INQUEST.

Timaru Herald, Volume XCVIII, Issue 18084, 11 June 1924, Page 9

INQUEST.

SEQUEL TO OLD MAN’S DEATH.

DISTURBANCE AT WINCHESTER

The Courthouse at Teniuka was well filled yesterday afternoon, when the inquest into the circumstances surrounding the death;of David Thomas Miller, 68 years 'of age, at Winchester on ;■ June 2, was continued by the District Coroner (Mr E. D, Mosley). The proceedings lasted nearly five hqurs, the Court rising at 6.45 p.m. Inspector Willis conducted the case for the police and Mr W. D. Campbell appeared on behalf of .Meßi.atney. THE EVIDENCE. George Henry Mcßratney, firewoou merchant, of W inchester, said that on the night of deceased’s death he/ had gone at 8.45 to a meeting in the public Jiall at Winchester... .."Whilst at the meeting his wife went to him and complained that a man was making a disturbance at the house. The stationmaster (Mr Lilley) accompanied Mrs Mcßratney. He left the hall in company with liis wife ’and .went home. On the way he met the deceased, whom at .that time he did not know. It was a. dark night._ His wife said “that is the’man,” indicating the deceased. He asked the man if he had been prowling, round the house, and the man just mumbled something. He seemed very shakyeither drunk or ill. - Witness caught hold of him by the coat. ■ Tire. warned the witness at this stage that he could not be asked to give 'any answers that might mcriminate him.

said that he was prepared to give all evidence in his power. Witness said he could not get any sense out of the man, so let him go, and he staggered and fell on his side. He toppled, over and then twisted. He had a swag 1 on his shoulder. Witness said, ‘Come on, old man, get up out of this,” hut . got., no: intelligent answer. Witness helped deceased on to the footpath, half- carrying him; ,as ne could not .stand very well. He met deceased a yard or two from the middle of, the road, which had a hard surface,', but was unmetalled. He-drag-ged deceased about .four, yards. During j this 'time witness’s wife and the 6tationmaster .were present. AVitness sat deceased, up against the fence, aiid then took Mrs Mcßratney home, to see if their little boy. was all light, and the stationmaster accompanied her to a neighbour’s bouse. Witness then went to the hotel and 'rang up the police. He offered no violence whatever to the deceased. After communicating "with the , police, witness returned to the place where, he had left deceased, and told Scott and another man at the corner to direct the police to the spot. It was not correct to say that he had told these men lie had “given the man one to go on with.” '-He assisted the constable to get deceased into a motor car, and accompanied him to Temuka. They called at Dr. Hogg’s, and after examination, the doctor said the man was dead. His wife said, “Don’t hit him, George!” He thought this was because she was upset, and thought that possibly witness .might hit deceased. It was- not because he had hit him. There had been nothing in the nature of a scuffle between witness: and deceased, it was when he let go of the coat that deceased fell. He had not seen any sign of blood on deceased when he picked him up. Witness had . only two or three drinks during the day. He was .angry when he caught deceased by the coat. Witness used only, one hand, and did not put the other on deceased's shoulder.

, -V l ' Mosley: It was extraordinary tiiy.t : the man had a cut lip. (Ju.ll you account for that? Witness: “No.”

Mr Mosley: I examined the body and it appeared to me that the cut had been caused by a blow. Can you account for that? Witness: “No.”

Mrs _ Mcßratney, wife of the previous witness, gave evidence corrobora-ting-'that of lier husband. When the deceased went to her house, he rattled one of the windows, and knocked the side of the house with the garden fork. He was frothing at the mouth, and nose, and seemed unable to give an intelligent answer to her question when she asked him what he wanted. Finally he said lie wanted his kit, and that he wished to go Orari. Several times she ordered him off the premises but. lie refused to go. Finally she got him off the premises, locked the house, and went to the public half to tell .her husband what had happened. Her husband returned with her. and they met the man on the road. As sooii as'her husband got up to him he fell. There was no scuffle, and she did not know what had caused the deceased to fall. He seemed very drunk.

Dr F. Scanned .who, with Dr. McInness, made a post, mortem examination of the body, said there was some abrasions on the face and a cut. on the left ear. half an inch long, and about a quarter of an inch wide. This was a recent wound. There had been extensive hemorrhage at the base of the, brain. The cause of death was hemorrhage from rupture of a blood vessel at the base oi' the brain. ' The facial marks were consistent with violence cl some sort, ami •.■mild have been caused by a blow or ; fall. The rupture of the blood vessel might have been caused as a result of the brittle state of arteries, or as the result of a fall.

Mr Campbell .•'.aid ii wa- known that deceased had had a pro; i y bad hill on the rail.vav station a; about five o'clock. Would ihe man hate been alive at 8.3(1 had there been a rupture their ?

Witness: T do not think ii is likely. The Coroner: If the man had fadmi backwards on his head there. would have been some bruise, would there not ?

Witness: Not if ho died within a few minute.';.

Evidence was also given hv 1 )j- Mo Lit UPS. W. H. Lilley. sialionmaster at Win

Chester, said that he saw the deceased tall wnen he was talking to iiioßratney, but lie saw no blow struck, and it did not occur to him tnut the man was seriously hurt. Evidence was also given by the barman at the \Vincimster Hotel, who said that deceased had been tnere on the day ot the fatality for about 20 minutes. He had two glasses of beei and was perfectly sober. N. G. south said tnat on the night of the fatality, he , heard Mcßratney say to a woma/t. on tiie road: “ What the are you doing?” Mrs Mots ratney said: “Stop it, George, bo careful.” Then lie heard what lie thought was a bit of a scuffle, and heard Mcßratney tell the other man' to get up. Witness tvas about 50 yards away. iV J. Robertson said he heard Mrs Mcßratney say: “Don’t iiit him George.” Witness than heard a thud and a groan. Cornelius Maiigin, telegraph messenger, Teiiiuka, said ho had heard Mrs ‘.il.cßratuey sav; “13c eareiul George.” .Next he heard a thud on the ground. T. W. Raiding, pamter, U'niciiester, said that Mcßratney had said to him, on the-night in question, when discussing deceased. “An.ynow, J gave Jinn one to go on with,” or words to that effect. Prior to .this-there had been talk about a man not being able to go out without his wile beidg molested. Further evidence was given by John Wills, who said he heard Mcßratney say that he Had hit a man up the road; by Eli Cooper, relieving -statloinuastcr, who said ho.. heard . Mcßratney say Unit lie had “given him. one to go on with” ; by W. P. Emslie, who said that on the atienioon of the clay in question, about 5 o'clock, he.had seen the deceased fall on the railway station, and lie seemed very dazeu; by Sergeant Dwan and Constable O’Connor, who gave evidence as to the inquiries winch they had made, and what they had done, when Mcßratney rang for the police. When Dr. Hogg said the man was dead, Mcßratney said, “Oh, good -God, no.” The Coroner said that the medical evidence had made the cause of death abundantly clear. The matter was complicated by the fact that that McBratney had not told the truth in several important particulars. One statement made by Mcßratney struck him very 'forcibly as not being true. He had said it would not be correct to sav that he had told the man at the corner that he had given the deceased “one to go on with.” ’lhe other witnesses had disproved this. Mcßratney had said that deceased toll without any violence on Mcßratney\s part. This was extraordinary, it was natural that Mrs Mcßratney should support, hoi husband, but her evidence did not impress the Court ns being quite the lnull. He was also not satisfied with ihe evidence of the witness Lilley. who, he thought, could have given more inlonnatiou than he had done. Souths evidence was signiennt, and showed soinc-i hiny occurred before the man 101 l in the ground, and it seemed to him Ihn: ihe word-, "Stop it, George,” referred t<> something that was actually hapiieu::ic at ihe lime, 'file Mcßratncy’.s had tried to impress on the Court flint the man had been under tire inlluence of liquor, yet ihe doctors had lour.d very little evidence of liquor. Mo would return a verdict that (deceased hod died as the le.-ult of hemorrhage from a ruptured blood ■ vessel at the base of the brain, in his opinion caused by the doeoiiM.d falling on lo the- road, as the result of a Mow delivered b.v George Henry Mnßrat.nev. He wished to say that, divesting the evidence of all its lying, he was not quite sure that the blow was delivered under such circumstances as would justify the conviction of Mcßratney for manslaughter.