Sidebilder
PDF
ePub

plank, joists or timber, not surveyed, marked or numbered as herein is provided, subject only to the foregoing exceptions, shall forfeit and pay for all boards, plank, joists and timber so sold and purchased, double the amount of fees due for the services herein prescribed for the surveyor general and his deputies, to be sued for and recovered in any court of competent jurisdiction, by the surveyor general, or his deputy, one half thereof to the use of the person who shall sue for the same, and the other half to the use of the city of Boston. 1

[blocks in formation]

1 For general laws respecting the survey of lumber, see R. S. c. 28,

§ 141-155.

Boston lunatic hospital to be erected.

1839, 131, 1.

Superintendent.

Ibid, § 2.

Ordinances re

specting hospital

STATUTES.

1. The city council of the city of Boston are hereby authorized to erect and maintain a hospital, for the reception of insane persons not furiously mad; and provision shall be made for the comfortable support of all persons confined therein.

2. The said city council shall appoint a superintendent, who shall be a physician, and constantly reside at said hospital.

3. The said council shall have power to pass such ordimay be passed. nances as they may deem expedient for conducting, in a proper manner, the business of the institution, and for appointing such other officers as, in their opinion, may be

Ibid, § 3.

Inspectors of

prisons to be in

pital.

Ibid, § 4.

necessary.

4. The inspectors of prisons for the county of Suffolk spectors of hos- shall be inspectors of said hospital, and shall perform the like duties in relation to it that they are now by law required to perform in relation to the prisons in said county. 1 5. [Whenever it shall be made to appear, on applica

Amount to be allowed for sup

confined.

Ibid, § 5.

port of persons tion in writing to the judge of the municipal court in the city of Boston, that any person is insane, not being furiously mad, the said judge is hereby authorized to order the confinement of such person in the said hospital: provided, that upon the request of such person, the question of his sanity shall be tried by a jury in said court.] Such sum per week shall be allowed and paid, for the support of every such person confined as aforesaid, as the mayor and aldermen of the city of Boston shall direct; and if, in any case, there shall be no parent, kindred, master, guardian, town or city, obliged by law to maintain the person so confined, and if he have no means of supporting himself, the same sum shall be paid out of the treasury of the commonwealth, for his support, as may be allowed for other lunatic or insane state paupers, [and any person, committed as aforesaid by said judge, may at any time be discharged, when, in his opinion, such discharge would be for the benefit of the per

1 See House of Correction, § 28-32, p. 225, 227, ante.

son so confined, or when, in his opinion, such person would
be comfortably supported by any parent, kindred, friends,
master or guardian, or by any town or city in which such
person may have a legal settlement ;] and the [said] judge, Fees.
jury and other officers, and all witnesses, shall receive the
same fees and compensation for services performed and for
attendance and travel, as are allowed by law for like services
in criminal proceedings, to be taxed, allowed and paid in
the same manner. 1]

confined in

tion, &c., and

ed from state lu

shall be confined

6. All insane persons who are confined in the house Insane persons of correction or the house of industry in said city, or house of correcmay hereafter be subject to confinement therein, and all patients removlunatics, idiots, and other patients, who shall be removed natic hospital," from the state lunatic hospital at Worcester, to the city of in Boston lunaBoston, by the trustees thereof, by virtue of the fourteenth Ibid, $6. and fifteenth sections of the forty-eighth chapter of the Revised Statutes, shall hereafter be confined in the said Boston lunatic hospital. 2

tic hospital.

court may com

natic hospital, in

certain cases,

1840, 79, § 1.

7. Whenever it shall be made to appear, on application Boston police in writing to the police court of the city of Boston, that mit to Boston luany person is insane, not being furiously mad, and is either chargeable or likely to become chargeable to the city or the state, or being furiously mad, has his legal settlement in and is chargeable to said city, the said police court are hereby authorized to order the confinement of such person in the said Boston lunatic hospital, saving to the person Appeal to municomplained against, the right to appeal from such order to the municipal court of the city of Boston, as is now allowed from other judgments of said police court by law. And upon his appeal, the question of his sanity shall, upon his request therefor, be tried by a jury in said court. If on such appeal it shall be made to appear that such person is

1 So much of the act, of which this section forms a part, as relates to the commitment of persons to the Boston Lunatie Hospital, by the judge of the municipal court of the city of Boston, and to their discharge therefrom by him, was repealed by stat. 1840, c. 79, § 4.

2 See the fifteenth section referred to, post, § 10, p. 269. The 7th section of stat. 1839, c. 131, was in effect repealed by stat. 1840, c. 79, § 3. See § 9, post.

cipal court.

Notice of intended application to

be first given to mayor, &c.

Ibid, $2.

insane as aforesaid, and is or is likely to be chargeable as
aforesaid, the said municipal court shall affirm the judgment
of the said police court, with additional costs, and issue a
warrant for his commitment according to law; otherwise
such person shall be discharged.

8. Any person who shall apply for the commitment of police court shall any lunatic, under the provisions of the preceding section, shall first give notice in writing to the mayor of the city of Boston, of his intention to make such application, and satisfactory evidence that such notice has been given shall be produced to the said police court, at the time of making such application. And the said police court may order any further notice of such application to be given to the person complained of, or to any other person or persons in his behalf, as they shall deem to be necessary or reasonable.

Mayor and aldermen may dis

finement.

Ibid, § 3.

9. Any person committed to said hospital by either of charge from con- the courts as aforesaid, and any person who may be confined in said hospital, upon his removal from the state lunatic hospital, as provided in the sixth section, may at any time be discharged therefrom by the mayor and aldermen of the said city of Boston, whenever the cause of confinement shall have ceased to exist, or when in the opinion of the said mayor and aldermen such discharge would be for the benefit of the person so confined, or when in their opinion such person would be comfortably supported by any parent, kindred, friends, master or guardian, or by any town or city in which such person may have a legal settleMay provide for ment. And said mayor and aldermen, whenever in their opinion, such lunatic or insane person can in such manner be more comfortably provided for, and the safety of the public will not be endangered thereby, may provide for his custody and support in other places than in said hospital, the said lunatic or insane person still continuing subject to the order and direction of the said mayor and aldermen; or, said mayor and aldermen may deliver him to the custody and care of any city or town in which he may have a Expense of same, legal settlement. The expense of so providing for such lunatic or insane person, shall be reimbursed in the same manner, and recovered by the same remedies, as are pro

custody of lunatic in other places.

how reimbursed.

[ocr errors]

vided in the sixteenth section of the forty-eighth chapter of the Revised Statutes: 1 provided, that in no case shall the sum charged for such provision exceed two dollars and fifty cents per week.

lunatic hospital

natics, when ne

commodate

R. S. 48, § 15.

10. If, at any time, the lunatics in the state lunatic Trustees of state hospital at Worcester shall be so numerous, that they can- may remove lunot all be suitably accommodated therein, and in the opinion cessary to acof the trustees, it shall be proper that some of them should others. be removed therefrom, the trustees may remove, to the jails or houses of correction in the respective counties, from which such lunatics were sent, so many of them as may be necessary, in order to afford suitable accommodation for the remainder of them; and the keepers of the jails and houses of correction in the said counties shall receive the lunatics so removed; and a certificate, under the hands of three or more of the trustees, shall be their sufficient warrant therefor; and in making selections among the lunatics for such removal, the trustees shall, in all cases, when other circumstances are equal, select foreigners before citizens, and among citizens, they shall select those, who, in their opinion, are least susceptible of improvement at the hospital; and the lunatics so removed shall be subject to the order and direction of the commissioners of said counties, respectively.2

covering expen

lunatic so re

18 Pick. 379.

11. For reimbursing any expenses, incurred by the city Remedies for reof Boston, for the support of any lunatic, removed as is ses of support of provided in the preceding section, the said city, if such luna- moved. tic had any legal settlement in this state, shall have the 1.37 like remedy against the town or city, where his settlement is, as towns have against each other, to recover the expenses of supporting paupers, and subject to the like conditions and limitations; and if the said lunatic has not a legal settlement in this state, the said city of Boston may recover the said expenses, in an action for money laid out and expended, in the name of the treasurer, against the said lu

1 See post, § 11.

2 See ante, § 6, p. 267, for confinement of persons so removed in Boston Lunatic Hospital.

« ForrigeFortsett »