Egypt (from our own correspondent) Lunatic asylums

Dr. J. Warnock's annual report has just been issued from the one hospital for the insane which Egypt has considered sufficient for her needs since the thirteenth century when the first was established. But increasing civilisation means that fewer and fewer lunatics and idiots are kept by their friends or families, and therefore the hospital becomes more and more crowded. Perhaps the benevolence of the present day is waning, or is it that there is less wealth, or perhaps as we English would fain believe, the intelligent native now understands that under our control he may send his relative, whom he still calls “struck by the wrath of God”, to the asylum which only 15 years go was justly called an abomination of the human race. The number of resident patients has risen from 300 to 500, not from any increase in lunatics, but from the necessary accumulation of uncured chronic patients. And yet during the year 1899 no fewer than 274 men and women had to be discharged still insane to make room for more urgent cases. This is an obvious danger to the public which the English advisers of the Egyptian Government ought to face without delay. England provides exactly 50 times as much asylum accommodation as Egypt per head of population. Another great disadvantage of the present asylum is that it is the only resort for criminal lunatics. During last year 23 men and four women were admitted charged with crimes, including six murderers. The analysis of the insane shows hasheesh as the cause of 22 per cent., pellagra as the cause of 5 per cent., and alcohol as the cause of 3 per cent., while the number of general paralytics has advanced to 6 per cent. The large towns furnished nearly all the last class and most of them are known to have had syphilis. The total admissions for the year were 598, including 17 nationalities besides Egyptians. Only one Englishman was admitted.