The New York herald., 1876-12-14
NEW YORK HERALD THURSDAY DECEMBER A. 7srRIPLE SHEET


there. seriously H. and vss not expected
Ny room miserable narrow, interpreted cell.
containing two wooden chairs, deal table and oeo
y nese sa, on ne onsu nsas he door moved .ie
but WAS TOO weak 10 turn my head toward her: but
heard her say. oh, you're alive yet, are your !
Shougnt the devil would have mad you before now."
rHs SYSTEM AND PROP. rEATHHK'
The foregoing rs the substance Of Mrs Noron's
cent OF deep ieeiing--and IN fauli!ess English. In
addition. the lady stated that ber husband had In
sisted upon her foregoing number OF accusations Al
the meeting which led 10 Dr.. ordronneaux's inquiry
into the case because he reprchended the exposure
OF bcr feelings that the recapuation Of the indgutcs
inflicted on her would involve. she denies the asser-
ton made by the Doctor tha. second nurse was IN
yariabiy present when Jane Ea,on administered so in
humaDy 20 her alleging that Al most OF the periods
IN question that female torturer was alone.
~ "RxPEkrn LuxAcY.
Or. Ordronneaux found by the HERALp reporter
in his once Al No 27l Broadway The Doctors views
and opinion OF the Case are substantially as follows
Mrs. Norton was admitted 10 The Boonngdale Asy-
lum at The solicI,aton OF her husband, shs was At
that time extremely weak from long abstinence from
iood . consequence Of her inaady. Her affection
puerpera INSANITY, brought on by the death Of child
some time before. ana she was subject to fixed dclu-
sions, affecting her memory faces and persons 10
such extent that she continually mlstook strange
visitors Tor her husband and children. and Law
ished all conceivable terms OF cndearment
them For outside facts her memory MAS more than
ordinarily good but regard 70 herself u stood Al
NIL Her cardinal ielusion was that her visionary
enemies aborng for the destruction OF her hus
band and Children and that their preservation de-
pended on hcr abstinence from tcOu IL was tncre-
fore, necessary In order TO preserve her hfe TO force
her She Is q powerful woman, and IN her
struggles against tho attendant may easily have in
.,n the event OF such injuries, however, IL was the
nurses duty report them 10 tho physicians, was IL
noty''
extraordinarily"
Yet Mrs Norton claims that those injuries were
inflicted al not single butat atty different periods
THAT, sir, rs manifest eSaggeration No wounds,
such as Mrs Norton sustained, could have been re-
peacd even balf dozen times without causing such
serious illness would havo brought Them At once
TO notice"
an old employe or the asylum"
'Yes, and one who has hitherto borne an excellent
lin regsrd to her culpaorl,,y in the present case
howover?n
"rha, is a point which yet remains Tor considers
tion. rho bulk Of my papers IN the case, amounting
TO nearly a ream OF iooiscap, are IN my ofice IN
Albany This report OF mine, which n an abstract Of
some OF them Will sufficiently em0ody my opinion as
far as II has gonc.'
The following is copy Of the section OF the report
most pertinent to the Question:
REPORT.
1T is difhcult to believe that the accident to Mrs.
Norton throat have entirely escaped the notice
Of Jane Eaton.n sY
sUnlcss she had inflicted II and feared TO report IT,"
suggested the reporter
sSuch an accident involving laceration Of one half
OF the throat, with subsequent acute Inflammation
sulting IN adheslons Of the nvula 10 the velum
palati must have altered the anatomical proper
lions OF the parts 10 have seriously impaired their
functional activity There must in consequence have
swelling with extreme tenderness IN SWALLOWING,
great difficulty OF articulation and manifest alteration
IN tho tone OF voice. Some of the symptoms, II not
all. must have been present for over week. DR..
Sands says Ia his testimony that II would
require two weeks for the throat to recover from
them. yet during that time she does not appear to
have made any complaint, and none OF those about
her although feeding her and convcrspg with her
daily, discovered any indications OF her injuries"
"But. Doctor, the wounds arc there; have seen
them myself You think they were--accdental!"
asked the reporter.
"Yss Jane Eaton may possibly have been dcrelic.
In her DUTY TO keeping the physician informed OF
the stale Of the patient but do not think she failed
on the score OF humanity"
ANOTHER MEDICAL OPINION
DR.. Elisha Harris is the physician for the Prison As
socarion and was found in his Office, in the associa-
tions rooms in the Bible House Long experience IN
cases similar this. he does no, hesitate TO al
firm his belief in the truth OF the major part OF Mrs
Nor;on's story There Is great deal 100 much brute
iorce used in dealing with tho insane" he
said, 'smost especially In similar 10 that
OF Mrs Norton. II Is the ruIc in
that the patient needs the most gentle OF
idosy ncrasies is dangerous to her remnant Of
reason. In Mrs Nortons there is one thing at
least according her statement that calls partlcu
iary for condemnation. Tho unfortunate lady, during
cung The idea that her dead baby was still alive
and onceavorcd TO suckIe the visionary child For
tins offence ~ she was ssrais-acke,ed IL wonder
that that she recovered sufficiently to tell
the story"
RESULT.
No personal decentralization IS sought for tho suffer
ings which Mrs. Norton endured. she desires, how.
ever, to wake the public TO proper scSsc OF re-
sponsipiltY sucn cases as this The pens OF Charles
keadc WiIkie Collins and others OF equal power have,
like The scalpel OF skilled physician, LAID these
abuses over aud over again for our compariots
across the water and to-day Tho English madhonses,
like the French, are models OF their kind uciortu-
nately America has yet had prophet bring the
crying evils Of its system Of treatment Of the insane
into popular notice.