SUICIDE BY POISON.

Globe, Volume XXII, Issue 2021, 16 August 1880, Page 2

SUICIDE BY POISON.

A coroner’s inquest was held before Dr. Coward and a Jjury, of whom Mr John Collier was foreman, at the Hospital, this afternoon, on the body of William Henry Langford, who met with his death under circumstances detailed below. The jury having viewed the body, evidence was taken : Constable Charles Trevelyan stated that at half-past seven on Saturday morning whilst on duty in Colombo street north, a person, inquired as to where Dr. Townend lived, and told witness a person had poisoned himself, pointing north over the bridge. Witness went to the house of the deceased at Knightstown, and saw him in bed. He said he had taken a shilling’s worth of strychnine at twenty minutes to seven that morning, and as soon as it effected him, he woke the rest of the family and informed them of what he had done. He stated where the cup was from which he had taken the poison, and appeared to be in grea. pain. The poison was purchased from Mr Gould, chemist. He was taken to the Hospital in a cab, Dr. Townend having previously given him a mustard emetic. Dr. J. H. Townend was called to the house of deceased on Saturday morning by the last witness, and on arriving there he found dedeceased in bed with recurring rigid spasms. On being asked, he said he had purchased a shilling’s worth of strychnine from Mr Gould, and, being tired of his life, had taken it. After taking an emetic he was taken to the Hospital and attended there subsequently. During the day he appeared to improve, but died on Sunday morning, at one o’clock. Witness, with Dr. Irvine, who also attended deceased in the Hospital, made a post-mortem examination. The rigor mortis was strongly worked, and there were no appearances inconsistent with death by strychnine. The stomach-pump was employed for about four hours, and after death there was not sufficient strychnine left to trace. Witness was perfectly satisfied that deceased died from poison by strychnine. Some contents of the cup referred to had been analysed and found to contain strychnine. Sergeant Moriee deposed that he knew deceased, who was formerly a debt collector, and had been fourteen years in Now Zealand. For some time past, more especially the last two months, he had been very depressed in spirits, caused by monetary difficulties. The Coroner—l think the case is very clear, gentlemen. The man having previously said he had taken strychnine, and the symptoms described are all indicative of poison by strychnia. It is rather remarkable that he lived so long, for two grains is enough to kill a person, but probably the mustard emetic being taken afterwards would cause him to throw a great deal off. X do not think there is a doubt as to the cause of death, but I leave it to you to say whether the man died from strychnine, and in what state of mind he was in when be took it.

The jury found that deceased had caused death through taking strychnine administered by his own hand, but there was no evidence to show what state of mind he was in at the time.