STATISTICS 
—OF THE— 
CORONER'S COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF MONTREAL 
1898. 
BY 
WYATT JOHNSTON, M.D., and GKO. VILLENEUVE, M.D 
(Reprinted from the Montreal Medical Journal, March, 1894.) STATISTICS OF THE CORONER’S COURT FOR THE 
DISTRICT OF MONTREAL, 1893. 
By Wyatt Johnston, M.D., and George Villeneuve, M.D., 
Montreal. 
The number of deaths investigated during the year was 386. 
Calculated from the census of 1891, the population of the 
judicial district of Montreal is rather more than 350,000, of 
which about 280,000 is urban, making a yearly rate of about 
1.1 inquests per 1,000 inhabitants of the district. 
In 184 of the 386 cases we were summoned to testify as 
experts. In the remaining 202 cases the information is obtain- 
ed from the very complete public records of inquests kept by 
Coroner McMahon. Of these there were 36 cases in which 
no medical testimony was taken. In the remaining 166 
cases, the medical evidence was given by other physicians, 
who in 60 cases had either not seen the deceased professionally 
during life or only at a time remote from the death. In 88 of 
the cases the evidence was taken before the coroner alone, 
without a jury. 
We give the following details which seem of interest. 
Of the bodies, 276 were males and 109 females. In one 
case, that of a newborn child, the sex is not stated. 
Exclusive of the new born infants, the identity of 5 bodies 
remained unknown, being in each case persons found drowned. 
Classification by Ages. 
Per ct. 
Cases. 
Age... 
« 
- 
New-born. 
to 
00 
Under 1 yr. 
CJ1 
CO 
to 
1 to 5 years 
c& 
4^ 
5 to 10 yrs. 
1 
8-HS-9 
1 
to 
Ol 
10 to 20 yrs. 
Ol 
Ox 
20 to 80 yrs. 
11 9 
>£» 
C5 
30 to 40 yrs. 
15 1 
s 
40 to 50 yrs. 
4- 
£ 
50 to 60 yrs. 
00 
00 
ss 
60 to 70 yrs. 
4^ 
4- 
r, 
70 to 80 yrs. 
co 
Oi 
80 to 90 yrs. 
00 
CO 
90 to 100 yr. 
iS 
Unknown. 
1 
1 
Total. 
Classification by Months. 
Per centage 
Cases 
Month 
Or 
CO 
cc 
Jan. 
CO 
Feb. 
CO 
05 
Or 
March. 
to 
to 
00 
April. 
CO 
00 
£ 
May. 
11 4 
June. 
00 
Or 
8s 
July. 
© 
O 
August 
£3 
Sept. 
o 
CO 
H 
Oct. 
to 
Nov. 
h-1 
00 
Dec. 
0 001 
1 
Total. Number of Autopsies held, with their proportion to thk 
NUMBER OK INQUESTS IN EACH MONTH. 
Mont li 
Jan. 
Feb. 
March. 
'u 
a 
May. 
June. 
July. 
X 
| 
Sept. 
Oct. 
> 
o 
Dec. 
Total. 
Autopsies.. 
3 
2 
1 
a 
4 
10 
5 
0 
5 
8 
2 
1 
66 
Percentage 
13 1 
5 4 
2 H 
21 4 11 1 
22 7 15-1 22 5 
181 
19-5 
7 7 
5*5 
14 6 
Classification by Verdicts and causes ok Death 
I.—HOMICIDES. 
Firearms 1 
Blows and falls 4 
Criminal negligence .. 4 
Infanticide..'. 3 
Total 12 
II.— SUICIDES. 
Firearms 5 
Cutting throat 3 
Hanging 2 
Drowning 1 
Jumping from height 1 
Railways 2 
Poisoning....." 9 
Total 23 
III.—ACCIDENTS. 
Firearms 4 
Machinery 3 
Elevators 3 
Railways 23 
Street railways 8 
Horse and carriage 14 
Tologganing 1 
Burns, scalds, burning build- 
ings 22 
Explosions 3 
Falls from height 11 
Falling bodies 11 
Drowning 41 
Choking by food 3 
Overlaying 3 
Illuminating gas 7 
Administration of chloroform 2 
Poisoning 11 
Exposure 2 
Sunstroke ....' 1 
Other causes 1 
Total 174 
IV.—NATURAL AND UNKNOWN CAUSES. 
Circulatory System 140)—Heart disease 39 
Aortic aneurism 1 
Hespiratoiy System (35)—Pneumonia 15 
Phthisis and haemoptysis 17 
Bronchitis 1 
Pulmonary emlMjlism 1 
Other diseases 1 
Digestive System (12)— Diarrhoea 5 
Peritonitis 2 
Other diseases 5 Nervous System (18)—Apoplexy 10 
Congestion of brain 2 
Other diseases 6 
Genito- Urinary System (5)—Chronic nephritis 1 
Urethral fever 2 
Puerperal fever 
Developmental Diseases—Stillborn 5 
Infectious Diseases—Typhoid 1 
Diphtheria 1 
General Diseases (10)—Purpura and scurvy 2 
Senile debility 4 
Infantile debility 4 
Other diseases 2 
Habits and Occupations—Intemperance 5 
Unknown causes 4o 
Total 177 
Summary of the principae groups of causes of death, giving 
THE PERCENTAGE WHICH THEY FORM OF THE TOTAL INQUESTS 
AND ALSO THEIR FREQUENCY, PER 10,000 LIVING. 
Verdicts. 
Number. 
Per cent. 
Per 10,000 
living. 
Homicide 
12 
3 11 
034 
Suicide 
23 
5-96 
Accidents 
174 
45-07 
4-96 
Natural and unknown causes 
177 
45-86 
Total 
386 
1000 
Deaths from Homicide. 
A few remarks upon these different groups may not be 
out of place. 
We have no case of conviction for murder or manslaughter 
to record. Of 12 verdicts of homicide, 3 were for infanticide 
by persons unknown. In none of these was the guilt brought 
home to an individual. Of the 9 remaining cases : in one the 
violence took place in Ontario and therefore has no bearing 
upon the criminality of this district; two charges, both for 
manslaughter, are still before the courts; one case was dis- 
charged by the police magistrate ; in 5 cases the grand 
juries found no bill, and the only one which came before the 
Court of Queen’s Bench was dismissed by the judge without 
calling for the defence. In none of the cases was there any 
evidence of malice. The results of the incriminating verdicts of coroner’s 
juries here appear to be of a surprisingly mild and harmless 
character. In a number of cases of accidental death, verdicts 
of “ negligence not criminal ” were found. 
Deaths from Suicide. 
Sh'X AND SOCIAL CONDITION. 
MALES. 
Married 12 
Unmarried 4 
Not stated 2 
18 
FEMALES. 
Married 1 
Unmarried 2 
Widows *2 
5 
Total 23 
Suicide: Classification by Age. 
Age 
?; 
if 
o 
1 
S 
o 
5 
d 
-r 
i 
s’ 
0 
5 
3 
i 
S' 
X* 
J_ 
Total. 
Nuinl>er 
1 
4 
4 
8 
4 
2 
2J1 
Suicide: Classification by Months. 
/ 
Month 
Jan. 
A 
Z 
£ 
April 
J une 
July. 
5c 
s 
■*, 
a. ' ~ 
a 6 
y< 
Dec. 
Number 
0 
0 
2 
2 
4 
4 
1 
1 2 
2 
2 
The occupations of the male victims were as follows:— 
Lawyers, 1 ; farmers, 1 ; merchants and clerks, 4; workmen 
and servants, 12. 
The apparent causes were as follows :—Business trouble, 1, 
family trouble, 1; unknown, 1; physicial disease and suffering, 
2; love, jealousy, or dissipation, 4; drink, 5 ; mental disease, 9. 
It is reassuring to note that the frequency of suicide, vi/.., 
0-65 per 10,000, in Montreal, is low in comparison with most 
other large American cities, the rate per 10,000 living in 1891, 
having l>een as follows: Baltimore, 0*56 ; Philadelphia, 0*70; 
Boston, 1 11; New York, 157; Chicago, 1-87; St. Louis, 2-16; San Francisco, 2-6G. In Paris, the annual rate of 
suicide is about 3-78 per 10,000. 
Of 9 cases where poison was the means employed, 7 were 
by Paris green; and one from rough-on-rats. Some means 
should be taken to restrict the too ready sale of such deadly 
commodities. The suicides by firearms, cutting throat and 
hanging, were all in males. 
Accidental Deaths. 
The commonest causes of accident, in order of frequency, 
were:— 
Drowning 41, or 23 5 per cent. 
Railways 23, or 13'2 “ 
Burns, scalds and fires... 22, or 12 6 “ 
Horses and carriages 14, or 8 2 “ 
Falls from height 11, or 6 3 “ 
Falling bodies 11, or 6’3 “ 
Poisoning 11, or 6 3 “ 
Street railway 8, or 44 “ 
Illuminating gas 7, or 4.1 “ 
Browning.—The number of drowning accidents is sufficient- 
ly high to attract attention. Of the 41 cases, the accidental 
nature of the drowning was well established in 32 cases only, 
all that could be stated about the remaining 9 bodies being 
simply that they were found in the water. 
Illuminating (las.—The number of deaths from illuminating 
gas is also surprisingly large. The danger of gas depends 
upon the proportion of carbon monoxide it contains, and this 
again depends upon the mode in which the gas is prepared. 
It has always been asserted that the gas supply of Montreal 
contains a very small proportion of this dangerous ingredient, 
but the large number of deaths from this cause would seem to 
render the subject worthy of investigation by our health 
authorities. 
The accidents happening in connection with public travel 
naturally have a great public interest. 
Fatal Railway Accidents.—The victims were trespassers in 
10 cases; employees (brakesmen or switchmen) in 6 cases; 
travellers in 4. In 4 cases the accidents occurred at level 
crossings. 
Street Railways.—Of 8 fatal accidents during the past year, 
5 occurred in connection with electric cars and 3 with horse cars. Two of the victims wore employees; 1 was a child 
playingyipon an empty car on a siding; 3 wore persons cross- 
ing the street, and 2 wore pa sengers (one of whom got off 
the car, while in motion, on the wrong side and was struck 
by an approaching car on the other track; the other was 
killed while trying to pass from one car to another while in 
motion). None of the accidents were shown to bo due to the 
use of the trolley system or the over head wire. 
Elevators.—Three deaths which occurred from elevator 
accidents were all due to imprudence of the persons killed, 
none arising from any defect in the machinery. 
In most of the accidental deaths the cause was clearly 
established by the evidence of eye witnesses, and the investi- 
gations were conducted chiefly with a view of deciding whether 
there had been criminal carelessness or not. 
Deaths from Natural Causes. 
In 130 cases definite natural causes were assigned, and in 
47 the finding was either “ natural causes,” “ unknown causes,” 
or “ unknown natural causes.” The nature of the cause of 
death was almost always made out when autopsies were 
made out, and, therefore, the expression unknown means that, 
in most cases, no attempt was made to find out the cause of 
death. It has not seemed advisable to attach any importance 
to the relative frequency of the known and unknown causes 
shown in the tables, because, in a large number of cases, 
definite causes were assigned for the death without any proof 
at all being adduced that the alleged causes really existed. 
There is no doubt that a large number of the deaths investi- 
gated during the year wore, directly or indirectly, due to 
drink, but as the conclusions of the juries on this point appear 
to have been arrived at by intuition rather than by investi- 
gation and weighing of the evidence, definite statements on 
this head based on the verdicts would be misleading. We have, 
therefore, refrained from attempting to estimate the exact pro- 
portion of deaths due to intemperance.