CASE HISTORIES 99 



Consequently it was difficult to get any information from him 

 except by culling it out of his stream of talk, and one could not 

 be certain what was fact and what was fantasy. Under this 

 heading I have given only what I believed was fact. 



He had much sexual curiosity, but his bashfulness prevented 

 him from seeking experience. In France he first tried hetero- 

 sexual intercourse, but did not satisfy himself. " I've never had 

 a good coitus or seen a vulva. My penis slipped out. The girls 

 said it was too small (his genitalja were normal). Boys said it 

 was too small too." 



He submitted to pederasty by other soldiers, and that must 

 have been the cause of his disgrace among his comrades. Once 

 he said he had committed fellatio also, but denied it in the next 

 breath. 



General observations: In our first talk I asked what he was 

 here for. " I'm sick in the guts, in the stomach, and spine. (" Are 

 you getting any better?") I don't think so. This is a state 

 prison or a reformatory." (I explained it was a hospital for 

 mental disease, and that he was being kept here only because his 

 mind was sick. "Do you believe your mind is sick?") Yes, it 

 always has been. This place is full of nuts. They fatten you up. 

 He wants to get fat and go home and get an automobile. He 

 was afraid he was going to get shot. He wants to get home. 

 He's supposed to be a white rat. I heard that. He wants to 

 borrow a couple of hundred dollars to get home with, this kid 

 does. This world is coming to an end. I hear voices all the 

 time. Catholics and Masons. He ought to fall under a train for 

 being a Catholic. I'm a clean white kid, I never did anybody 

 dirty. Father supposed to be a Catholic, mother too. I guess 

 I'm only afraid to fight with bare fists. I fought in France with 

 boxing gloves. I want to go home. Being afraid of people. 

 This kid wants to be rich. They won't tell him nothing. He's 

 against the Masons and Knights of Columbus and everybody. 

 This kid would do anybody a favor. (He spies a calendar with 

 a picture of a pretty girl.) Have coitus with her, with everybody 

 in the world. I earned thirty dollars a week in the shipyard. 

 He wants an automobile to ride around in. Spiteful devil, me. 



