INEBRIETY AMONG WOMEN.

Sphaking at a special meeting of the Council of the Charity Organisation Society, held in London last month, Lady Henry Somerset said that the question of how to arrest the alarming increase of inebriety among women and how to deal with those that fell was of increasing importance. Whatever might be saidssto the contrary, itr'was a fact that inebriety among womep. was not dijminishing, but rather increasing. It was not, however, a hopeless, incurable evil. There might be circumstances that rendered cure or reclamation exceedingly difficult, but she did not believe that suoh cure or reclamation was absolutely impossible, even in the worst cases. The System of short penal sentences had the effect of sending inebriate women back to freedom when the craving for drink was at its height, not only to repeat the offence, but to multiply the number of the unhappy beings whom the influence of heredity and the force of circumstances hurried to the sapne woeful destiny, liecent legislation would, no doubt, prove a material help, but it could only be regarded as an instalment. There was a very large number of habitual female inebriates who never went before *a police magistrate at all, and for whom provision would have to be made sooner or later. We should, perhaps, soon begin to deal with the question more from the point of view of insanity, and realize that for the good of the community habitual inebriates must be treated as insane, and that otherwise no real cures would be effected. The Industrial Farm Colony at Duxhurst, Beigate, was established four years ago on lines which were believed to be scientific and sound. They sought to provide there a moral and a physical hospital, and to cure patients of a disease. The most important feature of the scheme was the arrangement for the recognition of the individual in the patient, and with this object cottages were provided, each having accommodation for six patients and a nurse-sister. Part of the success of the scheme had been due to this system of dividing the colony into these smaller sections, where normal home life was maintained. There could be no question that the reclamation of any form of delinquency could not succeed so long as the unscientific mistake was committed of herding together a large number of persons who had all fallen into the saime folly, mistake or sin. The occupation of the patients was varied, and was as far as possible in. the open air. Workroom industries, such as Weaving, had been established as a complement to the outdoor labors, and, in addition, the patiejnts performed domestic duties. The system had proved very successful. The medical officer had reported that but of 112 patients who had passed through the homes 55 were now doing well, or nearly 50 per cent. In these figures every case was included, whether the patient stayed the prescribed, year or not. .By leaving put the oases which, for sofoie reason or another did not stay the full time the result obtained was: Eightythree cases, of which there were doing well 55, or 67 per cent. ,