The Sun.
London, England, 1863-10-14 00:00:00

Strange and Suspicious Death in St. Luke's.

Yesterday morning Mr. H. Raffles - Walthew, de-
puty coroner, resumed at the Pitman's Arms Tavern,
Pitman's-buildings, S.
Luke's, the inquest respect-
ing the death of an infant
child.
It appeared from the evidence taken on the pre-
vious occasion, that
on Friday week Dr. Bruce was
Mrs. Roys, called in to see a the wife of a clerk, at
4, Norway-street, who
was suffering from small-
pox. She had given birth
and the child, after living to deceased the day prior,
14 hours, was found dead,
with a mark of a ligature around the throat. The
tongue protruded, and blood issued from the nose.
Dr. Bruce said that theappearances presented were
not such as could have
arisen
from suffocation, but
rather from strangulation, It It was stated that no
mark of a ligature had beenbirvisible around the child's
birth, neck at the time of its at which, however, no
medical man was present, th
Mrs. A. Cameron, only assistant being
a mid Rife, She had given a cer-
tificate of the death of the child, and alleged that
the fact of the child was of prematuret birth justified
her doing so. She stated that in her opinion the
more child could not have lived than a few days in
any case, and that its death arose entirely from its
having been prematurely born_
Mr. W. Roys, 4, Nerway.piaee, said that he had
called in Dr. Bruce, because some of his children
had taken the small-pox- it was tzi
same disease.
thethen found that
the mother of the deceased
The deceased was born on Thursday Week, and died
on the Friday.
Dr. Bruce said that he had made a post-mortem
examinaticn of the deceased child,
He found that
the deceased was au eight months'
child.
lived. It
There was
no natural reason why it should not have
was well developed. There was a
ell-marked ox,
Were
coriation on the throat. There wef:) contused marks
around the nape of the neck, The brain was
healthy, but gorged with blood, as
"
lungs. The other organs were healthy.\ There
also the
ere were
internal injuries corresponding to the outward
marks on the neck. Death resulted
ftedrom violence.
Suffocation and overlaying would
not have pro-
duced death in such a manner. It was impossible
have been caused
to suppose that such violence could
accidentally. It appeared to
him
a thatd
the fingers
squeezed the child's
neck had been grasped from behind, n
had then grasped the throat and the jugu-
lar veins and the arteries. If murder was intended
it must have been a skilled person that effected the
death in that way.
Mrs. Cameron recalled, said that thecertificate
which she gave of the child's deathors. tated that death
examineddvied
the
child
was from convulsions. She had n
child. It was a mistake that the in 14
hours after birth. She noticed that the child'sjaw
had been tied up when she saw it, which
unusual. When witness gave the certificatewas very
she
did not know that Dr. Bruce had been in the house.
She had no idea that the child had died from vio-
lence, as the mother Was as enacted as she (wit-

nest') herself.
The Coroner said that no charge had been made
against the mother as yet. It WtlB most improper for
a midwife to give a etvtificate of death in such a case.
Pr. Bruc© PRid that he was only told about the
child's lying dead by a lodger in the house, who
complained of the danger of having a dead body in

the house for four days. He was merely called in
because there was small-pox in the house.
Mr. Roys recalled, said that on Friday night he
lay down on the bed where the child was. It was
very restless, and was crying through the night.
It suddenly ceased crying. It was then on its
mother's arm. He asked her if it was breathing,
as it was so still. She then said it was dead.
By the Court—Witness was last a clerk to a
trades' protection society. He had been twelve years
ago assistant to a chemist. Six years ago he dis-
pensed for a surgeon, He had been out of regular
employment for ten or twelve months. He was at
present earning only a precarious living. His wife
had employment. She was a bookfolder. Witness
had taken the child up about four o'clock, and
walked about with it to try and pacify it. It was
about half an hour after that deceased ceased crying.
The coroner said that the case was a most extra-
ordinary one. The doctors both agreed that the child
had died from great violence, and from skilful vio-
lence. He should adjourn the court until such time
as the mother should be sufficiently recovered to
attend.
The proceedings were adjourned accordingly.

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

CALCUTTA AND SOUTH-EASTERN.

A special general meeting of this company was
held yesterday at the office, Gresham House, Old
Broad•street ; Mr. J. Borradaile in the chair.
Mr. ADAMS wished to know whether they had
feielfed any traffic returns ?

Ml
rir.
The CHAIRMAN said they had received same ex-
tending over six weeks, and that the expenses had
exceeded the receipts by £766, but he believed that
the
txaffie had-sinew improved. When, the resolu- ,
tioa that he had to submit was brought before them
for confirmation at a future meeting, he trusted
that further information would be laid before them
as to the traffic. The Government had consented to
authorise the company to raise a farther sum of
£lOO,OOO for completing the undertaking, the out-
lay being subject to the approval of the local Go-
vernment in India. The company had already
exceeded its powers by £31,526 for useful works.
The additional capital was required to provide
station accommodation and to complete the jetty
and other works at the Mutlah terminus. Sir C.
Wood had authorised the company to raise the
£lOO,OOO by the issue of inconvertible debentures at
41 per cent. per annum. The authorised capital
amounted to £400,000, and the additional sum they
proposed to raise would increase the share and loan
capital of the company to £500,000. He concluded
by reeving a formal resolution authorising the direc-
tors to borrow on debentures a sum not exceeding
£lOO,OOO for a period of seven years, not exceeding
AnitecsetismsaArNy.seconded the motion.
I n Y
6 per cent. interest, and renewable for a further
toperiod Mr. HARTRIDGE it was stated that
the u
was 281 miles in length from Calcutta to
the Mutlah, or 30 miles including sidings. They
had no project for a dock or market. The jetty
was in progress, and the local authorities had under-
taken the construction of a market, which would be
finished next year. Those were all the works con-
templated under the guarantee. A graving dock
would be important, and also a branch railway in a
Eouth-eastern direction to a populous district, but
by a separate capital, assisted by a
such eelViipPfriojeete for developing the traffic must be
c
Government Mr. ADAMS thought they should not sanction the
outlay
any more money. The original capital had
ol
subsidy.
t
been
£400,000, and was now proposed to be further in-
creased to
1500,000. That, he feared, would leave
no chance of getting more than 5 per cent., as they
werepromised 10 per cent:on a capital of £350,000.
After carried
as to the necessity of the proposed outlay
to putai ri
n h
some observations from Mr. Wilde and the
Choaiyfldz o
ef a
at £350,000, but it had been increased to
line in a perfect state of efficiency, the
resolution was carried unanimously, and the meeting
separated.
—__
tane