Brighouse & Rastrick Gazette. — 1881-09-24 (Brighouse, West Yorkshire, England)

SUICIDE BY DROWNING AT BRIGHOUSE.  On Thursday morning an in luiry wag hell before Mr. William Barstow, district coroner, at the Black Swan Inn, Wiggate, Brighouse, into the circumstances attending the death of Joseph Singleton, 68 years of age, described as a labourer, and residing at Toothill Bank, Rastrick, who was taken out of the canal near the Perseverance Mill, Brighouse, early on Tuesday morning last, quite dead. The jury were composed of the following . Messrs. Frank Milne, (foreman), Alfred Stott, Thomas Alfred Elam, Jonathan Marsden, David Jackson, George Turner, James Fox, Seeker Blackburn, William Russell, Fred France, John Tye, and Ramsden Crowther.  The jury having been sworn, proceeded to view he body.  The first witness examined was Edna Pearson, who stated she was the widow of Thomas Pearson, railway guard, and resided at Toothill Bank, Rastrick. The deceased was her brother, Joseph Singleton. He lived with her, and was sixty-eight years of age. He was a fancy weaver, but had not been able to follow his employment for some time. She last saw him alive about ten o'clock on Monday evening, at which time he went to bed. He had complained for a fortnight of a severe pain in the bladder, and had not been able to pass his water. He went to Dr. Pritchett's on Saturday morning last, and he afterwards told witness the doctor had taken a quart of water from him, but on the Monday morning, he did not seem any better. About a quarter to four o'clock on Tuesday morning she heard the deceased go out of the house, and he had never returned since. She did not think anything wrong about him going out at that time as he had a habit of wandering about. —ln cross-examination by Inspector Hey, witness stated she had not perceived anything unusual in the deceased's manner of late. The deceased was not one that said much at any time, being of a quiet disposition. He left his pocket knife and a shilling in the bed-room, but she did not know they were there, until her daughter told her some time after deceased had left the house. He had only taken one bottle of medicine. He could not work much, and when be did any, it was only a little bit of out-door labour, he not having followed his employment as fancy weaver for several years. She had not heard him say he would commit suicide, nor had she ever heard him say he was tired of his life. Deceased had not been in the habit of getting much to drink, and she did not think that his committing suicide was traceable to drink in any way. She thought the pain he had endured had caused him to oommitt suicide.  Richard Ramsden, blacksmith, Wakefield-road, Brighouse, said that about eight minutes to six o'clock on Tuesday morning he was going to his work along the canal bank when he saw near the Perseverance Mill the body of the deceased in the middle of the canal. Without losing any time he told John Wiseman and Benjamin Wood, and the three of them at once got the body of the deceased out of the water, although they had to get a boat to do so. The deceased was, however, quite dead and cold. The deceased's cap was on his head, and so far as he could see he was fully dressed. Witness immediately gave information to Inspector Hey at the police station, who at once accompanied him to the place where the body lay, and had it conveyed to the Black Swan Inn.  Harriet Lawton, wife of George Lawton, Brighouse, stated she helped to lay out the body of the deceased, and that she found no marks of violence on his body; his ears were, however, very black, and his body over the bladder was very hard and swollen.  The Coroner here reviewed the evidence, and stated he thought the jury would have to return a verdict that the deceased had committed suicide whilst in an unsound state of mind, caused, no doubt, by the intense pain he had been suffering.  Inspector Hey thought that the first witness must have been mistaken when she stated the deceased did not leave her house till a quarter to four o'clock on Tuesday morning, as the policeman on duty in that locality saw him pass the Junction Inn at the Bottom of Town, Rastrick, at ten minutes past three, and he was seen again .at half-past three by another policeman near the Calder Bridge Mill. At thirty-five minutes past three the Inspector himself passed over the canal bridge near where the deceased was taken out of the water, and he neither saw or heard any trace whatever of anyone about.  Some conversation followed amongst the jury, at the conclusion of which the following verdict was unanimously returned:—" That the deceased, Joseph Singleton, was found drowned in the canal at Brighouse, having committed suicide whilst he was in an unsound state of mind caused by severe pain."