Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1905-03-02
TRAGIC ENCOUNTER
WITH A PATIENT

Justice of the Peace w V. Oglesby
was called to the Hospital for the In
sane Monday evening TO hold an in
quest on the death of patient who
died under peculiarly sad and tragic
circumstances.
The patient in question was Stanny
Zucieme vic of ShamOkiu, who was ad'
! dyed insane at Sunbury on Thursday
Of last week and hro1ght TO the Hos
pital for the Insane on the same day.
Before leaving SnubuTy Zuciemevic
made his will. giving expression to
the prophetic remark that lie would
not live more than a few days"
Zuoiemevic was confined in ward
at the Hospital About 6 40 O'Clock
Sunday might he raped on the door of
his bed room. An attendant answered
the call, whereupon the patient asked
for drink Of water. The attendant
procured the water but before taking
ii to the patients s room as a customary
precautiOn called another attendant TO
his assistance.
With a candle in hand the two men
opened the door when they were viol-
emily assaulted by Zuoiemevic. In
their endeavor 10 prevent the patient
from escaping from the loom, the two
attendants were themselves drawn in
TO the narrow apartment, when the
lunatic with cunning design pushed
the door shut and renewed his feIo-
cious assault upon the two men.
Tie door at the patient 8 rooms have
no knobs on the inside and can only be
opened by certain manipulation un-
derstood By the attendants, which re-
quires some little time. The wild
man, kept the two men so busy that
they coald not get the door open and
were obliged to act on the defensive
save their lives 1t was indeed a
desperate encounter, which the attend
ants have cause to remember until
their dying day.
They finally overpowered the insane
man and put him in a straight jacket.
One Of the doctors was Immediately
summoned The usual remedy was ap.
piled TO quiet the patient, when he fell
asleep and rested until morning. He
ate breakfast and seemed all right.
Later, however, he showed symptoms
of illness and fever developed. He
grew steadily worse until O'Clock,
Monday afternoon when he died.
Death, it is thought, was caused by a
fractured rib, which penetrated the
liver
The following jury was impaneled
by Justice of the Peace Oglesby: DR..
J. Q. Reed. William Started, George
Freeze, Edward German. Milton Am
norman and ". Z. Young The jury
after hearing all the testimony decid-
ed that the patient came to his death
under circumstances which cast no
guilt upon the attendants and that
there was no evidence upon which
they could be held.
W. Y. Oglesby j ustice Of the Peace,
acting coroner. yesterday presented 10
the court a report OF the lnquisition
taken at the State Hospital for the Iu-
sane, Monday, February 27th, upon
view OF the body of Stanny Zuciene.
wicz, then and there lying dead.
The facts as presented to the court
are as follows:
"Stanny Zucieuewicz was admitted
TO the Hospital On Thursday, February
90, 1905 by order OF the Court of North
cumberland comfy, he having been a
resident of Coal township in said coun-
ty, heing under the delusion that every
body was trying to kill or poison him.
AT $40 O'Clock Sunday evening
Sterling Ash, a nurse in tbs receiving
ward of said Hospital, heard knock
ing at Zucienewicz door. went and
found that he wanted q drink of wat
er. Having gotten the tin of water he
went with Edward NJ. Hart, another
muse (these two being the only nurses
in the ward at the time) unlock ed the
door, entered and gave the tin to Zuci-
euewicz. who declared it to be poison
and made savage attack upon them.
stating in his broken English, that he
intended TO kill them. In the sCuffle
the candle, the only light in the room,
was upset and the door. which has nc
inside knob, was shut, making il i'm
possible to escape. The room was by
10 feet and contained q large sized
wooden single bed.
In tbs effort to subdue the patient
he came violently in contact with
something, probably the head or the
foot of the bed which made bruI,e
clear across the abdomen, fraoturing
| the breast bone and two ribs 1t alsC
ruptured the liver. making an opening
| about one inch long and one inch deep
! The skin was not broken or punCtured
1t further appears from the testimony
that the said Sterling Ash and EdwarC
" Hart, were acting in the perform
ance OF their duty when the said Stanny
Xucienewicz was injured and that they
did nothing which under all the cir
cumstances is subject to censure.
The Ienort Wa. ordered fled and di.