WELLINGTON LUNATIC ASYLUM INQUIRY

Inangahua Times, Volume II, 30 May 1881, Page 2

WELLINGTON LUNATIC ASYLUM INQUIRY

(From the Canterbury Press.) It is a trite maxim that if you want to hush a thing up, the safest plan 19 to appoint a Boyal Commission to enquire into it. When a Commission enquired recently into the domestic affairs of the "Wellington Lunatic Asylum, however, there appeared to be no probability of the matter brought to light being hushed up. On the contrary, the vigour with which the Government proceeded to act on the report of the Commission was something quite invigorating in this time of procrastination and compomne. They instituted a criminal prosecution of the superintendent of the Asylum both for cruelty and for fraud, and in default of bail he was sent to goal ; they ordered similar steps to be taken against all the warders and other subordinates who bad been guilty of malpractices ; and they called upon the Inspector of Lunatic Asylums to show cause, if he could why he should not be dismissed from service. This looked well, and a grateful public in Wellington got up meetings and gushed tremendously

I about gratitu-ic to tin; Ommwi men tostimonals to Chairman, ntul all tlio rest of i>, Hut them was nothing in it. The Inspector of Lunatic Asylums made a defence which seems to havo satisfied the Government ; the super"* 1 inlemlent immediately found bail, ami a good deal of sympathy besides; tin? charge of fr;m I ai*.iit]>-t him was withdrawn, on an imbecile old woman giving formal receipt for the money ho was alleged <o have taken ; the prosecu'ion against the warders was dropped on the law officers advising that there was n > case against them ; and public feeling in Wellington, wo are told, underwent a great reaction. We quite expect to hear ;hat another meeting has been held (o express gratitude to Mr Whitelaw forhis benevolent and self'denying conduct in getting up on a winter's night to giva a refractory patient a cold batb, and to raise funds* for a testimonial to console him for the inconvenience to which the ill-judged report of the Commission, and the hasty action of the Government, exposed him. Whether this is done or n t wc may make up our mind to one thing, namely that the Wellington Lunatic Asylum enquiry has ended in smoke and that, nothing further will be done about it unless some energetic member with a penchant for scandals choses to take it up. I =