MOTHER’S AWFUL DEED

Hokitika Guardian, 13 September 1926, Page 1

MOTHER’S AWFUL DEED

FOUR CHILDREN DROWNED

A PETONE HORROR.

[ny TELEGRAPH—PER PRESS ASSOCIATION

WELLINGTON, Sept. 12.

A shocking domestic tragedy occurred at Petone on Saturday evening at the house of Mr Perrin whereby all but one of his five children lost their lives through the demented action of Mrs Perrin. Mr Perrin, who had lived happily with bis wife and five children, left homo on Saturday after dinner, taking one of his sons with him. They returned homo early in the evening He was then astonished to find the door of the house locked, and no response to persistent knocking. Becoming alarmed, Perrin broke a windom and entered the house. There was no sign of his wife or children. He called for liis wife and again there was no response.

Perrin then heard splashing in the bathroom so lie went and knocked at the door. Then liis wife emerged. She was clad only in her underclothes, which were soaking wet. On rushing into the bathroom, the husband was horrified to seo the body of liis eldest daughter, Peggy, aged 0 years, floating in the bath, which was full, of water.

Ho pulled the girl’s body from the hath, but then be saw another body at lbe bottom of the hath. This proved to bo that of Francis Hamilton Perrin, a boy aged three years.

Seeing a heap of liis wife’s clothes lying on the floor Perrin pulled these aside, and bo saw tlio bodies of bis two other girls, Phyllis aged 2 years and Bettie, the baby, only six months old. All four children wore dead, they having boon drowned in the hath.

Tlio unfortunato mother had committed the dreadful act wliilo sho was in a state of dementia. ATrs Perrin lias suffered from illheath for some time, and has had a succession of worries. The children had protracted attacks of ’flu, and she had nursed them to recovery.

THE MOTHER'S DELUSIONS. WELLINGTON, September 13. There appears to he little doubt that Airs Perrin’s mind was affected. She is a slimly built, rather delicate-looking woman, of medium height. It is understood when placed under police custody on Saturday evening sho appeared rational, but was suffering from the delusion that someone had intended to injure her little ones, and had tried to force the bathroom door some time prior to her husband’s return. The unfortunate mother appeared to realise that she had drowned.lier four children but was labouring under tlio hallucination that she had saved them from an unknown assailant. Her paramount thought appeared to be not of remorse at her terrible net, but anxiety at tlio fact that she bad been unable to save flic eldest child from tlio grip of someone who intended some evil to her littlo ones. CHARGED WTTH MURDER, WELLINGTON, Sept. 13. Dorothy May Perrin, looking frail and worn, was charge] this morning before Air E. Page at the Magistrate’s Court with tlio murder of her four children. On the application of the police sho was remanded for a week. In tlio dock the accused appeared perfectly calm but seemed hardly to realise where sho was.