Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-04-05
A-H0spitaI
For Criipp|eS Who
Aren't Lame

TO walk eat sleep and do everything normalv-except
talk They all speech crppes The institution is the
National Hospital for Speech Disorders New York City,
probably the only hospital for speech sufferers in the
world
The suicide of young doctors first patient led to its
founding quarter of a century ago. The doctor was
James Sonnett Greene Just graduated Cornell Uni
Versty Medical College young Doctor Greene sat in his
office 1t several days before his first patient
peared young of 20 apparently in the best of health
He only suffered"
Baffled by first case nothing had ever said
about speech disorders in his whole four years of medical
preparatory Dr. Greene decided to investigate the tera
ure the subject and told his patient to back in
few days
The young returned He had taken
simpler out DR. Greene had been Of several doc
tors he had consulted. Having gotten encouragement
from of them relief from the mental torture that
his suffering inflicted him, he had in modern
paper parance, Jumped fallen from the roof of an
apartment house.
That incident impressed Or. Greene's mind the suf
ferng and despair that the speech crppes lot in fe
Somebody ought something for boys like that"
thought him again and again the
went by until it gave way to queson-Why can't
be that somebody"
IT, He spent six years in post graduate work
abroad learning what being done for the speech cripple
the clinics Of Europe Returning to the United States
he got thousand dollars from another philanthropcay
minded colleague and in 1916 opened small speech clinic
It occupied remodeed brownstone house on East 37th
Street IA New York City and accepted for treatment all
who regardless of creed ability to pay
The fame of the clinic spread Patients came to it
all parts of the United States and from dozens of
boy starting out from San Francisco Travelled $1,000 miles
get TO the clinic Lacking funds to reach New York by
the direct route, he shipped able seaman
boat going around the other wayacross the Pacific to
Honolulu Japan Singapore and Siam. In Siam the Amer
can Consul helped him get berth ship going to
Egypt and from there to London Al London ne shpped
TO Cuba weeks delay he found another
berth ship bound for New York.
Another sufferer set out from New Zealand and
rived months later with his only possessions
the clothes he was wearing and one cent IN ms pocket
He shipped to British Columbia aboard freghter and
hitch-hked to New York.
Soon the little clinic rechrstened National Hos
pita Speech Disorders crowded beyond capacity
1t moved to larger quarters remodeed double house
In few years that too was outgrown as appeals help
poured in from speech sufferers everywhere.
Finally New York business man and philanthropst,
Mr. Lucus y. Littauer presented the hospital with
sevenstory building at 81 Irving Place New York City in
which to carry its work.
While sufferers comprise the majority of it's patients
the hospital types voice and speech conditions
There the from South America who for thirty
years had spoken in high falsetto voice
porpexed doctor because Of the type
but because of the language problem The pa
tent understood English; the doctor could speak
Spanish Finally another patient volunteered to act
Interpreter and within half hour the South American
speaking Spanlsh-in baritone voice
Another patient telephone operator lost her voice
completely There nothing wrong with the vocal cords
the psychic side investigated The doctors found
that just before the onset Of her voice trouble she had been
transferred TO much active exchange where she
had to learn TO operate different switchboard She did
not master the new board as quickly as she should nave
and her supervisor Frequently criticized her She became
afraid of losing her job Finally her unconscious gave
her escape" from the ntoerabe situation She a,oe
morning 20 find that she couldn't say word The
nature Of her difficulty explained to the patient she
given treatment and happy and laxative more,
she was transferred back 20 her old exchange.
Today in the seven-story hospital there patients
from almost every state the Union and
foreign lands The institution numbers among its alumni"
doctors Including well known psychatrisD, lawyers,
writers, college professors business men-even Rhodes
scholar
There others from the owler walks OF life because
the hospitals doors open to al who its help