SKELETON AND COINS.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 251, 22 October 1926, Page 9

SKELETON AND COINS.

EXCAVATED AT WANGANUI.

INTERESTING DISCOVERIES

(By Telegraph.—Specinl to "Star."!

WANGANUI, this day.

City Council workmen engaged in putting through the Ridgway Street extension have had two interesting finds of late.

The first was a skeleton, which was discovered ia sand and had only been buried in a very shallow grave. In this find ie evidence of a tragedy of former years, for the skull had been split as if by a tomahawk. There seems to be little doubt but that the man was murdered and buried hurriedly in a cramped position. From the teeth, which were in a good state of preservation,, it is apparent that the skeleton was that of a young man. The other discovery was that of a number of eilver coins dating from 1810 to 1819. These were unearthed during, the excavations by' James Brown, of Gonville. This find, recalls the disappearance of a consignment of silver coins stolen from the s.s. Stormbird in 1881, the coin being shipped at Wellington to a bank here, and was stolen from the. eteamer. The box which had been broached subsequen.tjy was tojeajtfcd by late Detective Benjamin near the spot where the present coins were found. The box of silver was too heavy for the detective to carry so he borrowed a barrow from the etationmaster ■to take it to the Police Station. ' Three arrests were made in connection with the theft, which at the time created great interest until the mystery was solved.