CHARGE OF ADMINISTERING CROTON OIL.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3861, 1 December 1883, Page 4

CHARGE OF ADMINISTERING CROTON OIL.

The Marlborough Times contains a full rop-irt of tho charge against Messrs M. F,ar, Bijruold, mid M'Nab, and Dr M'Donoii"-ii, for maliciously administering croton oU to Mr C. F. Horton, builder ot Tlaveloek. Tho case was briefly alluded to in our telegrams recently. Mr Rogers appeared for Messrs Fear and Bignold, and Mr M'Nab, who in a solicitor, conducted his own case. . Tho complainant, in the course of his evidence, deposed:-! recollect Sunday, 2nd September last. Mr Fear is the licensee of tho Commercial Hotel. I hail occasion to go into tho hotel about half-past 8 on tho evening in question, I saw all the accused, 'besides two men. from the schooner May, Mrs Fear, tho barmaid, and Mr Fear s little boy. Thcro were one or two others who came in and wont out. After I had been in tho room for n few minutes I'ear proposed that wo should have some _ egg flip " as it was his son—Bonson s— birthday Fear repeated the proposal three times Mr M'Nab then said, " Then, why tl lc don't you shout, Fear." Fear then said, " Let some of you beggars hud tho beor and I'll find the other stuff. ' Bignold was standing in the doorway, and heard tho conversation. Ho said, "Well, give me a ' bob ' each, you fellows, and I'll "O and muke it." I gave Bignokl a shilling. MrM'Glashan and M'Nab also gave him a shilling. Bignold put the money on tho -table in' front of Fear. Fear put tho money in his pocket. Bignold then said, " I'll gu and make it," and left tho room. He came back in about 20 minutes. He brought in two jugs on a tray, lie supplied Fear, M'Nab, M'Glashau, Mrs Fear, and tin., barmaid out of one of the jugs, lie then supplied two men from on board tho May, myself, and Boyd out of the jug. Boyd said, after returning fivru outside, "That viiiX ilip has made me as sick as a horse.""'Egg flip is m:ide of beer, eggs, and ginycr. I "was served with three glasses by Bignold from the second jug. About _ five minutes after 1 had drank tho egg flip I felt an unpleasant sensation in my throat and a faiutness. I then went home. Almost as soon as I got home I felt very ill with griping in niv stomach. This would be ten minutes or a "quarter of an hour after I hud taken the vug flip. I then had violent purging, which continued till live o'clock in the morning. I wits purged continuously all night, and suffered a great deal of pain. I ppunt tho whole night'in the office. About half-past f> o'clock I vomited, and then felt butter. I felt very weak. I eamo into liavclock that day to complain to tho police, as 1 .suspected 1 hud been drugged. I saw Fear standing in front of hu house. Fear was laughing at me as I came up the road. I said, " I'Viir, by heavens I'll prosecute you for this." Ho said, " What do you mean ?" And I replied, " You know what I mean well enough. 'You drugged mo last night." I was then taken bad and I had to return home aicain. I was confined to my house uud could not work for four days. 1 did not call the doctor in to see mo. Thcro is only one doctor here--Dr. M'Doinjugh. He is tho doctor who is charged with the commission of this offence. I know M'Nab had boon at tho doctor's house on the previous Sunday, and hiid stolen tho croton oil from hi-; house I did not ask the doctor to attend me. I met the doctor on Monday evening, uud said to him, " It's no use, doctor ; you gave the oil to M'Niib." He said, " No." Subsequently the doctor told me that lie had given M'Nab 30 drops of eroton oil and if Feat , had given me what he told him it would have done mo good. It would be about a fortnight afterwards that, I had the conversation with the doctor. The doctor expressed regret that he had anything to do with it. M'Nab spoke to me in reference to the matter in a room full of people, Somebody in tho room referred to it. M'Nab said, "Well, I'm d sorry, old fellow, you got it, and I. apulogi.se." Fear has also spoken to me on the subject. He asked me on two occasions to let the matter drop, and take no proceedings. Mr Rogers, iti defence, snicl it seemed to him that the case was an extraordinary one. It was altogether ludicrous to suppose that llorton,' living within i) 0 yards of a doctor, could have been so fearfully bad and not call upon the doctor to relieve him. It also seemed strange that tho others who had had a similar dose were not subpumaed. on the trial to prove- the injurious oll'ects of the egg flip. He intended to call two witnesses who had partaken of the croton oil, and they had not felt any injurious effects from it.

The defendant M'Nab addressed tho Court at some length, and contended that any man who would take four glasses oil a mixture of beer, ginger, sugar, and gin, and hot al; that, deserved to suffer. Horton was a "guzzler." The witness Hill had a reputation that was not a very enviable one. There could be no doubt that there was a conspiracy between Hill and Kiernan. After some evidence had been heard for the defence, iho Bench committed the defendants for trial. Bail was allowed—one surety of £50 each, and each of the accused £50.