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San Francisco Daily Examiner
March 4, 1887

More Tales of Cowardly Cruelty Toward Helpless Victims. 
Physicians Who Aid in Murder For the Sake of Receiving a Paltry Fee. 
Infants Purposely Mangled at Their birth, and Willfully Exposed to Death from Cold.
Further Inquiry Into the Question of Foundling Mortality- A Matron’s Tale – Need of a New Law!

Aside from the intrinsic importance of the subject itself, the remarkable degree of public interest excited by the exposure in yesterday’s EXAMINER. Of the barbarities practiced in some instances at least, upon that most to be pitied class of society, the helpless foundlings, fully justified the further investigations into the details of the subject yesterday made by a member of the local staff of this paper.

That the additional results obtained more than support all the assertions contained in the first article the readers will need no further evidence then their own intelligence for assurance.

The reporter first bent his steps again toward the institution already visited, the San Francisco lying-in and children’s hospital situated at no. 913 Golden Gate avenue. Here he obtained an interview with the matron of the institution, a pleasant well mannered lady with kindly quizzical glance, and through her kindness was enabled to push his investigation considerably further.

At the outset the lady did not receive with favor the idea of making the affairs of the institution public property as it were.

"What Has the Baby Done?"

The first mention of this reporter’s presence, caused her to throw up her hands in a gesture of vexed impatience and exclamation

"Dear me! Dear me! And can’t that poor little baby be laid in her grave and allowed to rest without all this trouble?"

"What had the poor innocent done? Or what had we to do but try to save its life?" But being assured this reporter desire was for more information upon a much broader subject than the incident of the brief life and untimely death of the unfortunate innocent to whom she had referred, the lady manifested every desire to furnish such information as she could.

"Children are left here" she said in answer to the first question "at all hours of the day and night. It is almost impossible to give a number we average every week or month as it varies greatly. Sometimes there will be 5-6 a night and after that none for over a month. Then again there will be one left every night or day as regular as clock work. If you want an average you must look at the records and form your own idea"

The reporter did as he was bid and had seen ascertain the lady had stated facts correctly. He was however able to estimate that the average received monthly was about 80.

MURDERED INNOCENTS

"Of those who are left here" continued the matron "there are scarce any who are in proper condition, this child I spoke of moments ago, whose death seems to have awakened so much interest and curiosity , though exceptionally well clothed, and to all appearances naturally vigorous and healthy, had been drugged as you had already published. It is terrible of course, particularly since death resulted after all we tried to save it, but there is nothing exceptional in the thing itself. More frequently then you would believe possible this is done. We find the infant in a stupor from which if other conditions are favorable, we may succeed in arousing it. But too often we fail and of course the little baby dies. Murder? Ah that’s a terrible word, but it seems impossible to call it anything else."

" But this is by no means all, there are other forms of crime all tending to the same end. Look over the record here- here- here. See what a number of cases marked premature. The public at large would find it hard to believe it, but children are left at our door continuously and since the institution has been in existence with their poor helpless bodies so wounded and bruised with instruments its plain there was no wish that they should live when they were dragged into this world. Even if a mother is so lost to allow it, it seems difficult to imagine there are physicians so inhumane as to do actual murder for the sake of a paltry fee. None the less its true."

CRIMINAL NEGLECT

"Do these children live, scarcely any. How can they mangled as they are before born"

"But could this not be accident or unavoidable necessity?" inquired the reporter.

"Perhaps it could be, but its not" replied the matron with such sternness that did her infinite credit. "its deliberately done with thee hope and intention that the infant dies. It differs from down right murder only in being more cowardly therefore more despicable"

"All this is horrible indeed " replied the reporter " surely it is the worst you have to tell me?"

"Yes for these things which I have spoken are all that can be classed under the head of actual crime, but there is such a thing as criminal carelessness, and of that we meet with continual instances. Most frequently it is shown in a neglect to clothe the child sufficiently. Infants are left here often which we find to be in a stupor from extreme cold. When this is the case we lay them on rubber bags on warm water, but in too many instances we can’t get the poor unfortunates warm. The blood freezes in their veins and their hearts stop beating before our means of restoration can have effect. Ah this is pitiful."

CRUEL NEGLECT

Tears dimmed the matron’s kindly eyes for a moment, but she soon went on turning the leaves of the record book pointing to various entries as she spoke:

"Here is a case where the child was left perfectly naked, and the bell not even rung to let us know. Of course if we had not immediately found her, the little thing would have chilled to death in a very few moments, as the night was unusually cold. As it is she is now alive and well"

"Look another entry found wrapped in butchers paper. It is an actual fact. The poor little thing was doubled up with his feet against its face tied up like a package of meat, in brown paper nothing else on it at all. This one had a rag tied around its body nothing else. That happens often though, and why they take the trouble of tying the rag on is something I’ll never know. Perhaps its to furnish a handle to carry the baby by"

The lady continues turning the pages of the record book and refers to various cases, and the brief remarks written next to each one. In many instances these referred to the physical condition of the child, its healthfulness or unhealthfulness etc.  From these references it was evident that nearly all the children were left in a very bad condition, two ever reoccurring notes were "very dirty" and "unwashed" As for clothing this reporters eyes fell upon numerous entries such as "wrapped in a diaper"" found rolled up in a ragged piece of shall" "naked" "nothing on but a fragment of a child’s skirt" " a torn strip of blanket wrapped around it"

THE DEPOSITS AND THEIR MORTALITY

Two succeeding entries, numbered consecutively, refer to a couple of children found about 3 weeks ago, both evidently left by the same person. One was sick and soon after died, but the other is still living, and when the reporter saw it yesterday it presented every appearance of good health and care. The records show that since the establishment of the institution in 1868 1,600 foundlings in round numbers had been received. All these however were not deposited secretly in the receptacle provided for such purposes, as once in a while the child is brought in broad as day, by someone, a woman who does not shrink from showing herself. Opposite one entry is a note "left by hoodlum" the matron explaining that the young female in question boldly rang the bell, and when the nurse opened the door thrust an infant into her hands with the simple remark "Here take it I don’t want it" she went away without giving any information about the child or herself.

As to the rate of mortality among the children, the matron thought it didn’t amount to a quarter of the babes left there, even including the deaths of such are practically lifeless when first received. In some months however, deaths are much more frequent than in others, July being notably so. Why this was so the matron could not state, unless it resulted from miasmatic influences prevailing in the air at that season of the year, or from the fact that food of the cows belonging to the dairy’s from which milk is obtained is changed during that month.

Before leaving the institution the reporter was given an opportunity to inspect the infants now there and these ordinarily in their appearance, furnished strong evidence of the truth of the assertions that the best of care and attention is given to them.

MORE VIGOROUS RULES

The reporter also visited the San Francisco female hospital on Stockton street, between Sacramento and Clay, where he found twenty-one little men and women all apparently in the best of health. The matron of the institution had had no experience with drugged or otherwise maltreated infants, she said and such work would be scarcely possible, since here the children are invariably brought by those whose care they had been, and are personally delivered into the hands of nurses. Persons who desire to conceal their identity, of course go to other institutions, where provision is made, perhaps unwisely to their benefit.

Nevertheless those in charge of this establishment, are not without their curious experiences. One of the matron’s charges is known as the "newspaper baby" owing to the fact its mother brought it to the hospital very neatly wrapped in newspaper, evidently desiring to conceal what she was carrying through the streets.

In another case a mother brought her own child to the institution, a distance of several blocks from the house, where the birth took place, on the same day it was born. To the horrified exclamations of the nurses she replied in wonder "Why shouldn’t I bring it? I feel alright?" It was only by the most earnest persuasion that she was finally induced to go to a bed and allow herself to be properly cared for.

"OLGA EUGENA"

In regard to the case that had been specially mentioned of the unfortunate infant left at Golden Gate avenue, hospital last Monday in a stupefied condition produced by the use of drugs, from the effects of which it did not recover, in reference to the circumstances, public interest continues keen. Nothing further however, has been ascertained as to the identity of its parents through Coroner Statton and his assistants have been earnestly working to that end, as well as to thoroughly investigate every other feature of inhumane treatment of helpless innocents.

In this particular case however in reference to the circumstances already mentioned, a fragment of worsted string being found knotted around about the child’s hand, a more touching interest attaches upon closer investigation of the facts.

When the cord came to be removed it was noticed upon surprise, that it had been most carelessly secured, the knot being of such character, that it was but a mere accident it had not fallen off, in particularly in the view of the fact that the cord itself encircled not the child’s wrist but its fingers which were drawn together in a bunch. All the circumstances made it plain that whomever had place the string upon the infants hand had done so in a hurriedly, having afterward had no opportunity to examine to see if it had been done so properly. Taking all the circumstances into consideration, including the fact of the string itself being manifestly a portion of the fringe of a shawl, which had been hastily torn away, it became plain that when the child was thus marked it was done under circumstances which required concealment even from the one companion whose act it was. But one more instance perhaps of the divine love of motherhood striving in the midst of suffering and shame, even in fear of him who shared the guilt to preserve some means by which at a future day, the lost might be reclaimed and that the child should have died, renders the facts even more pitiful, and in this case at least, despite the deadly effect of the drug which the hapless mother may have known to be administered, upon her the burden of the blame should not be placed.

A REMEDY NEEDED

But there are others who can not be held guiltless, and the soul sickens at the contemplation of the moral character of those who can knowingly can be guilty of acts which even if they stop short of actual murder, only differ but little in the crime. The railway switchman whose carelessness, unintentional though it be, wrecks the train and causes loss of human life is held responsible before the law and suffers deservedly the punishment of manslaughter. And yet for those who, not accidentally or through simple heedlessness, but knowingly and with a full realization of what they are doing, drug a helpless infant into a slumber, which too often results in death or exposes it in other ways to injuries which maybe equally fatal, the law apparently provides no punishment. That this should be so, is a stain upon the laws of this state and a plot upon her civilization which should immediately be effaced and the legislator which formulates such an addition to the criminal code as shall provide for the swift and sure punishment of those who thus practice against the lives of the innocent ,and helpless, will do much to deserve the gratitude of the public.