A SINGULAR DEATH.

Otago Witness, Issue 2299, 24 March 1898, Page 30

A SINGULAR DEATH.

An inquesfc was held on Tuesday at the Allanton Hotel by Mr Coroner Carew and a jury of sis, or whom Mr Alexander Hastie was chosen foreman, "occeraing tbe death of Rose Dysaskie. The following evidence was given : — Frauk Smolensfci, labourer, residing at Mr Kirkland's. deposed thab on Saturday last he and Arthur Ede lefo Kirkland's together about 730 in tbe evening tor Allanton. They gob I through a gap iv a hedge in'o a paddock aboub j a quarter ot a mile from Ailanton Hotel, aud j witness heard screaming from someone as if | they were in fear or pain. Ede and witness j were jusl parting at this time, and witness , called to Edo to atop and list°n. They heard ] the scream again. They could see something in the distance, and when thfc7 wenb up they found a youDg woaaaa. Sbs was sitbing down with her head hanging towards tbe ground and her arm partly supporting her. Ede said '* Who are you ? " and she replied " Dyea^kie." She said " Get me some water." Ede ran to a pond, and got! p-jine v<aier in his hat. She held her head* up rt this lime. Witness pot her on her feet, and thinking she was her sister,, who lived at Mr Shand's, asked if fee should take her boßae, eiLe s&id " No." Witness then asked H he should lake her to Greytown, and she Ea : .sl "No; l-svsfc rae a'one and go sway." Aflrr Ede had given her water she asked they vwt, and Vie told her Lh name. She then said •'W'.o is the other fellow ?" and Ede rephea " Frank Smoienski." She lifted up her h-^.'t and said' "Are you?" Ede eaid " We v* 1 .Vare her alone; hurry on gefc our thing*, *.!'■:• go back and eea ho'-v ehe is going hou^e a^aic." That was said after they leffe her. Sho whs mosning and screaming out, «rd seemed to be ia pain. Witnp?s Lid no i^iea-wlnt v/ss Hie rcati.ar with hfr. Nne of hhre r c'.T^f-n app '8-ec! to bs ]oo c i 0 at that time, -nd sbe ti. f! a h^b en. They ' stoppfd wita- Lor aboub fi«e n^fr.utes. They met no oi c on th<' road to 4iianton. They came to (he hote), had a drink, and then want to their homes near the hotfl Wi<-n»ss afterwards returned to the hotel, having been away about half an hour, and Ede avsived there about 10 minults .liter. Wifcu«S3 saw his brother John there, and was ask'id by him if he had not seeu the girl ou his way from Ku'k-

' land's. Witness said " Yrr," and his brother then asked •• Why did yon not fell when you came up ? ' Witnes* replied tbat Ede had asked them to leave her till they were going horns agaia. Witness's brother said i-.he girl wss daad. Witness told no one till he get h£.ine, and then coH his father and mother. He said he saw tha girl lying down, and she could not get up. He told them where he had seen her. Hia father a&id, "I'll go over and aeo her," aud wit-ness rcpH-?d be r.eed net mind, that they wera going home straight away, and were going to take her home if she wa3 no better. Wi&itess mistook the ,~itl for Lor sister Julia, who worked afc Mr Shand's. Wiiuess saw Constable Carmody afterwards thab night, , aud went with him &n& olhsrs to w&sre tho j hv-dy was. Witness then ricognked her us | Rose Djrsaski". Her body was then about 1 25 yards nearer the hotel than where Wi'nass j left h.iy. It va.e a dark, windy night. There i were cattle about five chains further away — vary t quiet c&tMo — iione hkeiy to frighten her." They ■' ci-roe oa the Hack about five chains before they • found the <prl. 3he was aboub three-quarters , of a mile from She was right on the ! track. There \?as another track aboub 20 yards to the right coining in the direction of Allanton. Arthur Ernest Ede, farm labourer, residing at Mr Kirklynd's, rave corroborative evidence. . Witness told Mr Black, the storekeeper, of I naving ajefc -;bc alter he haard of her death. j Noticed r<ojie i*'« ihe clothes disarranged when j It' t.w thf gsri. Tnere wa.s no more converj sr.tion with her than what had been told. After they left the girl witness said to Smolensk!, " We will say nothing about it but hurry up aud take her to Shand's as we go b*ck " Never thought the girl was so bad. i Thought she might have had a fright in the paddock fxoai the bullocks. Sometimes the ■ cattle would run round about people when they were going through the paddocks. Witness j never saw them chase anyone. J John Dysaskie, farmer in the district, j deposed tbat dsceased was his daughter. She j was born at Waihola, and wa3 about 17 years jof age. She left botne about 2 o'clock in the ; afternoon to go to Allanton. She was in good ; health and made no complaints. She did not ! say she was going to see her sister at Shaud's. John Wrcuble, employed at Shand's, said he left there about a quarter to 8 o'clock in company with a youth 15 years of agp. When going across the p*ddocks they tcet Julia Djsaskie j goiag home to Shand's. She said that if she j had known she would have sent Rosie with I witness. She said she had taken her as far ai j the stubble paddock, and told them to give a couple of cooees when they cams to the grass paddock as she might have missed her road. Wituess and his companion went on and c*ughb up with others and at length came to something lying in the paddook. This proved to be Rose Dysaskie, and she was apparently dead. Heard no screams or cry before he came upon the girl's body. Her clothes were open in front. That was all wifcuefs noticed. The hat was oa her head. Tae skirl of her dress was unbuttoned. Constable Carmody, in the course of his evidence, stated that the skirfc of the dress being unfastened exposed deceased** white petticoat for aboub a foot. She wore a jacket which was j open asl the way up. It was unbuttoned, but there were no ttars. The bedy of the dre3« J was unbuttoned to wi'hin one or two buttons j of the neck, and the lower part of her stays I were unfastened. Her dress aft the neck wns { fastened with a brooch . Made an examination I of the ground, but found no indications of a j ( struggle. Dr Cattan was sent for. On Sunday ! morning wibnsss found a belt that corresponded j with the body of the dress deceased wore about 50 yards in the direction of £: hand's. ; Juiia Dysaskie, in the employ or Mr Shane!, , deposed that deceased (her sister; eamo to sea s her ou Saturday. She seemed quite well and made no complaint. She left about a quarter • to 7, witness accompanying her part of ths way. Witness went about half the distance wi.h her and left her in the next paddock ta where her body was found. Stie said as witness was leaving, "Oh, Julia, come along a • little further." Witnes3 had gone further then '• than Mrs Shand had told her to, and could not go further. Deceased seemed frightened, and said she was afraid of meeting a bullock or anything. She seemed', more frightened than she usually wai. She was always frightened of cattle. She was not crying. Witness kepfc the track back to Shand'e, and about 10 minutes , after they par.cd heard someone calling out. • Ifc was a scream. Witness shouted and listened. The first time it was loud, and the next; time ib was lower. Witness thought it was her siater, but did not know whether to tura back or go to Shand's. Witness detailed her meeting with ; the witness Wroublo. She was near Shand's ; then. Never knew deceased to faint or have a ' fit. It was abouc 20 minutes aftes^leavicg her sister that wifcness met Wroubie and about 10 miuuteg after hearing the screaming. Dr Catfc&n stated that he made an outward examination of the body of Ro?e Dysaskie. 16 was apparently that of a healthy young wom%n. ' He found no marks of violence and no outward I appearance of the cause of death. The clothing about the lower part of the body was not disarrangtd in auy way, but the blouse and the | upper part of the stays were unfastened. There | were no stains or mark? of blood, no indicaI tions of an assault, no sigDS of vomitibing, and jno odour of poison. Witness made a post i mortem examination later on. The orgros of I the bodj' and tha brain appeared to be healthy, i with two small exceptions, bu'c these had : nothing to do with death. There was no ' apoplexy. The ventricles of the heart were j quite empty, aud this was the condition of the heart in a case of syucopa. The ciuse of the syncope witness could nob say. Fright or any strong emotion could do ifc. Ifc was probjble that deceased would feel a suffocating feeling in the region of the heart. It was a natural thing then tor a woman to loosen her clothing in front. The jnry returned a verdict of " Death from syncope," and expressed an opinion that the r.wo witnesses Ede and Smolenski had r.cted very unfeelingly in rot reporting the matter as soon as possible, so that assistance could have been obtained.