INFANTICIDE IN ENGLAND.

Grey River Argus, Volume IX, Issue 632, 5 February 1870, Page 4

INFANTICIDE IN ENGLAND.

' ."' The'future'chronider'iofctfaa social' hi«i-.;;> tory of the last ;fewi years:. will ha.ye rea-, . son to characterise them as the period of ; -tho second slaughter of the innocents. H;e . mli fcid; in the first place that extraordinary calculation of the London cprpnet*, Dr Laiikester,; : tliat naif the wbnien 1 in ; the ■ i'netr(> : p'o'lis are tifurderesses of their you M .' .He may : :6jp : .o>ay^npfe»Ppr<>hfiA<i [: t|ie=<}ond|ition on which, the : Qalculatipn is based— namely, .thatitisitheihalfpfthe class who : i i base gjiven; bicth to ; iliegitimate children. ■ From this, under any condition, alarming statement, he. yvill pn»ceed to the disco>^ry that a, Vbman on trial for the murder pf.- her.. child makes open ..confes^ipn of ..the crime, and ,iß,,;puwV9^d py ,ia lew mouths' imprisonment, ■tliiia 1 B^uainluij: "all women who may bo disposed to the, : same fell .work that even when the guilt iis Tfletfected '''-tW jlidiciaJ value > of aa infant's life is notjiigh. .•< Reckoning "by the verdict, stealing a pocket handke^,-.- ; 7 (^ief^n^3m()theringababyunderaheartHr; "Bti»feb- l aiPß^crimeß? of about ejjuaJjdegroa.i Tl.lV^gi'it? bythe gainfi standard, it.ivill alko tJe&p}>arynt,^ali^iofthmak^iUßmW\of ; "QiaiH^siug of inconvenient babies by thrust; ing them ilown^ew«rs-{ and that he-is jtlile toicairry on *this bjißines^ so adroitly ptl^t even when lh'' the v harias'of the'priiice*. j ; eyehw{iiiu lfc stands within arm's reaclv ofjud.tfp [and 3rjry, : yat r a tittle of conclusive fivitlencd can bfe'broiVgn^ ogainat him,_ and he is released, The fact that he 1 is arrainged a.nd condemned to a brief sojourn in prison for a minor offence is a very small satisfaction to the nooiety bf the day, and will be a matter of marvel. 1 to the uocicity of the future. Another {act, iv regard to the slaughter of the imio-

cents, and one a* interesting and as curious as any of the foregoing, will pro* bably come to ]ighs;.. ; . Jt ;^iil appear that there are^houses^ Known W the police in which children are born and expeditiously . " quieted?' at a iuoderate" expense. ; Thjere jean he^ .-no, 'doubt o^^ecor*e^teeaspl thia istatement •), fo^ apart frbnv'tlle ifreßiatlble ideductiiins which the too. abundant, reveilationa of child -murder supply, here is an ■authenticated ilhn?tiation. A'youngwoman ':who.-waa~ : about I .i'tp.Ab^W.lft\mo^eir'v.ks-' 't^iken to a certain 'hopse, the aocomraoidations of which were partly' made known : by circular to any who might desire to require to patronise it. The details of [the accommodation not made known by circular were explaihed on personal application. The visitor was introduced to an elderly woman to whom she told htr cir^ cumßtances. The proprietress of the establishment then informed her that she could be accommodated for so much, and that the child could be taken care of afterwards ; but she added, aignificantly, 11 If the- child -were- left 'theft, the mother rnxistitever expect -to see it ag&in." . Accustomed as. we are to the intricacies of crime, all are disposed to exclaim in bewilderment, "Is this portion of the mystery of some dismal sensation, : romance?" But it is not so ; if : we are to credit- our police reports, these things I regularly transpire under the very nose of • thei' lAw, The young woman to. whom the obl^tfg offer quoted had Keetj made, very, properly informed the authorities, giving the address: and ; name ;• of the hag. /TKe authorities, it was understood, were to enquire into the. affair; and since then nothing more has been heard of it. Pro-, bably no opportunity has been found of bringing a charge home to the professionalslaughteress, and possibly she had ] taken the alarm ixt*time and had changed her address before the detectives favbred- ; her:with;a v.isic< In any oase/ there is the ■ horrible . story j and there are dead infantß^ickeaiipin the streets of our great j cities, day. after day with such appalling ! frequency that the circumstance^ is 6iie of | the Common evehts of town .life. Just; I o\!er the.railings of public .sqtiareß, in the ; parks, down ' V; the - areas ot' secluded thbronghfsbrds; in du^tbinsj in common sewers, on suburban roads-^-oyery.whepß. the dead bodies of the- "unfortunate 'little ones are discovered? Of the number destroyed Bome-'ideJkPwill be obtained from i one more example, ' A. cwoman was arresteol on the .cmr^e (of infanticide. . .In tjie course of r bet: trial it'tr^spiredT that", within a brief 'period the 'dead b6dies. r of twelve infants h*d been found Avithin tt short radius' of the. . place where this woman lived. : There .was no- evidence ty associate her ydi&, these"; muTCfers,' but the suggestion was that she was a professional slaughteresS, and had found, that the easiest way. to get; rid of the poor little victim's" was'simplj^ id ' drop' themin any thorrtughfare when fancied ; herself unobserved. Dead* dogs and cats are hardly so numerously, distributed over the streets of bur cities as deadqhiidren are, according to these revelations. When tliese acts are brought together we; Bea more clearly to what an ; extent the crime of infanticide prerailsrthan we? possibly can do in glancing at the Separate pai-a^raphs; frequently as they appear in :our.newspapers; Indeed; the frequency withwhich we observe,the line^ " DeadlnfahtF(«und," has ajimp^t'.'dis^elfed' any' sense of ; Horror in reao'iiig'it, fttfd thocrinie with Avhfch it is associated has : lpst half i^bfiicknVas by. its ' |cpnsi;9rit"«.)ccijirrence. : It ha^ almqsi'be'c<sme lone of. ifee priiinary accidents; of life, a£d when an instance of ' it is cited peppl[e shrug .tbeir /shoulders and proceed With ; their own affairs^ ..• . ; . As the Te^nlt of a consideration of the singular state of things which the above eiren mstances illustrate^ -there are several points to be noted and remembered, first, That there are persons, ichiefly;WQinen, wti6 ; find it to be^ia^ profitable business to slay infants, either by the slow process of sUrvstipn .or ;by!any m/>re rapid method at hand. Secondy That the chances of 1 these elndihg detection ; are twenty against on/s of being detected ;sand that even when discovered the chances of escaping punishment are fifty "to one. Third, That the punishment .*M^ rawly more seve'rethiStf'a, brief, imprisonment ; ; ahd>i fourth, 7 '. \>Eh*fy; thes^ , .pjpofes.sipiial slaughtered .thrive and exist,: simply be-; cause;tfiere_ar^ w>nien who either cannot ! or.wfil npipr^^ "spring". ' .Bearing j these pbinfe. in." miqd, are ■we to :permit : traffic io continue .without a^y.yigbrbus effort to suppress it ?. : br lias ohfciviUsatiox brought | us to the conviction that infant life is of no valne, if it isnot an actual iucumbrance on society ? If cliision, there riinst ; be some speedy land general movement— riot the movement of a few individuals, but of the publicr-: tb succour^hei little ones from: the ,bntolip?p!. One means will be the infliction of aeyiarer ■puhisTimentis th^n at presentpifi the fltiiilty; ; aiid : ;jijiot3ter triay fee. the p!j:6Vßding ! (if somis estabffen^hib iif wHich" infants~mav^KaVe ■ life ! if tfeiF'uitn'&tiiiial^ parents .refuse tb sustain" it; j Tliig cr^'that-'siich^Ceßta'b-Ushrnent is-a on immorality b. of smaiii*c<)unt in -contrast with the murders vhTcn 'tlfe "absence "of arrefuge prb■'vokbs. -^■■^^- v- ■ *•« '$?7&:::^ l^C ■■