The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1896-06-11
MRS. dyer EXECUTED.
The Notorious London Baby
Farmer Hanged.
CRIME UNDER CLOAK OF RELIGION.

The Woman Is Accused of the Murder Of
Door Of Her Home She Had an Image of
Christ and the Inscription ''suffer Little
| Children tn Come Unto Me-" Etc.-Hor-
rifying Disclosures.
LONDON, June 11.-Mrs. Annie Dyer, the
baby farmer OF Rudbig, who was arrested
| ON April o on the charge Of numbering
many infants lntrusted to her care was
hanged in Newgate prison at o'clock
"Wednesday morning. Mrs. Dyer was ono
| Of the most extraordinary criminals Of the
age, wholesale, cold -blooded murdcress.
The police first became suspicious of her
and her son-in-law, Arthur T.. Palmer,
early in April, when the bodies Of a num-
Der Of children, apparently strangled TO
| death, were recovered from the Thames
| river, where they had been thrown.
weighted down with bricks, etc. An i'll
vcstigation led 20 the arrest Of Mrs Dyer
and Palmer.
Letters found in her house showed that
many Of the parents with whom she and
her accomplice had dealings were aware 1f
letters were from persons in all ranks of
society. The coroners had long been puz-
zled at the fact that so many bodies of in
fants were found in the Thames between
Wapping and Battersea.
Horrifying Condition of Afairs.
The preliminary examination developed
a most horrifying condition of affairs. II
was proved that since Christmas at least
twenty children had been entrusted to
Mrs. Dycr's keeping and of this number
only four were then living. In addition.
prior TO Christmas many other children
that had been placcl in the woman's
charge were unaccounted for and are ad-
mitted To have been murdered. \ con-
servative estimate places the number of
children killed at forty; but other csti-
mates have il that as many as 100 infants
We're either stranglcd or drowned by Mrs.
Dyer. Mrs Dyer and her son-in-law lived
in Reading, where they had a great rcpu
tation for piety. Over the door of her
home was figure of Jesus Christ, be-
meath which was the inscription: ''Suf-
fer little children to come unto Me, and
forbid them not for of such is the king.
dom of heaven"
Maintained Her Reputation.
Mrs Dyer had been arrested upon Tour
previous occasions. but somehow she man
aged not only to escape punishment but
succeeded In maintaining her reputation
for pety. But i'm court the woman :
nerve entirely deserted her. She had n
detected, terrified look and apparently was
in despair and saw the gallows ahead The
baby farmer was gount vet fairly good
looking woman of about 30 years of age
and seems to have derived quite good
income from her crimes. Three children
were found mt Mrs. Dyer's residence when
| arrested. They were a boyT years of
age, n girl Of years and n boy 3 months
old. There il little doubt they would
have gone the way of the other charges Of
the baby farmer had the latter not been
arrested.
Made ~ Confession.
Late in April Mrs. Dyer made a written
confession, admitting the murders Of
which she was accused. Ii was proposed
To introduce the plea of insanity in her
defense. She was examined later by n
physician employed by the home office and
was declared to he sane. Mrs. Dyer was
indicted May for murder and the fol
lowing day she was sentenced to death.
In prison she made several attempts 10
commit suicide AT Reading she attempt
ed to stranglc herself with her shoe lace.
Some time later she tried to force hand
kerchief down her throat, and upon an
other occasion she attempted to cut her
wrist against u piece of iron.