New-York tribune., 1907-04-14
FRENCH LUNACY LAW.
Case Which ArOuSeS Public Feel
ing against 1t.
Paris, April Z.

,so5 law by which the lunatic asylums in this
-.,,rtv,. are governed Vicomte dHugues was
-,snected member Of the Chamber of Deputies
"a one OF the mouthpieces Of the Conservative
,a-rv. on a certain day he disappeared. His
uvfo,,s friends and parliamentary colleagues
re promptly informed by the Vicomtesse
s,EIprues that her husband had suddenly gone
.oos and had. on the certificate OF duly quail
,sod medical practitioner, been confined in a
,,,r.tic asylun. where he stIll is. His legislative
=. was declared TO be vacant, and from that
-, he ceased TO be talked about, most peO-
= ,r,agininy him 10 be dead. And dead, in
- be was to the world and so would have
-.r,ai1ed 10 the day Of his actual death had not
Nc aged mother The DowaEer Nicomtesse
a,F5ugues, convinced herself that her unfortu-
,ate son was perfectly sane, and the victim
,i+be~ of an abominable conspiracy or OF an in
svnlicable mistake. The dowager vicomtesse
a. now actively engaged in drawing public atten-
,ion TO her sons case. and IS seeking 10 induce
,be Prefect of Police 10 give an order for his
release. This latter task. in view OF the wife's
onposition, presents almost insuperable difficult
ties.
on the other hand the entire Paris press,
voioing public opinion on the subject is entirely
IN favor of new legislation being substituted for
the dangerous law of 1888, by which is regulat-
tic as,lums As matters stand at present It IS
sufficient for one certificate To be signed by
single doctor after one visit 10 the alleged
ratient 10 secure the latter's committal To
ss,lun from which he cannot be released with
ont the consent OF the relative who brought
about his Incarceration, even should the director
of the asylum declare him TO be perfectly sane.
His release can be authorized only by the pre-
feet Of the department in which The asylum IS
situated.
In Paris this authority rests with the Prefect
Of Police. As a rule, all the resources of red
tspe are exhausted before this permission is
given The patient IS carefully examined by an
official expert in lunacy. whose general ten-
dency is TO confirm the views Of his professional
colleague.
That numbers of persons are confined in the
various French Iunatic asylums who in no
way insane seems to be generally admitted.
have myself questioned two or three Of the
warders OF the great state lunatic asylum at
Perray Taucluse, upon the outskirts Of Paris.
and they frankly declared that p goodly pro-
portion Of their patients were quite as sane as
themselves. People" they said. "are put IN
here whose parents or relatives want TO get
rid OF them. Sometimes 1t is a question Of pc
cunary interest which brings about their in
generation. but very often the patient is mere
~ weakminded and unable or unwilling TO earn
hts own living. and so he is sent here TO be a
burden upon the community, instead of being
supported by his relatives. The director Of the
asylum knows perfectly we'll that these persons
are harmless, but he has no authority 10 send
them away. Moreover, If they were to be dis
charged. their friends would soon find means
Of sending them back again. This is so easy
when the signature OF only one doctor is re-
guiredr
There have been Of recent years several sem
sationai escapes from public and private lu-
matte asylums here. a couple Of years ago a
brother rescued from the Paris asylum of Ste.
Anne his sister, who had been confined there
simply because her own mother was jealous Of
her beauty. lie employed an automobile. and
his audacious coup de main was universally ap-
plauded by the press hut he, nevertheless, laid
himself open TO criminal prosecution. and. had
the jury that tried him found him guilty, he
would have been sentenced 10 a long term OF
penal servitude. The jury. however brought
in as enthusiastic a verdict Of not guilty" as
they might have been expected to do in the
case Of a popular politician accused Of treason
Of a duellist vino had accidentally killed his
adversary. Another sensational rescue was that
Of Major H6riot from the private lunatic asy-
lum Of the late DR. Blanche. which is situated
just outside the fortifications Of Paris, in the
breezy but somewhat lugubrious suburb of
Neuilly. DR.. Blanche who was the father Of the
well known painter Jacques Blanche was
world famous specialist in nervous diseases.
Major H6riot was principal shareholder IN the
Magasius du Louvre. sort Of dryGoods Mecca
Tor women visitors to Paris, and was enormously
wealthy It was his wife who decided that he
was insane and that he should be shut up
So one day two stern faced men set out for"
Nal1ill-- and Ma for TTErior bet tween
them in tho cab. with gives upon his wrists
like Eugene Aran. and was presently incarcer-
ated I'm the establishment OF Dr. Blanche-where
he would have remained TO the end Of his days
had not his wife failed 10 reckon with certain
strange character whose headquarters were at
Iontmartre. and whose specially II was 70
rescue sane and wealthy patients from lunatic
ssylums, counting on their subsequent gratitude,
Which seldom failed. for a handsome remunera-
lion. His first successful effort had been made
with Baron Seillleres. This mans name was
Ioucheron, and he was one Of the picturesque
nglres OF the bohemian quarter which concen-
Eates round the Red MIL and Of which the
Butte Montmartre" is the hub. He had been,
ana 70 some extent still was an artist, painting
scenery for the minor theatres; he had figured
as weight litter at the local fairs. for he was
enormously strong; ne had been something OF \
eye IN a fight.
When he made up his mind TO rescue Major
s-EiiOl ne assembled q dozen or so OF ms old COL
leagues, the wrestlers and strong men who per-
form al the fairs in Paris and the provinces and,
4ller having carefully reconnOtred his ground
ahe taken the usual ''burgling' precautions, such
- bflplng the asylum servants and doping the
eapchoogs, he made nocturnal raid upon Dr.
Dlsnche's establishment at the head OF his her.
Suiean troop and triumphantly bore off Major
etrl5t 10 a place of safety. On the profits OF
sAls successful raid he lived uproariously at
~lontnartre for several years It was Moucher-
on VINO had been engaged 10 render a like service
- tne late COmte de Toulouse Lautrec. the great
PACK and white artist. whose family had placed
MN the acf = al Neufl1V bf