SINCE March 2014, Your Thurrock has been charting the references to the Great War in the Grays and Tilbury Gazette from one hundred years ago.
Our aim is to give a little insight into life in the borough in 1914 and beyond.
Earlier this month, we reported on the sinking of HMS Clan McNaughton and the loss of 38 men from Thurrock.
We included the name of Horace Redshaw from Grays. We then touched on the fact that a terrible incident happened at the home of his widow that led to a court case.
We found details of the case in the Grays and Tilbury Gazette from July 1916.
We must warn you, that it is not easy reading as it involves the graphic description of the death of two children.
Here is the report:
A REMARKABLE story involving serious allegations pf neglect against a mother was told at Grays on Monday, when the Coroner (Mr C Edgar Lewis) held an inquest at the Police Station on the bodies of James Redshaw, aged five, and Maud Redshaw, aged four, the children of Emma Kate Redshaw, a widow, lodging at 95, Grove Road, Grays.
In the course of her evidence, Mrs Redshaw stated she was the widow of a fireman drowned by the loss of H.M.S. Clan McNaughton. Supt. Page represented the police.
P.s. Griggs was the first witness, stating that on Saturday, July 22nd, at about 7.30 p.m., acting on information received, he went to 95, Grove Road, Grays, accompanied by P.C. Poppy.
This house was occupied by a man named Alfred Blows, and his wife and two children, and Mrs Redshaw and four children. Mrs Redshaw occupied two rooms, one upstairs at the back and a downstairs middle room. In a perambulator in the middle of the room witness found the child, James Redshaw, wrapped up in some night clothing and a bed quilt.
Mrs Redshaw was also in the room with a baby in her arms and a boy, named Horace, aged ten, was also present. There was a door leading into the backyard, which was wide open, but there was a very bad smell in the room, which was dirty and untidy. Witness said to Mrs Redshaw, “I have an order from Dr, Floyd to take these three children to the workhouse.” She said, “What, the baby, too?” Witness replied “Yes.”
He borrowed a clean sheet from a neighbour and wrapped up the boy James and the clothing which was round him. He carried him in his arms to a taxi-cab outside, and also kept him in his arms all the way to Orsett Workhouse. Mrs Redshaw took the baby and P.c. Poppy the boy Horace.
When they arrived at the Workhouse the boy James was taken and laid in a bath, and witness then uncovered his head, which he had not seen previously, and said it was covered with sores, vermin, and filth. A shocking smell came from it. Witness also saw the baby. The Coroner said that did not concern that inquiry.
Witness, continuing, said he then returned to the taxi-cab and went back to Grove Road, where he saw the deceased child Maud lying on a bed in the backroom. Her head was covered with sores, vermin, and filth. There was one window open in the room, but the smell was very bad. The size of the room was about 14 feet or 15 feet by eight feet. There were two full-sized beds in the room, which looked fairly clean.
The room itself was dirty and untidy. When witness raised the dead child up from the bed her head stuck to the sheet, caused by blood and matter which had oozed from it. Witness then conveyed the body to the mortuary where it was washed and laid out. The corpse was clean, but had flea bites on it, and there were some sores on the back of the neck.
The two bodies at the mortuary were those of the boy James and the child Maud, witness having conveyed the body of the former from Orsett on Sunday evening. When at Orsett Workhouse on the Saturday before James died Mrs Redshaw made a statement to him after having been cautioned. She said, “I am a widow. The child Maud was four years of age the 17th of this present month. I noticed the vermin in both the deceased and the boy ‘James’ head a long while ago. I tried hard to get them out. I had ointment from the chemist and have washed them with boracic lotion. The sores began to form about six weeks ago in James head.
The deceased child (Maud) has had sores in her head only this last week. She has had vermin in her head a long time. I did not think it was necessary to call in a doctor before. I did not think it was anything serious. I have always have a lot of trouble with my children. I have been in receipt of 13s 6d a week from the Government, and pay 3s a week for the room I now occupy.” Mrs Redshaw signed this statement, which was made in reply to his questions.
Replying to the jury, witness said he did not see both the corpses stripped. He only saw the boy’s head. The bedding was fairly clean.
Mrs Redshaw, asked to cross-examine, said she told the witness the child Maud was found dead in bed. This was not so, it was found on the floor.
Witness said, Mrs Redshaw did tell him the child Maud was found dead in bed.
Mrs Emma Winter, headmistress of Arthur Street School Infants Department, said the boy James attended that school, and his last attendance was on July 5th. Witness had never seen anything verminous on him, but a teacher had told her so on July 4th, and witness directed he should be kept under observation.
On the following day, July 6th, the mother told witness he had lumps in his throat, and she advised her to take him to Dr. Jones. She replied that she was taking him to her own doctor as, being a war widow, she had a doctor found for her. This was what witness understood from her. Witness mentioned about the vermin to the mother on that occasion. Witness also produced the child’s medical inspection card, showing he had been kept clean.
The Coroner; “This is Sept. 13th, nearly a year ago. I don’t think we had better take any notice of that.”
Witness, further questioned by the Coroner, said there was no smell from the child’s head when he was last at school. She saw every child at least once a day. Replying to the jury, she said she did not see any sores on the head. The child came to school fairly clean.
Mrs Louisa Blows, 95, Grove Road, Grays, said Mrs Redshaw and her children had occupied the two rooms at her house since August, 1915, paying her 3s a week. Witness saw her children going in and out of the house. She had never noticed anything regarding them, and was quite unaware of their condition. They played about with her children. She had noticed a few small sores on their faces about 3 weeks or a month ago.
The Coroner; had you noticed any disagreeable smell coming from the rooms?- No, sir, only for the last two days. Witness further said this was on Friday last, and witness told Mrs Redshaw about it, the reply being that the children were not well. Witness advised her to call in a doctor, and she did so.
Replying to the Coroner, witness said she last saw the boy James between a week or a fortnight ago, but she saw Maud during the past week, she was then downstairs sitting at a table. Mr Redshaw was generally at home, but witness was out for several hours a day.
The Coroner; did she appear to leave the children for any lengthened period?- No, sir.
The Coroner; was she a person who gave way to drink at all?- No, sir.
The Coroner; was she fond of the children?- Yes, sir, very fond of the children.
Replying to the jury, Mrs Blows said the mother told her nothing about the sores.
Dr Ward stated that he was called in by a message left at his house in order to see the girl Maud at mid-day on Friday. He arrived about 4 p.m. The child was lying on the bed apparently very ill. She was very pale. The face was puffy and swollen, and there were red bites of inflammation from the scalp to the face and the glands of the neck were swollen.
On looking at the head he saw it was alive with lice, and that the hair was all matted together. He cut off all the hair and released a large quantity of matter. The surface of the scalp was raw. Witness told the woman that, as she was a widow, she was entitled to attendance from the Poor Law Medical Officer, and in the meantime, if she would come to his surgery he would give her some antiseptic lotion to wash the scalp.
Although the child was extremely ill, she was able to sit up in bed to enable him to cut off the hair. The child was not “in extremis” at that time, and cried lustily. The mother was given the lotion. On the following day (Saturday), he received another message about the child, and telephoned to Dr Floyd asking if he had received any messages about the child, the reply being in the negative. Witness told Dr Floyd that he would hand over the case to him, but at his request went again to see the child. That was about 5 p.m.
On entering the bedroom he found the child curled up on the floor, the knees drawn up, and the arms flexed. The child was very livid and dead. The mother said; “I suppose she’s fallen out of bed in a fit.” Witness’s opinion was the child had died in a convulsion, and had then been dead five or ten minutes. There was a terrible odour in the room. He noticed the boy James on the bed, and found him nearly pulseless and getting cold, so witness gave him some stimulant. He returned home and telephoned to the police and also to Dr Floyd, advising that James removed to the workhouse at once.
Witness continuing, said he had made a post-mortem examination. The child was well nourished, but there were innumerable flea bites on the body and two small sores on the face. The whole of the scalp was raw and ulcerated with blood oozing from it, being still alive with lice and maggots. The brain was quite healthy, and there was no injury to the skull, while the heart and other organs were healthy except that the liver, kidneys, etc., showed the renal signs of blood-poisoning. There was nothing in the stomach, though the bowels contained partially digested food. In witness’s opinion death was due to septucemia (blood poisoning) owing to the septic condition of the scalp, due to vermin.
Replying to the Coroner, witness said he thought the child had been carried off in a convulsion.
The Coroner; You didn’t consider the child’s condition was hopeless on Friday?- No.
Asked as to the duration of the condition of the scalp, witness demurred to the suggestion of weeks, and replied it had probably been so for months. Undoubtedly it was due to gross neglect.
The Coroner; Do you think if the child had had medical attention about July 5th its life would have been saved?- Oh, undoubtedly.
Dr Ward added that he looked upon his visits as purely emergency ones.
Replying to the jury the doctor said the post-mortem examination when he found the maggots was about 24 hours after death. He did not think there was time for the maggots to have formed after death. He could not say if the lotion he gave the woman had been used.
Mrs Redshaw, asked to cross-examine, said; The doctor did not say what was the matter.
Dr Ward replied; that he told her on the Friday that the girl was seriously ill, and if the authorities knew she would get into serious trouble. He advised her to call in the Parish doctor.
The Coroner added; that it did not need much of an eye to see the children needed
attention.
Miss Lydia Jane Coombes, superintendent nurse at the Orsett Workhouse Infirmary, stated she received the child James Redshaw on Saturday evening about 8.5 p.m. He was laid in a padded bath, and hot water bottles were applied to his feet, and a stimulant administered. He was seen by Dr Allingham ten minutes after admission. Witness saw the child was very verminous. He died about 9.40 p.m. the same night. After he was seen by the doctor the child was put into a bed, and at 9.35 had a convulsing fit and died about five minutes later.
Dr W. Allingham, medical officer to the Orsett Infirmary, stated that he saw the child James about 8.15. He was lying in a bath padded with blankets, and was in a collapsed condition. He was cold and almost pulseless, and appeared to be in a quite hopeless condition.
The child was absolutely swarming with vermin, and lice were creeping all over his face and body. Witness made a post-mortem examination on Sunday evening and found that the scalp was in a terrible condition, while the suppuration had almost penetrated to the bone.
The glands of the neck were very much enlarged, and there were sores on the right hand and left foot. Considering the general septic condition of the body, it was ill nourished. The brain was healthy, but the liver etc., was gorged with blood. Death was due to septic absorption from the suppuration from the scalp, caused by vermin.
Witness considered the scalp had begun to ulcerate quite two or three weeks prior to death, its original cause being the lice. This was due to gross neglect, and it could not have been overlooked even apart from the stench, which was awful. In witness’s opinion had the child received medical attention as recently as July 5th there was every probability its life would have been saved.
The mother, Emma Kate Redshaw, volunteered to give evidence, and after being cautioned, said she was a widow, her husband having been a fireman, who lost his life on H.M.S. Clan McNaughton. Her husband’s name was Horace, and James and Maud were her children. She owned there had been a few vermin on their heads, but she had tried to get them out.
She knew they had sores on their heads and on their faces, for she had cured the latter. She did not think it was necessary to have a doctor, for she thought she could cure them, as she did those on the faces.
The children had only been upstairs about 3 days. The stench must have come from their heads. She considered she was capable of looking after the children. “The boys Horace and James, had been troublesome at times.”
The Coroner said that was the whole of the evidence. It was for the jury to consider whether or not they would return a verdict of “Wilful Neglect”, which would amount to one of “Manslaughter”. He further explained the legal consequences involved, and also the provisions of the Children Act in regard to such cases.
The jury, after deliberation, returned a verdict that the children’s deaths were due to wilful neglect by their mother.
The Coroner said that was a verdict of “Manslaughter”, against Mrs Redshaw, and he must commit her for trial on that charge.
Mrs Redshaw was subsequently arrested by Supt. Page and brought before A.W. Boatman, Esq.
Supt. Page gave formal evidence of arrest, stating; “This day, July 29th, I attended an inquest on the bodies of James Redshaw, aged five, and Maud, aged four, children of the prisoner, when the jury returned a verdict of “Manslaughter” against the prisoner. I said to her, after cautioning her, “After the jury’s verdict, I shall arrest you upon a charge of manslaughter of your two children”. She replied “Yes”. I ask for a remand until the Petty Sessions on Friday. Prisoner was accordingly remanded until Friday. Bail was allowed in £10 and a surety of a like amount.
At the Petty Sessions on Friday, before A.W. Boatman, Esq., IChairman), the evidence given at the inquest was repeated.
Replying to the Bench, Dr Allingham said in the case of the boy James the suppuration commenced a fortnight or three weeks previously. The smell from the child was terrible, and when he bent over the child in the bath he felt he could vomit. If the child had had treatment a fortnight or even a week previously its life could have been saved.
In reply to the usual caution, prisoner said she desired to make a statement. She said; “As soon as I noticed vermin on the head I went and got some Franklin’s head ointment from the chemist’s, and about a week after using it they had sore heads, and I stopped using it. I used to bathe their heads with boracic powder, and then when I applied the boracic the used to scream. I could not do very much with them, and did not persist with them as I ought to have done. I was frightened because they screamed so, and when I saw the swelling on the girl’s face I sent for Dr Ward. I have had a lot of trouble.”
Prisoner was then committed for trial to the next assizes, bail being allowed, herself in £10 and one surety in £10. She consented to the other two children remaining in the Workhouse.
