The Sun.
London, England, 1865-05-25 00:00:00

CORONERS' INQUESTS.

Dr. Lankester, the coroner for Central Middlesex,
has sent in his second annual report for the central
district of Middlesex, from August 1, 1863, to July
31, 1864, for presentation to the magistrates. The
first portion consists of a table giving an account of
the number of inquests held in the various parishes
in the district in the years ending respectively on
July 1, 1863, and July 31, 1864. From this table
it appears that there were held 1,271 inquests in the
year, making 191 inquests more in the last than in
the former year. This increase has taken place
principally in the parishes of St. Pancras, Maryle-
bone, Islington, Clerkenwell, and St. Giles's, and is
due to two causes,—first, the natural increase of
population ; and secondly, the increased vigilance
of the summoning officers. The increase of the
population of the year has probably been about
25,000, which would give, according to last year's
average, about 40 additional cases. The latter cause
has, however, acted most powerfully. In St. Pan-
cras, Islington, and St. Giles's, where the increase
has been largest, new officers have been appointed,
and there are no longer any complaints of the ne-
glect of inquiry such as he felt bound to refer to in
his last report. So great, in fact, was the abuse and
inconvenience of employing parish constables, ap-
pointed by vestries, that in the case of the parish
of St. Pancras he had reluctantly to insist on his
right to send his warrant for inquests to an officer
of his own selecting.
One of the most noticeable features in the returns,
says Dr. Lankester, is the increase of inquests under
the head of accidental deaths, which amount to the
large number of 70 cases :—" While the increase of
inquests under the head of natural deaths may be
attributed to the causes I have mentioned, I cannot
suppose that deaths from accident have been pre-
viously overlooked. I attribute the increase of ac-
cidental deaths mainly to these causes :—First, the
increased traffic in the streets of London ; just as
the metropolis increases on all sides does the traffic
of its central streets become developed, and either
the carelessness or foolhardiness of drivers of vehi-
cles and foot passengers become the source of acci-
dents destructive of life. Secondly, the enormous
development of building in the centre of London,
employing many thousands of men either in the
destruction of old buildings or in the building of
new ones of unexampled size and extent, undoubt-
edly contributes to a large increase in the number
of accidents. In passing I may observe that,
although in these cases it is seldom that criminal
verdicts are returned, the moral influence of the
Coroner's Court is immense. In a large proportion
of deaths from accidental causes the verdicts are
accompanied with recommendations for the better
security of human life, which in the majority of in-
stances I have reason to know are attended to."
The increase of verdicts under the head of suicide
and homicide is not greater than may be accounted
for by the increase of population. The diminution
of verdicts of " deaths from unknown causes" may
be accounted for by juries more frequently return-
ing verdicts of " wilful murder" in the case of
newly-born children found dead in the streets. In
a second table Dr. Lankester has arranged the in-
quests of the two past years according to the
months. From this it will be seen that there are
decidedly fewer inquests in the months of August,
September, and October. In these months the
average is 160 in the month. In the three follow-
ing months—November, December, and January—
the average increases to 209, while the highest ave-
rage is obtained in February, March, and April,
when they reach 216 in the month. In May, June,
and July this number falls to 197 in the month.
The greatest number of verdicts of " natural death"
are given in the spring and winter months of the
year. Old persons and children suddenly die from
the effects of cold. The greatest number of acci-
dental deaths are met with in the winter and spring
months. The number of inquests in the first six
months of the two years is 408 against 354 in the
last six months. Suicide appears to be the most con-
stant of all the causes of death into which the in=
quests are divided as far as season is concerned.
There is a slight excess observable in the autumn
and winter quarters, being 78 against 64 in the spring
and summer quarters.
Another table gives the number of inquests held
in hospitals, prisons, and lunatic asylumns in the
central district of Middlesex. This table shows that
while the number of inquests held in St. Mary's,
Middlesex, and University College Hospital have
been nearly the same there has been a large increase
at the Royal Free. The Great Northern, which dur-
ing the previous year had been removed from King's-
cross to the Caledonian-road, Islington, and received