The Sun.
London, England, 1866-09-17 00:00:00

CHARGE OF INHUMANITY AGAINST THE

MASTER AND MATRON.

This morning at nine o'clock Mr. Humphreys, the Mid-
dlesex coroner, resumed the inquiry into the circum-
stauces connected with the death of Thomas Nichols, aged
seven years, son of a ropemaker, residing in Silkhill-court,
Hackney-wick, at the Town-hall, Church-street, Hackney.

As on the previous occasion the inquiry caused con-
siderable excitement and interest, and the case was watched
by a number of vestrymen and guardians of the parish
with the keenest interest.

Mr. Daniels watched the case on behalf of the master
and matron, and Mr. J. J. Merriman, instructed by the
Rope and Twine Spinners Society, attended on behalf of
the parent of the deceased child.

It will be in the recollection of our readers that when
the inquiry was first opened on Friday last, the evidence
taken went to show that the deceased child was taken
with the symptoms of incipient cholera at about eight
o'clock on the previous Monday evening, it was at once
seen by Dr. Vinall, the parish surgeon, who at once wrote
an order for the child's admission into the " iron house,"
or building, and as a cholera ward for the union, and gave
it to Mr. Jones, one sub-inspector of the sanitary commit-
tee to go with the father of the child, and see the order
carried out. The father carried the child on his back to
the workhouse, and. on his arrival there both master and
matron refused to admit the child, and the assistant of the
house surgeon, who happened to be in the workhouse at
the time, ran out and fetched Dr. Summers, the district
medical officer, who lived close by, and who came directly,
and upon seeing the child, immediately gave a verbal order
to the matron for its admission, and finding that was not
attended to, he went into the porter's lodge and wrote an
order to the same effect, which he gave to the matron,
who put it down on the bench, saying the master would
see it when he came. When the master came he, too, re-
fused to take any notice of the orders of the medical offi-
cers, his superiors, and insisted upon the child being taken
away, although it was alleged that there was plenty of
vacant beds, some seven or eight, in the cholera ward at
the time. The result was that the child gradually got
worse, and after having been kept waiting in the cold
drafty yard of the Union for three-quarters of an hour,
was sent off by the master a distance of about a mile and a
half in the Union cab to the German Hospital, where it
arrived at 20 minutes past ten, and was at once admitted
and attended to by the house surgeon; but his efforts to
save the child's life wore unavailing, as it died the next
morning.

Upon the opening of the inquiry the first witness exa-
mined was,
Mrs, Hitchcock, the nurse at the workhouse. Her evi-
dence corroborated that of the other witnesses detailed
above.

In cross-examination by Mr. Merriman, she said that
there was no resident medical officer, and it took about
three-quarters of an hour to send for Dr. Miller, the house-
surgeon. There were general instructions for the treat-
ment of cholera patients, and she would have treated the
case in question if she had been allowed.

By Mr. Ellis—l have seen many cholera patients, and-I
think it was necessary to take the child and put him in
warm flannels and fomentations.

By Mr. Daniels—l send for Mr. Summers in all urgent
cases. Ho generally comes within about half-an-hour. 1
do not remember a case of a man dying of cholera not
being seen by a medical man. I recollect the case of the
man Cole, who died in the Union. I do not think it is
generally two or three hours before the medical officer
comes.

Ann Driscol, matron of the workhouse, was next sworn.
She deposed—l remember the child being brought on Mon-
day last, between its father and a female. I had the order
and took it to the master, who said it must bo sent to the
German Hospital. I told the porter to go and order the
fly, and he sent an old man. Fearing the old man would
not be quick enough, I ran up the front steps and unlocked
the private way, and said, "Be quick, my good man, be
quick." The female said to me when I got back to the
gateway, " What is to be done with this baby ?" and find-
ing it belonged to the same family, I asked the master
and ho said, "Admit it at once," and I took it to a ward
and had it attended to. Mr. Oxley said the other child
ought to be admitted, and I said I was carrying out the
orders of the master. He went and fetched Dr. Summers.
Dr. Summers said the child ought to be admitted, and went
into the porter's room, and came out with an order in his
hand and said, "Read this." I said I could not, the master
would see it wliten he came ; ho would be there directly.
I could not read the order because I had nGt my glasses.
By the Coroner—The child was kept about 20 minutes
waiting.

By Mr. Ellis—Mr. Oxley, the nurse, and Dr. Summers
all three of whom said the child ought to be admitted at
once. Mr. Oxley spoke very sharply to me.
By Mr. Merriman—l am not bound to answer the ques-
tion whether I and the nurse were on bad terms.

The Coroner having summed up the evidence,
The•room was then cleared, and the jury remained de-
liberating an hour and a half. They returned the follow-
ing verdict :—" That the deceased died from cholera, and
that his death was accelerated through the exposure at the
workhouse, and that his removal to the workhouse was an
error of judgment on the part of the master."