THE CAIN MURDER CASE. The Judge's Charge.

Te Aroha News, Volume IV, Issue 189, 29 January 1887, Page 1

THE CAIN MURDER CASE. The Judge's Charge.

Dunedin, Jan. '22. There was a crowd at the Supreme Court this moi'ning, when Thomas HaU, charged with the murder of Captain Cain, came before the Grand Jury. His Honor Justice Williams, in his charge to the Grand Jury, 3aid :— I shall confine myeelf to pointing out the salient features of the case made against theaccused by the depositions. The accused, Thomas Hal!, is charged with the wilful murder of Henry Cain. Henry Cain died on the 19th of January, ISS6. He had been ill for some time before of dropsy and heart disease. The doctor certified that he died from these causes. At the time of bis death there wa3 no suspicion of any foul play. Some mouths after hia death suspicions ware aroused and his body was exhumed, and there was found antimony in a quanlityj[3ufricient,according to the mcdi cal testimony, to have accelerated death in a person in the weak condition in which Cain was shortly before his death. Now, antimony is not naturally found in the human body, and is not a product of decomposition. If lak9n, a3 it seems to have been taken, by Cum in hid lifetime, how was it administered ? His medical man, Dr. Mclntyre, had on various occasions prescribed for him, but antimony never entered into any of these prescriptions. To account, thoiefore, ior its presence, there could be bat the hypotheses : 1. That it wa^ taken or administered by accident. 2 That ib was v. ilfully taken by Cum. 3. That it was wi'fully administered by someone else. You have to consider which of Ibese the avidence shows to be the ruo^t probable. The evidence further shows some ground for supposing that more antimony was administered than was actually found in the body after death. During the latter part of his life Cain suf-tret-d trom constant vomiting — a symptom, indeed, of hisdiseace, but also a characteristic s} mptom of autimonial poisoning. He feems to have especially complained that the ! whisky which ho had been in the habit of taking for many years caused him to vomit. Two witnesses, who took the whisky in Cain's hou^e, ?poke of being sick immediately after, but on the other hand other witnesses, who also took the liquor, suffered no ill effects. The modical testimony does not seem to have been very fully brought out at the preliminary inquiry, and possibly from the quantity oi antimony found in the body, and irom the uppearance of the different organs, the doctor may be able to draw some further inf6rences material to the case. The accused (Hall) had manied the str-pdaughter of the decca°ed in May, ISSS. The deceased had an objection to tho marriage, and HaU and he were not afc that timo on friendly terms. About three months before Cain's decease, however, those differences were made up, and Hall bocame a daily visitor at the house, calling morniug and evening, and often beine with deceased alone Jt is suggested that the poisoning commenced, or at any rate became regular, shortly after the time Hall's visits commenced. In May, ISSS, Hall had purchased antimony, and also a work on poisone, which he appears to have bought .■"ph'cially to ascertain the operation of rhi* particular drug. The book contains the date ISS2 in Hall's handwriting, sukgopting that he thtn had it in his possession, and suggesting what was, of course, untrue. In August, ISSG, Hall was arrested on another charge, a charge ot attempting to poison by antimony, and antimony was found in hh possession. He then admitted that ho had purchased antimony, and stated ho had used it ior a long time for cigarettes for asthma. For some time before Cain's death Hal) had been in groat financial difficulties, and he resortod to forgery to allevinte those difficulties. In poveral roepect3 Cain ' 3 death would have boon a direct or indirect pecuniary benefit to Hall. The ca&e, therefore, as disclosed by <he depositions, is shortly as follows : — Cain's death was accelerated by antimony ; the hypotheeisof accidental administration, or of its hnving been wilfully taken by Cain, is im probable ; Hall had constant; access to Cain ; Hall had antimony in his possession, and had studied the subject of ftntiaaotfial pouon ; Hall was urgently in want of money, and Cain's death would help to give him some monr*y. If 'you think there id prim a fncte evidence that Cain'a dealh was accelerated, even in the smallest degree, by antimony wilfully administered by Hall, you will find a true bill. At twenty minutes to one the Grand Jury fouud "a true bill against Hall. The criminal sitting wne then adjourned till ten a m. on Monday. Mrs Newton and Mrs Weir having both been confined recently, their attendanco has been dispensed with at the trial, Their depositions will be pd|b in. There is groat demand for admission to witness the trial, which is by ticket.