Heredity and eugenics in relation to insanity / by F.W. Mott.

  • Mott, F. W. (Frederick Walker), 1853-1926.
Date:
[1912]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Heredity and eugenics in relation to insanity / by F.W. Mott. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    3 it is better to speak of such mental defects as congenital. Congenital defect is not heritable, a fact of very considerable importance in diagnosis, especially as regards segregation with the view of prevention of transmission of feeble-mindedness. Registered Insanity in London. The registered pauper insanity in London is 5*5 per 1,000 of the total population, whereas for England and Wales it is 3*4 per 1,000; naturally there is a widespread belief that insanity is greatly on the increase. If we look at the accompanying Fig. 1 it will be observed that while the population of the county of London has been nearly stationary, registered insanity has practically doubled. It will be observed that pauperism also showed a marked rise for 10 years, while it has fallen for the last three years, but although there has been this fall in pauperism during the last three years there has been a steady rise in registered insanity. It might be thought, therefore, there was no correlation between pauperism and insanity. This is not so. No doubt the fall in the curve of pauperism has been due to old-age pensions. Nov/, old-age pensions will not affect