GRIM NOTE

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 3, Issue 618, 24 August 1933, Page 5

GRIM NOTE

(Press Assn.—

failed in suicide once so tried again HAD GUN REPAIRED

-By Telegraph — Copyright.

Auckland, Wednesday. An inquest was held before Mr. W. R. McKean, S.M.", to-day touehing the death of Claude Meredith Fenwick, aged 54, managing director of T. F. Morrin and Fenwick Ltd., who was found dead in his office late on Monday afternoon. Cecil Tilley, warehouse manager, said that he heard the report of a gun and rushed into deceased's office where he found him sitting in his chair apparently dead. No person , left the office. k ' Pin IX/Tnn i]u\t mnvnino* Hpnpaspfl

' AJ. wnuLvj '""b y — ihad given witness a single-barrelled shot-gun asking him to take it to a gunsmith's and have the striker repaired. Witness took the gun to the shop and brought it back that noonEvidence was given by John Murray, secretary to the firm, that owing to the financial state of the company, the bank had put in a receive.r about a! > month ago. During the past fortnight, Mr. Fenwick had appeared rather more cheerful than usual. Detective Sergeant McHugh produced eleven letters written by the deceased to members of his family, business associates and friends. A note left on the desk read: "I finished my letters at 1.15 a.m., pulled the trigger and nothing happened. The gun had a defective pin and would not strlke. So I had to go home and go to bed. Ironical wasn't it? There was a sort > of tragedy to the comedy touch about it. That is why I am still here waiting for the gun to be repaired." The coroner returned a verdict that deceased died as the result of a gunshot wound self-inflicted.