New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-10-27
TRIED TO MURDER'HER CHILD.
BIG MISS MURPHY IN A RAGE OF FEAR
THE CROWD THAT PRESSED IN TO VIEW THE
BABY HIPPoPoTAMUs ALMOST SAW ITS
MOTHER KILL 1T.


MOTHER KILL IT.
The baby hippopotamus at Central Park nearly
lost its life yesterday, but was fortunately res
cued just in time by its keeper. 1t had been de-
cided to let the public have sight OF the new
conner, and accordingly about p. m the doors
were opened for the first time and the expeotant
crowd surged in. No sooner did Miss Murphy,
the mother of the baby, see the crowd approach
than her fears were aroused to such pitch Tor
the safety of her infant that she hustled the little
thing up to the side Of the inclosure and got be-
tween it and the people.
Still the strangers poured in and pressed around
the bars, and Miss Murphy grew more nervous.
In her anxiety to protect the little one She
crushed it cruelty with her heavy body
against the side Of the cage. The baby
grunted pteously at this and the keeper
saw that something must be done at once. He
gave orders have tho people excluded instantly.
but the sight of the old one squeezing the life out
of the young one had excited the crowd, too, and
those nearest the bars began to call out that Miss
Murphy was killing her baby and those behind
pressed up so as to see 1t.
The police, too, began to shout to the crowd
to clear out, and the keeper prepared to enter
the cage. All this set Miss Murphy fairly wild.
one was sure HOW UlldU Sne WuS going 10 Dc rODDcu
Of her baby, just as she had been of her first
one, which was nursed by the keepers on bottle
till it died, and not knowing what fate awaited
her offspring in the hands of these masterful
bipcds she resolved to kill 1t herself rather than
let them have It,
Accordingly she opened her usually placid fare
so wide that the onloOkes graSped the bars to
keep from falling in, and then SIZE turned on her
little one to crush its tender pg-hke form into
sausage meat. She made snap at 1t, but her
mouth capacious that part Of the rail
Of her cage was embraced with the baby in the
cavern and this undoubtedly saved the little
thing from anything worse than great pinch.
Before Miss Murphy cOull try again, big pole
was l. sert d betw' c1 her Jaws by the keeper who
had rushcd in. This man h S the two older hip
popotami pretty well under cOatrol, and Miss Muir
phy recognized his authority even in her great
agitation. She allowed her elf to be prodded
to the far side Of the cagc. and the crowd by
this time having been hustled unceremoniously
away, the big beast soon felt reassured and calmcd
down.
That her attempt to kill the baby arose only
from anxiety for its safety. and not through any
lack Of motherly love. was apparent from the
pleased way in which the big brute fOndled the
little one few minutes afterward. and the COM
Dlacency with which she submitted to it's exceed
ingly vigorous way of calling for more nourish-
mCnt. The baby is believed not to have sus-
tained any serious injury, but the public will
not he able to get a peep at it for some time to
come. that is certain; perhaps not until the
new and larger tank is completed for all three