TWO TRAGIC DEATHS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 50, 23 November 1918, Page 2

TWO TRAGIC DEATHS

l)ct KmMNu Ll'l'liUo Uγ ILUNimo

FATAL FALL FROM A WINDOW

An inquest was held ■ yesterday morning by llr. l< , . V. I'lazer, S.M., into the circumstances attending, .this .death ~ of. Arthur .Tiggeiis, n single man, 40 years of age, employed at the" Grand Hotel, who threw himself out of a window in tho top story of the hotel, on November 21 and was killed. .■....■.. . . ■ Margaret Caroline I'reitas, a bar porter at!'the Grand Hotel, said slie. saw deceased in his room on Thursday morning, and urged, him to go.hack to his bed.' Ho had boon suffering ffoni ''influenza sinco Sunday last. ..Ho was receiving attention from Dr. Jacobstm, who visited him on Iho evening' of .November 20. A little after 1 p.m.- on Thursday witness wont to his room and tried to get iii.. She could hear him mumbling, but lie did not answer her'.*" She "Him heard the wijidnw of his room rattle, and on going l to (he' lavatory' close by aiid looking out of the window she .saw deceased falling. HeWas quite dead when picked up. Ho had..removed, the. handle of his door, and had it in his ham! when picked up. James Alfred Duncan.' licensee of the Gram! Hotel, said that deceased., who had been in his employ.-us a porter for tho past three .or four, .months, was generally sober, but since armistice tiny. he. had, beoi) drinking.'.'Ho* had been off duty since Sunday, and was attended by .Dr," Jacobson. and was visited by a nurse in the house'and-by another iui'rse. from St. Andrew's Emergency Hospital. Tho injltionzn. had affected his head; it was hard to keep him in bed.. The Coroner found that death was due to.a;broken neck caused ,by the, deceased haviiig jumped from the sixth story window of the Grand Hotel while delirious as the result of influenza.

PATHETIC - DROWNING- -CASE. - Mr. Frazer conducted a- second inquest at 10.30 a.m. yesterday into the cause of death of Thomas Edward John Tolley,'. 42 years of ago, who was found , drowned at Weka Bay, Evans Bay. "Eoiid,',. on Thursday afternoon. -. : Alice Matilda O'Hallornii,- residing at Evans Bay ltpad, said' that about 3.55 p.m. on Thursday she saw the body of a man floating in AVeka Bay about 20 yards from the shore. Witness waded into the water and threw him a.rope, but lie made no attempt to grasp it.'..She'.then called a neighbour (Mr. Eeeves), who got a boat and secured the ' body. The deceased could not have been in tho wnter more than about five minutes. Artificial respiration was tried, but .without success. Hugh Reid Siniin, dispatch dork, employed by' John Chauibor's and Sons, Ltd., said tho deceased had been employed by lhat firm. Tie had been suffering from influenza for about ten days, and. notwithstanding; his condition he wtis very restless and desired, to work. He- came to tho store on Thursday morning, but the manager sent him homo null told him to remain.away until ho-.was quite well. . John Joseph M'Grath, solicitor, said ho was the officer in. charge of the linsencatli and Oriental Bay. influenza district. Representatives of the committee had been visiting"' Toiler's ' house for several days owiiij to illness-i.iin the faniily, and invalid food had been supplied. On Thursday' u representative called at (lie house,-left suitable -provisions, anil saw.that everything wns right. ■The family consists of a wife and nino children, with another expected shortly. Between' 3.30 and i p.m. Mrs. Henderson,, a. neighbour, rang up to say that some of the deceased's children had told her lhat their father was just leaving the house and had said that he was going to drown himself at Evans Bay/'AVitiio'ss left his house at once, and- mot -Constable. Hall riding towards tqwiu The constable was sent back to try to.stop the man while witness went in his motor-car on tho other-road to intercept ths man. The constable must havo got.to Woka Hay very shortly after deceased got there. Witness had volunteered to givo evidence

in fairness to tlio committee, which hivo done all possible for the family for tfflj past four or five days. Voluntary worfc» ers had been lookiiifj after tlie house, and the committeo would sec that the family did not want. The HaUiilai Committee had also visited nnd assisted (ho liimily on more than one occasion. 'I'he deceased had been worrying during his illness as to how ho would meet Iris liabilities; the loss of oven a wok's wages would be t> serious matter to him. i'ho Coroner found thut death was due to shock through the deceased throwing himself into the water while depressed as tho result of influenza.