Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1922-01-10

| after its birth and every day for that
| length of time. The child had SUI
! ticient clothing she thought. but not
enough nourishment. She thought
! the mother did not have milk enough
! for the baby. There was some baby
! food in the house, but she saw only
one bottle. She said the child was
normal looking at birth but did not
! seem to grow and she thought it
I was hungry. She went over Satur
! day last to hathc the child and
thought it looked i'll.
Or. {. X. Simmons. when called,
: said that the child Was born on De
| ccmbcr 18th and was III normal con-
, dition and looked healthy at birth.
: and in his judgment weighed about
! seven pounds. He said the mother
| had a temperature for several days
! and llt saw her every day for three
! or four days. She had milk on the
| third day. He saw her again on the
| second of January in the evening.
! Mrs. Trask was there with the child
| sitting before the oven with the
| child wrapped in Il blanket. The
| baby was blue with cold and looked
; cmaciatcd. He said that he pre-
scribed more blankets and heat. in
| the way of 4 hot water bottle. He
sew Il bottle of baby food and there
! was some matted milk. Trask mixed
! the food for the baby. The bottle
was of a size that would possibly
supply the baby with food i week
; The next time he saw the baby was
On Sunday when it was dead.
On cross examination by MI
Gardner. DR.. Simmons said that in
his opinion the baby died from lack
of nourishment and he thought the
girl should have been able to take
better care of the infant.
DR.. John G.. Towne testified in the
capacity of medical examiner He
! said that he was called by telephone
and told of the case and asked to see
the child as medical examiner. He
got in touch with Sheriff Edward
! HARDWOOD and County Attorney San
born and together they went TO the
Trask home about $50 Sunday night
] There he viewed the body of William
James Spencer. three weeks old He
said that he found that the child
died at 1890 that forenoon and was
seen by DR.. Simmons about Il of
the same day. He said that he went
/ into the history of the case ard found
that the child had given care to the
I baby for seven or eight days.
D.. Simmons. he said, estimated
the weight of the child at birth as
seven pounds: in a few days it
weighed six and half pounds and on
{ Sunday the body was in a petticoat
and weighed a trile less than two
pounds. There were MOI marks of
violence onSthe body. neither did the
mouth or throat show evidence of
having swallowed anything of a
harmful nature. The buttocks were
raw and the child died in a drawn up
position. He said that there was no
question but that the child died from
malnutrition and neglect.
DR.. Towne said that the defendant
told him that her milk gave out in
about week. That they had an s.
cent bottle of Mellin's food and the
child had had about half enough. He
said that he couldn't find that he
baby had had any care outside of
what Mrs. Trask had given it. That
there was no reason why the mother
shouldn't take care Of it. that 1t vas
all right physically. He stated also
that he didn't believe that Che milk
gave out the way the mother said it
did, because it naturally would not.
On cross examination DR.. Towne said
that a baby might die in the time
stated of too little food or exposure.
Here Mr.. Gardner interposed, saying
that it was all the place she had. DR..