Objection has been made that the Winthrop Farm is out of the city limits, and therefore liable to taxation. To this it may be answered, that the institution is of a charitable nature, and therefore not taxable. The town of Winthrop is liable to be annexed to the city, and propositions to that effect are already under consideration. But if so assessed in the town of Winthrop, where the entire amount of tax raised by warrant the present year is only five thousand two hundred and eighteen dollars, it would be but a moiety of the amount of interest upon the cost of locations at Breed's Island or Dorchester. In view of these considerations, the Board of Directors, upon the most careful revision of the whole subject, see no reason to distrust their former decision, but confidently recommend the location at Winthrop as being preferable to either of the others. They advise the adoption of the plans heretofore submitted in City Document No. 94, 1867, with their unqualified approval, and in the firm belief that such action would prove in an eminent degree beneficial to the interests of the city. Very respectfully, J. P. BRADLEE. GEO. W. PARMENTER. M. M. FLANDERS. S. A. DENIO. LEWIS RICE. I. E. NOYES. PATRICK DONAHOE. BRADLEY N. CUMINGS. WILLIAM SEAVER. NATH'L MCKAY. WM. WOOLLEY. CITY OF BOSTON. OFFICE OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS, To the Honorable the City Council : GENTLEMEN, The undersigned, a member of the Board of Directors for Public Institutions, respectfully dissents from the opinion of the other members of the Board in regard to the location of a hospital for the insane, and begs leave to present his reasons therefor. The question upon which the opinion of the Board is asked is simply, which of three sites presented for the consideration of the City Council, namely, the Winthrop Farm, so-called, Breed's Island, and the Codman Estate, is the most suitable for the location of a hospital for the insane? Before proceeding to pass upon any particular locality for such an institution, it is proper that we should decide upon the general qualities which any locality must possess in order to adapt it for the purposes in view. In deciding upon these general qualities, or requisites, there can hardly be a difference of opinion; the difficulty lies in their application to any one locality. Undoubtedly all would agree that the hospital should be easily accessible from the City Hall, the headquarters of those who control it. While it might not be considered absolutely necessary that such an institution should be located within the city limits, it must be regarded as an important point in favor of any site proposed that it is so located. The grounds, especially that portion on which the hospital is located, should be sufficiently elevated to secure pure air, without being too much exposed to the severity of the storms which are frequent on the New England coast a great portion of the year. There should be a sufficient quantity of land to afford an opportunity for farming and gardening on a small scale. The land should be of a quality to be made attractive by the growth of trees, shrubs, and flowers, without involving a very large expenditure of money. The view of the surrounding country should be pleasing and attractive, — not calculated to depress the minds of the patients by its solitude, nor to excite them by too powerful an exhibition of the forces of nature or the activity of man. In this connection, let me quote from an article on this subject, written by Dr. Ray, of Providence, R. I., a gentleman of well-known reputation in this department of practice. (See City Document, 1863, No. 11, page 17) He says: "It is to be hoped that we never shall be contented, in any case, with a bald and monotonous surface, where no tree nor shrub, no fountain nor rural arbor, no mound nor lake, is allowed to add a single feature of beauty to the scene. It is a great mistake to suppose that such things are designed to please the taste of the sane members only of the establishment, and are not among the legitimate means and appliances for improving and restoring the insane." To what extent does the site in Winthrop possess the requisites which I have named ? It is not as accessible from the City Hall as Breed's Island or the Codman Estate. That portion of the site which is elevated is so much exposed to the full force of the ocean storms as to render it practically uninhabitable, without a very large expenditure of money. And when it is remembered that, upon the peninsula of Nahant, directly opposite this place, it has been almost impossible, with all the care and appliances of art, to make any other vegetation but grass successful, what encouragement have we of being able to make trees grow upon this bleak, unsheltered spot? Dr. Ray, whom I have already quoted, candidly states, in another communication respecting this site (see City Document, 1868, No. 75, page 13): " If it be true that no tree can be made to grow on that site, then I have no hesitation in saying that it lacks a requisite which, if not indispensable, is one of the most desirable that an hospital for the insane can possess.' On a fine day in summer, the ocean view is undoubtedly attractive; but, unfortunately, fine days are rare on the headlands along this coast. The view of Winthrop Farm, on almost any day between the first of November and the first of June, is enough to appal the smallest tax-payer or the individual most enthusiastic for a new hospital. For a short time, during the summer, a residence on this spot, leaving out of question the outlay of money necessary to place such an institution there, would, no doubt, be healthful and agreeable; but during far the larger portion of the year, the patients could take less out-ofdoor exercise there than in almost any other place. During the winter season, the "airing grounds" in the rear of the proposed hospital, exposed, as they would be, to a clear sweep of the northeast and northwest winds, would surely test the power of human endurance; and it is doubtful whether, at that season such a building as it is proposed to erect could be heated so that the patients would be comfortable within doors. Major-General Foster, of the United States Engineer Corps, long familiar with our coast, states that this place is as much exposed as the most prominent headlands of the outer harbor, and that it will become necessary, in case hospital buildings are erected upon it, to protect the bluff by costly sea-walls. The quantity of land is sufficient, and more than sufficient; but the opportunity for farming or gardening is certainly very |