MURDER CHARGE.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18550, 27 November 1925, Page 11

MURDER CHARGE.

THE KAIKORAI TRAGEDY. MRS HART COMMITTED FOR TRIAL. (TIMS AISOCIATIOK TILiaSAM-) IH'NKDIX. November 26. The hearing ol charges of the murder of her three children .igainst Ellen Hart lx-gan in the Magistrate'.- Court tliis morning before Mr llartholomew, . y \I. The children's name? and ages were: Lindsay Hart, o years: Andrew William, 3 year? .j months; and Nola, i'turteen months. Mr Calbm appeaiwl for accused. Thb inquest uas taken (on.eurrcr.tiy. Margaret I'fton. next-door neighhour. Hated that :it 8.20 on Monday morning. November 9th, she heard rometlu'ng fall on the roof of the house. She went out and heard- accused calling ''Come quickly." Accused had a handkerchief in her hand. Sho stated that she h;ul killed her children. AVifness asked accused to come to Jiei house, but, accused replied that she didn't want to leave the children, adding. couldn't come like this." Witness noticed cuts on accused's throat. She called a cousin to assist and they brought accused into witness's liou.se. Accused said, ''AA'c had an argument last night." adding. "T suppose I'll hang- for this." "Witness sent for the doctor and asked her husband to go to Hail's place to see if any of the child-' ren were alive. Thev found the bnhy. j Nola. in a pram in the front bedroom, with its throat- cut. Andrew Lindsay was 1 on the kitchen floor in the s-Tno condition-. Prior to this .' censed Ini'l stated that she ha<i left a note for her husband. He had told her in the morning thai bo wanted her. but she said she could not stay on his term.-. After Dr. Evans arrived, accused said,

: 'We confessed our si.tis last- night/' The-woman stated that' her huslmiiii had said the children would have to suffer for her .sin.s. She had replied that she didn't want thom to do ibat. To Mr Callan: Witness noted that ' accused appeared very fond of the children. Ozmorid Burnard Ufton, husband of the last witness, corroborated 1 the previous witness's evidence. He stated that he had noticed nothing peculiar about the Harts as neighbours. "Religion Made Me Do It." Gladys Blanche Newall stated that she went to Mrs Ufton's house on November 9th. Accused was in the sit-ting-room and threw her arms round witness's neck, stating:—"Whatever do you think? It's nothing but religion made me do it. I was getting the children ready for school and 1 on th£ spur of the moment I did it, but they did not want to go. Wo had decided to live a Christian lite and confessed our pasts to one another. My husband said he would' forgive me for every-, thing, but that there were things that God would never forgive me for." Dr. Evans deposed as to the fatal wounds and also to minor wounds on accused's neck. Site had been crying, but she* was calm and collected." She told witness that she didn't know what had come over her to kill her children, but she now realised that it was the Wrong thing to do. Later at the police station, accused told him that, coming from churchy.on the previous night, her husband said that God would forgive all her sins, but there was one which He could not, and therefore her husband could not. She also said that before leaving on November 9th her husband kissed all the children, and asked whether there were to he any more quarrels. She said no. She also said that a fortnight . previously her husband and she had agreed to confess their past sins. He came home one, evening and told' her that; after hoar.' ing a preacher he attended' another meeting which changed his view of religion.

Mental Condition. Dr. Evans added that accused stated that up to twenty-two years of ago sho was a Catholic, hut since her marriage she had gone to the Baptist Church with her husband's people. Later, at the Hospital, accused went over practically the same ground with the addition that her husband had! said that the first child was not his. She thought from the fact that her husband had kissed her before leaving that everything was all right, and did not want to blame him. To Mr Oallan: Any questions that he asked accused were to find* out her mental condition. He had 'been told that at one period accused was temporarily blind, but he would not connect that with her'mental state. To the Chief Detective: During the interviews he discerned no mental weakness. Sergeant Duulop said that when leaving for the police station, accused cried: "I shouldn't have done it." Detective Farquharson stated that when he read the charge to accused, she said: "Oh! Don't tell me they're all gone.'' Accused was committed for trial. Chief Detective Lewis, referring to the inquest, said that the evidence of the husband might be called, he being the last person to see the children alive. The Magistrate said that no useful purpose could be served. The husband could not bo called in connexion with the murder and it would be impi >per to call him for the inquest. He .'ound that the children died from injj'"ios inflicted by accused with a. razor, there not being sufficient evidence to show her mental condition at the time. On the suggestion of Mr Callan. the Magistrate, recommended to the Minister that accused be detained in a. mental hospital pending trial.