New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-12-18


it their chief topic: Bingham's oDserVauon' VI
the Religious Decisions of Insane rorson9,
London, 1S41, and Cheyne's Essays on r"i. ~,
Derangement in Supposed Connection WIZ"
Religion, Dublin, 1S43. Both were Wrl'Ueh III
the very infancy of modern kho"ieuk0
of mental disease Cheyne even pu'S
forward the theOrem that mental arrangements
are always connected with mental disease, as
new POSITION Both volumes are smau anu
diffuse, largely filled with matters when d
reader at the present day would SKIP as eie-
mentary or disregard as behind the tlmes'
They throw no light OIL the question OF re-
sponsibility But there are, scattered through
the general works on insanity, instances Oh
these religious decisions abundantly sufficient
to show that brain disease sometimes produces
them, and that they may urge the SUBJECT on
ward to perpetrate almost any act OF
violence Hackett, in Queen Ellzapeths
time, and Yenner, IN the reign
of Charles H.. raised sedtiOns, each acting
under the deusiOn that he was dylnely COM
missioned to assume the crown. The poet
Cowper wounded himself somewhat severely
with a pen-lnfe in attempting to obey sup
posed command from Heaven that he should
kill himself. An Englishman, without ap-
parent motive, struck q cab horse In the street
with an axe on his trial it was found that he
believed himself to be Jesus Christ and did the
act in the desire to attract attention to his
supposed mission. An Englishwoman drowned
four of her children, acting under the sugges-
ton of "A black, shadowy figure" that ii they
we're in Heaven they would be out OF DANGER
and that she could easily put them into the
~. Al,nft nfpp
Martin, the incendiary, who set lire TO lOrK
| Cathedral, admitted that he knew the act 10
! be illegal, but said that he had the command
| of God to do it. This case is remarkable 1or
| the indications of sane methods accompanying
| an insane act. There was no doubt OF MS IN
sanity; he had been already twice confined IN
an asylum But it was shown that atter
| afternoon service he remained in the church
and, as soon as alone went up into the Del1ry,
! where he cut off some eighty feet OF the
prayer-bell rope in which he tied knots, FORM
ing "a sort of ladder by which he climbed over
the iron gates of the choir. Having thus
| gained access to the choir he struck light
with a flint and his razor, lighted candle
| which he had brought, and thus set ire To
paper obtained by tearing up prayer-books,
aud which he piled close to the carved work
at the archbishop's throne He then made his
escope by equally ingenious ard methOdical
! efforts. Young Irishman dug out his
| eve and cut off his hand, imagining he
was obeyng the command: Ii thy right eye
| offend thee, etc. In France, years ago, a
whole family, Dutartres by name, tancled that
| they alone possessed knowledge OF the true
! God. and under imaginary inspiration perpe-
! trated murders and ether crimes. french
| yine-dresscr thought himself commissioned
| to procure the eternal salvation OF his family
| by killing them, and did kill two OF his chill
| dren. For this he was put IN perpetual con-
fnement rs a lunatic; where, years after
ward. he conceived the project of Offering
an expiatory sacrifice in pursuance of which
idea he cut the tlroats of two fellow
| lunatics and wounded his keeper A
commissioner was once sent to the
Bicetre to set at liberty patients whom ne
shoud Judge to have recovered from their
| lunacy. and he selected one whose answers to
numerous questions gave no indication of
madness. lie made written order for the
mans release; but on submitting this, in due
course. TO the patient for his signature the
latter betrayed his delusion by subscribing his
| name Christ Benvenuto Ccllini, while i'll
prison, was impressed by Authorizations OF the
| bodily appearance of Jesus of which he gave
long, graphic description. Lovat, in Venice,
in imitation of the cruchXi0n, cOntrlYed
to nail himself to a cross, and then TO
sling it out at the window OF his lodging
room in full view of the hOTiiied church,
goers American examples are not so numer-
ous but the case of the father in Massl-
chuscttS year or two ago, who slaughtered
his daughter in imitation of the sacrifice of
Isaac, will be well remembered.
Medical opinions differ from legal as to
wbctho. decisions like these should exempt
the subject from criminal punishment. The
general view taken by Anglo American jurists
il that it is not safe or practicable to
accept the deusion as an excuse, unless 1t
shows the man to have been incapable from
disease of comprchending that his act was
punishabia OF, at least, that 1t was morally
wrong In other words, If Gulteaus brain
WAS so affected that he could not, by any ell
fort he was able to make, have realized that
his shooting Garfield was " criminal Or, as
some say wrongn-he is exempt otherwise
not and his dclusiOn. if one existed, must
have been according to legal opinion such that
if if were true, his act would have been unpun-
ishablc The general opinion of medical wri-
trrs is to the eilect that this standard is too
strict. 1t assumes, they say, that men under an
insane dcllsOn always reason correctly from
their false PREMISES whereas in truth what
ever brain disorder begets notion of divine
command often cOnfuses the power of drawing
conclusions respecting ones actions under it.
Medical writers on insanity generally contend
| for more liberal allowance of the defence of
insanity than the law courts at present are
willing to admit. Guiteau's trial, if the exist
ence of sincere delusion were proved, might