THE TIMARU POISONING CASE

Feilding Star, Volume VIII, Issue 36, 4 September 1886, Page 2

THE TIMARU POISONING CASE

PBOFESSOB BLAOK'S EVIDENCE

INTIMACY OF THE ACCUSED

[per united press association.]

Timaku, September 2.

The hearing of the Hall case was re« sumed this morning before VI r J. Beswick, R.M., and Messrs Elworthy and H. Le Cren.

James Gow Black said : I am a Pro* fessor of Chemistry in the Otago University ; on the 18th of August I received a box from the hands of Constable Daly, a witness in this case ; there were fifteen articles in the box, nnd (hey were all numbered from 1 to 14; I made an anal ysis of those articles; exhibit A. is one of the articles; I found it contained tartar emetic ; in exhibit B (the pockets) I also found tartar emetic; also in exhibit C (loose powder in white paper) I found tartar emetic ; also in exhibit D likewise loose powder ; exhibit E (a liquid slightly opalescent with a little while powder still undissolred) contains antimony in some form ; exhibit F contains tartar emetic in white crystals ; exhit.it N, the vomit, was found to contain antimony ; exhibit O, said to be urine, was found to contain antimony ; I received exhibit P from Constable Egan on Saturday last ; it is vomit and I found a trace of antimony in it; I tested the other bottle (urine) with Dr Ogston, and found anti* mony in it ; Dr Ogston assisted at the analysis of exhibits. George Smithson deposed : I am a shepherd to William Johnson Newton, of Castle Rock, Totara Valley ; I saw the accused there on Sunday, January 24, of this year ; I believe they went into Mrs Newton's bedroom, the drawing* room, and diningroom ; lam sure tkey visited the bedroom ; I cannot say how long they remained there; I was in Timaru on Saturday, July 31, at Hall's office ; I theD waited for 15 minutes, and at the end of that time Miss Houston came out of the office ; she did not go into the room while I was waiting. Francis Ogston deposed : lam an M.D. and CM., of Aberdeen ; I have assisted in making some of the analyses described by Professor Blaok, in the evidence he has given to-day ; I quite agree with his evidence in respect t» those substances which we analysed together, in which Professor Black stated that antimony had been found ; tartar emetic is anti mony. Jane Turnbull deposed that the tw# prisoners were good friends, he calling her " Megrim*," and she him •' Tom" sometimes ; I nave seen Hall go into Miss Houston's bedroom more than once; I saw him go in several times, sometimes in the morning between 7 and 8 ; some* times she was out of her room and sometimes she was in ; I have known Hall to stay in the room 10 minutes ; sometimes Mies Houston was there on these occasion*.

At 430 his Worship adjourned the Court till 10.30 to-morrow morning.