The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1868-08-08
LUNATIO ASYLUMS.
A Defer SO OF the Institution-The Recent
kidnapping Case In New Jersey.

DR. ii. A. Buttolph, Superintendent OF the
New Jersey State Lunatic Asylum, mas pub
lished q letter vindicating the institutiou's
officers in the case of Mrs. Merritt, recently q
patient there. After remarklng that many re-
ports-including that which was printed in the
Atlantic Monthty-are erroneous, 1t not exagge-
rated, DR.. Buttolph says. ,.,.,,,,ou
on the 18th day of July. on the application OF
the Hon. Edward l.. Price. member OF the
brother of the patient. VINO furnished an am,
davit from q physician of her insanity, and
VINO executed a bond for her support. signed
also by ex. Governor Rodman Nj. Price, another
brother, and by Mrs. Price, her moLher. IneSe
are the usual preliminary forms TO IN, the admis
the Institution and statute laws OF the state
To these papers reference is made In the answer
corpus, as his ground of Justification in
admitting Mrs. Merritt to The institutio9'
and not for retaining her asme1wa,rhd, sie1
Times article; for the latter, addltlonai
reason to her admission papers will soon ap.
remained. On the 22d of July. four days after
Mrs MerritTs aaSsi9n nad was Sy nSee Be5e
of the Supreme Court on application OF Colonel
Merritt, husband of the patent by tnis VIII
In Hudson city, in this state, on the 2ith, two
days after, to show cause why she was re-
consent OF the Judge. however, her presence In
ceurt was dispensed with, and the answer
Gsyiuma ven snIs and ' had been detained thus far
for the short period OF four days by virtue
of Ompliance, on the part OF IrlenuS, Win Jn6
required preiminaries before described. As
the parties were not both prepared to proceed
with the inquiry, on application for delay, the
Judge postponed the further hearing until the
4th of August, twelve days after, and ordered
that Mrs. Merritt should remain under ooser-
walton in the Asylum during the interval At
the hearing on the 4th OF August Judge Bedle
allowed me TO make an amended return to the
writ which was to the effect that after ooserv-
Ing Mrs. Merritps symptoms and condition
from the time of her admission to that date,
viz from the llth of July to the Sd of August
7 A. Cd ha mi n ion hlt q a wa n
sane On this return the Judge ordered her
discharge from the insti ution, and that she be
allowed to go where and with whom she
pie leased. She left the same evening with her
husband. Though no other justification Is
needed for the Institution and its officers for
the act of admitting Mrs, Merritt as pa
tient than that above described, yet 1t may
be stated incidentally that the proprlety OF re-
BtTaining her in the Institution was conhrmedby
the social and political standing Of the appll-
cants, and by the knowledge OF the fact that
she had on the day previous, the l7th OF July.
been declared TO be Insane by a jury OF inquest
convened by order OF the Chancellor, to make
Inquiry into her mental S @ e. In sucn circum-
stances IL would have been rashness on the
part of the Superintendent to decide in less
time than the whole period Of sixteen days,
that Mrs Merritt was under care, that she was
not insane. but IL will be OBJ erved that he was
restrained by the writ from all action in refer
ence to her discharge from the 22t TO the 2iLh
of July and by order of the Judge from the 24Jh
of July until the Sd of August, the day she was
released by order Of the court"