THE MOANA INQUIRY.

Taranaki Daily News, 1 February 1919, Page 5

THE MOANA INQUIRY.

THE-MYSXERK- DEEPBNfI; IK»V:-.iDU) THE POISON' <IEX-INTQi THE BOTTLE! 1

Bjr-Telegrapi.—PreM A»»6d*Um> "j_ Wellington, Jan. 31'. The enquiry into the Moana tragedy, was continued to-dav.

W. Donovan, analyst oi Dominion Laboratories, said he had examined tht sodawater taken by diseased but found no trace of cyanide in the sodawater bottles or lemons from tho ship. Professor Easterfleld gays evidence that there was no cyanide in any sodawater impounded by the police." Tht merest trace could be detected with cw tainty. He had not found cyanide in th« sampjes taken from the works of Thomson, Lewis and Co- It was a moral impossibility for a bottle of sodawatet containing cyanide to leave the tirm'iWellington works. He toferrcd that the cyanide found in the empty TBottle* on tho Moana was placed in the bottle* subsequent to leaving the works. Ha visited the surgery on the Moana and found two one ounce bottles of pnissio acid which had never been opened . Tha coroner remarked, in 'reply to counsel, that he was strongly of opinion that the poison was not self admin' istered by either of the victims. The enquiry was adjourned to enaWl further investigations re the drugs »np« plied to the ship's stores.