ACCIDENT AND FATALTIES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 68, 13 December 1907, Page 6

ACCIDENT AND FATALTIES.

$ A TERRIBLE ACCIDENT. MAN DRAWN INTO A SCUTCHER. (BY TELEGItAI'II—SrKOIAT. COItItESPONDENT.) □unedin, December 12. Edward Burnside, single, aged tiventy-nine, a native of Auckland, met his death yestorday at Ward liros.' flax mill, Evans' Flat, near Lawreuco, under horrifying circumstances. lie and his brother Fred, along.with two others, were dry scutching'. Edward, working merely in his singlet and trousers, was feeding on the left-band side of the machine, which is driven by steam, and travels at a very high' rate of speed, and his brother, was on tho right-band side. Almost instantly, and without tho slightest worning,, Edward's loft hand and arm wore drawn into the scutcher, followed by his head and "body, and before the driving belt flew off the pulley the unfoitunato man had pretty well passed through the machine. Death, of course, was instantaneous. It is conjectured that the accident arose through Burnside getting hold of an extra long bank of fibre, and that in stepping back momentarily to give it the required twirl, in feeding it into tho machine, the fibre was caught and drawn well into the mouth of the scutcher, and with it. his hand and arm before lie released his hold. He was a sober and industrious man. CAUGHT IN MACHINERY. Palmerston North, December 12. A girl named Carroll, aged 16, sustained serious injuries yesterday through being caught by tho arm in the machinery at the rope works at Foxton, where she was employed. The machinery had to be taken to pieces to release her. A doctor found it necessary to amputate the arm at the shoulder. The victim rallied well from tho shock. i NEARLY DROWNED. Palmerston North, December 12. A. Olliver and W. Young, well-known narrowly escaped drowning at Fielding yesterday. They were bathing in the Oroua River, and got out of their depth. Thoy had gone under twice, when they were rescued by a passer-by, Mr. Cooper. BODY FOUND. Dunedln, December 12. Tho body of a man was discovered yesterday, face downwards in the mud,- in the tidal basin behind the railway station. It was seen oil-Tuesday, but was then mistaken for a bundle of rags. AYhen the tide camo in two constables and two civilians went put in a flat-bottomed boat, and with difficulty got it ashovo. It proved to be tho body of William M'Farlane, a plumber, aged 49. M'Farlano was married, but has recently lived away from his wife. -How he got to the centre of the tidal basin is a mystery, as the rami is from 10 to 14 feet deep. At the inquest on the body of M'Farlano, tho evidence showed that deceased had been drinking to excess of late. The medical, testimony was to the olfect ; that, death was not duo to drowning, the opinion being expressed that it was caused by exhaustion and exposure. Deceased had entered the water before death. The jury returned a verdict that deceased had died from exposure and exhaustion while in a weak state of health. A labourer named J. Clohsey, thirty-six years of age, met with an accident whilst blasting at Wellington College yesterday. The blast went oft' iit the man's face, with the result that he had to be removed to the Hospital. An elderly man, James B. Hamilton, a carpenter, sixty-four years of age, residing at No. 13 Crosby Terrace, broke his thigh whilst getting oiF u tram-car at Winder's cornor on Tuesday night. Hamilton was admitted to the Hospital yesterday. A married man, named James .Wright, of 130 Aro Street, mot with an accident on the turbino steamer Maheno last night. Somo bales of llax, which, were being slung into ( the No. 1 hold, became unfastened and fell. Ono'of the bales, after landing on the bottom of the bold, rolled on top of Wright. Dr. Henry was called, and examined the man," and found that he had sustained a bruised vthigh anil was suffering from shock. Wright was conveyed to his home in a cab. <•