The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1890-06-25
INQUEsTs.
County Commissioner Conclude So Many
lnquests are Unnecessary.
SDacial Corresnondenee of the Sfandard-

County Commissioner Conclude So Many
lnquests are Unnecessary.
Special Correspondence OF the Standard.
BUTTE, June Alt Is more than likely
that there will be a big kick when the bills
for the inquest held Q the bodies of
the miners taken from he Anaconda
mine are presented TO the board of county
commissioners. II Is likely also that the
bills will be rejected.
The county commissioners have agreed
that three-fourths of the inquests held in
this county are unnecessary, and IL has
been decided not to allow the
bills FOR Any more inquests unless
the coroner or acting coroner
shows cause why the inquest was neces-
sary. The inquests are costing the county
about $500 per month and for the past
three years the cost Of the coroner's Office
has been about $4,000 a year.
One of the officials of the county said
to-day: "Not one inquest In so ever de-
velops anything that was not known
before the inquest was held. OF course
the law provides for the holding Of an in
quest when the deceased meets death by
unlawful or means. Efforts are
to be made to have the Legislature define
more accurately when inquests shall
be held. They should be held
OF course, In case Of murder or suicide,
and also where there is no telling how a
man died. But that does not justify the
standing in wait for a man to die in order
to hold an inquest over him.
mo long q n man was laying beside
the rack and was struck by an iron bar
of a passing train. A man saw the acc
dem and hence there was no need of an
inquest. But il was held just the anne,
and q physician was called in TO tell how
the knocking out of q mans brains would
eaIISa 1aath Tha nhvSielan sent i'm "a hill
for $25.
rather suddenly recently in East Granite
street. DIR. Whitford was the attending
physician and was summoned to the in
quest. He refused to go on the ground
that the inquest was unnecessary, the
man had died from natural cause n
under his care. DIR. Whitford was not
compelled to appear, but the inquest was
held.
IAN inquest under similar circumstances
was held in Walkerville. The engineer
road the other night met his death in a
manner well known to everyone. No in
quest was necessary but N was held at a
great expense to the county.
1.-THE ~coroner's fee is 50 per day, but with
extra fees in issuing subp9nas, etc., the
bill runs up so that no coroner gets less
h a SO for an inquest, and from that IL
rum up 10 S45. Besides that are the wit
nesses' and jurors fees, and sometimes
expenses for travelling. Each inquest
costs from SIS to Ss5 altogether. The
public receives no benefit. II is very sell
don that anything is discovered by an in
quest, and as l said, they are in most
cases Unnecessary
Ii from a member of the board
that hereafter the bills for the inquests
will be rigidly scrutinized, n reduced 10
the lowest possible sunni; and in every
case il will have to be shown that the in
quest was necessary before the bills will
be paid. There was a case to-day where
a man died suddenly i'm Melrose. There
is a justice Of the peace in Melrose, hui
they sent to Butte for a justice to go Mel
rose to hold the inquest. h increases
the expense greatly and unnecessarily.