Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1860-04-05
Wurtester Daily Spp,
HOW THEY MANAGE THE LUNATICs AT
GHEEL
From the Knickerbocker Magazine.


the insane hospitals AS he proposed visiting
the renoter districts Of the commune, he or
dered his carriage, and entering it, drove with
me to one OF the most barren and lonely pOr-
tons of the Campine, some two leagues or
more from Gheel. Our first call was to be at
an isolated cottage on the highest part OF this
moor; but some time before we reached 1t we
met ay-haired lunatic, the solitary boarder
at this cottage, DR.. Bulkins said, who, with
bare head, and his long locks flying in tie
wind, was gesticulating turiously, and occa-
sionally uttering cries and howls III a most
stentorian voice.
Gle imagines himself" said the doctor, Ito
be Napoleon, and he is giving his orders to his
troops who are gathered for the battle of Wa
terloo. He is one of our noiSiest patents, and
onsthis plan he can have full scope for the ex-
ercise of his lungs, without disturbing any
one"
as it not dangerous and violent to others 2"
I asked.
Not at ALL was the reply, "as you shall
see for yourself Yon little child has been
sent after him see how easily he will control
him."
The child whom the doctor pointed out, was
arosy checked, barelegged little urchin ofper
haps halfa-doZen summers, and as the luuatic
was giving the word of command to his imagi
nary legions to wheel and charge in battalions,
and whispered few words in his ear, when,
presto, change! the soidStam emperor was
transformed into quiet, humble, shame-faced
man, who with stumbling step and downcast
eye, suffered the boy to lead him to the cottage
ga little child shall lead Them" said the
doctor, as he turned to me, smiling.
We alighted at the cottage; every thing was
very plain, aud the cottagers were evidently
poor but the best room in the house was the
, -. 4,
benches, and its nicely sanded floor, gave evi.
dence of the neatness of the cottager's wife.
"Who have the principal charge OF the luna
tics indoors % | asked.
"The women and children for the most part
was the reply. "Whcn very violent, the men
are sometimes, though rarely, asked no help,
but there are very few women in the commune
who are not competent to manage even the
most turbulent, and generally they succeed
much better than the men. They possess
more tact and adaptation to the work. Our
women are usually very amiable, and centu-
ries of experience have given them a skill i'll
the management of the insane you seldom
meet elsewhere"
We drove next to a small hamlet where
there were ten or twelve insane persons. On
our way we met two young men, with their
legs tied loosely together with thongs.
"That," said the doctor, 'iS to prevent them
from running away"
"What binders them taking them off if they
wish to escape % l asked
Nothing except a bit of superstition. The
thongs are put on with ceremony which in
vests them with sort of sacredness, in their
view, and they never will take them off them
selves"
"DOu you have many escapes 2"
every few only eleven last year, and most
of those did not 90 far. As the householders
lose their pay froH the day the patient escapes
and can get no more patients till his return,
they are usually successful in bringing them
back very soon"
GLOW many" asked, care under restraint
of any description 2"
"Only about thirty of the whole number in
the commune"
And what are your restraints g
"The thongs, as you have seen, the can't
sole, and strapping the arms back at the ell
bows, SO as to prevent them from striking 9TH
ers."
'No chains z"
"Not now; formerly they were thought ne
cessary, but we are very thoroughly converted
to the system of non-restraint."
AS we alighted from the carriage, lunatic
was carrying in his arms pretty little girl of
two or three years, with whose prattle he
seemed greatly delighted.
"That man" said the doctor, sis subject to
violent paroXysms of mania, during which he
destroys furniture and clothing, and is really
dangerous. Formerly we should have chained
him and even since lie came here, the paySan
with whom he lived was seriously bruised in
the attempt to subdue him in one of these par.
oXysms but the sight OF the child, and per-
mission to take it in his arms, quiets him at
once"
"But is there not" asked, danger to the
child in trusting her in the hands of such
maniac 2"
81 think not" he answered 'in this case
When lunatc manitests dislike for child,
ia very rare circumstance they should never
be left alone together. We had painful incl
dent, resulting in the death of little child
some nine or ten years ago; but there the luu-
attic, who was of a very jealous temper had
conceived a hatred for the child"
"Have you had no other mistortunes arising
from this perfect freedom in which the luna
tics are INDUCED 2" inquired.
Zone only. In 1845 the burgomaster of
Gheel was assassiaated by a lunatc, whom he
had needlessly irritated. The man protested
to be physician, and went about the country
gathering up herbs and simples, with which he
concocted nauseous doses, which some of the
paySanS were foolish enough to take. The bur-
gomaster was a druggist, and partly, l pre-
sumo, from professional jealousy, and partly,
possibly, from the love OF teasing, he ridiculed
the lunatic before crowd of people, calling
him a quack and a swindler and torbidding
lin to pretend TO practice any more The
aan was very angry and much excited, and
a ,oon after, meeting the burgomaster alone, he
plunged knife into his breast"
"Do you not find inconvenience and crime
the result of the familiar acquaintance of luna
tics of the two sexes 2"
Gar less than among the sane There have
been only four cases Of sexual crime i'll seven
years"
"Mrs. -" said the doctor to a comedy
matron fifty, in the next cottage we visited,
"the friends of Lacordaire have lost very heav.
lily by the flood, and write me that they can al
low but two hundred and fifty francs a year
for his support hereafter. j will send him to
Henri, Ia nou,ricier who had applied for anoth-
er patient,) and give you Colonel Minot, who
has Just come, and whose friends are willing
to pay a high price to have him well at
tended"
A tear started in the good woman's eye.
doctor" said she, IL cannot give up La
cordaire he has been with me fifteen years,
and, helpless as lie is, l love him like a broth
err will keep him at the reduced price"
''Well, well" said the doctor, in his brisk
way, 1--WE will arrange it somehow for have
told Colonel Minot's friends that you will take
him, which gave them great satisfaction"
Il cannot do it, for l must in consequence
give up Lacordaire," said the matron decid-
eddy.
AS we left the house, DR. Bulkins said to
me; Inns is not unfrequent occurrence.
Our people very often become much attached
to the patients, aud most strongly think 10
the helpless ones"
AS we rode slowly over the Campine, we
saw considerable numbers of the female ma.
tients in the fields, laboring quite actively.