The Express. — 1847-11-03 (London, England)

GEOID:M.B, SOUTIIWAILL—Before Mr. W. Payne, at the Crown Tavern, St. George's Circus, Blackfriars-road, on the body of It. Butler, aged 48, who died from breathing impure air, and not allowing himself the common necessaries of life. —Mr. Hooper, the parish surgeon, deposed that on the morning of Sunday last, he saw the deceased at No. 4, Minahplace, King-street, Borough-road. Ile was then alive, but his extremities mete quite cold, and there was no pulse to be felt. lie was lying perfectly naked upon an old mattress on the floor. The stench was quite sufficient to kill any one. At the back of the house was a dustman's yard, which of itself was quite sufficient to engender fever.—(A juror observed that the stench in the neighbourhood was so great that he was frequently obliged to burn brown paper to destroy it.) Witness scat out for some brandy and gave deceased a teaspoonful in tome warm water once or twice, and he seemed to rally a little. After the lapse of half an hour he began to sink, and he expired in the course of an hour afterwards. Witness attributed death to the impure atmosphere he bad been breathing, and his not allowing himself sufficient food. —John Woolf, police constable Id, No. 213, said that he occupied the house, No. 4, Minah-place. The deceased rented one of the back rooms, and had done so since lost April 12 months. He understood that by trade he was a shoe-maker. lie had beets confined to his room during the past few days. After the death of deceased, whilst searching the room, witness found 251. 19s. 9,1. The deceased was a man of very parsimonious habits, and would not allow himself the common necessaries of life. He would never allow his wife to enter his room, or it would have been properly cleansed.—Elizabeth Woolf, the wife of the last witness, said that she had given the deceased soup and sago to strengthen him, believing him to be unable to get either for himself. She had done so when she and her family wanted such articles themselves.—Verdict, " That the deceased died from breath. ing impure air, and neglecting to take the common necessariesof Svxxxr COUNTY LeNATIC &WM:M.—Before W. Carter, Esq., at the County Lunatic Asylum, near Wandeworth, relative to the death of George Randall Woods, aged 27. The case excited such interest es to induce the attendance of Mr. Kemble, the chairman of the visiting magistrates. The deceased, a clerk, was ad. mitted on the 18th of October last, and died on the 31st of that menth.—Edward Itouse, an attendant, stated that on Sunday morning be had occasion to leave the ward in which deceased was, with upwards of forty other patients, to go to another part of the building, and desired a patient named Glover to watch the deceased, who was considered a suicidal patient. Witness returned in a few minutes, and missing deceased, inquired after him, and was induced to visit the bath-room. lie there found the deceased lying on his side with a razor grasped tightly in his right nand and his throat cut. The razor was usually kept in the private drawer of the senior attendant's room. Could not account for deceased's possession of it. Durham, the other attendant, bad put the razor in a cupboard in the day room used by the patients on the Saturday previous. That cupboard is used to keep the carving knife and fork and the attendants' knives and forks, crockery, and other article' that could be resorted to by the patients desirous of destroying themselves. That cupboard, however, was invariably kept locked. Glover was of a quiet and very benevolent disposition, and one that would prevent suicide if be saw it attempted.—Mr. Joseph Holland, the resident medical officer, deposed that deceased was extremely melancholy, had a great desire to secrete himself from his fellows, and was disposed to commit suicide ; and in consequence he had given strict injunctions to the attendants to watch him. Witness considered Rouse had acted judiciously in placing deceased under Glover's care. Looking at the circumstances of the deceased's death, he had not the least fault to find with either of the attendants. He was very much surprised to find the deceased in possession of a razor.—Other evidence having been gone into, the jury returned as their verdict, "That the deceased destroyed himself by cutting his throat with a razor, being of unsound mind; and we, the jury, regret that the razors, as well as other instruments calculated to cause death, should have been placed in the cupboard of the room appropriated to the lunatic patients, and suggest to the committee the consideration of this subject." The foreman also wished it to be understood that the jury did not consider the attendance sufficient.—Mr. Kemble assured the coroner and jury that their suggestions should meet with the utmost attention from the visiting justices.