BABY FARMING.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 9116, 29 May 1895, Page 6

BABY FARMING.

THE WINTON CASE. (PBESS ASSOCIATION TELEGRAM.) INVERCARGILL, May 23. An Inquest was commenced to-day on the body of Dorothy Edith Carter, one of the two babies first found in the garden at lArches, East Winton, and with the' murder of which child Minnie and Cfcarlee Dean Mβ charged. Louisa Cox (Christchurch) deposed that in accordance with an arrangement through a if? J zelt » "he brought deceased, a child Which was born the 23rd of May, 1894, and was the offspring of her daughter, Mary £oiusa Carter, a married womaD, to the «luff, by»teamer, on the 30th of April, and

there, in a private hotel, delivered it to a Mrs Gray, to whom she gave an envelope. The child was in good health. Witness identified Mrs Deau as Mrs Gray, also the clothing found at Lurches as that given to Dean with the infant.

A chemist at the Bluff deposed that he gave a woman, who signed " M. Gray" in his poisons book, sixpence-worth of laudanum about noon on the 30th of April. He could not identify the woman as Mrs Dean, but a girl who ha(' lived many years with her said the writing in the poisons book was Deau's.

Esther Wallace, another inmate of Larches, aged fifteen, deposed that Mrs Dean told her on the 29th ult. that she was going to the Bluff for a year-old baby ; that she brought it home on the 30th ; that witness met her at the Gap road (a station short of Whiton); that she carried the child home; that its name was Dorothy Edith. Among Mrs Dean's parcels was a piece of new oilcloth. The child remained till the 2nd instint, when wituesa carried it to Barkley, the first station north of Winton, and there put it on the norlh-bouud morning train with Mrs Dean, who had a light tin box with her. Mrs Dean returned on Saturday, the 4th, without the child. The box was much heavier than when she left. Mrs Dean said it contained bulbs given her by Mrs Cameron, of the Mataura Hotel. (That lady, being called, denied that she gave her anything but slips of flowers.) On the way home through a paddock Mrs Dean told her to put the box in some buahes for the night. Wituesa went for it next morning, and brought it to the Larches. It wa3 still as heavy as on the Saturday. Mr Dean put it uuder a bed, and witness next saw it on Wednesday, the Bth iast., at the door. It was open and with » little soil in it. In other parcels brought by Mrs Dean were clothes worn by the oaby Dorothy ; also those for a smaller child. Witness identified the oilcloth in which the body was wrapped when exhumed as that which had been on the table at the Larohes, on which the new cloth Mrs brought home had eince been placed. \V. G. Everett (guard) and Mr McKellar (Rabbit Inspcctoi) proved that Mrs Dean aud a child travelled to Dipton. Both knew her.

T. Baker deposed that he assisted Mrs Daan tv the hotel at Dipton and back to the evening train. She said she had come off a boat. lie carried a tin box both ways. It was quite light. Ayiing (holelkeeper) corroborated this, and said Mrs Dean told him the reason why she left the train was that the child was ill.

C. Davis (guard of the evening north train to Lum3deu), deposed that he knew Mrs Dean, and saw her and a child get on the train at Diptou. He went through the train to collect the tickets shortly after, aud saw her and the child alone in a carriage. Returning soon after to the van he saw the child lying on a cushion with a tin box between her and Mrs Dean. Later he passed through again and saw no child, and at Lumsden Mrs Dean left the train without the infant. He saw her next morning on the Lumsdeu platform without the child. A boy of ten years, who carried the tin box to an hotel in Lumsden, and two servants of the house, deposed that the box was much heavier than it now was, the boy saying it took him all he could do to carry it. T. Martin (railway guard) knew Mrs Dean. She travelled with him in the train from Lumsden to Gore on the 3rd iust. She had no child, but carried a tin box. Three guards, who will trace Mis Dean further, could not be called to-day, being absent ou duty. Further evidence was given of the return to Clinton, where Mrs Dean stated that she had been to the Clarendon station (where the Hornsby infant was last seen alive) and stayed at Mataura on Saturday, and the fact that she had no child with her was also deposed to. Messrs Hanlon and Hanan, who appear for the accused, put no questions. Mr T- Mac Donald, for the police, suggested an adjournment for the day, which was agreed to. He said he hoped to finish to-morrow, unlees it should be deemed necessary to examine Professor Black, who had returned to Dunedin.