The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1908-01-28
INSANITY OF THAW
MANIAC Oppressive |:
This Experts Explana-
ton Why Millionaire
Slew White.
.LONDON DOCTORS
TELL OF ILLNESS

1SLlSC lNSSLo SShSS bAlA
the End Is
Nearing.
NEW YORK, January c7.-The Thaw
defense closed Its case to-day with
I"maniac depressive" insanity as tho
| explanation of the death Of Stanford
White at the hands of the young Pitts
burg nillionaire. Tomorrow the prose-
Icutlon will begin It's evidence In re-
tbnttal, and tho case. should go to the
fury "Wednesday or Thursday noon.
| District Attorney Jerome to- morrow
morning Will apply for the appoint
lment OF a commission to take the tes-
itimony of Abraham Hunnel. the dis
fbarred and convicted lawyer, who Is
lconfined IN the penitentfnry on Black
Wells Island, and who Is said TO be too
itilI to appear In court. Mr.. Littleton
said he would oppose any such action,
.Whereupon Justice Bowling announced
| that II necessary he would go to the
,.island himself tomorrow night, In
icGnpany with the defendant and his
icoursel, to preside at the taking of
IHummel's testimony. The jury. 1t was
stated. would not be compelled to take
the night trip across the river.
ThaR seemed delighted at the pros
poets of the outing.
district Attorney Jerome refrained
| from his tactics OF last year in requir-
Eing bond of the expert witnesses for
! the defense, three OF whom--Drs. Wag-
rer, Evans and. Jelliffe-declared that
4 Tllaw at the time he killed Stanford
1 White was suffering from such de-
! liset sci reason as<not to know the ma
Eturo or quality of his act or that tht
nct was wrong. The prosecutor con-
tented himself with drawing from the
\ aiienists the fact that last year they
1 sWore ~ was during a "brainstorm''
| that 5l'faw committed the homicide. He
aiso read from the affidavit by DR..
/ Wagner before the lunacy commission
1 last year giving conversations he haa
fwith Thaw In court which tended to
show that the defendant had a distinct
/ trecollectiou of occurrences on the roos
5farden Immediately preceding the
i tragedy.
IN Inquiry by the Judge.
Il WIS left to Justice DowIins to
i make Il most important inquiry OF the
EHenists. He desired to know the exact
nature Of maniac Oppressive" .insan-
Tfty. and ifsEthe attacks were likely to
\ recur.
1 He also asked IL person suffering.
4 ron this form of Insanity. would be
Likely to commit assaults. He. learnoi
I that 1t was a recurrent form of mental
disorder. the attacks coming suddenly
and without warning, n period of In
I sanity being followed by manlacal
\ outburst, then by period of complete
/ depression and then by another lucid
\ interval. 1t seemed that the presiding.
4 Judge was securing Information upon
which to predicate judicial action in
i the event of a verdict of not guilty on
4 the ground of insanity or OF straight
/ acquittal. Even in the latter event JUS
4 tice Bowling would have the right to
have Thaw committed for examination.
4 "subncute NIanin."
An English physician one OF the
4 three foreign men OF medicine, who
4 testified to-day. first gave the name OF
maniac depressivc' or ''subacute
mania" to Thaw's mental condition. Dr..
y sydney Russell Wells, of London, made
the diagnosis during tho outbreak by
/, Thaw in London in 1899. when, with
3! normal temperature, Thaw demanded
j that the walls of his rooms In a nurs-
A ing home be torn down so that he
4 iimSht have air ana that twenty tons OF
ice be put in the apartment to cool 1t.
4 Mr.. Littletons hypothetical question.
4 which was answered by the three ex-
lperts. was complete resume OF the
i evidence, with the exception, as Dis.
i. trict Attorney Jerome pointed out, of
4 the testimony OF James Clinch Smith.
J sbrother-in-lawSo of Stanford White who
talked with Thuw for fifteen minutes
lIJust before the shooting OH the roof Of
il Madison Square Garden. The question
i Icontained some 1000 words.
The Act Of Providence.
Or. Charles Francis Blngaman, the
lThaw family physician. of Pittsburg.
WAS put on the witness stand when
sIcourt opened to-day. DIR. Bingaman
'|told Of tho early symptoms Of nerv-
\ ousness In Harry Thaw, saying he was
4 |hrst called to attend the boy when.
4 he was three years old. At that time.
This nervousness often bordered on con-
4 vulsons. The attacks usually fol-
i lowed various other children's dis
i eases. Thaw slept badly as child,
4 'Irequiring a relay Of nurses most of
4 the time. DR., Bingaman said that In
4 the fall OF 1908 he was called to at
5Etend Harry Thaw In Pittsburg, and
sEtreated him for nervousness and mel
4 |anchola. This was after Thaw.s first
4 trip abroad with Evelyn Nesbit.
4 The witness saw I'haw several times
q |ln the Tombs after his arrest and the
4 defendant always referred to the Madl-
4 son Square Garde:, tragedy as .'the act
Z OF providence." Thaw's acts and ap-
4 rearance In tho prison Impressed the
IEwltness as irrational.
i Mental Disturbances.
Following DR., BIngan1un came DR..
4 Wells. of London, who WIS called to
q attend rhaw In the English capital
\ lin the early part OF 1899 Mr.. Thaw
Il was In a very N rvous coItll tion'''5 sata
a |Lr, Wells. His pulse was extremely
5rapid, and llo complained OF pains In
1.-THE head. diagnosed his cuse as one.
{, OF mental dlsturbance.'' On one Of his
Twists to the defendant the witness
!. said he found his patient IN a highly
JIeacitabe state, despite the fact that
flhis Temperature was only 90 degrees.
lie feared Tiaw might harm himself.
i Thaw did not respond to treatment,
\ even opiates falling, and DR.. Wells said
y he decided to send the young man to-
4 the hos pital. On another visit he
Hound Thnw dancing about tho room
Hike nladn1an.
\ Thaw at the \ hospltal did not like
Y Y Continued on seventh Pages)