Evansville weekly journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 184?-18??, 1848-02-24

MURDER OF A CHILD BY ITS MOTHER, n
SUICIDE OF THE MoVHER.-One OF the most
painful tragedies, says the Rochester Advertis-
er of the 9Th inst, which has been our prov
ince to record, occurred in Irondequoit, about
four miles from this city, on Sunday evening,
being no less than the murder of an infant
child by its mother, and the suicide of the
mother by hanging! The circumstances, as
far as we have been able to gather them, at
this early hour, are as follows:-On the even
ing in question, between 6 and7 o'clock, Mrs.
Barnard, wife of Alanson Barnard, one OF the
consiables of Irondequoit, requested her hus-
band to so to a ~neighbor's and procure a pail
of milk. Mr.. B. was absent something like an
hour, having stopped to talk, as is usual
amongst neighboring families, and returned
home between 7 and s o'clock. On reaching
the door of his house, he was met by a little
girl, some eleven years of age, who said to him
that she s'could not find her ma" Running
hastily into the house, he examined the beds in
the several rooms, the clubhouse, &c, making a
loud noise at the anne time to attract the at
tention of the neighbors-one or two of whom
came ina few minutes By this time a light had
been procured by the little girl, and the house
thoroughly examined, and on proceeding to
the cellar, Mrs. Barnard was found suspended
by the neck with a handkerchief to a beam
On looking further they discovered her infant
child, about eleven days old, lying dead in bed,
who appeared to have been strangled. From
the story OF the little girl it seems that soon af
ter Mr.. Barnard left, the mother remarked that
she was sleepy, and would lie down for awhile
and proceeded to the bedroom for that purpose
when ii is supposed she strangled the child. In
a short time she cameeinto the room occupied
BY the little girl, and told her to go and get in
to her place in the bed, and lie still-not to
stir-when the mother undoubtedly proceeded
to the cellar, and puta an end to her own life as
stated above. NJ possible cause can be as
signed for the commission of this rash act.
The mother wasanamiable. pleasant woman,
agreeably situated, and highly rega- ded by
her family, and her friends. For some. time,
however, she had occasionally exhibited a dis
taste for company, and vent less frequently
amongst her friends and ~npighbors, i%nclining
rather TO a melancholy state of mind. After
the birth of her child, on the 10th ult., she
was extremely cheerful, and recovered in health
very rapidly, SO much so that she had partaken
of her meals with the family for two or three
days. On the day on which the sad act was
committed, she came to the table both at morn
ing and noon, and nothing was discovered diff
ferent from her usual manner. The only So
luton thatcan be given, sin the supposition
that in a sudden fit of arrangement produced
by childbirth fever, she put an end to her OWL
and the life of her offspring. She was about
thirty-two years of age, and leaves a husband
and four children. Coroner Frost held an in
quest IN the bodies yesterday, and the jury re.
turned a verdict in the case of the mother o
death from suicide, probably the result of in
sanity; and in the case of the child, death from
some cause to the jury unknown. There were
no marks of violence on the child; but at thai
age it could have been easily sinothered with
out leaving any appearance of foul play.