by Sara Donati
I think of you both every waking hour and often dream of you, in your cozy nest high in the mountains. Please do write again soon and tell us how you are faring, both in body** and spirit.
With all my love, your devoted
Aunt Lily
*I hope you remember what trouble Margaret’s boys got into when they found that bottle of schnapps. Stay away from it, is my advice.
†Everybody has come to the same conclusion, the judge is going to take those children away. No use in sugarcoating it. And Anna will be mad, is what she’ll be.
‡Never you mind about the courts. One way or the other, Oscar will make sure nothing of the kind happens.
**Speaking of bodies, I for one would like to hear more about what that Fink lady is feeding you and whether you are really eating enough.
We send you and Cap our love and good wishes and prayers.
Your true friends, Jane and Henry Lee
THE NEW YORK HERALD
MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 1884
COURT TO RULE ON THE FATE OF THREE ITALIAN ORPHANS
On December 27 three children, Rosa, age 9, Antonio, age 8, and Lia Russo, age 6, were brought before Judge Sutherland sitting at the Chambers and Special Term of the Supreme Court, on a writ of habeas corpus.
The writ was issued on the petition of the Roman Catholic Church, which has asked to have the children removed from the home of their guardians Detective Sergeant Giancarlo Mezzanotte of the New York Police Department and his wife, the physician Anna Savard. Attorneys for the Church allege that an error placed the children in a family that is not Roman Catholic, and that this error must be corrected. They ask that the Russo children be returned to the custody of the Sisters of Charity.
Long hours of testimony were required to establish the history of the three children, how they lost their parents, the mysterious fate of a fourth child, an infant called Vittorio, and the unusual circumstances that brought them into the care of the Savard and Mezzanotte families.
Judge Sutherland, a devout Roman Catholic, is expected to respect the wishes of the Church in the matter, as he has in the past.
MEZZANOTTE | SAVARD
22 WAVERLY PLACE
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
January 13, 1884
My dearest Sophie and Cap,
The children are to be taken from us.
My anger is within bounds only because they will not have to return to the asylum. Instead Judge Sutherland has ordered that they be surrendered to the guardianship of Jack’s brother Leo in Greenwood.
I trust Leo and Carmela to care for our three as they care for their own, and I know that Jack’s parents and the rest of the Mezzanottes will do everything in their power to ease this transition. And still I am so worried. The only small balm was to see Father McKinnawae’s face when he realized he had been thwarted.
Aunt Quinlan reminds me that the children have survived far worse, and will survive this too.
Please forgive me, but I don’t have the heart to recount the details of the hearing or its resolution, which you will find in the enclosed newspaper articles. I chose the least sensational and soberest of the many, and include a report of Rosa’s testimony that will make clear that she is as steadfast as ever. As soon as I am able to gather my thoughts I will write again and when it becomes available I will send a copy of Judge Sutherland’s ruling.
I would prefer if you did not share this news with Cap, if that is at all possible. He will work himself into a state and that will do neither of you any good. To distract him, Jack is adding a note along with the case file for the multipara homicide investigation.
I thought I could not miss you two more, and find that in this I am, once again, wrong.
Your Anna
THE NEW YORK HERALD
SATURDAY, JANUARY 12, 1884
COURT RULES ON THE FATE OF THREE ITALIAN ORPHANS
ALL PARTIES DISSATISFIED WITH THE OUTCOME
Yesterday Judge Sutherland issued his ruling on the custody of the three Russo children brought before the court on December 27.
To the surprise of many, the court did not grant the petition of the Roman Catholic Church, nor are the children to remain in the custody of their current guardians. Instead custody will be transferred to one of Detective Sergeant Mezzanotte’s brothers, whose wife was raised in Italy and is a practicing Roman Catholic. Leonardo Mezzanotte is a shareholder of the large Mezzanotte family farm in New Jersey, where he raises sheep and breeds livestock and guardian dogs.
In issuing his ruling the judge spoke in blunt terms to the parties assembled in his courtroom. “There is more than one way to resolve this problem, and returning three young children to the harsh realities of an orphan asylum, no matter how well intentioned, should be seen as a last rather than a first resort. Where there are family members the children know and trust who can also provide religious training I see no need to look any further. I encourage the new guardians to file for adoption as soon as possible, to provide these children with the security of a permanent home and family.”
“We are sorely disappointed,” Detective Mezzanotte told reporters. “But if the children cannot stay with us, we are thankful that they will be with my brother and his family. They have been abandoned too often in their short lives, and should not have to live through that experience again.”
Andrew Falcone, attorney for the archdiocese, released a statement to the press.
“Catholic children belong in Catholic families,” he said. “Carmela Mezzanotte claims to be an observant Catholic, but her history belies that claim. She has married not only outside her faith, but into a family of Jews and nonbelievers. Judge Sutherland appears not to understand this, or he simply chooses to ignore this fact.”
The Russo children were not in the courtroom to hear the ruling. “For which we are thankful,” remarked Dr. Anna Savard. “Such devastating news is best delivered in the privacy and safety of the only home they know.”
New-York Tribune.
SATURDAY, JANUARY 12, 1884
A PRIEST SPEAKS OUT ON THE RUSSO CUSTODY CASE
The Russo custody case, in which two parties claimed the right to care for three Italian children orphaned in a smallpox outbreak in Paterson, New Jersey, continues as a topic of discussion and interest.
Detective Sergeant Giancarlo Mezzanotte of the New York Police Department and his wife have been caring for the orphans since they first came to the city, a circumstance that the Roman Catholic Church has challenged on religious grounds. As established during the hearing, Detective Sergeant Mezzanotte, whose mother is a Jewess, claims no religious or philosophical allegiances. Mrs. Mezzanotte is a so-called Free Thinker and thus denies the existence of God.
In the end the judge gave neither party custody of the three children. Instead they are to be removed from the Mezzanotte home on Waverly Place and placed in the care of other Mezzanotte family members, practicing Catholics, living on a farm in New Jersey.
Father John McKinnawae, founder of the Mission of the Immaculate Virgin on Lafayette Place and a man who has dedicated his life to the care of homeless orphans, was angry about the ruling.
“Children who have suffered the loss of both parents must have the consolation of the faith to which they were born and baptized. The Mezzanottes are not in a position to provide even that much. To this sorry situation comes the fact that Mrs. Mezzanotte is employed as a doctor and works long hours. A woman who puts her profession before raising the children entrusted to her has no grounds for complaint when they are taken away.”
Anthony Comstock of the Young Men’s Christian Association made a similar point in a public statement issued after the ruling. “Innocents must not be left to the machinations of the godless, who can expose the most vulnerable to peril. In this, at least, the court ruled appropriately.”
Church officials
were also dissatisfied with the placement of the Russo children with Mezzanotte relatives. “The situation with the extended Mezzanotte family in New Jersey is also far from ideal,” said Father McKinnawae. “These three children would be far better off with the Sisters of Charity.”
Conrad Belmont, Esq., attorney for the Mezzanottes, dismissed Father McKinnawae’s accusations. “The court had nothing but praise for Detective Sergeant Mezzanotte and Dr. Savard, who have been dedicated and loving guardians to the Russo orphans. It seems that Father McKinnawae’s personal grievances and animosities have crowded out the charity and compassion which are so fundamental to Christianity.”
The New-York Times.
SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 1884
A CHILD’S TRUTH
Sources close to the investigation and hearing on the custody of the Russo orphans provided transcripts of some of the testimony taken in the judge’s chambers. In particular the interview with Rosa, the eldest of the Russo children, provides background and context that has been otherwise missing from the public exchanges. A verbatim excerpt from the transcript of Mr. Falcone’s questioning of the orphan Rosa Russo follows.
Mr. Falcone: Miss Russo, please tell Judge Sutherland about your trip to Staten Island with your current guardians.
Rosa Russo: We went to find Vittorio, my baby brother. Mr. Lee drove us to the ferry, then we took a train and then a horse and carriage. But Vittorio was gone when we got there.
Mr. Falcone: The weather was very bad, isn’t that right? And you and your little sister were soaked to the skin and got colds.
Rosa Russo: What does that have to do with anything? We went to find Vittorio, because the bad priest took him and wouldn’t give him back.
Mr. Falcone: Miss Russo, Father McKinnawae dedicates his life to the care of orphaned children in danger. It is disrespectful to refer to him as anything but Father McKinnawae. Do you understand?
Rosa Russo: I understand that he took our brother and wouldn’t give him back.
Mr. Falcone: Did Father McKinnawae tell you that he had your brother in his care, that he had arranged an adoption?
Rosa Russo: People who do bad things don’t like to admit what they do.
Mr. Falcone: So I take that to mean that Father McKinnawae never told you he had placed your brother with an adoptive family.
Rosa Russo: You know what you need to do? You need to make him swear on the Bible and then ask him. Judge Sutherland, could you please do that, make the priest swear on the Bible and then answer a question? Because his lawyer is asking me a question that only the bad priest himself can answer.
Judge Sutherland: Rosa, I see the logic of your suggestion, but for right now please answer Mr. Falcone’s questions to the best of your ability.
Rosa Russo: Yes, sir. I will try.
Mr. Falcone: Now, once again. Did Father McKinnawae tell you that he placed your brother with a new family?
Rosa Russo: The bad priest never answers questions. He just asks them.
Mr. Falcone: Miss Russo, I understand that you are distraught but I will ask you to remember your manners. Let’s try this from a different direction. Why are you so sure that Father McKinnawae placed your brother with an adoptive family? Who told you this?
Rosa Russo: Nobody.
Mr. Falcone: But you must have gotten the idea from someplace. From someone. Was it Dr. Savard who told you this?
Rosa Russo: You can learn things without being told. You learn things by watching and listening. And reading.
Mr. Falcone: Is it possible that you overheard something about your brother Vittorio that you misunderstood, or that was simply incorrect?
Rosa Russo: No. That is not possible.
Mr. Falcone: Are you familiar with the idea of “wishful thinking” when you desire something so much, you imagine it to be true?
Rosa Russo: I’m supposed to be polite and respect you, but you want to trick me. It’s not fair that you try to get me to say something that will make Auntie Anna look bad when she did nothing but good things. When we came to Roses she didn’t send us away. She gave us a big bed to sleep in with warm covers, and good clothes, and lots to eat, and hot water and soap for baths and Auntie Quinlan who speaks Italian and Auntie Sophie who knows lots of stories and Auntie Margaret who knows about corsets and manners and who taught me to read. And Mr. Lee and Mrs. Lee who feed us and teach us about gardens and who took us to church even when I didn’t want to go. All the bad priest did was take my brother and give him to a family and refuse to give him back to us. Make the bad priest swear on the Bible and ask him where Vittorio is, and see then who is good and who is bad. And also, that priest doesn’t like Uncle Jack because Nonna is Jewish and she is the best person in the world—
Mr. Falcone: Judge Sutherland—
Judge Sutherland: Let her finish.
Rosa Russo: Thank you. And he doesn’t like Auntie Anna because she thinks free* but most of all because she doesn’t obey him. He doesn’t like anybody who isn’t exactly like him and who doesn’t obey his rules. But I’m not like him and I don’t want to be like him. I just wanted my brother back, my baby brother who I was there when he was born and I gave Mama sips of water and did what the levatrice—the midwife—said. And I promised Mama when she was dying I would take care of my brothers and my sister, but the nuns lost my brothers, and all I wanted was to find them again. And now I don’t want to answer any more questions. Not until the bad priest answers some of my questions first.
Judge Sutherland: I think we’ll end the questioning for the day right here.
We at the New York Times read this transcript with great interest and some curiosity. Young Miss Russo raises a pertinent issue, and in fact records indicate that Father McKinnawae was questioned about the fate of the infant Vittorio Russo. When Mr. Belmont, attorney for the Mezzanotte-Savard family, asked whether the priest had any knowledge of the infant’s fate or whereabouts, Father McKinnawae declined to answer.
*Editor’s Note: We believe that Miss Russo was referring to the fact that Dr. Savard is a proponent of Freethought, the philosophy espoused by Robert G. Ingersoll, “The Great Agnostic.”
NEW YORK CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT
MULBERRY STREET
13th January 1884
Dear Cap,
As promised I am sending you the multipara homicide case-book. It might serve to distract you from the unhappy news in Anna’s letter, but even so, I hesitate to send it. I prefer to think of you and Sophie collecting stray dogs, sampling cheese, and discussing the odd habits of physicians. And so I will suggest that you do not read it, simply because our lack of progress will frustrate you as much as it frustrates everyone here.
I must also report that the newspapers finally figured out some part of the events of last summer. They have got their hooks in Mamie Winthrop and I fear they will persist until they have made all the details public.
If you can’t resist reading the case-book, I would appreciate your thoughts and insights. But I recommend you find some better way to spend your time.
Your friend,
Jack
NEW YORK CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT
DETECTIVE BUREAU
MULTIPARA HOMICIDES CASE-BOOK
Date Opened: May 30, 1883
Detectives: D.S. Maroney, D.S. Mezzanotte
Case No.: 188305H-63
Subject: Nine homicides occurring between May 23 and June 20, 1883, as the result of surgery performed with harmful intent and malice aforethought by person or persons unknown. Referred to hereinafter as the Multipara Homicides or Murders.
Summary: In as far as we have been able to determine, nine different women, strangers to each other, sought out an illegal operation over a six-week period in May and June. The person or persons to whom they went for this procedure charged a large sum. While performing
the operation, the guilty party made three deep cuts into the top-most part of the uterus (“between the uterine horns”), which perforated the bowels. As established by Dr. Lambert’s post-mortem examinations (attached), the similarities of these very distinctive incisions cannot be coincidental or accidental. The purpose was to cause system-wide infection and a painful death.
Status: Unsolved. Moribund.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Summary of Facts
2. Report of Dr. Lambert and summary of the final post-mortems
3. Suspects
4. Appendix
NEW YORK CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT
MULTIPARA HOMICIDES INVESTIGATION
Summary of Facts
January 1, 1884
Prepared by D.S. G. Mezzanotte
C L A S S I F I E D
VICTIMS
NAME
HOME
AGE
DEATH
PLACE
Janine Campbell*
NYC
26
May 24
New Amsterdam, in surgery
Abigail Liljeström
Buffalo
25
May 30
DOA Bellevue
Catherine Crown
Brooklyn
30
June 4
DOA Woman’s Hospital
