The Atherstone, Nuneaton, and Warwickshire Times. — 1885-07-11 (Atherstone, Warwickshire, England)

LAUDANUM. -On Friday evening Iwit an inguast vma bold at ! the Sp ttlemoor Inn, Lower Ford..trect, before Dr. C. W. Iliffe, coroner, on the body of Jame.. Rom. age-I 47, of 37, Alma-street, an exwergeant in the Coventry Polito Force, who Gel Morn the • etre., of an iiverdono of lawianum on the previous ; day. The first witness called tvae the wife of the ; Miiria Row, who sail thsit her husband I wax 47 yea, of ago, and had been in the police , force for about twihty year, having served ! ties or euven years of that Pine in Coventry. He . lett the force, and of laic he had boon ci•deavours ing Ct obiain Stofoetioto but we. unable to to SO, I not this fteemed to have peeped upon hie mied, ! and made hire dempewlent tail restivee at night.. He wm mtunded it, March lmt by Dr. Lyn,, and he had lathly been vi .i . ing Dr. Hied. He com plained of paine in the s' °mach, and hie appetite fluctuated. He hod lately been in the habit of ' t Ming laudanum to inducenleep, but ahe tint not Item. how or front whom he purchased the paidon ; oho only knew ef filet Ming one pennyworth. On Wedn,day night lie went to bed about 10 30., and wa. perfectly robe, He had of late been very t- inperim. At about 3 o'clock on Thoreday morning he got up, on •I she ankeil Min if lie woo. unwell, and he replied that he could not sleep, alCough he hwl tak-e n lme of laiLlanum. She h id previtimily men the bottle produced (Libelled " Lau lanum"), and elm Now it on the morning be died. Ho al,rwardit trent back to hod, and he wav goict uMil 6 o'clock. At that time Ito W,lB awakened by tie breathing herd, and Rh. went at once to me what we. the matter. On geitig to Wm he tried to speak to her but could init. She gal( too children, Moakiaet, and thee stayed with him, and thinking he got worm she cent for a neighbour. who went for a 410 C, Or at about eight o'clock, and he arrived half-an-hour. The . . .  C, aoida.'sh-e delayed sendieg for a doctor from 6 until 8 was become she was so Regan:ed.—The Coroner said that the firot thing that ought to be demo alien 44 parson was Pikeo it was to pend for ' a medical loan. The delay of two houre and a half in a case of poloooing ww too lotig.—Witneso mplied that phe was wit oxidic Mat 1,0, huoband ha I taken answer to the foreman of the Joey, witneso mid that there had uot beeo any falling out or unpleasantness of any kin I. they had alwayo been on gyoil terms.--Mr. Bailey, chemist, of the Burge,, said he realm., herod the &mewed coming to hie shop, in fact lie hal been a regular customer of his. fie had not been in the habit of corning for shy sieeldmg draught. but on Tuee lay evening, bout 6 o'clook. lie came to his ohnp •,,a asked WitMSS for a peonyworth of laudanum, ad to the boot of liao recollection Me botele hail 1,,, the libel of the chorea. Born whom the deceased hod previoudy purcharred laudanum. but he took it ofi and plamd ito stead 0,0 0.00 label, which was •• Laudanuin—Boinon." He ...keel deceased what he .was going to we the narcotic fgr, and ho replied for pans it. the back, and that he took eland 15 drops of it. Wit., replied that that qu ridgy wool not hurt him, and added 'lO 1 wore yrall 0 should not get occiwtomel to it if you do you will havo great difficulty in leaving It off'' Mtn.s blither told him that in extreme pam 20 drope would not hurt hon. Ho gave deceased two drachms of I iiidamam in a bottle, which would be equal to eight grains of °pion, and was of ordmary " a P." prepare ion. Tine was the first time wituew had supplied deceweil with laudanum. —Dr. Lynes Paid that at about lialf-pant eight o'clock on Thursday morning last he WM called to the howe of the deceaowl. Oa las arrival he foam' hen dead, and ho was informed that lie had died about live minute, pre. viouply. From what he heard at the One et his aud bona the evidence of the witnes... in his opinion the ileceaseiro Math vow canoed by an overdose of la:id-mum, taken by misadventure, which had Wen more effemive on accoant of hie weak system. He attended 111,11 in March lad for jaundice and conje.ted liver, and he wis of opinion that his other organo being iu not unheilehy condition would render boa more liable to the off- et of narcotic poisoning.—The Oininer, in summing up the evidence, maid the only point for the jury to consider Ve. whether the laudanum was taken with the intention of committing suicide, or whether It wee taken by accideut. The only evidence before the jury a. to Die suicidal aspect of the case w .8 deceased,a deprewed con. ddion. He yawned robot,, taken 1,,0 coodition to heart probably more than he would ham done the had been aoooeo temperate roan. He (the Owoneri waslocljeo,l tn think that the evidence veers not ...one enough to guide the jury to the concluoion that ilecdaeed lood atiy. intention of destroying 1,1610011 ; he thought at was more a matter of his taking two great a dole of poison in his unhealthy condition. If deceweil had meant to take I is life he would certainly have procured name than 0 peanyworth of laud.num , that way a point which he wiehed the jury to observe. Ho himself concurred M Dr. Lynes' opinion me to the cause of deceased, death.—The jury returned a verdict in accordance with the medical testimony.