Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1906-06-22

Hearing Before Insanity Board Was Exhaustive
Decision Will Probably Be
Reached Today
HEARING

The Chenoweth case attracted a
great many spectators today at the
court house who at times were highly
interested in the tits between the at
torneys and the testimony Of the doc
tors, which as is proverbial with the
profession was somewhat widely at
variance.
Yesterday when the doctors re-
turned from their examination Of the
defendant, as Chenoweth is called in
this case, Mrs. Chenoweth was put on
the stand. ..,..-
* It is we'll to state before going any
further, that this was a rather unusual
hearing and for that reason the case
was not conducted strictly upon
judicial methods so far as procedure
was concerned, all formalities being
waived in sort of catch-as-cateh-can
way. Thus, while Mrs, Chenoweth
was really the prosecuting witness,
she was also a witness in behalf of
her son as against the officers of this
state and Montana, who seek to have
Mr.. .Chenoweth tried on criminal
charges.
Mrs. Chenoweth went into the
heredity of her son showing the
strains of insanity which existed in
his fathers family and in his father
She related how he, had come west
and became a sheepherder and finally
sheep owner; of injuries he had re
ceived as boy; of his love affair and
how the death of his sweetheart hai
affected him and of his subsequent
neglect of her, his mother, and strange
performances on the plains which LEI
to trouble with the law officers, lead
ing her to the belief of his insanity
Her testimony was essentially thu
same as she gave upon her sons tria
for breaking Jail, when he was &C
quilted upon the ground of his bein.
insane. She also related how he hat
been sick and how he had had ;
collapse last Saturday in the count,
Jail.
II On cross examination by Attorne.
Stevens she said she had given he
son medicine from time to time an,
had administered stimu1ants at tn
time of his collapse. The question
asked indicated an inference tina
4 drugs had been administered to de
PENDANT to bring about his sickness
land breakdown. This was ,denie
then, and upon other occasions whel
witness was on the stand. :.
i Supt. Moore of the state insane hos
Ipital was the next witness and CAV
his experience as an alienist He sal
from the testimony of the mother o
defendant and from the several eS
aminations of patient made by him, h
would unhesitatingly say the man wa
insane This of course, being base,
upon the premises that the statement
made by Mrs. Chenoweth as to. hi
past history was true. He said h
would not discharge patient from
the hospital upon. such an examination
as that made by the doctors yesterday
Mr.. Stevens then, asked that tn
doctors be heard before he cross es
amined DR.. Moore, which was agree,
to. 3 ~
DR.. Smith was then called and sal
he had examined the defendant twic
and found him sane; that there wa
no such thing as partial insanity,
man must be either sane or insane
On. cross examination he, admitte
that he had formed his opinion afte
seeing defendant but before, .examin
ling him. Mrs. Chenoweth had som
| time ago asked him to make an ez
| animation Of her SON, but he had re
fused on the ground that the count.
/ physician was the proper party, blu
4 that he had made an examination a
the request of Mr.. Stevens, and agaii
during the hearing of the case, "a
/ stated yesterday. There was a rattle
prickly exchange between the docto
j land Attorney Townsend during tn,
Testimony. which amused the hearers
4 DR.. Quain testified that IL was i'm
i possible to tell d accurately withou
| long study whether the man was ID
| sane or not, but he was Of the i'm
Ipression from what little he had seel
LOT the man that he was sane.
4 The testimony of Drs. Chamber,
i and Gampbell was to the same effect
! both admitting they had had little. .es
iperience In such. cases. An adjourn
mennt was then taken until this morn
/ ing! ..s q.
The first witness today was Sheriff
4 Waleh who was rallied nv ff1a state