The Sun.
London, England, 1818-07-24 00:00:00

DISTRESSING SUFFOCATION.

Wednesday last, an Invest was held at Wool-
wich. before Mr. CARTTAR, one of the Coroners
for Kent, on view of the bodies of John Wright,
John Donovan, and Hugh Jenkins, who were
suffocated in a privy on the preceding night.
Richard Kingsland said, that on the preceding
night, between eleven and twelve o'clock, he wag
assisting Hogh Jenkins, John Donovan, John
Wright, and several others, in emptying .the
from the privy of the house occupied by the Master-
Attendant in the Dock-yard at ‘Voolwich. They
had got about ten buckets of the soil out, when -a
man of the name of James Brooks, who was
in the hole, fell down on the soil, upon which
Hugh Jenkins, one of the deceased, called out
there was a man down, and Immediately,a ladder
was got, and Jenkins wEnt down it to the assist-
ance of Brooks, when he also tell, and was soon
suffocated by the vapour or stench arising from
the soil.—Before Jenkins was known to be dead,
a man of the name of Isaac Pitcher %vent down
to try to assist, when lie also was overpowered by
the vapour, anti became insensible. Hereupon
John Donovan went down, and the effluvia had
the same effect on him ; he tell, and was also suf-
focated by it. G. Parish, another of the workmen,
then went down with the intent of rescuing his
fellow-labourers, when he was attacked in the same
way, but was caught up by Win. Leman, and
saved. Soon afterwards, John Wright, a watch-
man, whom he had called to assist, being anxious
to extricate the five poor men who were then in
the hole, went down the ladder, but he was affect-
ed in the same way, and suffocated. A Man of
the name of Denis Daley then ventured down the
ladder, when he also tell. By this time several
of the yard watchmen had come to their as-
sistance ; they had plenty of lights, and the
bodies of Hugh Jenkins, John Donovan,
John Wright, James Brooks, George Pat ish,
Isaac Pitcher, and Denis Casey, were taken
out of the hole. The first two were found
to be dead ; John Wright lived about two hours,
and then died, and the remaining four were reco-
vered by the Surgeon of the Yard and his assist-
ant. The time that was occupied by this melan-
choly event was about two hours. The above evi-
dence was generally confirmed by Lieut. Renwick
and Edward Burr.

Robert Dunn, surgeon of the Dock-yard, said

he was called about- half-past eleven o'clock on
Tuesday night, to assist the men ; he found seve-
ral persons endeavouring to get them out of the
hole, and when they were extricated, two of theta
were found dead, but White lived about two

hours. Witness had no doubt their deaths were
occasioned by suffocation from the stagnant va-
pour.—Verdict, Accidentally smothered by the
noxious vapour of the vault.

DREADFUL DEATH.—Yesterday, an Inquest was
held in Assembly-row, Mile-end, on the body of
Wiiliam Hill, aged three years. It appeared, trona
the evidence of Jane Monday, servant to Mr.
Hill, the deceased's father, and Mr. Edward
Castle, surgeon, that in consequence of the pa•
rents of the unfortunate deceased having occasion
to go into the country, the child was lett entirely
to the care of the above female witness, who ge.
nerally kept him in the kitchen ; and on Tuesday
morning she went up stairs, and left the deceased
sitting on her chair in the kitchen ; in a short
time after she heard the child cry out " Jane,"
and his cries led witness to go down stairs as fast
as possible, when she found the deceased with h.•
mouth burned in a dreadful manner; there was
a chair by the side of th 9 dresser, which the de•
ceases had managed to climb on, by which means
it reached a bottle of vitriol, which Mr. Hill pro•
cured for making blacking, and drank a great
quantity of it. A surgeon was instantly sent for ;
but the child was dead shortly after taking the
vitriol. The deceased's inside was burned in a
shocking manner.—Verdict, Accidentally poisoned
himself.