Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-12-18 00:00:00

THE N ORTHERN TIMES.-LIVERPOOL, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1857.

AN IRISH CORONER'S INQUEST.

An inquest of an extraordinary nature was held at
Ballyiamesduff, on Saturday, the sth inst., before Dr.
M. Fedeen, of Cootchill, coroner, on the body of a woman
named Margaret Cusack (wife of a respectable shopkeeper
in town), who, it was alleged, died suddenly the previous
evening. A jury of fifteen respectable and ieitelligent men
was sworn. After the nsua i. preliminaries hal been gone
through, and the body viewed, the jury retired to Mr
Smitta's tavern to hear what eri hence would be produced,
aad return their verdict accordingly. Mr. Patrick Cusack,
husband of the deceased, was first witness examined.
After the usual caution had been given himhe said :
Deceased was my wife ;"she was the mother of five children,
and about 36 years old ; sha was ie bad health for the
last three years or more; during the last year she was
considered worse, having frequent attacks of vomiting of
blood, and complaining of a soreness in her side, tied a
great palpatation of the heart ; on Monday last she be-
came much worse and continued so until Friday evening,
when she died. Ca Wednesday evening Pat Smith, is
" bone-setter" by repute, came into my shop to buy some
articles ; he inquired for my wife's health ; I told him she
was very bad, and asked him to see her ; he did so, and
said he would get half a glass of (I think) spirits of salts,
and give her a drop of it in a "dandy of punch" which
he did ; on the following day I gave her a few drops inure
in the same manner, and repeat-d it three or fiur times
before her death ; I think it we's about six drops at etch
time I gave her, she appeared to get much relief from it ;
she got no other medicine ; and about five o'clock the
next morning she had her bed dressed, and whilst sitting
on a chair beside the bed she gat very bed ; I was called
up to the room, and in about ten minutes she died; I
think it was at dr. Williamson's he got the spirits of salts.
Mr. Williamson was sent for, and being sworn, slid, he
had sever sold it—it was not sold in his shop, nor could
it be kept there without his knowledge.
At this stage of the investigation DAtor Coote, the
medical officer entered the room, and said, "Oh Mr.
Coroner, the woman lies got no such t'ing as spirits of
salts, nor any poisonous mediciee—l belLve she got some
spirits of rti•re, which is an excellant medicine, and I am
cure ciuld have done her no harm in her sicknesi."

Pat Cusa7k : Yes, s'r, that was the medicine shs got
turely, but I was so confused I mstoek the name.
Pat Smith, who, it w.s alleged, give the medicine, was
now ex:imine4. His evidence was an exact repetition of
Cusach's, except as to the name of the medicine, which he
said was spirits of nitre.

Doctor Coote sail hi examined the body of deceased,
which was very emaciated ; thire were no external mark.,
nor anything to indicate bad treatment ; is satisfied she
died from natural causes alone.

Coroner : Well, zenqemen, that leaves your duty an
ca-iy one. You 'Qin find that she died from "natural
causes."

Mr. Daffy : If you please, Mr. Coroner, wo will give
our own verdict. I'm sure the jury are of opinion there
was no necessity far an inqu's,..
Coroner: I don't care k hat you think ; I will have
things my own way, or I wil! lock you up till I starve yon.
M-. Murphy : Yon have no right, sir, to endeavour to
intimidate us in that wanner. Why were we summoned
here if you are to dictate to us ? You have insulted the
jury.

Coroner : I never knew a more factious set of psople
than is here. (fhis ex ;r.-.ssion caused great uproar among
the jury, members stindin.-; up to resent it.)
Coroacr : It is a fret that nineteen out of every twnty
men in Ireland have their ;hands raised against the law,
and the gcv,Amment know this, and are anxious to take
advantage of the smallest matter to bind them down.
Afr. Merphy : That is not the fact, sir, and besides it is
whcliy irrevelant. Three—fourth's of tin army now shed-
ding their b!ood in India in defance of "law and order "
are, I regret to say, Irishmen. It is our misfortune tg be
too submissive to the English-made law.
Mr. Duffy : Yon are but wasting our time and your own
by these unseemly dialogues—you have a right to apolrgise
for and retract your expres:ions. We arc neither a
" factio.," nor disposed to be factious ; we will think for
ourselves.

Coroner: I will retract nothing. Any observations I
made had reference only to Mr. Duffy; and (addressing
tha police constable) never summou him on a jury before
me.

Mr. D : I suppose lam not slave enough to subnti
to your dictation.

Several jurors said they would not sit there any longer
to hear sylch language; frami the coroner and request hit
to retire, which he did. After consulting for a few
moments they unanimously agreed to " find" that the
deceased died from natural causes, and that there was no
occasion whatever for an inquest, and describing the con-
duct of the coroner es insulting and derogatory. The
coroter on entering refus2d to take the verdict, and again
said he would lock them up till next morning if they would
not give him a proper verdict. It (he said) I was now
beginning the inquest, I would hava the body_ opened to
sh-rw you what I could do, and what power I have.
Mr. Brdth : You dare not, sir, if you had not the
sanction of the medical officer and the jury, nor without
evidence of same unnatural cilwie.

Coroner : Oh, you have not enough of inquests here ;
if you had more, i would teach you what to do, and (ad-
dressing the constab'e) get up more inquests here, you
have not half enough of them.
The Coroner then retired and the jury having again
consulted, agreed to wri e on the printed form, " That
tho died from natural causes," but appended by way cf
resolution : 'That we, the jury, empanelled before the
vroner, Dr.litFadden, to investigate the cause of the
death of Margaret Cusack, of this town, are of opinion
that the holding an inquest was wholly unnecessary ; that
the conduct of the coroner was most insulting and un-
gentlemanlike, applying the epithet faction 'to them.
and using threats which, to them, appeared derogatory
and mist imnreper.—Signed at Bsllyjamesduff, the sth
day of Deeirnber, 1857, icr self a d fellows,

" PHILLIP REILLY, Foreman."

childhood. .You have been imprisoned twice before—once
for two months, and once for three months. I shall now
send you for three months, with hard labour, and rest
assured that your next offence will be followed by penal
servitude.
The prisoner, who wore an air of sullen melancholy, and
who was attired in a half-sailor costume, was then again
locked up.

THE CRISIS AND THE BANK OF ENGLAND.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE NORTIIERN TIMES.

Sir,—The publication of the Bank Returns from
1845 to 1857, in theNoeTHERN TIMES of the 17th ult.,
furnishes most valuable information, as, at a glance,
it is seen that the directors made money cheap at
home and forced it abroad, until, in 1817, they found
the exodus of the bullion beyond their control. A
similar coarse was pursued up to 1856 and 1857,
and the results must be the same every ten ysars
unless they are compelled by law to retain the
bullion at not less than fifteen millions. Of course
this would reduce the dividends to the proprietors,
but it would effectually allay any undue commer-
cial expansion, and prevent a money panic; this
point has never been dwelt upon in connection
with the repeal of the Usury Laws and the Bank
Act of 1844. So explain my meaning I will, by way
of illustration, revert to the modes of payment
in our home trades ; take, for instance, cotton—
cash in ten days or banker's bill at three months.
Before the repeal of the Usury Laws, money was
always under 5 per cent. ; hence the custom was to
pay in cash, deducting interest at 5 per cent., the
legal rate of interest ; but in 1837, 1847, and now
again its 1557, it will be well to remind Lord Over-
stone that we are again made familiar with the
drafts of Manchester banks on their London agents
at three months, for which the Liverpool merchant
is shaved at the rate of 10 per cent. and a bank
coinnission. Now, when the Usury Laws were
repealed, the legal rate became the current rate of
the Bank of England, whether 2rper cent. or 8 per
cent., and the payments should have been, for all
produce sold to middle men or consumers direct,
cash in 14 days less three months' interest at Bank
of England rate. At present the merchant has not
only to meet his own bills, but to run the risk of
endorsing bankers' paper, doubling his floating
liabilities. No member of Parliament ever
alluded to the action of the bank screw on
what Lord Overatone himself must admit should
be considered paper as good as gold, and far more
convenient; but to convert Jones, Loyd, and Co.
on Jones, ,Loyd, and Co , at three months, could
not for one week be discounted at all, and only
since at from 10 to 12 per cent. Our merchants
should, therefore, alter the terms of contract in
their sales' notes, and our Legislature should
compel all mortgagers of ships to be liable for the
tradesmen's bills for stores supplied. This would
stop much mischief, and bring the payments to
cash, or, if in bills, there would be the security of
the ship-freight.—Yours, ONE OF 1819.
Birkenhead, December 17th, 1857.

THE CURRENCY.

EXAMINATION OF SHIPMASTERS.

LETTER 11.

REV. J. K. GLAZEBROOK IN REPLY TO
REV. JOHN MACNAUGHT.