CORONER'S INQUEST.

Oamaru Mail, Volume I, Issue 96, 11 August 1876, Page 2

CORONER'S INQUEST.

An inquest upon the body of William Fleming, whose death we chronicled in our issue of last evening, was held • yester-: day afternoon, at the Shamrock Hotel. A Jury of fourteen being empanhelled, of 'which' Mr. Henry Richmond was chosen foreman, the following evidence was taken : The first witness called was John Somerville, the owner of thd property, upon which the accident Recurred, who deposed— . ' lam a carpenter. I recognise the body of deceased as that of a' man named William Fleming, whom I employed to make some excavations on my property at the corner of Aln and Neil streets. Deceased had been so employed for about a fortnight. I have . never been present while deceased was at work, but I have examined it on several occasions after he had knocked off work. The cutting had the usual ordinary appearance, and did not appear to be undermined. I visited it on Tuesday night, but as it was dark at the time I am unable to say whether there was any danger. On Wednesday evening deceased's wife came to my residence, andjfcold me that although her husband came home at a regular hour, it was then far beyond his time, and he had not returned. - I then went at' Qnce to the .excavation and found deceased lying on his face : one, of his-legs; was clear of the. earth and double'd up..iii a-peculiar position, while the < other; was covered, by the fell of stuff. With the assistance of a man named John Page, we raised the body up, but found the man was dead. I then reported the matter to the police. When I returned with the police I noticed that there had been a fall of earth to the extent of about three tons, while some : pieces, probably of * a hundred weight wei'e close to the body. As deceased had stated that he was a practical miner, I concluded he would work excavations with precaution. " " Isabella Fleming deposed that she was the wife of deceased. She had visited-her husband at tlu*ee p.m.-on Tuesday, while he was at work, and although the bank was slightly undermined, she.did not think there was any danger of its falling. She thought, however, the fall must have taken place about half an hour after'lier leaving. As her husband did not return home, she called on" Mr. Somerville, and informed him that she was afraid there was something wrong. Her husband was a native of Blantyre, Scotland, thirty-seven years of age, a sober man, and was generally as happy as the day was long. ; ""Dl\ Fleming gave evidence as to having examined the body- and the injuries .received by deceased. 'ln his opinion, death was caused from a violent- compression of the body, the result of; a fall- of-,eartli, causing internal -hemorrhage. The. jtiiiy, after a few minutes* deliberation, returned the >folio wing ; .vferdict " That- the deceased (William*' Fleming) came to_'his -, death by _ an fall of earth." ; '• . •,