THIRD EDITION. Deaths.
McCorkindale. — On the 10th January, at St. Clair, Caversham, Jane Lindsay, the second and beloved daughter of Hugh and Jane McCorkindale, of Duncan street, South Dunedin; aged 23 years. Deeply regretted. — The Funeral will leave the above residence To-morrow (Saturday), at 3 p.m., for the Southern Cemetery. Friends will please accept this intimation. -Evening Star, 15/1/1897.
THE DISAPPEARANCE OF MISS M'CORKINDALE.
DISCOVERY OF THE BODY AT THE CLIFFS.
The search for the body of Miss McCorkindale, who was supposed to have been drowned in the ocean off the Cliffs at St. Clair, was continued on Thursday with assiduity till halfpast 3 in the afternoon, when the body was discovered. Two young men named Hobbs and Wilson, who, along with numerous others, had volunteered their services in connection with the sad affair, had lowered themselves over the Cliffs just underneath the spot where Miss McCorkindale's umbrella was found. After making a minute exainination of the place they found the body jammed at the base of the Cliffs between two rocks. Two others taking part in the search were communicated with immediately, and the body being wrapped up in some material was raised to the surface, and thence removed to the St. Clair Hotel, where the unhappy parents performed the mournful duty of formally identifying the body of their daughter. Although there are numerous bruises about the body, which is a good deal disfigured, it is surmised that in its downward course it fell straight into the ocean, and death was therefore due to drowning, and that afterwards the waves washed it into the position in which it was subsequently discovered. With the exception of the hat the body was fully dressed, and nothing found on it throws any light on the sad affair.
THE INQUEST.
An inquiry into the circumstances attending the death of Jane Lindsay McCorkindale, whose body was found at the foot of the Cliffs at St. Clair on Thursday afternoon, was held on Friday at the Metropole Hotel, St. Clair, before Mr Coroner Carew and six jurymen, of whom John Chetwin was chosen foreman.
Hugh McCorkindale, newsagent, who resided at Duncan street, South Dunedin, deposed that the body shown to the jury was that of his daughter Jane Lindsay McCorkindale. She was born in Glasgow, and had been about 22 years in the colony. She followed the occupation of a tailoress, and was 23 years of age. Deceased was living with witness, and was missed on Sunday last at about 12 o'clock. She had been a little despondent for the last four or five weeks prior to her death, and seemed dissatisfied with her surroundings. She had been sometimes unwell during part of the day, and would get all right by night again. She had not been in a despondent state before. Dr Brown had seen her two or three times. She was able to attend to her work right up to the holidays. Dr Brown had ordered her a change, and she had been to Naseby, where she remained about ten days. She returned home on Saturday the 9th inst., and said she was a little better. On Sunday she got up, cleaned herself, and said she was going across the road to see a companion. She left the house about 10 o'clock. After witness returned from church, finding that deceased was not back, he sent across the road to Miss Minn's for her, but learnt that she had never been there. Witness, knowing the despondent state she had been in, and becoming alarmed at her absence, took a car to St. Clair, which was her favourite place for a walk. He looked all about for her, but could neither see nor meet anyone who had seen her. About 7 o'clock in the evening he learnt that she had been seen in the morning in Cargill road, going in the direction of St. Clair. He went to the police immediately he returned from St. Clair, and reported that she was missing. He kept up a search for the deceased, and on Monday, at about 12 o'clock, he heard that an umbrella had been picked up at the Cliffs, and he identified it as the one belonging to his daughter. On Tuesday evening a little boy found a hat on the Cliff, near where the body was said to have bean seen floating in the water. He continued to search all the week, and he heard on Thursday evening that the body had been found.
To Sergeant Brown: During her illness the deceased talked of being useless, but it was quite contrary to her usual nature to be despondent.
To the Coroner: About a week before she went to the country the deceased was found attempting to eat matches. She spoke very lightly about it, and promised never to do anything of the kind again. The matches had no ill effects upon her.
To Sergeant Brown: Witness did not know that the deceased was in the habit of using chlorodyne, but it had been administered to her by her mother for illness.
Sergeant Brown produced a bottle labelled chlorodyne, about three-parts full of liquid, and stated that it was found in the deceased's work basket.
Witness said the bottle was found after the deceased was missed. He believed that deceased had tried chlorodyne for toothache. He did not think it was ever in the house more than once. The work basket was on deceased bedroom mantelpiece.
To a Juryman: Witness had ascertained from a chemist that deceased had not taken sufficient chlorodyne to do her any harm.
Dr Brown deposed that the deceased came so see him on several occasions — the first time on the 15th of December. When he saw her first she complained of uncomfortable feelings in her head. She was light-headed and giddy, and could not collect her thoughts. It struck him that she was a remarkably intelligent young woman. She told him that she had had a very severe attack of influenza four years previously, and had just passed through another attack which had not been quite so severe. With the exception of the sensations described she presented no signs of any organic disease. He came to the conclusion that she was suffering from the after effects of influenza. She was despondent about herself on the occasion of her first visit, but the despondency was much more marked on the subsequent occasions that he saw her. He advised her the first time he saw her to take a rest from work; and subsequently, when she began to speak about her life being useless, he recommended her relatives to take her away for a change. He also advised her sister, who was going away with her, not to lose sight of her. Although she spoke about her life being useless she made no reference to taking her life. Witness had seen the body, but could not recognise it. The skull was broken and the features all shattered. It might have happened either before or after she got into the water. He could not tell whether she died from drowning or not.
To a Juryman: Witness thought that the despondency was the result of influenza. He had known of several similar cases.
To the Coroner: He might say that so far as he could see ho would not have been justified in putting the deceased under restraint. He thought it was a case eminently suitable for domestic treatment; and that any other kind of treatment would have done her more harm than good.
William Henry Grimmett, plasterer, Cargill road, knew the deceased by sight. On Sunday, the 10th inst., he saw her as he was going down the Forbury road from St. Clair. She turned the corner of Albert street and went up the hill towards the Cliffs. There was no one with her. He noticed nothing strange about her. He did not see her afterwards. It was about half-past 10 a.m. when he met her.
Thomas Martin, warehouseman, of Roslyn, deposed that he was on the Cliffs last Sunday morning with Mr Austin, when he noticed, just below the highest part of the Cliffs, an object in the water, which he took to be a corpse. He thought it was not possible to get near it from where he was. He came down to the baths, got a pair of glasses, and went back to the place where he was before on the Cliffs. By this time the object had drifted so far out to sea that he could barely distinguish it. When he did see it he merely suspected that it was a body, but was not at all satisfied that it was.
To Sergeant Brown: It would have been impossible to get to the object without a boat. On his way down to the baths he picked up an umbrella, but left it where he found it.
To the Coroner: It was about 11.30 a.m. when he saw the object he took to be a body. From where he found the umbrella anyone could have rolled down the cliff into the water.
To a Juryman: A boat would certainly have been of service if one had been available.
Cornelius Wilson, bellowsmaker, of South Dunedin, said he was searching round the Cliffs on Thursday for the body with two companions named Hobbs and Henry. They had been searching for about three-quarters of an hour, when he saw the breakers under the Cliffs moving an arm up and down. He was on the rocks close to the body, and when the breakers went out he could see the whole body jammed in between the rocks. He called his companions' attention to it, and asked them to signal to the people on the hill that they had found the body. After a time they succeeded in getting the body from between the rocks, and it was subsequently brought to the Metropole Hotel. The body must have been washed into the position in which he saw it by the sea. It was half-past 3 p.m. when the body was found. They got down the Cliffs partly by the help of bits of steel wire which they found fixed there.
To the Foreman: The body was about 50 yards out from the high water mark.
Thomas Martin (recalled) stated that when he last saw the object which he took to be a body, it was coming in to shore again, being brought in, he thought, by an under-current.
Constable Dale also gave evidence.
The Coroner, in addressing the jury, said it seemed to him that it would be impossible for them to say what was the cause of death. The doctor was unable to say whether the deceased died from drowning or from the wounds. Her skull was fractured, and her wounds were quite sufficient to account for her death; but it was impossible to say whether she was killed by falling down the bank on to the rocks or whether she was drowned. There was a possibility of course, as some of the jury had suggested, that she might have slipped and unintentionally have fallen down where she was found.
Hugh McCorkindale: It was quite a customary thing for her to go for a walk on Sunday morning, both by herself and with her sisters.
The Coroner: I cannot hear you any more now.
The Jury after some deliberation returned a verdict to the effect that the deceased was found dead, but that there was not sufficient evidence to show how she came by her death. -Otago Witness, 21/1/1897.
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