The sun., 1901-03-30
WOULDN'T HAVE A DOCTOR.
so PEARSON's ADOPTED CHILD DIED
AND HE rs ARRESTED.
"God Made the Body and God Will Take Care
Of IT," He Tells Justice Lent He Denies.
However, with Much Indignation That He
Belongs to the Christian science Sect.

However. with Much Indignation That He
Belongs to the Christian science Sect.
KENsICo, March 20 Every time Luther
Pearson goes through the street of this village
the good folk hereabout look at him askance
and then turn their eyes clear away The
women Of the Methodist Church. where he
and his wife used to be prominent, now talk
about them both and hereafter Kenico may
not be pleasant place for them 70 live in.
The reason for this is that they are both Faith
Cure believers. whose belief in the efficacy OF
prayer as a cure for disease has been. IL is
alleged. the cause Of the death of an adopted
child OF theirs The law has taken cogniz-
ance OF the childs death and Pearson is now
under indictment for having through neglect
been responsible for H.
This is more Of a crime In little commu-
nity like this than II would seem In a larger
place where they have other things 20 think
about But Faith Curists and Christian
Scientists are rare birds in these parts and so
their doings have been considered the more
shocking The Pearsons were tho first OF
this ilk to turn up here They came from
somewhere over near Nyack. ayear and half
ago. They went TO live in a house which they
named The Overlook, on the crown OF the
1ll back OF tho railroad station. They seemed
at first very nice to the people OF the village
Pearson was employed in the Offices OF the
New York Central Railroad Company in New
York and went to the city every day They
Joined the Methodist Church and Pearson,
who is about s5 years old took charge Of the
Bible class In the Sunday school
For time everything went we'll Then
IL 30 happened that George Moore, a restaur-
ant keeper in New York, who lived In Kensico.
fell sick OF pneumonia His wife had few
acQuaintances in the village Among those
who went TO the stricken home were the Pear
sons They told Mrs Moore to let her hus-
bands case rest in the hand OF the Lord and he
would come out all right Mrs Moore. who
was devout Christian followed their advice
for three days Then she sent for doctor
when the doctor came he said II was too
late and the next day Mr. Moore died After
that the PearsOns quit cumming with the
MethOdistS and there was considerable talk
The village gosslpS then began 10 talk
about the number of babies that appeared at
the Pearsons It is said that Mrs Pearson
thought the Lord had called upon her 10 take
care Of IA many babies AZ she could af ord
because she had none OF her own During
last summer she had a number of the little
| hings from the city up at her place and
one Of these she adopted This Il the one
whose death has now led TO the indictment
| OF Mr. Pearson
| llttlt over a tnOntn ago tnlS Cnlld was
| taken Ill with catarrhal pneumonia No
physician was sent for In three days IL
! died The village people talked, but they
/ did not make any complaint 10 the authorities,
| This resulted from an undertaken who came
| up from New York to bury the child He
| asked for the burial certificate The Pear
sons didn't have any The undertaken would
| not touch the body until that formalty was
complied with and Pearson went 10 see the
| Town Jerk, J Benedict See. who lives in
North Tarrytown See notified the Coroner,
who arranged that the child should be buried,
| but al the same time he notified the District
| Attorney of Westchestcr county and an in
vestigation followed The evidence in the
case was presented 70 the Grand Jury last
! Tuesday and an indictment returned charging
| Pearson with having failed to supply the
child with medicine This onence when
committed against minor is a misdemeanOr
! just as much a. though the neglect con-
sisted in the failure TO supply food or -helter
Pearson was arrested Tuesday night and on
| Wednesday was arraigned before Justice
| Lent In White Plains He told the Justice
that his wife was at that time being. con
fined and he was permitted to go to his home
the Court insisting, however. that he SHOULD
SEs With hm 2hEyiean " N 0TaS tGGt y1 HI
she doesn't need doctor" said Pearson
The Lord will take care Of her
take ard Gh}XbSsGHn }ban H TtG s b byon 'H''te'
The next day Pearson was again arraignec
in court and whom the Justice asked him II h,
had taken PShysibCia6n PSa, bd back with him h
Il believe in the power Of God TO heal
he went on God made the body and Coo
Suppose that / should break both you
arms. said the Court, Edo you think tina
! God would set them"
I'm not prepared 10 argue that point witt
! you, retorted the prisoner
He was then held in $1,000 bail for trial
| As he could not give bail and as his wife
condition elected sympathy he was parole
| until later. when r Frank Hart of Green
| hurp y ! Dpueared and went on the bond
Pearson received several sympathetic tele
grams from Alexander Dowe the Iionls
| healer. and from this II Is presumed that he
| member OF that scot 4 SIN reporter trie
20 get him to tell yesterday what sect h
docs belong to. but he refused TO say NOR
then 10 deny with some heat that II was I
the Christian Science school His wife an
the new baby, which came without the hel
Of the doctors. are said 70 be doing well