Fred was a native from England; had a wife with him; lodged in attendants' room, near me; Fred abused me shamefully by bathing and washing me in water and human filth; then galled off my wet hair, in spots, with the shears, disfiguring my person forgazers to sneer at; yet, I had feelings for others, as well as for myself.
One time he had a victim or patient bound with hand-cuffs, A, seated on the irons of an iron bed-stead, with his feet fastened up to the same, thus sitting till falling backward upon the iron rack, crying and groaning in pain from torture.
But, oh, alas! as I have said, they kill some in these institutions.
Behold theman, alunatic, in a lunatic asylum, bound with muff, E, as seen in the engraving. And as I positively saw in the incurable house; Fred, with a chair raised above his victim's head, with one round broken; did not see him strike him with the chair, but saw him drag him out of the room by the neck, bound, as described above, with strap, B, noosed around his throat and neck, as a hunter lassoes the wild horse. Behold them at the head of the stairs, as I did; Fred hurrying through the doorway, and his victimslammed against the door-post, helpless and bound as he was, slamming around the door-post, strangling, in fear of the awful precipice below, down he plunges to the bottom, and like one in deep water, disappeared from my sight for a time.
After a time came back Fred, the asylum nurse, and the poor strangled man, bound as he was, and wet from head to foot, nature was almost exhausted; he survived a few hours, and gave up the ghost.
Is this Marshall Lunatic Asylum a slave depot to hold poor unfortunate men and women, and send them on to eternity without a moment's warning, prepared or not, and no one accountable? Money is the root of all evil. And these sins are sins of ignorance, not to be winked at.
Herod laid hold on John, and bound him and put him in prison for Herodias' sake, for naught but telling the truth.
And the king sent and beheaded John in the prison. And his head was given to thedaughter of Herodias, who danced before the king and his guests on his birth-day. Is no one accountable for his death?
And John's disciples went and told Jesus.
And I often tell Jesus how attendants kill poor lunatics in Troy Lunatic Asylum.
And I have been and told Governor Dix, of New York State, how they bound and pounded me, without cause, and strangled me. I carried the accursed harness into the executive chamber, hoping that Governor Dix would protest against such treatment; and I still hope.
I have exhibited to Mayor Kemp, of Troy city, the accursed harness, and revealed to him the cruel treatment the lunatics undergo in Ida Hill Lunatic Asylum by the Cain family or their children.
I have told the president of the institution how badly I was treated when bound by Isabella, hoping to influence the government by setting before them the facts as I saw and realized them.
I have lectured privately and publicly with all long suffering upon the subject of asylumlife; though it be sown in weakness it may be raised in strength to the good of poor sufferers and redound to the glory of God.
This attendant was a carpenter or mechanic of some kind; was a tall, lean, bald-headed, cruel-hearted man. His stay was short; negro Lawrence was too strong for him, as I saw them in a tussle; but a child could handle a strong man when harnessed tightly with the asylum harness.
A soldier of the last war, after listening to one transaction and seeing the asylum harness, told me how he was tortured when a prisoner in Libby prison, bound in chains and almost starved. I have seen so much of human nature I believed him. A fool can lead a horse to water but he cannot make him drink. I have revealed great truths thus far in my history; do not expect to convert the world, but will try to do my duty.
Charles Barclay was a great sufferer in the hands of this cruel mechanic and attendant,Barclay being bound with handcuffs, A, muff, E, and belt B, became somewhat noisy. He had enough to endure to make a sane man crazy.
One morning came in this cruel mechanic with a cord tied to a round stick as large as a broom handle, placed it into Barclay's mouth then placing the cord back of his neck tied it to the other end of the stick, which was in the poor man's mouth, his hands were bound and he was gagged and left in this suffering condition till dinner time; loosened a little while for dinner and then gagged till supper time, and so on from day to day.
Reader, did I not have a specific object of prayer before me as a room mate?
Another attendant came who gave me the first medicine I had after I entered the institution. The first medicine I received was three sugar-coated pills; must have been in the spring of 1864, it was before I became acquainted with Dr. Lomax.
No unkindness did he manifest to me,only he robbed me of the tobacco my wife brought me on her visit about that time.
Mr. George Wadsworth, his wife and mine, were shown into my room by Isabella, when in came the male attendant and Isabella made an excuse for showing them to my room. I was lying in bed, in low spirits, weak and discouraged. I asked no questions about friends or home. I knew Wadsworth and his wife Lotty, although I had not seen them in four years. For a person to be visited in a prison, especially by acquaintances, is not very pleasant and to be left is harder. I was asked by my wife if I knew Mrs. Wadsworth, who I so much liked to hear sing when at church.
The countenances of neighbors were as familiar to me when seen in prison as out. I knew the different kinds of birds although their sweet music had lost its charms to me. I preferred home in preference to that place, and had I had one encouraging word in thatdirection my heart would have leaped for joy at that time.
We took the parting hand. Oh, think for a moment, reader, how must a dear wife have felt, when the tears trickled down her cheek, to leave her husband in an incurable asylum; incurable as she had often been told by doctors.
At one time, and again a brother J. visited, at other times a brother B., and one time a brother R., from Buffalo, visited me, whom I had not seen for many years, and while the tears streamed from both our eyes we separated, perhaps to meet no more on earth. Pen cannot describe, I must hasten.
I sent to a brother L., living in California, the transaction as seen and described in the engraving, saying I would send him this history, when published. He writes as follows:
"It is enough," praying me not to send it, "I cannot bear to read of so much sufferings of a brother."
I pray you who cannot read my history and sufferings take the Bible and read of Paul, beaten and in prison, of Job, of ourSaviour, in the garden, pleading that the cup might pass, and read the story of the cross.
Haly was born of old country parents, and so was Isabella, the magdalen woman, who helped him bind me, as seen in the engraving.
The morning they bound me, as seen in the picture, I was standing by a window in the short hall, when Haly came to me and says, in a harsh voice, "go to the dummy and stand till it is ready." I immediately obeyed, and as I stopped at the place he drew his foot and kicked me severely. I turned around, showing no violence, did not speak to him, don't think I had for days; but he drew his fist and says "don't face me;" I then turned to the dummy and soon raised the breakfast from the kitchen to the third floor. This transaction was the beginning of the second one which took place soon after breakfast with me, as seen in the engraving.
I believe these transactions were plotted and agreed upon by the two wicked attendants.
The first time my friends came I told them Haly and Isabella were killing me, but I suppose they thought me to be crazy, though I never heard any one call me crazy until Magistrate Boynton, of Pittstown, addressed me as follows: "You crazy old hypocrite, when are you going back to the asylum?" I hope Boynton will become a gentleman. Man, know thyself.
Again, as I was telling another man how Haly pounded me with the strap and buckle leaving wounds up to that time, he replied, "may be you needed it." I hope he will be saved by and by through faith in Christ yet to be obtained.
I saw Haly in a fight with Patrick Fitzgerald; had an iron weight in his hand, and the blood streaming from the patient's brow. Patrick was received as a lunatic; thrust into the dead-house cell soon after I was taken out in 1860. I believe a lunatic should be treated as a mischievous little innocent child.
I never begged but once. I begged while in that strangling condition for mydear life, and, whilst life remains, I will beg and pray for those I left behind me in lunatic asylums, numbering seven hundred unfortunate ones.
Some time after Haly and Isabel and Scott strangled me; I was very weak and short of breath; and at the time my wife and daughter came I was very weak; I told them the cause, and, perhaps, will never recover from that lung and breath straining. Be that as it may, God is my helper, and I shall not want.
Up to the time Haly left, and anon, Isabel had access to the men's department, and acted as independent as though she was mistress of all. After Haly, Mr. Noals, a patient, acted as attendant; heard Isabel say to him, when in a dispute, he had better save his breath to cool his porridge. Some of the female patients called Isabel mother, and so did David Hix when he came in the evening and wanted a female patient to take a walkwith him; in dead of night, when the moon shone bright, I have heard Hix say, mother! mother! I have brought back your daughter; and the daughter says, mother! mother! there is no danger of walking out with such a fine man as Mr. Hix. This was the Hix that helped to bind me when kicked to the chair and bound to it.
William Anderson, attendant, until I left October 13, 1870.
Soon after William came William B. Gibbs went home, and I was placed in the north-east room that Gibbs left, where I lodged until I left.
In this room I remained at least four years. I was a great sufferer from rheumatism in the stomach, much soreness and often raising blood; faint and weak; away from home and friends. But, says one, did not the attendant care for you? I ask, what can one man do for twelve patients, by night and by day, even if he was well disposed.
In this room were from three to six beds,from 1867 to '71, occupied by white and black, old and young. Should I attempt to fully describe every transaction that occurred in this room within the four years, a volume as large as this would not contain it. I will give a few names of persons over whom William Anderson was attendant in this room. I will relate a few transactions that occurred.
Myself, Ned Buel, Kirk Hull, William Jefferson, John P. Bacon.
I have talked with many country physicians since I left the asylum, and they generally believe that patients in Troy Asylum are all well cared for. But doctors are mistaken, and the public are deceived, and the poor incurable ones, and others, have to suffer wrongfully.
Troy Lunatic Asylum is like a whited sepulchre without, but within is full of dead men's bones; and I say to county doctors, do not recommend such an institution, neither blow for them longer, until a reform is brought about, for you know not who the fire burns in those secret chambers.
After Jefferson had been bound in bed all night Anderson loosed him and told him to get up. The negro refused; attendant drew the clothes immediately off him, the darkey leaped from the bed, though hands bound with cuffs, AA, and belt, B, grabbing the vessel from under his bed, threw it at the attendant's head, missed his game, hit the door and broke the vessel. Attendant drew the door shut and was gone for a time and I trembled in fear, lying in bed.
Presently came Anderson with the magdalen, Isabella, and a male bully from the main house entering the room where I was, pounced upon the negro, and, after a long tussle, brought him to the floor, and whilst the two held and bound his feet together with strap, B, the magdalen Isabella was pounding his shins with a broom handle and saying, "'tis his shins that want it," another strap, B, being noosed around the one that fastened his legs together, Isabella hitched a ginny, or her hands, to the strap and startedfor the door, dragging the poor lunatic out of my sight by his heels and in all probability down two flights of stairs to the bath-room, as may be judged by what is yet to come.
Again, one morning as I was lying in bed having just finished my breakfast and placed the heavy coffee bowl on the stand, quickly, Jefferson darted across the room, grabbed the bowl and struck me on my head as I was lying in bed, and left, taking a stool went to the next room; did not see him strike Wm. Mine, Mine told me he did. Saw Mine in the poor-house since. Saw Anderson bring the stool out of Mine's room; inch and a half plank bottom split in two. Saw Anderson dress Mine's wounded head. By this time Jefferson was back with me, Anderson pulled the self-locking door and I was locked in with the crazy negro.
Come in doctors, the luny negro will not hurt you, come in doctors, and give me acup of cold water; you say I am incurable, I say I am faint. Come in, doctors, the negro won't hurt you, his luny mind is turned another way; he stands with a drawn mop, this side the door, ready to meet his foes. At this moment came Anderson with two main house bully fighters. Slam, bang, open came the door and in came the attendant with his two fighters pouncing upon the negro and jammed him down on a bed near where I lay, whilst one, not weighing less than two hundred pounds, grasped both hands in the negro's hair, held him tight to the bed. In the meantime the second one (who had helped bind him previously) pounded him in the face until the blood streamed from his nose and mouth. "Now," says Anderson, who had strapped his feet together whilst they were pounding him, "let him up," instantly drawing him bodily to the floor.
Now he lays bleeding on the floor, and now they raise him upon his feet, and place on his hands muff E. The lunatic beingbound, hand and foot, was taken out of my sight.
After a time I saw him lying on the floor bound as described, with the exception of his feet; wet from head to foot; gasping for breath. Come in doctors, the lunatic is cured, he can't hurt you; come in, father, your son won't hurt you; come in, mother, and fan your fainting son; pray, come one and all, make up minds to keep your unfortunate ones from lunatic asylums.
Kirk Hull was an orphan boy, some sixteen or seventeen years of age, of a slender constitution; was subject to falling fits,—have seen him have many—falling prostrate on the floor, bruising his head and face till the blood ran down his brow; frothing and bleeding at the mouth, with his hands fastened in muff E. I have seen Anderson put the whole of the asylum harness on him, and lay him on his back in bed and bind him to the bedstead on either side, stretching his legs to the foot, and then fast with the feetstraps to the foot of the bedstead, lying in such a torturing state night after night, and week after week. He was cured of fits in the Marshall Lunatic Asylum, Ida Hill, Troy; N. B., not by medical skill, but from torture and such maltreatment. The orphan died in the darkness of night, with no one to smooth his dying pillow, or wipe the cold sweat from his brow. Lying as I was, within two feet of the orphan's body, sleep departed from my eyes till morning, when in came Anderson with the dead board. Bacon, Noals, Anderson and another carried him from my sight.
When I ask the husband to keep his luny wife with him at Hoosick Falls, he says, "I cannot take care of her." When I pray a sister who has her thousands to keep her foolish sister from Ida Hill Lunatic Asylum, she says, "I can't take care of her." (What! not better than Kirk was cared for?)