Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-31
1OO-POUND NURSE
LAYS LOW GIANT
FraiI Little Woman Fights for
Life with Maniac at Re-
ceiVing Hospital
PULLS BEARD AND KICKS
| Don't Think | Could Do 1t Again,
PIuCky Girl Says After
the Attack

Attacked by a raving maniac who
had slipped his bonds in the receiving
hospital yesterday, pretty Ethel Beat
ty, a young nurse, fought a desperate
battle for her life, lasting twenty min
utes until Police Surgeon Kiddey and
a police reporter went to her rescue.
William knox, the patient, who
weighs more than 200 pounds, and who
had been brought in earlier in the Gay
as an insane suspect, ieaped at the
frail little woman as she entered ms
room. Miss Beatty, who weighs
scarcely 100 pounds, fought the man
| off desperately, and with almost SUI
perhuman strength hurled him upon
his bed, where she attempted to Dlnd
him with the sheets. lie was just
freeing himself from her grasp Wnen
the two men who had been in an
other part of the hospital rushed to
her rescue.
Within a few minutes from her eX-
perience with the insane man drunk
en- patient with delirlum tremens ran
from his ward and attacked ner with
his fists. Angered, she seized him by
the collar ana rushed him through the
narrow passageway that leads 10 the
city Jail, where the brave young Wom-
jailerS.
BROKE FROM STRAIT-JACKET
Knox was placed in a strait-jacket
ana later removed to the insane ward
of the county hospital. He is blind
and deaf, but of bury frame and pos
sessed with great strength. For sew
eral years he has been an inmate in
the Home of the Little Sisters of the
Poor at 2700 East First street. Sat
urday night he exhibited peculiar
symptoms, and Sunday morning be-
came unmanageable and the police
were notified. When he arrived at the
receiving hospital he was placed in
one of the wards by himself and his
feet were manacIed. In some manner
he freed himself and had risen from
his bed when the nurse entered the
room.
In speaking of her experience yes
terday Miss Beatty said the man talr-
ly sprang at her when she entered the
room. Il was taken SO by SUI prise
that for moment l was limp in his
arms. When l felt his fingers pass
over my face and realized that he was
feeling for my throat to strange me,
my strength came back to me, and L
fought him as hard as 1 could. He
tried to crush me with his arms, and
L thought that my bones would break
in his grip. L seized his beard and
pulled il hard, and he released the
pressure of his arms.
KNEW 1T MEANT LIFE
"Then slipped from his grasp, and
in a scuffle managed to trip him. In
another moment he was across the
cot, and 1 tried to bind him with the
sheets while calling for the surgeons.
DR.. Kiddey ran into the room with a
police reporter. II they had not ar
rived when they did L don't believe
that 1 could have held out much
longer. He was awfully big and
strong. L don't think l could do it
over again, only L knew at that time
that my life depended on it,
The police surgeons say that it took
them several moments with their COM
bined efforts to subdue the maniac
and that he struck vicious blows at
them before they had laced him in a
strait-jacket.
Yesterday was not Miss Beatty's
first experience of the kind. The po-
lice surgeons say that several weeks
ago she was attacked by a drunken
patient who welded a chair as a
weapon. Miss Beatty promptly plant
ed we'll placed kick on his ankle and
the patient dropped the chair and re-
tired to his cot as tame as kitten.
The young nurse lives with her
mother at the Queen apartments, 529
California street, and has been in the
receiving hospital service five months.