The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1905-07-16
ASYLUM
SCANDAL
AGAIN
Testimony on Which Attendants
Are Said to Have Based De-
mand for YarhrOugh'S
Removal.

The walk-out of the 20 or 80 attend
ants at the state insane asylum last
week has had the effect OF some inves
tigation as TO the cause of their action
The attendants demanded that Mr.. and
Mrs. D. w. C. Yarbrough be dismissed
from the asylum and on the refusal OF
the superintendent to comply with
their demand they walked out III a
body.
They are said to base their com
Paint against Mr.. and Mrs. YarbrOugn
on the statements alleged to have
been made by Mr.. Yarbrough before
the investigating committee appointed
by the legislature. The Jacksonville
Metropolis says:
The article complained Of is that
part of the report of the asylum inyes
tigating committee OF the legislature
comprising Senator w. K. Jackson
and Representatives ]. w. knight
Jas. A. Sledge and J. F. Fillingim, in
answer to the statements made by the
Board of State Institutions regarding
the asylum. A part of this report
gave information that the charges al
leging immortality were in a larg;
measure prompted by information OBJ
tanned from D. w. c. Yarbrough, OF
the asylum.
What Yarbrough Said.
In defending its former position il
denouncing the conduct OF the asylum
the legislative committee in its report
said:
THE committee did not ask nor dit
] Z; H. Of n In or
ploye or how long any female employ
ed in the hospital had been there, mol
did the committee ask if any one Oh
mere then employed were unchaste
ii the good name or character of Iht
! female employees has been traduced i
was not done by the committee. Mr.
| D. w. G.. Yarbrough did volunteer some
very damaging information to ont
member of the committee with refer
ence, as he expressed it, to the repre-
| hensible conduct between male anC
| female attendants. He said they haC
gone out in pairs or couples two nights
| in the week rambling and lying Out
until late, and in one instance a couple
were out all night; tina. when DR.
| Gwinn was away so long last summer
ETC.; that in one instOnce he was sat
4 i9fed something wrong was going OF
in a room and he opened the dool
\ quickly and found them in very com
! promising position; that they had gone
/ to such an extent that there seemed
/ 20 be no degree of shame of one couple
/ in the presence of another He did
not call names nor was he asked to dc
/ SO He also referred to some two Of
more female attendants and probably
| one patient, who had given birth with
/ in two to four months after leaving
| the hospital. He also referred to the
| conduct of DR.. Gwinn and a female
employe. also many lectures he hat
given Dr. Gwinn about his cold-bloodef
negligence and indifference with ref
eTence to treatment of patients, his
manner and method of purchase and
disbursement of supplies, and his ID
ingratitude towards him that when he
left he did not so much as speak q
kind word to the incoming superin
tendent in his (Yarbrough's) behalf
ETC., etc. So as before said, If the
character of the female employees has
been traonced Mr.. Yarbrough and the
writer of that remarkable document
have done it, for the writer Of the
document says: Many of whom are
virtuous and pure women of our own
state Notice he says many-a clear
imputation that some are not. II
would now be in order and the right
thing for the female employees to de
mand that the board OF commissioners
point out and name such of them as
are virtuous and pure and such as are
not They (the board) say some are
virtuous and some are not. Produce
the proof of your assertion, gentlemen
You have attacked. you have traduced
the good name of part of the female
employees in the hospital. Name then
or withdraw what you have written
or some of the good families of Gads
den county, from which these EN-
ployes come, may make the PROPOSE
ton interesting to you. so far as the
committee knows, every female now
employed in the hospital is as pure
and chaste as the newborn babe in its
mothers arms, and If the searchligh!
OF truth is ever turned on the great
hullabaloo raised about that clause OF
the committees report, it will show
that it was the work of selfish, design
ing men to draw the attention of the
public from the main question of re
sponsibility for the evils in and about
the institution, and as being the mos
effective means to break down the
effect Of the committees report
Shame on you, or any man or men
who would resort to sentiment, and
make breastworks of a lot of women