tional cause for confidence in the system of treatment I have taken so much pains to recommend to others, yet, in the general history of the treatmont of insanity, I have heard and known of much that was strongly to be deprecated and regretted. With a paucity of experienced writers upon what is highly important to human happiness in general, and to thousands in particular, it is natural for those who have spoken with the assurance of truth, and the feelings of philanthropy, to look for respectful attention; and while I feel grateful for many most honourable testimonies in my favour, I have several times lately had cause for regret, on finding a direct opposite practice prevail, producing the most deplorable results, with those who could not but know the practice I had recommended, and the success of it, and who could not be acquainted with the merits of any other. plorable state, owing to the pride of their relations, who only considered how they might avoid notoriety, and personal inconvenience to themselves, under the vain fear of the world knowing that they were related to an insane person. Many there surely are, whose motives cannot be doubted, upon a near and dear relative being afflicted with mental disease, who yet have so much of vacillating indecision, that it is rendered inveterate, if not incurable, by delay alone. While many are kept from the timely means of recovery by the wicked designs or disgusting apathy of those who should have been their active protectors, many there are, who, having dear relations visited by insanity, are as much to be pitied as the patients are, so very acute are their sufferings; thus proving the dreadful inroads mental diseases often make into the circles of domestic happiness, exclusive of what the patients themselves undergo; and indeed much as is said of the dreadful evils of insanity, much as it has been described in terms of horror, those only who have been actual sufferers from it, or who have been situated as I have, can have any true conception of the misery it produces. But a great share of its evils arise from the superstitious and ignorant notion of its being disgraceful-hence concealment, and consequent delay in the application of proper means of recovery, if they are ever resorted to-but more frequently from highly improper and unnecessary coercion and measures of aggravation, which render it incurable. Like many others, I may be too much inclined to teach, and too little disposed to learn; I have therefore the less cause for being chagrined by opinions being given adverse to my own. I have been lately informed of a very learned physician, and one who has seen much of insanity, stating positively, in the face of a learned opposition, that insanity is not a curable disease, and that medical practice is entirely useless in the treatment of it. I have known other physicians, whose treatment of the disease was extremely violent, both medically and morally, as if to verify the opinion of those who contend that nothing should be done but permitting the disorder to take its If the world could be brought to own course; and this, too, in direct think insanity no more disgraceful opposition to the positive opinion, that than the gout, its evils would be greata gentle, but unremitting, attention to ly diminished, and we should soon medical, as well as moral, treatment hear little of its being incurable; for is highly necessary to the best comforts the best means of recovery would then of the patients while under the influ- be patronized, instead of building ence of the disease, as well as for the large prisons, all over the kingdom, best means of recovery from it; and for the confinement of the most numerwhile some, under a judicious union ous classes of the insane, and in which, of the medical and moral means, have if the best means of recovery were not safely and perfectly recovered from overlooked, they are most egregiously this sore malady, others have sunk mistaken. Is it to be supposed that a into the most deplorable madness, or disease, the liability to which seems the most incurable mental imbecility, interwoven with the best capabilities entirely owing to the neglect of both. of human nature, can be subdued by And while so many have become the the mandates of a new law, in which victims of this disease, their poverty the best means of recovery were never preventing the means of recovery recognized? Can any thing be more being procured for them; numbers of preposterous than a law to transfer the rich have sunk into an equally de- | lunatic patients from the asylums of Liverpool and Manchester to the Lancashire county asylum, for the purposes of cure? In the two first institutions, which are in part supported by charitable contributions, we may at least expect experience in the treatment of the disease, with the attention of first-rate medical knowledge. What advantages does the latter afford, except those derived from strong locks, and bars, and high walls, as a means of security? tients of the pauper class being so generally rendered incurable before they enter its doors. Before there was a county asylum, if a poor man became insane, almost immediate application was made to the officer of his parish, and in most instances almost immediate medical help was afforded; and in a much larger proportion, I am persuaded, than what recover now, this first help proved effectual for the removal of the disease; and where it did not, the patient was submitted to the most reputable and experienced treatment, under which ultimate recovery generally took place. Under the operation of the county asylum law, if a poor man becomes insane, his friends conceal it as long as possible, being in fear of the county asylum; and when, from necessity, a disclosure takes place, there must be considerable delay before the proper authority is obtained to remove him; and the removal itself is almost sure to cause great irritation, and aggravate the complaint, so that, in a majority of cases, the patients are incurable before their arrival at the appointed place for cure. Would there be any harm in admitting the really insane without any delay ? or any authority but what humanity would sanction? Is there any other law in existence to prevent the timely application of the proper remedies for a serious disease, and to exclude all others? Fresh cases of insanity are, it appears, lodged at the Liverpool and Manchester asylums, till there is a sufficient number to make a lòad for the Lancashire asylum. So, transports at our county gaols accumulate, till there is a load of them for the hulks. I have known these removals of the insane produce the most heartpiercing horrors in the feelings of the unfortunate objects of them, as if criminals for transportation. And here I could wish to ask, whether any county asylums have hitherto been the means of diminishing the number of incurable lunatics in their respective counties? for if they have not done this, they have done nothing, or worse than nothing; they have done mischief by their expenses. I should hope that the Nottingham asylum had done good, it having been so well attended, and having been so much supported by voluntary contributions as to give it the character of a charitable institution; but it would prove satisfactory to be informed, that the number of incurable insane paupers has diminished in the county of Nottingham since the establishment of its asylum. Be that as it may, I know a county, in which the number of its incurable pauper lunatics is three times what it was at the time of opening its most grand and highly appointed asylum, about seven years ago, if we are to take the reports of it to be correct, as given by its managers. And as it does not appear that there has been any increase of fresh cases, at most, not any of consequence, the alarming increase of incurables must be imputable to the operation of the county asy-severity. lum law; it being notorious, that a less proportion of those visited by insanity, and subjected to the county asylum law, have recovered, than did recover previously; and this may be, without justifying any imputation upon the treatment in the asylum, the pa While I am blessed with life, and health, and power, I will never cease to declare, that insanity is, in almost every instance, a perfectly curable disease, by the use of proper and timely means, and that the best treatment, as it regards the cure, is such, and such only, as is most calculated to render the patients comfortable while under process of cure, but that delay, or improper treatment, may, and often does, render this disease incurable; and in point of fact, a very large proportion of those visited by insanity, do not recover, and are treated with I have thought that a general inspection of all mad-houses, public as well as private, might lead to important results, and have applied to the proper authority to recommend the measure: but the world seems made up of three sorts of people, viz. those THOMAS BAKEWELL. Spring-vale, 25th June, 1825. SOLITARY HOURS. (Continued from col. 634.) No. III.-On Infidelity. whose nervous fears make them feel | Let us take a retrospective view of insanity a repulsive subject; those the conduct of those, who, in former who, from apathy, care nothing at all ages of the world, have rejected the about it; and those who have no power Christian religion. Need we refer, in or influence in the state. All I could illustration of this, to the spirit which wish or hope for is, that the united actuated a Nero, a Domitian, a Calikingdom would become equal to other gula, or any of those other monsters of nations in wisdom and humanity, as antiquity which disgrace the page of it regards those afflicted with mental history? Is not the same fact condisorders. firmed by daily observation? Do we not almost invariably see the man who has broken through all religious restraint, openly trample on all human authority, and indulge to the greatest possible excess in every known vice? Is it not the man that is devoid of all religion, who, by wantonly shedding the blood, and taking the life, of his neighbour, reduces himself to a level with the lion or the tiger that roams in the forest? Is it not the man who is mournfully destitute of all religious principle, whom we find suffering on the scaffold, the vengeance of those laws which he had so often violated? In short, is it not the man who is proud, by his actions at least, to disown his belief in the doctrines of Christianity, whom we find perpetrating the most atrocious crimes with which the world is acquainted, and manifesting a ferocity of spirit, but a few removes from those malignant beings which are reserved in chains of darkness to the judgment of the great day? "A daring Infidel, (and such there are, YOUNG. In my former observations on infidelity, col. 621, I mentioned some of the causes which lead to its adoption; and endeavoured to demonstrate their insufficiency to justify the man, who, on such indefensible grounds, admits its baneful principles. I shall now consider, first, its influence on the lives of its votaries, and on society in general; and secondly, its operations on the minds of its disciples, in the approach of death, and the near view of an eternal world. In reference to the former, it is well known, that infidels have, in all ages, been very profuse in the studied eulogiums which they have pronounced on natural religion. They have represented Christianity as the greatest curse that could possibly have befallen the world. To it they have attributed all those evils which deluge our earth with ruin and misery; and with an audacity peculiar to themselves, they have asserted, that the human race can never enjoy peace or happiness until the religion of Jesus is expelled from the world, and the standard of infidelity erected in its stead. Now, supposing for a moment, that the projects of these infatuated speculators were carried into complete execution, what, we would ask, would be the consequences of such an event, either with regard to individuals, or as it respects society at large? With regard to individuals, an appeal to past experience and daily observation will answer the question. It may be objected, that these sweeping assertions are not supported by a reference to the conduct of particular individuals. To such as thus plead, the writer would recommend an attentive examination of the conduct and crimes of those wretches who figured in France during the early periods of the French revolution; being fully persuaded, that, by observing, and reflecting on the actions of those inhuman monsters, their doubts will be completely removed. It will, however, be readily admitted that there have been infidels in the world, of more amiable dispositions. But it is a melancholy fact, that instances of this nature are very rare; and even when they are to be found, it is sometimes obvious, they have not been produced by the influence of these principles on the mind. Amiable dispositions and exemplary conduct, where they have been visible in the actions of infidels, must either have been inherent in their natures, or have been the effects of a kindly education; for not one single instance can be adduced of an individual, who, on his embracing atheistical sentiments, became changed for the better, either in his dispositions or his actions; while, on the contrary, there are but very few of those who have embraced an infidel creed, who have not immediately demonstrated by their conduct, to the conviction of every spectator, the pernicious influence of the system they have adopted. others. The denouncement of the Christian religion, the shutting up of all places of religious worship in Paris, their proclaiming death to be an eternal sleep, and their refusing to worship only Reason, Equality, and Liberty, were followed by the unavoidable consequences of such impious and infatuated conduct. Having previously, after a mock trial, beheaded their king and queen, they proceeded with all imaginable haste to the perpetration of those other crimes, which, having disgraced humanity, will transmit their names to an execrable immortality. The scene which Paris exhibited during the administration of government by Robespierre, Danton, Marat, and others of similar views and feelings, may be better imagined than it can be described. The unjust seizure of private and public property, which they appropriated to their own unhallowed purposes, the imprisonment and cruel treatment of those who dared to differ from them in opinion, the public martyrdom of multitudes without even the form of a trial, and, in short, every other crime at which humanity recoils, became the order of the day. A gloomy horror pervaded every mind, and was depicted in every countenance. Every breast was filled with a terrific suspicion. Even those who had been accustomed to live in the greatest friendship, began individually to dread each other. The ties of relationship were But proof, in detail, of this point, is scarcely necessary, for the fact is tacitly acknowledged by the more candid among themselves. In the writings of Lord Bolingbroke, and others of the same stamp, the Christian religion is represented as inculcating what is unquestionably the best system of morals that has ever been presented to the world; and the same authority reluctantly admits the bad effects on individuals and on society, which the principles of infidelity have a natural tendency to produce. The same fact has also been repeatedly confirmed by the verbal confessions of numerous infidels. When Hume was asked by a lady, on his honour as a gentleman, whether, if he wanted a confidential domestic, he would choose one of his own principles, or one who had embraced the Christian religion, he candidly, though unwillingly, admitted, that he would give the decided preference to the latter. This simple fact requires no comment. Having made these remarks on in-violently burst asunder, and those who dividuals, let us now shortly attend to the influence which infidelity is calculated to produce on society at large, were it universally adopted; and on this part of the subject we are not left to indulge in visionary speculations. The experiment has already been tried, though on a comparatively limited scale; and from the results we may infer, with moral certainty, the effects it would produce on society, were it universally embraced. We saw in France, in the early stages of its memorable revolution, a number of atheists, by a course of plunder, rapine, murder, and, in short, every species of crime which could render one man the scourge and terror of another, obtain the ascendancy in the government of the nation. No sooner had they reached that eminence, than their principles were developed in their conduct towards themselves and were most closely connected together in the bonds of consanguinity, frequently proved the most implacable foes. It sometimes happened, too, that the father, in the person of his son, met with his most determined persecutor; and the son, on the contrary, as frequently met with the same character in the person of his father. In short, all friendship and confidence were completely at an end; and one man was afraid to divulge his opinions to another, from a well-grounded apprehension of being immured within the walls of a gloomy dungeon, as a preparatory step to the guillotine or the scaffold. Such is a faint delineation of those scenes which were exhibited in France during the administration of the men whose names have been already mentioned; and they furnish us with a correct specimen of the influence of atheistical principles on individuals | breath in which they affect to disbeand on society at large. lieve these solemn truths, they tacitly admit them, by invoking the vengeance of the former, that they may experience the awful reality of the latter! Now, supposing that men of the same principles, and actuated by the same spirit, were to obtain the ascendancy in the government of every nation, though the imagination may form some imperfect conception of the spectacle which the world would exhibit, yet no language can adequately describe it. The dictates of justice, and the principles of humanity, would be entirely discarded; and the man who possessed the greatest portion of physical force, or intellectual energy, would be most dreaded; and would seize the property, and dispose of the persons, of others as he pleased. Instead of engaging in any of those useful and dignified pursuits, which constitute them excellent members of society here, and fit them for the exercises and enjoyments of a blessed hereafter, men would study how they might manage, with the greatest chances of success, the pistol, the dagger, or the sword. Throughout the world, the most dismal scenes would be exhibited, and the most revolting and horrific tragedies be performed. The bonds of society would be wholly broken up; our streets would stream with human blood, and the earth would become one great theatre of ruin, misery, and desolation. But I hasten to consider infidelity as it operates in the approach of death and the near prospect of a future state. Of all the scenes which are to be witnessed on our terraqueous globe, I know not one that is more common, and more truly afflicting, than that of the infidel, while in health and jollity, bidding defiance, by his words and actions, to the majesty of heaven, affecting to despise, and presumptuously mocking that solemn event, by which the union between soul and body must for a time be dissolved,and even importunately daring and soliciting Jehovah to make him the object of his tremendous indignation throughout eternity. The only prayer, perhaps, that such characters ever offer to heaven, is, that God would pour damnation on themselves and others. The glaring inconsistency observable in the conduct of those men on these awful occasions, ought not to pass unnoticed; for if there be no God, and no state of future existence, how is it, that, in the very same But whatever may be the conduct both of practical and speculative infidels, while in the possession of health, and in the midst of their gay and thoughtless companions, that assumed bravery utterly forsakes them, when by themselves; but particularly in. sickness, and on the apprehended approach of death. In such seasons, neither imprecation nor defiance is heard to escape their lips. On the contrary, they instinctively shrink within themselves, at the idea of being in a state of seclusion from the world. Even the celebrated Hobbes, notwithstanding all his stoical philosophy, and boasted heroism, could not endure to be alone even for a few moments, during the silence and darkness of the night; and if the candle in his study accidentally happened to be extinguished, he would tremble and shudder until it was re-lighted, like the timorous infant, on whose credulous and superstitious mind the spectral tales of the nursery were exerting all their magical influence. But it is in seasons of sickness, and O might she stay, to wash away her stains, BLAIR'S GRAVE. |