Medicine: Dr. Cowles Investigated

Last week’s inquest into the revolver suicide of rich young William E. Swift of Chicago at Dr. Edward Spencer Cowles’ expensive Manhattan sanitarium (TIME, Aug. 25) gave Dr. Cowles opportunity to answer nasty rumors about his professional conduct, particularly about his administration of narcotics to patients.

This was the real cause for quizzing Dr. Cowles when he appeared before Dr. Charles Norris, Manhattan medical examiner, and Sol Ullman, state deputy assistant attorney general representing the medical grievance committee of the State Department of Education which has charge of medical licensure. (Dr. Cowles has repeatedly been refused admittance to local and national medical societies.)

After the interrogation had proceeded a while and Dr. Cowles had said that Swift had habitually used large quantities of bromo seltzer and that at the sanitarium he had received only chloral hydrate as a nerve sedative, Mr. Ullman snapped at Dr. Cowles: “You’ve had experiences of this kind [i. e. suicides] before, haven’t you?”

Dr. Cowles grew angry: “I want to know if you are trying to get information or to hurt my reputation.” No reply. Dr. Cowles, quieter, then declared that the Swift suicide was the first on his premises.

When questioning ended, Dr. Cowles, who is a son-in-law of William Gibbs Mc-Adoo, dictated a formal statement: “I have welcomed the opportunity of coming to this investigation. I’ve especially invited the opportunity because there has been in the public press and in the questioning here the impression that drugs are being used in an improper manner in the institution, which I deny and resent. … I probably use as few narcotic drugs [chloral is not a narcotic] as any man in the profession. …”

Equivocal was Examiner Norris’ statement at the end of his investigation: “I think we’ve got to believe the story that the [Swift] wound was self-inflicted. From the evidence, what else can we do? It would be a long, hard road if we were to assume otherwise.”

Inconclusive was Mr. Ullman’s opinion of his study of the sanitarium activities: “We are interested from the ethical angle. We have been watching. …”