THE TUAM STREET FATALITY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5552, 25 February 1886, Page 3

THE TUAM STREET FATALITY.

iiie Inquest DEATH FEOM NATURAL CAUSES. The following appeared in our Third Edition of yesterday :— Yesterday afternoon, at the White Horse Hotel, before R. Beetham, Esq., Coroner, an inquest waa held touching the death of Johnson Midgley/whoee untoward death waa recorded on Tuesday. The jury consisted of the following .- — Messrs A. Appleby, R. "Walton, C. P. Hulbert, D. Craig, W. Chrystall, and R. Struthers, who chose as their foreman Mr R. Walton. Inspector Pender appeared for the police. Mr G. Harper appeared to watch the proceedings on behalf of Mr J. Taylor. The jury, on their return from viewing the body at the house of the deceased, heard the following evidence : — Dv Samuel Alexander Patrick, legally qualified medical practitioner : I examined the body of the deceased, and made a post mortem examination of it this morning. It was lying at his house. The body was well nourished. I found five abrasiona on the right side of the face — one on the upper lip, one at the angle of the mouth, one on the bridge of the nose, and two over the right temple, and one apparently of earlier date on the left cheek. There was no external injury to the head. Upon removing the skull I found the brain everywhere superficially congested, ffhe right side of the brain was internally congested. The left ! side was not much congested in- 1 ternally, but in the posterior part of the left hemisphere I found a largo clot which had torn up the brain, substance. The pericardium or sac con- ! taining the heart contained about three j ounces of fluid. The heart was otherwise { healthy. The other organs were healthy. ! To Inspector Pender: I think it better j to give my belief aa to the cause of death after I have heard the evidence. The cause of death was the pressure of the clot on the brain. I think the explanation of that may depend a great deal upon what I hear afterwards. To the Foreman: The pressure of the clot of blood would cause death, as it would stop the action of the heart. lam sure excitement might have caused rupture of the vessels, and the formation of the clot. What caused the excitement I wish to hear the evidence before saying^

Constable Robert M'Lellan, on duty at Chrifc-tchurch : I recollect John Taylor, at ! about a quarter past 11 yesterday, coming I to the Police office and giving himself up. i He came in to the sergeant's office, and said co me, " I have come to give myself in charge. I believe I have killed a man." I asked him to sit down, and he made a voluntary statement, which I wrote down, read over to him, and he Bigned it. (Statement put in and read. It was to the effect of what has already been published.) Henry Oakley, plumber, residing at Christchurch : I live the next door to Mr | : Taylor, at 234, Tuavn street. I am" in partnership with Mi Taylor. About 11 o'clock I arrived at my place from Opawa, where I had been upon business. Mr Taylor was standing outside on the footpath of the Btreet just in front of his own garden, apparently waiting till I came. He stopped me as I came up, and asked me what 1 thought of the fence which Mr Midgley was erecting. I may mention that Mr Midgley was just inside, close to us, and could hear what was said. I did not reply to Mr Taylor, but told Mr Midgley not to put up such a fence, as it was a disgrace and he should put up a reasonable one. I also told Mm that we would pay half the cost. He replied that the fence was good enough for him, and if Mr Taylor wanted a better one he could put it up himself. I told him it was nonsense to talk like that, and he said he had decided not to ask Mr Taylor any other favour, as he had asked him once about tying up the dog and Mr Taylor would not comply with his wish. Mr Taylor told him that this was not true, that his wish was complied with. He denied it again, and said that the dog was a nuisance all the time I was in Dunedin, jumping over the fence. The conversation returned to the fence, and Mr Taylor told him he would have to work on his own side. At this time Mr Midgley was on Mr Taylor's section. He then crossed over a line he had fixed to keep the fence straight on to his own ground. Mr Taylor went inside on to his own garden, and told him he would have to keep the timber on his own property — that he would not have it lying on his garden. Mr Taylor took np a short piece of timber that was lying on the grass, and tossed it over the garden into Mr Midgley's section. He seemed to be annoyed at Buch a fence, and made a push at one of the posts with his hands. Mr Midgley then jumped over the line he had erected at about a foot from the ground, into Mr Taylor's garden, and rushed at him to hit him — to give him a hiding. Mr Taylor took his own part, and several blows were exchanged. The Coroner : You mean he defended himself P Witness : Yes. I called out at once— as soon as I saw them beginning to fight — to stop. I was all this time in the cart, and then jumped out and pulled them apart. In fact, they had not got hold of each other, but were close to and hitting at one another. Mr Midgley appeared, as near as I could tell, to be judging to get him* self ready to make another attack on Mr Tayler, and just as I expected by his attitude that he was about to make another rush the man suddenly became rigid. His hands closed suddenly. He seemed to alter in a moment. They were four or five yards apart, and before I could prevent him he fell very heavily on the asphalt on his face. I was between them when he fell. As soon as the man fell I picked him up, and turned him on his face at once. I concluded he had a fit — I have seen several men in fits — and called for water. Someone brought me water, and I poured some into his mouth. Someone undid his boots and others poured water on him. I went to the telephone and telephoned for Dr Thomas and told others to go for a doctor. Meantime Dr Patrick had come just as I had given Midgley some water. He pronounced Midgley to be dead. To Inspector Pender : Just the moment that Taylor pushed the fence Midgley rushed at him with the intention apparently of striking him. I could not swear who struck the first blow. They both fell on their knees once. After they got up both "shaped" as if to fight. Taylor had no room to retreat, because they were close to the house within a yard. When I came between them they were striking at each other as well as they could. There was about a yard between them. To the Coroner : Midgley appeared furious. He struck at Taylor furiously. Taylor struck back to defend himself. I cannot say that he did more than defend himself. He did no more than I would have done myself if I was so attacked. The Coroner : That is what we want to know. Witness : Taylor did not show heat or temper that I saw. He did not at any time place himself in the position of the attacking party. To the Foreman : Midgley prepared for another attack, but fell upon his face. They were not fighting when he fell. They were not close together. There was no blood on his face before he fell that I saw. When Taylor threw that piece of timber it did not go within yards of Midgley. No spade or hammer or anything of the kind was used on either side. To the Coroner : The timber was not aimed within yards of Midgley. To the Foreman : I am quite sure that nothing was used but their hands, on either side — no timber, nor spade, nor anything else. Dr Patrick : I can give evidence now as to the cause of death. The Coroner : You had better wait till some more evidence is given. Ellen Cook, wife of Matthew Cook, a baker : I live nearly opposite Mr Midgley'B, about three or four chains off. I paw deceased and Mr Taylor about 11 o'clock yesterday morning. Mr Midgley was putting up the fence. I saw Mr Taylor when he came up. I could not hear what was said. I saw them disputing apparently, by the way Mr Midgley was putting his hands, about the fence. I saw Mr Midgley on Mr Taylor's section. I saw Mr Taylor go inside to where Midgley was, and Mr Midgley went into his own section. I saw Mr Taylor pick up a piece of wood and throw it into Mr Midgley's garden. Mr Taylor then pushed against the fence. Mr Midgley came from his section and struck Mr Taylor. Both men closed together and fell. They got up, and Mr Midgley ran against Mr Taylor again. They struck blows. Mr Oakley then came on the scene, and parted them. He pushed Taylor on one side and Midgley gave a step forward, and then fell. He was facing his own section, and fell on the asphalt. To Inspector Pender : Midgley struck first, and they fell together. Mr Taylor srot up first, and they stood apart. Mr Midgley struck at Mr Taylor who put up his arms, and was trying to avoid the blows. I saw Mr Taylor pushing Mr Midgley back as he was striking. At one time he fell back from Midgley. Mr Midgley kept advancing upon him. Mr Taylor was, I think, defending himself. To the foreman: The timber did not strike Mr Midgley at all. Annie Midgley, wife of the deceased : I recollect my husband putting up the fence yesterday. I saw Mr Taylor come from his shop towards my husband. He asked my husband why he was putting up such an ugly fence, or something of that kind. In answer, he said it was good enough for himself (meaning my husband), as he was a poor man. There was something passed about a dog. I must say I heard Mr Taylor say he would annoy my husband ; and he knew how he could do it. The baby was crying, and I went in to it. A boy came through the house crying, "My dadft," and I went out and saw him fall. I don't know whether he had fallen before. He was dead when I ran to him. To Inspector Pender : There was no previous dispute between my husband and Mr Taylor, only about the dog. To the Coroner : My husband has always enjoyed pretty good health. Inspector Pender : There arc two or three other witnesses, but their evidence is only corroborative. Perhaps you will hear Dr Patrick now ? The Coroner (to the jury) : If you wish to hear Dr Patrick I will recall him. The Foreman : That is what we particularly wish. Dr Patrick (re-called) : I found that de-

ceased had suffered from a long standing disease of the brain. The Coroner: You ehonld have given that in your evidence before. It won't affect this case, -will it ? Witness: I think it will. I think deceased died from what is called apoplexy. This apoplexy might occur before his fall or because he fell. My opinion is, seeing that he fell in an interval of tho conflict and not following a blow, that it was the excitement of the contest which caused the apoplexy which caused him to fall. He had not the apoplexy because he fell. He was killed by the apoplexy, and not by a blow. , The Coroner : Gentlemen, you have heard the evidence. The difference between manslaughter and excusable homicide is this : If when engaged in any unlawful occupation, which a fight iB, one of the parties is killed, whether accidentally or not, the case is one of manslaughter; but if the man attacks me, and I, in defending myself kill this man, it is excusable homicide, and does not amount to manslaughter. The difficulty is to say whether the fight is limited to self-defence, or becomes an attack. A man is not justified in turning a defence into an attack. The most recent case deciding this question is to be found in Coxe's Criminal Cases, 1877 to 1882. (The Coroner read the decision of the judge to which he had referred, and continued.) Assuming that the death was caused by apoplexy, caused by the excitement, you will still have to decide whether or not the case is one of manslaughter. The question is one altogether for you to decide whether Taylor extended beyond {reasonable limits his self-defence. If you believe that Taylor passed the boundary of self-defence, it will be your duty to find a verdict of manslaughter. The jury retired, and after an absence of five minutes returned with a verdict as follows :— ■" The verdict is that Taylor did not exceed the limits of justifiable selfdefence, and that the death of Midgley occurred through a fit of apoplexy brought on by excitement." This was a verdict of death from natural causes. Mr Beetham discharged Mr Taylor, who had hitherto been in custody, and in doing so expressed the opinion that no blame was attached to him.