Evening star., 1920-09-05
|MADMAN STAYS,
| BEING Captured
| IN SECOND ATTACK
st. EIizabeth's Patient Es.
capes, Killing Another to
Steal His Clothes.
HIS RECOVERY FROM
WOUNDS UNCERTAIN
Third Inmate of Hospital Witness
Of Fatal Struggle on Hillside
and Tells Attendants.

.S~~S S4s~~AN8Ae0s
After beating to death a fellow
patient at st. Elizabeths Hospital,
yesterday morning. Vincent w. Hop
kins. another inmate. eluded the
police throughout the day. but was
wounded and captured at 10 o'clock
last night by James E. Cadell.- an
engineer at the asylum pumping
station. when he attempted a second
attack.
The dead man is Patrick ]. Messett,
sixty-eight years old, whose relatives
live in Scranton, Pa. Messetts body.
stripped Of tie brown suit and straw
hat he was wearing, was found on Q
hillside in the asylum grounds shortly
before noon.
When Hopkins. who had escaped
from the ward of dangerous patients
early yesterday morning in his night
clothing, was shot by the rifle of En-
gineer Cadell last night, the police
say, he was wearing the dead mans
clothes
Hall at the asylum after he had been
shot, was too weak to make a states
ment. The theory of the police and
hospital officials is that Hopkins at
tackled Messett for the purpose of get
ting his clothes.
Recovery Uncertain.
The bullet from Cadelrs rife is sbe-
lieved to have penetrated Hopkinsf
left lung. and his chances of recovery
a1e uncertain. The engineer was per-
mfNed to remain on duty at the
pumping station with a policeman
stationed there.
While an army of police and hos
pital attendants We're guarding every
road In Congress Heights and watch-
ing the, bridges for Hopkins he was
seen by Cadell near the asylum pump
ing station, which is near the river
front.
According to Information gathered
by the policA Cadell took Hopkins
into the pumping station and sat him
in . chair while he went to telephShe :
for aid.
While CadeN was attempting to
get a telephone connection. the police
were told. Hopkins made two AZ
tempts to leave the building. but was
brought back each time by the en-
gineer. -
Engineer Uses Rifle.
After his second attempt to leave
Hopkins is said to have advanced
toward the engineer. who, the police
say, fired q shot from his .22-caliber
rifle. Special Officer James willard
hurried to the pumping station in
response to Cadelrs call and took
the wounded fugitive to Howard
Hall.
.eone OF the physicians at the
less patient who has the freedom Of
the grounds claims to have witnessed
two men struggling with each other
on the; hillside. where Messett was
found dead in the morning.
This. inmate, the doctor said. was
NOT close enough to recognize either
of the men, but, after he had seen one
of them fall and roll over an embank-
ment he reported what he had seen
that because Of his mental condition.
this inmate was not able to give a very
clear account Of the encounter WHICH
resulted in Messett's death. so
Coroner ]. Ramsay hewitt viewed
Messett's body yesterday afternoon
At that time no trace of Hopkins had
been found and the coroner decided
not to hold an inquest at the morgue
until Tuesday.
Tine Of Escape.
According to one OF the physicians
at the hospital. Hopkins escaped from
q ward OF dangerous patients be-
tween and $50 o'clock yesterday
Investigation Of the case
had not been completed last night.
but the belief Of one of1cial was that
the patient sprang through q deor.
way as an attendant opened 1t 10
enter.
within three minutes after his ab:
sence was discovered. guards were
searching throughout the grounds for
him. It was not until o'clock. hows
ever, that trace Of him was found.
An attendant named Strothers en-
countered Hopkins in a stretch OF
woods inside the asylum walls and
started back to the ward with him. .
Before they had gone far. according
to one of the doctors. the fugitive
the guard and again :
made a getaway. =
It was about four hours later. or
nearly noon. when another inmate
who is allowed the freedom OF the
grounds. reported to the doctors the .
struggle he had seen on the. top of b
the hin overlooking Boiling Field and :
the river. a
Attendants hurried to the scene and s
found Messett, who had died mo-;
ment before. The section Of pipe and I,
two blood-stained rocks were found
nearby. Those who found the body
were surprised when they discovered
the victim had been stripped Of his
brown suit, his sailor straw hat and
shoes Messett was regarded as =
harm ess patient aad was allowed 20
20 aheut the grounda -
AZ soon ~ Capt. c. r. n. Lord ~
ISuAtlnped On Page 8 Column e