The Robins Case.

Manawatu Herald, 3 December 1904, Page 3

The Robins Case.

MURDER SUsPEOTED., The N.Z. Times Melbourne correspondent forwards the following interesting particulars of the case, reported by cable a few days ago, in which a dwarf has been*arrested for the suspected murder by poisoning of her mother : Inquiries into the death of Mrs Sarah Ann Robins, a resident of Richmond, which is one of the most populous suburbs of Melbourne, haVe elicited strange and pathetic circumstances, which have justified the police in laying a charge of murder againsf the deceased woman’s daughter. Mrs Robins was sixty-six years of age, had been three times married, and was the mother of twenty children, of whom only two survive. One of these, Rose Hhbbert, a daughter of the second marriage, who is a congenital dwarf, of about three feet in height, and is now 27 years of age, and the mother of a daughter, one year old, afflicted similarly to herself, has been arrested in connection with her mother’s death. Mrs Robins was thrown from a dog-cart on September 15th, and suffered injuries to her face and head which necessitated medical treatment, but gave -no cause for alarm. Subsequently symptoms set in which appeared to have nd connection with the accident, and on September 23rd her medical attendant was summoned, and he at once formed suspicions that some irritant poison was being administered. The doctor immediately arranged for a nurse of his own choosing to be placed in charge of the patient, but although this was done, and the preparation of the deceased’s food and medicine was left solely to the nurse, the symp

t'orfiß increased, and on the 2Bt,h of September it was decided to remove Mrs Robins to the Melbourne Hospital. Her condition gradually became worse, and in the early morning of September 30th the police were sent for to take her dying depositions, but arrived only to find her unable to speak • and she died without making any statement. The post-mortem on the body disclosed arsenic in sufficient quantity to cause death. The police inquiry could elicit no motive for the crime, but their investigation dispelled the idea of either suicide or accident. The nurse who had attended Mrs Robins noticed that Amicable relations existed between the deceased and both husband and daughter, who were the only occupants of the house- However* as a result of inquiries, and oii Account of contradictory statements that had been received from the daughter, but not made public, the police arrested her on November 11th, and charged her with the murder of her mother. The unfortunate girl is subject to fits, and at the time of her mother’s removal to the hospital, and when arrested, she was seized with severe fits of convulsions, and since her arrest she has fainted several times. At the inquest it was stated that the girl had admitted in one of her statements giving both arsenic and mercury to her mother while she was ill, but asserted that it was at the request of her mother. She is committed for trial on December 12th. The circumstances are extremely painful. Th* family were comfortably well-off. The appearance in the criminal dock of an unfortunate girl, sadly deformed, and having the care of an infant equally unfortunate, is a sad sight.