Spirit of Lost Angels
“I dared not move, nor utter a sound, under the frosty stare of Sister Superior.
The woman took her goose-feather plume and lowered her gaze to the register that, from what I could make out, recorded every detail of life in la Salpêtrière — its rules and punishments, garments and food allotted, animals maintained, vegetables harvested, personnel employed.
‘Name: Charpentier, Victoire Athénaïs, widow of Armand Bruyère, merchant and innkeeper,’ Sister Superior read in a grim monotone. ‘Date of ent...ry to la Salpêtrière Insane Quarter: 8 September, 1785. Age: 23 years. Condition: Alienism of la Frénésie type caused by too much moral sensitivity, the listlessness of deep grief, and an imbalance of bile humour. Medical Observations: The effect of this humour has bogged the patient’s intestines by slowing down excretions and drying out the brain.’ Sister Superior barely took a breath and her voice never wavered. ‘Usual treatment performed on patient for six weeks: copious bloodletting from the feet to the temporal artery.MoreLess
The woman took her goose-feather plume and lowered her gaze to the register that, from what I could make out, recorded every detail of life in la Salpêtrière — its rules and punishments, garments and food allotted, animals maintained, vegetables harvested, personnel employed.
‘Name: Charpentier, Victoire Athénaïs, widow of Armand Bruyère, merchant and innkeeper,’ Sister Superior read in a grim monotone. ‘Date of ent...ry to la Salpêtrière Insane Quarter: 8 September, 1785. Age: 23 years. Condition: Alienism of la Frénésie type caused by too much moral sensitivity, the listlessness of deep grief, and an imbalance of bile humour. Medical Observations: The effect of this humour has bogged the patient’s intestines by slowing down excretions and drying out the brain.’ Sister Superior barely took a breath and her voice never wavered. ‘Usual treatment performed on patient for six weeks: copious bloodletting from the feet to the temporal artery.MoreLess
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