Happiness & Prosperity

NZ Truth, Issue 1204, 27 December 1928, Page 5

Happiness & Prosperity

IN the legal phraseology of the charge sheet, Tyrer was accused, before Magistrate Page, that on December 2, 1928, with intent to do grievous bodily harm to one Albert Edward Liddle, he did actual bodily harm to the ' said Albert Edward Liddle." Liddle's evidence was heard m the hospital ward of Porirua Mental Asylum, after he had submitted himself to examination by Dr. T. G. Gray, Inspector-general of the Mental Hospitals Department, and Dr. John Russell, his deputy, both of whom certified that Liddle had sufficient capacity to understand the nature of an oath and to give a consecutive story. Liddle said he was a single man, 52 years of age, and that he had been a pati en t-'at the' asylum since 1922. On Saturday, December ,1, he had said before a number of other inmates: "I am going to break a window tomorrow," and on the following morning, about twenty past or half- past 11, while he was m No. 3 courtyard, he hurled a piece of clay through an upper window. When, a few minutes later, Tyrer came into the .courtyard, he said .to Liddle: "I can't sleep m that room now, with the window broken. You ought to go m and clean it up. You ought to be made to clean up that glass. I'll make you." . Liddle says he had warned Tyrer that he was going to break a window, just as he had told others. Alleged Punching Tyrer then took Liddle by the arm, and a junior attendant named Quintal opened a door, through which they passed into the day room, thence through the two double glass doors into the corridor, and into the first bedroom on the left-hand side of the corridor. When the door was closed, Tyrer allegedly caught Liddle by the neck and the , coat, knocked his feet from under him, dealt him a stunning blow, and when he fell on to the floor, according to Liddle, kicked him several times m the small of the back, m the chest and the stomach. After seven or eight kicks, the senior attendant lifted Liddle to his feet, and then punched him under the jaw. Once or twice Liddle was, "out" for a few seconds, or, he- says, it may" have been minutes. .Liddle alleged that Tyrer threw him once again and knocked his head against the wall. Liddle says he defied Tyrer, who was so enraged that he jumped on the patient-victim's chest — Liddle says he danced on it — and commenced to kick him again. , Then he lifted Liddle to hia feet, saying: "Have you had enough?" to which Liddle replied, "Yes." •'' "You won't break another window?" queried the attendant, to which Liddle says he 1 replied "No," and that when he gave that answer Tyrer retorted : "You can break all the windows m the place, so long as you don't break mine." "At no dime when he was kicking

ininniiiuiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiMtiiiniuniiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinii miimm iiiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimniiiiiiiiiiiiiiitimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiliiimiiMiiiiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiii THE separation proceedings, brought by Mrs. Broughton on the grounds of her husband's cruelty and failure to maintain, were strenuously opposed by Broughton, who denied all his wife's allegations against him. When the, parties made their appearance m the Magistrate's Court, Miss Kirk and other officials and friends of the Women's Protection Society were m attendance. There were also present a number of ladies who had interested themselves m Mrs. Broughton. Broughton had as his legal guide, Liawyer Jack Scott,- while Mrs. Broughton's case was conducted by Lawyer O. C. Mazengai'b. When Mrs. Broughton married her husband, Lawyer Mazengarb told the court she knew he had been married before, but did not know he had been living 1 with his second wife for, some time before getting divorced from his first one. She did not know she was marrying a divorced man and ono. who had broken the seventh commandment. Mrs. Broughton was content to look after Broughton's four children by the second wife, but prior to the birth of her own child she had to put up with acts of cruelty on the part of Broughton. When counsel mentioned the unenviable experience Mrs. Broughton h;i(l suffered at the hands of her husband recently, and which was fully iiiirrnted m a recent issue of "N.Z. Truth," Lawyer Scott interjected: "T hut's right, bring m as much of this mutter as you can. You are only talking to the Press." Occasionally, when m drink, went on Lawyer Mazengarb, Broughton used to suffer from delirium treinens and on one occasion, just prior to the birth of her child, Mrs. Broughton had to lock her door against him. When the child was six months old Broughton left her with the four children of the previous marriage as weir as her own. Some time later Broughton filed proceedings m the Supreme Court for judicial separation and, strangely enough, based his petition on alleged cruelty by the wife. Mrs. Broughton took proceedings for maintenance m tho Magistrate's Court m June, 1927, and the Supreme Court action never came up for hearing, but was settled by Broughton paying the costs. Broughton was earning good money Wltfe a brewery firm, but he got into

me or striking me did I call out for help. It is no' use calling out for help, an d, although I was being kicked and struck Quintal did not interfere," added Liddle. "After being let out," went on Liddle, "I walked along the .verandah of No. 3 courtyard, where all the other patients were lined up waiting for dinner. I was , doubled with pain, and although I went into the dining-room with the others. I didn't have any dinner, as I couldn't, eat anything. "During dinner I got up from the table and spoke to an attendant named Hustler, who took me into the office. "Then the accused came into the office', and Hustler lifted my clothing, looked at my breast, and said: . 'There's something broken.' "The accused then looked at my chest and asked me how I did it, and whether I had fallen on the concrete, but . I didn't answer him.- " ( "Then he took me to the hospital, and on the way there he said to me: 'Play the game and say nothing about it,' so I replied, 'On my oath before God, I'll say nothing to the doctors.' "I have no ' ill-feeling or enmity against the accused, and I did not have a fight with any patient named George Vogt on that Sunday morning. , No other person hit or kicked me on Sunday morning. "I didn't call out for help, as none of the warders nor anyone else would have assisted me. Quintal didn't say anything at all. Tyrer has attacked scores of men, and dropped them on to the concrete. ..." Walter Paterson Quintal told the court that he had Deen employed as a junior attendant at ,the asylum for about thirteen months. Senior-attendant Struthers was m charge of No. 3 courtyard, and with him were attendants Armes, Worsley, Nelson and Quintal. During the morning: Dr. 1 Macky passed through the courtyard with deputy head attendant Brown, and when .they had passed through Liddle rose from his seat on the verandah, where he had been talking with Quintal, and moved m the direction of the doctor, as though he wished 'to say something to him. Suddenly, Liddle withdrew his hand from his pocket, and threw something at the window of attendant Tyrer's sleeping-room, >and broke it. About five or ten minutes later Tyrer came into the courtyard and asked Ljddle why he had broken the window, but the patient simply replied that he had just broken it, and that was all there was to say, or words to that effect. ' - ' ' When Tyrer told Liddle he would have to clean up the glass, Liddle said: "Certainly I will clean it up."' The two men, patient and attendant, then went across the courtyard to the door which leads mo the day room, and when Liddle had passed through, Tyrer shouted to the junior attendant to follow him. Quintal went over to where the senior attendant was, thinking that Tyrer wanted him to accompany Liddle while, he cleaned up the, mess. But Tyrer continued to' walk along 1 the corridor with them,, and when they reached the first dormitory door on the left, Tyrer opened" the door, pushed Liddle into the room, a small dormitory with three beds m it, and then in- j structed Quintal to close and lock the door. ..."•-■ "This is what you are going- to get for breaking my 'window," is the statement accredited to Tyrer by his junior officer, and with thut he allegedly commenced a fiendish attack with his feet upon the chest and stomach of the man who lay on the floor. Quintal says that after Tyrer had kicked Liddle on one side of the body, he turned him over and kicked- him on the other. When Quintal told Tyrer he had gone' far enough. Tyrer lifted Liddle to his feet and asked him if he

had enough, and when Liddle said he had, Tyrer gave him three terrific uppercuts beneath the jaw, felling him to the floor. » ' ' About a-quarter to one that afternoon, Quintal was sitting' on the lawn m front of the building, when Tyrer called him. He went over to Tyrer, who said to him: "I have got myself m a bit of a mess, and we have to stick together. I couldn't go up and say I deliberately kicked the man." "We will have to say that the patient Vogt and Liddle had a fight and whilst Liddle was clown Watt, anotner patient, kicked him." Attendants Struthers and Huckstepp were present at that conversation. Rule On Injuries Quintal says he agreed at the time that Tyrer couldn't say he kicked the man, and with'that the conversation ended, and Quintal returned to his seat on, the lawn! ■ , . Later, m the day Struthers relieved the junior attendant from duty on a small eminence .called the "Knob," from which attendants .keep watch on the whole of the patients m the courtyard, and told him. he was wanted m the office. At 'the office lie was asked to sign a form which" purported- to show how Liddle had received his injuries. It is a rule of the institution that when a patient suffers some injury, it must be shown clearly how that injury was received, and by whom the occurrence was' witnessed.,. In all, Quintal says, he signed three of these forms. One stated, "Patient says he fell on to the concrete," another purporting to show that a patient named Vogt received injuries while fighting with Liddle, and a third

detailed the hurts received by Vogt while fighting. The details incorporated m the three forms were inserted before Quintal arrived at Hustler's office, and although he had not witnessed any of the incidents related therein, he says he signed the statements, although he knew they were not true. He was on duty all that morning, and if there had been any fighting he would have witnessed it. He said he was certain that fighting had not taken place as indicated by the three forms. Lawyer Leicester <for Tyrer): What did Liddle do durng the five or ten minutes before the accused came out? Quintal: "He said 'I'll 'teach the doc.ors, for giving me black medicine'," Is it true that you and Liddle are particularly friendly? — We are on fairly good terms, seeing ■'r.hat he is a patient. Liddle tells me you are Just, like two brothers.. What would you say to that?— l wouldn't say that. Would it be that you arc more friendly towards Liddle than' towards other patients? — 7NO, I wouldn't say

. that, either. And yet you tell us that you stood m the room and watched Tyrer knock Liddle about! — Well* you see, I'm only a junior officer t o him. Do you still say that you stood m the roo m a n d watched Tyrer knock him about? — I do. And raised no hand m the patient's favor?; — I told Tyrer he had given him enough, but I made no other endeavor to stop him. Am I not right m saying that Liddle Is a man regarded as one of violent tempe r amc n t ? — No. It is more devilment. Do you know whether he is the type of man who inflicts injuries upon himself ?— Upon himself, yes; but nobody else. Do you say that this man offered no resistance whatsoever to this treatment? — No, none Whatever. And you yourself made no complaint afterwards ? — No. According to you, the certificate which says "The patient Liddle says he fell on to the concrete" lis untrue? — Yes. So far as I know, he didn't • fall on to the

You didn't see him fighting with Vost?— No, I didn't. Did you prior to to-day make a statement to the police that you saw a fight? — No. Did you make a statement to any of the doctors at the hospital? — Yes, to Dr. Hayes. And that was untrue? — Yes. Who wrote the body of the certificates relating: how . Vogt and Liddle received their injuries? — Hustler. Cnief -detective Ward: What is the black medicine Liddle referred to? — I wouldn't like to discuss the matter. Magistrate Page: You mean you don't know? — No. Have you been good friends with the accused? — Yes. • It was after Tyrer's suggestion that you should "stick together" that you I ; . . . . _ Bone Fractured made, the untrue statement to Dr. Hayes? — Yes, sir. Dr. J. C. D. Macky, assistant medical officer at the asylum, said -that he was passing aci-oas the courtyard of number three when he heard, the sound of ! breaking giass, and saw Liddle standing about ten or fifteen' yards away. About one o'clock on the same day, added Dr. Macky, he examined Liddle and discovered the man had sustained afracture of the breastbone, the lower fragment of which was over- riding the upper, although the bones had not penetrated the skin. The sixth and tenth ribs on the right side were fractured, and there was a contusion over the sight of the fracture of the tenth rib. As the injury to the breast-Done're-quired urgent attention it was not possible at the time to make a complete

examination, as it was imperative that the patient should not be moved more than necessary. In the doctor's opinion, the injuries from which Liddle suffered were quite consistent with his having been kicked. Previously Liddle had been an extremely fit man — big-framed, heavily built, of good muscular development, and his general, health had been good — and the medical man contended that Liddle was not injured at the time he threw the missile at the window. He could not have thrown a stone and broken a window while suffering- such injuries. - . ■■ The "black medicine" to which Liddle referred was a sleeping draught. Defending counsel: If Liddle made the statement that he punched himself on the nose and on the chest, would you regard that statement as true? — If he made it seriously, I would. You heard this mornings, that hewas harboring a grudge against the doctors, because they gave him "black medicine." I take it that certain types do bear grudges against doctors and warders ?— Yes. . . And that would amount to an obsession? — Yes. The chief-detective: You said, doctor, that if Liddle seriously said he hit himself m the chest and the eye, you would believe him/ What did you mean by that?— My experience of Liddle has been that he always keeps his word if, as I said before; his statement, is made seriously. Sometimes, of course, he passes facetious remarks, which obviously are incorrect. '. ; William Worsley, a single man and junior attendant at the asylum, before taking the oath mumbled something to the bench to the effect that he wished to deny what he had said to Detective-sergeant Thompson, who investigated, the , case. ■ ;■■ •-■ ' '■■■■■• It appears that he' told Thompson he had not seen a fight, at all, but as the result of something which senior' attendant Struthers said to , him, he went into Hustler's office and signed some forms there, knowing they were untrue. In court he completely retracted hia former statement by saying that he did 'see the fight between Liddle and Vogt, though at some • distance away from it. ' Chief-detective Ward: This means you were told to 'sign that statement ?— Yes. . ' . ■ ' '"■ ' • Did you also say/, m that form referring to Liddle's /injuries, that the statement was not true?-*— l 'don't re- ; member ''saying that. Well (showing Worsley his original statement to the detective-sergeant) refresh your memory. — Yes, I did say that. ■ . ■•'■ ' •-'•'; Did you tell Detective -sergeant Thompson that when Struthers spoke to you and relieved you. that afternoon, Struthers, told you to go m and sign those forms? — Yes. What time was this fight between Liddie and Vogt; before or after Dr. Macky passed through the courtyard with Brown? — After. ' So you made to him what was ah untrue statement? — Yes. : Did you see anyone else taking part m the fight between Liddle and Vogt? — Yes. Watt was standing there, but I couldn't see whether he was taking part as I had my duties to attend to. Why did you make this untrue statement to Thompson? — Because he bothered me, and said I had to make a statement before he left. The bench: How far .away were you from tins fight ?— About fifty or sixty yards.. '' ' \ ; " •' i You didn't see the nature of the fight?— No. .

Nor how long it progressed? — Oh. Ifi must have been two or. three minutes. Why didn't you say m your statement that you saw fighting? — He didn't ask for.it. Why did you give an untrue statements—Because he was bothering me. Now, Worsley, I -will give you one other opportunity; I want the truth here. Have you told the truth to-day? —Yes. , • . ' ■' ' ■-' ■,: ■ ■■; . ■ Then you don't want your ■' evidence put m any other way. Tou saw fighting going on, and those card-sheets put m were true? — Yes. Detective-sergeant Jack Thompson gave evidence that on December 4 he received a complaint from Dr. Gray, Inspector-General of Mental Hospitals, . as the result of which he -went to Porirua that afternoon. He interviewed Liddle, and shortly afterwards saw Tyrer; the accused. Thompson told Tyrer . that :he was accused of having kicked and brutally assaulted Liddle, to Avhich Tyrer replied that it was absolutely untrue, and explained that Liddle's injuries were . caused through his fighting with the patient Vogt. 1 Dr. H. D. Hayes, medical superintendent at the mental hospital, :was "« asked by Lawyer Leicester if Liddle was a patient' Hvio'^'was particularly violent at ; ;,tl.m:esi^ He; "replied tha£ although Liddie- was-a troublesome sub* ject, he never' was violent to others. Did you- hear Liddle say that Tyrer; Complaints Common had dropped scores of other men on to ■- the concrete?-^— No. "•.,,- • V Is that statement m your opinion a rational statement ?* T r-It sounds ,'exag- ' gerated/ ' .;;.,, „.^: . -.-..;.. ..■;-.;• Is that a rational or irrational statement; (doctor ?— Rational, although it - depends how true it is; What do you say about the truth of the. statement? ' The doctor did not reply to this question, and the magistrate ruled that Dr. Hayes was not called upon to .decide that phase of <the. situation. ' Counsel: Is.Liddle!s statement, that Tyrer had hurt within a hundred and more than twenty others, rational? — It sounds ■ra tiori'afc.but is exaggerated. • Is it riot a common thing for patients « to -make complaints against warder's;? •— • A common •\ thing;' - : ;/-" {■■!..;■ .^^V.^r' ,•.••■ '■■--;.■. And is every complaint the subject of an enquiry ?-— -Yes,; but it depends upon the circumstances how ' far \ tiie enquiry is continued; >--■ ' Do you remember a, conversation you had with Vost, -relative - to the fight between himself and Liddle, whom he , admitted having fought?— rHe said he had .fought : with everybody; "With Liddle. with theni all, with the whole world," he said. He Avaa hopelessly incoherent. . , ': At the close of the evidence Tyrer pleaded /'not guilty" and was com 7 ihitted for trial.. He reserved his defence. Bail was allowed corriprising & personal sum of £400, and t\vo other sums, each of £200.

told the court, "I received *a file relating to the alleged mental condition of Mrs. Broughton. So that her condition could be brought under the notice of 1 her husband, the file was handedto the sergeant m the usual way. , "The following morning at 9 o'clock Broughton' came to see the sergeant as a result of some arrangement made between the sergeant and the person residing at Nairn Street. I had to' go into the sergeant's office, where; I saw him m conversation with Broughton. "Having known Broughton ■ -f or a number of year,s, t tbok.up the quesr tion of his wife's condition with him. I ' told him," went on the senior-ser-geant, "that we had received a complaint regarding, her mental condition. I asked him when he had last seen her and. what he thought of her condition. . . "He gave me to understand that he had seen her on the previous. • day — but 1 would not be certain of that, point— and that he was satisfied: she was insane. | then . explained to him the usual procedure followed m such cases, namely, that he could take his wife to a doctor, or take a doctor to the house if she did not consent to the former course. : -••■ "Broughton told me he did not think his wife would do either,"' said -the, senior-sergeant. "I then told him I could arrange for the matron to accompany him to the house, and perhaps she could prevail upon his wife to come to the police station. He did not think she would do ''that. "I thereupon told him the .next, course to adopt, which would be to go to court and make application for a reception order, and a warrant would be issued and she . would be arrest-ad by the matron and a plain-clothes man and then medically examined.: - "I also told him that it would be necessary for him to beat the police station, so that the doctor could auestion him. I told him that if he didn't act on those directions— that is, if he was satisfied she was mental— we would make enquiries, and if we were satisfied she was mental we would make the application. , . , , ""In order to. assist him,. ; l' told him " I would make arrangements for a plainclothes constable to go to court; '-It was then that he said he would -lite to see his solicitor; that before Backing 1 the application he would consttit with. ;Mr. Scott.i; . V \ . - (Continued on page 6).