The evening world., 1895-09-05
is SUICIDE RIGHT a.?
Gustave Boehm Says Yes Before
the Medico-Legal Congress.
More Murder in June and July
than Other Months.
Child Insurance Zones In for s
Little Discussion.

The Medico-Legal Congress resumed
its sessions at lO.3 o'clock this forenoon
in the United States Court room in the
Federal Building.
The first paper read to-day was "Ae-
gal Responsibility in ,Inebriety," by T.
ID. Crothers. NJ. d DIR. Crothers held
that inebriety was a species of insanity,
and should no. be punished equally
with crime committed by sober persons.
This theory was combatted by Albert
Bach. DR.. Forbes Winslow leaned to-
wards DR.. Crother's view.
DR.. Winslow's paper on Suicide Con
sidered as a Mental Epidemic" was par
ticularly Interesting.
Most suicides. he said, could be traced
to mental causes. Loves passions un-
requted were largely responsible fol
many suicides every year. June and
July were the months in which suicide
reached the maximum rate, and October
and November the months when per-
SONS were less inclined towards self-mur.
der The deductions were taken from
European statistics.
In Paris. where there were nve sui.
cides to every one in London, DIR. Wins.
ficient religious training. ennui and
gambling.
Gustave Boehm's paper on Suicide
and the Right TO Commit It. gave rise
TO heated discussion. Mr.. Boehm held
that mon. under certain circumstances
had a perfect right to end his life. This
view was taken also by Albert aBch
who cited instances where. in his opin.
Ion. persons were justified in commit.
ting suicide.
view vigorously. holding that man had
no right to dispose of his own li'e any
more than that of another person.
DIR. Quimby declared that a physician
had no right to terminate the life OF a
patient. even when to prolong that life
was to cause the most agonizing tor
ture. He condemned the practice by
some physicians of putting patients with
In a paper read by f. l.. Hoffman. OF
Newark. on 'Medico-Legal Aspects of
Child Insurance" that gentleman COM
batted the theory that there was a
greater mortality among insured chill
dren than among children whose lives
are not insured. There are in this coun-
try, Mr.. Hoffman said, 1000 900 children
insured against 4OO0OO0 in England.
DR.. William Lee Howard. of Balti-
more. explained that there was preju-
practitioners against psychology and
hypnotsm In the cure OF disease, but
1t was a fact that those who were most
violent in their opposition were entirely
Ignorant Of the subject. 49,
DR.. T. y. CrotheEs stated with much
assurance that.there vas no fisld in the
science of medfctneNso broad as that OF
the psychological treatment of disease
by anto-suggestion or hypnotism.
Before the close of the present cen
tury," he said. we shall find every
physician Of prominence practising hyp-
notism and using psycho-physics In. the
treatment of his patients
Or. Forbes Winslow told Of a well
authenticated case of transference OF
symptoms. a physician placed a metal
band about the head Of patient who
was suffering from melancholia. and by
hypnotic suggestion the symptoms were
transferred to the metal band. leaving
the patient in a normal state. The band
was put away in closet and four
months later was placed on the head
OF another person. On removing the
band /: was found that the symptoms
of melancholia had been absorbed by
the second wearer, who exhibited the
same characteristics as the first patient.
Sophia McClelland read a paper on
Psyche Psychological Mechanism and
then the Congress took recess until
g ID O'Clock