INQUEST.

Dunstan Times, Issue 874, 17 January 1879, Page 3

INQUEST.

An inquest was held on Thursday, the Bhh inst, at Ryan's Bendigo Hotel, Ophir, (Blacks, No. 1 ), before W. L Simpson, Esq , Coroner, and a Jury of thirteen, Mr S. Leask, chairman, on the body of John Waldron, who had shot himself on the previous day, on .the range ’between Ophirand Blacks No. 3. John Ryan, sworn, said ; I reside with my-fa 1 her at Ophir. I have seen the body of deceased, it is'that of John Waldron, I last saw him alive at 2 p.m., yesterday. Ho asked mo to go out rabhitting with him. I refused "He’then asked me for the loan of my pun. ’l eave it to him, also poavder flask, shot belt, and box of caps. The shot was, [ think, No. 1. He poured some into his hand, an ton'd they would do. He went away with ’the gun taking the track up Waldron’s Gully iu the direction of the range. The deceased seemed to he quite sober and in bis senses when I handed him the gnu. T saw him have one glass of shandy-gaff that day. I know the deceased’s wife, rumour says they did not live on good terms 1 never saw them quarrelling. Deceased was an ol I resident of Ophir but has been much away during the past two vea.es. The day before yes.erdi.y was the first time I bad seen him for months. Deceased did not seem to me the least excited. William M’Breen, sworn, said : lam a farmer iivpartnership with Grflith Thomson, a’Tda Valley. 1 have seen the l>. dy now U-fore the Jury, it is that of John Waldron. Deceased came to our fai in on Tues day nijbt, the 7th inst., and stayed. He was perfectly sober and in his right mind. Deceased's step-daughter is married to my partner. 1 had no particular talk with him. He told me he had come from Tuapeka. Deceased’s wife was also staying at our farm that night. Ido not think they occupied'the same room. I saw him conversing with-his wife apparently ' n friendly terms On The following morning (Wednesday) I Lad'occasion to go to Ophir with a reaping machine. I saw deceased there between : 12 and 2 p.in.. He said he would letuui home with mo. Deceased’s wife accompanied me to Ophir on horseback. 1 saw Tier talking to deceased there. We (she and *T) left, together on the return journey, she on horseback, and I driving the machine. 'I was told that deceased had gone towards the range with a gun. We hail travelled about three miles towards home when we ■observed deceased coming on to the road. •He was carrying a gun. He came leisurely towards us and met ns, I asked him why ho had not waited for the machine. He replied that he had come up the short way. T told him to get up on the machine and have a ride. He dec'ined, saying he would walk. 1 was walking. 1 again asked him ami he again decline I. He then tume 1 and went towards his wife, who was eight or ten yards behind tlie machine. I looked back and saw deceased presenting the gun at his wife. I immediately let go the bo r ses and ran to catch him, hut before I got hold of him he bad discharged the gun. I saw his wife fail off the horse, and 1 ran and picked her up. Deceased came to where his wife lay. looked at her, and then ran away behind a rock. Ho immediately after appeared and was in the act of reloading the gnu and looking in the direction of his wife and mysiif. Mrs Waldron entreated me to take her away, and I hurried ■ away with her in the direction of home. All the horses bolted when the gun was ■discharged. I assisted Mrs Waldron as far as Mr Love’s house where I left her, and went on to ray farm ai.d told my partner Thumps ni. We both returned to where Mrs Waldron was left. 'Thompson then procee e l to Ophir to inform the Police and telegraph to a doctor. Mrs Waldron called to deceased not to shoot her, and seemed afraid. Deceased came after her a second time. "When supporting Mrs Waldron to Mr Love’s £ di 1 not hear a discharge of tirearms or at any time afterwards. The rock tint ilc i aise I went behind was only a few yards off the mad. I have frequently heard fn-m my partner Thompson that deceased ami ids wife did not live on goo I term-* with each other. Until Tuesday las’ I had not sewn deceased for two yeais, and

I think he has been absent from his wife all that time. T believe be leaves four or live children, the eldest of which is about 14 or 15 years of-age. Heard Mrs Waldron ask deceased if it would not bo bitter to take up some land and keep his family on. F om that remark'd should judge he had no land at the time. I understood drink was the cause of the difference between deceased ami his wife. 'Deceased di 1 not appear the least excited hy drink when he came up to ua on the road, -Do presented the same appearance as he did in the morning. I would have taken deceased to be a sullen man.

William Brown, being sworn said : 1 am Police Constable, stationed at Ophir. On We Incsday emi'ng (yesterday) between 7 and 8 p m Griffith Thompson reported to me that John Wa d ran had met his wife on the road between Ophir and Blacks No. 3, and shot her. I proceeded with him to the place where it was said to have occurred, and when within a few hundred yards of the place I left the road to search for Waldron, and about 50 yards from the road I observed deceased lying at the head of a gully. 1 called upon Thomson 'to come, and then called to the deceased, but immediately found he was dead. The gnu laid on the hill-side about three yards above him ; the powder flash and shot belt lay further up the hill, against a rock ; the ram-rod of the pun was within two feet of the head of the decease 1 ; in bis left handwaa the cap box ; and in the right hand was a piece cf japer which, I would say, he had intended for walding for tho gun. I examined (he gun, which is tho one. now produced, and found it emp'y with a cap on dhe nipple, apparently recently discharged. The deceased’s hat was Inside the ram roil. The body did not appear to me to have rolled at all. The gnn was lying parallel with the Haft side of tie body, with the muzzle ol-

most on a line with the head. I examined the body and found a gun shot wound on the left breast, the shirt and under-shirt burnt, as also the body at the breast. 1 searched the body and found 4s in money, and some papers. Amongst the papers was a letter—apparently from his wile— dated 12th September, 1878, from Blacks. 1 then had the body conveyed to where it now lies. I have known the deceased for the last three years. He has been absent from Ophir for the past two years at least. I have not seen him for that time until I saw him yesterday. His wife resided in Ophir up to seven or eight weeks ago when she went to Victoria, and returned about a Week ago to Ida Valley. I have never seen deceased drunk -, hut his wife complained frequently to mo that he was a drunkard, and on one occasion remarked that she could do very well without him ; that he drank all she could make. I was once or twice called on for my assistance by the vife. I went and found deceased had turned the family out of the house ; hut he did not appear drunk to me. On one occasion when I was called upon, deceased said he wanted the children taken to the Industrial School because they were not his. Mrs Waldron was present. Fnm the position of the gun and the ram rod I am of opinion that deceased discharged the gun into his side with the ram rod. Thomas Leahy,on his oath said : lam a duly qualified medical practitioner, residing at Clyde. I have examined the body now before the Jury, and find a gunshot wound penetiating the abdomen and through into the chest and left lobe of the liver. Five or six of the ribs are broken, apparently with the shot, as 1 found the shot penetrating the ribs. All the blood of the body was in the abdomen, the heart was empty, and the rest of the body pallid. The deceased, I would say, was a man of 45 years of age. Taking the deceased’s height—sft. 10in. —I find that the gun resting on the ground would exactly reach the place where the shot has entered the body. The gun must have b"en very close to the bo y as the shot has entere 1 like a bullet. The inquest was then adjourned for the attendance of Mrs Waldron until Tuesday, the 15th iust. Tuesday, 15th Instant. On resuming the inquiry at the Courthouse, Ophir, Griffith Thompsan, on oath said : I am a farmer, residing at Ida Valley. I know deceased to lie John Waldron. lam married to a daughter o' his wife s. I last saw deceased alive on the morning of the Bth iast., at my farm, where he had stayed the night previous. He stated he had come from Tuapeka. His wife was staying with me ar, the time. I noticed no change in him. Deceased conversed with Ids wife da wig the evening. 1 thought they were quarrelling. I told them to desist as I wanted no quarrelling in my place. When deceased arrived all his children ran out to him. He shook hands vviih them. He «cnt inside the house, and his wife appeared as if Stic wished to avoid him. 1 heard her s-iy to him he should go back to where he bad spent Ids money. All lie said was that she was rather to i hard on him. He proposed leaving altogether. I persuaded him to stop and have tea. After tea he went to go* away. He said be wanti dto speak with me. 1 walked with him for about a quarter of a mile. He spoke sensibly. I noticed he w.is tired, and persuaded him to come back and stay the night He did so. He said he was not sure whether lie would stop in the neighborhood. Deceased and his wife occupied separate rooms. Next morning deceased went to Ophir. 1 have been informed by my wife that deceased illtreated his wife on several occasions. The reason for the quarrelling was his fondness for drink. He visited his wife about six months ago, but stayed only a short time. He did not contribute to the snppoit of bis family. On every occasion he has come back be has always wanted to get money, and on this occasion he also wanted money from his wife. Deceased used to have a paddock at Ophir, hut lie sold it to Mr F. Harrington. He had, at one time, cattle, but I don’t know what has become of them. I don’t know the wife to be now possessed of cattle. I can give no information as to what became of the cattle. Deceased was posseseed of a small house at Ophir. which is of Httlc value. 1 removed Mrs Waldron to St. Bathans, after she was wounded, at the request of Dr Allan. Decease had on a previous occasion borrowed a gnu to shoot his wife ; and also on one occasion had taken a knife to cut her throat, but as she escaped from him he seized a dog and cut its throat. F. J. Wilson, on oath, said : I am a solicitor. 1 never saw deceased to my knowledge. About two years ago, at the request of Mrs Waldron, I prepared a deed of gift of all the household property, chattels, etc , of deceased and sent the same te the West Coast of New Zealand to be signed, which was duly done, and I registered it The Coroner said he had a certificate in his hand from Dr Allan, to the rflVct that Mrs Waldron was unab'e to attend. As he (the Coroner) did not know that she would give any further evidence, excepting perhaps as to the terms on which she had lived with the deceased, and as that could not affect the verdict ho would now close the evidence. The Jury, after a few minutes’ deliberation, returned a verdict “ That deceased had shot hims-df whilst laboring under temporary insanity.”