The Sun.
London, England, 1836-01-25 00:00:00

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CORONER'S INQUESTS:

Friday evening, at eight o'clock, an inquest was held
at the Hare and Hounds, Buckeridge-street, St. Giles's
commonly called the Rookery), before Mr. STIRLING, on
view of the body of a man unknown; apparently about 60
years of age, who died of starvation and the extreme of
human privation, in the manner detailed in the following
evidence.

Previous to the examination of witnesses, the Jury, at
their own particular wish, proceeded to view the deceased's
body, which lay stretched on the floor of a filthy empty attic
of the house where the inquiry took place, and a more heart-
; rending, appalling spectacle never was witnessed. The
body of the unhappy man was reduced to a completi::skele-
ton—filthy in the extreme, and the few tattered garments
. that Lung about his emaciated frame swarmed with vermin.
f On the Jury re-assembrng in the inquest-loom, the investi-
gation touching the truly deplorable occurrence was prc-
cee led in.
Mary Williams, a widow woman, residing at the Hare
and Hounds, deposed that within the last week or ten days
she had seen the deceased about the house. He appeared
in the utmost state of destitution. He walked with great
difficulty, and that with the aid of a st;cl. Witness corn-
passioned his forlorn condition, but:was too poor to relieve
his distresses. The poor old man had been frequently
turned out of public and lodging houses in the neighbour-
hood, owing to his filthy state. Upon many occasions the
deceased had at different hours of the night crawled up to
the attic, in which he lay dead, unknown to the landlord.
On Tuesday he told witness that he had not tasted food for
two days, at which time she considered that he was quite
,light-headed. She gave him a piece of bread, which be
devoured voraciously ; but the result of which was, that be
was afterwards seized with a fit of coughing, which witness
thought would have ended fatally. About one o'clock on
Wednesday morning he came from the street, and got into
the attic unobserved by ail, except witness. On the follow-
ing morning witness found him dead and cold. The parish
surgeon saw the body soon afterwards.
By the Jury—The deceased told me that he had been in
the service of a Lord for many years, during which time he
resided in the parish of Marylebone. I never knew his
name.
.On my inquiring of him why he did not apply for
parish relief, he said he was ashamed to make any applica-
tion in the wretched state he was in.
The CORONER observed that in all his experience so
dreadful a case had never come under his notice, ,And in-
quired of the beadle whether the unfortunate man had ever
applied to the parish of St. Giles for assistance, who replied
in the negative. •
John Banks, the landlord of the Hare and Hounds, and
other individuals, spoke to the starved, destitute condition
of the deceased prior to his dissolution,
Mr. Buss, surgeon of St. Giles's workhouse, gave his de-
cided opinion that the deceased died from the want of the -
common necessaries of life.

•
The Jury, after making some observations, returned a
verdict—" That the deceased died of starvation."
On Saturday afternoon, Mr. STIRLING and a respectable
Jury assembled at the Pied Bull Tavern, near Islington
Church, to inquire into the circumstances attending the
death of Robert Capel, who was killed by the explosion at
the new Islington Market.
James George Brain, a carpenter, residing in the Lower-
road, Islington, said he knew the deceased, who was 39
years of age, and he saw him last alive on Saturday se'n-
night ; deceased was in the employ of Mr. Gerrish, and was
at work at some iron building materials in the new cattle-
market ; witness on Thursday night, just after twelve, while
in his own house, heard an explosion in the market-place,
whither he hastened, and he found the engine and a great
portion of the brick-work about where it had stood all in
ruins. Witness, understanding that, some persons were
missing, immediately made a search for them, and he dis-
covered the deceased first ; the body had a most frightful
appearance, one leg and thigh having been torn completely
out of the socket, the head smashed, and the body rent
open. Another sufferer, whose name is Sergeant, was
found lying some distance from the spot ; he was insensible,
and had sustained very dreadful injury about the head.
Hockin, the third individual that was hurt, was running;
about the.•grounds, he was shockingly disfigured, and it
seemed that the explosion had deranged his intellect, as he
was crying out, '• What is matter ? Where am I?" Wit-
ness procured a hackney-coach, and removed Sergeant "and
Hocklin to St. Bartholomew's Hospital, where they now
remain.

Francis William Gerrish, engineer, No. IG, East-road,
City-road, said that at twelve o'clock on Thursday night
the workmen left off work to have supper, and he was at
/the time superintending the engine, one of the men in-
formed him that one of the straps was loosened, and wit-
ness was in the act of tightening it, when the boiler unfor-
tunately burst ; he was thrown down and hurt a little, but
crawled out of the rubbish. The conical end of the- oiler
was shivered to atoms, and a large oak pillar stationed near
the boiler carried to a great distance into the adjoining
field. He could not account for the accident. He had a
thorough knowledge of steam-engines, but when he pur-
chased the one in question, his millweight accompanied him,
and they could see no fault in it ; since the accident, how-
ever, be had discovered that one of the stays to support the
front was a little cracked, and appeared to be an old flaw,
and tl:is bar had given way _through being faulty. He
bought the boiler as a second-hand one, with the assurance
that it had only been worked once, but; he had discovered
since the accident that it had been mended.
The Jury expressed themselves satisfied with the evidence
adduced without calling in additional witnesses, and then
stated that they were all of opinion that there was no blame
attributable to any party whatever who were engaged in
working the engine, and the occurrence wad accidental.
A verdict to that effect was recorded.
The deceased was a hard-working man, and had only
been married eight months.