Hide Article Text (OCR)
A TERRIBLESTORY.'*-•%£The Career of at Convict' ■^ho Mnr-Med Ht» Own Child—Three Gen-• orations of Wrecfe^d Minds.hein.JWhe ad,r The peculiar, and • almost; incredible story brought out by the arrest and conviction • in the Richmond county court of sessions in March last* after much litigation, of George W; Lake for being the father of five children' by his own daughter, was yesterday revived, says The New York World, at a special term of the supreme court7 before Judge Cullen. • / Lawyer . George A. Moses, appearing, for Lake, /moved for leave to file a bill of exceptions' for the purpose of appealing from the last judgment / of the court The motion was opposed by the district attorney of Richmond ..eounfcv, but Judge Cullen• , • * o .*decided in favor of the convict.Lake is now- in. Siug Sing prison; where he was sentenced to serve nine« ' t 1 i • * 1and one-half. years’ imprisonment Three generations of wrecked minds% . . . . . .. .i - » , ^ , *are the result of his wicked and shame-1 . • . «'* * S 1 * • * ,,less career. His case illustrates, aside• . i , • •..* . . . ,from the depths of depravity to' which human nature may sink, the evil effects of intermarriage between blood relations. Lake was born , in. Topsville, Mass., and when but 15 years old became infatuated with Emina Sweeney, a young woman of that village,- who was possessed of a limited amount ofdiscretion. He was a frequent visitor at her father’s house, and after a few: months a child was born, the paternity of which was laid to young Lake. - Hestn , •nlt;insiviHi:VJP«StAaiwglt;litsoylt;rhfled the country, taking passage as. a Common sailor on a Chinese merchantman. From China he went to Japan, where he acquired the language of the natives, and finally engaged in exporting fancy goods and bric-a-brac to this country. He prospered, saved money, and. finally returned home with a snug little fortune, and continued, business with his headquarters in New York. He found that during his absence Emma had married, and that his child was in Boston Orphan asylum. He gained possession of the little unfortunate, and sent her to a seminary to be educated. She was called Emma, after her mother. None of her schoolmates ever suspected little Emma’s misfortune, and she was quite a favorite among them: Lake visited the child only occasionally, and supposed that its mother had lost all interest in her.^ . i .Such, however, was not the case:' The latter made frequent visits.in secret to the little one, and manifested a great deal of affection toward her, although she never revealedjier relationship.This state of affairs continued until 1875, when Lake took Emma from her studies and brought her to New York to act as his bookkeeper. At the time she was a bright, fair-haired woman of 16, unusually, weir developed for her age. Lake took her to live at the old Washington hotel,’ where he registered her as his daughter. He never introduced her to anyone and always led her to and .from the dining-room. She went to and from his office with him daily, and when he spent the evening out Emma was always left locked in their apartments. Boarders at the hotel finally objected to the two peculiar guests, and, being asked to seek quarters elsewhere, they removed to No. 9J State street Lake was then between SO and 85 years old, and his new landlord supposed him to be the husband of his youthful companion. The couple had been in the house but a shoft time when Emma gave birth to a child. Her mother had neither seen or heard of her since her departure from the seminary, but the day the infant was born Lake sent for the woman. When she arrived at the house and found that her shame had been carried down to her daughter she went raving mad, and had to be removed from the house by force. She was taken to an insane asylum, where she died of the shock a few days later.Before the new-born child was a month old Lake deserted his family. He was arrested on a charge of abandonment, and at the station-house denied that the woman was liis wife. AnStite• »throthsoCOitainvestigation brought to light evidenceW:of the registration at the Washington hotel, where he had claimed the girl as his daughter, and he was held on a more serious charge. He was tried and acquitted, after which he removed with his youthful family to a comforta-dipi;anwlt;w:nooffelt;hawlrelt;grnocaientostcoubastifoiholuiwiwistainaslisholememiThwomeedspchoble but not very pretentious cottage inftand carriage in which he drove to thet very pi!, N. Y.Tottenville, N. Y. He kept a horseferry at cTifton every morning. Ho left it in a livcry-stable there until his return at night, when he drove home again. The young woman, who wasdoubly related to him, never appeared in the carriage and was seldom seen in the streets. Lake continued his unlawful relations witli her and his family increased. As the second generation of children grew up, however, they were found to be idiots, and public indignation against the father became so bitter that he was forced to leave the neighborhood. He next took his afflicted family to a house on Todt hill, a few miles from Clifton. This was about four years ago, and he was again indicted. Then it was discovered that the mother of his younger children had become insane. She was sent to an asylum, her children (five in number) were taken to the poorhouse and Lake was lodged in jail. He was tried, convicted, and sentenced to nine and a half years’ imprisonment at hard labor in Sing Sing. Ho served twomonths of his time,, when a stay on ap-ilf.peal was obtained in his behalf, and ho was transferred back to the Richmondcounty jail. The gcnoral term of thero^Nocal1MeNoCOltheWGon'Antheratmelecciclivpe;thiraimePa:pc:* a 1Sitthiup“Uthlt;po:“IWi
Newspaper Details
Kellogg Enterprise
Kellogg, Iowa, US
Fri, Aug 27, 1886
Page 2
Full Page
Clipped by
Diane N.
USA 23 Sep 2018
Other Publications Near Kellogg, Iowa
Kellogg Weekly Enterprise
Kellogg Jasper County Reporter
The Kellogg Tribune
Kellogg Enterprise
