The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1869-07-01

| encumbranee TO me; that his mind in
| such a condition that he could not labor profit
| ably, though he remained in the Office with me
till the time Of his removal, in fact till just
before his death. That fall, he had disease
called break-bone fever; he had that in my
house, and " as c0nvaleseing from il at the time
came home from my trip to Virginia. He
was at that time in considerable state Of de-
preston. His physical health grew better, but
has mind continued to be interrupted, until,
think. about the middle or last of January,
| 1861, his mind seemed absolutely 20 yield. A
friend, Judge Hill, found him. one day, in a
cellar, in a state of perfect aberration of mind,
making violent gesticulatiOns, and making a
speech, as IL were, to his deceased wife. Judge
Hill brought him out of the cellar, and whis-
pered to me that he was in a terrible state, and
ought 10 be taken home. l was, at the moment,
engaged, and 1 asked Judge Hill to take him
home, which he did, and followed as soon as
L could, aud when got there, found he was
4 In state of maniacy.
He had an attendant on him Dr. Robert
Mitchell, but think he only called friend.
DIR. Shanks was the regular physician.
found DIR. Shanks and DIR. Mitchell both with
him when got there. He was rowing some
times, and sometimes would seem depressed.
He would rest for while, then he would
groan, then jump up and wanted TO go TO town,
desiring to leave the house; that increased
upon him. | had to get up with him six OF
eight times in the night, at the request of his
son, and 20 TO where he was 10 be found on the
street, with nothing perhaps but an undershirt
on, and his drawers, his feet naked and one
frozen; he was in the street and refused TO
come into the house at all until | induced him
to come He was led by me almost like child
he obeyed me in almost everything suggested
| TO him. When he was first taken in this way,
and in the presence of those two doctors one
of whom is dead---Dr. Shanks--he took up the
| impression that he was in some way aid 10,
or belonged to, the staff of Gen. Winfield Scott,
and that a number of persons, who were in the
rebellion against the Government, were sur
rounding the house, intending 10 burn it, and
| b,r in nd in A. tod on that iIaa nd
| nothing could withdraw him from it. i thought
| il was better to guide him. | il was ma
MACY that was on him; whether it was tempo
rary or otherwise, | cannot say. / attempted
| rather to guide him in it than to oppose him,
as he had been by his family before. | admit
ted to him that he then an aid to General
Scott. and that General Scott had the power to
/ relieve him; and that all that he had to do was
| to communicate to the General that he was in
distress and he would be relieved. | then
| went into another room and wrote a commune
| cation, and signed il General Winfield Scott,
and addressing it to him, took it to the room
| where he was, telling him to remain perfectly
! quiet, and that Gen. Scott would send him a
force that would relieve him. He said he was
satisfied that would be So He laid down con-
/ tent for a time and slept / suppose for quar-
ter or half an hour quietly. He was in this
condition of rather violent maniaey from ten
to fifteen days; | cannot tell exactly how
long; he was until the physicians attending
on him, by repeating medicines succeeded in
reducing his physical frame to quietness, at
the expense of his strength and he continued
! after getting up from that in a very weak state,
both physically and mentally, until in April
he removed back to this State. Shortly after
wards, perhaps the LIST of June, heard he was
dead. | am not positive to the precise time
Judge Scott was Union man, but like great
many others he yielded to the pressure of pub
lie opinion, but think he occupied position of
resistance at the time, as far as he comprehended
| it. When he was in this condition Of violence.
and an attempt was made to restrain him, he
| would make efforts to escape. On one of these
occasions negro boy by the name of Charles,
a house servant, resisted his efforts to get out,
he got TO the front door and the boy resisted
him by gentle force, and | think he (Judge
Scott got a hatehet and threatened to kill the
boy unless he got out of the way, and he was
forced TO let him pass. | got into the house
about the time he got out, he had mt got down
the steps before came through from the rear
of the house, called to him, and he Immediate
ly came back and for time he lay on the bed.
1T another time he t9ok up the idea that there
was a number of persons about the house who
were .endeavoring to set fire 10 it, and if we
didn't allow. him 10 get out he would be smoth-
cred in the fire. We got him quiet and after
being still for time, he jumped ont of bed and
seiZing an iron poker, proclaimed that they
were endeayorlng TO getlu at the window, and
with the poker he broke every particle of glass
and sash out of the window. We had that
ight TO restrain him by absolute force. On
one occasion when in the street, he had only
his coat On another occasion he simply
had his pantalOons and boots on. Once ne had
nothing ON but wooden shirt and drawers and
the ground was frozen, his feet were so cold
when he got into the house that we had TO use
applications to warm them. While we resided
here saw that there something wrong
with his mind, but it did not occur 10 me that il
was absolutely an alteration of mind Of any
sort He was believer in mesmerism: he
protested 10 believe and he was always n
conscientious man-that he could read the
contents of a letter that he had never seen by
placing it upon his forehead an instance of
| that kind occurred with him in my house that
Innf lRnr Gfp rad fnn / f.,uu l Il.
| think | am satisfied that he did not know the
contents ofthe letter, yet he gave some of the
| contents of IL with degree of accuracy that
astonished me. / saw him try the same thing
| afterwards but never with the success that
happened in that case He would undertak
TO tell the character Of the writer Of letters by
placing them upon his forehead. / have writ
ten them down for him and may have some of
them now. / kept them for they were some
little vagaries l INDUCED in with him | am
satisfied that the impression was fixed in his
mind that he could do these things. lie believed
| that he could converse at any time with
deceased friends, and frequently spoke of the
fact that he had done so. He told me frequent
| ly that he had conversations with his deceased
! wife, not by table-tapping, etc., but that her
spirit spoke to him think that he did not
| hear audible voice. but that it was "A spirit
ual communication that he had with her. At
| one time he had Il verv fine pair of Derrin ger
pistols made and he habitually wore them in
| his pantaloons pockets. objected to his doin5
| so, telling him there no necessity in en-
| numbering himself with those pistols, but he
| said he did Mt know the moment that any more
powerful person than himself might assault
| him, and he wished to be prepared. | thought
| it strange that with his natural kindness and
! gentleness Of character that he should wear the
| pistols, and tried TO prevent him from doing
i do. ! do not think he had enemy, he was so
| kind and gentle in his intercourse with all men
He was Chancellor Of this State previous to his
removal to Memphis, and discharged his duties
| as satisfactorily as Judges generally do.
| By Judge Advocate:
Judge Scott would be about So years Of age
/ if he were living; his wife died in the summer
of 1859; INDUCED him in some of his vaga-
! res, for pastime, while we resided here; clair
voyance is sometimes INDUCED in by inteli-
gent persons; l have operated a little myself;
| l thought there was some humbuggery in ii,
but was interested in it, and felt that there
was some incomprehensihility in it. l object
| ed to the dissolution of our copartnership be-
| cause he was a very warm personal friend.
deplored his condition, and l was willing to
make my labor assist in his support; l believed
| that the condition of his mind was such as TO
unfit him for the transaction of other persons
business, felt that his mind was impaired
| and so did he. He had the attack of break
bone fever in the fall of 1850. He had recover
| ed from the effects of the fever, except the Gu
| taneous eruptionsi | do not know that he was
under treatment when he exhibited those vio-
| lent outbreaks. I think he had no violent out
breaks until after he had this fever | had
connected his vogaries, noticed in this city
| with his then condition, and myself and the
physician attending him, spoke of them; did
| not then think he was absolutely q crazy man.
but, as the saying is, Il thought there was
| screw lose"
| BY the Counsel for Defense:
One Of his excentricities, after the death of
his wife, was very Notifying to his friends;
he courted every young girl that would stand
still long enough for him TO talk to her; his
| conduct, in that respect, was troublesome and
disagreeable to his friends.
TESTIMONY or ALEXANDER n. CLAYTON.