The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-03-09
A MODERN cRUc|F|NON.
James Quinn of Philadelphia Nails
Himself Down Both Hand
and Foot
TO the Form OF q Cross Which
Was Marked Out on the
Floor.
by Brooding Over Religious
Matters.

With the marks of the cruel nails on
both hands and feet, James Quinn, an old
man, lay on a cot in the Philadelphia, hos
f, pital, says the Record OF that city, suffering
from wounds s%elf-inhioted while seeking to
cruelty himself az his Savior WAS crucitied
by his prosecutors. Though the pain OF
tho wounds must have been intense the old
man seemed not to notice it, but to suffer
great mental agony over imaginary sins.
He claspsd his hands in constant prayer in
penance for past misdeeds.
Quinn's attempt at self crucifixion,
which ID only the second instance of its
kind known to medical science, came ns
the elimination of long religious brood
ing and other troubles, which had I'M
hinged his mind. He lives at No. 11O4
McIlravy street. a little t~horoughfare
near Eleventh and Carpenter streets, and is
MIyears old. Formerly he worked as a
sawyer, but had to give this up because of
injuries to his hands, and for some time he
has been able to do very little. For years
he has been a religious enthusiast, but his
family had never any reason to suppose that
his monomania on this subject would lead
him to do any injury to himself.
For the past week he has been unusually
wild in his religious ideas, and on Thursday
night the climax came. Rising while the
rest of the family were yet asleep, he
performance. Roughly marking out the
FORM of a cross upon the floor and procur-
ing a hammer and some nails, he was ready
for the self-sacriice.
Placing a nail upon his right foot, a sharp
through. Great as the agony must have
been, he probably made nc sound. knowing
that it would arouse his mother, son or
daughter. Another nail was placed upon
the other foot, but the blow from the ham
mes failed to drive It Though. ;a 1t struck
Laying his left hand flat upon the floor
with the palm upward, he drove a third
nail deep into the flesh.
While seeking to drive a fourth nail into
his right hand, which must necessarily
have been a very difficult operation, consid-
etinpthe laceration of his other hand, the
family we're awakened, and Quinn was pre-
vented from completing the job. The skin
of his right hand WAS only slightly abraded.
The nails were drawn from the left hand
and right foot, but that in the left foot was
stuck 80 fast in the bone that it could not
be removed.
Word was sent on Friday morning to DIR.
y. J. Laughlin, asking him to visit Quinn.
and he did so soon afterward. He found
him trying to get the nail out of his foot,
using some rough instrument. The doctor
made the same attempt with an old pair of
pincers, which broke the nail off in the
bone. This necessitated Quinn's being
taken to the Pennsylvania hospital, where
DR.. Frank A. Gummey was obliged to cut
deep into the bone to reach the broken nail.
While the doctor was engaged in this pain
full work, during which Quinn took no an
psthetics, the latter prayed constantly and
fervently, begging forgiveness for his many
imaginary sins.
Finally he became So violent in his &C
ions that a police patrol Wagon was sent
.or, and he was taken out to the Philadel-
phia hospital. At first he was placed in the
mems ward there, but it was soon seen that
Ills chief trouble was mental rather than
physical, and he was removed to the ward
for the insane. A careful examination of
the wounds made by the nails showed that
they were not serious. His feet and the
injured hand were bandaged, and the best
of care taken of him.
In his prayers and supplications Quinn
was heard to say that for forty years he had
planned this act of penance for his SINS,
and at last he had done it. He appeared to
be satisfied with the deed. As his mental
trouble appeared to be deepseated he will
probably be taken to the Norristown insane
hospital for treatment.
Quinn's attempt at self-crucii1ion has
only one parallel case, that of an English
man who, by exercise of great ingenuity,
succeeded not only in mailing his hands and
feet to a cross, but in actually throwing
himself and tho cross from a window. The
result was more serious than that in Quinn's
case is likely to be, as there is no doubt of
the ~latter's recovery from his wounds, if
not from his peculiar hallucinations.