CORONER'S INQUEST.

Manawatu Times, Volume II, Issue 77, 14 July 1877, Page 2

CORONER'S INQUEST.

' An inquest was lield at the Palmer-, ston Hotel on. Wednesday; afternoon,, the 11th. _instant, on' the body of a named William. Reid, before Dr Rocksfcro, Coroner, and the following jury, — Messrs --Snelson, (foreman) ?; Waldegrave, Gilbert, Owen, Moffatt, Roe, Green, "Nathan, Eldershaw, King, Johnson, and^ETelvie. ' •>. - Before proceeding to the examination of witnesses, the Coroner stated that he wished it' to be distinctly understood that all who could give any information a's to the circumstances attending the 'death of the man, whose body was then before ,the Court, were requested to dojso,' It was not necessary that a witness should be summoned to enable him, to give evidence. w lt .should- be' the public study, to make such f inquiries as clear and searching as /possible. v < / Robert Wilford, having been sworn, deposed : lam a / laborer residing at Palmerston. I hare known the deceased for about two years. He was not a heavy ( drinker, ,but a few , glasses would* him over. I have been living with deceased' lately. I last saw him alive at our hut on Monday night, the PIT * I, •-, TTu i.* ii ..*.).■. jpt.. a . TTi. slept very soundly during the night. In the morning whea, I woke up j found him dead, and.l went' to the police and reported it.-, Deceased was sober on * Monday. He l\ad some beef, onions, and bread on Monday evening. I heard no unusual' noise during the, night. To the^best of my knowledge he was m bed on Sunday and Monday,- He had complained for some time past of cramp m his thumb. I'w,ent to bed about 8 o'clock on Monday night, and deceased was then snoring ,very,loud. I woke at 6 o'clock next morning,, and found him dead. His body was then; lukewarm. I had been living with him about a week. JBLe seemed very,low-spirited on account of getting no work, ; By the Police;*, I, did "not see deceased take any of the medicine. , I did not fetch, the' medicine rfor him; Williams'brought it. r !' I) Frederick S. , ;Akers, being sworn, deposed:/ Iam r a; doctor of medicine," residing at Palmerston. I attended the deceased on Saturday, the 7th inst. I was sent for. I found deceased lying m ai whare. ' He was suffering from,' nervous debility. ' He-told me f that he had been drinking very heavily lately ; f and complained of want o£ sleep. He said he,had/ not slept /for four days. I prescribed for him. VThe .prescription.' produced is mine. - • • > - By ■ the Jury a t The medicine was given to soothe the man. He told me he had not eateni anything' for some time. The medicine would 'suit' him. He did not complain off his_thhmb. ' I told him to send /to 'the hotel ior spme ' soup, as anyone wjould give*hin£fodd. Richard Ledry,, being sworn,,deposed : I am a chemist residing at" Palmerston.! I recognise'the, prescription produced. I made it; up for a man named Reid. The bottle produced is the one I made .up, and is m accordance* with the prescription. I wrote the directions m accordance with the prescription, and also gave them' verbally to the messenger. < t ' By the Police : I recognize the taste of the medicine" ' It was /macle" up to the best of my knowledge on Saturday. Sidney Skerman, being sworn, deposed : 'I am a legally qualified Medical practitioner residing at Palmerston. I made a post mortem examination of the body now 1 before the Court. I found the body to be "very well nourished. 'There were no external^marks tipon it sufficient to cause death. On opening the body I found the heart was^rather large, and slightly diseased, 'but not sufficiently so to cause death. The lungs were natural. The stomach -was engorged with blood< and r the mucous membrane inflamed. The stomach was empty. The intestines^ were engorged and empty. The liver was slightly enjgorged. Jrhe kidneys, and spleen were natural. •On opening the 1 skull 3 ! found the brain' natural. I consider tfiat deceased died from exhaustion, owing to the want' of proper nourishment. ' By the Jury : I, did not detect any smell of spirits from the internal organs.

I certainly do not think it possible that ■ the man could have eaten/beef and onions on the 'evening preceding his j death. He must have been without %fopdipr abotii|tyfo days. If he had died drinking his brain would ihave shown signs of disease. / J ? By t^ie ;Pjoliijel: Ido aiot consider that , thie mejdioine, prescribed by Dr Akers |#puld have killed; the man, even though mis stoibaftlt wire empty. | ; Jonn Gillespie, being sworn* deposed : district constable stationed at Palmerston. It was reported to me on the lOttiof July that a maniwas lyingdead m a hut close to the Palmerston Hotel. . rlfproceeded-^^^ totr «ffli found a dead* body^ thefeV Beceased had one*, handjon_ his breast, and J^e other hand was extende^towardsffie medicine. ' I X searched deceased^ pockets but found i no money br' property. I theiLprocured ] assistance an d^removed" the /.body to the '■■'■ Palmerston Hotel. I did not know the man p^eyiously. Deceased. was partly undressed ;'his trousers were off, but his shirt and vest were on. I saw no trace jof fopdfinthe; h\it,-ii > dr ; anytli^uor. > . The Coroner hayingisummed up, the^ Jury retired, and after' about an hour's deliberation brought iru their verdict as VfolloTPs: T --''That: -the .smdriWiUiam Reid, onthelejyening J& sa& otE or the morning ; of ;tKe lOt^Vj^ly, through ex--Ihaustipn frdm the, want of nourishment,