The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1883-08-09

An Inhuman stepfaIher After Kicking
and Heating Child KiIisit.

1
An Inhuman stepfaiher After Kickin
and heating u Child KiIisiL
NEw YoRK, August s-A more diabol
cal crime than that committed in the vi
lage q cfsmilhtown, L. l., yesterday, has nc
been recorded in the history Of Sutfol
county. It is incredible that such brutalit
could be inflicted bya human being, bu
the facts Of the case are not to be ques
toned. The case preoents woman VIII
went astray in her early life, witnessin
the slow torture Of her child, and its fna
death, at the hands Of a man whom the Law
obliged her to recognize as husband. H,
was not the child's father, but that afford
neither excuse nor justification for bis bar
barous acts. A good many people belieyl
the woman is purticeps criminil, but per
haps the criticism is untimely. She Ger
tainly did nothing to protect her chile
against long continued and violent abuse
Now she has turned against its alleged
murderer, and II her statements are veritieC
on his trial ,r murder, his chance ot test
ing the strength Of several feet oi ropI
would appear to be first rate.
THE PARTIES TO TIE CRIME.
Dolly Pollard and George Jetfries arrived
atthe county jail in Riyerhead to-day
They came from the village Of smithtown
under commitment for the alleged murder
OF a child, OF which Dolly is the mother
Their examination before the Justice was
conducted by District Attorney Petty.
Dolly Pollard Is the name the woman goes
by. but she says she Is married TO George
Jetfries. Prior 10 their marriage Dolly
held the relation OF wife to q white
man, who was the father OF the child
that is alleged to have been mur.
dered. Jeffries knew the circumstan,
ces when he married Dolly. Latterly
he has objected to supporting the child,
but Dolly says he never did support It, aa
she worked for that purpose herself. She
admits that che was obliged to lock the
child in the house when she went out to
work, and 1t received no attention until
she returned, sometimesat noon aud some.
times at night. Jedries, Dolly says, treated
the child with unheard-of cruelty. He
would kick it, lift it up by the hair, throw
1t out OF a chair, dip 1t in cold water. and
do other inhuman things. The child was
only five years old. Dolly says she could
not prevent this brutality. When she
made objections Jeffries treated her with
similar cruelty.
TERRIBLE BRUTALITY.
Jetfries' father testified that Jefries used
to beat the child so brulally that he ire'
.quently left the house to avoid witnessing
1t. The last time be saw Jeffries attack the
child was a few DAYS before It's death.
Then he took a leather belt, and beat the
child on the bare flesh with the buckle.
The blood flowed from its wounds, and the
old mal thinks be saw Jefies rub sail
into the wounds, He is sure he threw
something on the child which resembled
salt. He never saw anything SO brutal in
his life. On the night OF the
child's death he gave It a terrible
beating, and threw it across the room
against the opposite wall. It's mother put
it to bed and went oAt When she return
ed Jetries was in the bedroom, standing
over the child. The child was quiet then,
and she thought 1t had fallen asleep. JET.
fries went our, and woman living in the
neighborhood called in. Dolly told this
woman OF the awful beating Jeffries had
given the child, and OF fading him in the
bedroom, This neighhor suggested that
he might have done Something 10 the child
in iis mothers absence, and they entered
; ha ronpo faoat ar IN N, a ka a n axu ~, In ion
THE DISCOVERY.
Jetfries entered the house almost at the
Heis thought to have been watch:
ing the movements Of the mother from the
outside. Fhs neighhor lifted The child up.
1t gave gasp and died in her arms.
The physician who was sent to the house
found the child's body mass Of sores, In.
ficted by blows. These, however, were
not the cause Of death. The child's neck
was broken. 1t had been wrpng like a
Ghickenls. This was the cause Of death.
Dolly and Jeaeries were arrested.
She charged him with all OF
these crnelties. She said that
no one but Jetfries could hare broken the
phild's necs, as she did not do Il. The
inquest resulted in verdict accusing both
Of lhep. Jeffries admits having beaten
the child, but denies that he wrung It's
neck. District Attorney Petty says that
such beastly case has never been brought
10 his attention. The child might have
been killed by gentler means. Jeffries
will be indicted for murder in the firs.
tegse,