The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-05-14
BRUTAL Treatment
Asylum investigation Shows
0epravity of Attendants
WAS MOST REVOLVING
Patients Beaten With Clubs
and BuckIed Straps

Osawatomie, Kan. May 1.-THE result
of the first days examination by the leg
islative committee OF the insane asylum
here shows that brutal attendants are in
the habit of resorting to most cruel treat
ment of the patients under their control.
As this was but the first session of the
committee since it began the investigation
of the asylum here the indications ara
that further developments will reveal
more sensational charges than were
brought out by the investigation Of the
Topeka asylum. The committee is thor
oughly aroused and have issued sub
poenas for a great number of witnesses.
The informing was spent in looking
over the institution and it was not until
afternoon that the examination of wit
nesses was commenced. ]. R. McCurdy.
who was upervisior of the Knapp or de
tached building for two years, was one
of the first witnesses to take the stand.
The witness did not show great de-
sire to tell these stories of horror on the
institution for which he had lately
worked but gave the impression of one
who desired to tell the truth.
One of the questions asked Mr.. Nc
Curdy was if he could recall any instances
where attendants had been brutal to pa
tients. He replied that he had and asked
for one of them said:
while 1 was making my rounds one
day heard cries coming from the vicin-
ity of ward three and upon going onto
E, - n
four choking patient. The patient was
stretched out on the floor and the attend
ant was kneeIing on him. When the at
tendant was taken off the patient the lat
ter could not rise to his feet for a time.
And he was black in the face. inquired
into the cause of this and gathered from
the two stories that the patient had been
caught looking into the kitchen window,
where the attendant was at work. The
attenadnt told him to get out and not
look in. The patient replied that the at
tendant was not his attendant and he did
not propose to mind him. Whereupon the
attendant rushed out and leaped upon the
patient with the result described
Another case mentioned by the witness
is even more revolving. The witness was
on the floor when sounds, as of a scuffle
We're heard coming from the second floor
This was on a ward where tko attend
ants by the name of McClay and Quigley
were employed. When the commotion was
heard Nuzman, an attendant on the lower
ward. rushed upstairs. BY and by he re-
turned and in a short time the other at
tendant came down stairs. They reported
that one of the patients was even then
in the act of beating his head against
the wall. Mr.. McCurdy went upstairs at
once and found the patient lying on the
floor unconscious. In his head were num-
erous cuts, ranging from an inch and q
half to two inches long. These 1t was
said by the attendants he had infictsd
on himself before they could get to him.
The witness was suspicious of them but
had no evidence. He said that sometime
afterwards Nuzman had told DR.. Sands,
a doctor at the institution, that he had
made these wounds in the patients head
with a hickory club and that the buckle
end of a restraint strap had also been
used.
Another instance mentioned by the wit
ness occurred when he and the physician
they entered the epileptic ward. one of
the patients jumped to his feet and came
runnig towards him and said: THE at
tendants said they would kill US if we
said anything to you about this, but We
might as well die one way as another
He asked the man for his story, and
from II IL seemed that there HAD been a
most serious fracas the night before. The
attendants were putting patient to pad
and using what seemed to the other
patients unnecessary force. They went
to the old mans assistance and the at
tendants turned on them. One of them
was so choked that it pulled the flesh
loose from about his neck.
J. T. JOHNSON, who was the undertaken
for the institution for several years. was
called to the stand. He testified that the
number of dead bodies which came TO him
for embalming each year ranged from
% 10 20. He said that often, but more es-
peciaily last summer. these bodies were
badly decomposed and IN some cases fly
blown. In one instance while his helper.
who was shaving a dead patient a bad
bruise was found on the dead mans head
which looked like II had been made with
mallet or club. The assistant COM
mented on this matter to outsiders ard
it got 10 the ears Of Superintendent Uhl.
The latter came TO him and told him that
he had better be more careful about what
his assistant said. and n other ways repri-
manded him. whe masked about it he
said the work was soon afterwards taken
from him and given to rival undertake..
and he believed the expose made by his