Licensed granting a new licence the house must be inspected and approved by the Commissioners. The licences are granted by the Commissioners or by the local licensing justices according to their respective jurisdictions as defined by the Act of 1890. Certain conditions must be fulfilled in all cases. The licensee, or one of two or more licensees, must reside in the house ; no addition or alteration can be made to the licensed house without consent ; it is a misdemeanour to make an untrue statement in order to obtain a licence or its renewal ; a copy of a justice's licence should be sent to the commissioners ; in case of sickness, death, or incapacity of the licensee, the licence must be transferred ; seven days' previous notice must be given in case of a change of house, unless the substitution is caused by fire or tempest ; a penalty of £50 is incurred by a licensee who receives in his house any patients beyond the number specified in his licence, or fails to comply with the regulations of the licence as to the sex of the patients or the class of patients ; detention of lunatics after expiration or revocation of a licence is a misdemeanour. Regulations are made by the Commissioners for the management of licensed houses. Plans of the house must be hung up therein ; in every house licensed for one hundred patients, or more, a medical practitioner must reside there as the manager and medical officer ; if licensed for less than one hundred but more than fifty patients, the house must be visited daily by a medical practitioner, unless it is kept by a medical practitioner or has one in residence : if licensed for less than fifty patients the visits of the medical practitioner need only be twice weekly. Boarders.—The manager of a licensed house may receive and lodge as a boarder any person who desires to voluntarily submit to treatment. But the written consent must be first obtained of the Commissioners or justices. After the expiration of the time for which the consent was given, unless extended, the patient must be discharged. With a like consent a relative or friend of the patient may be received and lodged as a boarder. The consent of the Commissioners or justices, as the case may be, is only given upon application to them by the intending boarder. A boarder may leave at any time after twenty four hours' previous written notice to the manager ; if the latter should detain the boarder after the expiration of the twenty-four hours he becomes liable to the patient for £10 damages for each day or part of the day of the wrongful detention. The total number of patients and boarders in a licensed house cannot, at any time, exceed the number of patients for which the house is licensed. If required, every boarder must be produced to the Commissioners on their visits.
Act of 1890 deals very fully with the judicial inquisition as to lunacy. The Act itself should be consulted for information as to the manner in which an inquisition is conducted. The Judge in Lunacy, upon application, can order an inquisition, whether a person is of unsound mind, and incapable of managing himself and his affairs. The person who is alleged to be of unsound mind must have due notice of the application, and he can demand that the inquiry be made before a jury. The judge must comply with this demand for a jury unless, after a personal examination, he considers that the alleged lunatic is not mentally competent to form and express a wish for a jury.
After lunatic so found by inquisition can be received in an institution for lunatics, or as a single patient upon an order signed by his committee. But the order must be accompanied by an office copy of the order
appointing the committee. In cases where no committee has been appointed, the order for admission must be signed by a master.
speaking, a lunatic not so found by inquisition, unless he is a pauper, can be received and detained as a lunatic in a lunatic institution, or as a single patient, only under a reception order made by the properly con stituted judicial authority. The " judicial authority" is either a magistrate specially appointed to act under the Lunacy Act, or the local County Court judge or stipendiary magistrate. No relative of the person applying for an order, or of the lunatic, or of the husband or wife of the lunatic, can make a reception order. It is obtained by making a private application by petition, accompanied by a statement of particulars and by two medical certificates on separate sheets of paper. The petition should be presented, if possible, by the husband or wife, or by a relative of the alleged lunatic. Should it not be possible to comply with this last rule, the petition should give the reason for the non-compliance ; and it should also state the connection of the petitioner with the alleged lunatic, and the circumstances under which he presents it. Only a person of at least twenty-one years of age can present this petition ; and he must have Seen the alleged lunatic within fourteen days of the presentation. In the petition the petitioner is required to undertake that he will personally, or by special deputy, visit the patient at least once in every six months. Upon its presentation the judicial authority considers the statements therein made, and in the par ticulars, and the evidence of lunacy contained in the medical certificates, and whether he need personally see and examine the alleged lunatic. If he is satisfied that the order can properly be made at once, he can then make it. If he is not so satisfied, an early appointment must be made, not more than seven days after the presentation of the petition, for the consideration of the matter. Then he can make any further inquiries concerning the alleged lunatic lie thinks necessary and even visit him. The proceedings on the petition are absolutely private. No one can be present on its consideration except the petitioner, the alleged lunatic (unless the judicial authority in his discretion otherwise orders), and one person appointed by the alleged lunatic for that purpose, and also the persons who have signed the certificates. By special leave, however, the judicial authority may allow others to be present. At the time appointed for the con sideration of the petition the judicial authority may make an order thereon, or dismiss or adjourn it. If and when dismissed he is required to give a written statement of his reason for the dismissal, and to send a copy thereof to the Com missioners. Where a lunatic has been received as a private patient, under an order of a judicial authority, without a statement in the order that the patient has been personally seen by him, the patient can require to be taken before, or to be visited by some other independent judicial authority. The person who has charge of the lunatic must give him, within twenty-four hours of achnission, a written notice of this right ; and he must also ascertain whether he desires to exercise it, and, if he does, the person in charge is bound to arrange forthwith for the visit of that other judicial authority.