“The death occurred at Trentham Camp yesterday of Private George Frederick Dickson Stewart. Private Stewart was a member of E Company, 9th Reinforcements, but owing to ill-health at the time he was unable to embark with his company, and it was intended that he should sail, with a later draft. Yesterday he reported to the camp medical authorities that, by mistake, he had taken a dose of poison. He was at once conveyed to the Hospital, and rapidly his condition became very serious. Everything possible was done for him, but within an hour he died of heart failure— the direct result of a big dose of poison. He was twenty-eight years of age, and enlisted at Invercargill. His next-of-kin is Frederick Stewart, Londonderry, Ireland. An inquest will be held at the camp to-morrow afternoon. “

[Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 20, 25 January 1916, Page 6]

“Mr. D. G. A, Cooper, S.M., held an inquest at Trentham yesterday touching the death of George Frederick Stewart, aged 28 years, a private in E Company, Ninth Reinforcements, Surgeon-Captain F. R. Hotop, who was called to attend deceased on Monday, morning last, gave it as his opinion that death was due to formalin poisoning. The other evidence showed that deceased drank half a pint of formalin in mistake for water, and died within half an hour. A verdict was returned .that death resulted from formalin poison, accidentally self-administered”

[Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2679, 27 January 1916, Page 5]