Omaha daily bee., 1883-02-22
A MEDICAL TRAGEDY.
How DIR. Edwardes Was Driven TO
Suicide.

land has been ip'euecly excitod b, a
remarkable epiS d. iu IN dioal prsc.
tios. Or Eiwsrdes, a young physi.
clan cf excellent reputation, purchased
IN 1881 n share in the medical p ,actlce
Of DR.. Whitmsrsh, a. Houuolow, pay.
ing 5000 for il. Haviog %wiun,ag
manners and being hapoily married, no
soon succeeded in making himself the
DOR popular physician Of tho firm.
The practice, however, was not so
large as he had expected TO fad II, FOR
NJ the close of the first tweivenonth,
in October last, his share Of the poo
titS smounted 20 $40, out Of which ne
had to pay for his horse and groo n.
A dispute arose between the pArtuers
IA regard TO tho value of the ptaotice,
d.. Within srsh %contending that the
accounts wore three months behind,
aud that the book debts could not be
collected until after Christmas, and
reiterating the statement that the pco.
fits had averaged SS,626 annually for
three years before DR.. Edwardes pur-
chased an interest. DR.. Whitmaysh,
moreover, did not hesitate to renew a
soandalous charge, which would have
ruined his colleagues reputation il 1t
had been sub ,tautiated.
This charge, originally made by
Mrs. Bignell, one Of DIR. Edwarc es'
patients, had been retrscted. DIR.
Whitmsrsh, receiving the use he could
make of this stale caiumny, REMIND Cd
his partner of the discreait brought
upon the practice by the circulation OF
the scandalous reports in the v,llsge.
He told DIR. Eiwardes that, notwlsh-
standing the woman's denial, he was
inclined to believe the..oharge. He con-
veyed to outsiders the impression that
the original sta,oment might have
been true. To one man no declared
that DIR. Edwsrdes ought to DO horse.
whipped. He hold combinations with
the Bignells and employed their law.
yer to represent him In the negotia.
lions which he was conducting for the
purchase of his partners share in the
business. DR.. Edwardes, finding
himself entangled iu q tangled weo OF
cslumny and treachory. made one
final effort to fight his way out. He
charged DIR. Whitmarsh with
eeging on Mrs. Blgnell tc
bring q false charge against
him, and ordered his solicitor to pros,
ecute for conspiracy to extort money
from him. Ho was, however, too dis
trsoted Ia mind to await the action Of
the courts. He felt himself to be the
dupe of his ~treacherous partner. He
told his wife that his peace of MIND
had gone, that he was being bounded
on to his grave. He showed evidences
OF mental depression and excitement
and finally committed suicide, after
writing o letter In which he desert Dec
himself as a victim of ORGANIZED
calumny on the partof Dr.. Whitmarsi
and Mrs. Bignell.
Curiously enough, public sentimen.
in the village was wholly enlisted or
the sida of tho dead physician, The
contents of the letter convinced every
body that the scandslous charge wa
a foul calumny, and, 30 inten.e was tn,
feeling of indignation that DR.. White
marsh's house was attacked by a mol
and Mrs. Bignell's life threatened
The villagers were 30 exasperated tina
q strong body of police had to b.
posted In Hounslow to maintain pub
lie order and to prevent the recur
renee of seem of mob violence. Th,
coroner being required by villag
sentiment to vindioste the judgm an
of the mob, as we'll as to investigat
the D of death, held a most sea: ch
Ing inquiry respecting the business re
~lations of the two practitioners, an
the scandalous charge made by tn
woman Bignell, the five days proceed
ings being marked by some disgracofu
exhibitions of village excitement. Tn
result was an emphatic expression q
opinion on the part of the Jury tina
the unhappy physician "had bee
driven to his death by the presru r
brought to bear by his partner, Dl
Whitmarsh, using the false charge q
Mrs. Bignell as a means TO drive hir
to a dishonorable. dissolution of part
nership." With this explicit ct .te
ment of the calumniators' respo.s
bility for the suicide, Hounslow vii
be forced to content itself, for cr,n
inal charges oannot be lodged agains
either DR.. Whitmsrsh or his accom-
plioe.
That this was not the only instanc
in which DR.. Whitmarsh had star
dered his professional brethren wa
shown during the inquest. He ha
imputed to another physician neglect
carelessness, Ignorance, and imprope
treatment In q confinement case, an
had asserted that If he ha
been called In he could have saved tn
patients life. The post norton 81
animation proved that he had bee
misled by hearsay evidence of woma
gossips, and he had been compelled t
publish an apology in various Journals