The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-01-01
CORONER'S FINAL REPORT
DIR. BRAYTON DISCUSSES THE WORK
OF LAST TERM.
Summary of the Statistics of Violence
shows Value OF the Coroner's
Omce-DetaiIs.

Coroner Brayton reviews the work or MS
Office during the past year. DIR. Brayton
will be succeeded this morning by Harry
w. TutewiIer, recently elected to the Of
flee. Some of the interesting statistics OF
Coroner Brayton's report as follows:
Six hundred and ifty-seven cases were
investigated during the two-year term, SO5
9 n nrst year ana y4S eal ata haye been
males and 106 females. FOrty-two or that
number were colored, eleven irish, nine
Germans, four Jews, one Italian, one chi
nese. and the rest classed as Americans.
Thirty-four deaths OF children were inves-
tigated in less than one year. The ages or
the bodies examined are tabulated Dy
Coroner Brayton as follows: Eleven. one to
five: hfty-three, five to Twenty-Five; one
hundred and fifty-four, twenty-five TO six
~; forty-two. sixty to seventy; thirteen.
seventy TO eighty, and ten of the deaths
were people over eighty years of age.
Forty cases were examined at the City
hospital; seven at 81. Vlncents InhrmaFy,
seven at the Central Indiana Hospital for
Insane; one at the Deaconess Hospital; one
at the Little Sisters of the Poor, and one
Of the s4s cases there were twenty-eight
suicides, eighteen men and nine women.
Seven found dead by morphine: one by
by arsenical poisoning; two from hanging;
five shot themselves; two by strychnine;
one by hydrocyanic acid, and one by
chlorofOrm.
Three accidental shooting cases were in
vestigated, ten deaths by drowning-four
of which were attacked by cramps while
cases resulting in death were Investigated.
street car collided with two Belt trains
at South East street, killing the conductor
of street car and the brakeman of one OF
the trains. Three happened at crossings;
two were walking on steps of open cars and
missed their hold; two women jumped on
the car before the car stopped, and three
were knocked from their wagons. Two
were employees of the street-car company
RAILROAD ACCIDENTS.
Out of the 34S cases investigated, thirty
one were railroad cases. Eleven were en-
ployes; ten occurred on crossings; three
were cases of boys stealing rides; two were
on railroad companys right of way. The
railroads on which the deaths occurred
were: Big -Four, thirteen; Belt Railroad.
four; Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton, four;
Vandalia, three; Panhandle. four; Indian
apolis & Vincennes, two, and Monon, one.
Two cases of murder and suicide hap
shot his wife, then himself, and Pleasant
Pruitt shot his wife and then killed himself.
Andrew Deiss cut his wife's throat, intend
ing to kill her, but failed. He then drank
carbolic acid and died.
MURDER CASES.
The coroner has Investigated eight cases
OF murder. Della Copenhaver was shot to
death by her husband. who afterwards tel.
ephoned 10 the police to come after him.
Copenhaver was sentenced to death. Charles
Hubbard shot and killed Gus Monroe.
Hubbard was sentenced to prison for life.
Raphael CornpiteI was stabbed to death
by Joseph Spalding. Spalding received
life sentence. Daniel Sullivan, of Bright
wood, was killed Oct. 10 with some heavy
instrument in fight with Mr. and Mrs.
William Caldwell. Caldwell was sentenced
TO two years and Mrs Caldwell discharged.
Pack Williams shot and killed wallace
Powell Christmas afternoon.
Three murders have occurred in which
the murderers have escaped. A Chinese,
Dong Cong Tshun, was cut to death by
an unknown person. He received ten
strokes by a cleaver, cutting his throat.
Henry A. Rosengarten, Merchant police,
was shot by some unknown person. Ben
jamin Kersting, restaurant keeper, was
STABBED TO death Oct 10 by an unknown col
ored man.
Peter Webb was killed by Fannie Boyd in
self-defense. Alexander Downie was shot
In the spine by DIR. John s. Parsons on
Aprile 80. dying Sept. 10.
OF ordinary deaths the coroner says for
ty-seven fatalities were attributed to vari-
Gus forms of heart disease. Fourteen died
from tuberculosis, fifteen from pneumonia
and i've died from epileptic commissions
and seven from gastritis
There were ten deaths from burning dur
Ing the year, two from scalds, one fell with
lamp in hand which exploded, two tried
while In an epileptic spasm, and two chill
dren were playing with matches and their
clothing caught on fire.. Two died from
dropsy, two from paralysis, two from peri
tonltis and eight from senile exhaustion
four fell from lofts. fracturing their skulls
from which they died in short time; one
was hurt by tree falling during a storm,
two fell from telephone poles, three were
/crushed In elevators, one fell from the
eighth floor OF building, two were shocked
by live wires, one came to death by being
caught in betting at machine shop, a little
boy fell under a wagon while stealing a
ride, and a schoolboy hit in the head
by schoolmate with stone from sling
sh2t, causing hemorrhage and death: two
died from tetanus. one from ptomaine poi
son due to eating refuse found on the
dumps, and two from taking poison acct.
dentally;' three persons met death by fall
Ing out of window from a first story There
were eight deaths from apoplexy. Four
teen infants died from inanition and eight
deaths from alcoholism. Two came to
their death by gas asphyxiation and two
were asphyxiated by dirt caving in one
in gravel pit and one in digging a we'll OF
the 34S cases, seventy-two autopsies have
been held In the morgues Of the different
undertakers and at the City Hospital.
INQUEST RECORD.
The attention of the coroner has been
called to about seven hundred cases, but in
about forty OF these it was only necessary
TO approve the finding of the family ply
SiSiah, "ho was Idmludr with the patient,
and expecting sudden death at any time.
In such cases the coroner held no inquest.
The average number of cases the coroner
Is compelled to examine in Marion county
Is $50 each year. Coroner Brayton says.
The expenses OF the office are $1,000 for
coroner. l,sOO for expert examinations, $3.50
for clerk, 500 for constable $500 for wit
ness fees and $500 for office material and
tncidentals, making a total Of $3.50 year.
Each inquest costs the county about $40.
been made Of the expense OF maintaining
the Office OF coroner DR.. Brayton says:
I'm those cities or counties where the
Office has been abandoned the localities
have been notorious for municipal or ring
corruption, and in the spasms of reform
the coroner's Office has I'm some instances
been found Incompetent or corrupt and has
been abandoned. its functions passing to the
police courts and medico-iegal experts.
Eight years ago the Legislature of Indi-
ana fixed salary for the coroner of coun-
ties over 100000. and later the establish
ment of County Councils threw the same
<safeguards about this Office as IL did 9TH
'ers. The result is that in Marion county.
whether there are 100 cases or 500 cases
each year under the care OF the coroner
the expenses of the office restricted to
5000 annually.
There is no danger of the coroners Office
being abandoned in Indiana. 1t Is held Ia