females. Of those supposed to have arisen from moral causes, there were 522; 310 males, and 212 females.

Almost all the older authors upon insanity entertained the opinion, that mental causes were more prolific of in-sanity than physical. Within a few years however, the opposite opinion has been gaining ground, -- an opinion which is sustained by these statistics.

It will be perceived that, although a distinct class has been made of all the cases of delirium tremens,* intemperance occupies the highest rank in point of numbers, among the physical causes. So far as this item is concerned, the table may undoubtedly be taken as a criterion by which to judge of the comparative influence of the various causes of insanity in the community.

*There were 322 patients, whose disorder was either delirium tremens or some effect of intemperance other than insanity proper, and who are consequently not included in this article.