Omaha daily bee., 1883-02-28
A MERClLESS MOTHER.
She Deserts Her Child, Only
Six Months Old,
A Policeman with a Heart as
Big as o House,

About 8 o'clock yesterday morning
a woman who was waiting with other
passengers in the ladies' waiting room,
at the Union Pacific depot asked q
lady sitting near her to take care Of
her six months old child, until she
stepped out for a.few inmates. The
request was complied with, but the
minutes heightened into hours, and
when noon had passed and she did not
return it became evident that 1t was s
clear case of desertion.
The temporary nurse Of the baby
did not care to assnme the responsi.
bility of taking an infant not her Wi
and accordingly q telephone message
was sent to the marshal's office for a
policeman and Officer Pat Hiuchey
was detailed for the s%errice. He went
down expecting to find drunken man
or %aturbulent one to belugged off to the
%calaboose and he was d~umbfounded
when he discovered that he was OK.
pected to take tho child to che police
station, al he states that he was per.
e%mptorily ordered to do by Capt.
Payne, one of the off ,ers employed by
the U. P. company TO do police duty,
When Officer Hinchey replied that
he would first have to look
for some place suitable to take the
baby, he says Capt. Payne became
very indignant aud talked to him
arrogantly and insultingly before o
o full of passengers, upon the eup.
position that 1t was one OF the duties
of an Omaha policeman to take charge
of bsbies whenever they were left
without a guardian and were in other
peoples way.
Mc. Hinohey was no. to be bull.
dead, but wert DOWN TO the tele.
phone In the telegraph office aud got
the operator to. call up the marshal and
see If he knew of any place where the
waif could be cared for. The marshal
did not know Of any and St. Joseph's
hospital was called up, and one Of the
sisters responded that there was pro.
vision for such cases at the convent,
and they had better communicate with
them.
The convent Is away out on St.
Mary's avenue, and Officer Einchey
thought that rather than carry the lit
tie INT sc far off through town he had
better take Gaze of 1t himself. He
and the operator went in and took the
baby into the depot dining room
where they fixed up some bread and
milk for 1t, but 1t refused to eat, and
he then took 1t in his arms and carried
1t to his own home, on Twelfth and
Arbor streets, where he has a family
of nine children. he has a little n
of his own, and his wife divided
their baby's store of food provided by
nature with the little stranger who
took to it at once and Was soon as
happy, if not happier than it was In
it's mothers arms. Here 1fr. Hinchey
proposes to see that it 10 we'll cared
for until the commissioners provide 1t
with q home or some kind hearted
family who want q ''well spring of
pleasure" In their home adopt it, and
1t ls very certain 1t will not suffer
while under his hospital roof.
Officer Hinohey feels Justly hurt at
the manner In which he was treated
by Capt. Paine, which was entirely un.
called for and out of place. 1t was no
part Of his bushes to relieve the COM
pany or Its officer Of such q charge,
the county, commissioners and not the
police department, being the proper
authorities to apply too, and In such
"a case AZ this, a man with ordinary
humanity would have aided In seeing
that the baby got q home, and not a
cot in the county jail with
Its atmosphere reeking with to-
bacco and liquor. and stormy
with drunken oaths and blasphemy.
Pat Hinchey Is q brick and he could
not have shown It any better than In
the way he disposed of the waif by
adding to the number of bis already
large family. 1t can never be said to
him ''Inasmuch as ye did 1t not to the
least of these, my little ones"