BODY IN RIVER

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 55, Issue 233, 16 July 1935, Page 3

BODY IN RIVER

DEATH OF HALF-CASTE WOMAN. ' FURTHER EVIDENCE AT INQUEST (Per Press Association.) AUCKLAND 1 , July 15. The inquest was resumed to-day by Mi< W. It. McKean, S.M., sitting as Coroner, concerning the death of Mary Elisabeth Raymond, a young halfcaste Maori, whose body was found in the Tamaki River on June 2. Margaret Jane Wilson said that Miss Raymond arrived at her house on April 26. First she said 1 she had come for a holiday, and then that she was in a certain condition, making some mention of an operation. On Tuesday evening, April 30, Miss Raymond came in ’with her friend, Peggy Robb, and said she was going to stay at a girl friend’s place for a couple of days, added witness. iShe went, and witness never saw her again. A day or two later a Mrs Hughes called and said she feared something serious had happened to Mary. Witness went to Mrs Hughes’ house and learned from wiiat Peggy Robb said that Miss Raymond had been making arrangements to go to “Dr. Hewer.” Witness described her part in the endeavours made to find Miss Raymond. She subsequently identified the body in the morgue. Miss Raymond had never said anything to her about suicide. Alice Maud Hughes said that she had known Miss Raymond for eight years. Miss Raymond, on the night of April. 30, came to her and said that she had made an appointment with a doctor in Queen Street for the next day. She also said that Dudley Bennett was repsonsible for her condition and was agreeable to marrying her, but that she did not like to have to get married. She did not wish her people Oil' his to know. Miss Raymond arranged to stay with witness for a fortnight. That night she told witness that she was going to spend £6 the next day on an operation. Witness was anxious when the girl did not return on May 1. On May 2 witness telegraphed to Bennett “Mary missing. Come at once. Serious.” On Bennett’s arrival he read to witness a letter from Miss Raymond who said she had an appointment with a doctor for Wednesday and that Peggy Robb was going with her. On June 4, after reading, that a body had been found, she went to the police station with a written statement. *

Deteetive-Sergt. Walsh: Where was that written? Witness: At Mr Hall Skelton’s office. Was there any reference to Hewer? —No.

Questions by Coroner. In reply to the Coroner, witness said that Mr Skelton wrote the statement and she copied it. Mr Skelton wrote it because he wanted Hewei s name kept out. In reply to counsel for Hewer, witness said that Miss Raymond was distressed, and witness thought she might do away with herself. Frederick James Hughes, brother-in-law of Miss Raymond, said she stayed at his house on April 30. She left in the morning, returned in a taxi in the afternoon, and left' again, saying that she would be back a 5 o’clock. She did nonreturn. Witness twice visited Hewer in an endeavour to find the girl. . Evidence of the search was given also by Albert Edwin Burton, another brother-in-law. He said that he heard through the girl, Peggy Robb, that Miss Raymond was going to the place of a man named Hewer. v , * Eileen Anaru, known as Peggy Dobb, said she lived at a Pitt Street hotel. She knew Mary Raymond well, anU had known her for about a year, bn® visited a Queen Street shop on April 30 and there met Mary Raymond, who was by herself.. That was the fust time she had seen her since before Christmas. She did not know how much money Mary Raymond had; but the latter wanted to borrow £d lus from her. She said that she had been living in Wellington with Dudley Bennett and his people, and had come to Auckland for a certain operation. Witness told her she had heard of Dr. Hewer. Mr Walsh: What can you tell us about the phrase, “a watery! grave?” Witness: She did not say that to me. The expression “watery grave” I first heard from Mrs Wilson. That day Mary came in and said: “Oh, leggj, I don’t know what to do. I feel like doing myself in, as I have made such a mess of things.” At the hat- shop Mary said when she looked at the mirror: “This is the last time 1 will see myself again.” The witness said she did not know if Mary Raymond had gone to Hewer’s rooms after they parted, Mjjry Raymond was a complete blank to her after that afternoon. Visit to Detective Office. The witness said that when she went to the detective office she took her statement with her. It was written in Mr Skelton’s office. It was written on the same day as the other statements. There was no reference to Hewer. Skelton had asked her time and again if she took Mary Raymond to Hewer, and witness had told him she did not. The statement was partly dictated by Skelton. To Mr R. A. Singer, who watched the proceedings on behalf of George Frederick Hewer, and David Fulton Thompson, the witness said she had never met Dr. Hewer until the night after Mary Raymond’s disappearance. Miss Raymond left her at 2.10 p.m. The witness did not wait there until 3.30 p.m., but went into a shop and looked at some dress materials until three o’clock. At 3.30 she became concerned about the absence of her friend. There had been a previous disturbing occurrence that day. Mary Raymond had gone to have a drink of water and was scooping the water with her bands and letting it run over her face and down her frock. When the witness spoke to her about it, she replied: “I do not care what happens to me.” Dr. Walter Gilmour, pathologist at the Auckland Hospital, said he had

made a post-mortem examination of the body of Mary Raymond. Decomposition was advanced on June 3, and death had occurred about one month before. All the pelvic organs were missing. “No cause of death was found,” said Dr. Gilmour. “There was no evidence of death from violence, and there was no evidence of disease in the organs present, such as would be likely to cause death. With decomposition so far advanced, it was impossible to exclude death from drowning.” Mi- Walsh: Could you draw any conclusion from the fact that there was no foreign matter in the windpipe ? Witness: If death had been due to drowning, one might have found some foreign substance in the windpipe. The Coroner: If Mary Raymond had undergone an illegal operation oil May 1, what might have followed? Witness: There might have been sudden death from shock or liaemhorrage, or there might have been fatal blood poisoning. I think that if there had been blood poisoning I should have found some evidence pointing to it. Obstructive Tactics Alleged. Mr Walsh said the delay in completing the matter was due to obstructive tactics encountered by the police in their inquiries. “It is to bo regretted', sir, that these persons were not sent to the police in the first instance. So far as the majority of the witnesses were concerned, and that includes the lialf-casto girl Anaru, they were not placing themselves iu peril in making a full discovery to the police as to this unfortunate girl.” “I don’t know if Mr Walsh feels that there is any necessity for an answer from me,” Mr Singer said. “As far as I am concerned, it cannot be suggested that there was anything of hindrance.” Mr Singer added that from the time the witness Anaru came into his ken everything was done to enable her to give a statement under humane conditions.

The coroner said he had thought of asking for some further evidence —he did not know whether he should insist on it—about the destruction of the letters which had been handed to Mr Hall Skelton. Mr Walsh asked what witnesses the coroner might wish to call. The coroner: It is because the witv ness is a solicitor that I am reluctant to call him. He is acting now for Bennett. I shall give the matter some further consideration. The inquest was then adjourned until to-morrow.