In the acute or involuntary suicides, the predisposing condition of the mind is the result of circumstances which act rapidly, and pervert a judgment which, before their occurrence, might be deemed sound. Suicides of this kind are probably less frequent than those of the pre ceding ; but they are usually more shocking, and attract more atten tion; they are especially common in large towns, or wherever men pursue great objects at great hazards. For instance, a loss of money or of honour, the failure of an ambitious enterprise, jealousy, and many afflicting events, are enough at once to deprive a man of tender sensi bility of the power of just reflection, and to make him think that death is not so bad as the misery which be must. undergo. On the spur of the moment of anguish ho destroys himself. Similar circumstances impel a man of colder temperament, or of a braver disposition, more slowly' to the same end. The one may for a time endure passively his disgrace • the other may have courage at first to bear up against it ; but at iength the judgment is in both alike perverted, and the same state of mind is produced which urges others to immediate self destruction.
Lastly, there are examples in which suicide is committed with perfect coolness, being adopted, after due deliberation, as the most judicious course which, in the circumstances of the case, and as far as the know ledge of the individual enabled him to judge, could be followed. Such arc many of the cases in which men, finding themselves afflicted with incurable and painful diseases, have shortened that which they believed would be a miserable life ; and of the same class are the suicides com mitted iu accordance with national custom, or superstition, or from patriotic motives. The cases of this class are not proper subjects for medical consideration, for in these there is no disorder of the mind. The act is committed either without deliberation, in obedience to custom or authority ; or, when deliberation is used, the conclusion is only the necessary result of the error in the premises.
Such are the states of mind which most commonly predispose to suicide, and the circumstances which produce them. The character of the act itself usually corresponds closely with that of the mind by which it is urged. By those who commit it after deliberation, the means employed arc almost always successful ; so they are when men who have endured affliction for some time, at last sink under it. But when suicide is attempted under the sudden impulse of the fear of disgrace, the endeavour is often abortive ; the means chosen are insuffi cient, or they are awkwardly employed ; and it deserves notice, that the attempt generally seems to be the acme of the frenzy ; for if it be unsuccessful, it is very rarely repeated, and often he who has made it, in the next minute seeks assistance, and bitterly repents his folly.
It is a generally received opinion that cold foggy climates favour the development of the suicidal disposition; but in Holland, the climate of which is very similar to that of Great Britain, the proportion of suicides is lower than in any other countries with milder climates; and that many circumstances are capable of counterbalancing whatever influence climate may have, is proved by the number of suicides in the same country having varied considerably in different periods. It has also
been shown that the number of suicides, in proportion to the popula tion, is greater in France than in England. In the year 1953, in England and Wales the total number of suicides was 1257, of whom 921 were males, and 336 females, or 1•6 in 20,000 of the whole popula tion, or 1 in 450 of the deaths.
In accordance with the same genera] opinion, it is commonly said that suicides are more frequent in the latter part of the autumn than in any other season; but statistical inquiries would seem to indicate that the kind of weather which is most favourable to the suicidal dis position is rather that of long-continued heat and drought. The tendency to suicide varies greatly among persons of different stations and occupations. In a letter from Mr. Fair to the registmr.general, this tendency was shown to be " least among persons who carry on occupations out of doors, and greatest anions artisans who aro weakly from birth, are confined in-doors, have their rest disturbed, or have little muscular exercise." From what has been said of the variety of causes which may engen der or encourage the disposition to suicide, it must be manifest that no general account can be given of the morbid conditions of the body, or of the brain, which accompany the mental disturbance. Many facts relating to this part of the subject have been related ; but as yet they are unconnected by any generalisation. We may therefore proceed at once from the causes to the treatment of the suicidal disposition.
Here also what has been said of the one may serve for a guide to the knowledge of the other. With respect to the treatment of those among the insane who exhibit a tendency to self-destruction, there can be no other deviation from the ordinary treatment of insanity than that which consists in the careful removal from them of all means by which their intentions may be accomplished. Both for these and for those who show no other sign of insanity than their desire for death, the most successful remedy is the giving full occupation for the time ; this is indeed essential to the safety of all who show any disposition to suicide. The occupation moreover should be one which will carry the mind as far as possible from the subjects on which it is morbidly sensi tive, or on which it has been accustomed to dwell too intently. Above all, a person suspected of an intention to commit suicide, should be kept carefully from the contemplation of histories of self-destruction. Numerous instances have proved that the tendency to imitate the acts of others operates as forcibly in producing suicides as in encouraging the most trivial fashion. For all cases of imitative suicide there is a plain preventive means which should never be neglected, namely, the fear of being disgraced after death ; and that this operates forcibly in deterring men from suicide, is a sufficient proof of the imprudence of the opinion which regards suicide as affording by itself sufficient evidence of the insanity and irresponsibility of those who commit it.