EPILEPTICS AND DEGENERATES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3594, 30 January 1923, Page 6

EPILEPTICS AND DEGENERATES.

STERILISATION ADVOCATED. EXPERT EVIDENCE TO BE TAKEN. CHRISTCHURCH, January 24. At to-day's meeting of -the North Canterbury Hospital Board., considerable discussion was caused by a clause in the Hospital Committee’s report regarding epileptics. The clause recommended that the lioard should refer the matter to other hospital boards, asking for their support, and also for an expression of opinion regarding it. In a memorandum, the Chairman (Dr P. C. Fenwick) said it appeared to him there were three courses which might be adopted with great benefit to succeeding generations:—(l) Before marriage both the contracting parties should be obliged to produce evidence of health; also the parents* 1 of the contracting parties should provide a certificate that there was no family tendency to epilepsy or insanity. He believed many unhappy marriages would be folded if the law refused to legalise tiny marriage without the production of a health certificate, and certainly there would be fewer unfortunate children condemned to iil-health from their earliest years. (2) Persons who had been committed to mental hospitals and were about to be discharged on probation as having recovered* should not be permitted to return to family life without the sanction of a committee of experts. This committee should have the power of recommending sterilisation before the patient was released. (3) Any person convicted of assault upon a child should be sent to hospital for an operation. The class of person who was most prone to this crime was often of a degenerate mentality. He ventured to believe that operation on these cases would not onlv prevent a second conviction but would act as a most successful deterrent to others. Dr Fenwick said he had brought the matter forward, as he thought it should be well ventilated in the interests of future generations. He moved that the report be adopted, and that the opinions of other boards be sought on the matter. In opposing the proposals, Mr W. El leadley (secretary of the Returned .Soldiers’ Association) said that whilst every effort should be made to purify the race of degenerate pests, he considered that the suggestions in the report were altogether too drastic. The British people were a libertyloving race, and directly that liberty was interfered with one commenced treading on corns. He thought that before the board committed itself to the proposals it should obtain the advice of specialists, and then further proposals could be brought before the board later. There were persons in mental hospitals who should never bo there. They were there merely through senile decay. He was firmly convinced that there should be a half-way house. There were 33 soldier patients in Sunnyside as the direct result of their war experiences. They were absolutely sound in mind. He was quite in favour of power being given to .Supreme Court judges to order the sterilisation of mental degenerates if the judges were satisfied that by their being allowed to resume family life they would be a menace to the futurity of" the race. He moved that a sub-committee of four members of the board .he appointed to confer with the following experts and then report to the board: —J he Superintendent of Sunnyside Mental Hospital, the Chairman of the Honorary -Staff (Dr Guthrie), the presidents of the Social Hygienic Society (Dr Sandston and Mrs Roberts), and the Superintendent of the Salvation Army Rescue Home Ilie Rev. J. K. Archer, in seconding the amendment, said that whilst he was not opposing the proposals entirely, he was not prepared to support them without knowing the full facts. Dr Fenwick said lie did not wish to commit the board. ’I he proposals were his own opinions, and he wished to have outside expressions of opinion as well. Ihe Rev. J. K. Archer said that in our mental hospitals there were many perfectly normal women who had collapsed through the overstrain of life. They should not be penalised for things over which they had no control. If he had his way he would older the sterilisation of ail the millionaires of the community.—(Laughter, and much dissent). -Mrs Herbert hoped the proposals would not be thrown out. It was very necessary that tUe public should be aroused to the danger in their midst. The Benevolent Committee was called upon to support children whose narents were absolute degenerates. She mentioned one case in which mentally deficient parents had 10 children, nine of whom were being kept by the State. Replying to the discussion, Dr Fenwick said he was very glad Mr Leadley and Mrs Herbert had thrown a new light on the proposals. He had given the committee the results of 15 years’ experience in America. He wanted very badly to see a half-way house established. He had made honest efforts to stir up public opinion, and was quite prepared to withdraw his motion. Mr Leadley also asked leave to withdraw his amendment, and then moved—" That the whole matter be referred back to the Hospital Committee, with power to call any evidence they deemed fit.” This was agreed to.