The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1900-05-19
From the New York Sun.

Thomas O'Byrne and his wife are still
locked up in the Jefferson Market prison in
default of the $500 bail in which each was
held for the neglect and abuse OF their two
children, aged 5 and years respectively.
The case is one of the worst of its kind that
has come before the Gerry society for some
time and has features which suggest strong
arguments against child insurance OByrne
is an engineer on the elevated railroad, with
a salary of $3.50 a week. The two boys,
Fred and Walter, were the children of his
first wife, who died about two years ago.
o. Byrne married again about a year ago and
| it il his second wife who is accused OF ILL
treating the children. O'Byrne's plea is that
he was so henpecked and overawed by bis
wife that, although he knew his helpless little
BOYS were being shamefully misused, he dared
NOT intervene in their behalf.
There was one detail with reference to the
twp children which Mrs. OpByrne did not
neglect She was careful to take out life in-
surance policies on the lives of both OF them.
| To her husband she said nothing about this
proceeding and it is supposed that he was
ignorant of the fact until after he and his wife
were arrested by the Gerry agents, Barkley
and Meier. The neighbors of the O'Byrnes
we're aware all through last winter that the
children were being shamefully abused. On
one occasion Fred, the older boy, was put out
| of doors barelooted and kept there in bitter
cold weather until Mrs. O'Byrne was threat
ened with arrest if she did not take him in.
| On another occasion self-constituted COM
mittee of men of the neighborhood met
| O'Byrne and told him that il he did not put
an end to the abuse of his children they would
take the law into their own hands and give
him sound thrashing.
| 1t was not until April 9 when policeman
found Fred, filthy, half famished and with
both feet covered with ulcers from frost bite,
in The street, that The case came to the atten.
ton of the authorities. The boy was turned
over to the Gerry society. His parents neither
made inquiry for him nor reported him miss.
ing, but Gerry agents made inquiries and
twelve days later they descended on the
| O'Byrnes and found there the other boy, Wal
ter. in as wretched q plight as his brother.
| The children were SO nearly famished that
they had to be fed in small quantities at n
| time and as often as nine times day, as any
thing like full meal probably would have
been fatal to them. They have gained from
four TO six pounds in weight in the few weeks
the society has had them and are now proba-
bly, out of danger, although the elder boy may
have life injury to one of his feet from the
| frost bite.
'If" said Supt Jenkins of the Gerry society
|
a child had been killed for the sake of the IN
surance money placed upon its life, we might
get some people besides those directly con-
cerned in the murder into positions they would
not like. These industrial insurance COM
panies are putting up palatial buildings and
paying their officials princely salaries and
money for ii all comes from the pockets of
people who have barely enough income to
provide themselves with food and shelter.
| have no doubt in my own mind that children
are insured and deliberately killed by neglect
or otherwise in order that those who insure
them may pocket the money. The case is
Just this A parent or guardian, or other
person-for it does not matter to the insur-
ance company who takes out the poicy-beis
the insurance company that a certain child
will die within certain time. for all these
policies are what are called term policies,
| that is they are made for q certain time,
at the end of which they may be re-
newed. The company bets that the child will
not die within the specified time. The insur-
err puts up stated sum when he registers his
bet If the child fails to die this money is lost
to the payer and is retained in its entirety by
the company. 1t the child does die within
the given time, the company pays, SO you see
il is to the interest of the company that the
child should live, that it may continue receiv-
ing premiums and may not be called upon to
pay the sum mentioned in the bet, or ''insur-
ance contract" Were the child in the GUS
tody ofthe insurance company, foresight would
dictate that the little one should be treated
well but it is not. 1t is to the interest of the
party paying the premiums that the child
should die, in order that he be relieved OF
further payments, and that he get a lump sum
quickly. And it is precisely with that person
whose interest it is that the child should die
that it is left in custody.
sin great majority of the cases of abuse
of children which come under our society's
notice we find that the child has been insured
in these industrial companies. This O'Byrne
case is simply another instance. The subject
is one which has attracted great deal of at
tention in England of late years and has beer
touched upon in the verdicts of number o
coroners' juries. Attempts have been made
in New York, Illinois, Tennessee, Massachu
sets and number of other states to regulat,
child insurance by statute, but Colorado il
the only state in the Union that has a law OF
the subject. 1t prohibits insuring the live
of children under ten years of age. In Ten
nessee similar law was passed, but after
ward overruled as unconstitutional. In Mas
sachusetts there was hard fight made, bu
, the insurance companies won. In that stat,
alone there are something like $4,000 indus
trial insurance agents. They infest ever
| nook and corner of the state and WELD in thei
f combined strength a tremendous political in
huence. Here in New York we have bill
on the subject under consideration, which
possibly may be presented to the next legisla