The tragedy took place at Kaikorai on Monday, November 9.
Mr F.B. Adams, Crown Prosecutor, said there would be one defence — the defence of insanity, and the question was whether or not the accused when she committed the crime was in such a state of mind as the law could visit with extreme punishment, then it was their duty to bring in a verdict accordingly, followed automatically by the sentence of death, and any question of mercy remained thereafter with the Cabinet of the country.
On the other hand it would be open to them, if they were satisfied that the evidence justified it, to say that the accused was not in such a state of mind as to warrant visiting her with criminal responsibility. In that case their verdict would not relieve the accused of punishment, because the law contained provision for her retention for life as a criminal lunatic.
He asked them to fix their attention throughout the proceedings upon the question of the state of mind of the accused. There was no real doubt as to the facts — that Mrs Hart, with her own hands, slew her three children.
Margaret Ufton, a married woman, living at No 19 Brighton Street, Roslyn, said that on the morning of November 9 she heard Mrs Hart calling "Mrs Ufton!" Mrs Hart lived next door. Witness went to the fence and accused said, "Come quickly! ... I have killed my kids!" Witness said, "You have not killed them" and she replied, "Yes, I have killed the lot of them. I did love those kids!" Witness persuaded Mrs Hart to come to her house. Mrs Hart said, "We had an argument last night," and "I suppose I will hang for this."
Eva Selina McDonald said that she had been staying with her cousin, Mrs Ufton, on November 9 last. She had assisted Mrs Ufton to get the accused to Mrs Ufton’s home. Mrs Hart was crying and seemed very excited. When witness told her not to worry accused said, "It was worry that made me do it."
Gladys Blanche Newall, married woman, living at 22 Brighton Street, Roslyn, said she lived opposite the accused. On November 4 Mr Hart came along to see her and asked her to mind the children while he went to get someone to look after them as "Nell" (his wife) had left him. He wanted his sister to take the children to their grandparents at Mosgiel. Witness did go and look after the children.
The following day Mrs Hart rang up from Mosgiel and said she was returning to Dunedin, she wanted witness to help her with the children from the station, but witness could not do so.
Dr Evans said that on November 9 he received a telephone message at about half-past eight from Mrs Steedman, asking him to go to Mrs Hart’s residence in Brighton Street. He found the little girl dead in the perambulator. The baby had been dead within the hour. The bodies of the two boys were warmer than that of the little girl. He asked Mrs Hart the cause of the trouble which had led to the tragedy, and she said she did not know what had come over her to kill her children and that now she realised it was a wrongful act.
Witness had had more experience in mental work than any other general practitioner in Dunedin. He could not say that her mental state prevented her from appreciating the nature of the act.
Henry Meredith Buchanan, lately medical superintendent of Seacliff Mental Hospital, said he had first seen Mrs Hart on the day after the tragedy. Later, when asked about the tragedy, most of her replies were: "I don’t know. I can’t remember." He found her ideas limited. She was under his observation at Seacliff from December 2 until last Friday, and he had never detected an attitude such as he would expect from a mother if she were fully conscious of what she had done. Her interests were very superficial, like those of a young child.
— ODT, 10.2.1926
