At the age of 23, pioneering reporter Nellie Bly faked dementia in order to expose abuses of patients in Blackwell's Island Insane Asylum in New York City. Such investigative journalism was unusual in 1887 -- almost as rare as women reporters. Bly's subsequent articles created a sensation, exposing the rampant psychological and physical mistreatment of inmates, many of whom were not mentally ill but simply recent immigrants and other impoverished individuals without social support. This new edition from Common Classics of Bly's groundbreaking reports from the asylum features period illustrations from the original publication.