New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-11-22
through the window. the ball crushing thoueh MI Cum
mon az tempe and killing him instantly
THE DWIGHI INSURANCE CASE.
SOME INTERESTING TESTIMONY BY DOCTORS ABOUT
TIE AUTOPSY.
my TELEGRAPH TO TIE TRIBUNE.l

my TELEGRAPH TO THE IRlBUNE'l
NoRw1cu. n. Y, Nov. 21.-Dr. John SWIM
hurnc Mayor Of Albany, who closed his testimony IN lho
Drbt insurance ease yesterday afternoon. by stating
that in his opinion the body on which he asssteu III
li, a., artopsv was not that OF Colonel Dwight, ana
that the body he examined TO Its death by srang
lat,on with rome continued his testimony this morning.
The certificate Of the autopsy was then producedahu o
os tosti0cd that his signature attached was genuine
but that material changes had been made since aAlhB
his name The paper was not received az e'lucncc'
Thomas W. whitney, of Bnghamton, TESTIFIED tnaV
Dwight once told nm "a Hih hisN' 40 w"
TO be poor" u,o
p T. Rurbaus. Of BnghamtOn, who represented the
NctroDoan Life Insurance Company OF New-forK' LOT
warlcd an application OF Insurance 10 that company
upon Dwghts life, upon which they issued polcy, anu
afterward requested him TO return the same aA IL We"
tssucd uuon missatcmcns made In the application lie
rendered Dwight the premium already pau' DuV D"Is"
declined TO surrender the policy.
Dr Uoratio C. Wood Of Philadelphia said that he was
member of the National Academy of Sciences ana h'u
written many works on medical and scientific subjects
had nndc udrcds Of auopscS and In almost all cases
trd o,ec. NJ death from indications found after death
the symptoms cOngcsye chills and maaIi
aisa5s he dcscTiIrd the fulrOw made the body eH
Pp,,iUnJ. and I'm bs opinion said death caused by
stranculatOn He gave his knowledge n 10 PcIrrula
ba%@ Themselves In bed and cited several authorities
n~ t6of su,cct He made a microscopic examination OF
the different organs and found the h'alt anu ~,
healthy. Hcwds unable 10 uc7cIlpc wv i"i'' 'o " W.
Dr. Benjamin F. sherman, Of ogdensb,urg, ,l
described hi, opportunities OF medical educa
tiCn and practice He claimed TO be an expert
in microscopic examinations; he had examined m 1T "a
portions o Dwichts heart and found II healthy nc W
present at the COrOncrs inquest, hut hd changed is
opuon somewhat since then ~ Ia cause OF his dcath ms
as Dr SWnburne's. lie exhibited diagrams OF Dwlgh
room and the bed IN which Dwight died In rcPy
TO a hypothetical question IN REGARD 10
the Of DwiChts death, he SAID the cause "a 10
phyxia, resulting rom hanging win . rope: c, q, ,,,
Dr. Elisha II. Bridges, o OsdcnsbhI' Whuh'u 10 'ulh
ing examinations of about the same character a thr pre-
ccding witness and gave the same answer 10 lho hSlo
thetical question.
When Colonel Walton Dwight Of Binghamton' " u
died November d. 1875 he had insurance ON his life III
twenty companies, amounting altogether TO S42o'Ooo'
After investigation into the circumstances OF his
last illness the NcwYork Equitable Life and the Home
insurance companies paid the policies which thcy
had Issued each for $4,000 All Of the other companies
refused; and Anna NJ Dwight widow and cXccntry, sued
o recover insurance OF the eases were brouGt In
n, Fcdcr1l courts and some In the state ouil, fof ioui
of tho latter change OF yruu" tom Brnunc % lhcndhEp
County was secured The first orc to - tried Is thai OF
Dwight agaIuet the OCrWHul,- when wrote ppu'y
of 900 on Colonel Dwights lie; and TINS l. p''u
cly test case. Proceedings are watched win interest
moi oul. by the other Ngut~ uIi lN Insurance men gen
orally III. ALLEGED That Dwir secured insurance fraud
rllcuilv. having three years before these
puc. were issued had bad cough, spit blood, reared
l. 90 IN swimming without an attendant, been intrnpgf
ate and was otherwise In worse condition iIyrltdly
the companies 10 suppose. II appear IN
surlurc- on his M huf most ~ The cpupail' clilrr tc
fused or having i-.ucd policies, recalled lh'm promptly
after went through bankruptcy Hud ai ihNi inr
let his Insurance lapse. Eut IN ISIS, shortly ur!ur' hr
died br had secured Si2OOOO Of iu uurdnec. some
doubt. tctLuri. too concerning Tho cause
death, which, his wife alleged, was rt~i" FEVER