Northwest enterprise. [volume] (Anacortes, Wash. Ter.) 1882-1887, 1883-05-26


they had the woman out of the cell
and down into the sitting room, so
changed that her own husband did
not know her Witness continued:
There was another woman who told
me that she had been kept nine days
in one of the filthy basement cells,
with nothing but water, and her story
was corroborated by others. They
said that she was very violent, and
was kept there to reduce her strength,
so that they could manage. her. That
woman was with us for year, and
we never had occasion to use any
such remedies. The insane women
were employed at all kinds of work,
including the care of patients at the
hospital who might be afflicted with
contagious diseases. Ispoke to Capt
Marsh about that, and his reply was
that an insane person could not take
a disease. l also told him that our
women were so worked that their
food was insufficient, and his reply on
at least three occasions was that they
were brought there to die. DR..
Lathrop used to come to the insane
building about once q week, sometimes
not so often. One night, after we had
retired, one of the thirty seven women
in one of the dormitories fell out of
be adnd hurt herself l got ma wife
and went up there. My wife said she
was bleeding, and thought she was
dead, the blood gushing out of her
mouth. l sent my wife for DIR. Lath-
rop. She came back and said that DR..
Lathrop complained that he was tired
and it would do no good for him to
come. 1 went myself and told him
that thought the woman was dead
from internal hemorrhage. He said
he couldn't do any good, and told me
and my wife to lay her ont. 1 refused
until some one else had seen her.
Then he said the night watchman
and his wife would do. / got them,
found the woman was dead, and we
took her down stairs and laid her out
in my room. The next day no one
came to see about the body, and when
1 went to DIR. Lathrop he said he had
forgotten all about it, but that 1 could
get some of the inmates to help me
dispose of it, which 1 did.
Speaking of the treatment of in
fants, Mr.. Dudley said:
At night they were in charge of an
inmate. One night said to her that
she didn't seem to have SO much
trouble with her babies, as they
seemed to be quiet all night. She
said she had found out way to keep
them quiet. She took down bottle
and said that when they got trouble
some she gave them three or four
drops out of that, and they were quiet
all the rest of the night. / asked her
what it was, and she said she didn't
know; it was something the day nurse
used. / smelled of it, and found it
was mixture of morphine. She said
she was put there for punishment,
and was determined to maxi her work
as easy as she could. I asked her if
she knew the power of the stuff she
was giving them. She said she didn't
know and DIDN'T care. l told her it
was liable to.kiil some of them, and
she said that she didn't care how
many of them died, it was none of
her business. Out of the seventy
three babies that were born there,
and that were brought in during the
first year we were there, only one
was alive at the end of the year.
After they died l used to see man,
"Tim," with a small box under lis
arm going from the house to the dead
house l think that was what they
carried the dead babies in.