A verbatim report of the Mordaunt divorce case.

Date:
1875
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A verbatim report of the Mordaunt divorce case. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

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    except imbecile, 'would on any account have performed. I told her that I did not consider her an ordinary patient, and that I had come there for the purpose of examining her, in order to see whether she was shamming or not. I told her it was no use attempting to deceive me, as I should be sure to find her out. Oa the 23rd of September 1 visited her again. I found her in the room standing- statute like, looking around her in a vacant manner. I could never get a prompt answer, or anything consistent out of her. I tried her with money. I pro- duced some, and asked her to name the coin. She [did so correctly. I then asked her to tell me the amount, but she could not do so. She seemed anxious to have the money in her hands, and asked me to give her some. I said I would, and asked her to write a cheque. She did so on a piece of paper. The cheque was on Gurney and Company, hut being incorrectly written I sug- gusted that she should write a note to Messrs. Gurney and Co. on the back of it. The cheque was “ Lady Mordaunt, £500. Messrs. Gurnev and Co., pay Lady Mordaunt £500.” She also wrote a note on the back, telling them to send it to her address, which she gave wrong. I asked her where Gurney and Co. were, and she said in Warwick. I then asked her when 1 got the money for the cheque what I should give her for it, and she said “£5.” I was with her for about two hours on this occasion. I visted her again on the 26th of September. I went there in the afternoon. I dined with Lady Mordaunt. She took the place at the table which ladies generally do. She sat at table and helped those at it to soup, but she abruptly left off doing so and became taciturn. That was her general habit. She remained at table, but took no part in the conversation that was going on. I saw her again on the 30th September. I asked her about where she had been, as I knew she had been to London. I could get no answer from her of an intelligible character. I found in all my conversations with her that if I asked her to do any mechanical act, he it ever so silly or ridiculous, she would do it at once, but if I asked her any question which required the least effort of mind to answer it, I could get no answer. She never spoke to me about the cheque she had given me, and never asked me for the five pounds. On this occasion I made her draw another cheque. It was incorrectly drawn, and she did not seem to understand the instructions I gave her to write it correctly. She put no date to the cheque. I asked her what the cheque was worth ? She said half-a-crown, which I gave to her. I asked her whether she believed that to he the value of the cheque, and she said she did. All her answers were given with the greatest hesitation. I also saw her on the 4th October. She was standing in the room quite passive, and when I went in she left abruptly. I thought at that time she did not seem so lost as on the previous occasion. I believe the child was with her at that time, and I asked to see it. She left the room to fetch it, but came back without it. Afterwards the child was brought by tho nurse. She did not manifest any interest in the child. She looked at it, but did not take it. That was my last visit. From all these visits, I was struck with the remarkable consistency of what I may call her inconsistency. There was the same thing day by day. Her mind seemed a perfect blank. She appeared capable of being roused and inflneneed by a stronger mind, but when roused to do a rational act such act was never sustained. I believe that she was capable of doing at the bidding of others a rational act, but quite incapable of reflection. Cross-examined.—I believe that if a cheque-book had been placed before her, and she had to write a cheque, she could not have done so ; but if any one sat at her elbow and told her what to write, she would have done so. ’ When I played whist with her, I was her partner. She made mistakes, but not diffe- rent to -what any other rational person might have made. As to her sing- ing the song, I think what she did was a manifestation of natural feel-