INQUEST.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume VI, Issue 263, 23 October 1916, Page 7

INQUEST.

At the Courthouse, Hastings, on Saturday afternoon, before Mr. S. E. McCarthy, S.M., coroner, an inquest was held on the body of Thomas Robertson, aged forty two, who met his death under peculiar circumstances at Graham and Gobbles’ stables on Friday night. I William Gtorge Wall, sheepfarmer, >Sherenden, identified the body. Deceased had been in his employ, on and off for the past eight years, and was a single man, aged forty two years. Had always known deceased to be a sober and trustworthy man. He had two brothers in Auckland, one a grain mer-. chant and the other a chemist. Bernard Story, medical practitioner, deposed that he examined deceased’s injuries at Graham and Gebbie’s stables about 8.30 on Friday evening. Deceased was lying prone on the ground at the back of the stables. A tournequet had been, applied to the upper part of deceased’s thigh. Deceased had lost a lot- of blood. There was a deep' inside wound on the inner part, of; the thigh which had cut deeply into the muscles and had evidently severed an artery. The tournaquet was I released and witness bandaged the wound, after which he ordered de-; ceased’s removal to a private hospital. He attributed the cause of death to loss of blood from the wound, which might have been inflicted by falling on the broken bottle produced. Witness did not smell alcohol on deceased. Walter Vesty, groom, Tikokino, deposed that he was at Graham and Gebbie’s stables on Friday night. Saw deceased sitting on the doorstep of, the feedroom. He seemed fairly well. Deceased had a couple of bottles of beer. One was in his hand and the other in his pocket. After witness had finished feeding his horses, deceased handed witness one of the bottles of beer and asked him to pull the which he did. Witness did not see deceased after that.

William Gebbie, livery stable proprietor, deposed to having known deceased for sixteen .or seventeen vears, and had been in the habit of frequenting the stables. He called at the stables between six and seven o’clock on Friday evening. His condition appeared all right, but he apparently had had a drink. He was a chap who Could not stand drink. A couple of drinks knocked him over. Deceased left and returned later and went to the rear of the premises. Witness saw him later sitting on the step of the feed Toom. Whilst deceased was sitting on the doorstep he was singing and during the singing witness heard .a crash, something like the breaking of a bottle. A man called who was passing through the stable saw deceased and seeing blood called for witness. Witness saw deceased sitting on the step with a quantity of blood between his legs. Witness telephoned for the ponce who arrived in two or three minutes.. Constable Henry applied a tournequet to his thigh. The broken bottle was between deceased’s legs. From the position of the bottle witness thought deceased must- have thrown his leg across the bottle, the edges of which were very sharp. Constable Connor also gave evidence.

The Coroner returned a verdict that deceased died from hemmorage through loss of blood from a wound received by accidentally falling on a broken bottle whilst in a state of intoxication.