REPORTS ON LUNATIC ASYLUMS IN NEW ZEALAND.

19

D.—No. 29.

Dailt Eation allowed at Sunntside Lunatic Asylum. Bread ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... lib. Meat ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... fib. Vegetables ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 1 lb. Sugar ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... l|oz. Tea or Coffee -| oz., or Cocoa ... ... ... ... ... foz. Milk |pt. Butter ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 2oz. Flour ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 4 oz. Pepper... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... f- oz. Salt ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ioz. Soap ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 1 oz. Mustard (weekly) ... ... ... ... ... ... i oz. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday Boiled meat, soup, vegetables. •ivr i -, c , f Baked meat, vegetables, pudWednesday, Sunday ... ... ... < -~ / -± ■ ■>' •> /_ ding, or fruit pie. E. W. Seagee, Steward,

No. 11. From His Honor the Supeeintendent, Southland, to the Hon. the Colonial Secbetaet. Sic,- —• Superintendent's Office, Southland, 11th June, 1870. I have the honor to acknowledge receipt of your circular of 2nd March, 1870, requesting me to direct the attention of the Inspector of Lunatic Asylums to the 60th section of " The Lunatics Act, 1868." In reply, I have to inform you that, owing to arrangements having been made with the Provincial Government of Otago to receive from time to time into the Dunedin Asylum any lunatics that may be committed here, an Inspector of Lunatic Asylums for this Province has not been appointed. I have, &c, William Wood, The Hon. the Colonial Secretary, Wellington. Superintendent.

No. 12. Tho Peoyincial Seceetabt, Wellington, to the Hon. tho Colonial Secbetaet. Provincial Secretary's Office, Sic,— Wellington, sth August, 1870. I do myself the honor to forward herewith the Eeport of the Inspector of Lunatic Asylums in the Wellington Province. I have, &c, A. Follett Halcomee, The Hon. the Colonial Secretary, Wellington. Provincial Secretary.

Enclosure in No. 12. Mr. T. A. Bowden to the Hon. the Colonial Secbetaet. Sic, — Wellington, 3rd August, 1870. I have the honor to report upon the Wellington District under "The Lunatics Act, 1868," as follows : — Having been appointed as Inspector of the district on tho 9th of June last, I visited on the sth of July following the Lunatic Asylum at Karori, which is the only public Asylum in the district, and there not being any private licensed houses. The Karori Asylum is about three miles from the City of Wellington, and the distance travelled by me upon that occasion did not therefore exceed six miles. This Asylum has been in use for many years for the reception of the pauper lunatics of the Province of Wellington. It was originally a private dwelling-house, but has been adapted for the reception of lunatics, At the date of my visit it contained twenty-one lunatic inmates—six of whom had been admitted since the passing of' the Act of 1868. Of the whole number eight were males and thirteen females, of whom three only (females) required separate confinement and restraint. I found all the apartments clean and in good order; and the wards, beds, &c, were comfortable and sufficient for the present number of inmates. I think it, however, necessary to note that all the wards were then full with patients of the pauper class, and that there is no accommodation provided for another class of patients contemplated by the Act, the cost of whoso maintenance would be defrayed from private sources. The staff of officers at this Asylum consisted of the keeper (Mr. Sutherland), who has been in charge since its first establishment in 1859 ; a matron (the wife of the keeper); one male assistant keeper, and one male cook. I consider that in an institution of this kind, with thirteen female lunatic inmates, several of whom are violent, it is desirable that there should be an assistant female keeper. With respect to the arrangments of the Asylum generally, they are perhaps as satisfactory as could be expected in a building erected for another purpose, and only adapted as exigencies have arisen to their present use ; but they are very inferior to what an Asylum specially erected and arranged for