"cottage plan," which in some institutions has been carried to the
extreme of erecting a detached building for every ward. The climate of
St. Lawrence county forbade this. Her winters are as vigorous as those
of her Canadian neighbors, even as her people are almost as ebullient in
their politics as the vigorous warring liberals and conservatives across
the river. And there are features of the linear plan that can only be
left out of our asylum structure at the expense of efficiency. Other
rules that he formulated from his experience were that a building for
the insane should never exceed two stories in height; that fire proof
construction and at least two stairways from the upper floors should be
provided; that day rooms should be on the first and sleeping rooms on
the second floor; that all buildings for the insane who suffer from
sluggish and enfeebled circulation of the blood should be capable of
being warmed to 70° in the coldest weather; that ample cubic space and
ventilation should be provided; and that, as far as possible, without
too great increase of the cost of maintenance or sacrificing essential
provisions for treatment and necessary restraint, asylums should aim to
reproduce the conditions of domestic life.

[Illustration: THE ST. LAWRENCE HOSPITAL FOR THE INSANE.]

State Architect Isaac G. Perry planned the St. Lawrence State Hospital
buildings on ideas suggested by medical experience, with a breadth of
comprehension and a technical skill in combining adaptability, utility,
and beauty that have accomplished wonders. The buildings are
satisfactory in every particular to every one who has seen them, and
even the most casual observer is impressed with the effect of beauty.
This was accomplished without elaboration of material, expressive
carving or finish. The ornamentation is purely structural and is
obtained by a handling of the materials of construction which also