The New York herald., 1879-10-15

We had already viewed the messroom in it's base
ment reached from the mems quarters by covered
way The front door having been unlocked by the
young woman in charge we entered reception
lounges aud cushioned chairs. My guide, who had
been anxious to resume the conversation. said:-
1.-The women whom you see sewing in this room
are convalescent. Several of them have been here
long time but few have come in recently. That
pale. blue-eyed young woman there is late
rival She will not tell anything about herself.
but seems wrapped in deep melancholy. The COM
forts of the world are not all lost yet. you will
notice pot OF flowers on the window and "a piece of
carpet on which the sewing women can sit. 1t is
a strange fact. as you remark that tho women like
chairs on. It's queer. isn't it? it's like the
old problem of the debating societies-sWhy does
dog turn round several times before he lies down.
Sometimes they will use a strip of calico ir they
cannot get carpet. This door, which we will now
enter leads into Bedlam itself" suitng the action
to the word, my attendant turned the key and led
the way into long apartment with cells along
both Sides On benches placed at intervals some
of the wretched inmates. Chattering, singing.
self-communing, Others paraded up and down the
hall. Not instance observed in which ono
poor creature stopped to converse with companion
in misery 1t was region Of universal distrust.
Speaking generally the cells were not so bad
those have seen and already described at other
places. There was no question to plenty of air
and considerable sunlight. The intimate associa-
ton of at least twenty deranged women. in all
ditions OF mental disease. cannot, however, be too
severely condemned Where there are many
patients as Broome county supports there should be
at least an attempt at classification.
AN UNvIsIrED REGION.
We had walked to the end of the lower floor. and
were about to return to the entrance. when fan
guide and the female attendant who had accom-
panied us into the ward. This caused me to look
toward large solid door which might have escaped
notice.
my hand on the door.
'.Thatis where the very bad cases are,' said the
young woman with some hesitation. she jingled
her keys.
.sWe do not show that room to visitors" said the
yOun0 man. in utter violation of Horace's well
known rule regarding the bad taste OF introducing
three speakers in u dialogue.
1--WE mean-we thought you would not care to see
anything so unpleasant, said the female attendant.
who saw that her coadjutor making matters
worse.
l will not say exactly how convinced the young
man that it was safe to permit me to enter the
after brief parley, he addressed the woman attend
anti
Unlock the door and see if We can go in: oh. we
have nothing secret here. You shall see all"
TWO TERRIBLE INVENTIONS
The young woman unlocked the door and entered,
closing it after her. The explanation was that some
of the women might have torn Off their clothes
while the nurse was out After few moments
waiting the nurse threw open "the oak" and we
entered 1t was a low room. probably twenty-five
feet square, with four cells boarded of each side,
leaving hallway twelve feet wide in the centre.
Thrown over heavy wooden chair was "strait-
jacket of coarse leather. with all the straps and
buckles aud thongs thereunto appertaining.
still warm with the heat Of q human body.
Just below the neck. over the breasts. it had been
chewed INTO holes by the helpless creaturo. who.
bound fast at the ankles the wrists, the shoulders
and the waist. had worked her teeth beyond her lips
far enough to seize the obnoxious restraint
It terrible tale OF despair and agony that this
lacerated garment disclosed. looked about the
place. No stray pieces of female wearing apparel
were to be seen. Evidently this was tho only gar
ment which suffering woman wore. But my eyes
detected fact more terrible. / stood face to face
with that modern instrument OF torture which untes
III machine all the devilish ingenuity OF the
VehmsgericH and the Spanish Inquisition-I saw be-
fore me 'the Utica crib"
FACTS, FAcrs--AwFUL FACTS.
Imagine box with strong heavy sides. 5h feet
long by feet wide and IS inches deep-a veritable
down firmly and fs fastened with paddock In the
semi-humane institutions. where the use of this
contrvance is tolerated. it is the rule half fill this
box with the softest rye straw or hay, so that
little bodily suffering possible will be
inflicted upon the unfortunate occupant. But
it was not so here 1t was evident to me
at glance that the occupant of the leather
strait jacket was in this terrible Crib. stepped
within the CELL and was about to approach the side
of this bed Of the mortally damned. The attendant
came forward and said, ''She's naked. you know"
This fact had not occurred to in the first moment
of indignation, and stopped. But hesitated only
for instant. 1t was clearly not question of pro-
priety, but Of duty. l present among these
of sorrow and of pain from idle curiosity
1 must that suffering face. And during this mo-
ment OF hesitation a mute appeal for sympathy was
addressed to heart which almost brought tears to
eyes that have long studied sorrow. A thin. white
hand--a small, delicate, womans hand-and arm
slowly pushed out between the Stats Of the
cribs top. l involuntarily took off my hat. The
hand was closed. and not until it had projected
beyond the side of the box did it open. Then it
gradually unclosed itself and slowly Jet fall upon
the floor stream Of cut wheat stubble The tiny,
truncated cylinders, with their knite-like edges,
rolled about upon the painted boards, blown by
draught of wind faint that the OF sight and
not Of feeling made it perceptiblc. When the hand
was emptied the fingers moved slightly. conveying
to my mind complete Grafton in one brief sem
tence:-
upon this stubble I held-my bed and my
blanket alke-but. alas! not my winding sheet"
Then violent shudder passed up the thin. white
wrist and to the very tips of the long, slim fingers:
1t was the peroraton. 1t appealed to all that
humane in man--lt meant, ''This IL agony"
To which, with uncovered head, responded, ad-
dressing the attendant at is infamous"
Divining that visitor present, in lucid mo-
ment. this lost woman making mute appeal
for sympathy.
PITY! PITY! PITY!
The moment had come. l stepped resolutely to
the side Of this crib Utica and looked
down upon the pale face beneath the bars. 1t
were traces of refinement even yet could not
decide to the color of the eyes, to
the sufferers age. Thirty years-possibly
thirty.fve; but where cuts so deeply
very little of the human face divine remains!
Clear in sculptor's marble / the
despair of broken heart. Despair; then why not
death? Hopelessness; why not end to hope?
Here the refinement of cruelty. In former
times tacks and broken glass scattered on the
bottom of the boxes in which prisoners condemned
to torture placed to suffer and to die. But
here. ut Binghamton, the guardians of the insane
poor too mercful for that. Hero suffer
which 10000 pieces of neede-like stubble inflicted