The Sun.
London, England, 1837-06-26 00:00:00

CORONERS' INQUEST.

On Saturday night, at nine o'clock, an inquest was held
before Mr. BAKER and a respectable Jury, at the sign of the
Cape of Good Hope. Limehouse, to investigate the circum-
stances attending the death of Mary Driscoll, aged forty
years, and her female infant. The inquiry took place at the
instigation of the medical gentleman who attended the de-
ceased, to rrevent any false rumours which might arise in
consequence of an important operation performed on the mo-
ther, post mortem, but which, unfortunately, was not attended
with success.

Mrs. Hannah Williams knew the deceased, and saw her
almost every day. On Friday last she was sent for to see the
deceased, whom she found in bed, evidently in a dying state.
She was in a very advanced state of pregnancy. On being
sent for witness presumed the deceased was in labour, but on
her arrival she found such was not the case, nor were there
any symptoms of it. The deceased died within about half an
hour after she arrived. Mr. Johnstone, the surgeon, was
there, and paid every attention to the deceased. He subse-
quently performed an operation, though ineffectually; still, in
her opinion, with great skill.

By the Jury—Had seen the deceased alive and well the day
previous, and going about as usual. The deceased a short
time before she died stated that a few days before she had
been washing a blanket, and in lifting a large iron pot from
the fire, with hot water in it, she felt something give way
within her, which at the time she thought would be her death.
Mr. Charles Johnstone, of the Commercial-road, surgeon,
was first called to attend the deceased on Thursday evening ;
he had seen her previously the same morning, having a pa.
tient to visit in the same house. At that time she corn.
plained to him of a violent constipation of the bowels, which
had continued without interruption for ten days ; he then sent
her some castor oil ; when sent for in the evening she was la-
bouring under violent inflammation of the bowels ; he then
ordered other medicines. On Friday morning early he again
saw her, and bled her ; the symptoms under which she was
labouring still increasing, other measures were then resorted to
to relieve her, but without effect ; the unfortunate sufferer at
that time was in such a state that the pressure of the bed
clothes caused most excruciating pain ; she became delirious,
got out of bed, and walked down stairs ; saw her again in a
few hours, and found she was most rapidly sinking; he went
home to get some stimulant medicine, and was absent ten mi-
nutes, but in the interim she had expired. Knowing that the
deceased was near her confinement he considered it necessary
that an endeavour should be made to save the child ; but not
wishing to perform the operation without previously consul-
ting some other medical gentleman on the subject, he sent for
Mr. liens, a neighbouring surgeon, but that gentleman being
from home and every moment then being of consequence, ho
performed the necessary operation, and extracted the child
within ten minutes after the death of the mother. The child,
however, was quite dead, and evidently was so before the ope-
ration was performed.

The COT2ONER said that Mr. Johnstone had conducted him-
self in a very proper manner in a case of such emergency, and
that he was also quite right in instituting that inquiry.
The Jury acquiesced, and returned a verdict in both cases of
" Natural death."