RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY
YEARS
Photo. Bassano, Old Bond Street, London, W.
L. FORBES WINSLOW,
M.P., LL.D. CANTAB., D.C.L. OXON.
RECOLLECTIONS
OF FORTY YEARS
BEING AN ACCOUNT AT FIRST HAND
OF SOME FAMOUS CRIMINAL LUNACY
CASES, ENGLISH AND AMERICAN ; TO-
GETHER WITH FACSIMILE LETTERS,
NOTES, AND OTHER DATA
CONCERNING THEM
WITH 19 ILLUSTRATIONS
BY
L. FORBES WINSLOW
M.B.. D.C.L., LL.n.
LONDON
JOHN OUSELEY, LTD
FLEET LANE, FARRINGDON STREET, E.G.
(All rights reserved)
This Book is dedicated to every true Englishman
who, having the courage of his opinions and
convictions, is not ashamed to express the same,
and who in every way acts up to what he thinks
right, with a view of benefiting humanity and
doing good in the world by preventing harm,
heedless of public opinion and the consequences of
jealousy, and who hits " straight out from the
shoulder^ as every true-born Englishman should
do without fear of consequences.
L. FORBES WINSLOW.
2066735
PREFACE
ALTHOUGH I have breathed the atmosphere of lunacy
for a period extending over sixty years, and can there-
fore chronicle events dating from that period, the real
tragedy of my life, — if I may use this expression, — com-
menced from the year of my qualification in 1869 ; thus
am I able to give a forty years' record of practical
knowledge of lunacy. Every legal case mentioned by
me became public property at the time of the trial.
Certain facts, however, I have given in connection
with these which have never previously seen the light
of day. I have been careful to avoid all mention of
treatment, the book being entirely one of a social
nature and not a professional record. I have endeav-
oured to express my views fairly but unflinchingly on
public matters, and only to condemn where I think such
condemnation was well deserved. The book is written
for the world at large ; but at the same time I have
no doubt in my own mind that many of my own
profession will benefit by the perusal of its pages, as
there are certain lessons to be learnt therein.
L. FORBES WINSLOW.
57 DEVONSHIRE STREET,
Sept. 9, 1910.
CONTENTS
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS
PAGES
Memory and its peculiarities — A few words about my
family — Where I spent my childhood — Visit to the
Duke of Wellington's funeral — My first appearance
before a Medical Society — Early school-days — The
first term at Rugby — My first appearance in an
orchestra — Cambridge days — Steal a march on my
fellow-students — Athletic experiences at Cam-
bridge— How I pass three examinations in three
months, graduate, and win a bet in consequence —
Interesting experiences with the tutor and Professor
of Medicine at Downing — Leave Cambridge and go
to St George's Hospital — Become qualified at
Cambridge — How my brother, the vicar of St Paul's,
St Leonard's-on-Sea, gives up the study of medicine
in favour of myself — I become associated with my
father — And join the asylum staff — My father dies
— My mother persuades me not to disassociate my-
self from the asylum — My mother dies — Heavy
Chancery suits follow — A triumphant result —
Receive D.C.L. from Oxford and LL.D. from Cam-
bridge—Keenness for athletics . » » . V . 1-27
LUNACY OFFICIALS I HAVE MET
Masters in Lunacy — Samuel Warren and his pomposity
— Sir Alexander Miller and the Clapham recluse
case — Master Fischer cross-examines me on my
own book — Dissatisfaction expressed on the general
Control of the office — Lord Chancellor's Visitors of
Lunatics, and personalities connected with them —
Commissioners in Lunacy whom I have met — John
Forster the most severe but the kindest of all —
William Frere learns his business from my book —
How the Commissioners are misled and misguided . 31-42
CONTENTS
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
PAGES
My sporting patient— Case of feigned insanity through
love — Am asked to give evidence in the Tichborne
case — Visit to eccentric major in Scotland — My
dealings with a homicidal maniac — Visit to an asylum
at Venice, on which I report to the Italian authorities
— How I seize a homicidal lunatic in his own house —
Expose a Spiritualist, and Mr Punch honours me with
a couplet — My adventures at the bureau of police at
Naples — A night with a raving drunkard — How an
English subject is rescued from a Dutch prison — A
mysterious visitor with a metallic band on his head
— The widow, the witch, and the American Governor
— My acquaintance with the " Swami" — A gentleman
highly connected consults me in a mask — The com-
poser of " Alice, where art thou ! " dies — A gentleman
in an asylum near Exeter returns to London a free
agent — Murder committed by a lady whose husband
acted on his own responsibility 45-84
LEGAL EXPERIENCES
Discourtesy and disrespect are to be expected— Judges
support counsel— An opinion of justice— How medical
witnesses are treated in Law Courts— How the Trea-
sury experts are treated differently— How vital facts
are suppressed— How the prisoner does not have a
fair trial— Examination of prisoners waiting trial for
murder— How medical men decline to go into witness-
box, and why— Trial and execution of Robert King,
a lunatic— How I floored a Q.C. in that case— A
definition: the medical and the legal profession
-Unfairness of law in England— A case where
soothing" treatment succeeded— How I managed
to get a lunatic legally represented at an inquiry—
An opinion of a British jury in cases where insanity is
S^Ctt^ffS ™ystery-Staunton case - Case
u Ml^ Powell— Case of Mainwaring— Murder
on the Brighton railway by Lefroy— Otley murder
M 9"32S2? murder by Tay'or and Currah—
Mrs Mavbnck's case— Mrs Pearcey's case— Tread-
y and Drant: murder by epileptics-The Reading
r-The P°isoned cake
KA ^S £yer-T,he P°isoned cake murder1
Mary Ansell-The trunk murder : Devereux-Lady
shophfte^-A West End club kleptomaniac-The
rthrrt i • °ase ~ Case « arson -The
Cathcart lunacy mqu.ry-The Townshend lunacy
........ 87-247
CONTENTS xi
JACK THE RIPPER
PAGES
Series of murders — My views as to the murderer — Lunar
influence on dates of murders — Sir Charles Warren
and the police — Wrong persons are accused — Numer-
ous theories are started — Defect in the police system
— Take the matter up myself — And communicate
with the authorities — Jack the Ripper writes two
letters to me — Date of murder given in letter to me
proves to be correct — Again warn the police — Jack
the Ripper and the lucid interval — Receive definite
clues, and trace the man — I have his blood-stained
rubber shoes in my possession, together with
ribbons and feathers — Offer to catch Jack the
Ripper on a certain Sunday morning, but the
police again decline to co-operate with me — Publish
my clue in the New York Herald, then published in
London — No murders committed since that time —
My general conclusions on the case — Recent develop-
ments . . . . ... . . 251-283
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES
A voyage across the Atlantic — Arrival in America — An
experience of American interviewers — My supposed
views on ladies riding bicycles — These opinions
challenged — A denial of the same — Preside at the
Congress — Instructed to examine David Hannigan in
the Tombs — Give evidence at a commission of
lunacy — Trial of David Hannigan — My appearance
in court — My opinion is asked in the cases of Holmes
and Durrant — My opinion is published — Examine
Mrs Fleming in the Tombs charged with matricide
— My opinion is published — Mrs Fleming's case dis-
cussed in full — I meet a millionaire at the West-
minster Hotel — He dies suddenly — Assist at the
inquest and post-mortem — False rumours relating to
his will — 80,000 dollars cause me a wakeful night —
My visit to the New York World office— Dr
Parkhurst's guns silenced — My friend with his loaf
of bread — Experience of a millionaire's dinner —
My daily events are chronicled — Adventures with the
American spiritualist — Return to England . . " . 287-350
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS
Some eminent men I met — Sir William Fergusson and
his fee— William Rose— Sir Benjamin Ward Richard-
son— An open speaker — Propose a toast of the " Fine
Arts," and get rather involved— My first and only
political speech — Dr Farquharson on medical politi-
xii CONTENTS
cians— Dr Winn's lecture before the Victoria Institute
— How his lecture finds its way to Scotland Yard —
Mr Dillwyn, M.P.'s, Lunacy Committee in 1877— My
opinion of the same — Testify and give my views
on the same — My first meeting with Lombroso —
Some of his peculiarities — Move a resolution at
Exeter Hall on over-pressure — Some lawyers I have
met — Edwin James and Montagu Williams —
Affectionate remembrances of my father —
Established a British Hospital for Mental Disorders
in 1890 — No lunatic or alleged lunatic has been hanged
at my dictum — The hardness of the world, and the
inability to convince them — Degeneration of the
human race — Alarming increase of insanity during
forty years — Reasons for the same — The Lord Chan-
cellor— Sipido attempts assassination of Royalty —
Want of Christian sympathy in the world — My opinion
of the Lunacy Acts, and of those who endeavour to
force their enactment — In this, unfairness reigns
supreme— Still register sixty-six, not out . . . 353-384
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
L. Forbes Winslow — portrait .... Frontispiece
PAGE
Mrs Maybrick before her Trial . .142
Mrs Maybrick during her Trial . . . . . 142
Mr Berry (to Dr Forbes Winslow) : "You've always got
something to say" . . . '. . 155
Mrs Dyer . . . . . . • . 175
Mary Ansell . *,.''• . . . . . 192
Mary Ansell's Sister . . . .. . 192
The Condemned Girl's Hand . . . . . 194
Mary Ansell's Mother . . . . .194
Devereux in Court . . . , . ,. . 201
A Jack-the-Ripper Letter . . . . . 264
,, „ „ ..... 274
David Hannigan . . . . . . 298
Hannigan awaiting his Trial for the Murder of Mann . 299
Hannigan before the Commission in Lunacy . . 300
Hannigan's Statement . » . . . . . 303
Hannigan's Trial : Scene in Court .... 307
Hannigan's Father ...... 309
H. H. Holmes : Some Sketches of his Head, and his
Letter concerning them . . . -317
William Henry Theodore Durrant . . .321
Mrs Fleming .... . 326
Mrs Fleming consults her Lawyers in the Tombs Prison . 329
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS
RECOLLECTIONS which are implanted in the mind can
never be eradicated. As one grows older, so also do
the events which are chronicled in one's early life
become more vividly impressed upon one's mind.
Anything worth recalling we remember, whilst any-
thing we desire to forget and wipe from the tablets
of our memory becomes still more in evidence. In
recalling recollections extending over forty years we
have the inevitable to cope with. Our memory
becomes once more vividly active, and it has become
" wax to receive and marble to retain."
" Oh, that wretched memory of mine ! " is often
exclaimed by many of those whose brains are begin-
ning to show signs of collapse.
It is a fact that at one time in every one's life the
memory often begins to slacken, but on the eve of
dissolution, or as old age is approaching, our memory
returns with all its wonted vigour. The past stands
out before us in all its hideous nakedness. The memory
of the child is more acute than that of the adult ; in
middle age it is often treacherous ; in old age, except
for the memory of names, it again becomes acute,
especially for events long past and gone, but imperfect
2 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
for recent events. This is one of the chief indications
of loss of memory. In answer to a question comes the
response, " My memory is splendid. I can tell you
what I did years ago." " Very well," says the physi-
cian, " can you tell me what you did yesterday ? "
The reply is a negative. This is the true test of
memory.
I graduated as licentiate of the Society of Apothe-
caries, thus enabling me to register as a qualified
medical practitioner, in 1869, previous to my medical
graduation at Cambridge.
Though my experience in detail as a mental expert
will presumably date from 1869, the year in which I
became qualified in medicine, nevertheless, from the
fact that from a year old I have lived among the insane,
I feel therefore that, previous to the time I received
my first medical diploma, I had earned sufficient
experience even at that early age to entitle me to the
title of a mental expert.
It is a generally admitted fact that as a rule no one
learns anything of his profession, be it legal, medical,
clerical, or any other, until the useless subjects included
in the schedule of his examinations are wiped out of
the memory, and room is made for more useful and
practical subjects bearing directly upon his own
profession.
A few reminiscences of my early life, therefore, may
not be inadmissible here.
I was born in Guildford Street, London, on 3ist
January 1844, and an impression made on my youth-
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 3
ful mind of the Foundling Hospital at that time has
always existed.
My father was a physician, struggling to establish
the recognition of the plea of insanity in criminal
cases in England, and he lived to see the accomplish-
ment of his desire.
My mother was a Miss Susan Holt ; my grandmother
a well-known mover in the religious world in New
York, Mrs Mary Winslow, whose life, written by her
son, the Rev. Octavius Winslow, entitled Life in
Jesus, is a well-known and well-read book both in
England and America as a text-book of all that is
righteous and good. Edward Winslow, one of the
Pilgrim Fathers who left England in the Mayflower
in 1620, and who was the first Governor of Massa-
chusetts, was a direct ancestor of mine. A large book,
entitled the Winslow Memorial, published in New
York, traces my lineal descent from him.
Within a few months of my birth I was taken to
Sussex and Brandenburgh House Asylum at Hammer-
smith, founded by my father, and I continued to live
there, with certain periodical intervals, while at school
and college, until 1886, when I vacated the atmosphere
of a lunatic asylum — a fact I was extremely delighted
in doing.
In 1852, at the age of eight, I was taken by my
father to see the funeral of the Duke of Wellington,
and accompanied him to the Conservative Club in St
James's Street, having passed the previous night at
his consulting rooms in Albemarle Street.
4 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
In those days clubs were not used on such occasions
as a means of obtaining money to add to their coffers
by making their members give a heavy donation in
order to get a seat or allow a relative to have one.
This is a great contrast from what takes place nowa-
days. No ten pounds was then inflicted upon a
member who was desirous of taking his wife to view
any royal procession. So far as my recollection goes,
not only did my father take me with him, but also a
patient, who was the terror of my early childhood,
was included in the party.
My first appearance before any learned medical
corporation was in 1853, when I was nine years old.
My father, in the capacity as President of the Medical
Society of London, was giving his oration, and for
some reason or other, whether I evinced an eagerness
at an early age to see what the proceedings of a
Medical Society were, or whether he wished me to go
of his own accord, I cannot recollect at this moment,
but I accompanied him to this meeting. I remember
the circumstances as though it had only taken place
yesterday. I was dressed in a black velvet knicker-
bocker suit, and sat on a chair just in front of my
father on the platform. It was not to be supposed
that at such an early age I could really take very much
interest in an oration, even though delivered by my
own father. He was not, however, prepared for the
catastrophe which happened, and one which I have
often heard him narrate. In the midst of a most
eloquent sentence, in which the attention of the
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 5
audience was deeply wrapped, the proceedings were
interrupted by a sudden scream, and it was found that
I had fallen from my high estate on to the platform,
whilst my squallings induced him to descend from his
presidential throne, and for the moment interrupt the
sanctity of the proceedings. Beyond this I can say
nothing as to what became of me ; whether I spent
the rest of the evening in the cloak-room, or whether
the fall had wakened me up sufficiently to cause me
to seriously attend to the oration, I am not prepared
to say.
I might say, whilst on this subject, that the last
time my father came to London previous to his death
in 1874 was to accompany me to the Medical Society
of London to look at his own picture, which he had
presented to the Society, and which had just come
back from being renovated, and is hung in the same
place now as it was then — in the entrance-hall of this
Society.
My early school -days are not remarkable for
anything in particular. The first school I went to
was kept by a dame — the house is still in existence
in the Hammersmith Road, between Nazareth House
and St Paul's School ; from there I went to King
Edward the Sixth's School at Berkhampstead, and
then to a school kept by a Baron Andlau at Clapham
Common, with a view to acquiring a knowledge of
modern languages, especially German, which language
all boys were supposed to speak during play hours, or
pay a penny fine. From Clapham Common I went to
6 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Overslade, near Rugby, kept by the Rev. Mr Congreve,
and from there to Rugby to the house of the Rev.
C. A. Arnold.
The first experience of my journey to Rugby is
amusing. I had gone to Euston Station with a new
" topper," as was the wont of any new boy with a
view of causing favourable first impressions. In the
first tunnel we entered after leaving Euston, some boy
knocked off my hat, the result being that I arrived at
Rugby minus a hat. My elder brother, who had been
at the school a year before me, had earned the nick-
name of " Bags," from the fact that on one occasion
he arrived with rather a loud pair of inexpressibles.
I was at once called " Young Bags " in distinction
to " Old Bags," which was then given to my brother.
This accompanied him to Oxford and me to Cambridge.
Nicknames acquired at school often continue through
life.
I left Rugby in 1861, the year the Prince Consort
died, and I recollect whilst playing the Old Rugbeian
football match at Rugby I heard of the decease. I
made a number of valuable acquaintances at Rugby.
Arnold was very musical, and at stated periods those
who were pupils of his, and who possessed any musical
talents, took part in the Kinder Symphony. A fine
violinist, Herr Deutschmann, led our orchestra. I
played a most extraordinary instrument called the
cuckoo, and two of the other boys — but now learned
judges, whose names I dare not mention, as I do
not want to be committed for contempt of court
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 7
— I think played the triangle and the whistle. The
performance was in every way a success, and was
repeated periodically.
After leaving Rugby School, though it was always
my intention to follow my father's footsteps as a
mental specialist, I had not quite decided what course
of study I should pursue as the modus operandi to
obtain a qualification. At first I went to read for
the matriculation examination at the London Uni-
versity, and I commenced to do so with a Dr Gill,
who at that time had a class for the matric. During
the Easter vacation I went to Paris with my father
and an old friend of his, Dr Waller Lewis, the head
medical officer of the General Post Office, who, being
himself a Cambridge man, persuaded me to abandon
the London University for Cambridge, which I did
forthwith.
I entered at Caius College, Cambridge, in the
October term, 1862. My father, I recollect, took me
up there, and left me in charge of the Rev. C. Clayton,
the excellent, conscientious, and good tutor of that
college at the time.
I was very desirous to begin my medical studies at
once. Unfortunately, before I could register as a
medical student at Cambridge, the " Little Go," or
some recognised educational examination, had to be
previously passed. The first examination for the
" Little Go " took place the following March ; but
unless I was prepared to pass what is called the
" Honours Little Go," which consists of extra mathe-
8 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
matical subjects, and which is only intended for
Honours men, a distinction I did not aspire to, I
should have to wait until the following October, or
exactly one year from entering. This I politely de-
clined, and struck out a course which appealed to my
notions. I wished to steal a march upon those students
who had entered the same term as I had, and decided
to let the Cambridge " Little Go " wait and to pass
some other educational examination. I had been in
communication with the Royal College of Physicians
of London, who at that time held a similar examina-
tion, and entered my name for this, which was to be
held in March, the same month as the " Honours
Little Go " would have been held. I kept this
entirely to myself.
At Cambridge it is necessary to " keep " so many
days in each term, amounting to two-thirds of the
actual number of days to constitute a term. My
term only expired the very day of my examination
in London. I had ordered a cab to fetch me from
the college at 7.30 a.m. to take me to the station.
None, however, arrived. I rushed from my rooms
down King's Parade, and, fortunately finding an
empty conveyance of some sort, galloped down to
the railway station. The man presiding at the book-
ing-office told me that I should not have time to
catch the train, but, rushing over the line, I jumped
in as it was actually moving out. I arrived in London,
and, driving straight to the Royal College of Physi-
cians, I went through the morning examination, and,
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 9
returning home, told my parents what I had been
doing. I was called foolish, and encouraged by being
told I should surely be " plucked," and " How could
I have done such a stupid thing ! "
Nothing daunted, I continued my examination the
same afternoon and twice the following day. To my
satisfaction and relief my name appeared in the list.
I forthwith registered myself as a medical student,
and thus gained nine months' start of those under-
grads who had entered the same term as I had, and
who were waiting until they had passed the " Little
Go " in October before registering. The time I thus
gained was invaluable to me, as I actually became
qualified in London before I had taken my Cambridge
medical degree, which is rather a unique experience,
if not an isolated one. As a number of my medical
friends were migrating from Caius to Downing College,
I followed their example. We had more independence
there ; the college was nearer the Medical Schools.
At that time it was a small college, but soon the
numbers gradually began to increase. We put an
eight on the river, and gained eight places in six
nights, rowing to the top of our division.
I rowed number six ; Lord Justice Collins, Professor
Ray Lankester, and the Rev. Mr Macmichael, a subse-
quent " blue," had oars in the same boat.
In addition to a boat-club, the little medical colony
who had migrated to Downing from Caius founded
an athletic and a cricket club. I was appointed
president of these.
io RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
My college days were of the usual humdrum descrip-
tion, though, like many others, I often look back to
them with affectionate regret that they are gone for
ever. Friends made there, never seen since ; but,
though lost to sight, they still remain to memory dear.
March 1865 had arrived, and though I had been in
residence for nearly three years, and was within three
months of the completion of my residence at the
university, I had not passed any of my examinations.
The fact was, having passed the Royal College of
Physicians entrance examination in 1863, by which
I became a registered medical student, I was content
to pursue my medical studies, ignoring for the time
being the general examinations of the university.
I was determined, however, to pass these within my
three years, and made a supreme effort to accomplish
this. Between March and June I had to pass three
examinations — the previous examination, or " Little
Go " ; the professorial examination in modern
history ; and the Bachelor of Laws degree, or LL.B.
I had decided to graduate both in law and medicine
in preference to the ordinary B.A. degree — a fact I
have never regretted.
Though this seemed a gigantic task, I accomplished
it. The " Little Go " was passed in March. I had
two weeks intervening between this examination and
the next. The vacation had just commenced, and I
came up to London and joined a class of Professor
Stokes, of memory fame, as the professorial modern
history examination was replete with dates and other
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS n
facts, which required a gigantic memory to acquire
in two weeks. I also studied hard at the Reading-
room of the British Museum. I returned to Cam-
bridge in April, and was examined by the Professor
of Modern History, who at that time was Professor
Kingsley. I had the satisfaction of seeing my name
in the Times as having passed first class. Then I
commenced my legal studies, having six weeks before
undertaking a complicated and difficult examination
in law. I passed, and took my degree of LL.B. in
June, thus passing the three examinations in six weeks,
and winning a bet of twenty to one made with me by
some titled, conceited undergraduate of the same
college, who, having expressed his opinion against
my achieving this, sneered, and offered to back
his opinion. I was determined to do this, and I
succeeded, much to the surprise of many.
There is one thing appertaining to my university
days which appears worth chronicling, as bearing on
my first professional experience of uncontrollable
drunkenness. It was a very strange, at least a very
unusual, event for any undergraduate to be able to
narrate. The tutor of Downing was a man of mark
at Cambridge. He was well known for his responsi-
bility in ordering the dinners for which Downing was
then celebrated ; this specially applied to the catering
for the High Table, at which Sunday dinners were a
feature of the university, so far as the dons connected
with the other colleges were concerned, and who used
to assemble every Sunday to participate in them in
12 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
our Hall. As I was a fellow commoner, this advantage
I also enjoyed. The association with fellows and dons
of other colleges raised me rather beyond the pinnacle
of the ordinary undergraduate. It had the advantage
of putting me at ease with my superiors, followed by
an impression of equality with those in authority.
Our tutor was very hospitable, and he was never happy
unless surrounded by a number of convivial spirits,
quite as capable of doing justice to a good repast as
he was himself. We had a French chef, also the
nominee of the tutor, and I may say that the dinners
at Downing in the year 1865 were as good as could be
found in any restaurant in Paris.
Except on Sundays, our party at the High Table
generally consisted of about six, of which the tutor
was quite the ruling spirit. Downing College pos-
sessed a considerable amount of property in Croydon,
Cambridgeshire, and its immediate vicinity. The
tutor being also bursar, it was his duty to go out there
to collect the rents. These visits often necessitated
a dinner with the farmers. I remember one wintry
night the tutor asked me if I would accompany him
on one of these missions. I consented, and we drove
over in a dogcart. On our way back the snow was
thick on the ground, and as he succeeded in depositing
the trap on a bank, and having my grave doubts as
to the sobriety of the tutor, I offered to take the reins
into my own hands. He consented with a hiccough.
I shall never forget that journey. My suspicions
proved correct, and it was with the greatest difficulty
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 13
that I was enabled to keep my tutor from falling out
of the trap, besides nearly upsetting it. We arrived
safely at the college, and I took him forthwith to his
rooms, escorting him upstairs. On opening his door
I saw to my surprise that the Downing Professor of
Medicine was in a worse state, so far as sobriety was
concerned, than the tutor himself. Having put the
tutor safely to bed and tucked him up, I then woke up
the professor, who was snoring loudly in an armchair,
and escorted him safely across the quadrangle to his
own house.
Poor old man ! I can see him sitting there now !
He used to give the lectures on materia medica for
medical students. At the first lecture he was quite
sober, and he impressed upon his class the great im-
portance of the subject. The second lecture was about
tasting his wines, also an important one in his own
estimation, as his cellar contained many fine samples.
I cannot at this lengthened period recollect in what
part of materia medica wine-tasting is included. This
lecture was much appreciated by the students, and
those who had missed that lecture turned up in a
large body at the next one, eager for the same to be
repeated — only to find, much to their chagrin, that
the professor was unwell and unable to lecture.
One or two more lectures of much the same descrip-
tion were given during the term, and the schedules
for attendance at these lectures, as constituting
a part of the medical student's curriculum, were
duly signed by him and forwarded by the student
14 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
to the Regius Professor of Medicine. This same
professor was one of the physicians to Addenbroke
Hospital, and one of the university examiners for
the degree in medicine.
I attended the viva voce examination out of curiosity.
Whether the Downing Professor of Medicine had in-
dulged in a quiet nap it was difficult to say, but he
had always the knack of asking the same questions
which one of his confreres, assisting at the examina-
tion, had just previously asked. Sir Richard Dalby,
the distinguished aural surgeon, who was one of the
candidates, and who had a keen eye for the ridiculous,
and who knew the peculiarities of the professor, on
several times being asked the same question, replied
that he had just answered it. Things were very lax
in those days, especially so far as related to the attend-
ance at lectures.
After leaving Cambridge I went to St George's
Hospital, where my medical education was continued,
returning to Cambridge later on for two years' more
residence in order to complete my medical terms
there. The years, therefore, between 1868 and 1870,
the year of my receiving the medical degree of the
university, were spent backwards and forwards be-
tween Cambridge and St George's Hospital ; though,
as I have previously stated, I possessed the degree
of licentiate of the Apothecaries' Society, giving me full
rights to register as a full-blown medical practitioner,
which I did.
I had an elder brother, the Rev. Forbes E. Winslow,
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 15
now vicar of St Paul's, St Leonard's-on-Sea, the " Old
Bags " of Rugby fame. He was originally intended
for the medical profession, and with this view he
became a perpetual pupil at St Bartholomew's Hos-
pital. On the completion of his first year of study he
was bitten by a mad dog whilst playing in a cricket
match, and being apprehensive of the result he
suddenly threw up medicine and began to read for
holy orders, thus leaving the field open to me so far
as a successor in the same line of practice to my
father was concerned. Had this not taken place,
the writer of this book would doubtless have remained
in obscurity.
Upon receiving my diploma from Cambridge, I at
once became associated with my father, who had the
enjoyment of the largest practice in lunacy in England ;
and when I say that at the age of twenty-five I was
frequently left in entire charge of his practice, and
managed it exclusively for some years before he died
in 1874, he being incapacitated from illness, I might
say that I earned my spurs in this peculiar branch of
medicine at a very early period of my existence.
In 1871 I became attached to the staff of the Sussex
and Brandenburgh House Lunatic Asylums, situated
at Hammersmith ; but having always regarded this
as my home since I was a few months old, and having
lived there, the experience was by no means a novel
one to me. I felt, however, that I was in authority
there, subservient to my father and the medical super-
intendent. The authority I assumed soon became
1 6 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY TEARS
developed into one of absolute responsibility ; as my
father's representative I soon blossomed out into a
licensee. During the many years I was in residence
there I was never more than a paid official.
After the death of my father in 1874, I continued
to reside at the asylum, having my consulting rooms
as before in Cavendish Square, my mother's home.
Everything went on well ; I had her interests at
heart ; we were a united, happy family. My mother
was a wonderful woman — kind, and beloved by all.
My eldest sister, who lived with her, married soon
after my father's death ; her husband came and hung
his hat up in my mother's house. Things soon
changed. The freedom one had enjoyed soon dis-
appeared. I felt like an intruder even in my late
father's house. This was nauseating to my feelings.
As month by month went by, this continued and
increased. One day I went to my mother and told
her it was my desire to sever my connection with the
asylums at Hammersmith. Her reply was, " Stick
to the ship. Your father has left the asylums to you
in his will." I explained to her my position, the
restraint that had come over me since another in-
dividual had been taken into the family. My mother
then said, " In addition to your stipend you shall
have one-sixth share in the profits of the asylums."
As she seemed evidently upset at the mention of my
dissociation with these asylums, which since my
father's decease I had been the sole and only prop
in supporting, I consented to remain. But matters
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 17
did not improve ; I felt as if there was a sort of
cloud encircling the house. This feeling was also
expressed by others who previous to the event I
mentioned were frequent guests at our house. This
evidently affected my mother's health, who seemed
much worried and harassed, for which there was no
excuse or justification. This gradually told upon her
health, though I did my best to reassure her. Ulti-
mately I seemed to hate the very house where previous
to this I had spent such happy days. My mother died
in 1883. Before the breath was out of her body, my
brother-in-law came into my study with a paper
already drawn up by him for me to sign which was
to give him an equal share in the profits of the asylum.
This I indignantly repudiated and declined to sign.
He then replied, " I will make you, or throw the
estate into Chancery." This was done, and I was
appointed manager under the court. Interference,
and no power to do what I liked, associated with
the fact that nothing could be done without the
sanction of the receiver, this — with the fact that I
was called upon to pay the beneficiaries a certain
sum per annum before drawing my own salary — made
me desirous of putting a stop to this unsatisfactory
business. I became an obstructionist. I felt that,
as my father had " authorised " the trustees to dis-
pose of the asylums to me, I was being shamefully
treated. Quarrels took place, a family feud arose.
I was then called upon in chambers to vouch all
accounts kept by me since my mother's decease until
1 8 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the hearing of this application in court. The amount
was close upon eight thousand pounds. I took this
into chambers myself, vouching every item and show-
ing a balance on my side. There were about six
solicitors attending these summonses, and the time
it took to complete the matter was considerable.
Ultimately the accounts were closed ; and as I saw
that every effort was being made to deprive me of
my inheritance and rights, I put in a claim for my
sixth share of the profits agreed to between my mother
and myself, as previously mentioned. During her life
it only existed on paper, and I never put the agree-
ment into operation. My brother-in-law, again equal
to the occasion, opposed this. He stated that, as he
was living in my mother's house at the time, he well
knew her intentions. I explained that it was only
reasonable that, if I received a certain salary during
my father's lifetime, as an inducement to remain on
I had the additional offer after his decease. I was
tired of the whole persecution, and as far as I can
recollect never pressed the matter. Application was
made by the beneficiaries to depose me — in other
words, to remove one who had been the sole prop
for so many years — because I would not do what I
considered unjust. Opposition took place ; a heavy
Chancery suit then commenced. At the first hearing
I was represented by counsel, but afterwards I took
the legal matters into my own hands, appeared in
person, and argued the case in court.
The reason I dwell at length upon this matter is
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 19
to remove a misconception which arose at the time
as to why I retired from asylum practice. In two
or three public cases I have been in, both in England
and America, I have often been asked the question in
a sneering way by the counsel ; but he has generally
met his match in me by my reply. What I now say
is in every way substantiated by Mr Justice Pearson,
who tried the case.
On 22nd April 1885, in the Chancery Division of
the Law Courts, the final hearing of the case came
before Mr Justice Pearson, and learned and strong
and heavily briefed counsel were arraigned on the
other side. I had had sufficient of counsel so far as I
was concerned, and, as I have said before, I appeared
in person. I said as follows : —
" My Lord, — In consequence of your lordship's
suggestion on Friday last, to the effect that those
interested in the asylum should meet together and
discuss the matter, I beg to inform your lordship
that a meeting was held on Monday last, the 2oth
inst., at which meeting I resigned of my own
free will the management, under the court, of the
asylums at Hammersmith with which my father and
myself have been connected for upwards of forty
years. At the same time I refused any remuneration
which was then offered me to act as consulting phy-
sician to these establishments. It has always been
my earnest endeavour to carry on these asylums
satisfactorily, and to protect the good-will for the
benefit of the estate. In consequence, however, of
the furore that has lately taken place in connection
with lunacy matters, the value of private asylums is
at a very low ebb at the present moment. For the
20 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
last eighteen months or two years these asylums have
been financially managed by Mr Booker, the receiver
appointed by this honourable court, he ordering all
provisions, receiving and making all payments,
whereas I have not been empowered to interfere in
any way in this matter. How, therefore, could I
have been held responsible for the financial condition
of the asylums when I have had absolutely nothing
to do with it ? So far as the treatment of the patients
and the medical management are concerned, they
are exactly the same as they have been for years. I
have it on record, and not long since, that a gentle-
man came to Hammersmith with a view to placing
twenty Chancery patients there. Having inspected
the establishment and grounds, he decided that the
accommodation offered for the sums paid was inade-
quate. Again, on another occasion an inmate of
Sussex House, paying twelve hundred per annum,
was removed by the Commissioners in Lunacy in
consequence of the place not being good enough for
such a patient. This is no fault of mine, my lord ;
my hands have been crippled and tied for many
years. I have done my utmost to find a suitable
place for the transfer of the asylum, but I have been
powerless to act in the matter, and now it appears
that I am to be held responsible for the financial
falling-off of the asylum.
" MR JUSTICE PEARSON. — I do not think, Dr
Winslow, there is any occasion to go further into this
matter, as I have previously expressed my opinion on
your management and I have no reason to alter this
opinion.
" DR FORBES WINSLOW. — There is one thing, my
lord, on which I should like to make a few observa-
tions, especially as much stress has been laid during
this summons on the matter. I allude to the receipt
of a supposed salary of £1600 per annum. My lord,
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 21
the agreement was as follows : — I was to receive this
sum, provided the profits of the asylum admitted
of the sum being paid to me. But before I could
draw any part of it, the beneficiaries were entitled
to receive as a minimum charge, whatever the profits
might be, £100 each per annum. I had to pay, in
addition to this, £400 per annum to the medical staff,
and was bound by the order of the court to keep up
a suitable residence in town. Well, my lord, last year
the profits, according to the account rendered me by
the receiver, amounted to £1320, and out of this sum
your lordship will see it was impossible for me to re-
ceive the £1600, as agreed between myself and the bene-
ficiaries. Out of the £1320, therefore, according to
the agreement, £300 was paid as first charge to the
beneficiaries, rendering my salary £1000. In addition
to this, £400 had to be subtracted for the salary of the
medical officers, and I may put the expense of the
house for consultations, that I was to keep up, at say,
at the very lowest, £300 per annum. This reduces my
salary, which may appear in the first instance a large
one on paper, to a mere pittance of £300 per annum,
out of which sum I have to pay for the expenditure
of certain actions connected with the asylums. I have
nothing further to add beyond hoping that, under the
direction and management of Dr , things may go
amicably with those now interested in the concern.
" MR ROBERTSON. — On behalf of the infants I must
press for a sale.
" MR JUSTICE PEARSON. — Those interests are very
remote, and I hope the day is far distant when this
question will have to be considered.
" DR FORBES WINSLOW. — There is one thing, my
lord, I had forgotten to say : that I resigned my
appointment of my own free will and without any
restrictions being placed on my actions.
" Judgment. — MR JUSTICE PEARSON. — In this case
22 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
I am glad to say that an arrangement has been come
to between the parties, and one which, I think, reflects
the highest credit on Dr Winslow, who throughout
this matter has acted as a gentleman in his high
position would have done. He has volunteered to
retire, having refused any remuneration which was
offered to him, also the appointment of consulting
physician, from an asylum which he has managed so
satisfactorily for so many years, and which, as I ex-
pressed myself on a former occasion, he has conducted
well, and no reflection can in any way be cast on his
management. I expressed this opinion at the former
summons, and I hold this opinion still most strongly.
Dr , who has been chosen as manager, will
conduct the asylum in the interest of Dr Winslow as
well as of the others equally interested with himself.
Were I called upon to make a hostile order, I would
have taken into consideration Dr Winslow's long
connection and management of the asylums, and I
should have ordered him to have received heavy
compensation on his retirement therefor. Under
the circumstances, however, I have only now to make
an order, which has been supported by all parties
interested, that the agreement as come to by the
parties should be approved of by this honourable
court."
Such was the ruling of Mr Justice Pearson. I have
never availed myself of the ruling as to participating
in the asylum spoils as yet. I am legally entitled
to do this, however. My father left the asylum to
me in his will. The estate was thrown into Chancery
on the decease of my mother, as previously stated.
Certain relatives by marriage tried to interfere with
my management. I carried it on after my mother's
death, thinking that the provisions of my father's will
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 23
would be complied with. I had, however, been
deceived, and had wasted my energies and the best
years of my life in building up an inheritance only
to be confiscated by others, and not be enjoyed by
me. It taught me a severe lesson. I was associated
with these asylums for upwards of twenty years
in my medical capacity, and I had gained con-
siderable experience, but I was never more pleased
with anything in my life than when I severed
all connection with private lunatic asylums. The
licence of the Hammersmith asylums was transferred
to interested members of my family, and I have
never been asked to enter the doors of that establish-
ment since, and have never had any desire to do so.
My association with these asylums in my semi-
official capacity led to various actions which I have
no intention of entering into. I might as well state
that I was in no way responsible for this, but was made
a cat's-paw of the imperfection of the lunacy law.
All I was desirous of doing was to wipe my feet on
the mats of the asylums and say good-bye to private
lunatic asylums once and for all. At that time, in
addition to this heavy Chancery suit, I had other
litigation, but which was all directly in connection
with the asylums. I had to bear the brunt of this
without assistance and without any pity. I have
lived through all my persecution. I might mention
that, though I retired from the asylums — which are
now carried on at Flower House, Catford, by the
beneficiaries — by the will of my father and by the
24 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
rnling of Mr Justice Pearson I am as much entitled
to any profits issuing as my relatives are.
I had always taken a great interest in all matters
connected with lunacy, as may be inferred in my
being brought up in its very atmosphere ; and I felt
it rather a proud day in my life when I received the
degree of D.C.L. from the University of Oxford for
my thesis on " The History of Lunacy Legislation."
It might not be out of place to mention here that
the reason I felt proud and satisfied with my position
was from the fact that I obtained this degree at the
age of twenty-six, and I was the youngest recipient
of that degree ever conferred by the University of
Oxford. I subsequently, many years afterwards,
obtained the degree of LL.D. from the University
of Cambridge for my researches " On the Criminal
Responsibility of the Insane."
It has always been a great satisfaction to me that
I possessed these degrees. In my opinion they are
of far more value to me than all the greatest medical
distinctions that could have been offered to me. My
father, who had the honorary D.C.L. of Oxford, enter-
tained the same opinion so far as he was concerned.
I have always been of a very athletic turn of mind.
I was a great believer in this. Though I never actually
excelled to any great extent in anything of that nature,
nevertheless in whatever form of sport I took part I
was always well in the front rank. I won sports at
Rugby, also at Cambridge. There is one thing that
I am always proud of chronicling, and that is that on
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 25
2ist July 1864 I was one of the M.C.C. team to play
against South Wales, in which team W. G. Grace, the
greatest cricketer who ever lived, played his first
match at Lord's. It is also a sad fact to state that
I am the only living member of that team. I have
a copy of this match before me as I write. In the
same year I represented the Next Eighteen as opposed
to the First Twelve of the M.C.C. in the jubilee match
of that year. This was the year that the late R. A.
Fitzgerald, the Secretary of the M.C.C., asked me to
captain the first English team that went to America
and Canada. This I had to decline, as my studies
prevented it. Leaving Cambridge, I was elected at
a later period of my life president of the United
Hospitals Cricket Club, of which W. G. Grace was our
captain. In this I chose the cup, which is now
annually contested for by our hospitals, and I was
also president of the United Hospitals Athletic Club.
I captained the M.C.C. in many matches, and twice
again at my old school, Rugby, and in, I believe, the
only match in which they played against the United
Hospitals Cricket Club. This match I arranged my-
self. These are not prominent facts in my career so
far as my lunacy experiences are concerned, but I am
proud to chronicle them, and I think they are worthy
of a space in my life.
When I had been well launched in my professional
career I still kept up my regular exercise. I founded
a lawn-tennis club, one of the first in England, called
the West Middlesex Lawn-tennis Club. I also played
26 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
for Oxford against the All England Club at Wimble-
don ; as I was a D.C.L. of Oxford, I had that privilege.
An unfortunate injury to my knee, however, stopped
my enthusiasm in the game. I played for the
championship of England, and my final appearance
was at Bath, where I played second for the champion-
ship of the West of England. This was rather more
than a quarter of a century ago, and with this my
athletic efforts came to a close. I felt that I had
done my duty, and the pressure of work, associated
with the old injury to my knee asserting itself periodi-
cally, prevented the indulgence further in violent
exercise. I am still as keen as I ever was, and when
I go up to Lord's it is with the greatest effort that I
am able to desist putting my name down, as I used
to do, to play in matches. But I find that discretion
is the better part of valour, and a loose semi-lunar
cartilage, which is liable to slip out when one least
expects it, renders me in a position to play cricket
mentally from the pavilion at Lord's.
I always endeavoured to get my patients to take
an interest in sports of various descriptions. Cricket
matches and lawn-tennis tournaments were organised
by me. The West Middlesex L.T.C., which included
amongst its members inmates of the asylums and
officials connected with the place, held its own for
many years, even daring to compete with the All
England Tennis Club. Both Oxford and Cambridge
succumbed to us. The monotony of asylum life is
of such a nature that there is every danger of those
EARLY RECOLLECTIONS 27
who constantly associate with the inmates themselves
becoming mad, unless they take proper means to try
and amuse themselves in a way which completely
takes them out of their routine work and turns their
thoughts into another channel. I should never re-
commend anyone to accept the post of medical officer
to a lunatic asylum unless able to do as I now suggest.
The constant association with the insane I have found
terrible to contend with, and my capability to take
part in sports of various descriptions has been my
saving clause, I feel sure. I used to take a party of
my patients out fishing. It was curious to see those
who were very insane whilst in the asylum, anxious
as to whether they had got a bite or not, and assume
a rational state of mind in their anxiety to land the
fish. Another annual trip was to the Derby. The
patients went in my private carriages. This was
always enjoyed by them. Many had their parole
outside the grounds, and I never knew anyone who
in any way broke this.
LUNACY OFFICIALS I HAVE MET
LUNACY OFFICIALS I HAVE MET
MASTERS IN LUNACY
THE most important official appointments in lunacy
are the Masters. These are two in number, and their
duties are to hold commissions of lunacy on those
persons of alleged unsound mind who possess property,
and to appoint a committee of the person and estate
in the interest of those found lunatic by the said
inquisition. They are usually known by the term of
' The Lord Chancellor's Arm-chair Appointments,"
and are generally held by his personal friends — perhaps
those whom he wishes to do a good turn to late in life.
The appointments carry with them a salary of £2000
per annum.
Speaking from memory, those Masters whom I have
met are respectively : Master Edward Winslow, who
received the appointment in consequence of his rela-
tionship with the late Lord Lyndhurst, who was a
cousin of our family. He was Lord Chancellor, and
my uncle was his secretary. The other Masters were :
Barlow, Samuel Warren, Nicholson, Graham, Sir
Alexander Miller, Maclean, Fischer, and Amphlett.
32 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
When at the age of fourteen, I was taken by my
father to hear an important case of lunacy, in which
he was the chief witness, whilst my uncle acted in
the capacity of Master at the inquiry then being held.
Beyond giving evidence at various commissions,
there is nothing which has impressed itself in any
way upon my mind especially with reference to these
Masters. The only one who distinguished himself in
the world of letters was the ever-pompous Samuel
Warren, the author of Ten Thousand a Year and
The Diary of a Late Physician. He was a good
Master, but ever conscious of the importance of his
office and himself. He would not allow a liberty of
any description to be taken. I recollect that an im-
portant inquiry was being held which would occupy
the whole afternoon. The proprietor of the asylum
where it was being held suggested that the Master
should participate in lunch. It was brought in
to him.
" Take it away at once ! " exclaimed Warren ;
" remember this is a court of justice." He was no
doubt right as to the constitution of the court, but
I question the correctness of his legal opinion so far
as the lunch was concerned. For even in my experi-
ence I have been convinced that even judges must
eat, and that even law cannot sufficiently satiate
them. The alleged lunatic and witnesses enjoyed a*
good lunch on that day, and I am sorry that Samuel
Warren continued his inquiry in the condition he did
through his own pomposity. Master Francis Barlow
LUNACY OFFICIALS I HAVE MET 33
was associated with Warren and also with my uncle.
There was considerable bad feeling existing between
the two, but I have no intention of entering into this.
I always found him an amiable old gentleman of the
ordinary type of Master. Sir Alexander Miller I first
met officially as Master during an inquiry held on the
mental condition of an old lady at Canterbury. The
inquiry had been going on for two days when I was
summoned on the last day to testify.
Before I went into the witness-box the Master
commenced the proceedings by remarking that up
to the present he had not been convinced as to the
insanity of the lady, but he would wait to hear what
I had to say before giving any decision. The verdict
was given on my testimony. The conclusion proved
in every way correct. The old lady had been under
the influence of a certain ex-police inspector, who,
having been commissioned to watch her house at
Clapham Common in consequence of the many
robberies committed there, had obtained undue
influence over her. The case was that of a Miss
Skinner, and publicly recorded. She was called the
" Clapham recluse," as she never left her home ;
it was a well-known fact that considerable property
was concealed in the house. It became known as a
good place for periodical robberies to be committed.
Scotland Yard employed Inspector Badger to guard
the house. He did this so effectually as to get Miss
Skinner into his clutches, removing her to his house
at Canterbury, which was a small public-house, and
34 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
then tried to get possession of her property, until
some friends of Miss Skinner, living in Canterbury,
seeing what was going on, intervened and petitioned
the court for an inquiry — hence my appearance at
Canterbury. The lady was found by the jury to be
" a person of unsound mind and incapable of managing
herself or her affairs," and was forthwith removed
from the influence of Badger, and placed under
proper care and control, her property being protected
by the Court of Chancery.
This was the only time I met Sir Alexander Miller.
He soon after resigned his official position, being
appointed as Counsel to the Viceroy in India, which
was a much more remunerative appointment.
Master Francis William Maclean became his successor
in 1891. I knew him well. We were students at
Cambridge together. He was a moving spirit in the
Amateur Dramatic Club of that university, which
is known by the name of A.D.C. He chiefly, whilst
there, posed for effect. He had a fine presence, and
he was conscious of this. His impression of his own
importance evidently did not leave him when he took
up his appointment at the Royal Courts of Justice
in the capacity of Master in Lunacy, and I feel sure
that those permanent officials attached to the office
were conscious of this. A general satisfaction was
exhibited when he also vacated his office for that of
Chief Justice of Bengal in 1896 — a position I feel sure
he was well suited for.
Masters Fischer and Amphlett were the next
LUNACY OFFICIALS I HAVE MET 35
masters appointed. With regard to the latter, he
did his best, but was incapacitated by an inability
to see properly ; this naturally interfered with the
performance of his duties. He was actually in this
condition when he received the position. He was
kind and considerate to all, and did his best. I
always got on well with him.
The work devolving on a Master is generally per-
formed by the clerks. This was especially so in the
case of the late Master Amphlett, who was nearly
blind at the time of his appointment. I was informed
by one of the head clerks at the office that documents
used to be taken to him to sign ; he asked what he was
to do, and he was told, " Sign."
I had the pleasure of presenting Master Fischer
with a copy of my work, Mad Humanity, and also
had the satisfaction of seeing the same book on his
desk during an inquiry held some few years back at
Teignmouth. In fact, he questioned me out of my
own book, which I took as a high compliment. Master
Fischer is eighty years old, and still continues to
do his work effectually and well, as he always has
done.
The conclusion I have arrived at — which I am
aware is shared by all who have much to do with the
Lunacy Office as presided over by the Masters in
Lunacy — is that the delay is unnecessary and con-
siderable ; the work is really of a very light nature,
and there is no justification for the inconvenience
caused to solicitors or to the representative of the
36 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
lunatics found so by inquisition. Everyone at the
office seems to be a Lord Chancellor in embryo — at
least in his own imagination.
LORD CHANCELLOR'S VISITORS OF LUNATICS
I have met everyone holding this appointment
since I commenced the study of lunacy, with the
exception of Dr Nicholson. In my early days Dr
Bucknill (as he then was), father to the present Mr
Justice Bucknill and author of the well-known text-
book on lunacy in conjunction with Dr Hack Tuke,
was much in evidence, but I was too young at the
time to be noticed by him. His confrere was
Dr Lockhart Robertson. Unfortunately, many years
ago some dispute arose between my father and himself
with reference to the alteration of the title of the
Journal of Psychological Medicine, owned and edited
by my father, and subsequently by me. Dr Lockhart
Robertson was editor of the Journal of Mental Science,
then issued for the first time, and was desirous of my
father consenting to amalgamate his journal with
that of the Society. He declined, and a feeling of
ill-will sprang up, which, after Dr Lockhart Robertson
had been appointed in an official capacity, had its
disastrous effects.
The duties of the Lord Chancellor's Visitors are
absolute ; they can suggest the removal of any
patient from an asylum and influence the Committee
to remove them ; and when it is said that the best-
paying patients come under their jurisdiction, it can
LUNACY OFFICIALS I HAVE MET 37
be inferred as to what my mind is dwelling upon,
without entering further into an explanation.
They are a distinct body from the Commissioners
in Lunacy. The latter visit and inspect ordinary
certified lunatics ; the former, only Chancery patients
with property.
My father died some time before Lockhart Robertson,
and subsequently I used to see a good deal of the
latter at Brighton, and I was always personally on
good terms with him. The quarrel was not mine,
and I am the last to bear any enmity to anyone, as
all my friends know.
Sir James Crichton-Browne, F.R.S., was appointed
(1876) after Sir John Bucknill's decease. This gentle-
man is one of the most distinguished and courteous men
of the day. He was well known to my father, who al-
ways entertained the greatest esteem, not only for him-
self, but for his father, Dr W. A. F. Browne, formerly
one of the Commissioners in Lunacy for Scotland,
and himself an eminent authority on mental disease.
I have the satisfaction of knowing that during the
later years of his father's life, who was totally blind,
I had the pleasure of receiving articles from his well-
known pen for the Journal of Psychological Medicine,
of which I was then the proprietor and editor.
Sir James Crichton-Browne is one of the best
informed men of the day, and one who deserves the
greatest respect. He is the finest orator we have in
the medical profession, and always commands a
hearing. He can debate and discuss every possible
38 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
subject, be it a remedy to destroy rats or one to
destroy degeneration. I have heard him debate on
both in such an able manner that it might be suggested
that either was his own speciality. He is popular
and liked by everybody, and I have never heard any-
thing but respect and esteem expressed by anyone
when discussing Crichton-Browne.
Mr Ralph Palmer, the legal Lord Chancellor's
Visitor, I have also frequently met. He does his duty
also conscientiously, with every kind, good feeling.
Dr Nicholson, as I have previously stated, I have
never come across in any way.
COMMISSIONERS IN LUNACY WHOM I HAVE MET
It is only reasonable to expect that during my
twenty years' residence at an asylum in an official
capacity, my experience of Lunacy Commissioners
should be considerable. My memory goes back to
the days of Mr Lutwidge, a kind old gentleman,
who was unfortunately stabbed in 1874 during one
of his official visits to a large asylum — I believe
Fisherton House, Salisbury. A lunatic attacked him
with a pointed nail and drove it through his skull.
Then I recollect the severe and blunt John Forster,
who wrote the Lives of Charles Dickens and Dean
Swift. Forster was a well-respected Commissioner,
notwithstanding his blunt manner. He was one of
the old school. There was a real sympathetic feeling
in his bluntness. In fact, to use a Rugby expression,
he " had it down with you " at once. There were no
LUNACY OFFICIALS I HAVE MET 39
sneaking methods here used ; he came out in the open
and gave you an opportunity of clearing yourself,
should any reflection be cast upon you.
Then I well remember dear old Dr Nairne, who
held on to the last. I recollect on one occasion going
round the wards with him, and arriving at one of the
ladies' sitting-rooms. He said in his usual cheery
manner, nodding his head to one of the inmates of the
room, " I am so glad to see you looking so much
better." The answer came : "I am much obliged,
but I am the matron's daughter." He had evidently
mistaken her for someone else.
It is an extraordinary thing to me how these Com-
missioners can recollect certain cases, considering the
number they see and interview during the year.
Then the massive form of Dr Cleaton comes visibly
before me, associated with Mr Charles Palmer Phillips,
who for so many years acted as Secretary to the Com-
mission. Dr Rhys Williams and the Hon. Greville
Howard did not have a lengthened stay. The former
had previously been medical superintendent to
Bethlehem Hospital for many years. He was a great
friend of mine, was courteous and respectful to all ;
he knew his work and did his duty, and had great
experience behind him. He unfortunately yielded
to a complaint which he had for many years tried his
best to cure in others. The Hon. Greville Howard
shared the same fate.
I then come to Mr William Frere, or " Fat Frere "
as he was nicknamed at Harrow. He always had a
40 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
seat in my carriage at Lord's during the Eton and
Harrow match. He was a connection of mine through
a family marriage. He was the last person whom I
thought would have been selected for such a respon-
sible post. The Lord Chancellor, however, decided
to appoint him one of Her Majesty's Commissioners
in Lunacy. As soon as he received the appointment
he wrote me a letter as follows : —
" DEAR WINSLOW, — I have just been appointed a
Commissioner in Lunacy. I know nothing about the
subject. Send me your book."
I willingly and gladly complied, especially as my
book was dedicated to the Commissioners in Lunacy.
This book was called a Manual of Lunacy, written by
me in 1874, the preface of which was by my father.
It contained upwards of 400 pages. It was well
received by the public and reviewed by the Press ;
and though some uncharitable and spiteful persons
remarked at the time that such a stupendous work
could not have been written by me at the age of thirty,
which I then was, and that my father really was the
author, I state emphatically that the only part
written by him was the preface, and I had the greatest
difficulty to get him to even write that. He was too
unwell at the time to have done more. The first chap-
ter I wrote whilst enjoying the luxury of a Turkish
bath in Jermyn Street. It became the text-book for
the time being ; but inasmuch as an analysis of the
then existing Lunacy Law of 1845 became useless on
the passing of the 1890 Act, other more recent books
LUNACY OFFICIALS 1 HAVE MET 41
took its place. However, at the time of which I am writ-
ing, it was the acknowledged authority on all matters
appertaining to lunacy, especially from a legal aspect.
Frere knew this, and desired a copy. He justified
in every way his appointment, as he was very active
in organising the erection of proper fire-escapes in the
various asylums. This was insisted on as a result of
a most terrible fire which had taken place in one of the
large insane institutions, where the means of escape
were so imperfect that many of the inmates were
burnt to death.
Sir Clifford Allbutt, now Regius Professor of
Medicine at Cambridge, then came on the scene. I
never met him in that capacity, though I had done
so previous to his appointment in a trial at Leeds,
known as the Otley murder.
With regard to the present Board of Commissioners
in Lunacy, beyond seeing Dr Needham on two occa-
sions with reference to an important matter, and from
whom I received the greatest courtesy, I have never
had the pleasure of meeting any of the gentlemen.
On one occasion I had to call at their office, 66
Victoria Street, for information concerning a certain
lunacy matter. I saw Mr Trevor, then Secretary, but
now Commissioner ; he also was anxious and willing
to give me the necessary information, and said to me :
" Dr Winslow, the great mistake persons make is that
they act upon their own responsibility in certain
matters without taking us into their confidence or
asking our advice." I agree with what he had so
42 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
kindly said to me. It being known on that occasion
that I was in the office, one of the other Commis-
sioners, whom I had never before seen, came into the
room, evidently with the desire of having a look at me.
I felt that I must have been regarded as a rara avis.
With regard to the working of the Commissioners,
I believe that they are eager and ready to do their
duty ; but they are so confused by the obscurity of the
Lunacy Act and its proper constructions, but eager
to comply with it, that they have a difficult task to
perform. They are also liable to be completely misled
by the reports sent to them from various asylums,
written by those in authority at the request of the
person responsible for the incarceration and detention
in an asylum of someone from interested motives.
In other words, they often fail to see the motive
behind such a report issued by the medical superinten-
dent and prompted by the petitioner. I speak of
what I know to be the case, and I have ample evidence
and opportunity of proving my statement.
On the whole, my association with the Commis-
sioners in Lunacy in my asylum days, when I used to
meet them more frequently in their official capacity,
was an agreeable one. They knew and recognised
that I tried to do my duty ; there was no unjust
prejudice in those days.
Of the present Board, beyond Dr Needham and Mr
Trevor, I know nothing, and therefore I am unable
to give my personal experiences of them in any way.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
THE number of cases during the many years I resided
among the insane were numerous and peculiar. Many
hundreds came under my individual observation. I
had a busy time. After my rounds were finished in
the morning, I had to rush off to town to attend to
my private patients there, returning later in the day
to the asylum. For fifteen years I did this during
my father's lifetime, and after his death on my own
responsibility. From the date of my qualification I
became his factotum and his representative in every
matter.
Cases of every type and description came under my
observation, from the comparatively sane individual
suffering from slight mental depression, to the acutely
maniacal raving lunatic. The light and shade — if I
can use such an expression in dealing with this subject
— were so variable that I never recollect seeing two
cases precisely identical.
I had a number of most anxious patients under my
care, both homicidal and suicidal, and I can say with
no small degree of pride that during the whole time I
was in management I never had a suicide or a homi-
46 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
cide, which to a considerable extent reflects on the
personal control and tact shown ; at least, I feel
justified in recording this fact.
One of the worst cases I recollect was that of a
member of Parliament, who, strange to relate, had
consulted me about his own sister a few months
previous to his breaking down himself. He was a
most powerful man, and required the attention of
two attendants with him night and day to prevent
his committing violence. He had inherited a large
property. He made a complete recovery, and I had
an opportunity of seeing him as a friend after his
liberation, and for many years after he still served
his constituency faithfully and well.
I recollect one peculiar case placed there for some
years, going away and then returning again. He
was a careful peruser of the sporting intelligence.
Every morning he would paste on the windows of
his room the programme of the current day's racing.
On his going out into the grounds he commenced
shouting out the odds, placing a newspaper round
about him to draw attention to himself. He did this
nearly every day. Some of the patients used to come
and speak to him ; his reply invariably was : " Go
away, you fool ! don't come and interfere with a man
when he is busy with his work. Besides, you are all
lunatics and have got no money to bet with." He was
very neat in his bookkeeping, and every night he told
me what he had won or lost. I never, however, found
out who were his clientele ; but it amused him, and
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 47
that was sufficient. He appeared happy in his deluded
state, and many years after, when he had been dis-
charged, he was a frequent visitor at my town resid-
ence. His friends had lost all their money, and I
used to keep my late patient in employment. He
was a very clever draughtsman, and therefore I had
no difficulty in turning his services to use. The poor
fellow died of neglect, as his friends did not supply
him with sufficient nourishment. Curiously, as soon
as his relations got into a state of impecuniosity this
patient had no return of his attacks, but seemed to
grasp the situation. He was the most witty and
clever case I can recollect. His repartee was extra-
ordinary, and he was never at a loss for a reply. His
last effort was to paint what he called " The Temples
of Elora," an extraordinary production, which he
exhibited at one of the suburban theatres.
Some years ago a gentleman was shown into my
study, desiring to consult me upon a painful matter.
It appears that he had received a telegram summon-
ing him to town in consequence of the sudden illness
of a young lady, who had run away, having made a
secret marriage with a friend of his. This gentleman,
who was apparently about fifty years of age, told me
that he regarded this young man in the light of a son,
and took a great interest in him. He had been travel-
ling all night, and on his arriving at Brixton, where
they were staying, he found the lady to all intents
and purposes a raving lunatic.
A woman was in the room restraining her, assisted
48 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
by the husband, who had wired for him to come up.
A medical man had been called in, who said that
there could be no doubt as to her condition, and
that there was nothing to be done but to send her
straight off to Bethlehem Hospital. Before doing
this, however, he wanted my opinion and advice.
I agreed to meet the medical man in consultation
at four o'clock.
Upon my arrival at the house, as is usual in such
cases, it is the duty of the consultant to have a private
interview with the medical attendant, which I did.
He expressed the same opinion to me that he had done
to his friend, after which I accompanied him into the
room to examine the patient. The conversation was
incoherent, the ravings were continuous, and the ex-
citement was maniacal. I remained there for about
half an hour in the room with the doctor. After we
had gone downstairs I told him that in all my experi-
ence I had never seen a case like that before — the
symptoms were not genuine, and the woman was
feigning.
The medical man was evidently not of the same
opinion as myself, and we agreed to meet the follow-
ing day at the same hour.
On my second visit I again expressed myself of the
same opinion as previously. I then suggested it
would be advisable for me to send for a mental nurse
to watch the case. When the latter arrived at the
house she found the ravings still going on.
At night the patient was lying in the middle of the
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 49
bed. On the right-hand side was the nurse, outside
the bed, and on the left-hand side sat the husband.
The patient got exhausted, as feigners of insanity
generally do at night, and dropped off to sleep. The
husband went over to the nurse and began to talk
to her.
The patient was awakened by the noise, and a
sudden fit of jealousy at his behaviour with the nurse
appeared to restore her to a complete condition of
sanity. From that moment all the symptoms of in-
sanity disappeared. The following day, on my visit,
I was met by my patient with a smiling face. She
had completely thrown off her " madness," and was
again a rational being.
I said to the doctor, " What do you think of your
maniac now ? " He was astounded. The reason for
this was apparent. The father of her intended husband
had threatened to cut him off without a shilling if he
married her. She thought, therefore, by feigning
serious illness caused by this threat, that it might
work upon his feelings and so induce him to change
his mind when he had heard of what had happened.
Little did she know what a narrow escape she had,
through the ignorance of a general practitioner, of
being incarcerated in a lunatic asylum.
It was during the hearing of the Tichborne case,
whilst I was sitting quietly in my consulting room,
attending to my father's practice, that a gentleman
straight from the case was ushered into my presence.
He had called to see my father.
4
50 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
The question at issue was, what effect upon a man's
mind would a residence for many years in an uncivil-
ised part of the world have occasioned ? The lawyer
who sent this emissary desired this fact cleared up in
the Tichborne Claimant's case, which then was occupy-
ing the attention of the courts in London. My father
was wanted to give evidence on this point. In his
absence I was asked if I would testify. So far as I can
recollect this was the first instance of my being asked
to give evidence in a court of justice. I requested
time for reflection, and, as there was no immediate
hurry for a decision, I went on the quiet into court to
see what ordeal I should have to undergo. This I
thought too appalling for my youthful mind, and the
" Would you be surprised to hear ? " hurled at every
witness by Sir John Coleridge decided me to politely
decline. I have often, however, regretted this. Per-
haps I should have experienced a new sensation. I
have had many worse experiences since then.
One winter's morning, when my father was on the
Continent, a lady called upon me with reference to her
brother, who was described as " eccentric." He lived
in a remote part of Scotland, and was under the control
or influence of an upper housemaid. He was very
wealthy, and was leading the life of a hermit, and
there was great difficulty, from the way he was
guarded by the servant, in obtaining access to him.
His house was surrounded by a number of half-starved
King Charles spaniels and ravens.
It having come to the knowledge of his sister that
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 51
he had executed a will leaving all the family property
to this housemaid and a nephew, I was deputed by her
to visit her brother in the wilds of Scotland. I agreed
to do this, but anticipated a certain amount of opposi-
tion and difficulty in doing so.
The question was, how to interview him, and on
what plea ? A letter was obtained by his sister from
an intimate friend of hers, asking him to show the
bearer, myself, some courtesy, should I call. I took
this letter with me, and, first having obtained a
description of this unseen friend, I started. I had
to stay at a small Scotch country village the first
night, but I managed, by interrogating the various
persons whom I saw, to obtain a complete history of
the patient's condition. The next day I was ferried
across the river, and here again pumped the boatman.
He thought I was the intended heir, the nephew, and
freely opened his mind to me as to the condition of
his " uncle."
On arriving at the house, everything appeared
perfectly quiet. I knocked at the door, and after
waiting some time a small aperture in the door was
opened, and a voice, which was that of the upper
housemaid, of whom I had been warned, asked me
who I was and what I wanted ? I replied that I
desired to see Major S . The answer was that he
never saw anyone. I persisted most perseveringly.
I said I had a letter of introduction from a lady who
was desirous of my seeing the Major. The servant
hesitated, and, returning in a few minutes, said, " The
52 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Major will see you." I had not waited very long when
a thickly-built person opened the door, and I walked
in. Two seats were then brought, and the Major
and myself occupied these in the hall. I never got
beyond this. He then asked to see the letter, which
was shown him. He said he did not recollect the
writer in any way. Nothing daunted, I began to
describe the appearance of the lady (whom I had
never seen) and her maiden name. Ultimately
getting into his confidence, and throwing him com-
pletely off his guard, I managed to elicit what I had
desired to find out.
The property he had left, as I understood, to this
same upper housemaid, who had at first interviewed
me, and to his nephew. He then got impatient, and
was apparently anxious for me to take my departure.
I replied that I was fatigued, having come a long way,
and asked permission to prolong my visit a short time
longer. I did not wait for his consent, but continued
seated. I turned the subject to his half-starved King
Charles spaniels and ravens. He gave me some
extraordinary explanation of this. I was evidently
getting into his confidence, as I at once sympathised
with him in his reasons as to this and also as regards
other matters. He then gave vent to his feelings by
making the most extraordinary remarks. I encouraged
him in these. I waited until I had completed my
mission, which consisted in an exhaustive examination
into his mental state. Having finished my task, I got
up to say good-bye. As the presumed object of my
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 53
visit was to ask him to direct me to the points of
interest in the neighbourhood, and as the way he
pointed out was in the opposite direction to the ferry-
boat, which was waiting below for me, I had to walk
stealthily round the garden until I saw the door close,
when I found my way unobserved.
I returned to Perth and wrote a long account of my
visit, giving my professional opinion. On my return
to town I saw the sister, who had originally instructed
me. She was more than delighted with the way I had
done my business, and my report, containing twelve
sheets of foolscap, was handed to her legal advisers
in Edinburgh. I was subsequently informed that,
at the last moment, the sister withdrew from the case
out of her affection for her brother ; and I also subse-
quently heard, on his decease, that the property went
to the housemaid and to the nephew, and that his
nearest of kin, who was his sister, was completely
ignored by the testator. This could have been pre-
vented had she followed my advice.
The estate was an immense one, and I am positive
that, had the inquiry been held into the mental con-
dition of the Major, only one conclusion could have
been arrived at, viz., that he was a person of unsound
mind, incapable of managing himself or his affairs.
This was the first important case I was engaged in,
hence I give it in full, so far as I can after these many
years recollect the facts.
With regard to the powerful influence of the mind
in subduing mental excitement, I recollect a case to
54 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
which I was called — that of a youth, about nineteen,
who had nearly killed his brother the same morning,
having made a desperate attack upon him, and would
have succeeded in so doing, had he not been over-
powered by those in the house. The attack was a
sudden one, and had come on apparently without any
direct cause.
Upon entering the room I found the boy lying on
a mattress on the floor, struggling violently, being
held down by four men. Much to their surprise, I
went up to the patient, and placed my hand on his
head. He then turned round upon me suddenly with
glaring eyes, and I instructed everyone to leave the
room. They were loth, however, to obey my wish,
and evidently felt uneasy as to what would be my
probable fate. I repeated my request that they
should leave the room, and they did so, still
hesitatingly.
I then addressed the patient, whose paroxysms of
violence immediately disappeared as soon as we were
alone. I remained with him ten minutes, and during
this time his condition became one of absolute tran-
quillity. I requested him to get up and dress, which
he did. He then sat on a chair opposite me, and we
began to discuss matters of interest, apparently
regardless of what had just happened.
In the meantime those who had taken steps to
restrain him were in a state of trepidation outside the
room. I believe that then: ears were glued to the key-
hole. Not hearing any sounds, however, either of
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 55
groaning or shouting, they became still further appre-
hensive as to what had become of me, and, opening
the door with bated breath, saw the late raving lunatic
and myself indulging in a quiet conversation.
They were astonished, and could not comprehend
the powerful influence of one mind over another. In
fact, they were ignorant of the psychic nature of what
had taken place.
There was no return of the seizure, and the boy made
a rapid recovery.
In 1875 I was at Venice, and having been informed
that a large asylum, containing six hundred inmates,
had been opened at the beginning of 1873 on an
island situated a short distance from Venice, called
St Clemente, I determined to pay it a visit.
It had been erected at the cost of nearly three
million francs, and I was desirous of inspecting it.
I went there in a gondola from Venice, and knocked
at the door. I was looked upon with a certain amount
of suspicion by the janitor who admitted me. I re-
quested him to take my card to the director, which
he did. Soon an old gentleman came down and
escorted me round the institution. He could not
speak English, and hardly any French, and I was
unable to speak any Italian, therefore it was a sort
of dumb-show entertainment.
The place was a magnificent establishment so far
as the structure was concerned, the floors being com-
posed of handsome tessellated marble.
I was sorry to see restraint used to such an extent
56 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
there, a large number of the inmates being in chains.
Some of the wretched patients came to me with their
manacles and chains on their wrists and legs. One
poor lady, who was playing the piano with a consider-
able amount of difficulty, looked at me in an appealing
way as I went up to the instrument, and showed me
her poor wrists, on which was a considerable ecchy-
mosis and swelling, which had been produced by these
chains. Another one, who was allowed to play the
harmonium, was similarly restrained.
On my return to Venice I wrote forthwith to the
Italian Consul in London telling him what I had seen,
and suggesting that there should be an alteration so
far as the restraint used at the asylum was concerned.
On my return to England I received a courteous
reply from him, stating that the matter would be
attended to.
In 1878, finding myself at Venice again with a con-
genial companion, I was desirous of once more visit-
ing the establishment to see whether the alterations
had been made with reference to the restraint used as
suggested by me. I was conscious of the fact that no
one in the asylum could speak a word of English, and
therefore I took with me a printed and published
account of my previous visit, which I thought would
inspire the director and act as a sort of passport for
my admission.
I felt that there might be, however, some difficulty
in obtaining an interview, from the fact that I had
been informed that my previous report had been sent
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 57
to the director ; and I discussed the situation with
the proprietor of the hotel. He said, " I will make
this all right for you. I will write a private latter,"
which he did.
Armed with this authority, we started off to the
asylum. As I stated before, I was conscious of the
fact that no English was understood ; however, I
took my report with me. Arriving there, I handed
the letter to the director, who opened it, and to my
astonishment he welcomed my companion and myself
as "editor of the Times" and " Queen Victoria's own
physician." We felt, however, that we must act up
to this part. I then showed him my printed report
of the asylum, in which I condemned the restraint
used. I only wished him to see the heading — this
was " A visit to St Clemente," — as I knew perfectly
well he would not understand what I had said. To
my horror and astonishment, he called to somebody
on the first landing to come down. He did so, and
translated verbatim into Italian what I had written
in English ; and when he translated, " Never can I
forget the dreadful aspect of some of the poor wretched
lunatics bound like felons in some foul, pestilential
dungeons ! " I wished myself safe and sound at
Venice again.
He explained to me, however, that since my previous
visit things had been altered, and he thanked me for
what I had written, and we parted good friends, on
the assurance that, on my arrival in England, I would
communicate with the Italian Consul as to the im-
58 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
provements that had taken place since my visit in
1875. This I did, and also published a second article
describing the altered condition of affairs.
Those who are called upon to deal with the insane,
or those alleged to be so, must not know the meaning
of the word " fear." The fact is, that unless the
lunatic knows that the doctor, or other individual
who has to face him, is fearless he will get the better
of the doctor. There is nothing like self-confidence
and an air of fearlessness to quell a raving lunatic,
and it often prevents a calamity from ensuing. I
have always been imbued with these qualities ; it
has always been prominent in me as second nature,
and has served me well during many cases of emergency
and risk. I was summoned one afternoon to go at
once to examine a patient who lived in a house in a
lonely part of Clapham Common. From the descrip-
tion given to me I came to the conclusion that it was
a very acute case, and one in which I might experience
some trouble. I therefore instructed two attendants
to go on in advance and wait outside the house pend-
ing my arrival. The man had been throwing a large
amount of money about the common, and as a con-
sequence he had drawn attention to himself. He
was followed by the police, who, finding out particu-
lars concerning him, forthwith communicated with
his family, who subsequently instructed me in the
case. I was just sitting down to dinner when I was
summoned. I at once ordered my brougham, in-
structing the coachman to remain outside the gates
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 59
pending my return. On arriving at the house, and
having alighted from the carriage, I looked round
in vain for the two attendants. They were nowhere
to be seen. I decided to try and force an entrance
myself into the house. I opened the gate leading
through the carriage drive to the house. Darkness
reigned around ; everything seemed as still as death.
I rang the bell. Suddenly a man appeared at the
window asking the nature of my business. I replied
that I desired an interview. He forthwith raised his
arm and, presenting a revolver straight at me, fired.
Fortunately, he missed me ; but, heedless of what
might happen, I tried the door, which was locked,
and, determined to take the house by storm, I forced
the door, which opened in response to my efforts. I
then rushed upstairs, and found myself face to face
with my previous would-be assassin. He was a raving,
dangerous lunatic, and I closed with him. Though
lunatics are generally gifted with inhuman strength,
he found his match with me. He was not the first
case of a similar nature I had had to deal with. I so
well knew my man ; there was a desperate struggle,
during the progress of which he nearly got the better
of me, as I was gradually getting exhausted with the
inhuman violence of a madman. Much to my satis-
faction and delight, the attendants rushed in. They
had lost their way, but, seeing my coachman outside,
had been told where I had gone. I left the men in
charge and returned home, thankful to have escaped
with my life. The following morning I saw the rela-
60 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
tions, described what I considered should be forth-
with done, and before many hours had elapsed he
was safe under lock and key in an institution suit-
able for such cases. My efforts were only just in
time, as it was found that he had been robbed of a
large sum of money, which, being in notes and gold,
were not traceable. Besides, the additional fact was
that, suffering from delusions of persecution and
suspicion, he developed into a dangerous madman
of the worst description.
One day I was asked if I would investigate a
case of a spiritualistic fraud in the neighbourhood
of Bloomsbury, where a man named Bastian was
creating a certain amount of excitement in that
neighbourhood by holding seances, in which he was
alleged to materialise the spirits of departed relatives.
This neighbourhood was, and is now, the favourite
locality for spiritualists.
It was agreed that three other gentlemen should
accompany us, and, being convinced as to the fraudu-
lent nature of the transaction, it was thought advisable
that we should be armed with squirts containing red
cochineal.
We entered the room and paid our money. Pro-
ceedings commenced with a light seance, during which
nothing very unusual occurred. After this the room
was darkened. There were two rooms communi-
cating with each other. Suddenly an apparition
appeared through the door. One of our party pre-
tended that he was much impressed and agitated,
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 61
and exclaimed, " Oh, I recognise my dear, darling
child ! Oh, come nearer, come nearer me ! " The
medium, evidently not at all suspicious, came a little
nearer ; but when it had got sufficiently close, so as
to make sure of my aim, I squirted my cochineal
straight at it. There was tremendous consternation,
and the remaining lights were put out. I rushed into
the adjoining room, the spirit having made a pre-
cipitous flight. This proved to be a solid spirit with
a considerable amount of substance. A tussle took
place between the spirit and myself, aided by others,
evidently on the spirit's side ; but it ended in my
bringing it into the room, one of our party turning
on the gas again. I had hit him on the forehead and
on his dickey, which was made of paper ; he had
managed, however, to take this off, but at the same
time he could not take off his forehead, on which the
cochineal remained. I brought him into the room in
full view of the audience and denounced him as a
fraud. The majority of the audience demanded
their money back. I went off at once and took a
letter to one of the leading newspapers, which appeared
the next morning. Evidently the spirits had not been
accustomed to squirts of cochineal. The following
week Mr Punch inserted the following couplet :
" Bravo, Dr Winslow, you our woes do heal,
Coch a spirit, coch-an-eel ! "
Not very long ago I was consulted by an English
lady of refinement, who had been in the habit of
spending a considerable time on the Continent. She
62 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
had been subjected to a considerable amount of
annoyance, which ladies travelling alone in Italy
are liable to. In consequence of what had taken
place, she decided to go from Sicily to Naples by
steamer.
It was her intention to have stayed at the hotel at
Naples to which she was accustomed to go, and where
she knew those who were responsible for the manage-
ment of the hotel. On her arrival at Naples she at
once drove to the Grand Hotel, but found to her dismay
that it was closed for a few weeks pending repairs.
All this occasioned a great deal of flurry and alarm
in her, for knowing as well she did the terrible dangers
to which unprotected ladies were liable at Naples,
she hesitated for the moment what to do. She
knew of no other hotel, as she had never stayed
anywhere else except at the Grand. She carefully
considered her position and the best course to pursue.
She decided, inasmuch as there was a hospital in
Naples called the Continental Hospital, which was
supposed to receive into its wards persons of various
nationalities, to go there and ask the medical super-
intendent in charge to allow her to remain in one of
the rooms for the night, in order that she might decide
upon a course to pursue. She explained to him that
she was not really ill, but only a little agitated and
flurried on realising her present position, and at the
same time gave him her views of what had taken place
at Sicily. The medical superintendent, Dr Scotti,
apparently regarded her with a certain amount of
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 63
suspicion, and it is much to be regretted that he did
not use ordinary discretion in the matter. He did
not hesitate a moment but telephoned to the office
of the bureau of the police at Naples, who at once sent
an official down to the hospital. He had a conversa-
tion with the lady in question. Nothing was said
during the interview which in any way led her to
believe what a dreadful future was immediately in
store for her. After this person had left, a telephone
message was sent to a private asylum situated a few
miles from Naples. She was asked, much to her
astonishment and amazement, to follow two women,
who went to the room where she was ; one of these
she suspected to be a man in female clothes. She
followed them into a carriage which was waiting at
the door, and they drove off straight to this asylum.
She was requested to alight, and, to her horror,
found herself incarcerated in a public lunatic asylum.
Whilst there she was subject to the greatest insults
that could be possible to mention. Her trunks were
ransacked and her jewellery taken out of them, never
to be seen again.
The place was a filthy den. I have been there
myself, and can well describe its condition. Many
asylums in England are bad enough, but I leave it to
the imagination to picture the condition of an Italian
public asylum. She ultimately contrived to com-
municate with the British Consul, but he did not in
any way inquire into her case. He sent his own
doctor, who curiously enough was one I had known
64 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
in England some years before under different condi-
tions. The lady, having remained a short time in
the main building of the asylum, was transferred to a
villa in the grounds, where she received, naturally,
better treatment. This was done as they discovered
that she was a lady of position and refinement. They
had made sure on this point from the nature of her
dresses which they had seen in her trunk, and from
the amount of jewellery which they had carefully
placed in their own pockets.
Her friends were ultimately communicated with.
They came to Naples, but instead of removing her at
once, as they ought to have done, they let her remain
there a few days, much to her indignation. She ulti-
mately returned with them by sea to England. In
addition to the cruelty of the proceedings, and the
indignity she suffered, and the robbery that had taken
place, there was a serious wrong done to her, and
an unjust stigma of lunacy cast upon her, which time
could not eradicate, or anything ever recompense
her for.
She was a lady beloved by all who knew her, chari-
table, good, generous, a staunch and true friend to all
whom she respected.
I was requested to go to Naples to investigate this
matter, and to find out who was the real mover in
this sad affair. Fortunately there was a young
Italian doctor at that moment staying in Naples, who
was engaged in the steamship service between Naples
and Alexandria. He had formerly stayed with me
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 65
in London, and had brought a letter of introduction
from Lombroso. My investigation being of such a
delicate nature, I was very fortunate in finding a
faithful and true friend, whom I could trust, to
assist me.
We commenced our investigations by first going
to the Continental Hospital. Dr Scotti, although
some years had elapsed, recollected the case well.
After our interview with him, at which we did not
obtain much information, we went to the asylum, and,
making use of some excuse, we managed to throw
them off their guard and obtained an inspection of all
the documents relating to this lady's admission.
The medical director of the asylum evidently was
under the impression that I had been employed by
the British Government to investigate this matter,
and I saw no reason why I should undeceive him. He
evidently regarded me with a certain amount of awe
and reverence ; little did he know that the object of
my visit was to endeavour to prove that an injustice
had been done to this lady by her detention by him
in this establishment. I saw the order of the police,
the certificates of the doctors, and the other docu-
ments. My Italian friend, the doctor, translated
them to me in English. I did not want the asylum
authorities to think that I was taking copies of them,
so, as each one was translated to me, I made mental
notes concerning it, and on my return to the hotel I
was able to reproduce, nearly verbatim, each of the
documents I had had translated to me. This was no
5
66 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
easy task, but, being blessed with a good memory,
which I had been taught to use properly, I completed
my task, not only to my satisfaction, but also to that
of those whose interests I represented.
The conclusion I arrived at was that the responsible
person, in the first instance, was the Consul, for not
properly protecting the interests of a British subject,
and for not having himself signed the order for her
discharge, which it was his duty to have done. I
also blamed the medical representative of the Consul
for not having made proper and accurate investiga-
tions into all the circumstances connected with the
case. I considered, however, that the one who was
the most culpable was the chief commissioner of the
police, as it was he who had really initiated the pro-
ceedings and put the wheel in motion, without having
made sufficient inquiries. In other words, he had
been too premature and too hasty in his communica-
tions, and I had no intention of leaving Naples until
I had obtained a personal interview with him and had
expressed my views on the case.
The next morning the Italian doctor and myself
found ourselves at the police bureau. I gave a de-
scription in English of the object of my mission, this
being translated into Italian. Each official blamed
the other for what had happened — this is a practice
common with foreigners ; but I was determined not
to leave the matter unsifted. I became most emphatic,
and perhaps it was just as well for me that what I
really said was not translated verbatim into Italian.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 67
I listened to what the other side had to say, but I
expressed my opinion without fear, and the result of
my interview, as I was informed afterwards, nearly
ended in my being dragged off to the cells for con-
demning, in a way they were apparently unprepared
for, the proceedings which had taken place between
themselves and my fellow-countrywoman. The chief
of the police got very angry when he heard what I
had to say, and ordered me to leave his legal presence.
Possibly it may be inferred by my readers what the
usual behaviour of an English police official, standing
on his dignity, would be, when accused of any irregu-
larity and illegality in his proceedings. He would
have ordered the accuser to withdraw from his august
presence. I suppose he would think that, just as " a
king can do no wrong," so a police official could not
do so either.
I have seen a great deal of excitement in the world,
mental or otherwise, but I never, in the whole course
of my career, remember to have seen or heard such
fierce gestures and gesticulations as those that eman-
ated from the chief of the police at Naples.
I remained calm, as I did not understand one single
word he was saying at the time, though afterwards I
was told what the significant meaning of his words
were. The head official jumped up off his seat, shook
his fist in my face, and gesticulated as only an Italian
can do. I thought it best to keep calm and collected.
I did not intend to say anything further, but to await
the consequences and see what was going to happen.
68 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
I had expressed all I had to say through the inter-
pretation of the Italian doctor, who had been only
my spokesman, and therefore he was not held re-
sponsible for my offence. I was rather inclined to
laugh at the Italian antics, but the wild and fierce
aspect of my opponent decided me to keep a
sober countenance. The conclusion that was passing
through my mind was, that if the police official
himself had been incarcerated in the asylum instead
of the English lady, it would have been safer for his
own country's sake, for the public at large, and for
himself in particular. After he had exhausted all
the epithets that he could think of, and every possible
gesticulation, he summoned another official. This
gentleman, being fresh to the work, virtually re-
peated all the previous statements, accompanied by
similar movements ; but he was even more energetic
than his predecessor, this being due no doubt to
coming fresh on to the field of contest, whilst the
other, having finished all he had to say, sank ex-
hausted into his chair. I still held my ground,
anxious as to the sequel. I left this gentleman
dancing about the room, and, as he had evidently
lost complete control over himself, I thought it best
to leave the office till he had regained his wonted
condition. Having been informed by the Italian doctor
of the threats that had been held out against me, I
made a precipitous flight to my hotel in a cab, and,
having obtained my carpet-bag, I rushed off to the
station. I found a train just starting, and at once
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 69
jumped in. This no doubt saved me from having to
chronicle my adventures in a police cell at Naples. I
succeeded in my mission, and on my arrival in England
put myself into communication with the Home Office.
I requested Lord Salisbury to take the case up and
investigate the matter with reference to the neglect
of the Consul. I obtained no satisfaction, however,
out of this. Apparently they considered that I had
no justification in daring to impute any wrong in
connection with this gentleman. The question then
arose, what remedy this lady had. After a consider-
able amount of trouble, I found that should an action
have been brought against any of those who were
responsible for her incarceration in the asylum and
subsequent treatment, the case would be tried in
Italy. This simply meant that, however strong the
case might be laid before the judicial authorities,
there would be no chance of obtaining a verdict, as it
was not likely an Italian jury or an Italian judge
would give a verdict against Italian officials.
I have entered into this case at length, from the
fact that I hope it may be the means of protecting
other English people who might be travelling on the
Continent, and may show the dangers to which they
are subjected when moving about unprotected in a
foreign land.
Some time ago I had been attending a man who
suffered from attacks of inability to restrain himself
from indulging too freely in alcohol. I had advised
his friends to place him under proper control. I told
yo RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
them that unless some such steps were taken serious
consequences must ensue. I did not suggest an
asylum, but simply partial control, where a certain
supervision would be exercised to prevent him indulg-
ing in his chronic alcoholism.
As is often the custom in such cases, the most diffi-
cult people to convince are the relations themselves.
In this case, therefore, every possible excuse was made
by them to postpone what I thought it my duty to tell
them to do.
His employment was that of principal agent for some
margarine merchants living in Rotterdam. He had for
many years acted in that capacity, and it had come to
their ears by some means or other that he had had
a better offer made to him to represent another firm.
His employers at Rotterdam wrote to him to ask him
to come over to discuss the matter. His wife foolishly
allowed him to do so notwithstanding my advice to
the contrary.
On his arrival in Rotterdam he went to call direct
on the firm, and was asked by them to sign a paper.
He was apparently in a dazed condition, the result
of indulgence on the boat, and he foolishly did this.
This document proved to be an admission by him
that he owed the firm a certain amount of money.
This was not so in reality, as it was proved after-
wards that the books had not been properly audited,
and therefore there was not even a presumable case
of his indebtedness to the firm.
By Dutch law it is enacted that if any English
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 71
subject owes a Dutch subject any money he can be
forthwith imprisoned until that money is paid — that
is to say, if he puts foot in Holland, — and is also
liable to a term of seven years' imprisonment.
He dined with the firm that evening, and the next
day he was asked to breakfast to discuss business
matters, when he found to his amazement two police-
men waiting there to arrest him.
He was at once conveyed to a prison in Rotterdam,
but managed to communicate with his friends. His
wife, accompanied by his solicitor, called at my house
to instruct me to go over to Rotterdam and see what
I could do about obtaining his freedom. His wife
and myself left the same evening.
I found out who were the leading authorities in
mental diseases in Rotterdam, and gave them the
particulars of the case, should I require their help ;
I then called upon the officials, describing the nature
of the patient's malady. I went to see the prisoner,
but the unfortunate man did not appear in any way
to recognise the gravity of the situation, and did not
even remember signing the deed which was the cause
of his arrest and imprisonment.
The Dutch authorities declined to deliver him up
to my custody, notwithstanding that I pleaded very
hard, not only on his own account but on behalf of
his relations. I informed the authorities of what I
had previously advised being done ; the only response
was, that before he could be transferred to the care
of his friends, it would be necessary to hold a com-
72 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
mission of lunacy in England pronouncing him to be
irresponsible for his actions. I was most emphatic
in what I said to the Dutch officials, and I was de-
termined upon my return to England to agitate
in what I considered to be a public scandal in the
illegal incarceration and detention of a British subject,
whose brain I considered to have been weakened by
excessive indulgence in alcohol.
On the day after my return from Rotterdam I wrote
a long letter to the Times, and in discussing the com-
mission of lunacy, which the Dutch authorities held
over our heads as the only possible way of obtaining
the freedom of this man, I said : " This is a costly and
long proceeding, and it appears to me a monstrous
scandal that an English subject, of whose mental state
the opinions are voluminous, should be detained as a
criminal in a prison in Holland without being sub-
jected to any public trial, either to enable his friends
to clear him, or to establish that the act was committed
whilst suffering from mental disorder. The object of
my visit to Rotterdam was to report on the case to the
Dutch authorities, who, however, declined to interfere
until such an inquiry as I have alluded to was held in
our own country."
This letter was translated into Dutch, and appeared
in the leading papers in Rotterdam, and such was the
weight given to it, that within twenty-four hours after
the appearance of this letter the gentleman, whom I
had recently seen in durance vile, in a miserable con-
dition behind the bars of a Dutch prison, walked into
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 73
my study, accompanied by his wife, with a cheerful
smile depicted on his countenance.
Some years ago I was seated in my study, when a
man came in and took a seat opposite to me. I
noticed he seemed rather strange in his manner, and
I asked him what his symptoms were. The man,
drawing his chair nearer to me and glaring at me, said :
" The fact is, doctor, that I have a great desire to kill
everyone I meet." He then took his hat off, and I
noticed he had got a sort of metallic band round his
forehead ; he pointed to it and continued : " It is
only this which prevents me from carrying out what
I desire to do."
I asked him to give me a more descriptive account
of his meaning. He replied : " As I walk along the
street, I say to myself as I pass anyone, ' I should
like to kill you ; I do not know why, but I have that
feeling.' "
I became very interested in my man, though*
according to my custom when anyone calls upon me
in the first instance, I never allow him to approach
too near me. From the moment a patient enters my
study it is necessary for me to have my wits about me.
The first thought that always enters my mind is, does
this man or woman contemplate doing me any harm ?
I am always on the qui vive for such an emergency.
Keeping my eye upon the patient, I said : "I really
don't know what you are alluding to." He suddenly
jumped up from his chair, and attempted to seize a
weapon from his pocket. I seized his arm with one
74 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
hand, whilst with the other I rang the hand bell,
which was the summons for my man-servant, always
waiting outside, to come to my room. I said, still
holding my patient, " Show this gentleman out into
the street." By that time he appeared to become
a little calmer, and, being conducted by the arm to
the front door, turned round and said to me, " Good
morning, doctor, we shall meet again." I replied,
" Good morning." I do not know who the first
person he met was when he got outside. I had not
the curiosity to watch his movements.
This was a curious case of homicidal mania and
homicidal impulses, the latter evincing themselves
whilst in my study. He was, like all other homicidal
lunatics, cunning, deceptive, and plausible, nothing
in his outward appearance indicating insanity ; but
no doubt there was in his innermost nature a dangerous
hankering after blood, which was latent when he came
into my study, and developed in the way I have just
described.
One day I was summoned to see a lady staying at the
Midland Hotel. It appears that she was engaged to
many a late Governor of one of the States of America.
She was a widow, and, accompanied by her daughter
and the Governor, she had come to Europe previous
to returning to America to be married. They had
just come from Paris, where she had been buying hats
and dresses for her trousseau. Suddenly her mind
had become deranged, and she was under the delusion
that she was pursued wherever she went by a witch.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 75
Their passage had been taken on board the Baltic,
a White Star liner, and they were very anxious not
to be detained, but to get her back to America as soon
as possible for her to receive treatment in her own land-
I first saw her two days before they started, and the
delusion with reference to the witch had then taken
a firm hold of her. I anticipated, therefore, a certain
amount of difficulty in arranging matters for their
departure. I engaged a nurse, however, but she did
not seem to have any control over her. The only
controlling power seemed to be myself, as I sympath-
ised with her with reference to the witch, and she felt
rather encouraged in her delusions and therefore
trusted me. I felt that unless I encouraged her there
would be no chance of their being able to go to America,
and anyone opposing her wishes would lose all control
over her. I arranged that I should accompany her
myself, together with the nurse and the Governor,
the following morning, from Euston to Liverpool.
At the last moment she declined to go unless the
witch accompanied her. I allowed her to believe that
we had packed the witch up safe and sound in one of
the trunks, and that we would not leave her on any
account behind. We engaged a special carriage, and
she was under the impression that the witch was quite
safe in the luggage van. We arrived safely at Liver-
pool and went on board. At the last moment they
wanted me to accompany them to America, but this,
as I explained to the daughter, was impossible.
Some time after, I had a satisfactory letter from the
76 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Governor, informing me that he was happily married
and that his wife was perfectly well, but on their
arrival in America it had been found necessary to
place her under treatment for a time, as she could not
rid herself of the belief that she was bewitched, but
that now she had completely recovered from her
delusions.
Some years ago, when in Paris, I was asked to a
social gathering, where I was introduced to Swami,
who appeared to me to be a very singular character.
She was apparently a clairvoyant, and professed to
be able to look into the future and delineate character
correctly. She was very much sought after in Paris,
and was to be found in the drawing-rooms of most of
the leading psychics living there. I must say that I
was impressed by what she told me, though at the
same time I was incredulous, not to say suspicious.
A few years afterwards the same Swami was in-
dicted for certain crimes, which sent a wave of horror
and disgust over the country, and which obtained for
her seven years' penal servitude. She was sent to
Aylesbury Prison, where she, no doubt by her person-
ality, created a certain impression on the officials.
They called her the " Queen," and she used to preach,
not only to the inmates, but also to the officials. She
was a big woman of a striking appearance.
Whilst at Aylesbury she was the constant com-
panion of Kitty Byron, who had murdered Reginald
Baker, a stockbroker, whose case had been also
submitted to me.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 77
As far as I recollect, when I met her in Paris she was
very anxious to discuss with me what she termed the
" righteous life." She told me that she was a direct
disciple of Christ's, and that she was destined to play
a prominent part in the history of the world.
I have often thought in my mind since, in reviewing
what has taken place and considering it in conjunction
with my experience of her in Paris, whether she should
have been regarded in the light of one absolutely re-
sponsible for her actions. I must say the woman
interested me very much, both in her appearance and
her conversation.
One day I was seated in my study, when a gentle-
man came in with a mask on. He said : " Dr Winslow,
I have come to consult you on a most terrible question
in connection with myself. I am a well-known man,
closely related to the highest in the land, and there-
fore for certain reasons I think it desirable that my
identity should not be known to you. I feel that I
am in a position to open my heart out to you,
tell you the terrible story, and ask your advice con-
cerning it ; and I can do this with a much more open
mind, conscious of the fact that you are unaware to
whom you are speaking."
I must say that I was a little alarmed at my friend
and his hideous mask, and I moved my chair back so
as not to be in close proximity with him. I replied,
putting my hand on a notebook : "In this notebook
are contained the names of persons, which, if I divulged
them, would cause an enormous amount of sensation in
78 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the world, and would bring misery and ruin to families.
I do not ask your name ; I simply ask you to continue
your description of your case, when, after careful con-
sideration, I will give you my opinion thereon."
He then unfolded himself to me and gave the most
extraordinary experience that I have ever heard of.
After he had finished I then considered what my
reply to him would be. It evidently had the desired
effect of restoring him to a more tranquil condition
of mind. I assured and reassured him that I had
heard of similar symptoms before, and that I saw no
reason why, so far as he was concerned, matters
should not right themselves.
He seemed grateful, shook me by the hand, and
placed in it an envelope containing my fee. Rising
from his chair he said : " Dr Winslow, turn your
head round while I take off this hideous disguise
from the face of the man who has had to unfold to
you such a dreadful history." I turned my head
away. The door opened ; my friend left the house
for the outer world again. I did not, however, let him
know that through his hideous disguise I was able
to trace the identity of the individual.
One evening I went through rather a trying ex-
perience, one of a horrible nature, and which might
have turned out very serious to me. I was summoned
to attend a man suffering from mania incidental to
too much indulgence in alcohol. Upon my arrival I
found the patient sitting on the sofa, his eyes rolling
about in a very restless manner. There was a certain
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 79
amount of subdued excitement about him. His wife,
as is often the case where the husband is an uncon-
trollable drunkard, was herself rather weak of purpose,
or she would have taken proper steps to have had him
taken care of long before I was called in.
On my entering the room he jumped up from the
sofa, and, pointing to his wife, exclaimed : " Look at
the woman I have brought up ! Look at the woman
I have nurtured ! Look at her now ! There she is ! "
Having completed his remarks to me, he then left the
room, evidently with a view of further inspecting the
cellar. He returned, his eyes glaring worse than ever,
flourishing a large knife in his hand. I persuaded
him to make me a present of it, which I kept for
some time after among my curios. I saw that his
condition was a dangerous one, and that it was un-
safe for him to be left alone with his wife ; and as it
was nearly midnight and no possibility of obtaining
help, I decided to remain the night on guard. During
the night his craving seemed to increase, until I de-
termined to stop it at all risks and hazards. I knew
that I had the knife safe in my possession ; it was
only a question of one man's strength against an-
other's. His mania, by this time, had become so
violent that, knowing as I did the abnormality of
this among lunatics, I determined to assert my
authority and power by my hypnotic influence in
dealing with the case. I took the key of the door
away from him by force, so that he could no longer
obtain access to the alcohol. He then fell back on
8o RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the sofa, and I was enabled, by certain psychic
influences, to produce in him a deep, and what
appeared to me a calm sleep. I never left the sofa
the whole night in case he should have a sudden
relapse. At seven o'clock a.m. he woke up, the
attack having absolutely subsided. I feel sure that
had I not remained with him during the night, murder
would have been committed by him. This is an
interesting case from the fact of its being one of a
class, in which, had something not been done, the
consequences would have been serious. I think that
judicious and proper steps in similar cases, taken on
the part of other doctors called in, might prevent
many murders, which are now brought to light,
committed by acute alcoholic lunatics.
One of the most painful cases I attended was that
of Ascher, the composer of " Alice, where art thou ! "
He suffered from a form of paralysis which affected
his brain. I was at his death-bed, and his poor old
father said to me : " You see my son there, a pitiful
object. I have seen the whole of the Berlin Opera
House rise to him to do him homage. Look at him
now." There was no one in the musical world who was
so esteemed or thought so highly of as poor Ascher.
A few weeks before he died I set him down to the
piano, placing opposite to him his own song, " Alice,
where art thou ! " He seemed to revive for a moment,
and instead of being a poor listless individual his mind
seemed to respond for the time being as if a sort of
magnetic spell had been thrown over him by the
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 81
sight of one of his own compositions. He sat down
impatiently ; his poor fingers, half-paralysed, tried to
play ; but in the place of the lovely music incidental
to that piece, apparently nothing but discord eman-
ated from his fingers ; in fact, he kept touching the
wrong notes, but, conscious of the fact that he only
produced discordant sounds, he became very excited,
and kept shouting out to me, looking round : " Wait
a minute ! Wait a minute ! It will soon be right."
I took him from the piano, much to his displeasure,
as he was conscious of the fact that he had not been
playing the right notes and was eager to show me what
they ought to be. Ascher passed away in my presence ;
another instance of a great genius who had no doubt
much to thank the attention of the world in general,
mistaken kindness — which generally accompanies a
musical genius's career, — for his dissolution at an early
age. Whenever I hear that beautiful song, my mind
always reverts to the closing hours of poor Ascher.
It does not occur often in the career of a mental
expert to give evidence in a commission of lunacy in
the country, and to succeed in bringing back the
alleged lunatic direct from the asylum with restora-
tion to liberty.
A few years ago I had been instructed to examine
a gentleman who was confined as a person of unsound
mind in an asylum near Exeter. Accompanied by
another physician, I made the necessary examination
and forwarded our report to the solicitor engaged in
the matter. The question at issue was whether he
6
82 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
was capable of managing himself and his affairs. With
regard to the latter point there could be no two
opinions, as, from what transpired at the trial, it
appeared that he had been spending his money in
buying property in a most extravagant way ; but
whether his condition was such as to warrant his being
detained in a lunatic asylum and deprived of his
liberty was another question. I had a very strong
opinion that this was not so. The inquiry lasted two
days. The patient was brought to the court-house
every day, accompanied by an attendant. He waited
outside, ready to accompany him back to the institu-
tion. The same counsel was employed in this case as
in the Townshend inquiry, and I had the conduct of
the medical part of it. The jury found that he was
capable of taking care of himself, but incapable of
managing his affairs. He was forthwith discharged
from the asylum, and instead of returning to the in-
stitution he came back to the hotel with me, and re-
turned to London a free man.
I was very proud at what had taken place, as I felt
sure that, if the case had not been presented very
strongly on our part, he would still have remained in
durance vile. He had received every possible care and
kindness from the doctor in whose house he was, who
was ever ready and willing to furnish me with any
particulars relating to the case. He had no power to
discharge him, pending the inquiry which had been
applied for. Two other doctors had been retained on
the other side, whose opinions were as strongly opposed
PERSONAL EXPERIENCES 83
to his sanity as ours to his insanity ; and though we all
stayed at the same hotel together, we left them in the
enjoyment of their own society.
We did not see them after the alleged lunatic had
returned to the hotel with us a free man.
During my experience it has frequently been my sad
duty to warn friends and relatives as to the nature
of a case on which I have been consulted. Sometimes
they follow the advice I give them, but at other times
they either will not or cannot recognise the gravity of
the situation. I have a number of these cases as illus-
trations of what I now say, but the one I give will suffice.
A few years ago Mrs Louisa Constance Proud came
under my observation as out-patient at my hospital.
She suffered from depression, and was apprehensive
in her statements to me as to what she feared she
might be tempted to do. I made a careful examination
of her, as I felt the case was one of great importance.
Not only did I caution her husband, who brought her
to me, but I made a special note of her case at the time,
in which I said, " If something is not done at once, I
feel sure that serious consequences will ensue." I
read this over to the husband. I saw the case in the
month of September, and at my suggestion he took
her to an asylum, but allowed her to come out at the
expiration of three days, notwithstanding my strong
opinion in the matter. He then took her to the seaside
like an ordinary rational being.
A short time afterwards she killed her daughter, aged
sixteen months, by setting fire to the bed in which the
84 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
child was sleeping. There is no doubt whatever that
the husband was responsible for what happened, for
on the day this occurred it appears that his wife was
very despondent, and a few days before she kept asking
him, why he did not " put her in an asylum and kill
the children " ! She repeated continuously, " Oh, Jack,
Jack, you are a fool ! Why do you not put me away ?
Take some poison and kill the children, and they will
be angels, and then we shall have no trouble."
The husband also stated in his evidence : " She had
frequently threatened to commit suicide, and about
nine months ago cut her throat with a razor."
Being asked by the coroner whether he was satisfied
in his own mind that his wife was at times not re-
sponsible for her actions, he answered : "I regret to
say I am. I have had her confined in an asylum, but
I took her out again."
It appears that there was insanity in the family.
At the trial the woman was proved to be of unsound
mind at the time of the murder. I was asked to give
evidence in the case, but unfortunately I was away
from London at the time, but my report was handed in,
together with the opinion I had originally given and
what I had recommended should be done in this matter.
This is an illustration of what serious consequences
may happen when relatives, who have to deal with
mental cases, act upon their own responsibility,
evidently with the hope that the opinion expressed by
the medical expert, whom they have consulted, may be
erroneous.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES
LEGAL EXPERIENCES
LEGAL CASES
DURING the forty years in which I have been figuring
in the law courts, I have been professionally connected
with the leading cases which have taken place during
that period. It is only my intention, however, to give
the principal ones. They are all public property, as
they have all been fully reported in the press. Any
legal case I have been in of a private nature, which has
not received publicity, I have no intention of placing
before the world. What has been made public on one
occasion can be again reproduced by me. I have given
evidence before many judges, living and dead, and
have been subjected to examination and cross-examina-
tion by many of the legal luminaries, past and present.
From some I have received fairplay, respect, and con-
sideration, whilst at the hands of others I have received
discourtesy, want of respect, and have often been
handled in a way which I consider to have been un-
warrantable. It is useless as a rule to appeal to judges
for protection from the rebuffs of counsel. They are
conscious of the fact that, having been once in the
&8 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
position of counsel themselves, they would have acted
in a similar way. Forty years' experience in the law
courts has convinced me that counsel generally have
too much latitude. This is my personal experience.
Before certain judges, if the counsel has what is called
the " ear " of the court, you might as well throw your
money into the gutter as attempt to instruct your
solicitor to brief anybody in opposition to him. When
I reflect on the number of the poor wretches who have
received gross injustice at the Old Bailey, I always give
a sardonical grin as I pass there and see the figure of
Justice with the sword and the scales, which is supposed
to be the emblem of the purity of English law.
The public are usually kept so much in the dark
as to the way criminal matters are conducted, and
the consequence is that material of vital importance
is often hushed up in court, that I feel it will be of
interest to those who remember certain cases, to
which I am now referring, to enter into them in
considerable detail. I am thus enabled to produce
certain facts which as yet have never come before
the world. Medical witnesses in the box, when testi-
fying for the defence, have very often a number of
questions put to them which are ruled off as in-
admissible. The prosecuting counsel takes every
opportunity, should he be of opinion that what the
witness is going to testify to is of importance, to
raise some sort of objection as to its being irrelevant
or inadmissible ; he appeals to the judge ; the judge
upholds him. This has often been so with me. I
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 89
never can understand the reason why medical experts
are tried to be made either buffoons or perjured
witnesses, and not desirous of explaining the real
and true nature of the case as it appears to them.
I am sorry to say this is so in many trials. The
more the vital points are put in evidence, so much
the more they are suppressed. If a case appears one
of unusual brutality to the public, the defence does
not receive a proper hearing. It is often quite ignored,
and those witnesses who are called upon for the
prisoner are regarded with suspicion. They are con-
sidered in the light, very often, of traitors in daring
to oppose the powers that be. The suppression and
curtailing of evidence raised for the defence is a blot
on our judicial criminal trials. It appears to me
very unfair that experts for the Treasury should be
treated in a different way from those of the defence.
I have often left the court after giving an honest
professional opinion to the best of my convictions
and judgment, being conscious of the fact that justice
has not been done, and that the prisoner has not had
a fair trial. The ruling of our judges in instructing
the jury that if the prisoner knows the " difference
between right and wrong," by law he is guilty even
though he may entertain delusions, and so long as
this distinction exists in his mind he is responsible,
often gives rise to an agitation after sentence on the
part of the relatives who are aware as to the insanity.
After considerable amount of pressure brought to bear
on those in authority at the Home Office, sometimes
90 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
an inquiry is granted. Medical men nominated by
the Government are sent to examine the condemned.
No consultation with those doctors nominated by the
defence takes place, and often an incomplete history
is placed before those doctors at the time. This, to
my mind, is not as it should be. Surely, if a man is
on the threshold of his fate, the red-tapeism and
secrecy surrounding the Treasury officials should be
removed for the time being, and both sides should
consult together and arguments pro and con be con-
sidered. The examination is a one-sided affair, and
it is a blot on our constitution. That the reports
issued by doctors otherwise than those nominated
by the Treasury are ignored I feel certain, in the
majority of instances.
CONDEMNED TO DEATH
Though I have been called upon to examine many
prisoners waiting their trial for murder, I have never
had any opportunity of being allowed to examine any
who have been condemned to death ; this for the
simple reason that the Government, in cases where
no plea of insanity has been raised at the trial, refuse
to allow outside interference. They and their medical
advisers are alone the judges of whether certain
questions raised after conviction are sufficient to
justify a reprieve on the ground of insanity. The
examination of prisoners made by me, except when
in America, has always been conducted either in the
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 91
infirmary of the prison or in the medical officer's
private room — in each case, however, in his presence.
It is rather an appalling feeling to be conscious of the
fact that you are shaking hands with someone who
in a few days will be launched into eternity, and this
feeling is uppermost in one's mind as one interrogates
the wretched individual. I cannot recollect one
prisoner I have examined, with the exception of a
boy who escaped from an institution of the feeble-
minded near Hampton Court, who could be said to
be objectively insane. I never saw one who was
shamming or who wanted to be regarded as insane.
They simply walk from the cell into the doctor's
room, sit down like any ordinary individual, answer
my questions put to them. I then read these over to
them as to their correctness ; they sign what I have
read. After this my report is sent both to the solicitor
who is instructing me and also to the Home Office.
It is my intention to lay before the public some
of the facts of cases I have appeared in, which the
curtailing of such evidence has induced me to do.
Before a case can be properly adjudicated upon,
it is the duty of the court to hear all the evidence oi
both sides, medical and otherwise, in extenso, and not
to withhold any from the court from some legal
quibble or technical theory raised in the issue. The
prisoner should have the benefit of a fair trial. On
this point I desire to be emphatic, and I base my
assertions on what I have seen and heard in courts
of law.
92 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
At the present day there are few medical men who
care or dare to go through the ordeal in the witness-
box. There is nothing to be gained ; you lay your-
self open to insult and an imputation of wrong motives ;
your time is taken up in hanging about the precincts
of the law courts ; and as a rule, with few exceptions,
you find that the solicitors have appropriated the fees
which you are supposed to have received for your
professional services. I speak of what I know to be
the case, and what I have myself experienced. I
have witnessed a most learned and experienced
physician trembling like an aspen leaf under the
severe and cruel cross-examination of counsel.
What strikes me, after an experience of forty years
in the law courts — and I would again make this most
emphatic — is the fact that the evidence called by the
Treasury always receives more credence than that
called for the defence.
It is difficult to convince the Treasury prosecutors
that there are always two sides to a question, and
that it does not necessarily follow that the medical
expert called for the defence is not hi every way
giving an honourable, true, unprejudiced professional
opinion. The medical expert often leaves the witness-
box, having gone through what the French describe
as a " mauvais quart d'heure " of a very unpleasant
nature.
The jury are more inclined to believe those experts
appearing on behalf of the Treasury, who receive
handsome fees, rather than those medical experts who
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 93
oppose the Treasury, and who, as a rule, have to fish
for their money and get nothing.
One of the first cases I was called upon to testify
in, in which the plea of insanity was raised, was that
of Robert King, the " Old Kent Road murder."
If ever there was a judicial murder committed,
and a man hurled into eternity in an unjustifiable
way, it was in this case. It made a great impression
upon me at the time, being one of my early cases.
After the crime, which he committed whilst suffer-
ing from delusions of a religious nature, and which
was apparently quite motiveless, he made a desperate
attempt on his own life. He tried to cut his throat,
and had the penknife gone but a fraction of an inch
further, judging from the writing which was found
in his pocket, containing a number of incoherent,
nonsensical views on religion, there is no doubt but
that the verdict would have been one of " Murder
and suicide whilst suffering from temporary insanity."
But because the knife failed to do its deadly and
intentional duty, the poor wretch was taken to a
hospital, and everything was done which surgery
could do to patch him up so as to enable him to
take his place in the criminal dock of the Old Bailey.
I was requested to examine him in the cell beneath
the dock in the Old Bailey at the adjournment for
lunch. The examination was a most painful one.
In consequence of the aperture in his throat, he had
to lie down flat on his back whilst partaking of his
food. The man, in my opinion, was a semi-imbecile.
94 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
He did not know the difference between right and
wrong, which was the test of sanity in the English
courts. It was a Treasury prosecution, and for some
reason best known to themselves they wanted a
conviction and succeeded in obtaining one.
Sir Henry Poland appeared for the Treasury, but,
being unable to weaken my cross-examination, just
before I left the box addressed me as follows : " Dr
Winslow, I presume you get a good fee for coming here
to-day." To which I replied, addressing him by name:
" A doctor has as much right to his fee as a barrister
has to his." " Ah, you think so," he replied. " Yes,
I do," and down sat the big luminary of the law.
The wretched man was hanged, and a gross injustice
chronicles the British calendar. The impression I had
of my first appearance in court was, that a mental
expert's position was not a happy one, and after many
years' experience I abide by the same conclusion.
I remember many years ago, when my father was
giving evidence in a case, a young barrister, evidently
new to the business, suddenly jumped up from the well
of the court, and addressing my father, remarked to
him : " Dr Winslow, give us a definition of this in-
sanity, which you have so frequently alluded to in this
case." My father answered : " It is impossible to give
one definition of insanity which will include all the
varieties of this disastrous and dreadful malady."
This did not satisfy the budding Q.C. He thumped
his fist on the desk. " I insist on a definition." My
father hesitated for a moment, and then, giving vent
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 95
to all the longest psychological words he could think of,
and which he knew were beyond the comprehension of
the learned barrister, completely floored him and was
asked to desist, the barrister exclaiming : " Dr
Winslow, please do not continue further, for if you do
we shall all become examples of that terrible complaint,
which you have so eloquently described."
A short time ago I was giving evidence before Mr
Justice Sutton in a case of slander. The counsel who
cross-examined me, probably with a view of being
facetious or funny, raised the question of my profes-
sional fee. In this case it was nil. He put his question
in a similar way to that put by Sir Henry Poland in the
case of the Old Kent Road murder.
My reply was : " The difference between us is as
follows : your profession always receive their fees in
advance, we doctors rarely receive them at all." In
this case it was perfectly true, as also in the Old Kent
Road murder and many other cases I could mention.
It is a monstrous thing that those professional men,
who give up their time to testify in law courts, should
not receive their honorarium, whereas the counsel,
giving but such a short time to the consideration of the
case, decline to go into court unless they have received
their fees previous to the commencement of the pro-
ceedings, and go in with well-greased palms.
A medical expert, opposing the Treasury, has a
great deal to contend with. The Treasury have not
only all the money they desire at their back, but the
advantage of having the highest legal opinion and
96 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
advocacy in the case. The poor wretch struggling
against the Treasury has a poor time indeed.
I have come to the conclusion that those cases in
which the plea of insanity is raised do not get a fair
hearing in England. The suggestion of guilt and
responsibility is hammered into the jury by the pro-
secuting counsel, and those who are convinced that the
man is not criminally responsible, and who are giving
evidence to that effect, have to take a back seat. It
is rather an heroic statement to make, but I do so with-
out the least hesitation, and that is, that I conscien-
tiously believe that I have had right and justice on my
side in every case I have been called in to testify as to
the irresponsibility of the accused person. I remember
giving evidence in the case of Nunn v. Hemming at
Westminster Hall. An action was brought by a
patient who had been confined in Munster House
Asylum in the neighbourhood of Fulham. Whilst an
inmate there he had made his escape and had been
recaptured. His allegation was that, on being taken
back to the asylum, he had been drugged with chloro-
dyne, put into a bath, and subsequently, to use his own
expression, he had been " thrown into a padded room."
He brought an action against the proprietor of the
asylum for this treatment. The reason that I was a
witness was that a few years previously he had been a
patient in the asylum over which I had exercised my
medical supervision. In fact, he used to dine at my
table like one of the family, and was always treated in
a proper and humane way. The counsel for the prose-
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 97
cution, Serjeant Parry, made a great deal out of the
comparison between the treatment the patient re-
ceived at my hands and that which he received at the
hands of the other asylum authorities. The constant
allusion to my " soothing treatment," and his impress-
ing on the jury the fact that when my patient he was
always treated as a visitor, dining at my table, and
that I never drugged him with chlorodyne, rather
stirred up my poetical spirit. I was very young in
those days, and youth must be my excuse, but I sent
up to the learned Serjeant the following impromptu
verse : —
" If you are asked to treat the poor insane,
To ease their anguish, pacify their brain,
The padded room or bath you must not use,
Or you'll be blamed and also get abuse.
You must not give your patients chlorodyne,
But if excited ask them up to dine ;
And one safe medicine all the rest will beat —
It's Winslow's soothing syrup given neat."
The soothing treatment had inspired me, and I could
not resist giving vent to my poetical feelings.
During my career I have testified in commissions of
lunacy innumerable, and these have been held before
various Masters, and, so far as I can recollect, I have
never testified in any case which has not been decided
according to my testimony, with one exception. In
this case the patient was confined in an asylum in the
neighbourhood of London. He was a wealthy man,
and whilst in the asylum he was allowed to drive about
in his carriage and pair wherever he wished to go, and
7
98 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
whilst there, by his request, I visited him. Being
transferred to another institution, his son desired to
hold a commission of lunacy on him, and to place his
affairs under the protection of the Court of Chancery.
The gentleman in question made every possible effort
to communicate with me and get me to stop the pro-
ceedings if possible. In vain he tried ; he was behind
the four walls of a lunatic asylum, and all communica-
tion with the outside world was debarred him. One
evening there was a theatrical performance given at
this asylum, and the patient, being of a theatrical turn
of mind, got into conversation with one of the per-
formers, unnoticed by the attendants. He gave him a
letter to post to me. This informed me of the fact
that he was to be brought to town on a certain day, and
that an inquiry was going to be held into his mental
condition, without any opportunity being given him
of being represented or of defending himself in the
matter. In other words, it was to be an ex-parte trial.
Solicitors had been engaged, counsel had been briefed,
witnesses had been summoned on one side ; but he,
the interested party, was left out in the cold with no
one to represent him. In this letter he requested me
to take what steps I thought advisable to protect his
interests. The day of the trial had arrived, and,
accompanied by a solicitor, whom I had nominated, I
was waiting at the door of the court for the patient and
his attendants to arrive. The solicitor had already
written out an authority, to be signed by the patient,
which would legally empower him to represent the
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 99
alleged lunatic. On reaching the court I introduced
the solicitor to the patient, and after he had signed the
document we all went into court. This step was done
unknown to the other side, who had got everything
ready and had anticipated that the trial would go
through undefended. On the case being called, the
solicitor rose, and, addressing the Master, requested an
adjournment, on the ground that he had only just been
instructed. The representatives on the other side
were apparently staggered, but they had no alternative
but to abide by the ruling of the Master in granting an
adjournment of the case. The case was heard in the
High Courts of Justice a few months later. It was a
good illustration of what often takes place where a
wretched man is imprisoned in an asylum and is unable
to communicate with the outside world, and is in the
hands of those who are desirous of depriving him of his
liberty and of the management of his property, without
being given the right which every Englishman demands
of defending himself.
Though it was thought advisable in the interest of
the patient that his property should be protected,
nevertheless he had the advantage of a fair and proper
trial, in consequence of his being personally represented.
This no doubt satisfied him.
As a result of forty years' experience as a witness
in many commissions of lunacy held before a jury,
I have no hesitation in pronouncing the whole thing
a farce.
I was giving evidence before Master Fischer at
ioo RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Teignmouth in Devonshire. The jury were of the
usual intelligent nature found in country villages.
They had been summoned to hear evidence, and to
decide whether a certain gentleman was of sound or
unsound mind and capable of managing himself and
his affairs.
I will give one illustration as proof of my justification
in regarding commissions of lunacy, as at present
conducted by juries, as a farce of the worst description,
and I desire in every way to justify this opinion from
a remark I overheard made by one of the jury in this
case.
I sat immediately under the jury-box, and upon
the Master asking the jury if they would like to make
a personal examination of the alleged lunatic, one of
them remarked to his neighbour, but not hi the hear-
ing of the Court, " What do we know about lunatics ?
We could not tell 'em." This in broad Devonshire.
And here was a jury summoned to adjudicate on a
matter of which they were in baneful ignorance of
anything connected with the subject. It is not for
me to suggest anything in place of trial by jury in
alleged cases of insanity ; but the longer I have lived,
and the more experience I have obtained in this
subject, proves to my mind conclusively that some
other plan ought to be adopted in such cases. This
is not only so in commissions of lunacy, but also in
murder cases when the plea of insanity has been
raised, and in fact every case where the soundness
or unsoundness of a person's mind has to be decided.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 101
It is amusing to see the persuasive methods adopted
by counsel in addressing these gentlemen, apparently
regarding them as intelligent members of the com-
munity, instead of, as I have often met them, just
the opposite. I have had many opportunities, after
the decision of a case, of hearing what the jury have
had to say in the matter as to what was passing
through their minds during the trial. Of course
among twelve men there may be one or two with a
fragmentary amount of intelligence. I have generally
regarded a country jury in the light of the celebrated
Cornish jury with the same amount of brain, one of
the members of which, on being asked after the trial,
why he did not find the person guilty, replied : " If
you hang him to-morrow, it would not bring the old
woman to life again, so I gives him the benefit of
the doubt ! "
Another member of the same jury replied as follows :
" All I can say is that he saved two of my children
from the small-pox, and putting one and two together
I should not go to find him guilty " ; the case at
issue being that of a doctor who had been tried for
the alleged administration of arsenic in a dish of
rabbits smothered in onions. It is authenticated, and
is often quoted to show the absurdities of complicated
cases with scientific issues being left to the judicial
opinion of a number of ignorant men.
In cases where guilt or innocence is simply to be
decided they are quite as competent to deal with
the matter as the most cultured people in the land,
102 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
and often much better ; but when an abstruse subject,
involving scientific and psychological investigations,
occurs, and where the objective and subjective state
of the mind has to be dealt with, and where the
question of madness or rationality is the one under
consideration, then, as I said before, the tribunal to
decide this should not be a number of ignorant gabies.
At least this is my experience, and after forty years
I feel in every way justified in expressing my
views.
THE BALHAM MYSTERY : BRAVO CASE
My opinion was asked in 1876 with reference to
the case known as the " Balham mystery."
The history of the case is as follows : — Florence
Campbell, an accomplished girl, married Captain
Ricardo in 1864. Three years after marriage he
became addicted to habits of drunkenness, which
increased to such an extent as to end in delirium
tremens. Subsequently Captain and Mrs Ricardo
separated. Captain Ricardo died, and his body
being exhumed, antimony was detected. The allega-
tion at the time was that it had been administered
by his wife, but this was only slander, as they had
not then been under the same roof together for
many years. After the separation Captain Ricardo
went to Germany, whilst his wife visited Malvern.
She there became acquainted with Dr Gully, super-
intendent of a Malvern hydro, whom she had known
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 103
for years. The only obstacle, on his death, to Mrs
Ricardo marrying Dr Gully was that he had a wife of
his own still living. This state of affairs continued for
a few years, when, in consequence of an estrangement
with members of her own family, due to her clandestine
intrigue with Dr Gully, she determined to give up his
society in order to be received into the family circle
once more. About this time she made the acquaint-
ance of a young barrister of the name of Bravo, and
within six weeks of this, though he knew her past
life, he married her.
Four months after the marriage Mr Bravo came
home in his usual state of health, and sat down to
dinner with his wife and her companion, Mrs Cox,
at 6.30. At 10.30 he was seized with a violent attack
of vomiting. An alarm was raised that Mr Bravo
was ill. He rushed to the door of his room, shouting
loudly for hot water and help. Mrs Cox, accompanied
by the housemaid, ran upstairs, to find him standing
by the window, out of which he had been sick. In a
short time he became unconscious, and continued
more or less in that condition. It was thought
necessary to summon two medical men from London.
He had glimpses of rationality between his attacks,
and in answer to a question Bravo stated that he
had rubbed his gums with laudanum.
The first doctors found him dying of collapse and
heart failure. He had moments of consciousness,
during which they recognised symptoms of poisoning
by some metallic irritant, which, though at first were
io4 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
nearly sufficient to produce an almost fatal collapse,
had not done so, but allowed the patient to rally
in great agony, but with his brain unaffected.
The following day Sir William Gull was sent for ;
the letter, sent by hand, was as follows : —
" DEAR SIR, — My husband is dangerously ill. Could
you come as soon as possible to see him ? My father,
Mr Campbell of Buscot Park, will feel very grateful to
you if you could come at once. I need not say how
grateful I should be. — Faithfully yours,
" FLORENCE BRAVO."
Upon the arrival of Sir William Gull that evening
Bravo was pulseless but not insensible, and he asked
Sir William Gull to read him the Lord's Prayer, which
he did.
Sir William Gull left the house stating that Bravo
would riot live the night. He could elicit nothing
from him as to the nature of what he had taken ;
but he made the following statement upon being told
that he was dying of poison : "I took it myself —
laudanum." He died the same day, within sixty
hours of his attack. A large amount of antimony
was found in the body, and the question was, Who
administered this antimony ? Was it taken by the
deceased hi order to commit suicide ? The coroner's
jury gave a verdict that the antimony had been
administered with murderous intent by some person
or persons unknown, and negatived the suggestion
of suicide. To the last Bravo asserted that anything
he had taken was administered by himself.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 105
I expressed my firm conviction that Bravo com-
mitted suicide during temporary insanity, and that
it was not a case of murder ; and I was not alone in
my theory. I was present at the trial, and was sub-
sequently consulted in the matter, the whole facts
of the case being submitted to me. Bravo was a
man of excitable temperament, liable to sudden out-
bursts of passion without any adequate cause. He
was morbidly jealous, and he vented his suspicions
at every opportunity on his wife ; his mind became
absorbed with the one train of thought, relative to
certain events previous to his marriage, to which I
have already referred. The public from the outset
were determined not to accept the theory of suicide,
let the evidence be ever so strong or substantiated
by convincing facts. On my part, I was equally
determined to make them recognise the contrary, and
I did my best, and I think successfully, to accomplish
what I intended to convey. One strong reason for
his committing suicide was his mental depression at
his wife's infidelity, of which they had absolute and
abundant proof, and also the taint of hereditary in-
sanity in his family ; but this latter evidence carried
no weight at the inquest, and was hardly in any way
considered or dealt with. In a case like this, where
there was unfortunately so much which is theoretical,
I am strongly of opinion that there ought to have
been a medical as well as a legal assessor, as the
question at issue was whether the matter was one of
murder or suicide. In this case I must confess that
106 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
even the Treasury were desirous of sifting the matter
to the very utmost.
The jury having sat for twenty- three days, the
following verdict was given : " That Mr Charles
Delauney Turner Bravo did not commit suicide, that
he did not meet his death from misadventure, that
he was wilfully murdered by the administration of
tartar emetic, but that there is not sufficient evidence
to fix the guilt upon any person or persons." The
father in his evidence stated two most important
facts. When interrogated he said : " I can say he
was not a man likely to commit suicide " ; and again,
when expressing his views on his son's ideas respect-
ing suicide, the father said : "I know that he always
held a theory that a man who took his own life was
a coward." When asked whether there was any
evidence of jealousy between husband and wife, he
replied in the negative, stating that " they were
always most affectionate towards each other."
An open verdict was given in the way I have men-
tioned, without fixing the guilt upon anyone. By this
verdict an indelible stigma was cast upon certain
individuals. I did not think at the time that there
was any justification for that verdict. One witness
who testified at the inquiry stated that after Mr Bravo
was seized with his illness he said to her, " I have taken
poison for Dr Gully. Do not tell Florence." The
mystery was that either Bravo committed suicide or
was poisoned by his wife, Mrs Cox, or Dr Gully. Of
course, everybody was prejudiced against the wife.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 107
Her past conduct was brought forward ; the ingenuity
of her intrigues was raked up against her, and there was
not a vestige of mercy or consideration shown her. Her
detractors stated that "she dyed her hair," but they
did not prove she poisoned her husband. Evidence on
her behalf at the trial had no effect, for they were bent
on blasting her character, so that nothing bad enough
could be said against her. It was a parody of legal
proceedings. Everything that could be possibly
alleged against the woman was said, her character was
blackened, and she was held up to ignominy and scorn ;
but in spite of a prolonged public investigation, held
in the most unscrupulous way, nothing was adduced
against the widow to bring the crime home to her.
With regard to Dr Gully, the fact that the only
evidence they had was the purchase of antimony by his
coachman two years previously will suffice to show how
weak the direct evidence was. It was evidently lost
sight of that, supposing a conspiracy had existed
between Gully & Co. to murder Bravo, it must have
been of very short duration ; and it is not likely that
Gully carried antimony about with him, whilst he was
in the good books of Mrs Bravo, in order to poison any
man who might marry her.
The whole conflict of evidence and deliberate perjury
on one side or the other was so terrible that it hid from
the light of day the possible theory of suicide and
evidence in support of the same, but which subse-
quently I was able to bring home and prove without
a shadow of a doubt.
io8 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
The opinion that I gave on the case was one of
suicide, and that a verdict of wilful murder had been
arrived at without one tittle of evidence to justify such
a decision. I was convinced of the fact, well known
and admitted by all psychologists, that suicidal
insanity is an impulsive act, whilst homicide is premedi-
tated. The jury lost sight of this important point
in considering their verdict. One curious argument
which was urged against the verdict of suicide was that
evidence was given hi court that Mr Bravo had met
some friends the day previous, who reported that, from
his general demeanour, conduct, and appearance, he
was of sound mind, thus considering the case objectively
not subjectively. Such conclusions are worthless ;
they may convince an ignorant British jury, but they
have no weight otherwise. I considered that there
was a strong exciting and predisposing cause, as pre-
viously mentioned, from the evidence placed before
me with reference to the general behaviour and conduct
of Bravo upon many occasions, which was not consist-
ent with sanity : his violent fits of temper — impulsive,
no doubt, — and his mind absorbed by one predominant
thought as to the intrigue still existing between his
wife and someone else, were prominent features in the
case. A strange fact worthy of comment was the fact
that Mrs Bravo after her marriage consulted Dr Gully
with regard to certain medical treatment. Unfortun-
ately, the indiscreet way in which he acted, which was
quite unnecessary and unusual, was surrounded with
suspicions ; but having so acted, he must have felt,
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 109
however innocent he might have been, that he could
not have committed such indiscretions without in-
curring grave risk and suspicions.
On one hand we have an excitable man, madly
jealous, impulsive, unreasonable, and of a highly insane
temperament, unable to restrain his feelings. On the
other hand, a wife possessed of the power of deception
and intrigue, and who might have had a motive for
getting rid of Bravo. We have to weigh them equally
in the balance. Bravo's death was not accidental, and
it was not conceivable that misadventure was respon-
sible for the tragedy. It was either a case of self-
destruction or murder.
During the sixty hours he lived after taking the
poison he frequently rallied, but he never made any
allegation against anyone whom he suspected of
administering the poison. It would be contrary to
all instincts of human nature that a man should believe
himself to be poisoned by either someone he cared for
or someone hateful to him, and yet make no charge of
incrimination. In his moments of complete sensibility
he never made use of the word murder, or gave any
verbal intimation that any other than himself was
responsible for the abrupt termination of his young
life. I know of no instance on record of such a
metaphysical anomaly. Our knowledge of human
nature forbids its possibility. With all his faults,
though conscious in his heart of the knowledge that he
was probably passing through his last moments, he was
not base enough to bring a charge of murder against
no RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
others, for the simple reason that he knew so well that
his death could only be laid at his own door. He died
commending his wife to the care of his friends and
relations. Bravo had taken antimony by his own
hand in consequence of insane jealousy, which rankled
in his bosom, and I again maintain that there was no
justification for the jury returning an open verdict of
wilful murder.
The case being surrounded by so many intricacies,
which one had to analyse carefully, it is no wonder that
there was found a certain class always ready to give an
opinion in a case of which they knew nothing, and who
pointed the finger of guilt at his wife and her lover as
the aiders and abettors, if not the actual perpetrators
responsible for the death of Mr Bravo.
THE PENCE MYSTERY: STAUNTON CASE
The first case in which I became what might be
called an agitator, or, in other words, in which I was of
opinion that justice had miscarried, was in 1877. It
was known as the " Penge mystery," where Louis
Staunton, Patrick Staunton, Mrs Patrick Staunton,
and Alice Rhodes were indicted for the murder of
Harriet Staunton, wife of Louis Staunton, at Penge, by
starvation. Mr Justice Hawkins was the judge; the
Old Bailey was the scene of this sensational drama. I
was a spectator of what took place. The facts are
shortly these. Harriet Staunton was of weak mind,
and it was arranged for her to stay with Patrick
LEGAL EXPERIENCES in
Staunton and his wife, the payment being at the rate
of one pound a week. Louis Staunton, the husband of
Harriet Staunton, was in the meantime carrying on an
intrigue with Alice Rhodes, aged twenty, and the sister
of Mrs Patrick Staunton. It was also alleged that both
Louis Staunton and Alice Rhodes used to visit the
house together, and were parties to the charge of
starvation which was brought against the four unhappy
persons. Mrs Butterfield, the mother of Harriet
Staunton, had been unable to trace her daughter, but,
having heard certain rumours, was suspicious. One
day, whilst in a very weak state, Harriet Staunton was
removed by Patrick and his wife to a lodging at Penge,
where she died the following day under circumstances
which caused suspicion. A post-mortem examination
disclosed evidence of starvation, as stated by the
doctor in his death certificate. The body of the
deceased woman only weighed five stone instead of
nine, and was most emaciated, without any fat ; but
there were tubercles found in the brain. This opened
my eyes to an important fact elicited during the trial.
The allegation was that, to enable Louis Staunton to
carry on his intrigues with Alice Rhodes, his brother
Patrick and his wife, cognisant of the fact that Harriet
was of weak mind, aided and gave their services to
bring about what they thought Louis desired. This
disclosed a motive which made it so difficult to dispute.
In sentencing the prisoners to death on 26th September,
Mr Justice Hawkins, who had been unusually severe
during the hearing of the case, said as follows : " You
ii2 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
have been found guilty by a jury of your countrymen
of a crime so black and hideous that I believe in the
records of crime it would be difficult to find a parallel."
The questions the agitators had to decide were as
follows : —
ist. What did Harriet Staunton die of ?
2nd. If from any specific disease, might that disease,
as found by post-mortem examination, be the result of
starvation ?
3rd. Would such disease of itself account for part or
all of the emaciation ?
4th. Inasmuch as there were tubercles in the brain,
might there not be the same in the intestine, and, if so,
is it not a fact that food would not properly assimilate
under these conditions ; hence the emaciation found
after death ?
These were my questions, and I agitated as a
consequence.
The murder created much sensation, and, as is often
seen in such matters, it was prejudged previous to the
trial, and the moral grounds were allowed to overweigh
the real facts of the case.
I was convinced of the innocence of these people, and
I also believed that death was due to natural causes.
Harriet Staunton suffered from tubercular disease of
the brain, and my theory was that inasmuch as there
were tubercles found in the brain, so also were there
tubercles in the intestines, to such an extent that the
food would not properly assimilate.
Immediately after the trial I helped to organise a
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 113
preliminary public meeting at the Cannon Street Hotel.
This was held on 3rd October, and was influentially
supported. We decided at this meeting to prepare
five thousand copies of the petition to circulate far and
wide for signatures.
In the course of my remarks at the meeting I said
that I was able to affirm that often, in the case of a
diseased brain, the patient died from exhaustion and
inanition, in consequence of the food not affording
sufficient nourishment and the non-absorption of it
in the system. I criticised the post-mortem examina-
tion made by the doctor, in which he had stated that
the condition of the lungs and the brain as found
after death by him was proof of starvation. The
examination, however, not being made until six days
after death, I challenged the conclusions arrived at
by him, and expressed my opinion that the changes
which were found so many days after death were
due to post-mortem changes and not to natural
causes, and that, had this post-mortem been made,
as it ought to have been, within twenty-four hours
after death, no such indications would have been
found.
I concluded by saying that " all the post-mortem
indications in the case of Harriet Staunton pointed
to a brain diseased and not to starvation. It would
be a disgrace to England and an outrage upon
humanity to allow these four poor wretches to be
hanged."
A few days after this a great public meeting was
8
H4 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
called together by the committee who previously
organised the meeting at Cannon Street Hotel to con-
sider what further steps should be taken with regard
to the reprieve of the Stauntons and Alice Rhodes.
The following petition was then agreed to : —
" To the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty.
" The humble petition of the undersigned, your
Majesty's loyal subjects, showeth that Louis Staunton,
Patrick Staunton, Elizabeth Anne Staunton, and Alice
Rhodes have been found guilty of the wilful murder
of Harriet Staunton, and are now lying under sentence
of death ; that your petitioners, having regard to the
conflict of medical evidence and opinion as to the
cause of death of the said Harriet Staunton, and to
the character of the evidence as to the treatment she
received during her life, feel a strong conviction that
the crime of wilful murder has not been so proven as
to remove all doubt ; and they humbly submit that
the convicts should likewise receive the benefit of
that doubt."
I was entrusted by the committee to obtain the
signatures of the medical profession to the petition
in favour of the prisoners, and within a few hours
of my organising this petition I was inundated with
letters from a number of medical men, all eager to
sign ; and with one or two exceptions (as is always
found in a case of this kind), it was generally agreed
that the symptoms of the deceased and the post-
mortem examination proved that she suffered from
brain disease of a long standing, and that death arose
from natural causes.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 115
My petition was signed by the leading pathologists,
coroners, medical inspectors of health, surgeons, and
physicians of all the London hospitals. At this
meeting there were upwards of 2000 people present,
and when the resolution was put to the meeting as to
the petition there were only two dissentients.
Mr Justice Hawkins, together with many others,
had formed a very strong opinion on the case, and
after his expression of opinion on passing sentence
there was a great difficulty in obtaining a reprieve.
Our efforts, however, succeeded. This was granted
on the Saturday evening previous to the execution,
which had been fixed for the Monday. Instead of
Alice Rhodes walking to the scaffold, she walked into
my study herself to thank me for the efforts I had
taken to prove her innocence.
This was the first case in which I took a prominent
part, and the experience I gained has been very
valuable to me in after life, and I was much en-
couraged by the result. Alice Rhodes was the only
one of the four who received a free pardon. The
others were sentenced to imprisonment for life.
Nothing could have been otherwise expected after
the severe remarks of the judge. Patrick Staunton
and his wife, I believe, died in prison. Louis was
ultimately reprieved, and called at my house some
years ago. A subscription was got up, headed by
Sir Edward Clarke, who had eloquently defended
them, it being one of the cases which brought this
celebrated advocate into notice.
n6 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
THE DODWELL CASE
In 1878 the Rev. Mr Dodwell, formerly a master of
Cheltenham College, was arraigned at the Old Bailey
for an assault on Sir George Jessel, the Master of the
Rolls, " with intent to murder him " by discharging
" a deadly pistol at his lordship." The charge of the
attempt to murder was not substantiated, and he
was only found guilty of an assault. He refused all
assistance from counsel, and defended himself. This
case occupied much of my attention, as I was called
in to examine him on several occasions. Apparently
he had a grievance to the effect that in certain personal
litigation connected with the Chancery Division he had
not received justice. Notwithstanding that he made
many attempts to get his case reheard, he failed in
getting another hearing ; so a happy thought came
to him of buying a shilling toy pistol at a second-hand
shop and firing off an empty cartridge in the vicinity
of the judge, so that he might be taken up and charged,
and consequently public attention would be drawn to
his case. This " deadly weapon " for many years
formed one of the curios in my study. I should
think the inside of it had never seen powder, and the
astonishment to my mind was that when the percus-
sion cap was discharged it was not shattered to
smithereens. I mention this to show the nature of
the wonderful weapon employed. The great injustice
to the unfortunate clergyman was the fact that he
was found at the trial to be of unsound mind, and he
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 117
was sent to Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum
without one single medical witness being called to
support the theory of insanity. I visited Mr Dodwell
on two occasions in Newgate, accompanied by another
mental expert, Dr Winn, at the request of both
his friends and himself, and the report was sent to
the Home Office, the result being that certain questions
were asked in the House of Commons with reference
to the sanity of Mr Dodwell. It appears that at the
time Parliament took the question up the medical
officers at Broadmoor, where he had been sent, had
issued no report as to his state of mind. As he still
lingered on in " durance vile," a sane man apparently,
detained in a lunatic asylum, and one who had been
sent there on no medical testimony whatever, I was
asked to visit him at Broadmoor. I did so, and I
again forwarded my report, by request, to the Home
Office, and the question was revived in the House.
The press were indignant at the secrecy with which
the official reports were kept. The session ended with
nothing being done, or the public enlightened in the
matter. I think it advisable, perhaps, to give in
detail the copies of the reports of Dr Winn and myself
in the case.
As I have said at the commencement, the question
at issue was whether Mr Dodwell had a grievance in
reality, or whether it only existed in his imagination.
The case created a. furore at the time from the fact of
the possibility of a man being incarcerated in a
criminal lunatic asylum without any medical testi-
u8 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
mony being called to substantiate the accusation.
When I mention that Dr Gibson, the surgeon of
Newgate, also supported our views as to the sanity
of Mr Dodwell, the importance of the case and the
injustice done will appear obvious to all.
The following is a copy of my report forwarded to
the Home Office : —
" I have on two separate occasions, in consultation
with Dr Gibson and Dr Winn, had lengthy interviews
with the Rev. Mr Dodwell, now in Newgate.
" Alleged Grievances.
" i. He described in detail his alleged grievances :
his dismissal from the Brighton Industrial Schools,
inability to obtain a rehearing of his case, and the
treatment he received from the governors of a school
in Devonshire to which he had been appointed master.
" Actions in Court of Law.
"2. He gave a very lucid description of the course
of action pursued by him in courts of justice, and its
result ; of his endeavouring to obtain what he con-
sidered to be his rights, and his failure in every instance
to obtain a proper hearing.
" Acutely conscious of his Grievances.
"3. He gave an accurate description of the various
petitions he had presented. He appears acutely con-
scious that he possesses a grievance for which he can
obtain no redress. He believes in consequence that
his family and himself have been brought to the brink
of ruin.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 119
" Inability to earn a Livelihood.
" 4. He informed me that, having failed in obtaining
a rehearing of his case, he had made fruitless attempts
to obtain clerical duty. He had applied for such to an
agency, but without success. He had also endeav-
oured to get pupils, but in this he had also failed.
"Proof of non-murderous Intent.
"5. The act for which he is now in Newgate had
been premeditated for the last six months. As a proof
of this he read me an extract from a letter written by
him to the Lord Chancellor, in which he stated that it
was his intention to break the law in order to obtain a
hearing. His first idea was to fire off a pistol in Vice-
Chancellor Malin's court, but he found by so doing he
would simply be committed for contempt of court, and
the purpose he had in view would remain unaccom-
plished. He was anxious to impress on me that he
never had the intention of committing a murder. To
prevent or rebut a charge of so serious a character, he
purchased a pistol, and not a revolver, as he only in-
tended to fire once. He also informed me that a few
weeks previous to his attempt he read of a man who
was injured by the discharge of a pistol containing
blank cartridge. This accident would have been
avoided had not the pistol been close to the injured
man. To avoid any possible injury being incurred by
the Master of the Rolls, he, the prisoner, stood at what
he considered to be a safe distance from his Lordship
before discharging his pistol.
" State of his Affairs One Month previous to Assault.
" 6. A month previous to the assault he met a friend
in the Strand. At that time he considered that he was
suffering from gross injustice, and, having failed in
120 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
obtaining clerical employment, he had only a few
shillings in the world left with which to support a wife
and four children. On this occasion he exclaimed :
' I will not go to the workhouse except through the
gate of the dock ; and if by so doing my case is placed
before reflecting people of England and I sink, I must
sink ! ' He is a man apparently of determined purpose,
and this seems to have been his character through life.
I have carefully inquired into the history of his ante-
cedents, and can detect no evidence of hereditary
disease.
" Opinion of Case.
" 7. During the whole of my conversation with him
he was calm and collected ; there were no symptoms
indicative of a morbid impulse. He appeared to be a
man driven to desperation and ruin by circumstances.
He did not labour under any delusions. He declared
that he had only acted unlawfully with a view to
securing the attention of his countrymen to the subject
of his alleged wrongs. He gave clearly and distinctly
an account of his previous history. His memory
seemed to be excellent. His conversation, manner,
and general demeanour were most rational in every
respect ; and I was unable to detect any symptoms
indicative of mental disorder. I am of opinion, from a
careful and anxious consideration of the case, that he
is of sound mind, and there is nothing to justify his
detention as a criminal lunatic.
"L. S. FORBES WINSLOW,
"M.B.Camb., M.R.C.P.Lond., D.C.L.Oxon., LL.M.Camb,
" Lecturer on Mental Diseases, Charing Cross Hospital.
" 23 CAVENDISH SQUARE,
March 1878."
Dr Winn's Report.
" During a long interview with the Rev. H. J.
Dodwell, on Thursday, 20th March, and another on the
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 121
2ist, I could not discover the slightest indication of
insanity. He was neither excited nor depressed, and
his manner throughout both visits was calm and self-
possessed. His conversation was perfectly coherent,
without any inconsequence of words or thoughts.
There was not a trace of a delusion, and his memory
was never at fault. In all he said he gave unmistakable
proof of his being a man of great ability and learning,
and having feelings keenly sensitive to the least doubt
thrown on his honour or truthfulness. His general
health was good, and he stated that he never had had
any serious attack of illness, and that there was no
hereditary taint of insanity in his family. He gave a
clear and logical account of the motives and circum-
stances which led him to commit a breach of the peace.
" He stated that six years ago he held the appoint-
ment of chaplain to the Industrial Schools at Brighton.
From this office he was dismissed in consequence of his
having complained of the conduct of some of the
officials, thereby giving offence to some members of the
Board of Guardians. He demanded a full and fair
inquiry into all the circumstances of the case ; and
although he was supported by seven clergymen and
other members of the Board, his reasonable request
was not granted, nor could he get any redress for the
grievous wrong and ruinous loss he had sustained.
Since that time he had made repeated efforts to get
justice done him, in vain. He says that if he can only
get his character cleared he would be satisfied. Fifteen
months ago he applied to the Court of Chancery, but
was told by Vice-Chancellor Malins that he had no
jurisdiction in the matter. On asking him what
induced him to fire a blank cartridge at the Master of
the Rolls, he said it was from no vindictive feeling or
murderous intention, but with the hope that it might
be the means of bringing his case before the public,
being driven to it by extreme poverty, and that, if he
122 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
must go to the workhouse, he preferred that it should
be through the criminal dock ; that he did not fire
from sudden impulse — he had for months previously
contemplated doing something to force himself on the
attention of the public, having on his mind the example
of the officer who struck the Duke of Cambridge in
order to get himself heard.
" Mr Gibson, the surgeon of Newgate, informed me
that during his imprisonment his conduct has been most
exemplary, his manner and habits perfectly rational,
and he has never complained of the prison diet.
" From a careful consideration of all these facts, I
have come to the conclusion that the Rev. H. J.
Dodwell is not insane.
" J. M. WINN, M.D., M.R.C.P.,
" Member of the Medico- Psychological Society, etc."
Joint Report of Drs L. S. Forbes Winslow and Winn.
" On the 2ist inst., and at the request of the friends
of the Rev. Mr Dodwell, and with the special sanction
of the Home Secretary, we visited this gentleman, now
confined as a criminal lunatic in Broadmoor Asylum.
" We found him calm, collected, and perfectly
rational. He alluded, as he had done on our two
previous visits to him in Newgate, to his alleged
grievances, and to the motives which induced him to
commit a breach of the peace.
" He admitted that it was an unwise course of action,
but contended that he was driven by circumstances to
commit the act.
" We were unable to detect, either from his de-
meanour or conversation, any symptoms to justify his
detention as a criminal lunatic.
" L. S. FORBES WINSLOW.
" J. M. WINN.
"CAVENDISH SQUARE, W.,
une 1878."
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 123
The result of this agitation, public and political,
which was incidental to the incarceration in a lunatic
asylum of an Englishman in whose case no such evi-
dence of insanity had been raised at the time of the
trial, and in spite of the opinion of the surgeon of New-
gate, where he had been confined at the time, was to
obtain an official medical examination on the part of
the Treasury. This was in every way ex parte — no
consultation with the prisoner's medical advisers. A
conclusion was doubtless arrived at, as was desired,
with an imperfect knowledge of the true history and
facts of the case. The secrecy here adopted in the
Government examinations stood out in strong evidence.
The reports of these medical gentlemen nominated by
the Government differed, as I knew would be the case,
from the opinion expressed by doctors in favour of
DodwelTs sanity.
After our reports had been sent in, Mrs Dodwell, his
wife, sent a letter to the Queen, which was answered
from the Home Offices : —
" To the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty.
" I have taken the great liberty of writing to your
Majesty to make an appeal on behalf of my husband,
the Rev. Henry John Dodwell, who is detained during
your Majesty's pleasure at Broadmoor Lunatic Asylum.
I humbly submit to the general opinion that he deserved
some punishment for his unwise act ; but the long and
happy married life we have lived, his uniform kindness
to his children and myself, his calmness and persever-
ance for five years under the irritating difficulties ex-
perienced in endeavouring to obtain redress for the
i24 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
wrongs that had been done to him, is not to me con-
sistent with his being branded as a lunatic. And as
the eminent medical men who have examined him are
divided in opinion, I humbly and earnestly pray that
your Majesty will give him the benefit of the doubt and
liberate him, so that he may return to protect our four
children and release me from the helpless position I am
in, and save me from my only resource, the workhouse.
— I beg to remain, your Majesty's most humble and
obedient subject,
" ELIZA DODWELL,
"Wife of H. J. Dodwell.
" 77 GREAT COLLEGE STREET, LONDON, N.W.,
"6/A March 1879.
" To Her Majesty Queen Victoria, Windsor Castle."
The reply to her letter is as follows : —
" HOME OFFICE, WHITEHALL,
March 1879.
" MADAM, — In reply to your application to her
Majesty, praying the release of the Rev. Henry John
Dodwell from Broadmoor Asylum, I am directed by
Mr Secretary Cross to acquaint you that the same
has been laid before the Queen, who was not pleased
to give any instructions thereon. — I am, madam, your
obedient servant,
" (Signed) A. F. O. LIDDELL.
" Mrs Dodwell,
" 77 Great College Street, N.W."
The case was considered again in the House of
Commons, when it was stated that the medical men
who had been appointed to visit Mr Dodwell had
reported " that the safety of the public still required
that he should be detained at Broadmoor as a
dangerous lunatic." I beg to challenge that opinion.
I say that there was nothing in Mr Dod well's conduct
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 125
or career which justified the statement that he was
a dangerous lunatic. He had a reason for what he
did, and it might be said, therefore, that a man who
might break a window in his desire to draw public
opinion to his wrongs ought to be included in the
same category. This has often taken place.
The facts on which we founded his sanity were as
follows : —
1. That he gave a clear and correct account of the
grievances which induced him to commit a mis-
demeanour, having failed in every other attempt to
get a hearing in courts of justice.
2. That he did not fire a blank cartridge at the*
judge from an insane impulse, but had been pre-
meditating the act for six months, and was so deter-
mined to avoid any possible injury to his lordship that
he stood at a safe distance from him before discharg-
ing the pistol.
3. All the medical men who saw him, six weeks
before he was sent to Broadmoor, found him perfectly
coherent in conversation, and they could not discover
the least trace of a delusion.
4. From what he said it was evident that he was
a highly honourable, truthful, and religious man, with
strong reasoning powers and a highly cultivated in-
tellect ; possessing also great determination of will,
and feelings keenly sensitive to insult or injury.
5. It has been assumed that Mr Dodwell had a
morbid sense of his ill-treatment by the Brighton
Guardians. Can a man be said to have a morbid
126 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
sense of an injury which has reduced him and his
family to beggary ?
Dodwell lingered and died in Broadmoor Criminal
Lunatic Asylum. He had been driven mad by the
environment of the place, and whilst suffering in-
dignities he made an attack on Dr Orange, the medical
superintendent. Dodwell was a man of impulse, fiery
disposition, inability to restrain his temper, as many
of his late pupils at Cheltenham College informed me.
He was not insane, and there was no justification for
a life-long residence in Broadmoor.
THE MAINWARING CASE
In 1879 Gerald Mainwaring, aged twenty-eight, was
charged with the wilful murder of Joseph Moss, a
policeman at Derby. The act was committed whilst
he was suffering from alcoholic indulgence. I was
consulted with reference to the case, and the point
raised was, whether criminals were responsible for
acts committed whilst under the influence of drink.
It is a well-known fact, and laid down in our Code, that
" drunkenness aggravates the offence." In the case
of Mainwaring his brain had become temporarily
affected with alcoholic poisoning, so as to render him
in a state of irresponsibility and unconsciousness at
the time of the commitment of the act. There was
no malice or premeditation. His brain was on the
verge of delirium tremens, and no doubt the indulgence
and constant debauchery rendered him in a state of
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 127
irresponsibility for his actions. It was urged by the
prosecution that because he was able to walk com-
paratively straight when he got out of the cab, he
could not have been sufficiently intoxicated to be
held irresponsible for his acts. It was urged on his
behalf, and in an eloquent way, that the drunkenness
might have affected his mind to such an extent as to
reduce the crime from murder to manslaughter. The
jury thought otherwise. He was condemned to death,
but they recommended him to mercy.
The only public interest in this case is the question
as to how far a criminal who is intoxicated is re-
sponsible for any crime committed whilst in that
state. Of course, it is a dangerous dogma to allow
a drunken murderer to escape the scaffold ; but each
case ought to be considered, if one may use the
expression, " on its merits." Mainwaring's crime
was motiveless, but the unfortunate part of his
history was his association with public-houses, where
he used to spend the greater part of his time. This
is a typical illustration of the effect drink may have
on the brains of those who indulge too freely in it.
During my career I have had many patients who
have committed crime whilst under its influence.
Since the period of which I am now writing crime
has increased in the same way as alcohol has. Where
drinking exists, crime is also to be found ; and I
think I am not far wrong in stating that more than
two-thirds of the murders are committed either by
uncontrollable drunkards or by absolute ones — in
128 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
other words, by people suffering from the influence
of drink. I made a statement once whilst discussing
this subject, and which after many years' experience
I am prepared to emphatically substantiate, to the
effect that I have never seen a man in a perfect
condition of sobriety go into a public-house, and I
am sure I have never seen a man in an absolute state
of sobriety come out of one ; the former statement is
accounted for from the fact that I am never up early
enough to see him go in for his first drink. Not only
is drink responsible for a large proportion of crime,
but for more than a quarter per cent, of the lunacy
in all parts of the world ; and it is a terrible thing
to have to state, but I do so without fear of con-
tradiction, that more crime, more drink, and more
lunacy are to be found in the City of London than in
any other city of the universe. More shame to our
authorities ! More shame to our Government ! The
terrible social blot is at their door.
THE CASE OF LEFROY : MURDER ON THE
BRIGHTON LINE
In 1 88 1 all London were startled by a murder
committed on the Brighton line by Percy Lefroy
Mapleton. The victim was a Mr Gold, who had
been in the habit of travelling every week from
Brighton to London on business, with usually a
large amount of money in his possession. The
murderer adopted the name of Lefroy. a name he
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 129
was known by in the theatrical profession. The case
was one which caused considerable doubt in my mind
as to his responsibility. The day previous to the
termination of the trial I was consulted by his relatives
as to his mental condition, and by their instructions I
attended the trial, which was being held at Maidstone
before the late Lord Coleridge. I did so, not as a
witness, but as a spectator, with a view of observing
the demeanour of the prisoner. The trial commenced
in November, and it caused a considerable amount of
public excitement, as is always the case in a " train
tragedy." The general public, as a rule, for the time
being imagine that they might meet a similar fate.
Mr Gold resided at Preston Park, near Brighton,
and Lefroy knew perfectly well that the habit of this
gentleman was to pay weekly visits to London, and
to carry a large amount of money about with him.
Having completed his plans, Lefroy arranged to
leave London in the same railway carriage as Mr Gold
on the 27th of June. On the arrival of the train at
Preston Park, where tickets are collected, Lefroy was
found to be the sole occupant of the carriage, with
his coat off, his collar missing, and himself besmeared
with blood. His explanation of being in this condition
was that he himself had been attacked by a man in
the train. He was taken forthwith to the hospital
and his wounds attended to. There was, however,
observed a watch-chain dangling from one of his boots.
Upon being interrogated upon this subject, he said
that he had put the watch there for safety's sake
9
130 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
when attacked, and that it belonged to him. The
number of the watch was 16,261, and made by
Griffiths.
Subsequently, at 3.45 the same day, the body of
Mr Gold was found in Balcombe Tunnel. On the line
near Burgess Hill a collar was found, which was traced
as belonging to Lefroy, and in Clayton Tunnel, near
to Preston Park, was an umbrella belonging to Gold.
There were bullet wounds found on the body. Lefroy
was not suspected at the time, but was allowed to
return home to Croydon where he lived. A detective
called on him shortly afterwards, and took the following
statement from him : —
" I took a first-class ticket in the two o'clock train
from London to Brighton. Two other passengers
were in the compartment, one younger and one older.
On arriving at the first tunnel after passing Croydon
I saw a flash and heard a report of firearms. I re-
ceived a blow on the head from one of the men and
became insensible. I recovered consciousness at
Preston."
It was proved that Lefroy had taken a pistol out
of pawn, which was the one subsequently found ; and
upon investigation it was discovered that the watch
which Mr Gold had purchased at Griffiths corresponded
with the number of that found on Lefroy.
The case presented itself to me as one of absolute
guilt, though in addressing the jury the late Mr
Montagu Williams, Lefroy 's counsel, said : " This is
no ordinary case of murder, and there is no question
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 131
of sanity or insanity." This question was only raised
afterwards.
The trial having lasted some days, the late Lord
Coleridge, in pronouncing sentence, remarked : " You
have been convicted on the clearest evidence of a
most ferocious murder, a murder perpetrated on a
harmless old man, who had done you no wrong ; he
was perhaps unknown to you. You have been rightly
convicted, and it is right and just that you should die."
To which Lefroy replied : " The day will come when
you will know that you have murdered me." I heard
the sentence and I heard the reply of Lefroy.
A petition was got up, and I interviewed several
people in reference to the case. One of his friends
told me that Lefroy " was amiable, kind, even-
tempered, and of a lovable disposition, and that
he had ever displayed this from a child." On i6th
August Lefroy wrote the following letter, which was
shown me : —
" Possibly from my past life I may have deserved
this awful punishment ; but, after all, my sins have
been more omission than commission. My years
are but a boy. Annie, dearest, shall I ever see the
silver lining of the clouds again ? "
Previous to the trial he had suffered, as was to be
expected, from an enormous amount of anxiety.
On 3ist October he wrote to a friend as follows : —
" Now that the trial is approaching I feel no fear ;
on the contrary, however strange it may appear, I
am a happier man than I have been in a good many
132 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
epochs of my life. Thank God, my health is quite
up to the average, and ready and wishful for the
combat."
I was so convinced from the study of the case that
Lefroy was not responsible for his actions, that, after
another conference with his relations, I decided to
agitate in this matter.
Certain documentary evidence was placed in my
hands, together with a complete history of the accused.
The conclusion I arrived at was that there were
sufficient grounds for petitioning the Home Secretary
to grant a medical examination of the condemned
man. I was informed that I had been appointed
to visit Lefroy at the Lewes Gaol, and I immediately
telegraphed to the Home Secretary consenting to
make the examination, should my request be complied
with, in conjunction with a medical Government
official appointed by himself. I felt that all England
was up in arms against Lefroy, and that public opinion
was so great against the plea of irresponsibility that
I did not care to take upon myself the sole responsi-
bility of acting as his mental adjudicator in a case of
so much public importance and interest. Permission,
however, was not granted for me to visit Lefroy. The
custom exists in England that, after condemnation,
no outside medical interference is permitted, though
previous to the trial, had his friends approached me,
I should have been able to have examined him and
testified in court as to my opinion upon his mental
condition.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 133
I obtained a petition signed by upwards of a hundred
medical men, asking for a reprieve. One of the
principal medical men who signed it was a consulting
physician living in Brook Street, whom Lefroy had
himself previously consulted. Upon reference to his
diary the following entry appeared, attached to the
name of the prisoner : " This person is evidently
insane."
My medical petition, together with the general
petition, was signed by two thousand people.
The history of Lefroy was a peculiar one. He in-
herited insanity, both on his father's and mother's side,
and he commenced his career with anything but a
hopeful future. His mother died before he had reached
the age of five, while his father suffered from softening
of the brain some years previous to his death.
Lefroy was absorbed in theatrical matters, and
was abnormally conceited. Very often he used to go
behind the scenes, and sometimes got an engagement
as super. His natural disposition was described to
me as being one of gentleness, abhorring all crime,
but ever conscious of his imaginary importance.
I was not able to get any full details of the early
career of Lefroy. He was sent, however, later on to
Australia, but did not remain there long. During
the home voyage he conducted himself in such a
strange manner as to necessitate his being placed
under absolute restraint. The evidence of the captain
and the officers on the ship, which I heard, testified
as to this. I always entertained an opinion that, if
134 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
his real state of mind had only been recognised by
his relations at this period of his career, the terrible
calamity would have been averted. I was informed
that he had gone into theatrical speculations with
an imaginary opera-bouffe, which was supposed to
have been written by Offenbach, but which he called
Lucette. This had no reality beyond his own morbid
imagination. This was only one of his many extra-
ordinary statements, and founded on fabrication,
which from time to time existed in his own imagina-
tion ; some people were wont to call them lies, but
in my opinion they were delusions, the result of a
diseased mind.
I had a letter placed in my hands by his relations,
in which he stated that he had come into a property
of ten thousand pounds per annum for life, and that
he was going in for Parliamentary honours. The
letter was a comparatively recent one, and was
written in May; within a few weeks of this epistle
he committed the murder for which he was ultimately
held responsible at the hands of the executioner.
Lefroy was cunning, as most lunatics are, and
this quality was observed throughout the whole of
his transactions. His conduct was very peculiar
after the murder, but the fact that it was apparently
premeditated strengthened the case for the prosecu-
tion. But it might be as well to state that most
murders committed by lunatics are premeditated,
and that insanity and cunning go hand in hand.
Whilst in prison he made a number of extraordinary
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 135
confessions, which proved to be nothing more nor
less than a tissue of crazy incoherences. He admitted
the commitment of one crime after another, and the
murder of a Lieutenant Roper. The explanation
given by those opposed to the plea of insanity was
that he did this in order to obtain a respite for the
moment, to gain time for them to investigate the
truth of his statements, with the chance of this ad-
journment being followed by a reprieve. Information
reached me from the precincts of the prison that
Lefroy was " raving like a lunatic and foaming at
the mouth." This information, I had reason to
believe, as is usual in such cases, was suppressed by
the authorities from the general public. There is
no evidence that any mental expert was called in to
examine him after condemnation.
I entertained a very strong opinion that Lefroy
was not only insane, but was subject to paroxysms
of homicidal impulse. He had some imaginary love
affair, without the slightest foundation — it was purely
the delusion of a disordered fancy. I worked very
hard in this case to induce those in power at the Home
Office to grant a medical examination into the mental
condition of Lefroy, but without avail. The red-
tapeism behind the Office was very prominent in
this case. It was a popular murder, if I may use
the expression — one in which, from the fact of the
murder taking place in a railway train and one to which
anyone might be subjected, the public thought that
an example should be made. The spoil found on
136 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Lefroy amounted to an old watch belonging to Mr
Gold, and some Hungarian sovereigns were also found
on him.
The great mistake the family made in this case was
not consulting me previous to the trial instead of
after it had commenced ; also in not raising the plea
of insanity at the time. If there ever was a case in
which the plea of irresponsibility should have been
raised it was in the case of Lefroy.
Having, as I generally do in these cases, got behind
the scenes and investigated everything, I was informed
that so great was the prejudice at the Home Office
towards Lefroy and against listening to the plea of
insanity raised, that the officials connected with the
prison, on pain of dismissal, were not allowed to
divulge anything that occurred within the precincts
of the gaol for twenty-four hours previous to his being
hurled into eternity ; this was with special reference
to the prisoner's conversation and demeanour.
The case from first to last was a very sensational
one, and the attention of London was absorbed in
it ; but under no pretence whatever was the public
executioner to be deprived of his victim.
After these years, and reviewing the case calmly
and deliberately, and taking into consideration the
history of the case and all the concomitant facts, I
am very strongly of opinion that it would have been
to the interests of intelligence, humanity, science,
civilisation, Christianity, and justice if a deaf ear had
not been turned to the prayer of the unhappy man's
-•
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 137
family and medical petitioners, simply begging that
the Home Secretary would grant them an inquiry
into the mental condition of the youth standing on
the precipice of his fate. We asked no more than
this, and were refused.
THE OTLEY MURDER
I was summoned in 1888 to examine a man named
Taylor, who had committed a double murder at Otley,
but from no appreciable reason. He shot his own
child, which his wife was carrying in her arms, and
subsequently a policeman who came to arrest him.
With regard to the murder of the child, this was ap-
parently motiveless, though it may be said that the
assassination of the policeman was evidently done with
a motive.
I examined the murderer on two occasions, whilst
incarcerated in Wakefield Gaol. He suffered from
religious insanity, associated with auricular hallucina-
tions which urged him to commit acts over which he
had no control.
In the same year I had examined a man named
Richardson, who shot several persons at Ramsgate.
This was also a motiveless crime. He was arrested
and placed in Canterbury Gaol, where I saw him. This
trial took place on the i6th of February 1888. The
jury found he was of unsound mind and unable to
plead. Curiously, the case of Taylor commenced at
Leeds the very same day. I wired to the solicitor, Mr
138 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Gledstone, conducting the defence, as to my position
in the matter, but informed him that I would come
direct from Maidstone to Leeds, and I hoped to arrive
in time, Richardson having been tried at Maidstone.
On my arrival in Leeds the same evening I was met
at the station by the solicitor and some of the wit-
nesses, who appeared to be in a terrible condition of
distress. The case had occupied the whole day, and
the jury had come to the conclusion that the prisoner
was of " sound mind and able to plead " at the time of
the trial.
The other question was, what was his mental con-
dition at the time of the murder ? This was to be
decided by the same jury on the following day, with
the same witnesses, with one exception — myself.
Everybody had made up their minds that the man
would be convicted. The public regarded the case,
especially as far as the assassination of the policeman
was concerned, as a terrible one, and one for which no
excuse could be given. The next morning arrived,
the same witnesses were called, the jury apparently
were yawning during the time of their evidence,
having heard it all the day before. Immediately I
stepped into the box a change came over the spirit of
their dreams — they apparently began to listen at-
tentively ; and though some junior counsel tried to
trip me up, I held my own. Taylor was found to be
of unsound mind at the time of the murder. The
foreman of the jury and several members of the same
told me afterwards that had it not been for my evi-
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 139
dence they would have given the same opinion as
they had given on the previous day.
I was nearly lynched on my way from the court-
house to the station ; in fact, I was followed by a big
crowd and hooted. It was with a certain amount of
satisfaction that I found myself in a sound condition
comfortably seated in a smoking carriage on the
London and North- Western Railway, en route for home.
It is a morbid gratification for me to have to record
that a short time afterwards Taylor plucked out both
his eyes whilst confined in Broadmoor Asylum, and
while suffering from the same delusions and hallucina-
tions as those he had when he was placed on his trial at
Leeds, and on which I based my opinion and evidence.
Sir Clifford Allbutt, who was one of the leading
physicians in the North of England, testified on the
day previous to the one on which I had given my evi-
dence ; but even the weight of his testimony did not
convince the jury.
I was also retained the same week in a case of murder
at Weston-super-Mare. So there was the Ramsgate
shooting case in the extreme south-east, the Otley
tragedy at Leeds, and the Weston-super-Mare case in
Somersetshire. Rather a unique experience to be
retained in three murder cases in one week. I think
the annals of medical jurisprudence do not chronicle
a similar instance to this.
In 1889 I was called upon to examine in St Thomas's
Hospital a man named Currah, who had murdered
Letine, proprietor of a troupe of acrobats.
140 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Currah had a daughter, Beatrice, who had been
engaged by Letine as one of his troupe. Shortly after-
wards Beatrice was discharged from the troupe. As
a result of this there were various actions for wrongful
dismissal and for ill-treatment to the girl on the part
of Letine ; in each of these the acrobat came off
victorious, and this apparently affected the mind of
Currah. One day he waited at the stage door of the
Canterbury Theatre of Varieties and stabbed Letine
as he came out. I may here say that Beatrice had
died, and her death was supposed by Currah, whose
mind was affected, to have been accelerated by Letine.
He made a dreadful attempt upon his own life after he
had stabbed Letine. In consequence of this he was
taken to St Thomas's Hospital, where I examined him
in conjunction with the house surgeon ; this examina-
tion was made in July 1889.
Currah suffered from mental prostration, the result
of the tribulation he had passed through, and he
became haunted with auricular and visual hallucina-
tions to the effect that he was pursued by the spirit of
his dead daughter Beatrice, urging him to kill Letine.
I was summoned to give evidence at the trial, and
the man was acquitted on my evidence.
MRS MAVERICK'S CASE
On nth May 1889 Mr James Maybrick died in
Liverpool under certain suspicious circumstances
which apparently justified an investigation. It was
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 141
alleged that Mrs Maybrick had systematically mixed
arsenic with his food and also in his drinks. He had
suffered from bad health for some time, but the acute
and baneful symptoms only developed a few weeks
before his death.
The trial created an enormous amount of sensation
in England. It commenced 3ist July 1889 before Mr
Justice Stephen. The case was a most obscure one,
surrounded by a purely scientific issue, which only
those learned in such investigations could in any way
comprehend. It will be interesting, therefore, to give
the constitution of this learned jury who had been
summoned to adjudicate upon an abstruse toxico-
logical question. Mr Timothy Wainwright, plumber,
was the foreman ; the others were : one wood-turner,
one provision dealer, a glazier, two farmers, a grocer,
an ironmonger, a milliner, a baker, and another
plumber. With regard to the mental equilibrium
of the jury, a letter written by a gentleman living at
Southport is rather significant. He wrote : " Until
I had read the names of the jury in the Maybrick case
I agreed with the verdict ; but being acquainted with
three of them, I must say they are not fitted to ex-
press an opinion on such an important subject, being
men of the poorest education, and I can vouch that
one cannot read his own name."
The most direct way of giving the defence, as pre-
sented by Mrs Maybrick, will be to give in detail a
statement made by her in court on 6th August 1889.
The prisoner, at a sign from Sir Charles Russell,
142 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
rose to make her statement. She had some diffi-
culty in beginning, and clung to the front of the dock
for several moments, swaying to and fro, endeav-
ouring to restrain her tears. She said she wished
to make known something in regard to the charge
made against her of the deliberate poisoning of her
Mrs Maybrick before her trial.
Mrs Maybrick during her trial.
husband, the father of her dear children. She went
on to say that the use of fly-papers was for the com-
plexion. Her mother knew for years past of her
custom in this respect, and she (the prisoner) had
followed a prescription she had obtained from a doctor.
In April last she had lost the prescription, and thought
of replacing it by a substitute of her own, being
specially desirous of getting rid of an eruption on the
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 143
face before going to a ball on 3oth April. Mrs May-
brick went on to explain the soaking of the fly-papers
by saying that " scent was used in the soaking, and
it was necessary to exclude the air as much as possible,
hence the covering over by a plate and two towels."
Mrs May brick proceeded : —
" My lord, I now wish to say a word about the bottle
of beef essence. On Thursday night, gth May, when
Nurse Gore had given my husband the meat juice, I
went and sat down by his side. He complained of
feeling very sick and very oppressed, and he implored
me then again to give him his powder. I declined to
give it him, but I was overwrought, terribly anxious,
miserably unhappy, and his distress utterly unnerved
me. After he had told me the powder would not harm
him if I put it in his food, I consented. My lord, I
had not one single honest friend in the house. I had
no one to consult. I was deposed from my position of
mistress and from attendance on my husband, not-
withstanding, on the evidence of the nurses, he wished
to have me with him and he missed me whenever I
went out of the room. For four days before he died
I was not allowed even to give him a piece of ice
without it being taken out of my hand.
" I took the white powder. I took it in the inner
room with the meat juice, and pushing the door I
upset the bottle, and in order to make up the quantity
of fluid spilled I added a considerable quantity of
water. On returning to the room I found my husband
asleep, and I placed the bottle on a small table. When
144 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
he awoke he had a choking sensation in his throat and
vomiting. As he did not ask for the powder, and as
I was not anxious to give it him, I removed the bottle
from the small table where I had put it, on to the
washstand, behind the basin, where he could not see
it. There I left it until Mr Michael Maybrick took
possession of it on Tuesday, I4th May. After my
husband's death, until a few minutes before the
terrible charge against me, no one in the house had
informed me as to the fact that a post-mortem ex-
amination had taken place, or that there was any
reason to suppose my husband had died from other
than natural causes. It was not until Mrs Briggs
alluded to the presence of arsenic in the beef juice
that I was made aware of the nature of the powder
my husband had asked me to give to him. I then
attempted to explain to Mrs Briggs, but the police-
man interrupted the conversation and stopped it. In
conclusion, my lord, I have to say that from the love
of our children, and for the sake of their future, a
perfect reconciliation had taken place between us,
and that on the day before his death I made a free
confession to him of the fearful wrong I did him."
The jury retired to consider their verdict at 3.13
on 7th August 1889. They returned to court at 3.56
with a verdict of " Guilty." When asked if she had
anything to say why the sentence should not be
carried into effect, Mrs Maybrick replied as follows :
" My lord, evidence has been kept back from the
jury which, if it had been known, would have altered
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 145
their verdict. I am not guilty of this offence."
Having said this, Florence Elizabeth Maybrick left
the fatal dock.
The opinion in Liverpool was nearly universal as
to the acquittal of the lady, and the precincts of the
court were thronged with thousands waiting for the
issue. An angry murmur which was universal — in
fact, it was described on that occasion by one of the
newspapers as a " great, angry howl " — went up
from the crowd. Mr Justice Stephen, whose attitude
throughout the case was antagonistic to Mrs May-
brick, was subjected to the most determined hostile
demonstration. At one time it was even considered
he might have been lynched. He succeeded in getting
to his carriage, and drove off followed by the howling
and shrieks of " Shame ! " The sentence was given
just before four p.m., and it was nearly six before
Mrs Maybrick was driven out in the prison van. She
was cheered and cheered by thousands of people ; in
fact, all Liverpool was up in arms at the cruel and
unjust verdict. Not a single member of the jury
belonged to Liverpool ; the foreman came from St
Helens, whilst the others resided in the West Derby
Hundred of the county. On leaving the court they
were also subjected to serious demonstration. Mrs
Maybrick, interviewed after the sentence was passed,
was firm in her conviction that had it not been for
the judge's severe comment and lengthy allusion to
her wicked immorality the jury would have acquitted
her, but from the nature of the summing-up of the
IO
146 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
judge the jury had no alternative but to arrive at
the conclusion they did. She held a strong belief
that when the court adjourned for lunch, before the
judge concluded his address, the jury were all in her
favour, and this opinion was held by others as well
as by herself. On the following morning Mr Justice
Stephen, in order to prevent a repetition of the
demonstration against him and the mobbing, was
guarded by a hundred and fifty constables on his
arrival at the court. The feeling against him in
Liverpool was most pronounced, as his charge to the
jury was considered to be unjust and prejudiced.
The following day, from far and wide came the uni-
versal cry that an injustice had been done, and that
the verdict must be condemned and Mrs Maybrick
saved from a criminal's death.
Immediately after her conviction, becoming con-
vinced that it was a most unjust verdict, I determined
to do my very best to agitate in the matter, and to
obtain a reprieve for this lady.
On the Qth of August I commenced to agitate in
the press on the case, and in a letter of that date I
said : " Seldom has a case caused so much public
excitement as that of Mrs Maybrick. It is discussed
far and wide, and only one opinion appears to exist —
that she has been convicted on insufficient evidence.
The medical experts for the defence have been appar-
ently ignored. The jury have posed as moralists and
ignored the vital issue as to the poisoning by arsenic."
I concluded this letter as follows : " It is the duty
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 147
of every Englishman to agitate forthwith to save a
woman convicted without one tittle of evidence from
the hands of the public hangman."
Mr MacDougal and myself were most vehement on
the matter, and, having worked together in a similar
case known as the " Penge mystery," which created
nearly as much excitement as the Maybrick case,
we decided to adopt a similar plan here. It was
stated at the time that the only chance Mrs Maybrick
had of a reprieve was in the Queen's deep aversion
to the infliction of capital punishment on a woman.
Petitions were at once commenced, not only in Liver-
pool, but in all parts of the country, to which thousands
of signatures were attached, and which were prepared
for the then Home Secretary, Mr Matthews. A report
was current at the time that the costs of the defence,
which amounted to upwards of four thousand pounds,
had been paid by Mr Brierley ; also that a jury of
matrons had been sworn to decide another issue,
which might postpone the execution should the
efforts to secure a respite prove ineffectual. It was
proved, however, that there was no possible ground
for either of these rumours. Her mother visited her
on the Saturday subsequent to the trial, and found
her in a complete state of collapse, mental and bodily.
In addition to the special petition to which I have
alluded, the Licensed Victuallers drafted one on their
own account, the chief clauses of which were that
there was no direct evidence of the administration
of arsenic by Mrs Maybrick to her husband ; that
148 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the case against her was unduly prejudiced by the
evidence of motive, and that there was grave doubt
whether the circumstantial evidence relied on by the
prosecution was weighty enough to justify conviction :
that there was a strong body of medical testimony on
behalf of the defence ; that death was ascribable to
natural causes, and that there was not sufficient evi-
dence relied on by the prosecution that it was due to
arsenical poisoning : this together with the fact that,
having regard to the conflicting nature of the medical
evidence, there was a very widespread doubt as to
the propriety of the verdict on general grounds, and
that it would be in the highest degree unsafe to
permit an irrevocable sentence to be carried out. It
was pointed out by one of the correspondents that
the term " sick unto death/' stated to have been
used by Mrs Maybrick with reference to her husband,
was a common American phrase daily met with
throughout the States, and did not deserve the
gravity and importance placed upon it by the judge.
The execution was fixed for Tuesday, 27th August,
within the precincts of Walton Gaol, Liverpool, at
8 a.m. In the meantime public opinion ran very
high. Mr Justice Stephen had returned to London,
and had an interview with Mr Matthews of an hour's
duration. The evidence was reviewed in considerable
detail, and I was led to understand that Mr Matthews
was very much impressed by the arguments submitted
to him. The judge was reported to have expressed
not only his entire concurrence in the verdict, but
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 149
also his appreciation of the careful way in which the
jury had performed their long and arduous duties.
From a careful study of the judge's attitude through-
out the case, this is not to be wondered at. In the
same persuasive way as he succeeded in convincing
the jury, he so convinced the Home Secretary, who
became for the moment adamant. Memorial after
memorial poured into the Home Office, and one from
Liverpool containing over twenty thousand signa-
tures, the signatures of the ladies predominating
over the males in numbers. At Cardiff five thousand
residents signed the petition. In fact, petitions were
got up all over England to the same effect, most of
them being worded alike. Thousands and thousands
of names became attached, and I do not exaggerate by
saying that more petitioners signed the prayer for a
reprieve in the case of Mrs Maybrick than has ever
been previously known in any other case. One and
all proclaimed Mrs Maybrick was innocent, that Mrs
Maybrick had not received a fair hearing, that the
judge was prejudiced in the case, and that public
opinion would prevent an unjust sentence from being
carried out. It was apparently a mob agitation based
on justice, versus a cruel, unjust verdict.
A number of letters from the public, mostly of an
indignant character, flooded the newspapers.
On 1 3th August a gigantic public meeting, convened
by Mr Alexander W. M'Dougall, was held in the great
hall of the Cannon Street Hotel, City, for the purpose
of considering the summing-up of the judge and the
150 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
verdict of the jury. The large hall was crowded.
The chairman opened the meeting and proposed that
a memorial be presented to the Home Secretary pray-
ing for a reprieve for Mrs Maybrick.
In addressing the meeting I informed the audience
that there were few cases in forensic medicine where
such grave doubts occurred as in the present one. I
told them that Mr Maybrick had administered to him-
self in a very short time a number of poisonous drugs ;
I asked why no antidotes had been administered by the
medical men ? I next drew attention to the apathy
of the jury, who during the whole trial had not asked
a single question ; and further stated that among the
many medical men whom I had canvassed for an
opinion I had only received one expression of guilt.
On I3th August I wrote a letter to the press agreeing
to take charge of any communications or letters which
might be sent to me to be attached to the petition.
The petition read as follows : " The petitioners pray
that a reprieve may be granted in Mrs Maybrick's case
in consequence of insufficient evidence, and in the light
of scientific knowledge."
Within a short time thousands of additional signa-
tures were obtained and added to the original petition.
Not only did these petitions come in from all parts of
the country, but a special memorial was drawn up by
the members of the House of Commons, and especially
one by Mr M'Donald, the blind member, and Colonel
Nolan.
A sub-committee was appointed at this meeting, of
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 15 1
which I was appointed chairman, and a further meeting
was held at Cannon Street Hotel on i5th August. I
informed the audience of some very important facts
relative to the case, one of which was that I had found
the actual medical man who had originally prescribed
arsenic for Mr May brick, and acting under whose advice
he had continued to take the same up to the time of
his fatal illness.
" DEAR SIR, — I should be obliged by your placing
my name on your list as one who believes in Mrs May-
brick's innocence. A few days ago, while taking my
early morning walk along Park Road, I inquired for
Wellington Mansions (a house mentioned very often
as the residence of Mr Maybrick). I was told it was in
a street called North Bank — a rather notorious place.
A Liverpool gentleman used to say that he put all his
money in North Bank. I went, and the fact brought
to my mind the incident of a Liverpool stockbroker
whom I came across several times while acting surgeon
to the Skin and Cancer Hospital. He called upon me
several times. He was suffering from psoriasis of the
feet. I prescribed a solution of arsenic, and very
distinctly told him that if he did not continue the
medicine he might have paralysis."
The writer of this letter had recognised a picture of
Mr Maybrick in the newspapers as being that of the
Liverpool man alluded to in this letter.
I stated that I had received that day five hundred
telegrams from various persons asking that their names
might be placed on the medical or general petition.
Many of my medical correspondents had asked why
during the illness of Mr Maybrick, if poisoning had
152 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
been suspected, no attempt had been made to
administer an antidote.
The Lancet devoted five columns to a review of the
Maybrick case, and, after analysing the medical and
other evidence, said as follows : " We can have no
desire that the Royal prerogative veto should not be
exercised in this case ; but as a duty to the living
relatives of the deceased, to a painstaking, fearless, and
honest jury, and to one of the greatest ornaments of the
English Bench, we solemnly assert as an unbiassed
opinion that the verdict arrived at at Mrs Maybrick's
trial was warranted by the evidence."
This opinion, however, carried but little weight, as
subsequently, after they saw I had my petition in hand,
they also started a similar one — in fact, were made
to eat their own words. On igth August, when Mr
Matthews arrived at the House of Commons, three
petitions were presented to him in favour of a reprieve.
I believe this is the first instance on record where such
an unusual proceeding has taken place. I allude to
it to show the interest the public took in the matter.
I am not prepared to state the number of signatures
which were attached to the various petitions — they
could be counted in ten thousands ; suffice it to say
that my own medical petition, presented in person
immediately previous to the reprieve, contained the
signatures of 499 medical men, all of whom, with one
solitary exception, on scientific grounds opposed the
verdict. As to the number affixed to the Lancet
memorial I never troubled to inquire, especially after
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 153
the tone of their leading article to which I have already
referred.
Conference after conference took place at the Home
Office, but nothing definite was arrived at, and the
day for execution drew nigh. The medical opinion in
London was unanimous as to the un justness of the
verdict. A final meeting was held at Olympia, and
it was fully expected that Mrs Maybrick would be
released and present herself on that occasion.
The foreman of the jury, in consequence of various
statements and reflections which had been made
upon them arriving at their decision in such a rapid
manner, granted the following interview in order to
justify their conduct, as they thought : —
" Was it the judge's summing up which influenced
your verdict ? "
" It was not the judge's summing up which influenced
us so greatly ; it was the evidence given in the whole
case. I see it stated that one of the jurymen told a
barrister we considered that the medical evidence for
the defence had been bought. That is a very grave
statement, and I have thought of writing to each of the
jurors individually to ask them if they did say so,
for I think such a He ought to be contradicted. It
certainly is a very remarkable statement, and it is not
the fact. We considered all the medical evidence on
both sides."
Asked whether the statement volunteered by Mrs
Maybrick had not principally influenced the jury in
bringing in a verdict of guilty, the foreman replied :
154 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
" It was certainly impossible to say what would have
occurred if certain portions of the case had not been
submitted."
" Possibly you thought that statement broke down
the medical evidence for the defence ? "
" Well, it was rather a foolish thing. You see that
it was very improbable that she put it in the meat juice
in powder, because it would not have time to dissolve
so. It does not dissolve easily even in water."
" You imply from this that she put in a solution,
which accounts for the difference in the specific gravity
of the drugged bottle or an ordinary bottle ? "
" That of course suggests itself. If she spilled it,
that was a thing of no consequence, and did not require
filling up."
" If it was proved that she made a similar statement
soon after she was first charged, would that have made
any difference in your minds ? "
" I could not say. But why did not she call wit-
nesses to prove it ? "
" Sir Charles Russell offered to do so, and wanted to
do so, but the judge stopped him."
" Oh, he offered to call them, did he ? " This
seemed strange to Mr Wainwright, who, however,
continued : " Then Sir Charles Russell should have
cross-examined on the point before."
" The learned judge, if I remember rightly, did not
refer to the box of pills found by Michael May brick ? "
" The American pills ? He had got these, according
to the name on the box, in America four years ago, and
LEGAL EXPERIENCES
'55
the box was very nearly full ; so he had evidently not
taken many of them lately. We considered every
point we could, and were very sorry that we could not
do otherwise than we did. I am sure everyone on the
Mr Berry (to Dr Forbes Winslow) : " You've always got something to say."
jury sympathised with her. I would have given any-
thing not to have been on the jury, and twice as much
to be able honestly to find another verdict. But, being
there, we all had to do our duty conscientiously and
to the best of our ability."
156 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
" No doubt you did sympathise with her, and the
people of Liverpool appear to do so very strongly ? "
" So I believe ; but I think in a few days, when the
people of the country look at the case fairly and calmly,
they will see that we could not have arrived at any
other conclusion."
" Many people are very sorry for her, despite her
terrible offences in another direction, and petitions are
being got up for her reprieve."
" We knew nothing of what the opinion of the people
was, and had nothing to do with it even if we did.
But, personally, I would not be at all sorry if she were
reprieved."
The only evidence apparently called forth to prove
that Mr Maybrick took arsenic was : first, the purchase
of fly-papers ; second, the presence of arsenic in the
bottle of meat juice and in the saucepan in which his
food was warmed. As to the fly-papers, this was
explained by Mrs Maybrick on the ground that she
used them as a cosmetic. One of the leading skin
specialists asserted that arsenic is commonly used by
ladies for the complexion, especially in the United
States. This was also corroborated by many others.
I proved that twenty-one irritant poisons were
administered within six days before death — such
drugs as nux vomica, henbane, jaborandi, cocaine,
morphia, and others. With such a combination it
is not surprising that symptoms of gastro-enteritis
were present. As to the practice of Mr Maybrick of
taking repeated doses of arsenic, I have already
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 157
shown this to be the case as stated in the doctor's
letter who so advised. I also discovered that Fowler's
solution of arsenic had been prescribed for him, which
would have more than accounted for the morbid
appearances found, within a few days of his death.
If there ever was a case of wrong and cruel convic-
tion this one stands out prominently in history.
In England a Government mistake is not usually
admitted or rectified.
It was on the 22nd of August, late in the evening,
that the decision of the Home Secretary was made
known to the world. The wording of the reprieve
was as follows : " The Home Secretary, after the
fullest consideration, and after taking the best medical
and legal advice that could be obtained, has advised
her Majesty to respite the capital sentence of Florence
Maybrick, and to commute the punishment to penal
servitude for life, inasmuch as, although the evidence
tends clearly to the conclusion that the prisoner
administered and attempted to administer arsenic to
her husband, yet it does not wholly exclude a reason-
able doubt whether his death was in fact caused by
the administration of arsenic."
The question in the minds of all reasonable people
was whether such a decision, which expressed grave
doubts as to " whether his death was in fact caused
by the administration of arsenic," was sufficient
justification for keeping Mrs Maybrick in prison. I
think not, and it is a difficult thing to know on what
grounds this was done. It is another instance of a
158 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
refusal on the part of officials to acknowledge a
mistake and rectify the same, as they ought to have
done in this case.
It was two o'clock in the morning when Mrs May-
brick received the news of her reprieve. Already
Berry, the hangman, had been in the precincts of
the prison erecting the scaffold — so I was informed
by the Baroness de Roque, Mrs Maybrick's mother.
She gave me a pathetic account of what took place
in prison that evening.
The final decision had been expected to reach
Walton Prison, where Mrs Maybrick was confined,
before midnight, and both the governor of the prison
and the chaplain had remained up in expectation of
a message one way or the other, when it would have
been their duty to communicate to her that a re-
prieve had been granted or that she must prepare for
execution.
Midnight had struck, and all hope of receiving a
reprieve had been given up. At 1.30 a.m. the bell
of the prison sounded loudly, the door was thrown
open, and the special messenger entered, the delay
having been occasioned by the distance between
Walton Prison and Lime Street station, where the
messenger had arrived, and the inability to obtain a
conveyance. On the arrival of the messenger a few
members of the press had been waiting outside
eagerly to hear the latest news. The officials, with
the exception of the turnkey, had retired to rest,
having given up all hope more or less ; the latter,
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 159
being on night duty, opened the door of the prison
and admitted the special messenger bearing the news
of Mrs Maybrick's reprieve.
The governor of the prison summoned the chaplain,
who had retired for the night, and they at once
proceeded to Mrs Maybrick's cell. She was very ill
and prostrate in bed, half dozing, half dreaming,
ignorant of what her fate might be, conscious of the
fact of her innocence, that she had not received a
fair trial, and apprehensive that the result might be
that she would be launched into eternity within
twenty-four hours. Her thoughts waking, her dreams
sleeping, were not of a happy nature.
Upon entering the cell, Mrs Maybrick appeared
more or less in a state of stupor. She had not moved
from the position in which she had been left by the
chaplain a short time before. The sound of the
turning of the key in her door made her start up.
She was half dazed, and was not certain as to whether
or not it was a sign for the executioner to come in and
bind her. She instinctively realised that something
unusual had occurred, of the nature of which she
was in ignorance. It glanced through her mind that
to be disturbed at such an hour, and to be stared at
by two men who entered her cell, was, to say the
least, not what she had experienced during her
residence in prison ; whether it was a message of
life or death she was unable to say. The governor,
desiring at once to assure her, remarked : " Mrs
Maybrick, I have received a communication from
160 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the Home Secretary, which I think it my duty to
read to you at once." He did so. She appeared
stunned, and at first was unable to realise what had
taken place. She then burst into tears, and in a low
voice whispered, " I thank you ! It is hard to
bear ! "
Baroness de Roque visited her daughter at twelve
o'clock the following day. She found her still in
bed, and mentally depressed, quite broken down ; the
reaction had been too much for her.
The Maybrick Committee met in London the
following day, and it was decided that every legiti-
mate means should be taken to get the verdict
quashed, in order that Mrs Maybrick might receive a
free pardon. This was in consequence of the decision
of the Home Secretary, in which he expressed doubts
as to the death by arsenic. Agitation after agitation
took place, but still no pardon came. Mrs Maybrick
lingered in prison for fifteen years after this. I always
look upon the Treasury as being, so to speak, the man
in possession ; when they are in possession of any
poor individual, they have the entire reins in their
own hands.
Mrs Maybrick was removed from Walton Prison.
Mr Brierley departed for America on board the Scythia,
and left the shore unnoticed save by two relatives.
The Baroness de Roque returned to Paris. Mrs
Maybrick remained an inmate of her Majesty's prison,
an innocent woman wrongly and unjustly condemned ;
and, in spite of the new evidence which had been
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 161
brought forward from time to time, and the opinion
as expressed in America and England, she was allowed
to serve what really amounted to the full time of her
conviction, viz. fifteen years.
During Mrs Maybrick's incarceration in prison many
applications were made for me to visit her.
Sir Charles Russell, Lord Chief Justice, sent the
Baroness de Roque to my house, asking me to make
application to visit Mrs Maybrick.
I heard on good authority that no one was offered
the post of Home Secretary, during the life of her
late Majesty the Queen, if he was what was termed
a Maybrickite ; so convinced was her late Majesty
the Queen of the guilt of Mrs Maybrick, that these
were the conditions on which the Home Secretary
was appointed to that office. I received this informa-
tion from the mouth of the Baroness de Roque, who
heard it from the Lord Chief Justice.
In response to my application to visit Mrs May-
brick I received the ordinary official reply acknow-
ledging the receipt of my letter, and stating that the
same would receive consideration. This was subse-
quently followed by a further letter stating that the
authorities were satisfied with the opinion and treat-
ment of the prison surgeon.
The insomnia and nervous prostration to which
she was liable whilst in Walton Prison followed her
after she had gained her freedom in July 1904.
Considering the trouble I had taken in this matter,
and the fact that, had it not been for my exertions,
ii
1 62 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
she would have suffered the full penalty of the law,
it was a surprise to me that she left England for
Rouen without calling at my house.
On the 23rd of July 1904 I wrote as follows to her
mother : " I am delighted to hear of your daughter's
release, and trust that her health has not suffered
from the cruel incarceration." In this letter I also
offered to see her, understanding that she was suffering
from mental collapse, the result of her unjust im-
prisonment. I received a reply from the Baroness
de Roque, dated 3ist July, from Rouen ; in which
she wrote : " We much appreciate your kind efforts
on her behalf, but she is prohibited from seeing
anyone."
Mrs Maybrick, I believe, is now in America. She
has never even thanked me personally, or written to
me, for my gigantic efforts made on her behalf. I
agitated in what many considered to be an unwhole-
some case, as I often have done ; but I conscientiously
believed that she was innocent, and I spared no time
and relaxed no efforts to endeavour to establish what
I knew to be the truth. It was a case in which
opinions were much divided. Those who considered
the case, as I understood her late Majesty the Queen
did, from a moral point of view, had no hesitation
in pronouncing Mrs Maybrick guilty ; those who had
weighed carefully in the balance the pros and cons
as far as the question of arsenical poisoning was
concerned, thought otherwise.
The case was surrounded from the very commence-
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 163
ment with a certain mystery, which Mrs Maybrick
alone is able to solve.
In 1890 I was consulted with reference to the mental
condition of a woman named Pearcey. She was
charged with the murder of Mrs Hogg, who was stunned
by her and finally mutilated, and the body, cut into
pieces, was placed in a perambulator. The cutting
up of the body indicated the brutality of the murder,
the head being nearly severed from the trunk. The
part of the body found was conveyed to the police
station ; the other was found in a baby's carriage
in St John's Wood. This was a murder of the most
revolting description, and she was committed for trial.
The actual barbarity shown previous to the murder
led many to believe that the act could not have been
done by a sane woman, and the suggestion was prima
facie for investigation as to her mental condition.
Her quiet demeanour and behaviour in court created
quite a sensation. It was argued that her conduct
was inconsistent with that of a murderess, and it
was difficult to imagine that anyone who behaved
herself so quietly and with so much propriety could
have been guilty of such a heinous offence.
No plea of insanity was raised at the time, for
reasons best known to those advising, and she was
condemned to death. After the verdict I was con-
sulted by her solicitor, and he had all the documents
164 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
placed before me relating to the prisoner's history,
previous and subsequent to the murder. My
written opinion was asked for and forwarded to
the authorities.
Of course, when giving an opinion in these cases,
it is much more satisfactory to have made a personal
examination of the alleged lunatic, but, as I previously
stated, this the authorities do not allow after con-
viction.
With reference to her general comportment at the
trial someone interested in the case informed me as
follows : — " I had several opportunities of conversa-
tions with her solicitor and herself. I think it was
difficult for a person of good sense to sit there without
being stirred by a profound pity for the wretched
young woman, around whom the meshes of the law
were being drawn so relentlessly without the faintest
hope of mercy. Yet all whom I heard discussing the
case were convinced that this young woman had
actually been guilty of a premeditated, craftily
planned murder of the most ferocious description.
Everyone must have pitied the miserable woman,
but her crime hardened one's heart, and enabled one
to entirely assent to the severe remarks of the judge
in pronouncing her sentence."
This was an opinion of one of the public in court,
and expressed, no doubt, the view of all the others
who were at her trial. The opinion I gave was
apparently uncontradicted, that the woman was
of a low order of intellect. She was subject to severe
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 165
attacks of epilepsy. This was proved to me by the
evidence of her friends and relations whom I saw.
I also had evidence to the effect that on other occasions
after these epileptic seizures manifestations of violence
ensued, and absolute loss of memory of what had
happened during her paroxysm. From my experience
in cases of epilepsy I can in every way endorse this.
I also was informed that she had made several attempts
at suicide, once by hanging and twice by taking poison,
whilst in one of these epileptic trances and labouring
under this influence. Previous to the second attack
upon her own life she was seized with an epileptic fit,
in which she continued for some time. Her mother
also suffered from fits before her daughter was born.
To my mind this was the cause of the mental weak-
ness in Mrs Pearcey.
On the Sunday previous to the murder she had been
complaining very much of headaches, and stated that
she felt she was going out of her mind. The brutality
of the murder and the violence used strengthened my
opinion as to the probability of the crime being com-
mitted whilst in a condition of acute, violent epileptic
trance, of which I had seen many similar cases.
An application was made for me to examine Mrs
Pearcey, but on I7th December I received a reply
declining any interference. However, she was ex-
amined by certain medical gentlemen attached to
the Home Office, who possibly had not the same
interest in the case that I had, and, secondly,
were not so cognisant of the actual facts, and who
1 66 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
had not been visited by her relations and friends, or
knew the history of her case, or perused any documents
bearing on it. They were simply sent to form an
opinion as to the objective, not the subjective, condi-
tion of the prisoner ; and on 2Oth December a letter
was received declining to interfere with the due course
of the law.
The public mind, which was at first so prejudiced
against the woman, after my efforts had been made
and the true facts of the case published in the press,
veered round.
One gentleman from Teignmouth wrote as follows :
" I will be glad to do six months' hard labour in any
prison in England for the respite of Mary Eleanor
Pearcey, now under sentence of death. I do not
know the prisoner, but this comes from a heart
of pity."
The number of people who called at the office of her
solicitor, anxious to sign the petition, proved beyond
a doubt that they very gravely doubted that the case
was one in which the law should be allowed to operate.
Public meetings were held in reference to the matter.
Medical evidence was also tendered to the solicitor to
the effect that Mrs Pearcey had been of weak intellect
from birth ; this was evidence which could not have
been disputed.
Whilst in prison, from information which reached
me, I learnt that she was very listless and heedless of
what was going on, being more or less in a condition
of mental and physical collapse. One thing I have not
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 167
the least doubt about is, that in such cases it is an
injustice that those medical men who are cognisant
with the facts of the case, and in whose hands docu-
ments have been placed, in the same way as is done in
obtaining counsel's opinion, should have been pre-
vented from being present at any medical examination
in prison conducted by officials nominated by the
Treasury. It only shows to me the biassed way in
which such matters are conducted, and what applied
to Mrs Pearcey's case is equally applicable in a number
of similar cases.
The ordinary letters passed between the Home
Office and myself of the usual official nature. The
authorities were in possession of the wretched woman,
and her friends were denied every possibility of having
her properly represented at the medical examination,
when the question of life and death was at stake.
At the commencement of this agitation the public
opinion was dead against Mrs Pearcey, in consequence
of the brutal nature of the crime, and it took a short
time, even with all the evidence at our disposal, to
remove this impression or to get up an agitation in her
favour.
One deposition which was sent to the Home Office
related to an incident which took place in 1886 ; it was
obtained from one of the witnesses who gave evidence
at the trial, relating to an attempt she made at suicide,
and is as follows : —
" I spoke sharply to her ; she rushed to a bottle of
lotion marked ' Poison/ and drank some. I wrenched
1 68 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
it from her hand, and gave her salt and water. After-
wards she cried bitterly, and went to sleep. When she
awoke she complained of a pain in her head. I remon-
strated with her about what she had done, and she then
stated that she remembered nothing about it, and I had
difficulty in convincing her that it had happened."
This was not stated at the trial. About three months
later, the same deponent stated, they had another
disagreement in the rooms which they occupied.
" She then rushed upstairs," he continued, " and I
followed, and was just in time to prevent her swallowing
the contents of a bottle labelled ' Poison.' Again with
great difficulty, I produced sickness, which was
followed by a very severe fit, and her hands bled from
the pressure of the nails upon the palms of her
clenched fists. On her recovery she noticed this blood,
and had another fit." Subsequently she had, it seems,
an attack of hysteria, crying and laughing, which was
succeeded by violent pains in the head. Upon her
complete recovery the statement is that " she remem-
bered nothing of what had taken place, nor of her
attempt to poison herself."
Mrs Pearcey's father died in August 1882, and a few
months after this she made the first attempt on her life.
She was then fifteen years of age, and appears to have
taken the loss of her father to heart very much. She
was found one day in the garden suspended by a rope.
She had stood on a basket and then kicked it away, and
was black in the face.
The full history of her case and all the documents
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 169
were submitted to two leading specialists besides my-
self. We all expressed the same opinion in this case,
so I did not stand alone, as I have often done before.
The medical petition, presented to the Home Office,
based its plea for mercy on the following grounds : —
First, the behaviour and demeanour of the condemned
woman, and her protestations of innocence and forget-
fulness of the crime charged to her ; secondly, the
absence of all corroboration of premeditation ; thirdly,
the indisputable fact, as testified by many witnesses,
of her mental condition, her liability to epileptic fits,
and various attempts at suicide; and, fourthly, her
remarkable hallucinations.
From what I heard, she conducted herself in a quiet,
rational manner in prison, as such cases generally do,
especially those who suffer from epileptic insanity, when
the condition only asserts itself during the epileptic
paroxysm or immediately previous or subsequent to
it. In other words, there were no objective signs —
purely subjective ; and the medical officers attached
to the prison dwelt a good deal on the "quietude
and tractability of the prisoner's demeanour."
Every effort, however, proved unavailing, and on
2oth December 1890 a letter was received as follows : —
" SIR, — With reference to the representations and
memorials which you have submitted on behalf of
Mary Eleanor Pearcey or Wheeler, now under sentence
of death in Newgate Prison for murder, I am directed
by the Secretary of State to say that after medical
inquiry and the most careful consideration of all the
circumstances in the case, he regrets that he has been
1 70 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
unable to discover any sufficient grounds to justify him
in advising her Majesty to interfere with the due course
of the law. — I am, sir, your obedient servant,
" GODFREY LUSHINGTON."
In consequence, Mrs Pearcey met her fate in Newgate.
She was only the fifth female prisoner who was hanged
in Newgate during the fifty years immediately preced-
ing her trial. This is satisfactory to show that there
still does exist, to a certain extent, a strong public
feeling against any woman being hanged. Previous
to Mrs Pearcey's execution in 1890 there was an inter-
val of sixteen years between her execution and the last
woman hanged, named Frances Stewart, who was
sentenced to death for the murder of her grand-
child.
Of course, it was only to be expected that after Mrs
Pearcey's death a full confession would be circulated
far and wide. This is always done to justify carrying
out the last operation of the law.
In this case, however, the result of my agitation had
the effect of inducing the Home Office to order a
medical examination — an ex parte and one-sided one ;
whereas in the case of Lefroy no opportunity was
given to the wretched man to have his mental condition
tested.
MURDER BY EPILEPTICS — DRANT AND TREADAWAY
In 1877 I was consulted in two cases in which murder
had been committed by epileptics — the Pimlico murder
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 171
committed by Drant, and the Chelsea murder com-
mitted by Treadaway.
They were both found guilty and sentenced to death,
but subsequently reprieved in consequence of the
liability to epileptic seizures. It was proved in
evidence that Drant at the time he committed the
murder was actually in a condition of maniacal excite-
ment and violence, whilst under an actual epileptic
paroxysm. Treadaway was twenty years of age, and
the eldest of nine children. He murdered a Mr John
Collins. One of his sisters suffered from brain fever ;
his father was a melancholic ; his aunt an epileptic ;
and both his grandparents were of an unstable mental
condition. For some time previous to the murder he
had suffered from the marked aura incidental to
epilepsy, and attacks of giddiness.
This culprit, according to evidence adduced in
court and substantiated by many witnesses, was
a man in whose family hereditary tendencies to
cerebral disease had been manifested in varied and
numerous forms, fourteen individuals in three genera-
tions having suffered either from depression, eccen-
tricity, insanity, or from epilepsy and paralysis.
Treadaway himself, after indulgence in excessive
intemperance, became affected with permanent head-
ache, and had sustained during its continuance and
for two years repeated seizures of unconsciousness,
which he called " fainting fits." The attacks took
place while otherwise in sound health, lasted a few
minutes, and were marked by a severe shooting and
172 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
throbbing pain in the head, vertigo which made him
clutch at some support, the sensation of a black cloud
coming over him, and finally entire oblivion of what
was passing in himself and around. The recovery of
his senses did not at once dispel the cephalalgia and
mental confusion, but he was able to walk onward,
and felt quite well in an hour or two. He was like-
wise subject to severe pains in the face and the cardiac
region, where a cord seemed to be tightly pulled round
his chest. Loss of employment induced depression,
which was not relieved by the kindness of his family ;
and under the pressure of these circumstances he
meditated suicide, first by drowning and then by
shooting himself, and for that purpose bought a
revolver. While conversing with his victim he ex-
perienced the first signs of an approaching fit, which
had been preceded by headache, etc., and from the
moment when the dark cloud seemed to brood over
him he lost all knowledge and recollection of his
doings, or of the discharge of the pistol bought for
his own destruction, until he found himself in the
street, and did not fully realise his position until
next morning, although he seems then to have taken
some precautions in order to conceal his connection
with the deed. Most fortunately, he became con-
vulsed while in the dock, and was declared to have
had a fit of genuine epilepsy, the last of a series
which had occurred during his examination in the
police court. As to the perpetration of the homicide
by the prisoner there was no doubt, and a sentence
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 173
of death was passed. More fortunately still, certain
misgivings having arisen, prompted in all probability
by the healthy comments of the press, as to the
verdict, the Secretary of State directed further
examination, in such a manner that execution was
stayed, and the epileptic sent not to Broadmoor, but
to a penitentiary. Had such a commission exercised
their functions previous to the trial, or, what would
have been better, had the law required — as it does
in France and in one American State — that the
accused, in whose favour it was known mental im-
pairment would be pleaded, should be consigned to
observation in an asylum, such a painful and dis-
creditable dilemma would have been eschewed. Like
some of the parallel lines which run through the
history of great events, it is curious to find that in a
similar case in America, where a paroxysm took place
during the trial, conviction was followed by a deferred
sentence, a medical inquiry, and ultimate seclusion in
an asylum. This was the first occasion on which a
plea of epileptic insanity had been successful.
The sentence was commuted in both cases to penal
servitude for life. I did not admit at the time in any
way the legality of this decision. It was either one
of two things ; the man was responsible and guilty,
or he was not guilty on the ground of insanity. If
the former, he should have been sent to prison ; if
the latter, Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum was
the proper place for him.
The subsequent reprieve, as issued from the Home
174 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Office after our medical report, was : " Dr Crichton-
Browne, Dr Forbes Winslow, Mr Erichsen, and others,
having shown Edward Treadaway to be subject to
epileptic fits, during which he was practically irre-
sponsible for his acts, her Majesty has been advised
to respite the capital sentence passed on him to
penal servitude for life."
MRS DYER : THE READING MYSTERY
The Reading mystery in 1896 created much excite-
ment. Mrs Dyer managed a baby-farm near Reading.
She was charged with drowning a number of children
entrusted to her care. The trial was heard before
Mr Justice Hawkins. I once more found myself in
the unsatisfactory position of being an expert witness
in a case of a most unsavoury nature, and one which,
in all probability, had been prejudged, not only by
the public, but also by the jury, if they had read
anything about the case previous to its hearing. I
visited her twice in Holloway Prison. She gave me
the impression of a good old carefully attired monthly
nurse, but not of the murderess type. It appeared
from what I gathered, not only from my examination
of her, but from what I heard in court, that she had
been confined on several occasions as a person of un-
sound mind in two asylums, whilst suffering from the
very same hallucinations of hearing voices which she
had when I saw her in Holloway ; and this I testified
to at the Old Bailey.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES
'75
I was endeavouring to graphically describe to the
court what she had told me, " that she had visions
of animals and worms all crawling over her, eating
her very vitals " ; and whilst I was continuing my
evidence as to this, suddenly I heard one of the jury
say to his next-door neighbour sotto voce, but within
Mrs Dyer.
my hearing : " She may perhaps have dreamt this,
but it will soon be a reality." I was staggered for
the moment, and, had I not been convinced that Mr
Justice Hawkins was so prejudiced against the woman,
and probably would have said to me, " Dr Winslow,
it is no business of yours," or something to that effect,
I should have drawn his lordship's attention to what
1 76 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
I considered to be a monstrous remark on the part of
any member of the jury to make previous to the
hearing of the case. I knew at once it was a fore-
gone conclusion they meant to hang the woman, but
it nevertheless seemed to take the sting out of the
concluding part of my evidence. I take this oppor-
tunity, however, of chronicling the fact.
Mrs Dyer was found guilty, but of sound mind at
the time of the murder. It was also stated that on
each occasion when she had previously got into a
lunatic asylum, it was after another dead child had
been found in the river. Of course, I had no evidence
to prove this. I was simply called to substantiate
my views, based upon my examination of her.
I saw the lunacy certificates on which she had been
previously incarcerated ; but as in these certificates
she had the same delusions which she had when I
examined her, the conclusion I arrived at was that,
if she was of unsound mind during the time she
was confined in the asylum as a lunatic, she was of
unsound mind then.
It having come to my knowledge that Mrs Dyer
had been examined by a physician appointed by the
Treasury on nth May, I thought it only fair
that the wretched woman should have the benefit of
someone on her behalf, and on the I3th inst. I wrote
as follows to the press : " From a long experience in
such cases, I desire to express my strong opinion that
the defence should also be represented by its own
nominee."
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 177
I was nominated, and, though I was instructed by
the prisoner's solicitor, I received my fee from the
Treasury — rather a unique position.
The following is an extract from the Government
expert's report, which was forwarded to me. I
entirely disagreed with what was stated. I con-
sidered that the defence had a very strong case. The
result was apparently a foregone conclusion. Of this
I felt certain, but was determined to do my best
according to my strong convictions that Mrs Dyer
was of unsound mind : —
" Having to-day, nth May 1896, seen and examined
the above prisoner at Holloway Jail in the presence of
Dr Scott, medical officer of the prison, and having
seen the newspaper reports of the trial and the various
reports as to her life history, and her conduct before
and after the trial, also the reports of her family
history, I have come to the following conclusion : —
That there is no evidence of insanity in her of any
kind whatever ; that she has been in several asylums
as a patient, but the symptoms were always of a
transient nature and such as might be explained by
her then circumstances, or (she having been an asylum
attendant) might have been simulated.
" There seems to be no doubt that her mother was
insane, and it is likely that she (the prisoner) is of
defective power of self-control, and might be induced
to do wrong more readily than the majority as a
consequence of such hereditary taint. Though the
prisoner denies recollection of her acts, yet there is not
sufficient evidence of defect of memory to make me think
the prisoner is in any way irresponsible for her acts."
Upon this report being submitted to me, I prepared,
12
1 78 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
as I always do in these cases, questions which were
given to the solicitor to place in the hands of the
counsel conducting the defence, for the medical wit-
ness to be interrogated on who had issued reports : —
" Hints for Cross-examination of Medical Experts.
"i. From your experience in the study of insanity,
would you expect that anyone labouring under a
monomania of hearing imaginary voices would be
insane on the surface ?
"2. Have you not frequently known such cases
where the patient was perfectly calm and seemingly
rational, though entertaining delusions inwardly but
not apparent to the outward view ?
"3. If you were consulted about a patient who
entertained delusions that she heard voices telling her
to do certain things, and confessed that she was not
able to resist, also that her mother had died in a lunatic
asylum, and that she herself had been confined in
several, and had made many attempts to commit
suicide, would you think that there was a prima facie
reason for again placing her under restraint should she
suffer from these ideas ?
" 4. If you think so, how does Mrs Dyer's case differ,
in your estimation ?
"5. Is it not the rule that cases of homicidal or
suicidal monomania are free from outward excitement ?
"6. If Mrs Dyer is feigning insanity, would it not
be expected that she would have made some efforts to
make this visible in some way to the warders or doctors ?
"7. Did you form any opinion before you saw the
accused, as I gather from your report that you had read
the newspapers on the subject, and especially men-
tioned this ?
" 8. You also say that her conduct before the trial
had guided you : do you mean by this that you think
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 179
that she was illegally confined in the various lunatic
asylums ?
" 9. You also mention that her symptoms were of a
transient nature when placed in the asylums. Might
not similar symptoms, which justified her being
placed in consequence of her conduct at Gloucester,
have become again suddenly developed so as to
deprive her of reason, during which period she might
have committed the crime ?
" 10. You say that she is defective in the power of
self-control and might be induced to act accordingly
in consequence of the insanity inherited from her
mother. By this you seemingly contradict your
former opinion. Is not want of self-control a symptom
of insanity, and one which, in a case like this, should
receive grave consideration, taking into account all the
surroundings of the case and the history of the accused?
"ii. Would you in such a case, with a history
similar to Mrs Dyer, sign a lunacy certificate or advise
the friends to place such a one in a lunatic asylum ? "
Perhaps it would be of interest if I gave the notes I
made at the two interviews, on i5th and igth May, that
I had with Mrs Dyer, taken verbatim from my note-
book : —
Q. How long have you been here ?
A. Three weeks.
Q. Do you remember coming here ?
A. I do not know how I got here, but I remember
coming on a Saturday.
Q. Do you know why you were brought here ?
A . I believe it is because of those children.
Q. What children ?
A. Those children who were found.
Q. Where were they found ?
A. At Reading, I believe.
i8o RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Q. How many children were there ?
A. Can't tell. I try to think about it. It feels like
a dream.
Q. How many asylums have you been in ?
A. Only two, Gloucester and Wells. I can't re-
member the dates, but I can remember when I left, as
it was my son's birthday, i8th February 1894.
Q. Who put you into these asylums ?
A. I do not recollect going, but I know now. The
first time I went to Gloucester my daughter took me.
I believe it was Mr Beard [Mr Beard, the relieving
officer]. I can't tell how long I was there. I do not
think I was spoken to officially at my visit.
Q. What had they put you in the asylum for ?
A . I was depressed and low, and I know I did things
I ought not to.
Q. What do you mean by that ?
A. I have attempted to destroy myself and tried
every way to do so, but they won't permit me.
Q. When did you make the first attempt, and where ?
A. When I was living at Gloucester House, Bristol.
I can't remember the year, but I have a letter in my
pocket, if you will let me refer to it. It was in June
1894 that I attempted to drown myself.
Q. Were you taken to the hospital ?
A. Yes, at Bristol. My daughter promised to look
after me. She did not want me to return home.
Q. How is it that you did not succeed in your
attempt to cut your throat ?
A. My daughter was too quick, and snatched the
knife away. I cannot remember dates, and I wrote
to my daughter at Reading, and I have her reply. I
do not know that I ever hurt anyone but myself, and
I often hear voices telling me to go and do certain
things, and I go and do it.
Q. What have they told you to do ?
A. To kill myself, frequently. I feel I am bound
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 181
to do it, and therefore I want to do it. At the asylum
at Gloucester they beat and cruelly ill-treated me, and
put me in a padded room, and I felt it would be no sin
to destroy myself. My knuckle was put out of joint,
but at the same time I know I was very troublesome
and naughty.
Q. What about the children in the river ?
A. I can't recollect anything about these children,
but I hear voices every night, and I do not know what
to do.
Q. How are you feeling at the present moment ?
A . I have a headache now, but I am much better of
late. Sometimes I remember being at my daughter's ;
at other times I feel dazed, and I can't know or under-
stand anything about it.
Q. How is your memory ?
A. I can remember things that happened in my
childhood better than recent events. I have lived in
Reading. I am the only one of my family living ; all
the others are dead. I am not sure what my relations
died of, but one sister died of cancer. My mother was
in two asylums, the last one being Brislington House.
She died there. Her name was Sarah Hogley.
Q. Have you had any trouble during your married
life?
A . My husband was cruel to me, and I worried over
his treatment very much. My father left me a good
deal of money, but my husband spent it. I left him
three times.
At the subsequent examination on igih May the
conversation was as follows. In answer to my ques-
tion as to whether she had seen me before : " I think
I have seen you before," replied Mrs Dyer.
Q. When did you see me ?
A. 1 think the day before yesterday.
1 82 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Q. Where did you see me ?
A. Here.
Q. How have you been getting on ?
A. I slept last night, but not the night before.
Q. What kept you awake ?
A. I had a curious sensation, and thought I was
going down through the floor, bed and all.
Q. Did anything trouble you, especially last night ?
A. I heard a voice that night. I am only waiting
to do the one thing which I know is wicked. May I
be allowed to ask you one question ? The other day
after you had gone I felt very much worried.
Q. With what ?
A. The voices.
Q. What did the voices say ?
A . I must not tell you all they said. Why is all this
fuss made over me ? Everyone knows I have been in
an asylum ; my mind always dwells on it, and really
I can't help it.
Q. How many times have you been in asylums ?
A. Twice at Gloucester and once at Wells. I was
sent back the second time on leave of absence, and I
really do not know why. It is only low-spirited I get.
I am sure no one could say I ever tried to hurt anyone
except myself.
Q. When did you first take it into your head to
adopt children ?
A . I am sure I can't tell now.
Q. Did you put an advertisement in the papers as
to these ?
A. Yes, I believe I did.
Q. How many children did you have charge of ?
A . I can't tell how many.
Q. When did you first take to this business ?
A. Ten years ago.
Q. Have you continued it ever since ?
A. Yes.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 183
Q. What about the two children found in the river ?
A. I can't recollect anything about it. When I
begin to think I get mystified.
Q. What were the names of the children ?
A. I am sure I do not know. I can't tell now.
Q. When did you first hear about what had
happened ?
A. On Good Friday or Easter Sunday.
Q. Who told you ?
A. No one. Someone came to my house. It was
not a policeman, but I could not say who for certain.
Q. What were you doing at the time ?
A . Getting the dinner ready.
Q. Had you not missed the children ?
A. I could not tell. I never thought about them.
Q. When had you seen them last previous to their
being found in the river ?
A. I am sure I do not know when I saw them
last.
Q. Now to come back to the asylum. When were
you there ?
A. I cannot tell from memory when I went there.
Q. What was the longest stay ?
A. I was not long in either.
Q. Why did they put you in a padded room ?
A. Because I was troublesome in my bath.
Q. When were you last in a lunatic asylum ?
A. It may be two years, more or less.
Q. What do you think about all day ?
A. I can't think of anything ; that is where I am
puzzled.
Q. Do you ever see any visions ?
A . Pray do not ask me [looking very terrified at me].
Q. What do you see ?
A . I can't tell you ; that is why I keep awake at
night. The sounds I hear and the sights I see are
dreadful.
1 84 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Q. Do you ever mention this to anybody in the
prison ?
A. No, I keep it to myself.
Q. Can you give me any idea of what you see ?
A . I see my poor boy Willie and my mother.
Q. Do they ever speak to you ?
A. Frequently. I hear them talking and telling
me to come to them. The spirit of my poor boy,
Willie, seems to be with me all night. I fancy I could
handle his bones, and that I was picking them out of
the ground. When my poor boy enlisted and went
away I was very ill for three weeks, and when I came
to myself I was beating the rats off, who were all
gnawing on my body, and the worms were eating
me up.
Q. Have you written to your daughter since I last
saw you ?
A . I write nearly every day.
As I have said before, a medical expert opposing
the Treasury is always placed in a false position. It
is my intention, however, in this case, to justify
my position in the matter. The public are very
eager to condemn any doctor who dares to interfere
in what is called a popular case, and in what is
supposed to be a revolting murder, which shocks
humanity.
Mrs Dyer's daughter, whilst under cross-examina-
tion, informed the court that her mother had been
in several lunatic asylums between the years 1891 and
1894, and that her grandmother had attempted
suicide. Mrs Dyer had been detained for three months
in one of the asylums. Evidence was given by Dr
Frederick Logan of Bristol, who on 24th December
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 185
1893 had been called in to examine the prisoner at
Bristol, and found that she was very violent with
delusions. She picked up a poker and rushed at him
and threatened to break his skull, and had aural
hallucinations, the voices telling her to destroy
herself. He came to the conclusion that Mrs Dyer
was of an unsound mind, and gave a medical certificate
to that effect, upon which she was sent to an asylum.
He had not seen her since that date. Dr Firth of
Bristol stated that in July 1894 Mrs Dyer was ad-
mitted into the Bristol General Hospital, of which
he was the house surgeon, having attempted to drown
herself. Another doctor was called as a witness
who had also certified, in 1894, as to her mental
condition.
When these doctors had testified, my evidence was
to the effect that on the I5th May I had examined
the prisoner in Holloway Gaol. Dr Scott of Holloway
was also present, and I had a long interview with her.
I had not read much about the case before I saw her,
and I had not formed any opinion before I went to
see her. I asked her a great many questions, and I
considered that she was a person of unsound mind,
suffering from delusions and hallucinations. She was
suffering from melancholia and delusional insanity.
There was no excitement, but there was depression and
there were delusions. The prisoner made no attempt
to feign insanity. I examined her to see whether
she was shamming insanity. I came to the conclusion
that she was not. She said that very often she got
1 86 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
into a depressed condition, and that voices spoke to
her and told her to take her own life, and that she had
made several attempts to do that, but had been
prevented. She told me she had been in Gloucester
Asylum and had been cruelly ill-treated and placed
in a padded room, and in consequence of that treat-
ment she thought she had a perfect right to take her
own life. I asked her if she had any recollection
of the crime. She said she had not ; she tried to
recollect, but became mystified. I also stated that
I examined her again on igth May, and asked her
whether she still heard the voices speaking to her,
and she replied, " Yes, every night." She also said
that she was visited by the spirit of her mother and
her little boy. I went on to detail the statements
made by the prisoner with reference to the visions
which she said she saw. My opinion was that the
prisoner was of unsound mind.
If there ever was a prima facie case, notwithstanding
the revolting method of the crime, which required
careful consideration, it was Mrs Dyer's case. I have
no hesitation in saying that she did not have a fair,
unprejudiced trial, which has often happened in a
good many of the Treasury murder cases that I have
been in.
I justify in every way my appearance on her
behalf in court from the fact that the statements
she told me, whilst I examined her in the prison, were
the same as she told the other doctors who certified
her in 1893 and 1894 ; and the conclusion I arrived
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 187
at was, that if she was insane then, she was so at the
date of my examination and at the trial.
Mr Justice Hawkins was unusually severe in this
case. He had evidently made up his mind at an
early period. This was so in similar cases ; his re-
marks were generally of great severity, which no
doubt influenced the minds of the jury.
It occurs to me that most prison officials, especially
surgeons, look more for the objective signs of insanity
than for the subjective. In Mrs Dyer's case, to all
outward appearances she was of sound mind ; it
was only when examining the subjective mind that
the hallucinations became evident. It was stated
by some witnesses for the prosecution that her
symptoms were feigned. I take this opportunity
of condemning this in toto. I have not the least
hesitation in saying that had the question of her
mental condition been considered apart from the
evidence of the history of her crime, no expert would
have been found who would have failed to arrive
at the conclusion that she was of unsound mind. It
seems, however, incredible to me that anyone could
have committed the crimes, which were in every
way so horrible, and yet be in her sane and sober
senses.
Whilst in prison she made several attempts to take
her life, and five days before her death she wrote the
following letter to an old friend. It will be noticed
that there is a reference to her daughter, Mrs Palmer,
whom she addresses as Polly : —
i88 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
"FROM 1909 AMELIA E. DYER,
" H.M. PRISON, NEWGATE,
"Friday, ^th June 1896.
" MY DEAR SIR, — Many thanks for your kind letter,
also for the visit your wife paid me yesterday. Yes,
I have made a will in favour of my dear child, Polly.
I am thankful to say that I have seen my dear child
now this morning. God only knows how thankful
I was, but oh, Mr , the parting is more than I
can bear. I was glad to see her looking so well, dear
child. I am sure God will bless her. She, like my-
self, could not talk much of business matters. God
only knows how grieved I am to know she is suffering
for no fault of her own ; she did nothing, she knew
nothing, neither did Arthur. I am speaking truth-
fully ; the girl is innocent of the charge against
her. I only wish it could be managed that she could
have the same counsel I had. The home, I believe,
is not yet sold up at Reading. It is kind of your wife
wishing to take care of my clothes for Polly, but I
am afraid Granny is not keeping things together.
Each time I saw her at Reading she was wearing my
clothes, and as she had her own she need, not to wear
mine. I have sent Polly my wedding ring and a few
other small things I had here ; and all I can say is
I am truly grateful for all your consideration of me,
and let me beg of you do all you can for my dear child
Polly ; you won't go unrewarded. I wish I could
write properly, but I feel I can't, somehow, to-day ;
indeed, I will be glad to see you to-morrow. Poor
Arthur, I have troubled about him a great deal, but
I will say what Mrs told me yesterday have taken
a great weight off my mind. Now, my dear sir, all
I can now say is you have been a friend to me ; the
same also to my dear child. I am expecting some
letter daily from Willie. Polly and Arthur will see
all about that. Kindly write to Arthur. I am
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 189
speaking truthfully ; both of them are innocent of
any crime. What can I say more ? Only God bless
you and yours. Mr Scott will see you are admitted
when you come. — I am, yours sincerely,
" AMELIA DYER."
Mrs Palmer, Mrs Dyer's daughter, who was in prison
in Reading waiting to be tried also for murder, was
brought to London to say farewell to her mother.
The grand jury had, however, thrown out the bill,
and Mrs Dyer heard that her daughter would not be
proceeded against, the evening before her execution.
The last letter she wrote in prison was to her daughter,
in which she said : —
" My child, my dear child, may God Almighty bless
you and keep you. It was a great relief to me to
know that you would not be prosecuted. I knew it
yesterday. Now, my child, for Willie's and Annie's
sake, don't go abroad. You will have a letter from
our chaplain. I, myself, can say no more now, only
God bless and keep you both.
' My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness.'
" MOTHER, A. DYER."
Mrs Dyer also remarked : "My only wonder is I
did not murder all in the house when I have had all
these awful temptations on me."
The execution of Mrs Dyer took place on loth June
1896. With regard to the public feeling in the matter,
a paragraph which appeared in one of the newspapers
shows how the case had been regarded. It was as
1 90 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
follows : " Not a voice was raised for her. The
utterly despicable character of Mrs Dyer's crime may
be judged from the fact that not a single word has
been raised by the public or the press on behalf of a
commutation of her sentence to penal servitude on
the ground that she is a woman. She has gone to
the gallows unpitied and hated. For Mrs Dyer no
one ever asked for mercy, and no hope has been held
out since her plea of insanity failed." This expresses
well the usual feeling when a terrible outrage has
been committed, and how difficult it is to remove from
the public mind that which has been engendered by the
atrocity of the crime, and to substitute for it a merciful
consideration of the plea of irresponsibility. There
was never a shadow of a doubt in anyone's mind
but that Mrs Dyer was guilty, and the remarks made
by Mr Justice Hawkins, so far as that part was con-
cerned, were justified.
The chief question at issue was whether throughout
the chapter Mrs Dyer was a feigner of lunacy, or an
absolute lunatic. From the previous history of the
case, and from what I myself observed, I have no
hesitation in pronouncing Mrs Dyer a lunatic. It is
a very easy thing to say that people are shamming
insanity. From the very commencement the Treasury
were determined to hang the wretched woman, and she
therefore met her fate.
There was an interval of five years between the
execution of Mrs Dyer and Mrs Pearcey, making an
execution of two women in the last half-century.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 191
THE CASE OF MARY ANSELL
I now come to the case of Mary Ansell, who was
tried for the murder of her sister, an inmate of Leaves-
den Asylum, in 1899, by sending her some cake
which contained phosphorus. Mary Ansell was
eighteen years of age, whilst her sister was twenty-
five.
In September she had insured her sister's life for
£22, and on the death of her sister Caroline, in the
following March, from the effects of the cake, she
immediately applied for the insurance money, which
was refused. This caused suspicions to be aroused,
and in consequence Mary Ansell was arrested and
tried. Her sister died at the asylum. She had not
only partaken of the cake herself, but handed it
over to some of the other inmates of the asylum,
who became very ill ; but her sister was the only
one that died from the effects. The Home Office
took the matter up, and a post-mortem examina-
tion was made and the presence of phosphorus
detected. There was evidently a motive in this
case. I approached it with a certain amount of
difficulty.
I was instructed to examine her with a view of
reporting on her mental condition. I had all the
affidavits and statements placed before me, and I
came to the conclusion that Mary Ansell was a mental
degenerate, and ought not to be held responsible in
the eye of the Law.
192 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Mary Ansell.
Mary Ansell's sister.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 193
My report, as forwarded to the Home Office, was
as follows : —
"i. Hereditary Insanity. — Of this there is not the
slightest doubt. She is a mental degenerate so often
seen in families where insanity exists, as in hers, to
any great extent. Such an individual is allowed her
freedom, being simply regarded by her family and
neighbours as a weak-minded, poor fool, but harm-
less ; and there being nothing objective in her condi-
tion, she is not, like her sister, incarcerated in a
lunatic asylum. There are two insane sisters, and
insanity inherited both on the father's and mother's
side.
" 2. Motive. — There is generally ' method in mad-
ness,' and often motive is an act of insanity. I think
that too much has been laid on the insurance policy.
At the time she was contemplating the deed, very
possibly some insane idea was passing through her
so-called mind.
"3. Behaviour during Trial. — This is, in my opinion,
most important. There was an absence of excitement
or emotion during the whole proceedings, and an in-
ability to realise her condition or the gravity of the
act. The summing-up of the judge and sentence of
death did not in any way affect her. This is most
unusual, even in the hardened criminals.
" 4. Indications of Insanity. — Intense passion and
love alternating with each other. Frequent attacks
of mental vacancy. Talking to herself in an inco-
herent manner, strange hallucinations, loud fits of
laughter for no reason.
" I am of opinion that if the question of her in-
sanity had been raised at the trial, no jury could
have convicted her upon the evidence which might
have been adduced. In order for a person to be
legally responsible, she would be supposed to know
13
194 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the difference between right and wrong and the nature
and gravity of the act committed by her.
" That she did not know this difference I have not
the slightest doubt. This is confirmed by what the
chaplain of the prison has stated, that ' she can't be
made to understand what murder is.' If a person
commits a murder and at the time is unable to dis-
tinguish between right and wrong, be the crime ever
so revolting, by the law of our country that person
is not a responsible individual.
The condemned girl's hand.
Mary Ansell's mother.
" I state without fear of contradiction that Mary
Ansell would come under the category of persons
unable to so discriminate, and I am of opinion that
if the question of her being able to plead had been
raised at the commencement of the trial, and the
fact had been placed before the jury that she could
not distinguish between right and wrong, she would
not have stood in the position we find her to-day,
regarded as a responsible person with a complete
knowledge of her acts, and, as such, to undergo the
full penalty of the law."
Sir Matthew White Ridley was the Home Secretary
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 195
at the time, and Mr Justice Mathew was the
judge.
A big petition was prepared by the Daily Mail.
I had evidence placed before me from her school
teachers, her neighbours, her employers, the prison
chaplain, and others. Her employers said : " We are
convinced that this unfortunate creature is mentally
deficient and childish, and never seemed to have the
least idea of moral responsibility."
The Rev. H. Fowler, chaplain of St Albans Gaol,
stated : "I have seen Mary Ansell and talked to her
every day, and I cannot say that she comprehends
the terrible nature of her position. She grasps the
fact that she may be hanged, but she does not seem
to comprehend the serious nature of the crime."
The coroner's jury, on which she was committed,
found a verdict " that Caroline Ansell died at Leaves-
den Asylum, I4th March 1899, and that her death
was caused by eating a piece of cake on loth March,
containing phosphorus poison, such cake having been
received by her through the post on gih March, and
having been sent to her by her sister, Mary Ansell,
for the purpose of obtaining the insurance money,
payable on the life insurance policy on the life of
Caroline Ansell."
Mary Ansell's portrait, together with those of her
father, mother, and sisters, were submitted to me.
The following is my description of the same :—
" A typical specimen of a mental degenerate of
the lowest order. The whole features point to a
196 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
condition of irresponsibility. I should think that, in
addition to the irresponsibility, there must have been
a moral perversion. Our county asylums contain
many of these persons similarly afflicted. I should
think, judging from the formation of the head and
face, that there is absolutely no power of mental
concentration or of analysing in her mind the nature
of any act she might contemplate committing.
" Her whole type appears to be between a criminal
and a lunatic, but one where the criminal line has
been overstepped and the lunatic mind developed.
Insanity, passion, and crime are so closely connected,
that it is a very difficult matter to know where one
begins and the other ends. From the description I
have received of the unfortunate girl, I consider this
to be a very good likeness, and illustrates the type of
degenerates to which she belongs.
" With regard to Mary AnselTs hand, there is an
absence of any marked head-line, and the weak and
indistinct finger form and the general indecision of
character are to be observed."
Mary Ansell was a woman of very weak mind.
Her appearance was that of an imbecile.
The case created a great stir in Parliament. The
jurymen were nearly all unanimous in signing the
petition for a reprieve, and the foreman of the jury,
Mr Frank Cusworth, took a very prominent part in
this agitation.
Much indignation was caused by the announcement
that a great public meeting, which was to have been
held at Cannon Street Hotel, had been prohibited by
the proprietor from taking place. I was summoned
to act as chairman, but when I arrived there I was
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 197
informed of the prohibition. This was a curious
thing, considering meetings with regard to the
Staunton case and the Maybrick agitation had both
taken place there. A meeting, however, was held
outside, and the following resolutions were passed :
' That the case of Mary Ansell, now awaiting execu-
tion, is one which urgently calls for a second revision
of the Home Secretary's decision on the following
grounds : ist, new facts brought to light since the
conviction ; 2nd, her youth ; 3rd, the difference of
medical opinion ; 4th, her defence at the trial being
only half prepared and weakly put before the jury ;
5th, the statement of the foreman and other jurymen
as to the plea for mercy."
The foreman of the jury was there, and stated that
he was led to understand, and that the jury were
decidedly of the same opinion, that, whatever the
verdict would be, the convict would not be hanged,
in consequence of her mental condition.
A crowd gathered, including myself, at the Home
Office in favour of a reprieve for Mary Ansell. We
were met by an official, who explained that the Home
Secretary was not in, but we were told that if a
communication was left it would be handed to him.
We left, having expressed our determination to
petition Parliament. This petition, which was signed
by one hundred members of Parliament, was drawn
up, I may say, after the Home Secretary had given,
so to speak, his final decision — that the law must
take its course. Exciting scenes were witnessed in
198 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the lobby of the House of Commons, and a large
body of people, headed by the foreman of the jury,
came to the House to intercede on behalf of Mary
Ansell, so convinced were they of the imbecility of
the woman, their object being to make a final effort
on her behalf. In a short time one hundred signatures
of members were obtained, and ultimately many more
followed. This was the text of the petition of the
members of Parliament presented to the Home
Secretary : —
" We, the undersigned members of the House of
Gommons, respectfully suggest to the Right Honour-
able Sir Matthew White Ridley the desirability of
postponing the execution of Mary Ansell for at least
a week, to enable further inquiry to be made into her
mental condition, seeing that a great diversity of
opinion exists on the question."
This was signed by one hundred Liberal members,
but I regret to say that it became a political question,
whilst the Conservative members, for some reason best
known to themselves, supported their Home Secretary.
This petition was handed to the Home Secretary at
a late hour in the evening. Shortly after one o'clock
the Home Office informed the press " that the Home
Secretary was unable to alter his decision."
Mary Ansell was hanged on the following morning
at St Albans Gaol. To the last the condemned girl
did not realise her position until the procession to the
scaffold was formed, when she was in a condition of
collapse. I do not recollect in the whole course of my
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 199
experience such strenuous and influential efforts being
made on behalf of any condemned prisoner as in the
case of Mary Ansell. One would have thought that
the foreman of the jury, evidently regretting the
verdict, and taking the prominent part he did in
endeavouring to obtain a reprieve, together with the
medical opinions and the fact of Parliament taking
the matter up, would have been sufficient at least to
get a commutation of the sentence for a week to
make further inquiries.
THE TRUNK MURDER : DEVEREUX'S CASE
One of the few so-called " trunk tragedies " took
place in 1905. I allude to that of Arthur Devereux,
accused of poisoning his wife and twins, and secreting
their bodies in a trunk, which was placed in a luggage
depository. It was called " the trunk poisoning
mystery." I am absolutely positive, beyond any
shadow of a doubt, that Devereux was an innocent
man, and I believe that his solicitor entertained the
same opinion. The history of the case is a very
simple one. Devereux had been looking out for
employment and was unable to find any. Being a
chemist by profession, he had in his house a number
of drugs. He was very anxious to obtain work, as
he had another little boy named Stanley, whom he
had to support, and who was then at a boarding-
school. He knew how difficult it was for anyone to
obtain an appointment as an indoor assistant if a
200 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
married man, and therefore he answered an advertise-
ment in a paper entitled the Chemist and Druggist for
a post as an indoor assistant for an " unmarried man " ;
he also sent a telegram to the same effect. Unfortun-
ately, this telegram, having been sent the day immedi-
ately previous to the bodies of his wife and children
being found, was used as strong circumstantial
evidence in the eyes of the jury that at the time
Devereux sent the telegram he was premeditating
committing the crime. The telegram, sent in answer
to an advertisement, ran as follows : " Would a
widower suit, aged 34, qualified extractor ? One
child aged six, boy at boarding-school."
Sir Charles Mathews, who represented the Treasury,
made much of this. In answer to his question when
giving evidence, Devereux replied : " It was a device
he had used before to obtain a temporary situation
rather than be out of employment." On the day
following this telegram, which was sent on I3th
January, the bodies of his wife and children were
found by him dead — so he alleged.
I might as well mention that Mrs Devereux came of
a family of suicides, as also did Devereux. The theory
I have always entertained, and which I still entertain,
is that the day of the tragedy was washing day, and the
wife was occupied in this, and that the children got noisy
and troublesome, and in order to quiet them she went to
the cupboard and got some drugs ; she intended to
give them only a small dose to keep them quiet. She
unfortunately overdosed them, and as they got into
LEGAL EXPERIENCES
201
a condition of narcotism and ultimately coma, and she
was unable to waken them, she realised the gravity of
the situation, and then the suicidal predisposition
Devereux in Court.
which she had inherited came uppermost in her mind,
and she destroyed herself. Devereux came in, and,
finding what had happened, was at a loss to know what
to do. He also inherited insanity, his mind for the
moment became unhinged, and suddenly it reverted
202 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
to a similar case which had happened a few years ago,
called the " Grossman case." He followed the example
of this man, and, putting the bodies in a trunk, he
deposited them in a warehouse. Being charged at
Harlesden police-station on I4th April, he made the
following statement, which was submitted to me by
his solicitor : —
" METROPOLITAN POLICK, HARLESDEN STATION,
" \$th April 1905.
"I, Arthur Devereux, hereby declare that one
evening towards the end of January or beginning of
February last, after having been out for a few hours
with my child Stanley, I returned to find my wife and
twins lying dead in their beds, evidently, to my mind,
having died from poison taken or administered.
Rather than face an inquest I decided (with a recent
trial fresh in my mind) to conceal the bodies in a trunk
which I had in my possession for about two years.
This I proceeded to do at once. I missed some poisons
(chloroform and morphia) which I always kept in my
writing-desk after leaving my last situation, in the
event of my wishing to end my own life rather than
face starvation. The room smelled strongly of
chloroform, so I concluded that my wife had adminis-
tered it to herself and children ; probably also the
morphia. I had had a violent quarrel with her
previously to going out ; also many times quite
recently and during the last twelve months.
" I make this statement quite voluntarily without
any threats having been made or promises held out to
me. I wished to make it when first detained at
Coventry, but was advised not to do so.
" ARTHUR DEVEREUX.
" Witness, GEORGE COLE, P.S.,
" 14/4 April 1905."
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 203
On the evening of 28th January 1905 Mrs Devereux
and her mother, Mrs Gregory, were out shopping.
They parted about 11.15, Mrs Devereux going in the
direction of Milton Lane. Mrs Devereux was never
seen by anyone outside the flat until her body and the
bodies of the twins were found in a tin trunk on I3th
April at a warehouse in Kensal Rise. At that time
the prisoner had obtained employment at a chemist's
at Coventry. Circumstantial evidence was so strong
as to prove beyond all possible doubt that the trunk
had been removed from Devereux's lodgings by a
carman on his instructions. The police, who had been
in communication with Mrs Gregory since I4th March,
as she was unable to find traces of her daughter,
ultimately investigated the affair. It appears that
on 7th February Devereux removed five boxes,
including the trunk which contained the bodies.
This latter, which was very heavy, was warehoused.
This was found and opened by the police on I3th April,
and Devereux was arrested at Coventry on the charge
of wilful murder. When charged he made the state-
ment just quoted.
The following was the history of the case submitted
to me : —
"Family History. — Grandfather in 1860 attempted
suicide by hanging in consequence of business troubles.
He was found suspended, but cut down and life saved.
"Father in 1891 attempted suicide by taking poison.
He was a chemist. His life was saved by the stomach-
pump. He was charged at the Hamersham Petty
Sessions with attempting suicide, convicted, bound
204 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
over to come up for judgment when required, and
given over to the care of his friends.
" Mother was Cicely Jenny Louis, a daughter of
Major-General Louis. His maternal grandmother,
Lady Louis, was mentally afflicted and under the care
of two doctors for treatment, but, being well-to-do,
was not placed in an asylum.
" Aunt. — His mother's sister, Maud Louis, who lived
at Regent's Park, committed suicide by throwing
herself out of a high window. An inquest was held,
the verdict being ' temporary insanity.'
"Great-uncle. — Caleb Devereux, his father's uncle,
ten years ago, on 2oth May 1895, was certified as a
person of unsound mind by Dr Wheeler, the parish
doctor of High Wickham. He was sent to Stone
Asylum, Aylesbury, and there detained for twelve
months. This attack was caused by financial diffi-
culties. He was depressed, and made various attempts
on his life.
" Wife a very reticent person, at times melancholic,
and it is asserted that she threatened to commit suicide.
" Previous History. — Born December 1870, married
November 1898. Considered to be very fond of his
child Stanley. About ten years ago, whilst staying
with his brother at Highbury, he disappeared in a
strange manner, sleeping in parks, etc. When he
returned to his brother's house his manner was so
strange that his brother took him to Dr Swan of High-
bury, on whose advice he was sent away to a farm for
care and treatment. It appears, so far as I can gather,
that he had become irritable and quarrelsome of late,
during the last twelve months, with his wife,
though previous to this I believe they had lived
on good terms.
" Behaviour of the Prisoner after the date of the
Tragedy. — After the murder there was no apparent
change in his condition. He continued cheerful,
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 205
warehoused the trunk, wrote business letters, and
appeared quite rational. He then moved to the
Harrow Road, where he was arrested, and wrote out
his own statement, dated I4th April 1905, which was
witnessed by George Cole, P.S. At the next hearing
of the case at the police court after the first adjourn-
ment, he showed utter indifference with regard to his
position, and entertained no possible fear of being
convicted. This state lasted for about five weeks, and
during this time, beyond treating the matter with the
greatest amount of levity, laughing and joking, there
was nothing of a maniacal tendency to be observed.
At the end of this time, however, he commenced to
behave in an extraordinary manner, writing a number
of strange and incoherent epistles, one being to the
press, which he was persuaded not to send. He talked
and mumbled to himself, and said he was Jesus Christ,
and made a number of erratic statements. After this,
whilst in prison, he had exaltation of ideas and began
to regard himself as a hero, and frequently stated that
his fellow-prisoners should treat him with respect, as
being ' the hero of the trunk tragedy.' At this time
he was reported to have been absolutely indifferent as
to the issue at stake, and had an utter disregard for
guilt, laughing incoherently, and failed to realise his
position in any way, the very mention of the tragedy
producing hilarity in him."
Dr Maudsley's Report.
He was seen and examined by this gentleman on
2oth June, and the following was the report sent to
me : —
" I have read the depositions and statements in
the case of Rex v. Devereux, and seen many of the
numerous elaborately concocted scrawls which the
206 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
prisoner has written in prison, as well as the medical
reports of his behaviour there. Neither in the ex-
aggerated absurdities of these scrawls nor in his
extravagantly perverse conduct do I find evidence
of insanity. Both seem to betray the deliberate
use of a cunning intellect to invent nonsense of speech
and writing and perverse folly of conduct.
" That insanity, coming on suddenly, should so
soon reach a degree of degeneration which, were it
genuine, would mean the mental destruction of
dementia, is contrary to experience. Moreover, his
noisy, dirty, obscene, and viciously perverse doings,
energetically and consistently continued, are not
such as I have ever observed in any form of insanity,
and are inconsistent with the mental imbecility which
he apparently feigns.
" The opinion suggested to me by the prisoner's
nonsensical scrawls and doings was confirmed by
the interview which I had with him at Brixton Gaol
on Tuesday, 20th inst. He refused to answer any
question rationally, but giggled, grimaced, and
mumbled, humming the words of the question dis-
connectedly and grinning in an aggressive and insolent
manner. There was evidently no incapacity to grasp
the meaning of the question, but a consistent de-
termination to turn its words into nonsensical gabble
not in the least like the incoherence of true mania.
An actual lunatic I should have expected either to
take no notice of the question, being self-absorbed
in his delirium, or to make it the starting-point of
incoherent remarks, or perchance even to give an
occasional answer to the point. He, on the contrary,
was careful to answer nothing rightly. Two or three
extravagant statements which he interpolated into
his gabble — that he had lived to the end of the world
and before the world began, and had helped God to
create it ; that he had written all the books in the
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 207
world — were made evidently without belief in
what he was saying, and are quite inconsistent with
the mental disorder which he affects and with the
precision and alertness of his bodily movements.
" Twice during the interview he seemed for an
instant unconsciously to let the mask fall : once
when, Dr Scott abruptly and sharply asking a question,
he said, ' I beg your pardon,' losing his silly giggle
and showing a quite natural and serious look, and
again when, being told that he might now leave the
room, and not at once understanding what was said,
he similarly said, ' I beg your pardon,' rising from
his chair and walking away with quite a natural
expression and carriage.
" There seems to be a history of some mental
disorder in his family, which may have affected his
mental constitution badly.
" I should attach more importance to his personal
history up to the time of his committal than to such
possible hereditary influence ; and that seems to
show that he has always known, as I think he still
knows, what he is doing.
" (Sd.) HENRY MAUDSLEY, M.D."
This report of Dr Maudsley, if considered literally,
opens up to my mind a serious vista to the effect
that evidently a doubt existed in Dr Maudsley's
mind as to the absolute responsibility of Devereux.
I especially allude to what he says : " There seems
to be a history of some mental disorder in his family,
which may have affected his mental constitution badly. ' '
Permission having been obtained from the Home
Office in conformity with the usual custom, for
Devereux to be examined by medical experts, ac-
companied by Dr MacCarthy and Dr Armstrong
208 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
I examined him on two occasions, on the I7th and
2ist of July, at Brixton Prison. I again did so in
the cells at the Old Bailey on the day of his trial.
I think it may be of interest in the furtherance of
my contention as to Devereux's innocence, and in
justice to the case, to give in extenso my report based
on the result of my examinations of him. This has
only been previously seen by the solicitor acting for
the defence and the representatives of the Treasury.
And as an additional proof of my contention as to
the righteousness of my conclusions I also give Dr
MacCarthy's report, who was appointed with me to
examine Devereux.
I examined Devereux in Brixton Prison on iyth
July, and issued the following report : —
" This is to certify that-, acting on the instructions
of Mr Pierron, I visited Arthur Devereux at Brixton
Prison, accompanied by Dr MacCarthy and Dr
Armstrong, to-day.
" We had a long interview with him in the presence
of Dr Scott. I had previously been supplied with
a copy of Dr Maudsley's report of his examination
made on 2Oth June, in which Devereux's condition
is described as being one of nonsensical excitement
and general incoherency. I found him, to my sur-
prise, in a comparatively quiet and lucid mental
state, so far as incoherency and excitement were
concerned, though his mind was considerably un-
hinged. I was informed by Dr Scott that the ' lucid
interval ' which now exists commenced on Thursday
the I3th instant by the disappearance of his insane
conduct and delusive conversation.
" The history of the case as furnished to me shows
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 209
that Devereux has conducted himself in a very extra-
ordinary way whilst in prison ; that he has been
dirty in his habits, noisy, flippant in conversation,
restless and talkative. None of these symptoms
were apparent at my examination of him to-day.
In reply to my question as to why he had conducted
himself so badly in prison, he replied that he ' was
annoyed because they had stopped his papers, which
were paid for.' He accounted for his bad memory
by informing me that he had lost his memory from
2Qth May to 2Oth June, being unable to recollect
anything ; and he told me that at that time he slept
for days and nights without having anything to
eat or drink, and consequently could not recollect
anything which had taken place during that interval.
I took him seriatim through Dr Maudsley's report,
which described his peculiar conduct at the time of
his visit, on the 2oth June, but he could recollect
nothing of what had happened at the interview.
He told me that he felt very well and strong, never
better in his life. In reply to my question as to
what he was going to do when he left prison, he
answered, ' Follow my own employment.' I then
questioned him as to the charge upon which he was
to take his trial. He told me that he adhered to his
original statement. He also told me that it was his
intention to have taken a bungalow in the country and
to take the trunk with him and bury it there in a garden.
I questioned him further as to the tragedy, but he
was apparently unable to realise the gravity of the
situation. In reply to my question he informed me
that he read the newspapers. I asked him if he
could tell me anything which was going on at the
present moment. He hesitated for some time, and
then told me as to the appointment of Dr Osier as
Regius Professor of Medicine to the University of
Oxford. This he gave me as a bit of recent news,
14
210 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
though it took place some months ago. I pressed
him further on this subject. He then said he had seen
a paragraph in a magazine, but could not say in which,
where it was stated that the King was going to ab-
dicate in favour of George V. In the same magazine
the coronation of George V. was discussed, and the
paraphernalia connected with it, and who was to
be invited to the same. In reply to my question
he informed me that he was not worrying about
anything, and that he slept well.
" Objective Symptoms observed during Examina-
tion.—
" Facial muscles slightly puffy and tremulous.
" Sensation : diminution of feeling, as indicated
by tickling the soles of the feet.
" Gait : rather uncertain and unsteady.
" Speech : thickness in articulating, slow and
hesitating.
" Knee-jerk : exaggerated in left knee.
" Ear : marked ' aura haematoma/ viz. the
' lunatic's ear,' most pronounced. This
latter is a most important symptom as a
diagnosis of the complaint from which he
is suffering. I have been informed by Dr
Scott that he has only observed this of late,
and this symptom was not in evidence at
the time of Dr Maudsley's visit.
" Opinion. — All the symptoms above mentioned
are consistent with general paralysis of the insane, a
complaint which in its early stages is characterised
by frequent lucid intervals.
" I am of opinion that Arthur Devereux is at the
present moment a person of unsound mind, suffering
from well-marked and defined symptoms of general
paralysis of the insane, the result of heredity as a
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 211
predisposing cause and worry as an exciting cause,
this complaint being associated with certain objective
symptoms of an important character, especially the
' aura haematoma,' which is generally seen in such
cases, and is one of the most important indications
of this malady. When the absence of all feeling,
the indifference as to the issue, the exaltation of
ideas, together with his behaviour in prison as de-
scribed by Dr Scott, are taken into consideration,
the diagnosis, to my mind, is complete. To this I
would add his extraordinary scrawls and words
nearly all underlined, so symptomatic of the com-
plaint.
" Dr Maudsley, in the latter part of his report,
says as follows : — ' There seems to be a history of
some mental disorder in his family, which may have
affected his mental constitution badly.' This opinion
I desire in every way to confirm, but would go even
further than Dr Maudsley does, by stating that he
is suffering from mental degeneration of an incurable
nature, characterised by the symptoms previously
mentioned, and associated with a disease which has
frequent exacerbations and remissions during its
progress — in other words, the patient is sometimes
worse and sometimes better.
" From a careful consideration of the case, I am
of opinion that Devereux is not in any way feigning
lunacy, for at my interview to-day he tried very
hard to behave like a rational person ; and even if
he were considered to be so acting, he could not
feign the serious objective symptoms which at the
present time exist in him.
" (Signed) FORBES WINSLOW, M.B., D.C.L., LL.D."
I again examined Devereux on 2ist July : —
" This is to certify that I made a second examina-
tion of Arthur Devereux at Brixton Prison to-day,
212 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
in conjunction with Dr MacCarthy, Dr Armstrong,
and Dr Scott. Devereux informed me that he felt
much better. He told me that a doctor had visited
him on the day previous and had said ' that he was
much more satisfied with his condition/ I asked him
how he had been occupying his time since my last
visit. He replied, ' Talking to my fellow-prisoners
about their offences, but I have given up reading as
it appears to try my eyes so much.' This, he in-
formed me, was not the case until he came into the
prison hospital. I asked him whether he could re-
collect what our conversation was about at my last
visit. He replied, ' I told you as to the coronation
of George V., but I have found the magazine in which
I thought I had read an account of it ; but as I could
not find it there, it must have been my imagination.'
He still adheres to the fact that he must have been
in a deep sleep from May 2Qth to June 2oth, during
which time his memory was a complete blank. In
reply to my question as to whether he had any fears
with regard to the issue of the trial, he replied that
he had none. I asked him whether he had anything
to complain of during his incarceration in the prison.
He replied, ' I have no complaint of any description
to make, but what I want to know is, what has been
the matter with me, as I have been informed that I
have been laughing, singing, and feeling quite jolly,
but I have no recollection of it.' He was asked
whether he remembered, on I4th July, teasing a
prisoner and trying to climb up a lamp-post. He
said he had some very vague recollections of the fact.
He told me that he had a slight relapse yesterday,
and that his headache was so excessive he had to sit
down. I then referred to a very important point
connected with his case. It refers to a telegram he
sent two days previous to the tragedy, offering his
services for some position, stating that he was a
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 213
widower with one child. He told me that he had
often written letters describing himself as such, and
that he recollected one year ago he had written a
letter to a person at Eccles (which letter could be
traced), in which he stated that he was a widower.
He said he had done so for the simple reason that he
thought it would be much easier to obtain a situation
should he be deemed to have no special encumbrances.
Upon using a very strong electrical current upon him
I found that he could feel it in the hands, but hardly
at all in the feet. On putting a metallic slab on the
ground and placing his right foot on this and passing
a very strong current of electricity through the slab,
he hardly, if at all, felt the least sensation in the
lower extremities. This is what I should expect to
find in cases of paralysis of the nature from which I
consider he is suffering, and where the loss of sensa-
tion is first observed in the lower extremities. Through
the courtesy of Dr Scott we were allowed to interview
and question one of the warders, who had been fre-
quently in attendance on him. He simply confirmed
Dr Scott's statement as to Devereux's loud talking,
shouting, and silly conversation, which had occurred
periodically since his admission into the prison ; also
as to his having given prisoners certain nicknames,
making grimaces, and turning somersaults. The
warder told me that he had never seen Devereux in
the least dejected.
" From my experience in the examination of
persons alleged to be insane, previous to holding a
commission in lunacy, I have always laid much
stress on an expression of an opinion given by an
attendant who has been constantly with the patient ;
and so much importance is attached to their evidence
that they are generally subpoenaed and examined at
these commissions as to any impression they may
have arrived at as to the mental state of the individual.
214 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Following out my usual custom, I was about to put a
direct question to this warder with regard to the
mental condition of Devereux, but as Dr Scott
objected to this I did not press the matter.
" During the whole of my conversation with
Devereux there was not the slightest evidence of his
feigning insanity ; in fact, his whole desire appeared
to be to answer every question to the best of his
ability, and with no view of deception.
" In conclusion, I have not altered my opinion as
expressed in my first report, viz. that Devereux is
suffering from incipient general paralysis of the
insane, though he still remains in the same lucid
interval, so far as the excitement is concerned, as he
was on the I7th July when I first examined him.
" (Signed) FORBES WINSLOW, M.B., D.C.L., LL.D."
In support of the case I think it advisable to also
give the reports of Dr MacCarthy instructed on the
prisoner's behalf, also in extenso.
" 124 GOWER STREET,
" BEDFORD SQUARE, W.C.
"July ijth, 1905.
" Report as to the mental condition of Arthur Devereux,
a prisoner at Brixton Gaol, awaiting trial on a
charge of murdering his wife and two children.
" I examined the above-named prisoner on
inst. at Brixton Gaol, in the presence of Dr Forbes
Winslow, Dr Armstrong, and Dr Scott, and questioned
him at considerable length on matters relating to
himself, the trial, and other matters.
" I had previously been informed that he was in
a bad mental state, and that he was behaving like a
lunatic. I found him in a lucid state, evidently one
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 215
of these lucid intervals occurring in his complaint,
and he conversed with me in a rational manner,
excepting one occasion, when he stated he had read
in some magazine that preparations were proceeding
for the coronation, and, when asked whose coronation
he referred to, he replied George the Fifth's, and that
Edward the Seventh had abdicated in favour of his
son, and that the report referred to the ceremonial
to be adopted at the coronation. When further
questioned as to what he had read of recent date
in the papers he was unable to recollect, and seemed
to be losing his memory.
" He denies that he has behaved in a foolish, noisy,
or maniacal manner whilst in gaol, but states that
he has no recollection of events which happened from
May 29 to June 20, and that he was in a dazed state
between these dates, and that he believed that he
slept for days and nights without eating or drinking.
He had a dim recollection of Dr Maudsley visiting
him, but did not recollect anything about his examina-
tion by that gentleman.
" He was also hazy about his last appearance at
the Old Bailey, and could dimly remember some
warders being present, and looking up a long spiral
staircase. Whilst conversing with him I noticed a
slurring of articulation, the voice dropping and be-
coming indistinct. He informed me he did not call
in the police when he found his wife and children
lying dead because he knew he would be arrested
and charged with the murder ; that he was very
frightened when he discovered the tragedy ; and that
he put the bodies in the trunk, intending when he got
his holidays about July or August to take a secluded
cottage and dispose of the remains by burial in the
garden.
" In reply to the question if he suffered from fits,
he informed me that he did not suffer from fits him-
216 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
self, but that his brother Louis suffered from fits
from childhood onwards.
" I put him through various physical tests.
" On examining his eyes I found the pupils were
rather contracted, that they did not readily respond
to the reaction of light after darkness and dilatation
of the pupil ; the eyelids were puffy ; and the eyes
themselves moved slowly — showing paresis of the
muscles of the eye, — and were watery — showing
paresis of the orbicular muscles.
' There was marked loss of sensation, or I should
say diminution of sensation, as no shrinking or
drawing up of the feet was observed on my roughly
tickling the soles. The knee-jerk was increased,
especially in the left knee, though I was informed
the knee-jerks were absent by Dr Scott. His gait
was slow and measured as if he required to concen-
trate his mind on his walking to ensure steadiness,
and he seemed unsteady in turning round. He
swayed when asked to put his two heels together
and look upwards. His speech was slow and the
words slurred over, and an over amount of salivation.
" There was well-marked aural haematoma of both
ears, which is almost pathognomonic of his complaint,
and I carefully examined both ears with a lens and
could not detect the faintest marks of abrasion which
would be present if self-induced.
" I am of opinion the exaggeration of the knee-
jerks and the aural haematoma are of recent appear-
ance, as the exaggeration of the one had not been
evident to Dr Scott previous to our examination,
and the aural haematoma had not been referred to
by Dr Maudsley in his report of June 2Oth, and if
present would surely have been commented on.
" The prisoner seemed to be in good spirits and not
at all affected by his awful situation, and seemed to
have lost all sense of responsibility.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 217
" I heard from Dr Scott that he began to improve
in his behaviour on the Wednesday previous to our
visit, and regard his present condition of lucidity as
one of those intervals of sanity occurring in general
paralysis of the insane which appear at increasing
periods of time, the duration of the lucid period be-
coming shorter and shorter, till the attack ends in
continuous and drivelling idiocy.
" I have noticed Devereux's handwriting bears
several likenesses to one suffering from general
paralysis, especially in his writing being on every
available scrap of paper, in the writing being scattered
about over the paper, in the frequent and useless
underscorings, without any relevancy to importance.
" I am definitely of opinion that the prisoner,
Arthur Devereux, is genuinely insane, and that the
malady is not assumed. On reviewing the family
history one cannot come to any other conclusion but
that his present condition has been greatly affected
by heredity, and possibly youthful excesses and in-
discretions, and that trouble and worry has been the
exciting factor, and that he is now of unsound mind
and not responsible for his actions.
" (Signed) E. F. TALBOT-MACCARTHY,
« L.R.C.P.L., L.M.R.C.S."
" Second Report as to the mental condition of Arthur
Devereux, a prisoner at Brixton Gaol, awaiting
trial on a charge of having murdered his wife and
two children.
"July 2isty 1905.
" I further examined Arthur Devereux on this date,
in the presence of Dr Forbes Winslow, Dr Armstrong,
and the doctor to the prison, Dr Scott.
" I found Devereux in pretty much the same condi-
tion as he was in when I first examined him on the
1 7th of July, and Dr Scott informed me he had been
218 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
conducting himself rationally and intelligently since
that time, and that he had been visited by Dr Maudsley
the previous day, that being the first time he had seen
him in a lucid state.
" Devereux stated he had felt quite well, with the
exception of a headache the previous day, which was
severe. He has not been reading lately, as his left
eye became very tired and strained, and then the
headache came on, and he complains that he has not
got the same field of vision with the left eye that he
has with the right, and further complained of seeing
black spots. I endeavoured to examine his eyes with
the ophthalmoscope, but the illumination was in-
sufficient. I expected to find some atrophy of the
optic disc which might account for the ocular symptoms
complained of.
" In answer to the question why he had sent a
telegram a few days before the tragedy applying for
a situation and stating he was a widower with one
child, in answer to an advertisement appearing in
the Chemist and Druggist, he replied that little
quarrels occurred between himself and his wife with
regard to his mother-in-law, and that he threatened
to go away with his child and take a situation ; that
about a year before he had answered a similar advertise-
ment in the same paper for a position, representing
himself as a widower, and that if the files of the paper
were searched the advertisement could be found. He
also informed me his wife had also declared she would
go away and take a situation.
" I inquired of him why he was in hospital if he felt
quite well, and he said he felt as strong as a lion, and
boasted of his strength, which is a common boast with
people suffering from general paralysis. He also told
me he always feels jolly, and that he has no fear about
the result of the trial, but that he feels a bit light-
headed at times.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES
219
" Dr Forbes Winslow applied a strong current of
electricity with the object of testing Devereux's
sensation. I saw he was strongly affected by the
current in the hands, but that in the feet the sensation
was so much diminished that it was scarcely apparent.
" Dr Scott kindly consented to our seeing one of the
warders in attendance on Devereux, named Ernest
William George, who informed me he had seen a good
deal of Devereux since his admission, and that his
condition varies very much latterly ; that he was
noisy when he first came, talking loudly and shouting ;
that he called him ' Mr Bodkin,' and nicknamed the
other prisoners ; that he had seen him turn somer-
saults and make grimaces ; and that the prisoner had
struck him. I inquired of the warder if he had ever
seen Devereux in a dejected mood, or even thoughtful,
and he replied that he never had ; that he was quiet
and well-behaved now, and even assisted in keeping
the ward clean.
" I am still of opinion that Devereux is not
responsible for his actions, and that he is suffering
from general paralysis of the insane. He did not in
any way sham insanity, or pretend foolishness in any
way, and seemed perfectly straightforward during the
whole period of both examinations, as was admitted
by Dr Scott.
" (Signed) E. F. TALBOT-MACCARTHY,
"L.R.C.P.L., L.M.R.C.S."
Everyone with an open mind, having read what has
just been stated, can come to no other conclusion but
that the man was innocent, and that his actions,
subsequent to the murder, were those of a person
temporarily deprived of his reason. It was a Treasury
case, and everything was done to convict him, and the
medical witnesses had a difficult time. At first the
220 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
judge, Mr Justice Ridley, who tried the case, objected
to the medical evidence being given, especially as the
defence was not one of insanity — that is, he was not
considered to be in an unfit state to plead. Ultimately
the evidence was admitted, and I stepped into the
witness-box, and was rather thankful to leave it again.
I was apparently an unwelcome witness, and one
always feels it so in such a case. Nothing could remove
from the jury's mind the conviction that the telegram
sent by Devereux, previously alluded to, was sent
with a view to his committing the murder ; and this
sealed his fate.
Medical experts in this case were not fairly treated.
A great deal of importance was attached to the fact
that, unfortunately, having been asked by a member
of the press, who saw it reported that I had examined
Devereux, I expressed my views on the matter,
although I stated in court that " I was not responsible
for what the press put in."
The poor man was not allowed a loophole to escape.
He was doomed from the very moment of his arrest,
but I conscientiously believe, from the facts that came
to my knowledge, that he was innocent of the crime,
and his actions subsequent to the death of his wife and
children were those of a lunatic. I made every effort
to get a reprieve. One newspaper remarked that
" the persistent efforts made by certain medical
witnesses to force on the court that Devereux was
innocent approached very nearly to a public scandal."
Even this did not deter me from trying my very best
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 221
up to the last to get the man reprieved. It was not
a case as to whether he had committed the act whilst
in a condition of insanity, but whether he was innocent
of the crime, and that the children died unfortunately
through an extra dose of some narcotic administered
to them by their mother, who committed suicide when
she saw what she had done, and that, when Devereux
returned home and found what had happened, his
reason for the moment left him, and he acted without
sound or sane judgment.
Mr Justice Ridley, in summing up, stated that " he
wanted to say a word or two about doctors' evidence.
A doctor was of great value in giving evidence before a
jury as to whether or not a person was insane. From
his medical knowledge he was able to assist a jury in
coming to a conclusion whether a man was responsible
for his actions or not ; but it was for the jury to
determine the question — it was the jury who gave the
decision, not the doctor. If there was no question of
insanity a doctor could not give evidence about what
his opinion was as to the conduct of a particular
individual — he was no more entitled to do that than
anyone else, for the person's conduct must be tried by
the jury and by no other. Dr Forbes Winslow was
asked what his opinion was about the prisoner's
condition on 3ist January. That was an improper
question, and Dr Forbes Winslow very properly
declined to answer it."
What was uppermost in the doctors' minds was not
the question of insanity, but that the man was wrongly
222 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
accused, and that at the time his mind was unhinged by
the aspect of the tragedy as presented to him — that his
behaviour was only consistent with one not then
responsible for what he did ; because, from the evidence
placed before us, we were convinced that no terrible
crime was committed by Devereux, but that he was
guided by insane stupidity and ignorance in acting
as he did after finding the bodies in his room, and in
putting them in a trunk instead of forthwith communi-
cating with the police.
The last letter Devereux wrote just previous to his
execution, in reply to one written to the prison urging
him to confess, is as follows : —
" REVEREND AND DEAR SIR, —
" Re exhortation.
"As far as the actual charge made against me is
concerned I have a perfectly clear conscience, so would
reply to your communication, for which I thank you,
with a quotation from the Psalms of David, ' that the
Lord is on my side, therefore shall I fear nothing.' I
have already confessed to the public all there is to
confess. May God and man forgive me. — Yours
fraternally,
"ARTHUR DEVEREUX."
A postscript to this letter was as follows : —
" My spare time on all holidays and Sundays was
spent almost entirely in one of two ways — either look-
ing out for a suitable place for Stanley, or else in the
cemetery, communing with the dead. I love to think
of them as being in a place of departed spirits. Laurie,
the younger and favourite twin, ' Mama's baby ' as
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 223
Stanley called him, on his mother's bosom, clasping his
arms around her neck and smiling, while Evelin,
' Granny's baby,' lies at his mother's feet, suppliant
and grieved."
They had thus done all that could possibly be done
to endeavour to wring a confession out of him, but to
the end he remained steadfast to the truth when he
said, " I have nothing further to add but what I have
already stated." I am convinced more than ever that
Devereux was innocent, and that another judicial
murder has been committed.
It was a case of great popular interest, and one
of the greatest repugnance, surrounded by revolting
details, and there was the difficulty with the Treasury,
which is often found, to approach the subject with
an unbiassed mind.
As the case is of comparatively recent date, and
from the fact that it was surrounded by great brutality
and devilish cunning should Devereux have been
the actual murderer, and as most people, with an
imperfect knowledge of the facts, incline to that belief,
it has been my desire to endeavour to remove such
an impression from the public mind, and to show
that there was every justification for the prominent
part I played in this most unsavoury drama sur-
rounded by theories and complications. I in no
way regret the part I took, acting on the honesty
of my convictions that Devereux was innocent and
had not received a fair trial or a proper hearing.
The trial commenced on 25th July ; it concluded
224 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
3ist July. The execution took place I5th August.
The judge said in passing sentence, " I concur in that
verdict ; I am convinced by the evidence of your
guilt." The jury were thirteen minutes in consulta-
tion ; hence my statement as to it being a foregone
conclusion. I was convinced up to the last that
Devereux was innocent, and, understanding that
the Home Office were finally considering the question
by perusal of certain documents, in case they had
lost sight of my original reports, I enclosed the same
with the accompanying letter. The answer to this
is appended.
" bth August 1905.
"To the Right Honourable the Home Secretary.
" SIR,—
" Re Arthur Devereux.
"As I understand that certain depositions have
been placed before you for consideration re the above,
I beg to enclose for your perusal copies of the two
original reports I made on the case, and which were
forwarded to the solicitor conducting the defence.
The opinion I expressed in the witness-box, and which
I have always held, was to the effect that Devereux
knew the difference between right and wrong, and
was therefore legally responsible for his actions.
He is, I believe, nevertheless, in the condition as
described in my two reports, suffering from incipient
mental disease in its early stage. The medical men
were consulted not as to the innocence or guilt of the
accused, for with this they had nothing to do, but as
to whether, in their opinion — in the event of the case
being one of murder and suicide by his wife, — the
after behaviour of the accused might not be attributed
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 225
to an abnormal mental condition, the result of strong
hereditary taint, as set forth in my reports and corro-
borated by the evidence in court. I was asked in
court what my opinion was as to the prisoner's mental
condition on 3ist January. This question I declined
to answer, as I had no means of forming an opinion
on the matter, and in Mr Justice Ridley's remarks,
in summing up, his lordship remarked that I had very
properly declined to answer that question.
" I feel it my duty to lay these facts before you
for your merciful consideration. — I have the honour
to be your obedient Servant,
" (Signed) FORBES WINSLOW, M.B., D.C.L., LL.D.
" P.S. — I also enclose history of case furnished
by the solicitor to me."
" WHITEHALL, nth August 1905.
" SIR, — With reference to your letter of the 6th
instant relative to the case of Arthur Devereux, now
lying under sentence of death in Pentonville Prison,
I am directed by the Secretary of State to inform you
that he has given careful consideration to all the
circumstances, and I am to express to you his regret
that he has failed to discover any sufficient ground to
justify him in advising His Majesty to interfere with
the due course of law. — I am, Sir, Your obedient
servant,
" C. E. TROUP.
" Forbes Winslow, Esq., M.B."
KLEPTOMANIAC CASES
I have been engaged in a number of kleptomaniac
cases, chiefly " shoplifting " by ladies of position.
I had a number of these cases in succession, and I was
15
226 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
called in court by the counsel, in one in which I was
giving evidence, " the thief's friend." The majority
of these were women who have " method in their
madness."
One case, that of Mrs Eliza Leutner, which occurred
in 1892, impressed itself on my memory, as I took
a great deal of trouble but received no remuneration
for my pains.
This woman, together with her sister, Julia Salomon,
was charged with larceny before Sir Peter Edlin.
The two sisters entered Messrs Crisp & Co.'s, in Seven
Sisters Road. As each of them was attired in a very
large cloak, the attention of one of the shopwalkers
was attracted, and having his suspicions aroused,
he kept them under observation for about half an
hour. He saw them take up a pair of gloves, a night-
dress, and various articles from different parts of the
shop and secrete them under their cloaks, in con-
sequence of which he had them arrested. It appears
that the defendant Leutner had been tried a few
months before for taking an umbrella from another
shop, and had been acquitted. At this trial the
defendant Salomon was called as a witness to her
sister's character.
I was informed that there was insanity in the family,
and that she had been subject to epileptic fits. Upon
my evidence Sir Peter Edlin discharged Leutner on
her finding two sureties of £100 to come up for judg-
ment if called upon. This was only on the under-
standing that the measures suggested by me for her
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 227
supervision would be carried out. Her sister, Salomon,
was sentenced to ten weeks' imprisonment with hard
labour. Leutner was placed by me under certificate
as a private patient. I had taken a great deal of
trouble in the matter, and, though the husband
was a wealthy man of the Jewish persuasion, he
showed his gratitude to me for saving the family
from ignominious disgrace by not paying me my
honorarium.
I wonder I did not learn a lesson by this case not
to give evidence in a court of law without having first
received my fee, as the lawyers do ; but unfortun-
ately I have not done so, and what happened in
Leutner's case, so far as my professional fees are
concerned, has been repeated in many others.
From my subsequent experience of that woman
I am convinced that my opinion was justified. I
was so convinced of her insanity that I signed the
necessary lunacy certificate in court.
Another case I was engaged in in 1895 was that
of Margaret Lemon, who was charged before Mr
Loveland-Loveland with stealing property from the
shop of John Lewis, drapers, in Oxford Street. The
evidence for the prosecution was that the prisoner
called at Messrs Lewis's, and raised the suspicions of
one of the lady shopwalkers, who watched her and
saw her take certain goods and secrete them about
her. On being searched she said, " Keep it quiet.
I am going to give them to a coachman for his
children."
228 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
It appeared in the evidence that six years previous
to this she had been convicted of shoplifting at Leeds.
The same defence of kleptomania was raised, but she
was sentenced to four months' imprisonment. There
was evidence in this case that the woman's mind
might have been unhinged in consequence of the fact
that her mother had committed suicide, and the
prisoner, who had undergone a severe nervous shock,
had become mentally unbalanced in consequence,
whilst shortly afterwards her only boy had been run
over and taken to a hospital, which had preyed upon
her mind and unhinged it.
My opinion as to her mental condition was supported
by Dr Walker, the medical officer of Holloway Prison.
The evidence was without doubt very strong, but the
judge, having adjourned the case, decided otherwise,
and sentenced her to nine months' imprisonment with
hard labour.
I might mention that, after the first hearing of the
case, which was adjourned for one month, I placed
her under observation, and her conduct in every way
justified the plea of an impaired intellect which was
raised by the defence and supported by myself and
the surgeon of Holloway Prison.
It is a significant fact in this case that the prison
surgeon had himself communicated with the magis-
trate, giving his opinion as to impairment of intellect.
I have no desire of commenting on this case ; let
the facts speak for themselves.
In 1902 a boy named William Home was brought
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 229
to my hospital suffering from a form of moral insanity.
His family had not apparently recognised the gravity
of the situation. On my advice he was sent to the
infirmary, where it was my intention to keep him
under observation for fourteen days, instead of which
they only kept him three. The medical man con-
nected with the infirmary did not regard him as a
person of unsound mind, but in the light of a re-
sponsible criminal.
A few months after this he was tried at the Newing-
ton Sessions for thieving, and a sentence of six months'
hard labour was passed. Home was seventeen years
of age, and his people were most respectable and held
in the highest esteem. He was charged with stealing
cheques and money from his employers, auctioneers
and estate agents at Clapham. In my opinion his
behaviour subsequent to his theft did not receive
proper recognition on the part of the court who tried
him. After he had stolen the things he tore one
cheque in half and buried another in the garden.
His conduct had been very strange for some time.
He ran away from school when a boy, and he was
frequently absenting himself from home without his
father's knowledge. He had a mania for travelling,
which increased during the last two years, and when
employed by the London, Brighton, and South Coast
Railway he was frequently found travelling without
a ticket.
He made every effort to obtain money by borrow-
ing. He had been in more than a dozen situations
23o RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
previous to the one he was in when he was placed on
his trial. Not only had he stolen money, but he had
also taken things from the rooms of a lodger who was
living with his father. Altogether it was a case of
moral insanity in its worst form. He used to circulate
most extraordinary stories about himself and his
family, declaring that he was very ill-treated at
home, which had not the least foundation of
truth.
He was considered, however, by the court to be of
sound mind, and as he was guilty he had to surfer the
consequences of his act.
I have come across many judges during my career
who are loth to recognise any form of kleptomania.
The judge who tried this case, I believe, had several
similar ones brought to his notice, but it was a very
difficult matter to bring such a case home to him.
This is only one of a class of cases I have had of
moral insanity existing among boys. It is a most
difficult form of lunacy to realise or to recognise, and
most difficult to deal with. The chief feature of such
a case is the plausibility of the patient, with a desire
to regard himself of sound mind, indignant at any
plea of irresponsibility which may be raised on his
behalf ; he believes in his innocence though guilty,
and in every way he opposes any theory to the
contrary.
I was engaged in a curious case in 1888 — that of
a civil engineer living at Great Amwell. He was
charged with committing a number of criminal
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 231
assaults. Before the trial took place I had examined
him in consultation with some other doctors, and it
was found advisable to incarcerate him in a private
lunatic asylum. A petition was presented to the
Court of Chancery to hold an inquiry into his mental
condition. It was thought a wise step for the family
to take, as evidence was so much against him, and
it was also thought a humane step to take in the
interests of the prisoner.
The evidence I gave was that I had been instructed
by the defendant's family to examine him, and that
I found he was suffering from incoherent conversation,
indicative of insanity. He rambled and was generally
irrational, and his serious position did not appear to
trouble him. I was informed by the son that for
three years he had been most strange in his behaviour,
at times becoming very much excited, whilst at other
times he would lead the life of a hermit. His memory
was very defective, and he had suffered from great
exaltation of ideas, and neglected his professional
work. He was brought up for trial, and returned
to the asylum at the conclusion of the case.
I was asked some time ago to give an opinion on a
gentleman on whom it was proposed to hold a lunacy
commission to protect his estate. He had been suffering
for some time from mental derangement, and was in
the habit of going about the streets all night, looking
round him, and bringing home persons indiscrimin-
ately, under the delusion that they had been connected
with his past history. He went out of doors on one
232 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
occasion with a waste-paper basket on his head
instead of a hat. His habits were most peculiar —
burning his clothes, destroying the furniture and
books for no reason. It was difficult to persuade
him to go outside the house, and he would sit in a
chair in a thick overcoat and a muffler round his
neck during the hot weather. He would stand for
hours in one position in a room covered with news-
papers arranged in a fantastic shape. He was liable
to fits of mental excitement, during which he became
excited and noisy, and he would rave in a foreign
language.
I was called in to examine him and testify at the
inquiry that was held before Master Bulwer, who,
having heard my evidence, pronounced him as being
a " person of unsound mind and incapable of managing
himself and his affairs."
A few years ago I came across a number of cases of
nervous breakdown, the result of influenza, which was
not only responsible for insanity, but many cases
of suicide from that cause took place. When the
epidemic was raging I was consulted about a rather
peculiar case. It was one of impulsive mental break-
down occurring in a gentleman who had recently gone
through a severe attack of influenza. He was a pro-
fessional gentleman with the highest connections,
belonging to many learned societies. He was also a
member of one of the leading West End clubs.
For some time complaints had been made that
certain things belonging to members had been missed
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 233
from the club. This had especially taken place in the
cloakroom, where the coats were hung up. In order
to fix the guilt upon the one responsible for this, a few
marked coins were placed in an overcoat in the cloak-
room, next to the person's upon whom suspicion had
been aroused. From certain actions and certain
peculiarities in the demeanour of the patient the finger
of guilt had pointed to him. Within half an hour of
the marked money being placed in the room the gentle-
man went to the cloakroom, put on his coat, and left
the club.
The hall-porter, who had placed the money in the
coat, then discovered that the money had disappeared
from the coat in which he had placed it. He went
after the member and found him in a restaurant close
by. The amount of marked money was a few shillings.
He was at once given into custody and searched. The
marked money was in his pocket, in addition to five
pounds in gold which was his own property, which
showed that he was not in want of money at the
time.
The police officer who arrested him went afterwards
to his house, and there found two pairs of opera-
glasses, one box of cigars, seven match-boxes, eleven
cigarette-cases, fifteen cigar-cases, seven card-cases, a
cigar-holder, and one tobacco-pouch, all of which were
identified as being the property of members of the club.
The accused was a non-smoker.
In addition to these, a number of old used cheques
were found which had passed through the bank and had
234 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
been returned to the owner, and consequently were of
no value. The manager of the club prosecuted the
gentleman with great reluctance, saying that he
believed there was no felonious intent. Several
witnesses of great repute testified as to his character,
but I was the only medical expert called.
I informed the court that, in my opinion, he suffered
from melancholia, the result of repeated attacks of
" la grippe," acting upon a highly sensitive constitution
inherited from his father, and that it was necessary, in
my opinion, that he should take a sea voyage and have
complete rest. The jury, having heard my evidence,
found a verdict of " Not guilty," as the act was com-
mitted whilst suffering from temporary insanity and
therefore there was no felonious intent.
I examined this gentleman whilst on bail and under
remand, pending his trial. Being a well-educated man,
he was able to graphically describe his case, which was
very peculiar from the fact that, though many cases
of temporary insanity have been traced to " la grippe,"
I have never come across a more complete one of that
nature.
My patient, in describing his symptoms, said : —
" I had an attack of influenza four years ago. I
suffered very much, and was sent to the south of France
for two months. Since then I have had repeated
attacks of the same malady. One month before this
terrible thing happened I had suffered from great
mental depression and anxiety. I imagined that the
whole outside world was unreal and was simply a
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 235
projection, and that I only existed by its volition, and
there seemed to be no joy or delight in anything. I
tried to examine and investigate everything. This
feeling has really been coming on for the last eighteen
months.
" I am not a smoker, and yet I had this strong desire
to examine everything that I came across, and it was
this idea which led me to the cloakroom at the club —
my desire to so examine things. When I had them in
my hand I had a joyful feeling for the moment, but
when I arrived upstairs in the smoking-room I
realised what I had done, but could not in any way
recollect from whom I had obtained the articles. I
did not have the mental power to endeavour to find
the owner, and therefore took them to my own house."
THE CLIFTON LUNACY CASE
In 1888 I gave evidence before Mr Justice Field
at the Bristol Assizes. The case was known as the
" Clifton lunacy case," and the action was brought by
a lady against two doctors and also against the mother
superior of a Roman Catholic convent in Clifton, the
allegation being that they had illegally incarcerated her
in a lunatic asylum.
I was called in for the prosecution, but I distinctly
made it a condition in giving evidence that, so far as
the doctors were concerned, I considered that they
were justified in every way, but so far as the authorities
of the convent were concerned, in what they did
236 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
previous to the certification of the lady, I considered
that the plaintiff had grounds for her action.
She was the daughter of a clergyman, and had been
sent to various Catholic schools. In 1883 she went of
her own accord as lady boarder to a convent at Clifton,
and remained there for ten months. As she noticed
there was certain unpleasantness in the demeanour of
the mother superior and the nuns, she decided to leave
the convent and take rooms outside. They, however,
persuaded her against this, and she consented to remain.
On one occasion, being requested by the nuns to take
her meals upstairs, being of a quick and proud temper,
she promptly retired to her own room and remained
there. She noticed that her food was inferior to that
previously supplied to her ; she declined to eat it and
put it outside. On one occasion she was so disgusted
with her food that she threw it downstairs. Shortly
after this the mother superior, accompanied by some
nuns, came into the room, seized her by the wrists, and
took the key of her room forcibly from her. She
became indignant and struck the nurse in the face.
Two nuns were placed in charge of her, and she was
ultimately locked in her own room. Not long after
this a doctor was sent for and arrived on the scene.
Upon his having completed his examination he locked
the door and another doctor came. The result of this
was that she was sent to Brislington House Asylum,
where she remained a few months and was then
liberated. She considered her treatment to have been
in every way unjustifiable, and in fact she was per-
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 237
suaded to commence an action against the two doctors
and the mother superior. The plaintiff gave evidence
in a very lucid way and supported the charge. I con-
sidered that she had a good action for false imprison-
ment and assault against the authorities of the convent,
but not against the medical men, who, I thought, were
justified in signing the certificates. This opinion was
supported by a verdict being given in favour of the
doctors.
Mr Justice Field, who at that time was nearly stone
deaf, for some reason or other best known to himself
was very angry with me. This, no doubt, was because,
being more or less an unwilling witness, though not
opposed to the doctors, I had to fence with the ques-
tions put to me by our counsel, Sir W. Phillimore.
One question was, " Do you consider that ' rambling,
incoherent conversations, refusal to answer questions,
and vague statements of ill-usage ' are sufficient to
justify the certificate ? " My reply was, " Rambling
and incoherent conversations are certainly signs of
insanity." I was then asked by the judge to answer
the whole question as to whether the certificates
justified inferences of insanity. I replied that I could
not do so without analysing them.
As I previously had a considerable amount of
argument with the learned counsel, the judge got
very indignant at my audacity in doing so, and I
felt for the moment that this irate, deaf old judge
was about to commit me for contempt of court, but
for what reason I am at a loss to understand. Surely
238 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
if a witness does not comprehend the meaning of a
question there is sufficient justification in his asking
for an explanation of the same.
I had previously met Mr Justice Field at dinner,
and he seemed a kind old gentleman ; but the defects
of his aural apparatus were so evident to me that it
seemed strange that he should still preside in a judicial
capacity on the Bench. I say this without any dis-
respect to the learned judge, but state simply the
impression on my mind, which I believe was enter-
tained by many others. I found, however, that a
quiet chat I had with Mr Justice Field over a glass
of port wine was a different thing from what I experi-
enced when I gave evidence in a case over which he
presided.
The opinion I originally gave to the solicitor, and
one upheld by the judge, was that there was a distinct
action to be tried against the convent authorities
previous to the certificate of lunacy being signed.
On this point Mr Justice Field, alluding to the locking
up of the plaintiff, remarked, " This was no doubt an
interference with her liberty, and he would tell the
jury that this entitled her to a verdict, unless circum-
stances justified it."
I had been called in to advise on purely ex parte
statements, and not on any other evidence, which I
was unaware of at the time, and which only came to
light subsequent to the trial. It was, however, sufficient
to show that the learned judge entertained the same
opinion as I originally held.
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 239
CASE OF DR STORY: ARSON
Some years ago I gave evidence at the Bedford
Assizes in the case of Dr Story, who was formerly a
medical practitioner at Leighton Buzzard. He was
accused of arson. It appears that he sent his medicine
boy out on a message, and then went out himself,
having piled a lot of papers and wood in the hall,
which he previously ignited. The premises were
burnt down, and upon his making a claim to the
West of England Insurance Co., investigations were
made and the case was brought home to him.
I had previously attended him professionally, and
it had been necessary to have an attendant with him
on four different occasions. It had been found
necessary to certify him as a lunatic, as he was found
walking about the house without any clothes on.
There was a strong predisposition to insanity in the
family. He had three sunstrokes and three attacks
of epilepsy ; the result of this was that his brain was
affected by the smallest amount of alcohol imbibed
by him.
Contrary to my advice, his wife took him out of
the asylum where I had placed him, and what sub-
sequently happened the friends were alone responsible
for. His various attendants who were placed to look
after him in his own house had no authority over him.
When I examined him at the time of the trial I con-
sidered him to be a person of sound mind, but the
disease which had previously existed in him was latent
and liable to recur at any moment. In fact, it was
not safe to leave him alone even when presumed to be
of sound mind. I was pressed for a further opinion. I
replied that he was in every way accountable for his
actions unless he had been seized with an attack
immediately previous to the act for which he was
charged. They failed in proving this, however, and
the judge sentenced him to five years' penal servi-
tude, the jury giving a strong recommendation to
mercy.
I believe he did not continue long in prison, but
was drafted on to a lunatic asylum, which in my
opinion was the proper place for him, and from which
he never ought to have been removed in the first
instance after I had advised his wife to place him
under proper care. I have always held a very strong
opinion that many persons who have suffered from
sunstroke have their brains very often so affected as
to be unable to resist indulging freely in alcohol.
Whilst in this condition they are apt to commit
crime, and even murder ; but I consider that drink in
these cases, as in that of Dr Story, is the effect, not
the cause, of brain mischief ; the brain being weakened
by disease prevents them acting like an ordinary
individual.
It would have been more humane if the judge in
this case had considered these questions and acted
accordingly. He should have known that in sentenc-
ing Dr Story he was not dealing with an ordinary
prisoner, but with one whose mental system had
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 241
become disorganised from the effect of sunstroke,
followed by epileptic fits.
It is a maxim in the law courts that drink is no
excuse for crime ; in other words, it aggravates the
offence. I quite agree with this dictum, but at the
same time this should not be the ruling when drink
becomes the effect of a weakened intellect and is not the
direct cause of the mental excitement and irresponsi-
bility of the individual.
MRS CATHCART'S CASE : COMMISSION IN LUNACY
In 1902 I gave evidence in a commission of lunacy
held on Mrs Mary Cathcart. This lady, a prominent
lady litigant, was well known in the proximity of the
Law Courts. In May 1901 it was found necessary to
send her to Holloway Prison for contempt of court.
Whilst there she threw a piece of paper out of her cell
saying, " I have heard whispering, and this paper will
be wanted upstairs." A few days afterwards she rang
her bell and told the wardress that there was somebody
secreted under her bed pricking her feet.
The case came on before Mr Justice Grantham.
Evidence was given that she was suffering from
chronic mania. She suggested that all her troubles
were due to a solicitor whom she had consulted.
She had ideas of greatness, and made allegations
that many influential people had called upon her.
Whilst in Holloway she used to hold imaginary con-
versations with persons, giving their names, one of
16
242 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
them being Sir Edward Clarke. I had come across
her previous to the inquiry. She was a most extra-
ordinary, eccentric-looking individual, and anybody
who used to pass her in the corridors of the Law
Courts she would turn round and imitate. She did
this whilst in prison.
One doctor stated that during his examination he
put his finger in his mouth, and she immediately
followed his example ; then he stroked his beard,
and she, being unable to do this, put her hand under
her chin as a makeshift. She always had imaginary
grievances, and suffered, no doubt, from the delusions
of suspicion and persecution — a well-known form of
lunacy, which is characteristic of many of the self
litigants, especially of the female gender, who go
about the Law Courts eager to get their grievances
righted. I think it would be far better if some more
of these were safe and sound under lock and key.
She was a woman possessing a large amount of money,
and the case occupied a very considerable time.
During my examination I was asked to define the
difference between the words eccentric and insanity,
to which I replied, " An eccentric person has always
been so from birth. Eccentricity cannot be acquired ;
in fact, it is innate in one. If anyone who has been
in a normal condition suddenly becomes in a state
which people call eccentric, that is insanity."
At this trial, beyond having seen Mrs Cathcart in
the proximity of the Law Courts, I did not examine
her with a view to testify. I was called in as a sort
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 243
of mental assessor to give an opinion on the facts as
they were elicited in court. The gist of my evidence
was, whether I considered anyone who had a grievance
with reference to litigation and solicitors was of un-
sound mind. I replied, " Certainly not." I was very
decided in this, inasmuch as I entertained then, and
still entertain at the present time, the idea that I have
suffered serious loss in a similar way as complained of
by Mrs Cathcart. I was then asked whether I con-
sidered that all those who heard voices and held
conversations with imaginary people should be con-
sidered of unsound mind. There was a time in my
early professional career when I might have been
tempted to answer in the affirmative ; but inasmuch
as since then I had taken a prominent part in a case
where the chief allegation was whether hearing voices
constituted insanity, and from the fact that many of
the learned judges not only ruled otherwise, but gave
well-known examples to show that those who did
hear voices were not always of unsound mind, I did
not commit myself to answer in the affirmative. I
replied, " It was not of itself a sign of insanity. Hallu-
cinations of sight, sound, and smell might arise from
some disease of the brain, and yet people possessing
this might not be of unsound mind. The lady might
have delusions and yet be capable of managing herself
and her affairs." I was then asked in general cross-
examination, If Mrs Cathcart had kept up a continuous
conversation with the voices, would that be a symptom
of brain disease ? I answered that it might be only
244 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
eccentricity. My examination concluded by being
asked whether a long period of confinement in her
case might not have affected her mind ? I replied
in the affirmative. As I had not previously examined
her I was not required to state whether I considered
her as a person of unsound mind or not, being simply
retained as a medical assessor.
Mrs Cathcart was found of unsound mind and
incapable of managing herself and her affairs.
MARQUIS OF TOWNSHEND : COMMISSION IN LUNACY
In April 1906 I was instructed by the Dowager
Marchioness of Townshend to visit her son, who was
certified as a single patient, in his house in Brooke Street.
In conformity with that request I did so. I antici-
pated a certain amount of difficulty in obtaining an
interview with him, but this was not the case, and I
was at once shown up into a bedroom, where a gentle-
man was lying in bed with his head encircled in a wet
towel. I went up to him and began to interrogate him,
imagining it was the Marquis I had the honour of
speaking to ; but I found that it was his father-in-law,
who was apparently taking an afternoon siesta, not
feeling very well.
I came to the conclusion, from the lengthy examina-
tion I made of the Marquis, that there was no reason
for his being any longer certified and deprived of his
liberty as a " single patient." The facts of the case
are briefly these : —
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 245
Lord Townshend was stated to have been under the
influence of a Mr Robins, with whom he had resided at
Brighton, and whom he had known some years and had
every confidence in. By some it was alleged that he
had a sort of hypnotic power over him, and that even
after his marriage Lord Townshend had suddenly run
away from his wife back to the house of Mr Robins.
It was also affirmed that he was parting with his money,
and had given Mr Robins control over it. To prevent
a continuation of this, it was thought advisable to
certify him as " a person of unsound mind." This
was accordingly done. His mother, the Dowager
Marchioness, considered that this step had been taken
with a motive and was in no way justifiable ; hence my
instructions to investigate matters, as they then stood
in April 1906.
Shortly after this, by my advice, the certificates
were cancelled and he was a free agent. Application
was then made to the Court of Chancery for a com-
mission of lunacy.
I was requested to go to Calais to visit him, and he
then appointed me his medical attendant.
" CALAIS, April 2u/, 1906.
" This is to appoint Dr Forbes Winslow to act in the
capacity of my medical adviser, and at my special
request he visited me to-day.
" (Signed) TOWNSHEND."
With regard to Lord Townshend's case, it is satis-
factory for me to know that it was through my in-
246 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
strumentality that his certificates were cancelled. I
worked very hard in the case, and went to Boulogne
on several occasions to see him.
It was a great satisfaction for me to feel that no slur
was cast upon his mental condition so far as his own
controlling power was concerned ; and it is also
a pleasure to know that, as a proof of the gratitude of
the family for the trouble I had taken in the matter,
he appointed me his medical adviser.
I think so far as his case was concerned the decision
was for the best.
The case commenced on 24th July, and on 22nd July
I was sent to Boulogne to try and persuade him to
appear before the commission. He declined. On my
asking him to place his reasons on paper, he wrote as
follows : —
" I absent myself from the inquiry on the ground
that I regard the inquiry, or the very suggestion of such,
as an insult. I am, and intend to be throughout my
life, the controller of my own body and of my actions
and plans. Therefore I refuse to be dictated to or
ordered about by any person or persons. If I require
a doctor it will be to look into my physical condition,
and in such a case I will send for one.
" TOWNSHEND.
"BOULOGNE, July 22nd, 1906."
" This was written by Lord Townshend, in the
presence of Dr Forbes Winslow and myself, of his own
free will and without any dictation or suggestion.
" (Signed) WM. HY. WILLIAMS."
During the whole of the first day of the case Lord
Townshend was not represented legally by solicitor or
LEGAL EXPERIENCES 247
counsel. I was asked to take notes of the medical
witnesses for cross-examination, for anyone who could
be found to conduct the case. It was quite ex parte,
and the official solicitor had it quite his own way and
had the field to himself. The solicitor who originally
instructed me, having retired before the money was
found for his defence, could not have been very pleased
on hearing the following morning that Lady St Leven,
Lord Townshend's sister, had advanced £1000.
Counsel were instructed by a solicitor who came into
the case at the eleventh hour. New doctors were called
in. All the previous ones, who had given up so much
time to the case, and who were cognisant of every
possible item connected with it, were not only not
called, but not remunerated for their past services.
I had been four times to France. As my name was
mentioned so often, previous to the hearing of the case
in the press, it is well for me to be able to state the real
reason why, though Lord Townshend's medical adviser,
I was not called. The solicitor in possession never
even had the courtesy to in any way communicate
with me. The whole case showed me how easy it was
to pick up a case piecemeal, ignoring the experience
of others. One K.C. was briefed, and a junior who
was the son of the solicitor, who, being a personal
friend of the father-in-law, had been nominated
by him.
Up to the present my claim remains unpaid. The
other medical and legal luminaries received their
honorarium.
JACK THE RIPPER
JACK THE RIPPER
DURING the years 1888 and 1889 all England was
horrified at the perpetration of a series of terrible
crimes committed in the East End of London, which
were called at that time " the Whitechapel murders."
I became convinced from the very first that they were
the work of one man, and he a madman — not a wild-
eyed maniac, but an insane monster, possessing both
shrewdness, caution, and intelligence, yet alert to
the consequence of being captured, and cunning as all
lunatics are. I became intensely interested in the
field of research before me, and gave my whole heart
and soul to the study of the mystery ; and as each
fresh victim was discovered I strengthened and com-
pleted my theories as to the fact that it was a madman
who had perpetrated the butcheries. But I became
more than a builder of scientific theories — I found my-
self pursuing clues and searching for facts to prove my
scientific deductions. I was at once a medical theorist
and a practical detective.
Day after day and night after night I spent in the
Whitechapel slums. The detectives knew me, the
lodging-house keepers knew me, and at last the poor
251
2 52 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
creatures of the streets came to know me. In terror
they rushed to me with every scrap of information
which might to my mind be of value. To me the
frightened women looked for hope. In my presence
they felt reassured, and welcomed me to their dens and
obeyed my commands eagerly, and found the bits of
information I wanted.
It is not, therefore, surprising that it was I and not
the detectives of Scotland Yard who reasoned out an
accurate scientific mental picture of the Whitechapel
murderer, and then stamped beyond a doubt, if not the
actual identification of the monster himself, neverthe-
less the ability to capture the same.
To recall the history of the famous Jack-the- Ripper
murders in London slums, it should be remembered
that there were in all eight victims. This frightful list
began at Christmas 1887, and the monster laid down
his knife in July 1889, after the eighth victim. There
is good reason to believe that the hand of the murderer
was stayed by my revelations before I had finished
my contemplated crusade.
The following are the dates of the crimes, with the
names of the victims, which were perpetrated by that
mysterious individual, Jack the Ripper, whom Scot-
land Yard failed to capture.
In 1887, Christmas week, an unknown woman
was found murdered near Osborne and Wentworth
Streets, Whitechapel.
On the 7th of August 1888, Martha Turner was
stabbed in thirty-nine places, and the body was
JACK THE RIPPER 253
found on a landing in the model dwellings known as
George Yard Buildings, Commercial Street, Spitalfields.
The 3ist of August 1888, Mrs Nicholls was murdered
and mutilated in Bucks Row, Whitechapel.
The 8th of September 1888, Annie Chapman was
killed and mutilated in Hanbury Street, Whitechapel.
The 3Oth of September of the same year, Elizabeth
Stride was murdered in Bernard Street, Whitechapel.
Her throat was cut, but the body was not mutilated.
It is assumed that in this case the murderer was
disturbed before he had completed his work.
The 3Oth of September, the same day as Stride's
murder, Catherine Eddowes was murdered in Mitre
Street, Aldgate. I always thought that, inasmuch as
the murderer of Elizabeth Stride was stopped before his
work was finished, the mania was so strong in him
to mutilate in the way he had been accustomed to,
that he ran out and killed the first woman he met
after murdering Stride.
November gth, 1888, the body of Mary Anne Kelly
was hacked to pieces in 26 Dorset Street, Spitalfields.
July I7th, 1889, Alice M'Kenzie was murdered in
Castle Alley, Whitechapel. In this case also the
murderer had been disturbed in his work.
The public had been raised to an abject state of
terror, inasmuch as six murders had been committed
of the Jack-the-Ripper type during the four months
extending from 7th August 1888 to gth November
of the same year.
The panic had quietly subsided, when suddenly
254 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the crime to which I am alluding, of I7th July 1889,
was perpetrated, and stirred up public excitement
again.
I always entertained the same opinion that one
man committed all these crimes. Some argued other-
wise against the murders being all committed by one
man ; the fact was raised that the force of imitation
is very strong in the insane, and that a murder com-
mitted in a terrible way often has its imitators. As
a proof of what I say, I was visiting a prison some
time ago, and in the course of a conversation with
the chaplain he informed me that a youth had been
executed the previous week, in whom he took much
interest in so far as his spiritual welfare was concerned.
He had been convinced that the boy was really
repentant, and the following Sunday he alluded to
the case in the pulpit as an example of repentance
at the eleventh hour, and how gratifying the result
was to him. The murder was a very revolting one.
His sermon was very impressive, but before the week
was out one of his congregation committed a murder
in a similar way to the one he had alluded to. Some
years ago I had brought to my knowledge the fact
that a lunatic had jumped from the Duke of York's
column, and a few days afterwards others followed
his example. One insane person is seen flourishing
a knife in the street ; the power of imitation is so
great that others follow the example. With the
acknowledgment of such facts before the world, a
possible allegation in Jack the Ripper's case was that
JACK THE RIPPER 255
the first murderer had his imitators. I always dis-
agreed with this, and considered that the crimes were
committed by one and the same person ; that he was
a homicidal monomaniac of religious views, who
laboured under the morbid belief that he had a
destiny in the world to fulfil ; and that he had chosen
a certain class of society to vent his vengeance on.
Religious homicidal monomania is always of a most
obstinate description, and no doubt the desire to wipe
out a social blot from the face of the earth, being, so
to speak, his destiny, was the cause of the crimes.
An interesting fact about these murders was the
influence which the moon apparently appeared to
exert upon them. The theory is that lunatics are
strongly influenced at the various periods when the
moon changes. I have often noticed this myself, and
in tracing the dates in which these respective murders
were committed one cannot but be impressed by the
fact that they were either committed when the new
moon rose, or when the moon had entered upon its
last quarter. In only one murder was this proved
to be incorrect — that is, the murder of Qth November
1888, the one in which I received a letter warning me
of what would happen. The murder was just one day
beyond its time, and, to accord with the theory I am
now stating, the murder should have been committed
on the 7th of November ; but I will draw attention
to the fact that it was evident that the murder was
contemplated about that time, as in the letter I
received in October 1888 the writer told me that the
256 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
murder would be committed either on the 7th or the
gth. This will establish to a certain extent the theory
that lunatics are subject to lunar influences.
Sir Charles Warren was Chief Commissioner of
Police at the time, and I am afraid his position was
not a very happy one. Every sort of clue was sent
to him, and he always had the courtesy to acknowledge
those sent to him by me in an official way. From my
experience of the police, however, it is not easy to
persuade them to accept suggestions from outside
sources. As an instance of this, during the time that
the Whitechapel scare was on, a man, dressed in a
brown pea-jacket and cap, fell on his knees before my
daughter and another lady, who were at Brighton.
Producing a large bowie-knife, he commenced to
sharpen the same. Fortunately, the ladies were
able to take refuge in their own house. From the
description given to me by those who witnessed the
act, I thought I was justified in communicating with
the Brighton police ; the result was to cause a " scare
at Brighton." But when I made some important
statements to the police in London, they treated
it with a certain amount of levity. It is this way
in dealing with certain important clues which eman-
ate from outside sources that renders our police so
imperfect.
One of my ideas at the time was that the police
should have been supplanted, and attendants experi-
enced in dealing with lunatics placed about White-
chapel. They would have been in a position, in many
JACK THE RIPPER 257
instances, to have noted whether anyone was of
unsound mind or not, which certainly the police,
inexperienced in such matters, would be unable to
detect. This suggestion was also sent by me to Sir
Charles Warren, but the usual printed acknowledg-
ment was all I ever heard of it.
Every possible theory had currency. One was that
the murder was performed by an escaped gorilla. At
one time there was a rumour current that the murderer
was a Russian suffering from homicidal insanity, who
had been discharged from a lunatic asylum in Paris
as cured. So far as my experience goes, homicidal
lunatics are never cured ; the symptoms are always
latent, and are liable to be stirred up at any moment,
though they appear perfectly normal to the outside
world.
Also, in addition to this, a good many people who
had committed crimes were at once associated with
the Jack-the-Ripper murders. A man who had
recently come from Vienna attended one of the
London hospitals, making a statement that he had
been robbed of a large sum of money by the women
in Leicester Square, and in order to revenge himself
he was determined that this class of individuals
should be killed. He asked permission to see various
operations, but was evidently of unsound mind. The
fact was communicated to me, and I immediately put
myself into communication with the authorities in
London, and also in Paris, as it appeared that he had
been first confined in an asylum in Vienna and later
17
258 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
on in Paris. I asked for particulars as to the ad-
mission and discharge and other facts relating to his
case. At that time I thought perhaps that this might
be the individual wanted, and I considered the clue
of such importance that I determined to follow it up.
I received no answer to my communications whatever
from Paris, and I presume the same reticence goes on
in Paris as is found in London, where those officially
engaged are bound by the sanctity of their oath not
to reveal to the outside world what goes on in the
precincts of their office, or comes within their know-
ledge whilst in the performance of their functions.
The theory that Jack the Ripper was suffering
from masked epilepsy received a certain amount of
credulity. I thought so until after the third murder,
and I imagined that Jack the Ripper suffered from
this malady, and that, during the seizure, he might
perform the most extraordinary and most diabolical
actions, and upon his return to consciousness would
be in perfect ignorance of what had transpired when
the attack was on him, and would conduct himself
in an ordinary manner before people.
I have known several of these cases myself : one a
lady, who whilst in conversation with other people
would become deadly pale, and to the horror of her
visitors would pour forth a volley of profane oaths.
In a few minutes she would resume her conversation
as though nothing had happened.
I have been consulted in many such cases ; among
those previously mentioned are Drant, Treadaway, and
JACK THE RIPPER 259
Pearcey, who were all epileptic maniacs, and who
committed murders, the plea being raised that the crime
was committed during a masked epileptic condition.
What is always characteristic of this form of insanity
is the brutality of the crime and the cunning shown by
the murderer ; and yet, should the epileptic be taken
red-handed, he would be in ignorance of the fact, so
that there was a certain amount of justification for
the suggestion.
The butchers came in for a good deal of attention,
and it was considered a significant fact that there
always existed a slaughterhouse in close proximity
to the scene of the murders. Detectives disguised as
slaughtermen obtained work in several of these houses
in order to keep a sharp eye on what was going on.
It was stated that the murderer might be a woman
in disguise of a slaughterman.
In fact, the police authorities, from Sir Charles
Warren downwards, were engaged in looking for a
murderer who might be anything, from a well-dressed
man in his brougham to a coster in his donkey-cart.
The rich were equally suspected as the poor, the
educated and refined man as well as the opposite.
The unfortunate man who carried a small brown bag
had a bad time, and this bag was good ground-bait
for the police to bite at. They were evidently very
much at sea ; and in the whole course of my experi-
ence of them, and the interviews I had with repre-
sentatives of Scotland Yard, I came to the conclu-
sion that if the capture of Jack the Ripper was
260 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
in the hands of the police it was indeed a forlorn
hope.
What appears strange to me is the fact that they
did not realise their incompetency, and still more I
was astonished that important clues which were
placed in their hands were ignored simply on the
ground of nothing more or less than that they alone
were the persons who should detect the crime and
bring the murderer to book. If nothing more was
required to show the imperfection of the London
police system at the time, the Whitechapel murders
stand out in evidence. There seemed to be an
absence of coherent system of local government in
the Metropolis. The individual members of the police
force were left to the guidance of their instincts. The
secrecy indulged in by Scotland Yard, and the
repugnance to take anyone into their confidence,
except directly or indirectly connected with the
police force, appears to me to be a blot on our consti-
tution. Surely in this case it would have been far
better to have admitted the inability of the police
to trace the murderer, and allowed others, who were
apparently more able to deal with the matter, to
assert themselves.
The police were completely dazed, and, despite the
precautions taken and the traps laid, the murderer
escaped them all.
To recapitulate: I formed the theory that the
first two murders had been committed by an
epileptic maniac. I still held to my theory until the
JACK THE RIPPER 261
third murder, basing my conclusions upon the fact
that in this disease the paroxysms only occur at
intervals, and that they leave the person subject to
them in full possession of his faculties. He would
thus be able to control his diabolical impulse until
a safe opportunity presented itself. Moreover, epi-
leptic seizures of this description are frequently
accompanied by a form of erotic frenzy, and this
would account for the particular class of women
which the murderer selected for his victims.
After the fourth murder public opinion became
intensely excited over the Whitechapel murders, and
little else was talked about for days after each
murder.
I determined to throw myself heart and soul into
the matter, and wrote a letter to the press in which
I set forth my theory that a dangerous homicidal
lunatic was prowling about London.
Arrests were made by the score, principally of
people of a low class who inhabited the locality
where the murders were committed. I, however,
refused to believe that the murders were committed
by one of the lower classes.
I gave it as my opinion that the murderer was in
all probability a man of good position and perhaps
living in the West End of London. When the
paroxysm which prompted him to his fearful deeds
had passed off, he most likely returned to the bosom
of his family.
After the fifth and sixth murders, however, I
262 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
changed my views. The exact similarity in the
method of murder and the horrible evisceration of
the body showed too much of a methodical nature
ever to belong to a man who committed the deeds
in a fit of epileptic furor. Considerable anatomical
knowledge was displayed by the murderer, which
would seem to indicate that his occupation was that
of a butcher or a surgeon.
Taking all these things into consideration, I con-
cluded that the perpetrator was a homicidal lunatic
goaded on to his dreadful work by a sense of duty.
Religious monomania was evidently closely allied
with his homicidal instincts, because his efforts were
solely directed against fallen women, whose extermina-
tion he probably considered his mission. Many homi-
cidal lunatics consider murder to be their duty. Jack
the Ripper possibly imagined that he received his
commands from God.
I communicated my ideas to the authorities at
Scotland Yard, and expressed my opinion that I
would run down the murderer with the co-operation
of the police. I explained that lunatics can fre-
quently be caught in their own trap by humouring
their ideas. If opposed, however, they bring a
devilish cunning to bear which effectually frustrates
all efforts to thwart their designs.
I proposed to insert an advertisement in a prominent
position in all the papers, reading something like this :
" A gentleman who is strongly opposed to the presence
of fallen women in the streets of London would like
JACK THE RIPPER 263
to co-operate with someone with a view to their
suppression."
I proposed to have half a dozen detectives at the
place of appointment, and seize and rigidly examine
everyone who replied to the advertisement. Scotland
Yard, however, refused to entertain the idea ; and as
it was quite impossible for me, as a private citizen, to
seize and detain possibly innocent persons, the idea
was abandoned.
I concluded that a simple expedient like this would
be more likely to entrap the murderer than anything
else, for the diabolical cunning of a homicidal lunatic,
who conceives he has a mission, renders his capture
red-handed extremely problematical. I claimed that
a man of this nature would be sure to read the
newspapers carefully and gloat over the result of
his crime. The savage hacking and cutting of
some of his victims showed that he was under the
influence of a religious frenzy, and every horrible
detail he probably considered redounded to his
credit and proved that he was performing his mission
faithfully.
About this time rumours grew into loud complaints
against the inefficiency of the London police, and
scores of private citizens disguised themselves and
patrolled all night the streets of Whitechapel, hoping
to catch the murderer. Among them was no less a
personage than a director of the Bank of England,
who was so obsessed by a special theory of his own
that he disguised himself as an ordinary day labourer
264 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
and started exploring the common lodging-houses in
the East End, clad in heavy boots, a fustian jacket,
Sb *.,
•X> ••
^
with a red handkerchief around his head and a pick-
axe in his hand.
During the month of August 1888 a man was seen
JACK THE RIPPER 265
whose description, as then given me, corresponded
with the man who was found writing on a wall under
an archway. The inscription read : " Jack the
Ripper will never commit another murder."
On 4th October I received a letter purporting to
come from Jack the Ripper, and expressing an insane
glee over the hideous work he was carrying out. This
letter was in the same handwriting as the writing
found under the archway. Another letter was re-
ceived by me on igth October, also in the same
handwriting, which informed me that the next murder
would be committed on gth November.
November Qth, being Lord Mayor's Day, is generally
kept as a holiday, and the usual crowd had assembled
to view the procession. While the throng was at its
thickest the yells of the newsboys were suddenly
heard : " Another Whitechapel murder ; horrible
mutilation," etc. The murder had been foretold in
the letter to me, but no clue could be obtained as to
the writer.
The police worked night and day, originated
theories, acted upon all sorts of official suggestions,
but all without avail, ignoring, however, private clues.
The thought of the fiend silently carving up his
victim in the midst of a crowded neighbourhood,
reflecting with joy upon the righteousness of his
work, when the whole city was engaged in feastings
and processions of the Lord Mayor's Day, caused
almost a panic in the City. The mutilation of the
corpse surpassed in brutality, and presented a more
266 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
sickening spectacle than any of the rest. The murder
this time was committed in a room on the ground
floor, with a window in front by which any passer-
by might have seen the mangled body lying upon
the bed.
No more murders occurring, the excitement gradually
died away, until on I7th July 1889 a woman named
Alice M'Kenzie was found mutilated in the usual
manner in a dark Whitechapel alley.
The body, when found, showed that the fiend had
been disturbed in his work, and the policeman who
discovered it blew his whistle, and every constable
in the neighbourhood blocked up every opening, thus
forming a cordon through which no one was allowed
to pass. All contained in the cordon were examined
and a house-to-house search was conducted. It was
all in vain. The murderer had disappeared as com-
pletely as though he had vanished from the earth.
Letters had been received by the police in the early
part of the year warning them that the murderous
work would be resumed in July.
No clues, however, were obtainable from them, and
this murder remained shrouded in mystery, like the
others.
The long interval between the murder of gth
November 1888 and I7th July 1889 I accounted for
by the fact that the lunatic had undoubtedly had
a " lucid interval," during which he was quite un-
conscious of the horrible crimes he had previously
committed. After each murder had been carried out
JACK THE RIPPER 267
and the lust for blood appeased, the lunatic changed
at once from a homicidal religious maniac into a
quiet man with a perfect knowledge of what he was
doing, oblivious of the past.
This is what rendered his capture so difficult. A
man who was afflicted with permanent homicidal
mania, and who was always in the same frame of
mind as the murderer was when he so wildly and
savagely slashed the bodies of his victims, would have
been soon found out. Jack the Ripper, however, in
his lucid intervals, was a man whom no one would
suspect of the fearful crimes he had committed. This
is very common among lunatics of this description.
I still held to my theory that the assassin was a
well-to-do man suffering from religious mania. Many
theories had been started and met with more or less
favour. The general opinion was that the murderer
was a cattle-butcher visiting the slums of Whitechapel
and committing a murder every time his ship came
in. On the body of Mary Jane Kelly, who was
murdered on gth November 1888, a woman's hat
was found in addition to her own. Everybody then
said that the " Ripper " was a woman.
Nothing was proved, however, and the police were
still in the dark, though working assiduously.
The first definite clue was obtained on 30th August
1889, when a woman with whom I was in communica-
tion (for I had never stopped working on the murders)
came to me and said that a man had spoken to her in
Worship Street, Finsbury, who wanted her to go down
268 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
a court with him. She refused to do so, but, together
with some of the neighbours whom she told, followed
him, walking a little way behind. They saw him go
into a house in Finsbury out of which she had seen
him coming some days before.
On the morning after the murder of I7th July she
saw him washing blood off his hands in the yard of
the house referred to. She particularly remembered
the occurrence because of the peculiar look on his face.
When the house was searched the man was gone.
Nothing was better known about him except that the
description of him given by the other tenants tallied
with that given by a lodging-house keeper with whom
he lived a year before. This lodging-house keeper
called on me several days afterwards and gave me
some very important information.
He said that in April 1888 a gentlemanly-looking
man called in answer to an advertisement. He
engaged a large bed-sitting-room in his house, and
said that he was over on business, and might stay
a few months or perhaps a year. Before he came
there he told them that he had occupied rooms in the
neighbourhood of St Paul's Cathedral.
The proprietor and his wife noticed that whenever
he went out of doors he wore a different suit of clothes
from that which he wore the day before, and would
often change them three or four times a day. He had
eight or nine suits of clothes and the same number
of hats. He kept very late hours, and whenever he
returned home his entry was quite noiseless. In his
JACK THE RIPPER 269
room were three pairs of rubbers coming high over the
ankles, one pair of which he always used when going
out at night.
On yth August, the date of the second murder, the
lodging-house keeper was sitting up late with his
sister, waiting for his wife to return from the country.
She was expected home about 4 a.m., and the two sat
up till then. A little before four o'clock the lodger
came in, looking as though he had been having rather
a rough time. When questioned he said that his
watch had been stolen in Bishopsgate, and gave the
name of a police station where he had lodged a
complaint.
On investigation this proved to be false, as no com-
plaint had been lodged with the police. The next
morning, when the maid went to do his room, she
called the attention of the proprietress to a large
bloodstain on the bed. His shirt was found hanging
up in his room with the cuffs recently washed, he
having washed them himself. A few days later he
left, saying that he was going to Canada, but he
evidently did not go, because he was seen getting
into a horse car in London in September 1888.
While he was in the lodging-house he was regarded
by all as a person of unsound mind. He would fre-
quently suddenly break out into remarks expressing
his disgust at the number of fallen women in the
streets. He would sometimes talk for hours with the
proprietor of the lodging-house, giving his views upon
the subject of immorality. During his leisure time
270 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
he would often fill up fifty or sixty sheets of foolscap,
writing upon religious matters connected with morality.
These he would sometimes read to the proprietor,
who told me they were very violent in tone and
expressed bitter hatred of dissolute women.
At eight o'clock every morning he attended service
at St Paul's Cathedral.
All this information I gathered privately, and added
to the clues I had already obtained. As soon as I
heard the description of the habits of this man, I said
instantly : " That's the man."
If I had constructed an imaginary man out of my
experience of insane people suffering from homicidal
religious mania, his habits would have corresponded
almost exactly with those told me by the lodging-
house keeper.
The conception that I had formed of the way the
whole series of murders had been committed was
corroborated almost exactly by the evident propen-
sities of the mysterious lodger. I have said that the
murderer was one and the same person ; that he had
committed the crime suffering from homicidal mania
of a religious description, and labouring under the
morbid belief that the delusion entertained by him
had direct reference to the part of the body removed.
That under that delusion, and desiring to directly
influence the morality of the world, and imagining
that he had a certain destiny to fulfil, he had chosen
the immoral class of society to vent his vengeance
upon.
JACK THE RIPPER 271
As soon as my clue became certain I told the police
all I knew, and suggested a plan whereby the lunatic
could be captured upon the steps of St Paul's
Cathedral.
To my great surprise the police refused to co-
operate. The rubber shoes, which I took possession
of, were covered with dried human blood. They had
been left behind by the murderer in his rapid departure
from the lodging-house. In addition to the rubbers
there were three pairs of woman's shoes and a quantity
of bows, feathers, and flowers, such as are usually worn
by women of the lower class. Some of the latter were
stained with blood, and were in my possession.
I was severely criticised for informing the New York
Herald, then published in London, of my clues. The
publication of my information, showing how closely
hemmed in the murderer was, and how dangerous, if
not impossible, any more murders would be, evidently
frightened Jack the Ripper.
No more murders were committed after the news
of my researches. I think that the maniac most pro-
bably left the country for a time. The murderer was
described as being of slight build, active, with rather
a small head, delicate features, and a wealth of light
brown hair. He frequently boasted of his knowledge
of anatomy, and said that he had achieved consider-
able distinction at college. Several months after the
publication of my discoveries a young man was
arrested for attempted suicide, and when examined
by the police surgeon was proved to be hopelessly
272 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
insane. He was committed to a Government asylum.
The terrible Whitechapel murders were still fresh in
people's minds. The asylum authorities noticed that
his description tallied with that of Jack the Ripper
in my published statements. He suffered from a
despondent madness, breaking out at times into
violent homicidal mania.
Investigations were at once set on foot, and a theory
started that the mysterious lodger, Jack the Ripper,
and the unfortunate inmate of the asylum were one
and the same man. This man was found to come of
a well-to-do and respectable family, and evinced
considerable ability in his college career. His speci-
ality was anatomy, and he studied so hard that his
mind, never very strong, gave way under the strain.
Always of a religious turn of mind, he became afflicted
with religious mania. But it was found that he was
not Jack the Ripper. Lunatics often act up to the
Scriptural maxim, " If thine eye offend thee, pluck
it out." This was Jack the Ripper's idea, and he
imagined it was his destiny to wipe a social blot from
the face of the earth.
Now that the facts concerning his methods are
known much of the speculation concerning the
marvellous way in which he escaped arrest is set at
rest. He was a young man of quiet appearance and
not likely to attract any undue attention, while his
constant change of clothing would prevent the remote
contingency of anyone becoming familiar with his
appearance in Whitechapel. He was extremely active,
JACK THE RIPPER 273
and when shod with the noiseless rubbers could make
his escape, when another man less adapted for the
work would have been caught.
A sane man, however active, would have been
captured very soon. Constant experience has con-
vinced me that a lunatic's cunning and quickness of
action cannot be equalled by a man in the full posses-
sion of his mental faculties.
The peculiarity of my correspondence with Jack
the Ripper was that his letters were never stamped.
One was written on half a sheet of cheap notepaper ;
it was in a round, upright hand, and evidently written
by someone who was not accustomed to using the pen.
The writing is distinct, with an absence of flourish,
but written with deliberation and care. The scrawl
is not a hurried one ; the address on the envelope is
even more hurriedly written, with less care, than the
letter. It bears the postmark of the Western district,
whereas the previous letter I received was from the
Eastern. There was a smudge upon it which I was
always under the impression was blood, and which,
by the use of a magnifying glass, proved to be
the case.
The other letter I received was signed P. S. R.
Lunigi, giving his address as " Poste restante, Charing
Cross " ; this is the one in which my correspondent
informed me that a murder would take place on the
8th or gth of November. He requested the reply to
be sent to the Charing Cross post-office, giving his
address as 22 Hammersmith Road, Chelsea. On
18
274 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Oct- e-
^
Av «*Ao«>-
^
VK.
JA
& 04 14'?
JACK THE RIPPER 275
making inquiries, however, I found that no such road
existed.
In my opinion, there was no doubt the murderer
was the one who, on quitting his lodgings in Finsbury,
left behind him a pair of silent rubber shoes, stained
with blood, which I had in my possession for a con-
siderable period. The landlord subsequently called
upon me and asked me to return them, which I believe
he then handed over to the police.
The results of my conclusions were as follows, and
they have never been challenged or upset : —
First, that the murders were committed by one man
unaided and unassisted, and who suffered from
religious monomania, and had lucid intervals during
which he was in every way unconscious of what had
taken place.
Second, that Jack the Ripper changed his lodgings
after each respective murder, and that I had been able
to trace him from these.
Third, that the lodging-house keepers, on the next
morning after the commitment of each murder, found
stains of blood in the house, pieces of ribbon and
feathers strewn about the room which had been
occupied by their late lodger.
Fourth, that in some of these lodgings he left behind
him written scrawls bearing directly on the subject
of his supposed mission.
Fifth, that I was in communication with those
persons who possessed these writings.
Sixth, that I interviewed the woman at whose
276 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
house he lodged on the night of one of the murders,
when he was seen to come home at 4 a.m. and wash
his hands in the yard.
Seventh, that I made myself thoroughly conversant
with his habits in every way. I also knew his haunts,
how he spent his Sundays.
Eighth, that I knew that every Sunday at n a.m.
he went to St Paul's Cathedral.
Ninth, that I also knew that on a certain Sunday
he could be arrested there.
Tenth, that having completed my clue, which, on
my giving full particulars to one of the chief judges
in New York, was described as the most convincing
and comprehensive he had ever heard, I endeavoured
to once more take the police into my confidence and
get their co-operation. They declined.
Eleventh, that I warned the police that unless they
assisted me in the capture of Jack the Ripper on a
certain Sunday morning, and if they allowed the
mysterious red-tapeism and jealousy surrounding
Scotland Yard to interfere, I should publish my clue
to the world.
Twelfth, that after having given the police this
notice, and after they had declined to adopt my
suggestions, I published the whole of my carefully
worked-out clue, and from that time up to the present
no more murders of the Jack-the-Ripper type have
been committed.
Some time after I was travelling in a train. There
were two strangers engaged in conversation. The
JACK THE RIPPER 277
topic of the Whitechapel murders cropped up. One
said, not knowing who I was, to his friend, " At all
events, if Dr Forbes Winslow did not actually catch
Jack the Ripper, he stopped the murders by publishing
his clue." I felt I had done this myself, and I should
like to have said, " Hear, hear " ; but my companions
alighted at the next station. I felt that what they
said was the general opinion in England expressed by
everyone except the Scotland Yard authorities, who
would have deemed such an expression of gratitude
towards me as unworthy of the great dignity of their
office. I should like, in conclusion, to ask them one
question, and that is : " If I did not arrest the
murderous hand of Jack the Ripper, who did, and
what part did they play in the transaction ? "
The latest development in connection with Jack
the Ripper I received in the shape of a communication
on igth July of the current year. It was in conse-
quence of certain articles of mine which had been
appearing in the press on the matter, and with refer-
ence to a statement made by Sir Robert Anderson.
This letter was signed by a lady, and sent to the
Postmaster-General to be forwarded to me. The
names are given in full, but I have thought right to
suppress the same, though the matter has been
handed to the police for further investigations. It
seems in every way to corroborate my views on the
matter, and may possibly lead to an arrest of the right
man. At all events, I consider it to be of sufficient
interest to appear here.
278 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
" G.P.O., MELBOURNE,
" 10/6/1910.
" Your challenge is more than justified re ' Jack
the Ripper.' You indeed frightened him away, for
he sailed away in a ship called the Munambidgee,
working his passage to Melbourne, arriving here in
the latter part of 1889. He is a native of Melbourne,
Victoria, but before his return had been in South
Africa for several years. He was educated at the
Scotch College here ; the late Dr Blair was a great
friend of his family, and it was from him he gained
his surgical knowledge, the doctor taking him with
him to post-mortems. When he arrived in Melbourne
he married a Miss , who lived only a little over a
year, but she died from natural causes ; she was only
dead a short time when I met him. He told me he
had a hard time in London, and he was always
buying sensational newspapers. I said to him,
' Why do you buy those horrid papers ? They are
only full of police reports of terrible crimes.' He
said, ' I want to see how things are in London.' Then
he commenced reading the trial of a man named James
Canham Reade. This man married and deserted
several women, and finally killed one, for which he
was hanged. When he had finished reading, I said,
' What a fearful fellow ! ' He said, ' Yes.' I then
said, ' What about Jack the Ripper ? ' He said,
' Strange those crimes ceased once I left England.'
I was astounded at his remark, and said, ' My God !
Jack, I believe you did those crimes,' he having told
me about living in that part of London previously.
I tried to banish the thought from my mind, as I
loved him ; but I referred to it many times after,
and finally he told me he did do them. I said, ' Why
did you do those crimes ? ' He first said, ' Revenge,'
then said, ' Research.' I said, ' But you never
made use of the portions you removed from those
JACK THE RIPPER 279
women ; what did you do with them ? ' He said,
' Oh, there are plenty of hungry dogs in London.'
I wrote to Scotland Yard telling them all. Sir Robert
Anderson answered my letter ; but as I had told him
all I had to say, I did not write again till last year,
but have heard nothing from them. It is my opinion
they all bungled this matter up and do not like owning
up to it. I even gave him up in Melbourne in 1894.
The police examined him ; he told them he was in
Melbourne in 1890, so they found this was true, and
without asking him where he was in 1889 they let him
go. He laughed, and said, ' See what fools they are.
I am the real man they are searching the earth for, but
they take me in one door and let me out of the other.'
I even gave one detective a letter of his, but he only
laughed at me. I asked him to have the writing
compared with that at home signed ' Jack the Ripper,'
but he did nothing. Now I have burnt his letters
long since, but the monster's name is , called Jack
by relatives and friends. His brother told me he is in
Durban, South Africa, employed by the South African
Railway Co. He left here for South Africa about six
years ago. Your plan is to get a sample of his writing
and compare with yours. If you cannot find him
there, cause an advertisement to be put in the papers
purporting to come from his brother , who has
been lost sight of for many years and has never
claimed money left by his father to him. Advertise,
and Jack will soon answer this, but to some address
in London or South Africa. However, get his writing.
He was a very good writer. He often used to attend
St Paul's here, and I would tell him what a hypocrite
he was. I only wish I could see you.
" I am certain as I am writing this he is your man.
If only to prove how wrong they were to accuse that
poor Irish student, I would be pleased if the charge
was sheeted home to the right man, when I think of
280 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the suffering it has caused his people. As to Sir
Robert Anderson saying it was a Jew, he must be a
dreamer of the dreamiest sort, for he was the man
who answered my letter years ago ; but they served
me as they served you, with too little consideration,
for I am certain we are both right. He always
carried an ugly sheath-knife in his belt. When you
frightened him away he came straight to Melbourne,
and remained here till six years ago. What I regret
most is that that poor demented Irish student should
suffer for this man's crime. I did not know till this
week that anyone was charged with those crimes, or
I should have made a great deal more noise than I
have done, knowing as I do the real culprit. Since
starting this letter I have ascertained his proper
address.
" You ought to have no difficulty in getting a sample
of his writing. Go very careful about all inquiries, as
he always told me he would never be taken alive, but
would kill himself on the first inkling of being captured.
That is all I can say at present till I hear further from
you. I am sending this letter c/o P.M.G. to insure
its safe delivery, as I only got your name and opinions
from a newspaper cutting ; but you are quite right.
' Wishing you success with this, and hoping to
hear from you soon."
The day following the publication of the letter I
received from Melbourne I managed to unearth the
Irish medical student mentioned in this letter, and
who was stated by the solicitor who defended him in
1895 at the police court when charged with stabbing
a woman in a court at Whitechapel, to be Jack the
Ripper. He said to me : —
" I swear solemnly that I was wrongly accused
JACK THE RIPPER 281
and sentenced by Sir Charles Hall, the Recorder,
on 27th March 1895, at the Old Bailey. I was set
upon in Whitechapel by a lot of hooligans and robbed.
I took out a knife I had in my pocket to protect
myself. These hooligans then absconded, having
wounded me. The police came down the court ;
there happened to be a woman also in the court at
the same time, and the supposition was I had attacked
her. I deny it on my soul that I did anything : the
hooligans had done this. A solicitor was asked to
defend me at the preliminary proceedings at the
police court. He did so, but threw up my case at
a later date, leaving me to the tender mercies of an
English court of justice, undefended. This solicitor
informed the police that I was Jack the Ripper ;
they made many investigations, and were convinced
otherwise. Ever since then this same solicitor has
been publishing letters in the press to the same effect ;
also stating that ' his client ' died in prison, but was
the veritable Jack the Ripper. Seeing that you had
received a letter from Australia, I have been brought
to see you, asking you to take up my cause and have
me reinstated. I was lately studying for the same pro-
fession as yourself, and was an Irish medical student."
I in every way believed in the genuineness of his
story, and I took further steps in the matter. I
interviewed one who had known this man (whose
name was Grant) for some years before he was
sentenced to ten years' penal servitude for " illegally
wounding," as stated in the indictment. I saw and
examined his credentials, proving that this was the
very man who was sentenced, and who was stated
by his solicitor, notwithstanding his denial, to be
Jack the Ripper, " since dead " ; and I decided to
282 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
make an application before Mr Marsham at Bow
Street to get him righted and to make public what
I considered to be a great injustice so far as Grant
was concerned.
I wrote a letter to this solicitor informing him that
I had unearthed Grant, and asking him to call at
my house and I would bring him face to face with
his late " client," who was still asserted by him to be
Jack the Ripper — he will not be convinced otherwise.
He replied he could not come to my house, concluding
his letter : ' With great respect, I believe your
information and conclusions generally to be very
incorrect." This made me indignant, and I was
determined to prove my point, and succeeded. I
attended at Bow Street the next day, with Grant in
attendance, and made an application to the presiding
magistrate to stop this unjustifiable cruelty in stating
that Grant was Jack the Ripper. The magistrate
said it was actionable, and, having fully informed him
of the circumstances connected with my application,
I withdrew.
In order to still further confirm his identification,
I accompanied him to Scotland Yard to examine his
photograph and to verify the statement which I had
been upholding — that the man defended by this
solicitor in 1895 was not dead but very much alive,
and that his name was William Grant, present with
me then in the flesh. The usual red-tapeism still
surrounded Scotland Yard. After a great amount
of preamble and secrecy, my application to examine
JACK THE RIPPER 283
this man's photograph and compare it with the
original was taken up to the presence of the Assistant
Chief Commissioner of Police. The usual answer —
against precedent, and that it was against custom
to show a prisoner's photograph unless for extra-
ordinary reasons, but I might make an application
in writing. I should have thought that if there was
ever an extraordinary reason for so being obliged
officially, the application made by me was one. It
mattered but little to me, as the man was well known
there as W. Grant and addressed as such, and in
every way corresponded with the man to whom I
have been alluding. No Scotland Yard secrets are
given away, but there is a way of reading between
the lines, a gift I have often enjoyed and made use
of, and on this occasion I did so. " Hullo, Grant }
how are you ? " asked by an official, sufficed.
That Jack the Ripper is the man in South Africa,
who left London after I drove him away by publishing
my clue in 1889, I believe ; and, to complete this
weird account of him, I have every reason to hope
I shall be the means of bringing his capture about.
On the evening of my application at Bow Street
Grant called upon me to tell me that he had just run
into the very arms of the solicitor who says he is dead
and that he is Jack the Ripper. He rushed over to
him saying, " See, I am not dead yet, but very much
alive." Grant says the solicitor threw up his arms
in amazement and bolted to the other side of the
street.
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES
PERHAPS the experiences I went through in America
may be described as being unique in their nature.
It was in 1895 that I received an invitation from Mr
Clark Bell, President of the Medico-Legal Congress,
to act as chairman in the branch relating to mental
diseases in connection with the International Medico-
Legal Congress, which was then being held in New
York.
The Atlantic Ocean liner in which I chose to convey
myself to the other side of the " herring pond " to
comply with this request was the St Louis of the
American line, a twin vessel to the St Paul, which
was then making her initial voyage. As always
happens on these occasions, every possible berth had
been secured by rich Americans, with many of whom
I became on friendly terms before the end of the
voyage, and who individually handed me their cards
with pressing invitations to stay at their various
houses as their guest. It might be as well to add
here that although I accepted with pleasure most
of their invitations, neither any of these rich Americans
nor myself have ever met again. I have often pondered
287
288 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
at the astonishment which would have been occasioned
had I turned up at their houses with all my luggage,
including my Remington and a large tin box of books
which always accompanies me on my travels. I pre-
sume that friends made on an American liner are
similar to those one meets at hotels on the Continent
— warm friends for the moment ; a friendship,
apparently, which would appear to strangers to have
been one of lasting duration, which, however, is
conspicuous by the fact that when saying good-bye
we part never to meet again. I was delighted to
find among my fellow-passengers the English team
of cricketers sent out by the M.C.C. under the
captaincy of Mr F. E. Mitchell, who subsequently
became captain of the Cambridge University eleven.
Being a cricketer myself, I very soon became on
friendly terms with each member of the team. I
may say that I took special interest in this eleven,
inasmuch as over forty years ago Mr R. A. Fitzgerald,
hon. secretary of the M.C.C., had asked me to captain
the first team of English cricketers that ever went to
America. Unfortunately, my medical studies pre-
vented my accepting his invitation. I verily believe
that had I suggested it I should have played in one
of the international matches over there in Mr Mitchell's
team ; but inasmuch as such conduct might have been
considered frivolous in the eyes of the Americans on
the part of the President of the Lunacy Department of
the International Congress, I was content with acting
the part of a spectator and not of an active participator
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 289
in the game. Nothing of a very momentous nature
occurred during the voyage. There were the usual
concerts on board, over which Senator Gray, one of
the members of the American Senate, acted as chair-
man, whilst I was elected to the post of vice-chairman.
The onerous duty of this post consisted in proposing
a vote of thanks to the chairman. These entertain-
ments, which were got up periodically during the
voyage, helped to kill time and do away with the
constant monotony of an ocean voyage. The daily
routine on board an Atlantic liner has often been told
in far more eloquent words than I can describe.
Suffice it to say that the St Louis steamed into New
York harbour about 10 a.m. on 3ist August, the
Saturday following its departure from Southampton.
I forgot to mention that the usual number of poetical
geniuses were on board, who one and all testified, in
a verse regardless of metre, the excellency of the St
Louis and the ability of the captain in managing the
ship during the voyage, especially in foggy weather.
I was a prominent poet on this occasion, though
unfortunately the poetical effort only lives in memory
dear, being lost in substance. On arrival at the docks
in New York, and my luggage placed in the depart-
ment lettered " W," and whilst waiting to be sub-
mitted to the tender mercies of a Custom-house
officer, I had my first experience of the American
interviewer, a genus of its own kind. I was honoured,
whilst my box was being opened, by cross-questions
from both sides by two of these gentlemen, the chief
19
290 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
questions being : Why I had come to America ?
What I was going to do there ? How long I was
going to remain ? To the first of these questions I
was able to reply, but not to the others. The results
of this interview were long columns in the evening
papers, together with my picture, which, being the
only one given of any passenger on board the St
Louis, was to a certain extent gratifying.
The Custom-house examination having been con-
cluded, and no opportunity given to the officials to
pronounce me a smuggler, I handed my luggage over
to the tender mercy of one of the numerous carriers
and, having been warned previously to avoid all
American cabs, I deposited myself in a car. I ulti-
mately alighted at I7th Street, Irving Place, near
the Westminster Hotel, which was the house where
Charles Dickens used to stay during his many visits
to New York. Upon my arrival at the hotel I found
other interviewers in waiting for me.
As I have previously stated the sole object of my
visit was, so far as I knew when I left England, to
preside at this Congress, I was therefore a little sur-
prised at the various adventures I went through and
the cases I became engaged in previous to my return
to England. Some of these experiences might suffice
a man's lifetime. On the third day after my arrival
in New York the Congress commenced, and on the day
when my department met I was very busy in my
capacity as chairman of that section in reading a
paper on " Suicide as a Mental Epidemic " and on
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 291
" The Progress of Lunacy." In my position as chair-
man I had to lead the discussion on every paper that
was read before the section on lunacy. Some of these,
however, were rather abstruse, so that there were
certain difficulties to contend with ; for when a certain
subject is sprung upon one suddenly, it is often diffi-
cult, however one may be versed in it, to have it com-
pletely at one's finger-ends, and to be able to deal with
all the lights and shades in connection with it. I
managed, however, to get through the ordeal to my
own satisfaction, and at the end of the sitting I pro-
ceeded, mentally tired and weary, to my hotel.
On arriving at the hotel I found a gentleman in the
hall whom I had no difficulty in recognising as belong-
ing to the press. I gave him an hour's interview on
Jack the Ripper. At the conclusion of this I felt
rather fatigued, what with the interview and the duties
involving on me in reference to the Congress. I
started to go upstairs to dress for dinner. I had
only gone up a few steps when suddenly I heard
a voice exclaim : " Dr Winslow, one word, if you
please ! "
I turned round to face him.
He continued : "I want to ask your opinion upon
a most important subject."
" Will you kindly call to-morrow ? " I replied. " I
am too tired to give any more interviews to-day .
besides, I am just going to dress and to attend the
first dinner of the Congress."
He was not to be shaken off so easily, and replied :
292 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
" Do grant me an interview, Dr Winslow ; it is a
subject of vital importance, and one upon which all
New York are crazy."
This to a certain extent excited my curiosity, and
I came down into the hall, saying : " What is the
special question that I should enlighten New York
upon ? "
From his manner I gathered it was one, not only of
vital importance to mankind in general, but of great
international interest, as he seemed so eager to hear
what I had to say.
In reply to my remark he answered : " The im-
portant question, which at the present moment is
absorbing public interest in New York more than
anything else, and which is a most debatable one,
is : What is your opinion about ladies riding
bicycles ?"
I must confess I was rather amused, for at that time
the elegant exercise of ladies riding bicycles was not
universally adopted, as it is at the present moment,
in England.
I replied : "Do ladies ride bicycles in New York ? "
I had not seen any. I continued : " All I can say on
the matter is, that I should not like to see my own
daughter riding a bicycle, and that the proper place,
in my opinion, for a woman was the nursery. I
remember some years ago being present at a dinner,
shortly after the time when ladies were first admitted
to the medical degrees, and I recollect the following
refrain, which was sung at the dinner :
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 293
'Some ladies are ambitious now to practise as M.D.,
To grace our Universities by taking our degree ;
But the place in which they're wanted, and where I hope
they'll stay,
Is at home to nurse their babies in a quiet sort of way.'
I am sorry I can give you no further information."
I then went upstairs to dress for dinner.
The following day a long article appeared in the New
York World, headed
" DR FORBES WINSLOW ON LADIES RIDING
BICYCLES."
The next day there was an article in the opposition
journal, the Herald, entitled :
" WHAT THE NEW YORK PARSONS THINK OF DR
WINSLOW'S VIEWS."
Three or four days afterwards another article
appeared in one of the New York papers giving the
views of the lady doctors of Chicago, in which they
said : " Dr Winslow is an old woman, and had better
go home in the Valkyrie."
I suppose this was the greatest condemnation that
could be rendered to an Englishman at the time. The
Valkyrie was a yacht belonging to Lord Dunraven,
which had been beaten by the American yacht the
Defender ; and apparently my destination, according
to the lady doctors of Chicago, was to return home
also beaten in the yacht.
Scarcely a day passed but one newspaper or the
other kept alluding to this subject, which was nothing
294 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
more than an imaginary interview. After a few weeks,
however, I got rather indignant with its constant
repetition. The more I denied it, the more often it
was repeated.
Being annoyed I went to the office and asked to see
the editor of the New York World. I explained the
position to him, and he promised to put in a contra-
diction of the report. I returned to the hotel, and
shortly afterwards the same reporter called on me to
express his regret for what he had done. He said he
had been sent to get " copy " from me, and he had no
alternative but to draw on his imagination. I ex-
plained the position it had put me in, and, though I
did not care in the least, nevertheless it was unpleasant
to be misquoted. He asked me to write a letter to the
editor to prevent his being discharged from the office,
which I did ; this letter appeared in the paper.
Some time had passed, and I had forgotten the
incident ; as my attention was absorbed in the
investigations of four homicides and the mental con-
dition of the alleged murderers, the subject of ladies
riding bicycles took a back place in my thoughts. A
short time afterwards, taking up by chance a paper
called the Evening Telegram, published at the same
office as the New York World, I was rather astounded
at seeing an article headed :
" WHAT DR WINSLOW THINKS OF LADIES
RIDING BICYLES ! "
I felt, therefore, that it was not much good for me to
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 295
trouble or further interfere with the publication of my
supposed views.
When I went to New York, it was my intention to
remain there only one month ; but finding that some
of these murder cases in which I was called upon to
testify would not come into court for several weeks,
and being retained in them, I had no alternative but
to remain. Having a certain amount of time on my
hands, in addition to writing an article every week on
the " progress of women " one way or another in the
New York World, I decided to write a small book on
Youthful Eccentricity a Precursor of Crime.
I put myself into communication with a firm of
American publishers, Messrs Funk & Wagnall, and
on their invitation to grant me an interview and
examine my MSS. I went there one day, and was
shown into their literary sanctum — in other words,
their anteroom, where budding and anxious authors
waited the ultimatum of the firm as to whether their
productions were to see the light of day or to be
consigned to the waste-paper basket.
On the table were a number of journals, evidently
of a highly literary nature. My eye fell upon one of
these, called The Literary Digest, apparently of the
same nature as the Athenceum or Saturday Review.
I gave a sigh of relief, and said to myself that here
at least I should be able to read something which was
not sensational.
I took the paper up, as I felt sure I should have to
wait some time before entering the sacred presence of
296 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
the publisher. I sat down to enjoy a healthy half-
hour's Digest. I opened the paper at random, and the
first thing that met my gaze was :
" DR WINSLOW ON LADIES RIDING BICYCLES ! "
Had it not been for my desire to get my book
received by the publisher (which it was), I should
have fled in horror from that dreadful, hideous night-
mare which was apparently haunting me wherever
I went. I have no recollection, however, of coming
across this interview again until I returned to London,
where I was shown copies of extracts which had
appeared in the London papers.
As I have previously stated, after my first interview
re ladies riding bicycles, I had gone upstairs to dress
for dinner, the first dinner of the Congress, where I
met many of the members of the medical and legal
professions whom I had seen at the session during the
day. What made a great impression on my mind
was the amount of intoxication existing at that dinner.
It was a curious type of alcoholic excitement,
characterised by shouting and a tendency to violence
and destruction. Previous to the dinner I had
regarded these gentlemen from a highly scientific
point of view, and looked upon them with a certain
amount of awe and reverence ; but the sequel of the
dinner rather had a tendency to remove this im-
pression from my mind, though the next day they
turned up smiling as if nothing had happened, equally
grave and learned. I suppose it was a usual thing
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 297
in such festivities in New York. I have never come
across the same in England, and it was a revelation
to me.
I had only been in New York a few days when one
morning about 9 a.m., before I had gone downstairs,
a gentleman knocked and entered my room.
" Good morning, Dr Winslow. I am Doctor ,"
then giving his name.
I replied, " Good morning ; I do not recollect you."
He then told me that he had just made a capital
breakfast at the Westminster, and asked me when
I dined. I did not at the moment, however, grasp
the situation. It appeared that he had been taking
his meals at my expense. I had not quite become
used to New York customs, so that I was rather
inclined to put it down to the habits of the country.
On going to the bureau I gave distinct instructions
that no one was to be supplied with refreshment
or meals at my expense without first obtaining my
authority and permission. The same doctor turned
up at dinner, only to find me out and the free meals
suspended. On the day following my arrival, whether
I was regarded as a Rothschild or moneylender it was
difficult to exactly say, but I was asked by some of
my medical confreres to cash their cheques, which
I did ; one came back dishonoured. I was also
approached to lend money to other members of my
profession. This I politely declined. I felt like a
stranger in a foreign land, and I considered that if
this was one of the duties and privileges of the chairman
298 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
of a department in the Medico-Legal Congress, it was
a duty which did not exist in England. One of these
borrowers haunted me for days, and I could not shake
him off ; he evidently was in pecuniary extremis.
H
David Hannigan.
The Congress lasted for about six days. On the
second day I was approached and asked to examine
David Hannigan, then confined in the Tombs. This
was on gth September. It was a very sensational
case. He was charged with murdering a New York
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES
299
merchant, who had wronged his sister. His sister
died, and wherever Hannigan went he was pursued
by the spirit of his sister ordering him to kill ; her
Hannigan awaiting his trial for the murder of Mann.
voice haunted him with one refrain : " Kill Solomon
Mann ! " — his sister's betrayer.
The case was very much on the same lines as that
of Thaw, and the latter used to base his case upon the
defence there raised. It was a case of justification
by the unwritten law, and therefore justifiable homi-
300 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
cide. It was described by the press as a case which
" appealed to the emotions."
I might say here that in America all prosecutions
are conducted by the Government authorities on
behalf of what is called " the people." The more
Hannigan before the Commission in Lunacy.
convictions they get the more likely the District
Attorney and the Assistant District Attorney, who
conduct these prosecutions, are of getting promotions.
It is not a question of innocence or guilt in America.
Everyone who is innocent is tried to be proved guilty
in consequence of this reward they look for. Criminal
trials in America are therefore very difficult matters to
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 301
get proper justice or investigations upon. Our defence
was that, at the time of the murder or "slaying,"
as they call it out there, Hannigan was so unnerved
by what he had gone through that his mind was
subject to hallucinations, and he could not be held
responsible for his actions. We contended that he
was therefore of unsound mind at the time of the
slaying, but at the present moment he was of sound
mind and able to plead.
When I arrived at New York, much discussion had
been going on in reference to this case. The pro-
secutors for the people had been working hard with
the one idea of obtaining a conviction. They engaged
the principal lunacy experts in the city to support
them. The fact that I had examined Hannigan and
had given an opinion prejudicial to their view took
them by surprise and stirred them up with indignation >
and, knowing that my stay in New York was limited,
a plan appealed to their imagination — namely, to try
and make Hannigan insane when I visited him in the
Tombs, and then, having held a commission of lunacy
upon him, put him in the lunatic asylum and thus
gain time to get me out of the country, and then bring
him out of the asylum, try him for murder, prove his
responsibility at the time of the slaying, and hand him
over for electrocution. They found their match in me,
however. We had a commission in lunacy, at which
I testified, and fought and beat them with their own
weapons. This was held on nth October 1895. The
object of the commission was, as I said, to prove him
302 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
of unsound mind at this time. I visited Hannigan
on gth October in the Tombs, in conjunction with
Mr Ellgood, an English barrister-at-law whom I met
at New York ; and, knowing how important it is in
England in similar inquiries to get something in writing
from the alleged lunatic, Hannigan of his own free will
wrote as follows : —
" DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC CHARITIES AND
" CORRECTION, NEW YORK,
" October <)th, 1895.
" I, the undersigned, feel as if I am in my sound mind,
and realise I am placed in a very serious position,
about to go on trial for the murder of Solomon Mann,
and write these lines without any dictation from any
other person.
" DAVID F. HANNIGAN.
" Dr WlNSLOW.
"E. ELLGOOD, Barrister-at-Law."
I gave evidence at this inquiry, and was associated
with two other doctors ; and notwithstanding the
prodigious efforts made by the prosecution to prove
Hannigan a lunatic, I registered my first success in
New York by obtaining a verdict of an opposite
nature. At this inquiry there were three commis-
sioners appointed. They made a special examination
of Hannigan privately, and a thorough investigation
into his mental condition. Every question put by
them he answered in an intelligent manner, and after
having done so he was conveyed back to the Tombs.
The commissioners stated that, in their opinion, he
was of sound mind.
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 303
af.
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Office of Oljr ft-tton, Garner of franJUtn and Centre Stnett
H£HBY H. PORTER, Prtg'V
New York., L
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Hannigan's Statement.
3o4 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Now for the great ordeal ! On 24th October
Hannigan was placed on his trial, and proceedings
were commenced to empanel the jury. It took
some days before the jury were selected. The elec-
tion of a jury in America is peculiar. Each one has
to be submitted to a thorough cross-examination on
what is called the " witness-stand," which corresponds
to our witness-box. The object of both prosecutors
and defenders is to try to prove collusion of some of
the jury with friends of either party ; if it can be
proved that one of the jury has read anything of
the case, it is enough to exclude him. On this occasion
two hundred jurymen were summoned.
Previous to the commencement of the case, one
of the papers wrote : —
" The trial promises to be of exceeding interest.
Coroner O'Hanlon will give his opinion as to the
cause of death. For the defence, Lawyer Charles
W. Brooke will, it is said, admit the killing, but will
claim that it was done by Hannigan while insane.
Dr Forbes Winslow, the English alienist, who has
made several examinations of Hannigan, will testify
for the defence. Several other insanity experts
will follow Dr Winslow. The Assistant Attorney,
M'Intyre, will place Dr Robert Safford Newton, the
leading alienist in this country, on the stand to
combat Dr Winslow's evidence."
I have no intention of discussing this case in full.
It lasted for six weeks, and was associated with many
tragic events. Hannigan's father, who had been
watching the case so eagerly on his son's behalf, died
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 305
in court. Hannigan, when the trial commenced, was
in a sound mental condition, but when it concluded
his reason had left him, driven mad by the ordeal.
Charles W. Brooke, the eminent lawyer, who
defended Hannigan, and who considered the case to
be one of emotions, expressed his views, believing
Hannigan to have been irresponsible at the time of
the murder, as follows : —
" During my long career at the Bar I do not recall
a single case that has appealed so to my own emotions
as that of David F. Hannigan, whom I am now
defending. The entire surroundings of this trial are
deeply affecting and impressive, and everyone in the
court-room, including the presiding judge and the
prosecuting officers themselves, has been moved by
the pathetic incidents connected with the tragedy.
It was the hand of destiny that brought Solomon
Mann to his death in the late afternoon of last
May 23. David Hannigan was simply the hand of
vengeance. He had no will in the matter ; Fate
seems to have sent forth her fiat that Solomon Mann
must die for the wrongs committed towards Loretta
Hannigan.
" Hannigan had no intention of killing Mann on
that day. A score of incidents brought the tragedy
about. Had any one of these incidents been missing,
Solomon Mann would not have died on that day.
The circumstances are so extraordinary, they are
fascinating.
" Hannigan left home in the early morning without
a weapon and without a thought of taking Mann's
life that day. He was engaged in doing plumbing
work for the Health Department. He went to the
Criminal Court Building for instructions. In crossing
Chambers Street he passed a gun-shop. He owned
20
306 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
no pistol, since his revolver was taken away from
him when he attempted to shoot Mann on the day
of the inquest as to his sister's death. He stepped
in and bought a revolver. Possessing the weapon,
he did not go to seek Mann. He went on about his
work, carrying the deadly firearm with him. Toward
evening he remembered he had promised to do some
plumbing work at Forty-third Street and Sixth
Avenue. He took a Sixth Avenue car to go there.
His attention was attracted at Forty-second Street
by the passing of a parade down Fifth Avenue. He
got off the car to look at the parade, and came face
to face with Solomon Mann. If the Knights of
Pythias had not paraded that day, Solomon Mann
would have been alive on the 24th of May, for David
Hannigan would have gone on to Forty-third Street
to do his work.
" Who can say that a superhuman power did not
select David Hannigan as the instrument of its
vengeance ? If so, is there any human law that
would punish him for his irresponsible act ? God
knows, the poor fellow to-day needs consolation
rather than punishment."
The verdict, given on 25th November, after I had left
New York, was that the murder was committed by
Hannigan whilst in an insane state of mind. On the
conclusion of the verdict the accused was committed
to the Hudson River Insane Asylum at Poughkeepsie.
In addition to Hannigan, several of the jury them-
selves collapsed, and were also taken off to asylums.
The case was most sensational and painful, and no
mercy was shown to the witnesses or experts by the
prosecution. I was a day and a half on the witness-
stand ; and as a final bomb, when I was getting into
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 307
3o8 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
rather an exhausted condition, a hypothetical question
of 10,000 words was fired at me.
My appearance in court created a considerable
amount of jealousy among the profession over there,
but this made no impression upon me, notwithstand-
ing the great latitude given to the counsel and the
numerous innuendos and statements they were allowed
to make uncontradicted by the presiding judge, who
on this occasion was Judge Ingraham. I had gone
through the most disagreeable experience I had ever
been subjected to. My cross-examination only con-
cluded at six o'clock in the evening ; and as my
departure from New York had been arranged for the
following day, if my cross-examination had been
extended beyond that evening I should have had
to forfeit my passage.
I was in a state of exhaustion when I left the
witness-stand, and on my way out of court Mr Brooke,
the leading lawyer for Hannigan's defence — since dead,
I am sorry to say, — came to me and shook me by the
hand, exclaiming, " Dr Winslow, they have not singed
a hair of your head ! "
My reply was, " I did not intend they should."
The trial continued several weeks after I had left
New York, but I had all the particulars and details
sent me. There is only one comment I would make,
with reference to the evidence of Dr Newton, the
pompous New York physician engaged to refute my
evidence. On being asked by the counsel how he
had formed his opinion on Hannigan's sanity at the
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES
309
time, he replied, " By his pulse." He was asked how
he felt his pulse ; his reply was, " When I shook
hands with him I passed my thumb over it." It is
just as well that such wisdom should be chronicled
among my reminiscences.
As to Hannigan's ultimate future, he completely
Hannigan's father.
regained his reason, and is now in enjoyment, I
believe, of a mens sana in corpore sano.
The family were very grateful to me, as I stood to
my guns manfully, with a determination that I would
not leave New York until I had testified in the case.
Though the various advocates engaged for the
people or for the defendants are at daggers drawn
3 ic RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
when engaged in court, they have what I might call
lucid intervals when not professionally in antagonism.
As soon as the court rises they all rush to some re-
freshment bar and fraternise with each other as if
they were the best of friends. I had a curious experi-
ence. One of the leading advocates engaged in the
defence of Hannigan was unfortunately a dipsomaniac.
He knew this too well. He was powerless to combat
with the misfortune. After the case had commenced
an application was made for an adjournment on some
plea, the real reason being to gain time so that the
advocate should recover from his alcoholic bout, in
order to be able to properly grapple with the case.
In America there are no counsel as opposed to
solicitors. The latter conducts the case in court and
takes up the same position as the counsel do in
England. This is as it should be in our own country.
It is only reasonable that, after a solicitor has been
working up the case for months, and has every point
at his finger-ends, he should be able to do justice to
his client's case more than a barrister who has been
briefed at some enormous fee at the last moment
with an imperfect knowledge of the case that is pain-
ful often to witness. Not so in America. The solicitor
has grasped every small detail, and the defendant has
the benefit of his experience in dealing with the case.
The solicitor may have the assistance of an advocate,
but their duties are identical during the progress of
the case.
I was in no way favourably impressed by the delay
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 311
in American courts of justice. In England this is bad
enough ; in America it is much worse. In England
there is a prospect of the case being heard after a
certain amount of preliminary inquiry, during which
the pockets of the solicitors grow fat, and the one
cry is " Costs ! costs ! " " Something on account ! "
But in America the hearing of it may not be reached
for years.
Every possible excuse is made for adjournments.
I used to spend much of my time, when in New York,
in the Tombs. I had copious opportunities of studying
criminology in all its phases. There was a gallery
there called the " Homicide Gallery." In this were
wretches waiting for their trial for murder, walking
up and down the corridors like caged lions. Many
had lingered there for years in suspense ; they may
possibly be there now. I found the majority of these
agreeable companions. It was a difficult thing for
me to realise that they were real criminals. I was
convinced that many were not responsible at the time.
Amongst them was the hardened criminal, a well-
known type of offender. I had a sort of season ticket
to the Tombs ; in other words, permission to go in
whenever I liked to examine the prisoners. There
is no red-tapeism out there ; there is no Home Office
or Treasury, one supporting the other. Justice is
looked for in America, though the way to arrive at it
is tardy, but they may get it in the end ; whilst
justice is often difficult to obtain in England. We
look for it in vain, and are often misjudged. Solicitors
3i2 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
and counsel get fat, but in the meantime the wretched
client, who is entitled to justice, on the other hand is
often mined. I think any member of the legal pro-
fession would be the last to advise his nearest and best
friend to engage in litigation with all its terrible
sequels, such as worry, publicity, financial extortion.
He would say, " Submit to be wronged, but on no
consideration go to law." This opinion of mine is
based upon sad experience.
A few days after the Hannigan case commenced
I was seated in court listening to the proceedings,
when a newspaper man came up to me and said :
" Dr Winslow, this is a picture sketched in court
to-day, by our artist, of Holmes the Philadelphian
murderer, alleged to have murdered women and hidden
their bodies in subterranean passages. We want you
to work up a thousand- words article for our journal
to-morrow morning, and to give an opinion, based on
the formation of his cranium, as to whether he is a
responsible person or not."
The sketch was handed to me. At that time I had
been so absorbed in the case I was engaged in that
I had no time to study the Philadelphian murderer.
I promised that I would do what I could, and took the
picture back with me to the Westminster Hotel, and
carefully studied the peculiarities in the formation of
the cranium, from which I could deduce my facts. I
had seven different positions of his head to guide me.
H. H. Holmes, who was considered to be the
greatest criminal of the century, was tried and con-
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 313
victed in Philadelphia of murder. For some time
he had invented a scheme for insuring a number of
people, and then for murdering those he had insured.
It was proved in evidence that he had slain at least
twelve human beings. His victims included people
of all ages and of both sexes — helpless children, young
women, old women and men, — all, in fact, who stood
between him and the wealth he anticipated he would
possess by their death. He was a most plausible
individual, like most insurance brokers. His manners
were very enticing, and so alluring that he succeeded
in obtaining many dupes to insure their lives in his
favour. After the policy had been issued, Holmes
deliberately murdered these unfortunate individuals,
collected the policies, and pocketed the proceeds. His
operations were not confined to one city alone ; his
worst crimes emanated from Chicago. He erected
there on the southern part of the city a building
known as Holmes' Castle. He was the architect,
and planned the rooms with one object in view — that
of murder. It was tunnelled with secret passages,
and fitted with furnaces and acid tanks, in which the
bodies could be disposed of and destroyed. When
Holmes was arrested it was found that in the cellar
the bodies of four people were secreted, but the police
were unable to say how many more were cremated
in the various furnaces.
The way in which many of these people insured
their lives was in what is known as " graveyard
insurances," and he had collected a fortune of many
3H RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
thousand dollars from this. Upon his arrest, and
after his scheme had been found out, three women
came forward, each declaring herself to be his lawful
wedded wife ; but how many other wives he may have
done away with it is difficult to say.
Nine names were handed to me of women who had
been destroyed by him, and the assumption was that
they had been killed, from the fact that they had been
known to have had transactions with him.
Two sisters, named Williams, inherited fifty thousand
dollars' worth of property. Holmes induced one of
the girls to act as his typist, and at a later date the
other sister went to live in the Chicago castle. This
was the last ever heard or seen of these two girls.
Another girl employed as his typist also met with the
same fate. The man in appearance was very mild
and lovable. He had perfect manners, like all arch-
swindlers, and was the last person one would have
deemed capable of such enormities. He was five feet
seven in height, and weighed eleven stone.
Outwardly he was not an unattractive man, but
inwardly, apparently, he appeared to be a perfect
Don Juan. In his early life he taught in a school
in his native town. The actual murder which was
brought home to him was that of a man named Pitezel,
whose body was found in an upper story of a house in
Philadelphia. He had apparently been killed by an
explosion of benzine. A contract had been entered
into between this man and Holmes to perpetrate
a swindle. Pitezel was to insure his own life, with
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 315
the understanding that a dummy corpse would be
produced at the proper time and palmed off as that of
Pitezel. Holmes was too shrewd for this, and did not
go to this trouble, but having got the policy in his own
possession, which his victim gave him under the
impression that he was going to share the spoil, Holmes
killed Pitezel in order to obtain the money. After
having done this, Holmes informed the wife of his
victim, who did not know what had taken place, that
her husband would have to remain in hiding for some
time, and that it would be necessary for her to go to
Philadelphia to identify the remains of the dummy.
Instead of going herself she sent her daughter, who
recognised the body of her father. Holmes, dreading
that this information would lead to his arrest, killed
her, and also took possession of the other two children
and destroyed them.
He then informed the mother that they must have
been kidnapped, and induced her to travel all over the
country with him to find her children. The culminat-
ing point was when he tried to kill their mother with
dynamite. The murder of this man Pitezel was the
one upon which Holmes was tried and convicted.
With regard to the sketch of Holmes which was
handed to me containing various positions, it was
shown to him, and this hard-hearted criminal re-
marked : "I like this picture better than any I have
seen. The others were not strong enough. You have
got my nose and mouth, but I did not think I looked
so stern."
316 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
The following was my description of Holmes's
cranium : —
" There is such a distinct connection between the
study of criminology and lunacy that it is often a
difficult thing to decide, especially when there are
certain features present in the craniums of both. I
remember, many years ago, during the Franco-German
war, I collected a series of photographs taken of the
leading ' petroleuses ' in Paris, and I also had a like
series of photographs taken of the same number of
lunatics whose maladies were chronic in their nature.
The similarity between the two divisions, the criminals
on the one side and the lunatics on the other, was
very remarkable, not only in the shape of the cranium,
but in the general facial expression.
" It is an admitted fact that the two halves of the
skull are rarely, if ever, symmetrical. This is well
marked in Holmes, as far as I can judge from the
position of the head. The unsymmetrical form of
the two sides of the skull exists in murderers from
premeditation to the extent of 32 per cent. From
an examination of the form of the head, I notice a
condition which I designate as vertex-steepness,
rising up from before backward. This has been
observed among criminals to the extent of 56 per cent.
The frontal diameter on the top of the crown is appar-
ently broad, and more so than that of the forehead,
and the highest protuberance of the two parietal
bones lies in such an oblique horizontal line that one
end of it lies before and the other behind the ear.
This form of skull is rarely seen except in the case of
habitual criminals.
" What I especially notice, as a brief summary of
Holmes's skull, is the brachycephalia, the flatness of
the occiput and the want of prominence of the pro-
tuberance to a marked degree. Now, let us consider
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES
the importance of these cranial irregularities, and
what inference we can deduce from our knowledge
H. H. Holmes : Some sketches of his head, and his letter concerning them.
of these anatomical abnormalities. There is no doubt
but that psychical functions are located in the brain.
Murder is a complicated psychical function. Some-
318 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
times it is committed from an overpowering sensitive-
ness, such as inflicting death from an excessive sense
of honour. At another time it is allied to an ethical
weakness or imbecility, because the materials for the
formation of the nobler feelings, especially of com-
passion and justice, are wanting. In robber-murderers
there is an excess of the feeling of strength, which
develops the sensation of pleasure in their own power,
a certain horrible feeling of delight in contrasting it
with the weakness and the deficient feeling of strength
in other people.
" Besides, according to our experience, murder is
connected with a defect of intelligence, which is
unable to foresee the consequences of the deed to the
perpetrator ; while in other cases there is the satisfac-
tion in the cunning of a premeditated plan correspond-
ing with a pressing impulse toward the act. The
factors of such an act are therefore composed of
intellectual, motor, and sensory impulses, both positive
and negative, or, in strict language of cerebral-patho-
logy, of impulses which find their expression in the
function of the anterior lobe for intelligence, of the
middle lobe for the motor part, and of the posterior
part for the sensory. Now, as these parts of the
cranium are badly developed, we may naturally
assume that the brain is prevented from fulfilling its
proper part in the performance of its duties, and con-
sequently the mental powers became deranged.
' The conclusions to be arrived at from a careful
consideration of Holmes's head appear to me to be
as follows : — Complete want of all moral power and
control. Acts of an impulsive character, which
would lead him to commit certain crimes, heedless
of all consequences that must ensue. An acute,
cunning nature, much prone to deception, a deficiency
in the power of reflection, restless plotting without
considering the consequences. The anatomical state
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 319
of his brain leads me to the notion that the condition
was innate in him — born to commit a crime, unable
to resist doing so. In ordinary murderers, and I
should think in Holmes's case, criminal covetousness
was the first and chief desire, the impulse to obtain
possession of what was not lawfully his. Covetousness,
ethical weakness of mind, pleasure in the imaginary
or actual power of obtaining what he desires, are the
factors in Holmes's case.
" The pathological indications, if one can use such
an expression, to the visible eye denote, to my mind,
covetousness, ethical weakness of mind, pleasure in
the actual obtaining of or in the desire so to obtain
large sums of money in an artful fashion. His
countenance denotes a violence of temperament.
The continuance of a strongly excited feeling of power,
and of the pleasure in exercising strength over relative
weakness of intellect and of ethical development, form
the psychological basis of Holmes's case, as depicted
in the portrait shown to me.
" The knowledge of the complicated nature of the
psychology of such criminals is very important. When
we see anyone with a fierce temperament and an
arrogant consciousness of strength like that seen in
Holmes, we ask ourselves the question whether, if
placed under different circumstances and in different
positions, the more serious traits of his character
would have shown themselves. The answer appears
to me to be as follows : If he had been properly and
morally educated he might have become a useful mem-
ber of society. Of this I have not the slightest doubt,
but I am clearly of opinion that one with the bad ab-
normal formation of the cranium, the peculiarities of
which I have described, would never, unless he had
been properly taken care of, become anything else than
he unfortunately is at the present moment.
" He appears a typical example of the habitual
320 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
criminal. Set him free, and he will continue to
commit crime. As to whether the man can be con-
sidered quite a responsible agent, I am not prepared
to argue ; but, as I said at the commencement of this
article, the cranial anatomy is so similar in many
criminals and lunatics, that in such a grave case as
the one under consideration I would hesitate to express
any positive opinion with the present imperfect facts
before me."
As soon as I had completed my examination of
Holmes's cranium and written my report concerning
the same, which I considered by no means an easy
task, I was just on the way to post the same when
another reporter attached to the same journal handed
me a picture of Durrant, a medical student, the San
Franciscan murderer, convicted of the murder of
Miss Blanche Lament. This sketch contained seven
different aspects of his physiognomy. He said, " We
want the same length article to appear side by side
with the one of Holmes in to-morrow's journal."
I felt overwhelmed by my task. It takes a good deal
to puzzle me, however, and I at once set to work, and
having completed my heavy task, I took them forth-
with to the office of the paper. They appeared the fol-
lowing morning, both of them as now produced here.
Early in 1895 all San Francisco was shocked by
finding the remains of a young girl, terribly mutilated,
in the library of a Baptist church. The murdered
lady, Miss Minnie Williams, was killed within sight
of the altar. The body was found by a number of
ladies who were decorating the church with flowers
321
preparatory for Easter. The awful crime came as
a terrible shock to the city, but before they had time
to recover themselves another body was found in the
William Henry Theodore Durrant
belfry of the same church. This was that of Miss
Blanche Lamont, who ten days previous to the murder
of Williams had disappeared, and her body was only
discovered the morning after the murder of Miss
Williams. The body of the ill-fated girl was found
21
322 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
high up in the wind-swept belfry. The ruthless
assassin had enticed the two innocent girls to enter
the church (where they worshipped) with him.
Durrant was considered to be a model young man,
and as assistant superintendent of the Sunday School
he was regarded as a good and righteous individual
in every way. As he attended the same church as
the two murdered girls, he was able to get into their
confidence ; besides which, he was in the confidence
of the pastor of the church, and was well known and
esteemed by the congregation. It was powerful
circumstantial evidence, from which there could be
no dispute, which forged a chain of guilt around him
and rendered his arrest in every way justifiable.
His defence was an alibi ; but in spite of his denials,
many witnesses were called who swore that they saw
the monster and Miss Blanche Lamont on several
occasions together, driving about in cars near the
school in which she was a pupil, and the last that
was seen of the poor girl alive was by a witness who
was watching from a window near the church, and
saw the prisoner lead the girl into the sanctuary by
a side door, from which she never returned alive.
In fact, Durrant was the last man seen with her, and
within an hour after having entered the church with
his victim he was seen coming out from the direction
of the belfry by the organist. He was in his shirt-
sleeves, his hair disarranged, with an excited appear-
ance on his face, and pale and sick. Upon being
interrogated as to his extraordinary appearance he
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 323
explained that he had been overcome by the gas whilst
fixing the burners in the dome of the church. But in
spite of his denial the circumstantial evidence was so
strong as to convict him of the murder of the two girls.
" Here we have a different formation of cranium
and brain from that met with in Holmes. The whole
features and development of the skull point to a
condition of irresponsibility. There is an immense
development of the frontal protuberance, which gives
to the skull a strange and uncanny appearance.
There seems to have been a complete moral perver-
sion existing in the subject under discussion, the
intellectual powers at the same time being apparently
unimpaired. He appears to have attended his hospital
studies and medical classes without causing any special
suspicion as to his condition, which, to my mind, must
have been developing for some time. There is in-
domitable determination on the face, and the appear-
ance of the eyes conveys to me the same impression.
His conduct originally at the inquest was not that of
a responsible individual. He seemed, instead of being
engrossed in what was going on about him, to be
recognising his various friends and greeting them in
a most familiar manner. His utter indifference and
callousness throughout the primary proceedings and
subsequent ones point to a mental condition far from
normal. From a study of his physiognomy I should
say that he is a youth of a determined character, and
one of a class frequently met with, whose parents
and friends have been loth to recognise him as being
of unsound mind until some crime has been com-
mitted which brings his real condition before the
world. In Durrant there is a diseased perversion of
the moral powers, and the consciousness of right and
wrong appears to have been lost. His whole inward
324 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
state seems to have undergone a change, and, like all
such moral cases of insanity, to be quite dead to the
calls of social affection, of honour, or of duty, to all
of which he might, had he received proper disciplinary
training, have become a different person.
" His conversation and, as I have said, his general
behaviour were not of that nature to especially attract
attention ; but if a strict scrutiny had been made
into his actions by anyone skilled to deal with such
cases, there is no doubt but that his notions of right
and wrong would have been found much perverted,
and that his own social position, if viewed through a
medium, would give a false colour to the whole aspect.
" The absence of all feeling of shame and reproach
is often met with in cases similar to Durrant's,
especially when there is moral insanity existing in
the individual. Crime and insanity often associate
together. Many of the dreadful tragedies which dis-
turb society are the result of such association. They
may be the natural manifestations of disease en-
gendered by or associated with dissolute habits,
brutal appetites, and violent passions, as is often
the case. There is a class of persons — in which
category I would place Durrant — who cannot, in
the ordinary sense of the word, be regarded as
criminally responsible ; but they would, to the
outward world, be regarded as being mentally sound.
This class consists, I might say, chiefly of youths
between the ages of thirteen and twenty-five, who
combine an ordinary education and intelligence, yet
nevertheless, under certain favourable circumstances,
commit acts which outrage decorum and virtue. These
are inconsistent with the knowledge and position of the
perpetrator, and are subversive of the best interest
of the individual and of the community, and which,
although voluntary, deliberate, and avowed, evidently
flow from perverted affection and debased propensities,
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 325
and which, temporarily at least, obscure, if they do
not suspend, the influence of the judgment, moral
sense, and selfish considerations.
" The frenzy of feebleness in the common phases
of insanity are readily recognised. It is difficult,
however, to trace in the recklessness of the spend-
thrift, in the excesses of the voluptuary, in the callous-
ness of the murderer, the fruits of sufficient disease
as to admit of the acceptation of the words ' moral
irresponsibility,' yet to all experienced in the subject
it is known to largely exist. That derangement does
affect the sentiments is shown when the whole mind
is involved in general mania and the dictates of
conscience are as absurd as those of reason ; but
while history abounds in illustrations of this form of
disease, it has only recently been suggested that the
emotions and passions might be subject to special
disease, and might be affected independently of the
intellect, while all the other faculties remained appar-
ently active and unimpaired.
" Of such a type is Durrant, I have but little doubt
in my own mind. If we were to examine into his
history more closely we should in all probability find
that previous to the crime his character and dis-
position had undergone great alteration, and also in
his gradual mental degeneration. The form of mental
disorder from which, in my opinion, Durrant is suffer-
ing may occur suddenly or may become irresistible,
or the passion may have been nursed for some time
until it obtains a dominion over everything else. His
facial expression, contour of skull, physiognomy, and
general conditions lead me to regard this youth as one not
altogether to be regarded as a responsible individual."
On I3th September I was requested to examine
and report on the case of Mrs Fleming, charged
with matricide. It appeared that her mother, Mrs
326 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Bliss, came to stay with her, and after dinner, not
feeling very well, she went upstairs, and was seized
with symptoms of irritant poisoning, from which she
Mrs Fleming.
never recovered, ultimately dying from its effects ;
the allegation being that Mrs Fleming poisoned her
mother with antimony, disguised in Clam chow soup.
Mrs Fleming by the death of her mother inherited
a large fortune, and suspicions being aroused led to
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 327
her arrest, incarceration in prison, trial, and subse-
quent acquittal. I may say that the case created an
enormous amount of sensation in New York, as every-
body considered her guilty. Unfortunately they al-
ways prejudge cases in America, which interferes
with the proper trial. After my interview with her,
on the following day it was prominently stated by the
press that I doubted her guilt, and that in my opinion
she did not act like a criminal. The following is my
official report, which described the exact position I
took in the matter, and upon which her subsequent
acquittal was based. She offered me a fee of £6000 to
return to America and defend her ; but there was no
occasion for this, as those defending her made use of
my written report, which had its desired effect without
summoning the author of that report to New York.
As the case was one of such extraordinary interest,
I think it best to give the whole of my report in
extenso as handed to the authorities : —
" I visited Mrs Fleming at the Tombs on Friday,
1 3th September 1895. She received me very pleasantly
and agreeably, and in a very cheerful manner. She
did not in any way know the object of my visit, and
chatted on in ordinary conversation. I naturally
conversed with her upon the death of her mother,
but she informed me that she had in no way formed
a conclusion on the subject, and was at a loss to
comprehend or explain it. She told me that she had
always been on good and affectionate terms, and that
on the Wednesday previous to the death her mother
had dined with her at her hotel, and appeared in her
usual bright spirits.
328 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
" At that visit, as I understood from the conversa-
tion I had with Mrs Fleming, Mrs Bliss was com-
plaining of not feeling well, having a rather severe
abdominal pain. This was apparently a common
symptom, from which she had periodically suffered,
and which had caused the daughter considerable
anxiety ; and at this visit she felt unusually anxious,
and urged upon her mother the desirability of seeing
a doctor forthwith.
" In addition to the abdominal pain there was con-
siderable distension of that organ. Her mother, in
reply to her repeated desire that she should see a
doctor, replied, ' Oh, well, it will be all right.'
" Mrs Fleming informed me that in addition to the
symptoms stated her mother often complained of a
weakness of the heart and a sort of throbbing sensa-
tion around that organ. She did not hear anything
further of her mother until told of her death by Mr
Bliss. She told me that upon being so informed she
went immediately to her mother's house, and on
reaching the flat found a man who had been sent to
arrest her by the police. In reply to my question, she
replied : ' Had I known that my poor mother was
ailing I would have summoned the first medical
authority in the world to attend upon her. Of course,
I did not know who the strange man was, and I
remarked to the nurse, ' What is this man doing ? '
The man replied that he was in charge.
" During the whole of my conversation with Mrs
Fleming she was quite composed, looked me directly
in the face, there was no appearance or indication of
any mental derangement and she comported herself as
one innocent of the charge made against her. Cer-
tainly, if she had been guilty, she could not have
realised her position or the gravity of the act. Neither
do I think that her manner was at all assumed, but
quite natural. I think it would be impossible for a
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES
329
guilty person, and one mentally responsible, to have
comported herself in the manner Mrs Fleming did
during the whole of my interview and examination.
Mrs Fleming consults her lawyers in Tombs Prison.
" I formed a strong opinion as to the innocence of
the lady. Whatever might have been the actual cause
of her mother's death, it was certainly not, in my
opinion, to be laid to the charge of her daughter.
" There is no possible doubt but that the mother
suffered from gastrodynia, associated with severe
gastric symptoms, the abdominal distension and
330 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
' throbbing ' at the heart being characteristic indica
tions of that malady. Dr Bullman, I believe, enter-
tained this view when first called in. His first visit
was made at half-past six o'clock on the afternoon of
Thursday, the day following the dinner at Mrs Flem-
ing's. A mixture containing bismuth and bicarbonate
of soda, with other similar drugs, was prescribed by the
doctor, such medicinal remedies being common in
cases of chronic gastritis, and, so far as I could gather,
no antidote was administered or poison suspected. At
his next visit he found her very much relieved.
" Of course, it is a most important thing to dis-
criminate between what is known as acute gastritis
and poisoning by antimony. The symptoms are very
similar, both having indications of an inflammatory
character. In cases of acute gastritis due to an
irritant poison there is a feeling of increasing burning
at the pit of the stomach. This is much aggravated
by pressure, and there is a distressing feeling of nausea
and terrible retching. In addition to this there is the
fact that the pulse is accelerated, and also the breath-
ing. Great thirst is present, and everything taken by
the mouth is at once vomited. Extreme prostration
sets in quickly, and death usually takes place from
exhaustion. Now, apparently we have a distinct
remission in the symptoms, as Dr Bullman after his
first visit pronounced Mrs Bliss as having considerably
improved, and the final relapse was quick in the
extreme. He was summoned at eleven o'clock on the
evening of her death, but before his arrival she had
expired. Now, it appeared strange to me that there
should have been such a marked improvement in the
condition of the deceased, even of a temporary nature.
This is by no means usual in the case of an irritant
poison, the symptoms gradually increasing in their
severity without any amelioration.
" That Mrs Bliss had been a sufferer from gastritis
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 331
in one form or another there did not seem to be the
slightest doubt. There have been so many fatal
mistakes made in alleged cases of poisoning by antimony
in my country, that I was led to regard the matter
as one complicated and difficult to bring home to the
individual.
" The ordinary criminal would not, in my opinion,
have behaved in the same way as Mrs Fleming did.
It sometimes happens that after a crime has been
committed the criminal is never penetrated by a
feeling of guilt or of repentance in any way whatever.
In such cases, especially in females, I should consider
with the gravest doubts the probability of their
sanity. The hardened and responsible female criminal
is a rara avis at the present time. In such cases there
may be a deficiency in the feeling of moral guilt, though
they may dread the consequence of the crime.
" Murder by such persons is connected with a defect
of intellect, which renders it unable to foresee the
consequences of the deed to the perpetrator. One
important factor of crime is its hereditary character.
There is substantial proof of this. It is like insanity
and sometimes skips one generation and appears in the
next. So far as I could gather from information I
received, Mrs Fleming came of a stock which bears
an unimpeachable history, and thus an important fact
to my mind was removed.
" In order to study the psychology of criminals it is
necessary to pay periodical visits to some of the great
prisons when an opportunity arises of studying crime.
The peculiarity of many is the entire absence of all
shame or repentance, and there is a harshness in tone
and a bravado in manner which demonstrate that they
do not realise the depth of degradation to which they
have sunk from their own misdeeds. Among these are
to be found, as a contrast, those who may be perfectly
innocent, waiting their trial. Criminals as a class should
332 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
be regarded as imperfect men or women, whose minds,
from a deficient and imperfect education generally,
have led them to follow blindly their strong inclinations.
" Criminals may be divided into : first, those who
possess hereditary tendencies — as I have previously
said, this is very common ; second, ill-balanced
organisations, which are easily influenced by evil
associates ; third, adolescents, who have, with good
or bad tendencies, been subject to neglect and poverty.
It is a curious thing to examine carefully into the
history of a family in which crime exists as hereditary.
There will be lights and shades of various nature, and
gradations of the malady will be easily perceptible.
" In order to convict anyone of the administration
of poison a great many things have to be carefully
considered. The history of the accused and the
motive must be made evident. This must be a strong
one, and in these cases is an important factor. Cir-
cumstantial evidence plays but a secondary part in
such inquiries.
" Now, Mrs Fleming did not in any way suggest
to me the ordinary criminal. A consideration of crime
is deeply important to the ordinary moralist. The
incentives to crime are many. I have examined a
great many persons waiting their trials on the charge
of murder. In each one there have been certain
indications which, to my mind, convey an important
impression as to their innocence or guilt. In the case
of Mrs Fleming I could not realise that the cheerful
demeanour, and other features in her case observed by
me at the time of the examination, were compatible
with those of a murderess. In many such cases the
consciousness of crime is the first step to repentance.
Silence and solitude in the prison cell will often induce
reflection and tend to this result. Like all potent and
powerful remedies solitude reacts frequently upon the
guilty conscience.
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 333
" The degradation and shame act upon the mind
of the individual, and often there is an impossibility
to keep up even a semblance of innocence. The human
mind is never in a state of absolute repose ; its natural
tendency is one of great activity. In seclusion
impulses from within and without disturb its equani-
mity ; our appetites and desires, our affections and
passions, our hopes and fears, are constant sources
of emotion resembling the natural springs and under-
currents which unceasingly agitate the surface of a
lake.
" These impulses originate in the mind itself ; they
are emanations, strictly speaking, from within, giving
rise to a succession of thoughts and feelings variously
modified, according to the peculiar idiosyncrasy of
each individual. Such feelings excited in one of a
highly-strung neurotic temperament are difficult to
suppress. The lights and shadows of guilt which
must flit across the mind while in the prison solitude
excite or depress the energies of the nervous system,
rendering it impossible to bear up physically or other-
wise against the terrible mental strain going on within
the human economy.
" To establish the presumption of poisoning there
ought to be, if possible, direct proof. The whole of
the danger in such cases, both to the community and
the profession, lies in the tendency of the medical man
to attach overwhelming importance to certain morbid
indications which might be accounted for by natural
causes. He must be guided by his own judgment,
and consider carefully what salient facts can be brought
forward which may further the view of death from
unusual causes.
" The physician must not act the detective in such
cases. The public, as a rule, are ill-informed as to
what testimony it is proposed to establish in the
question of poisoning. In most cases the symptoms
334 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
of felonious poisoning are impossible to be detected
from those of natural causes. In some cases, where
death has taken place from the effects of a poison that
has unmistakably its own individual morbid symptoms,
the cause of death may be shrewdly predicated by
an intelligent individual. In some cases on record,
and especially that of Dr Smethurst, tried for the
murder of Miss Banks in 1859, death was attributed
in the first place to arsenic — not, however, on the
symptoms evinced, but on the chemical analysis, and
to the fact that arsenic was stated to have been found
in the possession of the accused. Had the chemical
evidence remained unaltered or unchallenged by those
representing the accused, he would have been executed.
But it happened to transpire that the accused had
never had any arsenic in his possession, and that the
poison had crept in with the test of the analyst.
" Thus in every case of poisoning by antimony,
arsenic, or similar irritants, there is always a likelihood
of the very poison being used in conducting the analysis
which may inadvertently find its way into the very
substance being thus analysed, and may itself be the
only possible toxicological proof of the existence of
a poisonous drug, the finding of which may be con-
clusive to those desiring a conviction.
" Also in the vessels used to conduct the examina-
tion the reactions given may be due to the composi-
tion of the vessels themselves. I mention all this to
show, in trying to fix guilt by poisoning on any person,
how easy it is, unwittingly, to mislead the court. I
say, therefore, that, standing alone, chemical analysis
is of itself insufficient to decide anyone's fate.
" In the case of Dr Smethurst, to which I have just
alluded, the analyses of the toxicologists materially
differed. One detected antimony, another arsenic,
while a third could not decide which of these existed.
After the trial was concluded this analyst wrote a long
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 335
letter explaining that the poison found was mercury.
A fourth, who gave a decided opinion at the trial that
arsenic had been administered, apparently repented
of what he had said and acknowledged that death
might have taken place from natural causes ; and still
a fifth expert stated that a mineral poison of some sort
or other had been administered, but he could not name
which. He ultimately altered his view, alleging that
death was due to the performance of some illegal
operation upon the woman. Here is an extraordinary
difference of opinion between the leading toxicological
experts of Great Britain. The accused obtained
an acquittal. So much for toxicological experts'
testimony.
" I am absolutely opposed to secrecy in such matters.
A case of poisoning is before the world ; let the public
know what poison it is proposed to try the accused
on as having been administered ; and, as I have said,
before a conviction can be sustained it is not sufficient
to state that death has ensued from an irritant poison,
but from what poison and by whom administered.
I asked in Mrs Fleming's case : Might not the attack
of sub-acute gastritis from which the deceased suffered
periodically, and from which she was suffering at the
time, have culminated in an attack of acute gastritis
which would have given rise to all the morbid appear-
ances found in the body after death ? "
This was the report I issued as a result of my
examination.
Mrs Fleming's statement to the officials was as
follows : "I did not poison my mother. Her death
was the greatest loss to me. What motive could I
have had ? " To which the State replied : " You did
poison your mother. We can prove that poison killed
her. We shall bring proofs against you with the most
336 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
convincing item, namely, a motive. You were poor.
Your mother's death meant that you would get more
than 80,000 dollars from the City Chamberlain."
The New York journals gave long descriptive
accounts, as they always do in similar cases, of
Mrs Fleming's personal appearance. After a long
description of the formation of her ears, nose, mouth,
eyelashes, colour of hair, and other minute details,
which I fail to see were relevant to the matter, they
summarise as follows : " There is but little in Mrs
Fleming's appearance to act as guide to the crimino-
logical theorist, but it must be remembered that no
man or woman could escape should the rules by which
scientists pretend to detect criminal or degenerate
traits be applied wholesale."
According to the Lombrosian theory, the fact that
Mrs Fleming possessed a narrowness of face, sloping
forehead, extreme development of chin, which accord-
ing to Lombroso marks more than 33 per cent, of
criminals among women, was not in her favour. Some
of the statements issued by the New York press in
this case, had they appeared in England, would have
amounted more or less to contempt of court, but
there is no such thing as contempt of court in
America.
I paid several visits to Mrs Fleming whilst in the
Tombs, and instead of finding her an agitated, weary-
looking individual, I found her cheerful and pleasant,
though her eyes looked dull and heavy — from crying,
no doubt, when left in the solitary cell ; she also
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 337
complained to me of headache. She took an interest
in everything going on in the world, and she had
heard of my efforts in the Maybrick case. She told
me she was looking forward with pleasure to reading
an account of it in the Sunday edition of the New
York World. During my conversation with her I
tried my best to distract her thoughts from the death
of her mother. For a time I succeeded, but her
mind suddenly reverted to the subject ; she said :
" How hard men are to women ! I wonder why they
are so hard on them ? Women are not hard on men.
But I am glad I came here. I have been treated
very kindly, and I have learnt a great deal about
what other people suffer. It is a good thing to know
what others suffer — don't you think so ? I have seen
a great deal of suffering here." I was absolutely
positive that the death of Mrs Bliss could not be laid
to the hands of her daughter. After each of my
periodical visits to her, during my stay in New York,
I was more and more convinced of the un justness of
the charge. The result of the case in every way
proved the correctness of my conclusions.
Whilst staying in the Westminster Hotel in New
York I came across a quaint individual, David
Gardner Thompson, a New Yorker of the old type.
Mr Thompson had resided for ten years in an apart-
ment-house connected with the Westminster Hotel.
His friends were few and far between. He had picked
up an occasional one in the lobby of the hotel. He
kept himself as a rule to himself ; he was quiet and
22
338 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
reticent. In his rooms the furniture was of remark-
able beauty, and arranged with great taste. The room
contained many valuable things. He was known to
belong to a famous old family, and was spoken of
as a millionaire. In the morning he was always very
quiet, but towards evening he became rather loqua-
cious, and was a victim of alcoholic inspiration. He
seemed to enjoy having conversations with me in the
morning ; he was a well-informed man, and our con-
versation extended generally over a wide range of
subjects, chiefly pertaining to literature and science.
Mr Thompson had reached his sixty-third year. It
might be mentioned that he had expended close upon
70,000 dollars in furnishing his suite of rooms. The
bedstead was of pure marble, the parlour was furnished
in ivory. In his sitting-room was a genuine Raphael.
In various parts of the room were various statuettes
— one of Agamemnon valued at 10,000 dollars ; and
a watch, set in large diamonds, which was valued at
10,000 dollars. Mr Thompson had let into his walls
in one of the rooms a small steel safe ; this contained
a number of valuable securities and other personal
property. In addition to this he possessed a large
amount of real estate.
One evening Mr Thompson, as was his wont, was
seated round a table with some of the other visitors
belonging to the hotel, and evidently a heated dis-
cussion had been going on concerning the question
of the immortality of the soul after death. The clock
had struck twelve when Mr Thompson rose from the
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 339
table to retire to his room. He had his hand on the
handle of the door as I entered the hall.
" Oh ! " exclaimed Mr Thompson, " here is Dr
Winslow. We will ask him the question. You
doctors are all very well in your way, but none of
you have yet discovered how to bring a man to life
again after he is dead, so that we might learn the
great secret. But never mind ! — good night ! " He
opened the door, and, looking round, repeated the
well-known refrain of an American ditty incidental
to the Civil War —
" John Brown's body lies mouldering in the ground,
As we all go marching along " —
when he bade us good night. The conversation
had evidently been on death, and, considering most
of the gentlemen seated round the table were more
or less in a state of conviviality, no doubt the
opinions would have been interesting to have
recorded.
Early next morning I was summoned to the apart-
ment-house occupied by Mr Thompson, the messenger
stating that he was found dead in his bath. I went
to his room forthwith, and found him half dressed
in an empty bath, with his head down and his feet
raised. I was called upon by the New York coroner
to assist him in making a post-mortem examination
and to testify as to the cause of his death. This was
any one of three things : he had been murdered and
robbed ; he had fallen into the bath in a condition of
semi-intoxication and dislocated his neck ; or he had
340 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
been attempting to get into bed, and, having half un-
dressed himself, some artery in the brain gave way,
causing sickness ; immediately rushing to the bath-
room, the artery further emptied itself, and caused
instant death. From the fact that his bed was partly
occupied I was led to the latter conclusion, and so
testified at the coroner's inquest, the verdict being
given according to my theory.
About a week afterwards we were all seated round
the same table — the chair occupied by Mr Thompson
being vacant, — discussing his memory, when suddenly
a man burst in saying : " Oh, Doctor Winslow, I
congratulate you ! "
" Do you ? On what ? " I asked.
" Have you not heard the news ? "
I confessed I had not.
" Mr Thompson took a great fancy to you, and left
to Dr Freeman and yourself 80,000 dollars."
I must say I was a bit surprised at this, but my
surprise was doubly increased when another man
rushed in shortly afterwards and repeated the same
statement. I began to think there was some truth
in it.
I had a terribly restless night. I was never very
good in turning English money into foreign, or foreign
money into English, but I tried my best to find out
how much English money 80,000 dollars represented.
I went to sleep towards early morning, having
completed my calculations — only to wake up to find
the whole thing a fabrication.
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 341
I was asked one day by the editor of the New York
World if I would like to go to see his office. I called,
and was shown into the editor's room.
He informed me, pointing to a pigeon-hole lettered
" W," that it contained my obituary notice already
written ; and also said that, during the whole of his
experience, no Englishman, as far as he could re-
collect, had ever received a more public reception or
welcome than had been bestowed upon myself. I
felt to a certain extent flattered, as the observation
was quite unexpected and uncalled for.
There was a well-known reformer, Dr Parkhurst, a
prominent man in New York at the time of my visit.
His opinion carried a considerable amount of weight
among some, whilst others regarded it of slight im-
portance. He interfered with everything which was
not exactly to his own way of thinking. He was an
agitator, like myself, but as a consequence he had
been the means of obtaining the suppression of many
terrible dens of iniquity and vice, which existed to
a large extent in New York.
As an agitator he apparently found his rival in
me, as I had been interviewed on every possible and
impossible subject during the time I had been in New
York, and consequently for the moment Dr Park-
hurst's guns had been silenced.
After I had been in the city for about a week, the
following paragraph appeared in one of the New York
journals : " There are two persons at present residing
in New York, evidently rivals in the way of talking —
342 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Dr Parkhurst and Dr Forbes Winslow. I do not
know who talks the most, but we should give the
palm to the latter. We wonder how they are getting
on in England without Dr Winslow. We imagine
that the Prince of Wales can now hear the wind
whistle through his whiskers at last."
Whilst in New York I came across an English
friend of mine, a bit of a crank in his way. He always
carried in his pocket samples of food, containing
flour for bread, and a loaf of bread made out of the
same, which he was always anxious for me to analyse
and taste. Wherever I met him the same thing
occurred — out came his loaf of bread. I did not
know what his idea was in reference to the matter,
but he had evidently some strange notions concerning
it. What he was doing in New York I had not the
slightest idea, or what was his profession. He called
upon me the day after my arrival in New York, and
was very anxious to discuss the loaf of bread. He
went to Staten Island, where the cricket match
England v. New York was going on ; and whilst the
team were indulging in their lunch, out came the sample
of flour in the one hand and the loaf in the other —
he evidently wished them to taste his bread instead
of the bread provided.
When the cricketers left New York I went to see
them off, and on the boat too was the same old crank
with his loaf of bread. I could not shake him off,
try as I would ; he was always there with his famous
loaf. The last that I saw of him was when the
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 343
City of New York left the quay on my return to
England. The crank was there on the quay as usual,
waving his bread and flour-packet at me as a sort of
au revoir or " Please remember me." He gave me
his photograph, and whenever I look at it I think of
his loaf.
During my stay in New York I came across a number
of interesting acquaintances, some of whom I have
met again on their visit to England. I had heard a
great deal of American millionaires, and it was with
a certain satisfaction that I accepted an invitation
to dine with one of them at his house in Brooklyn.
I expected a magnificent repast, but I was to a certain
extent disappointed, and I have often wondered
whether the millionaire's hospitality which I experi-
enced was typical of dinners given by such. On my
going into the dining-room I was rather astonished at
not seeing any wine on the table. This did not matter
to me, as during my stay in New York I was content
to partake of ginger ale, being more or less a
total abstainer. We had commenced dinner, when
my host was evidently struck by a happy idea. He
jumped up from the table and, looking at me, said :
" Dr Winslow, we know that Englishmen are fond
of claret, so we have got you a bottle." I must
confess I was rather amused, for, had I not been an
abstainer, I should have expected at least champagne,
hock, port, and everything which money could buy ;
therefore an eighteen-penny bottle of claret was
rather staggering. I replied, mentioning him by
344 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
name : "I am much obliged for your kindness, but
I never drink claret."
I mention this little incident to show that it does
not follow that, when dining with a New York million-
aire, one's expectations are always realised, for a more
miserable or wretched dinner I have never sat down
to in my life, and I made up my mind that I would
think twice before accepting another invitation of a
millionaire's.
What struck me about many of the people I met was
that they made profuse promises as to what they were
going to do one way or the other, but these promises
were never fulfilled.
On the second day of my arrival in New York I
had two interesting visitors. One was a lady, a Mrs
Bell, who was apparently interested in Mrs Maybrick's
case. She made me a present of her photograph,
attired in a bloomer costume, and she told me she was
the instigator of this custom among women in New
York. The other visitor was a representative of the
press. He said to me : " Dr Winslow, I represent
a journal in New York, and I have been asked to follow
you about wherever you go and chronicle your daily
movements." I thanked him for his kindness, but
at the same time I informed him that I could take
care of myself.
Evidently I was being watched, for one evening
I was anxious to see a piece at one of the theatres,
and, as all the seats had been booked, I decided to
go into the gallery, thinking that nobody knew me
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 345
and that it did not matter. The following day a
paragraph appeared in one of the papers : " Dr
Winslow was seen in the gallery last evening" —
mentioning the theatre by name.
The weather was very close in New York, and
Dr Shepherd of Brooklyn was very anxious for me
to take a Turkish bath in an establishment he had
opened. I consented to do this, and was much
gratified ; but the inevitable paragraph appeared
in the papers the next morning. " Dr Winslow had
a Turkish bath yesterday."
Whatever I did, or wherever I went, I was
watched and all my actions reported, though I failed
to see how such events could interest the general
public.
Of course, whilst in New York I visited all the great
hospitals and asylums, and I formed an opinion that
they were as well managed as any in our own country,
if not better.
A curious fact, which impressed itself on my mind,
was that all the medical officers connected with
asylums had to wear an official uniform. No one is
eligible to act in that capacity unless he is a naturalised
American subject, whilst all institutions are under
the control of the Government.
The " sanatariums," as they are called, are a sort of
private asylum, in which are confined not only lunatics,
but borderland cases, and those suffering from general
nervousness. There are no private asylums in America
which are carried on in a precisely similar way to those
346 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
in England — in other words, exclusively for persons
of unsound mind.
I was elected an honorary member of most of the
leading clubs in New York. I lunched with a friend
on one occasion at what is supposed to be the million-
aires' restaurant in New York, " Delmonico's " ; but
in my opinion it is inferior to Lyon's Popular in London.
I was taken to several spiritualistic seances, but
only on the distinct understanding that I would not
jump up and make a speech in the middle. A wealthy
man, Mr Newton, living in New York, was head of the
Spiritualists there. Unfortunately, he was killed a
short time after I left America, being run over by a
tramcar. He was an enthusiast so far as Spiritualism
was concerned, and did a great deal to bring it to the
notice and recognition of the public.
I recollect one afternoon going to the Carnegie Hall,
where these meetings were held, to witness what was
stated to be spiritualistic writing on a typewriter.
A typewriting machine was placed in a cabinet,
with a medium who was blindfolded and his hands
tied. A piece of paper, foolscap size, was fixed in the
machine, at the bottom of which was Mr Newton's
signature ; this was done to prevent the possibility
of any deception or fraud. The cabinet was then
closed. After a short time we heard the tick-ticking
incidental to a typing machine ; shortly afterwards
the cabinet was opened and certain spiritualistic
messages appeared on the foolscap paper, much to
the astonishment of many of the audience.
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 347
I said to the lady who accompanied me, " Oh,
please let me get up and tell them how it is done ! "
But she pulled me down by the coat-tails and pre-
vented me, which was perhaps just as well.
The explanation which occurred to me was as
follows : — Mr Newton, a poor kind old gentleman,
who was quite unsuspicious, had been asked to sign
a blank sheet of foolscap paper on the day previous
to its being used at the meeting, it being pointed out
to him that if he signed all suspicions would be re-
moved ; and no doubt at the same time he was asked
to sign one or two more for future experiments.
What happened was this, that previous to the blank
paper being put in the machine the message had been
written already on one of the other sheets. It was
clear to me that the audience had not grasped the
facts of the case as they presented themselves to me.
Inside the pocket of the medium was a small electric
battery, which, by pressing a small button, caused
the ticking noise to emanate from it, similar to that
of a typewriter. I realised the situation at once,
and had it not been for my lady friend I should have
exposed the whole fraud before the audience in
Carnegie Hall.
It is a great pity that in America they make a
financial business of Spiritualism, as it prevents any
real investigations being made, and increases the
incredulity of many. I went to nearly every
spiritualistic meeting in New York, as I was very
anxious to become a convert ; but so far as America
348 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
is concerned, I never saw anything that I could not
account for, and the fact, no doubt, of paying a
dollar for each admission to the seances induced
those who were responsible for them to give those
who paid their money's worth.
Spiritualism in America is a different thing from
Spiritualism in England. Boston is the great centre
of all Spiritualists in America ; many of them are
conscientious, hard workers and honest believers, and
there is a very large circle of them ; on the other
hand, there are a still larger number of charlatans,
who make capital out of imposition and fraud, which
they impose on a certain class of society. I have
met the same in England.
As a rule, I generally got fatigued at the close of
the day ; considering the amount of work which I
was usually called upon to perform, it was hardly
to be expected that in the evening my brain would
be in a condition to be further exercised. But one
evening, when invited to dine at the Union League
Club to meet some American authorities, I had to
answer a series of abstruse psychological questions
which were fired at me from all sides continuously
till the conclusion of the dinner. This not only
interfered with my temper, but brought on an acute
attack of dyspepsia the following morning. As soon
as I had finished a discussion with one guest, another
would commence ; and so this went on during dinner,
until I took refuge in my hotel.
I left New York on i3th November, as I have said
AMERICAN EXPERIENCES 349
previously, the day after I had concluded my cross-
examination in the Hannigan case, in the City of
New York. It was the same ship in which Sir
Henry Irving and Ellen Terry had often crossed.
The doctor attached to the ship was an Irishman,
who had become a naturalised American subject, as
this ship was bound to carry at least forty American
subjects. He presided at the table at which I sat,
and I had the seat of honour on his right. The
conclusion I arrived at was that it was a great tempta-
tion for anybody connected with the American liners
to take stimulants in excess, and I was not surprised
when eight or nine years later the same doctor called
at my house, looking rather out-at-elbows. He had
become a victim to alcoholic excess, lost his position,
arrived in England penniless, and asked me if I would
pay his fare to get back to Southampton, where he
thought he might be able to find some work. I might
mention that Southampton is the port where the
American liners start from. It was very sad indeed
to see one, whom I had known in better circumstances,
fallen so low, from the active young man in the uni-
form of an officer on a ship to a degraded, penniless,
out-of-employment, alcoholic degenerate. I gave him
what he asked for, and I have never heard of or seen
him since.
There was nothing special to chronicle on my
voyage back to England. I was not sorry when, at
7.30 a.m. on 2ist November, I left Southampton for
London.
350 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
I often think of my experiences in America and the
kind friends I met there ; and the desire of many of
them to give me a welcome to their country, where
I can claim, through family ties and relationship, a
close kinship.
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY
YEARS
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS
IT seems but yesterday since I received my first
medical qualification and saw my first patient on the
following day. Forty years have, however, passed
and gone since then. There is an old song I remember:
" Where are the friends of my youth,
Oh, where are those cherished ones gone ? "
I answer, " Alas ! where ? " Most of them have
gone to join the great majority. Some have left
behind them records which will never be eliminated,
and will live for ever in posterity ; whereas in the
case of others a small earthly grave, perhaps marked
with a tombstone to signify that they ever had an
existence, will be all that the world has been called
upon to remember concerning them.
I see before me the portly form of Sir William
Fergusson, Surgeon to the Queen, one of the greatest
surgical lights of the last century. He was a great
friend of my father's, and we were all socially
acquainted with the other members of his family.
Then poor old William Rose, Emeritus Professor
of Surgery of King's College Hospital, himself
353 23
354 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Fergusson's favourite house surgeon and assistant.
It was only a year ago I spent a very happy time
with him at his chateau at Boulogne, assisting him
in the removal of a cerebral tumour from the head
of a resident. Rose was a friend of mine of forty
years, but he had sadly changed. He was sorely
wronged and misjudged during the last few years
of his life. I fought his battles for him and earned
his thanks and gratitude. Rose used to tell a very
characteristic story of his connection with Fergusson.
The latter had performed an operation, and left Rose
to complete the work incidental to it. He said that
he had a special appointment, but would be back
shortly, asking Rose to wait. On Fergusson's return,
Rose asked if he had finished his business, to which
Fergusson in broad Scotch exclaimed, " Eh, mon, I
cashed the cheque all right." There had been a doubt
existing in Fergusson's mind as to this before the
operation was completed, whilst the man was still
under the anaesthetic and before a possible dissolution
as a result of the operation, when all cheques would
have been null and void ; and therefore he wanted
to make himself sure on this point, probably from
past experience.
I gave Rose his first fee ; at least, he told me so,
and also how acceptable it was at the time.
Sir G. E. Paget, Fergusson's rival at the time, I
also frequently met. I shall never forget taking one
of my boys to see him, who had injured his ankle-
joint. Paget said, " I don't want to see the joint ;
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 355
I know the nature of the complaint." I might say
that Fergusson had been attending the boy up to
the day of his death. Sir Thomas Smith, of " Bart's,"
wanted to amputate. I declined with thanks. My
opinion proved correct.
Sir Erasmus Wilson, of Cleopatra Needle fame, was
an intimate friend of both my father and myself. I
recollect when he was President of the Medical Society
I had charge of the musical arrangements at the annual
dinner. It was just about the time when Cleopatra's
Needle had been brought to London (1877) that I
sang a topical verse apropos of this, much to his
approval.
Sir Benjamin Ward Richardson was a staunch
friend of mine, and he supported me in more ways
than one in fighting that popular questions should
receive their proper recognition. He was, like myself,
one who had the courage of his opinions, and was not
afraid to come forward in the open, as was seen in
his views on " Hygeia," which were freely circulated
and quoted far and wide. Richardson was one of
the pioneers of the tricycle, and he had a dummy one
in his room on which he used often to exercise himself.
It was all very well in its way, but a poor apology for
the real thing.
Talking of Benjamin Ward Richardson reminds me
of an incident of an amusing nature. He was presid-
ing at the annual Shakespearean banquet of the Urban
Club. I had received an invitation to attend the
same, and during dinner Richardson sent a note to
356 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
me to propose the toast of " Success to the Fine Arts."
I was a little bewildered, as I was not in a position,
from an imperfect knowledge of the subject, to do
justice to the toast. I looked round the festive board,
and, beyond seeing the illustrious George Cruikshanks,
I failed to recognise any distinguished persons who
might have been said to have earned immortal fame in
the Fine Arts. Most of the guests were of a literary
turn of mind, the dinner being of that type, and not
of an artistic nature. I had noticed that immediately
opposite to me was a very irascible, peevish, old
gentleman, with very long hair, who had gone through
many a battle with an unfortunate waiter during the
repast. He was evidently of foreign extraction. I
had been on friendly terms with my neighbour, and I
asked him if he could enlighten me as to any especially
distinguished guests in the Fine Art line. He
whispered that the irate old gentleman opposite me
was, as I understood him to say, a very illustrious
German painter of a name something like Herr
Golopsky. This seemed to be sufficient for my purpose.
I arose to address the company when named by the
toast-master. I said in the course of my speech, that
" in an assembly like the present, when we could boast
of the presence of the illustrious George Cruikshanks
as representing English Fine Art, and the world-
renowned Herr Golopsky as representing Continental
painting, whose pictures adorned most of the foreign
galleries, that no words of mine were necessary to
further dilate on the subject " when I was suddenly
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 357
stopped by my friend opposite, who, rising, said in
very broken English, but in a subdued, angry tone of
voice : " I am not a painter ; I am a sculptor ! " I
made up my mind that never again would I consent
to propose a toast on a subject of which I was in perfect
ignorance.
I was once asked at a public dinner to propose
" The House of Commons." This was another matter
of which I knew absolutely nothing. I said that I
thought the reason why the toast had devolved itself
upon me was the fact that I was an unbiassed orator,
inasmuch as I had never read a political speech in my
life, neither had I ever heard one delivered. My father
had been offered two safe seats many years ago ; but
so far as I was concerned, I have never in any way
mixed myself up with or taken the slightest interest in
politics of any description. I have always regarded
politics as simply a question of self-glorification on the
part of members. If my life depended upon it I could
not tell you the difference between a Liberal and a
Conservative ; and I am sure I do not care — it matters
not to me. All that I can say is, that Parliament
seems to be made up of one continuous quarrel and
duel between two parties, to the exclusion of every-
thing else of vital and public importance. This is how
I should define Parliament.
The Right Hon. Robert Farquharson, late M.P. for
West Aberdeenshire, who was an intimate friend of
my family for many years, and when he was attached
to the Coldstream Guards, as surgeon, used to
358 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
spend a great deal of his time at our house, once told
me, in discussing the question of medical men entering
Parliament, that if a doctor chose to do this he must at
once give up his medical career, as the two were in-
compatible ; and so, I should think, hence the un-
desirability of any of my own profession wasting their
time by dabbling in its intricacies, its absurdities, and
its jealousies.
Then I remember old Dr J. M. Winn, a valiant
fighter for what was right and good. He was a great
opposer of the materialistic school, and fought a great
battle against the views of Professor Tyndall, Herbert
Spencer, Huxley, and others. Dr Winn was appar-
ently so obsessed by the very mention of the name of
Professor Tyndall, with whom he was in bitter an-
tagonism so far as his materialistic views were con-
cerned, that I am reminded of a rather amusing
incident relating to this. One day I had called Dr
Winn into consultation with reference to a young
Cambridge student of the same name as Tyndall, but
spelt in a different manner. Dr Winn had examined
the young man in my study whilst I was occupied in
the drawing-room in discussing the case with the father
of the patient. Suddenly Dr Winn burst into the
drawing-room exclaiming, " I have given Tyndall such
a doing he will never recover from ; I have floored him
without any shadow of a doubt." I was dreadfully
perplexed and horrified at this, as the father of my
patient naturally imagined that his own son had been
" floored," and it was with difficulty I quieted Dr
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 359
Winn and convinced the father that the gentleman
" floored " was not really his own son, but a distin-
guished professor of the same name with whom Dr
Winn was in antagonism.
In 1877 ne was requested by the Victoria Institute,
which is a society only second to the Royal, to read
a paper on " Materialistic Physiology." His mind was
completely absorbed in this matter for weeks and weeks
before the lecture was to be delivered. He used to
call upon me at all hours and read me extracts of his
paper. On one occasion he remarked to me, " Ah !
at 2 a.m. I had a brain wave. I got up and I wrote
as follows : ' But it is not by club phrases, sophistical
arguments, and ad captandum rhetoric that this new
system can be circulated, and it may be held that ere
long materialistic physiology will be sent to that
limbo which already engulfed so many systems of false
philosophy." Dr Winn condemned all the present
school of free-thinkers, which I in every way agreed
with, and I do not think that anyone could have been
more energetic and emphatic than he was during the
latter part of his life in agitating on this subject.
The eventful night arrived for the lecture. I think
that if I had been called upon to deliver the same
address I should have experienced no difficulty in so
doing ; this was from the fact that I had heard it and
discussed it so often with Dr Winn that I was nearly
word-perfect.
Dr Winn had requested me to go on in advance to
the hall to see that all the necessary arrangements
360 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
were satisfactory, and I awaited his arrival in the
vestibule. I shall never forget that night. It snowed
heavily, but, notwithstanding the condition of the
outside elements, guests continued to arrive, eager to
hear the views of Dr Winn in opposition to the
materialistic theology, if such an expression can be
used. Some of the guests were conspicuous by their
long hair, which in those days was a mark of highly
scientific origin, and was a passport into any scientific
discussion. Some of these long-haired gentlemen, as
they arrived on the scene, shook off the snow from
their hoary locks and outer garments. One old
professor, whom I never thought would have turned
out on such a night, exclaimed with a shiver : " Oh,
what a dreadful night ! If it had not been for the
great interest I have anticipated in hearing Dr Winn's
paper, I should never have ventured out." This was
a weird old man with sallow cheeks and prominent
malar-bones.
Eight o'clock struck, the time for the lecture, but
alas ! Dr Winn had not put in an appearance ; when
suddenly Dr Winn rushed upstairs, throwing his
hands about in a frantic state, and, seeing me, gave
vent to his feelings, exclaiming : " Oh, for the fruit
of my brain ! Oh, for the work of my lifetime !
I have left my lecture in a hansom cab, and, what
added insult to injury, I ran after the wrong cabman
by mistake and stopped him, and he demanded his
fare." By this time he had regained his breath, and
I told him that this was a most terrible calamity, and
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 361
that so many people had come, not only at great
inconvenience to themselves, but with the danger of
pneumonia staring them in the face, to listen to his
lecture. Indeed, I said I thought I saw some already
with one foot in the grave.
" What shall I do ? " replied poor Dr Winn.
" Never mind," I said ; "I will stand by you.
You tell them exactly all you remember of your paper,
and what you forget I shall no doubt supply." I had
entered my name down among the visitors at the
meeting, and as soon as he got through his task —
which he did in a very able manner, though leaving
out some of the most important and salient facts
which I made a mental note of — I was called upon to
address the meeting. It seemed rather an unkind
thing to do, but I could not let the opportunity slip
of expressing my astonishment to the meeting that so
eloquent an address should not have contained certain
facts, which I then began to place before them, but
which were originally in Dr Winn's paper. After the
meeting — which passed off very well, a learned dis-
cussion having taken place on the subject — Dr Winn
and myself left the hall together. He was more then
satisfied with the result of his efforts, and also thankful
to me for having drawn the attention of the meeting
to the important part of his address, which he had
forgotten. The original paper turned up ultimately
at the lost-property office in Scotland Yard, and was
published by me in extenso in the Psychological
Journal in 1877, of which I was then the editor.
362 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
Dr Winn lived till over ninety, and was the oldest
member of the Royal College of Physicians. He was
certainly a staunch fighter against the materialistic
doctrine of the day, then more prevalent than it is at
the present time.
In 1877, on the application of Mr Dillwyn, M.P.,
a Lunacy Committee was granted to inquire into the
working of the Lunacy Law of 1845, then existing.
I gave evidence before this Committee, consisting
of fifteen members ; and the result was the issue of
a voluminous report of 582 pages, containing 11,645
different questions and answers of sixty-three different
witnesses. I had seen an advance copy, which en-
abled me to publish an article in the Psychological
Journal entitled " Ex nihilo nihil fit."
Amongst the witnesses were motley groups of Lunacy
Commissioners, ex-lunatics, titled nonentities, and
other people of equal importance. Every imagin-
able form of complaint was ventilated, and many
extravagant theories were raised, whilst plenty of
opportunities were given for those who had a grievance
to air the same.
It was the only Parliamentary Committee I have
ever attended, and I was not very much impressed
by the sanctity of its surroundings. The result of
this wonderful inquiry led to absolutely nothing ;
much public money was expended in printing and
much time wasted in attendance at the same ; for
it was not until thirteen years afterwards that the new
Lunacy Act of 1890 was passed by Parliament.
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 363
It was like all Parliamentary Committees : it was
called together in order to stop public agitation and
the mouths of those who felt that they had a public
grievance, either in imagination or reality. The
Parliamentary Committee was appointed with a view
of staying the hands of the agitators. I spent many
afternoons of amusement listening to the witnesses
and observing the lamentable ignorance of the members
who formed the Select Committee.
Some distinguished witnesses were heard, amongst
whom I would include Sir James Crichton-Browne
and Mr Charles Palmer Percival, secretary to the
Commissioners in Lunacy, by whom some sense,
discrimination, and direct wisdom were brought to
bear on the subject.
After having given my evidence and listened to the
evidence of others, I arrived at one conclusion — that
the whole thing was a farce from beginning to end ;
and since then every justification for my conclusion
has been arrived at.
In 1897 I met a great personality in Lombroso.
I had been summoned to Milan to see a lady suffering
from a form of mental disease called " folie de doute."
I decided, as I was so near, to ask Lombroso to see the
patient in consultation with myself. I accompanied
the patient to Turin. Lombroso was a wonderful man.
I dined with him, and had the benefit of several con-
ferences with him. He had a magnificent museum
of criminology, which he was much interested in
describing to me. He was the first scientist to bring
364 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
to my knowledge the wonderful power of suggestion
in combating nervous disorders. He allowed me to
dedicate my work, then in the press, Mad Humanity,
to him. He acknowledged the dedication in the
following words :
" J'accepte avec une grande satisfaction, de Her
mon nom au votre, bien connu depuis un siecle par
vous et par celui de votre pere, qui premier a inspire
mes pas dans la psychiatric et dans la pathologic,
ou vous avez laisse des traces si profondes.
" (Signe) CESARE LOMBROSO.
"9 Mars 1898."
On his last visit to England he was staying in the
Isle of Wight, and asked me to be his guest whilst
there. On his return to Italy he brought out his
latest work, which he did not live to complete. There
was very much in common between Lombroso and
myself ; we were both students of crime. His works
on Criminal Man and Criminal Woman are standard
books.
He presented me with a copy of his private Atlas
on Criminology, which I value very much. He had
a wonderful personality. He was a kind-hearted man,
though he was dreaded by students when undergoing
examinations for their degrees at the University of
Turin, in consequence of his manner not being properly
understood, which frightened the timid examinee ;
but behind his brusque demeanour was a capacious,
kind heart, and a mind open to conviction.
He would say to the student with a small and badly
formed head : " You have mistaken your calling '•
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 365
you are a degenerate." To another he would say :
" From the formation of your head, you are an
epileptic." Whilst to a third he would remark :
" From your general aspect, demeanour, and sly
appearance, you are a moral pervert." Unless the
students agreed with all Lombroso said, they were
sure to be plucked. One doctor of medicine at Turin,
who had gone through the ordeal, told me about this.
My reflections during forty years of my literary
labour cause me a certain amount of wonderment
how I could have gone through so much. In
addition to being the author of many articles bearing
on my own speciality, which have been published in
many of the leading magazines in England and
America, I have granted interviews on every subject
of public interest in which my opinion would carry
weight. I am not alone in this, however, I am glad
to say, for other medical authorities have done the
same. I always have contended that if anyone has
a special knowledge of a subject of public interest,
there is no reason why it should be kept to himself.
I do not agree with discussing medical subjects in the
lay papers. The interest of such cannot be one for the
public. Psychological matters however are different.
I have kept a tabulated list of my various interviews
which gives me plenty of scope for reflection.
During forty years I have published the following
works : — Manual of Lunacy, Mad Humanity, Eccen-
tricity of Youth leading to Crime, Fasting and Feeding,
Aids to Insanity, Uncontrollable Drunkenness, Hand-
366 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
book for the Attendants on the Insane, A Lunacy
Chart, Spiritualistic Madness. This latter was pub-
lished in my early days, and I had a hard battle to
fight in consequence of my views. Lombroso and
myself both entertained the same opinion as to
Spiritualism. We both changed our views, however.
I also wrote a Codified Epitome of the Lunacy Laws
in England, which was published in French for one
of their standard legal works. My father was editor
of the Journal of Psychological Medicine for sixteen
years, having started it in 1848. I was editor of the
same for eight years from 1875. My most recent
book is The Suggestive Power of Hypnotism.
I knew the Earl of Shaftesbury very well, and it
was in 1884, by his request, that a deputation of the
School Board waited upon me to ask me if I would
move a resolution on the over-pressure going on in
the elementary schools. I had been writing a good
deal on the subject and making investigations, and
it was no doubt in consequence of this that I was
requested to move the resolution. The meeting was
held at Exeter Hall on 24th March, and five thousand
people were present. It was of interest to me from
the fact that it was the last meeting at which Lord
Shaftesbury presided. My resolution was : " That
in the opinion of this meeting a serious amount of
over-pressure, injurious to the health and education
of the people, exists in the public elementary schools
of the country, and demands the continued and
serious attention of her Majesty's Government ; and
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 367
that this meeting, while cordially recognising the
earnest efforts of Mr Mundella, the Vice-President
of the Council, to remedy the evil complained of,
believes that the recent changes in the Education
Code may alleviate but will not remove this over-
pressure."
My resolution was seconded by Mr Stanley Leighton,
M.P., and was carried unanimously. It was then for-
warded to the Prime Minister and the President of the
Council. Dr James Crichton-Browne (as he then was)
was authorised to investigate the facts as stated by
myself and others, and to consider the whole question
of over-pressure ; and his report was so exhaustive
and so conclusive that, as a result, he received a
knighthood ; and there was never one in my opinion
more richly deserved — or bestowed upon a more
worthy recipient.
Among some of the principal barristers, now dead
and gone, I might mention Serjeant Parry (who was
the Charles Russell of his day), Ballantine, Edwin
James, Montagu Williams, and Douglas Straight ; all
of these I knew intimately. I shall never forget an
important consultation which took place between
Serjeant Ballantine, my father, and myself, with
reference to the examination of a witness moving
in high circles of society, in a divorce case of a lady
of title, which at the time created a great deal of
excitement in London. The question was whether
Serjeant Ballantine should cross-examine the said
witness or leave him alone. The conference took
368 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
place at Evans's Supper-rooms in Covent Garden,
which in those days was often the meeting-place for
personalities to assemble. Ballantine decided he
would ask no questions. I attended the court the
following day, and he carried out faithfully the
arrangements agreed upon.
With regard to Edwin James, he had the largest
practice in London. He was imprudent, however,
and, being disbarred, left England for America,
where he enjoyed a good practice, returning to
England subsequently.
The first case I ever heard him cross-examine in
was a commission in lunacy in which my uncle was
the Master. Some timid medical man had been
quavering under his cross-examination, when Edwin
James asked him how it was he had made an affidavit
that he had retired from practice. The doctor replied
in a trembling voice, " This was a mistake." Edwin
James, equal to the occasion answered : " Now,
doctor, it is one of two things : either you have
retired from practice or practice has retired from
you. Which is it ? "
Nearly every important and sensational case of
interest, during the epoch in which Edwin James
reigned supreme in the law courts, he figured in.
Poor Edwin James ! I can see him now, calling upon
me in London a few years before he died, a dejected
and unhappy man. His wife had taken a bonnet-
shop in Bond Street, and he had become a sort of
private detective, and had called to consult me upon
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 369
a certain lunacy matter in which he was interested.
The only thing which reminded me of the great
advocate of yore was an old snuff-box, which he
still carried with him, and which he used continually
whilst in my presence.
Montagu Williams had a great criminal practice.
I recollect one celebrated case, in which a Wiltshire
magistrate was prosecuted for sending a postcard to
a lady of title, addressed to her husband, who was a
member of the Turf Club. The defence was that he
had so narcotised his brain by taking a large quantity
of zoedone as to render him irresponsible. This was
an anti-alcoholic drink, which came into existence at
the time. I remember a consultation was arranged
between Sir John Holker, Montagu Williams, and my-
self, as to the way of procedure. I was convinced that
the man was suffering from temporary insanity caused
by this fluid which he had taken, and that the best
thing to do would be to plead guilty and then put in
a plea of temporary insanity. Montagu Williams
argued that it could not be done. I said otherwise,
and gave cases to illustrate what I was saying. My
plan was adopted, and a verdict according to my
testimony followed, and he was handed over to his
friends. I was associated with another doctor at the
time in this case, who was rather a theorist and
localiser of cerebral centres. He told me that he
was going to explain to the jury the part of the brain
which was affected by zoedone. I advised him to
abstain from this as the question before the court
24
370 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
would be whether he was of sound or unsound mind
at the time he committed the libel. I am not
at all certain whether my confrere was given the
opportunity of airing his views as to the action of
zoedone on the brain centres before the jury ; but
I think not.
I cannot allow these reminiscences to close without
chronicling my affectionate reflections with reference
to my late revered father.
My father received the great distinction of the
honorary degree of D.C.L. from the University of
Oxford. I believe he was the only English physician
of his day who had that honour. It is the highest
distinction that can be obtained by anybody. Besides
this he had many other offers of still further distinction,
which he declined. He was thus honoured for his
investigations and researches in psychological medi-
cine, which placed him on the top of the pinnacle
of fame of any medical man of his time in that
speciality.
My father, following in the steps of Pinel and the
Tukes of York, was, with the late Dr Conolly, one
of the first to systematise a gentle, persuasive, and
loving treatment of the insane, who had hitherto
been regarded in the light of wild beasts to be curbed
and restrained by bolts, bars, and keepers' whips,
rather than as human beings, fallen indeed from their
high estate, but amenable to tenderness and judicious
kindness.
He it was who created the science of psychology,
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 371
and gave to it a local habitation and a name, at least
so far as this country is concerned. He was the first
physician who urged the plea of insanity in criminal
cases ; a plea which has outlived the assaults of
popular prejudice and ignorance, and which is now
accepted as valid in the courts of law. He likewise
contributed largely to the literature of his country,
his magnum opus, The Obscure Diseases of the Brain
and Mind, being one of the scientific classics of the
English language.
These achievements, combined with his successful
ministry to the " mind diseased," and his unvarying
kindness, generosity, and deep religious feeling, have
earned for him a world-wide reputation — a reputation
which, I confidently predict, will shine with purer
and clearer lustre as time allows of full justice being
done to the great work he has accomplished.
He wrote the first book on suicide published in the
English language ; the object of this work was the
abolition of the verdict of felo-de-se. It was at the
trial of Macnaughten (1845) for the murder of Mr
Drummond, who was shot in mistake for Robert Peel,
in which my father may be said to have made his first
success in a law court. He was in attendance in court
as a spectator, and was asked by the judge to enter
the witness-box. Previous to this he had been writing
a number of articles on insanity in criminal cases.
The case was stopped after his evidence, and from
that date he became an authority in all criminal-
lunacy cases.
372 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
With regard to the subject which I have often
alluded to in my book, where a popular case has not
received proper recognition from the jury, and where
the Treasury are eager for a conviction ; and as a con-
sequence the prisoner has not obtained a proper
hearing, the same was in existence in his days.
Talking about the evidence of a medical expert using
his best endeavours on behalf of a poor, wretched man on
his trial, whom he believes to be irresponsible, he says : —
" A man commits a murder. He is tried for the
crime. The plea of insanity is raised in his defence,
upon what is conceived to be sound evidence of the
existence of mental derangement at the time of the
murder. The attempt thus made to protect the
criminal immediately rouses public indignation. Such
an excuse is not in many instances listened to, and the
unfortunate medical witnesses who have been called
upon to exercise an important and often thankless
duty, in support of the plea, are exposed, for giving
an honest expression of opinion, to the most un-
measured ridicule and vituperation. In defending
the memory of the suicide from the disgrace that
would accompany a verdict of felo-de-se the evidence
of the medical man proving insanity is regarded with
great respect, and treated with profound deference ;
but in his efforts to save a lunatic from the agonies
of a painful death upon the scaffold, on evidence that
was adduced before the previously mentioned court,
the expert is exposed to unmitigated abuse. Instead
of being considered as an angel of mercy engaged in
the exercise of a holy and righteous mission, he is
viewed with suspicion, and often treated with contumely
as if he were attempting to sacrifice instead of to save
human life.
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 373
" Again, the attempt to prove sanity and mental
capacity at a commission in lunacy, with the object
of preserving intact the liberty of the subject, and
establishing his right to an unfettered management
of his property, is applauded to the very echo ; but
any endeavour to excuse, on the plea of insanity, the
crime of some unhappy wretch alleged to be an irre-
sponsible lunatic, in order to rescue him from penal
servitude or from the hands of the executioner, is
denounced in unqualified language as a most monstrous,
unjustifiable, and iniquitous interference with the
course of justice. The excuse of insanity will not,
in many cases, under these circumstances, be tolerated
by a portion" of the press. The public mind is violently
shocked at the commission of a horrible and brutal
murder. The act is viewed as one of great and bar-
barous atrocity, apart altogether from its concomitant
extenuating medico-psychological considerations. The
cry is raised for vengeance ! The shout is, ' An eye
for an eye ! a tooth for a tooth ! blood for blood ! '
— forgetting, in the paroxysm of indignant emotion
and frenzy of excited feeling engendered by the
contemplation of a dreadful violation of the majesty
of the law, that justice must be tempered with that
divine mercy which sanctifies and enshrines
' The throned monarch better than his crown,
And is the attribute of God himself.' "
I was associated with my father for many years
before his death, as I have previously mentioned.
His works live after him. It was in March in the year
1874 that he succumbed to Bright 's disease at Brighton,
having earned for himself an imperishable memorial
in the love and gratitude of his countrymen, having
acted up to the spirit of those memorable words with
374 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
which he concludes his great work : " The spirit of
love, tender sympathy, Christian benevolence, un-
wearying kindness, and warm affection should influence
every thought, look, and action of those engaged in
the responsible treatment of the insane. It is the
special province of the psychological physician to
' Fetter strong madness in a silken thread,
Charm ache with air, and agony with words.'
What a holy, honourable, and sacred occupation is
that in which he has the privilege of being engaged !
Angelic spirits might well envy him the ennobling
and exalted pleasures incidental to his mission of
benevolence and love."
It was always my father's wish to establish a hospital
for mental disorders where the poor could be treated
as out-patients, to give them an opportunity of
recovering without the necessity of being placed in
lunatic asylums. I was determined to carry out this
plan, and in 1890, unaided, I established a hospital
in London. It is called " The British Hospital for
Mental Disorders," Forbes Winslow Memorial, at
which there have been 60,000 attendances already
registered; thus showing the need of it. Four physicians
are attached to it. Of course, it has been the means
of creating a certain amount of professional jealousy,
but at the same time I let those scowl and sneer as they
like, I care not. The fact remains the same, that
the hospital has done and is doing an enormous amount
of good. It is well to do something in the world, so
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 375
that when you leave it you may feel that your efforts
have not been in vain. Let those who sneer attempt
to do likewise before they dare to sit in judgment upon
others.
I remember shortly before my father died he said
to me, " Thank God, I can lay my head on my pillow
and say that I have not been in any way instrumental
in hurling a fellow-creature into eternity." In other
words, what he meant to imply was that, should he
have been called upon to testify in a case in which his
opinion was adverse to a prisoner charged with murder,
and consequently responsible for his acts, he would
ask permission to withdraw from the case. He would
not let it be said that the death of any human being
could be placed indirectly at his door. I am pleased
to be able to say the same has existed so far as I am
concerned.
There are a certain number of hard-hearted people
in the world who would condemn anyone to death,
and the next hour would go and enjoy themselves as
if nothing had happened. Of course many cruel
crimes have been committed, but in every case where
the sanity of the individual has been in question, in
which I have been called in, there always has been,
in my opinion, a loop-hole to enable the authorities
to temper justice with mercy. I could be more em-
phatic and more personal, did I care, on this subject.
So far as I am concerned, I have never feared anybody
in the whole world, and I am sure I never shall. It
is the independent position I have taken up which
376 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
leads me to be able to chronicle my forty years'
experiences without any apprehension or dread, and
with the consciousness that it is the personal experience
of one who, through life, has had the courage of his
opinions and convictions, and who has acted according
to these principles.
On comparing the human race during the past
forty years I have no hesitation in stating that it
has degenerated and is still progressing in a down-
ward direction. It is not difficult to account for this.
The youths of the present age are much more insipid
than formerly, less manly, and insufficiently developed.
Cigarette-smoking in excess has a good deal to do
with this, whilst also alcoholic indulgence has much
increased of late. Many of these aborted youths are
the progeny of parents who are, on the one side or
the other, addicted to this, or are the victims of
secret drug-drinking. Just as alcoholic excess is the
cause of more than twenty-five per cent, of the insanity
in the whole world, so must it be the absolute cause
for the degeneration in many of those whose parents
have become so addicted. Where are the manly
broad-shouldered youths who could be seen forty
years ago ? They are few and far between. They
have been displaced by a narrow, limp, badly formed,
weak young man, slouching along the street with
that cursed cigarette never out of his mouth. Let
us compare, as an example, the pavilion of Lords in
1870 on a great match day with what is seen to-day.
The ordinary healthy, fine-looking youth, smoking
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 377
his pipe in the enjoyment of perfect health, has been
displaced by the puny, half-developed, degenerate
youth, weak in mind as well as weak in body. A
pipe in the morning and one at night used to suffice ;
now the cigarette, poisonous in its nature, is never
out of the mouth.
We are gradually approaching, with the decadence
of youth, a near proximity to a nation of madmen.
By comparing the lunacy statistics of 1869 with those
of 1909, forty decades having intervened. The
statistics being so taken, my reflections are sad
indeed. A terrible but real curse is in store, and
an insane world is looked forward to by me with a
certainty in the not far distant future.
In 1869, out of a population of 22,223,299 there
were 53,177 registered lunatics in England and Wales,
there being one lunatic in every 418 of the total
population ; whereas, in 1909, out of a population
°f 35»756,6i5, the number of registered lunatics was
128,787, making on an average one lunatic in every
278 of the population. So that in forty years an
enormous increase in lunacy is seen. Every year
this increase progresses, and by a simple arithmetical
calculation it can be shown the exact year when
there will be more insane persons in the world than
sane.
Surely a dreadful future for nations still unborn
to have to cope with. These are facts, and sad
to reflect upon. They must be accepted ; they
cannot in any way be challenged. In addition to
378 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
alcoholic excess, and cigarette-smoking, I place the
marriage of degenerate youths, of whom the world
is full, as also among the principal causes. Strong
athletes are few and far between nowadays. Let the
present race grasp these facts. Let them analyse
these, and they will find I am not far wrong in what
I state. And yet it is sad for me to reflect that,
notwithstanding all the advances made in the treat-
ment of the insane in the past forty years, neverthe-
less circumstances which ought to be controlled, and
which amount to actual suicide, are causing an
increase, not a decrease, in lunacy.
This book would not be complete without some sort
of reference to the Lord Chancellor, under whose juris-
diction all lunatics are placed, and to whom is issued
the annual report of the Commissioners in Lunacy,
as being the official year-book of the Commissioners,
who owe their actual position to the said Lord
Chancellor, and who apparently is supposed to
exert his personal jurisdiction in all matters per-
taining to the condition of the insane in England
and Wales.
Though it is graphically immortalised in Gilbert and
Sullivan's lolanthe what the varied duties of a Lord
Chancellor are, it has not, so far as I can recollect, been
therein stated that he is the legal guardian of all persons
of unsound mind. He has the nomination of every
appointment connected with the care and supervision
of lunatics. I allude to the official appointments of
Masters in Lunacy, Commissioners in Lunacy, and
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 379
Lord Chancellor's Visitors of Lunatics. The power of
his name and his authority reign supreme, and he is
mentioned in official documents, though of course he
is probably in ignorance of the actual case of any one
person who is confined under his jurisdiction. Lord
Lyndhurst, a near relation of my family, who died in
1863, was four times Lord Chancellor. He was a
distinguished man, and kind to his relations. My
father's brother, who became his secretary, obtained
the appointment of Master in Lunacy, and other
members of the same family also participated in his
generosity. Lord Halsbury, as plain Mr Hardinge
Giffard, was a great friend of my father, and I also
knew him intimately, though my best acquaintance
with him was when I used to wince under his severe
cross-examination. The present Lord Chancellor,
Lord Loreburn, I knew well as Bobby Reid. He used
to keep wicket for Oxford University, and many
matches in the early seventies I have played with him
for the Incogniti Cricket Club, of which I held the best
bowling analysis at the time. I always regarded
Bobby Reid with a certain amount of awe and
reverence, whether from the fact that he used to
look severely at me for my repeated wides, or
whether I always considered him as one beyond
the comprehension of my mental capacity, I cannot
say. However, I always was under an impression,
which has now been realised, that in the person
of the great wicket-keeper of that time was one
destined to become great in whatever calling he
380 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
entered into. The justification of my impressions has
come true.
The late King, when Prince of Wales, had a narrow
escape from assassination at the hands of a madman
named Sipido at the Brussels station. Luckily, no
harm came of the escapade. Facts were brought to
my knowledge, and I issued a report to the authorities
which showed clearly and convincingly that Sipido
was a lunatic. He was not treated as a criminal, as a
consequence, but as a lunatic. He was detained for
some years and liberated about two years ago. I was
subsequently in personal communication with his
late Majesty on this matter, as to the inadvisability of
this proceeding, and as a consequence, after personal
interviews at the Home Office and Foreign Office,
representations were made on my advice as to the
safe-keeping of Sipido, and the danger of allowing a
homicidal lunatic from being at large. I understand
that the report furnished by me to the English author-
ities was sent to Belgium. I considered that, as the
general opinion is that homicidal insanity is never
curable in England, and those who have suffered
from such are generally taken care of for their natural
lives, the same might be said in Sipido's case. I
believe my advice was followed out, so that steps
were taken to prevent a repetition of Sipido's dastardly
attack, which was made in 1899.
My task is now completed. There are certain
matters upon which my pen has been burning to
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 381
write ; my discretion perhaps prevents this. It
partly refers to the unchristianity existing among a
certain number of nonentities in the world, who are
always ready to pronounce judgment on matters with
an imperfect knowledge of the truth. It is not a
case of " Audi alteram partem " with many. Let
them pass along, let them pass by ; I care not.
" Judge not, that ye be not judged," I would remark
to them.
A public personage is always liable to miscon-
ception. This especially refers to those who have
tried to do their duty, surrounded by difficulty
at times. Jealousies will arise, and then the so-
called " would-be judges," themselves so pure, so
immaculate, will often step in and, casting their
eyes up to Heaven, will shrug their shoulders. In
this jealous and unjust world of ours, deficient in
Christian sympathy, everyone has to try to hold his
own, conscious of the fact that " to err is human, to
forgive divine ! " I would impress this very much
on many of those whom I know, who may be reading
what I am now saying, and who will find the cap fits.
I speak with the absolute power of my own knowledge
and convictions, and from what I know to be a fact.
What I have just said, I regret to say, especially refers
to some members of my own profession. I desire to be
most emphatic upon this matter. Before anyone
dares to judge another, let him make himself master
of the situation and not be prejudiced by only hearing
one side.
Misfortune, the result of non-compliance with the
Lunacy Act, is apt to occur with those who dabble in
its intricacies. If a man commits an irregularity in
an unfortunate non-compliance with any Parliamen-
tary Act, he must bear the consequences of his im-
prudence. It ought not to be in the hands of anyone
to show favour, or to decide who is to be proceeded
against or who is to be left alone.
The Lunacy Act of 1845 was so obscure and incom-
prehensible that it was impossible to construe its real
meaning. The interpretation of certain sections con-
tained in it came before various judges on a memorable
occasion, in which I was concerned. One gave one
opinion, another a different one, whilst a third varied
from the two others ; in fact, the density of the Act
was of such a nature that no one was safe who was in
any way called upon to put its enactments into opera-
tion. I was a victim to this, and as a consequence
the Act of 1890 was passed, the one which at the
present time is in existence. This is nearly as dense
and confusing as the other, and, as I said once when
discussing the matter publicly, " It is generally stated
that a coach-and-four can be driven through any Act
of Parliament, but I affirm that the whole Coaching
Club could be driven through the present Lunacy Act."
I am not far wrong, as in a recent case, in which I was
interested, both the counsel for the prosecution and
defence openly stated in court that they did not know
the meaning of a certain section, which could be con-
strued in two different ways, provided stops were
REFLECTIONS DURING FORTY YEARS 383
inserted in the section. The presiding judge, now
gone to join the majority, confessed that, mirabile
dictu, even he was puzzled as to its meaning. I
mention this simply to illustrate how obscure is the
present Lunacy Law, which is supposed not only to
look after the interests of those alleged to be insane,
but also to protect those who have to put its sections
into operation.
At the present time the same chaos exists among
asylum committees and those officials who are called
upon to carry out the provisions of the Act. One
body overrules the other, and no one apparently
knows anything about its real construction.
A technical breach of the Lunacy Act is liable to be
.made every day by those engaged in lunacy responsi-
bilities. One escapes with a warning, whilst another,
especially should he be a big gun, has to answer for
anything he may have unconsciously and unwittingly
done. He is generally misjudged, and is prosecuted
with all the rigour of the law and with all the force
and power of money behind a Treasury prosecution.
This is not justice. The lesser luminaries get off with
a caution. It matters not, however. Jealousy is a
green-eyed monster, and it "is cruel as the grave ;
the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most
vehement flame."
I now put down my pen — at least, retire with my
bat to the pavilion of criticism, conscious of the fact
that I have striven to do my best, and also with the
knowledge that there is nothing in my professional
384 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS
career that I in any way regret. I have endeavoured
to do my duty, and I am thankful that, with all the
anxiety, trouble, unjust persecution, and at times
misjudgment, that I have passed through, I am never-
theless able to register a good old score of sixty-six,
not out.
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