The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1882-02-08
The Literary Club.

The Literary Club.
The February meeting Of this Ciut
was held at the house of Mr.. NJ. y
DeBruhl last Friday night. Capt. J
W. Perrin in the Chair. Mr.. w. a
1empletom acted Secretary pro tenn
The special committee on periodical,
and library made Il report recommend
ing. among other things, that some
person be employed at Il salary O
twenty dollars Il year to receive and Is
sue the periodicals from nine to eleven
o'clock on Tuesdays and Fridays,
Adopted. 1t was also recommended
that i resolution be passed dropping
from the roll the names of all who
had not paid their annual dues, and
that non but those who have paid be
allowed the use Of the periodicals.
Adopted. So that hereafter none but
bona tide members or their families
can get the periodicals belonging to
the Club. These steps will very much
curtail the reading membership, while
it may have the effect Of increasing
the pay members. The Essay of the
evening was read by Mr.. l.. Wardlaw
Smith, his subject being Insanity.
i liz essay "SS lcdllN dt CNSFiiCIt lb-
per, evincing much research and
thought on the part Of the writer who
expressed his views in excellent Eng
liSh. After adopting the definition of
DR.. Charles Buckncll, that insanity is,
"A condition of the mind in which Il
false conception or Judgment, q defec-
tive power of the will, or an uncon-
trollahle violence of the emotions and
instincts. have separately Or conjoint-
~ been produced by disease" he
attempted to show the three different
kinds of Insanity that are embodied
in the adopted definition.
LIST. The intellect or reason may he
dethroned or defective from diseases.
Others give Us an instance Of what is
known as intellectual Insanity.
End. The will may be so indomitahle
that all that one reason may dictate
will prove futile and thus present to us
Nolitional insanity.
Bird. The mutinous emotions of Il
MAJ may have him so under control
from long continued indulgence that
he often commits acts unaware at the
time of its enormitv. This kind is
known as Emotional or according to
common parlance Moral Insanity.
IrresponSihility in first case is to be
determined by the test of the old III
thorities viz: The knowledge of right
and wrong with regard to the particu-
lar act in question.
In second casc responsibility can
only be determined by the detection Of
disease together with eXtraneous cir
cumstances. Test of right and wrong
does not hold good.
Third. In no case should moral in
sanity excuse.
Mr.. l.. w. Perrin, thought the mo-
tive CT criminals should be taken into
account, when considering their re-
sponsibility.
Rev. MI. Hallam, thought that the
insane might in many cases, have
prevented their own insanity 10y will
power. He thought many men were
Responsible for their W insanity, and
that many men who were sane to-day
could become insane if they desired.
Prof. d. Il. johnson thought active
aud constant employment was thcsur-
est preventive of insanity.
Mr.. w. G.. BeIict thought all mel
were more or less insane, and that
there was no such thing as drawing an
arbitrary line between the insane and
the sane.
Judge Aldrich thought everything
i'm the way of responsibility for ones
own acts, depended upon his knowl-
edge Of right and wrong, and his pow
cr to control his actions. He believed
Guiteau guilty Of murder because he
had on previous occasions restrained
himself from killing the President,
and he could have restrained himself
on the second of July in the Baltimore
and Ohio Depot, as well as he did OH
former occasions. He had no doubt of
his accountability, and the justice of
the verdict of the jury.
Mr.. Burt thought that men often
improperly escaped through the plea
of insanity. and at the request of some
of the members he related Il most
amusing incident Of the kind, which
happened in his own practice.
Judge MCGOWAN thought the line of
responsibility and accountability APP
pearcd so silently and quietly in the
light of reason, and disappeared so
mysteriously in the shadows of doubt
that there was no such thing as a def
mite rule Of action or accountability in
such cases. That the jury in each
ease rlust be governed ny the particu-
lar facts which may be developed.
Many other of the members of the
club made expressions, but as we took
no note We cannot with certainly re-
cal: the expressions and give each man
due credit. All were much pleased
with the essay.
Col. Rice, Of Ninety-Six, and Judge
Aldrich were among the invited
guests.
The next essayist is Mr.. Jas. Chal-
mers, Capt. L. w. White alternate, and
the next meeting will he at the resi-
dence of MI. S. &. Cason.