AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 144, 20 June 1887, Page 2

AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

(Per R.M.S. Mariposa.)

A STKANCB CASE.

The Castlereagb-street Tragedy

We have already given somo particulars o a case which has caused a considerable sensation in Sydney. Eliza Boraboom was found dead in bed with a bullet wound in her head. She had lived unhappily with her husband, and the latter, who fe proprietor of the Great Auatralian Coffee Palace, Castlereagh-street, Sydney, stated that hia wife had been so much influenced by jealousy that she lived apart from him some time ago. She, however, returned, but stated her intention of leaving him again, and packed up her clothing and effects for that purpoae. With the alleged intention of frightening her out of this notion, be went to the shop of Edward L. Brown, 40, Park-street purchased a British bull-dog" revolver and box of cartridges, and took ther^ home, placing them in a drawer in hia bedroom, in the preaence of his wife. .He then told her that if she did nob abandon the idea of leaving him, he would shoot himself, but positively states he had not the slightest intention of doing so, Put only desired to frighten her infco submission About a. quarter to 6 next morning; -he lets his bedroom for the purpose of calling some of the servants (to commence their daily work), and when he returned, found nis wife aittting up in bed wMi the revolver m her hand. She said, » You need no(3 sboott yourself," and pointing the revolver toner head, fired. The bullet entered her right temple, and Todged in the head." . Borsboom was placed under arrest pendingthe result ot the inquest. Ad the coroner's inquiry, William Moaford Hamlet, Government Analyst, deposed that on the 9th met. he received from Senior-Constable Diec a portion of a hand of a human being. The outer surface was smeared with a brownisnblack substance, which- had not penetrated ihe skin, noi was the skin scorched, aubmitting the smear to chemical analysis, he found that it consisted of imperfectlyburned gunpowder and fat or grease. Witness also received a large, dirty dressinggown mado of towelling material, wnicb he examined. On the leftside, at the spoo where the left arm would lie, and about at such a distance a3 the length of the arms, there was a bullet hole well defined and circular, and slightly Jessj than ttJlr-an-inch in diameter. Around the hole the material was much scorched and blackened. Chemical analysis showed the presence of unburned gunpowder in the blackening. On the other side of the dressing gown there was no scorching or blackening, but simply a clean cut hole. Witness also received a full-sized bed sheet which had stains, smears or markings upon it, of which some were blood stains and a great many black stains. One smear was themark where the revolver had been wiped. In order to make sure witness asked the police for the: revolver, and he photographed both the revolver and the sheet side by side. He then found that the actual barrel of the revolver corresponded exactly with the wiping smear. A 3tain juat above this corresponded in character and appearance to that on the handExamining the revolver,hefoundthe inscription ' Britishßulldog' engraved thereon, and on the letters "o" and " d " were traces of mammalian blood. On the right side of the stock at the base there was a spot of candle grease, and in several portions of the outside of the revolver some white substance was discovered. On analysis this proved to be whitening or chalk ; and, indeed, there seemed strong evidence of the revolver having been carefully cleaned. By the Coroner: The smear on the sheet left by th<t revolver appeared to have been caused by the rubbing of the revolver at lease three times after it had been fired.

By the foreman of the juryr The inference from the hole in the dressing-gown was that the dressing-gown covered the face of the woman when the revolver waa fired. Thia was his opinion; and he thought the revolver muat have been discharged within an inch of the skin. The effect of the charge would be likely to blacken and scorch the face as described by the medical evidence, even though it had been fired through the dressing-gown. If the revolver had been fired cloße to an object there would sure to be discolouration and blackening. If witness were told that the revolver in the clean condition- in which it came into liia possession had shortly before been discharged he would not have believed it.

By Mr Roberts : The powder on the hand waa imperfectly-burned gunpowder, but that did not necessarily indicate that the revolver had or had not been uaed by the deceased. The revolver stain on the sheet could hardly have been caused by any other means than the wiping of the revolver on it, though of course it might have been painted by an artist. It could not have been caused by the revolver falling on the sheet. Inspector Anderson stated that on asking Henry Boraboom, the deceased's husband, to tell what he knew of the affair, he said, " I got up at 5 o'clock to call some of the men to do work in the kitchen, and on returning my wife waa awake, and I said, ' Let's make it up and forget these quarrels.' She said, « No, I don't want to have anything to say to you, 1 and turned round and went to sleep. I lay awake in bed till a quarter to 6 o'clock, and then got up and went to the closet, and while there 1 heard someone call a lodger who works on the railway, but I did not see any one. 1 returned to my bedroom, and as I entered the room my wife raised her head and said, ' You don't want to shoot yourself now. 1 She had a revolver in her right hand, and I ran round the bed to take it from her, bub it went off before I reached her." Witness asked where he was when the shot waa fired. He pointed to a spot about 2ft 6in inside the door, and replied, "I was there. The candle dropped'out of. my hand and the matches were spilled on the floor." Witness found some matches scattered on the floor where Bovsboom indicated, and asked if the candle

went oub, Borsboom answered in the affirmative, and remarked fchah he was nob left in the dark.as one ga3 }eb wa3 alight. He admitted that he had bought a revolver and that his wife fcaitfw thab he had done so. He said it was in the drawer when he left the room at a, quarter to six o'clock, bub when he rebu ined as deceased prepared bo shoot herself „ the drawer was open about nina inches; Referring bo the dressing-gown, Borsboor a took ib up and stabed ib wa3 on fire and he put ib oub wibh his hand. Wftness, draw Ing his attention to the composed position of deceased, pointed out that if she had gob o ab of bed to remove the revolver from bhedra iver, bhe bed-clobhea would have been disar ranged, and asked him how he accounted for this. Boraboom made no reply. Wibnc jss asked him if he tucked bhe bedclothes i ander his wife's feet, oc if anyone else could have done 90. He said her sister mighb 'have done ib ; but on witness'asking-decease id's sister she said she had not. Borsboom leaned slighbly forward and addressing I ler said, "You don't remember." Witness. again asked bhe question, but. she shook her. head and said 3he never bouched the bedclothes. Borsboom coufdT nob account; for the stains on bhe sheet. Wituesß arrested him on bhe evening of bhe 9th ins-fi., at his residence in Caatlereagn-streeb, on suspicion of having murdered his wife. After a pause of about half a minute, on being told the charge, Borsboom said* "Me shoot 1" Witness replied "Yes," baft Borsboom made no further remark. On the way to the station he said "Therm that's dead's best off." Charles Hemry K«rshaw, a cook, living ab bhe Great Australian Coffee Palace, deposed thats only bavinsr gone there on Monday, Borsboom an# his wife were comparative strangera to ftim. On Tuesday night he slept in a room on the same floor and about six yards from *he one occupied by them. Aboub a quarter to 6 o'clock trie next morning", while lying" awake, he heard the noise of the discharge- >of a firearm very near by. Previous to this he had heard some one walking about li Jke a person with heavy boots on. About two. minutes after he heard the report, he hear d a door being unlocked very near to his own, bub he could nob say what room it* was. The door than seemed to be opened and the same moment) the sound of groans—" Qfe I oh I oh!" came to witness's ear. Immediately after Borsboom, from whom witness had imagined the groans came, knocked at witness's door and called out, " For God's sdke come out, my wife has shot herself." Hearing this, witnes3 hurriedly jumped out of bed, put Jon his trousers, and went with Borsiboom to hia bedroom. Some other man came inbo the room shortly afterwards. Boraboom seemed greatly excited, and, approaching bhe bedside, said, " What for did you shoot yourself V The deceased appeared to be lying aa if asleep ; the bedclothes were composed, and seemed to come up to the breast. On the evening of the same day, the prisoner had some conversation with him with reference to the ahooting of deceased. Witness was telling Boraboom that it waa a very severe trial for him, and understood Borsboom to aay, " Was it possible for a man to shoot her from the door where he was standing?" Witness presumed that Boraboom alluded to bhe deceased, bub made no reply to the question beyond the remark—" He coald not say." By a juror : Witness did not hear any talking or any other noise in, the adjacent rooms.

William Amiot, a shoemaker, residing ab the Great Australian Coffee Palace, said he occupied, in conjunction with a man named Edwards, a room oir the second floor. Being restless, he waa awake at About a quarter to 6, when he heard a voice call out the time and several volcea reply " all right." He heard a man walk from the next room and go downstairs. Within two minutes afterwards he I heard a peculiar noise in the room below and called out " What's that'»" Hia own door ' having' been opened, he heard some one moaning : " Oh, my wife haa shot heraelf; run for a doctor; go for the police." He believed the voice was that of Borsboom. Other lodgers gave similar evidence. The inquiry waa adjourned.