Widnes Examiner. — 1906-05-26 (Widnes, Cheshire, England)

CYCLIST CLAIMS DAMAGES. ---Alleged Running Down Case.  care of him or else hand him over to the police. They left the Infirmary together. In Tanners-lane a woman shouted to Gibbins and he went back. Witness followed. The woman said to Gibbin's "You don't look very well " and he replied " I urn all right." Gibbins declined to have a drink with the woman and they went on. In Watkin-street Gibbins said he would go into the house by himself and witness left hint twenty or thirty yards from the door. During the whole time witness was with Gibbins he saw no thing to make him think anything was the matter with him. He had no reason to think the deceased was Out of his mind.  In answer to the Coroner Allison stated that he had been in the Army and whilst there had had charge of lunatics.  Mr. Brighouse : If you had it all to go over again would you leave Gibbins at the corner of Watkinstreet ?—I think I would.  Mr. Brighouse: Suppose Dr. Hodgkinson gave you similar instructions would you think you were justified in leaving a man at the end of the street ?—lf I got the same orders in the same situation again I am certain I would do the same thing. I had no idea there was anything wrong with the man or I would not have left him. Mr. Brighouse in summing up said he thought the jury would agree with him that they did quite right in adjourning the inquest and thrashing the matter out. No one would have been satisfied unless they had done so. There was no doubt that Gibbins was suffering from delusions on Monday,and on Tuesday he must have been worse, and that\he was left at the Infirmary presumably safe. The aonduct of those connected with the Infirmary came tinder their consideration. He did not like the suggestion in that case that the halucinations of the deceased wore due to alcohol. Influenza waa sufficient to cause the delusions without alcohol or anything else. Apart from any legal obligation or any obligation cast upon him by the rules and regulations ef the Infirmary there was a moral obligation respecting the treatment of a man suffering from delusions and likely to be dangerous to himself or to the community at large, and ths right course to have taken would have been to have telephoned for the police to take charge of him. He did not wish to say anything to damage Dr. Brown in his future career and he did not think anything had been said in the case which would prejudice him in any shape or form. He saw nothing against the doctor except that he had committed an error of judgment. With regard to the porter. He had proper and distinct instructions and yet he allowed the man to go. Any man with sense, with the vast experience of which Allison seemed to make a boast, would have known that one of the characteristics of a lunatic and a person suffering from delusions was a desire to deceive people. After what Dr. Brown told him the porter had no right to leave the man. He said he would do the same thing again, and he suggested that Mr. Forshaw should ask the Infirmary people whether the porter ought not tc. have different instructions. If he was going to remain the porter and carry out orders as he had done in that case, he was a dangerous man to have instructions given to him.  The jury returned a verdict of " Suicide whilst of unsound mincl.."rhey desired to censure the porter, and exonerated Dr. Brown, whom they did not think could be blamed after the instructions he had given to the porter..  Mr. Brighouse : I entirely agree with the verdict. Addressing Allison he said : .You had definite instructions as to what to do with this man and failed to carry them out, and you aggravate matters by saying if you got those instructions again you are going to carry them out in a similar manner. If you had come to the conclusion it was an error of judgment on your part one would have looked over the matter. lam certain Mr. Forshaw and the Bbard of Management cannot do so with a man who says he is going to carry out instructions again in a similar fashion notwithstanding the fatal calamity as the reSult of your failure to carry them out. I think your position ought to be reconsidered.  Allison : I answered your question truthfully. I did not mean—  I‘lr. Brighouse : You have had your opportunity of arguing it out. lam not going to argue it any more.  AN