Page 232 - Reading Mercury

enormous quantities of water, some of which he obtained from cottagers on the road-
side, and others from any stream or pond they passed. On arriving about 2½ miles
from Wokingham, he laid down by the side of a stream, and took a large draught, and
here the farrier-major observed him stagger. This officer had previously remarked the
quantity of water he was drinking, and accused him of having some spirits concealed
about him, but this deceased denied. After taking the last draught of water, he began
talking in a wild and incoherent manner, about going back to look after the sergeant-
major’s horse, the sergeant-major, with his horse, being at the time in front. Deceased
soon commenced vomiting, and tearing the grass, as if searching for something, and
the farrier-major got two men to carry him into a by lane in a plantation, and then
went on for the regimental surgeon, who, on arriving, found the man lying on his
back, dead.
He was conveyed to the Duke’s Head Inn, Wokingham, and on undressing him, it
was found that he had on two woollen shirts, a cotton shirt, a stable jacket, and, over
all, his regimental tunic, with a great number of articles stuffed into the breast of it.
There was no one with the unfortunate man when he died. A post mortem examination
of the body was made by Mr. Llewellyn, the regimental surgeon, who found the lungs
gorged with blood, especially the left, so much so, that respiration must have been
impossible. The chest and head were much swollen, and quite livid. The brain, as well
as the membranes covering it, were in a highly conjested state, and about a
teaspoonful of serum was found in the ventricles of the brain. There was no unusual
appearance about the remainder of the viscera. The left lung very closely adhered to
the rib, and must have been affected by some old disease, Mr. Llewellyn considered
the deceased died from suffocation, produced from the too free use of alcohol. The
extreme heat must have increased the effect of the liquor. The deceased had not
previously been under the care of the surgeon.
A soldier, a private in the same regiment, who walked with deceased from Farnham,
deposed that when the latter laid down the last time, he asked him if he was going to
leave him there? Witness offered to stop, but the farrier-major would not allow him to
do so. Deceased did not appear ill or sick, but simply tired. He told witness that he
and another man had slept in a stable the previous night. While on the road, Lockhart
complained much of fatigued after the first few miles, and walked very slowly. He
drank out of a foraging-cap some water which his comrades got for him out of a
stream. This witness then proceeded to state that in the course of the march, Gray
swore at Lockhart, and pushed his horse almost up against him; but that was done
only once. They had not heavy duty to perform the day before.
The case at this stage was adjourned till the following day; and, on the court being
re-opened.
Alexander MacDonald, a private of the Scots Greys, was called. He said, the
regiment left Farnham between seven and eight o’clock on Wednesday morning. He
led his horse, because it had a sore back, and Lockhart and several others did the same
for a similar reason. Lockhart was on parade in good health in the morning. Witness
then described the occurrences on the march, up to the time of Lockhart’s falling
down when near Wokingham. When he fell, witness went up to him, and spoke, and
the deceased said he was not able to go on. Gray had been in the regiment eighteen or
nineteen years, and as generally respected, particularly by the officers. During the
journey, he heard Gray tell Lockhart, that if he did not get on, he should make him a
prisoner when he got in, as he had been drinking. That was the only conversation he
heard between them. Lockhart was quite sober when on parade on Wednesday

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