Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 July 1875 — The Insanity of Robert Dale Owen. [ARTICLE]

The Insanity of Robert Dale Owen.

Although he has always claimed New Harmony as his home, until his return in .a deranged stat .- of mind last Sunday Mr. Owen had not been in his adopted home for eight years. This time he had spent in the East in the pursuit of literary labors, to which field he had retired after a somewhat successful political career. The later years had been devoted to the investigation of Spiritualism, in which he was a firm believer, and of his connection with the medium Katie King the readers of the .Times are familiar, AV hen the pretenses of that woman were exposed Robert Dale Owen was much disappointed, but lost none of his faith in the belief of a union between spirit land and this earth. He believed himself to have been badly treated by the newspapers for his devotion to Katie King, and, being oi a very sensitive nature, this prostrated him, and for the first time in his life he was seriously sick, ami his whole nervous system was shocked. While convalescent he acjjepted an invitation to deliver an

address Itefore the Turf Association at | Rochester, about eight weeks ago. The effort was a labored one, and his actions on the racing ground* after it showed that he wan somewhat deranged. This continued on ly a few day*, but while still physically weak he commenced dictating to his daughter—Mias Rosamund Owen, who always accompanied him as his secretaryana attendant —the prefatory chapters of a labored book entitled: “Theology, Though Not Spiritualism.” He had not long pursued this before he gave unmistakable signs of the mental malady, and by the advice of friends was taken to the Danville Water-Cure, Livingston county, New York, under the management of Dr. Jackson. He derived no benefit from his sojourn there aave a restoration to physical health, and was finally taken to his home at New Harmony by his son, CoL "Julian Dale Owen. He rapidly. -grew worse, until it was deemed l>est to send him to the lunatic asylum at Indianapolis. He was adjudged insane by a commission of Justices last Thursday afternoon, and yesterday morning, before daybreak, was taken to Indianapolis by way of Grayville, 111.

It h:cs been charged that he is crazy- on the subject of Spiritualism; but this is denied by his relatives. Their denial may l»e well founded, for at no time during his demency has he ever referred to the Katie King trouble, or to Spiritualism, and only in long, extempore prayers, which he makes occasionally, has he touched upon religion. What occupies his mind mostly is horse-racing and the disposal of large sums of money in charity. As for the former, in his life he has never taken more than ordinary interest in turf matters: still, in his diseased mind’s eye, he ■beholds fast horses contesting on the turf, an<F~fire~«uggines he owns the State of Kentucky, anutfaat he utilizes that territory for stock-raising. Again he imagines himself a wealthy- aristocrat, entitled to lie called “my lord,” and that he has castles, fine equipages and large amounts of money. His brain is also busied in planning charities by which his fellow-men may be benefited "through his imagined wealth. In New- Harmony he wandered about the streets talking incessantly and with everyone he met. He recognized all his old acquaintances and called them by name, but his incoherent conversation betrayed a dethroned reason. At periods he would be in a state of terror and tremble with fear of assassins, who he imagined surrounded him, ready toplunge daggers to his heart if he made a step; tints for hours he would remain in one chair or one position. These fears almost maddened him, and in recovering from them he was considered dangerous. These periods were very wearing and exhausted his physical strength, and are the cause of great alarm to his physicians and family. Robert Dale Owen is now seventy-four years old. He is not quite six feet tall, and previous to his sickness was a wellpreserved old gentleman, straight as a young man of twenty, and had a distinguished appearance. His head is large, the features prominent, and he has a beaming, benevolent face. The forehead is very high and straight, large mouth, with lips compressed firmly, and long, straight chin. He has a long nose, which divides a pair of blue, uncertain sort of eyes. He wears his hair long, and it with his whiskers is as white as the driven snow. His face was clean shaven, but under his chin he wore a closely-cut beard. The venerable gentleman was always a model of neatness, but during his insanity he became careless, and his white hair and beard were allowed to grow- long and tangled.

Robert Dale Owen is not rich; he was once. When his father died the property went to the sons, and by the death of his brothers, David Dale Owen and William Owen, he succeeded to it. After the death of these relatives he found himself in the possession of an immense amount of land, considerable of which he sold very cheap. Had he done like a shrewd business man, kept tlie land for a number of years, he might have been worth millions. When his children became of age, Robert Dale Owen, like his father had done to him, divided his property among his children, consisting of Col. Julian Dale Owen, now aged about forty years, Ernest Dale Owen, a lawyer of this place about thirty years of age, and Miss Rosamund Owen, about twenty-five years of age, the latter his attendant wherever he went. He retained a fortune equal to $50,000 for himself, but he has lost nearly all of this during the past few years through persons in the East, who took advantage of the man’s belief in the honesty of his fellowmen and his credulity. In one scheme, just before he was taken sick, he was swindled out of $20,000 by a telegraph company, and this had a depressing influence upon him. Robert Dale Owen, in consequence, is a poor man, but his chil-, dren are among tlie wealthiest people in the county, which is about the same thing.— Mt. lernon, Ind. (July 10), Cor. Chicago Times.