St. Landry democrat., 1878-02-23
ANHOUR WITH TI4E INSANE.
Some Vagartes Of the Most Remarkable Men
Among the Patients.

Among the Fatehls
"Yes, sir, I'm the light of the%world,"
said hatchet~faced, emaciated man in
the city hospital for the insane on Wards
island. And he looked at the superin-
tendent, Mr.. A. L. Macdonald, seemingly
expecting some acknowledgment of the
truth of his assertion.
Getting from the doctor ned Of re-
spectful assent, the patient continued:
You know, doctor, that | have been
skinned alive here-burned alive, scalded
alive. You know it doctor. My bones
have been taken out of my body one by
one My head has been screwed off and
screwed on again"
"Why did they take your head ott'?'
the doctor inquired.
"Oh, you know, doctor. You know
we'll enough the patient replied, re-
proachfully. "You know that my head
is the moon and my skin is the stars.
Where would you get your light at night,
should like to know, if it wasn't for
me-? Doesn't nv blood supply light for
all the street lamps In that big city over
there?" As he said this he waived his
hand toward the opposite shore, where
the thousands of little gas jets glimmered
through the darkness. "Once," he CON
tinued, 'my head was as big as our
friend, the doctors, here. Now, see how
thin it is." And as he stroked his poor,
shrunken cheeks, his head dropped upon
his breast, his jaws dropped, and he
} looked unutterably sad.
eyes, but" said the doctor, trying to
rally his patient, "if your skin is all
: taken off and your bones are taken out,
) how is it that there is anything left OF
you?'
The patient did not raise his eyes from
= the floor. As the doctor was moving
away the poor fellow mumbled in answer
f that ne supposed his body was repaired
as fast as it was destroyed.
8 "That's a curious case," said the doc
q TOR "It is 2 mixture OF mania and
/ melancholia."
S A stout built, excessively nervous man
G with black hair and beard, was next Wis
h tied. He jancies that he has an electric
k battery on him, and that his enemies
r hold the wires and use them to draw
# away his thoughts.
eI "They came again last night, doctor,
d the patient said. "They came and tool
n my lungs out"
b This case reminds you of the patien
is possessed Of similar hallucination de
|. scribed in Charles Reade's "Terrlbl
u Temptation." Another fellow says tha
h he has doctor in his body, who move
:" about to physic and torture him.
= "Can you feel him to.day?" DR.. Mac
l. donald inquired.
X ooh, yes" was the reply, " / can fet
,e his shoulder pressing here" and he pu
Is his hand to his left breast.
ID "Then, where's his head % asked tf
le doctor.
r. The patient felt all over his body an
n about his throat, and then shook his hea
st saving. 81 don't know where his head
"a to-day" -. W.
- A very remarkable patient is an eide
u " man, an ex-college professor, who
ha ~ hard at work on translation of Horac
an with copious foot notes. He talks
nd learnedly and logically, that you wond
nr whether he has not been confined by m
he take. But presently he tells you co
an fdentially that Charles Dickens wro
of 1" Bleak House" for the sole purpose
bio iniuring him, and if you should say an
of thing about poison, he will immediate
MI tell you that his whole system has be
cir ruined by being inoculated with
- poison contained in the lead Of the wa
.a1 M pipes. He admits that he is insane, |
~ saws that he is carefully studying
- csse in connection with the lead pois
or ing theory, and has hopes of getting
~ ~ poison out of his system.-[N. Y. S.
ion A Billiard Expert.