The Washington herald., 1914-06-21
"
YEARS in ASYLUM,
BLAMES INTRIGUE.
New York Man Charges He Is.
Victim of Business
Rivals,
CLAIMS THAT HE IS SANE
Former State Senator Says He Will
Substantiate Story of Persecu-
ton of His Client.
CLAIMS THAT HE IS SANE

OF an alleged Intrigue to keep a sane
man In an insane asylum will be un-
folded next week at Granville, n. Y, when
f. B. Wickes, Of Ticonderoga, appointed
referee by Supreme Court Justice Borst,
win hear the case of Frederick w. Saw
age. now confined In the 81. Lawrence
State Hospital for the Insane at Ogdens-
burg.
The story. as told by Savage and his
attorneys. and which they say they will
prove in court, Is that he was seized in
Massachusetts nearly four years ago
while he was having business troubles
with the Hood Rubber Company, of Bos-
ton. and thrown into the Boston State
Hospital. Later he was transferred to
the Massachusetts, State Hospital at
Westboro. When II was discovered by
the officials of Massachusetts that Saw
age was a citizen of New York, he was
sent to the Hudson River State Hospital
at Poughkeepsie. and nearly two years
ago was transferred to the Ogdensburg
institution.
Edgar T. Bracket Of Saratoga. former
State senator, has come TO the aid OF
Savage He was brought into the case
by c. Bertrand Race, Of Albany. a boy
hood friend of Savage Both lawyers
are working without compensation TO
see, they say, that justice is done.
Whatever the merits of the case. the
records show that the Hood Rubber
Company has spent thousands of dollars
for legal talent and the services OF noted
alienists to prevent Savage's discharge
from custody.
story of an Invention.
Savage charges that an invention of
his which made the company immense
profits. and the control of which he
was about to transfer TO others. was
the motive for his kidnapping" The
Hood Company officials declare he made
insane threats against them.
Savage is now a bent old man, with
hair as white as snow -Four years ago,
when his troubles began. IL is declared.
he was a young man of soldierly ap-
pearance-he is 4 veteran of the Spanish
American war-straight as an Indian. his
hair a lustrous brown, and his face
as fresh and free from care as that OF
boy. He Is still under forty years Of age.
Senator Brackett declares he is GER
tain that every word OF Savage's story
is true. and he will be declared sane and
competent in the proceedings TO begin
Eext Monday. at Granville. But let Saw
age tell the story-which he expects TO
prove.
Prospects of Wealth.
"on the morning of January n. 1Sl1."
said he, Il was a prosperous business
man. with fair accumulation OF money
and the prospect Of riches Immediately
before me. l had received a tentative |
offer from the representative Of a group
Of men among the weaIthiest in America |
looking to the financing of my business
on a basis of 100000. All my worh |
looked rosy. The very day ] had ex-
pected to settle that matter three |
strangers rushed into my office. while I |
was debating to my stenographer. kid
mapped me. and rushed me on TO some |
sort Of prison. where I was locked up |
and not permitted for days to communi- |
cate with family. friends. or counsel !
Then I was hailed before a court with |
out having had time for preparing my |
case and sent to a mad house on the |
strength of so-called expert medical testi- !
mony. l have been I'm confinement ever |
since, dragged from one hospital for the |
insane TO another-four in all-hounded |
by men of millions who have spent |
fortune keeping me locked up as mental \
generacy ascribed to Savage by an |
aIienist on the stand was excessive |
He is unusually sociabIe by /
nature. n Mystic Shriner, Elk, and mem |
ber OF a number of other fraternal and |
organizations, as well as a
Spanish war veteran.
How He Got His start.
His gIibness of tongue stood him in !
good stead in a business way. II is
related that when he chose the career |
Of a commercial traveller and applied |
to a wooden manufacturing company for
a job on commission the firm as a sort |
OF joke assigned him to a Southern ter
ritory with a line Of goods suited to a
cold climate In less than a year he had |
such qualities of salesmanship /
that he was transferred step by step Un-
til he held the most lucrative position
of all the road men in the company's
employ. His fame spread and finally the
Hood concern procured his services by
a fiattering offer.
Savage saved. according to his story, |
enough money to spend $4,000 on various
patents, seventeen in all. The one that /
attracted the Hood people was device
for rubber boots. A three-year contract /
was entered into. he says, by which the
Hood company was to manufacture these Il
goods under the Savage patent and mar
ket them through their jobbers, giving
Savage a royalty and commission. The
first friction came when he asked the L
company to put his name on the goods.
They demurred, saying that ii would cost
8 900. II
II drew my check for $780, said
Savage, and offered 1t to the company. II
was proud of my invention and wished
to have my name identified with II. Be
sides, It was good business. The tender
was refused, however, and this caused
some unpleasantness"
Savage then tried to organize a rub
Der company to explait his inventions. He
called Il the Hood-Savage Rubber Com
pany and offered the Hood interests 49
per cent of the stock. This was rejected.
SaYage's version is that the Hoods want
ID 81 per cent The other side denies
his.
scores Of Letters.
According TO Savage, from that time
IN his connection with the Hood COM