The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1905-04-07

III the minds OF all is the recent case
of professional beggar in the city of
London whose voluntarily paretic
limbs stirred up the lively compassion
of the passersby, even of the poor, so
that charitable gifts flowed into his
ready palm.
This case has excited some little
attention, chiefly because the police
have prosecuted him successfully, but,
says the Lancet, he is only one of very
many.
1t is, however, in connection with
the naval and military services that
the art Of malingery finds its chief
exponepts. Indeed, the word ''malin
ger" was first applied to the attempts
of soldiers to evade arduous or I'M
pleasant duty. 1t is of interest to
notice the difference that exists be-
tween countries in which CONSUMPTION
prevails and those in which only vol
untary service exists. In the former
the most strenuous eXertiOns are
sometimes made to escape service,
and since most deformities disqualify
for admission, recruits, or rather those
who were liable to serve in the army,
have not hesitated to infict on them
selves the most severe injuries in order
to avoid service.
In the days when it was necessary
for a soldier to bite off the end of the
cartridge in loading his musket it was
no uncommon event for a man to have
one or more teeth extracted or filed
down so as to obtain exemption. In
countries such as our own at the pres
ent time, where voluntary service ex-
ists we are more likely to find appli-
cants for enlistment who attempt to
hide diseases. In all countries, how
ever, many soldiers, whether they have
been called to the service by conscrip-
tion or have entered it voluntarily,
earnestly desire to leave it. There is
an old tale in all probability true,
that illustrates we'll the trouble that
such a man will take to escape from
military service. A soldier was seized
with paralysis of the right arm; the
loss of power came on suddenly and
without obvious cause. Malingering
was suspected, but all the efforts of the
surgeon of the regiment was unavail-
ing; no proof could be obtained that
the paralysis was feigned. The man
was examined by two medical boards
and ultimately he was given his dis
charge. AS he went off from the bar
racks on the top of the coach lit was in
the days before railways, he waved
a hearty goodby to his comrades with
his paralyzed arm.
Probably the best example of the per-
severance which men will display in
the attempt to leave a service which
they detest is to be found in q case
under the care of Cline. The patient
was a sailor in the British navy, and
it is worthy of note that he was a
pressed" man. He fell on his head
and a slight depression of the skull
was produced. He Immediately be-
came unconscious and all efforts to
rouse him failed. He lay quietly in
his hammock and never moved. He |
seemed deaf to all sounds and at no
time uttered any word. He was able |
to swallow food, both solid and liquid, |
and indeed he made signs with his lips |
and tongue when he wanted nourish- |
ment He was brought back to Eng |
land, but no Improvement followed |
and the "unconsciousness" lasted for |
thirteen months. Then it was resolved |
to raise the depressed portion of the |
bone. Flaps were made, trephine |
was applied and the bone was cut
through. An elevator was then intro
duced to raise the bone, and as the |
bone was lifted up consciousness sud-
denly returned to the patient and he
spoke. At the time of the operation
most of the onlookers accepted the case
as genuine, but no one would nova
days venture to support the idea that
the patient really lay unconscious for
thirteen months, suddenly regaining
c. nsciousness on removal of the de-
pressed bone. There can be no doubt
that the man was malinger and
adopted this arduous method of leav-
ing a service into which he had been
forced.
The amount of pain and discomfort
which malingerers are willing to en-
dure to obtain their discharge is al
most incredible, but the facts are we'll
attested. A limb has been held in a
fixed position for many months, and
not even the application of the actual
cautery has sufEiced to move it. Many
men have chopped off some fingers
and have claimed that it was an acct
dent Mental arrangement of one sort
or another is a favorite form of malin-
gerry, but the results usually resemble
the popular or stage idea of insanity
rather than the true products of mental
alienation. 1t is not uncommon for
the malingerer to combine two forms
sf insanity, and this may be Of value