The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1897-05-06

ed In a simple Manner.
DR.. Robert Stafford Newton tells an
interesting story Of an :mpOstOr who
successfully feigned epilepsy fC- IA great
number of years. III spite OF the fact
that he was watched by the most skill
full neurologists.
"How to feign epileptlc fits forms a
necessary part of the education OF many
criminals in Europe and America. In
England. where it has been successfully
worked for II great many years and Is
we'll known to the police, the felgnlng
of epilepsy is called throwing Of fits
and dummy c%huCkiug. 1t is invariably
worked in threeS, after this formulas:
Two men. evidently friends, are walk
ing along the street, when suddenly II
of them falls in an epileptic fit. The
friend of the sick man pretcnds to be
greatly worried and gives all Of his at
tention t the resuscitatiOn Naturally
enough. "a crowd gathers around. The
third man lifts pocketbooks and watch
es and makes off with them.
There is n man whose career as a
feigner Of epilepsy is most remarkable.
This mans name was Craig, and my
first knowledge of him was when | was
connected with the Whitechapel Road
House hospital, the biggest hospital in
England. 1t had been noticed that
whenever Craig fell in a fit in the streets
Of London, reports were sent in to the
police Of money and jewelry lost. He
was more than suspected and was sent
into the hospital, both to be treated and
to be watched. This man was a perfect
fraud, but be was so we'll up in his act
ing that though he was most carefully
watched he escaped detection. He was
"a valuable man. but perhaps his pals
feared that the London police had too
close an eye on their movements. At
all events Craig was next heard OF in
America. The old formula was repeated.
He fell i'll fits, and valuables stolen were
reported to the police. He was shifted
around from hospital to hospital, and a
careful watch was kept upon him, both
when he was in one of these fits and in
the time of their intermission.
Craig began to think that a coup de
theatre was necessary to save his repu-
tation. He was at this time confined in
q hospital and was in n Of the upper
wards in the front part of the building.
There were doors that opened out on a
balcony. This balcony was 3S feet from
the ground, and at its base there was a
solid stone pavement. Epileptics are u.s.
ually a dull, stupid sort of people, even
when not in fits, and Craig feigned this
stupidity as well as the other symptoms
of the disease. He was allowed to wan
der about the hospital pretty much as
he pleased, and every ono in awhile
down he would fall in a fit. The doctors
had not discovered his fraud, but Craig
felt more than uneasy at the way he was
watched and suspected. One morning be
got up from his chair, and, with IA dazed
sort of a look, at the same time putting
his hands up to his head, he staggered
toward the balcony and tumbled over
backward-down, down, the full 3S feet
to the stone pavement below. When
he was picked up, it was found that one
of his wrists was broken and that he was
otherwise hurt, though, wonderful to
tell, not seriously. OF course this settled
in the minds Of the doctors the doubt
that had previously existed as to whether
he was a fraud Or not. The thing work
ed exactly as Craig had planned that it
should, and in course of time he was
discharged as a true but incurable cpl.
leptic. Once again OF the outside, he
worked successfully the old game Of fits
and pocket picking i'll threes.
"Once more he was taken up and sent
to the hospital. Here Il young doctor set
for himself the task of watching this
clever rogue. He had every symptom.
He would froth at the mouth, blood
would stream from his tongue that he
had bitten in his commissions, and there
seemed nothing wanting i'll real epilep,
sy. But this young doctor kept his
vigil, and patience had its reward.
Zone day, just as Craig was going
through the preliminaries before falling
the looking dazed, the slowly attempt.
ing TO fight off the coming spasms, the
cllnching Of the hands-the young doc
tor who was watching him observed
that, instead Of closing the hands with
the fngers over the thumbs, as would
have been the case necessarily in true
epilepsy-for the thumb, having the
shorter muscle, must feel the contract.
ing force first-Craig shut, his hands
with the fingers on the inside of the
thumbs. The doctor gave him a gentle
kick in the side and said: 'That'll do,
Craig. I've caught you. You are "a fraud.
You've lone your tricks well and for 8
long time, but your time is up. If yor
had been q true epileptic OF just "a little
better read in medicine, you would hav,
closed the fingers over the thumbs.
Without a single protest Craig straight
ened up and said, 'Well,,I knew it wa
bound to come some time
"What became of the man.
"Oh, his talents found a market. H
was so well known, had been so writer
up for the medical journals of both Eu
rope and America, that the doctors hire
him to go before medical students an
demonstrate to them how epilepsy coul
be feigned and also to explain how thes
pretenders were taught in England an,
elsewhere. To counterfeit the frothin
at the mouth they used a small piece G
Cnnn hnr xpnn -