Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-09-09
CIVILIZATION.
Horrible Treatment Of q Pauper Girl
I'm massachusetts.

II I'm Massachusetts.
4 From the Boston Herald. Sept. l.
1 Last week a girl seventeen year
of age, named Sarah Maria Nc
Keering, died in Lawrence, Mass.
who in her earlier years was made
the victim of most shocking cruelty
at the hands Of a wealthy farmer
and his wife we'll known in that vi.
cinity. Her sad story, in brief, is
as follows: She was born in pow
erty at Deer Island, and at an early
age she was taken by Mr.. Sam
born, childless father, to his hap
py and pleasant home in Salem.
She was then about nineteen years
of age. While there she enjoyed all
the happiness of which a child was
capable until her kind protector
died and left his wife in poverty.
She, too, also fell sick, and soon the
only support of the two was what
Sarah, then but four or five years of
age, could beg upon the streets in
cold, rain and snow. Some gentle
men found out the state of things,
and took charge of Mrs. Sanborn,
and Sarah was taken to Tewksbury.
At the age Of six years this nero in
taHt was taken by wealthy family
in the vicinity of Lawrence, and it
was naturally presumed that she
would be kindly treated and educa-
ted. At the TeWksbury institution,
a few years since, it was thought
proper to appoint an agent to in
quire into the welfare of the waits
who had been taken from the insti-
tuition. In the case of Sarah, the
family who had given bonds to ed
ucate and bring her up in q re-
spectacle manner, reported to the
agent that, after living with them
four years, she had run away. Fur
ther search resulted in finding Sa-
rah with a respectable family in
Lawrence, who had taken her in on
the day after she left her place, and
who were led to do so by hearing
Of her as being at the house of
neighbor, where she had obtained
shelter over night, and where she
came the afternoon before in
pitiable condition, with arms
black and blue from appa-
rent recent ill.treatment. When
found she was sick and helpless-a
beautiful girl some sixteen years of
age-emaciated, and pronounced to
be in consumption by four differ
ent physicians, who had been called
to her aid, and she told sad story
of abuse and shameful illstreatment
concerning tho family into whose
charge she had been given by the
State ten years before. She alleged,
substantially, that on one occasion,
having not enough to eat-being
fed for days in succession on MOTH
ing but cold potatoes and salt-she
took a piece of apple-pie and hid
it, but her master found it, and to
punish her took her to the barn
and compelled her to eat moist COW
manure from q large spoon held to
her mouth; that on another occa-
sion her mistress dragged her to
the kitchen stove and put her
hands on the hot iron, holding
them there until they were bliss
tered and at another time held a
chamber vessel to her mouth and
forced her to drink urine; that an
other day, when she was discovered
eating a piece of pie or cake, her
mistress made her take a dose of
epson salts, saying that she would
"physic it out of her )" that, while
the family always allowed the hired
help-men and women-to sit and
eat at the same table with them
solves, she was compelled to eat
alone, and from a tin plate, sitting
on a stool in q sink-rOOm leads
ing out of the kitchen. And she
further alleged that, for some slight
misdemeanor, her mistress took
her into the attic, and tying her to
a post, having first stripped off
every article of her clothing, ter
ribly beat her bare flesh with a
bunch of four sticks, till they were
nearly worn up; and she alleged
that the reason why she left them
was that they had threatened to
give her another beating, which
threat put her in such great dread
that she ran away, clothed so
shabbily, as is said by those who
took her in, that it could not be
judged from the medley of her
garments whether she was boy or
girl.
Such was the girls story Of her
cruel treatment, and she adhered to
it in the presence of those who had
| so fOullV abused her.