The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-01-28
Sleep Walking and Crime.

Professor Alfred Morrison, of Noun
Vernon, n. Y, claims that he was in {
somnambulistie condition and dreaming o.
burglars when he shot and killed his wife
Somnambulism has more than once
been the defense in trials for crime
Probably the most remarkable case Of the
kind in this country vas tried in Boston
in 1875 The defendant, Alfred j. Tirrel
charged with murder, was convicted il
the public mind before the trial began
Rufus Choate defended him.
Tirren was Of good family, but had VI
! cious habits. He was separated from his
wife and was living with one Maria Bick-
| ford. One night the inmates of the house
! in which they were living heard a cry,
a sound as of a heavy body falling to the
| floor, and then of some one descending
the stairs. Then fire was discovered. and
| when il was extinguished the Bickford
woman was found among the embers. her
| throat cut from ear TO ear. A woman in
the house next door had been awakened
| at the time by the cry OF a woman
! TirreH had called at livery stable, Sc
| cured a horse and carriage, saying he
/ had had trouble at home and wanted to
| set out OF town. He vas captured some
months later in New Orleans. He had
! heard of the tragedy and was preparing
TO return to Boston and give himself ap.
but mis- brOther-in-law prevailed upon him
not TO do so and furnished him money
with which TO go to Montreal.
At the trial it appeared that from his
youth Tirreu had been subject TO SOM
nambulistic paroxysms. He frequently
walked and talked in his sleep, and on
one occasion had pulled a companion out
of bed, crying: start that leader, start
that leader, or III cut his throat"
On the morning the Biekford woman
was found killed he appeared at a friends
house as if in a stupor, so much so as to
frighten his friend. Expert testimony
was given showing that the prisoner was
evidently somnambulisr, and it was
stated that while in somnambuIistic
state person could dress himself. com
nit homicide, set fire TO a house and run
into the street.
In his argument Mr.. Choate quoted from
"Hervey's MeditatiOns." Two men out
hunting slept together az night. One. in
his dreams renewed the chase, and when
at last the fall of the stag came he
shouted: I'm kill him! I'll Kill himl" The
other hunted awakened leaped out OF bed
and watched. The somnambulist secured
his knife and gave three stabs where.
few seconds before, his friend and COM
panion lay.
Tirrell was pronounced not guilty, and
was also acquitted of a charge Of arson.
Sleep-walking was the plea set I'D in
the defense of George Wilson, an indus
trious Chicago mechanic, who was charg-
ed with numerous buTglaries three years
ago. 1t appeared that Wilson followed
his calling honestly in the day time, but
when night came on and sleep overlook
him his nature underwent a radical
change. Wilson, the honest mechanic.
became Wilson, the house-breaker and
THIEF
One of the most singular. and at the
same time sad cases of somnambulism oc-
Cured a few years ago near Bakersville,
\. {. a young man there named Gar
land had been in the habit Of walking in
his sleep from childhood. Like most
sleep-walkers, when unmoIested he never
harmed in his ramblings himself or others.
Consequently his wife paid little atten-
ton to them But finally ne began TO
stay away from the house longer and al
ways returned soaking wet.
His wife followed him one night. He
went along the highway until he came TO
a narrow pig-trail leading to the Tow
River. The wife followed with difficulty.
as he picked his way through tangled for
est, over stones and fallen trees. For
more than mile the sleeper trudged on !
until he came to large poplar tree which /
had fallen with its topmost branches far /
out into the river. Walking on the log |
until he came to a large limb. he got down /
on his hands and knees and began crawl (
ing out on it. The frightened wife
screamed and called to him to come back. /
He was awakened by her cries, fell into /
the river and was drowned. 1t is almost /
certain that each night for weeks he had
taken taat perilous trip, leaped into the
river, swan ashore and returned home
unconscious Of anything having happened
The Archbishop of Bodreaux attests the
ease of young priest who was In the
habit Of getting up during the night in
4 state Of somnambulism, taking pen. ink
and paper and writing original sermons
When he had finished a page he would
read aloud what he had written and cor
rect it. In order to ascertain whether the
somnambulist made use Of his eyes. the
archbishop held a piece OF card board I'M
Ter his chin TO prevent him from seeing
he paper. He continued to write with
'ut being in the slightest degree incom-
NODDED.
In this state the young man also copied
music. and when it happened that the
words were written in too large characters
md did not stand over the corresponding
totes, he peceived his error. blotted them
'ut and wrote them over gain with great
xactness.