Inquest.

Southland Times, Issue 19133, 25 August 1903, Page 4

Inquest.

: — ■''.'".'.'•v.' ' r ' — *— Yesterday, before: ;_•::_: _I -McCarthy, Coroner, evnd a Jury consisting of Messrs Thos. Crawley: (XoTeman), W. li. M_Lean, B. Ashton, J . S. Baxter, Wm. {Strang aiid J. Taylor, the inquest upon the 'body of the female infant child of Janet Miller, of Spar Bush, was resumed. The .inquest wa© formally opened at the hospital a month ago, when the evidence of Constable Uasniussen was taken. Dr Hendry deposed that on 30th July he had made a post mortem examination on the body- of a newly-born female child. It was fully developed and wellnourished. The features were slightly swollen, and tho pupils moderately dilated. There were two small bruises on the" neck, one on «och side of the -larynx.) There was u slight : ecchypiosia; in iront of the another near. the,,. sternum and another : oh the l_t" arm; -There was a scratch in front, of the left shoulder and another-, running across- ther two first angers of the. left nand. There was also a scratch on the. left; -elbow and one on the Jback^ of the Jeft shoulder, ..The left lung was u_expan~de"d~ with the exception of the apex which was ly expanded ; right lung expanded' but -lower -lobe .hnper/ectly." The mouth lu.ryux and trachea were -- normal, and nil the other organs of the body 'airly normal. Death was due to asphyxia, the result of the unexpanded condition of the lung, which in its turn was arparently due to the omission to take the ordir---ary precautions usually taken .atCthe* birth of a child. The bruises and. scratches indicated that the mother had. been standing up or in some other position other than lying down when the child wfas bornr and' a" w__t- of : cane Ti_d 'Been" shown in. : handling: the child generally. He did not intend to -imply that the mother was gum.y or criminar replect -, probably she -could; jnot- attend to the child for some time after it was; born owing to her own condition ; but auphy- • xia had. been caused by the omissions : to whic_^_e;had ; alluded.- He Inwl no rea-j soil to suppose -that the mother had ' intended to injure her child::. ;Dr; ; D»lzeli .. assisted witness in making- the'*,post--_ibr-tem. '. ■- . ■ * -^ ?.'.!' ■ Dr Dalr-ell, Winton, deposed ltp visiting Janet Miller after hen confinement.:;" He found the child lying alongside the —other. It was dead. - He. Was in the room about three-quarters of a_;hour. and formed the conclusion that Janet Miller was : riot responsible for her actions, and as far as he knew she was unmarried. She beldnged to a most respectable family of settlers Ho assisted Dr Hendry at a post mortem and agreed with the evidence given. He had no reason to believe that the mother intended to injure her child. There was no wilful negligence on tho pa-rt of the mother 1 or her relatives. - Janet Miller said she lived with her mother and father at Spar Bush. She remembered last summer knowing. a man whose name she mentioned*; She did not remember , another man who was" a rabbiter. The man was -rude to her. "No other :_ui_l was rude tb her, Jn con^o-' quence of this rhah's conduct she became a mother about a ---fortnight agor slept alone. The child was born in the __i_i_g ( ; ;. she. was :-. dtandiiig >.«p ". on tlie fioor when the child was torn, ivo one was in tho room. Sho called for no one ; ahd made no' '.noise. ■ She was 29 years of iafeejand unmarried. She did all she thought she; had to do, amd put the child in bed ah_" went back to bed herself. The infant was "breathing . •when she put it into the bed;- but she did not know how lotog it lived. To the Coroner : She had never had a child "be-, fore. '■ ""-■ ■' "'■ * ; ' • : ' ■■•'■' ■--■/;-..'-■-;•'■- ■■'* - -.. ■ Dr Hondry, re-called, said -tha* after hearing- " Janet Miller's .-evidence he was of opinion that she could not. be held guilty of neglect. In his opimion, she h«d no rational conception of what was* occurring. To the Foreman:: Witness considered Jlanet Millen's intellect .-was so Car below the average . that she had, no rational conception of what was occurring. She was mentally weak. .■•■-- Agnes Miller, mother of Janet 31iller, deposed that . -she . had' had 15 Children. 12 of whom were living* 'Janet's manner was not the same as that of the others. There had always been a -want with her. About Ist April witness suspected Janet was with child, but she denied it. On l_th May witness . had her medically examined, and; sh&.vwas 'found to be with child. "Witness could ■ not get her to disclose the father's name. I' or seven weeks prior, to the birth Janet was in her room by day and night. She had her meals there and never caine. out, and did not appear to. want :to - talk , toany one. She made no complaint to witness of feelinje" unwell" before the baby was boru. Witness described the state i q Which she found the room, and the 12 of whom were Uvang. Janet's mnnthe birth. The child was alive when she ** lirst saw if -Witness sent- over for a neighbour and in the afternoon for DrDalzell. The baby lived till 'about nine o'clock in the evening." They' did all they could ior the -baby. ".; The Coroner said he thought the/jury would have no difficulty in concluding that Janet Miller was mentally, deficient. The motber made _o' .attempt: to- conceal the birth ; the : want of affectiop she showed was due to mental ihciipajrity. The jury found that tho child came by its death through the want of knowledge of the mother in not -calling for assistance at the time, of '-.- the birih.- ■= The foreman added that the jury desired to compliment the Inspector on- the kindly and delicate manner in which he had conducted the case. ;:.;:;