On the supposed increase of insanity / by Edward Jarvis.

  • Jarvis, Edward, 1803-1884.
Date:
[1852]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the supposed increase of insanity / by Edward Jarvis. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    ON THE SUPPOSED INCREASE OF INSANITY. Dr. James C. Prichard, in his Treatise on Insanity, page 236, says, A very general apprehension has exist- ed, both in this country, Great Britain, and France, that Insanity has increased in prevalence of late years, to an alarming extent, and that the number of lunatics, when compared with the population, is continually on the increase. A very similar apprehension exists in America, and the known facts and the public records seem to confirm it. There are certainly more lunatics in public and pri- vate establishments; they attract more of popular sym- pathy ; they receive more of the care and protection of the government; more and more hospitals are built; and the numbers of the insane seem to increase in a still more rapid ratio. Nevertheless, it is impossible to demonstrate, whether lunacy is increasing, stationary, or diminishing, in pro- portion to the advancement of the population, for want of definite and reliable facts, to show, how many lunatics there are now, and still less to show, how many there have been at any previous period. Wanting these two facts, we cannot mathematically compare the numbers of