A SORDID CASE.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXVII, Issue 5481, 9 January 1905, Page 3

A SORDID CASE.

INQUEST AT NEWTOWN. An inquest was held on Saturday by Air A. Simpson, Acting-Coroner, concerning the circumstances of the death of Joseph Rogers Clark, at his home, 208, Adelaide road, on Friday night. Augusta Clark, wife of deceased, in her evidence, said she did not know tho ago of deceased. Her husband returned to his home at four o’clock on Friday afternoon a iittlo unsteady with tho influence of drink. Ho locked tho doors, and threatened to strike with a heavy piece of lead anyone who came neax him. His wife escaped from the house by a window, and a few minutes later saw her husband go round the back of the house carrying a rope. _ She thereupon returned, and left again, carrying her baby. Fifteen minutes later she returned again, and found the bedroomdoor shut, with a piece of rope projecting from the top into the kitchen. Although she was unable to open the bedroom door, she had no suspicion that there was anything wrong. It was not tho first time her husband had locked himself in. and threatened to take his life. She had got used to it, and took no notice. Often,she had hidden the rope with which, he had eventually hanged himself. At bed-time on Friday night, afraid to go into the room by herself, she sent for the police. In reply to a juryman, she said that when she saw the piece of rope over the door she took it merely as one of the often-re-peated attempts by her husband to frighten her. She had been married to him for seven years, and he had never been properly sober all that time* He was a plumber and gasfitter, but had not boon working for some time. The family had been ordered to leave the house on Thursday night, or the bailiffs would be put in to take possession. For a year and nine months she had received no money from her husband — sometimes he brought a piece of meat home on a Saturday night, sometimes he got a hit of firing. Dr Alexander deposed that he was called in about half-past nine on Fridaynight to see deceased’s body. It was then growing cold, and the man had been dead for about two hours. Ethel Sigglekow, in her evidence, said deceased was her steprather, and was about fifty-six or fifty-eight years of age. He had been threatening many times to kill himself, and on Fridaynight, when one end of the rope was hanging from the bedroom-door, she took no notice of it. Constable Abbott, officer in charge of Wellington South police station, stated that at ‘ nine o’clock on Friday night, ho was called to the house of deceased. On going to the front bedroom, he found the door closed, but not locked. With a slight push tho door opened, and deceased fell from behind it. All attempts to revive life by artificial respiration failed. A verdict of “wilful suicide” was returned.