SUICIDE BY POISON.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXII, Issue 7480, 9 November 1885, Page 5

SUICIDE BY POISON.

« A case of alleged poisoning occurred on Friday night, of a very distressing character. The following are the circumstances of the case so far as we can gather them :About five weeks ago Mrs. Selina Gilmour, aged 25, wife of Robert Gilmour, of Stanley- i street, confined, being carefully attended in her confinement by Dr. Wine, and nursed by Mrs. Lowe, of Union-street, an experienced nurse. It appears about a fortnight after her confinement Mrs. Gilmour suffered from sore nipples, and her baby had to be weaned. Subsequently her breasts gathered and broke, and she suffered considerably. The nurse was kept on a month, and Mrs. ( Gilmour received every attention, Dr. Wine also attending. Mrs. Lowe left on Saturday ■ week, during the latter part of her i stay her patient being rather reti- ' cent and taciturn. On Friday night 1 about half-past seven o'clock, Mr. Gilmour • left his home to go to Parnell on business, leaving his wife in company with her mother ' and sister in the house. Shortly afterwards 1 deceased'* mother asked her (as she had been * up and down) if she would like to get up, < and ou her replying in the affirmative, > helped her into an easy chair by the bed, i and wrapped some blankets round her. 1 Deceased's mother went out of the room for <■ a few minutes, leaving the deceased's sister « with her nursing the baby by the fire. The t sister saw deceased rise quickly from the s chair in her nightdress, go into the kitchen 1 and take a small bottle from about the ( clock, and put it to her lips. The action was g so sudden, and deceased's look so strange, t that the sister called out to her mother, a On the latter coming into the room, she a asked deceased if she had taken any- s thing. She said " Yes, spirits of salts." t The mother called in a neighbour, and f Dr. Cobbett was sent for, as the nearest 1' doctor, who immediately prescribed the usual 1 remedies, and left an hour afterwards, as she I showed no symptoms of being dangerously a ill. Mrs. Lowe, the nurse, however, was r sent for, and remained throughout the night. Mrs. Gilmour died shortly after four o'clock a in the morning, not having been seen by any r; medical man in the interval. A post mortem t' examination of the remains has been made t; by Drs. Cobbett and Wine. An inquest ti will be held to-day at the Swan Hotel, ti Mechanics' Bay, by Dr. Philson, Coroner. li ■ 1