New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1873-03-16
Kill. OR CURE.

| KILL OK CUM.
Tile major is d capita! fellow. DOCTOR"
said, as We sAuntered out to smoke our
cigars in the garden, after an early dinner:
but ne ought 20 be more merciful to Us
~retched bachelors. What! with his charm.
ing wife and thai exemplary baby. he makes
it difficult 20 yespec: the tenth command.
ment."
You admire Mrs Layton!'
admire her" If she were not ChaTley's
wife, should fall head over ears III love
with her. ! have seen fairer faces, but for
dear. pretty. delicate womanly ways, ]
never met her equal
you couldE't understand mans thirst
ing for her blood:'
Good gracious: = wretch who could
touch one Of her golden hairs roughly de.
serves to be crucifed.''
And ye: fov many days she was IN
deadly peril of her lite.''
For her fortune!'
''Sbe had none.
Don't tell me. Doctor, that ar innocent
creature like that could give any one cause
for revenge"
mo; won: :e.: you anything of the
sort
~ think see. Some one was madiy IN
love with herr
IF you were 20 guess ill this day out
yOu would no. find the cause" said my
friend. Let US sit down here, and | will
explain. It's no secret: wonder the Major
has not told YOU.
| Down here" was On a rustic seat that
! the majors pretty wife had made at the end
! of his garden, close TO where little Till,
soon to be lost III the blue Hudson, sinkled
its way through his grounds.
During the war;" began the doctor, 81
! served in the army. in the same regiment
| with an old schOUlmate. He was as fine a
soldier as ever drew sword. Hale, hearty
! and SOUND in mind and body: eager to see
| service--and he saw plenty. ] thought
| that he bore charmed life, till one day he
was carried into the hospital tent in bad
way. A bal! had entered his shoulder.
| glanced on the clevicle iwhat you call the
! collar bODei. and had gone-somewherc.
| That is al! we c0uid tell, for there was no
;. other oritice: bU. whether il had passed up
! or down. or taken some erauc course round
! about. such as haiis will take. we knew
! not. and 70 probing could find out. Well,
| be recovered. wen: North to regain his
| strength, and for nearly three years lost
| sight of him. When the war was over, and
| | had begun to practice as civilian III New
York. met him again. But how changed.
He was living skeleton. and I saw in
| moment that he had become habituated to
! opium. DO YOU know what that me ans
| No. Wei, throw bucket OF water into a
| piano, and then ligh! a fire under 1t, and it.
| strings Will 10. be more out OF tune than
| an opium-smoker's nerves are out of order.
He asked me If he might call on me az my
office, and Of course assented; but it was
| DAYS before he came, and when he did ar
rive l knew that he had been preparing
himself for a fight with himself. Some
| foolish patients come prepared to hide the
| truth. scme 10 magnify their ills 1t is
part OF our business. i'll serious
cases. 70 examine mans mind before
| aL1y oh bar
as surgeon mus: be, / confess that
the condition o. my poor friend frightened
| me. There was an expression IN his eye
that had never seen IN any sane being.
and what made this worse was the calm.
busness-like manner in which he spoke. He
told me that soon after he had apparently
| recovered from his wound. ne began to
suffer from pains in the head, which IN.
! creased in severity till they became 80 ago
nizing that he had recourse to opiates to
alleviate them. But / have not come to
consult you about this ne said, this can
bear-must bear. Would to God that they
were always tearing NE. The wo"s: is
| when they are not.
"'They leave you very weak sug.
gested.
"'They leave me- Re replied. quite
calmly. with burning, all but uncon9uer-
able. desire .e take human life
II am not generally a nervous man. but
/ started and looked round me for some
weapon Of defense. Don't be afraid he
continued. with sad smile, the ut is not
on me now. ] should not have come If 1t
had been. have been nearly starved once
or twice, not daring TO leave M room. |
can conquer my madness now; the question
is how long ] can continue to do SO. feel
that it is growing upon me. l feel my
power OK resistance becoming weaker and
weaker. the craving Tor blood getting
stronger and stronger. | am like man
who has slipped over a precipice, and feels
the earth and shrubs to which he clings
slowly, slowly, surely, surely, giving way
with him. ] have brought wretched ours
out OF the stree, and killed them in my
frenzy. in the nope to exhaust it on them.
1t is no use: must have human life
"'Any human life,' inquired. or some
one in particulars'
."'Why do you ask this, DOCTOR lie
cried, getting suddenly excited.
''NO matter: go on
Sometimes he resumed, Il: seems that
any life would do; and observation-disclosures,
four days before l saw you l met. upon
New Jersey Ierryboat, a young girl. So
pretty, so refined, and nice! followed her
to her hOme-the devil that has taken pos
session OF me led me. She went an, and
soon came out again into her little garden,
and terdt d her tlOwers-poor child Doc.
tor, if had had a pistol with me should
have shot her. You may smile: but some
day soon shall. take q pisto! on purpose.
and shoot her.
1T was clearly no use arguing with hlIi:.
The best way with such people IS to admit
their facts and try to work round them.
Then, said |. the only thing you can
do is to submit TO the restriction OF an asy-
lum till this feeling has passed.
"'It will not pass. If ! were 20 go 20 q
madhouse ] should sham sane. Sooner or
later their vigilance over me would be Re.
Taxed. Then | should murder my keeper.
and &c straight fer tina: innocent girl.
"Then leave the c0untry!'
".Well. that would save her: but. doc.
tor. one life is az dear to its holder as an.
other. If dom: kill her. shall Kill! seine
one else
INV dear fellow replied. in as light
tone as could assume. these tancies are
durable. PU. yourself under skilled med.
cal treatment. You are all 10 bits, physi-
cally. Get sound in body. and you.! get
all RICH, in your mind
! Ion the contrary. ] AM ali ~ bits. as you
say, mentally, and NY body suffers through
my mind. Medical treatment, l have con.
suited every practitioner OF note here and
| in Europe. Some think I'm fooling them,
some look wise and talk as you do sboU: