The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1889-01-29
MEMPHIS DAILY APPEAL: TUESDAY, JANUARY 90 1880.
A PHYSICIAN TRAPPED.
A FUNNY INCIDENT IN MRS. RAW
SONS TRIAL.
How an Insanity Expert" OF Guiteau
Fame, Was Inundated by the Defend
ants Attorney. Seth Crews--A Les
son That VIII Not be Forgotten.

CHICAGO, H., Jan 2s.-The trial OF
Mrs. Rawson for shooting the lawyer Of
her millionaire husband for assaillng her
character, ended this afternoon, so far as
the hearing OF testimony is concerned.
The feature OF the day was the ludicrous
trap into which fell one OF the noted ex-
perts who were put on the stand to show
that she was not insane. The victim was
DIR. J. G.. Herman. His testimony was
notable, too, for its rather sensational
bearing on the evidence which sent Presi-
dent Gar1cld's slayer TO the gallows. Mrs
Rawson's lawyer, Seth Crews, had asked
the witness ii no did not testify at the
Gniteau trial that the assassin was insane.
He said he did
"Still," said the lawyer, "Guiteau was
hanged2"
"Ges, but the experts who sworo that
no was sane perjured themselves. They
gave testimony contrary 10 their own
writings. ! want to say, too, that several
OF them have since been dismissed from
the institution which they controlled for
mismanagemcn These so-callcd doctors,
| medical politicians, who testified for the
| prosecution in that case were paid by the
! Government, while the experts for the
defense were dragged to Washington by
the Government and got nothing"
After this outbreak on the Guteau case
Mr.. Crews picked up book, which he
said was Rays Medical Jurisprudence.
| tN...s n..l,. - H., a,tI IL, a llun1 ,,a,,
81 want 20 read you two cases which
read to the experts who testified before
| you. They are as follows N. j., u wo-
man. aged forty wears; cause OF attack,
great domestic trouble. She was q woman
of quick, active, strong mind, and known
among that class OF women as strong
minded. The physician in charge OF the
hospital WIS asked how u woman Of such
n mind could become insane; lao replied
she could not bend, hence. she broke.
IA. j., n woman OF very active, strong
mind, and Of highly nervous and excit-
able temperament This case, like the pre-
vious one, was the result Of domestic diff
cutics OF u trying character, which had
mortified her greatly. She had shown sui
cidal tendencies, but her friends had sup
posed these were overcome. She had
shown great excitement ut times, followed
10y great prostration. The excitement was
aroused ON the mention OF the name Of d
woman she supposed her husband to have
been intimate with. She became incura
| bly, insane.
DIR. kicrnan thought the lawyer was
reading from the book, but those who were
sitting behind Mr.. Crews saw that he had
two sheets Of manuscript closely written,
inside the volume
That iirst case you read, said the ex
pert witness, 81 remember very we'll.
have read IL, but that was chronic cas-,
oi hystcrical insanity"
Look here, Doctor said Mr. Crows,
taking the two sheets Of paper out Of th,
book aud handing them to the witness
'thcse eases are not In the book, nor Ia
any book, | made them up myself"
The Doctors face became very red wher
he saw what n trap lac had walked into.
They are very similar, Mr.. Crcws," h,
said, "to many cases In the books In thoiI
general features"
Mr. Crews said he had based his flcti
uJus cases entirely on Mrs. Rawsoni
history and symptoms.
The doctor WIS allowed 10 depart, Will,
Mr Rawson lay back in her chair nnt
laughed until the toan ran down he
| checks.