Devereux] MOHAVE ETHNOPSYCHIATRY AND SUICIDE 143 



This patient was seen by me for the first time in January 1940. Information 

 about her was obtained from her mother (through an interpreter), from her 

 younger sister, and from members of the tribe who have known her since child- 

 hood. Much of the data received from the latter source is unreliable and colored 

 by individual imagination. 



The father was an Italian who was apparently normal, but who met a death 

 of violence some years ago. He was shot by the watchman while attempting 

 robbery. The mother is a mild-mannered Mohave woman who speaks fairly 

 good English, but cannot understand all that is said to her, probably because of 

 the speed of the speech. She seems to be above the average in intelligence 

 (among her own) [sic!]. The patient is bedridden and is constantly attended 

 by her sister L., age 19, the latter even accompanying her to the hospital for 

 her brief stay. 



The relatives say that Mah was quite normal as a child. She was willing to 

 play with other children, and a history of moodiness and of self-centered and 

 introspective characteristics was not obtained. At the age of 6 she went to the 

 Indian boarding school at Fort Mohave, and returned there the following Sep- 

 tember for her second year, but, for some reason which was not clear, the 

 mother took her home at Christmas and she never returned to school. Another 

 informant said that formerly Mah played with other children at campfire meet- 

 ings, etc., by running from them and squatting in the grass a short distance 

 away, giggling, and covering her face. 



Her life was uneventful for the next few years; that is, her relationships 

 with the remainder of the tribe were practically nil, but stories are told of periods 

 of excitement, during which it was necessary to chain or tie her to the bed. 

 There was apparently some movement on foot to commit the patient, for there 

 are stories of the mother standing by with a gun and threatening to shoot the 

 first one to lay a hand on her. About 5 years ago, the patient took to her bed, 

 and has been there ever since. 



Attempts to elicit a history of delusions, hallucinations, or illusions have met 

 an absolute blank, not because the family is trying to hide anything, for indeed 

 they are most cooperative, but because they have seen so much of the patient, 

 for so many years, that they do not remember. As one looks at the patient, 

 however, one sees a continual movement of the lips as though she were talking 

 to some invisible person. She also makes sharp movements with her head, as 

 though she suddenly saw something to one side or the other. 



The patient seems to recognize her surroundings, and is alert enough to 

 respond to visual and auditory stimuli. There are many grimaces of lips and 

 eyebrows, but no actual speech. The sister claims that the patient is capable 

 of asking for food and water, though she is incontinent and has been so for 

 years. There is contracture of both knees in a flexed position, but motion is rel- 

 atively free with arms. At one time, the patient was surprised in the so-called 

 "fetal position," under a blanket. When she learns to know someone, she is 

 perfectly willing to smile and shake hands. 



The mother was very anxious to know the prognosis, and she is almost des- 

 perate for a new treatment for Mah, as she has tried everything suggested to 

 her, and at one time was trying to scrape together 10 dollars for a blood test, 

 which some doctor wanted to do. A diagnosis of schizophrenia, hebephrenic 

 type, was made, and a poor prognosis given. The mother was advised to put the 

 patient in an institution, so that the sister may have a more healthy and normal 

 life, but the mother would like to keep her at home. 



