Year: 1859

The Rockford (Ill.) News of the Goth relates
the circumstances Of one of the most singular
mad freaks of young Irishman named Ryan,
who was laboring under fit Of delirium tre-
mems at the time, that we ever read Of 1t oc-
CURED on the outskirts of that town on Satur-
day morning last. The fellow had been ON a
ten days spree.


Miss LIE Roy, who keeps house on Main street.
near the hill, for her brother, Mr. james LIE
Roy, the attorney, was seated in the kitchen on
Saturday morning about half past nine clock
when she heard the sound Of person chopping
wood In the yard On looking out Of the win
dow. she saw man, stripped entirely naked
walking toward the door with large axe in his
hand, and acting in wild and excited man
ner notwithstanding her alarm at the un-
W0nted sight she retained presence Of mind
enough to lock the front and back doors and to
run up stairs to her bedroom, where she lock
ed herself in. Presently she heard the mad
man-fOr such she was now convinced he was
breaking in the back door, q Job he accom-
plished in short time. Once in the house he
went around in an aimless manner to upset
everything he could lay hands upon. He rum.
aged the drawers, overturned the chairs, tore
papers, set things out of their places, but appa-
rently without any intention either to rob or
destroy. He entered Mr. lie Roy's bed room
and broke open a satchel containing some law
papers, which he tore; he pulled out the drawer
OF the washstand, the contents of which he
threw about, and committed other similar
follies.


All this time Miss LIE Roy sat in her bed
room, trembling with terror, and hoping against
hope that he would pass by her door withou,
attempting to enter, but it seems that the luna
tic, with a cunning not usual in such cases. was
all the while aware of her whereabouts, and
finally came TO her chamber door and demand
ed admittance. She not answering, he again
called upon her to open the door, or if not, he
would break it down and kill her when he got
inside. The terrified woman kept STILL and
was almost frantic with terror at the prospect
before her. At length the msdman grew i'm
patient, dashed into the chamber door, and
sprang into the room, axe in hand Miss lie
Roy, scarcely knowing what she was about
opened the window and jumped tn the ground
below. distance of some twenty feet, and ran
for the fence, which is some four feet high, and
with an agility that is truly surprising, as she
is small, delicate woman, sprang over il with
bound and ran across the corn field toward
the river, calling for help. The mailman had
cunning enough left not to follow Miss Le Roy
out the window, but ran down stairs, on which
he dropped his axe, but on arriving in the yard
he procured a club, and gave chase to the hy-
ing woman. She kept on running the naked
madman ut her heels, until she got across
another fence, when she fell on heap of sand
and her would-b be murderer on top Of her-the
blow he had intended for her falling on the
sand. He recovered himself immediately and
was about aiming another blow at her head
when several men who were i'm an adjoining
field came to her assistance, and seized the
lunatic before the blow fell. 1t was almost q
miracle that Miss lie Roy was not brutally
murdered