ALLEGED ILLEGAL OPERATION.

NZ Truth, Issue 128, 30 November 1907, Page 4

ALLEGED ILLEGAL OPERATION.

ANNIE WHITTAKER FOUND "NOT GUILTY."

She Would Not Give the Girl Away.

WHO PERFORMED THE ILLEGAL DEED?

William Burford and Annie Whittaker were charged .at Wellington Supreme Court on Thursday with unlawfully using an instrument with intent to procure a miscarriage. -

Mr Wilford, counsel for the defence, applied for a severance of the two cases, and adduced argument m favor of separation. There was a cloud of evidence pertaining only to the case against each accused, and the accused, 'TMrs Whittaker, at least, would be prejudiced by a joint hearing. Mr Myers, for the prosecution, m opposing, the severance, pointed out that Mrs Whittaker was the principal and Burford the accessory to the act, the accessory being a principal m law, and the evidence against each was one story. .

His B&onor Justice Cooper remarked that the first count of the indictment charged the prisoners jointly, but there was a considerable branch of the evidence that applied only to the female and not to the male accused, and a considerable volume of evidence applied to the male and not to the female. If he erred at all he preferred to err on the side that would prevent either of the prisoners from saying,

MI HAVE NOT HAD A PAIR • TRIAL," and as there might be a prejudice to one of the accused by a joint hearing he would accede to the request for a severance. The first essential of a case of conspiracy was the guilt of the principal, and m the event of the female prisoner being convicted, the case against the male accused could be proceeded with ; but he understood that m the event of an. acquittal the Crown would not deem it necessary to charge Burford.

Mr Myers agreed that such a course would be impossible. •

■ "Truth" readers were familiarised with the case for the Crown when the case was before the Magistrate's Court. It will be recollected that a. young girl of .17 named M-ay Bond, residing m Ellice-street, loved Burford most unwisely and developed that interesting condition which (according' to Smollett, or a contemporary) all eood ladies love to be m who love their lords. Unfortunately the church or the registry-office had no hand m the temporary union,: and our hideous social system regarded motherhood, m the circs., as a heinous crime. In ! her inexperience and distress the girl consulted Burford, who, on August' 17, introduced her to Mrs Annie Whittaker, who resides m Spencer House, Aro-street; The girl, who appeared m the witness-box (bathed m tears and' was accommodated with a seat at the solicitors' table, testified to the above, and also to th'? performance of an operation with the aid of a douche, Mrs Whittaker being the operator. The girl was afterwards supplied with chest plasters' at her lodgings by a Mrs Brooks, daughter of her landlady. -She -felt terribly weak, consulted a doctor and was ordered to the hospital, where the fact of the operation was discovered. A douche was i produced m Court, but there were { marked features Of dissimilarity between it and the one used on the girl.

To Mr Wilford, thegirl said , she was employed at Gill's place, Kelburne, when she had been intimate with Burford. The. Gill family went up country and Burford came arid slept with her one night, while 'another domestic slept with another young man m the house on the same night. The witness stated first that this was the only occasion on which she had been intimate with Burford, but subsequently corrected this statement. She had not used a crochet needle on herself, nor had she asked anyone to procure any medicine that might bring about abortion. Moreover, she hadn't informed the sinful domestic already mentioned that she

(May Bond) had had a miscarriage previously. Mrs Whittaker told her that she had inconvenienced her very much'by coming, and the woman had. even to borrow a bed to put the girl on. She went into Mrs Whittaker's, had her trouble removed, and departed for home within twenty-four hours.

He e.v«MTiined -by Mr Myers, the p.irl srid si 1 ,; 1 , had been intimate with Bai-

ford at r/ther places besides CiAH's, but she couldn't remember where. The

gay deceiver used to call at Gill's and take -her out.

Mrs Maria Brooks, who lives with the girl m Ellice-street, testified that May left her home m a pregpant con-

dition on August 17 and returned on the following day. Burfonl gave her the chest plasters already mentioned to give to the girl Bond. George Bond deposed that he met his sister and Burford on Ohiro Road on their way to Mrs Whittaker's and HE EXPOSTULATED WITH HIS SISTER for going there. Dr. Henry was the medico called m by the girl and, who discovered that she was suffering from the effects of a recent miscarriage, but he couldn't say what caused it. An instrument like the douche produced might have been the abortion agent.

To Mr Wilford : A crochet needle, a pen-holder, or irf fact any foreign body introduced into the womb w.ould cause abortion. The instrument used by a medical man to bring about abortion was much after the shape of a penholder. His Honor : But the doctor does not procure abortion. Counsel': What go you call it, doctor '?— Well, we call it "abortion, 5 but there is a "difference between the legal and illegal operation. Counsel : A doctor may commit a-

bortion, but no one else," is that it ? His Honor understood that a doc-

tor might find it necessary to perfo' m an operation to save a woman's life.

Witness : That is so, your Honor

Dr. TCwart, modical superintendent of the Hospital, expressed the opinion th.it the miscarriage was not prodveei b r Ih c douche produced. v -i-^i. o';{;! o'i'y h>' s^cep'-sful umJev abnormal conditions. If the girl had

used a crochet needle on herself at? 1» m the morning and a miscarriage occurred at 5 next morning (as m the

present case) the miscarriage might be due to the operation at 10 o'clock.: The average time was seventeen hours, but it varied, according to circumstances, from eight hours ta twenty-four.

The girl, recalled, fixed the date of her first sinfulness with Burford by the election of the Mayoralty ot Wellington, and she reckpned she was four months gone when the miscarriage took place.

When arrested by Detective Lewis, Mrs Whittaker remarked that there had been no girl on the premises to have abortion v practised on. She also remarked, *.'M.y God, what will be* come of my two little children ?" .

Lily Louisa Findlay, wife of a Wellington hairdresser, who was called for the defence, was m Mrs Whittaker's when May Bond transpired on the Saturay morning. May said to Mrs Whittaker, "You know what I have come for." Mrs Whittaker • re^ plied, "Yes ; when do you expect it ?" The girl replied, "At any minute." Two enemas, produced m the lower Court, belonged to the witness -and

WERE TAKEM HOME BY HER. In cross-examination by Mr Myers, &he was m the kitchen ■ when May Bond arrived, and there were two doors open between her and the speakers. She didn't see the girl, but heard 1 her go into the front room.

Addressing the jury, Mr Wilford submitted that a conviction must rest upon the evidence of the girl, who was an accomplice if the crime had been committed. Learned judges had affirmed that the evidence of no accomplice should be^accepted without corroborate on. He commented, upon the fact that Dr. Ewart did not credit the idea that the, douche found m Mrs Whittakev's had been used to procure abortion ; m fact, any married man would know that the doucha was commonly used for sanitary purposes, and for a purpose m no war connected with abortion. The , ?irl herself had stated that the instrument used was not similar to that produced. Counsel advanced the ther ory that Burford went to Mrs Whitt&ker and- told her that a girl he had got into trouble had used a croeheU needle on herself, and he asked th« woman to take the cirl m until i =.h« got over the trouble. Also that . t,h#. douche had been used m a harmless way and consistent with the theory that the operation had taken place prior to the girl's admission to th« house.

Mrs WMttaker, who did not go into the witness-box, made a statempnt: corroborating this tVorv. fhe ; said she'had known B'.'rford about, \«J > months, jmd on Wednesday, the 14t>h, between 8 and 9 o'clock, he name tothe house and asked her to take iD m > girl who had puncturod hersplf- with; a darning needle. Mrs Whitt?»ker hesitated, but consented after some: persuasion on the part of Hurford,' who said the girl would arrive prob-. ably about 12 o'clock on Saturday. Sho r-on'firmed the testimony given by Mrs Findlay, regardine: what took place at the door, and she

FURNISHED ACCOMMODATION FOR THE GIRL,

who appeared to be m pain. She administered brandy twice, aitd then used the syringe to give the girl r«r^ lief. The actual miscarriage "" took, place before 5 o'clock m the morn-i. ing. At 4.15 the girl called Mrs Whit-.' taker, who had retired, and remarked, "I think it's come. Can yqu relieve me of the pain ?" Mrs Whit- ■ laker, tied a sheet on to the end of the bed and instructed the girl to pull on it, and after further attention the trouble ended. The syringe was again used on the following day, and thegirl had dinner m bed. After the meal, she said, "I think I'll pefc up," and she left the house later m the afternoon. Burford came up on the following day (Sunday) to see if the patient was all rierht. On Monday Mrs Whitrnker- was Interviewed by Detectives Mo&rath and Lewis, who asked her if she knew a girl named May Bond. She replied m the negative. Her reason for doing so was that sh« TaaA nrornisefl May that if the worst mmo to tfce worst

SHE WOULDN'T GIVE HER AWAY.

Mr Myers, m the course of his ad-

dress, said the natural behaviour of an innocent wqman when idcntif-ftd and accused by May Pond m th« presence of the detectives should hare been to reject, the allegation indignation and to have stated that the operation was ■ performed by Hie

girl herself. Mrs WhittaVer had stated m her address that Burforrt'camn to her on Wednesday morning and asked her to take m a girl who hnd

punctured herself with a crochet needle, and counsel commented unnn th«» fact that the miscarriage had rot taken place till .Sunday morning.

His Honor summed up at length, and the jury retired, at 4.15 p.m., returning at 5.5 with a Verdict ©I "Not Guilty."