, 1873-08-01

out Of ha mouth. Tic i, Int It ahomli aSht a.
yagr'0a rasSyaa = tlsssoJoA Nc aning
whicll lo will romotnbor ,a,.u,,, ,oncl,od lilo
| ago Of Il. momner OF
CURIOUS FREAK'9eISv ~ qWHtNsANITY.
Three Hundred NceiEoa Found In n
| V0n,s&1a'H E2ody.
fl tho tltrtoth nnn,lnt report {tor 1a7a) OF tho
State Lunatio Asylum ut Utica, VIC llnta cosurlp-
tlon Of tho following remarkable cnso:
"a woman, 90 yoars Of ngo, si,'glo acan-
streps, with no hereditary tendency, 70 immunity,
tiou, emotional aud irroguari fooling; nt tin,os
| buoyant and liyoiy, and then gloomy and do
pressed. Her health during oarly life was doll
| cato, though eho Bufforod from no dotlnito form
waa aoizod with pain tn tile hond 1t was Of
| nhort duration, but worry sovoro, and during its
continuance tho patient waa delirious. Attacka
tho pnin and tho mental disturbance, havo oc.
currod since at Intervals Of from ono to tllroo
| mouths. In 1904 aho Ind aoute rheumatism,
and i9 iso5 , eovere ', attecls Of .d1ipnthoria;
parontly subsidod vomiting suporvenod, mud was
| 1cpcated evory few hours for fivo wools. To
rolievo this condition and procure aloop, hypo-
dormio Injections Of morpha wero Buccosafnlly
rapidly roganol her health. Some two yoars
aftor thia or In July, 1867, slo had m attack Of
Inflammation OF tho bowels and poritone,tm, and
for four weoks was delirious most Of tho time
She improved somewhat In health, but for tho
four months succeeding had frequent attacks Of
frenzy, during which Bhe often threatened to
tnkc hor own and hcr mothers life, and hncamo
worry difficult to control. In October following
mediate cLargo. Of llor phyaiciau. Soon aftor
| this, lo ascortained eho wilg uning hypodermio
Injections Of morphia to relieve pain In her
limbs md diforont parts Of her body. quote
~ was informed that size was using it (mor-
phia) to considerable extont, and called i,n,no-
! dintoly to explain to her tho effects aud danger
attending the t. practice believe every effort
desiHt. but all to no purpose. she was cunning
| mud nrtful, mud would almost always study out
somo plan to get tho morphia. She has used as
nHGh as tw4 d5aehma in woo in one or two
waB ono draclm por wook. aho uaod but littlo
II any, for three or four months boforo sho was
sont to the asylum, for IT WAS very difficult for
her to got It. She has acted very strangely evor
Hinco her first sicknoss Sho has bcon truly q
mystory which no ono could so1vo.'
=" Hor mothor aays TINT for years Bhe llaa COM
nl1inoa OF patn, aud pressed her ha,sd Oh oithcr
ultlo Of her hoao, with the exclamation, Oh!
| sho has complained OF such soreness Of the
head that whom sllo passed. hor hand over it, In
smoothing her daughters hn!r, she would cry
out: Oh, mother, don't; it h,,rta mo sol That
|
help, as tho patient threatened mud intended to
talso hor own life. That both before md after
Bho began the uao OF morphia her conduct was
peculiar and orratc; that aho was emotional,
and easily disturbed by tritleH That aftor the
1 morphin habit WAS known, her conduct for mnny
years preceding was wrongly attributed to this
cnuso.
"a few weohe boforo sl,o was aont to tho asy-
| lum She passed into an acutoy maniRcal cond-
ton, in which sho was Bloeploss, ate 1ttlo a,,d
irrogu!arly, lost 1foBh aud strength rapidly, and
became quito fooble. She was destructive Of
clothing, pulled hor hair out, WAS noisy, inco-
about, and WINS with difflcuity controlled.
g." In this condition sEo WIS admitted to tho in
stitntion on the 9th of May 1871. she WAS car-
rloa to tho ward and placed in bod. Examnn.
| tlon revealed acars md ecchymoAel Bpots,
covering nearly tho whole Of tho body which
! could DO roaclod by her own hnnd. She inserted
tllat sho Ind employed tho hypouormio injoc-
tions % for IT. threo ~ and one-ha!t years, oncc md
| mucll OF tho time twlco O day, milking in all
about 900 injections; that, during the lust fow
| months Of its continuance, sho Ind usod a
1rachm and one-half Of morphia per week.; that
saqaee e'asa aa se eeeas eeff 5 s Into S s
tiBsucs. For two days she was Rleeplcas, and
retained no nouriahment. Chloral, in thirty
grain doaes, was thon administered, which waB
| tolerated by tho stomach, and secured sleep.
Tho vomiting gradually became loss frequent,
and soon coasoa. She ato vol, gained flesh and
| strength, NIL manlacal symptoms subHidcl, aud
in twenty days sho was lip and about tho ward.
| "During tho month following Aho steadily
gained in mental strength and became quito
| stout. at tiMo OF noxt menstrual period tho
| right breast Bwolled to on extraordinary sizo 60
thnt We woro obliged to suspend it With adhesive
straps. 1t was hard mud oxtromoly sensitive to
the touch. This condition Of swelling and ten
derncsa extended in a narrow ridge to tho spine.
| Tho state of tho bsoaBt was Mt first supposed to
be owing to tho sympathetic action Of the organ,
with tho ronowoa activity OF tho menstrual func-
| ton. Fortwo wcofs applications woro employed,
without succoss, to relieve tho pain and tendon.
| At this timo on tlo 18th Of August tho patient.
| in rubbing her hand over the breast discovered
| IN elevated point just under tho skin, which on
| pressure gave o prickng sensation. Illis waA
| cut down upon aud broken ncedo extractod
! On tho 18th another noodle WIS removed. Tho
breast WAS now inllamod and extremely uonsitivo
August g another neealo WAS taken ont.
IRON this trio till Sept. 20, from one
| to five needles woro removed daily from tho
l1reast.
AFTER this, during tho months OF October md
| November. needloa were taken from various
parts OF tho body. Tho largest number OK
| tractod IN any ono day was twelve.
Son ono occaAion other WIS administered,
but the difficulty experienced in bringing her
under its influence, and tho montal disturbance
produced by it. was great that it was not again
rosortcd to. During tho whole period, to hor
final lnoss, sto retained hor ilesh, though sl,c
ate and slept irroguarly, lndor use Of tonics
state, at ti1nos irritable, potn|ant fault-fnling,
attempting to crcnto il-feoling between nttond-
ants. and demanding unnecessary caro- aud wait
ing upon At other timos sllo was abnormally
chcorfnl, gay. pleasant, md fulaomo OF praise Of
nil nrolll,d her.
" For tho first two months but comparatively
littlo pain waH felt in tho extraction Of tho nee-
dies. The skin was thtckeued, harsh md dry,
and almost insensble from tho prolonged and
distributed uso Of tho injections. Aftcrwaril
sho suffered aeutely, and often begged will, tears
that their removal might bo postponed from day
to day. About q month before death she had al,
lower portion Of tho right hing; this was acco,n-
panied by stridulous breathing, spaam Of tho
glottis globus llysterious, crying, aud and other
hystorical Manifestations. It was followed by I'LL
attack resembling muscular rheumatism, charac-
torxea by great pain mud hypornathonia Of sur-
face; tho right arm was BweIlod hot, aud extreme
ly sensitiye; it was supported on pillow aud
kopt batlea In auodyno fotions. She loHt Apo
tito aud Sleep became much depressed, and gayo
| an innnA of IIar tolfk1 lnn