The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1905-08-02
4 CHILD VICTIM
Ola Very Astonishing Cold Blood
ed Tragedy in Richmond.
HOW 4 SICKLY BOY,
Only Six Years of Age, Was Tortured
and Finally Beaten to Death 0y
His Mother, Who Herself had
Been TeaderIy Reared

Ills NlOEUSE, w 1U AiSIoShA AAS
Been TenderIy Reared
ia Luxury.
At Richmond, Va, for beating to
death her sickly little boy, child
barely six years old, mother who
had been tenderly reared in a iu3url
Gus home, and who comes OF enc OF
the best families Of Virginia and New
York, has been condemned to spend
Eve years in the penitentiary. Wnen
the verdict was rendered the Public
Prosecutor tainted and fell to the
floor; be had striven for and expected
the death penalty.
Beside the accused woman during
the progress Of the trial sat a man
who has more than national reputa-
tion for wise, self denying ano snec-
sionate care OF unfortunate ch!1oIen
DIR. Wisner E. Townsend, OF the
o1thopedic Hospital in Ne" so1S
City.
He is the brother Of the woman VINO
hest her own unfortunate child to
death, Mrs. Estelle Townsend smith
She appeared in court physical wreck
and doubtless the great surgeon whose
whole professional career hao marked
a disposition so completely the reverse
OF that manifested by bis sister, at
tributed her cruel acts to pnys:cal
breakdown that had affected her
mind.
Not 50 the witnesses for the pro-
secution, however-those motherig
neiphbors who had heard the child S
screams, who had seen him pushed
into ice cold water in February, seen
his naked dead body lying on tne
aoor Of his mothers house covered
with bruises.
Tie facts brought cut in tie trial
nace up tale Of a mothers csue!5;
to Al all;ng child thai is almost IN:
credible. This mother. always velleo
except when obliged to bare her facs
for Identification, listened for the
most part with stoicsl immooillty.
The Coroner, an artist OF no mean
ability. illustrated the wounds and
bruises upon the dead child'S body by
means OF star5ling!y hfelike, life sszeo
colored portraits. 1t vas a gnassly
and pathetic exhibit that caused
murmurs Of horror all through the
court room-but the mother never
stirred nor even bowed her head.
CHASTITY AND PATHETIC EXHIBITS.
Her life since the birth OF the boy
had been in surroundings very differ
ert from those OF her girlhood. She
had run away from her home In New
York to marry poor man, and ne mac
steadily grown less prosperous. A.
indicated by the defence, she nao DE-
come morbid ever an aiIment OF bel
little son, which he constantly aggra
waited by his own acts, and on account
of which the mothers OF other Chill
dren would not allow them to associate
with him. These acts of the Chile
his mother sought to correct by pun
ishment instead OF through the cfdcs'
of q competent physician-and I'M
possible task; and so finally she beat
him to death.
When the child's death was oiscoV
cred the husband @as sway frcn
home. Although he is under arrest il
does not get appear that ne shared II
the acts Of cruelty that ended in muir
der. The lamentable story is best
told in the testimony OF witnesses
who were first On the scene OF the
crime. Mrs. Lucy Byrnes, a motherly
appearing, mid6le-aged woman, a neal
neighbor, told OF her visit to the
Smith shone on the evening OF the
day OF the boys death.
II was upstairs undressing one OF
nv grand children when heard that
some one was dying at the Smith
house.
Mrs. Crostick and I went to the
houss ard knocked at the door. Mrs.
Smith opened it and NE walked in.
She said nothing to US, but turned
asd went to the body OF the child,
which was lying near the sofa, covered
with a quilt up to it's neck. She pick
ed it up and threw it on the sofa as II
it were dog, She wanted to know
il is was dead. The body was still
warm. Mrs. Crostick told her it was
. dead, after we had felt the heart.
There were three bruises over the
little heart and bruises all over the
little bowels. The back was brown
from beatings. There was cut over
the eye and the back Of the head was
bleeding from another. Oae OF it's
little fingers looked as il it had bsen
cracked with something. The mothe-
didn't show any sympathy. Poor
little fellow!'
THREW THE DEAD CHILD ON a SOFA.
did Mrs. Smith say anything
about the Child having been sick?'
''She said it had been SICK for two
OF three days, ana nothing would stay
on its stomach
''Did she offer that information OF
own accord:''
Mrs. Crcstick first asked her if it
had deem sick, and when she said that
it had been, Mrs. Crostick replied
that she knew nothing about it OF
would bave tried to have done some
thing for the child.'
''Was there anything said about
whipping the child?'
Eyes; Mrs. Crostick asked her what
the bruises were Going on the body,
and Mrs. Smith replied that she had
whipped It that night, and had
right to whip her own child because
it had been disobedient. She said
that she had undresse6 it TOR bed and