The Commonwealth. — 1867-02-23 (London, England)

EXTRAORDINARY SUICIDE OF A YOUNG WOMAN.  On Monday forenoon an inquiry was concluded by Mr. Richards, deputy coroner, at the Camden's Head Tavern, Bethnal-green-road, relative to the suicide of Jane Rogers, aged twenty.t ,70 years. The deceased resided with her famLy at No. 21, Camden's-gardens, Bethnal-green, and last Monday evening she went, accompanied by her moi her and brother, to an entertainment at the White Horse public-house, in Hare-street. While looking at sonic dissolving views she complained of feeling ill, and she returned home. She was not seen alive again. At the bottom of the garden, in front of her parenta' house, was a zinc) barrel, 3 feet 6 inches deep, and 2 feet in diameter. It was used for holding water, and on the night in question it contained water to the depth of two feet six inches. On Tuesday morning the mother of the deceased went to the barrel, and was surprised to find the water quite black; upon looking more closely she found the body of her daughter squeezed into the barrel, head downwards, the bulk of the body causing the water to rise to the top of the vessel, and corn. pletely cover all the limbs. The water was discoloured by the dye of her black dress, showing that the unhappy young woman must have been several hours in the barrel before she was discovered. _ .  Ann Greenfield, 25, Camden's-gardens, said that she was a tailoress. On last Tuesday morning, at a quarter past twelve o'clock, she saw a young woman standing inside the deceased's front garden gate. She believed that that person was the deceased. The young woman was standing near the gate. Witness then heard a man's voice cry out. "Good-bye, good-bye; good night, I'm going in." Witness did not see a man there. She only heard his voice. She was certain that the deceased did not speak. The deceased stood quite still, and witness was certain that she was silent. Witness did not see any man leave the garden. She did not hear a window shut down or a door closed. Witness did not wait to see any more, but she went in to her own house. She did not see the deceased move near the zinc barrel. The witness, in answer to the coroner, gave a minute and accurate description of the clothes worn by the deceased on the night in question, and she was crossexamined about hearing the man's voice in the garden, but her evidence was not shaken. Mrs. Jane Rlgers, mother of the deceased, said that she was with the deceased at the concert, and while there she fainted. Witness then went home with her, and she went to bed. It was then eleven o'clock at night. The deceased was sometimes light-headedWitness discovered her in the zinc barrel on the Tuesday morning. She had not threatened to commit suicide. She had been ill lately. George Rogers, the father of the deceased, said that his daughter had not boon engaged to any young man. The deceased had got up during the night, and eho had left the street door open all night. Dr. J. H. Brotherton said that the cause of the deceaeed's death was suffocation by drowning. A postmortem examination proved that the deceased had suffered from illnees for about two years. That illness would effect her brain. - .  The coroner having sumtned up, tho jury returned a verdict of suicide whilst la a state of temporary insanity.