Case XX.

Mr. —, aged 25, of a full plethoric habit and sanguineous temperament, became suddenly insane without any obvious cause; his case exhibited nothing new or interesting, being accompanied by the more common characteristic symptoms of mania furibunda, which at lenght yielded to a system, the rationale of which turned on the abstraction of stimuli; but I mention it as one in which the swing was repeatedly employed as a moral mean, by way of punishment, and to induce a compliance with the remedies prescribed; and though there was a necessity for its repeated use, I never saw a patient more easily or powerfully affected by it, and though he always earnestly solicited for release and suffered so much, his obstinacy and perverseness were to be overcome by no other mean; his dread of the swing was extreme, and yet he would not yield to my wishes till it was employed; once he seemed impressed with the idea of its proving fatal, and previous to be being placed in the chair, as if going to be led to execution, he exclaimed in the most pitiable accents, "hear the last words, dying speech, and confession of —," &c.

C***
Practical Observations on Insanity, p. 175f.