WAS IT MURDER?

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 48, 25 February 1913, Page 9

WAS IT MURDER?

THE TREV ANION CASE. • • fFrom. Onr Special Correspondent.) LONDON. January IT. Some months ago—in September last, to be correct—certain .London papers reanonymous commnnications suggesting that they should institute inquiries regarding" a death notice which appeared in their columns in the following terms: — "TREVANTON.—On the Llth inst. ( September), at 10, Grand Avenue Mansions, Hove, Hugh Eric Trevanion; Aged ***i —Ceylon and Austmlian papers pleaee • Cnpy." It is not often that anonymous communications receive much attention in editorial sanctums, but in this case at least one London journal did take the 'trouble to "'inquire within." The result •was, so far as "copy" suitable for immediate publication was concerned, not in the least satisfactory, and for the time being at all events the "story" pieced together by the Press investigator employed was, in the language of Fleet Street, "turned down." In the High Court this week, however, Mr vanian's death was the subject of a remarkable application, and it is quite "on the cards" that this application may lead to such developments that what to-day is known as the "Hove poison mystery" may take a prominent place among the famous poisoning cases of the century.

Mr. Trevanion died quite snddenty, bat as it was known that he had been in the babit of taking veronal for insomnia, the jury decided, without a post-mortem examination tueing held, thai ho had died of an overdose of tbe dru£, taken by misadventure. LateT, however, certain communications were made to the Dirrctor of Public Prosecutions, with the result that an exhumation was ordered, and the Home Office expert made an analysis of the body. The exacrt na-turo of his report has not yet transpired, but during the High Court inquiry it wiis ■stated that the experts engaged to examine the disinterred remains of Mr. Trevanion were of opinion that within a few hours of death the. deceased must have taken ful'y 150 grains of veronal, and their evidence was sufficient for the judges -to sanction the holding of a second inquest. ■ ■

It appears tha-t on coming of age, six years ago, Mr. Trevanion inherited a fortune which has been estimated from £80,----000 to £100,000. He was connected with several families in the peerage, as well as with the late Sir Daniel Cooper, first baronet, of whom he was a grandson, being the eldest of three sons of Arundefl-Trevanian and Florence Eva Trevanion, fourth daughter of Sir Daniel. His father was a nephew of the 12th and 13th Earls of Strathmore.

On his mother's side 'Mr. Trevanion was. a nephew of the late Sir Daniel Cooper, second baronet, the well-known sportsman, and his uneh? is the third baronet, Kir William Charles Cooper, of WooUakra, New South Wales, who has a residence at Newbury, Berks.

Young Trevanion, it appears, lived his life somewhat apart from his family, and had suffered much from ill-health, which had caused him at times great eaflering, and be was a martyr to insomnia- Soon after hie coming of age, tortured by <his malady, and the conviction that it was incurable, ho determined to travel, and made what was practically a tour of the •world. 'Exactly what th 6 itinerary was .is.not of importance, but about the-:timp of the completion of the tour Mr. Trevanion made the acquaintance of Mr. Jioe, and a- deep friendship sprang up. On returning to England, Mr. Trevanion went to live at a flat in fe't. Stephen's Crescent. W. Whether Mr. Roe resided there also is not clear, but it is certain that :the two were in each other's company continually, and made frequent visits to Brighton, and ultimately Mr. Trevanion decided tb«it he would "take up permanent residence there.

For « thne Mr. Trevaaion and Mr. Koe —the two were seldom seen apart— appear to have lired at'several hotels at the .famous South Coast resort, bat a few weeks before his death Mr. Trevanion took over a suite of rooms at 10, Grand .Avenue, and devoted a iarge portion of his time to the preparation of the flat for the comfort of himself and his friend. Many alterations calculated to improve the comfort and convenience of the rooms were made at his suggestion and it is clear that he had no idea ol suicide at the time. But he was still taking veronal, and though warned of the danger he ran by friends And relatives end the doctors, he perested in taking alarmingly large doses. On the night of September 9 he and Mr. Roe dined at the flat together, but he ate very little, and after the meal went to his bedroom and did not return. Mr. Roe went to look for him and found him very ill. He is said to have explained that he had taken an overdose of veronal. That statement was conveyed t>y Air. Roe over the telephone to the doctor, who went along without delay, and in the meantime telephoned to >Ir. Ttoe instructions as to the administration of antidotes and other first aid. A curious feature of the case, and one that puzzled the doctor, was that, contrary to all previous experience in Mr. Tre,vanion's case, thp sufferer was in great pain. At a later stage one of hie Relatives who had been summoned, noticed that fact, and commented on it,bnt the medical men who were called in to examine Mr. Trevanion saw nothing to lead them to suspect that anything be- i sides veronal had been taken "into their patient's system, or contributed to the fatality. Mr. Trevanion lingered until September 11th, and on the following day the inquest was held, The fact that it was carried out without any postmortem being made, and that the inqniry was conducted in the eemi-priT*acv of the flat in "which the tragedy occurred, caused some comment in tbe neighbourhood, but the body was duly interred at Norwood cemetery, and rested there until the Home Office ordered its exhumation in the first week of October. Jt is stated that the bulk of Mr. Trevankm's fortune has been left to someone outside the family.

After a lengthy inquest the jury t»v tnroed a verdict that there was ao evidence t0..: show how the veronal from which TreVanion died was administered. The coroner, in his summing up, pointed out that in some respects Roe's influence on Trpvanion had for good. There was evidence that Roe had a powerful motive for desiring Trevanion's death, and his conduct was open to suspicion. The coroner failed to see evidence of foul pfay; on the contrary it was difficult to see how a large dose of veronal could be administered wichont deceased consenting. A very'likely axplahatkm was suicide The jury added a rider to its verdict to the effect that veronal should be put on the prohibited schedule.