The Westmorland Gazette 20 July 1867 20 July 1867 Sudden Death at Keswick

20 July 1867 Sudden Death at Keswick

On Friday an inquest was held at the Woolpack Inn, Keswick, on the body of Isaac Stanley, an imbecile, aged eighteen years. John Stanley, rural letter-carrier, brother to the deceased boy, stated that on Wednesday night about ten o'clock he came downstairs from his bedchamber, and complaining of a pain in his head, asked for some rum. He was told to go back, and his mother would bring him a cup of tea. Witness slept in the same room with him, and noticed that he was very restless during the night. At half-past seven the next morning the witness found the head of the deceased on the floor, his feet remaining on the bed. He lifted him into bed, the body being warm. Dr. Tweddle was sent for, and came at once, but on his arrival life had entirely ceased. Thomas Musgrave said that on the previous night he saw the deceased fighting with another boy, two years younger than himself, named Armstrong, and by whom he was overcome. Jane Graham deposed that in the contest deceased was the agressor, have repeatedly struck Armstrong, who at first refused to fight, but afterwards struck deceased on the nose, causing it to bleed. Stanley afterwards tried to hit Armstrong with a pop-gun, which was prevented by witness, and the fight terminated. Dr. Tweddle said on reaching the house at eight o'clock in the morning he found Stanley quite dead. Under the coroner's authority he had made a post mortem examination of the head. In the left ventricle there was more than half a pint of serum, the cavity being sufficiently wide to hold a large-sized fist. The formation had been going on for a considerable period, and would have eventually been the cause of death. It was not unlikely that the event might have been accelerated by the excitement attendant on the fight in which the deceased had been engaged. Physically the lad was well developed, but the imbecility under which he had suffered of late years might be attributed to his cerebral complaint. The Coroner summed up, and the jury, after a short deliberation, pronounced a verdict of " Death from natural causes." The Coroner agreed in the verdict, and at the same time declined to reprimand Armstrong, on whom he said no imputations rested for occasioning the death of Stanley.