Wonderful trial of Caroline Lohman, alias Restell : with speeches of counsel, charge of court, and verdict of jury : reported in full for the National police gazette.

  • Restell, Madame, 1811-1878.
Date:
[1847]
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Wonderful trial of Caroline Lohman, alias Restell : with speeches of counsel, charge of court, and verdict of jury : reported in full for the National police gazette. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

    18/48
    By Brady.—I have attended women—married women—alter an abortion Q. Are there not many other causes besides miscarriage to which all these symptoms col- lectively may be ascribed? A. I think not.— Q. In a case of miscarriage does flooding always occur! A. Always. Q. Can that stop and again recur? A. If the patient docs notkeepa horizontal positioii it will coutinue. Q. If she takes no means to stop it, keeps walking about, how long would that flooding continue? A. It might last two, four, or six weeks. Q. Would six weeks be the extreme limits. A. I never knew a case where it continued more than three days from miscarriage. Q. If not stopped, how long would patient live under such flooding. A. Cannot say. Q. Is there any sign or symptom by which any physician, before the foetus has life or the woman quicken, can, with certainty, determine? A. There are certain symptoms from which we infer, but, there is no certainty but quickening. Q. Can not all these symp- toms result from suppression of menses ? A.— There are such cases on record. Q. What do you mean by quickening. A. The motion of child or foetus in uterus. This flutter cannot be felt from a mere change in uterus. Q.. What cause does the fluttering spring from? A. I think there is no cause to be assigned. Q,. At what period does quickening occur ? A. Some- times 12 weeks,up to 6 months. Q. What author says 12 weeks? A. Idont know, if I did I would inform you. Q.. At what period could you, by stethoscope, ascertain the quickening? A. At 12 weeks the pulsation can be detected by aus- cultation. The fluttering may be mistaken for wind or flatulence, and it is very unreliable or unsafe as a symptom and a woman may be mis- taken. Q.. Had you ever a case where a wo- man supposed herself in labor and was not preg- nant? A. No, sir. &. If a woman first misses her courses on May L3, could she have become quick with child on July 17. A. From missing the courses she could not be certain; but my opinion is she could be quick. Blisters, cup- ping, and other counter-irritants, are applied, in cases of disease of spine : but for what I knew to be an abortion, 1 should not use myself such means. I continued to attend Maria up to the 10th or 11th of August, i saw Mr. Bowyer on- ly once, and no other public officer from New York. On September 31st I saw Maria, and I saw her twice or three times, and examined her yesterday. Q.. At whose request and who was present ? A. Dr. Covell, and it was at Mr. Ne- vens, and in the prison in the morning, before the Court opened. Q. Have you said to any one what purpose you had in view. A. No. I know Geo. Millspaw. I think I did not tell Shim I said I would make a good thing of this prose- cution before I got through. I might have done so. I wrote to Mr. Cook, saying it might be settled. McKeon—Doctor,have you, and if you have produce the letters you wrote to, and received from the Mayor of New-York? A. I have them, here they are, [hands them the letter from himself, the Mayor's, the Chief's, and Mr. Bow- yer's.] Q. Does not the concurrence of all these symptoms in the same female, prove almost with certainty, that an abortion has been,pro- duced? Before this question was an swered, another was asked. Q. If a woman have her courses on the 16th of April, could she be quick with child on the 19th of July ? A.I think she could : I am not connected or related to any party in this case, and expect no compensation, reward, or remu- neration , and have no interest in this case except as a citizen. By Brady—I remember talking with George Millspaw. Q. What month did you write to Mr. Conk ? A. In April or May ; before I had made any examination ; I consulted no lawyer but the District Attorney ; I never paid any fee to any lawyer. Dr. Georpe Coles, called—I am a practising physician of this city, and reside at 55 Carmine street; I have resided in that street seven years; I have seen Maria Budine ; she called on m - on the29tb of June, 1846; I made an examination; I found the ':sual symptoms of pregnancy ; as a medical man 1 formed a conclusion that she was pregnant. Cross-examined by Mr. Brady.— I had never seen her before, nor saw her tili about six weeks ago. Q. What examination did you make for her? A. I made no internal examination,but from other symptoms, and my questions and her an- swers, formed my opinion; it was the areola, the darkness which takes place after pregnancy; I saw no other sign than this, and made no other examination; I formed my opinion without, and irrespective of any particular information. Q. I this areola caused by any thing else than preg- nancy ? A. It is not; I would not hazard the opinion ; I have never known the discoloration under any other circumstances ; It is not confin- ed to the'first child; I never saw the areola re- suit from any other cause than pregnancy; I think it cannot arise from mere suppression of menses ; there was no one with her when she came to visit me: I have been in practice nineteen years ; all medical opinions are made up from the testimony of the patient, and the symptoms she presents, or as you find : from all the lights I had upon the case, I formed distinctly the opin- ion I have given ; it is a fact known to all med* ical men, that a woman may menstruate aftee pregnancy. Philip Staats. police officer, called. McKeon.—This officer was placed on guard to watch all who went in or out of Resteli's house. A system of espionage was carried on by the public authorities for the purpose of gaining positive evidence aarainst the prisoner. Mr. Brady objected to the witness, as his tes- timony is perfectly irrelevant and immaterial. A. I was policeman at that time on duty; I saw this girl come from Madame Resteli's on the 7th of June ; I followed her to 21G Bleecker-st., to Mrs. Dexter's, who she said was her sister. The Court here adjourned to 5 o'clock, P. M. Evf.ning Session. Dr. Edwin Evans, called—I'm a doctor in Wal- den, Montgomery county ; a year last March I went there ; I know Miss Bodine ; attended her in September, 1846 ; I found her at Beriah Blood- good's. McKeon.—State all you know of this girl. A. Being sent for, I found her flowing as it is