THE LATE MR PERKINS.

Otaki Mail, 23 July 1923, Page 3

THE LATE MR PERKINS.

INQUEST AT TE HOKO. An inquest was held at To Horo on Saturday, before Jlv. \V. 0. Nation, coroner, in connection with the death of Mr. Harry I'erkins. Constable SatherJey appeared on behalf of the police. John Futinoll deposed: i am a brother of flie deceased, Henry Funnel!, and am at present farming at Oroua Downs. ! have seen the body and identify it as my brother. I!o was born at Cunibilun, Now South Wales. He was .11 years of age, and has been in New Zealand -'-' years. He was a married man. with a wife and family of eight Mill living in New South Wales. He left Australia, because, of his being addicted to drink. When he came to N'ew Zealand he took the name of DerUrws. It is about three years sHiee I -aw him last. He has been at his tradt j s> a blacksmith all his life. When I <.•!»• him last he was in ordinary goo.! health and apart*' from the drink, he was all that could be wished for as a , man. His family from what 1 know (

are in good positions. George Stanley Sharp, deposed: 1 j am a medical practitioner residing at Otaki. Yesterday morning (■M/T/S.i , ' 1 received a telephone message fron j Mr. Harr-en. an employee of deceased y. j -aying that he thought his en,plover, j Mr. Perkins, had died and would I come down at once. I arrived at Te Horo !lt S.S<i a.m., and examined the deceased

1 found life extinct and considered In j had been dead about an hour. Acting i under instructions from the Coroner. ! ■:,,,-,- in the day, I performed a post j mortem examination. I. found that I most of the organs were diseased. Hh ! -romach was empty of food, ha, con ! -aincd a small oua, of what t consid | ered uhisky. The sromach was vciw ' inich congested and inflamo.l. Hi:- j scarf was enlarged and showed evidenc, j ~f fatiy degeneration: all his arteries I were loudened. 1 formed Ihe conclti | Men thai death was due to heart, failure William Larson, deposed: I am ;■ \ slacks,,lit! re-siding a! Otaki firiie.. j ! have be.-n in ihe employ or Hie cle 1 .eased about four and half year.. On j ~„„i„g to work as usual on Krida, ) ™g. < '■"«'"' '"* "'""■ '■"l' 1 -- | and on going in F discovered Mr. Per- ! kins k- Una down alongside his bed. ! spoke to him. but he did not unswei. • Honking something was wrong. I rang j ..,, Mr. Wirdlev. asking him to come ,eer will, a. dm,, of whisky, thinking :i,at it inighl pull dec eased around. I Mr. Windley said he would send hi- j s,i to Ihe chare. 1 asked him to gi\o ! : '■"'■ « »'««" «»'< lin "■'"' " '- ' 'j ih, hoe .aid "Mr. I'erkiN, is dead." 1 rang up I"' 1 '- Sliitrj. ami asked him 1" : ,i K( out as Mr. Perkins was dead. He : came along about :H> minutes to half a" j .. hour late,' I ran- up Con-.aide Sail, | , -lev. Dr. Sharp in the meantime came

ami' laid lire was extinct. Me ,01,l me ,i,„ decked had been dead abou, an I '- :» " rs of drinking-.- j ''one, „ coupie of •, ks would elapse :,.,d sometimes a couple of months. 11 had a telephone in his ukare and tin | drink was sen, to him by train. lb j ~,., Iu „ C; ,vourltes, whisky and gi, j ; .,„| he only got a bottle at a time v . C,r a, I know. This las, bout had b j „ u for a month. H 1 . ..."-■ | he always brought some drink with hie 1 used to speak to him. but he said !<■ would not get over this last "Muni, j as he called W. I know that he had j had several prohibition orders issued! against him. I found him a very goo.: j boss: the best I have worked foralways straighl forward and hi st. Harrv Butler Wise, deposed: 1 am j -. storekeeper residing at. To Horo. 1 j have known the deceas'ed for two yea,- j ,s Harry Perkins. 1 saw him pretty} sell every day. 1 -aw him last the i morning before he died (the 19th.) j iibout 7.3 U a.m. He was pretty bad!; under the influence of drink. I spoke j to him. He looked worse than usual f under this bout. He took occasional! bouts. He got into a v L -rv low state j and lav aboui when in this condition. [ On the morning of the 19th, he came t" b ;ny store and purchased a bottle of ginger ale, which he drank in my presence. lie also got one bottle of pain killer, I

«-hk* \u~To6k hivhv will, hi.,,. Who,, lie stalled to g'-f " v,jr ;l b,ult 110 too]l ' : pain killer. Apart from ike drink the | , 1 ' " UU ' n ' Allan Sathorley. olepof-d : 1 am a Police Constable stationed a! Otakh About 8.35 a.m. on Friday - morning 1 reived a telephone incssup* .from tho previous witness (Mr. Larson) to the effect that lie thought his boss was dead l,y his bed ill his whare. As I was about to lenv.fTJ-reeeived another telephone message i'rom Dr. Sharp savins tiiat he found Perkins dead when hearrived. 1 til once went to Te Hon, and examined the body. The clothing was in a filthy state. With the assistance | ~f "Mrs. Taylor inid Mi-, llarkness and , Mr. l.utsna w c cleansed the body. II ' was in a normal condition. The bodv bad already 1....,, .daemon,,„, bed. by Mr. Larson. Decease,! had ins „ve,eoat ~n al „] H,o clothing was CO throat;!, I as though he hiu\ been out in tie- rain..

n „, only bedding lio l-a-i »'„.. t-.vo or] three fhclcs on a wire matt res- ami a , rug. Tl.kv were also wet as he had bee,, j Iving on then, in his wet ciothes. There! was a Ktron? *■."•« of whisky about the place and number of bottles were lying about. A five-gallon jar was standing by the back door. wWd, had recently contained beer. The only property found on him eras a sixpence - his vest pocket. I found a bill in the Wl.are. which showed the a M of liquor ho had received since the -Uli of the month. The dates wore July 4th, July 5Hi. same am.ounf and same price: 'bdy whisky, £111*.: lAfl, r,» bottle of £jir. IvC: a 'o'o.l cf 55 B'. 63.., from 4tli to K"h fa." Ih'o July H% mm nutUe of

1 uhisky 13/tS and 5 gallons of ale £1 as.; , July 12th, one bottle of whisky 15/6 July loth, one bottle of gin 15/0; July '. loth, one bottle of whisky l-j/li. and one 'of gin 15/(5; July 17th* one bottle of n* whisky 15/0, bringing the total up to i.' £IJ 6s. (id. 1 have known deceased for f I the past 15 years, and during that time ■■ j 1 have known him to have these periodj ical drinking bouts, and on several oc- -, casions 1 base had prohibitions orders | 1 ' issued against him. On this occasion I j ■ i was not aware that deceased had been i ' on the spree, until I had received the -'message from Mr. Larson. At other I I limes I used to see him in Otaki. I j lw.-us found deceased an upright man, j ! • man of good points, and was spoken I -ighlv of in the district. After the j •j ody'had been laid out and cleansed j 1 went back to Otaki and Informed the j Coroner and my inspector, and the I Coroner ordered an inquest and a post j mortem. There was no prohibition I order in existence againsl deceased ar | the time of his death. | A verdict was returned that deceased J died from heart failure brought on by , excessive drinking of alcoholic liquor.