THE MAORI HILL TRAGEDY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14439, 4 February 1909, Page 2

THE MAORI HILL TRAGEDY

INQUEST OPENED AND ADJOURNED. An inquest on Ihe boily of frimnet Lewis Brookes, who, after n perion? quarrel with his wife, shut himself through the head at Maori liill on .Monday night, was held in tiio I<kxll Council Chambers vest onlay. Mr JI. Y. Widdow son, S.M., was the coroner, and Mr (». L. Jones was .chosen foreman of i.ho jury. Sub-inspector Norwood represented the police. '1 lie first witness railed was

klizaboth Cameron, mother-in-law of the dei.v.-v.'d. who said her daughter had been intuited to ii;,> deceased for (d)out seven, years. They had lived tegeiher for about two years nfi>;r marriage, but during tile remaining five years had lived separately. Deceased, who was a fireman on the Union Company's Mahono. misled bis passago :L ', Wellington about- .January IS. and ii'OMirhed to Diinetlin, Mis !srwk?s was at jtlnit tune in Auckland, wb"re the bad been living, aml last Sulnrday she earns down 'U Dinvdiii, arriving by lb" fusi express from Chri<iehni'ch. Deceased v.a>- d'.wn (it the station and. aloisur with his wife, wilniifs, and others, went io Iter home in Maori Iliii. The previous occasion on wiiicb th r :.y had met each other \va- a few woek« before Christmas, when there was no (pi.irrciiing between them. On Saturdays last defeased was a. little ihe worse of drink. No quarrelling- ensued on ihe Saturday night, and , the two spoke a. few words to cash other in the Itilchen. If was the same on Sunday. On Monday deceased went, down town about 12 o'clock, and returned about. 7.30 p.m. It was noticeable thai lie kid been drinking. Mn? Brookes was in the bouse when be arrived. Aftor having some tea. be went. into the scullery, ami Ihen iiis wife earnn out of her room ami went out towards, the back door. Angry words between the t.wo followed. Ifrs Jirortkes ivtis asking dccoasetl for a rin,g of hers, and deceased, using an aitli, refused to give it. Mrs Brookes insisted on having it, and witness went out to try to make peace between them. Deceased said to his wife, " 1 will divorce you!" and liicii slated that lie bad been to see a solicitor that day. Her daughter ra-j-lied that he could divorce her, as sho never intended to live with iiir.t again, lie then threatened to strike he : - on ihe. fa.ee, and she retaliated with a sneering remark, upon which lie struck Iter, and pushed her up against the scullery touch. Deceased I hen struck her sever,i! limes on Ihe head, a.nd sh-o iikul-3 efforts to protect her face. Witness. who was standing at the door of Ihe

iouliory, went into the kitchen and asked her husband it. go outside and separate I hem. lie refused, .saying he would not ir.lerfcro Ix'twoon man and wife. Witness ihen went bark to the scullery, and had just, readied the <ioor when she heard a revolver .shot. .She saw thai <lec«i?«d was holding Ins wife', head with one hanu. ami the other was up against the side of her face. Wilneiii fell forward with the .shock she received whc. the revolver we-nt olf, and then heard two i;ore shots lired. Witness was him; on the floor, and, turning round, she saw that deceased had a revolver in his hand, and had it up to his head Another shot was !!red and deceased fell, and then she saw'lior oilier son-in-law (George Thorn) in the scullery. IK daughter had rushed out after the lirst. shot was lired, and she saw that rbora was hloed on her face. Witness had no idea that deceased was earning ;< revolver but her daiighleivinfovmod her on Sunday niglil th"t he had one hi his pos.ses.-ion. IV Hastings ■■•aid he was telephoned for mi Monday evening heiween 8 and 9 o'clock, and in r<*ponw went i„ Mrs Cameron's house. Deceased was lying on his face in Iho seulKy. and ihere'w;<« a bullet wound on the right, side of the head, froiy which blood had been flowing. The body was warm, but life was extinct. There was a bruise on the bridge of Iho nose. and two brumes near the right eye, probably caused bv the fait. A pest mortem examination maue that morning confirmed the view that, death was duo to a bullet wound. Witness did not ihink that iho fractures present in tho bead could have all boo.n caused by llie bullet, but the fall would account, for them. The lm!!«r itself would cause instantaneous death. The examination made indicated that the deceased was probably given to drink.

(ioorgo Thorn, molonnan on the Noslyn electric tramways, said he lived close 'to Mrs Cameron's house, lie was a brother-in-law of deceased, whom It" knew fairly well. Witness would not say that, deceased was addicted io drink. On .Saturday last williofs saw deceased, but. nothing was then said about his wife. accompanied witness to the 11-aibvay Station, consxlcnng it likely that his wife would pel urn by ihe train. Witness next saw deceased about 6 o'clock on Monday night, when Ik had lea with him. lie did not notice any liquor about di-:-ea«<Hl. ,who apwared to be in lhe best of spirits. He left witness about T o'clock. Witness went across to dccea'«'t's place laler in the evening, and on reaching ihe gale heard deceased and Ills wife talking in high tones in the scullery, lie waited outride mar i lie !iaio. think in;,' that ihe quarrel would blow over: but matters became worse, and he went up to the gate, where tliev conlil see him, o.xpcetius; that bis pre.sciite might cfiii;o tliem lo roaso quarrelling. Mrs linxkes reminded her huslnud that witness was at the gale and could hear them, but deceased becamo more angry, and. raising his voice, said: "I have new struck you before, but [ am going to do it.'now." lie then appeaml to strike his wife, and the next iliin.g witness heard was a. revolver shot and llicn screams. He immediately rushed inside, and then ancihoi shol was lired. deceased on this occasion pressing the revolver against his wife's cheek anil . -h:-r]inr::im, r ii. Deceased wheeled round as soon as witness had rnslu'd iii. Witness then grappled with him, gripping him under the arms hu: failing lo reach the arm which held the revolver. As lie caught him a third shot wen: off. and tlie liuHei. went over witness's shoulder ami appeared to go out of the. door. In Ihe struggle dewascd managed to get the hand holding the revolver up lo his head, and just as witness threw him over a fourth shot rang out. Deceased fell heavily to the floor, and witness found that lie was dead. In liie meantime deceased's nife had got up on her feet and rushed out iulo Ihe street. Wilnes then rang up for a doelor and for the police, and subsequently saw to the women. He then noticed the mark of a bullet and powder on -Mrs lircokes'ii lace.

In reply to Mr Uiililowson, witness wii<l ho <Iml not thitik that <k'cca.-;ecl ha<l Miol liini-sd! iucidenUilly <iunni; wunt'M'a Mrugglc willi l>ini. He appoam.l lo i.o quito (lok'riiiiU'j<.( io t>liool I'ini.scifj am! was ovicicniiy under Hie that his v.iie w;i:i iloail. li- nutoi imvc seen tlnu \io iuul \voun<i«:<l hot*.

(icoi'Hv llrc.'kc-. a mother ot the deceased. | was present, and asked witness.if lie tliougnt | that tlcicm-sihl had wordy iiicd the revolm j to frighten his wife. Witness replied thai, being outside, liv ( . fn ,ld »ot say anything about the litst shot; but the second .snot did not indicait tlmi the living was done lo Irighten iikwoman. inu next witness was David Cameron, hii.-oand of Mrs Cameron, the mot her ot deceased's wife. Xomitlwamling that tins uiine.-s was ill the kitchen, Irom which a s dcor leads into the .scullery, during the | wiiolq progi e-.s of tho <|iiurrcl and while tin ; shooting was going on, lie made no cli'eri ■ to interfere or a-j.sis!, but sat calmly there on the sola, llis rwsons fw ao doing were that lie was [lightened—that anybody would be.—and it was only when the whole business bail subsided that he ventured out ; into the scullery. In the course of his cvi- ! denes he said he was working in tho front ■ garden when deceased came home. lie was not perfectly sobc. Witness went inside | a few minutes later, and sat down in the i kitchen. Dei-.eased aw! Jii s wife were then j in the scullery, and were ipKirrclling. Wit- ! nesi's wife asked hint to go out and separate ; them, but he tlcciincd lo interfere between ■ husband and uiio. Witness then heard i three revolver slots lived in quick succession. lie remained ule.-ic lie was, as he was frightened, and had more sense than lo run into the mouth of that!'' Wilnes.s ■vent out into the scullery wlioti the shootii?.g was over and (he noise had subsided. He hud heard shots lircd and soreumin;; and st'.ugg'mit, b'.it liiicughout he remained whore he was. Mrs Cameron can;' into him when everything had subsided, and euid: "Sam has fallen; he is oni; scheming." It was then that he wont out. Subiinspeetor Norwood at this st;-;,'.

sialyl that Mrs Brootas was i.n a priv.tlhcspilal. It h'.ul >;ow b.''cn found tli-jt : bullet ha J penetrated her flash on'the cheek, and had conic out again just und; • the eye. Her condition was such tint ione was allowed to ec;- her. sml Dr Fiic-hcr. who was attending her, said she would ni: Do available for the inquest for four diner a week. lie therefore suggiralcd ai adjournment. There was also the evidcnc. of Dr Fitchutt and Constable West io !:- taken. The inquiry s;as accordingly adjourne.i uutil Monday next, Bth inst., in the Magistrate's Court, at 2.3 C p.m.