Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1894-07-06
HANGED FOUR CHILDREN.
A Mothers Horrible Crime at
Montgomery.

Mitchell Baker and wife Had Quarreled
and Agreed to Separate---NVhiIe Under
the Influence of Morphine Mrs. Baker
Hanged the children to II Bedstend.
Mrs. Lotte Baker, of Montgomery,
Franklin county, strangled her four chill
dren, aged seven, five, three and one year,
Saturday, while, as is supposed, under the
influence of morphine. Mitchell Baker
and his wife had been married eight years,
during the most of which time his jealousy
of her has caused trouble She has not
borne, it is said the best of regulations.
They had agreed to separate, and Saturday
morning he drove with load of household
goods to East Berkshire, where he intended
to locate. Arrangements had been made
for a liveryman to take Bakers wife to
Wheaton, Can, where her people live.
When this man called for Mrs. Baker she
was not to be found, and in searching the
house for her he discovered the dead bodies
of the four children hanging by their necks
to the bedstead, and a canary bird also
hung by its neck to the bedroom door knob
The man alarmed the justice and the
Methodist minister They returned with
him to the house, and after a search Mrs.
Baker was found sitting in selni-stupor
amid some bushes on the bank of brook
near by. After a desperate struggle she
was secured and taken to an adjacent va
cant house, it requiring four men to hold
her. She disclaimed all knowledge of the
deed, and said it must have been done
while under the influence of morphine.
She expressed regret at her crime, and re-
fused to look upon the bodies of her chill
dren. When told that the funeral would
be held Sunday, she refused to wait over
to attend it.
Mrs. Baker was interviewed at st. Al
bans whore she was placed in jail. She is
short, plump woman, 81 years of age, of
rather slatternly appearance, and of not
more than average intelligence. She
claimed to have no recollection of the
crime. Her husband, she said, had told
her she could never see the children again.
"He was to take the three eldest and leave
me the baby, a year old and without name.
He never took that child up but once in
his life, and never cared enough about it
to name it. | got some morphine from
friend, and intended to make away with
myself that morning. had tried to do so
the night before, when it was settled we
should part, but | failed. | wanted to
have him see me dead in the morning. |
took lots of morphine and sat up all night,
while he went to bed
The Crime May Have Been Premedi-
tRted.
Developments since Saturday lead to the
belief that the mother may have delibe-
rately planned to kill the children. Mitch
ell Baker, the husband, believes this was
the case. One reason for his belief is that
several times his wife said to her nearest
neghbor, Mrs. Shower, that she would kill
the children if her husband attempted to
take them from her He was told of the
threat, but paid no attention to it, for, al
though he knew his wife was bad woman,
he could not believe she was capable of
such crime. Another reason to Mr..
Bakers mind is that the children were
strangled with strips of cotton cloth and
calico, cut from au old dress of the moth
er's. The day before the murders he saw
his wife cutting up the strips, and asked
her what she was doing She tried to con-
ceal the cloth, and finally told her husband
she wanted to do up the chlidren's clothes,
so he could carry them more easily.
While Mrs. Baker claims her husband
was hard drinker and did not provide for
the family, the neighbors tell different
story. He is few years older than his
wife and has always borne good reputa-
ton among his neighbors, who say that he
is an honest, Industrious Frenchman, a
little slow, but willing to work and anxious
to provide for his family, till his wifes
conduct killed his ambition.
Mrs Baker has always borne a good re-
| putation until about two years ago. When
she was arrested after the murder her hair
looked as if it had not been combed for
months, and it was so matted that it was
necessary to cut off a great deal of it before
it could be combed. She comes Of bad
| family.
She talks freely with those who are al
lowed to see her in the Jail. She has APP
parently forgotten her resolutions to starye
herself, and eats heartily. She talks in
sanely, and asks for her chi .dren, and the
next moment she admits that she muir
dered them. Her main thought now seems
to he fear of hanging, and she has asked
for lawyer.