KOHURATAHI SKELETON

Taranaki Daily News, 20 January 1933, Page 9

KOHURATAHI SKELETON

COMMENCEMENT OF INQUEST SIMILARITY TO DONALD MORRISON CIRCUMSTANCES OF FIRE IN 1931. DESCRIPTION BY TWO NEIGHBOURS The homestead and woolshed on the property of Donald Morrison, farmer, Kohuratahi, were buraed to the ground in the early hours of February 19, 1931. Subsequent police and private investigation failed to reveal the fate of the owner, of whom no trace could be found. On September 15, 1932, the discovery of a human skeleton* with a rifle beside it was reported to the police by two relief workers from the single men’s camp at Kohuratahi, who had been out hunting pigs over the Morrison property. . Constable J. Colboume, Whangamomona, went to investigate and brought back the remains, *which were later sent to Stratford.

An inquest into the finding of the skeleton, supposed to. be that of Morrison, and into the circumstances of the man’s death was commenced before the district coroner, Mr. W. L. Kennedy, at Stratford yesterday. The inquest was conducted by Sergeant J. J. Power and was adjourned to enable an absent witness to be heard. Dr. David Steven, Stratford, stated that on January 17, 1933, he examined at the Stratford police station a collection of bones, almost a complete skeleton of a human being, all the bones being of one person. It was evident that the Skeleton was a male, the state of the lower jaw indicating that he was past middle age. The doctor was satisfied that they were the remains of an elderly man. By ah assembly of the bones of the 'left arm and making allowances for the bones of- the left hand, which were lost, he considered that the man’s height was between sft Ilin and 6ft. The bone of the nose indicated that a considerable time before his death the owner had received an injury. The general indication was that the man had been of very muscular build. SHOT THROUGH SKULL. The base of the skull was missing, but the frontal bone was present, and in it was a fracture running upwards and outwards from the cribriform plate. This fracture the doctor considered to have been caused at the time of death. Ohly fragments were present of the bones forming the upper back part of the skull. The connection between the spinal cord and the brain was present, but the left portion had been broken away and was missing. The bones of the foot indicated a high arched instep, while the frontal bone indicated a prominent forhead.

“The findings of the bones would correspond to death from a gunshot wound in the base of the skull, and indicate a self-inflicted wound,” stated the doctor. The shot, he thought, might have been under the jaw, or through the mouth,, and in the latter case it would be possible for the bullet , not to have damaged the teeth or plate. Gerald Gower, farmer, Kohuratahi, said he knew Morrison intimately, and his property adjoined that farmed by Morrison on Marangai Road. Gower had known Mdrrison for about 13 years, and saw him fairly regularly, especially during the wool season. The last time Gower saw him alive was about February 18, 1931 when Morrison was burning fem along the boundary fence. The next morning Gower discovered that both the wool shed and the house were afire, and that there was no sign of Morrison. That evening Gower heard some shots which he was certain were made by a .303 rifle. He considered that there would be eight to-a dozen shots about .a quarter of a mile away. The Morrison homestead was in , a particularly remote position, and the only two residing there were Morrison and a man named McDonough. There was nobody else within, four miles. Following the disappearance of Morrison, Gower assisted the police in a fairly systematic search of the .country but no trace was found, but on the Thursday (February ' 21) he discovered near the house one .of Morrison’s dogs shot, and a search some time later disclosed several head of cattle, also shot. They were in a gully.. The. cattle had been killed apparently three or four days before the dog. Gower explained that the nature of the property was such that Morrison could have spent a week in gathering together the herd. The place where the man’s skeleton was found was practically inaccessible, and a tree had to be climbed to get to the position where Gower assisted in the removal of the remains from the ledge. RIFLE AND GARMENT. A rifle was found nearby, and on being produced was recognised by Gower. It was a .303 magazine rifle, with the magazine fully loaded, and an empty shell in the breach. There was a leather strap around the trigger of the rifle and Gower was sure that the last action of the rifle had been the firing of a shot, and that not a hand had touched it after that. The rifle was well known to him, as he had used it. It was the property of Morrison,. who had cut down the barrel and replaced the front sight. Morrison used various kinds of .303 ammunition, but for a time before his death used Mark VII ammunition, a quantity of which, produced in Court, was found in ( the pocket of one of the garments with the man’s skeleton.

' Frequently Morrison wore a red pullover jersey, and Gower was sure that the jersey produced was Morrison’s. Morrison always wore boots of a good quality. Gower said he found Morrison a.good neighbour. He Was always optimistic, but had greater ambitions than it was possible to realise on the quality of land on his property. .

William Bernard Doocey, labourer, on Sunday, September 15, 1932, in company with a man named Mychaelich went pig-shooting over the property formerly farmed by Morrison. Doocey slipped on the papa face and landed on a ledge 40 feet below. It was impossible to walk down to the ledge. He discovered the gun leaning against the bank, and a short distance from it perceived a human skeleton nearly covered with vegetation. The rifle was not interfered with, and both men, on their return to camp, advised the police of their find. Doocey descended from the ledge by means of a rata tree which reached to the bottom of the gully 35 feet below. The following day he directed Constable Colbourne to the spot, and assisted him to bring away, the remains. i v ''

Martin McDonough, farmer, Kohuratahi, whose property adjoined Morrison’s on the southern boundary, said that for some years he and Morrison were the only two settlers in that districts. McDonough spoke to Morrison about a week before his disappearance, and afterwards he realised Mrs. Morrison’s behaviour was peculiar, as though she wished to confide to -him

about something that was troubling her. On the last day he was seen, Morrison was mustering horses, his behaviour, according to McDonough, being normal. One of the horses was formd shot. The horse was at the mouth of a gully and it was at tho head of thus gv ll y that the man’s skeleton was subsequently found. ’ McDonough identified as Morrison’s a razor found with the remains. Morrison was a good bushmen. Up to tho time of Morrison’s disappearance, McDonough ’ had not heard of anybody being lost in that district. Sergeant Power: “One would need to be experienced and a good bushman to get into that country?’’ “Yes." The sergeant: "Knowing Morrison «b *you did, would you he surprised to know that he would take his own life? ’ —“No.” ■ j . “Did you know that he was financial- ,v.. ly embarrassed?” —“Yes.” 4 ■ . “What makes you hold this, opinion? —“He was a man who held life cheaply.” McDonough explained that one day he and Morrison were discussing incurable diseases, and Morrison then stated that . ■ if he ever suffered from such, .he would do away with himself. When McDonough saw Mrs. Morrison last it was ten days before he saw Morrison for the last time. At that meeting Morrison said his wife had gone away. NO ONE REPORTED LOST. In answer to the coroner, Constable Colbourne said the dead . man either stood or sat on the ledge and fired the rifle himself, as the bones were in' a heap, not stretched out. The constable suggested that the false teeth! were ttaken out and put on a ledge, eventually falling on the skeleton. .From police ? records, the constable stated that nobody else had been reported lost in that district. Margaret Kate Morrison, aged 61, Takapau, Hawke’s Bay, former wife of : Donald Morrison divorced 14 years : ago, verified Dr. Steven’s remarks as relating to the physique of Morrison. The teeth were very similar to'' those made for Morrison 25 years ago. Since thei divorce, there had been no communication between the two; Sergeant Power considered there was no doubt that the fires at the woodshed and the house, which were on opposite sides of the road, were deliberate and there was no trace of fire between the' two buildings, so they must have been started separately. A search of. the burned buildings disclosed a dog’s body, but there was no sign of Morrison. It appeared that the destruction of the cattle was deliberate, that they had been shot, afterwards being rolled into the. : gully. No trace of Morrison was found' and it was thought tha. he might have ? cleared out, but a thorough investigation throughout New Zealand failed < to show any trace of him in the country or as having left it < - A Sergeant Power said it was a prac-' tically hopeless task to trace the dentist. Si who made the teeth. Morrison’s height was sft lljin and as far as the constable knew, he was of very muscular build.. At the time of his disappearance he was in financial difficulties. The inquest was adjourned sine die W evidence was required from .a. witness at present awajr.