SHOOTING FATALITY.

Press, Volume XLVIII, Issue 14473, 30 September 1912, Page 8

SHOOTING FATALITY.

CLARENCE PLUMRIDGE'S DEATH

The .District Coroner, Mr H. Bishop, held an inquest at the Hospitai yesterday afternoon, into the circumstances surrounding the death of tho lad Clarence Plumridge. Sergi. Remer appeared for tho police.

Dr. Kobinson, resident surgeon at the Hospital, stated that deceased was admitted to the institution at 1 p.m. on Sunday, September 15th, and informed witness that ho was climbing over a" rock and slipped, with the result that the gun went off and the charge lodged in his side. The lad wae much collapsed and had lost a good deal of blood. There was & large wound l>elow his ribs, extending into the right ■pleural cavity. Ho rallied from the shock, and for two or three days his condition was improving, but afterwards ho started down hill again, consequent on septic absorption. A slight operation was; performed and he improved for a time, but gradually he got worse and became semi-conscious, in which state he remained till he died at 8 a.m. yesterday. I>eath was due to toxtemia, produced by septic absorption, due to a gunshot wound.

.Margaret Ellen Plumridge, mother of deceased, stated that he was 14 years 9 months old. He was not in the habit of using firearms, and was not allowed to use them. He left home on the loth, at 8 a.m., with a ferret, to go for rabbits on the Port Hills. Witness did not see him leave home, and as far as she knew he did not have a gun with him. She saw and spoke to her son in the Hospital, but he did not say where he got the gun.

George Seymour, 16 years of age, stated that Plumridge and he and three other boys went to the Port Hills for rabbits. Witness had a gun with him, and Plumridge had with him a gun belonging to Len. Soman. On the 14th, at dinner time, deceased told witness ho was going to borrow Soman's gun. Witness never saw deceased with a gun on any previous occasion. Soman's gun was a single-barrel breechloader. Deceased had 25 cartridges in a box, which he purchased at Congreve's in Sydenham ; witness was with him when lie bought them for 2s 6d. Deceased worked at a biscuit factory, and bought the cartridges with his own money. After they got to the Hilb, witness shot one rabbit and they went to a burrow and pat the ferret in. Deceased was standing on a rock with, the stock of the gun on the ground and the barrel leaning against his side. The gun slipped and went off and deceased fell. Tho gun was not cocked, but tho hammer was loose. Witnais and two other boys went for assistance, and. Plumridge was removed to the Hospital. No one touched tho gun except deceased.

The Coronei: Didn't you know that in was wrong for him to have a gun? Witness: Yes; but I could not tell him anything. You Knew that the law didn't allow it?— Yes, and I told him once, and ho said, "Oh, that will be all right." It turned out to be all wrong P —Jfes. The Coroner, addressing witness, said that if at any future time he saw boys with guns who ought not to hare them, ho ought'not to go with them, because if ho did ho would bo responsible if anything happened. He advised witness to go with boys of his own age or with older boy 3 Ho ought not to go with "nippers." He should havo taken the gun from Plumricjge. . • Leonard Richard Soman, seventeen years nine months, a plumber, stated that he owned tho gun, and possessed it for not quite a year. Hβ used it last on .Saturday, September 14th, when, with others, including Plumridge, ho was v shooting on the Port Hills. When they returned.from the Hills, between 7 and 8 p.m., they felt tired, and went to Plumridge's for a drink of water. When getting the drink he laid the gun on the coal-bos at the back door, and forgot to take it away. He kjjew nothing more about the gun, except that ho heard that PlumridßO had it with him the next day. Witness remembered about the gun about 11 a.m. on the 15th,: and intended going for it in the evening. Plumridge did not ask him for the gun, and said nothing about. it. Witness thought he must have found it on the coal-box. When they got back irom the hills on the 14th it was dark. The Coroner "remarked that it was peculiar that witness, who had been carrying the,gun, should havo forgotten it. /Witness stated that he did not often carry a gun, and his brother Robert, who was with him, did not remind him jbout it. He did not lend tho gun to Plumridge, who had never asked him for it.

To Sergeant Reiner; He did not khow that Plumridgo bought cartridges for the. gun. George Seymour (re-called) stated that Plumridgo bought the • cartridges about five minutes to twelve (noon) on the 14th. , Tho bore of the gun was 12; the bore of witness's gun was 14;

The Coroner (to Soman): Are you telling the truth? Soman: Yes, I am. Quito sure ?-—Quite snro. How do you account for Plumridgo buying cartridges for a gun that was not in his possession at the.time ho bought them? —I don't know. The Coroner: It is mighty peculiar. (To Sergeant Retner.) .That is as far as I can go. Of course, if you get more evidence you will prosecute this boy. Soman added that Plumridge told him that he intended to borrow a gun from his uncle.

The Coroner said that any time ho got hold of a young man who gave guns to boys under sixteen years of ago he would mako an example of him. Ho tt.ho Coroner) did not say that Soman gave the gun to Plumridge— thero was no foundation for saying so. Ho did not know how many deaths of boys who went out shooting the Fort Hills were responsible for, but he had held many inquests on ; boys who died from gunshot wounds, received whilst out shooting on the hills on Sundays. Sergeant Reiner said that apparently tho property-owners raised no objection to boys shooting on the hills. Tho Coroner said that guns were a great temptation to boys—he remembcrrel when they were a great temptation to himself." He recorded a verdict: "That deceased died from a gunshot wound .accidentally received on tho Port- Hills on September 15th."