PYROMANIACS
As there are contain persons, known as Kleptomanics, who have such an alfection for the property of other persons that they cannot resist the temptation to appropriate it to themselves whenever opportunity oilers, so there are others who revol in conflagrations.
Occasionally this desire to see things burn becomes an uncontrollable passion and the person then a dangerous incendiary. Sometime ago a man was captured and tried in London on a charge | of arson, when it M’as developed in the ; course of his trial that he had been in the : habit of setting fire to buildings for the I pleasure of seeing them burn and parj ticipating in the attendant excitement. Ho M’as pronouneod a pyromanic, and | consigned to a lunatic asylum.
Recently a veritable pyromanic appeared in New Orleans, in the person of Louis Ganster, better known as Crazy Joe. One evening a fire M as discovered in a two story frame house, and when i tho Firemen neared the scene they | found Crazy Joe standing guard over tho fire, brandishing a revolver, and threatening to kill any one who came ^ near. Two policemen broke open the! door, and were greeted with several ; shots from Crazy Joe. He was forced to retreat into one of the burning rooms, M’here ho locked himself in. Two policemen burst open the door, M’here the pyromaniao Mas discovered flourishing an artillery cutlass in tho most reckless maimer. The officers pressed in upon him, M’hen Crazy Joe ran one of them through the body; the other officer approached the now infuriated maniac and M’as assailed most vigorously M’ith the cutlass, receiving seven dangerous wounds. The Firemen came to the rescue of the police officers, secured thier persons, and attempted to shoot the crazy man, but the weapon refused to go off. Crazy Joe then retreated to a balcony, M’hen the Firemen turned the hose upon him, and also a stream from a firo extinguisher. Under this treatment the maniac Meakenecl, and a policeman managed to secure him. As they trying to bring him out of the burning building, he fell from their arms a corpse. It is supposed that he died from the effects of the excitement and the acids throM’n upon him by the fire extinguisher. Pyromania is seldom developed to so alarming an extent as in this instance, but it is M’ell knoM’n that there are many persons to M’hom a fire is an irresistible attraction and who cannot be induced to leave the scene of a conflagration so long as any flames or excitement remain. The case of Crazy Joe is a most singular one, tending to show to M’hat extent these pyromanics may be driven by the desease M’liich afflets them.
