The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-02-17
DEATH At The ASYLUM.
BROKEN ARM AND BED SORES
FOUND ON MR.. PLATE.
Not known How the Injury oc-
Cured, But Supposed to Have
Been Indicted by a Fellow-Pa-
ttept-Death Due to Exhaustion.

Special Dispatch to the Post-Intelligencer
TACOMA, Feb. 16.-Henry Plate, ex-
postmaster of Marysville, Snohomisn
county, who died at the asylum last sun
day OF exhaustion, was a map about 70
years old and was sent to the asylum sew
eral months ago while suffering from
acute mania. Mrs. Plate was notlnea
and reached the asylum Monday.
She then found that. shortly before ms
DEATH Mr. Plate was found to be serious
ly injured, the bones of his left arm nav
ing been severely fractured a little belo"
the shoulder So severe was the fracture
that 1t reached into the shoulder joint In
addition to this, the body gave evidence OF
several bed sores. indicating that the pa
tient had not had the personal treatment
that his wife supposed he was receiving
How his arm was fractured there Is no
one to tell with any definiteness. All MRS.
Plate could learn was that at the regular
bathing day, several weeks ago. the IN
jury was discovered and some little atteh-
ton afterward given to IT, She was no,
notified and knew nothing of the tact
that her husband was worse unth nou-
fed OF his death.
Being unsatisaed with this meager In
formation, Mrs Plate decided to have an
autopsy, which was held at local under
taher Tuesday evening. The body was
then carefully examined by Dr. r. N.
Brown, surgeon of the First Washington
regiment during the Philippine campaign,
and DR.. J. Armstrong. The fractured
humerus and bed sores are the only IN
juries they found. From the fracture they
could tell nothing as TO how Mr.. Plate re-
ceived the injury. In the absence OF any
thing more definite II is supposed the in
tured man was struck with club or chair
by some other patient during the absence
OF the attendant So far as known no
effort was made by the asylum author-
ties to learn the exact manner In WHICH
the bones were broken The doctors are
of the opinion that Plate was not hurt
by e heavy fall which Is one OF the the
cries advanced at the asylum. 1t seems
almost certain that violent blow OF some
sort caused the fracture.
Or. Brown says IL is not surprising that
Mr.. Plate died of exhaustion as-that is
very common ending of patients VINO sur
fer from acute mania. Part OF the time
Plate was violent, causing him to be
strapped down to the bed at night. Dur
ing the day time he was allowed 10 use
rocking chair. The doctors do not erlti-
else the asylum management stating 1t is
not strange that such an injury was not
discovered until some time after 1t was
received.
The body was sent to Marysville
Wednesday for rme'e-atcompanted by
Mrs. Plate.
Superintendent Goddard, of the asylum,
makes this statement: When Mr.. Plate
came here last July his case was entered
as one Of hereditary insanity. From the
first he grew worse, and we never gave
Mrs Plate any hope of his recovery. His
physical condition became so low that he
had to be kept in almost constant re-
strdint, WHleu accounts for the beu sores
His condition was such that he had no
understanding when his arm was broken.
The fracture was discovered ON January
"A. not TO exceed twenty-feur to thirty-six
hours after 1t was sustained. 1t could not
have been any longer than that. because
Plates clothes had To be changed every
half day at least and his imp. hanging
arm was thus certain to be quickly dis
covered
1T was Immediately put into splints and
ne was given the best possible treatment.
He simply died OF exhaustion. Mrs. Plate
visited him the week before he died. She
prefers to think that he recognized her
then, but as a matter OF fact. he did not
and could not, so low had his condition
become. He had no knowledge OF her
presence. She stll believed he might re-
cover, seeming to have hope long as
there was life. A. to how the fracture was
sustained, | have two theories. though we
cannot tell with exactness, one is that
he fell. the other is that he was struck
by another patient.
Toward the last Mr. Plate became one
of the most troublesome patients we ever
had. He was noisy and rneddlesome. He
would try TO crawl into the beds of other
patients, regarding which many patients
are very scrimptuouS quite likely some
other patient struck him In retaliation
Mrs. Plato made no complaint here re-
garding her husbands treatment She
was told everything freely. both when she
last visited her husband and on her ar
rival after his death. There has been no
attempt 10 hide anything"