John Jones (509)

Date of Admission: June 12, 1890
Date of Discharge: July 8, 1890
Discharge Category: Recovered

Disease: Acute Mania
Supposed Cause: Not known

Medical Certificate:
1. He fancies himself to be a great musician and belongs to Christy's Troup*, so very excited, irrational and incoherent, talks from Welsh to English etc. He is unable to make cigarettes although he is in the habit of smoking them.. 2. His father states that he is beyond his control and that he kicked him today and that he is in bodily fear of him. June 12th 1890. Griffith W Roberts, Denbigh.

1. Excited demeanour and irrational and incoherent conversation. Such as his coining doggerel words in conversation, sudden association of various ideas in single sentences, as from "Christy Minstrel" singing to swearing and ending in cash counting - all of no relevancy; mixing of Welsh and English incoherently. Sudden complaints and curious description of pains which manifestly do not exist. 2. Facts communicated by his Father, Owen Jones: That this attack is the third or fourth under which John Jones has suffered. That he in consecutive moments fancies himself first a "minstrel" then anything else. That he talks much and irrelevantly of heaven and hell and of sending a telegram to heaven. That he remembers no incidents after their occurrence, such as that this morning he kicked his Father. That such an incident as that on my first seeing him he put on my hat and gloves, he could not remember in the same way. That though he plays in the chapel services, he has no depth of religious feelings and only talks of heaven and hell in parody. That he swears at his father - all things which he would never do when himself and in reason. June 12th 1890. John Lloyd Roberts, MB, Denbigh.

Approximate duration of present attack: 4 days

Number of Previous Attacks: 2

Number of Previous Admissions: 0

Number of Subsequent Admissions: 2

Total Number of Admissions: 3

Relatives affected: Mother who had several attacks and died during an epileptic fit

Number of Previous Attacks: 2

Epileptic: No

Suicidal: No

Dangerous: Yes

Clean Habit: -

Food Refusal: -

Sleep Habit: -

Destructive Habit: -

Disposition: Steady and industrious

Education: Reads and writes

Physical/Mental State at Examination: Health moderate. Digestive system disordered. This patient is the son of a Postmaster and Draper at Llanllyfni. About 5 years ago the case showed symptoms of insanity which was found to be due probably to self abuse. He was then at school and was brought home, recovering in the course of about 6 weeks. The second attack took place about two years ago when it was necessary to confine him in a Private Asylum where he was treated for about 6 weeks and returned home in a fairly manageable condition. In the above relapses he appears to have been in a low and depressed condition and apparently much demented. The present attack was noticed about 4 days ago when he became excited and unmanageable and unsuitable for treatment at home.

Current Diagnosis: Schizophrenia (F20.1)

Medications/Treatments:

Additional Notes

Readmissions:

21st July 1890 (no. 512) with acute mania. Medical Certificate reads:

1. Rambling. Loss of

memory for dates. Swears and when reading repeats it continually. 2. He is suffering from insomnia.

Dr. M. G. Davies states that the patient has been previously confined in the Asylum. David G.Evans, MD, Denbigh.

He was discharged recovered on 30th April 1891.

Another admission on 26th December 1891 (no. 527) again with acute mania. Medical Certificate reads:

1. He tells me that he is abused by his father (Owen Jones, Talysarn) and by his sister, Mrs Griffith, Penrhyn View, Llandrillo;

that both grip and pinch him which I find is entirely without foundation. He keeps filling his pipe with paper and smoking it, says he has no tobacco, whereas he has. 2. His father, Owen Jones, Talysarn, says that he is dangerous to those about him from sudden bursts of temper, and totally unable to takecare of himself.

December 25th 1891. William Montagu Venables Williams, Colwyn Bay.

He was discharged recovered on 15th September 1892.

* The original Christy Minstrels disbanded in 1860 but were so popular that ‘Christy Minstrels’ was used generally to refer to any blackface minstrel show. A troupe of minstrels based in Liverpool performed regularly in Denbigh and elsewhere in North Wales during the 19th century.