Widnes Examiner. — 1881-11-05 (Widnes, Cheshire, England)

SAD SUICIDE AT BURTONWOOD.—The county cproner, Mr. C. E. Driffield, held an inquest at the Ship Inn, Winwick Quay, on Saturday, on the body of a young man named John Bridge Hatton, who committed suicide last week under the following circumstances:—James Hatton, father of the deceased, said: I am a farmer, and live at Dallam Farm, Burtonwood. Mv son John lived and worked with me on the tarn, and was 23 years of age. A cousin of the deceased's, named Maria Yates, had also lived with tis for several years. The deceas?d and this girl were very friendly, but nothing wrsng, was suspected until a few days ago. On Tunday I spoke to the deceased about the matte,. saying that it was very unfortunate, 'but that we should have to get over it in some way. He did not say anything, but seemed much troubled. On Wednesday morning I went into the kitchen before going to Warrington. Maria Yates asked me for a quarter's wages, saying that she wanted to get some article of clothing. I did not give her any money. When I returned from Warrington,a few hours afterwards she had gone. My wife said she must have thrown her clothes through the upstairs window and gone through the front door, as she had left unobserved. I sent for deceased, who was in bed, to come to speak to me. I told him Maria had gone without her money. Deceased said she came upstairs and asked him for a sovereign, which he gays her. I said that he ought to have gone and looked for her. He cried bitterly, and said he did not know where she could have gone. He then went to bed. About five o'clock on Thursday morning my, wife heard deceased go downstairs and pass the window. Shortly afterwards she heard a gun go off. She said to me, "Jump up, there is something amiss; I heard a gun shot." We went out immediately, and after searching for about ten minutes found the deceased in a potato pit, where he had been working the previous evening. He was in a sitting posture, with the gun between his legs and pointing upwards towards his head, which, was terribly shattered. He was quite dead. I went for my son James and some men to help me to carry him to the house, and then gave information to the police. For the last week or two I observed that the deceased did not take his meals as usual, and as much as possible avoided conversation with me. He evidently had something on his mind, as previously he was of a cheerful disposition. When I spoke to him about his connection with Maria Yates I did so in a kindly manner. I did not say anything to him which I have cause to-regret. —Mary Hatton, wife of last witness, said : The deceased is my son. Last Monday I heard that there had been a dispute between Maria Yates and the deceased. When I spoke to him about it I did not scold him. The gun with which deceased shot himself was kept in the kitchen over the mantel-shelf. It was not usual for him to keep it loaded. He was fond of shooting, but he could not have gone out for that purpose on Thursday morning, at the time he did, as it was then quite dark.—James Hatton, a brother of the deceased, gave corroborative evidence, and the jury returned a verdict "That the deceased committed suicide whilst in a state of temporary insanity."