The Mathews journal. (Mathews C.H. [Court House]) 1903-1937, 1910-09-15
VIRGINIA WOMAN IN
SAD PREDICAMENT
Washington Board of Children s
Guardians May Care for Little
Ones if Refuge Be Found for
Mother-Two Show Symp-
toms of the Malady.

WASHINGTON, D. c. Special
A new terror, Infinitely more depress-
ing than the thought of her own pre-
dicament. is confronting Mrs. Mar
Sare' Cook, of Westmoreland county
mother of three children, who, suf-
tering with pellagra, has been re-
FUSED admission to two OF Washing
tons largest hospitals.
The deadly malady with which she
is aftlicted, the mother believes, is
slowly but surely affecting her chill
dren.
In her distress the mother fondles
the little ones and weeps and prays
that someone will come to her aid.
Mrs Cook is awaiting anXiously the
outcome OF negotiations which are
being carried on in her behalf, and
which before nightfall today may re-
SUIT IN her admission to a place of
relief.
But the ravages of the disease have
made such inroads on the constitu-
ton of the stricken woman that all
human ministrations may be i'm vain.
FOndIes Child as She Talks.
Last evening Mrs. Cook told in de-
tail TO Post reporter the story of
suffering which within three months
has reduced her from a robust Wo-
man. who had never known a sick
day, TO mere skeleton. AS she told
the story of her own suffering, she
fears for her children. two of whom,
she is convinced, are suffering from
the malady.
IL is mother love that has
made this fraiI creature of only
twenty-SiX years cling TO her
children and refuse the ministra-
tons which she might have re-
Ceived In Virginia hospital.
Last night, as she related her
story, her three-year-Old boy,
Bonnie, tossed restlessly I'm her
arms and would not be pacified.
None OF the ministratiOnS which
usually allay children's ills bring
any surcease TO the little suf-
ferer.
The doctors have not made a final
pronouncement in the case of the lad.
but in room nearby lay his sister.
six years old, whose condition gives
evidence that she is a victim of the
scourge of the South.
Sisters Symptoms Alarming.
She, too, was restless and uneasy;
her appetite is poor; she lacks the
high spirits of other children and
thus far nothing has been found that
would relieve her suffering.
DR.. z. b. Allen, one of the physi-
clans connected with the Board of
Charities, has been the Good Samari-
tan of this afflicted family. 1t is he
who is conducting the negotiations for
the admission Of Mrs. Cook to one of
the local hospitals. While in his opin-
ion the boy may not be suffering from
pellagra, DR.. Allen said the little girl
was in all probability in the prelimi-
nary stage of the disease. which is
slow in development.
Mrs. Cook has a strange antiD-
athy toward hospitals. Stoutly
refusing to be taken to any OF
the institutions I'm Virginia, she
insisted upon coming to WASH
tngton, hoping vaguely that re-
lief might come from physicians
who would treat her outside of
hospital walls So with her hus-
band, Richard Cook; the two
and the other child, the baby of
the household, Richard. five
months old, she came to Wash
ingtOn without prospect of even
shelter upon her arrival.
In Home of Her Cousin.
But in her distress the home of her
cousin, Mrs. Edward Teagle. of Flor
ida Avenue, Northeast, was thrown
open to the family. Here Mrs. Cook
told the story of her suffering during
the last three months.
1t was about the first of June"
she began. Little Richard was then
about two months old. We lived in
Westmoreland county, Va, and one
day l wheeled the baby to q store,
some distance away. 1 had often done
1t before, but when j got home 1 col
lapsed. Soon my appetite failed, and
/ became nervous and irritable. And
then the pain came. Oh, such pains
in my back and head! 1t seemed as
if 1 should go crazy, but 1 kept about
the house and did the best / could
for my husband and children.
Il went through the summer that
way. Some days 1 would have to give
up and lie down for a time, but
never really went to bed. My hus-
band was earning a dollar day in a
planning mill, and when / got so bad
/ couldn't do the housework he gave
up his position and stayed at home to
help take care of the children. We
used up every cent we had. and, as
he was earning nothing, of course. it
wasn't long before we were in straits
Disease Gains Steadily.
"An the time L was getting worse
At last they said / must go to the
hospital. They knew i wouldn't be
separated from my children, especial
ly Richard. So one day my sister
came to the house and said 1 must
go to the hospital, and when ! wasn't
my baby with her. l made such a
disturbance that they brought the
baby back, and then things went on in
the same way until we came to Wash
ington.
I'm afraid the children took the
disease from me. You see my arms
and nose broke out with efuptionS
Benny hasn't been so i'll, but the little
girl was covered with the eruptions
It's for the children's sake that l wish
could get better. / wouldn't be TAX
en- to a hospital, but 1 won't hold out
any longer. You see they have re-
fused to take me into two hospitals.
Now I'll go anywhere they want to
take me. l must do that for the
children's sake, but it'll be so hard
to give them up"
20 the sufferer talked on in plain
tive tones, almost Indifferent when
she spoke of her own suffering, but
keen to the situation when her
thoughts turned to the three chill
dren from whom she must soon be
separated for how long, no one can
tell. The Cooks lived in the District
up to about year ago, when they
sold out and moved to Virginia. 1t
proved to be a bad move. The hus-
band has earned less down there than
he did here.
But it does seem good to be up
here; 1t seems more like home, and
I've really felt better ever since
reached here last Monday" added
Mrs. Cook.
Mr.. Teagle has received his wife's
relatives with open arms. and has sig
pi6a6 his WILLINGNESS fn will,