ACCIDENTS AND OFFENCES. [From April 1 to May 3.]

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXVI, Issue 3961, 3 May 1870, Page 7

ACCIDENTS AND OFFENCES. [From April 1 to May 3.]

An inquest was held ou April 4, at the Stockade, before the coroner, Dr. Goldsbro'. Robert Mitchell was the name of the deceased, and he had been committed some time ago for vagrancy. The jury returned a verdict of death from natural causes. On April 7, about 8 o'clock, an unoccupiec building, lately used as a boarding-house, uituated on the beach, Onehunga, was dis covered to be on fire. There can be no doubt as to this being tho infamous work of an incendiary, the house having been unoccupied and shut up for three weeks, and during that time three separate but frustrated attempts have be^n made to burn it down. The property belonged to Mrs. Pilking- : ton, of Auckland, and was insured in tho 1 Royal Insurance Company for £400. On April 9, another awfully sudden death occurred in this city. On April 8 and April 9, the first of a series of charges of alleged breaches of the Customs Act, by Mr. Lawrence Lazard, was fone into at the Police Court. On aturday, April 9, the first case was brought to a close adverse to defendant, the result being the imposition of a fine of £100 and costs, or an alternative of six months' imprisonment in the Mount Eden Gaol, and the other seven charges against the defendant were adjourned until April 13, During the prolonged trial Mr. Lazard seemed to bear up with wonderful composure. But suddenly as the truth shot across his sensitive miud that he wouldhaveto be removed to the Mount Eden Gaol, and be there a fellow-inmate with the offscourings of colonial society, it seemed too much for his slight physical frame. His face blanched, a wild hysterical cry burst from his hitherto composed lips, his whole frame was seen violently to shake, and he leaned, or rather fell, against the porch at the entrance of the Court-house, He was carried into the court-yard for fresher air, and a doctor sent for. Scarcely had he been laid down before his body became rigid, and his face, neck, and breast quite black. On Monday, April 11, an inquest on the body was held at the Commercial Hotel, before T. M. Philson, 11. D., Coroner. The following verdict was returned: — "The jury are of opinion that the deceased Lawrence Lazard died at Auckland on the 9th April, 1870, from disease of tho heart, accelerated by intense mental excitement. " To which was added the following rider :—: — '• The jury also believe that, had the deceased been admitted to bail, the awful occurrence possibly might not have taken place, and trust that the attention of the AttorneyGeneral will be called to the matter." A very serious accident, which nearly proved fatal, occurred on the Hapa Creek on April 12. A man named Daniel Pleeland, who was at work at the Hape Creek tramway, was engaged iv rolling a log on the line when the einbaukinent gave way, and Fleeland was precipitated between a boulder and the bank. He was half buried iv the earth, and on i>eing extricated it was found that he had sustained a very severe cut on the calf of the leg, where lie was crushed against the boulder His esaape was almost miraculous. The poor fellow was carried by his mates to tho hospital, where he lies under treatment. A serious accident happened on April 13, to a man named Williams, while driving a large van belonging to Mr. A. Baines, of Onehunga. He was pitched off the higfh driving seat, and the wheel, passing along his arm, separate*! all the integuments, ffQm the elbow downwards, laying baie and injuring the h,Qne. !'he wound was dressed by Mr. Purchas on the man being brought to Onehunga. An unfortunate man, named William Hammond, who, it is to be feared, ivx-si in the habit of drinking to excess,, waa found dead Qn April 14, in the stable of the Caledonia Hptel, Symonds-street : and an inquest on his body was held during t e afternoon. Oar Tauranga correspondent sends the following :—": — " From a gentleman just returned from Kotorua, I learn that a sad and m lancholy disaster occurred on April 16, on the Kotorua Lake, when a canoe capsized, 18 out of 20 in the canoe perishing, amons;sb them a chief of considerable, yank, The ga,uoQ waa crossing over frqm an island in the aentre qf the lake, called Mokia. The two persons who escaped were two females, Great lamentations are going QUi natives from a.U parts are gathering for tho t mgi, and bulloqks, &c, are being collected for the feast." On April 18, a man, nsme unknown, was seen walking by Mr. Michael Doyle in one of the streets in the Dedwood district, near to St. Ann's College, and immediately in rear of the Chief Postmaster's private residence. Some fifteen minutes afterwards, the Rev. Mr. Bree and Dr. Baynhin were passing in tUat dir-eqtlcm, and found tho man. dead. — The Coroner's jury returned a verdict "' r hat the deceased died from rupture of the heart. " Peter Kellan, a seaman on board the ship 'Inflexible,' had a narrow escape from drowning on Sunday, April \T. He was sit' ting on a cp,3k near the edge of the wharf alongside the ship, when he suddenly fell between the ship and the wharf. Assistance was immediately given, and Kellan was rescued from his perilous situation. He was insensible, having, it is supposed, struck qi^e p,f the cross-beams of \he> -vy.lia.rß in "h,is fall. O,n April 1% $, voh\ev, aamnl William Fitzgibbon, got his tm^n broken, and sustained other injuries, while at work in the shaft of the Tower of London Claim. Another sudden death has occurred. Thomas Mitchell, who lived at Mqu.ns $Id,eq, and was engage 4 in th,Q milk trade, had qocaslqn to go' to Newmarket on business during Tuesday, April 25. About three o'clock he returned to his home, feeling a sight giddiness, which he thought might have resulted from his having walked h,Qin.e rather fast. During the af feprn.qon, however, Ije gqt WQfsa, *V n 4 about eight o'clock D.r> Philsan was sent for. He prescribed some medicines, thinking the brain was somewhat affected. Mr. Mitchell continued to get worse, and about 10 o'clock Dr. Kenderdine was called in. By this time Mitchell had sunk very low, and was threatened with convulsions. Dr. Kenderdine bled him on the. arm, but he continued \q sinlf untft about imd.i}igh^, wlwj he expired, A fatal accident occurred at a native settlement named Ongaruru, about 1S» miles from Tiiverhead., by which. (Joorjio s afstpad was killed. It appears that the deceased was engaged on Saturday, April 23, with two comrades, bdward Mackuig and 15. Murphy, sawing a heavy tree into lengths for the purpose of splitting it into rails ; and that \rhen one cut hnd been made the log rolled down a declivity over tb,p d^pcuspd, crushing kita Qlmqst * s into a pulp." Of course death was instantaneous. From Tapu we learn that a house belonging to Mr. W. Smith was burnt to the ground on Wednesday, April 27. Tli fire, it appears, communicated from the fireplace to the boards and chimney, and the whqlp of th.c propaity was destroyed, M.r. Smith was absent at the tim,e of the accident. A serious accident occurred ou the Hape Creek ti am way on Thursday, April 28. A car went off the. line a,t a aurya opposite the Tweedqido Claim, a.nd four men were thrown out with great violence. One of them, named Joseph Punch, had hie leg broken, and was otherwise bruised, while Martin Danaher, one of the contractors, was injured, although not so seriously. Punch was taken to the Hospital, where he was attended by Dr. Lethbridjje, i A somewhat im,po,rt»_u.t case was recently h.e^ ai Tauranga. A lieutenant of the TTauraki Volunteers was charged before Mr. Mair, the Resident Magistrate, with having stolen, or illegally possessed, himself of, certain furniture and. gqocls from, the house of settler named. Shncox during his absence. A gQQd deal of evidence waa adduced, the witnesses being mostly Maoris. The defence appears to have, been that the goods were removed from Siracox's house merely for safe-keeping j and that the priso- '■ uer was not only irresponsible for their re1 moval, but had more taan once warned hu ' pien that they-wsre actmg illegally I ' m cbtaia ' I ing the articles,- The Court dismissed &< otaft bei&g of opinion that ao orimiaw

f intent had been proved. The Besideni Magistrate, however, commented with jus< severity upon the impropriety of detaining settlers' i'ood3 in camp and appropriating them for personal uses.