ALLEGED NEGLECT OF A CHILD

Auckland Star, Volume XLI, Issue 64, 16 March 1910, Page 6

ALLEGED NEGLECT OF A CHILD

At the Police Court to-day, before Mr. E. C. Cutten, S.M., an evidently respectable man named John J. Donpvan pleaded not guilty to a charge of having so treated his 11----montiis-old daughter as to cause her unnecessary pain. Mr. J. R Beed appeared for the accused. b-inspector Hendrey, in stating .the case to the Court, said if appeared that Mr. Donovan lost his wife some months ago, and he had been living in Grey-street with the child since. The complaint was that he had allowed the child to cry unduly, and had not supplied it with proper food. It was not suggested that the infant had not been I supplied with sufficient food, but that the food supplied was not what was requisite in flic circumstances. Since the | child had been removed to a nursing j home it had increased lOozs in weight. Dr. Lindsay said he had examined the child, and found it clean and well cared for, but poorly nourished. Witness understood that Mr. Donovan had been advised by the hospital doctors to give the child a certain food; but he thought condensed milk and biscuits was the -est food for the child, and that was what he gave it. Such food was conducive to infantile scurvy. Mr. Reed: Do you think Mr. Donovan was doing this wilfully?— no. 1 think he was a very opinionated man, who, having become possessed of certain | ideas, would think he was doing right In carrying them out. Do you mean to get rid 6f the child? Oh, no, certainly not. I should say the object was to do the child good. I may add that infantile scurvy is more common with the children of the wealthy than with those of the poor, which is due to the use of food that had been sterißsed. Are there not many parents who starve their children through giving them improper —Oh, yes. And if it be suggested, in this case, that defendant did anything more than i many persons who do not understand how to deal with young children, would you say that is so?—No, I don't think so; the child was clean, and Its general supervision was all right, but the feeding with condensed milk was not. (Proceeding.) .