Litchfield enquirer., 1874-12-17

deserving his kindness-entered into the
 matter heart and soul. In due course of time we presented a petition to the Lord Chancellor, praying that the decision of the Lunacy Commissisn might be set aside.
 We supported our petition by quoting the evidence of Roland's friends and neighbors, during his three years resi- dence in the lake country as free man. These worthy people (being summoned before the Lunacy Commission) had one and all agreed that he was, to their judge ment and experience, perfectly quiet, harmless, and sane. Many of them had gone out shooting with him. Others had often accompanied him in sailing excur- sions on the lake. Do people trust a madman with gun, and with the man. agement of boat? AS to the Tact of vii olence," which the heirs at law and the next of kin had made the means of inn prisoning Roland in the madhouse, it amounted to this: He had lost his temper and knocked down man who had offend ed him. Very wrong, but if that is a proof of madness, what thousands of lu- natics are still at large! Another instance produced to prove his insanity was still more absurd. It was solemnly declared that he had put an image of the Virgin Mary in his boat when he went out on his sailing excursions! I have seen the im- age; it was very beautiful work of art
 Was Roland mad, to admire it and take it with him? His religious convictions lean ed toward Gath ohcism. If he betrayed insanity in adorning his boat with an inn age of the Virgin Mary, what is the men, tai condition of most of the ladies in Christendom, who wear the cross as an ornament around their necks? We ad- vanced these arguments in onr petition after quoting the evidence of the wit nesses. And, more, than this, we even went the length of admitting, as an act of respect to the court, that my poor hus- band might be eccentric in some of his opinions and habits. But we put it to the authorities whether better results might not be expected from placing him under the care of 8 wife who loved him, and whom he loved, than from shutting him up in an asylum among 1ncurable madmen as his companions for life.
 Such was our petition, so far IS l am able to describe it.
 g The decision rested with the Lord Jus tice. They decided against us.
 Turning deaf ear to our witnesses and our arguments, these merciless lawyers declared that the doctors individual as- sertion of my husbands insanity was enough for them. They considered Ro- lands comfort to be sufficiently provided for in the asylum, with an allowance of e700 Q year, and to the asylum they con- signed him to the end of his days.
 Go far iad IT uoo %bx, >F this infamous judgment was to deprive 1unatic being able of contracting marriage m law. So far as my husband was con- cerned, the result may be best stated in the language of popular newspaper, which published an article on the case "1t is impossible, '' said the article-I wish I could personally thank the man who wrote lt-''for the Court of Chancery to take man who has large fortune, and IS in the prime of life, but is a little touched in the head, and make monk of him, and report to itself that the comfort and happiness of the hlnatic have been efectuaily provided for at an expense of f700 year. .....- r.r.~l..
 Roland was determined, however, that they should not make monk of him, and you may rely upon it, so was I.
 But one alternative was left to us. The authority of the Court of Chancery (with- i'll it's jurisdiction) is the most despotic authoritz on the face of the earth. Our one hope was in taking to fl ght. The price of our hhery. as citizens oi Eng land, was exile from our native country, and the entire abandonment of Roland 8 fortune. We accepted those hard condi- tions. Hospitable America offered us a refuge, beyond the reach of mad-doctors and Lords Justices. To hospitable Amer lea our hearts turned as to our second country. The serlous question was, how were We to get there?
 We had attempted to correspond, and had failed Our letters had been discov- cred, and seized by the proprietors of the asylum. Fortunately we had taken the precantion of writing in ''cypher''o of Ro- land s invention, which he had taught me before our marriage. Though our letters were illegible, our purpose was suspected as matter of course, and a watch was kept on my husband, night and day.
 Rolled in our first attempt at making arrangements secretly for our flight, we continued our correspondence (still in ci- pher) by means of advertisements in the This second attempt was dis covered in its turn. Roland was refused permission to subscribe to newspapers, and was forbidden to enter, the reading room of the asylum.
 These tyranical prohibitions came too late. Our plans had already been com- We understood each other, and we had now only to bide our time We had arranged that my brother and friend of his, on whose discretion We could thoroughly rely, should take 1t in turn to watch every evening for a given time at an appointed meeting place, three miles distant from the asylum. The spot had been carefully chosen It was on the bank of lonely stream, and close to the outskirts of thick wood. A waterproof knapsack, containing change of clothes, 8 false beard and wig, and some biscuits and preserved meats, were hidden in a hollow tree. My brother and his friend always took their fishing rods with them, and engaged in the innocent occupation of angling to any chance strangers who might pass within sight of them. On one occasion the proprietor of the asylum himself rode by my brother on the other side of the stream, and asked politely if he had had good sport. i2 5il- T1 #.
 For 3 fortnight these stanch allies of ours relieved each other regularly on their watch-and To signs of the fugitive ap- peared. On the fifteenth evening, just as twilight was changing into night, and just as my brother (whose turn 1t was) had de- cided on leaving the place. Roland sud- denly joined him on the bank of the stream. oa L.ac# sI, ..----7 '. s-.-- ,- t-
 Without wasting moment in words, the two at once entered the wood, and took the knapsack from its place of shell ter in the hollow tree; in ten minutes more, my husband was dressed in suit of workman's clothes, and was furthur dis guised in the wig and beard The two men set forth down the course of the stream, keeping in the shadow of the wood until night had fallen and the dark ness h1d them. The night was cloudy; there was no moon. After walking two miles, or q little more, they altered their course, and made boldly for the high road to Manchester, entering on it at Q point some thirty miles distant from the city.
 On the Way from the wood; Roland de-