The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1888-06-19

@1ne9 ~ E13c4. N66 - - -
inmate - ~ 4teilscosx. insune ,rx-
iuA FIR IL Iast nv yezrs. and uss
recently hsouEhf before Chief yusss<e
Jones On . VIA o. hahens eorpu, =
hsst his sanity enquired into, i n u
city. II wm b resnensbeses1 thst su-
pErintendeut Wzn<hop 1t TIE exsm-
in1non befofe Tie chief Justice te~fi-
ned th1f he considered Mr.. BaIeh
practically CARED, hat had not dis
rhasEed hiFH on accounf II his ~ sra
an uncertainty ~ to whether be woszsI
Be abe - provide fer h;msels. Nj.
Batch nj BE- remembered by Al who
hare recently visited the Steisacuosa
asyium ~
VERY TALL EEEcr CID ersrLsuss
Dressed in a failed cavalry uniform.
He Was PERMITTED extensive iiAwrsies
~ the asylum APosr-IxrE11ssrzr
reporter yesterday had qEife : ennyes-
safion with Mr.. -Bzleh. He talkx /
very pleasantly and fxfisnalsy and Is
evidently very vel read man. He &
only sixty-fwo years OF ayr. but kts
hair l. gray and hi< ehe<ks saYrpwe.a
With the impfinfs IT tisae and trouhse.
In answer to question. Mr.. Bztrh
said. Last Saturday Br. Wsuehop
asked me II ! uould'like to 90 arny.
Of eDursc ! said that ! would. ~
have been trying 10 ret DISCHARGED for
. long time. left there Saturday and
came direcf 10 Seattle. 1 was NOT for
nnaiiy discharged but hope TO be IN
time.
Would you mind srr'ins me how
yon happened 10 be ss1.4.gsstsseI TO the
asylum. Mr.. Baieh I.
A0h, no. though
n - 4 vRETTy SAD STONY.
To me. have wife and family liv-
ing near The Dzile~ on the co]usnfss
river and have three grown children.
About five wears arc / went over -
Yakima Git II Old Yakima now, on
business aud Vas sent to the asylum
from there. The complaint was made
by restaurant keeper AZ whose house
] sas stopping. think his name was
Gillian or Gillian ] had an exr~rt
trial but no jury"
Were you really insanef-
II did not think 80 at the time. but I
am now Of the opinion that | was.
ny TROUBLE ORIGINATED
From eatarrh Of the ears. had /,
once In the army but not 80 had Is at
this time | experienced terrible pain
and II undoubtedly affected nv brain.
1t was very severe attack and in my
case but very little could lie done but
20 bear II and let time take It's course.
] had been in the asylum twelve or
fourteen months before fully regain
ed my mental faculties. and after that
! made frequent applications % the
doctor for my discharge. At first he
said that he did not consider me well
enough to go away. Later he told me
that he
would WRITE TO NJ FAMILY
And see what they said, and that he
Was perfectly willing TO let iae go II my
people would receive me. You see.
had not seen any OF my family since
was sent TO the asylum. Finally. about
six weeks ago, the doctor left il to me
TO communicate with my wife, which
4 did, She wrote TO the doctor in
reply that had been insane since
came from the war in 1856. and that q
brother Of mine had died in an asylum
back In the states. The letter closed
with the assertion that positively
couLD NOT RE RECEIVED AT HOME.
NY wife may have heard that a
brother Of mine died in an asylum, but
she Is mistaken. The only brother
ever had IL now engaged in business in
Texas. Ny plans for the future, pro-
vided am formally discharged, are
not fully determined yet. but / shall
be able 10 provide for myself
ado you think your mind was
actually deranged after you left the
army in 1852
No. not until shortly before l was
sent To Stcilacoom have been called
eccentric all nv life. even when was
at Wabash college, of which am an
undergraduate. l don't blame them
now for calling me so, but il used to
make me mad l can see now that
was peculiar in INV language and my
mind somewhat NV grandfather was
a learned divine and read Greek, Latin
and Hebrew His hooks and papers
fell into my hands and ] beca.re
Az EAeKR STUDENT OF THEOLOGY.
| don't doubt but 1t made me appear
eccentric in various ways-"
Mr.. Balch came to the coast in 1851
from Indiana, and was in the frontier
service as captain from 1854 to 1875.
In early days he taught school in vari-
Gus places, including Olympia and
Tumwater. Later he learned photo
graphy and travelled about the Sound
and in British Columbia considerably.
He is well known and highly respected
hy the older settlers.