Evening star., 1928-12-01

attorney turned with vicious Joy to an
antagonist whose weapons he could
parry with his own. II think the ques-
ton Is proper cross-examination, your
honor"
"The question is allowed"
Dr. Cavanaugh looked down at the
district attorney with an invulnerable
placidity, from which his intended
thrust glanced harmlessly aside.
"Of late years it has been my GUS
tom to take only such patients as in
terested me-and to take them where
ever l found them. Fortunately I am
no longer dependent on an income from
my practice, as I believe I stated on
direct examination, and am able to
devote my time for the most part to
have been working on the problem Of
the relation of fugue states to genuine
dissertation of personality. From
that point Of view found Mr.. Orme
interesting"
"Oh, so you were very much inter-
ested in Mr.. Orme'S easel"
Very much, yes"
"Well, DOCTOR" the district attor-
ney'S bludgeoning voice went on, isn't
it fact the scientific mind, like the
musical mind, Is subject to 'tempera-
ment'? In the enthusiasm of research
is it not frequently found that facts
are interpreted to meet the hypothesis
which the investigator is trying to
prove?"
THAT is sometimes true of some in
vestigators, yes
well, then"-the district attorney
painted little in his approach to his
goal-"what was to prevent David
Orme, knowing the intense interest you
took In his case, from making up the
whole story which you have told US
and using 1t as a cloak of defenSe?"
1.-THE main thing that prevented him
was that he couldn't do it."
So far as the doctor was concerned,
the district attorney had evidently
reached his goal only to find that
nothing was there.
You have heard of malingering,
doctor?"
For the first time DR.. Cavanaugh
permitted his smile to broaden.
'YeS, I have heard of malingering"
How can you be sure that Orme was
not malingering, deliberately concoct-
ing a story and initiating the symptoms
of this fugue you speak Off"
Again, if may, will resort to an
analogy Suppose you were to ask me
to initiate the playing of Fritz Kreisler.
If made the attempt, the imitation,
venture to say. would deceive no one.
Even if deliberately prepared for. the
test and had certain degree of skill,
the result, while it might pass before
hearers without musical training. would
certainly be detected without difficulty
by musicians.
THE imitation of a mental disorder
nOVaf1.NrEy RI Y1nlNt1lar ho1inf &c iY1fSnifalN
more difficult than the imitation of a
masters playing. In fact, not even a
student of the subject could possibly
maintain the fiction for any length of
time without giving himself away The
amateur who thinks that by grimacing
and tearing his hair he is giving a con-
vincing clinical picture of insanity Is
doomed to instant disappointment
Functional and organic derange-
mentS of the mind are as numerous and
as complex in their differences as phys
ical disorders. and their symptoms are
as definite. You might as we'll ask the
physician whether patient down with
typhoid fever or tuberculosis was not
making vague general pretenSe of be-
ing Ill. I may add that my own expert
ence has been fairly extensive, and
that it has not been devoid of the ma
lingerers Of whom you speak. Their
efforts were quite readily detected"
The district attorney glanced covertly
at the jury. They were obviously i'm
pressed He wished he had left that
particular line of questioning unopened.
Graham was leaning back, taking
things as they came. He could set DR..
Cavanaugh up there and turn him
loose! The district attorney inquired
Nf ha MT EuitHnIVf cfl0Y1t
family, why the devil they hadn't been
able to hook Dr. Cavanaugh for the
prosecution--then he would be sitting
back and Graham would be doing the
worrying. He passed his handkerchief
across the back of his neck, where the
roll of fat stood out in a thick ridge.
Then he leaned forward, moving to a
new line of attack.
Granting that all you say is true,
doctor-and I am without the advan-
tage of the technical learning necessary
to argue the point with you-" (the
district attorney hoped that would have
its effect on the jury, that they would
see themselves and him together as
allies, as plain men pitting their robust
common sense against the hair-split-
tings of the academic reporD there
still remains no reason why Orme should
not have had another impulse to knock
Sheila OShay down. And why, having
killed her with the blow, he should not
have concealed and destroyed her body,
as he thought, and then have conven-
iently suffered another loss OF memory.
Or let us say that the emotional crisis
put him into that state Of fugue again" !"
IT take it you mean to put that Sug-
gestion in the form OF a question" DR..
Cavanaugh spoke before Graham could
do more than grunt the beginning of a
protest. "At any rate. will answer it."
1T might have been physically pos
sible for Orme to have left the Ellsworth
grounds with his wife at half past 8, in
accordance with Mrs. Kane'S testimony,
have quarreled with her and killed her,
then have left her body lying casually
about somewhere while he wandered
about, and finally have returned for it
and taken it to the marsh in very
clever and almost successful attempt to
conceal his crime. That would be phys
ically possible, but it would not be pSy-
chologically possible.
mo one in a state Of mind capable
Of celebrating the plan for concealing
the body in the marsh and setting fire
to the grass in order to destroy it would
have failed to carry through the plan
at once.
But there is no evidence that he
didn't carry it through at once. No one
knows what time he arrived at the auto
camp. Why assume an interval of aim
less wandering?" The district attorney
was startled out of all caution.
Because" said DR.. Cavanaugh, "he
hadn't had time to go to the marsh and
get back when saw him."
when you saw him?" The district
attorney clutched at the torn shreds of
formality. IT withdraw that. When
did you see him, doctor?"
Eat half past 8 o'clock on the night
Of March 18 CHANGED to look out of
my office window and saw David Orme
sitting on the curb did not know at
the time, of course, that he had reverted
to his abnormal state-that he was then
suffering from recurrence Of amneSia,
although on this occasion on this occa-
sion slight and temporary recurrence.
Il was busy with caller at the time,
and I intended, as soon as the caller
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