The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-06-25 00:00:00

--- -
BABY FARMING IN LONDON.

At the Lambeth Police-court on Monday afternoon,
Mr. Elliott, the sitting magistrate, was engaged several
hours in the further hearing of the charges against two
women, said to be Rioters, naulerl Margaret Waters,
aged 35, with numerous aliases, including those of
Blackburn, Willis, Oliver, Hurley, dm., and Mary
Ellis, aged 25, for cruelty to a number of Illegitimate
children in not providing them with proper food and
nourishment. Since the case last appeared the police
authorities had been investigating the matter, and the
solicitore to the Treasury had taken it up. It was an-
ticipated that by further publicity additional evidence
would be obtained.

Mr. Poland (instructed on the the part of the Trea-
sury) appeared to prosecute, and said the case was
likely to become serious. Although it had appeared in
the newspapers the mothers mb, had placed their
children in the care of the prisoner Watt rs had no
come forward, and it was to be hoped that after the
evidence he was about to call, and the publicity that
no doubt would follow, further information would be
given to the police.
Captain Baynes, the district superintendent, and
Mr. Superintendent Gernon attended the investigation,
which had created considerable interest ; and Mr.
Mayo defended the prisoners.
Since the last examination Mr. Poland abated that
the police had obtained possession of a number of let-
tees written by various persona to the prisoner Waters,
alias Blackburn, Oliver, &c., which he now produced.
It will be recollect. d that advertisements were inserted
in the newspapers to adopt children at a premium of
£5, and as each advertisement was only for one child,
it was stated that a mother's love and care would be
bestowed upon it. Sergeant Reif, answered an adver-
tisement, addressing his letters to Mrs. Oliver, Post.
office, Brixton, and received the following reply, which
led to the apprehension of the prisoners :7

4. Wednesday, June 8.
"Slr,—ln reply to your letter, I beg to say that it would
give me great pleasure to adopt as my own your little boy, If
not too old, and I wish for ohs as young as possible, that it
might know none but ourselves as its parents. The child
would be well brought up, and carefully educated; he would
have a good trade, and be as In all respects as our own. We
have been married several years, and have no family. We
are In a comfortable position, have • good business, and a
home calculated In every way to make a child happy. We
are both very fond of children, and should you intrust your
little one to my care you may rely upon his receiving the
love and care of a mother. Any place you Ilhe to appoint
far an interview will snit me. I can meet you at any time
ou please, and should be glad to have the matter settle I as
soon aa possible. Hoping to have your early reply, I am,
Sir, yours respectfully, It. OLIVER
There were several letters found on the subject
of adopting children, which the police had obtained.
Before the commencement vf the case a Mr,
- - " •

---
Hollingsworth asked the advice of the magistrate how
he was to proceed to recover the furniture in the house
at Brixton, on which he had advanced money. Seeing
the case in the newspapers he found it was the woman
to whom he had made an advance and on whose pro-
perty he held a bill of sale. On going to the house he
found the police in possession of the furniture on which
he had made the advance.

The Magistrate declined to interfere in the matter,
saying that the police had charge of the house, to whom
any application could be made.
Mr. Poland, in opening the case, raid several dead
bodies had been found, and he should be able to trace
the clothes of the infants to the possession of the
prieonere. If the mothers of the children possessed
any feeling ef humanity they would come forward in
such %CS,' la give information on the subject.
Ellen O'Connor said she was 14 years old. She knew
the two prisoners as living in Frederick-terrace,
Brixton. She bad been servant at the house. She went
about three mouths since, first about twelve o'clock in
the day, and leaving at ten o'clock at night. This was for
the first fortnight, and since then she had lived in the
house till the prisoners were taken into custody. She
was engaged by Mr 3. Wa'.ers, whom she knew by the
name of " Blackborn." She knew the other prisoner
by the name of Ellis. When she first went to the house
there were seven infants, whirls number included Mrs.
Ellie's child. She oniy knew three of the children by
the names of 'Teddy, Joe, and Willie." The number
was at ter wards increased to It. While witnesswas there
four children were taken away. Two were taken by both
prisoner, about ten o'clock at night, and they returned
with the children after twelve o'clock, and said they
were too late for the train. On the next night they again
took the children " home," as they said, and returned
without them. The two were in lung clothen, and had
been in the house about a month. The prisoner Waters
told her they were taking them away because they
were iIL When the prison, re came hack they brandat
a hood, cape, and cloak. Afterwards /11v. Waters
took another little girl away and retmned without her.
About three weeks ago a•lother infant—the fourth—
was taken away. Wituees had never seen the four
children since. She wag frequently told to go to
the Post-offise at Brixton anti get letters addressed
there to "Mrs. Oliver." Sometime, she got six at
one time. After the prisoner Waters had read the letters
she generally burnt then. She read them to Mre.
1 Ellis. Witness went twice to Mr. Keyes, a chemist in
Loughborough-road, for laudanum—on one occasion
because Mr.% Waters told hertoeay she had &toothache,
and on the other occasion because it was wanted to rub
the chest of Miss Cowan's child. She ales went to another
. .

&Mist- for lauds—num, an he refused to let her have soy.

br:ii;" Friday nigh before the prisoners were taken
into custody she remembered Mrs. Ellis coming home,
and she was tipsy. Waters asked her who had made
her so, and whether she had been to Camberwell Station.
Just at the time a man pasted the window of the house
and looked in, on which the prisoner Waters said to
Ellis, " You nasty cat, you have ruined me." Withers
assisted the prisoner to put Ellis to bed, and she said
she had dote her out of £8 and she would let her
brothers and sisters know. Witness further stated
that Waters had sent her to a builder's close by te get
lime, which she said was to keep sickness away from
the children. After putting a piece about half the
size of her hand into a jug of water for an hour a des-
sert sp ,onful was, by the direction of the prisoner
Waters, put into each of the infant's feeding bottles.
The prisoner Ellis used to suckle her own child, and
sometimes Cowan's child. No child died while she
was there. Mr. Harris, surgeon, attended Mrs. Ellis,
and other medical men attended at the house.

On cross.examination by Mr. Mayo, witness said the
prisoners were fond of children, and treated them all

Police-constable King provel finding the dead body
of an infant, and produced the things in which it was
wrapped.
Mr. Poland said he should be able to identify the
articles.

A labourer named Francs stated that he found tbe
dead body of a child, and the articles of clothing found
with it were produced.
Police-constable Sheen stated that on the 17th of
May the last witness handed the body to him.
Police-constable Alford, said on the 24th of May he
saw a basket at Peckham covered over, and found the
body of a child very mach decomrosed. lie produced
the articles found in the basket. On the 10th of June
inst, he saw a brown paper parcel and a piece of red
flannel wrapped round the body of a dead child about
live or six weeks old.

Alfred Dean proved finding the body of a child in a
brown paper parcel at Peckham.
George Anderson, a boy living at Peckham, said on
Sunday week he was on some logs of wood and saw a
brown paper parcel.
The summoning i Aker for the Coroner of East
Surrey, to whom the brown paper parcel found by the
last witness had been given, said on the brown paper
parcel was the name "Mrs. Waters."
The girl O'Connor was recalled, and identified as
having been in the house where the prisoners lived
several articles produced by the witnesses who had
found the dead bodies of the infants. One of the
articles had been worn by "Little Emily," one of
the children now in the workhouse.

Mr. Poland asked for a remand, and believed on the
next occasion he should be able to produce further evi-
dence. .

The prtgoners were remanded, and a hope was ex-
pressed that on the next occasion F otne of the persons
who had placed infants in their care would communi-
cate with Mr. Superintendent Gernon at Carter-street
Police-station.