The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1890-03-06
ONE HADA BROKEN WRIST
Awful Abuse of Children
by a Hoboken Step
mother.
A NEIGHBORHOOD AROUSED.
Another Case on Jersey City Heights
ofa Heartless "House-
keeper"

Yesterday morning letter was re-
ceived by the Hoboken police signed "A
Sympathizin9 Mother The letter
Van Hull, of First and Harrison streets,
was in the habit of cruelty beating and
neglecting to provide for her three step
children; that the step-children were
compelled to pick coal. go on errands for
beer and whiskey, and were poorly clad.
and that two of them were running
about with their feet bare. When the
mother was drunk the step-children were
forbidden the house, the letter went on,
and were compelled to seek shelter in
coal wagons, and one of them, boy, was
compelled to sleep several cold nights in
blacksmith shop on Grove street. The
blacksmith on opening one morning
found the poor little fellow benumbed
with the cold and after questioning him
sent him home to his wife, where, when
food was placed before him. he ate raven
ously and told a story of his sufferings
from his inhuman step-mother that made
the kind hearted blacksmith and his wife
shudder
The lad also stated that on a previous
night his sister Lizzie, a girl of twelve
years of age. was driven from the house
by his stepmother and slept in coal cart
dll HlHut. 1Ae CudIktS III Ill6 tuOuy us
letter were SO severe that Recorder Nc
Donough would not place any confidence
in it until thorough investigation had
been made and Court Officer Stanton was
sent to investigate
The officer learned that the woman had
moved from No 40 Newark street and
was living in the notorious five houses, !"
man entered all of the six chill
dred and the mother were in.
The policeman looked for moment
at the children and had no trouble in
picking out the step-children, as the diff
ference between them in appearance and
the other children was at once noticeable.
Taking the three poorly clad children one
her step-children. She at first denied
that they were, but finally admitted they
were.
AWFUL. ABUSE.
The officer found that the girl Lizzie, a
pretty child of twelve, had an ugly cash
on her forehead and her wrist had been
broken. The wounds, he says, were re-
ceived at the hands of the inhuman
mother. The other two step-children,
Harry and David, also bore marks of ILL
treatment.
Several neighbors had gathered about
the doorway in the meanwhile and sew
eral signitied their willingness to testify
to the i'll treatment. They said that the
screams of the poor children were painful
to 1isten TO. Three of the tenants agreed
to accompany the policeman to the police
station, and Mary Lang, Eliza Rousch,
Nellie Boggs, Mrs. Meyer, Ellen Brady,
Mrs Steiner, Herman Bruins and Mrs.
Oatmann went with him.
When the woman was brought before
Recorder McDonongh she practically adj
mitted The truth of the charges against
her The Recorder was dumbfounded at
the nonchalance maintained by the
woman. He recovered sufficiently to adj
minister scathing rebuke TO the in
human step-mother and committed her
to the County Jail.
Sympathyzing neighbors have agreed
to take care of the children if the father,
who is poor carpenter, does not provide
for them.