Elisha YOULTON

   Another name for Elisha was Elisha YOULTEN.

   Research Notes:

Elisha Youlton died aged 46 years.

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"INQUEST

An inquest was held on Monday last by the District Coroner, Dr Pounds, at Abbot's Restaurant, Sebastian, on the body of a man named Elisha Youlton, who came by his death on Sunday afternoon, at about two o'clock, consequent upon injuries received by the upsetting of a spring cart, on the Sebastian road, at about eight o'clock, on the previous evening.

Henry Robert Hyde, a miner, said he had been a mate of the deceased, and had known him two years. On Saturday last they had gone together to the Warden's office at Sandhurst, to object to a trespass on their claim. They went to Sandhurst in a spring cart. On arriving in Sandhurst, witness left the cart with a tradesman in the town, for the spring which had been broken a few days previously to be repaired. This having been done, and all their business in town arranged, at about five o'clock, accompanied by Mr D. J. Mason, they set out on their return to the Sebastian. They stayed about fifteen minutes at Eaglehawk to obtain some groceries &c. They stopped again at Simpson's Halfway House, when the deceased got out and brought witness, who was driving, a glass of ale. Mr Mason had no ale. They then went on until they were about a mile and a half beyond Simpson's, all three sitting on the same seat, the deceased in the middle, when witness saw a stump about eighteen inches high, and a foot thick at the base, close to the wheel : to avoid this, he suddenly pulled up the horse, and the wheel barely touched it as it passed. It was a moonlight night, but at that moment the moon was clouded. He was driving about six miles an hour at the time. Just as they got clear of that stump, which was close to the wheel track, he noticed close to the track on the other side a tree lying which had been sawn across. It was beyond the stump not more than sixteen or eighteen feet, and after passing the stump he had not time to clear it. The right wheel caught against it, and he and Mason were thrown out; the horse also fell. Witness got up immediately and went to the cart. As the cart was with the bottom up the wheel which had come against the stump was still going round. He caught hold of the wheel in order to lift up the cart, knowing that the deceased was under it, but he could not lift it, and Mason was stunned by the fall. Mr Marshall at this moment drove up, and assisted the witness to raise it. He found Youlton underneath insensible. He removed him and then released the horse. The shaft which was broken they mended with the reins, and having placed Youlton in the cart the horse was put into the shafts again, by which time Mason was sufficiently recovered to get in by himself, and witness led the horse towards home where they arrived at about nine o'clock. The deceased had taken only three glasses of ale from the time of leaving Sebastian in the morning to the accident, and he was quite sober. Mr Mason was also sober, and had not had more than three drinks. Witness had had six drinks during all that day, and was quite capable of driving his horse as usual previous to the accident. The seat had been jerked out with witness, and Mason and the deceased appeared to have fallen inwards. No part of the cart had rested on his body after it was upset, but he lay under it. One side of it rested on a case of groceries and on some oat sacks.

The evidence of Dennis Fitzgerald Mason was corroborative of that of the previous witness, excepting that he said they also had stopped at Johnson's public house, in bailor's Gully, and had a drink each.

The evidence of Alexander Marshall, proprietor of the Myer's Creek saw-mills, was also corroborative. The previous witnesses were both of them sober at the time of the accident. Mr Simpson's evidence was to the same effect.

Dr Stilwell said that on arriving at the house of the deceased at about eleven o'clock on Saturday evening, he found him in a comatose state. He was in bed and his breathing was stertorous. There was a contusion on the left side of the head, about two inches above the left ear, and also a slight abrasion on the opposite side of the head and these wore all the external marks of violence which could then be detected, or afterwards in the post-mortem examination. He remained with deceased all night. He saw that there was concussion of the brain, and that the case was a hopeless one. On the post-mortem examination witness had found on the left side of the brain, under the puriteal bone, a clot of blood corresponding with the abrasion before noticed; there was also a quantity of blood effused at the base of the brain which was the result of a rupture of a vessel of the brain produced by a concussion. There was no fracture of any portion of the skull.

The jury returned a verdict in accordance with the evidence, and to the eifect that death was purely accidental." ³

   Marriage Information:

Elisha married Mary HARRIS, daughter of Thomas HARRIS and Martha HOCKIN, on 3 Apr 1838 in St. Agnes, Cornwall ¹. (Mary HARRIS was born about 1822 in Tolgullow, Gwennap, Cornwall, christened on 10 Apr 1822 in Gwennap, Cornwall and died on 22 Aug 1865 in Sebastian, Victoria, Australia ⁴.)

   Marriage Notes:

Elisha Youlten, 19, of Wheal Rose, bachelor, miner, son of Joseph Youlten, miner, and
Mary Harris, 17, of Wheal Rose, spinster, daughter of Thomas Harris, miner

Married by Banns

Witnesses: Stephen Harris, Joseph Youlten