The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1860-06-19 00:00:00

Dtbonsbire.

EXETER.—Erfraordenary nue of Poieoniag.—
' Great excitement has been caused here by the death
of a man named Samuel Hookway, a coppersmith,
and the serious illness of some members of his and
another family, all of whom, it was reported, had
been poisoned from eating fish. An inquest was
held on Monday week sod continued on Tuesday,
before Mr. H. Hooper, city coroner, when evidence
of an extraordinary character was given. It ap•
neared the deceased lived next door to a Mr.
'iscoebds and his family, who are or the Hebrew
persuasion. On Monday week Mrs. Jacobs asked
Mrs. Hookway if she would like to have a couple of
pieces of fish (gurnet) for her daughter who was ill.
The offer was accepted, and the fish, which had
been fried with oil, eggs. , and flour, was taken to
the house by Mrs. Hookivay. Nhe and her husband
ate a portion of it the same night and early the
next morning. Mrs. Hookway was seized with
vomiting and purging, The deceased went a
journey on the same day, but was similarly attacked,
and was so seriously ill Edit he was compelled to
return home on the following Thursday. He im-
mediately went to bed, was attended by two medical
men, Dr. Budd and Mr. J. Webb, but died on Sun-
day morning week. The nephew of deceased, who
had eaten a portion of the fish, was also seized with
vomiting and purging, and he and Mrs. Hookway ,
still continue very ill. Mrs. Jacobs had given some
meat and fish to another neighbour named Maunder,
in consideration or her having washed some
clothes for her. Mr. Maunder ate some of the fish ;
and his wife and daughter ate a small quantity of the
meat, and all were seized with vomiting and purg-
ing. Mrs. Maunder returned several pounds of the
meat to Mrs. Jacobs, and Mr. Jacobs threw it into
the river. It was explained that his reason for
duing so was, that unless a piece of meat is marked,
so that it might be identified, it is a part of the
Jewish creed that it shall not be eaten if sent from
the house of a Christian. Mrs. Maunder said there
were white specks on the meat, as though pepper
bad been sprinkled on it; and Mrs. Jacobs said she
had used pepper in curing it. It was elicited that
Mrs. Jaeobe be.v on the most friendly terms
with the family of thellookways, but she had never
spoken to Mrs. Maunder until the occasion in ques-
tion, her reason for that being that as she and her
husband were ill, she wanted some assistance in her
household works, and being poor, and not being able
to consume the whole of the meat, she gave it to
Mrs. Maunder in lieu of money. Dr. Budd stated
that the deceased died from inflammation caused by
the introduction of acrid animal matter into the
stomach ; and he thought it was one of thoee cases
where animal matter in a partial state of decay acted
as an irritant poison. The jury returned a verdict
that "deceased flied from eating fish in a Rartial
state of decay, which was thereby poisonous.
TORQUAY.—On Tuesday evening a little boy, ten
years old, who was playing with some juveniles near
the edge of the cliff at Daddy Hole Plain, fell over
into the chasm, a depth o(40 feet. It was naturally
supposed that the fall had much injured, if not
killed him, but strange to say he had received no
hurts whatever.