The Sun.
London, England, 1842-09-12 00:00:00

DISTRESSING SUICIDE.

On Saturday evening, at half-past six o'clock, a
Jury of the inhabitants of Knightsbridge and Ken-
sington were empannelled before Mr. Higgs, Deputy
Coroner for Westminster, at the Half-way House
Inn, on the Kensington-road, to inquire into the
death of Mr. George Colebatch, jun., silk broker in
the City, residing at No. 1, Upper Kensington-gore,
who was found in bed in a dying state, with a pistol•
shot wound in the head, on the morning of Friday last.
The Jury having viewed the body, which was lying
at the residence of the deceased's father, the following
evidence was adduced :

Mr. Edgar Barker deposed that he was a surgeon,
and was in partnership with Mr. Loader, in the Edg-
ware-road. Mr. Loader was a relative of the de-
ceased, and had attended the family for ,years.
Mr. Loader, who was at present out of town, had
attended the deceased about six months ago for an at-
tack of insanity. It was an attack of delirium tremens,
a particular form of insanity, under which the unfortu-
nate patients are subject tofurious paroxysms. Witness
saw deceased when he was in a state of convalescence
about four months ago. Deceased, during the attack,
required personal restraint. From that attack the
defendant got apparently quite free, and resumed his
ordinary occupation in the City, and had not been
under medical treatment since that period, although
he believed deceased had since laboured under some
singularities of mind. On the morning of Friday last
the mother of the deceased came to witness's house in
a flv, about half-past nine o'clock, and told him that
she- had found the deceased that morning lying in
bed, covered with blood, with a pistol lying by his
side, and that she had immediately got into a fly to
apprise him of it. Witness instantly returned with
her, and reached the house in about three-quarters of
an hour after the discovery. On entering the bed-
room witness found the deceased in the state that
had been described to him by Mrs. Colebatch. He
was covered with blood, and was sensible, but inco-
herent. He was about to.examine the source of the
bleeding, when he found a small pistol-shot wound (as
it appeared to him to be) at the deceased's right
ear.--(The pistol was produced—a very small pocket
pistol, not above four inches long.) Witness believes
it to be the same that he saw lying on the bed. The
hammer was down, and it appeared as if recently
discharged. Witness asked the deceased how it had,
happened, but deceased was too incoherent to give
any account. Witness, findin g that to be the case
sent to Dr. Phelps's Lunatic Asylum at Kensington
for one of the keepers, who had attended deceased
before, who came, and witness, having done every-
thing for the deceased to make him as comfortable as
his condition would allow, left the deceased with his
mother. No one was in the house when deceased
was first found but his mother and the female servants.
By. the Foreman—Did not seek to trace the ball,
and had no doubt but that it was in deceased's skull
at that moment. Two hours after witness left de-
ceased a fresh attack of hcemorrhage occurred,' and he
rapidly sunk until he died. Witness's opinion was,
that it was the deceased's own -act, and that at the
time he was in a state of insanity. He thought the
ball had penetrated to the centre of the skull.
Some of the Jury said, in their opinion, in a case
of such emergency, a medical man residing close to
the spot ought to have been fetched, instead of wait-
ing to send such a distance.
Elizabeth Markham deposed that she lived in the
service of the father of the deceased, who resided at
No. 1, Upper Kensington-gore. She had known the
deceased, who was twenty-five years of age, from his
childhood. He was a silk broker. During the last
three or four days he had looked moodily. He had
been to the City on the day previous to his death,
and dined with his mother alone. He was then
moody, and scarcely spoke. He went to bed that
night about ten o'clock, his usual hour. On Friday
morning, about half-past eight o'clock, his mother,
not hearing the deceased up, _went to his room. She,
however, immediately returned down stairs, and told
witness to go up with her. Witness did so, and found
deceased as has been described. Witness stayed with
deceased while Mrs. Colebatch got the fly and went
for the doctor. While she was gone, witness had great
difficulty in keeping the deceased in bed. He wanted
to get; up and go to town.
By the CORONER—Deceased was always sober in
his habits, and generally took nothing but water. He
died about three o'clock the same afternoon. Mr.
Barker came but once before deceased died. Mr. Cole-
batch, sen., was in town on Thursday. He did not re-
turn home at night. He was not fetched on Friday
until after deceased was dead. He had no conversation
with the deceased as to his shooting himself.
The COLONER here put it to the Jury whether they
c-1-, 2. it necessary to hams the feelings of Mrs.
Colebatch by examining her.
The Jury co/Adored they had had sufficient cvi..