THE WRONG LUNATIC.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2429, 30 December 1880, Page 4

THE WRONG LUNATIC.

One of the strangest things''a;lunatic could do occurred in Melbourne oh December 8. A man giving the name of Dr Emanuel Weston called at the office of the clerk of petty sessions, and asked fora warrant for the arrest of a man namedHolraes,who was in a dangerous state of lunnc3 r , and threatened the lives of several persons. The clerk at first demurred, and requested him to bring a doctor’s certificate, when the visitor replied “ Oh, that can easil} 1, be done ; I am his medical attendant, and will sign the informatioii for you.” This of course settled the matter, and the information was duly signed by “ Emanuel Weston, M.D.,” a warrant issued for the arrest of Holmes, represented as a “ mariner,” and signed b3 r Mr Call, P.M. The “ doctor” was first anxious to servo the warrant himself, ns he had serious apprehensions of his patient’s safet3% and did not desire to lose a moment. He was satisfied, however, at seeing a constable entrusted with the warrant, and walked away, leaving the constable to perform his duty. In a short time Mr Holmes, “ master mariner,” the supposed lunatic,appeared in court in his right senses, and represented to the Bench that the informant was a lunatic, and that ho (Holmes) was in charge of the ’buss stables, and had been in fear of his life owing to the repeated threats of Henry Everard Stone alias Dr Weston, who served in the capacit3 r of timekeeper to (lie Company. The ludicrous position in which the parties were placed gave rise to a considerable amount of laughter, and Mr Call, P.M., discharged Mr Holmes, the “ master mariner l ,” and supposed lunatic, as one being quite able to take care of himself, and bound over his accuser to keep the peace, ho not being in such an advanced state of lunac3 r as to warrant his committal. The further adventure of this wild lunatic are thus recited in the “ Sydney Daily Telegraph” of Dec. 17: —“The eccentricities of a man who gave upon his card —a highly elaborate affair—the name of‘S Dasto, M.D., A.C.E.’ but who turns out to be one W. E. Stone, a recent arrival from Melbourne by the steamship Cheviot, gave rise to considerable annoyance to the Town Hall officials yestcrda3 r . He presented himself there the previous day, and am nouucing his intention of delivering a series of lectures, the subject of which he did not however, state, engaged the large hall last night for the first, and handed over a cheque for £lO in payment of the rent. He afterwards visited several business places, where he engaged a piano, an organ, and a music-box, with which to enliven his entertainment, besides procuring some hundreds of chairs for the seating accommodation of his patrons. The lecture, he announced, was to be a free one, and he despatched invitations to His Excellenc3 r the Duke of Manchester, but in the meantime it was discovered that the man was insane, and that he had not the funds wherewith to meet the cheque, and the lecture was postponed.”