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Show I Insanity. I It has commonly been said that I lunacy was Increasing In the modern world. Dut Mr. Noel Humphreys In I his paper read beforo tho Statistical I , society proclaims tho theory that lunacy Is not Increasing at all. According Ac-cording to his Ingenious statement the apparent Increase Is duo not to the growth ot lunacy, but to tho growth of tho care of lunacy. To put tho matter mat-ter shortly, ho holds that It Is not s much that there arc more madmen, but that thero nro moro mad doctors. Substantially, his caso appears vory sound. There can bo llttlo doubt that many men are now put In asylums who would In previous ages have been allowed to wander In tho meadows or to play about tho streets. There can be little doubt that many men are now called Insane who In other times would merely have been called wicked; and It Is possible that many are now called madmen who In other times would merely have been called saints. The only question Is whether thli ' scientific harvest of all tho lunatics ' alive Is so great an Improvement as it looks. There can be no doubt that the wise men have come from all the ends of the earth to capture the village vil-lage idiot, who once danced without having bricks thrown at him. |