Weekly News. — 1892-08-11 (Blandford, Dorset, England)

DETERMINED SUICIDE.  Early last Thursday morning a portion of the New Inn premises in East Street were discovered to be on fire. and an alarm was quickly raised, which drew a number of people to the spot. The room from whence smoke and flames were issuing was occupied by an elderly woman named Forsyth, and on an entry being forced, the woman was found dead on the bed with her throat cut, a piece of cord round her neek, and the body much burnt and blackened. With some difficulty the body was removed through the window on to the leads outside, and lowered to the ground, ultimately being placed in a stable belonging to the inn. The fire was soon got ni.der,and extinguished without much damage to the house, although most of the articles of furniture in the room were destroyed.. . _ _ _ _ .  On Friday Dr. Parkinson (coroner) held an inquest at the Star Inn, when the following evidence was adduced:—  Phoebe Daniel, a neighbour, stated she knew the deceased Charlotte Forsyth, and was in the habit of visiting her and rendering what assistance she could, as deceased was much afflicted with rheumatism. On the previous Wednesday week witness found her much excited, because a man named Hunt had left her, and was living with another woman, after being with her about six years. On Wednesday evening last, about 9 o'clock witness went to deceased's room to make her bed, and she again comrlained of Hunt's treatment, and said she could not bear it. She left her about 11 o'clock, and deceased was then sitting on the side of her bad, with a lighted candle on a table near. Frank Goddard deposed that about four o'clock on Thursday morning he was going up to his allotment ground, and hearing someone call out the New Inn was on fire he want there, down the back way, and saw smoke coming down the outside stairs by side of the butcher's shop. He saw Tom Hood and asked him if the woman was out, and, as he did nat know, witness ran round to the front and got on the leads over Mr. Dean's shop and with assistance opened the window and entered the room. He could not see for smoke, but felt the deceased on the Led. He then went out, the smoke being too dense to bear. He told those outside the woman was on the bed, but he believed dead. After a few buckets of water had been thrown in the room, he went in, accompanied by William Riggs, and removed the corpse out of the window on to the lead roof in front. He noticed the throat was cut, and a piece of cord round the neck. William Riggs corroborated the latter part of the evidence.  Police-sergeant Brown deposed to finding the body of deceased on the flat roof over Mr. Dean's butcher's ahop. It was very much burnt, and there was a gash on the left side of the throat, and a cord round the neck. He had the body removed to the stable. Witness searched the room and bed, and found a knife (produced), and under the mattress a small parcel, on which was written, "Please give this to my brother." In this parcel was a letter to deceased's brother, and one to Mr. Lance (relieving officer), both of which were read by the coroner. Maria Milford, a neighbour, deposed she knew deceased, who suffered much from rheumatism. Had heard her threaten to "do away with herself," and  that she would "set the-- place on fire." Site was in receipt of 2s per week and a loaf from the parish. Dr. E. M. Spooner, who had examined deceased by request, deposed the body was very much burnt about the face and hand, and the legs and abdomen severely scorched. The cord round the neck was very tight. There was a gash on the left side of the neck, about three inches long, but not very deep. In his opinion, the cut was not sufficient to cause death, which, in all probability, resulted from strangulation or suffocation. Tom Hood was called by the Coroner in reference to whether the room door was fastened when he first went to the room, but some doubt existed, and Henry Hunt was the next witness. He admitted a long acquaintance with deceased, his workshop being on the same floor as her room, but said it was not true that they lived together as man and wife' and recently, when talking of getting married to another woman, she became violent and struck him several times with a heavy stick. The Coroner summed up the evidence, and the jury returned a verdict that deceased killed herself, either by strangulation, or suffocation, when in a state of temporary insanity.