The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1869-09-12
Horrible Treatment Of Pauper Girl in MasSa
chusetts.

The secular and so-called religious press
have given vide currency 10 a fabricated story
about the cruelty inflicted on a nun in Cracow.
Sympathy in Instinted measure was expressed
and Indignation loud and bitter uttered against
a community of religious who arc now found
to be bameless; but the testimony which de-
monstrates their Innocence Is withheld while
the original infamous charge proceeds on its
way doing the work of the father of lies. But
when real and well authenticated cases OF
cruelty are exposed, our indignant friends of
the press are quite measured in their censure,
hundreds not deigning to notice the matter AT
all. Massachusetts, prides herself particularly
on her high moral tone and sanity character
istics, yet we find such instances of fendish
malignity as the following taking place, with
but scarce a local protest. lift occurred
among Catholics, howl of indignation would
re echo throughout the land. We find the fol-
lowing in the Boston Herald, of September /;
Last week a girl seventeen years of age,
named Sarah Maria McKeering, died in Law
renee, Massachusetts,, who, in her earlier years,
was made tho victim of most shocking cruelty
at the hands of wealthy farmer and his wife
we'll known in that vicinity Her sad story,
poverty ut Deer Island and at an early age she
was taken by Mr.. Sanborn, o childless father,
to his happy and pleasant home in Salem.
While there she enjoyed all the happiness of
which child was capable until her kind pro-
tector died and left his wife in poverty. She,
too, alse fell sick, and soon the only support
of the two was when Sarah, then but four or
five years of age, could beg upon the streets in
cold, rain, and snow. Some gentlemen found
out the state Of things, and took charge OF
Mrs. Sanborn, and Sarah was taken to Tewks-
bury. At the age of six years this mere infant
was taken by q wealthy family in the vicinity
of Lawrence and it was naturally presumed
| n hot Sha he nd W ed n ed
| At the Tewksbury Institution few years ago
| it thought proper to appoint an agent to
Inquire into the walfare of the waits who had
been taken from the institution. In the case
| of Sarah the family who had given bonds to
educate and bring her up in respectable
manner reported to the agent that, after living
| with them for four years, she had run away.
| Further search resulted in finding Sarah with
n 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 n neighbor, where she
] had come the afternoon before in pitiable
condition, with arms black and blue from ap-
| parent recent ill-treatment When found she
| was sick and helpless-a beautiful girl, some
| sixteen years Of age-emaciated, and pro-
nounced to be in a CONSUMPTION by four diff
| ferent physicians, who had been called to her
! aid and she told sad story of abuse and
| shameful ill-tIeatment concerning the family
| into whose charge she had been given BY the
| State ten years before. She alleged, substan-
| tally, that on one occasion, having not enough
TO eat-being fed for days in succession on
nothing bnt cold potatoes and salt--she took
! piece of apple-pie aud 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 large spoon held to her mouth !;
! that on another occasion her mistress dragged
! her to the kitchen stove, and put her hands on
! the hot iron, holding them there until they
were blistered; and at another time held n
! chamber vessel to her mouth aud forced her
! to drink urine; that another day, when she
was discovered eating piece of pie or cake,
| her mistress made her take dose of epson
I 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 themselves, she was com
PEELED to eat her meals alone, and from tin
plate, sitting stool in sin3l-room
leading out of the kitchen. And she
| further alleged that, for some slight mis-
demeanor, her mistress took her into the
attic, and tying her to n post, having first
stripped off every particle 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 IL said by those who first took her in, that it
could not be judged from the medley of her
| garments whether she boy girl.
| Such was the girls story of her cruel treat
mcnt, and she adhered to it in the presence OF
! those who had so foully abused her.