SODDEN DEATH.—INQUEST.

Auckland Star, Volume I, Issue 241, 17 October 1870, Page 2

SODDEN DEATH.—INQUEST.

\ An inquest was held at the Alexandra Hotel, on Saturday afternoon, at two o'clock, touching the death of James Macrae, who died suddenly in Custom-house-street, the previous day.; A ' jury of whom Mr. W. Waddell was chosen foreman having been empannelled and having viewed the body the following evidenco was , taken :—Elizabeth Macrae deposed :My husband is a shoemaker lately arrived from Glas ; gow, aud was 48 years of age. My husband and I had come out recently by the Frith of Clyde, and came up from Wellington in the Lord Ashley. We arrived in Auckand on Friday morning. We took a house in Albert-street and commenced to carry the i luggage up in a cart. While the cart was going up Custom-house-street my husband ,' complained of a pain in his chest, and said he would be glad to get home and lie down. We were walking at the back of the cart with a fellow passenger. Very shortly after com- • plaining I looked back and saw he had fallen clown. He was raised up and water obtained, but he was unable to swallow. His eyes were 1 glazed. He appeared to have died instantly 1 without drawing a breath. His body was removed to Chapel-street in a cart. Dr. Goldsbro' saw him there, and at once pronouced him dead. My husband had always been a healthy man. I only knew him to be ill once in Edinburgh about twenty years ago. He had an inflammation on the chest. Dr. Burns who attended him J said he had only sent for him in time, as if it had been twelve hours later he would have been a dead man. He also told him to be careful of himself, or some day he would go off like a snuff of a candle. Deceased was a very sober man. He had only one glass of beer yesterday. We had a very rough time of it coming out. The place where the passengers were was very small. About a month ago he.fell out of his bunk over a door and hurt his left side, of which he has frequently complained since. He never could lie on his left side afterwards. —James Hedley gave evidence to ; the same effect —Joseph Prescott also "gave evidence to I the effect that he saw deceased fall down on Friday afternoon, and on examination found him. to :be dead.—Dr. Goldsbro' deposed: I was called to see deceased yesterday afternoon about 4 o'clock,, and. found that life was extinct. The features were pale and composed ; the pupils dilated, and no -froth, about the mouth. There was no pulsation at either the heart or the wrist. There was a slight abrasion on the right temple,. apparently caused by a fall.' He had evidently been dead a quarter, of an hour when I saw him. I have this day made a post mortem examination of the body, assisted by Dr. Lee. I -first opened the chest, and? found the lungs slightly adherent in several parts, but healthy in structure. I next examined the heart, and found a considerable ■^amount of serous fluid in the pericardium, j •The heart was large, and fat, and the ventricles j considerably dilated and thin. The aortic I valves were in a frightful state of disease, being j thickened, and having no power of 'clpsiug, j thereby giving rise to a gurgitation of the \ blood. There was a large fibrous 010 bin the right ventricle. /The mitral valyes were healthy S Y

There was no aneurism or rupture of blood vessel. I examined the stomach and kidneys. They were ..healthy, and contained no trace of poison. They liver was adherent to the lower surface of th#midriff. , L ;.The.Ykidneys, were large. lam of opinion that the*cause of death was..disease of the aortic valves, producing fatal syncope. cilifse .of, death was so apparent that I did not think*'it necessary to examine the head.—This was the whole of the evidence, and-, verdict was given in accordance with the medical testimony.