How are the facts, elucidating the state of a prisoner’s mind after a doubtful act, ascertained with us? The functions devolved in France upon the bright professional luminaries such as I have named, here fall upon the gaoler, the constables, and the turnkeys. _Experts_ may on the day of final trial be summoned in, to give their opinions on testimony, derived from such sources as this! No provision exists for any investigation beyond the _volunteer_ aid, which such an ungracious task will rarely secure. The moment for investigating the perhaps fleeting manifestations and evidences of disease passes, before the law makes the least advances for the prisoner’s protection. I have even known the instance of a professional man whose life was spent among the insane, and who, moved solely by humane feeling, had visited in prison a friendless wretch whose homicidal act was feared from circumstances to be the result of insanity, being held up and vilified to a jury by a government functionary, for his _officious_ intermeddling in matters in which he had no concern!” Such having been the opinions and practices of our courts of justice, it is not strange that the rights of the insane have often been trampled upon and that _even life has been sometimes sacrificed under all the solemn formalities of law, for acts committed in the irresponsible condition of insanity_. I could cite _many_ sad cases in illustration, but I will merely advert to one of a recent date, which the efforts of one individual prevented from being added to the long list of cases, in which the robe of justice has been stained by the blood of irresponsible maniacs. I refer to the trial of the poor negro Freeman, who killed the Van Nest family, consisting of four persons. In this case a verdict of guilty was given, and the community who came near resorting to Lynch law before the trial, were eager to have the sentence executed. Governor Seward, who, to his praise be it spoken, as a volunteer nobly stemmed the raging torrent of popular excitement, defended the prisoner. He succeeded in obtaining a grant for a new trial. This trial never took place. The judge, before whom he was to be tried, visited the prisoner in his cell, and becoming satisfied of his insanity, refused to try him. In a few short months the prisoner died, leaving no doubt upon the mind of any one acquainted with the case that he was truly insane.