Aged fifty-two; admitted into Old Bethlem the 18th December 1800, and
removed here, with the other patients, in 1815: he had been seven
months in the House of Correction previously.
This man is noted as being suspected of causing James Hatfield to
attempt the late King’s life, at Drury Lane Theatre: he met Hatfield
by accident in White-Conduit Fields, and talked the unfortunate
fellow into a persuasion, that the first step to the commencement
of his doctrines, and to its fulfilment in a happy change of things
throughout the world, would be the death of the Sovereign; with this
view, Hatfield set out as the supposed chosen instrument for the
accomplishment of the great design. Hatfield, in his examination,
mentioned this man’s name; he was accordingly apprehended the next day,
underwent several examinations, and was committed to prison; but from
his incoherent manner, his answers, and the evidence of his mother, he
was found to be deranged, and was sent ultimately to Old Bethlem.
He is a most singular and curious character, and in his ordinary
conversations of life, betrays not the smallest symptoms of a
disordered intellect; is cool, steady, and deliberate in all his
actions, cleanly in his person, and regular and decent in his
apartment. His conversations are not long, in a general way, before he
contrives to make some allusion to his case, and immediately strikes
out upon his darling subject of religion.
He has an apartment at the top of the house, which has a good prospect,
southward, commanding a view of the Surry hills; he has coal, candle,
and every convenience for his use; his provisions are regularly brought
to him, and in fine weather he is permitted to walk in the garden
allotted to the superintendant, steward, &c. two hours each day,
when he chooses; he has the privilege of mending the shoes for the
servants and patients, as he was bred a shoemaker, for which work he
is regularly paid his own price. He is also permitted to breed birds,
and allowed to sell them; he has a great number of canaries and other
singing birds, in places neatly fitted up, which he keeps in great
order; and, in fact, has less reason to complain of his confinement
than perhaps any other man in a similar situation. Notwithstanding the
exclusive privileges he enjoys beyond other irrecoverable patients,
he is extremely dissatisfied. Nothing pleases him: he is continually
finding fault without reason, and stating grievances that never
had existence; complaining to the governors; dissatisfied with the
physician, superintendant, steward, keepers, in fact with all persons
concerned in the business of the house. He is kept entirely apart
from all the other patients, for very substantial reasons: 1st. The
propagation of his new religion to weak minds might do much harm,
in the forcible, pointed, and positive manner he has of impressing
his tenets, and would very shortly bring the unfortunate patients,
already sufficiently deluded, to become converts to the Truelock
principles, and they would forget every thing else that tended to the
restoration of reason.--2dly. Being a discontented and uneasy subject,
he might soon excite contentions and dissatisfaction amongst all the
patients; for the best of them, at certain periods of their disorder,
are liable to catch at any trifle to complain of; and when they feel
their confinement sit uneasy, particularly if a man of such apparent
consequence as Truelock was to pronounce a patient perfectly sane, and
say to him that his confinement was arbitrary and oppressive; that his
separation from friends, relations, business, and his home, was in
opposition to sound sense and reason; that it was unjust and cruel:
such convictions of seeming truth, a poor deluded maniac would readily
grasp at; a general mutiny might be the consequence, which would,
perhaps, be difficult to suppress. Besides this, he would create a
general murmur as to the quality and quantity of their provisions, such
as he feels himself; for if he had in the greatest abundance all the
luxuries and delicacies of life, he would still find some deficiency,
and some cause of complaint; and he still continues the same radical
malcontent. But his religious opinions explode at once every idea of
his sanity. He believes that the true and real Messiah is to be born
of himself, and is to come into the world from out of his mouth; he
declares himself to be with child for upwards of twenty-five years; he
calls the Bible a vulgar and indecent history, not to contain one solid
or sensible argument. The New Testament he regards as mere falsehood
and deception, which he seldom takes notice of, he says, unless for its
absurdity.
He has written seventy-eight _signs_, with comments on each; which are
to be the sum and substance of bringing all persons to the true light.
“In your History,” says he (alluding to the Bible), “it is mentioned
that a prophet will arise. Now I am that identical prophet spoken of;
the Messiah is to be produced from my mouth, in spirit, not in fleshy
substance, as was the case with Christ.”
He then proceeds with a confession of faith, embracing all the prophane
and anti-Christian tenets of the Carlilean-school of theology, which it
would be impious to repeat.
The signs that he has written are, as he says, seventy-eight: but on
these he has remarks and comments in abundance. He continues to write
more, occasionally. The whole of these signs are merely repetitions
of the same things; but sometimes inverted, twisted, and transposed;
the whole being a medley of the most unintelligible nonsense that
perhaps ever entered the bewildered imagination of a wretched maniac,
occasionally interlarded with, “Mount Sion, the two-edged sword, the
flaming lions, the gates, the angels, the word, the prophet, and the
devil.”
“The time,” he says, “is fast approaching when all things are to be
fulfilled,” and the whole world, of course, to believe and be converted
to his doctrines. He has had these opinions for many years: but hope
bears him on, from a consciousness of their ultimate fulfilment. Of
this he is positive; no power on earth can prevent it. “They may
confine me, to be sure,” says he, “but it must come to pass.”
This prophet, in addition to his other privileges, formerly had
permission to go abroad, accompanied by the porter, for a day,
to purchase leather, and other things necessary for his use and
convenience, when he wanted, by leave of the committee; but, like many
other cases in the world, good-nature and indulgence made him proud,
and he abused the confidence reposed in him.
Having a great desire to have his new tenets published, and his signs
made manifest, as necessary to the fulfilment of his “divine mission,”
one evening (8th December, 1821), when he had been walking in the
garden, he contrived suddenly to disappear; but by what means is
still a mystery. He was missed in a moment, and all possible search
made about the house: but to no purpose, for the prophet had fled.
Despatches were sent to all the haunts he frequented, when out on
business; but no success:--he was invisible.
It appears since that he went to Mr. Hone, the bookseller, of
Ludgate-hill, as a likely man to publish his new doctrines. Mr. Hone
treated him very civilly. He explained his subject and his wish; but he
was told that the publication of a sufficient number of pamphlets would
cost £100. This the prophet was unable to advance. Mr. Hone would not
trust to the chance of the work for payment, if even he were inclined
to publish such nonsense. However, the prophet had humility enough to
ask for a bed. Mr. Hone could not accommodate him in his house, and
recommended him to a likely place: but it was strongly suspected that
he spent his night in very unprophet-like company, contrary to his
piety, his morality, and the divine mission in which he pretended to be
employed.
A vulgar, Billingsgate, and apparently abandoned woman comes frequently
to see him at the hospital, and is supposed to have been his companion
on the night in question. Failing, however, in his application for
“giving light” to the world, he came home next evening (9th December,
1821), at dusk, of his own accord, much fatigued, and no doubt much
disappointed, with his signs under his arm.
These signs and comments, &c. he has enclosed in a neat leathern case,
which he carries with him, at all times and on all occasions--to bed,
to the garden, in fact every where the prophet goes. It would be easier
to get sight of the original Alcoran, or unfold and make legible the
Herculanean manuscripts, than obtain a perusal of the signs without his
consent, or resorting to force. He is a very bad orthographer, and it
is difficult in some places to English his signs.
The following placard is pasted up in his room, which visitors
naturally read, and possibly inquire their meaning; which affords a
good opportunity for Truelock’s explanations.
“Three hundred years ago a philosopher sayed, the Stars give the
day-light.
“One hundred years ago, a philosopher proves to the publick that the
Sun give the day-light, and without the Rise of the sun there was no
day-light.
“One thousand eight hundred and nineteen years ago, the prophits rote
the Law, which was the Gospel, and said, that Christ was born of the
Virgin Mary, and walked on the face of the earth, that _groes weat,
oats, beens_, and _barley_.
“Now a Prophit rises, and says, he will prove to the publick that
Christ will appear out of the dark soul of the prophit, ware in he
stands, to give light, and be delivered out of the prophit’s mouth.
“The same is the two-edged sword, which is Christ; the same is the Son
of God, the same is the spirit of truth, the same is a new dockterin,
the same is a new revelation, for all the world, the same is Christ,
and his true and living prophit Saturn, in him, whom Christ is well
pleased;
“BANNISTER TRUELOCK,
“Mad man.”[2]
* * * * *
Another paper is pasted beside the foregoing, to the following effect:
“Do you know what we most admire in you? it is not your dress, we could
make a beast fine with trappings. What we admire, and what we ought to
admire in man, is that collection of fine feelings, which makes him a
human creature, to God and man.
“To know that the most distinguished geniusses are liable to
egregious, and most reprehensible feelings.
“The antient Pagans declared, in express terms, that there was wanting
some universal method of delivering men’s souls, which no sect of
philosophy had ever yet found out.
“No man is obliged to speak against the religion of a country, though a
false one, unless he has power of working miracles from Jesus Christ.
“BANNISTER TRUELOCK,
“Mad man.”