THE GISBORNE FATALITY.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 29, 4 February 1928, Page 14

THE GISBORNE FATALITY.

SISTERS KILLED BT CAR. EVIDENCE AT INQUEST. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) GISBORNE, Friday,

The inquest into the deaths of Fay Third, aged live years, and Edna Third, aged eight, who were knocked down by a motor car when going to school, was held to-day.

The coroner, Mr. E. C. Levvey, S.M., said he would decline to comment on the speed of the car, or as to the driver's method of progression. He returned a verdict that the death of the girls was due to injuries received through being struck by a ear driven by T. Dennis.

Evidence showed that tho children were standing on the footpath as a rubbish dray came along. When it passed they stepped out behind and started to run across the road, and they were then knocked down by a car proceeding in the opposite direction.

The evidence of the driver of the car, a Maori, Tom Dennis, was to the effect that on turning into the road from the country he slackened down to 22 miles an hour, but on nearing the school he slowed down to about 15 miles aYi hour. Seeing the dray approach, the road not being wide at that point, he sounded his horn and swerved slightly to the left to pass the dray. When about eight yards from the dray the two children, liand-in-liand, commenced to run across the road to the school ground. About half-way across they hesitated and then ran 011. Witness jammed all the brakes on hard, slewed his wheel to the left, and ran on to the grass by the roadside which by then the children had readied. The children were struck bj the left part of the car and knocked down.

Martin Henry Petersen said he was working within two chains of the scene of the accident. In his opinion the speed of the car was reasonable. He confirmed the driver's statement in regard to sounding the horn and swervinpr. Tn witness* opinion the car could not have missed the children.