Following is what I felt when I read Carpenter's book.
I hope this would make some sense to understand
Pound's mental condition in 1959.
 
   According to Carpenter's _ A Serious Character _ ,
Pound had been suffered from serious depression in
1959 and was prescribed reserpine by a doctor for
the treatment(page 861).
   Reserpine is an antihypertensive drug now only used
in emergency cases because of its serious side effect
of depression (in some cases, it induces suicide).
   It seems that the serious side effect of the drug was
 not known that time and had been used widely as an
antihypertensive drug or as a tranquilizer.
( In  Carpenter's book it is described as a tranquilizer).
   Although the duration of the prescription is not specified
and the result of the treatment is described as "entirely
unsuccessful" in Carpenter's book, there is a possibility
that the treatment might have been harmful rather than
unsuccessful and caused or worsened Pound's depression.
   So I think when we see Pound's behavior and intelligence
at the time, we'd better take such a medical condition into
consideration.
Italian medical record is cited briefly in Carpenter's book.
 
  Hideo Nogami
  studying Ezra Pound nonprofessionally in Japan
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