The North-Eastern Weekly Gazette. — 1890-03-01 (Stockton-on-Tees, Cleveland, England)

THE INQUEST. On Monday Mr Coroner Settle held an inquest at the Stockton Police Court touching the death of James Wilkie, aged 38 years, which occurred in the course of a quarrel on Saturday night.—Frank , Wilkie, brother of the deceased, identified the , body, and said the deceased lodged at Bainbridge's I common lodging-house in Cherry-lane, and worked las a puddler at the Bowesfield Ironworks. Deceased was a married man, and had a wife and four children living at Motherwell, N.B. He came to Stockton in August last. He was a very quiet man. Witness met him coming from work on Saturday at 4 p.m., and went with him into the Hope and Anchor Inn, Bishop-street, where they remained till 10 p.m. They separated in the district, witness advising the deceased to go home. Witness went into the Enterprise Inn, and had just got seated when a young man named Kelly came in and told him that something serious had happened to his brother. Witness hurried down Cherry-lane, and found deceased lying dead on the kitchen floor of the lodging-house. —By the Jury: When my brother left me he was just a little "fresh." He drank nothing but beer. He had not suffered from any illness previously that I am aware of The deceased had not had any previous quarrel with the man James Watson, with whom he had a dispute at the time of his death.—Dr. John Wilson said that along with Dr. Foss he had that afternoon made a post-mortem examination of the deceased. There were no external marks of injury. He examined the brain, which was perfectly healthy, as were also the stomach, spleen, and all the abdominal organs. The lungs were in a normal condition. The left side of the heart was enlarged in size, which witness considered to be due to valvular disease. This might at any moment cause cessation of the heart's action. In his opinion death had been caused by syncope. He declined to say whether this was also Dr. Fogs's opinion.—By a Juryman: There was not sufficient disease to cause death without some sudden shock.—Superintendent Bell: Supposing a person with a weak or diseased heart was attacked, I struck, knocked down, and kicked, would it not be ;likely to accelerate death ?—The Coroner refused Ito let the question be put, on the ground that they had no evidence of violence—Superintendent Bell said there were witnesses present who would speak to violence if they were called.—The Coroner held that they had no reason to enquire further after the doctor's evidence. A man might be in a state of intoxication, and he might have a struggle, and might gasp and cry out" Murder," but the question whether he received any final blow or kick after be left the lodging-house was not for the jury, but for the Magistrates to consider. The man in custody was the prisoner of the Magistrates and not of the jury, and the latter had nothing to do with him, for they had no evidence that anything of the sort occurred.—Superintendent Bell declined to let that pass, for they had plenty of evidence if the Coroner would let it be called.—The Coroner declined to allow the witnesses to be called, and also to call Dr. Foss to corroborate the medical evidence. He charged the jury that as the medical testimony was before them they had no reason to go beyond it.—The jury thereupon returned a verdict of "Death from syncope."  are largely little better off than the A, and where their pockets manifestly right that those FATAL Qui • ratepayereshould do their , I have heard that 0 has rather a good the  .L QUARREL TN A . A sad ease of death, seeing . warred at iócbc lad Saturday clam .sved Jame/ about 38 ye employed as a psddla. at the 1 works? and Sind' Asgust lase he h IA Basnbridge's g-honee in I 3sSzrd.i night, between ten and there under the influent*