CLAIM FOR £1244.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 213, 8 September 1926, Page 9

CLAIM FOR £1244.

DAMAGES CASE AT HAMILTON. SEQUEL TO ACCIDENT. AFTER TE AWAMUTU KACES. (By Telegrapa. — Gw Correspondent.) HAMILTON, this d»y. A motor fatality which occurred on : the Hamilton-Te Awamutu Road on the ' night of the last Te Awamutu races, on • December 11, when a lorry belonging to ' Innes and Co., brewers, Hamilton, capsized, a man named Ernest White being ■ killed and another, Arthur Cook, seriously injured, was reviewed before ! Mr. Justice Stringer and a jury of twelve lat the Supreme Court to-day. I Cook sued Innes and Co. for £1244 '' damages for injuries received a> the ■ result of the accident. Plaintiff contended that Davis, the driver of the lorry, became intoxicated and so negligently and unskilfully drove the lorry that plaintiff waa thrown therefrom and suffered injuries consisting of a fracture of the left thigh and right leg, and also suffered damage to clothing. At the time, Davis wag employed by Innes and Co., and was performing duties within the scope of his employment. Plaintiff would be permanently partially disabled and would be unfitted to undertake manual work ! except of the lightest nature. j The defence was that plaintiff was not !at any material time on the lorry. If 'he was, then he was there without authority or permission. Defendant said :if there were any negligence on the part iof defendant company or its servants, ■ then it was held there was contributory negligence by plaintiff in that he supplied, or was a party to tlie supply of intoxicating liquor to Davis, and that, j notwithstanding the condition of Savis, I plaintiff elected to continue to ride on

! the lorry. Dr. Gower, of the Waikato Hoepital, j assessed plaintiff's permanent incapacity at 30 per cent Plaintiff, Arthur Cook, uid that just I prior to the accident he worked as barj man at the Waikato Hotel, although he I was a baker by trade. Plaintiff went out

on the lorry and worked at the booth all day, and at the close of the races climbed on the lorry along with other men who had ridden out with him in the morning. On the way back, Davis got down and assisted the driver of a little lorry to mend a spring. During the halt a passenger named Bluett produced a bottle of whisky from which Davis and Bluett had brinks. White also produced half a bottle of whisky, which was emptied. The only drink witness had was from a bottle of beer. When the lorry started on the journey again, Bluett, White and Davis were quite drunk. The lorry, on starting again, took a very erratic course. As it approached the fatal bend it was travelling very fast. The left wheels ran into a water-table bend, then, jumped in the air, and pitched White, Tristram and plaintiff off. White was killed outright. Davie came down to plaintiff staggering and falling over plaintiff's lega, which were broken. When he yelled in agony Davis smacked him in the face and told him to shut up. He also said he had killed White and waa going to "swing" for it. The case is proceeding.