Torsade Literary Space Master of Lunacy: Adventures in Research
From the Taunton Courier and Western Advisor of 5 July, 1882: “Alleged Insanity of a Somerset Gentleman”
The gentleman on examination was a man of property. His wife had petitioned the Commission of Lunacy to declare him “of unsound mind”, allowing her to protect her husband’s assets. A Mr. Nicholson, Master of Lunacy, presided over the Commission, comprising nineteen jurymen. Mr. Fraser, the accused, gave testimony in response to his wife’s statement that he “heard voices from invisible beings”. He said he did. Admitting the voices, however, he said also that he didn’t mind them. He felt in control.
The jury was divided. Eight jurors voted for insanity; eleven felt Mr. Fraser’s mind to be sound…if, presumably, individual. The Master of Lunacy said twelve votes in favor of sanity were required. One juror came over to the other side; Mr. Fraser was declared “of sound mind”.
Congratulations! You’ve found a bonus poem!
The Imbecile
The stalls smoke out billows of bacon
Fat precipitates from steam
Poor diet of the spirit engenders a figure from
the common lot
What do you remember
The way in which the leaves cast back the sun
Sid stares at them and sees them gain
The depth of sapphire
Sapphire and gold
The colors of a bread wrapper
Let us make the rough way smooth
And give the imbecile his due
Sid is poor, slow
He has been labeled so
Fancy yourself a soft-eyed doe
A delicate hoof balletically poised
To step in night-dewed grass among the daisies
Each blossom yielding as white bread mashed flat
And Sid scolded for dirty hands
Sky is blue and lunch is kind
The human mind applies subtleties
Sid knows the club and boot of authority
He knows also the runaround
He has been told to fetch the key to the drill ground
He being an imbecile can’t count
If three and five make ten today
Tomorrow they may make thirteen
He will say so and accept the label if they permit him
to run away
The rules change
And why should they not?
Sid has never seen the proof
(copyright 2015, Stephanie Foster)