The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-10-03
SHUT IN ASYLUM.
Former Attendant Says Many
Inmates Are Sane.
Sherman Elliott Says the Story
lent True.
GIVE HIS EXPERIENCE.
Many Crazy Only on One
Subject.
Woman Who Thinks She Is
Empress of America.
GIVE HIS EXPERIENCE.
Dodge city. Kan.

Dodge City. Kan.
To the Editor of the State Journal:
As I have been employed in the in
sane asylum at Topeka, desire to
make a statement of existing condi-
lions there. There are many inmates
who are not insane at all. They are
not turned out, so the officials say, be-
cause no one comes after them. L
have no personal grievance toward the
asylum officials but / am making this
statement because I know it to be
fact, 1 know of many people who are
much more insane than lots of the
inmates of the asylum. One man told
me that his brother sWore he was in
sane to get him out of the way. He
wanted the mans land. Hoping this
viii be looked into, I remain,
ONE WHO WAS THERE.
When the above communication was
shown to Sherman Elliott, one of the
members of the state board of control, 4
who has just returned to Topeka from
a visit to all of the asylums in the
state, he said:
"Our asylums have many patients
who say they are not insane. In fact,
the majority of insane people imagine
they are sane. AS a matter of fact,
many of them are absolutely sane ex-
cept on one particular subject There
are dozens of cases just like the one
Dodge City.
THE law requires that the members
of the board of control shall at least
once a month see every patient in the
asylums. Consequently, there are nat
uraIly a great many of the patients
now who know US, and who come to
US to tell US their troubles every time
we appear. I remembe the first time
visited the Topeka asylum, got
into conversation with one of the pa
tents who seemed lust as rational as
anybody. He explained to me with
clearness and evident sincerity that he
WAS being held in the asylum wrong
fully because his wife wanted him out
of the way so that she might live with
sort of a dispute about property, just
as is mentioned in this Dodge City let
ter. I talked to that man for d long
time, trying to detect some slight sign
of insanity Pretty soon one of the en-
gineerS called me aside on some pre-
text, and said: Ask that man about
the laws of nations if you want to find
out what's the matter with him.
went back to the patient. and said:
| How about the relations between the
different nati0ns2 Is everything har-
monious and as it should be?' Well
that man went right straight up into
the air, He raved about existing con-
ditions, told how the nations were all
fighting each other. and went on so
that there was no mistaking his
mental condition.
Il remember another very similar
case; man whose only weakness
was the weather. Talk to him about
any subject except weather and he is
perfectly rational. But once get him
to talking about what the weather is
likely to be- and he was stark crazy
Mr.. Elliott says that the state board
Of control is anxious to get rid of its
patients as soon as possible on ac-
count of the crowded asyiums and that
there is no possible object for holding
patients after they are able to take
care of themselves.
Mr.. Elliott then went on to tell
about some Of the peculiar cases
which exist in the Topeka and Osa-
watomie asylums. He said:
Did you ever hear of the human
calendar out here at the Topeka
asylum? They have one. They told
me about his popularity, and ] went
up to him and said. Can you tell me
what day this is 2? He replied prompt
", in sort of a sing-song voice.
"Wednesday, September q, 1906
/ What day is tomorrow [ asked. He
shook his head. What day was yes
| terday?' again I queried. Again he
shook his head. This patient can tell
| the exact date of the present, but
can't, or won't say anything about any
other date.
Another time one of the aatients
came up to me and said: DO YOU
know, Iney torture me terribly out
here2' Is that SOP I replied. What
do they do to your Well. they put red
hot iron bands around my head, and
then when the bands begin to get cold.
they pile Goals Of fire on top of my
head to heat them up again AS the
man has a good thick head of hair. his
story was very ludicrous.
when we were out there invoicing
| the goods at the Topeka hospital, we
had one of the patients helping u.s. He
seemed to be perfectly sane SO far as
we could see. The next time we went
out this man was in bed. He recogniz-
ed us, and said: They've treated me
terribly since you were out here we
| asked what they had done to him and
| he said. Wei. the attendant knocked
me down. broke four of my ribs lose
from my backbone, and broke my left
| leg in eight places. Just feel of my leg
/ if you don't believe it We examined
him and there was not a bruise on him
] saw the man again a few days ago,
and he was I'D and around again. I
/ reminded him of what he had said to
me about being injured. OH he re-
piled, I was just having one of my
crazy spells. You don't want to pay
any attention to what [ say when I
have a spell There are a good many
patients who have lucid intervals, in
which they are just as sane as any
body