OMEO TRAGEDY.

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CROWN CASE CON-

CLUDED.

mTEBESTING MEDICAL * EVIDENCE.

MELBOURNE. April l8.

The case for the Crown in the second trial of Ronald Geeves Griggs, the former Methodist minister at Omeo, on a charge of having murdered his wife, Ethel Constance Gnggs, at Omeo, on or about January 3 last, was con- cluded before Mr Justioe Mac farlan, m the Criminal Court to ditj The Crown alleges that Griggs administered poison, pfob ably in two doses

Mr Gurner K C and Mi Book are appearing for the Crown, and Mr Max woll K C and Mr Cullity are appear ing for Griggs ^

Dr Craufurd Hem y Mollison (Govern ment Pathologist) m evidence, said that ho made a post moi tem examination of the body of Mrs Gnggs aftei it had been exhumed He was of the opinion that Mrs Griggs died from arsenical poison ing Certainly two doses of arsenic were

given

Mr Book On what do you base that opinion'-On the amount of arsenic found ni the stomach and in the largei mtes tine The passing through of tho arsenic would be a gradual process

What other grounds have you for assUtn ing that more than one doso was taken' Hie length of timo that elapsed between bei first symptoms mid hei death

Can j ou express any ¿pinion as to whcthci the symptoms as described on the Satuiday and tho Sunday, resulted fiom aisenical poisonmgî-r should say that thoy vvoiD due to that qause If only one doso had been givoii I would have expected to find the stomach almost entirely free from scenic

Would the conipHo amount of aiscnio found represent all that was taken?* No some of it would have been ejected some of it would have been absorbed, and some would have passed by other pio« cesse» ,

Mi Maxwell Whjft was tho last case

ni which you attended a patient enfiel

nig fiom iisctiicul poisoning'-I eould not

say I have gi>i>n|*ti good maiiy after

death ?*

X am not as! ing yon "bow long it is sinoe you attended a patient miffding fiom niscincnl poisoning-I do not know that I have ever attended one If I did it was in my hospital days 30 y cal s ago

Then the statements that Jon aie mik ing ale the íesult of join lending ami postmortem è«,i>euence'

Supposing tlmt the p-itient takes a do-Be of poison can jon tell from n post moi

tem within what time aftei the taking of the poison lUfcjlirst sjmptolns manifested

themselves'-No

These opinions îcgaidiug the time taken and t/he amount of poison likely to cuusp death are based upon your lead

lnS'r>CV J14..I ," h -

You have »o' expouenco that Vbuld enable jou to confiim these opinionsV No '

AMOUNTS THAT WOULD CAUSE

DEATH

Is it not a fact that theie lire ti emeu clous vaiiations m regal d to the amount iif arsenic that would cause death, the time that would cause death, tho time that it takeB, an4 the mobility of the poison aftef it has been tal on into the stomach ?-It depulds how much

Mt Justice Macfailali li. ou are intio duung time and quantity, Mr Maxwell and the doctot Is trying to separate tllem

Mr Matwell AIL thetô any known x.ases ni which a patient has taken two and a half giams^and has been dead within four hums?-t ehnhot rUnèmbcr

that

Aie j ou actiuamted with the literature oft the subject*-Y.«*«

, Do you say that there is nolsilck case iecôrdeu7-I think hot lit four houfs

Might tim patient take half an «ounce and livo foi sevtm dajs'-Yes It IB not the amount that is taken but the amount that is absoiped

Is it it ubt^ossible that; two and a half giams wbula ptôvo fatal in about six hours aid 'thit a patieht might live foi »even days aftei taking 240 gi urns'-Yes

Unabsoibtid arsénié cannot ivill at all can it?-I Would not go that far«

Is it not a fact that hrscuic is extumel«/ ihsolllble'-I Would hot say that »

If arsenic weie put into tea without milk and starred, would there not be a scuir

observanl on the top'-\ es

Would there not bo A considerable pre cipita(fion of the arsenic to the bottom of the ¿Up?-Yes I would cxpec^; some to sink/

Du you say that it is impossible that arsenic so located in the body as this was could have been taken in one dosa*

-I would not sa«¿ that it was im

possible

Is there- anything in this case to in li

cate when the first dose was taken'-Nat fiom the post mortem examination

Having heard the evidence of Mr lay lor (Government Analyst), could j ou hazard an opinion when the aisenle found in the big intestine was taken*-I should say at least six horns bifoio death

Is it possible in jour opinion, that ill the aiseme found in bet body m gilt have got into it after 6 o'clock on the Sunday evening'-It is possible »

Do you not start with tha assumption that the man in the dock poisoned hi» wife immediately she Set foot iii the par sanago at Omeo?-No It is rcasonao e to suppose that the symptoms on Satur day night were sjmptoms anning from arsenical poisoning seeing that she died fiom poisoning

Mr Book What is the offeot of strychnine poisoning?-Violent spaBms

and convulsions

John Hehrv Condon grazier, residing about 10 miles from Oineo, in evidence, said that Griggs stayed at his house at different times He was stajiüg at his house whin ho was -atrested He also was stajing there about a week,before his wife s death Witness had on hi« premises BOHÍO órdmai y white ai eenie \n open tin, and an unopened tin We .. iii a box In the blacksmiths «hop Ho alsoliad_a__drum of arsenic In the wooi

Blic"daC:It'"liad been theie foi about l8 oi 20 years That ni the blacksmith's shop liad been theie f*u five _- ears Gnggs while thelo It dil"_i-ieut times went into the blacksmiths Bhop

Ah Mix« eil W hen in the blacksmith's shop w hat w as he doing?-Ho « as «pal- lin» 1 is bio ele

"When _ou went » with DtUoliVe

sergeant*Múlfahey, who c-petied. tile' case^ -I did. t ' ,

-How did you open it?-With a pinch

bar. , V ' , .

Mr. Justice Macfal-lan^ Had the case iieen opened before by you?-"Five'ycart

BRO, your Honour.

Henry Harman, a--larmer,'living l'at Ensay, about 35 miles from ' Omeo, ¿ave evidence that lie kept i aisenic on 1rs premises, It was ih the washhouse where Griggs could have gone when" staying 'at tho house. s '

' Mi. Maxwell: Did you <eVer see him go

¿n Jtllcre?-I didcot. ., .v <?. ísy '-'taoTHER'S^EtflDENCEíí

Mrs. Annie Elizabeth'White; livimr at .Rajlton,' in the north of Tasmania, bald

? that Ethel Constance Gtiggs was her

daughter. She was married a little under two.years ago«, and had One b&by. Mrs. Griggs visited her last year, and stayed in Tasmania about three months. Witaeae saw her op December K) when she wai going aboaid the Nairana. She then was in good health and spirits. Afte* her daughter's death she received a letter, 'dated 'January 5, from Griggs. Address* jng her as "Dear mother," he*1 told of

tlie illness of Mis. Giiggs from thd^ titao

of her an ¡val home until the time of her death., It said, ''She fast fell asleep and awoke in .hçaveni" ,

Mr. Maxwell: Did you get any,« im- pression while your daughter waa with you that erciyt'hine was as' it ought« to be*between them?-Yes. It was a gre»* shock when ,1 found out ho\v thiuRB had ¡been between then)..

, A'ftcr tho trial at Sale did ono of the jurymen who sat on the "care see yo"i off by the train?

Should I answer that, youf Honour?

. "Mr. Justice Macfarlan: I did not hear thtf question.

Mi. Gurner! How eau {it be relevant to ask of something about the last trial. ,

Mr. Justice Macfarlan: The jury liad discharged all its functions. I dp nut think that stich a question should be asked without notice. In future if you wish to ask a question which is so doubt- ful you should give notice.

Fynnc Fleming, stewardess on board the steithier Nairana, said that Mis. Griggs had travelled in the vessel from Launces- ton on December 20. She was bright and healthy on' the" morning the vessel en- tered the,liver at Melbourne.

EVIDENCE ADMITTED.

Joseph Mitchell, storekeeper, of Omeo, bald that on January 2 Griggs tame to JnVlidüsc and said that his wife was very ill. ' He asked the witness to Send Mis. Mitchell in, and he did so. Early on the morning of January 3 witness was called into ' the parsonage. The jury retired wthile the admissrbility or otherwise of certain evidence relating to a conversation between Mr. and Mrs, Griggs, and over- heard by the witness, was argued.

Mr. Cullity said that the evidence which he proposed to lead was relevant, in. view bf the evidence called by the Crown in relation to the spirits and health in which Mrs. Griggs was when she leturned

to Omeo. '

Mr. Justice Macfarlan: Is it put in as support of suicide? ' *

Mr. Cullity: Regarding the possibility of suicide. X

Mr. Justice Macfarlan admitted the ev i

dence.

Mr. Cullity (to the witness): Do you remember an instance about Christmas, 1920, when Mrs. Griggs was in your .store

at Omeo?

Witness: Yes; she came in by herself. Mr. Griggs came along 'with his motor cycle and sidecar. He spoke io his wife and she replied in a loud voice: "Take home vv.honv«, ou have in the car, I will get home as 'best I Can."

Mr< Cullity: Did you notice who vvaB in the indeear?-Lottie Condon.

Annie Mitchell, wife of the previous witness, ' said that on noon, Janimiy 2, Griggs asked for some sod« water foi his wife, Witness said, "Is your wife home'" He replied, "Yes, since Saturday," Later, Griggs asked witness to send one of the children for the doctor. She did io, and went to the parsonage.--He said io Mis. Griggs. "You are a nice one, com'rg home mid gettinjr «¡ok like this."' Mrs. Griggs íeplied, "Why should I be so lick .when I always have been so wcllj"

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