Please wait. Contacting image service... loading

Article text

DEATH CAUSED FOR STARVATION.
The adjourned inquest on the body of
William Kennedy, aged four months, was
resumed at Fremantle before Mr. Fair
bairn, R.M., on Saturday. It will be
remembered at the first coroner's sittin&r
Mrs. Burton stated she had only received
35s. during the four mp^i^g she had had
the baby under her care, and that it was
very poor and sickly when she took it in
charge, at the age of two weeks. Dr.
Barnett, recalled, said: In addition to
what I have already stated I wish to add
that the infant was only brought to me a
few minutes before it died, and that I had
not seen him previously. The inanition of
which the child died may have been caused
by the want of a suitable supply of
sufficient food, or it may have been caused
in the frisfting state of the liver by want of
power to assimilate the food. Michael
Kennedy, the grandfather of the deceased
child, warder at the Lunatic Asylum, said:
The mother of the deceased is a daughter
of mine; abont the 9th or 10th of last
tn--nth I was passing through the Fre
mantle Park, near the Pavilion, when Mr.
Burton informed me that my daughter had
only paid him 35s. ; I subsequently paid
him 80s., on the 15th of December, and
another sum of 20s. later on; I have
never seen the child. By Sergt.
Peacocke: I know Mr. and Mrs. Burton
by sight; they are both, in my opin
ion, given to drinking habits, and from
what I know are not fit to take charge of
young children. Mrs. Mary Delaney said :
I am a midwife, and was called in to attend
Lily Kennedy in her confinement ; the
baby was born before £ reached there;
it is about four months ago; I kept bo
account of the date ; the deceased was a
small child; I saw nothing wrong with it;,
it 'was very healthy ; the child was sucking
its mother when I paid my last visit; it
was about 7 days old ; the child was small
but fully grown. I consider half a cup of
milk per day would not be sufficient to
support a healthy baby.
After some brief remarks from the coron
er the jury retired, and after halfan
hour's absence retired into court with the
written verdict :— ' We found that William
Kennedy, while nnder the charge of Mary
Burton, was thoroughly neglected, and that
his death was caused by starvation. We
further consider that the said Mary Burton
is greatly to blame in not calling in medi
cal aid.'
$