The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1898-07-15
WILLIAMS STORY
OF THE SCANDAL
Tells Why His Wife Was Discharged
for Knowing and of Gould's
Duplicity.

SAN JOSE, July H.-Frank H.
Gould as a Janus, as deliberate
pledge breaker and as an unprincipled
self-seeker, is graphically portrayed by
Charles Williams, the husband of the
young woman unjustly dismissed from
the Agnews State Hospital.
On learning the facts in connection
with the discharge of his wife, Will
liams sought justice at the hands of
Gould in a private interview at the lat
ter's office. How his effort resulted
Williams tells in the following inter-
view:
My wife was dismissed from the
asylum at the regular meeting of the
board in March. Mr.. Gould made the
motion, and when the grounds of his
action were asked for, he demanded
favorable action on his motion as
personal favor. emphasizing his re-
quest by his vehement tones and eX-
traordinary dictatorial demeanor.
Mr.. Hale stood in and declared that
motion should be adopted as cour-
tesy to Mr.. Gould, because he was
chairman of the management commit
tee The motion was adopted.
by the board to have an interview with
Mr.. Gould to adjust the matter of the
reinstatement of my wife. The mem
bers told me that personally they were
anxious to see my wife go back into
the asylum as an employe, that they
had looked up her record and found 1t
entirely satisfactory in every way that
she had always discharged her duty
faithfully, that she had shown great
sympathy and care for the patients
and that her character was above re-
proach
Il was told by Mr.. Hale that the
reason assigned by Gould for wanting
Mrs. Williams discharged was that she
was a mental wreck and labored under
mental Authorizations. This reason
was given at a caucus called by Gould,
at which he, Hale and White were
present. The caucus was held just
previous to the board meeting, at which
my wife was discharged.
During the regular meeting Mr..
Upham asked why Gould wished to
discharge Mrs. Williams. DR.. Curnow
spoke up and said: Mr.. Gould, per-
haps she knows too much of the crook
ed work of your brother
Gould replied that he wanted her
dismissed for personal reasons. The
vote was taken and Gould gained his
point.
Acting on the suggestion made by
the other members of the board / called
on Mr.. Gould in his office in San Fran
cisco to endeavor to secure the rein
statement of my wife.
Il introduced myself to Mr.. Gould,
but he showed a decided aversion to
granting me an interview when he
learned that I was the husband of the
woman whom he had caused to be I'M
Justly discharged. / informed him that
/ had called in regard to her reinstate-
ment. He attempted to bring the meet
ing to an abrupt end. but l finally pre-
vailed upon him to listen to me by curt
" telling him some unvarnished facts.
Our interview lasted more than an
hour.
81 believe you treated my wife un-
Justly ! said. She had always done
her duty and had received many rec
concentrations in reference to the
same I showed him the recommended
tions, and he answered that l did not
know all the workings of the case.
Your wife has been made the cats
paw he said, of a dirty crowd of con-
spirators, who wish to throw my
brother out of the employ of the asy-
lum.
II 'eplied that h. was mistaken.
told him that my wife had reported to
me at once the fact of having observed
Mr. Tourtillott, Gould's half brother,
come out Of the room of Mrs. Madigan,
which is located in different and dis
tant part of the building from Tourtil- |
LOFTS, at an unseemly hour of the night. |
informed him that my wife considered
this q fragrant breach of good conduct
and that she was greatly disturbed |
with fears of the trouble that such ac-
tions would eventually precipitate in
the asylum. I further told him that
had instructed Mrs. Williams to be
truthful in the matter and to let the
blame rest where it should.
"Thereupon Mr. Gould stated that he
had sent resignation to his brother
after hearing the accusa-
ton against him: that his brother |
signed it at once and returned it to
him to be read at the next regular |
meeting of the board. He added that
he had subsequently investigated the
charges made by my wife and had ar
rived at the conclusion that she was |
suffering from mental hallucination
and that there was no truth, to his |
mind, in the charge. If there were
any truth in it, he said, my brother |
would have to go Immediately l would |
not stand such conduct if it were my |
own father.
IT told him that others had seen the |
same things witnessed by my wife; |