THE CHRISTCHURCH TRAGEDY.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VIII, Issue 646, 25 February 1914, Page 5

THE CHRISTCHURCH TRAGEDY.

SON CHARGED WITH MURDER,

The youth Alexander Thompson, the principal character in Friday's tragedy in Durham street, Christchurch, was brought before the magistrate on Saturday, and charged with the murder of his mother, Hannah Thompson. Accused appeared unconcerned. On the application of Sub-Inspector McKinnon, Thompson was remanded until Saturday next. Mr H. W. Bishop, S.M., was on the bench, and the accused was not represented by counsel. An inquest concerning the circumstances attending the death of Mrs Thompson was opened before Mr Bishop, in his capacity as district coroner, at the mortuary on Saturday afternoon. Chief Detective Bishop conducted the case for the nolice. Nellie Thompson, daughter of the deceased, stated that she lived with her mother at 39, Durham street. Witness was telephoned for to go back tii work as a waitress at the Dominion Hotel, and at about 7 p.m., when she arrived home, she found h«r mother dead. Deceased was fifty years of a?e. Her husband (witness father> was at Roto Roa. Alexander Thompson was witness" brother. He was a labourer, and be was twenty-three years of age. With ber mother lived Miss Wright and Mr Baxter, a labourer, and witness' brother and sister, seven years and nine years of a£>e respectively. Baxter had resided with Mrs Thompson for two years. Thsy had always got on well together. Her brother was not at home when ?he went home shortly before five o'clock. There was a separation order between ber father and mother. The inquest was adjourned till Tuesday. INQUEST CONCLUDED. Christchurch, Thi' Day. At the inquest concerning the death of Mrs Thomson, Alexander Thomson, son of deceased, made a statement in which he said the blow which knocked his mother down was intended for Baxter, who lived with his mother.

Baxter, after describing the quarrel, said Mrs Thomson said something to her son, who began swearing and hit her on the side of the face and knocked her down. Witness was not within feet of the time, so the blow could not have been meant for him. Mrs Thomson got up and the son continued his bad language and knocked her down again. The coroner returned a verdict that death was due to hemmorrhage caused by the rupture of a varicose vein, due to a fall caused by a blow from her son, Alexander Thomson.