Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-01-31
A TERRIBLE HISTORY.

A TERRIBLE HISTORY.
The Michigan Insane Asyluns at Kalanaa-
sOo-4 Story That Should Haze Been Told
Sic Years Ago Published No,c to Call At
tention to u Continuing WrOn0-4 Solemn
Foice of Protest and of Warning.
Port Huron (Mich.) Sunday Commercial
The story published below is not intended as
o newspaper sensation. 1t is plain recital,
made and published wholly in the interest of
the poor dependent inmates of the Michigan
asylum for the insane at Kalamazoo.
Inasmuch as the lady, part of whose expe-
rience there it is-and who was never violently
insane-was resident of Port Huron before
she was sent to the asylum, and has resided
here quietly with her and daughter for six
years since her escape; as She has bought her a
home and paid for it; has gone into the circuit
court and by virtue Of her own unshaken testi-
mony sustained and corroborated, reclaimed
property which a rascally husband had endeav-
ored to fitch from her: as she has demonstrated
her sanity in many ways; and because her story
now told is corroborated, in so much as is at
present possible, by her daughter and by other
persons, and because by every rule OF reason
ing and all forms Of analogy,
IT WEARS THE AIR OF TRUTH,
and appeals to human reason and the human
columns. This is the account given by Mrs.
Henry kewley, of Port Huron, Mich, of her
FIVE YEARS INCARCERATION
in the Michigan insane asylum at Kalamazoo,
in answer to questions put by a reporter for
the COnnlCYridl:
| was taken to the asylum about eleven years
ago. l was really insane at the time, though
was improving, and probably never would have
been sent there if my husband had been loyal,
honorable man.
One cruel practice the attendants INDUCED in
was that of reaching down and jerking
patients feet from under them.
Sometimes the fall occasioned the patient
great pain. will tell you my first experience
of that. About five weeks before [ went to
the asylum 1 accidentally ran needle into
my right foot, and it remained there. It
often caused me pain, and was anxious to get
rid of it.
Some two or three months after entering the
asylum ! was standing looking out of win
dow 1t the beginning of a very cold day.
and we were about to be called to breakfast.
AS stood there felt the needle pain me, and
the idea occurred to me that perhaps might
be able to force it out, so I rasped my foot
against the base or mop-board two or three
times, with that object only in my mind. I
had not noticed that my glove-kid shoes had
made marks on the white Dashboard, but one
Of the attendants--a grass widow, Lecty Ogden
by name-had.
what you doing, Mrs. Kewley?" she
said, and pointed to the marks on the wall.
For the first time I now observed the marks,
and stopped little to examine them, when the
attendant quickly jerked my feet from under
me- and struck fairly on my back. The shock
almost stunned me, and I could not have got
up Immediately if left alone. But Lecta called
her sister Louise and at the same time threw
herself my chest. The two put on the
Leather muff' to secure my hands, and buck
led heavy belt around my waist, drawing it so
tight as to interfere with my breathing. They
then assisted me to rise, and, as I gasped for
breath, they forced me to walk, pulling and
dragging distance of about forty feet to a
bedroom known as Mrs. Readers room.
The room was known as Mrs. Readers room,
because she was kept in that room and strapped
down to that bench in the day, and often to
the bed at night, for two and half years.
Her hands became defofmed from the constant
restraint. She was finally removed to
violent hall, and died there.
Doctor Hurd, now of the Pontiac asylum,
told me that she did regain her senses before
death. Once in a while 1 loosened the belt
which confined her hands and let her work the
muff off herself. l did not dare to be seen
touching her. They did not feed her enough,
and she often asked me to bring some food
frou, the table. did so several times, but was
put under the RESTRAINTS and ordered to de-
slst. This was not done by the doctor, but by
Mrs. Ogden and Mrs. Caffrey.
lNoTE-The "muff is something like a lady's
mutf in shape, but fastens the hands securely. |
Inside that room they fastened me in sitting
posture near the open window. could move
my feet but not my hands or body. A mixture
of sleet and snow was falling which blew in at
the window and settled on my shoulders. was
given my breakfast. 1 saw one and was
given no chance to explain, and was left there
until o'clock in the evening with
out food. The snow on my
back. on the seat beside me, on the floor about
my fees, was more than half an inch thick
when was released. At six Mrs. Ogden came
d I'd offered me food. but would not release nv
hands nor loosen the band around my waist.
objected to eating out of her hand, and said
that could not eat any way unless the belt
around my waist Was loosenea. She refused to
do either. | offered to clean the marks from
the base board if she would release me, but she
said she would show them to DIR. Palmer, and
he would order kept where was month.
L then asked her to lower the window, and she
said | deserved what l was suffering; she
would teach me not to do SO again. When she
finally did release the belt around my waist at
P. NJ, the rush of blood that ensucd caused
me to fall to the floor helpless, she grasped me
by the hair and dragged me out of the room.
She then called her sister, and they proceeded to
take off my clothing. Their violent behavior
attracted the attention of another patient,
Mrs. Blakely, who never appeared insane. and
did lots Of knitting and sewing. She grasped
a chair and struck them, saying: You have
frozen and starved her all day, and you must
let her alone; you shan't tantalize her any
longer They then left ME, ierked her feet
from under her. jumped on her, pulled, mauled
and pummeled until they had subdued her.
They then put on the muff and the restraint
belt around her waist and jerked her into the
room. l was too weak to assist her, or should
have done She was left in the room and
with the restraints all night. I afterward
asked her whether they kept her fastened on
the seat all night, but her answer has escaped
my memory.
Every day the atrocious conduct of the vixen
ish attendants shocked my nerves. Probably
no day passed in which some act of tyranny or
brutality WAS not practlced which should never
be seen in the treatment Of criminals, much
less in asylum for the insane
1t was in the fall that Went to the asyl UNI
During the winter a hall was finished off,
and in the spring I was ira, sferred from No.
10 to the new. or No. IA hall. Not many weeks
afterward | saw horrible crime committed
Between 10 and IL o'clock one spring morning
L was sewing side Of the hall. 1t wa
lhilly, and l was on a bench near the steams
coils, which alongside the wall. Beside
me sat a patient, by name Mrs. Hamilton.
This lady was very melancholy always, and
had habitof chewing paper as gum. She was
dong so that morning: when attendant,
Familiarity known Miss Emma, but whose
surname l forget, noticed her and said:
Mrs. Hamilton, what are you chewing?"
'Paper."