The Birkenhead News and Wirral General Advertiser. — 1917-05-09 (Birkenhead, Merseyside, England)

BIRKENHEAD BOY'S PATHETIC LETTER.  Found Drowned in Walimey Dock.  REMARKABLE INQuEsT groRY.  lOV Monday morning Mr. J. C. Bete. County Coroner, and a jury investigated at the Presbyterian *boas, Seacombe, the singular circumstances surrounding the death of Win. Darwood, aged 14, who i had been missingfrom home since November lest. and whose body had been recovered from the Wallasey Dock. Bessie Darwood, of 1, 'Taylor's Villa, Borough-road, Birkenhead stated that she was the wife of John Robert Darwood, at Present serving as sapper in the Royal Engineers. Prior to joining the Army he was captain of a ferry-boat at the Woodside Ferry. Witatess had identified the body of the deceased at the Seaoombe mortuary chiefly by the clothing, boots, and stockings. Be was her stepson, and 14 years of age. She was practically certain that it was her stepson. She had been married six years, and from the first it had not been a pleasant home. The children, however, were not actually unhappy. She last saw the deceased alive in November, but did not take notice of the date. That day he was supposed to have gone to school, and when she returned home at night he had left a note on the mantlepiece. This she gave to the police at the Police Station, and they had, stated that it had since been lost.  The note left by the deceased was as follows:  "Dear Mother,—l am very sorry to have done what I have done. I had to do it because I am tired of my brother's tricks. I had to do it, •or I should have been doing something -wrong to him." Deceased had made croases for three kisses for the children. Replying to further questions be the Coroner, witness said she had been suspicious about money being taken from the gas meter, and had questioned the children about it. She was told that a brother had broken open the meter, and shared the money with the deceased. She reported the fact that the deceased was missing to the Birkenhead police. She thought that the boys were frightened that she would 'cent the matter about the gas meter to the police. She had thought that the meter sounded empty, and had stated that she would send for a man to examine it. She WBB suspicions that this boy had taken the money, and (believed he thought that she would report it to the police. She had been saying that for a week before the boy disappeared, and he had not seen him since that time. She did not take it from the note which he had left behind that he would commit suicide.  The Coroner: Then what did you take it to mean don't know; I thought that he had just run away; that he was stopping ;sway, and was all right. :Although you had not beard from him for six inonths?—lies.  George Henry Sherlock, 2, -Laroh-road, ISeacombe, entptoyed by the Admiralty, gave evident* to the effect that at 10.30 on the previous Friday morning he was engaged on a boat in the Wallasey Dock, and saw the body of the deceased floating on its side, drifting towards the entrance. r-eovered it, and it was oon.yeyed to the Seaconahe mortuary. • Detective Short, Coroner's officer, stated that pn examining fse body on the previous Friday he fond it to be very-mach...decomposed, as though it had been in the water six or eight months. In the clothing he found a leather wallet containing cigarette cards and a slip of paper 'bearing the name, "W. Darwood, 1, Taylor's Villa, Birkenhead." Witness was present when Mrs. Darwood saw the body and identified the clothing and the toe-capped boots, Which were nearly new. She also identified the hand-writing on the slip of paper found on the body. The missing boy. was reported to the Birkenhead 'police but was not circulated on the bills, as they usually did. The just made a note of it, and no report came to Wallasey. Witness had not made any special inquiries about the home, and he did not know the father. Nor did he know whether the children had been properly looked after or not. The Coroner, addressing the jury, said the first witness had told them what was in the note left by the boy to the best of her recollection. The note was of such a nature that any parent Ought to have understood that the child was not coming back again. He did net return, and she reported the matter to the police, and the boy had not been ern shim up to the time of the recovery of his body. It was for the jury to say whether it was the body of Wm. boxwood, and, furtherhow he came by his death. The suggestion that he had committed suicide might be conveyed by the letter, but he WAG a very young boy to do that. They could. hardly understand a child of that age committing such an act, and he thought that their safest course would be to return a verdict of "Found drowned." After a short consultation the jury re-. turned a verdict to this effect.