CHAPTER 22. Improper Commitments. In view of a tendency which now seems to be somewhat general throughout the State, as a natural incident to the operation of the State care system, whereby aged inmates of county-houses and old people in private life who, while perhaps mentally enfeebled by age and infirmity, can not be regarded as insane and proper subjects for hospital care and treatment within the meaning of the statute, are certified as insane and committed to State hospitals, it is suggested that the Legislature should provide some additional safeguards, so that the burden of maintaining this class of persons shall not be put upon the State. In England such persons are characterized as "dotards," and are not regarded as proper persons to be admitted to institutions for the care and treatment of the insane. The frequency with which demands are made upon hospitals and asylums for admission of this class of dependents has suggested to the commission to call the attention of the Legislature to the subject in the hope that a remedy may be provided. It may be argued that the persons referred to will be subjects of public charity in any event, and that since their mental and physical infirmities render them peculiarly liable to neglect and ill-treatment, they should be cared for in institutions for the insane. The commission, however, is clearly of the opinion that such persons are not proper subjects for care and treatment in a hospital for the insane, and, consequently, that their commitment thereto should not be permitted, especially in view of the ever present urgent demand for accommodation for legitimate cases. CHAPTER 23. Correspondence of the Insane. Questions as to the jurisdiction of their custodians over the mail matter of certified lunatics having frequently arisen, the commission, realizing the importance of the subject, as regards the interest both of the patients and of the institutions having them in custody, determined to apply to the United States Post-Office Department at Washington for a ruling upon the question as to the right of asylum or hospital officials to control the correspondence of the patients under their care. The commission had previously made an order, under date of November 18, 1890, to the effect that all letters addressed by patients to the Governor, the Attorney-General, Judges of Courts of Record, DistrictAttorneys or to the Commissioners in Lunacy must be forwarded unopened; also that all letters written by patients that are not forwarded to destination must be transmitted to the office of the commission for examination and such final disposition as it may deem best. (See chap. 21, p. 348, Third Annual Report.) On receipt of the information asked for from the Post Office Department, the following circular letter of instruction was transmitted to all the institutions for the insane: - [Form 183.] STATE OF NEW YORK STATE COMMISSION IN LUNACY. Carlos F. MacDonald, president; Goodwin Brown, Henry A. Reeves, commissioners. To all institutions for the insane: ALBANY, March 17, 1894. I am directed by the State Commission in Lunacy to transmit the following copies of letters recently received by the commission from the Assistant Attorney-General of the Post-Office Department: SIXTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMISSION IN LUNACY. 503 Correspondence of the Insane, OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANt Attorney-GENERAL FOR THE POST-OFFICE DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, D. C., February 8, 1894. T. E. MCGARR, Secretary State Commission in Lunacy, Albany, N. Y.: - SIR. As per request made by Assistant Attorney-General Whitney, I have to inclose herewith a copy of the ruling referred to in the newspaper clipping presented by you, covering the disposition of mail matter addressed to prisoners confined in county jails and awaiting trial upon indictment. The specific case passed upon, wherein the question of the delivery of mail matter to insane persons was considered, has reference to a person certified to be non compos by several physicians and confined in a county asylum, but whose status as a sane person had not been passed upon by a court and jury. As a general rule, it may be stated that if a person has been adjudged insane by a court of competent jurisdiction, by which a conservator or manager of his business or a guardian of his person has been appointed, all mail matter addressed to such person should be delivered to such conservator, manager or guardian, or according to the latter's direction. In case a person be adjudged insane or an imbecile by a court, and he be confined in an asylum by order of a court and there be no conservator, or manager of his business, or guardian of his person lawfully appointed, then mail matter addressed to such person may be delivered to the keepers of the asylum. Of The jurisdiction of the Post-Office Department as a carrier over such mail matters may be said to cease when such delivery is effected. course, it must be recognized that the authorities of such institutions are required to exercise a proper discretion in the matter of delivering mail to inmates, and in preventing the transmission of letters intended for delivery by such inmates to outside parties, especially so when the interests or recovery of patients might be endangered or the safe administration of the affairs of the institution interfered with. Very respectfully, JOHN L. THOMAS, Assistant Attorney-General, P. O. Department. |