Mr W Terry, coroner, held an inquest at the Nag’s Head, Wollaston, on Tuesday on the body of John Cooper, aged 66, labourer, of Wollaston who came by his death under the following circumstances:

On Friday last deceased went to the London and North Western Railway Station at Wellingborough, to fetch some timber. As he was about returning to Wollaston the deceased left the horses and timber carriage which he was in charge of, to see some Militiamen who had been firing at the butts at Wellingborough. In so doing his feet caught in some string attached to a piece of tarpaulin, and he fell violently to the ground on his head. Deceased, before he died, said in an answer to a question, that he had shaken himself, but was not injured. Deceased proceeded home and complained of feeling ill, and was unable to sleep all night, being in great pain. At half-past three o'clock on Saturday afternoon the deceased's wife went for Mr. Orr, surgeon, Wollaston, but he was out, and the deceased died before he arrived, at half-past seven o clock.

Mr James W. Orr said he received the message at half-past seven on Saturday evening, and he at once proceeded to the house of the deceased, who had been dead about five minutes. Witness examined the body carefully and found no external injury of any sort, but a great swelling at the abdomen. From the examination made, and the symptoms described to him, he was of opinion that the cause of death was probably injury to the bladder and subsequent rupture producing peritonitis. If he had seen the deceased on Friday he would probably have been able to relieve the bladder, and there would then have been a possibility of deceased’s life being saved.

The jury returned a verdict of "Accidental Death," and added that they considered the doctor ought to have been called in on Friday night.