Well, that was horrifying. Not just Dyer herself, but British society in general at that point, the whole society that enabled women like that to exist in the first place. While she seems to have been the most prolific, she didn’t seem to be entirely alone in her practices:

Unscrupulous carers resorted to starving the farmed-out babies, to save money and even to hasten death. Noisy or demanding babies could be sedated with easily available alcohol and/or opiates. Godfrey’s Cordial—known colloquially as “Mother’s Friend” (a syrup containing opium)—was a frequent choice, but there were several other similar preparations. Many children died as a result of such dubious practices: “Opium killed far more infants through starvation than directly through overdose.” Dr. Greenhow, investigating for the Privy Council, noted how children “kept in a state of continued narcotism will be thereby disinclined for food, and be but imperfectly nourished.” Death from severe malnutrition would result, but the coroner was likely to record the death as “‘debility from birth,’ or ‘lack of breast milk,’ or simply 'starvation. '” Mothers who chose to reclaim or simply check on the welfare of their children could often encounter difficulties, but some would simply be too frightened or ashamed to tell the police about any suspected wrongdoing. Even the authorities often had problems tracing any children that were reported missing.

Great mugshot though