The Express.
London, England, 1847-09-29 00:00:00

THE EXPRESS, WEDNESDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER 29, 1847.

so M that she could not leave her bed, and on Sunday morn-
ing last wee found dead.—Mr. Farquhar, surgeon, said that
the emu of death wee pulmonary consumption, acoelemn.d
by want of proper sustenance and attention. In her room
were found some letters showing that ski bad recently re-
ceived post-office orders from her brother, who had also ar-
ranged to make her a regular allowance, but it wan believed
that she expended the moo in paying her debts. She
often said that she had paid her brother s expenses at cil-
ium, assisted him to enter the clerical profession, and that he
had treated her with ingratitude.—Verdict: "Died from
Meuse of the lungs, accelerated by want of sufficient suste-
nance and attention."—ln the course of the iaquiry, the
Dean of Chichester entered the room and denied
• statement in a morning paper that the deceased was
the sister of the late Dean of Chichester.—READlNO
IN Ban.—Before Mr. Wakley, M.P., at the Devonshire
Arms, Duke-street, Manchester-square, on the body of Mn.
A. J. Poehin, aged 63, whose death was occasioned by the
injuries she received at the recent fire which occurred at
17, Lower Seymour-street, Portman-square.—Mrs. T. Bates
stated that she was lady's-maid in the service of she deceased.
Her mistress was the widow of a gentleman of large property
in Leicestershire. On Saturday night last witness amber min
taess retire to bed at 20 minutes past 11 o'clock. Shortly
after that period witness went to bed, and some time after-
wards she was awoke by hearing her fellow-servants calling
to her, and saying that Mrs. Pochin must be on
fire. She ran down stairs to the second floor front,
in which deceased slept, and tried to open the door, but
it was fastened. She ran into an adjoining room, and
having pushed away a wardrobe, succeeded in opening a
door which led into deceased's room. The smoke, how-
ever, was so dense that ehe could not enter the apartment.
The footman at that time was in the street calling out " fire !"
and in the course of a few minutes an escape belonging to
the Royal Soeitty for the Protection of Life from Fire arrived,
the conductor of which entered the room and took the de-
ceased out. The beds, bedstead, and some of the furniture
were burned, and she had no doubt that the fire was occa-
sioned by deceased rending in bed, as she was in the constant
habit of doing. There was only a rushlight left burn-
ing in her room when witness went to bed, but
after the fire was extinguished she found a candle'
Rudy consumed on the stand at the bedside.—
Frederick Brown said that he was • conductor to the Royal
Society for the Protection of Life from Fire. By breaking a
pane of glare he was enabled to unfasten the latch and lit, the
sash. He then entered the room, which was filled with
smoke. He could see the lire running about the bedding.
By crawling along the flooring he got to deceased, and car-
ried her down the escape.—Mr. It. K. Matthews, surgeon,
of 10, Lower Seymour-street, said that deceased was most
extensively burnt over the face, neck, head, back and anus.
lie did all that was possible to be done for her, but she re-
mained in much the same nate till 20 minutes past 12 on
Monday morning, when she died—The Coroner havidg
summed up, said that nothing could be more dangerous than
reading in bed. It was unsafe, even if the candles were
covered with glasses or shades.—The jury returned a ver-
dict, "That the deceased was accidentally burnt to death,"
at the same time adding that they considered great praise
was due to the fire-escape conductor for the risk he ran in
searching for the deceased. --Surrosen Mintose OP A
FEMALE.—On Monday night, before Mr. W. Baker, by
adjournment, at the Green Man public-house, Highatreet,
Poplar, respecting the death of Mrs. Eliza Rayment, aged
46, a married woman, who was found drowned in the river
Thames, off Maims% on Friday morning the 17th inst.,
with her throat cut —Mr. Bain, a surgeon, said he had made
sport morlem examination of the body, which was very
much decomposed, and appeared to have been in the water
some time. There was a large quantity of extravasated
blood on various parts of the scalp on the right side of the
head, which could only have been caused during her lifetime.
There was a wound under the chin about four inches in
length, extending from the middle line of the throat to the
angle of the jaw on the right side. The wound was about
an inch in depth, and two important arteries were divided.
The division of the arteries would cause an immediate and
great loss of blood. It was possible that the deceased might
have inflicted such an injury, but a person using the right
hand would more naturally make the incision on the left-
land ride. He (Mr. Bain) attributed death to the loss of
blood from the wound, coupled with concussion of the brain,
which is likely to have taken place from the effusion of
blood upon the scalp. The extravasation of blood is such as
might have been produced by blows with a stick, or by a
succession of falls. It was stated by several witnesses that
the deceased lived on very friendly terms with her husband,
who is a retired auctioneer, residing at No. 77, High-street,
Hoxton. The deceased was rather intemperate in her habits,
and had pledged several articles of her wearing apparel to
procure drink. On Sunday morning she left home, and said
she was going on an errand. She dressed herself in her
bonnet and shawl, which was very unusual, for she was in
the habit of going on errands without her bonnet. She was
never seen alive afterwards. Search was made, but she was
not discovered until a fortnight afterwards, when she was
found deed in the river, with her throat cut. The jury con-
sidered there was not sufficient evidence for them to return
a verdict of wilful murder against some person or persons
unknown, or whether she had committed the act herself.
They then consulted for a short time, and returned a verdict
of Found drowned with her throat cut, but by what means
she became drowned, with her throat cut, there was not suf-
ficient evidence before the said jury."--C HAWSE AGAINST
THE OFFICERS or THE WEST LONDON UNION.—Mr. W,
Payne, the City coroner, and a respectable jury went into a
lengthened investigation in the Board-room of St. Bartho-
lomew's Hospital, touching the death of a poor man named
Wm. Rastell, aged 66 yeare,who it was alleged had died from
the want of medial assistance after an accident which took
place whilst he was at work at a house in Smithfield. —Mary
ItasteU stated thatdeceiteed was her husband. On Friday last
he was engaged in repairing a water-spout at a shop in
Smithfield, when he was seized with giddiness and fell about
eight feet te the ground. On Saturday afternoon witness upon
seeing her husband much H.OlllO went to Mr. Hutchinson the
medical officer to the union, and was there informed that
they could not attend without an order, and that witness had
better go to the workhouse, or to one of the officers for one.
Witness went to the workhouse, and was told through the
wicket that it was too late—she must come again on Monday
morning. Witness then went home ; and, thinking the de-
ceased would get better, did the best she could herself until
Monday morning, when witness sent for a friend, by whose
assistance the deceased was removed to the hospital ; but he
was tso far gone ; the surgeons gave him a little brandy, but
he died in a short time after his admission. Witness
(crying) : "My husband would have been alive now if I
could have obtained medical assistance. I did the best I
could, for I was not able to pay for advice and medicine.
He was a very healthy man previous to the accident."
Mr. Hagar, the house-surgeon, stated that the deceased was
dying when brought in, and certainly, if medical assistance
had been received sooner, it would have been exceedingly
beneficial to the case. He died from inflammation of the
lungs, no doubt accelerated by the injury he had received to
the ribs by the fait—The Coroner said that some of the me-
dical officers attend occasionally without an order, which, in
many cases, has proved of the most beneficial result.—
Several of the jury here expressed a wish to call some one
from the workhouse to account for the evident neglect —The
Coroner ordered the summoning officer to go immediately to
the workhouse, and ask one of the officers to step over to
give some explanation of the case ; for, if a person is to be
allowed to knock at a wicket for medical aseistance, and to
be told, on a Saturday evening, to call again on Monday tie
individual requiring such aid might die in the meantime,
and what would be the result ? why, the officers of the pa-
rish would be responsible.—The officer returned with Mr.
Wood, who stated that there must have been some mistake
with the wife of the deceased and the man at the gate. They
had elected a man to fill the office of porter that night, and
he believed that the nerson at the gate wee not acquainted
with the " rules of the Muse." If the female hid made en
application to one of the guardians, who resides in the vicinity
of the workhouse, she could have had medical attendance
immediately.—The Coroner remarked on the melancholy
nature of the cue, and said it wasto be regretted that such
a deplorable circumstance had occurred, and that a proper per-
son had not been pieced at the gate to give answers in cases of
urgency. They could not go too fully into cases opoo f this kinwhomd,
for it resulted in the most beneficial way to the r,
he was always anxious should have the best attention when
required. The jury returned for verdict :--" That the de-
ceased met his death accidentally ; at the same time, they
were of opinion that the deceased's death was accelerated by
the want of attention on the part of the medical man and the
guardians of the workhouse In not baying a proper person at
the gate to answer applicants in eases el emergency."

THE COLLISION ON THE SOUTH-WESTERN
RAILWAY.—INQUEST.
Yesterday an inquest was holden by W. Carter,
Esq., coroner for East Surrey, at the Dog and Fox Inn,
Wimbledon, on the body of William Henry Sawyer, aged 28,
late a guard in the service of the South Western Railway

Company
it. Golding, police sergeant, 31 V, deposed that he was on
duty on Wimbledon-common about 10 minutes to 4 o'clock
on Saturday morning, when he heard what he supposed to
be the goods up-train coming up the line at an unusually
slow pace ; it was then, apparently, at West Barnes, a dis-
tance of two miles. The engine appeared to blow, as if she
wanted more power. About four o'clock witness was pass-
ing up Church-lane, when he remarked to a constable that if
the Roods train did not make more speed she would have the
mail train run into her. At this time he heard another train
coming up the line, which he believed to be the mail train,
andpremises whenhe it had arriveddis optinct
whistles as of different
engines, and the steam of one of them was let off. Ile soon
afterwards heard of the accident, and, on going to the spot,
be saw immediately in front of the engine of the mail train
three carriages or trucks, which had been thrown
off the line ; they were very much broken, and
two men were pulling a rope of the centre one, and
asked witness to assist them, as there was a man there lying
, dead. The rope broke, and whilst the men were procuring
I anotherwitness looked into the carriage, which was lying on
its aide, and saw the body of the deceased ; he appeared to
be leaning on a chest, and a bag (apparently of wool) was
at the back part of him, wedged up by a load of goods. At
this time en engine came down on the up line, and a guard,
who came running from it, was asked by one of the passen-
gers of the mail train how the accident occurred, when be
said be had no knowledge of it until he arrived at Nine-
elms, when he missed part of the train, and he then came
down immediately with another engine, to look after the
missing carriages; he said he felt &concussion in the cutting.'
The body of deceased wan got out of the carriage in vest-
ness's presence; he was quite dead. It was witness's im-
pression, from what the guard had stated, that the mail train
had run into the goods train, and that, on the colli-
sion taking place, part of the train got uncoupled,
and the engine, hoeing obtained increased pressure,
proceeded on at once to Nine Elms. Whilst on
the bride witness' did not see daylight, owing to the dense
fog. His impression seas, that when the mail train arrived
the driver saw the red light of the goods train, that he then