WAS HE MAD?

NZ Truth, Issue 103, 8 June 1907, Page 5

WAS HE MAD?

DR. REID'S GRQBM.

A Frightful and Wicked Blunder.

A Sane Man Shut Up m Mount View Asylum,

The laws relating to lunacy are perhaps not known to every layman, but the knowledge is almost "universal m British communities that no man, suspected of insanity, can be committed to a lunatic asylum unless two reputable medical men certify to the fact of his insanity, and the reason for this is pretty obvious. To send an innocerit man to gaol is about the cruellest wrong society can do h*im(; because innocent or otherwise, there is no power existent that can ' remove the prison taint. Likewise, it can. also be assumed that to send a perfectly sane man to a lunatic asylum is to do him an injustice that canj never be remedied, and there are plenty /of oases on record where sane men and women have been shut up m liinajtic asylums, and there have (been reasons, base motives, they oan properly foe called, •aotuiatiin'e; tftose res-' pon«H>ie for the victim's incarceration. In ; ttoa story to be related by, "Truth," concerning the shutting up m Mt. .View Asylum of a supposed luna-fcic, this paper wants to maJce it plain, that jtbere have been no base or sordid motives underlying the action of the parties concerned. There have been blunders,

BIG, BLACK AND HIDEOUS BLUNDERS.

made, and) it is a (generally accepted trujsm iwyw-<a*days that a blunder is worse thai* a crime. Ev«o:yib.-ody m Wellington knows Dr. Macken., and, perhaps, everybody is aware that just at present that worthy medico is away on a holiday jaunt m his beloved ■ Emerald Isle, and perhaps those who know Dr. Macken have a knowledge, or are even acquainted with his groom and coachman, Dick Shields. People might know Dr. Maclean and his groom, but it is not at all likely that everybody kufcws the former's locum tenens, Dr. Reid), and it is concerning -his action m ' having Shields shut up m Mt. View Lunatic Asylum, under extraordinary! a/nd sus- 1 picious circumstances that thds paper proposes tjt> deal. Of Shields this much may !L.e sadd. He is a fairly deopnt and respectable young fellowi \vln used to drive Cardinal Moran about m Sydney, and it is not likely that that prelate would employ, anybody but a person df good ' char-, acter. Shields bears a Rood charaoter, and there are plenty m Wellington who can testify to the fact. But Shield's character hardly comes into the question. This much-, li'owever, may be, and must foe, said : Dr. Macketiv regard-ed Shields as a valuable and trustworthy servant, aitd it is leascnaib.!© I ' to expect' ttoait in fluandina; over his practice h r e baind-ed over the groom, -expecting! froth, the practice and the .groom, <fco he well oared for. Of Dr. Reid-'s observance of the former charge we have nought to say, ■ c* tine latter a great deal. He seems to have cared, root wis^lv, <toij. too well, for 'him> aircl- fiirnished iv hdiu oft by shuttaTus'h'im up m iuihatflc asy-' lum, under citcums-bamoes not at all creditable 1 to Dr. Reid as a professional man. In so many, words, it may 'be saaid' w that Dr. Reid, for reasons to he discussed later, certified that Shields was insane, and . here is what is the strangest part of it all, on AN UNCORROBORATED CERTIFICATE, . Shields was locked .up as a' "looney." This happened on or about April 6 last. Shields, as sane as" ever he was, or appeared to (be, was on. that ; day t-aiken awayi to Mt. View) by the police on Dr. McArbhur's order, and m -the Mt. View Asylum Shields was confined for a fortnight, more or less, when, sudden and strange as was.liife. removal, toe was < as suddenly. aiaiaV as straoigely released, amd there was not the least remark made that SMelds came out sacer tha-n when he went m If ajnytihing, lie oame' out a ' madder man, and who would not be, undei; such extraordinary circumstances. ? It was oruel m various ways, the cruellest beirog th'aiJDr. Reid' propos led to havie Shields shut up m the "ratrhouse" without first having acquainted his friends of his (Dr. Reid's) determination. Dr. ; Keid was BUbsoq'U'Qiitly 'taken to task over "tihis fact by one of Shield's., best and truest friends,, a-nid his reply was that he did hot know that SMelds 'bad any friends at all.- If that is true, why m tile name of all that is wonderful, did not Dr. Reid make enquiries and fimd out'? Oro ttoe afternoon of 'April 6, when th« order for his- removal was drawn out, Shields iiad spoken to and 'hjad; &ee»n- t&veral friends^ none of whom had noticed aTiytbi'ng irrational or strange m the "lunatic's" conduct, and it was only by an acoident-^the overhearing, of neighbors talk— that the wife of one of Shields' friends heard that he had been iemoved to the : lunatic asylum, and,, moreover, just to show how sensible a man Shields must be, when the officers executed tiie warrant, the groom was deeply engrossed m the CURRENT WEEK'S ISSUE OF "TRUTH." Now, it will 'be 'higjily interesting to learn from Dr. Reid, of course, providing that he knows), what constitutes insanity m a human 'beiiig •? According to the information given to us, Dr. Reid said that for four or five days previous to Saturday, !A>pril 6, Shields had acted strangely. On the ' Friday, there was an accident, white the doctor and,- Shields were out -driving-. Whether the fact that an accident occurred convinced Dr. Reid " Uiat Shields was insane is yebto be known. At any rate, a constable witnessprl the accident, aond his opinion is that Shields was not responsible, ' and that any other driver ''would not have been aible to save the horse from falling. Now, let the strange conduct be considered. Dr. Reid, m an interview with: Shields' friend, said that for the most part he formed the conclusion that the coachman was '-'dotty" because of the way he talked. Coachmen don't talk to .doctors when ou,t driving. Such would tend to lower the dignity c-f "Sawbones," and as Dr. . Macken was not so '.particular about Ivis digmi-ty m that respect, be, when out, encouraged the garrulous propensities oi bis fijr«em ( and Shields beina an

Hibernian, can flute faifly well- M ccurs to "Truth," and it will appeal to many of the public that* Shields thought • that being on spewing terms with Dr. Mackea, he could! yarn with his "makeshift." It was madness on Shields' part to take such a liberty, «tnd the fact that he talked, perhaps a 3*it< 000 much mi public, to a professional man, maghti be taken as a reason why Dr. Reddi thought that his driver was '"balmy,"' and h&vfrie thought so, bad ham re* moved to the Lunatic Asylum. The question of drink never seems ta have been taken into serious con-> sideration. The doctor never smelti it on the gKrom, but only heard 6fl it from the servants. What really! constituted insanity m Shields mosf} people acquainted i with the tnrth qfl the matter are at a loss to understand, and what is still far. worse Dr. Reid either will not, or can* not, GIVE ANY GOOD GROUNDS for certifying to his groom's- iasan* ity. Maybe it is a blunder pn the. young, doctor's part, but the stout* ting up m a lunatic asylum 'foiJT? ai fortnight is a blunder which, as,. wq have said* is wccse than a crdme,, and what "Truth" now wants ta know is 'bJow Dr. Reid came to seek)" a Magistrate's order for the man's removal without .first having con^ suited a brother practitioner, and' getting his certificate. This is more than any fcody. can understand. We are not too well intimate with the niceties .of the etiquette •of the medical profession, but it certainly) seems -that it would have been fan more; satisfactory if Dr.. Reid, con-* vinced that the groom was insane,, and anxious that the poor lellowj should receive the biest possiibaa treatment, should have left themat-« ter m the hands of other and lode* pendent practitioners, and have acted onjy on their certificate of thegroomfs dnsamity, or otherwisje. Im certifying that Shields was mad, on gcdng mad, and that he should be placed under observation tin an asylum, no other opinion- can be formed after knowing all, or nearly all',, of the 1 facts, than that Dr. Reid! made a mistake, a grievous mistake, and for which he to be ' badly kGeHiauled. Moreover, tbera is another funny • incident connected' With Shields' removal to the "rathouse," and that is the fact' thai; Constable Johnston .of Lambton Quay, certified that Shields had 1 "gone m the nut." Of course, this may only be a matter of prooeediure., Nevertheless; it is coming it a bit strong when ' a policeman, v.fco knows as mw<ch about insan- ■ ity • as he does of influenza or anything else m the medical biz, certifies that a man is "balmy," simply! because i)r. ReM gave his opinion: to that effect. Of course, if was ONLY DR." REID'S OPINION on the -matter, and that opinion does not seem' to he worth tlie paper it was written on. Shields' removal to Mt. View vn.fi, as said before, a bit sudden, and stranfie. too were the circumstances surrounding Ms release. ■ Shields' friends got nasty, and thfceatemd things, .anid 1 invoked legal assist>auc>L v . That assistance having fceen evoJcwl, little time was lost in ' ,efie.ctin-e; the alleged madman's release. This is pretty well everything: connected with this curious matter. ShidJa' fikn "s when .making enquiries at the Lam^.ton Quay Police Station "were *bold that the police knew Kothing' at all of the/ matter. Wonderful force— the police. Why on earth did. they not know, of it m iace <)f Constable Johnstons p.ath that Shields was insane? At other (fiiarters. the in-r formation supplied was of a very, meagre description. -and more tban one threat was made of briniino; the conduct of the people and , others under notice of the "Minister of Justice, Of course, Shields was glad to 'SeC out, aud wh«n Jiser got out Dr., Reid wanted; " .'to. re-employ Miri.. and Shields Was not having any oE it either, and he cannot le , blameri! for it. It is te fee hop-eel, anyhow that Dr. Reid will m future,, ere he sets out to shut up m :v lunatic asylum, what m his opinion: is a maldiniia'n, act m a more buspness-. like manai'er. He is ONLY A" YOUNG DOCTOR, . and ought to be more careful. Need-< less to say. anything: of a like na.-« ture ev«t occurring with him again.will not fee s« mildly treated as is this.v It has teen a blunder from beginning, "to the end, and such blunders aienerallf^ytpve costly affairs.