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*These cases were almost all at the Tooting Bee hospital for elderly persons, the majority being
over 60 years of age; many were mildly psychotic or demented, and in others, whose condition suggested
a possibility that there had been mental defect in early years, it was impossible to prove this owing to
their age and the lack of early record.
Analysis of
cases
examined.

From this it would appear that there is a higher proportion of cases of secondary
amentia amongst idiots and imbeciles. Taking the cases as a whole the proportion
of primary aments is lower than that usually anticipated, but in this connection it
must be remembered that the lower grade cases are more likely to require some form
of public assistance or control, and so are more readily brought to notice. The
distribution found is intermediate between that which would be obtained from the
study of the population of inmates of certified institutions and that of the general
population as found by Dr. Lewis in such a survey as that conducted for the Wood
Committee. As this table deals with cases considered under the terms of the Mental
Deficiency Acts, it does not include a large number of children in special schools,
none of whom would be idiots, and few of whom would eventually prove to be
imbeciles. Thus the reduced proportion of the feeble-minded can be readily understood.
Ascertainment
of
mental
deficiency in
casual wards.
During the year under review various certifying officers have visited casual
wards with a view to ascertaining whether any of the inmates were mentally deficient.