MINNIE DEAN'S STATEMENT.

North Otago Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 8265, 21 August 1895, Page 3

MINNIE DEAN'S STATEMENT.

(by telegraph.) Wellington, August 20. The statement lei t by Mrs Dean and forwarded to the Government occupies 57 closely-written pages of foolscap. It it is ungrammatical, and contains many faults of spelling. A portion of it is of a quasi-religious character, and the writer then goes on to detail her movoments by rail. The whole point of her argument is that she always gave the children laudanum when travelling, as crying infants were such annoyance. She gave the child several doses at various limes, but merely for the purpose of keepiog it quiet, and wheu it died she was frightened and buried it, and invented the s^ory about planting bulbs to avert suspicion. She says: "I know I was the oause of the child Carter's death, that I had given her in overdose of laudanum, but with no intention of causing its death, and God knows I have been punished for negligenoe, but a hnlr of the baby Hornby's head I never injured. Tho baby was not 10 minutes nlive in my care altogether." Further on she aaya tho drug was given to cause sleep, not death. The rest of the statement is devoted to minute details of the various children committed to her eire, some of them soveral years ago, -*nd are alive now. There is frequent reference to names and initials. It would be impossible to follew her in these details under several columns. Mtb Dean desired the statement to be published, and the proceeds given to her husband, after deducting L 5 for Mrs Taylor, a widow.