Unfortunately at Morganton no more land can be purchased and that institution cannot with advantage be greatly increased in size. The last opportunity to buy land there has been allowed to pass. This is to be deplored for the plan there has been so successful that much was hoped for in the judicious extension of these colonies.
Much more might be said on the general subject of caring for the insane, but time forbids. Perhaps on some future occasion this will be taken up and discussed.
Hospitals for the insane cannot properly care for epileptics or idiots. I use the term idiot in the sense in which it is defined by the North Carolina statutes "a person born deficient or who became deficient before the completion of the twelfth year of age."
Many of these defectives are capable of doing common labor and can be made very nearly self-sustaining if properly managed in such a colony for the insane as has been described. In many of the States where this is tried, it has been successful. In North Carolina, where we have such good climate and where land can be purchased cheaply, more can be done than in other less fortunate communities. I believe in the cotton and truck section of the State such a colony could be nearly self-sustaining, but leaving that out of the question, there can be no doubt it is the best for these people to live outdoor lives with proper employment. I would like also to enlarge on this feature of my paper, but time will not permit.
I trust, gentlemen, that you will become enough interested in these subjects to give them your hearty support. If you do, then the labors of those of us who are immediately responsible, will be greatly lightened and these afflicted fellow citizens will be happier and your State will be a better State.
Since this paper was written my attention was drawn to a statement in a medical journal of the number of insane sent to the hospitals in Massachusetts during the year 1904. It bears so closely on what has been said I repeat it and compare it with our State and hospitals. During that year 2,426 insane persons were admitted into the hospitals of Massachusetts, none of whom had ever before been inmates of any hospital for insane. Adding to these the number of re-admissions, which could not have been less than 600, we see 3,000 persons sent yearly to the hospitals of that State. Between 7,000 and 8,000 patients are cared for by the public hospitals.
As compared with North Carolina the population of Massachusetts is twice that of the white people of our State. We should have 1,500 white patients sent to our hospitals every year and we ought to have accommodation for 4,000. As it is, less than 400 are admitted and only 1,500 can be cared for in our hospitals. There is some differences, I believe, in the proportion of insane to the population in the two States, but not that much. Massachusetts gives her insane citizens proper care. North Carolina does not.
