Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-12-01
BEDLAM.
a Steamboat Loaded with Luz
natics.
Transfer of the Inmates of NAL
den Insane Asylum.
enes and Incidents of the
Journey.
From the DetrOi. Free Press, Nov. "a.

a year or two past the Canadian govern
ment has been engaged in the erection o
a fine new Lunstie Asylum at London, o
take the place of the old Government
Barracks at Maiden, which have lon
been used for the purpose, and the neV
building was only made ready this weel
for the reception of its strange and unfor
tunRte guests. The Union was char
tered to go down and bring the patients
She arrived at Maiden in good tim,
Wednesday afternoon, and the work of re-
-ceiving The lunatics on board was sooI
commenced The keepers had been pre-
pared for the change for several days, an
the first detachment was soon at thu
wharf. The tearing up and the confusion
sand hustle that always attend any sucl
change, had not been unnOticed by tn
patients, and they had been hard to re
strain for the past two days Some Of
the worst afflicted were very much excit
ed and a story was current with them tina
it was the intention to get them all in
new building and burn them up. .Conse
quently, when the keepers commence
Handwriting them together in gangs t
make the journey to the wharf, nearly
every patent was wild with excitement
Putting about q dozen in a gang, with two
or three keepers, the entire lot were OF
board the boat by dark, although some Of
them were very troublesome.
One patient, a very wild, strong fellow,
who had conceived the i1ea that he was
being led TO the gallows for the murder OF
President Lincoln, made sudden dash and
fled with such swiftness that he reached
the woods in advance of all pursuit and
made his escape, being still at large yes
terday. Several others made frantic
efforts 10 break loose from their gangs
but the keepers at length got the whole
number safe on hoard. Think of over
three hundred luna.ics being crowded
together on q steamboat There were
old men, young men, women, children,
black and white, and not ten out of the
lot that did not require the constsnt eye OF
some one of the keepers who had been
reinforced for the occasion.
The boat, the town, the river, the
snow storm, everything below, above and
around the poor unfortunates was new
and strange to them, and they acted
well, like madmen. The Union is one of
the largest boats on the lakes, and there
was plenty of room for all. The most
violent cases were shut up in the state
rooms, and the rest were given the use OF
the lower decks and the cabins, the keep
ers being stationed so as to prevent any
escape by land or water. The lunatics
howled and shouted with delight or dis
may, some of them thinking that the
boat was TO be sunk in the lake, and 9TH
ers, with a religious turn to their Attic
lions, believed that the boat was to san
with them to the gates of paradise.
Owing to the heavy snow storm which
set in about dusk and prevailed nearly all
night, the Captain thought best to remain
all night at the wharf. The night was a
weary one to all on board. The lunatics
started new stories, and most of them
were wild with desire for the boat to
move on her voyage. Some slept and
others spent the night in shouting and
singing and dancing, or in making vain
attempts to escape their keepers. One
had been an old ''sslt, and thoughts of
other days went flashing through his be-
logged brsin, departing again before he
could grasp and thoroughly comprehend
them. He would command those about
him as if he was pacing the quarter deck
of fIigate, and when the crew ''muti-
MED" and refused to ''heaVe anchor" OF
sport the helm" the poor man would
fall to weeping over their disObedience.
An old African, black as black can be
had some dim rec0llections of camp.
meeting seasons, and he insisted that al
sinners present should come forward and
secure his prayers. Just according "a
their msnias the poor beings acted, and
none were as glad as the crew when the
Union started on her voyage soon afteI
daylight yesterday morning. On the way
up the patients grew very bOisterous, and
several of them kept making furious at.
tempts to elude theVigilance so constantly
exercised over them. The old African,
so full of pity and piety the night before,
took umbrage at the looks of one of The
crew, and did not forget q fierce desire &c
brain him until transferred to the dock al
Windsor. Another one was veXed at the
want of confidence shown in not putting
him in the place of the engineer, and hC
consequently contracted q strong hatre1
TO that official, and could not see him
without uItering satanic howls.
The women, who composed nearly hall
of the whole number, were generally
more quiet, and were more easily pacified
when violent, by the statement by the
keepers that they were going to buy new
dresses and bOnnets, and then all go st
visiting" They promenaded up and dQwr
the cabins, discussing ''the latest fash
ions, and some even got 50 proud, in the
thought of what was soon 10 be. that they
would not notice those of the Slower
crust" of society.
The Superintendent of the Great West
ern Road also came iu for a share of WORK
in the removal, and was called on TO pro
vide an extra train of eight large passen.
ger coaches for the accommodation of the
patients. While the train was making
up, the people were held ON board the
boat, or the most reasonable allowed Il
wander up and down the dock for a shor-
distance. None of them seemed to re
member that they had seen a locomotive
f" before, and the putting monster was al
amazing sight to them. These that hat
been anticipating their destruction as the
result of tie journey, were again frantic,
being sure that help had been obtained
against them from the inferal regions.
At length, about ten O'Clock, the trair
was ready, ard the transfer commenced
Some of the patients refused to walk, anC
were carried in, and cOaxing and gentle
force soon filed up the coaches. Ont
man came near being left behind, having
well eecreted himself on board the boat
but sharp eye brought him out, and hi
went into a coach with his head down
as il realizing that he had played the
game snd lost. When all was ready, the
locomotive gave the usual ''off brakes,
and the train moved away, carrying of
the most curious lot of shouting, scream
ing mortals that one ever saw collected
together.
The officers on board the Union had
kept their mission a secret, as it was OBJ
yious that anything like crowd of sight
seers at Windsor on her arrival would
tend to unduly excite the patients; but thC
shouts of those who could not be KEEP
still soon attracted attention, and q crowd
of people witnessed the transfer. The
new asvlum, which the unfortunate pe0-
pie have by this time reached, has been
modelled after the best suggestions thai
could be given by asylum superintendent
in the Dominions and the States, and
there is no doubt that the patients viii
find the change a very agreeable one
The dress and look of each individual
among the large lot was word in praise
of fhe care and attention of those who
have them in permanent charge.
MISS PAULINE FLETCHER, at the age 'oi
fourteen, an adept in all the mysteries OF
algebra, geometry, trigonometrY, and SC
forth, is the champion mathematician OF