The Savannah morning news., 1903-06-05
LAUDANUM FOR BABY
PLACED IN INFANTS MILK AND
DEATH RESULTED.
NURSE WAS RESPONSIBLE
HAD SEEN THE CHILD's MOTHER
DO THE SAME THING.

Fixed Milk for 5-MOnth's-OId Boy
Sunday Morning and Put in n Lib
eraI Share of the POisOn-Infant
fingered Until Yesterday-In
Drenching Rain Police Pursued
Nurse-MOunted officer stopped by
Gate Used Revolver in Effort to
Blow Lock OR-NOt Believed That
Poison Was Deliberately Admins
istered by Negro.
From the effects of a dose of lauda-
mum administered Sunday morning, the
5-year-old son of Camille Gray, living
on Oglethorpe avenue, near Clifford
street, died at o'clock yesterday aft
ernoon, and the police were given a
wild goose chase in a binding rain.
1t is claimed by the mother of the
child that the laudanum was put in a
bottle of milk by a nurse called Celia,
who got away at the time by jumping
over a back fence. When the child
died, Patrolman Hartley was called in
and the servant, who was in a neigh
boring house, made her escape. The
uniformed man saw a woman running
through Jones' field, near the Tybee
depot, and called to Mounted Patrol
man Fogarty, who is acting sergeant,
to chase her.
The mounted officer put spurs to
his horse and started after the wom-
an. The gate to the pasture was lock-
ed and the patrolman could not ride
through the barbed wire fence. He
dismounted and, whipping out his re-
volver, sent three bullets into the lock.
The lead from the pistol, however did
not break the lock and the acting SER
geant was forced to retrace his steps.
At the Tybee depot the $3.50 o'clock
train was taken by the uniformed men
for LaPaigeville, where it was learned
the woman had relatives.
Before leaving the city police head
quarters was notified and Supt. Gar
funkel and Detectives Murphy and
Bostick, and a representative of the
Morning News, left for LePageville in
the detectives wagon. At the negro
settlement east of the city woman
was found who answered the descrip-
ton of the nurse, and who had only
few minutes before arrived at the set
Element. She was taken in charge
and brought back to the city. She
had made many conflicting statements
to the officers. but it developed that
she was not the nurse. While at the
house on Oglethorpe avenue the plain
clothes men and the superintendent
made a further investigation and ex-
pressed the belief that the laudanum
was not administered maliciously.
They made their conclusions on the
statement made by the mother of the
infant.
The woman stated that she had pur-
chased a small vial of laudanum. and
on Saturday night gave the baby
single drop in a bottle of milk. The
poison was placed in a bureau drawer
in the presence of the nurse. On Sum-
day morning the nurse fixed the milk,
and it is alleged poured half of the
contents of the vial into the milk bot
tie. When the mother gave the in
FAINT the milk she smelled the lauda-
mum and made an investigation. She
found that large quantity of it had
been put in the milk and a physician
was hurriedly sent for the nurse in
the meantime making her escape.
The infant was walked" and every
thing possible was done to save its
life. The mother stated to the police
that she had kept it awake until yes
terday, and that it was dead soon aft
er, 1t closed its eyes. So far as the po-
lice were able to learn the nurse could
have had no motive in wanting to get
rid of the baby, and the officers be-
lieve that she thought that it was
necessary to administer laudanum with
the milk, without knowing how much
to give. The poisoning of the baby
occasioned considerable excitement on
the East Side, and the chase after the
woman, who was making for Lee
Paigeville attracted the attention of
the passengers on the Tybee train.