From the Dover Telegraph and Cinque Ports General Advertiser, Saturday 27 February, 1836. Price 7d.

DOVER DEBATING SOCIETY

The anniversary supper of this Society took place, a short time since, at the "Plume of Feathers." In the course of the evening some of the members expressing a wish to join in a bottle of wine, a person being present who had authority to take orders for the article, some was procured. One of the company, Mr. R. Hamilton, an officer of Excise, knowing that "mine host" had no wine license, gave information of this supposed breach of the law, but it was proved that the Landlord had not received the money for the wine. At a special meeting convened on Wednesday evening it was unanimously resolved, "That Mr. R. Hamilton be no longer considered a member of the Institution the members not reconciling themselves to sit in company with an individual who sought an opportunity of punishing their error, rather than honourably endeavouring to prevent it. 

From the Dover Telegraph and Cinque Ports General Advertiser, Saturday 20 April, 1844. Price 5d.

CORONER'S INQUEST

An inquest was held on Thursday, at the "Plume of Feathers," Dover, before G. T. Thompson, Esq., Coroner for the Borough, on the body of an unbaptized infant, the son of Jane Mann, spinster.

Mary Knott, wife of William Knott, mariner, deposed, tat she was lodging at the house of Luke Smithett, in Limekiln Street. That on Monday week Jane Mann came to the house, and in the evening was suddenly taken in labour, and delivered of a child. Mr. Hunt, th surgeon, was in attendance. On Saturday and Sunday the child cried very much, and she gave it, on two occasions, a spoonful of weak gin and water. It was better on Monday, till the evening, when it began crying, and continued all night. In the morning it appeared more composed, till noon, when it began to kick and cry violently. She then gave it half-a-teaspoon of Baby's cordial, which she purchased at Mr. Cottrell's. As it did not get better, she gave it a similar dose about half-past four o'clock. At five o'clock it was taken in a fit, which lasted about a quarter of an hour. It then recovered, but had a similar attack shortly afterwards. It again recovered, but had a third attack, which lasted half an hour, when the child expired.

By the Coroner:- No medical man was called in.

In reply to a question from a Juror, witness produced a phial, containing the remainder of the mixture, which she said Mr. Hunt had seen.

Luke Smithett corroborated part of the above evidence, and, in addition, stated that from hearing the woman say the child had taken several doses of Godfrey's Cordial, he wished Mrs. Knott and Jane Mann to send for a surgeon, to examine the child; but as they seemed declined, he went to Mr. Hunt the following morning (Tuesday.) His wife and Jane Mann both told him the child had taken Godfrey's Cordial. In reply to a question from Mr. Brockman, the foreman of the jury, witness stated that he went to Mr. Hunt for his own satisfaction, and that it might not afterwards be said the child had been made off with.

Mr. R. T. Hunt, surgeon, deposed that he attended Jane Mann at a premature confinement. The child was very healthy, and he had since seen it when attending the mother. On Wednesday, Smithett came and asked him to come and examine the child, saying it had died rather suddenly the day previous, and he was not satisfied as to the cause of death, as Godfrey's Cordial had been administered. On going down he found the child presented a perfectly natural appearance. Was told by Mrs. Knott and other women that the child had strong convulsions. Asked Mrs. Knott what had been given to the child, and she gave him a bottle, which he examined, and found the contents perfectly simple, being composed of syrup of poppies and caraway seeds. This mixture was perfectly harmless, and would not cause death if a much greater quantity had been given. He had on that day, (Thursday) made a post mortem examination, and found the stomach perfectly healthy, containing only a small quantity of bread, which smelt slightly of medicine which had been administered. On examining the head - found the vessels of the brain highly congested, which might excite convulsions and cause death.

The Coroner, addressing the Jury, observed that he considered the conduct of Smithett very popular, and from the reports afloat considered it necessary an inquest should be held. From the evidence of Mr. Hunt, however, there appeared no truth in the rumours; and the Jury, without hesitation, returned a verdict of "Died of natural causes."

From the Dover Telegraph and Cinque Ports General Advertiser, Saturday 23 January, 1858. Price 5d.

CORONER'S INQUEST

On Tuesday afternoon, at two o'clock, an enquiry took place before the Dover Coroner, George Thomas Thompson, Esq., at the "Plume of Feathers," Limekiln Street, touching the death of John Firth, a gunner of the Royal Artillery, who died on Sunday evening from injuries sustained by a cartridge exploding while firing a salute from the Drop Redoubt on Saturday morning, on the departure from Dover for London of her Royal Highness the Princess of Prussia. Mr. G. Bennett was chosen foreman of the jury; and after viewing the body, which was lying at the Western Heights Hospital, the following depositions were taken:-

James Davis, bombardier, Royal Artillery - I knew John Firth, who was a gunner of the Royal Artillery. On the 16th instant, at about eleven o'clock in the morning, a salute was fired from the Drop Battery. I had charge of a gun. Deceased and three other gunners were with the gun; he was at No 3, and his duty was to put the cartridge into the muzzle. We had fired one round, and were in the act of loading for the second round, when the cartridge exploded. To the best of my knowledge, deceased must have been in the act of leaving the gun when the explosion took place. On the gun being fired, the vent was pricked, and served by No. 4, the cartridge put in by the deceased, and No. 2 (the other gunner injured) was in the act of ramming home, when the cartridge exploded. The rammer was blown over the parapet to a long distance, and deceased and No. 2 were blown into a ditch below, which I take to be nearly forty feet deep. We directly left firing from that gun, and several of the men ran round to where deceased fell, but some of the officers' servants got there first. I did not go. The cartridges contain about 2lbs. of powder, and are enclosed in thick flannel bags, sewn together, and so constructed that loose powder cannot escape. I should say that the cartridge had not been rammed in above two feet. I cannot say exactly how the explosion took place. Mp opinion is, that the cartridge had ignited before it was put into the gun. The gun was so run out, that the muzzle extended twelve or eighteen inches over the grass, which was about a foot below it. I have seen the grass ignited by guns being fired, but I don't know whether the grass was ignited by the first discharge on Saturday. It is my opinion that deceased, either in getting upon the parapet with the cartridge in his hand, or in stooping down to put it into the muzzle, brought it into contact burning grass, and caused its ignition. The gun is not faulty; and if the vent was well served, and the gun properly sponged, I believe no spark could have remained in it. I saw the gun properly sponged on the first round being fired. It was my duty to do so.

By the Jury: It would have been much easier, and more safe, to have run the gun back to load it. We have run them back to load since the explosion of Saturday. I don't think any one looked to see whether or not the grass caught fire after the first round. The gun has been fired from since, but was not fired after the explosion during the salute. We have six guns for saluting. There are 15 seconds allowed for the loading of a gun; there is an interval on one minute and fifteen seconds before our turn would come round to fire again.

Edward Protheror, surgeon, Royal Artillery: On Saturday morning last, I was within fifty yards of the men on the occasion of their firing the salute. I heard that some of the men had been injured, and on going up found John Firth in the ditch of the Drop Redoubt. I saw that he had lost both arms, and on his being raised up the hilt of his sword came out of his abdomen. He was taken to the hospital immediately, and amputation of both arms performed. He died at a quarter past nine on Sunday night. I have since opened the body of deceased, and I find the cause of death was from rupture of the intestines, by the hilt of the sword. He was 37, I believe.

John Harding: I am a gunner of the Royal Artillery, and I was stationed at No. 2 gun on the firing of the salute on Saturday. I was No. 4 at the gun, and my duty was to serve the vent. Following the first discharge, I stepped in, pricked the gun, and served the vent, while No. 2 sponged the gun. I saw him go through the motion of sponging the gun. I cannot say whether he sponged it effectively, or not. I saw deceased go to the muzzle with the cartridge in his hand, and also saw him stoop down and put it into the gun. Upon his having done so, I saw No. 2 in the act of ramming home. At that moment the gun exploded, and I believe the cartridge was not further down the gun than eighteen inches. I do not know where No. 3 was when the gun went off; if he was before the gun, he had no business there, for after putting the cartridge in he ought to have left the gun, and fallen back instantly. I do not know whether the grass below the muzzle had ignited on the first discharge of the gun, but I have often seen it ignite, and on the evening of the same day, when firing another salute, I saw sparks on the grass while I was loading the same gun. The brick parapet is about two feet high; the gun was run close up to it, and its muzzle extended over the grass for nearly two feet. The gunner loading had to step on to the parapet with the cartridge, and might have put his hand on the grass to assist him, having the cartridge in his hand, when a spark on the grass probably ignited the flannel. To load the gun properly, it ought to have been run back. I have never known guns to be loaded while out as those were at the Drop Redoubt on Saturday.

By a Juror: There was an officer in command, who kept the time. It was my duty to serve the vent until the ramming had ceased, and then to prick the vent and retire. No. 5 then approached with the port fire. My thumb was on the vent when the explosion took place. the sponge and rammer are separate; the latter was blown away. At another part of the day, on firing another salute, we had a different sponge.

This was the whole of the evidence adduced; and after a few observations from the Coroner, the Jury returned the following verdict:-

"That the deceased, John Firth, was accidentally killed by the explosion of a cartridge, while firing a salute." The verdict was accompanied with a request from the Jury that the Coroner would write to the Commander of the Garrison, expressing the Jury's hope that in future salutes the guns might be run back for loading. We understand that a report of the accident was forwarded to the Horse Guards, a telegram was despatched in reply, ordering the guns to be always run back, in future, before loading.

The remains of the deceased were interred on Thursday in the cemetery at Copt Hill. The coffin was conveyed on a field piece drawn by six horses; and in addition to the company to which deceased belonged, the funeral cortege embraced a field battery fully equipped from Shorncliffe, which rendered the procession very imposing, and attracted considerable attention in the line of march. The bands of the Sussex Militia also attended.

In reference to the other unfortunate gunner, who was blown over the parapet with Firth, and also sustained the loss of his arms, and other injuries, we were informed on Tuesday that his case could not then be spoken of very favourably. His name did not transpire at the inquest.