Western sentinel. [volume] (Winston [i.e. Winston-Salem], N.C.) 1856-1886, 1883-04-26
BOSTON'S BRUTES.
A MASSACHUSETTS HORROR.
Investigation OF the Tewksburg Aimshouse by Leg.
islative Committee.
(Ne1r Orleans Times Democrat J

the Tewksbury Almshouse by COM
mittee of the Massachusetts, Legisla-
ture is exciting great interest through
out the State, and the sittings of the
committee are attended by large
crowds. The investigation was order
ed upon charges by Coz. Butler that
the inmates Of the almshouse were in
humanity treated and the bodies Of the
dead sold to medical students. Both |
charges have been corroborated by
number of witnesses.
At one of the late sittings of the
committee Chas. H. Dudley, a former
night watchman of the almshouse was
examined Dudley spoke of the re-
moval Of the dead bodies of the pau
pers, and said that when he spoke to
the superintendent's son about it the
latter replied: We've got to get
some pay for taking care Of the crit
ters." The witness told of an intoxi-
Gated man who was brought in one
evening, handcuffed and taken direct
ly to cell He was given water, but
no food, and after three days Of this
treatment, appeared to be sinking rap
idly. The attention Of the physician
and superintendent was called to his
condition, but they did nothing. The
man died next day.
Dudley said the children were con-
tinuelly crying at night from hunger.
They were fed at the same table with
the older people, and in the scramble
of $50 half-starved men and women
they got very little When the night
watchman told Marsh, the superinten-
dent, of this, the latter replied that he
guessed they got enough. When Dud-
lev told the superintendent he had been
giving the little ones food surreptiti-
ously, he was warned not to do it
again. The food was coarse and not
enough was furnished for half the in
mates.
After being night watchman, Dud-
ley was appointed, with hisswife, to the
care of the female insane. They hao
charge of an average of about 40 pa
tients While in this department, he
found that the trunks belonging to the
patients had been taken away. The
beds, made of straw, were in a rottor
condition, fairly steaming with filth
: 1I1OSU O1 UIlC DcUS IldSt oHIy oIlC oIlSOt
and some not any. There was only
+ one thickness of blanket; most Of th'
females were without nnderclothlns
? and shoes and stockings, and nothing
but thin calico dress.
! In his testimony concerning the fe
E male insane, Dudley spoke Of one cas-
that came to his attention. He said
q "In the attic in another cell foun'
woman lying on the straw perfect,
naked the straw was bad and filthy
, [ was told by one of the assistants tina
: this woman had been in the cell abou
year. She was so violently insan
, that she would tear her clothes. Sh
: was so near skeleton that she woul
4 not have weighed more than 40 pounds
n NV wife Immediately clothed her, an
o [ had the room cleaned out. She ha
q only one meal day, carried to her b
b an idiotic girl, who said that she ha
g always taken care of the old woman
# I allowed her to continue doing s.
, but watched her and found that sh
: threw the food away and came bac
q with the empty plate, telling me tn;
q the woman had eaten all her food.
N then carried the food myself and tt
q assistant took it into the room,
= five or six weeks we had the woma
y out Of the cell and down into the 81
= ting-room, so changed that her oW
20 husband did not Know her"
~ Dudley then testified to the trea
70 ment in the infants department. +
,t remarked to q woman who was put
- % l,n took al, ~,
"a that she seemed to be fortunate III h
.s treatment of the children; they ke
~ -. more quiet than formerly. 7 es
she said, and she brought out a hal
pint bottle, saying that was some stu
which she gave them to make the
quiet. He examined it-and found tn
it was a mixture of m2rphia. She sa
lis that it was something left there by t.
he day nurse. They had put her dov
lis among the children to punish her, al
", she was going to make it as easy t
MT herself as she could. He told her th
as she would kill the children if she ga
,ic them so much morphine, and she sa
,e- she did not care if she did. He CO..
RS, planned of her to the superintendel
en- but it was ten days before she was
At moved, Dudley said that he kn.
ad personally of seventy-three babies
ch mig in that institution and only one
ell them lived-Iames Riley, a remark
oe- BILE child,''
he "Yes,' broke in Gov. Butler
es- this, &c he must have been very
er- markable child.
On. In reply to question by Gov. b
he Ter, the witness said they never h
om funeral services over the dead.
in clergyman who occasionally visited
po- institution remarked to him that
must he a very heaEhy place, as