The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1879-04-20
THE STORY OF A FOUNDING.
HHATHAprESED tn TIE CHILD FOUND
IN WM. HEESE'S MAILMAN

Worked by nm Unhappy Mother Changed
TO the Calico Uniform Of the city Hospital
Adopted and ChrIstened by the city and
Assigned TO n Little Iron Crib In Ward IL.
Not long after dark on Wednesday even
ing a three-months' baby with. blue eyes.
plump. round checks. and yellow hair. was
found on the doorstep OF s3s Sixth avenue.
Onlcer Dixon OF the Fity0rst street station
was stopped. while patrollng his beat near the
Central Park. by William Heese OF s3S Sixth ave-
nue.. who with some excitement, told the story
OF his finding the child He was just enter
ing his door whom he stumbled over the Sleep
Ing infant lying in his hallway. The child was
wrapped In warm CLOAK. The skirt and un
derclothing were OF decent linen trimmed by
hand and pleated and puffed with long affec-
tonate. and diigent labor. The mother Of the
child had not the means to buy for her infant
costly clothing-that was evident: but she had
toiled to dress the little one becomingly. Every
stitch told OF loving anticipation or regard; and
II the unhappy woman had abandoned the child
whom there was nothing before It but starvation
or worse. at least she had kept from tho pawn
brokers these little remnants, that might have
kept herself and her child q few days longer
| together. Her story cannot be known. because
neither Heese nor of1cer Dixon found the
least clue to the identity OF the child. nor wRs
| any hint to be had OF who had lei! the babe in
| Heese's doorway.
Onlcer Dixon took the child In his arms after
notifying Heese that he must appear at Police
Headquarters the next morning and make oath
| to the circumstances above gyon. and started
| for the Fifty-nrst street station. Before the
sergeant at the desk he made his report. left the
child. still sleeping. on the sofa in the Captains
| room. and returned to his post. Then. after
Officer Dxon's report had been entered upon
the station blotter. another patroman was de-
tailed to take the infant to Police Headquarters.
The record in the case was as follows:
Name.I,foandiins
ny whcT-oniecr Dixon
| Heesc aud taken 10 the Central once.
In the horse car. going down town. the officer
attracted tho attention Of the passengers as he
| awkwardly. but with due tenderness held tho
baby in his arms. II slept peacefully through
| out, and smiled when he gaye itup 70 Matron
| Webb at tho Central ONCE. Mrs. Webb has had
| thousand foundiings turned over to her care
| during three years past. but she says this WIS
the frst OF them an that she has kissed before it
| had been washed and Iut in clean linen. This
cdme S GqS from Sfs@e Ss baR She noecd Red Gs oo
that. while the chill's clothing was Of
cheap material it was carefully ani pre,iily put
upon It Represented months of labor. No
foundlng SO decentiy dressed had eyer before
| y
ornamented with silk ribbon a long full cape
Of "A material that looked like merin1; n long
Undertaking. and both long and short stock
ings and neat worsted shoes made NJ the little
ones outfit Tho child woke up and applied
two vigorous. chubby fists to its large bright
eyes, ana instead Of crying, laughed. Mrs
webb's. married daughter. who was on a visit
TO the Matron. also kissed the waif. and took it
in her arms. while it fed from nursing bottle.
Then the child was put in one Of the nine beds
webSHs bSHsrs care. re Lite X-Risht tho chld scro-
hat was the only other OF the Matron's wards
mtn m J. m m ~ ~, rard "a Nj Wshts rooms ne
According to tho rules. the Ma,ron had to
send the child the next morning 10 the city's
Infant Hospital on RandalIs Island. These
toundlings are cared for by the n-days'
mothers who have ayAiled themselves OF tho
city's charity until they are able 10 leave the
hospital. IL was on Thursday morning that
Matron Webb said TO q reporter OF THE SUN:
The child Is not kelly to live long As the
baby looked sturdy enough, the reporter
asked for the Matron's reasons The mothers
there" she said. have their own babies 70 nurse
and Hre Indifferent to the needS ., OF IT., the it,ie
their charge. II the founding does live. II Will
acqqire nothing that is good from the 2. drunken
| You speak very earnestly, said the re-
porter.
have seen for myself. The management OF the
Infant Hospital on Randairs Island Is open 70
criticism and have felt obliged to complain OF
marion asked me whether had charged that
tho women and children there were starved l
planed that the women and infants looked AS II
they were starved" -
-, " or, they were not given proner food re- re,
ishment for their own babies, yet were obliged
to nurse AN additional child" -
" In other respects what Is the fault'
"Why. tho very basis OF tho system there is
tni Tue foundlinRs arc nursed by yagrants-
| drunken w,,"an. VI course they get no liquor
there but they are neHrally Slctns 20 H. ahd ,h
mothers that arr sent there from the .'e'"S-ih
ward Of the Charity Hospital. are wretched
So the babies die. tho reporter suggested.
A great many OF them do" Mrs. Webb re-
Belonging to The W women me are. Each woman @ las
u child Of Eer, own and q founding. The
cba 99op Gb any m Is e TeS IS San not " 6en s Se
case the foundling gets 1t. In times OF pain or
sickness, when the children need especial care
human nature (ower and stronger in these
, womenl prompts them TO protect and noursh
their own. and to neglect the strange children.
Therefore the foundngs die"
granddaughter OF Janitor Webb on Thursday
morning to take to the office OF Mr.. Blake. su-
: Eleventh street and Third avenue Mr, Blake
estimates that he provides for an average OF 250
! the documents that. accompany tho child
and to enter their substance on his
facts. he christens the child and the
name then given. the little one is likely TO bear
. through life-unless. when profess ional Grim
inal. the founding grown to manhood or wo-
manhood finds an alias necessary Formerly
the same custom prevailed here as that ridi-
culed in Oliver Twists stOry-the giving to
the foundllng a name beginning with the next
letter of the alphabet TO that OF the foundlng's 4
name who had been christened Just before.
} divers letter was T-the name Of the child
before beginning with an g. and OF the
one before with an Il. Dickenss satire put an
} end 20 that custom. Then in this city the
foundngs were named after the locality in
which they were picked up. as Nicholas Forsyth
for child found In, Forsyth street. or John
Bowlinggreen when the baby had been abAn-
doned in the neiRhborhood Of that park. But
, Superintendent Blake gives the wait whatever
sensible name occurs to him Mt the moment q
name is wanted Being informed that the
founding of Wednesday was q girl. he named Il
Mabel Jennings" Information that reached
him several hours aiterward when the child
was assigned To a mother and Il bed In the hos
} pital, led him to name it Martin" instead OF
Mabel"
The next steps In the progress OF tho baby
toward his adoption and final disposition by
tho city We're rapid. A nurse who is perma-
nently employed by the department fed tho lit
tie fellow and delivered him 10 the driver of the
departments wagon. which was driven to the
pier nj the foot Of East Twenty-siXth street. In
"a ~. - L.