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Show oo ALLOWED TO DIE Chicago, Nov. 17. Tho little condemned con-demned baby died tonight at 7:30, o'clock, just after being christened. The water of baptism trickled throuwgh tho scant brown hair of the child, while science, withholding the easy gift of life, stood by, waiting. The mother, weeping In her bed, assented as-sented to the death penalty. The coroner, whose concern is not with the living waited for the end. "John. I baptize theo, In the name of the Father, of tho Son and of tho Holy Ghost. As the words were spoken by a wet-eyed woman, Miss Catherine J V. Walsh of the Catholic church of St Anne do Brighton, the baby quietly died in his crib. The dullness of death was In the eyes. Miss Walsh saw and added a llttlo prayer: "God grant that this child's life shall not have been lived in vain." Even as the prayer was spoken, it was' being answered. For at that moment millions of men and women all over tho world, reading tho story of little John Bollinger, were searching search-ing their consciences, weighing a mighty problem, preparing to sottle in Issue older than civilization This Is the question: When a child is born defective, when its Infant body is deformed, when its best life prospect us an existence ex-istence of helplessness in an Invalid's Inval-id's chair, perhaps In an institution for the mentally weak, then shall that child die by the hand of society and science and civilization? The verdict was death In the case of little John Bollinger. But, on behalf be-half of tho thousands of defectives yet to be born, there Is to bo an appeal, an appeal that will find a thousand tongues of eloquence. There will be a decision and that decision will be the contribution of John Bollinger Bol-linger to tho world that fed him for six days and killed him. Mother Not Told. In less than a week the condemned baby became famous, fulfilled his mission mis-sion on earth and then passed on. It is apparent that his momentary existence ex-istence will have accomplished more than some lives that run the allotted span of three score years and ton. "He has gone." It was a nurso who spoke. She lifted the blanket that covered the body in Its crib In tho German-American hospital, looked closely at the child, and spoke the words that tho world for days has been waiting. "Shall we tell the mother?" asked another nurse. "No," said Dr. Harry Halselden. "not tonight. She is nervous weak." And the storm was breaking a storm of impassioned and clashing opinions. Dr. Halselden was tho storm center, becauso it was he who had willed tho death of the child. It was he who, confessing that ho could have given life to the baby, refused to do so. By a simple operation, he declared, tho life would have been saved. "But it would bo wrong to have this life," he said. And quietly, resolutely, resolute-ly, he braved the frantic denunciations denuncia-tions of those who thought otherwise. Problem Difficult. "I may be accused of murder," he said. "I am ready. I have obeyed my conscience." What action will be taken remains to be decided. State's Attorney Hoyne himself is racked with doubts. "There is no doubt," said Mr. Hoyne "that there are technical grounds for a prosecution. I shall not express an official opinion. Privately I think the doctor was right." '" |
