The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-06-12
DR.. LAWTON
A WITNESS
Said Mrs. Brenton Was Vol
untary Patient at the
Retreat
NO EVIDENCE OF
INSANITY SEEN
Wrote that She Was Not Moral De
generate, but Changed His Mind AT
ter She Had Left. DR.. w. n
THOMPSON of Hartford Also Witness
Special to The Reformer.)
Hartford, Conn.,, june

Hartford, conn.,, = ullC -
Although voluntary patient VINO
could leave at any time provided she
oaye the customory IS hours notice,
a censorship was established over the
letters of Mrs Elizabeth Curtis Hol- |
man while she was III the BrattleDofo
Retreat, according to the admissions OF
DR.. Shailer +. Lawton, who was on the
witness stand during the whole after
noon Yesterday in the S50,O0O consplr-
acv suit on trial in the United states
district court before Judge Edwin ,.
Thomas and a jury, against Rev Grams
ton Brenton. DR.. Oliver c. Smith anu
DR.. Paul Waterman.
DIR. Lawton. as superintendent OF
the institution in which Mrs. Holman
was put while the wife Of Professor
Brenton. made the statement she was a
moral imbecile. He was confront
! ed with several letters he had writ
| ten. denying this emphatically, by Ia
| vid Il. Fitzgerald, chief counsel Tor
| Mrs Holman, yesterday afternoon DT.
| Iawton explained that his opinion that
| she suffered from moral degeneracy was
/ formed after she left the insane asy-
lum
new witness yesterday was Dir. ".
/ n Thompson, now superintendent OF
/ the Hartford Retreat, who was former
~ first assistant of the Brattleboro IN
sutton who testified concerning the
| pathological history of Mrs. Edward
III. Bunce. Cne Of Mrs. Brenton 5 rela-
| tives. who was confined in the Retreat
| nearly up to the time of her death. In
| a hypothetical question put to DR..
| Iawton on the direct examination, MI.
Wells incorporated about everything Of
| an erotic nature that Mrs Brenton has
been accused Of doing. and asked the
witness to say whether. that being the
case, he thought it the proper proceed
ure to put her in a sanatorium. Mr..
Fitzgerald accused the defense Of try
ing to Justify their action. The doe
tor 5 answer, when the question was al
lowed after legal wrangle, was an
affirmative one.
Opening of Court.
AS soon as court oepned a copy of
the public acts of Vermont Of 1910
: approved Jan u, 1911, was introduced
/ bv Mr. Wells despite Mr.. Fitzgerald :
l objection. One act provides for the re
cepticn of patients at the BrattlehorC
institution upon their pplication to tbs
superintendent or managing head.
certificate is not needed, except by in
sane or inebriate patients. The pa
tient, the act SAYS, shall not be detain
t cd after giving in writing, IS hours
notice.
The first witness called was DIR
u Smaller E. Lawton, superintendent O
{ the Brattleboro asylum, who was intro
J duced by the defense. He testified t,
a consultation on September ;, witt
Professor Brentou and Or. Watermal
in regard to Mrs. Brenton. The Wit
ness said that he was told Mrs. Bren
ton was erotic and morOse. He re
ceived information as TO her alleged re
lations with Mr.. Holman and was toll
She would not obey her mother or til
I family physician. At a subsequent il
4 terview with Mr.. Brenton on Septen
Der 9, DR. Lawton testified. he told tn
ne professor he had made a thorough eN
IN animation of Mrs Brenton and fai
e. ed to discover any sign of insanity.
le The witness said that after seein
in the love letters written by Mrs. BreI
is ton to Mr.. Holman, he expressed tn
opinion that she, must be moral in
! beetle to write such. Two subsequeI
u interviews, one with DR.. Waterman an
be another with Miss Schubmehl, were r
2 called by the witness. In the latte
Miss Schubmehl expressed her thanl
for the treatment of Mrs. Brenton an
j. suggested that she bc removed to Lii
ia den lodge. This action was taken 500
Id Explained Document to Her
The document signed by Mrs. Bre
. ton upon her arrival at the Brattl
I. boro institution was put in eviden,