WOMAN POISONED
STRANGE CIRCUMSTANCES, , IS MAN HIDING ANYTHING? ,y. • ■ (By Telegraph—Per Press Association.) : : >4. GISBORNE, Aug. 4. An unusually long and searching inquiry was held to-day by Mr Harper, S’.'M. concerning the death of Mrs. Christina Sutherland McMahon, aged SI years, who died on July 24th.,from tlie effects of poison. The medical evidence given was to the effect that the deceased told a doctor and'also a house surgeon ait Cook that she filled some raisins with poison to kill rats, and had taken the ; raisins by mistake. The principal witness was a married named Robert Milton Bell, who visifecV the deceased shortly before she ;iv.as. found suffering from the poison. Bell, ip evidence, said that he went to . .deceased’s home in . response to a telephone message from her.. On his arnvftl; he said; shemfferedhim a ring security for a-loan of-£25 that he -Jfffd made to her two months previouslyHe sjxid that accept and : ; .thep ; i-Jeft,'[saving that want ertheE thh inoney or tlie -ring. When he.gpt home, he found ; in;.his. overcoat- pocket. Elc had previously, lent the deceased sums up "to £2s' to assist' Tier"iii her business as a -dressmaker, and she _ had assisted j£fj; keeplhis' bbobs.’’’He; hadi known the for-Hiree -years’,Sand had formerly- boarded with the deceased and her husband. -Witness was subjected to a seareli--ing -cross-examination by the police .and "the Coroner. In giving bis verdict, the. Coroner said that it was quite evident that dbatb was the result of strychnine poisoning. The question was whether it was taken intentionally, or accidentally. The evidence of two doctors showed that the deceased had stated the poison ? fybW [ taken accidentally in raisins. ‘Th4-*dedbased told other wit--1 took the poison accidentally. '.j: i ; , / “It is q„yse .erytTent”! the’!Coroner said, “thaij'tjje’tjdisjdn was taketi-by deceased ; Bell 1 "had .called on, ev .jthnt afternoon--. She .said she took 'the. 'poison iirk/raisin, biiiLit; seems ’strange;' •jfchSt she should ;ha,ve. taken it by' acciy denty;{GhlV onfOpersoh: can throw light on ’-the. whole matter, and that i-s the witness, Belli Xam quite sure that he is not telling us all, and I am not satisfied with tlie manner-in which he gave his ovidp”<-e. He apnears to be keeping something concealed. There seems ho \v9iv she should have taken ,fhenJj£e,Tand. the-lonri as mentioned by Bell was not by any means a sufficient Reason. There must have been some l-qtheiCmotive if she took the poison inVutiohallyr and'Bell appears to be the only one who can give any indication o?'~that.” rcr The Coroner said, that; the evidence must" Ke regarded as a whole, -arid in r vknv-of the fact that the deceased had stated- that she took the poison accidentally','its finding would he that she died--as .the result of strychnine poisoning, accidentally taken by her.
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Hokitika Guardian, 5 August 1930, Page 3
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454WOMAN POISONED Hokitika Guardian, 5 August 1930, Page 3
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