The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1873-04-03


| treatment 1 have consulted every
practitioner of note here and in
Europe. Some think / am fOOling
them, some look wise and talk as yOr
do about treatment All have failed
Doctors are no use to me-
" Then may 1 ask why you have
come here ?
''To ask your advice as friend" ht
answered, drawing his chair nearer tC
me; "and, "lowering his voice ito ask
you one question as a friend and s
God-fearing man, and to which 1 ash
to give me plain yes or no."
"Go on"
"Feeling as feel, shall I be jdsti.
fled before God in taking my OWL
life ? Will it be deadly sin for me tC
do for myself what would do to s
mad dog"
81 repeat his words almost ss ht
spoke them. cannot give you the
faintest idea of the solemn delibeTR.
ton with which he put this awful
question. For some moments could
not say word. Then 1 started VI
and told him would not answer yes
or no-that it was not fair to ask me
to take such responsibility. Then he
rose too, and said he must resolve il
for himself, and I saw plainly which
way it would go. "Give me till to-
morrow to think it out" I said de.
tanning him.
''TO-moYrow may be too late" he
replied. "The fiji may come upon me
tonight for all know"
"COme home with me; I'm not
4 r.SI
81 would try very hard not to do so
butt know myself. 1 cannot
trust myself Don't you trust me" "
81 will trust you but I'll do more.
You are not armed [ suppose ?"
mo" he replied with a shudderi
"not now."
" T'H take care that you shall not
| be, and I'll carry my Derringer in my
pocket. On the first indication of
homicidal mania give my word I'll
shoot-and 1 shoot straight said
this to satisfy him, poor fellow In
his state could have laid him down
like child. 1t did satisfy him, and
we went home together. He'd him to
| talk of our old soldering days, and
gradually got him back to his wound.
| | made him describe the first sensa-
tions Of pain in his head, and repeat
all that his different medical advis-
ers had said. happened to have a
strong preparation of hasheesh by
me. I gave him a dose, and whilst
under ifs inHuanoa 7 .~-~f.'Iis- ~--~---
| ined his head. Now the head, you
must know, does not fatten or waste
away in proportion to other parts OF
the body. Still, his had become mere
skin and bone; and this state, per
/ haps, gave me an advantage over
Others who had made the same eX-
! animation. At last l felt a faint
twitching-a sort of abnormal pulsa-
/ tion-abOut two inches above the left
ear. 1t might be merely nervous, but
it might be caused by the ball.
81 then set my mind to work, and
| thought the whole case over steadily.
| In the first place was that impulse to
/ take human life, of which my poor
| friend had spoken, really uncOntrolla-
| BILE ? For example, suppose that one
day he did take pistol 'On purpose,
and go to that young lady's garden
would he shoot her d? To suppose that
| the insane mind never changes its
purpose, or turns from the fell COM
pletiOn of its purpose, Is to say IN
other words that the insane mind Is
stronger than the sane mind. If 6
man with freshly broken leg were
to tell you he was going to run foot
race you would not believe him, be-
cause your common sense revolt;
against the idea of his running with q
leg disabled. But If one with his
brain disabled declares that he is go
ing to do something dependent upon
the action of his mind common sense
does not argue so well.
"In the second place, did my pool
friend, with his impaired means oi
Judgment, believe that the impulse
was uncomfortable ? Because il ht
did the end would be the same, so fal
as he was concerned. He would
sacrifice his own life to protect thai
of others, though they were in nc
actual danger.
"In the third place, might not thi:
story of the impulse be a mere pre-
tense to excuse the commission o
suicide? ? Now, there are no forms o.
madness more obscure in their origin
more difficult to detect, more persis
tent, and more fatal than suicida
. LQdlAd anu Gho LllEAE AAGANC bCC4 A4NAAA
erous cases in which persons who
have destroyed themselves have care
fully prepared evidence tending tC
show that their death was accidental
why should there not be one in which
the fatal act was to be $50 far as pOssi
ble) justified
''In the fourth place, granting tina
there was either real hOmicidal manis
or fancied homicidal mania tending
to suicidal, or simply the latter-Ua:
there a possibility of cure
GAS the first three questions rested
for their solution on one set Of facts
and deductions to be drawn there.
from, considered them together. A
victim of suicidal mania rarely ifevel
speaks of suicide. When q man say
he is going to drown himself, you may
generally direct him to the cars which
will take him to the river side witt
the fullest conviction that he will no
breakfast with the crabs. If in an ex
eeptiOnal case, suicide is mentioned
it will either be treated lightly, as al
act that is not crime, or the patient
will be very earnest in his assurance:
that he would never commit it. Re
membering my poor friends manner
1 noticed that he spoke of taking hi
own life with much more emotion
than he evinced when he told me 0
the impulse to shed the blood of 9th
ers. His words 4 must have hU
man life-if 1 had had a pistol witt
me, / should have shot her-sOme dal
soon shall take pistol on purpose
and shoot her-I should murder II,
keeper and go straight for that limo
cent GIRL were spoken as calmly a
though he said, Il owe five dollars.
must go and pay them,' and at tn
same time with q tone Of deep com
miseration for the predestined victims
They we're to die for no fault OF thei
own, but they were doomed to deati
if he lived. When, on the other hand
he spoke of saving their lives at thl
sacrifice Of his own, his mannel
changed. No one afflicted with suici
dal mania ever treated self-destruc
tion with the horror, the conscious
ness of its wickedness, and the relig
iOus doubts as to its being pardOnabl'
under any circumstances, with which
he considered it. He had never one
spoken of murder as a crime.
"After long and careful considera
tion, came to the following eonclu
siOns
"He is not laboring under suicida
mania.
''His impulse is real, and will hav'
fatal results.
Confinement is an asylum woulC
have no curative effect.
"Then took down my books bear
ing upon the anatomy Of the human
head.
"The next morning addressed hin
thus
Before I answer you as to wheth
er you would be justified before God
lunder the impulse you told me Of, il