The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1906-06-08
TESTIMONY OF COMPLAINING WIT.
NESS IN HIS FAVOR.
NONE OF CHARGES ARE PROVEN
HOSPITAL INVESTIGATION BEGUN
BY STATE BOARD.
DR.. NICHOLSON ON THE STAND
Governor Mickey's Complaint Based
on Letters Received From DR.. Mich.
olson, Physician at the Hospital.
Letters are introduced.

olson, Physician at the Hospital.
Letters are introduced.
The investigation into the affairs OF
the Norfolk hospital for the insane
was begun at the institution early this
morning. Three members of the state
board of public lands and buildings ar
rived in the city last evening, Secre-
tary of State Galusha, Commissioner
Eaton and Treasurer Mortensen, and
the hearing was opened by them. At
torney General Brown could not come
until noon today.
At noon the attorney general ar
rived, accompanied by Gov. Mickey.
The governor, who brings charges
against Superintendent Alden and Dr.
Nicholson, is represented by Attorney
John NJ. Stewart of Lincoln, Dr. Alden
is represented by Attorneys Robert
son, Tyler and Mapes, while DR.. Mich
olson is represented by Attorney T..
j. Doyle.
Miss Anna Hermann, stenographer
in the law Office of Mapes & Hazen,
is taking stenographic report of the
testimony.
DR.. Nicholson occupied the witness
stand practically all day. In all his
testimony he has failed to back up
one single charge made in his letters
to the governor, which formed the ba-
sis for the complaint and which
caused the governor to ask for the
of hnth A11pn and I)r
Nicholson. He has admitted on the
stand that all the charges were made
from hearsay, and on most of the com
plants he never heard any evidence
until after the trouble with Dr. Alden
started.
AS the climax to his testimony, he
stated to the governor such a spirit
of good fellowship has now developed
between himself and Dr. Alden that
he thinks they could work together in
harmony for the best interests OF the
institution.
The investigation seems nowhere
near completed. A session will be held
this evening, when it is hoped that all
the testimony will be given but it is
witness examined during the day and
ten or twelve more to be placed on
the stand, the investigation promises
to be well drawn out. 1t may be pos
sible that the board will be convinced
from the testimony of DR.. Nicholson
that it will not be necessary to go into
the matter in detail with the other
&c iC oil In
favor of DR.. Alden.
The Charges.
The charges of the governor against
DR.. Alden cite incompetency, lack of
discipline and harmony in the institu-
tion, gross cruelty, improper keeping
of accounts and allowing the executive
to be misled, failure to report true
condition of the hospital to the gov.
ernor, employment of incompetent
help and allowing them to remain af-
ter he knew they were incompetent.
The same charges are made against
DR.. Nicholson except the last two,
which do not apply to him.
The first evidence introduced to sub
stantiate the charges of Gov. Mickey
olson to the governor. The first was
written August 20, 1905, four months
after DR.. Nicholson had taken his po-
sition, and said that his family had
been relegated to the third floor OF
the building as punishment for call
ing Mrs. Alden to account for a just
cause, that the superintendent had
tho cnnnnH floor a N a
two bath rooms, charged that there
was a riot of misrule in the institu.
ton, vulgar language not limited to
the superintendent but to Mrs. Alden
as well, alleging that she used Ian
guage that would bring the blush OF
shame to the innocent cheek. He said
that DR.. Alden intimated that he ought
superintendent kept four ponies there
himself. He alleged that attendants
had been refused the use of carriages
on Sunday to go to church with, and
that among the employees were inebri
ates whom DR.. Alden failed to dis
charge for a very good reason.
On April DR.. Nicholson wrote an
other letter, which said that things
had grown from bad to worse and thai
he wrote not through jealousy but
through a desire for the good of the
institution, and If the governor want
ed he would give further information
The letter written April 18, in re
ply to the governors request for fur
ther information, charged that three
patients had been murdered, that two
patients who escaped were ordered
to be beaten when caught and he sup
posed that they were, that men who
had been guilty of brutality had beer
promoted at increased pay, so ht