INQUEST.

Grey River Argus, Volume VII, Issue 501, 1 April 1869, Page 3

INQUEST.

An inquest was held yesterday afternoon at the Golden Age Hotel, Richmond-quay, on the body of Anne Bromley Hildebrand, who was found dead in her bedroom on the previous evening. The following evidence was given : — Jessie Macfarlane said : I knew the deceased, Mrs Hildebrand. Yesterday afternoon 1 was called in to see Mrs Hildebrand, as she was ill. She was then sittiug crying in bed. I asked her what was the matter, and she said she was pained all over. I offered her burn brandy, or pepper ; but she said she could not take anything. She did not appear to be in pain ; but she kept on saying, "What ever shall Ido ?" I came back in ten minutes, and she was fast asleep. I did not see her alive afterwards. I inquired three times about her in the afternoon, and on each occasion was told she was still asleep. By Mr Sub-Inspector James : She did not inform me whether or not she had been to the chemist's shop. Augustus Hildebrand : lam a butcher in Greymouth. The deceased was my wife. Her name was Anne Bromley Hildebrand. I returned from Hokitika yesterday, and met my wife at the shop door. After I had had something to eat, she said ! she would stay in the shop while! went up the street to the Murray to buy some sheep. When I came back, I saw my wife in the shop ; then I went up again to sea the sheep landed. I got back between Seven and eight o'clock, and lay down dressed on the bed. I woke up, as near as I can tell, at eleven o'clock, struck a match, looked round the room, and saw my wife sitting on the floor in front of the bed. I. felt her forehead, and it was quite cold. I cried to my partner Weber for help. He got out of bed, and came to inc. He saw her dead. I then ran for Dr. Morice, and also to the Police Station. To my knowledge the deceased has never threatened to commit suicide, or to have been in the habit of using laudanum. I did not see any bottles in the house last night. I have always lived on good terms with the deceased. I cannot say where she was when I lay down on the bed. George Weber : lam the partner of the last witness, and knew the deceased. About one o'clock yesterday afternoon I saw her. She appeared rather excited, and in answer to me Bhe said she had been np town. She went into her room, and to my knowledge did not come out again. Half an hour after she went in I knocked at the door, and received no answer. I enquired of the man in the shop if anything was wrong. He said she was ill, and had sent for Mrs Macfai-lane. I asked Mrs Macfarlane what was wrong with the deceased. She replied that she did not know exactly ; but she had pains. Shortly afterward 4, 1 opened the door, and svw the deceased lying asleep on the bed. I saiw her no more until about one ©'clock this morning, when Hildebrand called me in to look at her, when 1 found her dead. She was in front of the bed in a sitting position, leaning forward with both hands on the bed. Mr Hildebrand went for Dr. Morice. The deceased and Hildebrand lived on good terms. I have known them for about three years, and they have always lived on good terms. David Clark : lam a chemist's assistant with Mr Williams. I believe I sold the deceased 6 drachms of laudanum yesterday for external application. She said she had been in the habit of using it. I put a printed label "Poison, for external use" on it. None of the bottles shown me are the same. It was between 12 and 1 o'clock. It is customary to supply poisons to unknown persons for linaments. I had not sold the deceased any laudanum previously. Dr Morice : I knew the deceased. She has frequently been a patient of mine. I was called to see her this morning about half-past twelve o'clock. I found her in the bed-room, sunk down on her knees by the side of the bed, and the left side of the head resting on the bed. She was quite dead. I have made a postmortem examination to-day, and find that, excepting a slight black mark on the left arm and a slight abrasion on the right side of the nose, there were no external marks of violence. I opened the head. The membranes and substance of the brain were much conjested. Bound the right side and base of brain there was a good deal of blood effused. The other organs, except the liver, were healthy. The stomach was comparatively empty, and I fancy I could detect the smell of spirits. The cause of death was the effusion of blood on the side and base of brain. I found no appearance of laudanum in the stomach of the deceased. It might have been taken some hours previously and passed off; and could not be detected without a chemical analysis. Six drachms of laudanum would be sufficient to cause death, and would tend to cause effusion of blood on the brain. I heard that the deceased had been in the habit of using laudanum externally as a linament. Constable Keating : At about two o'clock this morning Mr Hildebrand reported at the Camp that his wife was dead. I got up, accompanied him to his house, and saw the deceased in her bedroom. She was in a kneeling position in front of the bed, as if she had been trying to get into it. I saw no external marks of violence. Dr Morice was there before me. I found the five medicine bottles produced in the room. A female in the room made a search of the deceased's clothes, but no property of any description was found on her. The jury returned a verdict that the deceased died from natural causes accellorated by excessive drinking.