New-York tribune., 1896-10-25
THE "HARMLESS INSANE"
DANGER FROM THE GREAT FREEDOM
THAT is ALLOWED THEM
SOME RECENT CASES OF MURDER AT THEIR
HANps-cR1T1cIsM OF THE PRESENT LAW.


There is q great difference between an insane
person. a harmlessy insane person. and human
being in his senses but 1t Is oftentines Dill
hcult to make the distinction. In fact II every one
could believe what he hears, there are great
many persons coahned in asylums who ought 70 De
released, and there are also a great many persons
at large in the community who ought to be con-
nned in asylums. 1t is dshearening TO read In the
papers that there are large number OF harmless
insane" persons roaming around al their own sweet
will who at any moment are likely to pick up an
and split the head OF the first unoHending
citizen they may chance 10 meet. or who. II the
harmless" one be OF the so-called ''project-mak-
ing class, may take It into their heads TO plow
out the inside Of banking establishment. should
their lop-sided brains decide that such course
was necessary for carrying out. the project.
There persons who try to make them
selves out insane when they are not as when
man has killed one and has no other form
OF defence to fall back upon Then there are men
who perfectly sane. but are confined In asyurns
for the benefit OF relatives who think they Know
how to spend the insanelysano mans money better
than he does
II the officials OF asylums. with all their expert
encc and approved systems are not able TO prevent
the "harme,s insane from doing attendants or
fellow-patients TO death right under their very
noses, happened the othe: day at Wards lslano
how is unsuspecting public going to protect
itself against the diosyncracies Of man with
punc.ured brain l,be whose presence may be made
known at any moment by act OF violence?
Take the case Of the Frenchman. Ernest Du-
bourque. In 1889. lie inherited prciectmaKlng de-
usons from his father. who fostored the idea that
ne had claim against the United States Govern
ment for damages OF some sort or other. and used
TO parade up and down Broadway with sign
hanging on the front OF his coat stating so. When
the father died the son put the sign on his front.
and followed his fathers example In walking u2 and
down Broadway. Harmless insanity everybody
called Il. One day Ernest Dubourque started down
Fourieenth-st which crowded with women
shopping and began stabbing risht and left With
pair of sharp compasses. \ dozen women fell VIC
tins OF his sudden freak. one Of whom aferward
died from her injuries. He was brought up for trial.
and It was decided by the jury, upon hearing the
testimony Of the experts that he was not III SUBJ
ject for justice and he was sentenced 10 the Utica
/ Insane Asylum from which he was released at the
end OF four years on the ground that he was no
longer insane. He was then tried fo- the murder
of the woman who died from the injuries from the
coupasses. convicted and sentenced to states
prison fer NE
THE LAW CALLED ABSURD.
That case illustrates the absurd workings OF the
! law" exclaimed Dr Edward c. Spitzka, with whom
n Tribune reporter talking In regard TO this
! subject There is no question In ny mind
! that Dubourque hopelessly incurab!e but as
| he was a Frenchman who could not understand
/ English. and the officers al Utica were A'neri-
| who couc not understand lrcrcn, IL was "c-
! cded tha; he cured. becau-7. II MS acuohs'
he perfectly qu!ei and rational
! d. Spitzka then cited the wel.known cases OF
! Count Johannes and James owen O'Connor. actors
| and artful dodgers OF dccayed vegetables ana pad
! eggs Or. Spitzka said that OConnor had been
patient OF his. giving the name Of Howard. Al one
time tho doctors actually induced OConnor 10 ap
pear before Il class IN medical Jurisprudence AZ an
example OF paranoac. He induced him TO 90 so
by telling him that he was splendid example o'
an intellectual insane person and TINS so nat
tered his pride that he consented Al tie time
! OConnor was studying law. and when the doctor
told the class this fact there was no end OF sur
prise manifested among the students. Upon being
/ questioned Oconnor sa!d ne hai never heard OF
Blackstone: and when legal points werc pat 10 hin,
he would say that he had not rcached tha' point
| in his study yet. It's fact. though. that about
two months after that tine he took tho e1aniina-
! ton prescribed by aw aud was admitted 20 the
| bar As IS well knorr. ocounor died In an asy-
lunc. Cou... johannes similar character In
srs ms Gay; yy.v,nS nU'S Src@s .drayins" ability.
"As the population o: tho United state; now
eorao5 IN e,.ry 80 Hnd there are more
ones outside OF asylums than in them fiye,s@,hs rs
on OF the tser way thsre Few .an, persons
without asHam sd not beoTs to ssa
clearcut type which man.tess iisei, ~ pI
otherwise'' Dr. sp!tzka then mentioned the case
OF wealthy merchant in Fulton-st. wh9 lone soins
]
,ha, he was getting the beneht OF paten: NnSn nc
he dhe merchant made Sorcfoss me e,iioned nio as
a probable case OF project-rnakng insanity.
THE CASE OF GUITEAU.
Or spi,zka spoke OF Guteau. lie said that Dr'
j. J. Rice had been called in on one occasion "nen
Gulteau had threatened the life OF his sis'er' Mrs'
schoneld (who afterward went insane herseip "ith
an axe while IN frenzy over some rei'slous r'o,
,ect he hat Or. Rico gave testimony that ne Ia"
,alan stems 10 have Guteau committed 10 an IN
e,,ution bu. such the delay caused by the
red tape OF the law that Guiteau was permitted
tho freedom which resulted IN the assassination OF
president Garfield. The OF Maegie keppe..
who abducted a little child which she would un'
ADMITTEDLY have killed had Il not been for one o,
,hose unaccountable and sudden changes Of mind
so common in ,he insane. was cI'en, CD. ch.reo Of
SEALING a small towel from house where sh, was
Dsirr. Attorney Dackus OF Brooiyr 10 exsniie
her She pronounced insan. an'; was nr,rs. ris,
OF The expert he picked up papeI ana ana reaa nrol
one day that this same Wondn WI tIn r hereby
nausne public sensation almost equai TO Una Una
o. o, s''e Sound before she mad killed The child as she
had conndcd 10 some man shc Intended 10 CO.
and eommfsd ,r g oizka a iHe new law which
went into eec, last July makes II nmosi 'inpos
sSin, sDe no The petition certificate of iunacy md
shsws e @ 'nf ses e'0rsdI undcr raeh sopa
Savs w DR.. Spltzka. honiedes committed ~ insrns rns
nareons not In asylum Wou'n nlCItaso., ~
PaSa Pe1So.' roust rest with the Legislature and The
piaIiic No r,o,., mission He said that he and many
,h,~ Lqas ssoeriasrs had become thoroughly disguised
QUIZ ,o,ld allow the law 10 work out It's own ne,
and Wou'' fnI, that afternoon he had been called
s,ruc,.o ose where the patient was violently insane
IN, y, he would no, touch 1t on account OF this OBJ
iectionable law o-so,s ,,r sr,.zka con.
o,mdnS who are insane but whom !, Is mos, az
cn, 20 prove So The best specialist need not
be ashamed admit that The h,I - as b rce
n rprebabe paranoa or mental dsorde Is h ye, cor ne
Tlent p s,,ntje forms OF paranoia latent paresis
lns tirOoneratiye conceptions and impulses withou
even suspectng the existence OF these coho'''o's'